"Beautiful, isn't it?"
"Wha-?!" You shrieked in surprise― You had been so wrapped up in your thoughts that you hadn't even notice Commander Pixis next to you until now. You ended up spending the rest of the day up on the wall, just staring into the distance and thinking. How long he had been standing there, you had no idea. "I… I'm sorry, Commander, I know I'm not supposed to-" You hastily explained as you scuffled up, but Pixis quickly interrupted you.
"It's fine, don't worry about it." Garrison commander chuckled. "I often come up here just to collect my thoughts, to relax… It's a good place for that." He smiled as he pulled out a flask from his pocket and popped the cork open. After taking a long gulp of his drink, he handed the bottle to you― Still unable to make up your mind of what to think of this, you accepted the gesture somewhat confused. The strong smell of liquor made the hair on the back of your neck stood up when you brought the flask up to your lips, but you took a small sip anyway. "[l/n], right?" He asked as you handed the flask back, chuckling a bit at your efforts not to cringe at the taste of the drink. "So, feel a need to lighten your heart? I don't mean to pry, but…" Pixis gave you a meaningful but sympathetic look as he spoke. "You looked kind of troubled when I found you here."
"What?" You blinked surprised. Pixis really was a sharp-eyed old coot, you had to admit. "No, I'm alright― I just have a lot on my mind, that's all." You gave him a slight smile before turning your gaze back to the horizon. The view was beautiful indeed; Sun was already quickly setting behind the mounds and hills in the distance, painting the sky into a rainbow of warm colors.
"Is that so?" He chuckled― The slight raise of a brow told you he was having a hard time believing you. "They'll be back in… 3 days, wasn't it? The scout regiment, that is." Pixis answered to the confused look of yours. "They'll be fine, don't worry about them."
"Scout regiment..?" You frowned, now staring at him in disbelief. "Why would I-"
"Why?" Garrison commander repeated the question, a somewhat mischievous spark in the corner of his eye. "Because of that sweetheart of yours."
"My what?!" At this point you didn't know if you should feel more awkward or creeped out. There was a hint of truth in his words, but you weren't just ready to admit it― Even to yourself. "No, no, no..! There's definitely no sweetheart anywhere! Not here or not there!" You hastily explained, gesturing towards both inside and outside the walls in a lively manner.
"Oh, don't you even try and deny it― The longing of a heart, I know when I see one." Old man laughed and took one and then another gulp from the flask before continuing. "Ahh, young love..! Is there anything better?"
"What are you talking about?" Ignoring the heat on your cheeks, you crossed your arms over your chest and gave the garrison commander a stern look. "Just drop it, I am not in love with him! We barely even- I- I… Oh dear." Only now realising your own words, you quickly swatted your hand over your mouth; What you just had slipped out made the smirk on the garrison commander's face only grow wider.
"So you have someone special in your mind after all?"
"No! Or… I don't know, maybe…" You groaned, lowering your gaze to rub your temples― This conversation was really wearing you out. Who would have guessed that one day you'd be discussing about the complexity of your romantic life with who else but Garrison Commander Pixis? That was a conversation you weren't ready for yet! "You know…" You sighed as you began slowly dragging yourself towards the closest staircase. "Life is stupid sometimes."
"It sure is~!" You heard him laugh as you slouched the very first few steps down. "But no worries, you'll get used to it!"
Last rays of sunshine had disappeared behind the horizon and the chilly night air was creeping in. No matter how hard you tried, you couldn't get the old coot's words from your mind as you made your way through the darkening city.
"Damn Commander Pixis… And damn Captain Levi..!" You muttered under your breath as you marched down the hall and towards the living quarters of the military police HQ. "I had a good thing going― The shit dust was finally starting to set, life was simple and good… Note to myself: Mind your own business and you'll do fine. If you'll ever see a drunken, ridiculously hot guy tottering middle of the street at night, just keep walking." It was already quite late in the evening and most of the folk had retreated to their bunks a good while ago― After not encountering more than a few souls when returning to the HQ, you almost jumped out of your skin when someone ran into you at the living quarters doorway.
"Whoops! I'm sorry, I didn't-" Reddish haired girl hastily apologized, almost dropping her glasses in the hustle. "I wasn't looking where I- Oh! [f/n]..!"
"Running around like a headless chicken again, Elise?" You snickered at your friend, reaching down to grab the papers from the floor that had slipped from her grasp as she bumped into you. "Looks like Dawk is busting your butt for reals."
"Y-yeah, I guess so." Elise laughed somewhat nervously, correcting her glasses again.
"Is… something wrong?" At first you thought it was just your imagination, but something felt off― She was clearly avoiding the eye contact when you handed the papers to her, nervously fiddling with a loose strand of hair the whole time.
"What? Oh, no..! It's fine." Elise shook her head, not taking her eyes off from the papers in her hands. "I just… I'm sorry, I need to get these reports on the commander's desk before he leaves the office―" She gave you a timid smile before rushing past you. "Gotta run, good night!"
"What the..?" You furrowed your brow as you watched her skitter down the hallway and out of sight. She had looked surprised― almost shocked― when she realized it was you who she bumped into. The way she acted was really out of character, to say at least; Elise was a bit quirky and often in a hurry running Dawk's errands, but you had never seen her seemingly so nervous. "This can't be good… definitely not good. She was clearly avoiding me! But why?" An unnerving feeling stirring up in your gut, you continued your way up to your room. "Elise is really the worst liar ever― If she hadn't skittered away so quickly, I bet I would've been able to-" Just about to reach for the keys in your pocket, you halted when you found your room door slightly ajar. You could swear you'd never forget to lock the door, and few cracks on the wood around the lock were enough to ensure this wasn't the case this time either. After cautiously pushing the door fully open, you stood at the doorway for a few seconds before slowly walking in.
"Great… Why didn't I see this coming?" Letting out a deep sigh, you took a moment to examine the destruction; Your whole room was trashed, all your belongings either torn apart or scattered around the floor. "Well then… Looks like I'm fucked."