94 Lily Attacks

"No take backs!" Lily shouted quickly when she saw how stunned Zero was.

"I-" Zero began, but Lily shook her head.

"No," Lily repeated, bringing her knees down and coming closer to him.

"But," Zero insisted, "You can't ..."

"I'm can, and I did," Lily said with a small pout, "I asked and you said yes. So take it like a man."

"You really want ...?" Zero asked, hardly daring to believe.

"Duh," Lily replied with a laugh, "Why else would I ask, if I didn't? Or are you saying you don't want to be?"

"No .."

"NO?!" Lily gasped, cutting Zero off yet again.

Zero was getting perplexed now because she kept cutting off his words and he couldn't say them. Granted, he hardly said much but this time, she completely misunderstood what he had wanted to say.

He had meant, 'no, it's not that' but instead, she thought he did not want to be her boyfriend.

Before he could clear the misunderstanding, the very hurt Lily took his hands in hers and looked at him in the eyes, "Do you hate me?"

Zero gulped, seeing her so close, the words suddenly dying in his throat.

He shook his head.

Lily smiled widely then and nodded, satisfied, "Good. Then it's not a problem."

She patted his cheek, "Because I like you, Zero."

Zero's eyes widened.

Did she? Really?

"No, that's not right," Lily mumbled, looking down and missing the dejected look on Zero's face.

"I don't like you," Lily began and Zero's eyes widened again at that.

She smiled brightly and looked up at him, saying, "I love you."

Okay, now Zero just froze.

From being happy, to dejected, to hearing something completely unexpected that Zero just could not think anymore.

For a split second, he thought that this was what Kai had probably gone through when Lianne had been running away from him while pretending to have a boyfriend.

Zero just stared at her, not daring to believe that this was not a dream.

It felt like a dream.

He was never this emotionally affected before so it must be a dream.

Lily waited for Zero to say something, but he just sat there, staring blankly at her.

She tilted her head a bit but there was no reaction.

She wasn't expecting him to reply with the same words since, you know, he's a block of wood (rock, wood - he was both). However, wouldn't he have something to say?

Or at least, look like he was surprised? Or sad? Or happy?

Anything?

"Zero?" she called out tentatively, waving her hand in front of his face.

Did she break him?

He continued looking at her in a daze, and so, Lily did what she had always wanted to do.

She kissed him.

This was not her first kiss nor was it the first time she initiated a kiss with a guy, but this was the first time she was this nervous.

She placed her lips on his stiff lips, letting it stay for a second before she pulled back. She only intended it to be a peck on the lips, but when she wanted to pull back, she found she couldn't.

Zero had woken up from his daze.

He now placed one hand at the back of her head and the other snaked around her waist as he pulled her to him while continuing where she left off.

Though surprised at first, Lily did not hold back either.

So she wrapped her hands around his neck and allowed him to put her on his lap as they continued kissing.

It wasn't even any deep kissing for all they did was just kiss each other on the lips but Lily felt this was the most memorable and magical moment in her life.

After five minutes of this newly formed couple thoroughly tasting each other's lips, they broke apart.

Zero had the gentlest smile on his face that melted Lily even further, and Zero stroked her cheek, saying, "You're mine now. You can't ever escape."

Lily nodded, hugging him tightly. Placing her cheek on his chest and listening to his heartbeat, Lily replied, "I don't ever want to escape."

Lily was happy.

She was glad she listened to Lianne and just did whatever came to her mind. Now, this man was hers.

The earlier incident was starting to fade away and all she felt right now, was utter bliss.

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Zero reluctantly sent Lily home after they had dinner. Upon reaching her house, he switched off the engine and discovered that Lily, too, did not seem to want to go back as yet.

She was still hugging him behind and not getting down from the motorcycle.

"Lily, we're home," Zero said, then quickly corrected himself, "I mean, your home."

Lily sighed and took off her helmet, then hugged Zero again, rubbing her face on his back.

"Times like this, I wish I stayed in my own apartment like Lianne," Lily mumbled against his back.

"How about I send you to work and pick you up from work every day?" Zero suggested.

"You won't get fed-up seeing me every day?" Lily asked, turning her body so that she could glance at his face.

"Of course not," Zero replied.

This was the first time he was glad that Sir forced the Diamond Team to take regular hours. If it was before, he would never have been able to do this for one never knew if they could get called up for something.

Having a 9-5 job didn't seem too bad after all.

"Okay!" Lily agreed readily, then her face fell.

"What's wrong?" Zero asked immediately, getting off the bike and facing her.

The bike was steady, so there was no danger of Lily unbalancing it once Zero parked it - but he did have one hand still on it to keep the bike even.

Lily looked at her house and then back at Zero. She pressed her lips together and started biting her lower lip.

Now that she was back, and facing the fact that she would be separated from Zero, the earlier incident started creeping back.

It wasn't totally gone and she found herself suddenly feeling very unsettled.

She grabbed Zero's sleeves and said softly, "Can you stay the night?"

"Lily?" Zero prodded gently.

"I … I … feel safe with you around,�� Lily explained, "Just for tonight?"

Zero felt her trembling a bit when she asked that, and he understood.

"I'll send you home first, then sneak into your room later," Zero said, thinking about her family.

Lily couldn't help but smile at that, touched at his thoughtfulness.

"Thank you, Zero!" Lily exclaimed, flinging her arms wide and wrapping it around his neck. She brought him close and kissed him, happy beyond belief.

Zero, in the meantime, was taken by surprise yet again by her 'attack' but quickly adjusted. He could get used to this.