What It Means

by HorrificallyDreadful

After a brush with near-death, Tatsumaki realizes she cannot be the pillar of hope the people need. For the first time in a long time, she is afraid. The only one who can save her from that fear doesn't understand the concept of responsibility. There's more to hero work than a good fight and more to bravery than strength alone. The world needs a true hero, but what does that mean?

33. Co-workers

AN: Hello, and welcome back! Sorry for lying! Lol, I meant to have this posted a few days after the last one, but I was having some severe issues with my computer, but we're all good, now! Thank you to everyone who reviewed my last chapter, I appreciate the support, as always, and I don't really have much to say about this one. It's quite the read, I'll tell you that. I hope you like it!

Disclaimer: I do not own One Punch Man or any of the characters associated with the title. All rights belong to their respective owners.

---

(On a sign)

"You're doing great, but...
you CAN do BETTER!"

Saitama stared at the odd message on the poster ad at the top strip of the train he was on. He was in the middle lane, packed in with the others who couldn't find seats, holding the overhead handles if they could reach. It wasn't too crowded, but he did bump shoulders a few times when the ride got rough. His gaze was stuck on that particular ad, partially because it happened to be the one right above the door in front of him, but mainly because he couldn't exactly tell what was being advertised. Every other banner had a picture of some product or the name of some law firm or company. That one, in particular, only had those obscure words of inspiration...

A little further down the way, on the same cart, Tatsumaki and Fubuki claimed their spots on the bench, vigilantly hiding their presence as best they could. Again, they ended up looking like a mother with her teenage daughter. Fubuki had her face stuck in a newspaper they picked up at the station. Tatsumaki just kept her chin low, letting the brim of her baseball cap hide her face from any possible leering eyes. Though, this time she felt a lot less likely to be spotted. Instead of the bright orange wig she wore before, she went with a much less conspicuous brown. And through the gaps of the people between them, she kept a sharp eye on the man who still had an unreasonable amount of faith in that stupid bucket hat.

It astonished her that no one else could recognize Saitama through his lackluster disguise. He really did just blend in with the people when his main feature wasn't visible. Even she lost sight of him a few times when her view was obstructed. After watching him so closely for the past hour and a half, she had a good idea why. Outside of that obnoxiously bright yellow suit, it was almost like he was a completely different person. He wore clothes that didn't show off his physique, so he looked a lot skinnier than most people would likely assume the 'strongest man in the world' to be. Covering his reflectively bald head was what really tied it all together.

One-Punch-Man seemed larger than life, and Saitama didn't exactly fit that persona. It really was like he was two different people...

'Still... there's no way he has some kinda secret life or something... right...?'

Fubuki made it a joke, but it wasn't like it was completely unbelievable... Well, it was, but it was still a scary thought to have implanted in the back of her mind. In some way, it reminded her that, outside of what she's seen, she really had no idea who Saitama actually was. Even if it wasn't as extreme as having a secret family, it could be something like an ex-wife, or girlfriend. What else would be important enough for him to take this hour-long train ride to City-Y? Did he take this trip every day? '... And why the hell couldn't he just like-.. run there!?' she wondered with a frustrated tone.

Tatsumaki absolutely hated the train. It was crowded, it smelled gross, and the hum of the big metal cart rattling against the rails made her feel sick. If she had it her way, they'd just follow it from the sky, but Fubuki said that could end up blowing their cover if someone on the train happened to see them. Plus, all of the exit platforms were covered, so it was easier to keep an eye on Saitama if they could actually keep an eye on him.

"Psst," Fubuki whispered, getting her attention. "What's he doing, now? I can't see him."

Tatsumaki hadn't looked away in a long while. "He's just... standing there. What else is he supposed to be doing?"

"Mhm-hm, just making sure you can still see him," Fubuki giggled. "Of course, you've been staring at him nonstop since we got on the train, buuut-.."

"Shut up!" Tatsumaki muttered, harshly. "No, I haven't... I'm just..."

"Stalking him?"

Tatsumaki rolled her eyes and gave her an irritated look.

Fubuki giggled and shook her head. "You can keep an eye on him without making it so obvious, ya know? He's kinda trapped in here until the doors open again."

"Wow," she muttered sarcastically. "I had no idea." Again, her sister chuckled at her moody antics. She was clearly having more fun than necessary, and Tatsumaki was quickly getting annoyed. With a shake of her head, her gaze trickled back to Saitama who was still standing there with that plain look on his face, just staring up at something she couldn't see. He was like a statue posing among the crowd of chattering civilians... until he wasn't.

It happened too fast for her to comprehend. He suddenly got a suspicious look on his face and swung his head around, in both directions, as if he could feel someone watching him. Before she was ready, he looked right at her and she immediately turned away, trying to act natural...

Saitama sneered at the air, vigilantly peeking at the crowd he was in. '... Did someone fart?'

Tatsumaki waited it out for a moment and tried to calm her pounding heart. When enough time passed, she flashed a timid look to see he was staring off into space, again. She released the breath she didn't know she was holding and rubbed her face. "w-... We shouldn't be doing this," she muttered.

"Hm?"

"We should just get off at the next stop and go home... i-I don't wanna do this anymore."

Fubuki rolled her eyes with a sigh. "Would you relax? He's not gonna see us. As soon as he gets off, we'll get off too and follow him from the air."

Tatsumaki nearly protested but after thinking it over for a moment, she relented. The train ride was likely going to be the most risky part of their mission, and they were already over an hour in. She'd feel a lot better once they got back in the air.

---

After another hour or so, Saitama found himself walking through the streets of City-Y, flowing almost mindlessly along the stream of the marching crowd. It sort of seemed like he had no destination in mind, but every now and then, he snuck a glance at his phone as if to check the time, and he had some sort of business card in his pocket that he kept taking a look at. 'Hm... Now, that I'm so close, I wonder what I should get...'

---

Drifting just behind the edge of the buildings, Tatsumaki and Fubuki watched his every move, still wondering what the hell he was doing here. "There's no way he just came to window shop," the smaller esper said.

Fubuki shook her head. "I don't think so. He keeps checking the time. He must have some kind of appointment. Maybe at 3? It's 30 till," she assumed.

Tatsumaki shrugged with an irritated scowl on her face. "I don't know... Maybe... Why way out here in City-Y, though?"

"I don't know," she muttered. "I mean, he used to live in City-Z, so he probably still has friends and stuff that li-..." Fubuki's words were cut short when they saw him finally make a turn into a shop.

"Huh?" Tatsumaki voiced. The two sisters shared a confused look. "... A toy store?"

---

(DING!)

Saitama stepped inside to find it nearly empty. Other than the cashier lazily leaning over the clerk's counter, reading a manga, there was a kid with a facemask at a little video game demo booth intently trying to win whatever game he was playing, and his mother holding their purchase as she kindly supported him with little cheers.

With no real urgency, he strolled around for a moment until he found a section with toys suitable for children aged 8 to 12. '... I think he's this old, right...? And what the heck are the popular toys for kids these days?' he wondered. Maybe it was because he was older, but for some reason, everything looked kind of lame. Obviously, the main theme of the entire store seemed to be Pro-hero memorabilia. There were action figures, plushies, and full-on playsets of him and his co-workers in some rather iconic settings. There was even some sort of race track built like it was made on that alien ship from the invasion. That didn't really seem tasteful, considering that ship wiped out an entire city of people. 'Whatever sells, I guess...'

(DING!)

He turned back to the door when the bell sounded to see who it was, but they ducked into an aisle before he could catch a glimpse. With a sigh, he looked back at the toys in front of him and tried to decide on something that didn't seem ridiculous...

"Go for the One-Punch-Man plushy."

Saitama was startled by the sudden lazy tone and turned to the cashier who still had his eyes on the manga.

"You're looking for something for your kid, right...?"

"Uh... Yeah," he muttered.

"The One-Punch-Man plushies are the hottest sellers; every kid wants one. Just restocked the shelf. You should get it now before 3. When the schools let out, they'll be gone in thirty minutes..."

Saitama turned to the toy he was talking about and stared at it with a perplexed look. It was some kind of egg-shaped pillow toy of himself wearing his hero costume with a weirdly bright smile on it. The worst part about it was the added detail of a blotch of white on the top of its head meant to be a reflective shine. 'My head does not reflect that much...!' He took a deep breath and momentarily looked around the shelf for something else. 'I shouldn't get that, right...? I mean, that feels weird...'

"Don't think too much about it, dude," the clerk drawled out in his lazy tone, grabbing his attention, again. "I know you're type. Grown man in a toy shop on your own, thirty minutes before school lets out? I'm guessing you're a deadbeat trying to buy your kid's love, so just get the plushy and make it easy on yourself."

'... Wow,' Saitama thought. 'This guy's a good salesman...' He grabbed the plushy and made his way over to the counter, passing by a woman and her daughter who were digging around in a bin full of stuffed animals.

Of course, it was the Esper sisters in disguise, vigilantly listening to everything they were saying. Safe to say, they were more than interested in this shocking turn of events. Tatsumaki couldn't believe it. 'It's true...! h-He... has a kid!?'

'Maybe it's a misunderstanding!' Fubuki reasoned. 'There's no way he'd hide something like that!'

"Hmh, was I right?" the clerk asked when Saitama tossed his purchase on the counter.

Saitama watched him scan it in and shrugged. "Uh... Basically, yeah."

The guy didn't even look him in the eye. His focus was still set on his manga, even as he bagged the toy for him. "Yeah, I figured. Don't sweat it. You're not even the first one I've seen today."

