IT QUIETLY PAINTS THE LAND RED AND DISAPPEARS
"How could you make such a great impact on his life and just leave so suddenly? How could you paint the Earth with your blood and make him devour it?"
Vendetta was oddly chirpier than usual throughout the whole chopper ride back to the den. She kept shifting in her seat and tapping her feet every few seconds, it was starting to drive Soma insane. Not only that, she also kept looking out the open door as if she was about ready to jump off the helicopter at any given time.
To top it all off, she still had that stupid lopsided grin stuck on her face. Twitching in annoyance at the twelfth giggle that had escaped her lips, Soma's innate ability to ignore everything around him finally snaps in two.
"What the hell are you so happy about?" He growls. Vendetta jumps slightly at Soma's sudden inquiry and her brain desperately tries to rake up some form of response as if on overdrive. Coming up with nothing to set as an excuse for her clearly suspicious behavior, she went with the only answer her simple mind could think of.
"It's nothing." She answers as casually as she could but the excitement in her voice betrayed her.
"You've been giggling like an idiot for the past hour and..." Soma hears the shuffling of her feet. Sure enough, the tapping followed suit. Accompanied by another giggle.
"Shut up before I shove my blade down your throat." It wasn't a threat. It was an ultimatum. Soma's narrowed eyes drove that point home. Not one to go down without a fight, Vendetta crosses her arms in defiance. A playful grin settling on her lips.
"Oh yeah? I'd like to see you try that without swallowing some of my oracle bullets in the process. You'd be on your knees reciting your apology like a mantra when I'm through with you." She laughs. Soma contemplates on it and thinks that maybe picking a fight with a new-type who could switch between forms within a matter of seconds wasn't the wisest thing to do if he wanted to stay alive.
Irritated at the thought of losing the argument, he opts to appear as if he's ignoring her. By experience, he knew that Vendetta hated being ignored by him above all else.
"Soma? Hey, Soma. Don't ignore me when I'm winning, dammit!" She grumbles at his sudden silence. Internally, Soma could almost smile at their childish antics. These small arguments may have seemed petty to the average bystander but to Soma, they were proof. Proof that he was still human. That even he could get into silly fights and just act like the child that he never had the chance to be.
Fenrir finally comes into their line of view and the chopper slows into a stop. As soon as the helicopter lands, Vendetta immediately jumps out of her seat and dashes towards the elevator without so much as a glance towards his way. She didn't even wait for him to get on when she clicked the elevator door shut. Now that was definitely nothing. What was she hiding from him? Peeved at her for being so secretive when she was always an open book to him, he stops in his tracks when he remembers her earlier conversation over the intercom.
Thoughts of 'who was she talking to?' and 'what was she so damn happy about?' dominated Soma's mind. He wasn't an idiot by far, he knows how to put two and two together but when he tries to think about why Vendetta suddenly became so happy after talking to the man, he stops wanting to think at all. Then there's the unanswered question of why he was so pissed at the whole thing in the first place.
Soma starts making his way to the den and back to his room, hoping to at least get some rest for the night. Thoughts of the moon and the little girl on it far from his mind. Replaced by silly banters and idiotic arguments with a certain raven haired girl who is never short of something to say.
When Soma steps out of the elevator and into the veteran's section, he catches a glimpse of Kota entering Vendetta's room. Thinking back on it, the voice he heard over the intercom could have sounded like Kota's. Was that it? Did Kota and their leader...
'Tch. Why the hell am I even thinking about this?' Remembering his initial exhaustion and his plan to sleep on it, Soma makes his way towards his room. Deciding to skip his nightly practice, he sits on the edge of his bed. Closing his eyes, he remembers the first time that Vendetta entered (barged) his room. The girl was still a rookie then and she didn't even feel the need to knock. From the first moment she arrived until now, Vendetta always looked like she belonged in the den. Like there was nowhere else she would rather be.
He can't remember what she wanted to talk about since he just told her to get the hell out and leave him alone. Now that he thought about it, that was probably around the time when Eric died. She was a rookie who just saw a comrade die right in front of her eyes. Was she there to find comfort in someone who went through what she did? Suddenly, Soma started to feel sick again. This time he clutches at his shirt where his heart was supposed to be. Perhaps unconsciously, he knew that his heart was aching.
Thoughts of Kota and Vendetta suddenly fills his mind. Was he jealous of what they had? At what he couldn't have with Shio? Whatever it was, something ate away at his heart and his thoughts couldn't help to wander on what Kota was doing in Vendetta's room. His enhanced hearing wouldn't be of much use to him now since every room has been sound proofed at Dr. Sakaki's insistence. With the exhaustion from today's mission finally catching up to him, Soma slowly drifts into sleep. Thoughts of Vendetta still violating his mind.
"Good morning, Soma!" As soon as Soma steps out of the elevator, he sees Kota sitting next to their leader. The pair was smiling way too happily like a couple of lovestruck birds. Soma noticed that as usual, everybody flocked around her. Her smiles and laughter were contagious.
