(I don't when I don't know how. But someday, I will thank Rika for the car)

Having no clocks, I didn't really know how much time had passed since we left the supermarket. What I did know was, that we reached our destination in one piece.

"Home sweet home. If home is a run-down store that is." I shut down the car's engine as it entered the alleyway by the convenience store, the same alleyway we parked it in last time. Even the door we unscrewed and used as a makeshift barricade was still there.

"Well, with the shutter's down, it should be relatively safe" Saya responds as she starts packing her stuff back in her bag. Aka the map and radios.

"At least I can't see any corpses around right now" Saeko adds as she keeps leaning between the two front seats.

"They probably got drawn away by the engine's sound, when we left with the car last time." I answer as I steer the car close towards the store's wall to my right, then turn left, in order to create that 'cone' shape with the opposite wall, so we can use the door to block the opening once again.

"Which means, we'll have them coming back now..." Saya stops fiddling with her bag as she speaks.

"More corpses, less curious survivors" I answer plainly.

"Yea yea, I know." Saya sighs slightly as she hugs her bag and turns to look at me.

"In any case, let's go." I open the door, take my bag and exit the car.

(Hmm, maybe I should have parked with the hood facing the road. Oh well.)

"Saya, remember how we set up the door last time?" I ask as I turn to the pink-haired girl after reaching the metal door that laid on the ground.

"Yea, and seeing how you parked, I take it we'll do the same thing again?" Saya asks as she exits the car and turns to look at said door.

I nod, pick it up, and move to place it between the car and the wall.

Saya first checked to see if the humvee's backside completely blocked the right wall, then walked around the hood and came up to me, on the door's opposite site. Saeko just stared for a couple of seconds before walking up to me as well.

With that, we shoved the store's door between the car and the wall, ending up with the store's door 'jamming' on the driver's door.

"Alright, we're not aiming to stay here for too long, so it should do for now" I say as I back away and nod.

Saeko glances at me before also taking a few steps back, Saya was actually on the other side of the barricade, so she just stared at me.

"Saeko, come on." I motion with my head as I move to climb up the car's trunk...

I actually saw Saya smirking to herself as I and Saeko moved from the trunk to the hood of the car.

(Is she really feeling that triumphant because she didn't have to climb this time around? Heh, cute.)

After grouping back up, we headed to the back alleyway of the store. Towards the back door that led to the small hallway that had the stairs which led to the upper floor to its left.

"Did we leave the door open?" I ask as I stop and raise my arm.

"Can't remember. We left in a rush and I was barely awake" Saya responds as she peeks over my shoulder. Or you know, she tried to, being that I'm a head taller than her.

"Wait here" I move forward and to the left, towards the opposite wall from which the store's door was at.

(If it has people inside...what do I do? Leave? Kick them out? Group up? Each decision sounds worse than the last one, especially if I'll have to trust that a bunch of random hobos won't try anything funny while we're asleep. Saeko and Saya were after all, based on Morita. Among the 'hottest' girls in our school, even by this world's standards, and, I totally agree with him.)

Upon reaching the open door I looked through it, at the hallway and small visible 'front' room that had the cashier counter.

(Looks empty. While people will probably stop at gunpoint, corpses won't. And shooting might not be a very smart idea if we want to stay here for the night. Maybe I should get Saya's gun, though the intimidation factor of the Scar-H is way higher, and corpses won't react as long as I'm not stepping on rubber ducks.)

With that thought, I walked through the back door. After glancing at the stairs, I went to the main room.

(Empty. While there are signs of 'normal' people being here, it could just be from our stay here. We didn't exactly clean up after us…)

I do a quick sweep of the surrounding area and rooms. Them being the storage room on the tinted thick glass wall to my left, the toilets that were next to the storage room, and the manager's office behind the register in the wall to my right, with the missing door…

(Everything's clear, toilets still stink.)

I move away from the main room and head towards the hallway. Once the stairs were to my right I took my flashlight, opened it, and placed it under the gun's handguard.

(Need to find a 'no hands' flashlight, one that can hang from a pocket on the vest for example. Holding the gun like this is just downright retarded.)

I climb up the steps and then turn to the right, towards the dark room that me and the group slept in last time. I then stop by the door and do a quick scan before actually moving in.

(No creepy crawlies here.)

I stop looking through the gun's scope and let out a small sigh.

(Ok, all's clear. I don't see any signs of people 'staying' either. The place was unbarricaded and there aren't any bags or anything that looks like a bed or mattress around.)

With that, I pocket the flashlight and go down the stairs, then exit through the back door and motion at the two waiting girls to come.

"Is it safe?" Saya asks as she silently walks next to me, then glances inside.

"Looked empty from what I saw, keep your eyes open nonetheless" I respond.

"I'll go lock the car and take a bag of food along with the gas stove. If you'll start setting the uhh, tub. Make sure it's elevated from the floor, will make it easier to empty it once we're done" I glance at the girls as I speak.

"You want to siphon it? You know we need a hose for that right? " Saya asks as she folds her arms.

"Found a hose in the storage room, the door in the wall that's made of tinted glass next to the toilets. Along with a mop, a broom, and a bucket. Cleaning supplies if I had to guess.

"Fine, but I'm not touching that hose" Saya responds.

"I'll deal with it. In any case, I'm heading to the car. Any food preferences from the stuff that we have in there?" I ask as I start walking, then stop, turn around and look at the girls again.

"Hmm, I saw a lot of uncooked rice and pasta in the boxes. Everything else was canned so I didn't check it in detail. Looked mostly like meat and fish." Saeko responds as she tilts her head slightly…

"Mostly low acidic items in the cans then. Makes sense, they last longer" Saya adds up.

"I see, neither of you answered my question though" I respond as I fold my arms. Causing both girls to stare at me for a couple of seconds.

"R, right...tuna. I want tuna" Saya responds with a mumble as she glances away.

"If I can be picky, anything with rice" Saeko responds.

(You call that being picky? Jeez Saeko.)

"So tuna with rice, I'll check what we have" I nod and turn around.

(Wonder who'll cook. Saeko definitely can as seen from Rika's house. I can...somewhat. Saya, I have no freaking idea...seeing as she has pink hair, and is princess-like. Maybe she also fails to cook sandwiches, like a certain princess from Terca Lumireis...)

