Chapter 17: Chapter 15: Illusive Date IV

“Hey, Iven, which mode should we pick?” Alisa asked as she was intently scared at the small screen on the wall inside the photo booth. 

 

On the screen were three options named “Friends,” “Couple,” and “Group.” 

“Uhm… it’d probably-“ 

 

“Ah.” Alisa interjected and pressed the “Couple” option. 

 

 Ahhhhhhh….! I internally screamed. 

 

“Why do you look so grim? Couple mode doesn’t sound that bad; we’re a couple of people, so maybe it fits,” Alisa said as she tilted slightly in confusion.  

 

“Ah, ah, but….”   

 

Ah, she’s so innocent…! But wait, I get the feeling that I’m being played here; there’s no way someone like her doesn’t know what a “couple” is. 

 

“Well, the mode doesn’t matter, every one of them is more or less the same, don’t you think?” 

 

Well… whatever, I think she has a point. I thought as I walked up beside her. 

 

“Okay… first make a heart shape, the two of you,” The machine said from its speakers. 

 

“Huh? Uh… erm…” 

 

“Like this, Iven,” As I panicked, Alisa grabbed my hand and made a heart shape with both of ours. Ah, this is embarrassing… it’s sweet, ugh… I don’t know what to think anymore…! 

 

My heart was about to burst with mixed feelings. 

 

*Snap* 

 

“Okay, next please put your shoulders together,” we had received our next steps of instructions from the photo booth. 

 

“Here…!” Alisa voiced as she pushed her shoulder against mine while she smiled at the camera.

 

I can smell her hair… it smells nice.  

 

“Hey Iven, you should smile too.” 

 

“Like this?” I did what she said and tried to smile. 

 

“Yeah, that’s it.” 

 

“It’s not weird, is it?” 

 

“No not at all, oh it’s about to take our picture.” 

 

*Snap* 

 

The camera flashed again and took our photo, posing the best we could. 

“Please hug each other,” the machine voiced. 

 

“Oh this is easy!” 

 

“Huh?” In the next moment, Alisa quickly wrapped her arms around me, embracing me in her warmth again.

 

Ah.

 

Ah.

 

Ah.

 

Ah. 

 

I was frozen in shock as I felt Alisa’s warmth throughout my body. Mixed emotions, I couldn’t move in embarrassment. 

 

She’s hugging me again...! I can’t face her…! This is too much…!

 

With my desire to be embraced in another person’s warmth and my commonsense clashing with each other. 

 

I don’t know what to feel about this except that I’m both happy and embarrassed. 

 

*Snap*

 

After the camera had taken our photo of us hugging each other, Alisa unwrapped her arms from me. 

 

“What’s wrong, Iven?” 

 

“No, nothing…” I replied as I desperately tried to hold back my disgusting grin.

 

“Oh okay.” 

 

That surprised me… I didn’t think she’d hug me for a second time; thank you, photobooth god…! 

 

“Then for the last pose…! Please kiss!” 

 

“Huh? Ah, huhhh??” I voiced loudly. 

 

‘That’s weird… well, we’re cousins, so it should be fine,” Alisa spoke. 

 

“Eh? You’re fine?” I asked. 

 

“Well, it’s my first kiss, but I don’t mind if it’s with you….” Alisa shyly said as she acted in a cutesy manner as her cheeks reddened. 

 

“Uh…” 

 

“Close your eyes.” 

 

“Oh, okay…” I did as I was instructed and closed my eyes. 

 

With my vision encased in darkness, I felt something soft touch my cheeks the next moment. 

 

This doesn’t feel like her lips… Curious, I opened my eyes and saw her close to me with her fingers touching my cheek.

 

“Huh?”  

 

*Snap* 

 

“Kidding, did you actually think I was going to kiss you?” Alisa cheekily said with a mischievous smile as she put her hand away.  

 

“Ah, ah… no.”

 

“I was just joking….”

 

You are reading story Convoluted/Heart at novel35.com

“Okay…” 

 

Thank goodness it was just her fingers; I don’t know how I’d feel if she actually kissed me. This date and the hugs are enough.

