Chapter 5: Holding On To Moments
Nino didn't leave her room for several days after the event. Serra had quietly carried out her job, and left without a word. Erk had been oddly quiet, too. Pent and Louise were beginning to worry for them all. They sat in their room, discussing what to do.
"First off, I think we need to get Erk and Nino seeing each other outside of lessons." Pent was saying.
"That's an obvious first step." Louise agreed. "Getting them to see each other during their personal time might help."
"Nino's clearly upset about the whole Serra fiasco."
"I think she's more upset about Erk putting a hand on her shoulder when Serra asked if he had someone else. Her hopes got all high, and then Erk said... what he said, and..." Louise sighed. "Nino's upset because she's been rejected, basically."
"And Erk's worried about her." Pent said, nodding. "I'm sure they'll get over this eventually, but it wouldn't hurt if we tried to help, would it?"
"No, dear, it wouldn't." Louise smiled. "So, let's get helping."
--
Nino stood outside the castle gates, with Lady Louise, waiting. What she waiting for, she didn't know; Louise just told her to wait there for a while. Nino sighed, and fidgeted. She felt strange in this new outfit. Louise had told her that she was going to town, and Nino had to come with her. Louise had then yanked Nino's clothes off; her skirt, cloak, tunic, boots, and thrust this new one onto her. Nino's new outfit wasn't entirely different from her old one; she wore tall black boots, a black skirt with red stripes, and a black t-shirt with a red pattern on it. Quite a gothic look, Nino mused. Louise assured her that it looked perfect, and so the two went to the gates. Nino sighed. Whatever were they waiting for? A minute or so later, her question was answered. Pent walked toward them, pulling Erk along behind him.
"Sorry I'm late, darling." Pent said as he neared them. "Erk was being quite resistant."
"It's alright." Louise said, smiling. Nino hid behind her as Erk drew closer. "Now that we're all- Oh, Erk! You look dashing!"
"Thanks..." Erk grumbled.
"He put up quite a fight." Pent chuckled. "Didn't want to wear the outfit." Nino peeked from behind Louise. Erk did look very nice. He was wearing regular-looking black jeans, in contrast to the long baggy pair he usually wore, a plain black t-shirt, and a black hat. "The hat was the main issue." Pent said, grabbing Erk's hand to prevent him from trying to take off the hat for what must have been the twentieth time. "Leave it alone, Erk!" Pent snapped at him.
"I don't like hats..." Erk mumbled. "They're all itchy." He again tried to remove the hat, and was again thwarted by Pent.
"Leave it." Pent warned him. "It looks nice. Try making some sacrifices for your appearance. You'll get used to it." Erk didn't say anything; instead he continued to frown. "Shall we get going?" Pent asked everyone.
"Yes, let's!" Louise replied happily.
"Um..." Nino spoke up. "We're all... going to town?"
"Of course." Pent told her. "I figured my favourite students deserved a break, so I'm taking them to town. That's okay, isn't it?"
"Uh... y-yes." Nino looked away, grabbing Louise's shirt with a hand. Louise and Pent led the children to a horse-drawn carriage nearby, and they all sat inside. Erk and Nino sat opposite each other, and spent the entire ride trying to avoid each other's gaze. Though, they weren't entirely successful. Despite their best efforts, their eyes continued to look at the other. Upon being noticed, they would sharply turn away again. Pent and Louise chuckled at the sight of the pair. It was obvious to the two of them that Erk and Nino cared for each other somewhat, whether or not they admitted it. They hoped that this day out would help the pair of them patch up this obvious rip in their friendship.
-
"Well, here we are." Pent said happily, as the four dismounted. "Well, where are we going first?" He asked the others. Nino hovered as close to Louise as possible, while Erk hovered somewhere a fair distance from the group. "Erk, come over here." Erk grumbled something, then shuffled over, dragging his feet. "Where do you wanna go?"
"Dunno." Erk replied shortly, sounding like a moody teenager. Which, at the time, he was.
