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[The next few weeks were... Well "less than stellar" would be a severe understatement. It was no surprise when pretty much everyone in their circle learned about the giant mess of a fallout that occurred between the two. Understandably, Leia had the sympathy and Alvin the flack. Even Jude confronted him and punched him when he couldn't explain himself. What confused everyone was that it was clear the two did have mutual feelings, but the one who was supposed to be an adult wasn't acting them. Rowen tried to reason with him, to give him that elderly mature advice and remind him that this was not the path he had chosen and was one they all thought he had left.

Time and time again, Balan, Rowen, Jude, and even Yurgen asked him the important question: Why not? And all Alvin could say was that it just can't. Eventually they stopped asking since it was clear that Alvin had made up his mind. They didn't agree to it, but there wasn't much they could do. Elize again did not want have anything to do with him, both hurt and disappointed by his actions.

Only Elle contacted him again, and with her usual forthright attitude, remark how stupid he was being. Perhaps it was because Elle didn't have as many deep roots with them that she was able to not be as adversely affected by Alvin's action. She had never seen him before, so it just seems weird to her. And it was to Elle he eventually caved and told about he didn't think he would be a good match for Leia—that she deserved more. When he started to say he wanted her to be happy, Elle was quick to point out that what he was doing now wasn't really helping that. It was a fair point, and one he knew himself, but he just remained silent. He was using the logic that it might be painful in the short run, but it would be better in the long.

While Alvin was on his GHS, Elle had wandered into his office and was just being a nosy pre-teen, looking through his desk. It was there that she stumbled across the long forgotten tickets, and when she pulled them out, Alvin had caught her and was about to give her a playful smack on the head as punishment. But when he saw the tickets, he froze. He remembered the circumstances as to how he acquired them...and more about that particular day. When he saw Elle notice a particularly worn and old looking letter, he quickly shut the drawer, telling her to quit being nosy. But when she asked about the tickets, he told her the truth—they were for him and Leia. The deal was if she didn't miss her deadlines, he'd take her up there. Of course...that plan was shot now, so if Elle wanted to, she could go with Leia in his place.

Of course the girl would have none of it. She quickly pulled out her GHS and called Leia, asking where she was. After that, she grabbed Alvin's hand and forcefully dragged him out, even kicking at his shin when he tried to protest (and damn did that hurt). Not long after, they were at Helioborg, and again Alvin hesitated. He knew what the girl was trying to do, and somehow his feet actually allowed his body to be dragged to it. He had avoided Leia as much as possible, keeping only minimal contact and giving her short replies to any texts or calls she gave him. So seeing her there talking with Jude and Balan made his blood run cold.

It was awkward—he could see Jude giving him the cold look and even stepping closer to Leia, as if to help protect her for whatever pain he might dish out next. Balan on the other hand was a bit intrigued (of course he would). And then Elle was shoving and pushing him toward the group. The topic of the hot springs began, and even though he tried to just give the tickets to Leia for her to do what she wanted, she refused to take them. But he was refusing to go with her because it would be a bad idea. In the end, Balan settled it by taking the tickets and actually calling the hot springs.

"You're lucky, Alfred," Balan said after he hung up. "Those almost expired and that would have been a waste. But you're both good to go now! One honeymoon suite for just the two of you. It was the only one left, so you only have yourself to blame," he added when everyone gave him incredulous looks. "Anyway, it's about time we got back to work. Let's go, Jude."

Alvin could feel the intense look his old friend was giving him. Jude would later call him not to yell, but in a tired and somewhat pleading voice told him, "Just don't hurt her anymore, okay, Alvin? I know you're better than that, so...just try talking it over?"

The days leading up to that overnight trip were heavy for him. Several times he thought about just canceling, but the pressure everyone was giving was more than even he could take. And really, he did owe Leia at least something. He had asked for time to think. Hadn't he thought enough? The very least he could do was at least finally tell her what his thoughts were about this. To apologize. But all the endings that came to his mind after that...they didn't exactly leave him feeling all that good.

And now, they are at the hot springs. He tried to keep a normal facade, smiling and being as casual as possible with her. But he still maintained that distance, both physically and emotionally. Of course they were mistaken as an actual couple, particularly when they were rung up and led to their room. Of course that would just...bring a lot of awkwardness to stay, so he suggests they walk around, check the place out. As is the protocol, they had to change into the yukata-like robes provided and seeing Leia...well he tries very hard not to think too much about it, for once not commenting on how she looks.

