Miraculous

by Cosmic Sky

Given his right arm, Touma had become accustomed to the concept of miracles being nonexistent when it came to his life. Other people seemed to have a different opinion. As he lay in a hospital bed receiving visitors, he began to think, maybe they might have had a point. He considered meeting Itsuwa something of a miracle, and she thought the same of meeting him.

2. Chapter 2

And here's the second chapter! After the number of characters in the first one, this one will be focusing more on Touma and Itsuwa. Expect some headcanons and fluff, lots of fluff. Enjoy!

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Miraculous

Chapter 2

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"See you later, Itsuwa, Index! And Itsuwa, thanks for the ride!" Shouted the spiky-haired teenager as he hustled his way across the street toward his school. Itsuwa watched him with a smile on her face, one that didn't go unnoticed by her sole remaining passenger.

"Here's hoping he's able to get through an ordinary school day without something crazy happening." She sighed.

"Um, isn't he able to go through some days without trouble?" Questioned the purple-haired girl to her passenger.

"He can, but you never know, especially now that we've defeated three out of the four Right Seats of God. No one's ever done such a thing, and some kind of blowback is coming, rather we like it or not." She didn't want to bring it up, in fact, Index had been doing everything in her power to not think about it. With a glance, she could tell that Itsuwa had been thinking about it too. Even in the world of magic, every action had a reaction; that wasn't simply scientific law, it was a law of reality. On a more grounded level, Touma's existence had become even more dangerous and interest-inducing to the Roman Catholic Church. Practically everyone with a shred of awareness knew that could only mean trouble, how much of it was the question. Or not considering what they'd all already been through.

Regardless of what happened next, Index and Itsuwa knew what their duties, no, their desires were, to remain at Touma's side and weather whatever storm came his way. They both knew that was easier said than done, but the greatest things in life involved the greatest effort, and resilience.

Love was one of them.

"Hey…do you two have any idea where you're going for your date afterward?" Slowly inquired the silver-haired girl.

It would have been easier to pretend that she hadn't heard the shorter girl, but that would have been rude. Itsuwa couldn't bear to think of doing that…but she also didn't want to tempt fate by giving a complete answer about where they were going to be. "Yes, we do. We have a few places picked out." She stated.

For a time, Index was quiet, something that slightly worried Itsuwa. She couldn't help but wonder what was going on in the silver-haired girl's head. Whatever it was, she had a feeling that whatever she was thinking, it might have involved Touma. Scratch that, Itsuwa knew it was about Touma. In invisible shroud fell over the two girls as they drove down the road in silence. It was one that both of them were content to willow it, but in it there was an unspoken tension. The first to speak would be the one to break that tension, a task that neither of them felt a desire to do.

The truth is they were scared.

Itsuwa certainly felt that way as she gripped the handlebars of the motorcycle. She was looking forward and dreading the eventual drop off at her and Touma's shared apartment. Come to think of it, I know their apartment location, but they don't know mine, or eve the location of some of our safehouses. On one hand, Itsuwa knew that was a good thing as the unknown location of those safehouses were what made them safe. On the other hand, what if Touma's apartment was attacked and he needed somewhere else to go in case of an emergency?

Or, to be more precise, what if Touma wanted to come see her?

A blush crept upon the spear-user's face at the thought of the spiky-haired teen coming to see her. For such a thing to happen…wouldn't that mean that their eventual date was a success? Which would mean that he wanted to keep on seeing her, right?

"Um, Itsuwa?"

"Y-Yes! What is it, Index?" It was a miracle that she'd avoided causing an accident while on the bike. Such a thing would have been both painful and embarrassing, not to mention it would have taken a bite out of her wallet since she'd had to pay for any damages done to her rental bike.

"Um, when we get back to Touma's apartment…do you think you could…help me with some things?" Shyly asked the nun-dressed girl.

Blinking in surprise, Itsuwa looked to her left side where Index sat in the side character. Luckily, they came to a light which gave her a chance to turn her full attention to the smaller girl. Index's body language spoke of tension and fear, fear that Itsuwa had shared with her a few moments ago. Looking at her, she deduced that her thoughts had shifted; something new was rousing the girl's unease and Itsuwa recked her brain trying to figure out what it was while waiting for the light to change. Her first impulse was to question if she'd broken something in Touma's apartment, it wouldn't be the first time. The more she looked at Index, the more she felt that wasn't the case. She felt that this was something a little more serious.

The light changed to green giving her reason to hit the gas again.

Sucking in a breath, Itsuwa decided to be bold and toss the line. "Is this about…Touma?"

"Yes, sorta." She admitted, somewhat surprising Itsuwa. Honestly, she was expecting there to be a little push and pull, but whatever was eating at her was grave enough that she decided to cut o the chance. "Look, you're good at…housekeeping, right? I mean, the day you showed up you certainly seemed to know what you were doing, even with all the appliances in Touma's apartment…" Index took a deep breath, which was incredibly easy to do since the wind was whipping at her face while they were going down the street. A quick look around told her that she had to speak fast as they were about five minutes away from Touma's apartment complex. "I need you to teach me how to…er, take care of myself." A short pregnant pause ensued as the magical library steeled herself for the explanation. "It's time I started taking some of Touma's words to heart."

Had Itsuwa not been driving, she would have looked straight at her. "Index, you know he was only-"

"Even if Touma can be as dense as a boulder, it doesn't change the fact that he's right. Plus…I…I want to be able to do somethings myself." She declared with her head bowed low making so Itsuwa couldn't have been able to see her if she had looked her way. Her eyes focused on her hands, having risen and balled into tight fists that trembled, and it wasn't from the hum of the motorcycle. "Always…it's always someone else doing things for me. On TV, that kind of thing can be idealized, but in real life…not so much. I don't want to be some lazy lay about who does nothing but lie around! Especially since Touma's not always going to be there to do all the cooking and cleaning for me even though a part of me wants him to keep on doing those things!"

"…What makes you think he'll stop doing those things?" Itsuwa asked, already knowing the answer deep in her heart.

Speaking it would be painful, but it was just a part of confronting the truth that Index knew she was going to have to face eventually. "Because…Touma has as much right to live his life as I have a right to live mine. He's fought to protect my life multiple times as he has others. That's one of the things that makes him-"

"Incredible." Itsuwa cut off with a little blush on her face. An apology began to build in her throat. Turning to face her silver-haired counterpart, she began to vocalize that apology until she saw Index smiling back at her. A nod followed and was repeated on Itsuwa's part causing the two girls to giggle in unison. There was a possibility that somewhere in his classroom, Touma felt a shiver run up his spine.

"I don't think we should ever tell him that though, it might go to his head and that's the last thing that we need." Index laughed to which Itsuwa joined her. Within a minute, the laughter faded as a sober shadow fell over her face. "I like how things are, crazy as they can get sometimes…but…I know that they aren't going to stay like this forever." The shadow darkened over her face as the implications of her words sunk in, not just for her, but for Itsuwa as well. "One day, he's going to…urgh, meet someone, and that someone is going to want to spend as much time with him as I do, maybe more. Which will likely lead to…ya' know." A hot blush covered her cheeks, and Itsuwa's as well. "So when that day comes, I want to be prepared! For his sake and mine! I will not be this helpless moocher he thinks I am!"

Admirable as her words were, Itsuwa could practically hear Touma's voice going, "But that's what you are!" and then promptly being bitten on the head by his silver-haired charge. Immediately afterward, she would have pleaded with them not to cause a distraction least they crash. Surprisingly, she found herself laughing at the imagined scenario knowing how accurate it was to real life. Her laughter invited Index's leaving the two girls caught in another laughing fit.

A short while later and Itsuwa managed to get her laughter under control. Her lips remained curved into a soft smile as she spoke to her passenger. "You know, Index, I don't think Touma really thinks of you that way. Sure, it's possible that you may annoy him sometimes…but I think he likes having you around. You're precious to him, just like so many other people in his life."

"…Thank you, Itsuwa." The shorter girl whispered with a small smile. "But I know that as time goes on…Touma's going to meet someone who's going to be really special to him. Every hero has his love interest, the woman he's fated to give his heart to." While she spoke, she gaze turned skyward. Pure white clouds lazily drifted through the morning sky, heedless of the trials and tribulations that humans were facing. There was something uplifting and disheartening in that. The spiritual answer to such a duality would have been that the heavens continue to turn, regardless of the affairs of mortals. "That woman…is the one he's going to be sharing a home with, a home that I can come visit…but it'll be theirs. Not mine." There was a brief tightening in her chest as she thought about it, the fear that attempted to seize her heart. Index clasped her hands together and summoned her all her strength to push it away. "I'll be happy for him, and I'll be living my own life as well! With my own room and everything!"

"And you want my help in being able to maintain that room, right?" Generously offered the purple-haired girl.

"Yeah…pretty much. But before all that, I want to be able to rub it in Touma's face that I can do housekeeping, and maybe do it better than him!" Alright, on one that, Index knew she was shooting for the stars. At the very least Itsuwa wasn't the type who'd laugh at the absurdity of her statement.