"Shut up." Remembering that Kota had given him a greeting, Soma answers him with a snarl. Kota's happy-go-lucky cheeriness was somehow starting to irk him and Soma didn't even know why.
'What the hell is he so happy about?' Soma could take a guess but he decided to ask himself anyway, unwilling to acknowledge the answer that he's come up with.
"Jeez. Someone's in a bad mood." Kota whispers to their leader who met his with words a smile and, of course, a few comments of her own.
"What's the matter, Soma? Still in need of some tampons?" She teases but Soma was not in a playful mood. He doesn't even meet her taunts with his scowls like he usually does.
"...hmph." He sees Lindow and Sakuya down at Hibari's counter and ponders joining them in a mission. Heck, he'll go with anyone right now if it meant getting away from the cheery atmosphere between Kota and Vendetta. Ah, but then he'd have to deal with the pinkly atmosphere of the two newlyweds instead.
'I can't win either way.' Soma winces at the thought. An action caught by Vendetta who was making her way down the flight of stairs. Concerned, she asks him if he was okay and he meets her question with only silence.
"Hey, Soma. Take this mission with me." Vendetta waves the small piece of paper which had the writings of 'Kongou' and 'Tranquil Temple' on it. Her usual lighthearted grin still etched on her face despite his coldness towards her.
"No." He instantaneously answers like a rebellious child on a tantrum. Lindow, who overheard their usual exchange of banter laughs heartily at Soma's immaturity. The former leader was clearly happy with how far Vendetta had come with Soma. Anyone could see that he only acted this way around Vendetta, Soma just hasn't realized it yet.
At first, even Lindow had silently thought that Vendetta was just like the rest that had come and go. He didn't actually think that she would follow up on his order to befriend Soma but he was extremely glad that she did. Sakuya might have told him that Soma started to open up more to them because of Shio but somehow Lindow knew that Vendetta had also made quite the impact on the usually stoic male.
It was a given since Vendetta was the one who stood by him from the moment they first met until even now. Sadly, Soma had a bad habit of not understanding what he had right in front of him until after it's gone. Lindow could only hope that it doesn't come to that.
"Aw, come on, Soma, you're not really going to turn down that face are you?" As per Lindow's words, Vendetta immediately pulled the best puppy face she could muster up. With both her hands clasped together resting on her chin, she pouted her mouth and lightly raised ber brows. Pleading for him to go all the while.
"No...and get the hell off me!"Soma brushes off Lindow's arm which hooked clownishly on the back of his neck and growls out a retort.
"I as your former leader, order you to go on a mission with her!" Lindow exclaims authoritatively, his arms crossed in a commanding manner. To which, Vendetta mirrors his exact same stance.
"And I as your current leader, order you to go on a mission with me!" By now, the whole den was laughing at the two's silly antics.
"Damn you both!" Soma stomps off towards the vendor and angrily barks out his orders of ten rations. As the merchant was still scrambling for the items he had ordered, Soma spots Kota nearing their leader with that same carefree smile still carved on his face.
"Hey, if he doesn't wanna go with you then take me!" He chirps in cheerfully. Pissed, Soma quickly gathers up his rations and walks towards them. Lindow, who was by now chatting happily with Sakuya, caught Soma's annoyance with the corner of his eye. Smiling knowingly to himself, he signals for Sakuya to look at what's about to happen.
"What the hell are you standing around for? Let's go." He aggravatingly takes her arm, a scowl evident on his face, and pulls her towards the elevator. Without even letting Kota finish what he was saying, he closes the elevator door shut and clicks for the rooftop.
"Oh my." Sakuya giggles while Lindow sighs at Soma's ignorance. How could he be laced with so much jealousy and still not realize what he felt for the girl? But then again, who was he to call the kettle black? It took him years to realize what he felt for Sakuya. Smiling to himself, he glances at the beauty who he now had the right and honor of calling his wife.
"What was that all about?" Kota puzzlingly wonders out loud. Both Sakuya and Lindow could only chuckle at the other clueless fool among them. Honestly, what was the only married couple in the whole den supposed to do with a couple of lovestruck teens who hadn't the slightest clue about their feelings?
Meanwhile, inside the elevator, Vendetta just couldn't stop teasing Soma for what he did. She was never going to let this live down and sure enough, she's started poking him constantly for taking her arm and leading her away.
"Jealous that I won't get to spend as much time with you anymore?" She jokingly asks. Sighing, Soma couldn't believe that he would willingly subject himself to this but he wasn't about to let Vendetta go on a mission alone with that dolt, Kota. Sure, they've been on missions alone together before but that was then. Before Soma started feeling pissed at the very thought of seeing them together.
Now that he thought about it, when did it all start? After he'd told her about his birth on the Forgotten Carrier? After Shio took Nova to the moon? And why has he stopped feeling as bitter as he did before whenever the thought of Shio crossed his mind?
And that's a wrap on the second chapter of 'Over The Clouds'! Again, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and review. If there are any mistakes that I missed, point them out to me yeah? :3 I lovee me some reviews~ Hate it, love it, just tell me. I'll try to update again when I can so see you then!