||Start Again||

Chapter VIII

With one more try,

can we start again?

It was business as usual at the Sixth Heaven. A sacred Holy place where the clouds were made of untainted golden silk and the roads were paved in gold and holiness that will cleanse even the vilest of criminals, except the Holy Flame didn't purge them and turn their body into cinders in an instant.

Nobody found out yet, though. It was a place that no ordinary Angel was allowed to enter regardless of the cause. Even an Archangel had to get permission before entering unless under special circumstances.

Such place is known as Zebel, the homage for the Six Seraphim as well as the Seven Archangels, the highest possible rank for the dwellers of Heaven. They are Angels basked in all that is Holy whose loyalty to God are boundless and powerful as they are loyal and holy.

But what exactly is 'business as usual' for the Seraphim? Are they the twelve-winged beings circling the Throne of God chanting "holy, holy, holy" in daily basis until the Judgment Day? Are they the peacekeeper of Heavens? Or do they hang about by the crystal clear lakes, sipping divine tea as they watch a TV show while waiting for trouble arise?

If you say that is basically doing nothing, then yes. They are essentially doing nothing when it's 'business as usual', which is every single days since peace was reestablished.

They are indeed the guardians of the Throne of Heaven, though. They monitor the Angels from all of the Heavens. They are the ones the Celestials—leader of a battalion of Angels—sought for guidance. The ones the lower Angels sought when they needed tips on how to convince the waiting souls in the Third Heaven that they are already dead and are not dreaming they're in Heaven.

But those kinds of days came in few and far between.

Ever since the Great War ended, and the System was restored once more, the Seraphim were stuck on doing nothing while watching the progress of God's imperfect creations doing what they do on Earth. It had been long since there was a relevant threat for the Throne of Heaven, and long since a Celestial came by and asked for a lump of the clouds to stuff their pillow with.

Because sometimes, Angels may experiences sleep difficulties.

Boring? For humans, perhaps. But for them, a day spent without dilemmas is an accomplishment. It signified everything was working accordingly. And as most Seraphs are pacifist, no one wants a dilemma.

So when one did rise, it was an unexpected and unwelcome surprise.

Nearby a small pond that showed the progress of humankind, where Michael and Gabriel often spend their day watching and chatting, a pillar of light separated the clouds nearby as a Celestial clad in brilliant golden armor similar to Roman Praetorian came to their view.

"Shalom aleikhem." The Celestial said, slightly gruff in voice. In fact, his voice was the harshest and deepest of all resident of Heaven. Even Uriel as well.

"Aleikhem shalom." replied the two Archangels who were sitting on a plastic chair, each smiling their graceful smile that wasn't a rare sight for any Angels.

"It has been quite some time..." Gabriel, the only female Archangel, and the most beautiful of all Angels, spoke with a gentle and soft tone. It was so pure that her voice seemed like they'll melt like snow. "I hope the pillow I sewn is of use to you, dear Gadreel."

"Ah, er... yes..." apprehensively, Gadreel bowed his head. "It is the grandest gift I have ever bestowed. I'm forever grateful to you, Archangel Gabriel."

"I'm glad to hear that. Don't hesitate to ask me need you any of it again."

"I... uh... Gladly." It's been thousands of years serving and hearing God's Messenger's kind voice, and never once he knew how to act around her.

But that's not the point he's here. "Pardon me—" he stopped himself as he was being informal, and straightened his posture. "I apologize for intruding without any notice in advance, Archangel Michael, Archangel Gabriel, but I fear this discovery is one not to miss."

The golden-haired Archangels glanced at one another before Michael asked first, "You don't need to lower your head, Celestial. Do tell."

"Yes..." And Gadreel faced forward. "During the last scouting of Hell, we found that the tomb of the Fallen One has vanished."

Michael tipped his head to one side, lightly swaying his golden mane along. "Vanished?"

"Oh dear, did somebody steal it?"