I let out a small chuckle as I kept walking towards the car...

Upon reaching it, I checked that no corpses were on the other side of the barricade before climbing over the Humvee. And after jumping off to the other side, I open the trunk and look inside.

(Hmm, the stove is in the duffle bag with the gas canisters. The food is in the uhh uncolored aka brown crates, water's in the blue ones.)

I glance at the red crates as I open the duffle bag.

(We need a shotgun, all that ammo is useless right now. And speaking of ammo, the first thing we'll probably run out is handgun ammo, aka 10mm, as we have four weapons that use it. Saeko's handgun, my handgun and Saya's Mp5 and handgun. The rifle ammo should be fine as the only weapon that can use it is the Scar-H. Plus, the only weapon that did use that ammo was Kohta's Ar-10, as Rei used the M1-A1 as a glorified stabbing pole.)

After a quick glance behind me I started adding the stuff we needed into my bag, a couple of gas canisters, the gas stove along with some of its utensils, like metal pots and a ladle, two packets of rice and a few water bottles. As for the tuna…

(Hmm, the gas stove is bigger than the bag, about one-third of it is poking out, anyway. canned food…)

I then start looking at the sealed cylindrical cans inside the food-filled crate.

(The girls were not wrong, most of the stuff here seems to be meat and fish. And from what I can see, they're all 'plain flavor'. Wonder if we have...hmm?)

My eyes stop on what seemed to be plastic packages with...powder? I pick one of the orange ones and feel its weight, then read the label.

(Curry? The plastic is pretty thick, it also looks airtight…not really a fan of spicy stuff though.)

I leave the pack back in its place and pick another one. This one green in color.

(Uhh, I'll just take this one and ask Saeko if it sticks with rice and tuna. Oh and I better pick some chopsticks for the two. I'll just use my Swiss-knife as it has a small spoon and fork extension. Think I saw it in an inside pocket in my bag. )

I pocket the materials and close the hood, then lock it and climb back over to the 'safe' side. I then back away a few steps and look over at the barricade...

(I'm starting to see more corpses on the road. But as I said, more corpses means less alive people sticking their noses here...and seeing as it's just me Saeko and Saya now, the last thing I need is a bunch of Shido's knocking on my front door...)

After giving the barricade a quick check I start heading back towards the store's back door.

(I'm not aiming to spend days here, but we should probably reinforce the barricade somehow.)

After going back inside I moved to the main room to see Saya and Saeko on my left, In the corner of the room, stacking up boxes next to each other.

"Hmm, this should suffice" Saeko speaks up.

"We still need to set up the curtains" Saya responds.

"We could move one of the shelves to the right. They have metal bars we could use to tie the curtains on" Saeko answers as she glances to her right, causing Saya to turn her head towards the store's display shelves.

"...The bars will be too low if the pool is placed on the boxes…" Saya mumbles after a few seconds…

"Not really, the only thing visible will be your head" Saeko tilts her head slightly as she turns to her.

"Yea but Nai…"

"You're already calling me a pervert for reasons I can't fathom, I'm not aiming to give you an actual reason to back up your claims here by being one" I butt in as Saya starts speaking again, causing both girls to turn to me. With quite the different expressions…

Saeko looked as casual as ever. Then again, we sort of came to the conclusion that we'll be sleeping in the same bed while we still had the choice of not doing so. Saya was being Saya. She just stared at me with a frown and a slight blush...

And seeing as our genius could not find a comeback, I turned to Saeko.

"I found some tuna and rice, no oil. Also picked some dried herbs. Hope they won't make the tuna come back to life" I take off my bag and leave it on the counter after walking over to it.

"You would have solved the riddle of why the dead are walking if it did though" Saeko responds with a giggle as she walks up to me.

"You want me to cook?" She asks right after.

"My cooking skills are water boiled pasta and sandwich level, I'm not signing up for the job" I respond as I start taking everything out of the bag.

"Alright, I will cook for us then" Saeko nods with a smile.

"There are only two chopstick sets here" Saya, who had crept up behind us, points at the chopsticks as she speaks..

"Yea, I'm better off stabbing people with chopsticks rather than using them to eat" I respond as I start looking inside my bag again, then take a small, thin plastic bag with the Swiss-knife inside and place it next to the chopsticks.

(Huh? Was this always inside a bag or did Saeko put it in there when she checked my bag?)

"Hope you don't mind, but I'm going western barbarian on this" I add up with a chuckle as I turn to the girls.

"I will start cooking after we have taken a bath then" Saeko nods at me.

"Ah! Speaking of bath" Saya turns to me and points her finger to my face, or well, mask.

"We need to set some rules around here" She adds up as she leans towards me and puts her other hand on her hip.

(...I'm not going to like this…)

"Not gonna agree till I hear them" I answer as I tilt my head slightly. Saya narrows her eyes.

"Girls take baths first" She begins, I nod. Saeko nods as well.

"When we're taking a bath, you are not allowed in the room" She continues, I nod again…

"We'll wear different clothes after taking a bath, In order to wash the ones we used outside" She adds up, both me and Saeko nod.

"So you're not allowed to wear your ma…"

"Request denied" I cut Saya off.

"Fine, we vote for it" Saya smirks at me as she narrows her eyes even more.

(Like hell we are, I know Saeko will vote on your side in this matter...)

"Nope" I respond.

"You can't nope this you idiot, it's a group decision." She answers back, then raises her hand with the smirk still on her face.

Then both of us turn to Saeko...She looks at me for a couple of seconds…

"Is it that horrible that we desire to be able to see your actual face?" She asks as she raises her hand.

"W...wha, I'm just saying this because it's just stupid for him to wear it constantly" Saya leans her body back to a normal posture and darts her head to Saeko as her eyes go wide.

"B..but whatever, the reasons don't matter. Two versus one, no mask, period. Take it off" She then darts her head to me as she puts both hands on her hips and leans towards me once again.

(Saya kicked it into overdrive here.)

"...Fine, after I have taken a bath. I need to clean it anyway" I respond with a nonchalant shrug.

"Hum, about time." Saya huffs triumphantly as she folds her arms and straightens her back again, the smirk still on her face.

