"Kanie-kun, you're acting strange."

Kanie Seiya wanted to scream. He knew it was a very bad idea and yet he still went on with it. Why? Because it's his job. Because he's a professional. Totally not because he wanted to impress someone.

But thinking about it now, would a blackmailing, stoic woman with firearms in both her pockets be impressed with riding a ferris wheel?

"I'm not acting strange, I'm just... acting the way I always do in this situation."

"And what situation would this be?"

Damn it! There could be multiple answers to this question. One would be that he's in close quarters with a girl (ha, no way he'd say that). His fear of heights would be another. It would do him a lot better if both answers are kept in the dark.

"It's my first time to ride a ferris wheel." He said, after too many seconds had passed. He didn't elaborate. Sento didn't ask him to continue either. She just stared at him the way she usually does. She seemed to be doing a lot of that lately.

He decided to break the silence. "How long is it going to take before we reach the bottom?"

"Judging from the height we're in, it's going to take around five more minutes. Why do you ask?"

"I'm going down."

"We haven't even had our first round, and we still have two more-"

"It seems to be working fine! And if you want to make sure, then you can stay while I leave because I trust you. Oh, will you look at that? What a wonderful view!" All that was said in one breath, as Kanie was facing the view of the dirty, lifeless park.

Sento, who never turned her gaze away from him, scrutinized him even further. It was making him uncomfortable but he couldn't understand why. She was just another co-worker. He was used to having her around. Right, he'd just blame it on the height.

Their carriage suddenly swung slightly from side to side. They were at the maximum height of the wheel and Kanie's nerves were going haywire. He sat himself down across from Sento and buried his head in his hands, muttering on about his oncoming doom.

"You know, if you would have just told me you were afraid of heights, I wouldn't have forced you to come."

Kanie looked up so fast he almost gave himself whiplash. "I'm not scared and you didn't force me into anything!" He said, as his arms visibly shook while holding onto the carriage's railings for support.

"Your leg has been jumping ever since we stepped foot in this carriage."

Okay, he wasn't aware of his own foot's doing. Traitor, he wanted to scold his leg. Kanie hated the way he had stumbled over his words as he said, "Why do you notice, anyway?" in a very defensive manner, and failed to notice the implications of said words. At least he had managed to get Sento slightly flustered. It was a small victory but a victory nonetheless.

"How could I not notice?" She asked smoothly. Even with the faint blush on her cheeks she still managed to look cool and collected. "We're the only two people here." Which reminded Kanie that yes, in fact, they were the only two people there. Was it just him or was the space getting smaller?

He couldn't stop himself. His breathing started to increase in speed. His grip on the railings tightened as his other hand clutched half of his face in an attempt to calm down.

Alarmed, Sento quickly dropped on her knees, her hands moving back and forth in hesitance. Unsure of whether she should hold him or not, she asked him instead, "What's happening, Kanie-kun?"

"I-" breathe "ha-have to-"

"You're breathing too fast, you have to calm down!"

The answer was right in front of you and you just had to ask, his thoughts would have been verbalized if it weren't for the situation.

"Do you have a paper bag with you? Or..." Sento continued spouting ideas but none of them registered in his brain. This was bad.

The next thing he noticed was that there was a soft... something against his lips. And this soft something, he noticed, caused his breathing to slow down. He was just going to ask Sento what solution this was for future reference when he noticed that that something were her lips, and the calming pressure on the sides of his head has been her hands. Her gun-wielding hands that were worn yet soft against his skin.

Sento separated from him the exact same time he came to the realization, and his improved breathing started picking up the pace again.

"I read somewhere that when you kiss someone, it would somehow stop their breath, or at least slow it down, and you were…" Kanie's mind was flew away again from Sento's voice, and listened to his own in his head instead. It was his first time to be kissed. She had basically devirginized his lips. And although Kanie was everything a great man could ever be, he had never been kissed.

Oh god, what do I do…

He was starting to panic again, and he knew it too. So he grabbed Sento for another kiss, since it seemed to be the only way to cure his current problem.

Her hand flew to her gun in instinct, but then returned to the back of his neck once she noticed what happened. She didn't back away, and neither did he. It was a contact of lips that lasted the remaining minutes of their time in the ferris wheel, with some occasional shifting of the leg or gentle touches of hands.

And if it weren't for Sento's foot right next to the door, it wouldn't have hit her that their time had gone by, and they were free to go. Sento immediately stood up, with Kanie a second too late, one as flushed as the other, though their expressions were as straight as when they entered.

Silently, they made their way out, refusing to acknowledge the presence of the man in charge of the booth as he said weakly, "So I'm guessing the ride is working fine?"