"W-While it is a possibility, Archangel Gabriel, I fear that the tomb is more likely destroyed rather than stolen." Gadreel said as politely and as straight as possible. He's known for his sarcasm and sense of humor, but he wouldn't dare doing that to the Archangels... "There was a massive crater spanning roughly 2.0034 miles in diameter, but there was no hints of what had occurred to create such destruction."

Michael blinked. That's not ordinary. "Did you find anything else in the tomb?"

"Nothing... There was nothing other than what I said. I fear that the Fallen One might have been unsealed, Archangel Michael."

And there, for the first time in his life as an Angel until he was assigned as a Celestial, Gadreel saw a glimmer of fear flashed by the face of the Right Hand of God.

"May I ask who this 'Fallen One' is?"

Gadreel clearly hesitated on saying the name that could cause havoc in Heaven just by saying, but Michael had no qualms.

"He's our eldest brother, dear sister."

"Oh..." Gabriel said with a mellow tune. "But aren't you the eldest, brother?"

"In here, I am." Michael muttered. "You can leave now, Gadreel. Thank you for bringing us the news."

"It is an honor. Aleikhem Shalom." And with the same beam of Holy Light, the heavily armored Celestial descended back to the Fifth Heaven.

Gabriel glanced up as her brother had left his chair, wearing a face she had never seen before.

"Brother? Are you going to see the eldest brother? If you do, can I come?"

"I'm not, sister." Michael smiled bitterly at his pure little sister. "But maybe we will, someday."

Gabriel's smile was effortlessly enchanting. "Okay!"

Bureaku

It was spring in Japan, the songbirds were being songbirds, and there's a Hailie outside swinging somewhere, but Lucifer was stuck in the Student Council's room as if he's a student with a detention.

He had been warned, kind of, but that did not mean he's willing to be interrogated, or having to listen to his lover getting chastised by the Student Council's President, or not being allowed to hum Beethoven's Ode to Joy. Apparently, humming is rude.

On top of it all, he hadn't showered yet... oh, and he also hadn't met the rosy Valkyrie yet.

"Really... What were you thinking Rias...? I understand your circumstances, but for you to went that far and gave your virginity to a man whose identity is questionable at most..." the girl shook her head critically. "This isn't a fairytale. As your friend and as someone that has experienced your trouble, I can't say I support your decision. It's bold, but reckless."

"I know... but although it might have been due to the heat of the moment, it doesn't change that I'm in love with him."

"Being in love with him doesn't deter the possibility that he's a fraud. For all we know, he might be a wanted criminal in the Underworld."

"He's not!"

Sona was quick to counter with a piercing question. "And how can you tell?"

"..." Unable to come up with a decent rebuttal, Rias skulked at the couch in front of Sona's desk. She's aware that Sona's right, as usual, but she wished that she could prove this serious friend of hers that she's wrong. Right now, she felt like a defending lawyer and Sona was the judge, with the Student Council members as the jurors and Lucifer as the defendant.

The all-too-carefree defendant.

Because as the disciplining went on, the dashing defendant poked around the room and the Devils inside. They certainly didn't regard him as highly as Rias, but should he really care about how these adolescents see him? He didn't even care when the Angels brand him as an Outcast of Heaven, or the Fallen One or whatever title they made up, so why should he bother?

"I hope you don't take our Kaichou's words too severe, uhm... Lucifer-san." Such was the polite words of Sona's Bishop, the graceful brunette sophomore whom carried a caring impression around her.

"Ah, not at all!" Lucifer replied in Japanese. If his blurry memories served right, she was quite famous for her nice motherly air and courteous personalities. And judging by the judging looks from all the other Devils that was telling him to not corrupt her purities, he should be right.

"Don't you think you should pay attention to Kaichou's words too? You're not here to fool around."

Lucifer sent an easy, 'are you serious?' look at the light brown haired male, Saji Gen-something. "Rather than stressing about those trivial little things, wouldn't getting to know her a better way to spend the time?"