"Well..." Pent took a firm hold of Louise's hand. "We're going... this way!" The two ran away as fast as they could.
"Hey!" Erk gasped. Pent and Louise were already out of sight. He glanced nervously at Nino, who looked as surprised as he felt. She looked over to him, then at the ground. "So... what do you wanna do?" Erk asked, sighing.
"I... I don't know." Nino mumbled.
"D'ya wanna stick with me, or shall we go seperate?"
"D-don't leave me alone!" Nino gasped. "I've never been to this town before, I don't wanna get lost!"
"You're sticking with me, then." Erk said, sighing again. "Let's go." He started walking away.
"Wait for me, then!" Nino called, giving chase. She caught up with Erk, and gripped his arm tightly in both hands. "Don't just walk off, Erk."
"Sorry." Erk said, patting one of her hands. "I won't do it again." He looked around at the buildings, wondering what to do. "Got any money on you?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Let's take a look at the market, then." He said, steering her in that direction. "You can always count on a market to have interesting stuff."
-
The pair looked around the market, spending what must have been two hours in there, looking at assorted goods. At first, Erk remained a step behind Nino, watching as she looked at the different items on the different stalls. Eventually, he started talking about the items with her, and pointing out other things she might like. The two started to really enjoy themselves after the first fourty minutes, but Nino's mood was killed by Erk reading a book from one of the stalls for about half an hour. When he finally finished, Nino moaned at him a little, then the two continued to look around the market. After they'd given everything a good look, and bought a couple of items, they went to a nearby bakers'. Erk bought himself and Nino a pasty each, and the two sat by the central statue to eat them.
"Wow." Nino sighed after she had finished her pasty. "That was so much fun!" She grinned happily at Erk. "Thanks for showing me around, Erk!"
"No problem." Erk, who was still eating his pasty, replied.
"But next time, don't spend half an hour reading."
"Hey, gimme a break! I had to wait for you when you were looking at all those girly things! Let me enjoy something, eh?"
"Yeah, but I was only ten minutes! You stood there like a zombie, reading that one book!" Nino glared at him, then giggled. Erk found himself chuckling.
"I wasn't stood like a zombie!" Erk protested, but still laughing.
"You totally were! You were like 'duuhhh'." Nino pulled a ludicrous face, eyes rolled backwards, jaw hanging. "You were totally spaced out. I could've kicked you in the leg, and you wouldn't have noticed."
"Hey, I'm not that bad."
"You're like that every time you read, Erk." Nino told him, prodding his shoulder. "Every. Single. Time." Each word was accompanied by a prod.
"Alright, alright!" Erk said, batting her hand away. "Next time we come to town, I won't read as much!"
"At all!"
"At... what? Now, come on, that's just unfair."
"No it isn't. You seemed to enjoy yourself when you weren't reading. I'm sure you can do it next time, too. Promise. For me?"
"Fine, I promise." Erk smiled. "I'll not read next time we come to town. I'll do what you wanna do, following you on hand and foot like some lost puppy."
"Erk! Not like that! We can do stuff you wanna do, just no reading. Okay?"
"Sure." Erk said, pulling Nino into a one-armed hug.
-
Pent and Louise sat on the second floor of a restaurant, by a window, watching Erk and Nino sat by the central statue.
"Looks like they're getting along already." Pent said, smiling.
"Quicker than I thought they would." Louise told him. "Guess they care about each other more than I thought."
"Think Erk can really go a day without reading?" Pent asked, chuckling.
"If it's for her, I'm sure he could." Lousie sighed as she watched the two talking and laughing, pushing each other playfully. "Erk's still got the hat on." She noted. Pent laughed.
"Maybe he likes it now."
-
"Heyy, you've still got the hat on." Nino pointed out.
"Huh? Wow, guess I forgot about it." Erk said, taking it off. Up in the restaurant window, Pent fell over.
"How come you don't like hats?"
