(Ah sorry... meant to get this up sooner but er, I spaced it off. The last chapter might not be for a couple days as it requires a loadton of tweaking and stuff, but until then... enjoy~
Ahmm... the chapter titles aren't all that fitting. Should've just called 'em "Chapter 1, Chapter 2," etc. :P)
Zukin applauded briefly. "I am glad you got her on a date so quickly, Zero-san," she congratulated, smiling for once. Without giving him time to protest about whether or not it was a date, she continued. "This is working out so well. It's difficult to wait until Wednesday to see what you two are like together."
Zero glared at her. "What do you mean? I won't see you Wednesday."
"But I will see you two. It was part of our deal."
He mentally slapped himself for agreeing to that. "Now it sounds like an invasion of privacy."
"I assure you that the more difficult you make it to hide, the farther away I'll be. Or perhaps, I will not be around at all for some parts. But it will be impossible to find me, so I suggest you assume that I'm not there at all."
He sighed in defeat. "At this point, I won't argue."
"And I will not give you any more advice. The rest is meant to happen on its own." She nodded. "I wish you the best of luck." She wandered to the edge of the roof, but paused to say something without turning around. "I highly respect you, Zero-san. You are farther than I will ever be."
She flew away from him quickly, even though they both knew he wouldn't comment on it. He still questioned her full motivations, but he wasn't going to lose sleep over not knowing. Besides, she allowed him to keep secrets, so he wouldn't bother her about hers.
He didn't believe she had any more help to give him. She knew enough about meeting others and becoming friends, but she wasn't in a relationship herself. He wondered how her plans worked so well up to this point, though he had to credit her regardless.
---
Zero waited outside the tower that evening, on a nearby bench. He took a few minutes to reminisce about their first meeting. It was right where he sat, or at least very close to it. He saw her on his first day of aimlessly wandering the streets, looking for someone who was remotely normal. She didn't speak, and neither did he. When she apologized for inconveniencing him, she became his favorite person in this town instantly, as opposed to the others who bugged him for a dance every time they saw him.
She was passive and kind, and precisely the type of girl that Zero had only seen rarely. Whenever he did meet someone like her, he tended to scare her off one way or another. Yet although Alice was afraid of him, she hadn't given up on him yet, and perhaps that was what he... liked about her.
He saw her come out of the building in an old-looking red top with green shapes on it. She ran up to him, worried that she made him wait too long. She bowed her head and then greeted him.
"Good evening, Zero," she told him. "How was your day?"
"Fine," he replied. "And... yours?"
"It was busy," she told him. "But I'm glad I'm done for the day." They both shifted from the awkward situation. Zero glanced around for Zukin while he was avoiding Alice's eyes, but as the bat girl promised, she was no where in sight.
"So... where are we headed?" Alice asked curiously.
Zero thought of the few places he'd seen in this town, until the perfect one hit him."What about the park?"
Alice almost blushed a bit at the thought, but it could've been worse. "Umm.. s-sure."
He glanced at her. He wanted to be alone, but she probably didn't. "I won't force you to."
"N-no, I mean... it's not a big problem. I'm just surprised."
Another bit of silence followed. Zero cleared his throat to break it, and the girl faced upward at him again.
"Um... I think it's on the other side of town," Alice said. "It would be easiest if we got a ride."
They found a bus stop, and waited in a crowded bus until it went to the park. Alice found a seat, while Zero waited holding a handrail. For privacy's sake, it was a quiet ride. They would be alone soon enough...
--
When the park was finally in sight, the sun had begun to rest behind the buildings of the city side. Zero tried to lead Alice to an area absent of many trees from the belief that someone would hide in one of them. This was good news for her as well, for she didn't want to head to a dark place with someone she barely knew.
Alice yawned off to the side, trying to hide it. Zero noticed anyway and signaled her to rest on a bench, when the moon finally appeared alongside the stars in the sky.
They fidgeted for a few moments, until Alice was yet again the person to say something.
"It seems like since we met, we were never able to talk much," she commented.
"It's in our natures," Zero reasoned. "Though I'm sure your reason for keeping to yourself is more legitimate than mine."
She smiled uneasily. He was still a scary person to listen to sometimes.
"Um... Zero," she started shyly. He looked at her with interest, though she didn't meet his eyes yet.
"You've... kinda been talking to me more than the others. It sort of seems like... do you um..." her mind fumbled for words. "Am I different?"
Zero leaned back in his seat. "In short... you are." He sighed, feeling vulnerable while trying to express something deep. He hated it, but he continued. "You really are different from the others. You respected who I was more than they did when I first met them. Even though I was distant, you didn't push to find out more about me..." He realized he was almost a hypocrite. "Even though I pushed to know more about you."
Alice shook her head gently. "I don't think you were being pushy. This... this is all so sudden to me, but we're still getting to know each other." She rubbed her arm a little. Zero couldn't tell if she was cold or just fidgety. He almost thought of lifting his arm...
"But..." she started sadly.
... the thought disappeared. He had a bad feeling.
"Before... in case anything happens... I want you to know that... there was... there is someone back in Japan..."