Kusaka Reya's cheeks turned pink as she subconsciously, and nervously, looked to another direction. "Ah... w-well..."

Saji's expression turned grudging. He had only known this man for several minutes, and already he disliked him.

At the couch at the middle, a Rias with a sullen look was staring at her flirtatious lover. While it was a relief that he didn't think much of the animosity directed to him, trifling with another girl when she's in the same room was... quite saddening.

Sona noticed it too, and she couldn't stand him either. "And to think he has the same traits as that man... I'm really concerned with your choice, Rias."

"H-he's different!" Rias snapped back at her friend. "He's different." She resaid, to herself and Sona. "You don't see it, but he's different. Without him, we wouldn't know who Rossweisse-sensei really is. He's also the one who added two more servants in my peerage all in just a day."

"Did he?" Sona was acute as always.

"Yes!" Rias fumed. If she couldn't convince her Lucifer was not a con-Devil, then at least she could list his redeeming qualities and deeds. "He was the one who made Rossweisse admit she's a Valkyrie! And without torture as well. Least not physically."

"More like the girl's torturing herself." Lucifer butted in, jumping to fill the empty seat beside Rias. "She's overly conscious of herself too and quick to conclude. She thought I was making fun of her when I'm just being friendly!"

"...You mean flirty?" Rias begrudged.

"Eh. Same thing."

What kind of man was he, Sona wondered. For her, he's rude, immoral, and too carefree of an adult to be considered as a worthy candidate as her friend's fiancé replacer.

"What's your motive? Lucifer-san?" she started with an edge in her words, gaining their attention. "Why do you help Rias? And what makes you think you are laudable and not laughable instead?"

Rias clearly did not appreciate Sona's sharp words, but Lucifer didn't seem to care. "I don't think I'm that loud, to be honest, and I'm not that funny of a guy either. I'm helping her because... I want to, I suppose? Besides, she loves me and I love her."

The fact he said it casually baffled the Devils present. Rias was vehemently blushing and so were several others. Seeing their innocent reaction was a joy to behold for Lucifer.

He only smiled, though. "And motives? Do I need one to have fun? Wait, I guess wanting to have fun is a motive as well..."

"...And what of your name? Are you aware the position held by the name you claimed? A very severe punishment waits for Devils who take his name in vain in Hell."

Rias clenched her hands and gripped the hem of her skirt. That was not something she liked to hear.

"Aw gee, I didn't know I'm that important..." Lucifer muttered diffidently. "But why though? It's just a name. There are tons of Adams and tons of Jesuses in Mexico and Spain. Muhammads all over the world. And maybe Siddhartha too... but I've never met any."

"Humans' regulations don't apply to Devils'." Sona countered.

Lucifer looked very disappointed. And disheartened. Like he just got rejected for the first time.

"And here I thought Devils aren't bind by rules... Well, fine by me." He's not one to mull over things if he could help it. "If I say my name's Jeff or John Smith, will you let me leave? I need to get a new watch. I can't tell how long I've been here."

And Sona was not one to take jibes easily. Especially not one from strangers. "You're not leaving this place until I am satisfied."

"Really?" His face beamed up as his smile turned to expectant grin. "I can satisfy quite well if I do say so myself. Rias can testify."

The faces of embarrassment were aplenty that day. And these people called themselves Devils... What Devils went red-faced after a single suggestive joke?

"Wh-wh-what the hell are you saying you vulgar man?!"

"Eh... Vulgar man...?" Lucifer said as if to have a taste of the dumb insult. "That's a first."

"I have many more up my sleeves you—"

"That's enough, Saji." Sona said. She tried hiding her red blemishes on her cheeks, but Lucifer's eyes were trained eyes. He could note her discomfort quite easily.

Rias coughed into her pretty hand. "I-I'm pretty sure that's not what she meant."