"They itch. Real bad. I'm surprised I forgot I was wearing it, actually. Guess I was having too much fun to notice." He grinned, and Nino giggled a little.
"It looks real nice, though. You should put it back on."
"No, seriously. Hats itch me almost to the point of pain. I hate wearing hats." His grimaced. "But maybe, if you like it so much..." He shrugged.
"Really? You'll wear it for me?" Nino asked. Erk smiled.
"But only if you wear it for a bit first, okay?"
"Sure!" She snatched the hat, and rammed it onto her head. "Like this?" It went surprisingly well with her outfit.
"We totally have to buy another hat like that."
"How come?"
"Well, it looks real good on you. And I want to see you wearing it all the time. But, we can't both wear it at the same time." He explained. Nino pictured herself and Erk, with the hat stretched across both their heads.
"Okay, let's go look for one." She said, chuckling a little. She stood up, and held her hand to Erk. Erk took it, and the pair went in search of another hat for Erk to wear. Nino smiled, gripping Erk's hand tightly. She held this moment in her mind, wishing she could hold his hand forever.
--
Nino laid on her bed in her room, sighing happily as she remembered they day's events. She had completely forgotten why she and Erk had avoided each other for the past few days. Nino giggled, remembering when she and Erk had walked hand-in-hand around town in search for a hat just like the one she was still wearing. She stretched her bare legs, rubbing her bare feet together, and grinned. Today had felt so much like a date, she wished with all her might that it had been. Someday, she promised herself. One day, she would win Erk over, and they would be together. He already liked Nino, so that would make it a little easier to win him over. She could already picture Erk and her, walking around town, holding hands, laughing together, spending time with each other. Sitting by the statue, eating pasties. He would put an arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer against his body. He'd move his face closer to hers. Her lips would part, eager to meet his. She'd close her eyes, so she would feel only his lips against hers, and nothing else. She'd enjoy every moment that their lips were together, and she would stroke his face, grip his shirt, his shoulders... Nino snapped out of her reverie, her face glowing a bright red. Her mind had gotten carried away. She smiled like a fool, pressing her hands against her cheeks as they burned brightly.
"If only!" She giggled, kicking her legs excitedly. She stopped suddenly, sighing. It'd take some work. How would she go about winning him over? First, she should improve in her lessons. If she did, then Erk would be happier, and maybe start to like her more. Then, if he let her go the 'special room', she'd take him, and the two could lay on that bed together, staring at the 'auras' that the room created. Maybe that sort of move could bring them closer together? Nino had felt closer to Erk the first time they had gone to the room. Maybe Erk felt the same? Nino decided then that she should ask Lord Pent and Lady Louise for help. She would do whatever it took to win Erk. Nothing would be going to far. Even if she had to... she shook the thought from her head, blushing again. She knew she'd go that far if she had to, but she didn't want to think about it right now. It was too embarrasing. She sat up, and rubbed her ankles and feet. They were a little sore from all the walking she had done. And the running. And jumping. And even a little dancing, when she and Erk snook into a dance hall. Erk had shown a side of himself that Nino had never seen before. In the castle, during their lessons, Erk was a stern and serious mentor. Outside of lessons, during their free time, he was a quiet, withdrawn friend. In the special room, he was a tender, gentle friend. In town, he was a excitable, mischievous friend. In his diary, he was a cheeky, rude, somewhat arrogant boy. So, Nino mused, which was the real Erk? Were they all the real Erk, but he just showed parts of himself? Or were they all masks, to hide his real self? Nino guessed that before the death of Ella, Erk was his real self, and then he hid away. She vowed that she would make Erk show how he really was. Nino stood up, and sat at her desk. If she was to improve in her lessons, she'd better start now, and make a real commitment. She picked up her quill, dipped it in ink, and started writing 'I will improve' over and over. She paused to adjust her hat, smiling to herself and wondering if Erk was still wearing his.
