NOVEL NEXT Chapter 226: Blurted Out
"Wow, it sure is a nice day out, huh?" Smiled Akila, looking around.
"Y-Yeah, it is. Th-The weather is really n-nice," Nodded Kia nervously.
It was the 22nd of June, 1920, a little over a week since they'd got back from Anima. After taking Kia's advice and resting, Akila did a lot of reflecting and training, pushing himself pretty hard.
A couple of days ago, Kia had worked up the courage to ask him out, making sure to clarify it as a one-on-one outing, which he agreed to.
They were currently heading to an arcade, which had recently opened up in Persona. Akila had shared several ideas from his previous world with Lyra, who found them fascinating and decided to try and implement the ideas that would be possible in this world.
While video games were beyond the current level of technology, there were plenty of other options in the arcade, with games such as ice hockey, hoops, skeeball, ping pong, darts, bowling and more.
The games had been adjusted and reinforced to be suitable for this world, and enchanted with Spells to replicate some effects that weren't technologically possible, since Magic made the humans of this world physically stronger than the humans of Akila's previous world.
As the arcade came into sight, the two of them entered the building, Akila buying a bag of tokens for the games, before they explored the place, looking around at the options.
"Man, this is so nostalgic. Never thought I'd see all these games again, I don't know where to start. Anything in particular you wanna try first?" He asked her.
"H-Huh? I-I, um, I don't know...I-I've never seen any of these before, s-so I'm completely clueless here," She muttered with a shake of her head.
"You okay? You're kinda stuttering a lot."
"I-I always stutter, I-I can't help it..."
"Yeah, but you're stuttering a lot more than usual."
"N-Never mind that, um...o-okay, how about that game?" She responded, pointing at the bowling lanes in an effort to change the subject.
"Ooh, good choice. Been a while since I last bowled, I was never very good at it though...huh, I wonder if I'll be better now since my body is way stronger than it was in my previous life," Mused Akila, as he headed towards the lanes, Kia trailing behind him.
As they took over one of the vacant lanes, Akila explained the rules to her, before going first to demonstrate how it was done.
He picked up one of the balls and stepped forward, before swinging his arm and letting go of the ball, rolling it towards the pins. It veered a bit to the left, before knocking over four pins, a loud clatter ringing out.
"Man, I love that sound...but I only got four. Let's see if I can get a spare," He muttered, as he rolled again.
He groaned as the ball swerved at the last second, knocking over just two pins.
"I-I see, so we just try to knock all of those things over in two tries," Remarked Kia, as she stepped up to take her turn.
"Yeah, but if you get them all in one try, the points you get in your next round will be doubled. I'd give you advice, but as you saw, I'm not particularly great at this game. Maybe just try to roll the ball as straight as possible and-...," Began Akila, before trailing off as she promptly rolled a strike.
"O-Oh, I got all of them," She responded with a slight smile.
"Hey, nice! That was awesome, you're a total natural at this!" Grinned Akila, holding his palms up towards her.
She raised her hands and lightly smacked them against his.
"Th-Thanks...so, do we have to roll the ball? Because I think it'd be easier if I could throw it," She replied, as Akila went up for his next turn.
"Uh, no, you can't throw it," He shook his head with a wry smile, before adding as he picked up a ball and stepped forward, "Alright, this is my chance to redeem myself, here I go!"
...
"H-Hey, um, cheer up," Remarked Kia, awkwardly patting Akila's arm.
"Man, I lost devastatingly. You nearly rolled a perfect game, and it's your first time playing it, that's amazing. Meanwhile, nearly half my rolls ended up in the gutter," Laughed Akila sheepishly.
"M-My fingers are a bit sore, though. But I did enjoy myself, th-that was fun. What should we play next?"
"Hm, let's see...oh, that one! It's called ice hockey, it's pretty simple but a lot of fun," He grinned, heading over towards the table while explaining the rules to her.