 

Any more, and I’d be overly s̴̡͉̲̰̻̲͖̯̊̂̏͂͂͆̏̇̋͌̾̑̏͠͝e̸͇̝̫̗̬̟̩̦̫̬͒̌̔́̅̿͛̌͘͘l̸̡̛͕̗̞̟̙̺͈̜̠̊̃̾̅͋̈̄͛̿̀͠f̴̖̘̀i̸̢̳̩̞̣͈̪̬͕̥̅̊̃̊͗̇̆̈́̒̔̚͜͜s̵̛͇͇̙̫̖̰̺͑̿̾͜ͅh̴̡͔̤̱̣̖̺͚̼̙͍̲̞̏̎̾͗̌̋̈́̆͐̇͘͜.̶̡̫̜̞͍͔̺͎͚̤̭̭̫̔̉̓̔̑̋

 

“Thank you very much, please confirm the photos taken and it will be printed shortly after.” 

 

***

 

“That was fun….” I uttered as Alisa, and I walked home side by side together on the sidewalk.

 

When we left the photo booth and checked the time, I realized it was late. I didn’t want it to end, but everything good must come to an end. 

That’s something I realized some time ago. 

 

The date was fun. I don’t know if this was even a date in her eyes, but I can count it as one. 

 

“You did have fun, Iven?” Alisa asked as she glanced at me for a moment while holding a single paper bag in her hands containing the prizes we won at the arcade. 

 

“Yeah, very.” 

 

“I see, then that’s good.” 

 

“How about you?” 

 

“I had fun as well, you’re a fun person to be around with.” 

 

“Really?” 

 

“Yeah, that’s why there’s never a time spent with you where it’s boring. You always brighten up the mood in any place.” 

 

“Uh, yeah… thanks.” Me? Fun to be around? Those words couldn’t be any farther from the truth. 

 

I’m a person that’s not fun to be around; instead of brightening up the mood, I always bring it down in some way; I’m a person that no one should notice. 

 

I don’t deserve to be complimented like that, but if it’s coming from Alisa, I’m a fun person. 

 

I might be able to believe it though I won’t allow it. 

 

The me who is here now won’t allow it; I don’t believe it. 

 

But if I don’t believe in it, it means I won’t believe in her. 

 

I’m conflicted. 

 

Between my want to not hurt anyone and my need to be happy. 

 

I can’t choose. I can’t decide based on my feelings alone. I want both, but I can only take one. 

 

If I choose to be happy, I’ll end up hurting someone. 

 

If I choose not to actively hurt anyone, I’ll end up alone. 

 

I won’t make light of my options. 

 

I’m at the crossroads of life and death. 

 

A weighty decision needs to be made. 

 

To hurt or to be hurt… 

 

A choice that I need to make soon. 

 

***

 

“Thank you so much for today, Iven, I had a lot of fun.” 

 

“Yeah, so did I.” 

 

With the sun setting, I managed to walk Alisa home. During the walk home, the awkward silence that I’m so used to was gone and in its place was a delightful and fun conversation. 

 

“Well, see you at school.” 

 

“Yeah.” And with that, Alisa went inside her house. 

 

Having nothing else to do outside her home, I decided to walk back to mine. 

 

As I walked on the clean sidewalk, the cheerful feeling of happiness wasn’t present as I was alone. Nothing but pure silence around me aside from the sounds of vehicles passing by on the road next to me. 

 

It made clear that I started sinking back into this lonely feeling without her. 

A feeling that I started to dread. 

 

I’m a lonely person… I want to be with someone; I want to talk to someone. 

My desires start to voice themselves in my mind. 

 

“…” I sighed as I reached my neighborhood. 

 

Suddenly, the space around me had changed. 

 

“Ah,” I uttered in shock. 

 

I was no longer in the familiar environment of my neighborhood, but in a place I had recently stumbled upon. 

 

A place of the supernatural. 

 

“Welcome back, Iven.” I turned around and heard a sweet voice speak out from behind; in front of me was the familiar demon. 

 

“Lilith…?” I call out her name as I try to make my brain work. 

 

I was tired. 

My mind was in no condition to handle the supernatural at the moment. However, I still tried to work my already battered brain. 

 

“Why am I here?” I asked. 

 

“You very know well why you are here,” Lilith voiced with a mischievous grin.  

 

“Huh?” I uttered in confusion.

 

“It’s time to pay the piper, your free trial has ended.”  

 

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