Xero passed back and forth, refusing to look at her partner in the mirror again. Even if no one saw a flaw, she knew she would. She went over her checklist again. "Attire, hair, gift," she quickly turned her head towards the box on the kitchen table. "Mints, book."
She looked at her communicator in her hand for the millionth time. "You can do this. Just relax. You've fought monsters and an evil clone. You can ask out your partner to a casual dinner date."
She scrolled through her contacts until she reached "Z."
"Relax. This is just a normal thing. It's not like we are getting married. We're just going out to eat. Maybe even hug." for a moment she thought what life could look like if they weren't restricted by the rules. "Maybe, if the situation was ever right, we could hold hands… or even… kiss." She quickly pushed that thought out of her mind.
"Get it together!" she told herself as she dialed the communicator. "Be confident."


Zero looked at the deserted room, his eyes falling squarely on the middle floorboard, right in between the two support beams. He moved carefully to its and removed the 1st, 2nd and 3rd loose board. Hidden under the boards were a set of journals. He moved them with precision as though they were ancient relics. As he tucked the journals within his coat, his communicator went off.
"Hey Xero, perfect timing, I just finished here," he said noticing the communicator was set to one-way view. All he could see was a black screen.
"That's great, so here's what's going to happen. You. Me. Dinner. Reccardi's. Need pick up?" she said quickly.
Zero looked out the windows and could see the restaurant several blocks away. "No, I am good. See you there."
"Good, good. Right. Yea. Great. See you there in a bit, Zero," she said awkwardly before hanging up.
Without thinking twice about the conversation, zero pocketed his communicator and double checked that he had all the books. He then started his descent down the stairs, only stumbling on his feet once or twice on his way down to the street levels.


Xero double checked everything she had again. Her attire, hair, and the gift.
"Why did I say his name, he already knows I'm talking to him," she asked herself as the Modi-pod lowered her down to the street levels.


Susan continued to row, her thoughts turning to the future. What will happen? Will the Poppyfields be happy to see them again? To see her? Will they recognize their daughter after so long? Can she actually connect with her son or will he reject her entirely? How will the Poppyfields react to-
"Susan, it's my turn to row," Katz said breaking her train of thought.
"Right, right," she said handing over the oars.
She looked out into the darkening sea. The sun coming down to an end. "What do you suppose they are up to," she asked out loud.
"I'm sure Vein has them trapped in a cell right now."
"I meant Zero and Xero."
Katz thought about that for a moment. "Probably enjoying a nice dinner. But you should get some rest before your next shift."
"Right," she agreed as she laid her head down. She had closed her eyes, yet all she could think about was the future, the possible futures, and whether or not she had one with a happy ending.