"... Huh..." Saitama swiped his black credit card and put his pin in. "Why's this one the most popular?"

"Because it's One-Punch-Man? He's the greatest hero ever, these days," he sighed.

"Mm," Saitama hummed in an equally unimpressed tone.

"Trust me, your kid will love you for a week, at least. These things have been selling out faster than anything they've ever dropped."

"Really...? Well, what if he already has one?"

"... Oooh," the guy said in a mockingly understanding way, snatching his receipt from the machine it was printing from, still not even bothering to look. "So you're that kinda deadbeat, huh? Divorced?"

"... y-Yeah?" Saitama muttered, taking the slip of paper from his hand.

The guy sighed, dramatically. "I don't know, man... I guess just keep the receipt and you can return it if that happens... Or just resell it. Like I said, they're pretty hard to come by..."

Saitama stared at him for a long moment before giving the funny-looking plushy another look. If it was really that popular, then maybe it would do the trick. He made his way to the exit to see that the boy and his mother had left at some point. Through the reflection of the glass on the door, it almost looked like that lady and her daughter were watching him, but when he threw a glance over his shoulder, they were just frantically rummaging through the bin as if they were clawing to the bottom. '... Hm... I don't know why, but... kinda feels like someone's following me...'

(DING!)

The second the bell rang, Tatsumaki's sharp gaze shot right at Fubuki to see she was already looking at her. "... What the fuck!?"

---

"It's gotta be a misunderstanding!" Fubuki harshly whispered. She and Tatsumaki were back over the roof, slowly drifting just behind Saitama, watching him with hawk-like glares. "I mean, it's definitely gotta be something stupid, right!?"

"Shush!" Tatsumaki said.

Fubuki's worried look shifted between her older sister and the subject of their sleuthing. If this wasn't a joke, then she was suddenly feeling a lot more invasive than she thought they were being. "... h-Hey, maybe you were right," she said. "Maybe this is a little too much, heh! w-We shou-.."

"Shush!" Tatsumaki said with a bit more force. "I'm not going anywhere..."

"But, what if you see something Saitama doesn't want you to see?"

"Then, I won't tell him?" she said with a perplexed look as if visually calling that a stupid question.

"Okay? But you'll still see it... And what if he finds out about this?"

"There," she said, pointing down below. Fubuki followed her gaze and noted their target had stopped. He checked the time on his phone again before taking a seat on one of the stone public benches lining the sidewalk. Across the street from him was some sort of fancy-looking elementary school. "That must be the school that his kid goes to."

"We don't know that!" Fubuki corrected her. "It could just be a niece or nephew or something."

"He said it himself!" she protested. "Stop being stupid Fubuki! This is serious!"

(BRRRIIIIINNNNGGG!)

The school bell sounded, and within seconds, there were children rushing out as if they couldn't wait to be somewhere important. Fubuki grabbed at her sister's forearm. "It is serious," she said, "very serious. So, maybe we shouldn't be spying on him during such a private moment!"

Tatsumaki swatted her hands away and watched Saitama stand from his seat, vigilantly searching the crowd of children for someone specific...

"He's probably just doing some charity work or something!" Fubuki tried again. "They still do that big brother program, right?"

"Fubuki!" Tatsumaki narrowed her gaze in suspicion. There were so many possibilities, and none of them made sense in a favorable way. He was either here to pick up his own child or someone else's... So, he was either a dad or a perv, and she definitely didn't like either option...

Though, she would definitely prefer the former. Unfortunately, the more she watched, the more worried she became that it was the worst-case scenario. His sweeping gaze shot open when he supposedly found who he was looking for in the crowd. He hesitantly raised his hand in a nervous wave before pulling the plushy out of the bag and shaking it their way in the creepiest fashion.

Fubuki couldn't even breathe, anymore. She didn't know what was happening, but she definitely knew what it looked like. If this was what she thought it was, they might even have to intervene, as heroes. 'Saitama, please... say you're joking, right now...!'

---

In the crowd of children flooding out into the streets, the one Saitama was shaking the plushy at couldn't have been more confused by the situation...

It was Child Emperor who had stopped walking with his group of friends when he spotted the odd man in the bucket hat watching the school. He immediately saw the plain face of his favorite hero and co-worker without a second glance. No one else seemed to have noticed him, but he was known for being perceptive. The only question was, '... What the heck is he doing here...?'

He made his way over, absentmindedly bidding his farewells to his classmates who tried to greet him.

Saitama watched him the whole way and thought about how to approach this delicately. "Yo, i-Imasu, right?" he asked before cupping a hand over his mouth and slightly lifting the front of his lid. "Shhh. It's me, Saitama. Pretend I'm your uncle."

"Uh... w-What...? I already know it's you. What are you doing here?" he asked. "And my name's Isamu, by the way."

Saitama seemed surprised that he already knew who he was, but he didn't question it. "o-Oh, right. Sorry... I came to see you. I kinda need your help with something... So, I got you this." He presented his gift with a hopeful smile.

"y-You want my help?" he asked. "w-.. Well, of course, I'll help you, Saita-.. i-I mean, uncle," he corrected, peeking around to see if anyone noticed them. "You didn't have to buy me a present... and I already have one of those."

Saitama reeled at that information. He looked down at the little plushy with a disappointed sneer. "Oh... So, I didn't have to buy this?"

"It's kinda... creepy that you did, actually... eh-heh-heh," he awkwardly chuckled. "When I first saw you, I totally thought you were a creeper, spying on kids."

"... Hm?" He thought back to just a few moments ago and could immediately see his point. He even lured him over with a toy. '... Oof, that was weird, huh?' His eyes shifted around in a nervous fidget as he stuffed the plushy back into the discrete paper bag. 'Thank god no one else saw that...'

---

"... Heh... heh-heh-heh," Fubuki started nervously chuckling. For as horrifying as the situation seemed just moments ago, with the added context of Child Emperor, she felt a little foolish at assuming the worst. Saitama didn't have some sort of secret life with a wife and kids or anything, and he wasn't a predator preying on children. He was just an absolute idiot who came to see a co-worker.

Tatsumaki felt like she could finally breathe again. She watched him converse with their fellow S-Class hero as the two started down the street. The smile that settled in was already making her face sore, but she couldn't stave it off. Only Saitama could be that unbelievably stupid. Who shows up at a school with a toy that he was clearly using to bribe a child? It was by far the dumbest way he could've gone about whatever this was.

"See?" Fubuki said. "Hah! I told you it was all a big misunderstanding...! I think we can, officially, call this mission a success..."

"... What?" Tatsumaki turned to see her preparing to fly off. "Where are you going?"

Fubuki turned around with a frustrated look. "Ugh, come on, Tatsumaki. We followed him and made sure he's not leading a double life, and now, we know he's not. Which means, it's time to go."

"o-Okay, but we don't know why he came to see him! We can't leave now!"

"Yes, we can. Let me show you." She turned to leave again, but her sister refused.

"Whatever, then. Just go... I'm gonna see what they're doing."

Fubuki sighed and turned back just as she was taking off. "Ugh, Tatsumaki! Just leave it be for right now!" She shot off after her and quickly caught up. "We got what we needed, already! He's gonna catch you and you're not gonna know what to say!"

"No, he's not! I'll stay in the air!"

"How long are you planning on following him!? Till you catch him in his shower!?"

"What!?" she yelled, screeching to a halt. "This was YOUR idea!"

Fubuki jerked to a stop when her sister's mental prowess overpowered her. "i-I know that! But, like I said, we're already done! We know what we need to know, so let's-.."

(Electronic Wind Chime ringtone)

Fubuki's words were cut short when her phone rang. She pulled it from the big pocket of her oversized hoodie and saw it was an SOS message from one of her group members.

"Hmph! Sounds like your friends are in trouble," Tatsumaki said with a mocking grin.

Fubuki rolled her eyes and threw her hands up in defeat. "You know what? Okay. You're right. If you're that curious then you should follow him. I'm just saying that if he does catch you, you better think of something to say. If he finds out you've been following him, he'll definitely think you're a total psycho..."

Tatsumaki stared at her with an angry pout...

(Thoom!)

She blasted off in the direction of her mark, leaving her sister behind to sigh in frustration. Fubuki could feel a headache coming on. Hopefully, she didn't do anything too embarrassing.

---

"Sooo," Child Emperor drawled, "... you want me to build Genos a new body?"

Saitama walked around his impressive laboratory with his head on a swivel. To say it was far more impressive than his little space at HQ was an understatement. For one, it was massive, big enough to hold a commercial airplane... or three. There were all kinds of inventions and machines cluttering the large room, leaving little space for them to even move. They had to swivel their way through the chaos just to make it to his massive computer setup at the back of the room. "Uhhh, yeah," he shrugged. "With that one alien space metal er whatever? The uh... indestructible one?"

"w-Well, it's not actually indestructible," he reminded him as he plopped down in his seat and started typing away. "Tch, it's definitely the strongest metal on this planet, by a long shot, but it can be broken."

Saitama continued to pace around the area looking at all of his cool inventions. "Okay...? But it... takes more damage than like titanium and stuff, right?"

"... w-Well, yeah, but it's not something I can really use for a robot. I've been trying to build a few of my own, but the metal's too dense for them to hold a good charge. The amount of energy they consume just keeping a balance while walking is insane."

"... Oh," he muttered. He came across a table littered with little metal orbs. "... Well, what about that stuff in those grenades?"

Child Emperor was almost shocked to hear him suggest that. "o-Oh... That's-.. actually not a bad idea."

"Wha-... really?"

