Hey everyone.

This feels odd... having gone so long without writing and kind of leaving things as they were before seemingly returning out of nowhere to a story many people probably gave up and moved on from. But I did make a promise in one of my stories that I wouldn't leave things unfinished, and that I seriously want to try to have closure for all my stories. There has just been a lot that has happened in my life over these past several years that contributed to me being absent and quite frankly, unable/unmotivated to write. However, I knew I always wanted to get back to it eventually. I apologize that I have left many projects open, and I want to say that I do plan on at some point returning to them and bringing them to their conclusions.

I recently did a rewatch of this series and fell in love with it all over again. Don't worry about the story's integrity; I kept all my original ideas for this one written down and saved in a document. So the vision should remain the same, though I hope the tone, feel, and quality has not diminished as a result of my negligence and hiatus from writing. I feel like I set a certain standard for this story with my introductory chapter, and I hope I can maintain it. Of course, I can't guarantee that my writing style hasn't changed, but I want things to feel familiar and flow well together. Do let me know if I am failing in this aspect though, and I might even make revisions to chapters in between the time I post new ones.

It's a bit weird to feel all sentimental and a bit emotional about returning to creating fan fiction of all things... as that doesn't particularly sound normal haha. But I missed doing this and having the feedback/love from the communities that share the same interest and passion for these franchises, and I hope I can at least contribute decent material to them. My goal is to start writing new chapters for the ones that aren't one-shots and seeing them through to the end. I won't have a set schedule, and being completely transparent I will only produce new content whenever I feel like it on a whim. However, this has always how I've come up with (by my own standards) best work, and I don't think I will be changing that any time soon.

If somehow you are here from the BBRAE community, I wanted to briefly mention that yes... my plans for continuing my content includes my BBRAE stories (though I guess this should be obvious, as that is 99% of my published work and Steins;Gate is the outlier). I look forward to writing BBRAE again, though that's something that might take a bit longer to get to. For a while it was easy for me, as I felt like I was able to identify with the characters... but now with everything that has happened to me since, I've changed a lot as a person. It might be a bit challenging for me to reacquaint myself with them so that they feel authentic, but I hope I can one day recapture them well.

At any rate, I better stop rambling. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please don't hesitate to leave me honest feedback.


"Tu-tu-ru! Okaaaarin!"

Okabe was broken away from his thoughts as he turned to see a young woman in a pale turquoise sundress standing by the doorway of the Future Gadget Lab, a pleasant smile adorning her face.

"Welcome back, Mayuri." Okabe greeted with warmth in his voice.

While it had been a little over a year since Okabe reached the Steins Gate world line, it still felt as though it was all yesterday. Despite how hard he tried to suppress it, the trauma originating from the events of the alpha world line would often cause those memories to resurface. Sequences of Mayuri's death would replay in his mind; over… and over… and over again to the point where he would almost vomit. Every passing day made him grateful that she was still there- with him… safe and sound. He never took her for granted, but now he was ever more appreciative of her presence in his life.

"Are you okay? You seem a bit sad." Mayuri asked worriedly.

"Don't worry, I'm fine. I'm just… pondering some things." Okabe answered assuredly.

"Eeeeeeh, are you thinking about Kurisu-chan?" Mayuri teased.

"WHAT NO- I mean, no. I was just thinking about the Organization's next move! Yes… they could strike at any time!"

Okabe turned his head while holding up his cell phone.

"It's me. …What? Is that so. Well… I will continue my surveillance until they do. About the additional emergency funds- huh? It's not possible? Tch. Very well. We will make do with our current resources."

"Oh Okarin! There was some kind of letter delivered earlier this morning that I forgot to give you! I wonder what it is?" Mayuri asked herself, placing her index finger on her chin thoughtfully.

Okabe turned back to face her, placing his phone in the side pocket of his lab coat.

"Ah, thank you. Let me take a look at it." Okabe responded as he reached out to grab the white envelope from Mayuri.

The envelope itself was of notable quality, with a golden seal keeping it shut. Lifting the it carefully, Okabe opened the front and retrieved the letter before unfolding it.

VIKTOR CHONDRIA UNIVERSITY were the first words he saw near the top of the paper. He let out a slight gasp before continuing down the page, reading to himself.

