Simple Life

*Ding...Dong...Ding*

An echoing sound of an antique bell flooded the halls of one of the most successful academies located within the Eastern District. The warmth of the afternoon sun, hours before dusk, slipped through the blinds in a classroom of the academy. The room was near barren apart from a small, worn sofa and its two occupants. Because of the situation that occurred over the past few days, Alan and Evangela both agreed to stay near one another in crowded areas. Within the quiet and barren room was Evangela, peacefully looking through her holographic device, sitting next to Alan resting on the sofa without a care in the world. After the afternoon bell finished chiming, the door to the empty classroom slammed open. The noise startled Evangela and caused Alan to jolt up. However, if this was a genuine threat, Alan would not be of any help as his eyes were still closed.

"Guess what?" Marshal shouted as if he was a kid running to tell his mother something exciting that he just found out. Alan ignored him and lay back down, pretending to sleep. Evangela stared blankly at Marshal. "Ouch, that hurts, especially from you Evangela." He whimpered.

"S-sorry, you just caught me by surprise." Evangela couldn't look Marshal in the eyes.

"You know Alan," Chronos said to Alan telepathically. "This is a dangerous game you're playing." Chronos' tone was oddly playful. While Alan knew Chronos switches his tone with him every so often, he still couldn't help but wonder why. Despite not knowing the real answer, Alan just chalked it up to him being bored and left it there.

"I'm aware, but she seems like a good fit for Marshal," Alan responded.

"You are blind, my friend." Chronos sighed. "But what are you gonna do if your plan backfires?"

"It won't. I'll play matchmaker and all my problems will melt away."

"How so?"

"Simple. I get Marshal to find his way into Evangela's heart. Then once Evangela falls for him, she'll rely on him to protect her. Once that happens, I can finally be free to enjoy myself without the worry of having to protect someone." Alan had a smug tone. Chronos clicked his teeth, then followed with a burst of strange laughter that didn't match. "Huh?"

"It's nothing. But I hope you realize that this plan of yours isn't gonna work. Marshal might be someone who can easily fall for girls, but he isn't the type to mess with their hearts. Once he finds out, he'll give up."

"What do you know about him?" Alan asked. Instead of an answer, Alan was met with a dry laugh.

*Bonk* Alan felt a sudden fist-like blow to the head. "Owwww," he groaned in pain. Alan slowly got up from the sofa and glared at Marshal.

"Then wake up already so we can have some fun," Marshal said with a smile.

"Take a hint, you bastard," Alan whispered.

"Ummm… where are you planning on going and for how long?" Evangela asked bashfully for some reason.

"The three of us are going to the amusement park!" Marshal brought out three tickets. With a childish smile on his face, he waved them around. Seeing the joy in his eyes, Alan felt a tad bit bad about what he was about to say next. He walked up to Marshal and placed his hand on his shoulder.

"I hate to burst your bubble like this but," Alan interjected, "Normally today is my day off, like you, but since I haven't been to work for two days, I kinda need to head in today."

"Oh…" Evangela and Marshal both said in response.

"Well, I have to go," Alan whispered while grabbing one of the tickets. "Good luck on your date." He gave Marshal a pat on the back.

"You set me up, you bastard."

"Hehe, payback." Alan walked out of the classroom.

~~0~~

A half-hour later, Alan got off the train and walked into the industrial section of the Eastern District. The streets were filled with large vehicles either delivering materials or picking up goods for delivery. The roads were narrow and all the vehicles that drove on them kicked up a lot of dust. 'Normal' factory buildings littered the industrial section of the city, as this part of Old Providence suffered the least amount of damage during the quake. Alan strolled through the busy streets while listening to music, trying to zone out the loud noises until he approached a building called, 'Old Tradition Wood shop'. The sign was old and worn, with the 'Old Tradition' part being made of fresh wood. He took off his headphones and walked inside.

"Yo boss, I'm here to work overtime if needed," Alan yelled across a wide area filled with machines and tools. The smell of fresh sawdust lingers in the air, giving the place a warm summer vibe as the heat from the machines combined with the sawdust.

"Oi, welcome back," a large older man walked out from a large bandsaw machine. "No need to worry about overtime, lad. Linda told me what happened." He smiled. "I managed to knock out some of your minor projects. I was nice enough to leave the unplanned ones alone. You can thank me with some beer."

"Well, I guess I'll work overtime as seen fit then." Alan ignored the past part and grabbed his stuff and headed over to the employees' room to change into more sawdust-friendly clothing.

"Oops," the large man said as he watched Alan walk into the room. "I'm sure he'll be fine. I hope he's not awkward with women." He then stood across from the door with a smug look on his face.

Upon opening the door, he saw the sight of a topless woman and he immediately closed the door. "Hey boss," Alan said with a stern expression, "Care to explain?"

The girl in question had just finished changing and walked out of the employee room. She was a tall girl dressed in a tomboy-like fashion. The girl wore a yellow and black plaid shirt with a pair of faded blue jeans with tares. She had long, dark brown hair tied behind her and light brown skin similar to that of light chocolate. "Hello there Mr. Macemon, it is nice to meet you. My name is Maria Vincent. From here on out, I am your apprentice." Her brown eyes sparkled with excitement as she looked Alan in the eyes.

Alan turned to look at the large built man behind him.

"As you heard from her, she is your new apprentice," the man said with a big smile. "After all, you have worked here for about 5 years now, so it's about time that you get to train someone."

Alan scratched his head, "I get it, I get it," he turned to look at Maria, "It's nice to meet you, let's get along." The girl smiled and went to wait for Alan to get changed in the main area.

"Treat her well Alan. She was waiting patiently to start since Wednesday, but you were kinda caught up in playing the hero." The man gave Alan a stern look as if he was trying to tell Alan something deeper than what was spoken.

Alan caught on to what he was hinting at, "Don't worry sir, I have learned that hating outsiders for not understanding our pain is completely unjustified."

The man raised an eyebrow. "I have to guess that the girl you saved was an outsider also?"

"Am I that easy to read?" Alan sighed.

"Yup!" The man slapped Alan on the back with some force. Alan stumbled forward a little. "She's a foreigner who has a knack for working with her hands. Hint hint. She is the same age as you, so it's a win-win learning experience for you." He finished with a wink and walked back toward the machine he previously had been working with.

"Old man, don't be a creep." Alan turned and walked into the employee room to get ready to work for the day.