A/N: Once again I should be writing my long stories but the plot bunnies strike again. I'm sorry not sorry.

Also, I've been meaning to write something that deals with the very beginning (or even before) of Adam/Sio's relationship; most of my canon fics take place after their relationship has been established for some time, but thinking back, I'd like to write and explore more of their characterization when they're just starting out, still unsure of how to act/what to do/the awkward moments of your first relationship. That, and I kind of miss Adam's snarky ways... ^^;; he mellows out towards the end of the series (or maybe it's because he no longer has to put up with the pretense of being 'Jack the Ripper'?)

Fluff b/c I s2g I've got too much naughty things going on in my OTHER million-and-one-not-supposed-to-be-long one shots already.


"Oy...squirt..."

"Ah...e, eh? J-Jack-san..."

A single emerald glared down at her, the white eyebrow twitching with barely concealed irritation. Sio supposed she should've felt a touch more guilty being literally caught red-handed, but the curiosity was too great.

Especially considering what she just discovered.

"What, did I say about snooping around my things, hmm?"

"U-Uuhh, y-you said...to not do...that..."

A nod. "Correct. So you do remember. Then, please tell me, what are you currently doing right now?"

"I...I'm, looking...at, your guitar. Speaking of which, I didn't know you played guitar—"

"—That's not the point—!" An aggravated sigh, the young man having to restrain himself from simply giving her a tongue-lashing that would no doubt send her into terrified tears. Which was not what he wanted to do, not when they'd just barely, sort-of-kind-of (maybe?) confirmed their relationship. 'I mean, a kiss is pretty obvious...right? Right?' God, how he wished there was some kind of manual or at least someone else to talk to about 'how to girls' (that wasn't Gandhi); saying something like 'I love you' right after their first kiss was kind of jumping the gun...but then again, so was just impulsively kissing her without any sort of pretext or even a simple confession of 'I like you', now that he thought about it. 'Good job, Adam...'

"Look, if I can't trust you to respect my personal space, then I'm not going to invite you over to my room anymore for video games or whatever."

"S-Sorry! Imreallysorry! It's, it, it was an accident, I swear!" Sio knew it didn't look good, but she truly hadn't meant to peak around; it was only because she'd (stupidly) flung her jacket across the room, missing the chair and even the bed so it fell into a side crack she shimmied behind the headboard, where her jacket lay over a rather dusty guitar case. Which was how Adam found her when he returned from retrieving a couple of games Gandhi evidently forgot to return. "I, I was just...getting my jacket, really! It's not my fault it happened to land over your guitar case..."

When Adam first invited her over to 'check out some games' and maybe play a few, she'd been shaking with nervous excitement; inviting her over to his room? Did that mean what she thought it meant? Adam wouldn't move that fast, would he? But then again he also just, like, kissed me...before I even confessed or anything so...

But she was also intensely curious to learn more about him. The human Adam Muirhead, when he wasn't constantly the embodiment of Jack the Ripper (or even Florence Nightingale). What kinds of mementos did he like to put in his room? Did he even have any at all? Did guys get different rooms compared to girls? Was he in a rock band or something before joining DOGOO?

Another sigh, Adam looking like he both wanted to berate and forgive her at the same time. In the end he simply settled for folding his arms across his chest, trying to look stern but not mean. "...Next time, just please lay it across the chair, all right? No need to be all...bombastic or such. Don't need to impress me or anythin'..."

Sio blushed with immense embarrassment. Just when she thought she'd gotten the hang of 'acting normal', yet another thing would come along and trip her up. Note to self, casually throwing your coat so it landed perfectly on a chair did not work as well in real life as it did in movies. "S, Sorry...I'll be more careful next time, Jack-san..."

"Y'know, you can just call me 'Adam' now, by the way." He couldn't help but blush a little, despite his irritation. Giving someone other than his mother permission to call him by his first name, his real name...it was a different feeling from constantly hearing his e-gene moniker, the casual slips of the tongue from other holders notwithstanding. But it was also sort of pleasant, in a fluttery, affectionate kind of way. "An' you can drop the whole '-san' honorific or whatever; I don't care if you use it or not."

