"Haruhi, let's go outside!"
"I can't, Hikaru."
Hikaru plopped onto the seat beside her.
"Why not?" He knew the answer, but he was oddly compelled to ask…nah, he was just being annoying.
"I have homework to do." Haruhi's voice was flatter than three-day-old Coke.
"Homework? Pfft. C'mon, let's go get ice-cream! You can do your homework when we get back," he said, tugging at her arm.
"Later," she droned, her pen moving rhythmically on the paper. The monotony of her voice was almost beyond human ability. Hikaru groaned.
"You know, studies show that excessive desk work is bad for you. Myopia and everything."
She raised her head slowly. "Really, Hikaru? Which institute?" she replied, somehow maintaining her creepy toneless voice whilst asking her question.
"Uh…the…um…I forgot?"
She lowered her head once more, pen again returning to paper, uttering not a single word. Hikaru simply stared in silent horror at his girlfriend.
"You know, you're like a robot when you do your homework," he pointed out.
"That's not very nice," she drawled in return. Hikaru sighed.
"I'm going to get an apple from your fridge." He rose from his chair.
"Okay." She didn't look up.
He returned, as he said, with an apple in his hand…and, strangely, a plate and a knife. He held the items out in front of Haruhi.
"Haruhi…cut it for me?"
"Eat it whole." Her reply was stinging – well, as stinging as it gets when the words are completely emotionless.
"Uh…" he mumbled, "o-okay." He was too ashamed to tell her he didn't know how.
Abruptly, the scratch-scratch of her pen stopped. She looked up with an adorable smile.
"I'm finished!" she said happily. "Let's go outside, Hikaru! How about we go for ice-cream?"
He looked at her. "W-what did you say?" he stuttered, dumbfounded by her weird sudden enthusiasm.
"Let's go outside! C'mon, you can do your homework later."
Hikaru's palm met his face with a vicious smack.
"Mm-kay."
***
Epilogue: The Apple
Hikaru smiled gently as he clasped Haruhi's hand. They both held cones of ice-cream in their hands, Haruhi with a ball of pink ice-cream perched on her cone, Hikaru with a light green ball on his.
"Hey…" Haruhi glanced up at the tall redhead.
"Yeah, Haru?"
"What happened to your apple core? I didn't see you go to the bin."
"What apple core?"
"You did eat an apple, right?" she said.
"Yeah…?" he answered, confusedly.
"Well, where's the centre bit? You know, the middle bit with seeds in it?" she asked.
"Uhm…"
"You didn't, did you?" she said, laughter dancing in her chocolate eyes.
"…You said eat the whole thing!"