(AN: This chapter is from Topaz's point of view! Happy reading!)
My name is Topaz Wulf. I am 24 years old. I live in a two story brick house near where all the hotels are. And, no, I am not married. The only time I'd be attractive enough for marriage is if I time traveled to the cavemen era. I wake up at 7:00 am every morning. Well, it's not really "waking up" if I never go to sleep, more like gathering enough energy to sling myself out of bed. I go to the bathroom in which I bathe in only the finest hibiscus water while sipping a glass of pristine aged vodka. But ONLY a sip. This stuff was expensive-. I drink a lot, though. It's not really something I'm proud of. Once finished, I dry myself off with pure cotton towels I change into my typical outfit, a black and white striped turtleneck with a black tee shirt over it and dark blue jeans with black lace up boots. As an accessory, I wear my chain necklace with a cross on it. Walking downstairs to the kitchen, I comb out my long, silky, black hair. I think about what to eat for breakfast. Eggs and bacon? Waffles? Or maybe even french toast... It's one of the most exciting decisions of the day. I'd even go as far to say it sparks joy within me. I settle for the classy french toast. I get the box out of the freezer and microwave it until it's cooked. I spread strawberry jam on the side and pour maple syrup on it. Then I add a small dollop of whipped cream and decorate it with some blueberries and a mint leaf. I start eating with my fancy china utensils. Eh, I'd say the food's alright today. Later, I put the dirty dishes in the sink to be washed later. I brush my teeth, still trying to keep my mask covering most of my mouth. I never take off said mask, by the way. Don't get me wrong, my teeth are in perfect hygienic condition. It's just- whatever. As I'm preparing to head out, I get my multi tool out of the junk drawer and put it in my pocket. Wait. What the hell? Why isn't it in here... I had it before but that was when... Oh right. Mistral has it, damn. It's no bother. If I were to get into a fistfight with anyone, I certainly wouldn't lose. I grab my phone and subway pass. With that, my day has officially started.
I walk out and head for the subway station. As usual, I'm going to the record shop. I'm actually quite happy that I have stuff I can do there. It's not stressful at all most of the time, and it just consists of me making small talk. I'm not the type to spark up conversation, but Mistral seems just as awkward as me anyways. That was confirmed when she asked me for my number, that dumb yet oddly likeable moron. Oh, I don't have a job either, I don't need one. I was left a fairly bountiful inheritance from my relatives, so money isn't much of a problem. Even so, I don't want my splurging to bite me in the future.
There's nothing really to talk about walking to the station, no one's awake. Of course, there are the early bird workers driving their cars around and honking at each other like mad men. I can't really handle much noise, it's fairly easy for me to get sensory overload. Plus, it just pisses me off. My earbuds broke a while ago and I hadn't gotten a chance to buy new ones, so I can't tune out the noise with soft lofi melodies. Though, I should try to get used to it - living in the city and all -. Eventually, I make it to the elevator connecting to the station. Just this normal elevator in the middle of two big clothing shops. I enter the elevator and push the button. Kinda glad this elevator doesn't have music, it's one of the only bits of silence I get in a day. There's nothing I have to drown out. The elevator skrrts to a stop and the door opens. This is one of the nicer subway stations. Nothing like Grand Center Terminal, no, far from it. But it's nice and quaint. There's a deli/pizza place and a small convenient store that sells comic books. I sometimes buy a comic if they have an issue that I want or don't have. In fact, I have a whole collection of comics and manga in my house! Maybe I should invite Mistral to Barnes and Noble one day... I go down the escalator to the trains and scan my card. Annnddd...of course it declined. Hm, maybe I could just duck under the turnstile... Actually, there's a security guard nearby. I don't think my outfit would make me any less suspicious if I got caught in the act. I groan and wait in the line to fill my card. There's...like 4 people ahead of me. Geez, this is gonna take a bit.
Then again, it's not gonna be worse than what happened 2 days ago. Someone stole my train card, had to chase them through the city, accidentally got caught in a fight ring, dueled for my card back, it's...not important. I play a bit of cookie clicker games on my phone. I'm too rich in each game, and despite being Russian, I don't intend to fall to the "our stuff" joke on the internet. Soon, the line depletes and I'm FINALLY allowed to use the atm. God, that must've taken a while, I don't want Mistral to be disappointed at my late arrival. I fill my card with 20.00$. Now, it's time for the real thing that's gonna slow me down. In the time it took to refill my card, my train left. It's gonna take so...so long for another train to come. I scan my card again and go to the train boarding area. I find the nearest bench and sit down. It's one of those benches with 3 seats, and I'm sitting on the far left. Hopefully, everyone follows the unspoken of bench sitting and sits a space away from me.
I watch the TVs near the benches. They play the news and subway safety videos, but they also play word unscramble games, guessing games, and some zodiac horoscopes. I'm a Cancer, and my zodiac said something about writing down my dreams? It's a bunch of bullcrap for sure. Birthdays came up in a conversation with me and Mistral, which is how I learned she's a Virgo. Her horoscope said something about doing work around the house. Ha, yea, she doesn't seem like the type to really clean up, but she is reliable and admits her mistakes when she needs to. She's good at heart and doesn't mean any harm as far as I can tell. Really sweet too, even if she gets a little loud, I don't mind, surprisingly... I drifted away into my deeper train of thought...then the actual, real train pulled up to the station. How long was that, like, 30-40 minutes? I get up and rush to be one of the firsts in the vehicle. As soon as they open, I squeeze through the opening to optimize the amount of time I'll have to snag my special seat. I skid through the cart like a madman,but I do manage to claim the seat. It's just a normal seat in the corner of the train, but only one person can fit on it. There's no seat in front of me either, so no one has to make eye contact with me.