"Ah, o-okay Ja—ah iya iya, A...Adam...san," she added a few seconds later, still unable to get over her cultural preferences. "Um, in, in that case...y, you can call me...just 'Sio' too, if that's...okay with you..."

His lips quirked into a smile. "Actually, think I still prefer 'hanninmae'..." A pillow came flying off the bed but his reflexes allowed him to dodge it with ease. "All right, Sio. Chill out, yeh need t' calm down..."

"Hey! If you're going to be my b, b-b-b-b...boyfriend, then how about not calling me stupid names?" She was pouting but her face was a brilliant scarlet; just thinking of how their relationship changed from merely comrades to boy/girlfriend made her body flush, nevermind saying it out loud. 'Oh crap! Are we boyfriend/girlfriend now? Maybe I shouldn't have said that...!' It was too late to take back her words, though Adam didn't seem to be affected much, at least from what she could see.

"Fine, 'm sorry...Sio. That better?" Though his lilt was casual and his demeanor hadn't changed, inside Adam was as nervous as Sio's ramblings. Did she just say boyfriend? 'So she does think of us as...together...like that...' Instead of trying to further confirm anything however, he opted to just casually act as if they were already an ordinary couple, who were already dating and all that jazz, even if they were actually super-powered, genetically-engineered soldiers fighting invading aliens from outer space using weapons made from the DNA of their ancestors.

Right. Dating. His heart seemed to leap into his throat, causing Adam to swallow nervously. How could it be he had no trouble mowing down a dozen Objects, yet could barely make his voice work around a petite, Japanese schoolgirl? "A-Anyway, did you wanna play games or not?" As soon as that phrase left his mouth he wished he didn't always sound so harsh; it wasn't that he was eternally irritated, but rather after having to be Jack the Ripper, and all that persona entailed, for so long... Sometimes it scared him to think he would have trouble turning off the 'Jack' personality, or worse, it would permanently take over. But old habits died hard, and Adam made a mental note to be more conscious of his tone around her. The last thing he wanted was for Sio to think there really was no difference between Adam Muirhead and the phantom killer. "I mean, you do like video games, right?"

Sio nodded shyly, clutching the remaining pillow to her chest. 'Whew, looks like he didn't notice...or at least he's not freaking out about it. Wait, does this mean he sees himself as my boyfriend? And I'm his girlfriend?' That thought nearly sent her into another frenzy, and so she was quite relieved when he suggested video games as a welcome form of distraction from all these terribly confusing feelings. "Uh, y-yeah! I played quite a few games before DOGOO...y'know, being a loner and all that..." She scooted closer to where the collection of discs lay. "Ooh, you have Ikaruga? I'm impressed; most Westerners complain Japanese shoot-em-ups are way too hard..."

Adam couldn't help but smirk. "Hard? Those blokes wouldn't know what hard was until it smashed them in the face...but sure, I'm down. Haven't played this in a while...brings back memories." He reached over and plugged in the console, which had gathered some dust while they'd been busy with Operation Stone Forest. "So, you wanna give it a go? Sounds t' me like you're a fan."

The controller dropped into her hands and Sio felt a grin curving up her face as the screen booted to life, the familiar beeps and chirps as the game loaded and she started the first round. "Fan? I guess you could say that... I'm into any type of shooter honestly, be it first person or shoot-em-up like this." She was so engrossed in the neon flashes and button-mashing she didn't even notice Adam slowly encircling her from behind, arms around her waist until she was literally sitting in his lap.

"E-Eeehhh? Ja—A-Adam-san, wh, what, what are you..." She flinched at the sudden heat, barely separated by a thin layer of cotton as she realized just exactly where she was sitting. 'Ohmygod, I'm sitting in his lap, and his hands are...touching me...!' A nervous sweat ran through her, Sio unsure of what to do or how to even react. Concepts like 'skinship' were entirely foreign to her outside of manga or such; the last time she'd been touched or even held like this was when her parents were putting her to bed as a child. Maybe it was normal for Westerners to be this close casually?

In hindsight, perhaps silently pulling the girl into his lap wasn't the wisest of moves, especially given how the sniper seemed to have turned stiff as a board. Shit. "...Sorry. I didn't mean to freak you out. I just thought it might be nice to...nevermind," he muttered, hands suddenly pulling away and scooting Sio off his lap. "Don't worry about it."