The resort is rather large. Not as large as the water park, and it has a very old, traditional Kanbalar flair. But because of the season, there are plenty of people, both from Rieze Maxia and Elympios. There are families, singles, couples. It definitely had a relaxing atmosphere.

Now if only he could actually feel that way.

As they walk, he finally glances over to her.]

So...what do you think? I have to admit it's pretty nice.

[Small talk. Small talk is good, right?]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ were it not for all of the food on the table, she would probably reach out to him right then and there. instead, she has to shuffle herself around a bit until she's kneeling on the side of the table that's close to him, rather than across from him. then, she does reach out, laying one of her hands over one of his. ]

You know I'm not gonna give up that easily, right? [ she can tell this isn't easy on him, so there's just a little bit of humor in her voice, and she squeezes his hand softly. she's not about to start cracking jokes, but she can try to lighten things up. ] Especially if all you're going to say is that you don't know.

[ if he really, genuinely told her to back off she would probably think about it, but he hasn't done that. he's given excuses as to why this isn't a good idea, but no real rejections (the ones that came before this trip don't count, obviously). ]

[He's still uncertain, and it shows. In fact, if he's trying to hide his emotions, he's doing a really shoddy job at it. It's easier when it's with other people, but somehow, whenever he's with Leia, the mask is harder to put on. Especially when she's close to him like this.

And he's not thinking about any kind of physical attraction. The attraction he feels right now is the one he's felt for a while now. The one that tugs him to her in a deeper sense. That sense of comfort mentioned before, that sense of calm and peace. It's soothing, and he does want more of that.

He looks down at their hands. It's a familiar sight, a familiar touch. It's only natural for his fingers to want to slip through hers, to grasp her hand into his. And they do just that, if slowly. He never really consciously thought about it, but her hand seems much smaller and smoother compared to his. He usually wears glove when wielding his weapons (it always helped with his grip, especially when he always had to pack so much force into it), but the callouses on his hands are much rougher and weathered than the ones she has. When he thinks about all the lives taken with them...of all the things he's done...he almost wants to retract them. Instead the grip tightens a bit and he finally looks at her.

That's when he feels that tug of physical attraction, that desire to reach over and cup her face and pull her to him. It's not even due to their state of dress (which he actually kind of forgot). Just seeing her face, her eyes, the way her hair falls—that alone is enough for him. Knowing how she feels about him only strengthens those desires, but they're kept in check.

Instead, after several long moments of silence a very small and wry grin appears.]

I'll just never understand what you see in me, will I? [And not just Leia. Presa, too, and everyone else who gives him these second, third, fourth, who knows how many chances. Who keep trying to help pull him to be the man he should have been were it not for everything that happened to him. Or maybe he has that kinder side because of what happened to him.

Regardless, he still hasn't made a clear rejection, and at this point...he might just give in. It's clear him trying to push them apart didn't work, and Leia isn't going to give up. He might still need some more time, but... If he's going to be like this anyway, maybe giving it a shot wouldn't be such a bad idea.]

[ when she feels his fingers thread through hers, a sense of satisfaction comes over her. even if he still hasn't agreed to give this a shot, he's not pushing her away like he has before, either— it's not a yes, but it's not a no. while she may not be great at negotiating and she might lack the skill to easily turn his not-a-no into a yes, that gives her hope. it's little gestures like that that give her the strength to keep pushing.

she holds onto his hand a little tighter as she speaks. ]

I could say the same thing, you know.

[ because it's clear to her why she would like him— she's given him a pretty decent list of reasons, even— but she isn't quite sure what draws him to her. even if he's told her about how he feels comfortable around her and things like that, she has insecurities of her own. they might not be like his (they'll probably never be like his), but they're still there.

still, she means that in more of a lighthearted, teasing way. she even cracks a small smile at him. ]

So, maybe you should just trust me when I say there's a whole boatload of reasons.

[ at this point, she's also leaning so that she's a little closer to him. not consciously, necessarily, but she does feel that same sort of attraction toward him that he feels toward her. she feels comfortable around him— happier just because of his presence, especially since this is probably the closest they've been to "normal" in a long time. the idea to lean in and kiss him might even cross her mind (and her gaze even flits down to his lips to reflect that for a brief moment) but she's not going to. not yet, at least. ]

[...Trust her. That does get a small smile out of him, even a light, small laugh from the back of his throat.]

All right, you win.

[And...maybe he should try trusting himself more. So long as he keeps to his wish of not hurting her, shouldn't that be enough? Shouldn't that be enough to help keep them together, to make her happy? To make it so they don't have regrets?

