After the meeting was dismissed, it seemed like a bit of time had passed. It was already starting to shift towards the evening. People still had things they wanted to do. As such, Alice and Sarah went off to prepare dinner. Don and April returned to his office. There were still some things he needed to write out. Orders and whatnot that needed to be done while he was away
Right after the meeting, Lilly decided to hit up the library. After all, there was one in this prison, and she decided to get well acquitted with the place. Not only did she enjoyed reading, but her Seed Power was perfect for her. The more she read a book and learned about the creature in the book, the more powerful it became.
For example, if she summoned a dragon from a book that made a statement about seeing a dragon, then the dragon would only have its appearance. It wouldn't have any abilities it had unless she read about them. Whereas, if she finished the book and the dragon was explain. What abilities it had and more in-depth about the dragon itself, the dragon would come out its peak condition.
This applied to anything she summoned. So, when she arrived, she could see it was a rather small library. Nothing to fancy, but that was fine. She started to get well acquitted with what books were where. She even decided to take memos on what books she wanted to read through first. She had already made it in her mind to become the librarian. In fact, that was the kind of job she wanted when she graduated.
As she went through the different sections, she noticed that the place was decently organized. Not necessarily dirty, but more like the books had been kept in perfect condition. Nothing was out of place, and everything seemed to be just right. She was happy about this because it meant she wouldn't need to reorganize everything.
With that said, she decided to pick out a fantasy book. She actually wanted to read something more in her tastes. Still, she felt that by reading fantasy books, she could build her arsenal of powerful summons. She recalled that the wolves she summoned before were easily dispatched by the Berserker, so she needed something stronger. Especially since there were stronger undead and bugs out there that were more powerful than the Berserker.
At first, the book started off as typical. The hero was granted the power to protect humanity from a dark force. Still, as she went through, she realized a deeper underlying meaning in the book. It wasn't a happy fairy tale, but moreover a dark horror fantasy tale. The first several chapters made it seem like your cliche fairy tale book. Still, as she ventured further, the hero continuously questions if his choices were the right thing to do. He was killing other races and animals because they were deemed to be a danger to humanity.
Eventually, Lilly had become too engrossed in the book to tear her eyes from it. She had learned about several new beasts she could summon. A small Sea-Serpent that was a summon of its own that aided one of the heroines. It could spew out ice and even cause the air to freeze over. Another was a hellhound, well that was what it was called. A large dog engulfed in flames could spew out fire and cause the atmosphere to heat up.
It seemed like Lilly was thoroughly enjoying the book, so much so that she had reached a turning point in the story where the hero was suddenly questioning if he should even be on humanities side. It looked like the hero was about to take the side of the dark force known as the Devilin, but the book had come to an end.
Instantly, Lilly got up and looked for a book by the same author. Hopping to find a continuation of the story, and when she did, she found that it was a four-book series. She took the last of the series and returned to the table to continue reading.
Meanwhile, Katelyn decided to talk with Tim. Since their arrival, she felt like she could finally relax. She had asked Tim to join her in her room, which was still an open cell until the doors and walls would be replaced. One could see Noah, Dillian, and Tyrone taking measurements as they said they would off in the distance.
They wanted to make sure each cell was the exact same, and so far, it seemed like it. This would make things easier when it came to renovating, so once they got their measurements taken care of, they started to draft up blueprints on the spot. Noah had brought with them several pieces of paper and pencils.
"Tim, do you ever think that we would have made it out alive if Don never showed up?" Katelyn asked while sitting on the bed, looking at the ground. Tim had leaned against the wall looking at Katelyn the entire time since she was the one who called him over. "Honestly, no. I hate to say it, but I knew I was going to die, which is why I wanted you two to at least live." Tim answered truthfully.
Tim wasn't an arrogant person. He knew his strengths and weakness. He knew he was outmatched and made sure to swallow his pride when need be. Katelyn sighed softly, "Then can you promise me something." Katelyn spoke but never continued after that. She was a bit scared to say what was on her mind.
She didn't want Tim to get the wrong idea, well moreover, find out that she liked him. She didn't want Tim to view her differently. "Well? What is it?" Tim asked, seeing how Katelyn stopped speaking. Katelyn opened her mouth but couldn't say another word. Tim's brow rose curiously, so he pushed off the wall and moved to stand in front of her.