Sio put the game on pause, feeling a little awkward herself. "Nice to...what? I mean, A, Adam-san...I'm sure you already know, but I literally have like, zero experience when it comes to this type of...stuff. So, if...there's something you wanna do, I mean...I'd be okay to just, try it. I-I mean, short of anything illegal or dangerous—a-ah, n, not that you'd be the type to do that...!"

Despite the awkwardness, Adam couldn't help but smirk. Sio's constant spazzing really was too amusing at times. "Oy oy, calm down squirt! It's all right; I'm by no means an expert myself...it's just, I thought it might be nice to...well, hold you," his face broke into an instant blush. "Of course, only if you're okay with it."

Hold me? Suddenly everything she thought she knew about the acerbic, aloof leader of the Second Platoon vanished. If you told her when she first joined that Jack the Ripper was the touchy-feeling type, she probably would've made some quip about him only wanting to get close enough to slash your throat. But as she was quickly learning, it seemed her hunch of 'Adam Muirhead' being different from 'Jack the Ripper' was correct. It seemed Adam really was more of a laid back, mellow, and perhaps even a bit shy type of guy. "H-Hold...me?" She squeaked, face burning as well. "L-Like, t-touching and all that...in your lap?"

'Whoa, whooaa, I didn't realize Adam was such a...romantic type of guy?!'

"It doesn't have to be that close, if you're not comfortable with it!" Adam was getting flustered as well, now regretting trying to initiate any sort of physical contact so soon. "I just...well, now that I...like you, I kind of...want to be closer to you. Like, hugging or being able to put my arms around you, stuff like that?" He sighed, burying his face in his hands. "Y'know what, forget it; sounds like you're not comfortable with getting all touchy-feely like this yet." Actually, he should've guessed the sniper wouldn't be comfortable with it, given how much she'd freaked out during their first mission in the hurricane together, and that had been strictly for business, 'get the job done' reasons too.

Oh. Ooh. For some reason it never occurred to Sio there was such a thing as non-sexual physical contact. 'Duh, of course that's normal; I mean, even best friends do that kind of stuff...god, I'm such a social noob.' Adam may have been rough around the edges, but he always respected her boundaries and never actually did anything to her. 'Unlike some other people I could name...'

"N-No, th-that's not what I—" She fidgeted, unsure of how to get her point across without coming off as even more of a loner than she already was. "I-I mean, I just...didn't think about it that way, that's all. Like I said earlier, I...don't even know what it's really like to have friends, let alone a...boyfriend, s, so...it never occurred to me people actually want to get closer to me like that." She sucked in a deep breath. "I-I, you just caught me off guard, since I was playing that game, but..." Summoning all her courage as Nobunagun, she looked at Adam directly in the eyes. "I, I'd...like to try it. I-I mean, the whole, hugging and stuff—if, if that's...okay?" Adam's expression remained impassive this whole time, causing Sio to panic slightly. 'Oh god, what if he thinks I'm just some, some...totally, socially inept weirdo?!'

Before her panic could completely override her Adam was already drawing her closer, Sio tensing a bit at the unfamiliar sensation of even being held, but gradually as he settled her in his lap, she realized how warm it was. It wasn't a hug, but rather he was cocooning her almost; her back brushing against his chest while his arms encircled over her shoulders, his chin resting just on top of her hair.

"...This better?"

"A-Ah, u-umm, y, yeah...!" She hoped he couldn't feel how fast her heart was beating, but judging by the faint pulsing against her back, Adam was probably just as nervous as she was. 'Whoa, I'm being held by a guy for the first time...! I can't believe this is actually happening—I'm touching a guy...!' And yet for some reason, it wasn't nearly as awkward or strange as she feared; in fact it was surprisingly warm, and...comforting. Especially given how petite she was, and how tall Adam was, it almost felt like he was protecting her, shielding her from the outside world inside her own little cocoon. 'It...actually feels really nice...like, I'm safe...'