As she'd listened, Itsuwa felt a small flicker of relief inside of her. Though a part of her chastised herself about feeling such a thing, she couldn't deny that the flicker had turned into a cackling flame that sent warmth throughout her body. Within her mind, images of doom and gloom and heartbreak began to dissipate, as if storm clouds cleared away by the light of the sun. Exhaling, she leaned forward and looked up to where the sun was shining bright. Itsuwa smiled back at it. "Housekeeping can be simple enough, and so can cooking, but if you want to master either, you'll have to work at them. I wouldn't call myself a master, but I can say that I've learned my fair share."

"Then you'll be my teacher once we get back!" Passionately declared the magical library.

Itsuwa sweat-dropped as she smiled at her. "Um, we're…already back, Index."

Blinking, she looked to her left finding the multi-story complex that she and Touma called home. "Uh…how long have we…urgh, you know what? Never mind! Come on, talking about all that stuff actually made me a little hungry!" Without missing a beat, Index hopped out of the passenger seat and ran toward the stairs.

Once she was gone, Itsuwa find herself leaning back and laughing to herself. It feels like anything my anxiety starts rising, something goes and calms it right down. Her gaze drifted over to the sun. In spite of the morning chill, Itsuwa felt like she was being caressed by a spring breeze. "Touma…I hope you're having a good day at school." As soon as she said the words, an image of her mother popped into her mind. Hearty laughter burst from her lips as she imagined how she'd respond to her words…and to an extent, Touma. Her laughter grew as she pictured her father's reaction to him.

As she dismounted from the bike, she pondered if parentage would be a suitable topic for her and Touma's date tonight. He seemed interested in hearing about her family…and Itsuwa hoped that he wouldn't mind telling her a little about his.

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3:48 PM…

"You know, I'm a little surprised you didn't have your new girlfriend come visit during lunch hour. I'm sure she'd have brought you one hell of a tasty treat." Chuckled the shade-wearing wildcard that was Tsuchimikado.

"And risk inviting more trouble? Please, the fact that I've made it this far without something happening is a small miracle." Touma casually fired back as he finished packing his things.

"Yeah, not to mention she said yes to a date with you." The Level-0 looked to the blonde with a dry stare, which Tsuchimikado responded to with his trademark grin. Eventually, Touma's frown melted into a soft smile that made Tsuchimikado laugh. Anyone who knew the pair would have recognized it as being part of their usual interactions. When the blond wasn't dragging the unfortunate Level-0 into some insane situation involving the cold world between the Magic and Science sides. Speaking of which, both of them were actually quite relieved that o such incident had occurred over the last few days. Tsuchimikado wasn't at all surprised to learn that Touma was trying to make the most of that lull. Of course, he was going to make sure to enjoy himself as well. "So, what's the destination? I've got a few recommendations."

"Already have some places in mind, and no, I'm not telling." Firmly declared the dark-haired teen. His friend's continued snickering was a soft murmur in his ears that he'd learned to accept, yet be weary of. Touma looked straight at his blond friend with a dry stare, something that only made him laugh even harder; he wasn't detoured.

The hint was taken. "Hey, hey, I love my joking around, but even I have limits, you should know that! I promise, I won't call for you unless it's absolutely serious, like the entire order of the world as we know it is about to end serious!"

Touma rolled his eyes. "If something like that were to happen, I'm pretty sure it would start with me."

"Yep, which is why I'm pretty sure Itsuwa's bringing her spear along just in case, right?"

There was a pause on Touma's part as he briefly glanced up to the ceiling. He had to admit, the more he thought about it, the more he realized Tsuchimikado had probably hit the nail on the head. "If it comes down to it, I'll be happy she brought it with her." His lips slowly curved into a smile. "Trouble came along before and between her magic and her spear and my right arm, we handled ourselves well enough." Internally, he braced himself for some sort of snide remark considering his statement had a pretty glaring hole in it. Thankfully, his blonde-haired friend didn't take the bait. This time anyway. "Hey, can I trust that you won't let Aogami in on this?"

"What? You think I'd set him loose on you or something?" Continuously chuckled the green-shirted teen lying back in his seat. Touma had been incredibly tight-lipped about his date, and for good reason. Regarding the third member of their underachieving trio, he would have lost his mind learning that Touma was getting a girlfriend. "Hey, just give it some time, I'm sure someone will notice you two around town and from there-"

"That'll be then, I'm focused on now, which I want to go as smoothly as possible." Touma interrupted.

He'd stayed after school officially ended since he needed to make up for almost four days' worth of school work. It wasn't fun, but he knew it was something that he had to do. Staying after class to do remedial work was something else that he'd gotten used to doing, even finding a small bit of peace in it. Of course, it wasn't like he was on his way to becoming an academic genius or anything. Then again…depending on how things went with Itsuwa…

As he walked to the exit with Tsuchimikado in tow, he pondered on the personal information Itsuwa had devolved to him regarding her past. He never would have pictured her mother being a teacher, both her parents being teachers really. It was actually a little funny considering that at first glance, he did fit the delinquent imagery, though he liked to think he failed the attitude test. Touma didn't actively try to cultivate an image…it just stuck to him and he found it hard to shake. Luckily, it hadn't stopped some, including Itsuwa, from getting to know him.

The evening sun seemed to be inviting him to keep the optimism in him going, if only until something or someone fell out of the sky to knock it out of him. His arms stretched upward as he came into the light, feeling the warmth of the fall sun on his face. While it couldn't quite compare to spring or summer, it was still miles above rain of cold. Touma was grateful that there seemed to be a little bit of summer left to squeeze out before autumn hit Academy City in full force, then winter. That said, he admittedly was looking forward to seeing the campus in winter.

Looking from the sky to the earth, the teenager's eyes widened as he saw something, or rather someone, he hadn't expected to. Not yet anyway.

Before he knew it, Touma felt his feet moving, his shoes pounding against the ground. He couldn't help but smile at her, and she smiled back. "Hey, guess you really did come to pick me up, huh?"

Itsuwa's blush only made her seem more adorable in his eyes. "I, um, is it okay for me to get this close? I know I'm not a student or anything but…"

"It's fine, Itsuwa." Assured the gray-eyed youth. Somewhere inside of him, there was an immediate impulse to reach out and touch her hand, but he refrained from doing so. On one hand, he knew it was due to his self of awareness. For all he knew, someone like Fukiyose was nearby, and if she was nearby then calamity would sink its fangs into him. "The school actually isn't super strict when it comes to visitors on campus, especially after school's officially ended. Speaking of which…what do you think? How's it compare to any of the schools your parents have taught at?"

Stifling a giggle, the yellow-eyed girl looked up the walkway to the massive building. "Practically every school here puts the ones that my parents taught at to shame." Looking past Touma to the main building, Itsuwa felt a sense of longing come over her. Needless to say, Academy City had the best schools in the world, much to the inner frustration of the school boards of several countries around the world. "During one of the calls me and my mom shared, I asked her if she had ever want to teach at a school in Academy City. She laughed and told me that she wouldn't turn down a potential invitation, but she was happy in the places she'd been. She just loves teaching, as does my father so I think they would both take a chance to teach at one of the schools here, but not lose any sleep if an opportunity never came." There was a brief pause as she released a bubbly laugh. "My dad though, he'd probably claim that students seeking to learn how to translate don't know what they're missing in not having him for a teacher."

Touma laughed with her. "He's that good, huh?"

Her smile made him feel like he was being caressed by the winds of spring. "Well, he'll tell you that he doesn't want to brag…right before launching into a speech about how many languages he knows, including dead languages that no one speaks anymore. Or at least normal people speak."

"I'm going to do the stupid thing and ask if he can curse in ten different-"

"He can." The Amakusa operative stated with a smile. "Though he won't tell you how to do that until you've proven you care about learning the language beyond just a few insults." Feeling bold, Itsuwa laced both her fingers behind her back and cocked her head at her crush. "Touma, you wouldn't be one of those people, would you?"

A hot blush swarmed his face as he took in how cute the violet-haired girl looked to him, cuter than usual. Personally, Touma always thought Itsuwa fell onto the cute side of things; he could only imagine what would happen if she became aware of that cuteness and began to actively use it against him. It seemed like that time had come. "Would asking to learn how to say compliments be enough to get me in his good graces?" Itsuwa's laugh made his heart beat a tick faster, something he was growing used to as he spent more time thinking about her.

"Hm, a foreign language professor…maybe something can be arranged."

Cold dread replaced the joy that had formerly been running through him. A frown on his face, Touma whipped around to face Tsuchimikado, who was approaching the couple after keeping his distance for the first part of the exchange. He supposed that was nice of him, but now his interests seemed to have been piqued, which spelled trouble for him, and Itsuwa.

Speaking of Itsuwa, she trained her focus on the blonde, a hand on her chin and her brow bent in concentration. "That voice," she began. "I've heard it before…"

"Well, naturally, I mean I doubt that you'd forget me so soon after-"

"Come on, Itsuwa, let's get going! We don't wanna be late for the movie!" Shouted the grey-eyed teenager, throwing his arm around the magician and urging her forward.

"Movie? What movie?" She questioned as he walked her forward. Though momentarily confused, she started to put the pieces together once she realized that Touma had acted this way before, back at his apartment. Guess there's some things that he's just not ready to tell me. Or doesn't want to face. Theorized the spear-user. Ultimately, she decided to go along with it, after all, this ploy had him wrapping his arm around her shoulders and practically squishing their cheeks together. Just like before when she showed up at his apartment the first time. That had been a…heart-racing experience that had ended just a little too soon in Itsuwa's opinion; she wanted another moment like it, and for it to last longer. At the moment, it seemed she was getting her wish.

