Olivia nodded as Damian rose from the table to pay for the meal. As she finished her meat pie, she fished her neural net device out of a pocket, glancing at the time. It had gotten late and she certainly had no intention of staying on Pittsburgh for any extended period of time - no matter how unexpectedly pleasant the visit and surprisingly agreeable the company. Though she had to admit, she would have to make sure to remember the diner's address. Perhaps it would serve as a reason for a future repeat visit.
Hearing talk and laughter coming from the counter at the back of the restaurant, she glanced up to see Damian and old man Sal engrossed in conversation - or rather, just Sal, with her date standing a little awkwardly across from him, listening politely to what the old owner was speaking at him. It sounded like someone wanted to take a photograph of something, but Olivia couldn't make out any details from across the room. She shrugged to herself.
Putting down her spoon and neatly stacking her used dishes one on the other, she stood up from the booth and leaned against the table, arms crossed in front of her, ready to leave.
Damian soon returned, with Sal following close behind, eagerly gripping a clearly dated camera. It wasn't necessary for any adjustments to the lighting with how bright the smile on the old man's face was. "It'll only take a second, I promise. But you two look happy together, and it's important to preserve memories of that. One picture of you two together and you can go. I know how busy being young can be." Damian could not possibly protest without being verbally run over with fatherly advice about how he needed to be more appreciative of the moment. "Fine, fine. One picture." Damian conceded and stood next to Olivia so Sal could do what he wanted. But clearly something wasn't to the old man's liking and he made it clear what that was. "Come on kid, that's your lady, you're standing next to her like she's some stranger. Stand closer together and hold her." With the utmost of hesitation and after exchanging a look with Olivia, he nodded to Sal and took a step closer. Knowing that wouldn't be enough for a sentimental old man, Damian was forced to place a hand on her back and adjust his body language, as if truly standing with a partner. In return Sal was true to his word and quickly captured the moment, forwarding the picture to Damian's PDA, trusting that he'd share it with Olivia.
With that finished and after a small exchange of pleasantries almost entirely by Sal, the two were free to go.
On indefinite hiatus because the current state of gameplay sucks - ping me over discord if replies are needed
For the nth time, Olivia raised her eyebrows, this time in renewed bemusement, as the old man stepped a few feet away, grinning an excited, childlike grin as he gazed through the camera's viewfinder. Glancing at Damian, who shrugged at her apologetically, she sighed and straightened up. With a more or less sincere smile, she looked back at Sal.
"Stand closer together and hold her!" He insisted. For an instant, her smile faltered. She tensed up ever so slightly as Damian inched a little closer and gently rested his hand on her back. It wasn't so much the fact that she didn't entirely trust the man at her side - though it was difficult to remain alert in such close proximity to him - but rather that aside from Isla and her uncle, she hadn't had much in terms of intimate contact with anyone in... She didn't even remember how long. Take it easy, she thought, they were merely indulging the whims of a kind old man - nothing complicated. As quickly as she had tensed up, Olivia relaxed again, her smile returning to her face just in time for the camera's flash to go off.
Together, their helmets pulled snugly over their heads again, they left the diner and stepped out onto the dimly lit street. Traffic had died down and there were only a handful of pedestrians still roaming the sidewalk, hurrying down the road to avoid any unnecessary exposure to the smoggy, ash-filled air. The distant roaring of furnaces and heavy machinery continued to emanate from the factories and mines surrounding the city.
"A kind old soul," Olivia observed, referring to the restaurant's proprietor. "A little insistent for my taste." She turned to face Damian, a smirk on her face, however hidden by the helmet.
He audibly laughed as she mentioned the old man's insistent nature, clearly he didn't disagree with that opinion. How could he? After being interrupted for what must have felt like an eternity. "No arguments there, he's an old fashioned man, but definitely a better man than I am." Starting up the bike soon after admitting that, he waited for her to get on safely before trying to move. From here back to the spaceport wouldn't be too long of a journey with how quick the bike was.
When they arrived he would pull up alongside the bench Olivia was sitting on when she first arrived, freeing himself of his helmet so that he could see her off and be heard clearly. Once more he offered to help Olivia get off the bike, gesturing for the helmet to be returned soon after she did. With the evening they shared together going as well as it did, he tried to contemplate parting words. "I know the trust you must have in me and what I say and do is as small as it can get. But I'm glad I called, and happy you chose to be here." A part of him was saddened by the fact a moment like this had to come to an end, he tried to shut it away but that just made the feeling more prominent and even visible. He felt the urge to ask if they could ever do this again, but denied it. Opting to instead just look at her, the manner in which he did so was quite a change from the times on Ames. It looked like affection in his eyes, a sense of appreciation for what had been shared.
