You know, as much as I listened to "Simple and Clean" while writing this, I also lived off of Coldplay...

Disclaimer: I OWN EVERYTHING. TWEWY AND THE CHARACTERS. THEY'RE MINE. ... Okay that's a lie. I don't own anything. But I got you, didn't I?

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Simple and Clean

- Ch. 3 -

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"You're WHAT?!"

"I'm going to meet Joshua. We're going Christmas shopping together."

It had just occurred to Rhyme last night that this wasn't going to go over well with her brother. For some reason, she hadn't really thought about it before, and the fact that Beat did not like Joshua had never once entered her thoughts. She was not, however, about to let that interfere with her day.

"Beat, come on. I know you don't particularly like him--"

"Like HELL I like him! I wanna punch tha' prissy kid's lights out!"

"-- but you should really give him a chance. He's not that bad, and I think that he's actually a really nice guy."

Beat made an unsatisfied face that said, "Pssh, alright," but stopped arguing. "Look, whatever. If you think he's okay, then I guess he MIGHT be okay, but if he lays a finger on you, you betta call me up ASAP and let me beat the crap outta him."

Rhyme sighed as she finished lacing up her shoes. "I'll be fine, Beat. I promise." With that, she grabbed her coat from the rack and smiled at her exasperated brother as she walked out the front door.

As much as she wanted to simply brush off what Beat had said, she couldn't help but think about it as she made her way to the 104 building. She couldn't deny the fact that she had heard quite a few more-than-negative comments about Joshua from Beat, Neku, and even Shiki, but he honestly seemed like a nice person to her. She had heard something about him killing Neku, but she didn't know the details and had decided to put it out of her mind, as scary as it should've been. Really, though, he acted perfectly normal - albeit a bit provocative at times - as far as Rhyme could see.

She was suddenly pulled from her thoughts as she walked headlong into something - or someone.

"Oh, jeez, I'm so sorry... Joshua?"

The latter turned and grinned as she said his name. "You're pretty lucky that it was me," he giggled, flicking a finger through his ashen bangs. "It doesn't seem like you to not pay attention like that. Got something on your mind?"

Rhyme shook her head. "I guess I just wasn't watching where I was going..."

Joshua giggled again and motioned for her to follow him inside. 104 was packed, as usual, with people of all ages scurrying from place to place, window-shopping or bustling about on a search for Christmas gifts.

"Well," Joshua said as they stepped through the door, "where shall we start? Looking for anything in particular?"

Again, Rhyme shook her head. "Nope! We can go wherever you want."

"Alright, then," Joshua grinned, pulling off his gloves and stuffing them in his coat pocket, "just follow my lead."

They hit D+B, Edoga, Wild Boar (where Rhyme bought a lovely T-shirt and pair of pants for Beat), and Mus Rattus before deciding to take a break around Hachiko. As they stood in line at Sunshine Stationside waiting to grab a bite to eat, Joshua again found himself studying his companion.

She acted so cheerful and carefree all the time; It was as if the smile never faded from her face. He honestly didn't understand it, but it seemed to have a positive effect on him anyway - at least, that's what he figured, since every time he was around her he ended up smiling more and more. He was enjoying himself on this little outing of theirs. Joshua was actually glad to be around her, which was saying something, seeing as he truly couldn't stand people. With most everyone else it was as if they were there and he was just some attachment, some nonentity just along for the ride. They didn't care about him, and for the most part he didn't care about them, either. With Rhyme, though, it was so unbelievably different: She initiated conversation; She asked his opinions on things; She listened to him and made him feel like they really were two normal people just being together.

Suddenly, Joshua had an impulse that he, at that moment, really couldn't explain.

"Would you wait here a minute? I'll be right back," he said, dropping his small bag at Rhyme's feet.

"Sure...Where are you going?"

Joshua just smiled and waved as he walked away, leaving Rhyme to simply shrug and turn back to face the counter.

A few minutes later, Rhyme looked up to see him walking towards her table. He was empty-handed, so he couldn't have been shopping, could he...? She smiled and waved, and he did the same, though there was something in his eyes that she wasn't quite sure about...

Rhyme being Rhyme, though, she asked no questions and simply continued to smile as he slid into the seat across from her.

"Say," Joshua said as he and Rhyme finally stood, after having finished their snacks, "do you know how to ice skate?"

Rhyme sighed. "I'm terrible at ice skating. I just don't seem to have the coordination..."

Joshua smirked and picked up their bags. "I could teach you, you know. Why don't we give it a go?"

Rhyme blushed a little for reasons unknown to her. "I... Are you sure? I don't want to be too much trouble... I really am pretty awful."

They dumped their trays into the garbage and headed out the door. It was dark now - or, at least, the sky was; the city landscape was lit up with sparkling colors of neon signs and Christmas lights. The stars were almost completely blocked out, and only the slight sliver of a moon was visible in the evening sky.

"Come on, you don't even want to try?" Joshua pressed as they walked aimlessly out into the crowd.

"... Fine, I'll try it. But... But don't be too harsh, okay? I'm really uncoordinated."

Joshua grinned and started off in the direction of the ice rink. He knew she'd give in eventually, and for some reason, he was really looking forward to the rest of the evening...

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