"But, I don't think it'll work, though."

"Why not?"

"Because it's still too chaotic. I still can't synthesize the energy, completely. It's way too volatile. If I were to put that stuff in Genos's core, it could completely erode whatever's left of his organic body..."

Saitama watched him type with a confused look on his face. This was all sounding way too sciency for his liking. He picked one of the orbs up and examined it closely. "... Well, what if you just use a little of it?" He accidentally pressed a button somewhere, and the little sphere started beeping and vibrating.

"Mm-mm," Child Emperor shook his head. "That stuff is such a dominant energy that it continuously grows from even the smallest amount. It's too risky. If Genos has a human heart, that stuff could end up having negative effects on his cardiovascular syst-.."

(boof!)

He spun around to see what that was.

Saitama had his hands clasped together and there was smoke seeping out through his fingers. "... a-And what does that mean?" he asked.

"... i-It means that... if I put that energy in his body, then he could end up having a heart attack or something. He couldn't survive that constant flow of power..." With a shrug, he spun back around and continued typing. "Honestly, I'm really not an expert when it comes to building cyborgs, so it's hard to say... I mean, even if he could somehow contain it, I really don't think he'd be able to control that much power. It wouldn't be a slow build-up. His, very much human, brain is already hardwired to his current strength. It would literally be like... giving a little kid a bazooka or something..."

Saitama shifted his gaze around until he found a small trash bin tucked off to the side. He quickly dumped the scraps from the bomb that detonated in his palms and thought about how ironic that statement came across when it was coming from a literal child in a room filled with weapons.

"h-Hey... can I ask what this is all about?" the kid suddenly asked.

"... Hm? What?"

"This whole 'new body' thing? Is there something big going on?"

"o-Oh," he muttered, awkwardly scratching the back of his head. "... Nah it's nothing bad, or anything. I just-... w-Well, I had promised him that I would help him get stronger, but he's..."

"A robot?" Child Emperor finished for him.

"Uhhh, yeah... Well, we were sparring yesterday and he kinda got all sad and stuff about losing... Said he felt like he can't get stronger than he already is and all that... Then, I remembered you telling me about that metal and figured he could use an upgrade..."

"Oh... Hmm," he hummed in an impressed tone. "You're a pretty good Master, after all, huh? Going that far to help your student?"

"Heh... Nah... I'm actually a pretty terrible master," he said, staring at something on the large monitor. "Turns out, Genos has... really been doing more for me than I've been doing for him... Like, a lot more..." Saitama wasn't sure how much he should say to someone that wasn't in the group, so he thought carefully before he continued. "All he's ever really asked of me is that I help him get stronger, and it kinda feels like I'm just letting him down... So, yeah, I was really hoping you could help me, but... if you say it's not possible, I definitely trust your judgment..."

Child Emperor immediately felt like he was somehow letting Saitama down, himself. He looked to the floor between them with a frustrated scowl. "I'm sorry... I just don't know that much about mixing that type of technology with something that has organic human parts. It's kinda out of my territory..."

"Yeah, I get it..." Saitama rubbed his face, thinking about what he could possibly try next... and then it hit him. "Well... what if we ask his doctor for help?"

"Huh...? His doctor?"

"Yeah, the doctor that made him. I mean, I'm sure he knows a thing or two about how to upgrade him."

"i-I guess that's true," the kid muttered. "... Well, if you want to try that, then I'm totally by your side."

"Really?"

"Absolutely! We're friends, right? That's what friends do for each other!"

Saitama watched him hold his fist out for a pound with a confused expression. He wasn't really sure how to feel about being friends with a ten-year-old, but he eventually returned the gesture, gently bumping his knuckles. "Hmh... Right..."

---

Half an hour later, Saitama was on his way back to the train station from Child Emperors lab. They were able to get in contact with Dr. Kuseno and set up a time to meet. Genos had actually given him his number a while ago, but Saitama never really felt the need to use it. He was beyond excited at the prospect of working with a new energy source and was pretty eager to finally meet Saitama in person. The second the old man was on board, he and the boy genius got to talking science and other technology mumbo jumbo that Saitama didn't understand.

So, all in all, this wasn't a wasteful trip. Other than buying the plushy he still had discretely hidden in the paper bag he carried, everything went pretty smoothly. Though, he still had this chilling feeling that someone's been following him...

He had actually felt that way since leaving his apartment earlier, but so far, no one suspicious really popped out at him. At some point, he figured that he was just overreacting to what Genos said yesterday about these apparent fan pages on the internet tracking every interaction he has with Tatsumaki.

He was honestly too creeped out to search it up himself, but from what Genos has told him, there is a plethora of images and videos of them from moments he could vividly remember, like when they were hunting down that invisible monster, and a few blurry shots from when they were flying away from the battle together after killing the multiplying creature the other day.

Was there some sort of team that was dedicated to tracking their every move, like storm watchers? And were people really that interested in what they did outside of hero work? 'Geez... Even if I did ask her out, where would we even go...?'

(CRASH!)

"AHHHH!"

"RUN!"

"OUTTA THE WAY!"

Saitama came to a stop when he was suddenly being shoved by the crowd scrambling by him in the other direction. "... Hm?"

"FEE-FI-FO-FUMMM! Hergh-hergh-hergh," a deep, quaking, voice came booming out down the street. "Run, you puny creatures! Bring me a real fight!"

Saitama pinned his bucket hat to his head as the crowd continued to rush by him. He stood rooted to his spot with a confused look on his face. 'Oh, man... What the hell is this?'

(CRASH!)

An empty taxi cab smashed down into the base of a building, thrown from the adjacent street at the intersection in front of him.

(boom! Boom! BOOM!)

The blaring footsteps shook everything in the vicinity until the culprit came marching around the corner. It was a grotesque, blob-like monster towering up to the sixth floors of the surrounding buildings; a one-eyed cyclops with the physique of a bloated elephant. Every loose flab of skin on its body seemed to jiggle like a loose water balloon, even when the creature stopped. "Hergh-hergh-hergggghhhh! Come on! Someone call the heroes! I'm itchin' for some FUN!"

Saitama stared at the unsightly monster as it swiveled its head around in search of something else to destroy. 'Should I take care of this...? I'm not technically 'off' today, I just haven't gotten any calls... o-Or, I hope I haven't.' He immediately dug through his pocket for his transponder to make sure he had it turned on. That was a mistake he had made before.

"Who's it gonna be, huh!? Who's ready to die, first!?" The people scurried away from the beast, like ants, and it watched with a delighted smirk until the crowd uncovered the man in the bucket hat who didn't follow. "... Hmrrgghh? You ten kinds of stupid or somethin'?"

"What?" Saitama muttered.

"You ain't runnin' for your life," it pointed out. "What, you think you can take me? You wanna be the first to try and take down the BLOB GOBLIN!?"

"... Damn," Saitama muttered with that same perplexed look on his face. "That's a terrible name."

"Hurgghh...?" The creature turned its full attention to him with a daring look in its eyes. "What'd you say...?"

"Your name sucks?" Saitama repeated with a shrug. "It's horrible. I mean, did you give it to yourself, or is that just what everybody calls you?"

"Hergh-! Hergh-! Herrgh-!" it chuckled. "You're pretty brave for a grown man with a toy!"

Saitama gave him a strange look before peeking down at the plushy, loosely hanging out of the bag. He still didn't know what he was going to do with it, now.

"Hargh-! Haaarrggh-! You're a fool for not takin' off with the rest of the sheep! And on top of that, you went and pissed me off! Now... you're MIIIINE!"

(BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!)

Saitama watched it charge him without a shred of fear. 'I guess, I can just resell it, like that guy was saying, or... maybe just give it away to someone. It's not like I need the money...'

(BOOM! BOOM...! BOOOM...!)

It felt like with every step the creature took, it got slower and slower until it got close enough to lunge at him. '... Hey, now that I think about it, I sure hope the trains don't shut down because of this thing...'

"I'M GONNA CRUSH YOUUUU-..!"

(FSSHHHH!)

Before he threw a punch, the creature suddenly imploded, like someone squeezed a ketchup packet with all their strength.

"eh-!" With nothing to block the shower of blood and guts that spurted in every direction, Saitama held the bag up in front of his face in anticipation of the inevitable mess. Only, it never came...

He could hear the massive innards splash onto the hard surfaces around him, but he was completely dry. He hesitantly peeked around his purchase to see he was engulfed in an invisible barrier that had the blood slipping off of it, slowly revealing the world as the mess slipped away. When it cleared enough, the barrier vanished, and all that was left of the monster's muck dropped down to the street with a nasty slopping sound.

"h-Hey... Are you okay...?"

His breath caught in his throat at the familiar voice and he looked up to see Tatsumaki descending from the sky with the grace of an angel. She had taken her brown wig off, but she was still in her oversized hoodie that drooped down past the jean shorts she had on.

"Hoh," she chuckled, awkwardly, when they made eye contact. "It's you..."

He was confused as to how she knew until he realized that his bucket hat had flown off at some point, revealing his bald head. "... Uh... heh-heh... Yeah," he replied, nervously. "And it's... you..."

She smiled and slowly came to a stop a good few feet above the ground. She spotted his headwear lying on the street a few feet behind him. With just a look, she picked it up and slowly drifted it over Saitama's shoulder. He went to grab it, but she pulled it away with a playful smirk. "Hmph... Sorry for stealing your kill, there," she said, nodding to the mushy pile of flesh that was once a living beast. She brought his bucket hat to her waiting hand and twirled it around as if she were examining it. "If I had known, I would've-.."

