130 Seven Days (5)

It wasn't as bad as Iris had expected. The day was warm, so in a little bit, the clothes were dry, and they could leave.

When they started touring the park once more, Iris asked Kyro about a path that led to the side. He answered, and she used that fact as the start of the conversation. Although they could walk in silence, it was more fun while talking.

She didn't ask him about anything he might not share, just things about the park that he might know. At first, he answered only with a couple words, but once the conversation turned to pets, he became much more talkative.

Without even needing to be prompted, he shared some adventures with Lucy. The cat disliked other animals, especially dogs, and would hit anyone that came close to him. Because of this, all the pets in the park had been taught a lesson. Every dog that has lived here for more than a couple months was very clear on the fact that coming close to Lucy was the same as trying to pick up a hedgehog.

"Why do you think he warmed up to me so fast?" she asked as they passed another intersection.

"Probably because you're smaller than him. Or that your fox form is so young. He might believe you can still be taught better."

They both laughed at that, and Iris launched into a tale of how Lucy had taught her how to climb one night. It had been serious business at the time, but now she couldn't help laughing at the whole affair.

Like that, they walked out of the park, and Kyro led them toward the closest supermarket. It was nowhere near close, but they had time on their hands so neither minded it.

There, they bought products that could be eaten as they were or required little culinary talents. Kyro never cooked, so he was clearly not a man of the kitchen, and Iris wasn't eager to show off her non-existent cooking skills, either. If forced, she could do it, but that was for worst case scenario. Food cooked by her was meant to stave off hunger, not impress people with her culinary skills.

This posed the question of how she was going to convince Kyro to let her stay, but she pushed that thought aside for the moment. They were talking comfortably for once, and she didn't want this moment to end.

It felt like they were childhood friends who had reunited after a long time instead of strangers. They were mainly reminiscing about the events they had both participated in, but which they had seen through very different lenses.

After Kyro paid and picked up the plastic bag, they returned home around the other side of the lake. It had a number of attractions for children, and Iris watched them playing there with clouded eyes. She could almost see herself sitting on the swings next to her aunt's house, her gaze fixated on the empty seat beside her.

"Hey, did you hear what I said?" Kyro asked, slowing down their pace when he noticed that she wasn't paying attention.

"Sorry, can you repeat it? The children here just reminded me of something." Her words were light, and he didn't ask more, but she could see the question in his dark eyes, the way his brow furrowed.

Still, he let her be, and she was thankful for that. The past wasn't something she liked to dwell on. It had nothing on her current life.

At home, Kyro didn't rush away after they ate a very late lunch. Iris counted it a small victory and suggested, "Do you want to play something?"

His eyes moved from her to the TV screen and the controllers underneath it that he hadn't yet bothered to put away. "Any preferences?"

"I-I haven't played much," she admitted. "But I'm sure it can't be that hard! I've seen others play!"

Her strong words seem to have worked, for he went to pick up the controllers. She quickly cleaned up the table and returned to sit down with worry-filled anticipation.

It couldn't be that hard, right? With her friends, she had usually went out shopping or to sit and talk in a cafe, so games never came up. The only time she might have tried them was in a few parties she attended, but she would always know few people there, and so she never dared to interrupt the main group. She would cheer them from the sidelines, laughing at mistakes and jeering the losers with the rest of the crowd.

"Here." Kyro passed her one controller, then used his own to go through his game collection and choose the icon with a muscular man.

Iris' confidence fell a bit at that, but she refused to back down. If he chose this game, then it had to be acceptable for beginners. It was going to be okay!

The next moment, she was faced with over thirty heroes to choose from based on their faces. To make it even harder, some of them had masks or wore huge hats that took up most of the picture.

When she looked at Kyro, he had already chosen a hero with a fedora. "Just choose whatever," he said, a small smile playing on his lips.

"Fine," she muttered and chose a hero that looked like some purple space magician.

They were then loaded into the match, and Iris began smashing her buttons without any idea about what she was doing besides the basic right and left movement. It was clearly not the right way to play, but Kyro didn't say anything, so she just continued to try and hit him with whatever skill came out from her random combinations.

The first match was soon over in her utter defeat, but she had hit him a couple times, and she was almost certain she could repeat that. In the next round, her life was soon almost over while his was only missing a third, but she didn't give up. It was already a spectacular achievement with her being surprised every other moment with a new skill that showed up out of nowhere.

Then, something wondrous happened. She clicked who knows what, and lightning came out of her character's palms. It struck Kyro's fedora guy and obliterated him in a gruesome fashion.

For a moment, both players sat stunned. Then Iris raised her controller in the air in victory. "I defeated you!" she declared proudly, her face about to break from how wide her smile was. "Told you it couldn't be that hard!"

"It's just one of the three rounds…" he said, holding back his laughter.

He was probably amused by her enthusiasm for winning one round, but she didn't care. She had won! Even if she had not the slightest clue how to repeat that ultimate ability, she had won!

Kyro didn't forget to poke fun at her for losing the match in the end, and she answered him by calling him a bully for styling on a new player. They went back and forth like that for the whole evening then, with Iris trying out all the heroes in time. The game was as simple as it was hard, and she could only applaud Kyro for making a good choice.

Without either of them noticing it, they played till late into the night, forgetting even that they had gotten dinner that only needed to be heated in the microwave.