"It's...you're, really warm..." She mumbled shyly, fingers hesitantly grasping around his arms. "Whoa...your skin is so pale...and soft..."

Adam couldn't help but laugh at the comment. Leave it to Sio to defuse even the most awkward of situations with just a single sentence. "Well, I am human, or so I hope..." His own body was starting to relax as well, now that the girl seemed to be settling into the idea of physical touch. Even though he wasn't that much taller than her, somehow her sitting in his arms like this made her seem smaller. 'And definitely more adorable', his brain absently commented, resisting the urge to go all out into an immediate embrace. 'No Adam, gotta take it slow, let her get comfortable first...' Despite witnessing her in action countless times now, for some reason, these newfound feelings made him more protective; the urge to shield her away from harm, whether it was dangerous Objects or over-eager holders—he stilled a little as he realized this new idea of being her protector embedding itself in his mind. 'I bet the old lady would have a heart attack if she figured out how different I actually am, compared to the Ripper...'

"U-Uh, um, Adam-san?" He gave a slight grunt, gazing a single eye down at her. "It's not, uncomfortable, is it? I-I mean, I...don't wanna cut off the circulation to your legs or anything since I'm sitting on them..."

"Nah, you don't weigh all that much, truthfully. Though, if you want, you could scoot back a little more—there we go," he sighed as Sio shifted her weight so she was now firmly between his legs, making it easier for Adam to tuck himself neatly around her. "But it's...cozier like this, no?"

"...Mmmmmmm...!" Sio didn't say anything except a high-pitched squeal, followed by extreme nodding. Before, their clothing made for a soft barrier, but this slight change meant there was more skin-to-skin contact, especially how he rested his head against her neck, feeling his breath warm her skin. She was also pressed more tightly against his chest, and her cheeks burned as she discovered she could feel the hard muscles of his chest through their clothing. 'Damn, he really is ripped...those muscles feel like solid steel!' Thank goodness she wasn't having a nosebleed, although if she concentrated too much it might actually happen. 'He also smells kinda nice...aahh, what am I doing?! I sound like a pervert, breathing in his scent...!' But it was true that being so close caused her to notice all sorts of details she'd never thought of before. Like how his clothes actually smelled clean and were free of stains, or how smooth his skin was (except for the small scars here and there from battle) and the unbelievable warmth that emanated from him, despite his paleness. 'I mean I know it's just how he looks, but for some reason I always imagined he'd feel...colder...not warm like this...' Suddenly Sio could understand why people wanted to be closer to each other; not just lovers, but friends and family. The feeling of touch, of being close and the tacit trust between two people... "You know...for some reason, I feel safe, like this...it's, pretty comfortable actually..."

His laughter rumbled against her back and again Sio was taken aback by how much she enjoyed the vibrations. "Well, I'm glad you feel more at ease. Because I like this feeling as well, getting to hold you like this." Slowly he brushed against her knuckles, until Sio opened her fingers and he laced their hands together, enjoying the added warmth. "To me, it's something...special, that I only get to do with you..."

Sio only stuttered incoherently, and Adam realized too late the implications of his words. 'Oh bollocks; I really need to remember to watch my mouth around her...' Despite the fact Sio was also his first girlfriend, it was harder to remember the girl didn't even have much social interactions until she joined DOGOO, literally jumping off into the deep end from 'comrades' to 'lovers' straightaway. "Sorry; I just meant that well, you're special to me, now." He sighed and rested against her honey-brown strands, noticing how silky and smooth they were. All the little details that didn't used to matter were reversing now, it seemed: her large maroon eyes, the face he used to think was plain but now was probably the cutest thing he'd ever seen, and the faint citrus-flower scent that was no-doubt her shampoo mingling with what he could only assume to be her scent... 'Alright Adam, you can stop being creep now...'

"Th, that tickles actually...!" She giggled slightly as his feather-soft strands brushed against her cheek. "Man, your hair is really soft and fine, too..." Unconsciously she turned around and ran a hand through the strands, before realizing what she was doing. "Ah! Uh, s-sorry, I didn't mean to just touch your hair like that—!" Her voice died as he gently took her hand before she could retract it, and placed it against his strands. "Ah..."