"Uhh, ok so. Let's set the pool? I'll go get the hose" I respond as I raise both arms slightly above my head and turn to walk away.

"I'll set the pool" Saeko responds.

"I'll deal with the curtains," Saya adds up.

(I'll let them have this, maybe it'll get Saya to ease up on the chundereism. And Saeko...well I guess she asked nicely?)

With that I walk past the little 'stage' the girls set up with the boxes and walk into the storage room.

(Alright so, the hose should be…)

I turned my head to the right, until my sight fell on a bucket at the end of the narrow hallway that thankfully still remained walkable, what with all the storage shelves that had been placed in the already narrow room.

I nod, walk up to the bucket and peek inside, a green garden hose coiled inside it.

(Good I didn't dream of it being here after all)

I pick up the hose and start walking outside as I glance at it.

(It has an attachment that seems to lock on faucets, good thing as nobody would want to stay in that damn toilet.)

I give the hose a tug as I walk outside the room.

(Thought about using it as a rope. But it's made by a rather soft plastic, easy to get cut by sharp objects or rip under pressure.)

"I'm going to open the door to smelly land, you might wanna hold your noses" I say as I lift my head and look towards the boxes, where Saeko and Saya were working on the new 'bathroom', toilet excluded.

"Don't take too long, or I'm going to lock you in there if you start smelling like that" Saya replies as she turns to me with a slight smirk.

"Thanks for letting me know, now I'm definitely breaking down the door if it gets stuck" I reply as I casually walk towards the actual bathroom.

(God even with the toilets working this place manages to smell like a cesspool...not that I know how one smells, but uhh, it's waste and sewage shoved in an open hole, can't be very high is smelling ratings.)

While trying to keep breathing to a minimum, I head to the faucet and turn it on, causing water to start running for a few seconds, before closing it again.

(I wonder how long it'll be until the taps run dry...Having running water now means that not a lot of people are actually using the city's water system. Maybe the survivor camps like the elementary school, the mansion and Saya's apartment used local reserves? If they used taps, then the water should at least have had less pressure power by now. Hmm, whatever the case, it's one more reason why we need to move it. Filtration pump or not, I don't want to risk drinking groundwater. And well, at least I can say that the city's water is not what started the infection, we would be walking corpses by Rika's house otherwise.)

I then take the end of the hose that had an orange attachment that opened like a funnel in the end and lock it on the faucet before exiting the bathroom.

"The hose is set, water is still running, better not overuse it though. We don't know when it'll run out now that the city's infrastructure is as dead as its residents" I glance towards the toilet door as I speak.

"Yea, we won't fill it completely" Saya responds.

"Actually, maybe we can just take a shower instead of filling it" Saeko stops setting the pool and turns to Saya.

"Can't we at least relax while taking a bath? We have been up all day…" Saya whines in a low tone.

"Also, no hot water" I respond after Saya...and both girls turn to stare at me.

"What? Water heating needs electricity. Maybe solar ones 'would' work, if you replace all the burnt wires and electronics..." I add up.

"...Ahh...crap. I, totally forgot about that..." Saya lowers her head, her mouth left slightly open and a sad frown on her face.

(You don't have to look 'that' dejected, you're making me feel bad for mentioning it now.)

"Well if you fill the pool, you can boil water in the stove and add it in. Cold and boiling will balance out to a medium temperature, and as it's relatively hot, the room temperature is also relatively h..."

"We're filling it up. I'm not taking a cold shower." Saya cuts me off as she folds her arms with a pout.

"Well do as you wish, I'll go set the beds" I respond as I walk past them.

"Huh? Can't we just place the sleeping bags before we go to sleep?" Saya asks as she turns to me with a raised eyebrow.

(Riiight, chundere here still don't know about the 'double bed'...oh boy)

"I...we got some inflatables back at the store, we can use them as mattresses" I respond as I turn around.

"Oh, I see. Yea, that does sound better than a plain sleeping bag…" Saya nods slightly as she lowers her head and folds her arms, seemingly in thought.

"B, But don't get any funny ideas! L..like sticking the beds next to each other…" Saya's voice, while it started relatively loud, kept decreasing in volume as she spoke, to the point that it ended with a whisper. The fact that she turned her head away, also didn't help.

"Yea...of course…" I responded with a deadpan voice, then turned to Saeko, who was touching her lips with her knuckles, a smile visible on her face as she looked at me. I think she was trying to hold herself back from giggling? I mean, good luck 'not' sticking the beds together when two of them are fused.

"Well, tell me if you need anything." I turn around and start walking.

"By the time you're done we might be taking a bath, the pool is nearly set up. So don't come down until we're done…" Saya turns to me, narrows her eyes as she puts her arms on her hips and leans her upper body towards me.

"Alright, you have clothes to change into?" I ask.

"Yea, I picked some from the car" Saya responds. I then turned to Saeko, and saw her nod at me.

"Well, I'll try not to come down for no reason.." And with a slight shrug, I start walking towards the hallway.

"Does wanting to take a stroll count as a reason?" I 'ask' as I turn around, only for Saya to puff her cheeks and narrow her eyes even more at me...

(Momentary deafness, activate.)

I turn around, and head towards the hallway. After I went up the stairs and reached the second floor, I took out the flashlight and looked around.

"Any wendigos around now?" I ask.

"Nope, just a fuming Saya downstairs." I add with a chuckle as I take off my bag, open it and take the pump out.

(Right, forgot to take the extra sleeping bags, the ones we'll use for the ground and as covers.)

I leave my stuff and head back downstairs, then go outside and straight to the humvee. Once there, I unlock it and take a couple of sleeping bags, as the group had left them behind before going over the bridge. Then, back to the second floor. After that, I set the two inflatables and lock the pump into the double one.

(Alright, time to get to work.)

What transpired, was the most boring moments of several days combined…

-Sometime later-

By the time I was done, I was pretty sure the girls were taking a bath downstairs. So I decided to wait upstairs…

(Wish I had a PSP or DS right now. Or my pc...)

I groaned lightly as I bumped the back of my head against the wall I was leaning on.

I had also taken off my equipment. Leg guards, arm guards, gloves, vest, guns, αnd was sitting with my back against the wall.

