People Are Persistent

Cherry and Yai tagged along with me every day after that out of curiosity, I didn't like it but I wasn't bothered enough to complain. Serco wasn't back on Earth until Friday. That day to my dismay, Yai, Cherry, Cam, and Jake(Yai's Boyfriend) were still stubbornly accompanying me to meet Serco. I prayed he wouldn't be mad at me, but I didn't get my hopes up too high... He had on a thoughtful expression, his long lashes shaded his maroon eyes, which looked more saturated in the sunlight. He was wearing a white hoodie and jeans today, simple but the clothes fit him so well and were so clean he looked as if he was advertising them in a magazine. When I was about 20 feet away he looked up and we immediately made eye contact, it felt like time stopped for a second as he smiled at me. I guess my entourage doesn't bother him. Once I was at his side I bowed my head and said,

"I'm sorry, Nacina told everyone we're dating and they wanted to meet you." I rushed my words out so fast they slurred together, I wasn't sure if Serco understood because he just lifted my chin with his index finger and kissed me 3 times in succession, each kiss was deeper than the one before it. He had me in such a trance I couldn't even think enough to be embarrassed.

"Are you Akina's friends as well?" Serco stated curiously, looking around at the other people who were clearly more embarrassed by our PDA than we were.

"Yeah, I'm Yai and this is Jake and Cherry. You know Cam." Yai informed me, the other two strangers waved and Cam stayed still giving me an annoying smirk.

"I'm Shion," Serco stated, then he reached for my hand, clearly hoping he was done socializing with them.

"How did you meet?" Cherry probed, right as Serco was turning to leave.

"Downtown, she was walking around and I happened to see her." Serco elaborated,

"Okay, but why are you dating?" She investigated further, cutting her eyes at me.

"Because I want to be with her," Serco answered without a hint of hesitation. "Because being just friends was becoming difficult." He added, turning his eyes towards me "Because I want to take up all her time, I want to kiss her, and I want to ..." I then cut him off, putting my finger to his lips.

"It's not that complicated Cherry," I added then I grabbed Serco's hand and we speed-walked away. I heard Cherry say in a high-pitched voice,

"I thought you were just exaggerating. Where did she find him?!" After that, I was too far away to hear anything else they said. Serco held onto my hand, gently stroking my skin with his thumb.

"Are those really your friends?" He asked, keeping his eyes ahead.

"Well... they're Nacina's friends," I admitted.

"Oh... Is there anywhere you want to go?" Serco asked, his curiosity about the others seems to have dissipated.

"... There's not anywhere I really want to go," I replied. Serco sighed and mumbled.

"Humans are so indecisive." I felt a little embarrassed but decided to speak up by saying,

"I'm just so happy to see you, I can't think of anywhere I want to go... I'm just happy we're together. I'll be happy just standing right here, in this spot, for hours... as long as we're together." I thought hiding my feelings was painful but voicing them and waiting for him to reply was much worse,

"Then... want to go to my place?" He suggested after a moment of silence.

"Yes," I responded before really thinking but after I did start using my brain, it flooded me with dirty thoughts and my face got hot. I hope I don't start sweating.

"I'll cook dinner for you then... what do you like?" I pulled my hood over my head to hide my expression before answering,

"I like pasta... I'll help." We went to the grocery store and while we were shopping I made sure to text mom, letting her know I would be with a friend for a few hours.

"Is there anything you don't like? Or do you have any allergies?" Serco asked as held a bundle of Enoki mushrooms,

"I'll eat anything healthy and I guess I don't like hard candy very much," I replied. Serco hummed to himself, tossed the mushrooms in our basket, and then grabbed some corn in the husk and lastly some romaine lettuce. He let me choose the noodles and I chose Farfalle, I've never had them before if I'm being honest, but they look like little bow ties, which I find adorable. There were a lot of other ingredients he grabbed some cheeses, milk oils, etc. I let Serco make most of the decisions because he seemed so confident in what he was doing. He carried most of the groceries himself, only allowing me to carry the light items as we walked down the sidewalk. The walk continued until we reached a deserted area,

"Come close to me." At his command, I obeyed, standing just a few centimeters across from him, He put his arms around my waist, and I could feel the grocery bags lying against my back. I felt a sinking sensation feeling like I was going down in an elevator, and then a second later I was in a room I didn't recognize. The floor was wall to wall, red hardwood. Those walls were painted dark grey. There was a crimson loveseat and a crimson couch with a glass coffee table in the living room area, and mounted on the right wall was a large HD TV the largest one I've ever seen. The living room opened up to a bar and the kitchen, where Serco went immediately to begin cooking and I sat on a barstool so I could place the bags I was carrying onto the counter.