"Nah, don't sweat it," he waved her off. "That was... pretty cool, actually... Nice job."

She smiled and shrugged her shoulders in a playfully nonchalant way. "Yeah, it was no biggie. I'm just... glad I got here before you got hurt."

"... Hm?" He initially thought she was serious until he noted that playful look on her devious grin. "... o-Oh, heh... Yeah, that was... really terrifying. I was probably gonna die, for sure. Can I get that back, by the way?"

"Hmh-hmh," she giggled and shook her head. "Well... I'm glad you're safe." She tossed his hat back and watched him snatch it out of the air with his free hand. "Cute toy, by the way."

"Huh?" He looked down at the plushy, still sticking out of the bag, and immediately felt awkward for having it. "o-Oh, uh... yeah, it was a... gift for my... nephew," he fumbled as he stuffed it back inside, "... but he already had one, so-.."

"Mm," Tatsumaki nodded with a knowing look. "That's... too bad."

"Heh... yeah..."

(Click-FLASH...!)

They froze for a long moment at the sound of a camera shutter. On the second floor of the building next to them, there was a teen girl watching their interaction with an adorable look on her face as if she were on the brink of tears. "i-... I'm sorry," she said, wiping at her cheek. "... y-You guys are just really cute..."

"Eh-!" Saitama was reasonably disturbed. They really were spying on their every interaction.

Tatsumaki noticed his horrified look and it only made her chuckle, again. "Hmh-hmh!" She turned around and flew off, dragging Saitama into the air behind her to escape the crowd of civilians that came rushing out the moment they left.

Saitama pinned his hat to his head and stared down at the ensuing mob below. "Man... I hope that didn't ruin my perfect disguise!" he shouted over the rush of the wind.

"Tch, how the hell is that a 'perfect disguise'!?" she asked.

Saitama shrugged with a grin. "I don't know, either! It always seems to work, though...! I mean, it got you!"

"Keh-! Yeah, okay!" Tatsumaki rolled her eyes and kicked up their pace a little, shooting off for the clouds.

Saitama's smile grew as he watched her fly ahead of him. He didn't expect to run into her today, but it was definitely a happy coincidence. In fact, he couldn't think of a better turn of events. Now that he had pushed his plan for Genos in motion, there really wasn't much left for him to do. Flying around with the girl he liked didn't seem like such a bad idea.

They broke through the clouds and slowed their pace to a gentle glide. Immediately, everything was more peaceful. The warmth of the sun felt amazing on Saitama's skin, and the gentler breeze kept him cool. Plus, it also happened to blow Tatsumaki's scent in his direction, and he had to admit, 'She... smells pretty nice... Is that weird?'

As if she could feel him watching her, she suddenly turned back before he could look away. "... What?" she asked.

"Huh? i-I didn't say anything."

She narrowed her eyes, suspiciously. "You're... staring at me."

"... o-Oh... really...?"

Again, she did her best to hold her composure, but that damned smile came slipping back in without her say-so.

She turned back around, but Saitama caught it before she did, and, as always, his grin wasn't too far behind. Despite just being caught, he kept looking right at her as if she were the only thing to see up there at the top of the world. "... Hey, where are we going, anyway?" he finally asked.

"i-I don't know," she shrugged. "I guess I just figured we should get out of there before they crowded us."

"Ah," he muttered. "Fair enough..."

Tatsumaki's grin deepened and she kicked up the pace just a bit. She was flying them in the general direction of City-B, but she honestly wasn't even thinking of a specific destination when they took off. He didn't seem to mind, but she figured his asking meant he was looking for a ride home. She nearly corrected their course before his next question completely caught her off-guard.

"Hey... do you drink...?"

"Uh-!" she gasped, lightly, and peaked back over her shoulder. It instantly felt like her heart was starting to race. "wh-.. What...?"

"Like, beer and stuff?" he shrugged.

"o-Oh," she mumbled, turning back around. "... Sometimes, yeah..."

Suddenly, an excited grin spread across his face. "Cool... We should go have a drink somewhere... i-I mean, if you're not busy, of course..."

For a long moment, she didn't say anything as if she were considering it.

Saitama noted her hesitation and immediately thought about how that sounded, out loud. He meant it as a generic invitation, but it definitely sounded more like he was asking her out. "a-And not like a date or anything," he said, rubbing his neck. "Just as uh... co-workers...?"

---

Half an hour later, they found themselves at a bar in City-F, wearing disguises again. This time, Tatsumaki just stuffed her hair into a baseball cap and wore her hoodie over top of it, and Saitama again relied on his trusty bucket hat.

The place they chose was more accurately described as an adult entertainment lounge that just so happened to have a bar as an amenity. Aside from that, there was a pool haul, an arcade, and even a movie theater. It was pretty loud and chaotic on their way in, but once they found a table at the back of the bar's seating area, it was relatively calm. The chatter and other sounds of joy were still very much present, but they didn't have to yell to have a conversation. Tatsumaki figured it'd be their best option. If they had gone to a 'Heroes Only' bar, then they would've had to show their hero id's, and people might get the wrong idea.

All in all, they were pretty much assured some peace and quiet... and it was definitely quiet. When they first sat down, Saitama made a passing statement about the decor being a little over the top which Tatsumaki agreed with. Since then, it's been nothing but nervous taps on the table, shy sips of their beers, and dodgy eye contact.

The tension really confused Saitama. Even though he said they were coming as co-workers, this felt nothing like it did when he went with Genos. He didn't know what was different, but it was very uncomfortable. And he knew he wasn't alone.

He watched Tatsumaki hide inside her hoodie, staring down at the rim of the glass bottle she had double-gripped in her hands. The expression on her face churned something in the pit of his stomach. It was somewhere between angry, embarrassed, and terrified; all masked by an admittingly adorable pout. '... Was this a bad idea?' he wondered.

Tatsumaki was all of those things. She was terrified, for obvious reasons, embarrassed by the fact that she couldn't think of anything to say, and angry that she couldn't seem to just act naturally. He made it clear that this was not a date, so why was it impossible for her to just behave like a normal human being? She couldn't even look him in the eyes anymore. It was like some invisible force was blocking her path every time she tried. If this was how she was acting now, what the hell would she even be like on an actual date...? Would Saitama ever even ask her out if she couldn't at least make this situation bearable...?

With a deep breath, she tore her eyes away from the rim of the bottle and looked around the room, slowly working her way back to Saitama. When she finally got there, he was staring off into space as if he were deep in thought, '... Or incredibly bored...' She took a deep breath and quickly thought of something to say. "s-So," she startled him awake and he quickly met her gaze, "... i-Is this really a normal thing?"

"Hm...? What?"

She tucked a loose strand of hair back up into her hat. "y-You know... Co-workers going out for drinks..."

"Oh, uh... sure," he shrugged. "Or... I think so... They used to do it at my old job, all the time."

"... Oh," she muttered, softly.

Saitama awkwardly nodded. "Yeah... No one ever really invited me though, until Genos did a few days ago."

Tatsumaki nodded to show she was listening. Even if she had nothing to say, at least she could do that much.

"We went to this other civilian bar in City-B... Heh, and I think the bartender was like... actually blind."

"He was... blind?" she asked.

"Yup," he said as he took another sip. "And he was like a hundred years old, too... "

Tatsumaki chuckled softly and swished her beer around...

"That's... pretty old," he awkwardly muttered. Saitama watched her with a flat expression, finally admitting to himself that, '... This was a bad idea.'

King and Genos had warned him about taking action without consulting the group, but he didn't really see this as 'taking action'. They never said he couldn't talk to her. He just couldn't ask her on a date, yet. Now, he was starting to see why. Technicalities aside, this could be seen as a practice run... and it wasn't really going too well.

He twiddled his thumbs around the glass of his bottle and tried hard to think of something else to say. Something that could kickstart a dead conversation from scratch...

"d-.. Demon Cyborg," Tatsumaki muttered, snapping the silence.

"... Huh?"

Tatsumaki flinched when they locked eyes and she lost her words again. She brought her wrist up to cover her face when it felt like a blush was setting in. "He's... i-I mean, you talk about him, a lot," she muttered into the cuff of her sleeve.

"... I do?" Saitama wondered.

"Mhm," she nodded and hesitantly took another drink. "Is he like... your best friend or something?"

Saitama stared at her blankly for a moment. He had never really thought about that, but considering all they've been through, the answer came pretty easily. "... Yeah... Yeah, I guess so... He's really helpful and he's kinda fun sometimes, and he's..."

"Kind of annoying?"

"Yeah," Saitama agreed, without missing a beat. He smiled when she chuckled, finally brightening up a bit. "Heh-heh, he just kinda... talks a lot," he shrugged. "But, he's actually a really cool guy once you get to know him."

"Mm," she hummed, looking down at the table between them with a gentle grin. 'So far, so good...'

"Do you have a friend like that?" Saitama suddenly asked.

"wh-.. What...?"

"A... best friend?" he clarified with a confused look.

Tatsumaki sat back in her seat and again found herself staring intently at the glass of her beer. "Umm... No..."

"... Really?" Saitama wondered. "Not even your sister? You guys seemed pretty close."

"eh-..! w-Well, that doesn't count," she waved him off with a chuckle.

"... Hm? Why wouldn't it?"

"Because she's my sister?"

"So?" he shrugged, clearly waiting for more.

"So, it doesn't count," she reiterated with a slight hint of frustration in her tone. "Family is supposed to love you... It's obviously not the same thing..." She dragged a loose strand of hair away from her cheek with a soured expression and stuffed it back up into her hat as she wrangled in her temper. "I... don't even really know if she'd like me if we weren't sisters..."