(What's taking them so long…)

I let out a sigh and closed my eyes…

(Then again, Saya was not wrong, we have been moving all day, so I won't be surprised if they decide to 'chill' in there. Even if Saya was supposed to be reluctant about sharing a bathroom in the anime...though that 'could' be because of Rei and her uhh, breast checking methods.)

I shake my head and get up, then head to the door.

(With how dark this room is, I'll end up falling asleep.)

I exit and stop by the stairs…

(...Better I wait here, if they are still taking a bath, Saya will chew me out if she sees me downstairs.)

With that, I sat on the steps…

(So, now what? After this we head to the Mansion? From the little that I saw, it was past the mall we stayed at...Hmm, guess once we calm down we can sit around the map and make our next step…)

As I was thinking, I saw Saya walking past the small visible part of the hallway, heading towards the exit.

Her hair was down and was wearing a black sleeveless shirt, along with her school's green short skirt, plus actual sports shoes, I think the same ones she wore after Rika's house.

"Need something from outside?" I ask before she can exit, she turns her head to me.

"Somebody forgot to bring plates" She says as she folds her arms under her chest.

"Right, I think I saw some bento boxes in the car, inside the food crate, I'll go get 'em as I'm the one that forgot' em." I respond as I get up.

"Fine, I'll go outside for my hair to dry either way, then probably lie down for a bit..." Saya responds.

"Are you alright?" I ask as I walk up to her, She tilts her head questionably.

"Uhh, yea. I'm just tired, because of somebody, I ended up jumping into a river and then I had to walk all day" She answers with a smirk as she leans slightly towards me with her arms still folded.

"Wonder who's that idiot" I respond with a chuckle as I start heading towards the exit…

"I'll give you a hint, he always wears a stupid mask" She huffs as she starts walking behind me.

After going outside, Saya followed me all the way to the car in silence.

"I'm surprised you really didn't come down again after going up there…" Saya speaks up while waiting outside of the car. As I gathered our 'plates'.

"You're already treating me like crap most of the time Saya, I don't need it getting worse" I respond as I place the bento boxes next to me and close the crate.

"No I'm...it's, it's because you. It's your fault…" Saya starts stumbling her words as she glances around.

"Maybe it is, I ain't a knight in shining armor after all. Black tends to not shine a lot" I answer as I exit the car, close the door and lock it.

"By the way, here" I dig in my pocket and take out the hand creams I took from the supermarket.

"...Huh?" Saya just tilts her head as she keeps looking at the colorful plastic packages in my hand with a questioning expression…

"Wait, these are." As if the gears in her memory started to spin she lifted her head to me, her face even more weirded out.

"I promised I'd get you some in the police station" I respond as I extend my arm.

"I…" She stops in the middle of her sentence as she takes the items, and stays quiet.

"In any case, I'll hand these over, don't stay out too long, you might catch a cold" I put my hand on her head and ruffle her hair.

(Huh, that's weird, her hair felt a little 'too' wet.)

I walk a couple of steps and then turn round, Saya still rooted on the spot.

"Hey Saya." I call out to her, she jerks her shoulders and turns around, still looking at the ground.

"It might be better if you stay in the back alleyway, you don't know who might see you" I point with my head to the left as I speak. Saya, after a few seconds, nods and starts walking, her head still lowered...

(...She just turned really meek. Was this such an important thing?...I mean sure, I remembered a promise I made to her, but still.)

We then headed back to the back door in silence.

"Ahh, Naier…" Just as I was about to enter the door Saya spoke up, causing me to turn to her.

"..Ahh. N, nothing. Just, thanks" She stumbles on her words once more before bowing slightly.

"You are welcome" I respond as I turn around.

"A..also!" She spoke up again...

(...What's gotten into her.)

Turning around I find her with a flushed face.

"...N..nothing…" She answers as she keeps looking at the ground…

(You get points for trying.)

"Alright, if you need me, you know where to find me." I respond and turn around again.

With that. I walked back to the store, and on to the main room. Saeko was by the counter, looking over the now open stove with a ladle in her hand, more importantly though…

(And now I know why Saya turned weird right before the entrance…)

"You...didn't find clothes again?..." I 'ask'. Saeko, hearing my voice, turns to me.

She had her hair up in a ponytail and was wearing...uhh. A buttoned shirt that was left unbuttoned on the chest area, and that's all. I mean, that's all I could see, as it ended a little under her hips, so I could not actually see her underwear, in difference with every other outfit she wore so far…

"My body is still wet, I didn't want to get clothes we could use drenched, also, be careful not to slip on the water that's on the floor" She responds casually…

(Wet my a...wait. They did take towels right?)

I turn my head to the 'bathtub'. No towels there.

"Where are the towels?" I ask.

"We had towels?" She asks back.

(Didn't you look in the back of the car some time ago?!)

"In the back of the car, I picked some from the store too…" I respond as I turn to her.

"Ohh. I didn't see them" She answers casually with a slight shrug…

(...Didn't see them, my ass.)

"Ooook, uhhh. Brought these" I leave the bentos next to her on the counter.

"Thank you" She nods with a smile as she glances at the bentos I just placed on the counter.

And a couple of seconds later...

"...You know the only reason I'm fine with dressing like this, is because you are the only man that can see me." She keeps looking at the rice inside the metal pot as she speaks .

(Holy crap, she just switched to aggressive.)

"Didn't you stroll around with an apron?..." I ask.

"And a jacket that you gave me." She answers with a slight smile as she tilts her head and leaves the ladle in the boiling pot.

(Right)

"And, I really didn't have a choice back then, nothing fitted me." She stops speaking for a second and turns to look at me.

"So please, don't think of me as a harlot because of it. Ever since the pharmacy, your eye's are the only ones that I want on me." She takes a step towards me and places her hand on my chest then lowers her head again...

"And I'm willing to prove it to you. To give you everything I am, the moment you ask it of me." She lifts her face and locks her eyes on me, her mouth slightly open as her cheeks start to take a shade of red…

"Your heartbeat is rising…" she pushes her hand lightly against my chest as she keeps staring at me. I leaned towards her until my mask almost touched her nose…

"And your rice is burning" I lift my finger and point at the boiling pot.

"Ah!" Her eyes go wide as she instantly turns around and starts focusing on the jealous pot.

