"... And then I met Rose. She gave me the direction and guidance I needed. She served as my mentor, and helped me out when I needed her the most. I owe a lot to her."
Matt could do nothing but listen in silence as Violet opened up to him. In such a short time, he realized he really knew nothing about her.
She still didn't go into any details about her past, and Matt grew increasingly curious. However, there had to be a reason behind her not saying any more than she did, so Matt decided not to probe any further.
'She'll tell me when she's ready.' For the time being, he was grateful he got to listen to her vague origin story.
'Whatever she went through, it must have caused her to wait a whole year to begin college. That's why she's a freshman, even though we should both be sophomores.'
Violet was brilliant, so Matt doubted she failed the exams. Whatever happened to her must have shaken up so badly, she needed to take some time off.
"Thanks for telling me, Violet. I really appreciate it."
"Yeah, it feels really nice talking to someone about this kind of stuff, you know? I only had Rose back then, and she was really busy, always going on missions. On a few occasions, she would take me along with her, though."
The more he heard, the more Matt realized how lonely it must have been for Violet. It made him feel even worse for pushing her away when she kept pestering him.
'Apologizing will get me nowhere, though. I should do better than that!' Right then and there, he decided to be more intentional about his relationship with her.
"Alright, Violet. Since we're both in this together, what do you say to being friends?"
Violet's eyes widened in surprise, causing his heart to race. He was also experiencing a similar reaction, and he felt so elated that he was at a loss for words.
Was she so surprised that he was offering friendship to her, or…?
"I thought we were friends already, Matt."
"O-ohh yeah. I guess we are. Haha!" He laughed awkwardly and nodded.
"Yeah! Hahaha!" Fortunately, she didn't notice how uncomfortable he was, and she started to laugh as well. The tension around them slowly dissipated.
Together, they sat on the bench and laughed till they were tired.
"Alright! We gotta do the fist bump. That'll be our signature friendship move." Matt said to her and smiled, suddenly feeling an even greater rush of emotion than before.
This overwhelming feeling had been building up inside him, and now he felt like he was about to explode.
"You know fist bumps aren't exactly a signature move right?"
"W-well, it's a good start!" Matt stretched his fist out, smiling shyly at Violet.
He hadn't done anything this corny in a while, but he couldn't resist.
"Fine." Violet laughed, stretching out her fist too.
Both fists bumped, and they made explosion gestures as they retracted their hands—simultaneously. It was both funny and weird that they both did the same thing without any prior agreement.
It reinforced something that he had been mulling over for quite some time now.
'I still really, really, really like Violet.' Her carefree laugh enthralled him. He especially liked the way she threw her head back when she laughed, it was so cute.
Unable to help it, he also began laughing along with her, and both of them laughed long and hard—not caring if anyone was watching them.
It led Matt to his second discovery—one he had been scared to admit to himself.
'I really am a Chuunibyou at heart.' He realized, in that warm moment he spent with Violet. They said no words to each other, they merely laughed and laughed and laughed some more, both not wanting the moment to end.
'... Always have been, always will be.'
*
*
*
A black car was parked by the side of the curve, and three individuals sat inside.
One sat in the driver's seat, tensely gripping the steering wheel. As for the other, he held a pair of binoculars and looked through them. After a few seconds of silence, the one with the binoculars pointed enthusiastically.
"Targets spotted. They're currently laughing beside the fountain—where the recently collapsed Link was detected." He said to his companions.
For a brief moment, silence enveloped the car.
The driver was as tense as earlier, and the man with the binoculars wasn't any better off. However, he mustered up some courage and he spoke up.
"They're the two new recruits from the Chuunibyou Society, just as the intel stipulated. Should we make our move now? Give the command, and—"
"No." A feminine voice suddenly spoke up from the backseat of the car, causing the two men to stop what they were doing and pay rapt attention.
They dared not look back to see her face, so they concentrated their gaze on the sight before them.
"It's premature to do anything at this stage. I suppose, before we do anything, I should inform the leader first." Her voice was calm, but she sounded sinister and cold.
It caused even these two grown men to tremble.
"Y-yes. You are right."
"I-indeed."
They both nodded and affirmed her words, while taking covert glances at the boy and girl who were already leaving the fountain side. The campus was vast, and they could be heading anywhere.
"Should we still follow them? Observe them a little more, or—"
"There's no need for that. Let's go."
Nodding rapidly, the driver ignited the engine of the gleaming dark car. The vehicle hummed as it was brought back to life, but the sound was interrupted by the laugh of the woman at the owner's seat.
Her laugh was so menacing that her companions shivered in their seats.
"This should be interesting. Hahahahahahaa!"
Thus, the car zoomed off—leaving nothing but a trail of dust, and a terrible foreboding of the darkness to come..