“What’s this?”

Alice and Kato found and rejoined their group without issue, but upon arrival they were separated immediately. Pulled along by Mirabelle and Evie, Alice smiled helplessly as they once again took her away. The others seemed to have no qualms about the continuity of this arrangement, and only shrugged or snickered at Kato’s despair.

“Divine punishment, Kato. You must have done something to incur their wrath.”

“I did nothing today. And Alice has already forgiven me about it, so we’re supposed to be good.”

“So you did do something, ya rascal. Typical.”

“But hey, at least I’m hanging out with you guys, right? Bros before hoes.”

“Tell me that again and I’ll have to shank you.”

Eon slapped Kato on the back as they smirked at each other and continued on their way. While Alice and Kato were away with Gilbert, the rest of them watched the hero show and traversed a haunted house. Though it was unfortunate that he missed the scene that Franco would have made, there were always opportunities later on.

“Hey Kato, we need to get Eon and Caius to do something for us today. We won the bet, remember?”

“Oh, you’re right. We could get them to do something.”

“A very unfortunate predicament for us.”

“Need a light?”

“Thanks.”

The ever lovable Franco and the calm Caius joined them, and again the lollipops were distributed among the men, a sign of their unwavering bonds of brotherhood.

“Coming up with something right now is hard. There’s nothing I want yet. Can we just have the two of them owe us for a while?”

“Hold the phone, you’re asking for a bit too much here. The bet is for today, only.”

Eon comically tried to put a stop to it as the others chuckled. They would lead each other in circles around this for a while, debating on the many facets of the bet except, amusingly, for the bet itself.

Somehow, it was already way past three by the time they regrouped and set off once more. Gilbert’s interruption must have eaten into more time than Kato expected. But then again, they also took their precious time eating lunch, so the late afternoon arrived seemingly too soon.

“Why the hell are they on the merry-go-round?”

“Sisi wanted us to take a picture of her on it.”

Scarlett said to Eon as Sisi, Ariel and Teto appeared around the corner on one of the plastic horses. She waved to the little girls as they approached closer, and held up the camera that Sisi had brought with her. Sisi had been snapping photos all day, and had probably replaced the roll of film at least twice already.

Nearby, the Three Heroines went with Caius and Franco on the bumper cars. There was initially a long line-up for this ride, but they toughed it out anyway. True to their reputation, it was not hard to see that the other men in and out of line were staring at this unusually heavy concentration of physical attractiveness. Probably, Franco’s somewhat imposing presence prevented the onlookers from approaching the three princesses.

Though Kato saw this happening in the morning at every turn, the place had less people earlier compared to the now late afternoon, where there were bound to be lots of people wherever they go. To see the number of eyes on them multiply over time was as intriguing as it was unnerving. Something in the back of his mind told him that it should only be a privilege for him and his band. Jealousy? Seemed like it.

As he watched the five of them finally make their way to the front and hop on, he noticed that there was something amiss about his friends. He couldn’t put a finger to it so he kept looking on, but it gave him no further clues as to what was misplaced. His friends drifted around aimlessly in the arena, letting the electric cars bump into each other.

But he put a pause on his train of thought as a familiar voice called out from behind him. Actually, it halted that train completely and he exited from it immediately. That was fast, he thought.

“Yo. You’re not looking after Teto?”

“The eye candy over here is a bit better, is why.”

“Who here’s giving you the better eye candy?”

“I’d say it’s you, Bianca.”

“You were only allowed to pick from one of the two separate groups though.”

She smiled vaguely at his unusual emphasis in his words. He peeked over at her, now also leaning against the railings of the bumper car arena. Determined and unreadable as always, it seemed.

“So, what’s the plan? After this.”

Kato asked nonchalantly.

“Plan? I don’t know the plan. Eon’s been leading us the whole way, along with those three of course.”

“Not knowing the plan? Weren’t you and Eon yelling at each other yesterday at the playground? You can’t possibly not know the plan.”

“You know how it goes. There’s always room for impromptu work.”

