"Hey, guys! What took you so long?"
Slipping off the sandals she borrowed, Ace walked into the room with Ryoma by her side. "We just had a little conversation." She shrugged.
Sitting down on the couch, she brought her gaze up to the TV. The boys were still playing Castle Bashers, but they weren't fighting each other this time. They were progressing the storyline.
Ryoma plopped onto the seat next to the girl, taking a bite from his cupcake.
A moment later, she felt her phone buzz in her pocket.
Reaching for it, she pulled it out and unlocked the phone.
Lyra: Hey Ace! Whatcha doin?
A few cupcakes sitting on the coffee table caught the girl's attention. She rotated her phone around and took a quick picture of the desserts.
She smirked, sending the picture to Lyra.
Lyra: You made cupcakes again?!
Lyra: I wish I could have one so badly ;-;
Lyra: Wait...
Lyra: Is that Castle Bashers in the background?
Ace: Yeah.
Lyra: NO WAY
Lyra: YOU'RE PLAYING WITHOUT ME??
Ace scoffed, making the black-haired male sitting beside her look at her questionably.
Ace: Nah, I'm not playing.
Lyra: ?
Ace: I'm at a friends' house.
Ace: It would seem that they really like this game. And scary movies and tabletop board games.
Lyra: ;-;
Lyra: Damn I wish I was there
Lyra: It's my lifelong dream to play one of those tabletop games!
Lyra: But nobody I know is interested in this type of stuff. Sad.
Ace chuckled slightly.
Ace: I know what you mean.
Ace: It was my first time playing too.
Lyra: You're so lucky
Ace: If you visit me someday, then I'll-
Her phone was suddenly snatched away.
Staring at the male in surprise, she began reaching for it, only to have him further bring it out of her reach.
"No, no, no. This generation is all about smartphones and technology." Raiden hummed as he held it out of her reach. He smirked at her.
"I was using that!" She cried out, desperately reaching for it.
"What is it that you've found so interesting, Ace?" He rose an eyebrow, amused.
"I was texting a friend!" The girl stood up and walked over to the other side where he was holding the phone, only for him to switch it to his other hand and away from her.
"Ace?"
"Yeah?" She turned around, seeing that Allian had puppy-eyes. "D-do you.. Find your phone more interesting than me?"
"And me?" Evan asked softly.
"And me?" Kai added.
"Woah- what?" She looked at them frantically. "That's not it at all!"
Ryoma shook his head and placed his hand on the side of his head, sighing.
"But.. but Ace.." The blonde continued. "Why are you.. On your phone when we're in the same room? Are we just too boring for you?"
"No! You're getting the wrong idea!" She groaned, frustrated. "It's not like I-"
"Ace," Raiden faked a frown. "You're making us all so sad. What will you do?"
"Stop messing around!" She sighed.
"But we're not.." Evan murmured, looking down.
Flopping down onto the couch in defeat, she muttered, "Then what do you want me to do?"
The males looked at each other, looking like they had the most brilliant idea ever known to mankind.
"Can you stay with us?" Allian asked in a gentle, innocent voice.
Ace blinked at him, wondering if she heard correctly. "What?"
"And give us a goodnight kiss?"
"What!?"
"Pleeeaaaaaase?" He clasped his hands together, which Evan and Kai followed, looking at her with big, bubbly puppy eyes.
"What? No!" She groaned in irritation.
"Well, if you refuse our request then you'll have to come up with something else." Raiden smirked.
Ryoma, who had been silent all this time sighed. "It's okay, Ace. They're joking."
Ace frowned. "I sure do hope they're joking.."
Then suddenly, her device that was still in Raiden's hand lit up, the ringtone it emitted alerting her that someone was calling her.
Raiden lowered the phone, looking at the screen. "Your dad's calling."
Taking the phone from him, Ace stood up and left the room, her phone against her ear.
When she was far enough from the boys, Allian muttered quietly, "Should we listen in?"
Raiden thought about it for a moment. "Sure. Evan?"
The boy nodded, getting up silently and trailing after her, careful to maintain his stealth. His small figure came in handy in situations when silence was required for not alerting the target. He leaned against a wall, hearing the muffled sound of the girl's voice.
"..."
"I'm at a friends' house right now."
"..."
"Yeah."
"...?"
"Why would I be hurt? Dad, I told you they're nice people."