"Aw." Lucifer slumped his shoulders nonetheless. Though the girl's not his, he's still quite disappointed. Consented sex is sex. "Well, I doubt my answers are of satisfactory anyway, and wasting both of our times are wasteful. So why don't let me leave? It's not like I'll disappear."

Sona held Lucifer's brown eyes. She was cold, calculating, and distrustful at the beginning, but as she saw her friend-slash-rival, and how miserable she looked, Sona yielded.

"Fine. But don't think this is the last time we meet."

"Ooh! Good! I want to know you better as well!" Lucifer chippered, burning the only male aside from him with envy and Sona with ire for being made fun of. "Well then, see you when I see you." he bid the Student Councils, and as he stood, snatched Rias' by her fingers. "Let's go Princess- or uh, Hime-sama?"

Rias was not a sucker for honorifics, nor she liked being called Princess... but she would be lying if she alleged her heart forgot a beat.

"Ah, uh— W-We'll talk later Sona! Excuse us!"

There was nothing Sona could do to stop them from leaving. There was, and she should, because her discussion with Rias wasn't finished yet, but she didn't want to. Because as much as she loathed that man; she had never seen Rias making such a face with anyone else but him.

As Sona exhaled a sigh, her Queen stepped up to her side. "Yuuto's right. He's a peculiar man."

"He smells nice though." Tomoe said, and was ignored.

"Indeed." Another sigh ensued as Sona continued her duties as the President of the Student Councils and also as one of the prefects of Kuoh.

"He's the worst." Her hotheaded Pawn exclaimed with arms crossed. "The hell does he think he is? Saying whatever he wants and leaving like that?! What a punk..."

"A mere punk can't defeat Rias' peerage either, Saji."

The way she reiterated his sneer bit him. "Y-Yeah, but..."

"At any rate, he's dangerous. He may be on the same side as ours, but without a clear reason and as long as we haven't a hold of his motives, we can't and shouldn't trust him. I advise all of you to remain vigilant around him."

Break

"..."

"Today, we observe the many faces of our Civics teacher. At this very moment, she can be seen sighing heavily and longingly."

"Oh! What a change! It appears she has found a hope spot! Whatever is it that could relight Sensei's spirit?"

"And back to square one. Rosuvaise-sensei is depressed once again as though she realized her dream boyfriend was indeed a dream boyfriend."

"Inexistent and short-lived..."

That struck a nerve. Rossweisse straightened up. "Will you two leave the class already?! Stop bullying your Sensei! It's not nice! Leave me alone!"

"Oh! So Sensei was thinking about it!" the light-haired girl chirped. "Come on Sensei, we just want to know how your boyfriend looks like."

"Or your imaginary one." Her brunette friend added with a snicker. "We won't tell anyone, promise!"

It was late in the afternoon, and they were the only students inside the room because of an obligatory remedial test and because they sucked at Civics.

"But that's weird!" Rossweisse cried, "Do girls nowadays talk about that kind of thing?"

"Huh? 'Nowadays'? That's something my grandfather said when he's lecturing me." The brunette, Murayama, captain of the Kendo Club, leered at their romantically-unsuccessful teacher.

"Oh geez, I'm not an old person!"

"Well you sure talk like one." Katase, the vice-captain of the aforementioned club giggled heartily, "Okay, okay, we're just joking~ but us girls do talk about stuffs like that too, Sensei." She assured, though later she was enviously glaring at her captain. "At least before one of us got a boyfriend."

Murayama puffed out her chest. "Fufu, that's right. I'm the most experienced in this room."

"Ugh..." Katase groaned as Rossweisse slumped even more on her teacher's desk.

Truthfully, she was thinking about a man. Not an imaginary boyfriend, but an actual, living man. And it was the same man who reminded her why drowning her sorrows was never the right option.

Her headache was killing her. And as if that's not enough, thinking about him made it worse.

