Lolita Love Story

"Where do you want to go?" he asked with eager eyes. Saikai found herself smiling. Caym looked almost like a nervous child. She had never seen him like that, nor had she ever expected to. "How about the arcade?"

She pursed her lips, recalling Rie's story about her summertime friend, the pale boy with silver hair who played games with her at the arcade. The vague description matched Caym, but it wasn't something that could easily be confirmed since they hadn't seen each other outside of their time spent together at the arcade, and they hadn't shared anything personal according to Rie. They hadn't even swapped real names.

"I don't really like video games, but I'm willing to try."

"No, no, no. Video games are something I do with my friends," he said, waving a dismissive hand. "You're not like them. You're my friend too, but I think of you differently than that."

She blushed, wondering how someone could be so blunt.

"Maybe we should go to the park," he continued to himself. "Or we can go to a movie..."

They walked past the loud arcade and the groups of children running out with stuffed toys, holding them up excitedly like little trophies. It was the arcade Saikai went to days ago with Rie to do purikura. She wondered if it was the same place where Caym and Rie had spent their summer days together. He didn't seem to be interested in it now.

"We can do karaoke," he offered, watching her carefully. "I have more than enough for a few hours."

"Oh... I'm not very good at singing, though." As she said it, she felt a stab of guilt. Was she being too difficult? "But... It's okay to try it."

"What do you usually enjoy doing?" he asked patiently. It made her realize that he honestly knew almost nothing about her, and she realized that she should have felt less comfortable than she was with someone so unfamiliar.

"Um, I usually just read or do homework. I don't really have time to do anything other than that." She smiled to herself suddenly. "But I've always wanted to go to a zoo. I never had the chance as a child."

"We can go to the aquarium, then," he said, leading her down another large street. She blushed as he took her hand and wove through the streets. Suddenly, a large, modern building was in view. Its silver trim was shiny and new, and its windows were tall and clear. It had just been finished a few weeks ago, though she hadn't seen the project completed. She wondered how Caym knew about it, as he didn't seem the type to enjoy such things. They stopped in front of it and he turned his face toward her. "Well, what do you think?"

"I don't know what to think," she said, smiling. "I saw the construction, but I didn't know it was supposed to be an aquarium."

He squeezed her hand, making her realize that their hands were still clasped. Her heart fluttered uncertainly. "Come on, Sai-chan. Let's go in."

***

It was sunset by the time they left the aquarium. They had seen everything- the whales, dolphins, and sea turtles, and all kinds of fish, shellfish, and coral. There had even been jellyfish. Caym didn't have much to say most of the time except some friendly conversation, but he seemed to be satisfied that Saikai had enjoyed herself. Saikai found herself less bothered by his hand over hers as they went further and further into the aquarium, but she still distantly felt that she should pull away. As they walked home, his hand remained in hers. She wondered if he knew how she felt.

"What was your favorite thing today?" he asked suddenly.

"I really liked the jellyfish," she answered, smiling a little. They had been like little swirls of lace, with their beautiful dress tails flowing behind them. And they were all different colors- purple, red, blue.

"I'm surprised you haven't seen an aquarium before," he said, smiling. "I thought all children must see that."

"Yeah," she said uncomfortably, "I guess they do."

"So, what's different about you?" he asked, looking at her with black-brown eyes that seemed to probe into her soul. They were hard and sharp, like little arrowheads. She felt a chill along her spine, raising gooseflesh on her arms, and she looked away as fast as possible. Caym hadn't looked like that a second before. In the moment that he looked at her with those frightening eyes, something had changed completely. Her heart began to pound in her chest, hammering angrily against her ribs. Everything within her struggled to be free, like she would explode at any moment.

"My father works overseas," she answered uncertainly, her hands shaking now. She realized suddenly that he was no longer holding her hand.

As if not noticing her sudden fear, he pursed his lips, a grin pulling at the corners of his frighteningly handsome lips. "So, who takes care of you, then?"

Saikai felt a surge of urgency. Something told her to tell him a lie. Anything but the truth. She had never felt like this before. It was terrifying.

"Is it your mom?" he probed, not bridging the space between them to take her hand like he had before. He remained close enough that he could easily grab her, and it scared her. She eased away from him as quickly as she dared to, but found that he was following her and closing the gap. "Or an aunt, perhaps?"

"A friend of the family," she corrected, focusing on the distance back home. It was getting dark now. They were still a few minutes from her home. Saikai wished that he didn't know where she lived. She wished that he hadn't been the one throwing rocks at her window and eyeing her from afar. She wished he'd just never seen her.

Before he could respond, his phone rang and he answered it impatiently. She couldn't understand what he was saying; the language sounded unfamiliar. After talking for several minutes, he slid the phone shut and walked silently beside her.

"What happened?" she asked, noticing his changed expression.

"Nothing," he assured her firmly. "I can't walk all the way back with you, but I think you'll be fine by yourself."

"O-okay."

Suddenly, Caym wasn't at all what Saikai had thought he was. He wasn't the pleasant, mysterious, and smooth but misunderstood guy. Was it a persona? Was it a mood?

Caym was exactly what his piercings and tattoos had hinted at.