She hadn't realized he was in front of her since she was still deep in thought on what to say or how to say it. When she finally found an answer, she looked up and was about to say it, but then she realized how close Tim was. 'Too close!' She thought. Her cheeks became red, and her mind started to take a turn in a different direction.
"I like you, so don't go dying on me." She said what was on her mind. All of it, from her own feelings to what she was thinking about. It came out without her knowing, and in the end, her face became even redder. She felt hot and started to fan herself, then stood up, "Oh umm! Forget--" She was about to leave, but Tim had stopped her.
He moved in front of her and wrapped his arms around her. Instantly she froze. She didn't know what to make of this. "And here I thought I was the only one who felt that way..." Tim's voice was soft. Katelyn could feel some heat coming off Tim's face since their cheeks were pretty much side by side. When she turned, she could see his ears were red.
"Wait... you like me?" Katelyn stuttered for a moment. Tim released her and stepped back with a nod. He would scratch the back of his head lightly, "Of course I do. You are pretty cool. I can talk openly about things, and we can joke around a lot. I feel like I don't have to muddle my words around you, and I can do as I please." Tim said. He felt shy about this since he wanted to be the one to say he liked Katelyn.
However, the reason he didn't bring his feelings to light was for the same reason Katelyn didn't bring hers. "I was just afraid that maybe our friendship would end. I didn't want to lose a cool friend just because I fell in love with her. Ya'know?" Tim said, looking at her. Katelyn's expression shifted from shock to joy. A smile had curved across her lips.
She walked up to him and flicked him in the forehead, "Why didn't you say something sooner!? I've been hiding my feelings for you this whole time because I felt the same way. You were the first guy who has actually treated like a friend rather than someone they wanted to sleep with." Katelyn said.
Tim had rubbed his forehead lightly but gave her a puzzled look at her last comment. "Is that what all these guys wanted? I was wondering why you were always surrounded by guys." Tim said. He seemed a bit dense when it came to things like this, just a bit... hopefully.
"Oh? Were you jealous?" Katelyn gave Tim a mischievous smile, and Tim waved his hand in dismissal. "Not at all," Tim said nonchalantly, which kind of wounded Katelyn's ego a little. "Really? I guess I seem that easy to you." Katelyn replied with hurt and annoyance in her voice. Tim shook his head, "No. That isn't what I meant. I knew what kind of person you were. You just had yet to realize it yourself at the time." Tim said.
Katelyn was now confused by Tim's words. "What do you mean?" Katelyn asked. "That you more than just an easy pick. You are a treasure." Tim answered. Instantly, Katelyn's eyes started to water. Her heartbeat rapidly, and she felt like she would cry from joy, and she did. Tim mistook it for something else, "Hey? Did I say something wrong?" He asked with a concerned expression.
"No, you idiot... I am just happy. No one has ever said something like that to me before..." Katelyn replied, and Tim softened his expression. He moved up to her and embraced her, "Well, you just never found the right person then." Tim replied, and Katelyn embraced him while sniffling happily.
Their moment only lasted for a second before someone knocked on the concrete wall to get their attention. Instantly, they split up with bright red faces and pretended to play innocently. "Are you two done?" Noah asked with a blank expression on his face. "H-How long have you been there?" Tim asked. "Long enough. Anyways, I'm gonna need your help with some things. Preferably your sharpening ability. Are you available oooooorrrrr...." Noah let the 'or' last a bit longer.
"He's good! He can go!" Katelyn answered for Tim, who quickly looked towards her. "Are you sure?" Tim asked, and Katelyn nodded. "Yeah, besides, I need to sort things out." She said and pushed him forward but pulled him back by the shoulder a second later, which caused him to go into an odd position while leaning back. There she placed a kiss on his cheek, which caused his eyes to light up and his cheeks to flare. "Remember, you can't die on me." She murmured, and Tim nodded.
Afterward, they left, and Katelyn was now sitting on the bed in thought. "I can't believe he likes me!" She exclaimed inside of her head with glee. She had doubts that Tim even liked her. She knew what kind of girl she was. Most boys like Tim usually steered clear from her type, and yet Tim stayed by her side. At first, she thought that maybe Tim just wanted to get into her pants, but the guy never tried.
