After the exact 9 minutes and 42 seconds had passed, Ajax heard the rapid knocks on his door. He intentionally took extra time to answer the door, "took you long enough, pipsqueak."
Lumine just glared at him as she pushed a cup of coffee to his chest, "here's your Espresso". She seemed to be slightly out of breath and her blond hair was disheveled, probably because of all the errands he made her do before coming here.
With a wide smile, he took the cup and walked back into his apartment, "I'm impressed that it's still warm". After inspecting the cup, he took a sip, "and no signs of spilling out of the cup. You must be good with your hands."
"Yeah, good enough to strangle you to death", she murmured as she followed into his living room with a bag.
Turning back to face her, "Did you say something?", he asked with a not-so-innocently tone.
"Nothing", she grinded her teeth when she noticed his smirk.
"Nothing, what?", his smirk only grew wider.
She put down the bag onto his dining table with a loud thump and bit her tongue before composing herself. Then, she faced him with the best smile she could summon at the time, "nothing, Ajax-senpai."
He couldn't help but laughed out at her 'smile' because it was more of a grimace, "you call that a smile?"
She crossed her arms on her chest, "sorry that I can't even fake a smile for you. I only smile when I feel like it."
He shrugged at her response, "then, you can understand if I can't help because I don't feel like it, right?"
When he pretended to walk away, he felt her tug on his shirt almost immediately, "Archons, fine. I will smile!"
"Let's see it then, go on", he signaled her with his chin and continued to drink the coffee.
She glared to the side with a grumble, "the things I do for you, Aether."
After mentally preparing herself, she looked up at him with a closed-eye smile. He could still detect a hint of grimace so he added fuel to the fire, "now, call my name."
A vein popped on her forehead but she managed to hide it away before he commented on it, "Ajax-senpai."
"And, what is your request again?", he hid his smirk behind the cup.
Still trying her best to maintain the smile, she was able to speak out, "please help us with the props, Ajax-senpai."
Smirking victoriously, he finished the coffee, "I will take it for now, but I want a better smile before today ends."
Her smile fell abruptly at that, "are you shitting me? Isn't this enough??"
"This is just the beginning, Chibi-chan", he patted her head, making her hair messy even more on purpose. He took away his arm just before she could slap him off.
"Did Thoma tell you that?", she asked as she tried to comb her hair back to normal.
"No, Ayato did", he answered back cheekily, "you aren't the only one who got the best senior."
She cursed to herself silently when he checked on the bag, "let's see- math, history, geography, law, literature, business and ahhh yes~ my dictionary."
"Do you really need all of them?", she asked skeptically, handing him the receipt for the books.
"Yes, I need to do a very important assignment with these", he took the paper and transferred the amount back to her account.
He didn't need all those books, he just wanted to trouble her but he would rather jump down from his apartment than admit the truth.
"You have finished the coffee, right? Let's go then", she spoke while taking her phone out to check the bus schedule for their way back. She didn't expect that he would pull another stunt right away.
~
"I am not getting on it", Lumine pointed to the vehicle accusingly.
"Why not?", he shot back while running a hand on the red sports bike that has been decorated with blue-purple galaxy stickers, "don't tell me you are scared of bikes."
"Normal bike? No, not at all. But, this is already screaming danger just from the look, especially if you are the one who's driving", she shook her head rapidly.
"Oh, don't be such a wuss. I promise I will be gentle with the ride", his wink only made her frown even more.
"I would rather take the bus, see you there", she tried to walk away but of course, he wouldn't let her go easily, "aren't you supposed to be my assistant? If my assistant isn't with me, I might get lost. If I were to lose my way, it won't be me that would get a problem."
She snapped back at him, "you know the city more than I do, and GPS exists!"
He only ignored her as he continued mumbling with a dramatic pose, "oh dear, I might never find the way, what a nightmare for SOME people."
Seeming the argument was only wasting time, she had to be the one who had to step back, "fuck it, FINE! I will ride your abyssal bike."