“I’d imagine the two of you already planned for this impromptu work, though.”

“And you’d be right. So let’s go somewhere else together.”

“Where?”

“I have a place in mind.”

“Leaving the rest of them behind?”

“We’ve calculated this part of the impromptu script too.”

She put a finger to her head cheekily, proud of the big brain ideas that she could always come up with. Without reason to deny her, Kato laughed and followed, parting from the group and walking after her.

As they wandered through the busy park side by side, Kato was reminded of the times they had escaped from their group of friends by themselves and spent that time alone together. What was more ludicrous was the way that she managed to peel him off from the Elites this time around. The bigger their circle got, the harder it was to chase after these moments.

Then, as they passed through a route that they had been through before, he thought of a great idea. Something fun to test with.

“Hey, do you wanna pick out the thing you wanted now? You said earlier that you wanted one from here, right?”

“Huh?”

She turned to him in surprise as Kato pointed to a nearby souvenir stand. There were many small trinkets for sale such as pens, stuffed toys, keychains and their various combinations.

“Come on, you were pretty insistent this morning about it.”

Pulling her over and stepping under the shade of the stall’s multi-coloured umbrella, he pointed to one of the metal keychains built into a skull-and-bones pattern with heart-shaped eyes. There was still a look of mystery on her face, and it only confirmed what Kato already knew. What was left was to see how she reacted.

“Then I’ll have it. Thanks.”

After a brief moment, she brushed the confusion off easily and smiled widely at Kato. Of course. That was exactly how she would respond in this situation.

“Hey, can I have this?”

“Sure. Three dollars, please.”

Receiving it in a small paper bag, they bid the storeowner goodbye and walked on. Knowing the situation now, if Kato’s guess was correct, there was still some distance before their final destination.

Sometimes, he wished that the two of them led more normal lives than this, but there was no point in meandering about that. Living in the present was what was important at the moment. Right as they left the stand, she began speaking.

“Hmm. You’re getting better these days. Either that, or I’m losing my edge.”

She opened half the curtains. Kato decided it was a good time to open the other half too.

“Did you know that I was able to tell the difference?”

“No, I didn’t. That’s why I thought it would work.”

“Hmm.”

It was Kato’s turn to muse. That means she didn’t know all the details about what happened yesterday at the playground. And for it to remain so was probably a good thing.

“Were you expecting me to know that? If I did know, I wouldn’t have followed through with this plan.”

Uh-oh. She was already onto him. Silently, he prayed that the other complicit girl knew how to deal with it.

“Mira, I believe I know you well enough, but I’m not you. I can’t guess correctly about everything that goes on in your head.”

Again, she smiled very widely at the somewhat troubled Kato. She was undoubtedly Mirabelle, flawlessly mimicking Bianca’s outward appearance.

“Did the two of you swap everything? That’s insane.”

“We’ve even swapped our underwear. Do you want to confirm?”

Mirabelle began unbuttoning Bianca’s blouse from the top, hugging close to him so that he could, if he wanted to, see down her shirt and the bra that wrapped around the two mounds of perfection on her chest.

“How could I even confirm that? And don’t show me it here, please.”

“So I can show it to you elsewhere?”

“Most definitely. But if it’s actually Bia’s, please give me a rain check on that one at least.”

“Hoho, so you’re only after my undergarments. Are mine that much more special?”

“More like you’re happily giving your consent, so why not.”

He waved her point away, to which she giggled. Feeling the heat already, he felt himself being backed into a corner by Mirabelle, just like the countless times before. The only person who could and was allowed to do that to him was her.

She untied the loose bun behind her head and let her hair flow freely. Taking spare ribbons out from her pockets, she tied her hair into her familiar pigtails once more. Running her fingers through her hair to fix the messiness that was more of Bianca’s style, she quickly transformed back into her usual self.

”At what point did you realize it was me?”

“When you called out to me earlier. The moment I heard your voice, I already knew it was you. It took a moment for me to realize what the two of you did, but it wasn’t that hard to figure out.”

“Really? Without even needing to see me?”