"Ohh, it's still ok. We really can't waste food now…" She lets out a small sigh as she closes her eyes, then opens them and keeps them in the pot, though the blush was still on her face.

(A little more and I seriously might have pushed her down, and honestly I don't think she would have even resisted...heartbeat rising my ass, she was actively seducing me...)

"I'm going to take that bath now" I respond as I turn around.

"Umm, you know I can't leave this room, the stove is here." She glances at me before looking back at the food.

"Once rice boils you can lower the temperature and leave it, no?" I tilt my head slightly as I turn to her.

"I thought your cooking ability was sandwiches" Saeko giggles slightly as she keeps looking at the pot.

"And pasta, this counts as pasta-like knowledge. To answer your question though…" I stop in the middle of my sentence and tap on my mask. Causing Saeko to turn and stare at me…

"Ehh I don't care, do as you wish" I respond as I raise my hands slightly.

"Naier. Are you teasing me?" She asks as she raises an eyebrow and tilts her head, a small smirk appearing on her face.

"Me? What would ever make you think of such a thing." I respond with a casual shrug as I turn around.

"Hmm, very well. I will do 'as I wish'" She replies. I turn to glance at her, only to see her still smirking at me…

"Try not to make Saya scream her lungs out…" I scratch the corner of my mask before turning around again…

(Well, that escalated quickly .)

With that over, for now at least. I headed back into the second floor to get a change of clothes out of my bag, only to remember that Saeko had taken them out, so instead. It was back to the car for me...

After getting some clothes...and some towels, I headed back to the store. Giving one towel to Saya in the process, who was still sitting outside. And one to Saeko, who was still staring over the pot, that was now lid closed, and burning over a low flame. After she untied her hair and covered them with the towel, I headed to take a bath…

(I don't feel dirty at all. And I am supposed to be 'careful' on that type of stuff. But not taking one after the other two did is just, yea...no.)

By the time I was in the pool, Saeko was still over the pot…

(She ain't gonna move huh? O well...)

With that, time passed in silence. Until...

"And Naier, remember. No mask after the bath" Saeko speaks up from the other side of the curtain.

"Yea, no mask, Balaclava only, read you loud and clear" I respond with a chuckle as I glance at my mask that was on one of the rack's shelves…and after a few minutes of silence...

"...Why do you like covering your face so much?" She asks.

"Why do you like beating the shit out of people?" I ask back.

"...So you mean to tell me that if I wore a mask. It would excite you?" She asked once again.

(Right, forgot she actually gets uhh, wet, from killing stuff…)

"Uhh, no. I didn't mean it like that. Some people like guns, others like cars, I like helmets and masks." I respond.

"I see…" She then stays quiet...for about ten seconds…

"If the world somehow returns to normal. What are you going to do?" She shoots another question.

(Damn she's on a roll.)

"I got, no freaking idea" I answered.

"Do you want to return to your country?" She asks again.

"No" I answered flatly.

"Hmm, how come? You didn't like it there?" And yet another question.

(Yea, let's ignore the fact that leaving here means leaving both you and Saya behind, and that I have no memories of my own concerning 'my' country.)

"I was never one to get attached to a place, used to move a lot" I responded.

"So you would not care if you left Japan either?" Her voice sounded a bit different this time. A bit, forced.

"Ha, you think you're getting rid of me that easy? I'll probably stuff you in my bag if I'll end up leaving. Wonder if they allow Saekos on a plane." I respond with a small chuckle.

"You know you don't have to stuff me anywhere, I would come with you willingly, if you'd have me." She replies with a giggle.

"I'll keep that in mind" I answer as I stretch.

(Ok that should be nuff swimming.)

I get off the pool, dry myself and change to a new set of, same black clothes.

(...These are the new clothes right? Uhh, yea, the unfolded ones are the ones I wore.)

"Wonder if we can use the water in the pool to wash the clothes too, it doesn't look dirty. Is it ok to mix body shampoo with clothing shampoo?" I ask as I look at the foamy water in the pool.

"Hmm, I never used body shampoo to clean clothes in my house. It probably lacks the stain removal abilities of the clothing one, otherwise, I suppose I don't see a problem with it. As we are not using a washing machine which would probably be incompatible with body shampoo" Saeko replies.

"You are done?" She asks right after.

"Yea" I answered back.

"Could I ask you to come here for a minute then?" She asks back.

Without answering I exit the 'bathroom' and head to Saeko.

"What's up?" I ask as I stop next to her. She just turns to stare at me…

"Uhh…" And she keeps staring…

"Sorry, I just wanted to look at your face. It's a rare sight to see the Ninja penguin without his mask" She finally speaks up as she tilts her head with a warm smile.

"...I'm starting to think you were the one who started this whole penguin thing" I reply as I fold my arms. Saeko shakes her head.

"Shizuka, not me" She answers.

(Figures. She could be lying though, Shizuka is too easy of a target...)

After a short silence, with Saeko having her eyes locked to my face...

"Well, I'll start by washing my clothes, until the food is ready" I glance around before turning towards the pool behind me.

"It's ok, I can wash them together with mine." Saeko replies.

"Uhh, I'm still taking care of my mask myself, not because I think you might try to hide it or something, honest" I glance back at her and lift both arms to my head.

"Saw right through my plan, shoot" She replies in a playful manner as she tilts her head and presses her finger on the corner of her lips.

With that, I move back to the pool and take my mask, which I left on the display rack.

(The mask itself should be easy to clean, the balaclava, guess we'll see. Maybe I should start wearing the hood, as it will stop blood from sticking on the balaclava. Also cool and tryhard factor plus ten.)

"Do we even have clothing detergent?" I ask as I dip the mask in the pool.

"Hmm, good question, I don't think I saw any in the car" Saeko replies.

"Oh well, guess we stick with shampoo" I shrug slightly and continue.

Saeko did not speak afterward. Yet, there was something else on my mind now.

(Still, is Saeko really that dependent on me? Or she's trying to lead me on? Even with Takashi she was not 'that' assertive. And it's obvious in the anime that she's in love with him to the point of 'giving him everything she is'.)

I stop scrubbing the mask and lift it to head height...

(Uhh, must you always think like everybody is out to get you? Maybe Saeko does like you to the point of being even more assertive than she was with Takashi...)

