Oh, what a night...

“Stupid or not, it’s obviously still something.” Something had to be bothering Ethan, if it was making him hide like this! “Come on, I promise I won’t laugh.”

Ethan just knew the other boy was going to laugh at him. Still, he just sighed and looked up at Vahli and simply said, “My fan club.” He only called them a fan club because of their scary levels of organization and intel.

Ah, he shouldn’t be surprised to hear that… “Well, you have a few weeks to find it.” Hopefully she didn’t get too distracted from that. “Hey, the ice cream cart is still here. You want to get some?”

“Hm... ice cream.” Lizzy pretended to think about as a mischievous smile crept across her face. “Last one there is a fried circuit!” With that, she took off running to the ice cream cart.

“It can be fun but I sometimes run into bad people… but oh well.” he shrugged. “Maybe I can take you with me one day. Of course I’ll bring you back so Eddie doesn’t worry.”

“I guess... But there’s plenty of bad people without leaving home.” Lizzy had run into a couple, after all. Nothing that a swift kick in between the legs couldn’t solve, though. “I’d like that. But you know Eddie. He’d worry no matter what. He didn’t even want me to go to my new school because of how long I’d be gone and how far...”

Vahli was immensely confused. “Hiding? From what?” He had already joined Ethan, though, hunkering down being the giant.

Ethan hung his head down, hiding his face on his knees. “It’s so stupid..” He really didn’t want to say it. He could already feel the red flush of embarrassment creeping up his face.

“Of course. You remember where you put your fishing rod, yeah?” Ah, it was adorable to see her so excited. It made Eddie feel a bit better, walking alongside his little sister.

“Hm... It’s somewhere.” Lisbeth couldn’t quite remember. Maybe it was in the closet. Or behind the drawers holding all her electronic materials... Or under her bed. That could be it. “I’m sure I’ll find it!”

“Oh, that explains why you were gone so long. Oh, nothing really happened much. My hair turned white from all the ice growing on it, though I don’t mind it. I also started traveling a lot more. I don’t stay in the same place for to long.” He explains. “I think its called being nomadic?”

“Oh, that sounds fun. The traveling, I mean.” Lisbeth had noticed his white hair, but hadn’t really... cared? That wasn’t the right word. It was just that Kuro was Kuro. “I’d like to go to all sorts of places someday.”

He did. He totally just said that. Vahli fidgeted, not entirely sure how to react to such a comment. (Not a whole lot of people called him ‘pretty’.) “…W…Well….” He cleared his throat, rosy hues showing way too easily against his skin. “I didn’t say you couldn’t look. Just…no staring.”

Ethan’s face showed a hint of a smile now. “Oh, yeah. I guess there’s a difference.” Slowly, he reached out a hand, offering it in greeting. Now that he’d inserted his foot into his mouth, might as well introduce himself. “My name is Ethan.”

“Aw, it was nothing. No need to thank me Lizzy.” he gives a slight laugh. “I haven’t visited you and Eddie in a while.. how have you been?”

“More than nothing,” Lizzy smiled at him. “Well, I just got home a few days ago. My new school is kind of different... It runs almost all year long.” Every student there builds their own schedule, though there are minimum requirements. “But it was time for a break. Being too busy isn’t good, you know? What about you?”

“H…Huh?” He blinked, looking back at the giant. Did he just say what he thinks he just said…? “What do you mean by that?”

Ethan paused, mouth half open. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud. A faint blush rose to his cheeks, as he nervously held a hand in front of that foolish mouth. “Um, just... you’re too pretty not to look at.”

“You’re so weird, Book, how do you climb up here but not know how to get down?” He reaches for the cat, grabbing onto him before descending down the tree. “Here you go, Lizzy~”

“Oh, Book!” Lisbeth happily reached out to take the cat and cradle him in her arms. Book purred and mewed, before jumping down and trotting off towards home. “Silly kitty... Thank you so much, Kuro.”

Seeing such a giant act like that was…almost endearing. Vahli couldn’t help but return the stare for a moment, before letting out a soft huff. “Just try not to do it again.”

“I’m not sure I can help it...” Ethan tilted his head to glance at him through the fringe of his hair, still kind of looking down. The other boy was just too eye-catching.