"... Eh-heh-heh," Saitama suddenly chuckled. "What the hell are you talking about? Why does that matter?"

Tatsumaki narrowed her eyes. "... What?"

"I mean... she is your sister," he needlessly pointed out. "It's not like that's gonna change someday. And from what I've seen, she really cares about you... a lot..."

Tatsumaki watched him with an unreadable expression. She was, admittedly, a little irritated that she was being lectured out of nowhere. Especially by Saitama of all people.

"She kinda reminds me of Genos, actually," he said, taking a drink and scoping out the room, again.

"... How?"

Saitama turned back and finally took note of her demeanor. She looked like she was slowly shifting into an angry scowl, fighting to maintain a look of indifference. Was it something he said? "... u-Um... i-I don't know," he shrugged with an awkward chuckle. "She... talks a lot?"

Part of her was trying not to give him the relief of a smile, but her composure slipped far too quickly. That was just too true. Her sister told the longest stories, and she always had a million questions to ask about everything. It was possibly one of her most annoying traits, and there were plenty in competition for a spot on that list.

Saitama smiled in success at somewhat landing that joke. It immediately brought some much-needed levity to the conversation, but he still had a point. "She also worries about you, a lot... Maybe even more than Genos worries about me," he shrugged. He could visually recall Fubuki begging him to save her life during their first mission.

Tatsumaki held his eye contact for only a moment before looking away, pondering his words. That was another one of her sister's most annoying traits, for sure.

"I've only known Genos for a couple months, now," he continued, "but you've had your sister your whole life, so... maybe you're just used to it, or something."

"... Hmph," she softly grunted. '... That's almost true...'

Saitama took another drink and sat back in his seat. "I don't know, though... Maybe it is different... but, at the end of the day, I guess," he looked up at one of the televisions hanging on the wall to see they were doing a report on the attack two days ago, "it's just... kinda nice to not be alone..."

Tatsumaki watched him daze off while his words sunk in. For as simple as that sounded, it was true. She had never had a friend other than Blast, and, when he was alive, he was gone more often than not. Plus, it was no secret that, aside from her adoring fanbase, no one really seemed to like her. Without Fubuki, she really would have no one. '... It is nice... to not be alone...'

That one statement somehow opened up a new side to him that she had only seen in glimpses before now. At this point, she could make a safe guess and say he was a loner before meeting Genos, but she never got a clear picture of just how alone he really was. She was dreadfully curious, but that felt like a 'date conversation' as her sister would call it.

In one of their 'sessions,' Fubuki came up with an early game plan for how to conversate on the first date. The gist of it was to make sure they got into deep talks about their pasts and fears, and stuff. She said it was a vital step to show Saitama that she was both vulnerable and emotionally mature enough to share. Tatsumaki still wasn't really sold on the idea, and truth be told she wasn't even sure she was vulnerable enough... or emotionally mature. The thought of trying to tell Saitama about the things that happened in her past felt terrifying. Was that really necessary? Did they really have to dump their traumas on the table and hope to not get judged...? Could their first date really not just be about having fun...?

"Hey," Saitama suddenly called out, drawing her gaze. "Do you wanna play a game...?"

---

(On a screen)

"waka-waka-waka-waka-waka-waka"

Tatsumaki stood to the side of the big, arcade-style, machine, watching the little yellow face chomping down on the white dots. Saitama was playing, still looking just as plain as ever. The atmosphere in the heart of the arcade section was chaotic, to say the least. It was almost dizzying with the flickering lights, of all colors, demanding attention, and the jaunty tunes playing as a backdrop to the sounds of electronic chimes and comically cartoonish laser blasts.

And there were couples... Lots and lots of couples...

In every direction Tatsumaki happened to glance, there were apparent lovers floating around, hand in hand, with beaming smiles on their faces as they whispered to each other. It was like they were all in their own rom-coms, marching through the scene for stock footage to use in a montage. They were everywhere. She couldn't ignore it if she tried. Though, looking at Saitama, he definitely did. He was locked in on the game he was playing. "... So, this is Pac-man?" she asked.

"Uhh... I think it's Ms. Pac-man, actually," he said, noting the big display on the top.

"What's the difference?"

"Hm...? i-I... don't really know," he admitted. "Feels the same..."

She watched him run from the little colorful ghost things until they nearly cornered him. Then, the little yellow cheese creature ate a bigger dot and something changed. "... What happened?"

"Oh, I ate one of those big ones. I don't know what it's called, but it makes you like... invincible or something, and the ghosts run from you, now..."

"Mm," she hummed.

"And you can eat them when they're blinking like that, watch..."

Tatsumaki followed along, trying to at least seem mildly interested, but it honestly looked... kinda stupid. "... So, how do you win?" she asked.

"Hm...? y-You just eat all the white things and keep going to the next stage."

"Next stage? How many are there?"

"Uhhh..."

Tatsumaki waited on an answer that never came. She watched him slowly being cornered on all sides again. There was no big white dot left for him to turn the tables so he panicked and ended up running himself right into one.

"Damn... I almost had it that time."

'He was nowhere near done though...'

Saitama swiped the card he just bought to load up a new game. "These are kinda cool, huh?" he asked, flashing her the little piece of plastic with a flat smile.

"... The card?" she said with a perplexed look. "What's cool about that?"

"These machines used to be coin-operated," he said. "Back in the day, I used to go to the arcade by my apartment with no money. I just found the ones that other kids dropped on the seats or underneath the machines. They were kinda hard to find though, and I usually ended up with enough for only like one or two games..."

"Sounds pretty boring," she said.

Saitama smiled at that and shook his head. "It actually made the games a little more fun, that way... When I only had one chance..."

Tatsumaki watched the side of his face for a long moment while he got another game started. She couldn't tell if he was actually enjoying himself or not. It didn't look like it... though she never really could tell the difference when it came to him. It was one of his qualities that irritated her the most. He was completely unreadable, especially when compared to the average man. Just looking around at all the other couples really put that into perspective.

Her gaze traveled an inch in front of Saitama's face and she suddenly zoned in on a couple at a machine further down the row they were on. She couldn't tell what game it was, but it definitely didn't seem to matter to them. The girl was leaning back against it and the guy had her caged in with his hands straddling her on either side. They were both beaming with beautiful smiles and staring deep into each other's eyes as they spoke. It felt like with every word they exchanged, they got closer and closer until they were damn near sharing breath... Then, they kissed... and she suddenly felt really embarrassed to have been watching for so long.

She quickly looked away with a blush, returning her eyes to the screen they were on. Again, she watched him play for a bit before losing interest. Her gaze shimmied back to that couple just as the girl was playfully dragging the man away... and when they disappeared behind Saitama's face, she stopped there... The first thing she looked at was the flickering light that was reflecting off his head, which made her smile a bit, but eventually, her eyes trickled down to his lips... and they stayed there for a long while... even as he seemed to snort a booger back up and dramatically wiped his nose with his entire forearm. 'Hmph... gross...'

Saitama happened to glance over just before level 2 started, and he noticed her intense glare. His eyes flickered between her and the screen a few times. "... What? Is there something on my face?"

"uh-!" she gasped, snapping out of her daze. "wh-What?"

"Huh...? You were staring at me," he pointed out.

"I... n-No, I wasn't," she said, turning back to the screen with a defensive look.

"Heh, you definitely were," he said.

Tatsumaki shook her head and watched him walking himself right into a corner, again.

Saitama wasn't paying attention, any more. He stared at the side of her face, only occasionally taking a glance at his position on the screen. Then, under his breath, he muttered, "... Do you like me or something?"

"What!?"

"Huh...?" he shied away from her intense look. "... wh-What?"

"What did you jus-.."

"i-I said... Do you wanna play or something," he cut her off. "Hah... i-It feels like I've just been playing alone... o-Oh... looks like I lost again..."

He swiped his card for another round as Tatsumaki kept studying his face with an unreadable expression. She was sure she heard something else...

He stepped back and awkwardly gestured for her to take over. "It's uh... your turn..."

Tatsumaki shifted her gaze to the joystick with an uncertain look. She timidly switched spots with him and stared at the screen as it loaded the game in.

When she finally started playing, Saitama watched her first run and tried his best to just act naturally. He meant for that little comment to just be a joke that they laughed off, but her reaction scared him a bit, for some reason. It almost felt like he had somehow reset the tension of this outing of co-workers.

When she loaded onto the second level, he took a peek at her out the side of his eye. Still, she had an unreadable look to her as if she were deep in thought or extremely focused... it was hard to tell either way, but he was mesmerized all the same. The flashing lights of the machine painted her face in vivid colors and reflected in her big bright eyes... It was almost hard to look away, but a giggling couple passing by them drew his gaze.

They were holding hands and strolling down the aisle with glistening smiles... and Saitama locked onto that simple gesture that told the entire world at a glance how close they were...

When they were passing over Tatsumaki's head, he stopped there and looked down at her face, again. Then, he looked down at her hand holding the joystick. It was so small and dainty, and he suddenly remembered how it felt in his palm the other day. '... Hmh... I kinda wish this was a real date...'

"How long am I supposed to keep going?" Tatsumaki asked, drawing his gaze back to the screen.

"Huh...? What level are you on?"

"I think this is... six?"

"uh-!" he gasped lightly. 'Level six...!?'

Tatsumaki peeked over and noted his surprised look. "... Hmph, you kept losing at level three, right?"

"w-Well..."

