Then a few days went by, Sapphire was beyond tired after that one LONG mission ... it took him about three days to completed ... so that's why told him to get as much rest as he can, and boy, he sure is thankful for that advice … but still, that was a heck of a hard mission.
Seriously, fighting off against two strong (and annoying) Aragami all by himself in a row, two days in a half, and another half stuck at a deserted place… for three days! Thankfully, he was located by the signal of his Armlet, though it was weak.
When Sapphire didn't come back from his mission for twenty-four hours, everyone was worried, especially Alisa, she couldn't stop worrying about her boyfriend. Now that Sapphire is beside her, she dragged him to the back room of the Laboratory, there, along with the Aragami girl; she speaks with the frazzled Sapphire.
"Are you okay?" Alisa simply asks, but the tired reaction from Sapphire kind of answered her question, "... Okay then, you still tired, I think I should drag you to my room, which is much closer." she suggested, but that earned a gibberish tired reply from Sapphire, "Shuwa? Noe, ya dona havde to ... Imma kay ere ..."
Alisa isn't convinced, that's because her boyfriend is speaking in a forms of words, that she couldn't understand ... though it is kind of funny, "... No, whatever you just say, I'm still going to force you to rest." Then she proceeded to drag him out of the Laboratory, in which Sasaki reminded her, "Try not to rough him up while you're dragging him like that, I still need him alive for my work!" He said it with a big grin.
Alisa just rolled her eyes, and then she moves out of the lab with Sapphire. When she reaches her room, she place Sapphire on the sofa, "Uh... danke ..." Sapphire mumbled while closing his eyes to relax, Alisa smiles a bit when she sees Sapphire relaxing, he deserves it, then she sits on the nearby sofa next to Sapphire, she then doze off as well.
"Alisa, you are the best thing in my life ..." Alisa heard as she wakes up, it was Sapphire, "What?!" she blurted. Sapphire didn't reply, Alisa then notice that she was actually carried by Sapphire, bridal style ... and she also notice that she's wearing a wedding gown, and Sapphire is wearing a dashing tuxedo.
Alisa was freaking out, is this even a dream? "Um ..." her cheeks started to heat up, she was blushing, "Cute ..." Sapphire said, and he is closing his lips to her, Alisa then thought, "Doesn't matter if it's a dream, this feels great ..." And proceed to kiss him passionately. Dream or no dream, that is still very romantic.
"Alisa? Alisa!?" she heard somebody calling her, "Huh?" she said sleepily, and it was a fully rested Sapphire, "Alisa? You awake? ... and I thought I was the tired one." He commented. Alisa rubs her eyes, clearly it was a dream ... but the kiss, it was surreal.
"Woohoo, Alisa, are you alright? You're spacing out!" Sapphire said, "Oh ... Nothing, nothing ... just ..." she said incompletely. Sapphire raises his brow in confusion, "Just? ..." Alisa looks at him and simply said, "This ..." then she kisses him. Sapphire was pleasantly surprised.
When she broke off the kiss, it took Sapphire a while for him to speak, "That ... was ... nice, but why did you kiss me so suddenly? All you have to do is ask." Alisa chuckled, "Sorry, I just want to make sure of something ..." Sure enough, after that kiss, Alisa can confirm that it was real, or it 'will' be real.
Sapphire raise his brow again, then smiles and kiss her again, "Okay then, I'm not really sure what you mean, but hey! That was a nice kiss! ... And thanks for letting me rest in your room." Alisa replies, "I don't mind, you're welcome here anytime."
Sapphire then remembered something, "Wait, aren't we supposed to be doing something?" he said, Alisa doesn't know what he talking about, "Like what? It's a free day today; you're not doing any mission anyway".
"Oh yeah ... Silly me ... Leader's impulse, I guess ..." Sapphire said, earning a chuckled from Alisa. Sapphire smiles, then he ask Alisa, "Alisa can I use your terminal for a second? I want to check my items." Alisa nods. "Sure ... But don't look at anything else in there!"
"Like I … Oh … sure~!" Sapphire said sarcastically while being playful, Alisa shouts, "Sapphire!" Sapphire smiles, "All right! I'm just kidding!" He then proceed to using her terminal, Alisa took this moment to have a drink.
Meanwhile, in Sasaki's Lab, Kota had just arrived, "Huh? Where is Sapphire? I thought he was here!?" Sasaki answer him without taking his eyes off the screen, "Oh him? He's busy resting, Alisa dragged him." Kota blinked, "... Kay then, enough said." He said; while half-minded want to watch Bugarally.
Back to Sapphire and Alisa, "Hmm ... nice clothes ..." Sapphire commented while looking at Alisa's terminal, Alisa heard and said, "Hei! I told you not to anything else in there!"
Sapphire replies back, "What? I'm just looking at this fashion magazine ... even though it's all Russian ... There is your clothes right here! And they got it on white color too! Why didn't you choose white? Wait! Don't answer me! It's because it clash with the color of your hair... and your eyes! So now wonder you choose the black one!"