She definitely got it as even after the shade-wearing teenager became a bit of a distant memory, Touma kept his arm wrapped around her. Itsuwa wondered if he his continued hold over her was subconscious or intentional, either way, she wasn't in a big hurry for it to end. She also hoped that Touma didn't look down at her, otherwise he'd see how her face was rapidly heading toward a new shade of red not known to man. She practically looked like a ticking time bomb about to go off!

While she was caught in her own inner thoughts, Touma was wrestling with his. Okay, you can let go of her now. An inner voice in his head said, to which another replied, why not? His original aim had been to keep her away from Tsuchimikado. It was two-pronged as on one hand, he wanted to keep her from recognizing his voice, and on the other hand…he felt that the longer they were around him the more likely something absurd was going to happen. He was now pretty sure they were at least twenty feet away from him, the street coming into view along with Itsuwa's rented bike. Instantly, the memory of her riding it down the road with him behind her flashed through his mind, followed next by the memory of her taking him to school on said bike with Index in the side car. He'd been happy on both rides, and as crazy as it was to believe, he was actually happy at the prospect of-

"Index is with the priestess." Itsuwa suddenly spoke pulling him from his thoughts. Slightly wide-eyed, he looked to her. Thankfully, her blush had been reined in enough that she could look to him and not feel like a bomb about to go off. "I-I drop her off within the last hour at her home. She'll be under the Amakusa Church's protection for the time being."

"Then she's in good hands." Declared the high schooler with a casual smile. "So, how were things between you two? I'm trusting that I've got an apartment to come back to."

"Hey, give her some credit." She laughed. "I was there with her helping clean the place up so it'll be better than ever when you get home from your first day back."

"When you say it like that, you make me think I'll be coming back to a completely refurbished apartment with crystal chandeliers and everything." Touma remarked. Though he would have liked for such a thing to be true, he was ultimately grateful that he had a home to go back to. Hell, he was grateful that in spite of all the violent encounters he'd had, few had touched his apartment. Not even his first encounter with Stiyl had done that, to which Touma was grateful for. "Say, what does your place look like? What kind of place did the Amakusa Church put you up in?"

"N-No-Nowhere special, j-just one of the many for rent apartments in District 18. At least when I'm not staying with the rest of the Church members." She offered him his helmet while taking her seat. In seconds, he had adjusted his helmet and goggles, with her doing the same. A jolt of excitement raised through her as she felt Touma's hands wrap around her waist. It was magnified as she fired up the engine and felt the hum of the motorcycle. Itsuwa felt like she was floating on cloud nine, rising up to the sky in fact. The ride had yet to begin.

"Itsuwa," she heard her crush declare.

Turning back to him, she flashed him a smile that caused his cheeks to redden. "Don't worry. It's still a little early in the afternoon so the streets will probably be packed again, not to mention some folks getting off from work. I'll keep the speeding down to a minimum."

Touma laughed. "That's good to know. But I was actually going to say if we end up staying up into the night…well…I wouldn't mind if you took me for another ride at high speed." A tiny voice in his head screamed that he was setting himself up for disaster, and likely another trip to the hospital…which likely would have gotten a word out of the hospital staff. Screw it. Answered back another, more jovial voice.

The purple-haired girl seemingly took his words to heart as her face lit up like a Christmas tree. His words likely weren't the ones she was expecting, but she was happy for them none the less. When she turned back, she had a smile on her face, one that belayed the excitement bubbling within her. She had a plan for this date, they both did…but Touma's words had given Itsuwa motive to make a little…deviation to them, one that she now knew Touma would happily accept. "Alright then…I guess when that time comes, you better hold on tight!"

There was no denying he had been a little terrified when she let the speed demon in her show. He'd also been felt a stronger attraction to her than he'd already had. It was as he was lying in the comfort of his hospital bed did it dawn on him that he wanted to feel that rush again, he wanted to feel his arms wrapped around her slender waist. While Touma was a guy very aware of the fairer sex, he tried to keep himself as on the straight and narrow as possible. Needless to say, that was often easier said than done. When he was around Itsuwa…he felt a desire to break off that chosen path, take the risk and see where it landed him. Was it reckless? Hell yeah it was, but the feeling that permeated through his body, especially his heart, it was all too good to pass up.

His decision was bolstered by the wind whipping in his face as she hit the gas and sent them on their way.

Until the first light they ran into was a red light, which they were only able to see from Touma sitting up and peeking out over the line of cars that it had created.

"Eh, well, as far as my rotten luck goes, I guess this isn't so bad." He sighed to which Itsuwa merely giggled. "Hey, at least it's not a car crush or something."

"Curiously, how often do those happen in Academy City?"

"Hm, I'd say every once in two or three weeks. Most cars are automated, or at least anyone who can afford an automated car has one. That said, street racing is still a thing." Hoping he wasn't overstepping himself, Touma asked a question that had been lingering in the back of his mind for a while. "Itsuwa, you wouldn't happen to be into street racing, would you?"

"W-W-Who, me? I…um…well…it's not like I don't know about it. Or I've…never seen it." It was clear that there was a hint of embarrassment in her admission. Touma didn't have to think hard why-street racing tended to be something people would associate with people like him. One glance at Itsuwa and one never would have suspected a love of driving and eve speeding. "From time to time I…have watched some videos online, and some movies focused on street racing." Thankfully, he couldn't see her face, otherwise he'd have seen the intense blush that had returned to it.

"Ever thought of pro-racing?" Touma innocently inquired.

Thankfully, Itsuwa didn't seem to take his question offensively. "Do you think…that I…would have been a good racer?"

Several yards ahead of them, the light flashed green and the line of automobiles began to move at long last. Moving at a snail's pace actually gave Touma the time to steel himself and answer her.

"Yeah, I do. Either that or a professional driver if you don't mind me saying so. I think if you want, you could maybe turn that into a day job or something."

Feeling a continued flutter in her heart, Itsuwa responded, "If I ever did become a chauffeur, would you consider being my first fare?"

He wished she could see his smile, but Touma wanted to believe that his cheery voice spoke enough for what she couldn't see. "Definitely."

Even though the wind was chilly, Itsuwa felt like the sun was shining on her as brightly as it did on a summer day. Her heart drummed in her ears, each beat pumping pure joy through her veins. Somehow, it was all magnified as she felt Touma's hands tighten around her waist. Not just taking you where you need to go…but also being there by your side to confront whatever new challenge awaits.

It was a wish that Itsuwa knew would be much harder to carry out in real life…especially if Touma's belief in his rotten luck proved to run far deeper than anyone realized. Or if he threw himself into a situation where there truly wasn't any hope of escape…but Itsuwa wanted to be an optimism. She wanted to be able to look to the future regardless of how uncertain it may be with a heart beating with confidence, just like the boy who'd taught her that such a thing was possible.

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5:05 PM…

THONK!

Itsuwa was mesmerized, she had been for roughly the past five minutes. Her eyes studied every motion of the Level-0's body as he patiently waited then sprung into action in the span of a second. Every few seconds, her ears rung with the loud crack of a baseball bat hitting a baseball, sending it flying. A small collection of baseballs was growing by the minute at the other end of the batting cage, not a single ball lay at Touma's feet as he'd hit every one that came his way. That record remained unbroken as several more balls shot at him, connecting with his bat then soaring in the opposite direction.

At first glance, one wouldn't have assumed Touma Kamijou to be skilled in any way regarding sports. Then again, the same could be said for her and driving. Granted, by Touma's own admission, he'd never been too interested in sports, but that didn't mean that he wasn't capable. There was more often than not a great deal more to the spiky-haired teenager than met the eye. It was actually one of his most attractive traits.

It wasn't like Itsuwa needed any more proof of his athletic ability, but seeing him hit him over twenty consecutive balls in the batting cage had further elevated her opinion of him.

The batting machine shutdown on Touma's request and he removed his baseball helmet. Immediately, his spikes popped out in their full glory after spending so much time suppressed.

"That was…incredible." She admitted from beyond the cage. "With that kind of skill, I think you could probably become a pro baseball player."

"I'd be better at batting than anything like catching, or throwing. Trust me, I once played a baseball game with a few friends about a month ago and on my time to pitch…yeah, the opposing team scored an instant homerun." Admitted the black-haired teenager.

"I'm tempted to say that was more on the part of the batter than yours." The spear-user offered with a light smile.

"Then should I tell him about the time that I threw a ball so hard that when it was hit, it had the stuffing knocked out of it leading to a redo that leapfrogged the opposing team to a win?" Humorously shot back the Level-0. Itsuwa laughed at his statement. "You know, none of the sports teams have ever outright banned me from joining…even though they likely know that they'll probably never win any championships. As you can probably guess though, a future in sports isn't in my-"

There was a brief sputter from the batting machine, sparks flying from it. Itsuwa looked to it in wide-eyed horror, then back to Touma. Her body moved on pure reflex, wrenching the door open then dashing for her charge. The teen looked to her with wide eyes, though he made no attempt to stop her. Considering that she was trying to save him from taking a ball to the shoulder, or potentially the head, he was more than happy to let her tackle him to the ground.