"Hey! Don't call my baby like that", he flicked her forehead before whispering to the bike softly, like a lover, "forgive the shorty, babe. She has no taste for beauty."
She only rolled her eyes and caught the white bike helmet that was aimed at her face.
"Nice catch", he merely chuckled at her annoyed face and grabbed another black helmet for himself.
He swung his long leg over the bike and prompted her to do the same, "are you coming or what?"
She tsked at him and put on the helmet before getting on her tiptoes to sit at the very back of the bike.
"You are going to fall off, you know", he looked back at her as he put on a pair of gloves.
"I will be fine", she said but gulped deep, when she saw his smirk.
"Alright, I warned you", his 'warning' was too cheery for her ears so she gripped the back of the bike tighter.
He intentionally made a loud exhaust sound before starting to drive out of the parking. He waved 'Hi' at the security and waited for the coast to be clear until they joined the main road. So far, he was driving normally so Lumine made the mistake of putting down her guard a bit. Because as soon as the cars were clear enough, he purposely sped up to join the main road. He drove between the speedy cars flawlessly. Even with a helmet, she could feel the rush of the wind on her body. Each sway made her heart beat faster and faster.
"Hey! Slow down a bit!", she tried to speak but he didn't respond. She could feel that she was slightly slipping from the seat.
After a few tries, she had to move forward and held onto his shoulders for a more steady position.
At the front, Ajax smirked when he felt her hands on his shoulders. Proud that he managed to make her panic. He kept the high speed just so that she wouldn't dare to let go of him.
Without taking his eyes off the road, he turned his head slightly to say, "you're scared of some speed, pipsqueak?"
"You said you will be gentle with the ride", she gripped his shoulders with annoyance, so tight that he could feel her fingernails digging into his flesh.
"This is me being gentle. We could do even faster if you-" "NO", he snickered at her immediate response.
"Then, relax and enjoy the ride. We'll be there soon", he said before speeding up even more.
~
As soon as they reached the place, Lumine jumped from the bike and faced him with her usual scowl, taking off her helmet aggressively, "gentle, you shit. You went over 90!"
"Oh please, don't act like you didn't enjoy the speed. I can feel your awe from my back", he just waved her off.
Then, he turned to the house, "nice place you got here. Homey and neat."
"Men, changing the subject", she mumbled before walking to the front door.
"Xiao! I'm home", she shouted at the entrance.
The man in name walked down the stairs. His neutral face turned surprised when he noticed the taller man behind Lumine.
"Ajax can help us with the props", she answered his unspoken question.
Ajax cleared his throat from behind, "excuse me, 'Ajax'? You say?"
"Fine! Ajax-senpai here is going to help us", she groaned.
Only then, he smiled with satisfaction and turned to the younger man, "hey Xiao! Long time no see, pipsqueak here requested me to help you guys. Sorry to hear about your arm."
Xiao looked between the two confusingly before he spoke, "thank you. I will take you to the props now", to which Ajax nodded.
But, before he followed him, Ajax glanced at Lumine, "I want a lemonade."
She put hands on her hips, "you just drank a coffee?"
"That was from a shop. I want this homemade, by you", he grinned at her visible annoyance and left her in the living room.
She was more than attempted to add laxatives in the drink but she held back for the good of Aether and friends. Even if she made it to be extra sour, he would make her fix it anyway so she made it as best as possible.
"The drink is ready", she carried two glasses of lemonade on a tray and walked into the extra room that they used as a workshop.
Inside the room, Ajax was commenting on the props, "you said you did this with a heat gun? How much time did you give it to bend?"
He turned the prop and showed the curve of the shield, "see here? It didn't get enough heat. It looks good for now but it might change its shape as time goes by. I will retouch these too."
Xiao nodded his head firmly as he noted everything he commented. Lumine was stunted to find that Ajax was really giving out sincere pieces of advice to Xiao.
When Ajax noticed her, his neutral face changed into the usual smile, "there's my assistant. I was getting parched."