I shake my head and take the mask and balaclava, then start heading towards the exit. Once out, I turn to my left to see Saya with her back to me.

"Hey, you know where I can hang clothes to dry?" I ask as I walk up to her.

"Huh, you can leave them on the c…" She turns around as she speaks, only to stop in the middle of her sentence after turning to face me, her eyes frozen wide open and her mouth slightly ajar.

"Hello?" I tilt my head slightly as I keep looking at her.

"C...car" Saya squeaks, before quickly putting her hand over her mouth, slightly lowering her blushing face.

"M, my hair dried, I'm going inside" She then zoomed past me before I could even reply.

(...Is my face that amazing to look at? I always thought I was average to meh looking…)

I then look at my mask.

(Weird, oh well.)

After reaching the car, I leave the mask on the front bumper and hang the balaclava on the car's antenna, then turn to look at the sky.

(It's getting dark. Hmm, I also still have to ask Saya what she did with our night shifts.)

With that, I went back to the store. To find both Saya and Saeko by the counter.

Hearing me enter the room, Saeko turns to me.

"Food is ready" She says with a smile.

"Don't remember the last time I had cooked food" I respond as I walk up to them.

"Yea, feels like the first day of the outbreak was months ago..." Saya keeps looking into the metal pot as she speaks.

(I meant before the outbreak as well, as I was all buns and fast food long before day Z. Don't need to tell them that though, for one Saya will definitely use it as an excuse to poke her finger to my face.)

"It will be a bit hot, but the tuna I mixed with the herbs will help cool it down faster" Saeko starts placing rice in the bentos as she speaks.

"Actually, what herbs did I bring?" I ask as I turn to look at the bowl that had the tuna in.

"Hmm? Dill. You picked it randomly?" Saeko asks as she turns to look at me.

"What. naawww, of course I didn't pick it randomly…" I respond as I glance around, Saeko lifting an eyebrow to my obvious lie.

"Is Dill good with tuna?" I ask after a few seconds of silence. Saeko lowers her head and closes her eyes as she starts giggling..

"Yes, Dill is usually good with any seafood." She answers as she opens her eyes and turns to look at me again.

"I would seriously kick you if you had managed to ruin good food" Saya folds her arms and keeps looking at the rice as she speaks.

(Say it to ma face. Or you're still blushing?)

After Saya's remark, we stayed quiet while Saeko prepared the three bentos, aka, plates.

"Aright, food is ready" Saeko, upon speaking, lets go of the kitchen utensils and leans back, then turns to me.

"Where are we going to eat?" She asks.

"Anywhere we want, personally, I'm eating here" I respond as I sit on the counter, turning around in the process, then tap it with both hands.

Saeko nods and takes a bento on each hand, then walks up to me, hands me one, and sits next to me. Then scoots even closer, to the point that her leg was touching mine. Actually screw that, she was literally leaning on me…

And uhh, guess who was looking like an extra grumpy cat now. Saya, with the towel still around her shoulders, got her bento. Then sat on the counter, albeit a little further from me and Saeko…

"I could not find any flavored tuna, hope you don't mind it plain" I take my swiss knife and open the 'fork'.

Just as I was about to dig the fork into the rice I realized something.

(Wait, I have two Japanese people with me, got to 'Thank for the food' first. Nearly started out of habit, as I never did that when I was by myself, though now I really got to 'thank' for the food, Saeko made it after all.)

I close the fork and leave it next to me.

"Thanks for the food" As I start speaking, Saeko and Saya speak up with me in unison.

"Actually, where did you two put your equipment?" I ask as we start eating.

"Behind you" Saya answers flatly as she points her chopsticks behind her without lifting her head.

"Humm, Naier, can I ask for a favor ?" Saeko, who was still leaning on me, turned her head to me. I glance at her, nod…

She then brings her chopsticks, which had a bite-sized chunk of her food, close to my face...and stops...

(You gotta be pulling my leg)

I glance at the chopsticks, then at the smiling Saeko. Then back at the sticks, and back at Saeko...

"I always wondered how it feels to do this, hope I'm not making you feel uncomfortable" Saeko, seeing my dead response speaks up.

(Ohh yeah, we cool, just that I feel an epic glare on my back right now.)

"I guess, I'll admit I'm not a big fan of mussy stuff like that" I respond and open my mouth slightly.

Saeko did not miss her chance and placed the chopsticks in my mouth with a slight giggle.

"Hum, for not being a fan, you sure caved in fast. Even if she did it wrong…" I hear a whining voice behind me seconds later.

"Ohh, you know of a correct method?" Saeko glances past me and she raises an eyebrow, a slight smirk on her face.

"Why, is there a reason I should not?" I hear the same whining voice behind me respond, in a slightly higher tone this time.

(In other words. She practiced this even while Takashi was giving her absolutely no attention?...That's, actually kind of sad…)

"Hum, fine, if you don't believe me I'll show you." I hear Saya respond as she slides off the counter and comes to sit next to me, opposite of Saeko.

(...Ok, acknowledge this for a moment, I have both Saya and Saeko next to me, hand-feeding me? The actual fark is happening here.)

"Hey idiot, open your mouth. I, I can't show her how to do it if you're being an idiot" Saya starts speaking with a serious face, I need not mention that her face was also beet red do I ?...

Not wanting to anger the already ticking time bomb next to me I open my mouth. And Saya moves her hand towards my mouth. Correction, her slightly shaking hand to my mouth.

(...Her hand is seriously shaking right now?)

Also another thing I noticed. Her lips curved up to a smile, even if it was momentarily, before quickly turning back into 'grumpy cat' mode.

"Hmm, so like that?" I barely managed to swallow as Saeko brought her chopsticks to my face…

(Ok, I have a bad feeling about this.)

I open my mouth nonetheless…

"No, you're doing wrong, it's like this" Saya responds as she brings her own chopsticks to my face again…only for…

"I see, then it's like this?" Saeko to continue the combo…

This...went on for some time...

To the point that I was actually full.

(They will seriously choke me here)

I leave the swiss knife/fork on the bento, and creep my hands behind Saeko's and Saya's neck, then grab them both at the same time.

