The afternoon sun hung low over Polaris Academy's neighborhood, casting soft golden hues on the quiet streets. Nyota leaned against the patrol car, arms crossed, while Kilo paced lazily nearby, flicking a small pebble into the air and catching it over and over. The faint chatter of students leaving after-school clubs floated toward them, blending with the occasional rumble of passing buses.
"Remember what the superintendent said?" Kilo asked, breaking the silence. He caught the pebble mid-air and tucked it into his pocket, grinning. "About 'constant oversight' and how we're, like, the guardians of this sacred block?"
Nyota glanced at him, unimpressed. "We're here to make sure nothing happens, Kilo. Not to mock the assignment."
"Oh, I'm taking this very seriously," Kilo replied, his tone dripping with mock gravity. "I'm keeping a close watch… on whether or not I can nap without you snitching on me."
Nyota sighed, shaking his head. "If this is you taking it seriously, I don't want to know what slacking off looks like."
Kilo leaned back against the car beside him, smirking. "You're no fun, you know that? You're starting to sound like Sage."
"Someone's got to keep us focused," Nyota said, his eyes scanning the street. "This isn't a vacation."
"And yet, here we are. Babysitting a school and its overachieving students. Pretty sure nothing's going to happen." Kilo gestured toward a cluster of teenagers crossing the street. "If the superintendent wanted us to do something meaningful, maybe he could've, I don't know, not stuck Sage with cleaning toilets."
Nyota cracked a faint smile. "He's not cleaning toilets."
Kilo's grin widened. "Not yet, but give it time. By now, he's probably named the mop and given it a motivational speech."
--
Back at the precinct, Sage had been handed a mop and a bucket by one of the higher-ranked officers, who didn't bother hiding his amusement.
"Think of it as character building," the officer said with a smirk, leaning against the doorway. "Make sure those floors shine. Director Noriko herself could walk through here any day, you know."
Sage stared at the mop, his expression unreadable. "Right. Because clearly, there's no one else qualified for this job."
"Careful, Hikari. That's insubordination I'm hearing," the officer quipped, though his tone was more playful than reprimanding.
Another officer passing by paused to add, "Don't forget to do the restrooms. I hear there's a clogged one on the second floor."
Sage's grip on the mop tightened slightly, but he said nothing. With a sigh, he pushed the bucket forward and began swabbing the floor with slow, deliberate strokes.
"Just you wait," Sage muttered under his breath. "Next time you slip on a wet spot, I'll be sure to—"
"Talking to your new best friend already?" came another voice, interrupting his quiet grumble. One of the younger officers poked his head in, grinning. "Don't forget to give it a name."
Sage rolled his eyes but allowed a small smirk to break through. "I'm thinking something like... 'Liberty.' You know, for the irony."
--
Nyota chuckled softly, shaking his head. "You're relentless." The sound of Kilo's laughter snapped him back to the present. "What's so funny now?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Just picturing Sage standing there, holding his mop like it's some royal scepter," Kilo said, chuckling. "Poor guy's got to be fuming. You know he takes everything so seriously."
Nyota allowed himself a small smile. "He'll live. Besides, it's just until they decide what to do with him."
Kilo grinned mischievously. "You think he actually named it?"
Nyota shook his head, unable to hide his amusement. "Knowing him? Probably something philosophical."
"Or something dramatic," Kilo added, grinning. "Like 'Excalibur.'"
The two of them laughed, their voices mingling with the soft hum of the quiet street.
When the laughter subsided, Kilo leaned against the car again, a more thoughtful expression settling on his face. "Speaking of dramatic... when we head back, I'm driving."
Nyota turned to him, skeptical. "Yeah, no. And what's wrong with my driving?"
Kilo snorted. "You mean besides the fact that it feels like we're on a rollercoaster? Look, I'm just saying, I value my life."
Nyota gave him a deadpan look but said nothing, letting the jab roll off him.
Kilo glanced at the time on his watch and stretched his arms above his head, the boredom starting to creep in again. "Okay, I've officially watched enough pedestrians for one day. I'm starting to recognize faces."
Nyota smirked, pushing off the patrol car. "It's been, what, maybe a few hours?'
"Exactly," Kilo said with exaggerated exasperation. He shoved his hands into his pockets and gestured down the street with a tilt of his head. "There's that convenience store a block over. C'mon, let's grab something. If I'm stuck here any longer without caffeine, I'm going to pass out."