He's leaning closer toward her as well, the hand that had wanted to reach out to her finally doing so. His fingers lightly brush against her cheek, pushing away some of those loose strands. Like her, that desire to be a bit more intimate and kiss comes to mind. And would it really be so wrong to do it now?]

Let's give this a shot.

[So after all that. All that unnecessary backpedaling, unnecessary tension, just—unnecessary everything, he finally gives in to what he wants and what she wants as well. He still has those insecurities, but even like this as they sit so close together, he can feel those disappearing. Like they shouldn't have happened to begin with (and really, they shouldn't have).]

[ that small smile she had been wearing only grows when he says that— that they can actually do this— and her heart does an involuntary leap in her chest. she's tried to imagine him saying things like that before, but the reality is a lot nicer.

the brush of his fingers against her cheek only serves to further the intimate feeling of the moment, too, and she leans in more, enough to lightly brush her lips against his. it's nothing serious and it might not even count as a "real" kiss since she only lingers for a moment before she pulls away just enough to be able to speak, but it's still something. ]

That's more like it! [ which is... a pretty simple way of putting her feelings into words, but hey. she's a simple girl. ] You're gonna have to make up all of that lost time to me now, though.

[ it's another joke, poking fun at how he waffled over what to do for so long only to end up giving in, but there is a little bit of truth to it, too. they've wasted a lot of time tiptoeing around each other and walking on eggshells at this point. ]

[For the first time, he can actually enjoy that light brush of her lips. It might not have been a true kiss, but that sentiment is there and for a moment he considers making it so. ]

Make up for it, huh?

[There's a bit of a teasing grin as he leans back in.]

I can think of a few ways...but it might be a little much for you.

[He's only teasing. But look, he's been holding back and the incident at the hot springs should have been a pretty good indicator as to what he really wants to do. At the same time, though, they only just finally settled into this kind of relationship. It's still kind of surreal, too, especially since there are both changes and little changes between them. After all, they had already been close with one another. There's just now another layer of intimacy and deeper feelings. And although the mood is pretty good right now... Right now he's fine with just the light touches and teasing her a bit to try and and get them back on track. No need to jump around even more crazily than they already had.

(Although he hasn't thought about later when they'll have to sleep together, but he can deal with that different temptation later.)]

[ the meaning behind his words definitely isn't lost on her, especially given what happened back at the hot springs. thinking about it makes her start to blush again, but for what might be the first time since all of this started, it's not an awkward sort of embarrassment— she actually feels kind of giddy.

and besides, it's not like she hasn't had similar thoughts (even without the hot springs to blame, because she likes him and he's good-looking and it's not her fault if her mind wanders a little sometimes, okay), but... yeah. keeping things playful and light for the time being might be a better idea. ]

C'mon, you could at least try to be a little romantic about it.

[ it's yet another joke meant to carry the good mood even further, made evident by the way she's grinning at him in spite of what she's saying. ]

Romance isn't really my thing, you know. [So he says, but he still has that light smile.

Which turns a little more a devious as he leans in so that his lips are closer to her ear.] You'll just have to get used to the more adult ways of "romance."

[And it's after he says that that he gives her a playful nip on the ear before pulling back, smirking a bit.

Yeah, why did he make things awkward to begin with when he could have been doing this from a while ago? Alvin, you idiot. But it is a bit relieving as well, being able to finally just express himself without holding back. Okay, maybe with a little restraint.]

[ is he teasing her still, or is this for real? it's hard to tell, but that doesn't stop her eyes from going wide when she feels his teeth graze her ear.

all she can do once he pulls back is stare at him, her face steadily turning redder, until she gets her wits about her. ]

Y— Yeah, right! You're not getting that for a while.

[ she doesn't even know if she means that (the way her heart is racing and she finds that she kind of wants to kiss him again, for real this time, says that she doesn't), but still. she's not going to start throwing herself at him that easily. her pride won't allow it. ]

Maybe you'll just have to learn how to win a girl over the old-fashioned way.

[He finds her reaction more amusing than he thought he would. He had a feeling that was how she was going to react, or at least that kind of attitude.]

But you already confessed to me, right? So didn't I technically already win you over?

[And without even really trying, apparently.]

[ why does she even like him again... ]

Well... yeah! But that's not what I meant!

[ she meant it in an adult way, okay. but she's not going to come out and say that, because the food on the table suddenly looks really interesting and if she's eating then maybe he won't ask her to elaborate on how she meant it. so she snags something off of his plate (because she can) and pops it into her mouth. ]

[She apparently had a buttload of reasons, but none of them really explain this part, no.