“Well, recognizing your voices is easier to do since it’s harder for you to mimic. Plus, the two of you haven’t even said anything to me after Alice and I came back, so there was no chance for you to make me doubt my memory of your voices.”

“I see, I see. It seems like we managed to mislead the other Elites, but you’re the only one out of them who we couldn’t trick.”

Kato again paused for a moment there. He couldn’t help but think about what was going through Bianca’s mind after yesterday. He guessed that she couldn’t have told Mirabelle about it, if it meant explaining further about what happened.

“But what’s this about buying something for Bia? This is the first time I’ve heard about this.”

Talk about the devil. They were both thinking of Bianca, albeit in different contexts.

“That was just to test you. I wanted to see how you would react.”

“You were hiding it well, not going to lie. Since you already knew it was me, by going on the offensive asking me about something I shouldn’t know about, you would see if I reacted to it correctly, and I would be caught red-handed if I didn’t. So, was I caught?”

“Definitely. Bia didn’t ask for this one earlier. It confirmed to me that you didn’t know.”

“But then my reaction was not that interesting, was it? That’s why you quietly went along with it.”

She confidently stated. In his head, he wailed. His childhood friend couldn’t be this clever. He scratched his head with incredulity, but he wasn’t done yet.

“Well, it’s not just for catching you red-handed. What I really wanted to know was how you’d react to the fact that I’m supposed to give the keychain to Bia. And as you said, it seemed like there weren’t much reaction, were there? I suppose I can actually give it to Bia then.”

Her eyes narrowed, momentarily eyeing the paper bag in Kato’s hand. She took a moment before answering his challenge.

“So Bia actually asked for something like this earlier?”

Uh-oh. He dug himself into a hole. He really didn’t want to answer this question truthfully, but if she were to ask Bianca later on, then Kato would be in a pinch if he lied here.

“I picked this one out for you.”

“Hmm.”

He answered as naturally as he could, though blatantly dodging the question. No surprises here. It was all he could do without overtly telling the truth. Kato remained one step behind Mirabelle.

“Then don’t give it to her. Give it to me.”

Mirabelle said after another pause. This time however, her voice was a bit more tender than earlier, and somehow, he could hear that difference in it, but it didn’t last long.

“I’ll forget about all of this if you do. Otherwise, I’ll ask Bia.”

He sighed. After all, Mirabelle wanted him to pay attention to her too.

“Here ya go.”

He handed it over to the perfect girl walking next to him, and she smiled delightedly. That warm smile brought peace to Kato’s mind, instantly letting go of all the little frustrations she caused him mere moments ago.

“Thanks.”

They stopped in front of an old but huge ride, a useful landmark and clearly visible from afar. Neither of them had not actually had a chance to go on it in the past, yet they already felt a curious sense of fulfilment just by coming here together.

“Shall we?”

“With pleasure.”

There wasn’t much of a line for this ride at this time since it was the middle of the afternoon. It would be close to sundown when the line got long, for it was best experienced with an orange sky. However, there was only so much Mirabelle could do to make their elopement perfect.

“Forgive me. I don’t have so much power that I can get us away whenever we wanted.”

“You mean whenever you wanted. I didn’t ask for this.”

“Nnnn. Are you going to really complain now?”

“Nah. This is your first time on a Ferris wheel?”

“Yes. And you too.”

“How do you know?”

“I know all about you.”

She gave him the vaguely content smile that sparked both Kato’s imagination and frustration. The warm yet distant words struck him painfully. It felt as if she wanted to convey her emotions to him, yet it revealed nothing at all. This enigmatic dance she put on fascinated him as much as it flustered him, evoking an ever stronger desire to learn of Mirabelle’s true intentions.

He realized now that Mirabelle had much time to prepare for this encounter. Several days ago, when they sat at the top of the jungle gym, she was unprepared for that episode because her misstep with student council duties produced an unscripted scene there, so she was a bit more vulnerable. Today the gaps were thin and, Kato reluctantly admitted, the most quintessential qualities of Mirabelle were front and centre stage.