Nyota raised an eyebrow. "You're the one who just said nothing's going to happen. Aren't we supposed to stay put?"
Kilo gave him a mock-serious look. "Relax, we'll be back in ten. Plus, we're technically still on watch while we walk. You've got your sharp eyes; I've got my… charm."
"Right."
Kilo grinned, already starting to walk ahead. "It's a valuable asset, you know."
Nyota sighed. "You're lucky I'm not Sage. He'd never let this slide."
"Which is why he isn't here. Now, let's move before I starve to death."
Nyota shook his head but followed, his gaze flicking toward the school gates in the distance before shifting to the quiet sidewalks around them. The two of them strolled at a casual pace, blending in with the students trickling out of the academy and the occasional jogger.
As they neared the corner, the bright neon sign of the convenience store came into view, its windows plastered with advertisements for snacks, lottery tickets, and energy drinks. A small group of students loitered near the entrance, chatting and laughing.
"Think they've got anything decent in there?" Kilo asked, pulling the door open and stepping inside.
"Probably not," Nyota replied, stepping in after him, the faint hum of an air conditioner greeting them.
The store was cramped but well-stocked, aisles packed with colorful rows of chips, candy, and instant noodles. The scent of reheated hot dogs and fresh coffee lingered in the air. Kilo made a beeline for the refrigerated drinks, muttering about the lack of variety as he scanned the rows of bottles.
"You getting anything?" he called over his shoulder.
Nyota shrugged, his hands in his pockets as he wandered over to the snacks. "Not sure. Depends on if I see something worth trying."
"'No-fun Nyota,'" Kilo said again, shaking his head. "That's what I'ma start calling you."
Nyota continued weaving through the cramped aisles of the store, his gaze idly scanning the shelves. The hum of the air conditioner blended with the muffled conversations of other customers, creating a quiet backdrop to his thoughts.
As he rounded the corner, a small thud interrupted his focus. An item had fallen to the ground just ahead of him. Without looking up, Nyota instinctively bent down to pick it up.
The faint aroma of cinnamon and vanilla wafted toward him, catching him off guard. It wasn't just the scent—it was the realization that someone else had bent down at the same moment. Their hands hovered over the same item, frozen mid-reach.
"Sorry," the person murmured, their voice soft but audible over the hum of the store.
Nyota grasped the item first and straightened up, extending it toward them. "No problem," he said simply, his voice steady—until his gaze met theirs.
His words faltered, trailing off as he took in the sight of the stranger in front of him.
"My goodness…" he thought, his heart skipping a beat. "She's beautiful."
The two of them stood there for a moment, the item still in Nyota's outstretched hand. The noise of the store seemed to fade away, leaving just the two of them facing each other.
Nyota held the item out for a beat longer than necessary, their hands hovering just inches apart. He could feel the awkwardness rising in the silence, but before he could say anything else, the girl finally accepted the item with a small, almost shy smile.
"Thanks," she muttered quickly, glancing down at the item in her hands before looking up again.
"No problem," Nyota replied, forcing a casual tone, his heart still racing in his chest. "Just… don't drop anything else around me, alright?"
A brief smile tugged at the corner of her lips, but she didn't linger.
Before Nyota could think to say anything else, a voice called out from further down the aisle.
"Yo, Nyota, you ready to leave or what?" Kilo's voice carried easily through the store, breaking the moment.
The girl gave Nyota one last look—this time, her gaze softer—before she briskly squeezed past him, brushing by Kilo without a word as she made her way toward the register.
Nyota watched her go for a moment, the air between them now thick with unspoken thoughts, before he shrugged off the moment and walked toward Kilo.
"Guess that's it, huh?" Nyota said with a quiet exhale, trying to shake off the strange tension that had settled in his chest.
Kilo, who had been eyeing Nyota with a raised brow, finally spoke up. "What was that just now?"
Nyota glanced at him, his mind still drifting back to the brief, awkward exchange. "What was what?"
Kilo studied him for a moment, a smirk spreading across his face. He shrugged nonchalantly. "She was cute."
Nyota blinked, caught off guard by the sudden shift in Kilo's tone. He let out a half-smile, feeling a little more self-conscious than he'd like. "Yeah... she was."
Kilo's grin widened, clearly amused, but he didn't press further. Instead, he gave Nyota a playful nudge as they exited the store.