He took a glass from her and took a big gulp. Lumine handed another one to Xiao, "here you go, Xiao."
"Thanks", he mumbled softly and took it from her hand.
"I expected it to be sour or super sweet but this is better than I thought, assistant", Ajax remarked after finishing the glass in one go.
"Thanks, even though I didn't need your compliment", she snorted at him sassily.
Ajax only raised a brow at her, "are you sure, my 'assistant'?"
"You don't have to add that 'assistant' in every sentence!", she grinded her teeth at his arrogant face.
He purposedly ignored her and turned to Xiao, "I can take it from here, Xiao. You can go and buy paints."
Xiao's eyes widened slightly, "no, I can help-"
Ajax cut him off with a wave, "it's fine, I have my assistant with me. She promises to help me all day", and pulled Lumine to his side, wrapping his arm on her shoulder. Lumine struggled slightly in his hold but stopped moving when he tightened his grip.
Knowing her dislike of Ajax, Xiao was hesitant to leave her alone with him. His steady eyes shifted to her, "will you fine with him, Lumi?"
She glared at Ajax's smirking face one last time before smiling at Xiao, "I'll be fine, Xiao. It's true that I promised that to him."
Xiao studied her one more time and nodded firmly to the older man, "then, I will leave you to it then. Call me if there is anything you need. Thank you for your help."
Ajax waved goodbye at the fresher with all smiles and grins, "leave us to it."
As soon as Xiao left the house, Ajax smirked at her lopsidedly, "now then, can you bring me the extension cord? I want to re-shape this shield here", and let her go from his side.
Lumine took a deep breath to prepare for the hell and brought out a pair of clips to tuck her longer hair strands behind the ears.
"Wear this too", he tossed her safety goggles when she came back to his side.
In contrast to what she thought, Ajax had a serious expression when he worked. Gone was his usual smirk and teasing. Even though she's a beginner at this, she could tell that he's really capable from the way he handled the tools. He was attentive to the surroundings too. When she wiped away some sweat off her forehead, he told her to open the windows and back off a little, without looking away from his work.
When he was done using the heat gun, he blew some air to himself before glancing at her with the usual playfulness, "it is hot in here. Fan me a bit, assistant."
"I can get an electric fan-"
"No, that won't do. The electric fan will be too cold with the sweating."
"You play basketball matches inside the air-con gym though."
"It's a different matter. Now, hop hop", he clapped his hands, urging her to get on it.
When she got up with a sigh, he shouted, "I didn't hear an answer!"
"YES, AJAX SENPAI!! I will fan you with my own hands!", she yelled back from the living room.
She came back stomping with a plastic fan in her hand and started fanning him.
"Too fast, you can't keep the speed more than 5 minutes."
And when she slowed down,
"Is this the best you can do?"
"You fuc- Why don't you make up your mind then?"
"Okay, new rule. You aren't allowed to curse me or I will call you 'busu'."
"Are you calling me 'ugly'??"
"Because you are."
Ajax couldn't help but snicker at her red angry face. It's fun to tease her to the point she looks like she's going to explode. Seeming the poor plastic fan almost snap in her hands, he decided to stop ... For now.
"Come on now, it's hot."
"The hell you're going to is even hotter, Ajax-senpai", she murmured under her breath as she started fanning him again.
~
When Aether sneaked back into the house, he found Xiao reading a book in the living room.
Keeping an eye out for his sister, he asked, "Psst- Xiao! Where's Lumi?"
Xiao nudged towards their workshop, "in there. She's finishing up the props with Ajax."
Aether's feet stopped in motion and snapped his head back to Xiao, "I'm sorry, Ajax?? Are you sure they aren't killing each other in there?"
"I'm sure of it. I just checked on them a few minutes ago. They seemed to be doing fine so I'm just staying put here", he put down the book onto the sofa and followed Aether, who was tiptoeing to the said room.
Aether opened the door slightly and the two peeked into the room.