“Hey there, do you have a sec?”

Mirabelle waved to one of the workers at the ride’s booth, but they didn’t come over to the two of them. Instead, the man just waved back, and then waved to his co-worker standing at the gates. When that co-worker caught sight of that, they both waved at Mirabelle simultaneously.

“Let’s go.”

“I could make a witty retort, but there’re probably more opportunities for that later.”

Skipping to the front of the short line and being ushered into the passenger car by the staff, they thanked them for their help as the doors closed and they slowly drifted up and away from the platform.

Rising above the park, they could see their beautiful city sprawling in every direction. In recent times, rapid economic development changed the landscape so much that the city was not recognizable upon first glance. A mere ten years ago, there would have been less than half of the skyscrapers they could see today. Older buildings were demolished for newer and better ones, and newly paved roads spread into the hillsides like veins.

Even in the face of progress, the character of the city remained the same. The city was still a cosmopolitan composition of many ethnicities, speaking the same Yue vernacular. Despite its existence as an exclave far away from the Yue homeland, it remained the centre of Yue culture and exported more of it than its homeland did.

The two of them sat across from each other in the spacious gondola, looking out the windows that, for safety reasons, only opened wide enough to poke your face out. It was enough to feel both the warm breeze and the faint white noise from below that flowed through their lift. Contrasting the modern skeletal-metallic interior were the velvet seats, comfortable for the young and the old.

“So, how do you think of Alice?”

Mirabelle started with an interrogation; one that he couldn’t even physically escape from. Genius.

“She’s a bit awkward as a person, but she’s got a good head on her shoulders, surprisingly enough. She has her own share of troubles to deal with.”

Kato answered her honestly. At times like these, he should let her do as she wanted because they had a limited amount of time here. It was best to let Mirabelle take the lead and have her say what she wanted to say, so there was enough time for him to do so too.

“I think so too. I was surprised when I learned of her marriage to Gilbert and she was so adverse to it. I felt so upset and frustrated at myself for being so powerless to affect her fate. But you’ve helped her a lot in the past week. You and the Elites. So I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

She bowed gracefully, and he could only scratch his head in slight embarrassment. Undoubtedly, Alice was an important friend to Mirabelle.

“No need. In the words of the grandmaster, it’s just another day at work.”

“Unlike with Yui, the grandmaster did nothing this time around. It was all you.”

“The grandmaster Eon is disappointed. He wants some of the credit too.”

“I’ll credit him should he deserve it.”

One of Eon’s monikers was the ‘grandmaster’, knighted so for coming up with wacky yet brilliant ideas. Together with Kato’s maverick streak, they were a dangerous force of nature at the playground.

Then he found something strange. Mirabelle was away from school for the entirety of the week, yet she was sincerely expressing her gratitude as if she was with them the whole time. She must have heard of everything from Alice earlier today.

“Also, Alice has been talking about you non-stop since I’ve returned. I wonder why that is?”

She made a veiled accusation against him. At least it confirmed his conjecture.

“You can keep wondering. I don’t control that girl’s mouth.”

He gave her a non-response on reflex. Sometimes, it was unavoidable.

“Heh.”

She chuckled softly, but made no further comment. They were still rising, perhaps past halfway to the peak, but once they were some distance above the ground, there were no glaring differences to take notice of. They remain suspended in the air, over their hometown below; the place where they grew up together.

“How was your morning with Bia?”

“Not bad. We hung out as usual, just like any other day to be honest. We were more surprised at your non-intervention.”

“Hmm. Well, there was good reason for that. And I’ve done you a favour. Evie wasn’t all over you today.”

She mused for a short moment, but got right back on track.

“You’re right. Evie hasn’t been all over me today. Thank you very much.”

Perching her elbow on the open window and supporting her head with her hand under her chin, Mirabelle felt the light breeze on her face as her hair fluttered around her. Kato couldn’t help but watch her, unable to take his eyes away from her form.