"It's alright, Sio. I don't mind if you wanna play around with my hair," he grinned slightly. "Yours is quite nice, as well...it's very smooth..."

"...Th, thanks...Adam-san..." Sio was sure her face was a bright red, but somehow her lips were smiling before she could stop herself. 'Wow, he actually complimented me...it's so weird to see him all nice like this. But I like it.' Slowly she reached out, fluffing the strands as Adam looked on curiously, enjoying the feeling of it as she ran her hands through them. "No offense or anything, but...how come you're so, well, different now? Is it because we're d, d...dating?"

Those emeralds narrowed a bit, Sio afraid for a second she'd said something wrong. "Hmm...well, you're not incorrect. It is true that, our relationship now is...different. You're not just another soldier-in-arms to me, anymore. But also...how much do you understand about personality dissociation between holder and e-gene?"

"Huh? W-Well, I mean Saint-Germain told me it was one of the side-effects, but it's different for everyone...like how Gandhi and Newton are pretty different from Mirza-san and Beckham-san, or even...me, actually, now that I think about it..." The sniper frowned slightly as she recalled those moments of pure bloodlust on the battlefield. "Is that why? You being Jack the Ripper?"

Adam nodded slightly. "Sort of. But remember, technically I'm not Jack the Ripper; my e-gene is really Florence Nightingale. But I can't let that get out, lest I literally turn a century's worth of history on its head. It's just too much trouble. And so...I guess, because I have to be so careful about maintaining this lie...sometimes I wonder if I didn't subconsciously adapt this different attitude to better fit in with people's perception of what 'Jack the Ripper' should be like. In all honesty, Nightingale herself hasn't had much of an effect on my actual personality."

"So...are you saying, that your personality and attitude as Jack...are, created?"

"Somethin' like that. Can't say I'm rightly proud of it, but...it is what it is. An' so far it seems to be working, so..." He shrugged slightly, although Sio noticed he wasn't looking at her anymore. "I apologize for being so rude with you when you first joined; truth be told, I've just had to put up this...front, so to speak, for so long that it's almost instinct now. I mean, I wouldn't say all of it is completely fabricated but..."

"Adam..." What could she possibly say to that? Realizing you were starting to turn into someone else was scary enough, but forcing yourself to become someone different just to keep a secret? "Is it...really that bad if people find out the truth?"

Those sincere maroons, gazing with concern for his well-being...Adam felt his heart give a lurch as a flurry of emotions he'd never felt before fluttered through his veins. "...I don't know; maybe it's not quite the disaster I'm imagining it to be but...well, I also made a promise to her...that I would do my best to not reveal the truth, unless I had to..."

The sniper nodded silently. "Man, you sound...well, so noble," she blushed in embarrassment. "I'm just kind of amazed that you're pretty different than my first impression of you...ack, that came out wrong..."

To her surprise there was a barking laugh from the man. "Hah! Believe me, I'm not the 'white knight' you seem to be painting me to be. It wasn't what you'd call love at first sight; truthfully, I was kind of annoyed at you, since you were just running around and shooting things without even thinking it through. And there were other quirks that made me...not sure how to act around you. But, you know...I came to learn that you are quite capable and your quirks became more charming than irritating...and my feelings changed somewhere down the road." He paused for a second, gently stroking the skin around her knuckles and Sio shivered with pleasure. "...When I first realized consciously that, I actually liked you...I didn't sleep a wink that night. In hindsight, getting under your skin is probably not a smart way to make a good first impression, but what can I say? I started enjoying any form of attention you gave me, even if it was negative..."

"So, so all that...teasing and stuff...you were doing it because you...had a crush on me?!" The look on Sio's face could only be described as bewilderment. "Yeah uh, I'm no expert in relationships, but you probably could've made things go smoother if you were nicer...instead of being sarcastic and grumpy all the time." She pouted, but Adam only laughed harder. "Hey, why are you laughing? Okay yeah, I take it back—you're definitely not a knight in shining armor."

"Well, I did tell you, I'm not an expert, either," he shrugged haplessly. "You're my first girlfriend; hell if I knew how to go about courting you or whatnot. Besides, like I said...I was afraid to let my guard down too much, especially around others. Until I was sure I could trust you with my secret...I couldn't take that risk."