Because she had no idea where they were currently. He said he'll be her date, but he already had a girlfriend. A lover, even. And on top of that, she was her own student... As a teacher, she shouldn't barge in their relationship, but as a woman... she just couldn't stop thinking about him despite knowing how wrong it was to want someone that wasn't hers.

It was easy to divert herself when she was teaching, but now, everything came back to her like a flood.

Still, it's not right. She shouldn't want him. He's only toying with her, and it's not right for her to butt into an established relationship, more so the relationship of her own student, as illicit as it was.

"And now we see Sensei's back on her natural demeanor... lost in her thought, and—"

"If you don't leave now, Sensei will make sure you'll retake another remedial test."

""Waaa~ah!"" having their share of fun, Katase and Murayama ran outside their empty classroom with the captain leading in front. Only for her to tumble back when she crashed into something, causing Katase to fell down as she crashed into her back.

They yelped in shock than they were in pain.

Rossweisse blitzed up from her seat and nearly cried out their names and ran up to them to ask if they're hurt, but like her two students, she was too shocked at the man standing under the doorframe.

You guessed it, it's Lucifer. "Whoops. You girls alright?"

Murayama and Katase could only stare at his extended hand as if he's offering them a block of diamond. Lucifer had to wait for several seconds before the brunette finally took his hand and got up, and then helped the other girl.

"Should've looked forward when you're running shouldn't you?" He smiled a teasing smile, and just like that, the two fell to his charms despite not understanding what he said.

Too bad he's not interested in them. He's interested at the lady in the same business suit as she was in yesternight, at the lady that was staring at him in disbelief. "Rosie, ready for our date?"

They might not ace English but they weren't so bad at it as bad as Civics, and they were pretty sure 'deito' meant what they thought it meant. "U-Uhhh! Thank you Sensei! See you tomorrow!" "Yeah, bye!"

Suddenly, Rossweisse wished they didn't leave. She didn't know, but Lucifer knew they were hiding behind the door, being the curious little eavesdroppers they were. He didn't mind, though.

"Well?" He said again, now with a hand outstretched. "You're not allowed to say 'no', by the way."

Katase and Murayama rushed from their peeking spot the moment they heard their teacher and the unknown foreigner's footsteps, and their way back home was filled with little gossips that will bloom tomorrow morning.

Break

She's reluctant at first, and required convincing that it wasn't her money they'd be spending, but in the end, the stingy Valkyrie conceded.

"My oh my, aren't you an absolute thing of beauty." was the first phrase she heard from him the moment she emerged from the changing room. "Not to say your suit doesn't suit you, but this." The young fellow moved his hands as if he's presenting her to a show. "You're lovely in it. Brings out your eyes."

Rossweisse didn't even get to response as Lucifer approached her, and unbuttoned her denim shirt to reveal the white T-shirt beneath it. He also noticed her surprisingly racy bra that her white shirt failed to hide.

She squeaked as he did so without shame.

"There you go, much better." Lucifer smiled a winning smile, rendering her unable to complain of his indecency. "We'll take this one. I mean uh," he repeated the sentence again in Japanese as he noticed the young saleslady was gawking at him.

"B-B-But I don't think I'm comfortable in this!" Rossweisse cried out finally as she stared at her slim dark jeans.

"Why not? It brings out your legs too." Lucifer reasoned. "You got legs; was there any reason not flaunt them a little?" He'd go with short jeans for her, but that would ruin her 'casually beautiful' image. Furthermore, the girl won't say yes no matter what he said. She even refused to wear a knee-length skirt for gods' sake.

That aside, that's not what she meant, and now that he mentioned, she's even more conscious of her legs. In desperate attempt, she closed her knees and fumed at him. "These outfits don't fit me! Z-zey-they're too cute!"

"Too cute? But those are casual outwear." Lucifer then looked at the salesperson beside him for a third opinion. "What do you think, Miss? Doesn't she look pretty in it?"

Of course she said yes. She's trying to sell regardless. Even Rossweisse knew that.

"I-Is it really okay? These were pretty expensive..."