--
Erk sighed, looking at the hat on his desk. He had taken it off because it itched too much. Nino liked that hat, so he wanted to wear it, but it itched too much. Almost to the point of pain, as he had told Nino. He still didn't understand why hats affected him so. It was all hats; caps, smart hats... all of them. They all made his head itch. He put it to one side, then picked up his quill and started writing. He was copying some text from his book; 'Practical Applications of Anima Magic: Volume VI'. He copied text from his books to help him remember it. It had worked, since he could almost recite all of the books he had ever read. The text he was writing now was how to apply Thunder spells to daily life. Next was how to apply it to travelling. It was surprising, what could be done with Thunder. Erk would not have thought of half of those things even if he'd tried. His hat distracted his attention again. Nino liked it so much. Mumbling to himself, he put it on again, and sat still for a few moments. This was all he could tolerate. After a minute or more, the itching started. Erk scratched furiously at his head, annoyed.
"Why do you itch, damn you??" He asked his head, digging his nails in as hard as he could. That hurt, but didn't distract from the itching. Sighing, Erk scratched once more, then put his hand down. What was it about hats? He used to wear them quite often. One hat in particular. Ella had bought it for him, and told him to keep as a 'lucky hat', so he could do well in lessons and exams. Erk leapt to his feet, and raided through his cupboards for the hat in question. It took an hour or so of searching, but he found it. It was a dark blue hat, that somehow suited his hair, and the clothes he used to wear. He smiled sadly at the hat, remembering Ella. He hadn't worn it since the day he found out she was dead. "Oh, Ella..." He sighed. His voice sounded somehow different. It was similar to his usual deep and distant voice, but it had an edge that beckoned people closer. Erk remembered that once he was a fairly popular, well-liked boy. What had happened? "I lost her." He whispered, swapping the hats over. He looked at himself in his mirror. A minute later, the hat didn't itch. "No itch." He mused. "Special hat." He smiled, running his finger along the pattern that Ella had stitched into it. "Very special." He smiled at himself. "Hello, Erk. It's been a long time. Where have you been?" He sighed. "Hiding. Without Ella, I'm nothing. There's no point in me being here. Stay out there, Erk Two. You'll stop us from getting hurt, won't you? Of course I will." He frowned, then shook his head vigorously, yanking the hat off. "Weird." He hissed. "Talking to myself." He slumped back on his desk, and carried on writing.
-
Nino sank to her knees. She was outside Erk's door. She had rushed to show him her writing, which she thought was pretty good. She had heard everything Erk had said. So, Erk was hiding himself. He was afraid of getting close, and losing that person again. He was afraid that he'd be betraying Ella. Nino could understand that. She fought back the tears, got to her feet, then knocked.
"Come on in, Nino." Erk said. Surprised, Nino entered.
"How'd you know it was me?" She asked as she closed the door behind her.
"You have a very distinctive knock. So, what can I do for you?"
"Um... I, ah... tried writing that sentence again." She offered him the parchment.
"Let's see then." He took them, and inspected the writing. He grimaced slightly.
"No good?"
"No. But, it's alot better." He smiled. "Much better. How hard did you try?"
"Very, very hard!" Nino told him. "Really hard."
"Here." He handed Nino a bracelet. "You can enjoy the Aura Room for a day."
"Uhm... d-d'you... do... you... w-want to come with me?" She squeaked. Erk regarded her for a minute or so, eyes glimmering in thought.
"Can you wait an hour?"
"YES!" Nino shrieked. "Y-yes, I can..." She muttered, blushing.
"Then go to your room, and I'll come get you." Erk told her, turning back to his writing.
"Thank you so MUCH, Erk!" Nino cried, hugging him tightly. "I can't wait!!"
"Ah, but you have to." Erk said, grinning. He half-returned the hug. "Go pretty yourself up."
"I will!" Nino gasped, dashing from the room.
"Too close." Erk murmured after she had gone. "You're getting too close."