Saya lets out a yelp and closes her eyes for a few seconds, Saeko jerks her shoulders slightly and opens her mouth a bit, but otherwise leaves her eyes locked on me.

"First, You will choke me like this, second, if you keep stuffing my face with your food, you'll empty your bentos without actually eating anything, third…" I let go of both of them, take my fork and dig into my bento, then split my food into two portions.

"This is yours" I point the right portion to Saya.

"This is yours" I point the left portion to Saeko.

"Ok?" I ask. Both girls nod after a few seconds, with a rather dumbfounded expression.

"I apologize, I got a bit carried away" Saeko, with a smile still plastered on her face, nods slightly and brings her chopsticks over my bento.

"I was just showing her..." Saya follows up after Saeko, though her face had a blushing pout instead.

(Sure you were Miss 'I'll show you how it's done'. )

I decided to not say that out loud though, our blushing chundere seemed flustered enough as it is.

The rest of our dinner went on without any 'surprises'. And by the time we were done, the place had also visibly gotten darker.

"Ok, I'll deal with the plates, as we have to wash them in the bathroom." I speak up as I get off the counter.

"I'll deal with the clothes then" Saeko nods at me as she also gets off the table, she had also taken the towel off her hair some time ago.

"I will..." Saya puts her hand over her mouth and stretches with a yawn in the middle of her sentence.

"Sorry…" She adds right after as she lifts her glasses and rubs her eyes with both hands.

"You can go upstairs to sleep if you want, or help Saeko. Washing clothes will take longer than washing bentos and pots obviously" I turn to look at Saya as I speak.

"I'll help Saeko…" She responds as she also gets off the counter with a rather sleepy expression.

With that, I moved to the gas chamber…

(God I need an actual gas mask for this place.)

After getting all the cutlery there, I start scrubbing the bentos with a sponge I found on the store's shelves…

(At least the girls didn't oppose me when I said that I'll leave the door open. Still, this place had sponges and dishwashing soap, but no clothing detergent...)

-Several nose agonizing minutes later-

(Ok, done, I'm outa here, before I pass out.)

I walk out of the bathroom with the bentos, the cooking utensils and pots inside them.

"I'm done" I speak up as I get near the girls.

"We need some more time" Saeko responds. Saya just kept her head down, not speaking, much less reacting.

"Uhh, Saya you ok?" I ask as I lean towards her.

"A...I'm fine.." She responds with her head still lowered…

(...'something' definitely happened.)

Just as I was about to turn my head to Saeko.

"She just got a bit, too focused washing your…"

"S...shut up!" Saya darts her head to Saeko as she cuts her off, her face taking all new levels or red.

(Right...I did leave my old clothes here…)

Saya glances at me a couple of times before darting her head back down to the pool…

"We can't leave unwashed clothes" She mumbles in a low tone.

"I see, thanks Saya. I'm going to let these dry outside" I respond as I walk past them.

"Since you had more to do than me, once you're done I will deal with emptying the pool outside" I add up as I stop for a second and turn around, Saeko looks at me and nods, Saya didn't react.

(And she has yet to see the beds too huh?...)

With that thought, I headed to the car and left everything on it, then went back to the girls, where I waited for them to finish with the clothes while I was waiting on the counter, as they didn't let me join in.

And several minutes later…

"Hmm, emptying the pool will take some time, we should start emptying it before you two are finished" I hop off the counter as I speak and walk up to them. Then, I took the hose and went to the smelly bathroom, hopefully for what would be the last time for today.

(Ok, I should fill both sides with water and then leave one side in the pool, the other on the ground outside, the elevated position of the pool will siphon the water out.)

With that, I take the orange attachment out, open the faucet and fill the hose with water until it's 'full'. Blocking both hose exits with my thumbs I head back to the pool, leave one side there and with the other side in my hand, I head outside and leave the hose to the ground. Water instantly pouring out...

Several seconds later, water was still coming out, meaning that all I had to do now is wait. I lean my back against the wall and take a deep breath.

(Now we wait…)

I looked up in the sky that was quickly losing its orange coloring. Then looked back down, at the two sides that the alleyway ended.

(The side that does not have the car was already barricaded, and that flimsy ass barricade we have by the car should hold any corpses that manage to wander there, we'll also close the back door, as it opens towards the outside, corpses will need to break it down, if they manage to get this far...

To be honest though, the idea of seeing corpses popping from the corners right now is freaking me out a bit. Is it because I feel more vulnerable now that I accepted that I am in a 'safe' spot? Sure I'm not wearing my gear and don't have my gun, but I didn't have these in the school either. I guess, the idea of no 'safe place' really existing is what's actually freaking me out...

Or that Saeko and Saya are totally defenseless right now. Both of them left their gear behind the counter after taking a bath…)

I must have lost track of time, as thankfully nothing happened while I was waiting, until Saeko and Saya walked outside with the clothes on their hands.

"The pool is almost empty, we will go hang these, by the time we're done the pool should be empty" Saeko speaks up as she glances behind her. Then turns to head towards the car with Saya.

(Ok, let's get this over with.)

I nod, push myself off the wall and head back to the pool to find it almost empty.

(Hmm, might as well brush my teeth while I'm waiting.)

I back away from the pool and head to my bag that I left upstairs, then take three toothbrushes and a tube of toothpaste before heading back down. After sitting on the counter I open one of the sealed brushes, put some toothpaste and start brushing while mindlessly staring at the pool. Until I heard footsteps to my left.

"Ughh, right. I almost forgot I got to brush my teeth" I hear Saya groan with a sleepy face. She drags her feet over to her bag behind the counter and takes her toothbrush.

"Can I have toothpaste?" She asks as she extends her hand to me, moving to the front of the counter in the process..

"Uhh, where did you get water?" She asks again as I give it to her, I respond by shaking my head.

"Ahh, I don't have my bag with me, it's in the car" I hear Saeko speak up right after. I turn to her and extend one of the sealed toothbrushes.

"Oh, thank you" She smiles at me and takes it, then takes the toothpaste from Saya, who looked like about to fall asleep with the brush in her mouth…

Saeko sat on the counter right after, again, excessively close to me. She then pleased her head on my shoulder and closed her eyes as she continued the monotonous task…

Saya, who decided not to sit on the counter, was casually looking around. Until her sight landed on me and Saeko. Probably due to her being sleepy, she didn't really react and turned to look away. Only to dart her head back to me as her sleepy eyes snapped open and her face took one glorious frown.