"..."
"I'm always on guard! You don't have to worry about me."
"...?"
"Oh! I didn't realize it was 5:30 already. I'll go home now."
"...?"
"Nah, it's like a 20-minute walk from our house. I'll run if you want me to come home quickly. That'll take me around 7 minutes."
"..."
"Okay! I'll see you soon!"
"..."
"Love you too!"
Noting that the phone call was over, Evan crept down the hallway and entered a room, closing the door and turning on the lights.
Ending the phone call and putting the device back into her pocket, Ace walked back to the living room.
"Hey, Ace! What did your dad ask you?" Kai asked, looking up at her.
"He just wanted to ask me when I'll be home." She replied, picking up her notebook and walking to the main door. "It's getting pretty late so I'll get going now."
The boys stood up, walking towards her.
"But- but what about my goodnight kiss?" Allian pouted.
"I'm not kissing anyone." She laughed.
"Awwwee.."
"I'll see you guys on Tuesday, okay?"
"Sure.."
Ace looked around, noticing someone was missing. "Where's Evan?"
"He went to the restroom while you were talking on the phone." Raiden answered.
"Ah, okay." She slipped on her shoes. "Bye guys! And tell Evan I said goodbye as well."
"Understood."
Kai opened the door for her, allowing her to walk out. "Would you like me to walk with you to the gate?"
She smiled. "I appreciate it, but I don't want to take your time."
Walking out of the house, she waved goodbye to them before exiting the premises and disappearing down the street.
The males watched her go, a twinge of disappointment tugging at their hearts.
Kai closed the door and walked back to take his seat on the couch. The rest of the males followed. A second later, Evan approached them and sat down beside Kai.
"What did you hear?" Ryoma questioned.
"Most of it was discussing when she would get home. I couldn't hear what her father was saying, but based on her replies, her father is wary of us." The boy replied.
"Wary?"
"He doesn't want his daughter to be out and hanging with just guys." He shrugged.
"Typical father behavior," Allian said, frowning.
"I see." Raiden adjusted his watch and crossed his legs. "Well anyways, I have something I wanted to discuss with you guys for a while now. I have more news on the threat note Ace received and have a plan to deal with it." He smiled. "Listen closely. There's no room for errors."
~
"Aunty! Dad! I'm home!"
Closing the door and locking it, she smiled at the two grown-ups sitting on the couch watching the TV screen.
"Welcome back, Ace." Her aunt smiled.
"You weren't out doing anything bad, were you?" Her dad frowned.
"Ugh, why do you even think that?" She sighed. "No. You know I'm not like that. You trust me, don't you?"
Her dad stood up, opening his arms to her. A smile formed on his lips. "Of course I trust you. Come here, I missed you."
Smiling, the girl wrapped her arms around him while he did the same. When they let go, she looked back at the TV and laughed. "Why are you watching cooking episodes?"
He shrugged. "It won't hurt to try and cook a meal once or twice every now and then." He sat down and glanced at the woman. "It would certainly save your aunt the pain of putting stress on her ankle."
The woman smiled. "It's nice to finally see you try to help the family."
"I am.. I work all day.." He grumbled.
Ace laughed. "I'll go take a shower or something. It's 6:20 pm."
"Okay. We'll be waiting for you." Her dad smiled. "Let's learn how to make ice cream together!"
"That's not a meal." Her aunt sighed.
"Who says we can't have ice cream for dinner? It's a great idea, isn't it?"
"Me." The woman stated bluntly. "And no, it's not."
"Buzzkill.." He muttered.
Ace shook her head and retreated to her room, placing her phone down on her table. Almost a second later, her phone buzzed.
Unknown Number: Did you get home safely?
She picked up her phone and scrolled to the message.
Ace: Yeah. Who's this?
Unknown Number: Ryoma.
She nodded, recording down the contact. Smiling, she began typing in her next text.
Ace: Awwee were you worried about me, ya big tough guy?
Ryoma: Please don't tease me.
Ace: Haha! It's alright. I'm the only one seeing your messages.
Ryoma: I suppose you're right.
Ace: Well, I need to go do some things now. My family's waiting for me.
Ace: I'll talk to you later, okay?
Ryoma: Okay.
Ryoma: Be safe.
Putting her phone back down, she stifled a few giggles. He's such mom.