--
Nino hummed happily to herself as she looked through her wardrobe for something nice to wear. She was very excited. She called this a 'half-date', since she thought of this as a date, but Erk probably didn't. It'd be different from town, but still nice. To spend some alone time with Erk, just him and her. Laying on that bed, staring at one of the auras that the room could create. She thought it would be incredibly romantic. She sighed happily, imagining Erk laying next to her, smiling softly. He'd roll onto his side, and gently stroke her cheek, his smile widening. He'd move his face closer to hers, and pull her face toward him. She'd close her eyes, waiting...
"Gah!" Nino gasped, snapping out of it. Her imagination had run away again. "Stop it, stop it!" She told herself. "We're not that close yet!" But soon... She promised herself. Soon, we'll be together. She smiled. After choosing a pretty, blue flowing dress and appropriate shoes, she sat herself on her bed. She tried to think about what she could say to Erk, to talk about with him. But, for some reason, she coul only think of the competition she had for Erk's affection. Priscilla, she thought, was a strong contender. Erk liked her, and had spent longer with her than he had with Nino. The tactician was a mild challenger; Erk liked her, but he hadn't said in his diary how much. Rebecca was low on the list owing to her spending so much time with Serra. Serra was way of the charts, as Erk didn't even like her, but she was obsessed with him. Serra would obviously try to get in the way at every opportunity. Nino frowned in thought. Priscilla and Serra were the biggest two worries, then. That, and the ghost of Ella. Erk was clearly still very much in love with Ella, and would have a hard time letting go. Nino sighed, and set about getting ready.
--
Erk and Nino lay on the bed in the Aura Room, staring at the ceiling. Erk had activated the red crystal, which generated an aura of a sunset. Nino smiled happily to herself, glad to be laying so close to Erk.
"Nino." Erk said gently, drawing her back to reality. She looked inquisitively at him. "That writing you did. It was impressive, considering the way you usually write."
"Really?"
"Yeah. You really like this room, huh?" He smiled. Nino smiled back.
"Yup." She told him. But I like it better with you here. She thought to herself. "I really wanted to come here with you again."
"I knew it'd be good incentive for you." Erk grinned. "It seems that I can actually teach."
"You're a great teacher." Nino assured him. "I can read alot better now, thanks to you. Lady Louise gave me some books to read, and I really liked them. There's this one, it's about two boys from Caelin, and-"
"And they discover some texts written by the first King of Caelin, and tell everyone. Most of the story is about them being accused of falsifying the documents, and them trying to prove that they didn't. It's quite fascinating... what?" Nino was frowning at him, and pouting.
"Is there anything you haven't read?"
"I'm sure there's plenty."
"Have you read the one about the pegasus who was scared of flying?"
"She eventually dived off a cliff to save the rider of her sister." Erk smirked. Nino pouted again. "Sorry. I've read alot of books."
"I noticed." Nino sighed, then snuggled against him. "Still, if I wanna read a book, and don't know if it's any good, I can just ask you. You'll know all about it."
"I might do. I haven't read all the books in the castle, though."
"Really? You must have. You've been here years, and all you do is read."
"Hey, I study, too. And train. And practise. And sometimes I have to travel to other places, too. I haven't been able to read everything."
"In that case, I'm gonna find at least one book that you haven't read." Nino declared.
"If you do, read it to me."
"Wha?" Nino gasped.
"Hey, I wanna see how you're reading's improved."
"Can't you just pick a book out for me to read?"
"Chances are I'll have read it. If it's new to both me and you, I'll be able to see how you handle it."
"I don't get it."
"Lemme explain." Erk said, putting an arm beneath Nino and holding her against him. "If you read a book I've already read, then I'll know what words are coming, and I'll be reading the story in my head. I won't be able to see how you handle certain words. Whereas if it's something new to me, then I'll have to check certain words, so I'll know what kind of words you struggle with, and that'll help me teach you better."
"... I still don't get it."