Also hey, that's his food.]

I still don't think it'll be that hard. [Implying she'll just fall for him, anyway. Such arrogance.] But if you keep taking my food, I might reconsider my methods.

[Though speaking of food, they probably should actually eat now since they both barely touched it since they had that "talk."]

[ except if they're going to be together, he's going to have to get used to her eating off of his plate. ]

I dunno, I don't really feel all that worried. What's the worst you could do?

[ and to prove her point, she's going to reach to take something else off of his plate, and... into her mouth it goes. she's also starting to look awfully smug. ]

Maybe something like this.

[Well, he did warn her—sort of. He takes her hand and pulls her to him, his mouth meeting hers. And before she can do anything, his tongue is going to force its way through her lips and into her mouth, sliding past the piece of fruit she had stolen to run against hers. He doesn't linger too long because the threat of her accidentally biting him is pretty real. But he does move his tongue around a bit, maneuvering it to push the fruit closer to his side before he can grab it with his teeth and pull it back. It's only when it's in his mouth does he pull back with a smirk.]

[ whoa whoa whoa. her eyes go wide as he pulls her in (what is he even up to?) and wider still when his tongue slips into her mouth. normally she might fight back a little, but her mouth is pliant thanks to her surprise. they've kissed several times at this point, but this is the first time it's been open-mouthed and it's the first time he's initiated it all on his own, too.

it isn't until he pulls back and she realizes that she can only taste a faint hint of leftover juice from the fruit that she knows exactly what he just did. ]

Hey, that's not fair!

[ ... well, it kind of is, since he warned her and it was his food to begin with, but that's not how she's looking at this.

so, after a moment she's going to curl her fingers into the front of his robe to keep him from pulling away any further and then close the distance between them again so that she can try to copy his little maneuver. her face is burning up and she doesn't even know if he's already swallowed the piece of fruit, but payback is payback. ]

[A laugh starts to form deep within his throat before she's closing the distance between them. He hadn't swallowed the fruit yet, but he's not letting her have it, either. In fact he's a little surprised that she is trying to pull the same thing on him, but it only seems to...arouse him a bit. He knows he shouldn't let himself feel that way (this time for reasons that fall more along the lines of, "Should wait until after we've settled down"), but it's difficult.

An arm slips around her, pulling her closer to him as the half-kiss, half...whatever one wants to call this continues. He might let her have the fruit at first before he fights back, and at some point he might forget the fruit all together and just focus more on kissing her, sliding his tongue against hers with increasing aggression until they inevitably have to break for air.

So who has the fruit?]

[ if there's a chance for competition, leia will always take it— that's what drove her to do this. the fact that kissing him feels nice is just a pleasant bonus, but it's one that makes her lean into him, her hands releasing his robe and sliding up his chest to lay over his shoulders instead.

she's more focused on getting that fruit than making sure the kiss is as aggressive on her end as it is on his, but she does try to keep up as best as she can without risking her goal. her tongue slides against his tentatively (is that even how it works? she's really just imitating him and following what feels right every step of the way) as she returns the kiss, and she even lets her teeth graze his lower lip as she pulls back, her breath coming quicker than before.

if the smile that spreads across her face as she chews and then swallows is anything to go by, she's the "winner" here; him being focused more on the kiss than on the fruit was enough to give her the upper hand. ]

[Cheeky little one, but he'll let her "win" this time. Particularly since he's going to lean in a little as he grins a bit.]

Seems like you enjoyed that.

Yeah, I guess it was okay!

[ more than okay, really, but... he doesn't need to know that. it would be a little too embarrassing to say out loud, anyway. ]

I'd be willing to bet I'm not the only one who was super into it, though.

[ it had felt like he was pretty into it, at least. ]

[—Okay!? Just okay!? This...this girl..........]

Hold on, what do you mean by "okay"? [His pride is on the line here.]

I mean it was okay!

[ she may or may not be doing it on purpose now. ]

You know, like... it wasn't too bad, but it wasn't the most awesome kiss ever, either.

[ ... okay, yeah. it's definitely on purpose. ]

[Yeah he can tell.]

Oh? Like you've had that many kisses before? If I remember right, the one at the bar was your first one.

[ busted. ]

Hey! For all you know, I've kissed a whole bunch of guys since then!

[ except for the part where she hasn't. ]

[Just this look. This look of, "That is the worst lie I've ever heard."]

[ hey, not everyone can be as good at lying as he is. ]

Don't look at me like that! It's totally possible!