Finally, a ball bounced against the safety net.

"See, stuff like that would happen during practice, not that I'd be down after a single stray ball." Touma chuckled. If Itsuwa hadn't been there, he'd have either avoided the ball or taken a hit t the shoulder and spent the next couple of minutes with a dull pain his arm. Thankfully, she'd moved fast and saved his hind.

Sitting up, the girl smiled, "Naturally, you're one of the toughest people that I've ever met." Looking back to the batting machine, she quietly hoped it wouldn't malfunction again. It hummed again, seemingly returning to its regular function causing her to sigh in relief. "I almost think I would have preferred having your baseball bat break."

"That's happened to me before. Honestly, I'd take that over getting hit in the fast with a baseball…even though it's embarrassing as hell." Touma muttered remembering all those times he swung the bat, namely a wooden one, only to have it snap in half. Metal bats such as the one he'd been using a second ago were immune to such effects, and for obvious reasons he tried his best to keep a hold on such bats least he accidentally hurl them and they hit someone. He was proud to say such an incident had never happened before, and Touma had no intention of letting such a thing ever happen. "Thanks, Itsuwa."

"D-D-Don't mention it." His hand was still clasped around hers, having helped pull him up. Itsuwa once again wondered if he was aware of the prolonged contact or not.

She was inclined to believe it was the former as he gave her hand a light squeeze while smiling at her. The two of them departed the batting cage, still holding one another's hand. Neither spoke a word about it, it simply became a feature of theirs as they left the batting cage and continued on their way, the mechanical malfunction quickly forgotten about. Itsuwa knew that it was best not to dwell on it; Touma never did, he simply took such misfortune and trudged on with his day. She'd always quietly wondered how he did it, catching glimpses of it during their previous ventures, namely their time in France, but Itsuwa now felt like she was getting a first-hand experience.

Just before the batting cage, they'd hit up a bowling alley, where Itsuwa somewhat dominated over him. Part of it was due to Touma wanting to "test himself" in using his left arm instead of his right. He'd told her that from time to time he liked to practice doing things with his left arm instead of his right; Itsuwa innocently questioned if it was in preparation for if a day came when his right arm was…removed. She'd noticed how his eyes seemed to flash with a mixture of worry and naked shock, almost like the thought was new to him. Itsuwa immediately felt terrible for asking the question, but Touma had waved her off and merely said he was indeed preparing for that potential scenario, but he was also doing it to challenge himself. He surprisingly cited some members of the Amakusa Church who'd he'd seen fighting with both hands instead of one, even bringing up her. The shorter girl couldn't help but blush as she quietly mentioned that though she was predominantly right-handed like him, she had trained herself to be able to use her left hand, if only a little. From there, they'd decided to spice things up and bowl using their left hands instead of their rights.

Every time Itsuwa got a strike, Touma watched as her face lit up and her arms shot skyward in a little dance. The first time she did it, embarrassment came afterward until Touma told her that he enjoyed seeing her so happy. And that he didn't mind losing to her, he had plans to even up the score as their date continued. Which the spiky-haired teen ended up doing once they hit the batting cage. In a sense, the couple were now tied up with a "win" under each of their belts, and quite a bit of game coins between the two of them.

Tenhachi Sports Center was a recently opened attraction in District 15; it was naturally a big hit with the inhabitants of the sports-focused District 20 who made their way there to practice their abilities. Aside from them, it was a place for the city's inhabitants to just have some fun with various sports-related activities. As Touma and Itsuwa were experiencing, it also made for a nice place to hang out with on a date. So far, they were enjoying themselves.

It was Itsuwa's curiosity that led her over to the aquatic sports section-a series for VR panels and headsets that would take one to a stimulated beach where they could try out any number of sports. Touma knew before they'd even crossed the site's threshold what had attracted her attention.

"So, I take it you've been on a jet ski?" He happily asked as his date eyed the hooked-up machine, currently in use by another. A small line had formed up to use the virtual reality racing game.

"Two times when I was younger, both with my dad, who did the driving." She responded looking back to him with a smile. "I always wondered what it'd be like to ride one myself. Heh, well, it's not exactly real but it'd be the closest thing for the moment, huh?"

"Yeah, I mean at least until we can hit the beach one day." The Esper happily responded, said response causing a light blush to creep up on Itsuwa's face. The beach…so we're both thinking about the same thing. He thought in the back of his head with a smile. Touma hit the mental breaks on his imagination, which quickly began to run toward the image of Itsuwa dressed in a cute bathing suit. Yes, it was an image that a part of him wanted to come true…but another voice in his head remarked that it was a little too soon for that. The other voice shot back that he'd already seen how…sizable her chest was. "So, um, jet skis and what else? Did you ever learn to drive a boat?"

A thoughtful look fell over the yellow-eyed girl. "I actually did once, when I went to go visit my mom. It took me a couple of days to learn how to stir a boat, but eventually I got the basics down. That said, I don't think you should ever look to me to do something like stir a cruise liner or something."

Crossing his arms, Touma looked upward to the light-covered ceiling. An image formed in his head of a uniformed Itsuwa welcoming passengers a magic-themed luxury cruise line. A grin and blush rapidly came to occupy his face, both of which were in full view of Itsuwa.

She flew into an internal panic. W-What's he imagining? I-Is he thinking of me giving him a boat ride? I-I could do that, it'd probably be a little safer than taking him for a ride on a motorcycle. B-B-But if we were on a boat then…then…! She hadn't regretted diving into the water to save him in Avignon, if it ended with her clothes getting soaked and having to change out her clothes. Matter of fact, sometimes when Itsuwa thought back to it, a part of her liked how Touma seemed to take notice of her wardrobe change, even if he had tried to look away. That had to count for something, right? What if…what if something like that happened again. Would he actually be-

"Uh, Itsuwa? You ready to go?" Touma called pointing at the now nonexistent line that separated them from the jet ski simulators. She snapped out of her thoughts, grabbed his hand, and dashed toward the rides.

Academy City being the place it was, virtual reality was as common as birds in a park. What augmented reality as used for tended to vary, various circles putting more funding into developing it to make it as life-like as possible. As Touma and Itsuwa discovered, that funding had been put to good use.

Virtual water splashed against their bodies as they skid across bright blue waves. An equally blue sky lay above them, an artificial sun beating down upon them. Excitement raced through their veins as they made tracks across the water toward the watery finish line that lay directly ahead of them. Touma and Itsuwa looked to one another through the waves that bounced them up, excited grins were etched onto their faces where they remained before they both looked forward. Neither of them had any intention of losing, a drive that was reflected in how they leaned forward with the throttle pressed on each of their jet skis. Wind whipped at their faces and filled their lungs, the air expanded in various shouts that exploded from their throats, especially when one of the two teens felt themselves go airborne. Getting to the finish line wasn't going to be easy as the waves grew rockier, turning into natural slops that launched them higher into the air.

Through the excitement, Touma knew that not all the waves were meant for excitement, they were obstacles as well. Some of them moved in ways that actually led away from the finish line instead of toward it. He knew that was part of the trick-getting so lost in the excitement of airtime that the race was forgotten about, and that was when one didn't suffer a wipeout, which was a common occurrence for some first timers. This was Touma's first time on a jet ski, even a virtual one, but he was determined not to suffer a wipeout. Call it his pride, call it determination, whatever it was, it helped keep his mind on track.

At least until his curiosity got the better of him and he looked to his far right where his date was.

The normally shy Itsuwa had grown bold. When she jumped the watery waves, she went high, her laughter reaching into the digital skies. Her entire body was doused with ocean water, and with the sun overhead she seemed to be dotted with sparkles that captured Touma's attention. It was sheer coincidence…or maybe it was just his bad luck acting up; which was funny since the image of the water-coated scantily-clad magician was an image that he very much loved seeing. Itsuwa was close to twenty feet in the air. How in the hell had she gotten that high anyway!

Regardless of how she got there, she was floating in the air with a look of absolute jubilation on her face. Something about it…made Touma's heart beat just a few ticks faster.

It wasn't the first time he'd felt this way while looking at her, in fact, Touma remembered feeling this way as early as when she picked him up from school for their date. Looking back further, it hit him that he'd begun to feel his way whenever he was watching her-

"T-T-Touma!" Itsuwa shouted as she began to descend back onto the water's surface. "W-W-Watch out in front of you!"

He looked forward just in time to see the virtual wave coming straight at him; it was about three seconds from smashing right into him-just enough time for him to mentally curse himself for getting distracted.

Whosh!

Credit really had to be given to the developers, they managed to find a way to get virtual sea water to not just feel like actual sea water, but even taste like it as well. On sheer impulse he began to swim for the surface, which was thankfully only a few feet from him. Whelp, at least this whole thing is virtual! He thought to himself breaking the surface and tasting virtual air. Looking around, he saw his jet ski a few feet away, thankfully still upright instead of upside down as Touma had temporarily been. His attention was drawn to the voice of his date who rode over.

"Touma! Touma, are you alright?"

"Yeah, just finding out how razor thin the difference between real water and virtual water is." Humorously laughed the Level-0. Her concerned face melted into a relieved smile. "Um, you know this is a race, now would be the perfect time for you to go for the win."