"Never mind, love." Erk sighed. "Just find a book I haven't read."
" 'kay." Nino sighed, smiling. She knew that Erk hadn't realised that he'd called her 'love', but hearing that had made her happy. She tucked that away in her mind, so she could listen to it again. 'Never mind, love'. Sure, the rest of the sentence wasn't brilliant, but Erk had called her 'love'! Nino giggled to herself, putting an arm over Erk's chest, pressing herself against him. "Heeyyy..." She looked up at him.
"Hmm?"
"If I find a book, could we read it down here?"
"I suppose. Find it, and you can enjoy this room for a day, too."
"Done!" Nino snapped, laughing. "I'll find it for sure, now!"
--
"Lady Louise? Lord Pent?" Nino was knocking on the door to their study the next day. Lord Pent answered.
"Yes, Nino? Can I help you?" He asked.
"Erk's set me a challenge. I need to find a book he hasn't read."
"That's quite a challenge. There's only about six in our entire library that he hasn't read."
"Only six?" Nino moaned. Castle Reglais' library was huge. "How am I supposed to find those?" She sighed. "Actually, that's why I came. I was wondering if you could help."
"I might be able to." He scratched his chin. "Come on in, dear." He stepped aside, and Nino walked into the room. "See, Erk has a thing about books. If he sees a book he hasn't read, he'll read it there and then." Nino laughed at that. "So, if we ever get some new books, I hold onto them for a little while, until Erk's studied up to where he should be. Then, I'll put a couple on the shelf at a time."
"Do you have any new books now?"
"No. I put the last three on the shelves two weeks ago. Erk took them the very same day. An hour later, in fact."
"Oh..." Nino's heart sank. "Wait, what about the six he hasn't read?"
"They're currently being repaired. One student took them out, and they got damaged."
"Oh, okay. So...when's the next lot coming?"
"In a few weeks." Pent smiled. "But, I can still help you."
"How?"
"Well, Erk only took two of the books. See, I took the third out myself."
"Why?" Nino asked. Pent shrugged.
"I wanted to read it."
"Could I have it?"
"I'm not done with it yet." Pent told her apologetically.
"Awww... but, I need it."
"Part of your 'win over Erk' plan?"
"How'd you know about that?" Nino gasped.
"Louise and I thought you'd do something like this. Lucky guess, really."
"Where is Lady Louise?"
"Gone to town, to try and find a book Erk hasn't read yet."
"Really? What about the one you borrowed?"
"I'm a slower reader than Erk. Much slower. I've seen that boy read an ancient language dictionary in a day. Those are huge." He held his hands apart, showing the size. Judging by the size, Nino figured the book was about as thick as a beer mug was wide. That was thick. "I'll be months with that. And I know you're not gonna wait that long."
"Nuh-uh." Nino shook her head.
"So, just wait for Louise. She'll be back by this evening, one way or another."
"What about the damaged books?"
"They'll take weeks to repair. Even then, we might have to replace them."
"Fine, I'll wait for Lady Louise. Thank you, Lord Pent." She sketched a quick bow, then left his study. Outside, she bumped into a very familiar someone. "Oh, uh, Erk!" She gasped, stepping back. He stood by the door, arms folded across his chest.
"Cheater." He said, grinning. Nino frowned at him, though she smiled a little.
"All's fair in love and war." She told him, before trotting toward her room.
"Love and war?" Erk muttered to himself. "What's she been reading?" He shrugged, and made his way toward the library. Surely they must have something new in by now?
--
"Love and war, dear." Louise said to Pent that evening. "Very little difference between the two."
"I know. I still remember what I had to go through to get you to be my partner." Pent replied, grinning.
"Oh, don't!" Louise gasped, blushing. "Anyway, I found one. New release yesterday." She held up a book.
" 'Finding Sanctuary Two; Our World'. Interesting." Pent flicked through the pages.
"I know Erk's read the first one. He's been after the second ever since. He loved that book."