"Guess I'm just better," she shrugged.

Saitama's gaze shifted back to her with a new sharpness. Was that trash talk? He wasn't even playing seriously during his turn. He could easily beat that if he tried. "... Hmh, yeah... Okay..."

"Okay, what?"

Saitama turned back to the screen to see her halfway done, already. "Just... okay," he shrugged. "I mean, I wasn't really trying."

"Right," she said in a completely sincere tone. "Of course."

"Ah-hah-hah," Saitama awkwardly chuckled before the feigned playfulness slowly fled from his expression. He zoned in on the screen, desperately hoping she messed up soon. If she managed to beat his personal record of nine levels, he'd definitely be in trouble. There was just something about level 10 that always tripped him up. Surely, with this being her first time, she'd run into the same problem... right...?

He was wrong.

Tatsumaki was breezing through the game like a seasoned pro, and she didn't even look to be trying all that hard. By the time she was down to her last life, most of her focus was on the baldy standing next to the machine. He hadn't said it, but she could guess she had already far surpassed his personal best. It was the way he was chewing on his bottom lip and how he tucked his arms over his chest that gave it away. She fought to keep herself from smiling, but watching the strongest man in the world pout about losing in a video game was kind of adorable... She did feel bad, though. Halfway through the next level, she purposely cornered herself and pretty much allowed the ghosts to trap her. When they finally took her last life, she could see Saitama visibly snap out of whatever daze he was in. "Oh," she muttered. "Looks like they got me, huh?"

"... Uh, yeah," he said.

"Level 23, though," she shrugged. "Is that good?"

Saitama glanced at her with an uncertain look. He suddenly felt like he was somehow being hustled, here. '... There's no way she's never played before.'

"Hmph, not bad for my first time, at least, right?" she asked as if reading his mind.

Saitama smiled, but it never reached his eyes. "Mhm... Not bad..." His gaze slipped away from her when he saw another machine against the back wall, further down.

Tatsumaki could feel the unspoken animosity in his tone, and it took all she had not to burst out laughing. She was able to mute her amusement down to a cheek-aching grin. "... Hmh-hmh! Did you wanna try again?" she asked. "I can help you pass level three if it's too hard for you."

"eh-...! n-No, heh," he chuckled. "That's okay. I can do better than that, but... it's kinda getting boring, ya know?"

"Uh-huh," she muttered in a knowing tone.

"I'm... really more of a fighting game player, anyways, so-.."

"So let's play one," she immediately said. "I think I'll probably end up beating you if you teach me how to play."

His smile deepened in an ominous way.

"I might just be a natural," she shrugged.

Saitama stared at the side of her mocking face for a long moment. He wasn't looking for a competition, but she was being very overconfident. At this point, '... I might have to get serious...'

For the next few hours that followed, Tatsumaki proceeded to defeat Saitama in every single game he dragged her to in hopes of winning. Everything from the fighting games to air hockey. She dominated him so easily that somewhere along the way, she almost felt like he was letting her win... but his soured expression said otherwise. He was furious after each loss and demanded a rematch in everything until he realized he wasn't getting closer.

With something to actively do, all of the awkwardness seamlessly vanished before they even realized it. They were freely chatting as if they hadn't a care in the world. They didn't think about how they looked or if someone was going to recognize them. They were just enjoying a gaming session in an arcade, fueled by their competitive need to claim a win, and the victor was brutally obvious...

---

"Ah-hahaha!" Tatsumaki laughed as she skipped down the street toward their apartment complex a few blocks away, loosely following the frustrated Saitama who looked like he was trying to ignore her. "Come on, baldy! Stop being mad just because I beat you in everything!"

"I'm not mad," he waved her off in an unconvincing tone. "And all those games are rigged, anyways."

"Oh-hoh, so they were rigged just because you couldn't win?"

"... You're a cheater," he baselessly accused when he had no response.

"Ah-Haha! What!?"

"Or a liar," he added. "There's no way you've never played games before."

"I really haven't!" she retorted. "I'm really just naturally amazing at it for some reason."

"Yeah, okay," he rolled his eyes.

"h-Why are you mad!?" she chuckled at his childish antics. "Maybe... you just suck?"

"Okaaay," Saitama groaned, rolling his neck out as she laughed. "You know I almost had you in that last game of Road Brawler. My button was broken."

"You're the one who broke it!" she countered with a beaming smile.

Saitama wanted to rebuttal, but he had to admit, it was nice to see her smiling. "... Hmh... Well... Good for you, I guess."

"Mhm-hm! See, did that hurt?" she mockingly asked. "... Sure wish I could've used all those points I got on a prize."

"h-What? Those are my points."

"Keh-! Yeah, right!" she protested. "Almost all of those points were mine!"

"Tch, well, yeah, but... I mean, I bought the card," he shrugged.

"Wooow," she drawled. "Really?"

Saitama playfully shrugged. "Hey, you should've bought your own."

"Hmph! Whatever!" she waved him off. "You could probably use it more than me, anyways. I can always just go get more."

"I love how humble you are," he said, sarcastically.

Tatsumaki cutely shrugged as she matched his pace down the sidewalk. She took a deep breath and stared down the road ahead. They had initially flown from City-F, but she sat them down a few blocks away when she saw how clear the roads were. It was well past midnight, and they seemed to be the only two out at this hour. She figured this was the best idea in case her sister happened to be in her room. If Fubuki spotted them flying in together, she'd surely be curious about where they've been.

And Saitama didn't mind for essentially the exact same reason. If Genos and King were still loitering around his condo, they'd probably assume he was moving on his own if they saw her drop him off on the helipad, which totally wasn't the case...

"So," Tatsumaki said, "you said you used to do that at your old job?"

"Hm...? Oh, uh... Nnnope, never," he said. "I... didn't really have any co-worker friends back then... I guess, people thought I was kinda weird er-.. whatever..."

"Hmh... Because you're bald?"

"Hey! That's not weird!" he immediately retorted.

Tatsumaki gently left her feet and laughed at his defensiveness. His lack of hair was definitely a sensitive topic. She swooped around him and snagged his bucket hat before he could secure it.

He rubbed at the top of his head with a wistful look. "And I wasn't even bald back then..."

She examined his headwear again before removing her baseball cap. It was immediately freeing to have her hair down.

Saitama watched her put his hat on as she checked her reflection in one of the windows of the closed shops they were passing. He was mesmerized by how soft and flowy her hair was. For some reason, he always figured it'd be a lot less giving considering its distinct curly look.

"So, what was it, then?" she asked. "Why didn't you have friends?"

"... i-I don't really know, to be honest." He turned back down the road to see how far they were. "I mean, there was this one guy who I used to eat lunch with sometimes who said I was... pretty boring," he shrugged.

"Keh! He said you're boring?"

"I guess so... I mean, I don't try to be."

Tatsumaki twirled her baseball cap around, intently listening to his words. "Well, what do you like to do?"

"Huh?"

"Like, outside of work, when you're just... home alone or you have a lot of free time. What do you like to do for fun?"

Saitama stuffed his free hand in his pocket and absentmindedly looked down at the plushy in the bag he was still carrying. That was something he never really considered. Most of his off time was spent just being bored and thinking of ways to change that, but he didn't really have a consistent time killer that he'd necessarily call 'fun'. "I don't really know... I guess, playing games, and... reading manga, watching movies, and stuff?"

"Oh-hoh, yeah," she chuckled. "You're boring."

"Yeah, I know," he muttered. He watched her twirl around as she giggled. "Hmh... but what else is there to do, ya know...?"

Tatsumaki thought it over for a moment before shrugging her shoulders. "I don't know... Lots of stuff. Like... going to amusement parks?"

"Huh...? You like amusement parks?"

She was caught off guard by the perplexed tone in his voice. "w-Well... yeah? Lots of people do, so what?"

"y-Yeah, I know," he said, still giving her a strange look. "I just... never would've thought..."

"i-I mean, I'm not like seriously obsessed with them or anything... I used to take my little sister, sometimes when we were kids..."

"Hmm," he hummed in a pondering tone.

"What?"

"I just didn't expect that, I guess... I mean... can you even ride all of th-.."

"Yes! I can ride the rides!" she suddenly exclaimed, clearly startling him. She tried to maintain an angry look, but it cracked when Saitama's look of surprise melted into an amused grin. "Heh, are you kidding me!? I'm not that short, ya know! I'm 5 feet!"

"Pfft! What?" Saitama sputtered.

"I am 5 feet tall!" she stated clearly.

He looked at her floating form in its entirety, trying to measure her by sight. "... Mm, 4'7, maybe," he shrugged.

"Uh-!" she gasped. "h-Are you joking!?"

"Do you measure yourself in heels or something?"

"I'm 5 feet tall, you idiot!"

Tatsumaki was red in the face when he started laughing. She was feeling more confused than ever before. She was furious, but she couldn't wipe the smile off her face. Even though the joke was on her, his joy was almost contagious. That didn't mean she was going to take these insults lying down. "w-... Well, I'd rather be short than bald!" He didn't stop. "Heh-! y-You probably never even had hair! I bet you were born like that...! Ah-haha! Stop laughing!" She floated her baseball hat directly into his face to try and stifle his amusement, but he pulled it off and continued on.

"s-Saitama...?"

The two turned to the new voice, slowly coming out of their delighted chuckles when they saw who it was.

For Tatsumaki it was the worst possible person they could have run into at that moment, so it killed her joy almost immediately. To Saitama, it was a stranger, so he got his last few chuckles out before his curiosity took over.