Alisa rolled her eyes, she knew Sapphire like to 'fashion' himself ... it means all about styles and fashion, but sometimes she couldn't believe how he knows more about \]fashion than her, and he's a boy. "Oh! This sweater might look good on you!'And I think you'll look good on-"
Alisa stopped listening to him, he'll just talk and talk and talk, so now she just going to answer him indefinitely, "Yeah ... Uh huh ... Nice ..." Well, the day ends when Sapphire talked himself and Alisa to sleep, and his and Alisa's mouth still moving, "So ... white ... and ... black ... combines ..." "Sure ... right ... that too ..." Sleepily.
Then on the next morning, Sapphire wakes up to find that he spend the night at her room, and she is right there on top of him, "Okay, how does this happen?" Sapphire question himself. Right now Alisa is sleeping soundly on top of Sapphire and both of them are on the floor.
"It's beautiful ... Whatever you say ..." Alisa keeps mumbling from her sleep, Sapphire smiles for a bit when he heard this, "I guess I talk too much..." (What was your first clue?)
Anyway, Sapphire move slowly so that he won't wake her up, then he carries her to her bed, "Sleep peacefully ..." he kiss her forehead then he went out.
He slowly opens the door and close it just the same, he then walks slowly to the elevator, "Ah-ha! There you are!" shout a particularly loud voice and it caught Sapphire off guard, "What? I didn't do anything! You can't proof anything!"
"Whoa! Whoa! Chill! It's just me! Kota!" Kota said to calmed him.
In a second, Sapphire regain his composure, "Oh hi Kota!" Kota sweat dropped, "Um ... hi! Say, where were you yesterday? I've been looking almost everywhere for you!" Kota said, though actually knew where he'd been, Alisa's room.
Sapphire then ask, "Almost everywhere?" Kota nodded, "Yeah, from the Lab to the Veteran Section!" there is a slight pause before Sapphire said anything.
"Uh ... I think next time; you should widen your search area ... but anyway! Why are you looking for me?" Kota then tells him, "All right, how about you and me go on a mission together, just the two of us."
Sapphire thinks for a while, then he is totally into the idea, "Sure! Why not?! Let's go find Hibari!" Before Kota could say anything, Sapphire grabs him and those two rush to the reception in the Entrance of The Den.
"Good morning Hibari, Is the 'Black Alligator' mission available? Because if it, Kota and I would like to take it!" Sapphire said towards Hibari.
"Yes, yes it is, but just the two of you? If that's the case, shouldn't Kota be healthy for this work?" Hibari said while pointing towards Kota on the ground, "Argh ... I'm somewhat okay ..." Sapphire face-palmed himself.
"Oh … sorry dude, I didn't mean to drag you all the way here!" Kota is just going to say, "Argh ... being dragged by an energetic friend is pretty much hazardous to your health."
After a while, Kota recovered, but before they depart for the mission, they chat with each other for while. It is a random conversation.
"Still, the world's a sorry place to live in now, isn't it?" Kota said stating the world's situation, "Long ago ... before there were any Aragami, it seemed like a really peaceful place." He continued, "There were no life-or-death struggles at all."
Sapphire then took this moment to say, "Are you just quoting everything you found on Norn?" Kota chuckled, "Okay, yeah I admit it ... There's a whole bunch of videos from the old generation, see. Have you seen them?" Sapphire nod his head, "Yes, some of them." Kota smiles, "It's really cool. Someone uploaded all these old TV shows, like Bugarally"
"Hmm ..." Sapphire hummed. Kota continued, "I bet back then, everyone lived their lives in peace ... smiling all the time. You'd go home, and your family would be there to greet you with smiles on their faces." Sapphire knows what he means; Kota got his family back at the Outer Ghetto.
"There'd be lots of laugh at the dinner table, then you'd stay up half the night playing games ..." Kota said.
"Seems a lot like my life ... " Sapphire thought. "And when you went to bed, you'd only have happy thoughts, like what to do the next day ... And then ... tomorrow would come, just like that."
Sapphire daydream about how that would felt like, it would be peaceful ... Kota continues, "No one ever dreamed that the future of the world would be so terrible ..." "Back to reality ..." Sapphire thought bitterly, "Well, how could anyone have known? Not like we know what's in store, either ..." Sapphire said in-a-matter-of-fact. Kota agrees, "Yeah, it's not like there is anyone to blame."
Kota silent for a while, "But if the Aegis Project succeeds, we can go back to that world. Where everyone can live without fear, live happy lives ..." Sapphire couldn't agree more, "Yeah ..."
"Oh, right, look at this!" Kota said while grabbing something in his pocket, and then he shows it to Sapphire. It was a doll shape of Kota's face. "It's a good luck charm my kid sister made for me."
"It's actually pretty cute." Sapphire commented. Kota nods his head, "Thanks, I'm bringing her lots of presents next time I go home for vacation." Sapphire smiles for his best friend, "Heh, good for you, buddy."
"Okay! We'd better had back now. Or the advisor's going to yell at us and I don't think I'm up to doing 1000 push-ups again!" Kota said, time for them to depart for the mission. Sapphire shrugged, "Meh ..."
Author's Note:
I really appreciated that you guys answered my questions! I feel even more motivated! With that said, enjoy this chapter!