"This'll help Nino a great deal. If we can convince her to give it to Erk." He smirked. "I'll go-" There was a knock at the door. "That's probably her, actually." He opened the door.
"Hi, Lord Pent!" Nino chirruped. "Is that the book?"
"It most certainly is. Come in, Nino." Nino walked in.
"Evening, Lady Louise."
"Evening, Nino." Louise replied.
"So, what book is it?" Nino asked.
"The sequel to one of Erk's favourites." Pent told her. "He's been after this for a while."
"Awesome!" Nino squeaked. "Can I can I can I can I?" She held her hands out for the book.
"What exactly are you gonna do with it?" Louise asked her.
"Erk told me to find a book he hasn't read yet, and read it to him. He says it'll help him teach me. And, I'll get to read it in the Aura Room, and even spend an afternoon in there!" She 'squeed' to herself. "I'm so happy!"
"Will you let Erk have the book after you're finished with it?"
"Oh!" Nino gasped, inhaling deeply. "That's a great idea! I'll get to complete his challenge, and give him a present! Louise, you're so brilliant! I-I mean... L-lady Louise." Pent handed her the book.
"Take care of it." He said to her. "Oh, and wait a couple of days before you show it to him."
"How come?"
"It'll be too easy if you give it to him only a day after the challenge. He'll suspect."
"Oh. But, he already knows I asked you. He was outside the room."
"Cheeky little-" Pent growled. "Well, still give it a few days."
"Alright." Nino skipped to the door. She pictured in her mind the look on Erk's face when she'd give him the book. It'd be in his room, when she went for a lesson. He'd smile at her in a way he's never smiled before. He'd thank her, and put the book on the bed beside him. Then, he'd cup her face in his hands, and bend down, still smiling. His breath would blow gently on her face, and on her lips, as Erk's own lips drew nearer to hers... "GAH!" Nino exclaimed as she walked into a wall in the corridor. "Stop doing that!" She scolded herself.
"Stop doing what?" Erk's voice asked. "You okay, Nino?" He approached her, looking concerned.
"I'm okay, Erk." She assured him, hiding the book behind her back. "I'm fine."
"What's that you've got?" He asked.
"N-nothing." Nino started backing away.
"C'mon, what is it?"
"Nothing!" Nino gasped, turning to run. However, Erk had already grabbed her. He grabbed the book, and tried to tug it free from her grip. "No! I-I can't give it to you yet!" Her fingers failed her, and Erk examined the book.
"Finding Sanctuary Two: Our World." Erk gasped. "Nino, you bought this for me?"
"Uh...um... y-yes..." Nino sighed.
"Oh, Nino!" Erk smiled at her. Nino realised that she had imagined his smile perfectly. It was unlike any smile she'd ever seen before. "I... I've been wanting this for so long!" He put the book on the bed next to him, and put his hands on her shoulders. "How can I thank you?"
"Uhm... I-I don't know... I..." Nino blushed.
"Hey, I know." Erk grinned, blushing himself. "You like me, right?"
"Wh-what?? Um... y-yeah, I d-do."
"I like you, too. Come here." He pulled her toward him, one hand stroking her face as he smiled gently at her.
"Oh..." Nino moaned, trembling. This was the moment she had been waiting for. She closed her eyes, waiting for the warm touch of Erk's lips pressing against hers. Waiting for Erk's arms to embrace her, and hold her against his body. But the moment never came. Nino felt a sharp pain in her face. She took a moment to register what was happening, then found herself face-to-face with a wall. "What...?" Nino wondered. "DAMMIT!" She screeched. "I've got to get my imagination under control!" She looked around, and saw that she was next to the door for her room. She quickly walked inside. "I should've realised I was dreaming. I mean, a bed in the middle of the corridor?!" She growled, and slammed the book onto her table. She flopped onto her bed, sighing. "Still, I hope it goes something like that when I give him the book..." She closed her eyes dreamily.