"O-Okay, so I just have to get this disk into the slot on your side of the table, wh-while preventing you from hitting it into the slot on my side, r-right?" She surmised, as she picked up the paddle.
"Mhm, yeah. I'll start things off with a bit of a softball, just to warm up," He replied, before tapping the disk and sending it steadily sliding across the table.
Kia drew back her paddle and waited, before driving it forward as the disk closed in, launching it back towards Akila. He watched it closely, before whipping his paddle across and striking the side of the disk, sending it rapidly zigzagging across the table.
Kia narrowed her eyes, her gaze darting to either side as she followed the trajectory of the disk, before blocking it as it zagged in towards the goal.
She then copied the move, striking the side of the disk and sending it right back.
The two of them got locked into an intense battle, the game dragging on as they stayed right on each other's tail, preventing the other from getting a lead.
Whoever reached seven points first would be the winner, and after what felt like an eternity, they were both tied at six points each.
"Alright, this is it, whoever scores next, wins. Neither of us have managed to score two points in a row, so if you wanna win...you'll have to pull off exactly that," Surmised Akila.
He'd reached six points first, and Kia had caught up in the last round.
"Y-Yeah, I know...bring it on," She smiled, as he struck the disk towards her.
She swung her paddle across, striking the disk towards the left side of the table, the disk getting deflected straight towards the goal.
Akila blocked it before launching it straight back towards her as he drove his paddle forward, Kia narrowly blocking it before sending it zigzagging back with a swift strike to the side of the disk.
The back and forth continued for a while, both of them evenly matched, the tension and pressure rising with each exchange.
And then, it happened, Akila caved under the pressure, failing to block out the disk as Kia deflected it off the side of the table, sending it shooting into the goal.
"I-I won!"
"Aw, I was so close! Man, what an intense match!" He grinned, letting out a slow exhale to ease the adrenaline.
"L-Looks like that's two to zero in my favor. M-Maybe you should pick a game you're good at," She suggested with a smile.
"Hey, I think I'm pretty good at this one...you just happened to be just as good," He huffed with, a wry smile spreading out across his face.
"W-Well, seeing as I won, I'd say I'm slightly better."
"Yeah, fair enough. Man, this is fun...thanks for inviting me, I'm sorry for worrying you. I feel like my head is clearer now, I really needed this," He smiled gratefully.
"O-Oh, um...don't mention it, I'm glad I could help," She muttered, thinking to herself, "Guess he caught on...well, that's only part of the reason. I was worried about him and wanted to lift his spirits, but also...I wanted to go on a date with him. B-But there's no way I can tell him that."
"You're so considerate...seriously, thanks. I'm glad I'm friends with someone who's so nice and kind," He replied with a grin.
"N-Not really, I wouldn't go out of my way to do this for j-just anyone, you know."
"Yeah? Then, what made you do it for me?" He responded curiously.
"Because I'm in love with you."
"Huh?"
"What? W-Wait, did...d-did I say that out loud?" She stuttered as her eyes widened in alarm.
"H-Hold on, are you serious?" He asked her, a stunned look on his face.
"N-No, I-...yes. I-It's true, I...that's how I feel. Th-This wasn't how I meant to say it, I-I don't know what came over me. I-I'm sorry, just forget I said anything!"
"I-I, uh...I don't think that's possible," He muttered, his face turning red as he met her gaze.
"Y-You don't need to spare my feelings...i-if you're going to reject me, please get it over with quickly," She responded quietly, feeling like she was on the verge of tears.
"I...I don't know what to think, no one's ever confessed their love for me before, I'm kind of at a loss for words. Can...can I have some time to think about it? I need to get my thoughts and feelings in order...you mean a lot to me, so it's only right that I give you a proper response. My mind's all over the place right now, I can't seem to get my thoughts in order. I won't keep you waiting long, I promise...is that okay?"
"O-Of course, and I'm sorry for putting you on the spot like this. T-Take all the time you need, I...I'll accept whatever response you settle on."