"If you want to engage in a staring contest with me, I promise that you will lose."

The sting was intense as the girl finally blinked. She had no desire to play the game with him, but rather, she was observing Nate as he played darts rather unsuccessfully. A particular thing she noted was that he was throwing with his left hand; she had sworn that she had once seen him writing with his right. He occupied said hand by twirling a lock of his hair.

It wasn't as if she cared for the scenery around them: he had yet to rebuild his card fortress even though it had fallen over a month ago. Instead he invested his efforts into stacking dice, with stacks never exceeding ten dice. He was under the impression that she had a particular fondness for the toys, when in truth she was indifferent. Still she maintained enthusiasm whenever they played their matching game.

"What are you writing down?" He asked.

"I'm creating a list of your habits."

There was no telling how long she had been compiling the data. Since day one she had been enamored with the enigma but never took the time to transcribe his likeness to any medium or understanding not exclusive to the abstract. Not even his employees gave much thought to his habits.

"Why?"

"I find them interesting."

"May I see this list?" He asked, throwing his final dart.

She handed him the paper. His eyes slowly trailed over the ink, digesting every word with subtle curiosity. It basically portrayed his quirks and oddities, and very well, he had to admit to himself. When he actually read them all together, he realized that he may have been somewhat abnormal. That, and evidently, very predictable. Routine was comfortable and reliable, but also, he noted, very dangerous in his line of work. Of course, it wasn't as if anybody that did not work for him knew where he was located, but there was still risk with stagnant living.

"Tell me, how is the weather outside today?"

"It's beautiful out today, actually. The cherry blossoms just bloomed this week. It looks like it's snowing flowers."

Time was blurred simply because the girl was suspended into astonishment. Presently, the two of them were outside, simply walking. Halle, Stephen and Anthony could not help but stare as the pair left, and watched from the windows as they walked along the sidewalk.

"Did she make him go outside with her?" Stephen wondered aloud.

"I don't see any practical reason for him to go out, though."

Halle smirked, "He wanted to."

Only a few minutes later did they reach a local park, filled with nothing but a central pond and numerous, numerous cherry blossom trees. Spring's virginity brought forth beautiful hues of white, pink, and subtle hybrids. The sun and wind had leniency, making it the perfect temperature to not need a jacket of any kind. Many people were out with the weather being so pleasant. That made for more people to stare at Nate as he walked alongside the girl.

"It seems that everybody else also wants to win a staring contest."

"To be fair, you are in stark white pajamas. Hey, do you want ice cream?"

"I'll pass, but I'll go with you."

There was a stationary vending cart offering ice cream of about a dozen varieties. A young man, not much older than the two of them, was working the station. He was obviously a native of this country, and he happened to be rather attractive by most accords. A flirtatious man, he had made obvious yet small gestures to the girl, and at the end of their transaction, mentioned that he had an interest in her. She blushed, beside herself, then followed Nate until they rested underneath a tree. Happily she licked on her treat while Nate sat next to her, pouting.

"What's your problem?"

"There isn't a problem."

"Then stop being miserable. Or at least stop being more miserable than usual."

More than usual? That indicated that there was a change that she hadn't predicted. He understood that he did not appreciate the vendor speaking rather rudely to the girl, but he was not the confrontational type. Instead he allowed his discontent to fester within himself. Giving a glance to the girl, he could see her smile, more radiant than the sun itself. Her hair gently swayed in the subtle breeze, and her whole demeanor had an airy feel to it.

They sat underneath a blossomed tree. The overgrown grass had provided for comfortable sitting. Her smile faded into a shocked expression when Nate had taken her hand and helped himself to a minute lick of her ice cream.

She giggled to herself, wondering why he was acting so erratically. Most people would not question his behavior, but little did they know, he often went on for days without speaking, even to his associates. The girl began to wonder if he was put off by her list. Still, she hadn't any error in it: hair twirling, ambidexterity, the habitual eating of only half of a chocolate bar, a collection of seemingly personalized finger puppets, sitting with his knee erect and other skewed on the floor, making sound effects when he played with robots, stacking dice only when six faced upward, and so on.

"Can I ask you something?" She turned to him.

"You just did, but feel free to ask me something else."

"What do you think of me?"

He hadn't spoken and it had become much quieter.

"What do you think of me? Am I annoying, do I do my job well, should I invest in a shower, that kind of stuff."

He sighed before speaking, "You do not limit your reading; I've seen you read fiction and nonfiction alike. You always make sure vacant rooms do not have any lights on. You don't mind if your eggs break and the yolk saturates your toast, yet you refuse to eat them together. You tie your sneakers on the back of your heel rather than the front. You are more well rounded than me."

She could not offer him any response. Instead she lost herself into gazing at him. His youthful yet stressed face allured a wonderful symmetry, often painted with falling blossoms. Nate's eyes never wandered away, even as he yet again twirled a bit of his hair. That was off, as he usually looked aside, even if only a bit, as he performed the tick.

The two began to dampen. A few moments after feeling the moisture, they simultaneously looked up to see an overcast sky weeping; yet the sun still seeped through the numerous blue breaks in the skies. Without warning a great rain fell upon them to the point of a simulated submergence into water. She laughed.

"It's a sun shower! Come on!"

She grabbed his wrists and pulled him her way, but with too much force, so they tumbled down the small hill beside them. The girl gently landed upon her bum as she sat while Nate barreled into her, knocking her down and landing atop of her. He froze, wide eyed and unable to distance himself from her. She could only continue to laugh. She hugged him.

Halle, Stephen, and Anthony sure had a hell of a time curiously swarming the soaking pair as they arrived back at headquarters. Their boss had no words nor glances to share with anybody. The immediate assumption was that the girl decided to instigate something not in his taste.

Nate wasted no time in changing from his soaking attire, while the girl was less hasty. She allowed her boss to shower first, as he had always taken them rather quickly. After five minutes had passed, she warned that she was entering the bathroom despite whatever objections he would present. Still, she did find a most interesting sight.

"You're shaving!"

He blushed a bit. A towel was firmly wrapped around his waist while half of his face sported shaving cream. His hair was dampened and the slightest bit shagged. She covered her mouth in a pitiful attempt to hide her grin. Soon a stifled giggle followed.

"Is something funny?"

"Nope, nope. Just glad to know you're a man, at least in that respect," She walked to him with an outstretched hand, "Let's see if the carpet matches the-"

She was promptly thrown out of the bathroom, and it was worth it in every sense.