“Something happened between you and Bia recently, right?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“When we were prepping for the swap, Bia avoided talking about you fairly awkwardly. Is there a reason for that?”

He metaphorically perked up from his seat, sweat rolling down his back that had nothing to do with the warm weather.

“There was nothing much, really. If there were, we wouldn’t have had a good time together today.”

Kato didn’t stutter with his reply. It was true. Even though they shared a kiss, nothing in their circumstance had changed.

“It didn’t have to have been something bad. It could just be something out of the ordinary.”

Like a markswoman, her aim was true. He breathed in deeply at her insistence.

“Just ask her about it? She’s the one getting the jitters, not me. It might just be something small or stupid.”

“Haha. You’re right. I’m just a little worried. You’re usually the cause of the problem.”

“Is that how you see me? I’m shocked. Eon is much more of a troublemaker than me.”

“Nope. This time, there was good reason to believe the culprit was you. But if you insist it wasn’t, then I have no choice but to believe your words.”

Mirabelle yielded while continuing watching the skies, not facing him. She smiled earnestly as her eyes formed half-moons, seemingly still very content.

“I’m hurt. Friends are supposed to trust in each other unconditionally, not after exhausting all other choices.”

Hand on his heart, Kato shook his head in disbelief. He knew that she was playing with him, so he went along with the melodramatic style. She laughed at his pretension, the cheerful sound echoing musically off the metal cabin.

“Hehe. Reversing the roles, Bia would have done the same, wouldn’t she?”

“Nah, she would believe me one hundred per cent.”

“As her sister, I highly doubt it.”

She took her arm back into the passenger car, still smiling, but now at Kato directly. Sitting upright, she knit her hands together in front of her elegantly, as expected of a girl of her noble pedigree.

“If you were in fact having a good time, then I apologize for taking you away from her.”

“No need. It’s part of my job description. To be at your beck and call.”

“Am I truly your employer? Sometimes I question that.”

“Have I ever failed your expectations?”

Kato sat back lazily, continuing the steady back and forth between the two of them. On the other hand, Mirabelle twiddled her fingers lightly, betraying her faint discontent at his response.

“Then if you had the choice to bring Bia instead of me onto this Ferris wheel, would you do it?”

And just as quickly, he sat back up.

“Hmm. Difficult to say. Is it even possible for me and Bia to avoid the rest of the crew in the first place?”

Asking a meaningless question, he used this added extra time to collect his thoughts. He realized that there was no good way to avoid her challenge.

“It wasn’t that hard. We just needn’t have swapped places, right?”

“No, you’re right. But only because you’re with us this time, it’s easier for Bia or her impostor to escape in broad daylight.”

Mirabelle inched farther out from her seat ever so slightly, indiscernible from Kato’s perspective, as she pressed him for an answer.

“Exactly. I’ll help you two out with that. So, would you do it?”

Again, he leaned back into his seat and rested his hands behind his head. A thought reoccurred to him within those moments of respite, just in time.

“Of course not. It was you who wanted to come on the Ferris wheel in the first place, not Bia.”

“Not Bia?”

“You’re the one who was obsessed with that one EC song, right? Happy Ferris Wheel? You used to rave about it all the time as a kid, and that’s why you always wanted to go on one.”

“Ah, that.”

“What? Am I the only one who remembered?”

“No. I was just surprised, in a few ways.”

“How so?”

“First is that you would answer in such a cowardly fashion. What a disappointment.”

She sighed, seemingly exasperated, to which Kato turned wide-eyed and bemused. He thought he was relatively safe with that answer, so he was confused at her dissatisfaction with him.

“Then did you want me to say ‘yes’ instead? Or would you have preferred the cliché ‘both of you’?”

“If you said ‘both of us’, I would throw you out this window if I could. But if you said ‘yes’, it would depend on your reason.”

Mirabelle said soberly. She remained stiffly in place, letting the wind comb through her black hair.

“If it was another uninteresting reason like the one you used just now, I would be just as disappointed. But if you were honest in choosing her, then I wouldn’t have to refute your will.”