"Dear Rintaro Okabe,

Congratulations! I am delighted to inform you that your application to Viktor Chondria University has been accepted and that you have been admitted to the College of Electrical Engineering's Class of 2011. We were very impressed by your academic history and achievements and feel that you would make an excellent addition to the Viktor Chondria University alumni. Viktor Chondria University is world-renowned for its valuable research and development, led by those with bright minds and a passion to change the future. After careful review of your application, we are delighted to say that we believe you meet our criteria for acceptance.

Please find all the necessary enrollment forms enclosed with this letter. We appreciate your filling them out and returning them to us to ensure your enrollment at Viktor Chondria University and facilitate the acceptance process for our program. If you have any questions or problems, please feel free to contact us at (555)-406-7913 or admission .

We are very pleased to accept you into Viktor Chondria University and hope that you find it a fulfilling and helpful experience that sets you on the road towards achieving your dreams. We wish you all the best and thank you for choosing Viktor Chondria University.

Yours sincerely,

Quincy Burke

Director of Admission"

"What is it?" Mayuri asked excitedly.

"It's… it's an acceptance letter to Viktor Chondria University." Okabe answered.

"OOOOOOOH! I'm happy for you!"

"Thank you Mayuri. This is definitely great news, although…"

Mayuri tilted her head to the side, her face giving an inquisitive look as she waited for Okabe to continue.

Looking back up from the letter, Okabe gave his childhood best friend a half-hearted grin.

"This means that I would be moving to America. At least, for the time being. I'm really thankful and honestly a little surprised that they accepted me, but I'm still not sure if I'm ready to uproot myself. Especially since this also means I would be leaving you, Daru, and the rest of the lab members."

Mayuri closed her eyes in acceptance before walking forward and embracing Okabe.

"Mayushii will be okay. This is a great thing for Okarin! So don't worry about me, we have plenty of time to do other things! Plus…" Mayuri began to trail off.

Okabe returned her hug before placing his hands on her shoulders and moving her away slightly, looking into her eyes adoringly.

"Plus what?" Okabe questioned.

"You get to have even more time with Kurisu-chan!" Mayuri exclaimed gleefully.

Okabe's face became bright red as he gently pushed Mayuri away from him before wildly flailing his arms.

"Christina has nothing to do with anything! I bet that pervert genius girl had her hand in my acceptance just so that she could make fun of my glorious achievements in person! CURSE THAT ZOMBIE GIRL!" Okabe yelled, clenching his fist while holding it up in the air.

"KEEP IT DOWN OKABE OR I'LL RAISE YOUR RENT AGAIN!" Mr. Braun yelled from the shop below.

Okabe's eyes widened quickly in both embarrassment and worry. He then recollected himself, letting his arms slump down to his sides while looking up at the ceiling.

"We have plenty of time"

"…have even more time"

Those words stuck out to him, repeating themselves in his mind almost tauntingly. He indeed reached the Steins Gate world line, and Kurisu had made sure that he would stay there. However, while theoretically both her and Mayuri were safe in this world line, the future was still uncertain. SERN was seemingly halted, and World War III at the least appeared to be pushed back with the race for time machines being allegedly snuffed. There was no indication that any world ending calamity was to come, but for some peculiar reason this only made him more nervous. They truly had no idea what the future held for them, and there could be another crisis just around the corner. Only this time, there might not be a Suzuha from the future who would appear and guide them through the end game. It was essentially uncharted territory with endless variables and outcomes. What would be the inevitable… a convergence to a point where the very world would not be able to be deceived?

Do we really have time? Okabe thought to himself.

When you experience time in the way that Okabe had, every passing moment held more weight… more value than what most realize. Every second was a gift, a blessing, and sometimes could even be a curse. One can never know when these things could be gone in an instant, with lives becoming drastically altered. At what point does one have to merely accept the outcome as opposed to devoting themselves to changing the world… again? Surely there would be an instance where they could no longer change fate… right?

Okabe shook his head at such thoughts. It wasn't worth pondering over. His stress and anxiety levels were already a persisting issue ever since his previous experiences, and he didn't need another layer of worry keeping him up at night. Whatever the future held, it would not be anything close to as dire as those world lines he faced. At least, that's what he hoped.


Unsurprisingly, the May Queen was busy as always. Every form, shape, and size of Otaku and NEET filled the room with awkward glances and interesting comments made towards the overly energetic wait staff at the maid cafe. Their jobs clearly took a lot of patience and benevolence given the environment, and Okabe was always amazed at Fayris' ability to keep the overall experience consistent. Of course, he too maintained a persona… though it wasn't at the expense of entertaining a bunch of obsessed moe enthusiasts.