What impacted him the most was a sense of anxiety, he didn't know that was what it was, but he knew he felt something and that frightened him. It wasn't at all something he considered a natural experience.
On indefinite hiatus because the current state of gameplay sucks - ping me over discord if replies are needed
Lightly shaking her head to let her hair disentangle after being clumped up within, Olivia pulled off the helmet and handed it back to Damian. A soft smile on her face, she looked the man in his unusually deep blue eyes. She'd had a good time, unexpectedly so. Going on a friendly date with one of Liberty's most wanted would not have been her idea of a relaxing evening, but as it turned out, it was surprisingly fun. But Damian's word struck true. They'd spend a pleasant time together, but she did not trust him beyond that. As much as he might claim and even show to be otherwise, to her, he was nevertheless the leader of a group of violent terrorists - something she could never reconcile with. At the same time, deep down within her, she had to admit that he wasn't the monster she would have expected such a man to be. The night had proven to her that he was more than capable of showing a genuine, human side to himself.
For a moment, Olivia struggled with her conflicting opinions. The look in Damian's eyes - was it longing? Affection? - didn't help with making up her mind. Internally, she sighed. It would take at least a good night's sleep to figure our what to think of this apparent enigma of an individual standing before her.
At the very least, she was appreciative. Appreciative of the fact that Moretti, of all people in the galaxy, had been able to draw her out of her rut of constant work and worry, had shown her what a relatively normal life could look like again, if only for a few hours. She felt like she owed him yet again.
"It was fun," she finally replied, her smile growing a little warmer. "I didn't know you had it in you to be so... agreeable." She chuckled softly at the jest. Then she glanced at the cluster of landing pads nearby, lit by enormous, if partially flickering, floodlights. Her ship stood on the farthest pad, freshly cleaned and waiting to carry her away from this sad, arid world. Looking back at Damian, she said, "I should get going."
A simple nod seemed like his response to her assertion that it was time to go, yet he still felt compelled. It was something he partially embraced, raising a hand for her cheek. He knew that any time he touched her was essentially a bargain, she could react negatively or even attack him for it given what she no doubt thought of him. It was incredibly stubborn of him to do that despite knowing the things that he did. What he was doing wasn't subtle, but it was a gesture he was hesitant to commit to. Though it was more likely that he was letting her decide how they parted ways for now. Either by bridging the gap between them or walking away. If she lingered, then his hesitation would die out and prompt him to lean in and make the decision for her.
On indefinite hiatus because the current state of gameplay sucks - ping me over discord if replies are needed
For the second time that evening, Olivia tensed up.
Instinctively, her right hand shot up and grabbed Damian's outstretched arm by the wrist, squeezing tightly. His hand grazed her cheek ever so slightly, trapped by her iron grip. In the same motion, her left hand reached down for the sidearm she kept holstered to her thigh, stopping just shy of clasping her fingers around the grip. A flash of hostility shot through her eyes as the smile vanished from her face. Her body shook slightly, a strange mix of surprise and anger coursing through both her veins and mind.
Only after several seconds, feeling like an eternity, did she realize what she was doing. Her hold of Moretti's wrist loosened slightly, but kept it firmly in her grasp. Her left hand pulled away from the pistol, fingers still twitching hungrily for the weapon. The rage disappeared from her gaze, to be replaced by cautious coldness, betraying no emotion. Nonetheless, she allowed the man's fingers to touch her face, if only ever so slightly. His fingers were soft, not what one would have expected from a man who spent his days fighting for the freedom of the oppressed and forgotten - though she was hardly surprised, judging by his carefully maintained, classy appearance.
She took a deep breath, waiting a moment before letting the air escape from her again. Ever maintaining eye contact with the man across from her, she slowly lowered Damian's hand, finally releasing it entirely. For a moment, she tried to think of something to say, some manner in which to express her feelings in that instant. Only to find that she had no idea what exactly her feelings were. All she knew was that she didn't know how to handle the situation at hand.
So she chose the easiest out - not handling it at all.
Wordlessly, she straightened her shoulders and looked away towards her ship. Hesitating only for a second, she started walking, leaving Damian behind, standing beside his hoverbike. The few dock workers still on duty nodded at her as she approached her craft and climbed into the cockpit. Gazing out through the canopy as she flicked the power on, she could see the commander of the Xeno Alliance looking after her. She averted her eyes and engaged the engines, the ship lurching off of the landing pad and rapidly ascending into the forever dust-filled air.
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