"Oh shush. Those aren't branded clothing anyway." Lucifer said. He could tell she was stingy with her spending and reluctant to accept other's money, hence her moderately priced set of clothing. "Just think of it as my apology for getting you drunk."

Rossweisse pouted. Hangover might be the logical reason of her headache, not him. She felt silly and stupid at the same time.

"Though, I can't say I'm sorry either. You're pretty amusing when drunk."

Embarrassed, she wilted like a rose. "...Ugh... Can you not mention it...? It's humiliating enough for someone to see me in that shameful state..."

"Aw, don't be!" He laughed heartily as he swung his arm around her slender shoulders. Rossweisse went tense. "You were being awfully cute back then. So very few can be cute while drunk." It didn't take him long to notice her burning face, and it didn't take him long to create a follow-through. "And so very few can be adorable without trying."

When he squished her cheek with a finger, that's when she shoved him away. "N-No! S-stop teasing me!"

"But it's fun!"

Rossweisse couldn't keep her calm around him. Made from bad to worse as he kept sparing unsubtle glances at her with his smiling eyes and lips, and was made from worse to worst as he wasn't the only one glancing at her. Her easy-for-the-eyes spring-themed outfit linked with her already head-turning silver hair, and the kind of face that left you wanting to have a closer look, it was hard for her to not gain this much attention from the passersby.

Not to mention the Devil himself, walking beside her as they strolled through the shopping district. She hadn't spent a long time with him, but she could tell that his confident smile was his go-to expression and not because he just bought a new watch with Rias' debit card.

She couldn't stand having these many eyes directed at her. Teaching and this were two different things. "W...will you stop looking at me?"

Her voice was quiet, it's almost like she's trying not to be heard.

"I can't help it. You're like what they say a sight for sore eyes." Not the case for Lucifer, however. "Not to say you're not beautiful with those suits of yours, you still is, just more refreshing to see." And less tacky. But still, she didn't need to hear that.

She's lying if hearing that didn't make her happy or make her cheeks heat up with a weird, tingly feeling to it. "...If only I can have just half of that confidence of yours..."

"Oh, why not build up what you have instead?"

"You said that like it's easy to do..." Rossweisse frowned, looking around at the town's park. It was mostly empty, and only couples like themselves were there to stay and enjoy the setting sun, or maybe get a little naughty after — at least that's what she thought.

"Isn't it? Just do it one step at a time. You don't just mastered your uh..." What was it again? "Civics. Yeah, Civics. You didn't master it in a single day, do you?"

Goddamn it why does he have a point. "If you put it that way, then yes... but, even so... It's not theoretic."

"Hm? 'Course it isn't. Doesn't mean you can't improve it." Lucifer casually said as he led them to sit at a nearby empty bench. There weren't any shopping bags other than the one containing her suits, but walking around the city and then here was niggling for his feet.

Rossweisse sat beside him. "Uuugh... it's easier said than done."

"Nothing's impossible." Lucifer chanted. "Either way what's the deal with confidence? And you seems fine to me, with your teaching and all that."

If his memory served him right, she's one of the most, if not the most, serious of teachers in Kuoh Academy. Very objective too.

"It's different..." she pouted. "...Wait... how did you know how I perform when I was teaching?"

"Didn't I tell you I was that 'Hyoodu' boy?"

She arched her eyebrows downwards. He did, actually.

Lucifer oh-ed. "Well, I was." Basing on how she's looking at him, she didn't believe her. "Come on, how else do I know you're single?"

Her cheeks puffed out, and the Valkyrie was now pouting at him.

"I'm just joking, yeesh. Able to laugh at yourself is one of the key factors of confidence, you know. Also not caring of how other's see you, but eh." Lucifer chuckled, frivolously poking her cheek once just to watch her squirm in surprise. "I'm not lying, though. I was Ise. Don't know how, but I'm back here again when he died. Isn't that weird?"