(Well, I'm actually done. So as much as I like this, Saya seems about ready to blow now that she can't tell me what a pervert I am.)

I tap lightly on Saeko's shoulder, who shakes her head slightly before opening her eyes, she then looks around before closing them again, sitting back to a normal posture in the process. I then hop off the counter and head to the pool before spitting whatever was in my mouth.

(Some doctors say it's better not to rinse after brushing, guess we'll find out now. In a world that brushing may actually have no point because nobody can get bad teeth.)

I chuckle slightly and turn around.

"I'll go close the door and head up" I point to my right as I start walking. Both girls reply with a silent nod.

So, after closing the door, I headed to the second floor, and looked at the beds…

(Think Saya is sleepy enough to not freak out?...)

I walk up to Saya's bed and push it a bit closer to the double bed with my foot.

(Nahh, will definitely freak out.)

I then head back to my bag, take my equipment and leave 'em over the 'head' of the double bed. Then kneel down and take the handgun out of the holster, check the safety and leave it next to everything else, along with the Scar-H. After that, I take off my shoes and walk up on the bed before lying down, using an extra sleeping bag as a pillow while passing my right arm under my head.

A couple of seconds later, I hear footsteps to my left.

"Uhh, finally, we get to sleep on something that isn't a cold hard floor. Still, won't these cause a lot of no..." I hear Saya stop in the middle of her sentence…

"Uhh, there are only two beds here…" She adds up in a low tone as she walks into the room. And after getting to the 'leg' section of the double bed and looking at both beds, she puts two and two together, or well, two and one.

"T...that's a d...dobule bed..." Saya's voice kept losing strength as she kept staring at the bed with wide eyes.

"H..hey pervert! W...what exactly you are trying to do?!" She then turns her sight to me as she raises her voice.

"He is not trying to do anything, I ask for this" Saeko walks up to the bed, then sits on the corner.

"W..whaa..." Saya then turned to Saeko, her voice started to lose power again, to the point that I could not really hear it.

"Seeing as you either keep calling me an idiot or pervert. I figured you would try to either eat my liver, or force me to sleep in the pool if I got a bed for three people, so I got one different for you" I point at the ceiling, then at the single bed that was a little further off to my right.

"Huh? N, No I...I…" Saya just kept glancing between 'her' bed and the double bed.

"Umm, Naier, you will sleep with your clothes?" Saeko, who I had the feeling was enjoying this, asks right after as she keeps leaning on her hand.

"Last thing I need is running around half-naked in case of an emergency. And that's what will happen if we wake up in the middle of an emergency" I reply as I turn to Saeko.

"I see, I guess that does make sense" She replies as she closes her eyes and stretches.

"S..so, you two will. Sleep...together?" Saya asks, still standing in the same place like a scarecrow…

(It actually does sound unreal now that she mentions it.)

"Yes" Saeko answers flatly as she lies down next to me, then hugs my arm and nuzzles her head right next to my neck, before tightening her hug on my arm and placing her leg on me. Then, with a long sigh, she stops moving…

Saya didn't move, she just stared at the bed…

(She's going to start kicking me now or something?...)

"B...but I...I.." Saya's own voice got cut by a short hiccup. Looking at her, I see that she keeps rubbing right under her eyes…

(Wait, she's crying? Uhh, What the fuck am I fucking asking? She jumped into the fucking river with me, and her being her, she obviously would not say why she 'really' did it…")

"Saya, I'm trying to do what both of you ask of me. I already told you that I'm happy that you decided to come with me, so let me just ask you something…" I raise myself slightly until I can lean on my elbow and stop talking, until Saya looks at me.

"Are you 'really' asking what you want from me?" I 'ask' as I keep looking at her. She did not reply, she just slowly folded her arms under her chest and looked away.

After a few seconds I look back up the ceiling.

(Ok, what I'm doing here is as wrong as it gets if looking at it from their side, might as well use everything I have.)

"Did you ever tell Takashi that you liked him?" I ask as I keep looking at the ceiling.

"Huh...wh..wha..."

"Would things have been different between him and you had you told him so, instead of acting like you are constantly annoyed with him?" I cut her off.

"What makes you think I liked him..." I hear Saya ask.

"You were pretty bad at hiding your displeasure when he went after Rei on the bus, or honestly anything that had him doing things for Rei" I answered.

"T, that's because she dumped him before the outbreak for his best friend! She didn't deserve him back..." Saya answers back, her voice starting off strong, but ending with a whisper.

"Probably, but she decided to act on what she really wanted. Did you?" I ask back. And got no response…and after a few seconds.

"No matter what happens with Saya, I'll still want you with me. That's what I told Saeko. The opposite, also counts for you Saya. Immoral, bad, or stupid as it is, it's the choice 'I' wanted to make. The rest of that choice, is yours" I add up as I close my eyes and lie back down.

Saeko didn't react to all of this, I don't know if she decided to not intervene, or if she honestly fell asleep this fast…

(Even if she decides to keep her distance from me. I hope this whole chat right now helps her on making better decisions later on in 'this' type of thing. I mean I was not lying about her and Takashi, if she was not such a stick in the mud with him and actually showed him some affection, she could have won him over, or have a way higher chance of doing so at least…)

And then, I heard Saya move, only to abruptly stop a second later. Then start again, then once again stop…

(Huh? What is she...)

I didn't even manage to finish that thought, and I felt the bed move while at the same time, something 'crashed' on the right side of my chest.

Opening my eyes, I saw the top part of a pink-haired head at the point of impact…

"You're horrible…" The pink-haired head whines in a low tone.

"I know" I respond as I bring my hand on it and ruffle its hair.

"Uhh, speaking of horrible, who's on the first night shift" I ask.

"You…" Saya responds without moving her head.

"Ok, the second?" I ask again.

"You…" She answers, this time in a lower tone...

"...The third…" I ask one final time…

"...You..." Saya replies in an even lower tone.

(Figures…)

"Well, guess I better get to work then." I respond as I try to get up, only for Saya to cling on to me with a short whine.

(Ohh this is going to be a loong night…)