"Ah, right... Wait, did you just say I'm your first girlfriend?!"

"Yeh, that you are. I guess we are each others' firsts...not that I mind in the least; I think it's more special that way, don't you agree?"

Not knowing what else to say, Sio simply burrowed herself against his arms, feeling very shy all of a sudden while Adam gently laughed and patted her on the head. 'Mmm...he does smell good; it's comforting, being held like this...and very warm...' Her eyes closed slightly, Sio basking in her newly-acquainted warmth of being in his arms, head leaning against his well-toned chest. 'Huh...I can hear his heartbeat...it's quite soothing, now that I think about it...' The steady rhythm, combined with the warmth and comfort of his embrace...her head tilted before she knew it, smacking against his arm. "Gah! Sorry about that..."

There was a chuckle from the man as he gently rubbed her forehead. "Someone's gettin' cozy, 'ey? Don't mind at all; though, if you're not going to continue Ikaruga, might as well shut it off." Sio nodded sleepily, Adam reaching over and powering the console down. "Did you want to play anything else? Or...seems like a kip is more up your alley?"

"Hey, don't make it seem like I'm just an otaku who sleeps all day...although you're not wrong," she murmured under her breath. "Actually, there was one other thing I kinda want to...or, maybe not..."

He gave her a questioning hum. "Something else? Well, that depends on what you have in mind..."

Sio squirmed around in his arms, embarrassed by her request. "W-Well, I-I mean, I know you probably don't want to talk about it, but...just, that guitar. It's yours, isn't it...?"

Adam knew immediately where this conversation was headed. "...Yeh, it's mine. An' let me guess, like most girls who discover their boyfriend has a guitar...you want me to play it for you."

"...Yes please."

Despite his initial annoyance at her having discovered one of his 'secret' hobbies, Adam couldn't help but smile. Nobody else knew about his hobbies or what he did before coming to DOGOO; even Gandhi and Newton only had vague ideas of the life he'd lead before the whole e-gene awakening deal, let alone the rest of the holders. Being able to finally share personal parts of his life that weren't about e-genes and AU weapons with someone else...it was a new, but pleasant, concept he could definitely get used to.

"All right all right, since you asked so nicely...not gonna bother singing though, that wasn't exactly my favorite; never got used to being in the spotlight."

"Wait, you sing as well?!"

Drat. 'Should've chosen your words more carefully, mate...' His inner monologue tsked in resigned defeat. "...Occasionally. And before you give me that look squirt, I really mean occasionally!" The sniper didn't seem deterred in the slightest however, if those wide eyes were anything to go by. "I-I mean, I just...it's, slightly embarrassing just...singing all of a sudden..."

"Aww...well, okay, if you really don't want to...but, I mean it's just me...and, I'm curious is all. You totally give off the 'bad-boy rocker' vibe; I'd be shocked if you didn't sing."

Bad-boy rocker? Adam raised an eyebrow but didn't comment on Sio's whimsical descriptions. "Er, how about this...I'll play a bit to warm up, and if I feel like it...a big if...then I'll...sing. Gonna be kind of odd since it'll have to be all acoustic..."

Sio eagerly clapped her hands as Adam reluctantly dragged out the guitar case, hoping he hadn't signed some sort of 'death by embarrassment' warrant. 'Well, here goes nothing...' The instrument hadn't been touched since he first moved in, and while there were times he seriously considered shipping it back home for safekeeping, something always caused him to hold back. "Blimey, it's quite out of tune...hang on," he muttered while adjusting the strings, the familiar twangs coming back as he strummed a few chords. "There we go. 'S not perfect without an actual tuner, but it'll do."

"Wow, a real acoustic guitar...it looks nice," Sio complimented as she ran her fingers over the smooth wood. "I always wanted to play some kind of instrument, but I'm too shy...I don't think I'd have much talent for it anyway."

"Oy, don't sell yourself short, squirt," Adam gently knocked her on the head. "I didn't think I'd ever do the whole cliché, 'join a band in secondary' deal, but...you never know what's gonna happen in the future."

"Are you saying we should start a band?!"