"Ah-haha! 5 feet... Hm?" After a moment, his brain clicked back on and he recognized her as the girl he kept running into. "Oh, uh... lllluck, right?" he timidly asked. It was something like that.

"u-Uhm! It's... Love, actually," she shyly corrected. Her gaze shifted between the two of them in quick fidgets as she tried to maintain a smile.

"Oh, heh... Yeah, Love," Saitama said. "My bad."

"i-It's okay," she muttered.

"What's up? What are you doing here?" he asked.

She went on to explain that she was staying in the area, and she had come to get some things from the store. Tatsumaki ignored her every word as her gaze shimmied up and down her outfit. She wasn't in that battle dress she wore during the mission. Her 'civilian' look was still way too eye-catching for it to be a good disguise. It was a bright yellow sundress that showed off her curves, topped with a cropped jean jacket. It looked like an outfit she picked right off of a spring catalog model. And she made no attempt to hide her pink hair. 'Tch, who the hell is she trying to impress?' she bitterly wondered... Though, she already knew the answer to that.

"-a-and then, I saw you walking by through the window, just know," Love continued, pointing back to the late-night corner store. "I just-.. wanted to say hi, I guess... i-I'm sorry if I was interrupting something."

"... Hm?" Saitama was confused for a moment until he caught onto what she was likely assuming. "Oh, nah it's cool. We were just walking home. We live in the same building, down the street."

Tatsumaki hovered off to the side, watching Love with a scrutinizing glare. Her eyes shifted to Saitama when he said that, though...

Love noticed that when she happened to glance her way. "o-Oh," she muttered. "... Hmh, I thought... you guys were on a date or something."

"eh-! n-No," Saitama stammered, slightly going red in the face as he scratched the back of his head. "We were uh... w-We were fighting a monster in City-Y, and she jus-..." He stopped when he glanced over to see Tatsumaki looking his way. He wasn't sure if he should say anything about going out for drinks. If there was really nothing wrong with it, would lying make it seem like it was more than what it was? "... She just... gave me a ride home..."

Tatsumaki wasn't sure how to take that. She held his gaze for a moment more before looking away, finding interest in something further down the road.

"... Well, isn't that nice?" a new voice said, drawing their attention back to the door of the corner store.

Much to Tatsumaki's growing irritation, it was the only other person who could possibly make this moment any more terrible. 'Urgh... Amai Mask.'

"The top 2 heroes of S-Class getting along so well." He flashed them a sweet smile and a gentle wave on his way over. "Truly a sight to behold."

Saitama turned to Tatsumaki and immediately noticed her look of disgust. He looked back to the stylish man and examined him, closely. "Hm...? Do I know you?"

'... Hoh?' Amai Mask's gaze suddenly sharpened as he bore holes into the plain look of Saitama. "Hm-hm... I would assume so," he said in his sweet tone. "I'm quite known throughout the organization and, frankly, even more so outside of it."

If that was surprising, Saitama didn't show it. There was something about his face that seemed somewhat familiar, but he just couldn't put his finger on it.

"A-Class, rank-1?" the popstar tried to help him. "Amai Mask...?"

He made a weird face as if he couldn't understand him... and then he shrugged as if to say I-don't-know.

"Gck-!" Amai Mask was visibly disturbed by his obliviousness. 'This guy... Is he tryin' to piss me off?' His gaze shifted to the annoying little esper when he could see her mocking grin out the corner of his eye. Even Love looked uncomfortable with the situation. "... Hmph," he chuckled, his gaze sliding back to the confused baldy. "Surely you must recognize me a little. I am technically the most popular hero in our organization, after all..."

"Nope... I've seriously never heard of you."

"Erghm!" Tatsumaki turned away and coughed to cover the sound of her chuckle, drawing the attention of their two intruders.

Amai Mask stared at her for a moment before turning his focus back to the bald man in the tracksuit. Despite his unreasonable disrespect, he maintained his composure well enough. "Hmh... Well, perhaps it's my fault. I've been meaning to introduce myself to you since your official debut. I must say, you're quite the hero."

Saitama watched him reach out for a handshake and accepted the gesture. "Oh, uh... thanks," he muttered. He raised a curious brow when the man suddenly got an intense look on his face, as if he were straining himself, somehow...

Amai Mask was squeezing his hand as hard as he possibly could in his base form, hoping to establish a bit of dominance, or at the very least, test his own strength against the world's strongest man. 'krgh-! ergh-...! You feel that!?'

'... Is he constipated?' Saitama wondered. He eventually realized that this handshake was going on for far too long and tried to pull away. "... Um... You gonna let go, now?"

"o-Oh," he muttered, releasing him with another eerily kind smile. "Heh, my apologies. I suppose I'm a little starstruck at meeting such an amazing... hero."

"So, what do you want?" Tatsumaki finally spoke in a sharp tone. "Why are you here?"

"Hoh, I have no business with you, today," he immediately said, shifting his sharp gaze toward her. There was a clear shift in his mood when he did so. He had no patience for Tatsumaki, no matter what the situation was. "I'm only here to help Love settle in. I've been helping her acclimate to the modern world. As you can imagine, it can be pretty overwhelming for someone unfamiliar."

"Hmph," Tatsumaki grunted with a suspicious sneer on her face. "So, you're babysitting, huh?"

"ah-! h-He's not my babysitter," Love exclaimed, immediately shrinking back when they all turned her way. She blushed under the piercing gaze of Saitama, specifically. "h-He's..."

"Your boyfriend?" Saitama assumed.

"e-Ew! Heh, no way! It's nothing like that, at all!" she quickly stammered. "w-We're just friends!"

"Guh-!" Amai Mask reeled at her words. 'EW!?'

Tatsumaki noted his reaction before shifting her gaze back to Love. What exactly was the dynamic of their relationship? Why would he choose to go through the trouble of helping some random girl settle in if they weren't dating? Did he like her but she didn't like him back? Something like that surely had to hurt his pride. More importantly, 'Why the hell is she staying in City-B...?'

"Ah, okay," Saitama said, breaking the brief moment of silence. "Just friends..."

Love hesitantly nodded, hoping she wasn't seeming too transparent, especially considering who happened to be watching. She could feel Tatsumaki's glare like a brick on her shoulder. "He's... he's really nice..."

"... Umm... Okay?" Saitama was getting tired of this random encounter that seemed to be going nowhere, and peeking over his shoulder, he could tell Tatsumaki was, too. "Heh, well it's... pretty late, now, huh?" he asked, drawing her gaze. "We should probably get home."

Tatsumaki rolled her eyes as she spun around in the air to continue on their way.

He turned back to say his farewells. "It was nice seeing you again, though, Love." His gaze shifted to the guy who had an absolutely shell-shocked look on his face. "... a-And it was nice to meet you, uh... i-I forgot your name."

"Wait!" Love suddenly stopped him before he turned away. Again, she crumbled under his piercing glare. "... u-Uhm... y-You said you live around here?"

"Hm...? Yeah. In that building, right over there."

Tatsumaki watched Love crane her neck to see where he was pointing. 'Tch, why the fuck does she care? She planning on spying on him or something?' she wondered, not even seeing the irony of her irrational anger considering her mission that morning.

"o-Oh, okay..." Her eyes flickered to Tatsumaki who was looming behind him. "... i-I was just curious, hmph," she bashfully muttered. "I'm... actually gonna be joining the Hero Association, pretty soon. Amai Mask said I should consider finding a city to call home, and... i-I really like it here in City-C, and I wa-.."

"This is City-B," Tatsumaki cut her off.

"uh-!" Love lightly gasped. That was the first time the esper had spoken to her directly. "... r-Right... City-B..."

Saitama couldn't have been more lost than he already was. Why was she telling him all this? And why did Tatsumaki seem to have a problem with her? He could hear it in the snap of her tone. Did they already know each other...?

"a-Anyways," Love continued. "I guess I'll... see you later, then?"

"uh-!" Tatsumaki gasped, lightly. She suddenly got a tight feeling in her chest. '... You bitch!' Her eyes shifted to Saitama, eagerly wondering what he was going to say to that. He looked as confused as ever.

"Uhh... Yeah, maybe," he shrugged, though in the back of his mind, he doubted that. They've only been running into each other by pure coincidence. The odds of it happening again had to be pretty low, right? "Well, you said you're joining the association, so I might see you at HQ sometimes..."

"o-Oh... Yeah," she smiled. "Hopefully, you do..."

The bald man awkwardly nodded his head as if waiting for more. When she said nothing else, he continued on. "Whelp... See you around, I guess..."

Tatsumaki was hovering in front of him, now looking down the road in the direction of their building, patiently waiting until he caught up with her.

Love lingered behind and watched them go for a moment. Her gaze shifted between the two before settling on Tatsumaki. '... Was that... really not a date...? They seem so close...'

"Hm-mrgh!" Amai Mask dramatically coughed to get her attention. "We should get going, too, Love. It's late..."

"... Yeah," she muttered. "Okay..." The two began their trek in the opposite direction. Love tried hard not to turn back, but after only a few steps, her curiosity got the best of her.

Unfortunately, so did Tatsumaki's, and they found themselves eyeing each other down as they drifted further apart.

To Love, it almost felt as tense as it did when they initially locked eyes for the very first time in that mission the other day. The Tornado of Terror was on a completely different level than her, in more ways than one...

Tatsumaki watched her with a frustrated pout until she finally looked away and continued trailing the snobby pretty boy down the sidewalk. If she didn't dislike her before, she definitely did, now. In the span of a five-minute conversation, Love managed to confirm they weren't dating, inform Saitama that she was availabe, and discover where he lives. She played the ditzy airhead well, but Tatsumaki could see she was a lot more meticulous than she wanted anyone to notice.

