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n“That was exhausting…” Sam said, hunching forward unable to keep his back straight.

n“It sure was.” Said Shizuru with a giggle.

nThe two had finished their discussion with Melissa, the president of the forty sixth base’s Valkyrie fanclub, and were now heading to their rooms to get some rest.

nIt took far longer than any of them had wanted, and having had to deal with everything that happened throughout the day on top of lacking sleep Sam was just done. All he wanted was to go to his bed and sleep sixteen hours straight.

nStill, even with his eagerness to meet the sand man, Sam chose a longer route so he could spend a little more time with his girlfriend. They didn’t get much time for themselves all day so this was the bare minimum he had to do.

nThe base was brightly lit but the stars above were still visible. They passed through the small park where they kissed for the first time. The silence was overwhelming, only the rustling of leaves could be heard.

n“Sorry for dragging you into this.” Sam spoke, feeling it was a good time to apologize.

n“No, it was a wonderful experience, I would say.” Shizuru replied. “It’s as if I’ve discovered another side of you.”

n“Really?” Sam raised an eyebrow at her statement, but the Asian girl only smiled.

n“Despite how you look, you’re a really kind person, Doctor.”

n“What do you mean despite how I look? Is there a problem with my appearance?” Sam asked jokingly.

n“Well, you always look tired and grumpy. And you tend isolate yourself from others.”

n“Aren’t we the same in that aspect? The isolation part, I mean.”

n“I still interact with the other soldiers frequently, you know. Especially those in the same team as me.”

nTurns out Shizuru wasn’t as much of an introvert as she lets on.

n“Hmm… so, even though you have other acquaintances and friends you can spend time with, you always come to eat with me.” Sam said teasingly. “I see how it is.”

n“Well, you wouldn’t have noticed me otherwise.” Shizuru replied, a mischievous smile playing on her lips. “What about you, then? I would believe it’s a coincidence if it was just lunch and dinner, but how do you explain breakfast? You always made sure to show up even when you need rest.”

n“Well, isn’t that obvious?”

nShizuru felt herself getting pulled into the darkness. It happened so suddenly she didn’t understand what was going on. When her eyes opened she saw Sam’s face close to hers. With the feeling of a tree against her back as well she could easily tell what kind of situation they were in.

n“I was looking for the right opportunity.”

nSaying those words, Sam leaned in and placed his lips on hers. Shizuru was startled at first but then closed her eyes and submitted herself.

nAfter a while their lips parted. Shizuru looked down despite herself, attempting to hide her bashfulness. Sam had yet to have his fill so he kissed her again, this time taking much longer than before.

n“… so… does that mean you were after me all along?” Shizuru asked.

n“I don’t know when it happened.” Sam said. “One day I just realized I had a thing for you.”

n“Really?” She looked up at him, her eyelids lowered. “And why didn’t you say anything until now?”

n“Well, I was going to, eventually.” Sam replied. He felt that they were going into dangerous territories so he made sure to choose his words carefully. “Eating with you was one of the few good things in my life at the moment, I was afraid I would lose that if I made the wrong choice.”

n“Still, keeping me waiting for so long. Doctor sure is slow when it comes to those things.”

n“Well, I won’t deny that.” Sam replied.

n“Were you so busy playing with the weapons that you failed to notice the hints I gave you?”

n“Wha-“

nBefore he could argue her last statement, a bright white light was suddenly projected on them.

n“What’s going on here?”

nThe two heard a voice, but with their eyes blinded they could only see two black silhouettes a few meters away.

n“What in the world is going on here!?” A voice asked.

n“Oh no! Sergeant Ranly! It seems we have accidentally happened upon a couple while they were having a private moment!” Another followed. “To think we would be so careless that we ended up intruding on a couple while on patrol completely by accident!”

nThe two didn’t even attempt to hide it. They were purposefully trying to, and succeeding at, ruining the mood. Sam let out a sigh and shook his head. First they envy him for working with the Valkyries, and now for having a girlfriend. He doubted the day they would leave him alone will ever come.

n“Ooooh! Isn’t that the Doctor!” One of the soldiers said. “Come to think of it I heard he started dating that Asian chick from the monitoring division!”

n“Seriously!?” The other added. “Leave some for us man!”

nSam turned to glare in their direction. He couldn’t see their faces because of the light, however with his increased security clearance accessing the patrol schedules will be an easy task.

nThose two dared to ruin his time with his lover. Sam promised in his heart that he will make them pay.

n“Well, we better get going!” One of the soldiers said, turning the light in a different direction.

n“Oh! But don’t go doing anything naughty out here! You know, public morals and all!”

nThe two soldiers walked away, not bothering to hide their laughter. Sam let out a sigh, and so did Shizuru. The two stared at each other for a moment then began giggling in the next. After a while they came to a stop. Sam leaned in and kissed his girlfriend once more, but this time he decided to cut it short just in case those bastards were still around.

n“I really am the luckiest man in this base, huh?” He said jokingly.

n“Because you have me, or because you have the Valkyries?” Shizuru asked with a mischievous smile.

n“Because I make them all seethe in anger just by existing.”

nThe two laughed it a little then decided to call it a night. Sam wanted to invite Shizuru to his room so they could continue what they started, however after taking one step he realized that he was quickly nearing his limit.

n~◇~

nHaving escorted Shizuru to the female dormitory, Sam sluggishly walked to his room. He would change his clothes, brush his teeth then drop onto his bed. That was what he planned on doing at the very least, however when he walked over to the closet something on his bed entered his vision.

nLong white hair, pale white skin and a slender body. Sam rubbed his eyes a few times, thinking his exhausted mind was playing tricks on him.

nAfter all there is no way such an angel would be sleeping on his bed, right?

nA minute passed, then a second. Finally deciding to accept reality, Sam crouched down and reached with his hand about to shake the sleeping beauty.

n“Wake up, Alice.”

nHe took out his phone and checked if she had sent him any messages, but there were none. She didn’t have the stench of alcohol on her so she most likely didn’t wonder there while drunk. This was the first time she came over so the situation was far too unusual.

nSam was in no shape to deal with his childhood friend’s sorrows. He wanted to sleep, but he didn’t need much brain power to realize that, with her being here, it won’t be happening any time soon.

n“C’mon, Alice, wake up already!”

nWith very little patience left he shook her again, this time a little rougher. Thankfully he didn’t need to do much more as the long white eyelashes slowly parted.

n“… Doc… tor…?”

n“Yeah, the Doctor who’s exhausted because he had to work overnight but can’t rest with you on his bed.”

nA few seconds pass and Alice finally began to get a read on the situation around her. Her eyes shot open and she quickly lifted herself, her face heating up to the point she felt like it would fall off.

n“S-S-Sam! This is… I just…” She stammered, her hands moving erratically.

n“Yeah yeah, you came here and fell asleep while waiting.” Sam waved his hand dismissively. “How did you get in anyways?”

nSeeing how annoyed he looked Alice quickly regained her composure. Her eyes slowly swam to the lower left corner as she answered his question with a nervous smile.

n“Well, I’m the commander, you know. I can enter any place on this base.”

nSam realized the stupidity of his question right away. The rooms on the base used digital locks that can only be unlocked using the occupant’s ID. The commander, the person with the highest level security clearance, has the ability to enter any room on the base she runs. All she has to do is swipe her ID and the door will just open to her.

n“Alice, I’m seriously exhausted right now.” Sam said, supporting his wobbling head with a hand.

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