"Do you cook often?" I inquired, looking up at the ceiling, it was smooth, white, and metallic.

"Well... When I have guests." I felt a slight pang of jealousy but quickly adjusted my thoughts and reminded myself we hadn't been dating long... and that having guests is normal.

"I didn't know you had visitors," I commented, letting out a breath to help me calm down,

"My... brothers come sometimes. They enjoy eating more than me; I also have one friend who visits from Infaniya from time to time." Well... that's a relief. "Would you like to try the sauce?" Serco offered while lifting the ladle above the pot and gesturing me to his side. I stood next to him and allowed him to feed me the sample.

"Oh! It's good! Wow..." My earnest response pleased him, and he continued smiling the whole while he was cooking.

The food was ready in 30 minutes and it was delicious, even the homemade salad dressing for the side dish complimented the pasta perfectly. He's a genius. Even though it was so good Serco only ate an apple and had a glass of wine, once I had finished, he took my plate from me and placed it in the sink, and then he asked, "Would you like to go to my room, now?" My heart wasn't ready, so I started coughing. "I bought a console... because you said you liked games. I got the newest model available and a few things to play together." So... he just wants to play games? I don't know if I'm relieved or disappointed.

"Okay! That sounds fun." I replied, once my blood pump finally calmed itself. He washed everything we used and after putting the clean dishes away, he gestured for me to follow him down the hall, up a flight of stairs. We passed by three rooms, all with bright red doors, the hallway walls were eggshell-white and the floor was the same redwood as in the front rooms. The door we stopped at was different, though. It was black, but the doorknob and lock were a shiny red metal, there were also spider Lillies carved into the bottom of the door, painted the same shade of red as the doorknob. I guess I won't get lost looking for his room, even though his home is huge. Inside, was a king-sized bed, with a red velvet comforter and black satin sheets. underneath the bed was a fluffy white carpet, that looked like it had never been stepped on. The entire right and left walls had built-in shelves, crammed with thick books, and at the far end of the room, opposite the bed, was a love seat, across from a TV stand, with a TV about 127cm (50") mounted above it and 2 consoles beneath it. His room also had 2 long windows reached up to the ceiling; which was at least 20 feet high. His electric bill must get crazy high when he needs to use the A/C. There was also a popcorn machine in the corner. I was so busy looking around that I didn't notice him walking away from me and sitting on the loveseat, but once I realized he was seated, I quickly planted myself next to him. I hope I didn't leave him waiting too long.

"I only have multiplayer games, want to start with a fighting game, shooter, racing, or co-play RPG?" He offered while scrolling through digital games on the TV screen.

"Let's... start with something easy, a race. To warm-up." I replied. He handed me a rose gold controller then smiled at me and said,

"A warm-up? How long do you think we'll be playing?" I smirked,

"At least a few hours, once you start, time just flies."

"I'll take your word for it," He replied, then he started the game. We raced for an hour, after that we fought for 2 hours and then, we tried the shooting game. It was clear he was new at first, but he adapted to each game so quickly that by the end he played as well as a paid professional would, it was a little annoying. "I win again." He bragged after shooting me from so far across the map that I could only see a speck of his character. I puffed out my cheeks and pouted.

"Let's go back to the fighting game, I need payback." He pecked my cheek and laughed,

"Fine. You can try,"

I don't know how much time passed but I noticed it was pitch black outside, aside from the stars.

"I think I should head home," I commented, mom might be worried... even though I, actually, do not want to go home yet.

"Oh... I understand. I'll drive you." Serco offered, then without waiting for my reply he stood up and left the room. I stumbled after him. We ended up going further down the hall then entered a spiral staircase. It's a good thing I only have to walk down them, I might have passed out walking up. "It does not feel like you've been here long at all." He suddenly stated, breaking the silence.

"I agree... I had fun." As soon as I said that he stopped walking and turned to me and because I was 2 steps behind him in the stairwell, we were at eye level with each other for the first time.

"Would it be possible for you to...stay here, tonight?" His request froze me in place, it was like time stopped and I was at a loss for words.