She blinked then looked back over to the finish line which lay some distance away. It seemed that she was realizing for the first time that they'd been in a race and she'd just squandered her advantage. All she did was giggle and offer him her hand. "Maybe you can call me a fair sport. Come on, I'll help you over to your ski." Now that was good sportsmanship.

Itsuwa, Muttered the teenager as he stared at his companion. The more he stared, the more he felt a desire to reach out and touch her face, run his fingers through her hair. While the water was fake, Itsuwa's face certainly wasn't. Every part of her was real…real and…lovely in Touma's eyes. Those eyes suddenly flashed with amusement before a wave of water splashed into Touma's face.

"H-Huh! W-What?! Itsuwa!" Over the roar of her jet ski's engine, he could hear her laughing. "H-Hey, wait up!" Okay, in retrospect, while Itsuwa was probably one of the kindest people he'd ever met, she wasn't without her devious side.

And strangely enough, that made her all the more attractive in Touma's eyes.

-o-

"Whelp, take your pick, I'm pretty sure I've saved up enough coins for almost half the stuff up there." The high schooler happily declared.

It wasn't exactly an exaggeration as he had accumulated a hefty number of coins from all their activities. Neither of them had come to the fitness center with the intention of shooting for any prizes, but once they started, they simply couldn't stop. Besides, this was also a date, and as such, Touma felt it was his obligation to step up. Proof of that step up could be seen in the weight of his "coin bag", heavy as it sat in his hands before Itsuwa's eyes.

The Amakusa girl couldn't help but find herself giggling. Touma's greatest accumulation of coins had come from the batting cage. He'd walked away with a hefty number of coins and left behind a rather impressive scoring that he joked would probably be broken by the end of the week. Even so, Itsuwa had been impressed, and so too had several onlookers. Personally though, she felt special that the rewards of such athletic ability were being given to her; she had every intention of returning the favor. But first, she had some choosing to do.

On paper, this was a sports center thus the need for "prizes" might have seemed a little ridiculous, but it made for a good motivator beyond simple fitness or enjoyment. While it wasn't exactly a prize collection on par with some arcades, it still had its healthy amount of plushies, clothing, some jewelry, and even some fitness and sports equipment (naturally). Itsuwa scored the collection on display, her yellow eyes gradually homing in on one item in particular.

"That one right there, fifth from the right." Happily declared the spear fighter.

Touma did a slight double-take as he looked to the item in question. It wasn't the item's price tag that startled him, even though it would cost little more than half of his accumulated coins…it was the item in question. A glittering silver baseball bat that would have looked good either as decoration or in use, it wasn't exactly what Touma figured Itsuwa would have wanted, but it's what she'd chosen. Who was he to deny her, especially since this entire thing was his idea?

His decision was further affirmed when he saw her eyes shine like stars as the bat was handed to her. The sight made his heart flutter and his lips curl into a smile to the point he seemed to be stuck in a daze. He practically was as Itsuwa had to ask two times what he wanted to get from the prize counter. Like her, he had an idea.

They left Tenhachi Sports Center, Itsuwa holding a bag containing a silver and blue-lined baseball bat alongside a pristine "ultra-reinforced" soccer ball picked out by Touma, amongst several other trinkets.

"You know, odds are I'm probably going to lose the soccer ball in a week, but I'll make the most of it." Stated the spiky-haired youth.

"Not if you keep a close eye on it, which I'm sure you'll be able to do. By the way, won't this make for a good play thing for Sphinx?" Itsuwa offered causing Touma to look at her with slightly widened eyes. "While Index and I were cleaning your apartment, she told me how sometimes he likes to play with spare balls lying around your apartment. It's a little bit, but I think he might take to playing with it, wouldn't he?"

"Yeah, he would, which is another reason why I'm worried about losing it." The next question was more than likely going to be why he bought it in the first place if he had such a fear of losing it. The truth was…Touma wanted to test himself and hold onto the ball for as long as he could. It was special after all, a memento…just like Itsuwa's baseball bat could be considered a memento from him. "A few blocks down from my apartment, there are these kids who really like playing soccer. Heh, sometimes they have to take breaks because one of them ends up kicking the ball so hard it gets blown to pieces. I'll be more than happy to loan that little monster in there to them for an afternoon."

Sweet laughter bubbled from Itsuwa's lips. "Ever the kind-hearted-!" Her caramel yellow eyes sudden narrowed, alertness filling them then surging through the rest of her body. In seconds, she grabbed Touma and pushed him to the ground, sparing him from receiving a basketball to the back of the head. Her eyes carrying that same alertness, now mixed with hostility, she glared daggers at the trio of boys who stood several feet away at the entrance to the sports center. Itsuwa took up a defensive stance in front of her charge.

"Well, well, seems the God of Misfortune went and got himself a cute bodyguard, I wonder how the hell that happened." Chuckle the leader, a redhead with cherry-colored eyes that switched between Itsuwa and Touma. They settled on the latter.

For his part, Touma looked at the older boy with mild disinterest. "A lot of stuff that would take too long to explain, so what do you say we leave it and go about our separate ways, huh?"

Mocking laughter rose from the group. Itsuwa narrowed her eyes at the three boys, all college age by her guess, and having some past history with Touma. She knew in a second that said history wasn't pleasant.

"Hey, hey, no need to give me the death glare." The leader spoke again, having noticed Itsuwa's sharpened gaze. She and Touma could see the small bead of sweat that had formed on the side of his face; this was attempted bravado, nothing more. But Itsuwa didn't let her glare slacken. "We noticed you seemed to be enjoying yourself and came to offer you some more of that-fun. I trust me, we can show you a-"

"No, you can't. Look, I don't know what your problem with Touma is, it ends now." The air around Itsuwa shifted, thickening and darkening into a deep violet-colored aura that seemingly chilled the air itself. Not just Touma and the college trio, other onlookers seemed captivated, no, terrified of the sudden maliciousness coating the formerly kind and docile girl. Some outright fell to their knees or butts and attempted to scout away. Touma could hardly blame them as he knew from first-hand experience what happened next. It was just a first that such anger wasn't directed at him for whatever reason.

He had to admit…he was actually happy to not be the target.

As for the actual targets, well, their state of mind could best be described as, "three seconds from pissing in their pants". On the redhead's face, one bead of sweat had become many as he realized that he'd chosen the wrong night to pick on Academy City's most infamous Level-0 Esper. Evidently, the supposed loser had been hanging out with some interesting people…interesting and scary.

Itsuwa's glare hardened, and with it her dark aura flared. One sworn that her eyes also glowed a near murderous shade of red that burned holes into the hearts of the three boys.

"EEEEKK! W-W-WE'RE SORRY! SERIOUSLY, WE'RE SORRY! K-K-K-KAMIJOU, WE SWEAR WE'LL NEVER MESS WITH YOU AGAIN!" The three screamed in unison, all hugging one another like life rafts in the midst of a storm. With the quickness of the storm winds, they turned to the side and ran, and kept on running until they disappeared from the two teenagers' sight.

Onlookers blinked in surprise, barely noticing how the aura of malice surrounding Itsuwa began to recede until they felt themselves able to exhale safely. Those who'd fallen began to pick themselves up, wiping away the sweat from their brows and calming their racing hearts.

Touma silently watched the threatening aura completely fade and his sweet and kind protector returned. Almost. "U-Uh! I-I-I'm sorry! I-I-I didn't mean to act that way! I-I just wanted to make sure they wouldn't bug you! I-I-I'm sorry if I overstepped my boundaries! I didn't mean-"

Smiling, the spiky-haired teenager stepped forward and wrapped his arms around the Amakusa Church girl. Her flustering apology came to a complete stop as she was enveloped in the warmth that was Touma Kamijou's embrace. It was an embrace that Itsuwa quickly lost herself in, shutting her eyes and basking in the warmth he offered her. Itsuwa wanted to believe that she was able to give him a little bit of the same.

All around them, life in Academy City returned to its regular flow. While the incident would probably make its way onto some online forums and whatnot, it was just another blip in the literal hundreds of events that happened every day in Academy City. Likewise, Touma and Itsuwa were just two people enjoying their evening date.

Neither of them were sure how much time had passed, they would find out when they passed the nearest clock. The stars of the night sky twinkled overhead, heralding to them that the night was still young and they still had it to themselves. Their shopping bag was carried by Touma, he held it in his left hand while his right grasped Itsuwa's hand. Gentle smiles on both of their faces, they began to walk forward.

"Hey, Itsuwa?" Touma started.

"Y-Yes?" She responded feeling just a tad bit optimistic instead of pessimistic.

Grinning, Touma leaned over and kissed her forehead, causing the girl to blush bright red. "That was pretty incredible. Thanks for the save."

The characteristically unlucky teenager practically became her life support as Itsuwa felt her legs practically liquify beneath her, making walking a tad difficult. Touma didn't mind though, he liked it when she leaned on him for support, and when she snuggled up to him and tightened her hold on his hand. He squeezed her hand back, noting how soft and gentle it felt. Her face was the same way, a face that never quite lost its red hue, but reminded as beautiful as it had been several minutes earlier.

---

7:57 PM…

"Woah, no line this time around. Either something really bad is about to happen or I've reached my limit for the day. Come on!" Touma shouted, an excited grin on his face.

