“Murderer! Murderer!”
~*F*~
“Come on, Ally. It was a joke!” Kon followed as Ally continued to stomp away. Sighing, Kon said, “Hey, now, this is my Christmas present, right? Aren’t you supposed to be nice on our Christmas date?”
“I don’t recall that ever being a condition of the date. I just said I’d go on one with you. I never specified how long it would last or how nice I would be.”
“Gee, you’re such a cold-hearted girl, aren’t you?”
Suddenly, Ally spotted an aged house that looked abandoned. The window was broken, the glass shattered, and the door hung by one hinge. As she gazed at the building, her vision spun before her and next thing she knew Kon was supporting her as she clutched her head.
“Ally? You okay?”
“I’m fine. I just blanked out a moment. I’ll be fine.” To change the subject, she added, “Where did you want to go for our date?”
“Oh! Well, I was thinking that first we could go to the park and ride on the see-saw- I haven’t ridden one of those in forever and you’re just heavy enough to match my weight.” Here, Ally elbowed him in the stomach. “Ow. Then we’d go to a fancy restaurant and eat some good food. After that, there’s this really good ice-cream shop I know about and we’d go on a moonlit stroll by the lake.”
“Except that tonight is the new moon, not to mention it’s cloudy and it’ll probably snow again, so ice cream might not be a good idea. And how would you know of a good ice cream shop? Have you been here before?”
“Hm? Didn’t I tell you? I grew up here too.”
“Huh? You didn’t tell me that. Where did you live? Should we go visit your family?”
“I... I have no family. They’re all dead.”
“Oh, I see. I’m sorry for bringing it up then.”
“No big deal. Anyway, let’s go over to the park.”
“Ah, okay.”
Kon grabbed Ally by the hand and dragged her to the see-saw where they got on and proceeded to go up and down. Both of them were quiet and it gradually became somewhat awkward being two grown-ups on a kid’s toy.
“Ally?” Kon asked, seeing that Ally had a far-off look about her. He was afraid she would space out again like earlier.
“Hm?”
“Penny for your thoughts.”
“Hmm.... I was just trying to remember. I feel like I might have been here before with my brother.” She gently touched the cross hanging around her neck. “Say, do you think you think we might have known each other as kids, since we grew up in the same town?”
“Ah, actually.... I don’t believe we ever met. Though... I might have seen you once or twice.”
“You did! What was I like?”
“Um-” Kon hesitated. “You were... very quiet, I think. I don’t really know, I only saw you from afar.”
“Oh,” Ally spoke, slightly disappointed. An awkward silence followed as they continued to go up and down.
“Ally?” a voice spoke.
Ally turned and looked. “Jack? What are you doing here?” she leaped off the see-saw, letting Kon land heavily and fall off.
“Ally, it’s so great to see you! Nice earmuffs, they match your personality well,” Jack commented.
Ally blushed, remembering how she had gotten them. “Thanks. What are you doing here, Jack? I thought you lived in In-between Town?”
“Ah, yeah, well I got a job working at a computer company. Basically, I go out and fix everyone’s computers. I came out here because someone couldn’t find the power button on their computer.”
“That sounds annoying. Shouldn’t you be able to get a better job? Aren’t you a genius when it comes to computers?”
“Well, yeah, but this is the best job I could get, considering I was involved in the Organization. Say! Your bells are different. What happened to the sonar ones I made?”
“Ah, Carumati gave these to me for Christmas. These have sonar too, but in addition, they have a communication device and a recorder.”
“Carumati? As in Carumati Baird? She’s with you guys?”
“Yeah. Why? You know her?”
“She’s my cousin.”
“Your cousin! Ah, that makes sense, actually. You’re both computer/inventor geniuses.” By this time, Konrad had stood up and walked over to Ally and Jack.
“Yeah, I’m glad she’s got you guys to watch out for her. So who’s this?”
“Ah, this is Konrad, the leader of GWANAN.”
“Nice to meet you,” Jack said shaking Kon’s hand.
“Likewise.”
“So what are you two doing here?”
“We’re on a date.” Kon exclaimed, putting his arm around her shoulder at which she glared at him.
“Ah! I’m sorry, I’ve been interrupting you. Well, don’t let Blake know you two are dating. If he finds out, he’ll throw a fit. He’s still waiting for you to come play that chess game with him, Ally. He says that if he wins, he’s gonna make you quit GWANAN and stay here.”
“He would,” Ally sighed.
“Well, I’ll be going then. See you later!”
“Yeah, later.”
“So that was Jack, huh? Surprising. Knowing that he’s related to Carumati, do you realize that all of us now have a connection this place?
“What do you mean?”
“Well, you and I grew up here, Ven worked in the Organization, and Carumati is related to Jack who lives here. Could it be just a coincidence?”
Ally thought a moment, then, “Who cares? I’m hungry. Come on, lets go. And quickly, before Blake runs into us.”
“There’s a really good restaurant in the mall close by here. It’s not too expensive either, which is rare for a mall.”
“Alright, lets go there then.”
The two of them hurried inside the mall down the street and Konrad asked for a table in a dark, secluded corner. “You try anything funny, Kon and I’ll kill you.”
“Hey, now. You promised me a date, so I’m going to do my best to win you over while I still have the chance.”
“What have I done?” Ally asked herself.
They sat down and ordered the least expensive food on the list and champagne. “Honestly, Konrad, getting me drunk wont do you any good. Usually, I just fall asleep when I drink too much.”
“Hmm? That would be rather adorable. Except that you proposed to your childhood friend the last time you got drunk. But I wasn’t planning on that. If you did get drunk, you might not remember my surprise.”
“Surprise?”
“You’ll see later.”
“Okay. Whatever.”
The two chatted lightly until their food arrived and their mouths were too full to talk anymore. When Kon had finished he asked Ally to stay there and wait for a bit. She watched him leave and then heard from a small side stage that the next song would be played by Konrad Aimery for Alameda Bryce. Ally was shocked and stared as Konrad walked out on stage, carrying a violin and played a gentle song called, “A Forgotten Memory”. Ally sat and listened, finding the song to be too beautiful to describe. When he finished, Konrad walked over to her and she found it impossible for words to come out. Kon laughed at her speechlessness.
“I spent all night writing that song for you. What did you think?”
Ally just stared and then realized something. “You! If you could play violin this good, how come I’m the one that always performs to make ends meet? That’s it! I’m going to make you play from now on until we get our debt payed off.”
“Aww, come on, Ally! I’m not that good am I?”
“Of course you are! I’m surprised you’re not some famous violinist instead of the leader of GWANAN.”
“Oh? You think I’m that good?”
“Of course!”
“Hmm.... I’ll play if you sing.”
“Huh?”
“I said I’d play if you sang with me. With both of us, we’re bound to earn tons of money.”
“What! No!”
“Al-Alameda Bryce?” came another familiar voice.
“Huh?... Blake?”
There, standing in a janitor’s uniform, was Blake.
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