As they hung out more, she realized that Tim just viewed her as a close friend like Lily. At first, she thought that Tim and Lily were an item, and she had asked Lily, but Lily told her they weren't. She told her that she liked someone else and that Tim didn't have anyone special. Which only made her yearn for Tim even more.
Today, she realized that the boy she was afraid of losing was actually into her all along. She was happy, and now she was wondering what to do from here. As she laid back on the bed, she looked up at the ceiling. "It only took coming to a completely other world and many life or death situations for this to happen for this... I wonder, would he have ever told him if not?" Katelyn thought to herself.
While that was going on, another 'Item' was sitting on the third floor, looking down at Noah, Dillian, and Tyrone. Noah was pretty much teasing Tim alongside Dillian and Tyrone about his newly formed relationship. "You think they'll do the same if they ever find out?" Rose asked while holding John's hand.
"Would that bother you?" John asked while still looking at the two of them. "No... Maybe... I don't know." Rose answered, changing her answer every several seconds. This caused John to chuckle lightly, but his smile turned into a frown when a thought came to mind. "Do you really trust me?" John asked. He still had doubts and found it crazy that Rose hadn't even tried to report him to anyone.
"I don't see why not. Can you truly say that you would have killed me?" Rose asked, and John shook his head. "No," John replied. "Then stop fretting over it." Rose seemed firm in her comment. John looked towards her. "But I..." John was cut off when Rose placed a finger to his lips. She stared at him with unwavering resolve. "John, my feelings for you won't change. You aren't the first person who had attempted to take my life, and you sure as hell won't be the last; however..." Rose's lips curved into a smile.
"You are the first person to have actually apologized for it. Not even Don had yet to apologize. Of course, I don't expect him to, nor do I blame him. At the time, I tried to kill him and everyone around him. Just like how I don't really blame you. I know what it is like, having lost everything, having to feel the pain of it all." Rose's voice shifted softly.
"I know." John would take her hand and lace their fingers. "The only difference is that I still have my brother," John said softly. Rose nodded, "And now you also have me. So, no more fretting over stupid things. You have to keep us safe." Rose said with a soft smile. "Right." John nodded happily. "Although, it'll be more so you keeping us safe. I am still not as strong as you." John admitted with a slight chuckle.
"Really? Your assassination attempt was pretty clean. You could make for a decent assassin one day if you wanted to. Do you want me to train you?" Rose said. At first, John thought she was joking, but then he realized how serious she was with the look in her eyes. "Oh... uh... you are serious. Can you let me think about it?" John commented.
"Of course, but don't think I extend this offer to just anyone. I am only offering because we are a couple now, and I want my other half to be as strong as me." Rose said. John didn't know if he was being punished or just downright lucky for what was going on now. On the one hand, he felt like he got off easy with what was going on, whereas now, he thought this would be a form of punishment.
Although, he didn't mind this punishment. If anything, he was happy about it. "Right." John expressed with a smile, and the two hugged each other.
"Seems like everyone is getting with someone." Jake sighed lightly. He had actually gone up to the third floor to clear his mind. He wanted to go outside, and more so, go into the watchtowers or on the roof, but it was still raining pretty heavily out there. So, he settled for the third floor and away from others, but then he noticed two others coming up here, and that was when he just decided to hang out.
"Don and April, Ion and Jessica, and now Rose and John, even Tim, and Katelyn. Noah and Alice seemed to like each other, and Sarah and Tyrone like one another. I am sure I've seen that Lilly chick checking out Don every now and again, and Jen is more so sexually attracted to Don" Jake sighed lightly once again.
"There's that Sussan girl, but I am sure she likes someone else. I've got her looking at Boss a few times, but who knows. As for Boss, it seems like the man has his own little entourage of women. Natalie is gorgeous, but she's leaving soon, and Rebecca is more like an aunt to all of us, so that's out of the question." Jake murmured to himself.
"I wonder when it'll be my turn..." Jake sighed heavily; although, this train of thought was better than what he previously thought. He had been judging himself a bit harshly lately. He felt like he wasn't doing much for the others or even their entire group. Sure, he had his Seed Power, but that was it. At the end of the day, he wasn't super smart like Josh. He didn't know how to build stuff like Noah. He wasn't super strong or tough like Don, and if anything, even John was getting places, or so it seemed with how he and Rose were an item.
"Am I truly cut out to be here..." Jake muttered to himself.