“But if I did choose Bia honestly, then you would be—”

“Perhaps. It’s a possibility. Either way, I’d rather be sad than not have an answer at all.”

“Mira…”

Kato pinched the bridge of his nose wearily. He really didn’t have any idea what went on in her head.

“But even though I’m disappointed, I can’t say that I’m entirely unhappy. It’s true that I always wanted to come on this Ferris wheel with someone special to me because of that song.”

Now that she was finished berating him, her goodwill returned. In contrast with her accusations moments ago, it was a sincere smile that told him that she really meant what she said.

“Ugh. Then what was all that about?”

“I just felt like you were insulting me because you made it sound so reluctant, as if there was no better choice than me, so I got upset and threw a tantrum. You’re just asking for an earful from me.”

“I was going for the sentimental value. Y’know, memories of the good old times. And good old albums.”

“I know. I prefer chastising you with the other interpretation, though.”

“You’re just messing with me now, aren’t you?”

Mirabelle stuck out her tongue and giggled. Unbelievable.

“But really, is it just that song the reason why you wouldn’t bring Bia?”

“Well, yeah. Like I said, you’re the idiot who plays it nonstop on continuous repeat until the tape dies.”

“Hmm.”

Suddenly, the cheerfulness on her face receded once again. She closed her eyes and gave it some serious thought for a short while. When she reopened them, she spoke softly yet seriously.

“If ever, that Bia asks you a question similar to mine, please tell her that you’d choose her. She’ll take you around in circles like I did. She’ll ask you why you didn’t pick me. Though she might not show it, she’ll be very happy deep down inside.”

Kato held his breath, shocked.

“What are you trying to say?”

She tightened her hold onto her own hands, mirroring the constricting feeling in her chest. She looked down at her hands, her voice dimming to little more than a mumble.

“I want you to face Bia with your heart, and come to a conclusion on what was started two years ago. And if you choose to make Bia happy, then I’d be happy too.”

It wasn’t unfathomable that Mirabelle knew of that. In fact, it was probably very likely that she did, so he was unsurprised at her openly pointing it out. Instead, his face was distorted with sadness and grief, because he could not believe what she was suggesting in spite of that.

“Mira, that’s not right. Why are you saying this?”

“Bia only has the next eleven months left with you in her world. If you answer her, she won’t be forever holding onto her lingering feelings for you and she can move forward.”

“But what about you? What will happen to you? You’re not going to escape from the mind wipe either!”

“Nothing will happen to me. I’ll continue as I am, and if all goes as planned, when the time comes, you’ll be removed from my memories too. That’s all.”

“So you’re saying you’re not like Bia, that you won’t have anything lingering and be able to move on?”

“Yes. I’m not like Bia.”

“Liar. I know you too well. You run away from yourself in the most important moments, afraid of what will come to pass.”

Kato had a frustrated, even murderous look on his face. This was not the Mirabelle he wanted to see, but he knew this part of her existed. Bianca wasn’t her twin sister just for show. In fact, this part of her was infuriatingly worse than Bianca’s melancholia.

“Afraid?”

She froze at his accusation. She looked up to see the upset Kato now kneeling in front of her.

“Mira, no one ever truly means that if they shed tears as they say it.”

“No, I…”

Like he said, tears trailed down her beautiful face from her reddened eyes.

“What compelled you to say that I’d belong with Bia? That’s something for me to decide, not you.”

“…”

Mirabelle was silent and forlorn. Kato reached forward to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes, and though she jumped slightly at his initial touch, she remained stiff and unmoving throughout. He then clasped his hands around hers, and they stayed that way for a short while.

“And about that, from two years ago. That’s something for me to think about as well. It wasn’t as simple as I wished it was. I can’t just close the case on it in one go and have everyone forget about it.”

Mirabelle’s eyes widened, but she did not ask further. She was disheartened by the non-response, as it was obviously something she was quite troubled over. Her silence continued as she internalized her thoughts and his words.

“It was your fault, after all. If you haven’t disappeared for so long, we wouldn’t be where we are now.”

