"Hnn." Noriko stared down at the plate that had been set in front of her, one ear twitching and her tail drooping a little. "This is…?"
"It's kombu and rice." Saitama sat across the table from her, already digging into his share. "What?"
"I can't eat this." She prodded the steamed green vegetation with a chopstick, grimacing. It smelled like food, but she knew better than to try to eat it. I appreciate him trying to be friendly…and I bet it tastes okay. Although I've never seen him cook before. Noriko lifted her sharp green eyes from the plate to meet his irritated gaze. "I don't mean-"
"Noriko's teeth are not built for eating leafy vegetables," Genos finished for her. He came from the kitchen with another plate, exchanging her kombu and rice for chicken curry and rice. "When I had my fingers inside her mouth yesterday, I could feel that most of her teeth are sharp and pointed like a cat's instead of flatter in the back like a human's. While she still has flat teeth in the back, they are less flat than ours and there are fewer that are flat on top. If Noriko were to try to eat leafy vegetables, they would get caught in her teeth and fangs. Noriko, I prepared this earlier while you were out training and there is more if you are still hungry."
"…thank you…Genos…" The catgirl felt awkward about dropping the honorific, but when he started to just call her "Noriko", she knew it would be even more awkward if she continued to call him "Genos-san". She started to eat, using the fork that he had set down beside the plate.
"Why were your fingers in her mouth?" Saitama stared across at the two with a deadpan expression.
"I fed Noriko yesterday before she regained her strength."
She felt like her face had caught on fire and bowed her head, wanting to hide her definitely red cheeks. Long strands of violet hair fell around her face as she lifted another forkful of curry to her lips. This is really sweet. It's still good though. How is he so good at cooking? Her tail straightened and bristled, ears perking forward as she felt a hard chest against her back and fingers running through her long hair.
Genos pulled her hair away from her face and secured it, but lingered for a moment. Metal fingertips gently went to one of her human ears and he lightly traced the shell of it. In front of him, Noriko had gone completely still and seemed to not mind when he touched her ear. Almost as if she was unable to even feel it. "Are your human ears functional?"
"N-no. When I mutated, I went deaf in my human ears and lost all feeling in the skin there," she quietly answered. It was embarrassing to talk about. When she went out without her hooded coat, people tended to stare and even ask her which ears were real. She felt the chilled metal suddenly at the base of her right ear, ghosting over the sensitive skin of her neck. "Hn. What…are you doing?"
"I am curious as to how much you can feel. The feeling is only absent until you reach the base of your humans ears, correct?" He saw her nod. "And the skin at the base seems to be very sensitive."
"Okay, can we get back to having dinner? You're making this awkward, Genos." Saitama met both of their gazes with a blank stare.
"Sorry, Master Saitama."
Noriko was glad when Genos sat beside her again and tried to focus on her meal. What he had said was true. Leafy vegetables did get caught in her fangs every time she tried to eat them. Also, the skin around her human ears was extremely sensitive. She could still feel her face burning, remembering the gentle caress of cold metal over her skin. Glancing at him from the corner of her eye, she caught herself watching him eat.
Despite being a cyborg, she knew that he had a sense of taste and touch. He seemed to enjoy eating and made small indications when he particularly liked something. They were small, almost unnoticeable indications. She could tell from his face that he did not enjoy the kombu. His lips were turned down at the corners ever so slightly and his eyes were just a little narrowed. "Hn. Do you…want to get ice cream later?"
Genos turned his head to look down at her, slightly confused. "Do you want ice cream? If you and Master Saitama both want ice cream, I will go after dinner and-"
"N-no. Er…I'm asking you. I guess. Just you. Do you want to go with me to get ice cream later?" She saw his expression soften and blushed a fresh shade of red. I like him. I definitely like him. I can't though. There are things that I need to accomplish. I don't have time for figuring this out.
"I'm not invited?" Saitama spoke up.
"Master, I will get you ice cream while we are out," Genos assured him.
"I'm going for a run after I finish eating, but we'll go after that," Noriko stated. I just need to stay focused and not let him get to me. I have to get back in fighting shape. The best way to heal is to make my body work. She glanced over at Genos again and saw a change in his expression when he began eating again. He looked pleased now.
When her meal was finished, Noriko set off for her run through the ghost town. She had gone out to train earlier that day, but had been called back for dinner before she could get around to her run. Her mind was on something else as she began at a light jog, moving down the street and away from the apartment building. She was thinking about her fight with Speed o' Sound Sonic. It still struck her as odd that he had been that infuriated at the mere mention of Saitama.
Thinking about the fight inevitably led her to think about how she had wounded him. It was a freak occurrence. She was trying to put herself behind him and managed to slip, her grip on her blades faltering. Both swords slashed into his side and the smell of his blood ignited her prey drive. Despite being battered and bleeding, she had been driven to attack with even more ferocity.
Speed o' Sound Sonic. He wasn't as strong as Saitama, but he was still pretty strong. And fast. The catgirl gritted her teeth and picked up her speed, her limbs aching in protest. She was still healing, but there was no way that she could spend the day sitting in the apartment building with the other two heroes. Genos tended to hover around her, checking on her wounds to see if they needed new bandages. Saitama tended to either ignore her presence or ask questions about her feline mannerisms. He's…still weird. I don't get that guy.
"So why'd you turn him down?"
