A/N: Hello, all! Back again for more? ^_^
Chibi Allen: Aw, man…I never wanna see another fruit in my life…ow, my head… o_o
~_~0 eheheh, sorry O, muse of mine, but you were weirdin' out on me back there…
Well?
Allen: Well what?
*sigh* Now my head hurts…The disclaimer, Allen! The disclaimer!
Allen: Oh yeah. *scratches back of head* I kinda forgot, hehe. o^_^o
So?
Allen: So what?
Not this again…
Allen: Right! Right, the disclaimer…midnightoasis doesn't own Xenosaga—or me for that matter—even though I'm kinda on loan I guess…^_^
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The Glass is Half Empty: The life of Allen Ridgeley
Chapter Seven: Here and now
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I'm not a savior
I'm not a king
There's only one voice in your
head
But I feel your anger
I speak your peace
Freedom time is here
So are you ready for the
Here & Now
~Steve Vai, "Here and Now"
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"I finally took a look at how screwed up my life had become. I can't even imagine how far down I would've sunk if Basil and the rest hadn't stepped in." Allen still cupped the now empty mug between his hands to stop the tremors that shook them.
Shion stared at him for a long moment. "Wow, Allen. I had no idea…" Muffled sniffles came from behind her in the other booth. Shion turned to find its source. "What was that—MOMO?!"
The little Realian came barreling out of the seat as Junior reached after her. Tears flying from her golden eyes, she flung herself at Allen in a fierce hug. His eyebrows shot up, and the color drained from his face.
"I-I'm so sorry…that you had to go through so much…pain. You had to deal with such a…such a horrible hurt…" She sobbed against his shirt, the dampness of her tears seeping through the layers of cloth.
Allen patted the little girl's back. "Shh, now. C'mon, you don't have to cry for me, MOMO. All that happened a long time ago…Please don't cry anymore."
After several more minutes of the group soothing the distraught girl, MOMO took a seat beside Shion, and Jr. sat beside Allen, who was now rubbing his eyes in a pained manner. "So the two of you were eavesdropping…you heard the whole thing, didn't you?"
Jr. raised his hands in defense. "Hey, is it really eavesdropping if we were in here first?" He grinned, and Allen shook his head and sighed.
Shion's brows knitted together. "Really…so what were the two of you doing in here alone that caused you to hide when Allen and I came in?"
The two young people blushed, and Jr. sputtered, "W-we were just talkin'…no rules against that!"
Allen arched an eyebrow. "Uh huh…I'll bet. Well, at any rate, you've heard this much already. Shall I continue?"
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Allen walked out of the dean's office, a worn leather briefcase slung over his shoulder. He'd been given the supervisor position over the new simulation experiment in the tech department and now clutched a list containing the names of the four students that would be working under him.
He paused and ran a hand through his shaggy hair—classes had made him hard-pressed to find time for a haircut. After a year at Bormeo, he had already landed jobs as teaching assistant and lab assistant to the head of the computer programming and virtual systems department…which was helped in part by his intense, year-long coursework.
It had only taken a few months of pleading with the offices at Bormeo to renew his application and begin his first fall semester, two years later than he would have if he had attended when he first planned. With all of the support they had given him despite his poor choices, Allen would never be able to fully thank his friends—his brothers—for all they had done for him.
He glanced at his watch. There were ten more minutes until the lecture on Realians in the main hall. Rumor had it that Vector would be sending a few of its employees to discuss possible arcs of new and ongoing projects…as well as recruiting opportunities for the corporation's research sector. It looked like it would be a very promising day.
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The lecture hadn't been quite as engaging as Allen had hoped for. The program director from Vector began by talking about a prototype that was made before Allen was even born and then spent the rest of the two hours pushing his "Realian Rights" campaign. At the end, Allen couldn't wait to get out of there.
He was on his way to lunch when he collided with somebody. Allen moved to catch the person's arm to keep them from falling backwards but only succeeded in losing his own balance. They were both sent flying in opposite directions to the sidewalk.
His briefcase's latch snapped, and a stack of papers flew out to scatter on the slight breeze like so many fluttering leaves.
"Oh, no…" Allen scrambled to grab all of his papers before they could blow away. He managed to collect about half of them before turning to face a smiling young woman, who held the remaining sheets in her hand.
She adjusted the glasses on the bridge of her nose. "I'm terribly sorry about running into you like that. I wasn't paying attention." She gestured towards the immaculate blue sky above. "I just find it hard to keep my gaze down on the ground on a day when it's called to be up in the clouds. Here, I think these are yours."
"Thanks. And don't worry; I'm just as much to blame for not watching where I was going." She giggled when he took the papers. "What? What's so funny?"
She gestured towards the papers that he was stuffing back into his scuffed briefcase. "I didn't think that anyone our age actually used paper anymore…Haven't you ever heard of using datapads?"
Allen feigned injury. "Well, I happen to think that there's something to be said for being old-fashioned." He let half of his mouth curve into a warm smile. "Such as inquiring a lady's name after she barrels into you like an A.G.W.S. on the fritz…" He was rewarded with another laugh, and he saw her green eyes twinkle behind her glasses.