"No, you don't need glue for this. Worbla sheets naturally stick to themselves after heating", Ajax held back her hand that was going for the glue. Then, he proceeded to demonstrate the two sheets stick to each other without gluing, "see? No glue."
She nodded with awe, eyes filled with interest. When he handed back the sheets, she started cutting into the marked shape. He watched her from the side and added some remarks here and there, "you will need to cut around this corner because it needs to bend around the armor. Or else there will be a bump."
"Like this, senpai?", she asked while showing her work.
"Maybe a little deeper. Like 1 or 1 and a half cm", he noted and went back to sand the EVA foam sword.
"Got it", she hummed to herself.
Aether glanced back at Xiao with wide eyes, "they aren't killing each other."
"I told you so. Well, they did fight for the first 30 minutes but after that, they seemed to settle down", Xiao crossed his arms.
"And, she calls him 'senpai' willingly?? Are you sure that is Lumine?", Aether cringed as he spoke.
"I heard it's some sort of deal between them. But, she doesn't seem to mind too much of it now", Xiao replied and pulled the door handle slowly, "let them focus on the work. You need to figure out how to stop her from killing you in the meantime."
Aether looked at the two working with each other coordinately before the door shut quietly.
Inside the workshop, Ajax asked, "your brother just came to check, you know. Weren't you saying you will kill him?"
"I can kill him later. We should finish this first", she focused on placing the layers on the armor.
"Siblings, right? You two are making me miss mine", he dusted away the sword.
"That reminds me. You have younger siblings?"
"Older ones, too. I'm the middle of seven children."
"No wonder you have a middle child syndrome", she laughed teasingly, "the one you are talking on the phone the other day is Teucer?"
"Yeah, the youngest and the most spoiled. Well, it might also be my fault that I spoil him too much", he chuckled wholeheartedly.
"If your mom only has 7 boys like you, she has my most sincere sympathy."
"We are 5 boys and 2 girls. But, Papa is really strict with us so we were never trouble."
"The head of Agapov enterprise, right? He seemed like a cold person from the magazines I have seen. How's he like outside?"
"He might seem cold from the photos because he can never smile purposedly in front of the camera", his hands slowed down, "he may be strict with us but he cares about our wellbeing even more so."
He stood up to grab his phone, "here, let me show you his rare smile."
She leaned in to see the screen better. The photo was of two parents and seven children playing in the snow.
"This is my Mama and the one who's hugging her is Papa. It was lucky to get his rare smile on camera", he introduced each one, "you can see Denis and Anthon lying on the snow. Eva and Tonia are hiding behind the snowman. Then, there's me chasing Ivan and Teucer."
"Must have been a really intense snowball fight", a contagious smile appeared on her face as the warmth filled her chest from the smiles and grins of the family.
"Yeah, we don't see each other on daily basis so when we do meet, it's all fun and games", he smiled at the photo nostalgically before closing the screen, "what about your family?"
She shrugged as she also grabbed her phone, "well, we are the only children of our parents so it's not much."
Then she showed him the last photo they took as a family, "we were eating the pizza here. We open a bakery at home. Damn, now I miss the pizza. When he peeked down at her face, he saw a brief sadness pass on her face. Understanding the feeling of missing home, he suggested, "why don't we order pizza for dinner? My treat."
She raised a brow, "I thought your coach has strict rules on calorie intake?"
He just waved off her worry, "he's not here, is he?", before adding, "just don't tell Ayaka. She won't like it if she knows about this."
"For pizza, my lips are sealed", she made a motion to zip up her lips before standing up to the door, "I will go ask Aether and the others, too. Also, it will be our treat."
When he was about to protest, she shut him with a glare, "no buts. You are already helping us enough. We will treat you. Sit still!"
And then, she slammed the door on him and left him chuckling.
~
When they were done with the work and dinner, it was well past 8 PM. Lumine walked him to his bike, "thank you for today. You even helped us with the paints too. We owe you one, senpai."
"See? You are calling me 'senpai' so easily now. Was it that hard?", he spoke as he put on his helmet.