Noriko tripped at the sound of Saitama's voice right beside her. Tumbling forward, she rolled and skinned her elbows and knees. She pushed herself off the ground with a snarl and tried to brush dust from her borrowed clothes with dignity. Her tail was still puffed up in alarm, but she managed to hide her surprise from her face. "Hn…did you follow me…?"
"Yeah. So why did you turn down Genos?"
"I…don't know what you're talking about." She started off again at a walk, shoving her hands into the pockets of the baggy green cargo pants. Her tail whipped side to side, showing her irritation.
"He said he told you how he felt."
"Hnn. He said he had feelings for me. He never said what they were," she argued. Noriko knew he was following her. Her pointed ears swiveled a little, picking up on his less than stealthy footsteps.
"You know what he meant. So what'd you tell him?"
She bowed her head and lifted a hand, anxiously gnawing her thumbnail with a fang. "…he took my first kiss…as "Noriko"…"
"Huh? What does that mean? I'm confused."
You always look confused! Suppressing her frustration, she took a deep breath and sighed. "I wasn't born as "Noriko". I gave myself this name…the day I escaped Grey Corporation. Before I was "Noriko", I was "Project Nya Number 1 First of Her Kind". Before that, I was "Moriyama Hinako". I've never been kissed…as "Noriko". So I was surprised."
"And you turned him down because you were surprised?"
She looked over at him, her tail pausing in its natural swaying motion. "Saitama-san, you…ask weird questions. I just said that I've had three different names and you don't care?"
He gave her a deadpan stare, appearing to genuinely not care. "Well that second name was really weird, but it doesn't really matter. You're "Noriko" now, right? Anyway, why did you turn down Genos?"
Still quite perplexed, she tilted her head. "He…never asked me out. He just…said that he had feelings for me…and kissed me." Her face heated up as she spoke and she absently toyed with a loose lock of purple hair. "I…said that I didn't have time for that stuff…and I don't. I have to take down Grey Corporation."
"Yeah, but you're still a teenager, right? You're like eighteen, aren't you? And you're training to get stronger so you can beat that place, which might take a while. Why can't you try doing stuff people your age do?"
"You know…you sound old when you talk that way."
"I'm like seven years older than you." He smiled and reached over, ruffling her hair and messing up her ponytail. "C'mon. Just give him a shot."
"He stole my first kiss."
"It's cute."
"It's not cute…it's…hn. I lost my kiss virginity to a cyborg." Her ears flattened, tail drooping a little as she bared her fangs.
Saitama burst into laughter, holding his stomach. "Did you just say "kiss virginity"?! I don't think I've ever heard anyone say that before! That's hilarious!"
She narrowed her eyes and scowled. "I didn't think you could laugh."
"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"
"I guess…I'll just see how it goes today," she conceded. It might take a while for me to get strong enough to break the others free. And I'm not going to ask this weirdo to help me. He might accidentally go after the other test subjects and kill them with that crazy punch. Noriko turned around to face the direction of the apartment building and frowned, sinking a fang into her bottom lip. My first kiss as "Noriko"…and it was like that. It wasn't bad at all. It was like…he was trying to be really careful with me. A lot more careful than my first kiss as a test subject.
She returned to the building and set off with Genos for the convenience store, both of them being silent. Neither seemed to know what to talk about. The blonde appeared to be lost in thought and Noriko was thinking about how she would apologize to the convenience store clerk for fighting in the store. When he finally began to talk, she jolted at the sudden break in the silence.
"I am glad that you asked me to go with you, Noriko."
"Were you…serious? When you said that you…?"
"I was serious when I said that I have feelings for you. Master Saitama has brought to my attention that I should have been more direct when I spoke to you and I would like to try it again."
The catgirl felt her heart skip a beat and she watched him from the corner of her eye. "…so…try again…?"
The two entered the convenience store side by side and walked over to make their ice cream selection, as well as picking something for Saitama. The young man behind the counter rang up their purchases, keeping his head down to hide his blackened eye and the bandage plastered on his cheek. He gave Noriko a simple nod and she nodded back in silent greeting, promising herself that she would return alone later to figure out what had happened to him.
Once they were back outside, Genos turned his attention back to Noriko. "I have feelings for you and they are romantic feelings. Noriko, I would like to ask you to-"
"F-fine." Her cheeks turned red and she unwrapped her popsicle, trying to distract herself from her embarrassment.
He seemed almost taken aback by her answer. "Are you sure? The last time I spoke to you about these things, you said that you did not have time."
"Well, I…I mean…you were…my first kiss. And I…liked it…and I like you. I…hnn…I have…a crush…on you. S-so we can try…hanging out…like friends at first, okay? I need to take things slower…because I'm still not used to being free like this and acting my age."
"Yes. We can take things slow," he agreed. "You are sure that you want this?"
"…are you sure…?" She tilted her head and ran her tongue along the popsicle, savoring its sweet pineapple flavor.
He could not help but stare as she repeated the action and finally leaned forward toward her. "Yes. I am sure that I want to have a relationship with you, Noriko, and I will do my best to accommodate your needs." Genos saw her face turn a deeper shade of red and came even closer. Before she could pull away, he stole a lick from her frozen treat. She stared up at him, slightly startled by the action. "Would you like a taste of mine?"
She grimaced and went to lick the plain vanilla cone, but found him quickly pulling it away. Her lips met his in a kiss that was harder than before. Butterflies filled her in that moment, making her stomach do flips and making her heart skip a beat. She gripped his wrist tightly and broke the kiss, turning to chomp off the top part of the ice cream. Licking her lips, she pulled back and began to walk away.