There were a lot of things Itsuwa wanted to ask about her date's sudden enthusiasm, but she figured that it would probably be best for her to experience the answers for herself. It'd be more fun that way, basically. Before she knew it, she was smiling and walking up alongside of him, her hand still interlocked with his. The closer they drew to the restaurant the more she was able to make out the smell of food, food that made her stomach growl. She recognized the smell, which made her stomach growl all the louder as it was one she hadn't inhaled in at least a month.

"Hehehe, you don't mind a little Italian-style pizza, do you?" Called the gray-eyed teen finally realizing it would probably be best to explain his idea to his date. Preferable before he did something to screw it up or fate decided to throw him another curveball.

"Considering it's been a while since I had either, I'm more than up for a slice or two." Actually, a small part of bemoaned how they weren't going to be having spaghetti, a childish thought that she pushed to the side as quickly as it came. This date was already romantic enough, and it was getting better by the second.

Roughly three-quarters of Academy City's population was Japanese or at least of Japanese-descent, leaving the remaining quarter as foreigners. Like the rest of the citizens, they'd all found their place in the city, quite a few opening up establishments of their own, like the two-story pizza joint Touma was guiding them to. Apparently, it was on average packed.

"Sole Rosso Pizza," She read from the bright sun-themed sun that stood atop the establishment. "You've eaten here before?"

"Yeah, it's also where I've done some studying for foreign language classes. I am in no way close to being considered a master, though I like to think I'm two-tenths of the way there." Touma replied. "Trust me, you'll love it, especially the bread!"

Her smile was her sign of trust, and the rumble of her stomach was an indicator that she was ready to eat.

Mere seconds after passing through the doors, they were greeted. "Signore Sfortunato! Welcome-" The words died in middle-aged blonde's throat as his green eyes served to Touma's right. Itsuwa felt a blush creep over her face as she gave a shy wave to the mustached man. His mouth hung open wide enough that you probably could have inserted your fists in. He wasn't the only one. Sadly, he wasn't alone as other waiters who happened to be passing by took notice of Touma and Itsuwa's entry, namely the fact that the two were holding hands. It was look watching an alien walk through the front door…which in Academy City, might actually happen. "You…you…you two…" He repeated in rather fluent Japanese.

"Yes, we're on a date, just a normal date and nothing more. Itsuwa, this is Elladio, a waiter who helped hook me up with this place. Elladio, this is-"

"Prega il Signore! Your misfortune has finally begun to come to an end, Signore Kamijou!" Proclaimed the European man followed next by his coworkers, several of whom began happily shouting to the point they were on the verge of spilling their trays. Touma observed others looked like they'd just been handed some unfortunate news.

Touma was willing to bait that they had. Such misfortune, sorry guys. "Look, we'd like a table for two. Anything would be nice."

"Of course, of course! Come, follow me! Alfio, go tell il capo that Signore Sforunato has finally become Signore Fortunato!" Just to rub it in, Elladio turned to Touma and winked at him.

"Seriously!" Bemoaned the spiky-haired teenager, already knowing the circumstances unfolding within the restaurant. Suddenly, he felt he should have taken Itsuwa out to a different place to eat. He wondered if there was still time to change choices as he looked back to the door.

What stopped him was the sweet laughter of his date. Touma looked to Itsuwa and was taken back by the blush she had on her face, it complimented her thinly veiled laughter. The sound wiped away the embarrassment that had been on the verge of consuming him. Now, the warm and fluffy feeling was coming back in spades. He felt his cheeks beginning to heat up as he stared at Itsuwa's bubbly expression, only looking away managed to keep the heat from fully consuming his face. It didn't dawn on him until they were at their assigned table did Touma realize he'd still been holding Itsuwa's hand…and he was somewhat reluctant to let go of it.

A good enough consolation came in her sitting directly across from him.

"Uh, I…guess I owe you a little bit of an explanation, don't I?" He began.

"You don't have." Softly retorted the shorter girl. "What matters is that everyone here seems awfully happy for you."

"I know they had a betting pool going on about my love life. What I don't know is if Tsuchimikado had anything to do with it."

"You know, for a best friend, you sure do talk about him like he's always plotting to undermine you somehow."

"He is." Touma grumbled. "While yes, I do consider him one of my closest friends, he's still a massive pain in the ass who enjoys raising hell, especially with me at the center, for his own kicks. In his defense, sometimes he doesn't need to do anything, the mayhem will just find me and from there the rest is history." He leaned back and stared out the window to the streets outside with a wistful smile. "That's kind of how I stumbled onto this place. A couple of delinquents start causing trouble, some sort of gang dispute, and it spilled out into the rest streets. People were in danger and I did what I usually do-wade into the carnage and try to help as many people as I can." Looking back to Itsuwa, he flashed her his trademark smile. She smiled back, having clearly anticipated where this story was going. "For the record, I only had to spend a couple of hours at the hospital, a few scratches and fractured bones, but nothing too serious."

"I'm happy to hear that." The spear-wielder admitted. She meant it. If there was one thing she'd come to realize about Touma Kamijou, whenever there was a crisis he always seemed to be involved, trying to resolve it and save as many people as possible. Such a trait was incredibly admirable, and incredibly worrying. "I take it some of the people you ended up helping work here?"

"Yeah, new arrivals from Italy. That's actually what some of the fighting was about-the fact that a foreign restaurant was being built. And that said restaurant owner wasn't going to pay protection money. It was just another ordinary day to be honest."

"Whenever you say that, it makes me wonder just how…fantastical Academy City can be. That's considered normal?" Blinked the violet-haired girl, genuine shock evident in her voice.

"Around here, yeah. Normally, you've got different factions going at it over one thing or another every other day. Albeit, some days it's rougher than others."

"Do some of those rough days involve magic?" Somewhat nervously asked the Amakusa operative.

"Hey, all magic does is add a little extra to the craziness that's already here. You learn to get used to it. Anyways, while I was in the hospital, the owner of this place, Gabriela came by to thank me for helping out, even though it wasn't really my fight." Touma didn't' feel there was a need to tell her that Gabriela's "coming by" had included a lecture about him jumping in front of an attack meant to pierce her chest and kill her. Yet again, his Imagine Breaker had saved his life, and opened up another unexpected Esper to a world of pain they wouldn't be forgetting any time soon. Still, it all ended well with her giving him a few free coupons and saying if he ever wanted to taste the "finest pizza ever crafted by human hands". Index had certainly made sure that the coupons were put to good use…all three of them. "And that's the story of how my association with Sole Rosso Pizza came to be. Just another day in Academy City."

"It…sounds like another life, or lives, whom you helped save, like you always do." Itsuwa nervously summarized.

"When you say it like that, you make it sound like I'm some kind of hero." Touma gently retorted. "I've never seen myself as one of those, I'm not a hero."

Itsuwa raised her hands from underneath the table onto its surface. Her eyes flickered to Touma's, which lay on the other side. A tiny voice in her head told her to reach for it, after all, she'd come so far this evening, why not go further? The date so far had accumulated enough evidence to point things in the direction Itsuwa wanted them to. But what if she was just misinterpreting all of those things?

There was only one way to find out. Boldly, the sixteen-year-old reached her hand across the table, interlacing it with his. "Touma, you may not think of yourself as a hero…but others do. To them, to people like me, you are a hero. You're someone we'd be honored to fight beside…and even die for."

Reflexively, his grip on her hand tightened; Itsuwa took it in strides, seeing how a momentary flash of grief darkened her crush's face. "I don't want anyone, least of all you doing that, Itsuwa. I…I want you to live, okay?"

Confidence swelling within her, as well as optimism, Itsuwa squeezed his hand. "I will live, but I am going to do my best to make sure that you stay alive too, Touma. Your life is precious too, precious enough that people like me and the Priestess and others will fight to defend it, just like how you'll fight to defend our lives." She watched momentary confusion color his face, then watched it melt into understanding. His expression melted into a smile that was aimed solely at her. "I, um, I want to do this with you again."

"Heh, that makes two of us." Touma laughed.

"Actually, make it three. Well, twenty-one really." Remarked a third voice. Touma and Itsuwa did a joint double-take, then looked to the side at the voice's origin. Her skin possessed a deep tan that came about either from being in the sun or working close to fire, or both. Cinnamon brown hair was pulled back and her sky-blue eyes twinkled to the point it seemed tears were ready to fall from them. One might have as the woman wiped one away using her right finger. "Bello, semplicemente bello."

"Guess I should be happy she didn't snap a picture of this." Came the teenage boy's grumble. "This is Gabriela, whom I'm sure is here to take our orders…which we've been waiting on for the last five minutes." Touma stated with a happy smile and mock annoyance.

"Salve!" Itsuwa spoke giving the European woman a slight bow that she returned. "We don't mind the wait."

"Foreign speaking and polite, I approve, Signore Touma." Gabriela laughed while winking at Touma. "I'm assuming it'll just be you two tonight? No Index?"

"No…it's…just the two of us. This is a date after all." Touma affirmed while looking at Itsuwa. He was sure that he was blushing as much as she was, after all, Gabriela was practically giggling to herself. Something told him that this was the real reason she'd taken off from her cooking duties. Regardless, he was grateful as it was another detail that would make this date memorable.

