Sitting at a small table inside of a coffee shop, Kinu and Matako barely chatted. Kinu had set to taking the pendant apart, and Matako watched on curiously. The girl took a sip of her iced latte, and whipped cream clung to her lips.
"Do you know what you're doing?" She finally asked, glancing out of the large glass window beside them. People were passing outside of the cafe, most holding shopping bags. The shop was located in the midst of a large outdoor plaza. A sort of arrangement of businesses. Warm shades of brown clung to the walls, complimenting the golden wood of the counters, and tables. An occasional painting of decorative cups of coffee speckled the walls, the largest hanging by the shelves of books for sale. Their area was secluded; each table was, due to a large partition between the booths.

Gazing up from the gears of the antique pendant, Kinu nodded.
"Of course I know what I'm doing. This is my job. It would have been over priced at the shop anyway, because this thing is pretty old. Where'd you get it?"
Matako seemed surprised by how easily Kinu started a conversation with her, but quickly followed up.
"A thrift shop. Father's day is coming up, and I think my dad would like it."
Once more, Kinu nodded.
"This model doesn't need a battery; it's a wind-watch. The only issue was the crown wheel and the ratchet. They weren't connected... Now... It should be as good as new..." Carefully replacing everything, and closing the watch, Kinu placed the tiny screws. In a matter of seconds, she was offering the watch back to Matako.
"Really? That fast?" After her moment of disbelief, a wide grin curled the blonde's lips. She was obviously thrilled, and if Kinu did not know any better, she would expect the girl to squeak and hug her.

Matako gingerly accepted the watch, and wound it up. It started ticking, and the girl's excitement threatened to burst at the seams.
"Thank you! I can't wait to- How much do I owe you? Here, let me-"
"I'm not charging you." Kinu stated, before Matako could find her wallet.
The blond frowned in confusion, and asked "Really?".
Nodding Kinu stirred her iced coffee with a straw. The girl placed her jaw on her open palm and dreamily gazed out of the window. So that's what it feels like to make somebody happy. Not family, but a sort of friend. It was a satisfying sensation. If anything, Kinu also wanted to smile. But she couldn't.

They had been followed to the cafe, and she knew it. On the walk there, Kinu had noticed somebody watching. A shadow indeed. The longer she observed, the more she concluded. That guy hadn't left. Whoever he was, he was observing her interactions with people.

"Really. I did it, because you took the time to talk to me. Even though I was kind of mean... I'm glad we could hang out." Shifting her gaze to Matako, Kinu offered a calm, nearly invisible grin, which the blonde mirrored, (With more expression). A moment passed, and Matako decided to be bold. She had heard rumors, and now was the best time to ask Kinu about herself.

"So, tell me. Why did you transfer in the beginning of the year? Did you get kicked out of your other school?"
Kinu nodded and watched her, appearing to only be half-interested. Matako had seen this expression somewhere before, but could not quite put her finger on it. When she asked why, Kinu glanced out of the window once more, clearly not wanting to answer. Nevertheless, the girl sighed.

"Well... In my old school... Though I had seen the same people for over two years, I had never breathed a single word to them. I walked into the classroom one day, and a bucket of bleach dropped on my head. Everybody laughed, and I didn't know what to do. So I stood there, and thought about it. Not a single person wasn't laughing; nobody cared. I threw a chair at them, and a few other choice items. Some people got hurt; whatever. But it would not have happened if they hadn't treated me that way."

Silence surrounded the pair, and Kinu could tell Matako was trying to process everything. it was probably a lot to hear, seeing as to how she didn't speak too often. Standing up, Kinu grabbed her cup and finished her drink.
"Would you like another?" She asked, and Matako shook her head. The blonde hadn't even finished half of her cup yet. Kinu walked to the counter, and ordered a small brownie sundae. As she was standing at the counter, she saw him.

A familiar, yellow eye, peeking through the bookshelf across the restaurant. Kinu held his gaze, until he replaced the book, and moved on. Of course, he never left the miniature library. When the girl returned to the table, Matako was eyeing her desert.
"We didn't even eat... You're just going to eat that?"
Kinu nodded, and Matako continued to stare at the food.
"Looks good." The blonde muttered, and Kinu offered another nod. To Matako's pleasure, the girl placed a second spoon on a napkin in front of her. Kinu cut the desert in half, and both enjoyed their share.

It did not take long to finish, but the moment they did, Kinu felt uneasy. She had wanted to look at the books. A new novel was supposed to be coming out soon, one about campers getting lost in a dense, cannibal infested forest. If her memory was correct, this was the day she could find it in the store, and she did not want to miss out. On top of that, creepy time obsessed guy was hiding there, and looking more and more like creepy stalker guy with each passing second.

"What is it? Do you want to look at the books?" Matako asked, and Kinu felt her heart rate increase. Why was this making her so nervous? It was not her social anxiety, either. For some reason, she was genuinely fearful. That man was still standing in the middle of the bookshelf, peeking at her. His one golden eye bore into her, as if he was scrounging about the very depths of her soul, looking for... Cookies or something. Whatever he was doing, it made her uneasy. She could barely see his shoes, and shadow at the bottom of the deep mahogany shelf.

Matako's lips were moving, and she was idly glancing around the store, and out of the window. Time seemed to stop, as Kinu warily held the man's gaze. He was not moving. Wasn't trying to conceal himself. He knew she was looking. This had never happened before. If this was her stalker, he was growing increasingly bold. Who was this man? He had no name to her. Just a face. This was alarming. Every tap of a glass against wood, or string of conversation was hazy, drowned out by the sound of Kinu's heart. She swallowed, in an attempt to bring herself back to reality, but she could not. This was reality. The prying eye was real.

It was not until Matako grabbed her hand that Kinu glanced up at her. The blond was standing up, and smiling down at Kinu.
"Did you hear me? I want to look at the books too; maybe we could find a good murder mystery." She pulled Kinu to her feet, and started to lead her towards the foreboding eye. The nosy man, whose gaze seemed to want to paralyze Kinu. To long for her hesitation, and worry. Placing her hand over Matako's Kinu froze.
"Matako-Chan. I need to get back to work... Forgive me, I took my break early. The old man is probably already annoyed." Offering a light bow, Kinu ignored the blonde's confused gaze.

A smile soon curled her lips and Matako nodded.
"Okay! I'll see you at school, then!"

Mirroring her motion Kinu glanced back at the eye. It was still there but a book slowly slid in its place. After murmuring a small "bye". Kinu hurried to leave, trying to act as naturally as possible. Once outside, Kinu speed walked towards the watch shop, and ducked into a near-by ally. Sure enough, the tall man walked by, only minutes later. He seemed to be rushing; he had lost sight of her.

Terror rippled throughout Kinu, and she knew. She was positive, without a doubt, that this was him. He was the shadow, scraping at her window, and watching her sleep. He was the jealous stranger, who tried to gift her items she liked; rearing up from the darkness of the crowded streets. He was the stalker; the eye.

And she was just Kinu. A very alarmed, disturbed version of Kinu at that. Second passed, and the girl turned to rush in the opposite direction of him. She would call the old man, and tell him she got sick or something. Whatever she did, she could not return to work. Not today.

A/N: O.o