"Ah—uh, let's...let's figure that out later, yeh?" Adam hastily pulled the guitar strap over before Sio could get any more wacky ideas into her mind. "A-Anyway...not gonna promise anything, it's been a while since I've played, so..." he blushed darkly, suddenly very concerned with impressing this young lady whom was looking at him with nothing short of amazed admiration.

Though it had been at least a few years since he last did any serious playing, Adam was surprised at how much muscle memory remained. The first couple test chords were just random harmonizing, but as his fingers slide up the fretboard, the melody he'd been working on just before heading off to university seemed to play itself; his fingers automatically stretching to reach the difficult high note that apparently, he was still capable of. "Heh, what do you know...still got it, mate." As he kept playing the vocals hummed out, and before he knew it he was singing the lines of the chorus:

Tachigare sora wo oyogu kono yume no naka
Osaekirenai kanjou ga afuredashite going up
Tatta hitori de hashiri tsuzuketeku to shimetemo...

Sio stared in amazement as Adam not only began singing, but in flawless Japanese at that. Of course she learned early on that Adam studied Japanese in school and they conversed in half-Japanese, half-English, but it was still something else to hear him sing it.

"Whoa...th, that's...amazing! Wow Adam, you're really, really good! Especially singing in Japanese like that...you sound just like a real J-rock star!"

Adam felt himself blushing under the girl's adoring gaze. "A-Ah, um...it's not really that big a deal..." he muttered, staring pointedly at the guitar. "Honestly, one of my bandmates was an anime otaku, so of course he asked if I could write something in Japanese..." he rolled his eyes, recalling the request their lead singer put in, because not only did Adam play guitar but he just happened to be the only one enrolled in advanced Japanese. "Yeh, so uh...that was somethin' we were tooling around with, but then we graduated before it was finished an' then shortly after uni started I...had my actual awakening. As an e-gene holder."

"Oh, I see..." Sio didn't say anything more, but judging from his melancholy tone, it seemed Adam's awakening hadn't exactly been pleasant. She was burning with curiosity at just what happened, but she sensed that was probably a topic for later on. "Still, I think it's really good; who knows, maybe after the war you'll be a singer-songwriter!"

"Heh, we'll see about that. This is really just a hobby for me, I highly doubt I'd ever pursue something in entertainment. Too much drama and bullshit, honestly." Adam carefully unwound the neck strap and put the guitar back into its case. "Still, dunno...maybe I should take it out more often, good way to relax and let off some steam..." While he never considered himself the stereotypical, 'emo goth writing angsty songs in his bedroom' teenager, there were definitely times when music helped him get over the hardest of emotional crises.

Sio nodded warmly. "I vote yes! I-I mean, I...think it's a good idea to have a creative hobby...n-not because I want to hear your music or anything like that..." The sniper stuttered and looked away, fingers pointedly digging into the rug. "...But if you invited me over whenever you played I'd be really happy..."

Adam felt his entire body flushing at her statement. Sio really was too cute for her own good, sometimes. "...Sure. Maybe you can help me finish that song...since I never did before joining DOGOO." He gave her a wink, and the girl broke into another round of blushing and stutters.

"A-Ah, u-uh...I-I was just joking kind of, I know you're probably really busy and tired from all the battles I don't want you to go out of your way just for me—"

He shushed her with a single finger to her lips. "Hush love, I don't mind at all. After all, you're someone very important to me, now...I'd like to spend more time together with you that doesn't involve massive amounts of monster guts." He gave her a small smile and Sio returned it in kind; that shy, genuine smile gracing her face as well and Adam felt his heart skip a couple of beats.

"...Y-Yeah, I...I wanna spend more time with you, too. N-Not just, listening to you playing guitar or stuff, b-but, maybe next time...we can play another game o-or, watch a movie..."

"Of course. We can do all those things as well."

A new type of warmth flooded her veins, Sio unsure of what the emotion was but she welcomed it. 'Wow, I didn't think Adam would be such a nice guy...but, he is really kind, underneath Jack the Ripper...'

Next time, she would bring over some of her games and play them with him. For today she discovered many things about Adam, but Adam didn't know much about her, aside from being a military otaku.

Yet, that is.