Damn, for the middle of winter, it was way to fuckin' hot out. I saw people goin' about with jackets and scarves hardly an hour ago, but now everyone's basically dressed for summer. Some families are out picnickin', loud ass kids are runnin' everywhere, some fucker's blastin' music too! I came out here to relax, to get away from my mistakes for just a fuckin' hour, to be alone... But I should've known better, this is Azure, after all.
It was a good hour or so bein' alone, but maybe it was time to buzz off and get back home... And I would've too if that Bisharp hadn't shown up right as I was leavin'. He and I just kinda stared at each other for a bit... Somethin' was on his mind, seein' how that scowl of his was gone, for the most part.
"...You alright?" I asked him, and in that stoic-bastard fashion, he said nothin' and sat right down on the bench. Obviously, I sat down beside him. Whatever shit I was dealin' with could wait.
"It has been... a long week, has it not?" he huffed, slouchin' forward. He'd hardly ever been this quiet before... I knew he wasn't big on bein' touched, but gave him a pat on the back anyway. When he didn't try to throw me off, that pretty much confirmed it.
I moved right next to him, lookin' him over for a sec. "Yeah... It's been shit, huh? Surprised it's been rough on you too, considerin'..."
He looked back up at me, dead in the eye. It hurt to look back, honestly. "Considering what?"
"You aren't usually the one fucked up by our fuck-ups, you know? You're, like, stoic and all that shit. I was half expectin' you to be trainin' so this doesn't happen again," I chuckled nervously, takin' my hand off him. His face went soft, and kinda... sad. "H-Hey, I didn't--"
"I have been trying to damnedest, day in and day out, and it is because of me that we are currently being watched by an entire Guild. Every step we take, every move we make... we are watched intently from the corners of our vision," he said, sighin' and shakin' his head. "Even here... that family over there, who arrived after you did? All of them are guild members. That Charmander with them is actually the team leader."
"No shit..." I paused, backin' his words up a sec. From the sound of it, this metallic bitch was... "Hold on, were you..."
"There is no one else I can talk to, and you just... left. Not that I blame you. I was simply waiting for a chance for us to talk, alone." He turned his face away. I could've sworn I saw somethin' in his eyes right before that. "Being around everyone is driving me mad, but being alone..." his voice drifted off, and he clenched his fists.
Shit... I shook my head and let out a breath; if I had to be a friend right now, I'd do the best I fuckin' could. It might not be all that much, but still. "Honestly, that's why I needed to get outta there. Seein' everyone act like nothin' was wrong was gettin' to me. I just had to be alone for a bit, so I get you wantin' the same shit. Which is... funny. I was thinkin' you and the others were finally openin' up to each other."
He chuckled, rollin' his shoulders back a bit and looking at me again. "I could say the same about you. Perhaps I was wrong to assume you were closer to them simply because you have grown more tolerable."
"Yeah, fuck you too," I laughed. It was nice seein' him get all sarcastic again. Hell, it was nice hearin' him chuckle. Now that was a good sign. "But still, it ain't like us wantin' to be alone is a bad thing. Old habits die hard, right?"
"Indeed..." He leaned back on the bench and hummed, thinkin' about somethin'. "What was that word... the one you described us as..? About how we both enjoy solitude?"
"...Loners?"
He snapped and nodded at me, a bit of a smile on his face. Chucklin' was one thing, but ain't nobody gettin' used to seein' this bastard smile... "That, yes. Seeing how different we have become since our first meeting, is it not fascinating how we still share that one trait?"
Now that he mentioned it... yeah. Kinda. I think? Ah, whatever. I leaned back on the bench and let my head hang, chucklin' to myself. "Yeah... I guess we are still loners, huh? At least we can be loners together, right?"
Neither of us really said anything for a bit...
"...I will most certainly forget that phrase as soon as possible."
"Same here, I didn't think it was that cheesy in my head."
"Gods, I can almost imagine the wine I could pair with it... Speaking of which, I have quite a few aged bottles back home. Hidden away, of course."
I hopped right out of the bench, catchin' the attention of that family of guild members. Could've sworn that Charmander was writin' somethin' about me in that little notebook he had. "Shit, really? The hell're we gettin' sentimental and cheesy out here for when we could've been drownin' in booze this whole time?" I offered him my hand to pull him up outta the bench, but as he should have, he pushed it aside and got up himself. The both of us grinned and nodded, which still kinda unsettled me, but that was far less important than the killer hangover I was about to give myself tomorrow.