---

9:10 PM…

"So, I seem to recall someone wanting to go for an after-dinner drive, still up for it?"

Itsuwa giggled as she offered him his helmet. "I'm pretty sure that's supposed to be my line. You know what you'll be getting into, right?"

"That I do…and to that, I still say hell yeah." Winked the spiky-haired teen. "Just, um, could you take it slow at first then build up to it, we did just eat after all."

Laughing, Itsuwa stated that she'd consider it. That was good enough for Touma, who securely fastened his arms around her waist. An electric jolt ran through the both of them at the physical intimacy; both of them had been quietly longing for it, their handholding back at the Gabriela's pizza restaurant serving as only temporary satisfaction. Their physical hunger had been sated…that left another kind yearning to be fulfilled.

It wasn't late night, not yet anyone so the roads were still moderately packed, the main roads anyway. The destination that Itsuwa had in mind would offer far more space for her to cut loose, something that Touma had been quietly aware of and accepted. Like she'd said, when the road was open enough, she turned into a bit of a speed demon. That part of her had been shown earlier in the date at the sports center, where he'd witnessed a demonstration of what happened if she got in the driver's seat and had a mostly open road before her.

The lights of Academy City zipped past them as she sped down the road, eventually weaving in and out of traffic with water-like grace. It was just another demonstrated of the immense skill that the normally docile girl possessed, another side of her that Touma was happy to be a witness to, even if it did get his heart racing a little faster than he would have liked. He remembered the rapid fear that had consumed him the first time he bore witness to her speed demon traits. Some of that fear was still there, but it was now balanced out with a mixture of excitement and reassurance. With her behind the wheel, he had faith; a part of him couldn't help but muse how nice it would be if he were ever in a plane crash, something that he believed likely lay in his future at some point.

Gradually, the streets became less and less crowded, which Itsuwa took as an opportunity to speed up just a little more. Touma felt his heart rate quicken, which he responded to by tightening his hold around her waist. A voice in the back of his head told him it wasn't just because of that. Just like how he wasn't just hanging out with Itsuwa as a way to repay her for all she'd done to protect him from Acqua.

Touma Kamijou was, like many, many, many men out there, quite dense when it came to romantic affection, but even he could read the signs a little. He'd been subconsciously reading them all night. They were all coming together in an answer that hovered over him.

You're acting like you're just now coming to this conclusion, you already came to it two nights ago when you were talking to Mikoto. A voice within him chided. It was right, at the moment all he was doing was tip-toing around the obvious.

Look at you, you fought a Saint, three Saints, mad scientists and magicians and even a freakin' angel! This is what's scaring you! Come on, man up! Be HER MAN for crying out loud! And make her your woman! Okay, whose inner voice was that? It sounded like a blend of Tsuchimikado and Aogami! Shaking his head, he tried to push the voice away. Though he knew he wasn't exactly a model of gentlemanly behavior, Touma still had his standards. He especially tried to push away the part about making Itsuwa his woman. She was…she was…she was an incredible girl whom he was thankful to know and spend time with, more so than any other female acquaintance.

In an effort to push shelve his inner conflict, he turned his focus to the scenery. He was a little surprised that he recognized it, and he wondered if Itsuwa did too. "Have you ever came down here? I mean, you said both your parents are teachers so…have you ever given any thought to following in their footsteps?"

"I actually have, and I would like to." The young magician plainly admitted. "Teaching…it doesn't seem like a bad career choice, at least to me. Unfortunately, given my duties to the Amakusa Church, I imagine I'd be out for at least a third of all school days."

"That still leaves two-thirds for you to be there." Touma coaxed.

Itsuwa smiled at his words. She wanted to believe he was right, that she would be able to spend enough time to get to know her potential students, to have an impact on them. "Um, what about you, Touma? Have you thought about what you want to do when you're older?"

"…Still working on that part." He responded, a shrug going along with his response. Were they in a classroom, he figured that the response he'd be getting was something along the lines of he could be anything he set his mind to. Realistically, the response would have been anything he was proficient at and could make enough money to live off of. "There are some occupations that I think I should stay away from on account of my right arm. For example, nuclear physicist, it'd suck for my rotten luck to kick in right in the middle of an experiment or near a reactor, right?" Bleak as his joke may have seemed, it was enough to get a laugh out of the spear fighter.

"Personally, I think you can do something a little safer. You've still got plenty of time, so don't feel like you should be in any big rush."

"True, I mean, I still have to make it through high school…and college entrance exams, and college itself, all of which seems scary whenever I think about it."

"Well…would me helping you out from time to time make it seem…less scary?"

"H-H-Huh?"

Briefly, she looked back at him. Because of her hair whipping in wind, Touma couldn't see her cheeks, but he knew they were flush red because he knew Itsuwa. Hell, he could practically feel her body heating up thanks to their close proximity.

"I-I wouldn't mind being becoming a teacher, a-a-and helping a friend study would be a healthy step toward that goal." She explained before quickly looking back to road ahead. It was actually needed as they were heading up mountain and if she wasn't careful the results wouldn't be pretty. Itsuwa had no intention of this romantic evening ending with a motorcycle crash and another trip back to the hospital.

"Um, Itsuwa," Touma began, his voice sounding just as nervous as hers. "That helping out…they we can just call them…study dates." He knew she'd pick up the emphasis he put on the last word, the description of what practically every private get together they had.

Her grip fastened to the handle bars, Itsuwa answered, "I would like that, Touma."

He couldn't see it, but he knew she was smiling.

Almost ten minutes later and the roar of the bike's engine finally came to an end. The two teenagers dismounted and made their way over to the railing-lined ledge that overlooked the surrounding area. District 21 sat on the westernmost edge of the city, as such if one went high enough, they could catch some amazing views; such views were one of the reasons why it housed many astronomical observatories. They could have stopped at one of those, but the couple had decided they didn't need anything too fancy for their first date.

First date, that's what they acknowledged this to be-the first of many more dates to come.

Natural stars twinkled above them while an array of steel pipes stretched out before them into the rest of Academy City, pumping thousands, probably millions of gallons of water into the city for its inhabitants. It stood as a sharp contrast to the natural landscape that lay behind them-mountains dotted with rivers held back by dams that both funneled water into the city and helped power it through generators. The two battle-tested individuals could hear the hum of some of those generators, it made for a suitable melody to watch to enjoy the scenery.

Neither of them said a word about the physical intimacy Touma initiated by wrapping his arm around Itsuwa's waist, not that she minded it, quite the contrary. She leaned into his embrace, placing her head atop his shoulder as the early fall wind drifted through the city. Given how close they were to the mountains, the breeze was quite chilly, which Itsuwa had accounted for in choosing to wear a coat. As for Touma, all he was wearing was his school jacket, which was less than ideal to keep the cold at bay. It became another reason for him to hug his purple-haired admirer.

"I know it may seem a little redundant…but I'm going to ask it anyway. Itsuwa, would you-"

"Yes! I-I would love to be your girlfriend!" Just like that, any sense of calmness or subtly she'd been shooting for became dust in the wind. For the umpteenth time, her face exploded into red bright enough it could put a tomato to shame. She was the one dressed appropriately so Touma should have been clinging onto her, instead, it was the reverse. She clung to him like he was a life raft. An inner voice inside of her chastised her saying that such behavior was likely going to get him to reconsider accepting her as his-

"I'm happy to hear that, Itsuwa." Touma gently cut off. She looked up to him, wide-eyed and mouth slightly agape. He felt his heart thundering in his chest as he stared back at her. It was screaming for him to do one thing, and he did it. With his free right hand, he cradled her face and pressed his lips against hers.

All the feelings that had been cooking within the two teens finally found an outlet in the moment that their lips connected. What started as a short and sweet kiss quickly erupted into more. Mouths opened and tongues took the invention to explore, colliding against each other in the process. It only furthered the sensual explosion occurring within the two of them. Touma held the shorter girl against his chest, an embrace that Itsuwa happily accepted as she pressed her hands against his chest. As they continued to kiss, she boldly began to snake her hands upward then looped them around her boyfriend's neck. In turn, his hands moved to her waist. Even when they had to separate for air, he didn't want to be apart from her; it was the first time Touma had ever felt this strongly for anyone in his life.

A second later and their lips, and mouths, connected again. The formerly cold breeze that had been battering them was nonexistent, the couple's newly admitted love keeping them more than warm enough.

It took the sound of a plane flying overhead for them to full separate and take stock of their newfound positions. One look at them and they certainly looked a couple-faces red, including their lips, their breaths panted, their arms wrapped around each other, and their bodies pressed close together. It was possible if they'd kept going one of them probably would have overwhelmed the other and they would have found themselves lying on the ground. The question was if that would have stopped them or if they'd have kept on going.

Touma had a gut feeling that he might have done the latter. Itsuwa felt that she might not have protested the two of them going that far.

Of course, the logical portions of their brains, now rapidly reassorting control over them, chastised the pair since going that far on a public bench on a cliffside overlook Academy City probably wasn't a good idea. Touma in particular felt that the minute things started seriously heating up his iconic rotten luck would kick in. The last thing he wanted was for Itsuwa to end up embarrassed.

Slowly, the two teenagers began to feel themselves laughing. They took up their original positions on the bench, his arm around her and her leaning into his side.