"Mmmmmmm! Fayris-chan's special message neko omelet is the best!" Daru exclaimed with glee and he clasped his hands together satisfactorily, gazing off into a non-existent sunset.

"I don't think something can be considered special anymore if you have it every day Daru." Okabe noted, smirking at his friend's guilty pleasure.

"Everything that Fayris-chan does is special Okarin!" Daru refuted before grabbing a fork and a knife, digging into his meal and immediately beginning to scarf it down.

"Tsk. Tsk. Silly Super Haka. What makes something truly special is its novelty! Exploring the unknown! Depriving yourself of all familiarity-"

"Does that make Kurisu special to you then? Because to you, she's uncharted territory?" Daru quickly fired back.

"ACH! Christina is my assistant! Of course she's special. BUT… she is not uncharted territory. In fact, her lips have been well charted! After all, she could not resist the irresistible charm of Hououin Kyouma!" Okabe declared triumphantly as he struck a confident pose.

"Sure does explain the radio silence." Daru commented, stifling a chuckle as he watched Okabe's pride deflate quickly.

"It's not radio silence! It's just… intermission." Okabe halfheartedly corrected.

"Whatever you say, Okarin." Daru replied as he turned his attention back to his food.

Okabe rested his chin in the palm of his hand as his elbow sat on top of their table, eyes gazing through the window at his side while in thought.

It was honestly a bit ridiculous, but was it truly unexpected of them? The two really were overdramatic and admittedly both were the epitome of tsunderes. Neither of them was ignorant of the truth in reality. They were completely self-aware, despite their unfounded need to maintain appearances. At this point it was merely a battle of pride that was the main obstacle between them. Kurisu made plenty of excuses which were often centered around her lack of moments shared with Okabe, in comparison to those of her counterparts from other worldlines. Okabe on the other hand, feigned busy schedules and newfound ventures in failed attempts to mask the simple fact that he was too embarrassed to be as forward as he would like to be. For the few occasions he had been bold, he could never look back on them without feeling sheepish and awkward.

It was frustrating to those around them that they couldn't handle their feelings in a mature way, but instead opting to act like middle schoolers pretending to be disgusted by a kissing scene in a movie. Though they knew better than to try and force things, so they mostly kept out of it.

Despite everything that had transpired, the two had come to a standstill. While they had nothing material to worry about, they both acted as if the weight of their actions were severe. It was foolish, though that was just one of many examples of things they had in common.

Attending Viktor Chondria University would probably benefit the couple, as it would force them to be around each other more frequently and for longer periods of time. Or at least, help them invent new excuses to see each other without ever being blatant about their true intentions. Okabe smiled softly at the thought of working in a more formal lab together, working on various projects and sharing their passion for science. In all honesty, it would be a wonderful experience. Kurisu's fears of identity would melt away, as new memories would be made together. She wouldn't have to be concerned about whether her feelings were real or not… or that their romance was one sided. It was practically making up for literal lost time. Perhaps this would allow them to grow and lose this feeling of awkwardness between them, and instead foster feelings of warmth and consolation.

There was still a lot to consider, though. This would mean he would have to make a lot of changes very rapidly. It wouldn't just be a change in location; it would be a change in culture, language, and lifestyle. Not only that, but he would be inadvertently affecting his relationships with his friends here in Japan. While none of them would see each other any differently, things change and life moves forward. This decision could potentially be life altering, setting him on a path that diverts from those of the ones he holds dear. Of course, it wouldn't be anything like the end of the world… and he was certain they would all find the time to meet and catch up whenever it was possible. But, their dynamic would change as they all reached various milestones and gained responsibilities along the way. It was all a part of getting older… Okabe concluded.

Either way, none of this had to be dealt with today. Or even in the next few days. He had time to really think things over to ensure he made a proper decision that he wouldn't regret.

He had time.

It felt weird to not think otherwise now, since it wasn't always that way.


And there we go. If it wasn't clear after this chapter, I wanted to quickly reiterate that I had no plans of dragging on the idea that Okabe and Kurisu had a strained relationship. Since this is set right after the Deja Vu movie, they should realistically be in a steady relationship. Part of the "scary" issues in the first chapter were a teaser, but the other half to that was the fact that it was how the characters themselves would view and handle the situation. Both of them are divas, and they're going to dramatize everything and make things appear bigger than what they are. They're out there living out the music videos they dream of being in when they take a shower. Eventually they'll drop their teenage mentality. Maybe.

Hope you guys enjoyed, and thanks for reading.