Nothing noteworthy happened on the way there, I just did my usual, keeping to myself. I considered taking a nap. But, of course, sleep is for the weak! I tapped my foot, waiting for the speakers to announce we were at the right stop. I kept looking out the window too, but there's nothing really to see in an underground tunnel.
Eventually, the train stops at the right location. I'm up as soon as the speakers blare the avenue name. Right as the door open, I run out. To my dismay, I bump into a few people that are crowding the door. I run before they can make me say anything. I sprint and sprint, huffing and puffing, not wanting Missy to wait any longer. Thankfully, the record shop isn't too far away from the subway exit. This is actually a pretty nice part of town. There's really big, fancy, and modern shops around here. I'm pretty sure there's a food court and an ice skater rink nearby! Ooh, there's a video game store here too! They have a bunch of manga for their characters. My favorite is with that green heroine that can turn into a wolf! I turn my attention back to my running, actually, I'm almost there!
It's in my sight now, woo! Hell yeah! I'll finally be allowed to sit down! I skid in front of the door and nearly break it down from my adrenaline pumping. "GAH-" I hear a familiar energetic voice exclaim. "H....Hi..." I pant and collapse in my seat."Oh dear, do you need a water?" Mistral offers. I meekly nod and she walks into the employees only room. She comes out a minute later holding a can, "Uhm..will sparkling water be ok?". I nod and hold out my hand to which she poorly throws the can over to me. I start chugging it like there's no tomorrow. "D-Do you need a towel? An ice pack? A warm and loving hug from your bestest friend in the whole world?" Mistral asks, I can hear the concern in her voice. I shake my head, "No, it's fine...I'll consider that last option though." I smirk, even though she can't see it. She smiles and giggles a bit. I would've thought she move back to her counter, but she stood nearby me today. She looks giddy, she's bopping up and down. I eye her up and down, "What's got you so happy?" She gives a smug look at me, "Oh, nothing~! I just got you a little something-something!" Geez, now I'm interested. "Y'know, you really didn't have to do that for me..." I say. Missy smiles with more happiness empowering her, "Haha! Don't sweat it, it didn't even cost me a cent!". "Really...?" I ask. Is she gonna give me like, a hand-me-down? "Mhm! And I thought you would really, really, really, really love it!" she cheers. I smile, seeing her so pleased makes me happy.
We don't talk about anything in particular, at some points we just sat together in silence. It was a nice and relaxing balance, her presence doesn't bother me. Maybe I would even go to the length to say I get excited when she's with me...? I swear, I'm a hetero. No homo tendencies at all. None. None at all. Nope. Not once. Ever. Never ever. Never ever forever. ESPECIALLY not towards...anyways, maybe I should learn how to drive so I can take her to work... I don't know how long we talked for after that, but I was getting sleepy. I guess today would be the day I surrender to the comfort of my pillows. I get up and start saying my goodbyes whileI walk out. "Wait!" Mistral stops me, "Your gift!". "Right! So, what is it?" I ask. She runs to the counter and opens their cabinet doors.
I-It all happened so quickly. At one moment I was watching her get something from the counter, the next she was holding the REAL Luxxen Blade in front of me. The Luxxen Blade was the sword the protagonist used in the famous fantasy-adventure-comedy manga/anime "Aerins Abnormal Adventure (And Company)"! W-What the hell?! How do you just get your hands on this without spending a dollar?! There were only like, 150 of these real swords made and hidden around the globe! Only 150 of the licensed deals! "H-How?!" I exclaim. I need answers. "Well, I dueled some guy at this fantasy fair thing for it. It was kinda bizarre..." Wow, and they lost to someone like Mistral (No offense, it's just that she has the strength of soggy bread). Maybe that's what she found bizarre too. "Y-Y'know there's only 150 of these..? They sell for like, tens of thousands online!" I tell her incase she wants to keep it. "Really? How do you know?" she asked. "Y-Yea! It's from like, one of my favorite manga and anime series! I kept tabs on it for a while!" I explain. "Oh! Then that gives me ten times more reasons to give it to you!" she said. "For real?!" I really don't believe it, I saw one of these selling for $25,000! "Of course! Seeing you pleased with the gift makes me happy!" Missy smiles, "But, if you do ever sell it- just be sure to split the pay-.". I give a small laugh and stare at its beauty, "No, I think I'll be keeping this for a long time.". What do I say? When she said she was gonna get me a gift I didn't think it would be THAT good! How do I say thanks without making myself sound sarcastic (As I normally do)? I can feel the world, no, the galaxy spiral around me. All that's there is me and Mistral. The anxiety builds up. Ok! Topaz! It's fine! You're fine! Just, build up courage and that'll be it! I take and deep breath and give the most sincere 'hidden' smile I can.
"Thank you."