She had her hand cupping her poked cheek. It's not that she disliked it, she's just not used to these kinds of physical contact. "W-Weird... yeah..." Rossweisse mumbled, still in the aftershock. "What do you mean by 'back here again'?"

"Well, this." Lucifer rubbed his belly as if he's pleasantly full. "Somehow, I'm here again. Not like I care, though. My body is comfy." She's not sure if he's joking or not, because he's hugging himself quite fondly. "Would you like to test my comfiness?"

"H-Huh?! Wh-what— what are you implying, you pervert?!"

"Ah, but perversion is also a flavor of life. A little of it is fine as long as you can control it. Too much, and you'll have that boy. Just the right amount, then you'll have me." Rossweisse silently stared at him, loss at words of his shiny confidence. "Joke aside; you look like someone who wants someone you can be comfortable with."

Dang, of course he could tell. After last night's incidence, it's no surprise he could make such conclusion.

"But, then again, who doesn't, really." Lucifer continued as he rested his back against the bench, and slung his arms along its metallic brim. "I just think it's ridiculous for someone like you have difficulties of finding one. Maybe because of time? Because back then, people will flock around you like pigeons to bread crumbs."

"Wh...what makes you say so?"

"Because why won't people flock around you? You're a nice person in general, dedicated to your job, pretty eyes and hair, cute, and so on, and so on. You can get too serious at times, but who's to say you shouldn't? You're just doing what you have to do, aren't you?"

Her heart was about to burst. That was the nicest thing someone had ever said to her, but yet, Rossweisse forbade herself from being happy. He's not hers. "Y-You're just saying that... I don't need your pity or anyo—"

"Oh puh-lease." Lucifer laughed. Her threat had no effect on him or on his amiable cheerfulness. "Stop mistaking my genuine compliments as pities. I don't say those kinds of things without meaning it. That's called being mean. I'm not mean."

Rossweisse pursed her lips. Reflecting, she realized it was her that was being rude instead. "S..sorry..."

She flinched when she felt his hand on the back of her head, stroking her hair down as he smiled at her. "Don't worry about it~. Just stop frowning. Smile, instead. We have much time to spend and frowning isn't a good way of spending it."

She couldn't resist on smiling after that, especially with him nudging her with his smile-like grin. "Nothings seem able to bother you..."

"I've been told." Lucifer sniggered. "But do you know a good way of spending it?"

"What?"

He snapped his fingers and pointed at her as he comically said; "Spending it with you~!"

A hot blush seared through her cheeks and she thought her face was on fire. Suddenly, her shyness and awkwardness returned, and she couldn't stop herself from hiding her rosy features under her slim fingers. He was just being silly with his silly grin, but nobody had ever done that to her and she didn't know what to do.

"Mein Gott— you're adorable. We should like, do this again sometimes."

Even then, there's that feeling deep inside her, throbbing as hard as her heart. She felt the pang of guilt growing the more she realized how infatuated she had become to him, and how badly she wanted him to be the 'someone' she could be comfortable with. And guilt turned to an aching pain as she knew she shouldn't.

She wanted to cry, but she's not weak. "Thanks for today, Luci-san, but I don't think we should do this anymore."

"No prob— wait what?"

She bowed politely, courteously, and left with her one shopping bag without looking back once.

And he was left wondering on the bench, confused, in disbelief, and unsurprisingly, hurt. How did it go wrong, he pondered, because the date was going really well for his standards of dates. She was smiling, sometimes laughing, but most of the time blushing, and he knew she was comfortable with him, but...

"How did that happen then?"

His first date in his new life and he got ditched. Off to a great start.

"That sucked." He walked away from the dating spot. What's the point on watching the sun set if he only had himself as company? Why stay and bum himself out when a new day's waiting tomorrow?

Although it would be nice if he could start this all over again, to find out what made an honest person like her could make such a dishonest face.

Nonetheless, he could use some Rias' pampering by now...

To be continued...