"Heh, that was weird, huh?" Saitama suddenly asked, pulling her from her thoughts.

"... Mhm," she hummed.

Even though she didn't say anything, Saitama could feel the drastic shift in her mood. He thought they could just jump right back into the playful comfort they had settled in earlier, but it seemed that moment was gone. Was she upset about something? "... So, uh... What's your deal with that guy?" he asked.

"What?" Tatsumaki gave him a frustrated sneer.

"The... weird guy back there," he said. "You didn't seem to like him, very much."

Tatsumaki took a calming breath as she looked back to the road ahead. They were only a block away. Their little evening together was coming to an end, and she didn't want to ruin it further by having an attitude over something that didn't even matter. "Um... Amai Mask? Yeah. He sucks..."

"... Oh," Saitama muttered. "... And what about Love? You guys know each other or something?"

"Tch, how the hell would I know her!?" she asked with a bit more bite than she meant. "i-I... I've never even seen her before..."

"Um... Okay?" He side-eyed her with a cautious glare, still wondering what she could possibly be mad about. It suddenly felt like he was back to square one of walking on eggshells, trying not to set her off. "You jus-... really don't seem to like her, either..."

Tatsumaki timidly looked back to find him staring right at her. She quickly turned away to hide the scowl on her face. "... I don't know what you're talking about... I don't even know her..."

Saitama said nothing more. It's not like he actually cared, anyway. He was really just trying to get another conversation started for the last stretch of their walk, but it seemed like she wasn't in the mood, anymore...

So, they continued on their way in relative silence, listening to the hum of the wind drift by. With every step they took, their pace slowed as if they were inching to the finish line.

Somewhere along the way, Saitama started to wonder if he would even get the chance to see her anytime soon. Sure, they lived in the same building, but they rarely ever ran into each other. If he had to wait and follow Genos and King's timetable, there was really no telling how long it would be before he could actually make a move.

"... Hey," he called out, just before they made it to the entrance. "... uh... Thanks for coming with me, today. It was..."

"Fun?" she finished for him.

Saitama was momentarily taken aback and he noted the look on her face. She wasn't frowning anymore, but her smile felt a little timid. "... Yeah," he muttered. "It was fun..."

Tatsumaki shied away from the eye contact and slowly dropped back down to the ground. She found interest in the marble floor of the sidewalk in front of their entrance. Saitama stepped around her and got the door for them. She muttered a 'thank you' and quickly stepped through.

The lobby was empty. The usual front desk attendant was likely on break, right now. They silently made their way to the elevator, both already planning on how to say goodbye when they got to the top.

Tatsumaki remembered another one of her sister's lessons. To leave a lasting impression after a date, it's important to smile at them when you say goodbye. It had something to do with creating a lasting image or something. This wasn't really a date, but she figured it was close enough for her to try it out.

They stepped inside and Saitama pushed the button for the top floor. When the doors shut, the hum of the elevator's mechanics amplified the depth of the silence between them, and they awkwardly avoided each other's gaze.

"... Eh-heh-hah," Saitama suddenly chuckled and shook his head.

Tatsumaki looked over at him with a confused expression. "... What?"

"o-Oh, no," he waved her off. "It's nothing... There's no way you're 5 feet tall."

"I AM 5 FEET TALL!" she yelled, immediately bursting into a smile again when Saitama started laughing.

"Ah-haha! There's no way. 5 feet tall is like... at least right here," he said, using the center of his chest as an estimate.

"Pfft! That's not even close!" she yelled. "How tall are you!?"

"Me? Like 6 feet..."

Tatsumaki rolled her eyes and shot him an amused look of disbelief. "Tch! Yeah, right! You are not 6 feet tall."

"I am, though," he said. "At least..."

"You're a liar," she said dismissively, turning back to the door with a grin that wouldn't go away.

"Heh-haha... Okay," he shrugged. "... I mean, it's been a while since I checked, but..."

Tatsumaki stared up at him with a scrutinizing glare. Then, her eyes shifted from the top of his head to his feet. "... Mm, 5'9, maybe," she muttered, playfully rocking on her feet and looking away.

Saitama smiled at her and shook his head. She was really going to use his own joke against him? "Hmh... Yeah, maybe..."

"Uh-!" Tatsumaki gasped when he suddenly put his hand on the top of her head and removed his bucket hat. Did she have that on the whole time?

"Still better than 4'7," he said, putting it back on.

Tatsumaki didn't respond, initially. She was frozen by his indirect touch, and it almost felt weird not having his stupid little hat on. "... Hmph," she managed to chuckle.

Saitama peeked over when she didn't rebuttal. She had a permanent grin as she stared off into space. Then, she brought a hand up and ran her fingers through her hair to pull out any kinks or tangles. Again, he found himself lost in how silk-like and flowy her hair looked. Perhaps it was an unfortunate impulse of everyone bald to see someone with such beautiful hair and admire them. He had never seen it look bad. Not even when she was bloodied and beaten the first time he saw her...

Then again, he remembered a random lesson from an art class he took in high school. His teacher said that, 'A beautiful thing can make everything around it seem beautiful too.' She had a beautiful face, so maybe it was just his mind playing tricks on him... Still, he couldn't help but watch her slender fingers comb through her locks just for them to immediately spring into their curls again. '... I kinda wanna touch it.'

Tatsumaki happened to catch him looking out the side of her eye. She didn't react, immediately. Her gaze found its way to the indicator light at the top of the elevator to see they were about nine floors away from the inevitable parting. After fixing her hair, she shoved her hands in the pockets of her hoodie and finally glanced over to catch him in the act. "... Hmph, what?"

"... Huh?"

"You're staring at me..."

'Huh... Deja vu,' he thought. "... You... have pretty hair."

"uh-!" she gasped. The two locked eyes for a moment that felt just a second too long. When the tension grew, and they both felt the rising heat, they turned away.

Saitama awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck as he stared up into the corner. 'Damn... Why did I say that?'

'Why did he SAY THAT!?' Tatsumaki unknowingly mimicked. Her face was beet red, and she suddenly felt like she was seconds away from breaking out into a nervous sweat. How the hell was she supposed to respond? And why say it out of the blue as if they were on that topic? She glanced at the lights again to see they were three floors away. Now, it almost felt like it was going slower. "... th-.. Thank you," she muttered, damn near under her breath.

Saitama glanced back down to see her staring straight ahead. "... Sure..."

(Ding!)

The door parted and Tatsumaki was the first to step out. Saitama followed behind and watched her slowly make her way home... and then, he thought of one other thing. "o-Oh, hey."

"Yeah?" she turned back. To her confusion, he was patting down every pocket he had as if he were looking for something.

"Uh... I was actually just kidding about the card. I uh... have it somewhere..."

"Huh...? n-No, it's okay," she said. "Hmh... y-You can keep it, really."

"No-no," he waved her off. "Fair is fair. You definitely kicked my ass at everything we played. I think I really only got like... five points, maybe."

"Heh, yeah, well... you did buy it, though."

"So?" he shrugged. "I think you racked up enough points to pretty much get whatever you w-..." he stopped talking when he suddenly remembered exactly where the card was. "Oh shit... I think I left it in that last machine..."

"Mhm-hm!" Tatsumaki chuckled. "You dummy... It's okay, though. Really. I probably wasn't going to get anything, anyways."

"Hm...? Why not?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I didn't need anything. I mean... trust me, beating you at everything was fun enough."

"... Yeah, but... uh-!" he suddenly gasped. He looked down at the bag in his hand and immediately found a solution.

"... Hm?" Tatsumaki hummed when he suddenly held out the bag with the toy that he had bought earlier. "... wwwhat's this?" she asked.

Saitama shrugged. "You won, fair and square. I've gotta give you something..."

"Eh-heh, so my prize is a... One-Punch-Man plushy?"

"eh-...! y-Yeah, heh... It is kinda weird... but I hear it's the top seller."

"Oh-hoh, really...? Didn't you buy it for your niece or something?"

"y-Yeah," he muttered, "but... i-I can just get her another one. Her uh... birthday's not until... next year..." He grimaced at his own poor choice of words.

Tatsumaki stared at the bag, trying not to break her composure. He had actually told her he bought it for his nephew, earlier, and that he already had one. Of course, she knew it was a lie already. It was just fun to see him try. "Hmh..." She met his gaze again and accepted the prize. "Okay... Thanks..."

Saitama handed it over and watched her peek inside the bag with a smile. "... Yeah... No problem..."

Tatsumaki gave him one more smile before turning and heading for her door. Saitama was frozen in his spot, watching her go until she made it. She unlocked it and spared him one last look before ducking inside.

Saitama couldn't wipe the smile off his face for a good few seconds. Then, he remembered the dilemma of possibly not seeing her for who knew how long and it damn near ruined the moment for him. With a sigh, he finally got moving, internally hoping Genos and King were ready to make a real move, soon. Having fun as co-workers was nice, but... it wasn't what he really wanted...

---

Tatsumaki was watching him through the peephole as he unlocked his door. Before he stepped in, he glanced back over his shoulder, and her heart skipped a beat when it felt like he was looking right at her... Then, when he went inside, she released the breath she was holding in a huff.

She looked down at the plushy in her hands with a beaming smile. "... Co-workers, huh...?"

---

AN: Hooray for more progress? You guys know what to do! Let me know what you think, and stay tuned for the next entry. Till next time!