"To my pride? Yes, very much", she wrinkled her nose.
"That reminds me. You still have to give me a smile", he finished wearing the gloves.
"Damn it, I thought you forgot it", her eyes narrowed in slits.
"The deal is a deal, pipsqueak. Now, ready when you are", he put his hand into the pocket.
"Getting on your high horse as usual, I see", she snorted one last time.
Looking back today, she really did owe him this. Since the basketball coach's really strict, they have little to no time for themselves. And yet he gave his free time to help them. Granted, he also took this chance to tease her but still it was a really enjoyable time. The tips he gave with the crafting are also bonuses.
A tender breeze that passed them at that time, ruffled her hair strands gently. She linked her hands behind the back, shifting her body weight onto right leg, a genuine smile reached her lips, "be careful on your way back. I'll see you tomorrow, senpai."
1, 2, 3, ... and then 5 seconds passed with no reply from him so she got confused, "huh, senpai?"
On the other hand, Ajax, who had never received such a sincere smile from her, was rendered speechless. 'Where did this smile come from? Why did it feel weird?? Wait, did my shirt shrink? Why did it feel so hard to breathe now?'
Annoyed with himself, he did what came to his mind first. Covering her face with his hand without saying anything.
"What the- what's this for?!", Lumine scratched his hand away. Her usual glare for him was on her face now, gone was her sweet smile.
Only then, he felt as if everything was back to normal. He could breathe normally now, "yep, that look suits you more."
"Oh, don't you worry. This will be a permanent expression only for you", a vein popped on her forehead.
"Lovely! See you later, pipsqueak", he winked at her with a wave and drove off.
She was left murmuring on the pavement at his action, "wasn't he the one who asked a smile? What a bipolar."
~
Ajax stopped by a convenience store to buy some snacks. When he pulled out his phone from the pocket, he noticed a voice recording app was still on.
"Oh shit, I forgot that I had this going", he tsked to himself before rewinding to the part he wanted to save.
When he played that part, "be careful on your way back. I'll see you tomorrow, senpai." The recorded voice of Lumine came from the phone's speakers. He was going to tease her with this but her unexpected smile made him drive away without a chance to do so.
He continued to stare at the screen for a few seconds before an idea came to him.
With a snicker, he dialed someone, "hey, your favorite junior here. Can I ask you for something?"
Itto's voice replied from the other side, "sure! ... You didn't get into trouble, right?"
"No, nothing like that. It's just that I have the voice of someone. Can you make it into a short remix? I want to save it as a ringtone."
"A remix? Whatttt? You know it's almost time for my assignment", Itto groaned.
"Pleaseee, you are the only one I can count on with the music. Also, I will give you three SSR cards if you make it for me."
Itto thought to himself for a few seconds before, "... five cards and I will give it to you before noon."
"Deal!", Ajax replied with the sweetest tone and hung up.
~
"So, I heard from Aether that you got along with Ajax-senpai yesterday", Ayaka asked with curious eyes.
"Yeah, we did for a few hours before he rubbed his dirty gloved hand on my face. Gross", Lumine made a choking sound.
"He's a good guy, right? I told you so", Ayaka clapped her hands in excitement.
"He's fine, I guess", Lumine murmured quietly and her eyes landed on the ginger-haired guy, who was laughing with Itto and Kaeya.
"This means that you two won't fight whenever you meet each other, right?", her friend was persistent to hear her answer.
"Well, that's-", before she could answer, she heard her own voice somewhere. Her voice of calling 'senpai' was repeated. It was mixed with some sort of beats and a DJ.
When the two girls looked for the source, it was no other than Ajax, who was showing off his ringtone intentionally, "oh look! My phone new ringtone. Isn't this nice, guys?"
Lumine gritted her teeth and grabbed a water bottle from her side, "I knew he would pull this stunt. Forget peace, he started this."
Ayaka could only sigh softly as she watched her angry best friend chase the snickering upperclassman.
~
19th Sept, 2022