"You know, this relationship…it won't be easy. I won't always be in Academy City." She spoke, a look of longing in her eyes.

"I know, and knowing my luck, I'll probably be out to, off to who knows where." At least they were both on the same page. To onlookers, they were just two teenagers in an ordinary romantic relationship, Touma wished that's all they were. Contrary to his declaration that he was just an ordinary high school student, he knew that wasn't entirely true. He may have seen himself as ordinary, but the events he constantly found himself involved in were anything but ordinary-they were also seemingly never ending. "But, at the end of the day, Academy City is the home I always come back to…and I'd…like it if it could be the same for you, Itsuwa."

Nuzzling his chest, she responded, "It already was, but thanks to you, Touma, I have even more reason to return here as often as I can." Her left hand rose and stretched across his chest; catching her drift, he stretched out his right hand and placed it over hers. Their fingers interlocked. "I know what you're going to say, if I get together with you, some of your rotten luck might rub off on me…but I think I'm prepared for that. And I think I'm prepared to challenge your assumption that bad luck plagues you. Touma, I…I want to stay by you long enough that you can say that you're not cursed, that having someone like me in your life is a…" Her courage temporarily stalled as her cheeks burned. That burning was channeled within her to reignite her courage. "I consider meeting you a blessing…and I want you to consider that meeting me and letting me love you can be considered a blessing."

Utter silence gripped Touma's being as he digested the words. He stared slack-jawed at the shimmering eyes of the young fighter-mage who'd quietly stolen his heart and whose heart he'd unintentionally charmed. As he struggled to speak, he felt the grip on his head tightened as Itsuwa's gaze somehow grew stronger.

"You don't live an easy life, but your life is precious, to me and so many others. I want to protect it…and…I want to share in it with you. I'll train my body and mind everyday if it means I'm able to do that." She meant every word. "We may not always be together physically, but in spirit, I'd like to believe we are. When we are together physically…I swear, I'll do everything in my power to protect you, Touma. Even give my-"

He felt his heart slamming against the confines of his chest his chest. That slam seemingly cared him forward, catching Itsuwa in a surprise kiss. It was intense, passionate, needy. Her eyes fluttered shut as she accepted it. She almost completely lost herself in the embrace, almost.

Touma could see that as they broke the kiss. Itsuwa had enjoyed it, but she wasn't letting it distract from the conversation at hand. That just further affirmed to the Level-0 that the girl in his arms was the girl for him.

"Itsuwa, I don't want you to give your life to safeguard mine, that's the last thing I would want you to do." He began, a fearful shudder rocking his body. "Instead of that…I…I want you to live your life…which I want to be a part of, the same way I want you to be a part of my life. So, what I'm guess I'm saying is…"

"I'll watch your back," she squeezed his hand showing that they were still interlocked. "And you watch mine. At the end of the day…we…um…come back to each other?"

"For moments nights like tonight? Hell yeah." He grinned. Itsuwa laughed, a new sense of joy exploding throughout her body. Like a magnet, it attracted the same euphoria swirling within Touma leading to yet another hug and a kiss, neither of which were lacking in comparisons to their previous embraces. What set it apart from the others was the sense of completion that had enveloped the two teenagers. They'd rode up to this spot with a great deal of emotions compressed within them, emotions that they both wanted to deal with before this date night ended. Needless to say, they'd dealt with them.

Now, what lay before them was the future, represented by the sea of lights that was Academy-

RING! RING! RING!

Touma's heart skipped a beat as he separated from his girlfriend and reached into his pocket. A multitude of feelings were running through him, but one took precedence above all else-annoyance. "Hello?" He called into the phone sounding half-baffled and half-annoyed.

This didn't go unnoticed by the person on the other end. "Um, heheh, I…take it this was a bad time?" Came Index's voice from the other end.

"Like you wouldn't believe." Touma grumbled. He wasn't surprised that it was Index calling him, and now of all times. His eyes widened a second later. "Index, you haven't set anything on fire, did you?!" He yelled.

"What? No! I know how to pour water on anything that's smoking!" She shot back.

"Water won't stop an electric fire; it'll just make it worse!" He fired back before taking a breath to calm himself. "What's up? Did something happen?"

"Um, uh…well, I actually called because I wanted to know if you could…bring me some pudding on your way back from your date with Itsuwa. Speaking of which, how's it going? You two didn't get another member of the Catholic Church coming after you or ran into another psycho Esper, did you?"

Touma felt his eyebrow twitch. "Pud…ding…pudding?" Seriously? That's what interrupted his date with Itsuwa? Pudding?!

"Chocolate-vanilla swirl if you don't mind." She added.

A burst was coming, a flood that would crash down through the entire mountain.

Itsuwa acted fast to make sure it never came. "We'll pick some up on the way back. Fair warning though, it may take us a little while to get back. We're up in the mountains of District 21."

"District 21? Seriously, you guys went that far? Fine, just make sure to come back safely." With that, the line went dead and Itsuwa handed the phone back to its rightful owner. She flashed him a soft smile as she did so. "I…think it may be time we call it a night, huh? It's getting close to ten and last I checked, it's a school night, right?"

It was a full minute of nothing but silent staring at the spear-wielder before the wielder of the Imagine Breaker chuckled. "That's true. As much as I'd like to stay out, it is time we probably started calling it a night. Plus, I really don't want to freeze my ass off."

"How's about for our next date, you dress a little more appropriately." Innocently offered the Amakusa Church girl. "Or, we can stop by your apartment so you can change clothes." There was a beat as she directed her gaze to the side. "On one of our dates…we could…go shopping."

Chuckling, Touma slipped his phone back into his pocket, then threw his arm around Itsuwa. "All sound like awesome ideas. I'll have to pick one out for our next date."

Itsuwa felt a flutter of excitement run through her at the thought of another date, and another, and another beyond that. How many would they go on? Where would they be? Given their earlier talk, it was clear that their paths might cross outside of Academy City, and when they did, they'd make the most of their time together. Just as they were doing now.

As they sat down on her motorcycle, they took a minute to look up and admirer the stars that glittered above them. Would they have such a starry view on their next date, wherever and whenever that would be? Neither Touma nor Itsuwa knew, just as they had no idea what the future held in store for them…but they were confident that they could weather it.

As Touma wrapped his arms around her waist, he felt an odd but very welcome sense of optimism consume him.

He was always jumping into other people's business, but it was a rarity for other people to jump into his, and take such a vested interest in actively being by his side. Index had been the first, and for that, he was happy. Itsuwa was the second, and for her continued presence, he was grateful. Her presence, her insistence on being a part of his life…what had he ever done to earn such a thing? How had she penetrated the sphere of bad luck that constantly plagued his life?

Touma didn't know the answer to that, and frankly, he didn't care. He was happy, happy that he had someone whom loved him and he believed he could come to love in return. It was a miracle, one that he'd spend every day of his life thankful for, and fight to protect, just as she would fight to protect him.

---

Alright, there it is, the date and fluff that I originally wanted to content to a single One-Shot, but here we are at two chapters with a third one pending. I have a soft spot for characters like Itsuwa: soft spoken, shy, nice, possesses some hidden talents like driving and housekeeping, and fully willing to put her life on the line to defend the things and people she holds dear. In the case of Touma, I felt it was an interesting polarity as it's stated that she's willing to die for him, which clashes with his hidden self-worth issues. To help start taking a crack at that, I had to have the first chapter which had him starting to accept parts of Mikoto's speech.

Leapfrogging off of that, the first part of this chapter kind of followed up on the end of the last one. In this case, it was Itsuwa and Index having a heart-to-heart. In my opinion, Touma developing a romantic relationship with another person would have an impact on Index as should that relationship go far enough…they would have to separate; in the context of this story, I see their relationship as more sibling-like with Index the younger sibling realizing her older brother will eventually move out and live his own life. But that doesn't necessarily mean he's going to cut her out of his life and it's going to be the end of her world.

Regarding the scene outside the sport center, you can put that on lingering trauma. The battle with Acqua is still fresh in everyone's mind so Itsuwa is a little…defensive, something that Touma's quite aware of. Admittedly though, it was a fun thing for me to throw in since I loved the dark side Itsuwa exposed after Tatemiya's pep talk.

So, Touma and Itsuwa had Italian on their first date. At first, I was going to have them eat at a Japanese restaurant, but I decided to spice things up a little thus the pizza joint scene was born. Some teasing from an OC staff who all poke fun at Touma's lady-killer-tendencies. Some quick Italian for you all,

Sole Rosso is Italian for "red sun"

Signore Sfortunato is Italian for "Mister Unlucky" (quite a fitting nickname, huh?)

Prega il Signore is Italian for "Praise the Lord"

Il Capo is Italian for "boss"

Signore Fortunato is Italian for "Mister Lucky"

Bello Italian for "beautiful" and semplicemente bello means "simply beautiful"

In the end, their date was mostly incident-free and filled with enough fluff that I'm hoping was entertaining and heartwarming. I really do love Touma and Itsuwa together as a couple and I do plan on writing some more for them, especially since there seems to be little content featuring them. One of them will probably involve a date with one cooking for the other, or both, and maybe a little something more. Hopefully when those stories are posted you'll give them a read. Until then, stay safe and healthy, readers!