She held out a hand. "Alright, but I think I could do a lot more damage to you than an A.G.W.S. in the long run. I'm Shion, Shion Uzuki. And you would be—"
He took it and gave it a slight shake with his own. "Allen Ridgeley. I take it from your uniform that you're here with Vector?"
She dusted off her dress and the sleeves of the trademark yellow and black. "That's right. And from your shaggy hair and stressed-out look…I'd say you're studying here as an assistant to one of the professors…how was that?"
His mouth hung open. "H-how did you…"
She laughed again. "Don't sound so shocked. I recognized your name because I came to speak Dr. Jackson about an upcoming project. I'm acting as sort of an intermediary for recruitment. We thought it would be more meaningful than sending someone from Personnel. Actually, I suppose you should accompany me to his office. You're the subject of our discussion after all."
Allen continued to stare, trying to get his mouth and brain in sync. "You...I mean, I'm the…"
Shion began to walk off. "How about you just show me where his office is for now?"
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"That's right. I was there to get new members for the R&D Division, for my first major project…Wow. I wonder how Dr. Jackson is doing now…his granddaughter's going to Bormeo now, isn't she?"
Allen put
his arm on the table and rested his chin thoughtfully on his hand. "That's
right. She would've started just a few months ago…"
MOMO looked up at Shion. "So
that's when the two of you first met?"
"Yep. I was even the one that conducted Allen's interview to get into Vector." She smiled. "He didn't know that I was going to be his boss at the time, so he called me Shion for those first few weeks. Then I guess he just got into the habit of the whole chief thing."
Jr. nudged Allen and winked. "So, how long did it take after you two met for ya to start puttin' the moves on—mmph!!"
Allen lunged to cover Jr.'s mouth with his hand. "Uh, heh, look at the time…All that talking wore me out."
The crimson-haired boy twisted away from his grasp. "Hey, man. Don't ever touch me like that." He adjusted the lapels of his trenchcoat. "It's not cool. Hey…are you blushing?"
The frazzled engineer quickly stood up. "I don't know what you're talking about…Anyway," he feigned a yawn, "I'm beat. I guess I'll go hit the hay. 'Night!" Allen dashed out of the café.
Shion tilted her head. "Huh…I wonder what that was all about…"
MOMO giggled when she saw Jr. roll his eyes and shake his head.
He mumbled under his breath, "Sometimes I can't believe how dense some people can be…"
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Allen rested his head against the wall of his bunk in exasperation for the second time that day. Geez. What the heck is wrong with me? He closed his eyes, frowning a crease into the middle of his forehead. I always get so damn awkward around her…And Jr. isn't really helping that much. He opened his eyes to stare at the ceiling above him in a distracted daze.
I wasn't like this when I asked her out to dinner that first time…back at Bormeo…
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Allen took the offered hand in front of him and gave it a warm squeeze. "You mean I actually got the research position?!"
The young woman giggled. "Yes, yes. I already told you that! Congratulations, and welcome to the team." She paused for a second, hand still captured in Allen's grasp. "Uh, I know you're a little shocked and all, but could I get that hand back any time soon? I might need it later."
"Oh! geez, I'm sorry…I'm just…so excited to end up at Vector of all places…"
She smiled and withdrew her hand. "Don't worry." She held it up and turned her wrist as if inspecting it. "See? No harm done. Well, I'm looking forward to working with you, Allen. I guess I'll be off…"
"Wait a sec!"
She stopped and smirked at him. "Yes?"
"I, um…are you hungry? I mean…" He took a deep breath. "Would like to have dinner with me?"
Her eyes widened a bit behind her glasses. "I…sure. I have a few more people to meet, so how about we come back here in an hour." The eyes were a twinkling green now. "You can show me around the town, too."
Allen couldn't keep the grin off of his face. "Great! Ahem…That is, I'll see you then, Shion…"
"Alright. See you later, Allen."
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Okey dokey…I'm done for this chapter. Heh, I'll be takin' a few liberties with Allen and Shion's pre-Vector (and pre-Kevin ^.~) relationship…Nothing super romantic. Mostly friendship, actually…But hey, creative license is what fanfiction is all about! ^_^
Allen: Finally! It's about time I get some action!! o^.^o
Shame on you! I'll have none of that in my fic, thank you very much! Remember the rating!!
Allen: Aw, shucks…~_~
Aww…don't worry. It can always change later. ^_~
Allen: Yay!! *glomps*
*_* …sigh…my muse just hugged me…^_^
Thanks to all who reviewed!!
Zero Tribal: Glad you liked it! Well, at least Allen helped bring a bright spot to his life. ^_^
GoldenSunSheba: Oh my…I think chapter 4 is a good preview of what could happen between Allen and the opposite sex on a dark night, in some nasty bar…o_O
Elise E. Maxwell: Thanks for the many compliments and mutual Allen-shippage! ^_^ Hope ya like this chapter, too!
Update will be coming as soon as I can manage…Things are a little bit busy for me here on campus, but I'll do my best! ^o^
As always, read, review, and enjoy!