Unofficial Date (part 2)

"That's not for me to decide, Nico."

I said coldly, and I began walking away. Seeing this, Nico hurriedly picked up his drink and followed behind me. And during the entire walk to the factory, he just wouldn't shut his mouth.

"I still don't get why you are punishing yourself like this. Sure, other people didn't like you. But that's no reason for you to be avoiding them completely. At least, one or two people around you is more than enough!"

"A single one of me is too much for those one or two people to handle."

"This is what I'm talking about! Why do you have to be so concerned with those things? Let them decide whether or not you are a weight!"

"But it has been decided, hasn't it? Otherwise, things wouldn't be like this."

"You don't get it, do you!? You are in this situation simply because you are pushing others away!"

I immediately stopped my walk and turned to Nico hurriedly. We just exited the mall and are now standing right by the stairs that lead to the large road. The sun has gone down, and it is now quite dark outside.

There are quite a few people here, and everyone can listen as Nico and I argue during the walk. He was talking too much and was causing too much attention to us. I have to stop him here.

"I don't push them away. Nobody was simply coming in my direction."

"Then, how do you explain your request to me after we took down the first demon?"

Hearing that, I quickly turned away again from him and faced towards the road. He was right, I did push him away, that day. But, that was because I didn't want him to be involved in my situation. Having him involved will only harm him and do him no good.

"You told me to stop talking to you again, acting as if we never knew one another! How is that not pushing others away!?"

"Nico, I did that for you."

"That's it! That's the whole problem, isn't it? You pushed others away because you are afraid of them being affected negatively by being next to you."

"Isn't that true, though? Two days after you ignored my request to stay away, you got glue on your pants."

"You think mere glue is going to stop me, Elizabeth!?"

"But, you were affected. Negatively."

"But, I don't mind it. At all."

"But, that's my whole reasoning. Enough of this."

I began walking down the stairs again, and this time Nico stayed silent. He let out a long breath and followed behind me silently. The rest of the walk towards the factory was silent, with only the sound of the vehicles going around us loudly.

Arriving at the factory, I went inside the thin metal walls after Nico opened it for me. I just entered silently after passing him by the metal wall, and I caught a glimpse of his annoyed expression.

He was… very close to exploding, I think.

Once we were inside, I noticed that there was nobody else here anymore. I took out my phone and started opening the application to order online cabs, and Nico followed behind me.

We arrived at our bags by the entrance. I turned a glance inside, hoping that the smoke demon didn't return. Unfortunately, the factory was so dark that I couldn't even see the other end of the room. So, in the end, I couldn't tell.

Nico sat down next to his bag while toying with his phone, and I sat down next to him. To his surprise, I was sitting very close to him.

I recalled his annoyed expression when he opened the metal wall for me, and I kind of felt bad. Now that we are alone here, it looks like we can talk a little.

"I'm sorry. I was too cold, earlier."

I suddenly said, and Nico laughed a little from that.

"I think I'm getting used to your personality by now. So, don't worry."

I giggled a little at his joke, and I turned to look at my phone. The driver is still quite far, so we still have time.

"Truthfully, I didn't push you away because I was afraid of you being harmed. I pushed you away because I was worried for my own well-being."

I suddenly said, and Nico turned to me worriedly.

"What do you mean…?"

"A long time ago, I had a close friend. We played together almost everyday, until the day we got separated. It was during elementary school, so it was long… long ago.

That day, she was possessed by a demon. You can probably guess what happened afterwards."

"Ah…"

It was an old story from when I was still in the third grade of elementary school. A close friend of mine got possessed by a demon, and things took a turn for the worst. In the end, she was forced to leave the school because of me.

"Ever since then, I always distanced myself from others. It wasn't just because I was afraid of them being harmed because of me, but it was also because I was afraid of being hurt from them leaving me.

You're right. Maybe, you're okay with getting glued. But, the time will come when things become worse. There's just no certainty that you won't leave me if it does happen."

"I..."

Looks like Nico wanted to argue about leaving me. But, seeing how he was lost for words, it seemed like I was right.

He does have intentions of leaving me. In the end, everyone who got close to me has always been like that. And at this point, I'm not surprised anymore, so I wasn't that disappointed.

"It's okay. You're not the first to be doing it, so no worries."

I said to him, and Nico looked away rather disappointed.

"Still… you need to keep trying."

I turned to him again, and this time, he wore a rather serious face. This time, he truly wants something out of me.

"You need to keep on trying, Elizabeth. Even if those people eventually leave you, you have to keep on trying to find even more people next to you. Stop pushing people away, and start trying to be closer to more people.

One thing I noticed about you, is that you didn't even try to keep those people next to you. You didn't even try to find anyone to keep beside you. For now, maybe you can endure everything all alone. But, as time goes, you'll realize that not everything can be solved just by yourself. The more people by your side is always better, you know?"

It's always easier said than done, Nico…

But, I can't tell him that. He already looked so hurt from being pushed away by me, and I can't bear seeing him look more hurt than this. So, I decided to just accept his words with an open mind and keep it inside me deeply.

I nodded at him silently, and turned my eyes back to my phone. From the looks of it, the cab is already getting close. Seeing this, I began standing up with my bag on my back.

"I have… another request. But, it won't be a one sided request like before. Would you listen?"

I suddenly said as I stood up, and Nico stood up as well after hearing that.

"Don't come see me during lunch breaks."

I suddenly said, which completely took Nico by surprise.

"Ah, don't take this the wrong way. I'm just saying that coming to my classroom during lunch is… a bad time to be visiting. We can still meet each other some other time, like after school ends."

I quickly explained, which made Nico look more relieved.

"Oh… phew, I thought you were going to completely push me away, again. But, why specifically lunch breaks?"

"Well, I have my own reasons. Mainly because lunch breaks are when most fights happen, and I don't really want you to be involved in it. I'm only pushing you away from all the negatives, so I'm not completely ignoring you. Don't worry.

That is my request. And in return, you can make any request from me."

Hearing that, Nico grinned. He quickly began pondering as to what request he wants to make with me. And finally, he made his decision.

"In that case… let's continue fighting together!"

"Huh?"

"Demon hunting! Let's keep doing this until the day we graduate!"

"R-Really…?"

"Yep! Pretty simple request, right?"

Sounds.…very simple, yeah.

And, until we graduate!? Are we going to keep hunting demons for that long!?

Well… it's not that difficult to keep, so…

"… Fine, fine. We'll stay ghost hunting."

"Yes!! I have lots of places to bring you to!"

From his excitement, I can tell Nico actually has a lot of plans regarding the demon hunting locations. I wondered if some of them are actually in a place far away from here. But to continuously do it for three years until we graduated… he got to have like a super long list or something.

I turned to my phone again and realized the driver had already arrived. I showed the screen to Nico, and he nodded in understanding.

"Looks like I'll be going first."

"Sure, thing! See you tomorrow, after school!"

I laughed a little seeing his bright attitude returning, and I waved my hand at him as I walked towards the exit. I slipped through the thin metal walls and walked towards where the cab was waiting, and I got on it after confirming with the driver.

As soon as I sat down on the air conditioned car, I realized just how tiring today really was.

Fuah… Why does everything have to be so emotionally investing…?