Paradoxically, she slowly lit up at those words. It was half-true, in a way that Kato wouldn’t know about, she thought. As if she was proud of being the cause of the problem, her voice regained its strength.

“You’re right. Then let’s leave it at that, for now.”

She revealed a bittersweet smile, turning her delicate hands over and holding onto his. He breathed out, glad that she recovered her composure, but was also disappointed.

“You’re supposed to explain yourself, not just leave it.”

“Hehe. But then you’ll know too much.”

“Know too much? More like know barely anything.”

Giggling, she dispelled the aura of sadness around her. Now that she was back to normal, he was not getting anything else out of her.

“I’m sorry about this with Bia. It seems like I got too carried away. I want to enjoy the time we have left here on this Ferris wheel.”

She said to him with conviction, her usual self returning in full. Kato could only nod, and withdrew to his seat quietly. The gondolas on the Ferris wheel continued to travel across the sky, and perhaps like the lyrics in that song she loved so much, happiness turned with it timelessly.

“I really liked it. It’s very peaceful and a nice change of pace.”

She sighed as she closed her eyes against the breeze that picked up slightly. As she alluded, the fatigued surfaced on her expression and she let her shoulders droop, loosening the tension in her body.

“Were you really busy?”

“Of sorts. There’s still a lot of work to be done.”

Their time on the Ferris wheel had ended smoothly. Walking side by side, they took their time making their way to the front gates of the park. This was Mirabelle’s contingency for returning to their group, and all they needed to do now was to wait for Bianca to bring the group to meet them again.

“How come you didn’t come back on Tuesday? What happened?”

After a short silence, it was Kato’s turn to try to obtain answers. It wasn’t uncommon for Mirabelle to suddenly disappear, but it still peeved him nonetheless.

“Remember how I said that this was for my future? An opportunity came up and I had to take it. I’m actually still in the middle of it, but hopefully things will turn out well.”

“Still in the middle of it?”

“Yeah. Half of today is an intermission, so to speak.”

“Half of today?”

“I have to make my leave now and return to it. I’m sorry I won’t be joining everyone else for dinner.”

He shrugged. Though he didn’t like it, he had put up with this for a long time now, so there were no qualms about it happening one more time.

“Can you explain in any detail about what you’re doing?”

“Not yet. I’ll be able to tell you in time, but for now, it is top secret.”

She put a finger to her lips, looking just every bit as alluring in Bianca’s outfit. It was perennially breathtaking.

It wasn’t actually too far away from the front gates, so they made it there fairly quickly. Beyond the gates on the main street was a limousine that belonged to the Jupiter family. A rare sight, the Jupiter sisters often roamed the city with the Elites by their own means. The appearance of that limousine usually meant unconditional farewell between the two parties, so there weren’t many fond memories of this vehicle. And it seemed like it would remain so today.

They passed the gates and walked toward the limousine, parked snugly next to the curb with its passenger door already open. Closing in on it, Kato confirmed it to be the same old mule from when they were children, and chuckled at the old heap on wheels.

“Thank you for everything, Kato. I had fun today.”

“Likewise.”

Standing at the curb, they stared into each other’s eyes in a trance, both motionless, waiting for the other to say something. Though Kato normally enjoyed these staring contests, it was too emotionally raw for him after what had transpired, so after burning the image of the pensive Mirabelle in his mind, he was the first to turn around.

“Maybe someday, you’ll tell me what’s going on with you. I can’t wait forever, you know.”

“What do you mean, wait forever?”

He looked back over his shoulder, and he made a heartfelt smile.

“I mean what I said.”

Mirabelle giggled delightedly. The juxtaposition of his hardened expression and his words was comical.

“I won’t be back next week, but I’ll try my best to not make you wait forever. After all, I don’t want to wait either.”

He nodded as his heartstrings were pulled at once more, but nothing else followed as the door closed on the car, leaving him in frustration again. In his head, he replayed endlessly the last few minutes of their encounter, wondering if he should have said more to her before she disappeared once more.