Finally, A Quiet Afternoon

Mei's door rattled ominously as she shoved her key into its rusted keyhole.

"You need to fix it," said Asher, but Mei shook her head.

"Still works," she smirked as the door swung open on its rusty hinges.

Asher paused as he stared into the dark room.

"Hey... If L Corp can sell a phone battery that lasts years, why are there no lights in here?" He glanced at the flashlight in his hand; engraved on its side was a noticeable 'Enkephalin Battery' label.

"The lighting system in this place died a few years back; I tried to get a new one from L Corp but it was too expensive. There are shops that sell lights for cheap, but they're in the Neon Districts. I'm just grateful for what we already have~" Mei went to the bathroom to wash herself, bringing her clothes and towel with her.

Confused, Asher wondered why L Corp couldn't just put a battery on a light, but he shrugged, pushing it to the back of his mind. It didn't really bother him much, anyway. He could go to the Neon District himself and buy some for her tomorrow.

Opening the door into her bedroom, Asher nearly leaped straight onto her fluffy bed, but stopped himself at the last moment. Asher could still smell the blood on his skin from this morning with Pierre and Jack.

Although his clothes had changed back, the smell of blood still reeked on him. Not wanting to ruin the cleanliness of her bed, he decided that he would wash himself too, after Mei finished.

Soon enough, the door opened to admit Mei, who had changed into more casual clothes. Her hair was damp, wetting her plain white shirt until it was nearly transparent. She wore a short denim fabric that exposed the skin on her pale thighs.

"Ahem... Is that what you usually wear at home?" Asher looked away in common decency, and Mei nodded her head.

"Yep, it's the most comfortable for me. Do you want to take a shower too?" Mei handed him a towel and some clothes, which Asher took gratefully. Hopefully the clothes were androgenous, like that pink onesie that she gave him last time.

Oh wait, he was wearing that right now.

Since he didn't spend much time in his own body after getting Sophie's Synchronization, he hadn't really noticed how strange he dressed.

However, looking at the clothes Mei gave him this time, it seemed he wouldn't be embarrassed any longer. A simple purple hoodie and comfortable-length shorts, nothing too weird. Of course, she didn't have any underwear to give him, but that was to be expected.

Asher thanked her before walking away to the shower.

He locked the door and unconsciously took in a deep breath. The bathroom, its air still damp from the previous user, smelled... really good. Not only with the sweet smell of shampoo, but also just the lingering feminine scent in the air.

The sound of running water filled the room as he turned on the water. He noticed a small grate near the top of the ceiling that let out a bit of natural light so he wasn't forced to use his flashlight to see.

The water was perfectly warm.

...

Mei sprawled out on her bed, enjoying its pleasant softness. She wondered what caused Asher to be so sad and listless. Although Mei said she wouldn't pry, she really wanted to anyway.

She realized that Asher could've helped her with the Soldato if she had just told him outright and gave in to his prying. And Sophie wouldn't have lost her arm trying to save her.

'Ah... Sophie...' Mei lifted her hand into the air, spreading her fingers out, thinking about what could have been.

Then Asher came out of the bathroom. She sat up, gesturing to a space beside her, erasing the sadness from her face.

"It's lazy Tuesday! Come here~" She was all smiles. Asher could tell something was wrong, but didn't press her.

Mei seemed to use her time off work exclusively to be passive and unproductive. Asher led a fairly busy life, so he could get behind that.

'A little bit of laziness wouldn't harm anyone,' he decided as he tossed his body onto the bed like a sack of potatoes. They laughed as the bed quivered at the sudden force of a falling object, causing both of them to bounce up and down like jelly.

They snuggled their shoulders against each other in amicable silence, only broken by their rhythmic breathing. Their body warmth negated the necessity for a blanket as it was kicked into the corner of the bed.

Neither of them spoke about it, but in the short span of two days, they had formed an unbreakable bond with each other.

Mei turned her head toward Asher, finally unable to contain her curiosity.

"Asher... What happened at lunch that made you so sad? Is it about the girls, or maybe because of me? Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?" She clasped his hand with her own in the darkness.

As seconds of silence passed, Mei took her hand off of his. She believed the silence meant Asher was mad at her and that she did something wrong.

"Sorry, wrong ques-"

Asher gently shook his head, interrupting her.

"No, it was a fair question. I actually have a few myself, if you don't mind. They're related to yours."

Mei, of course, didn't mind, and motioned for him to continue.

"What are your feelings toward the Fingers? Have you heard of anything about the ones besides the Index and Thumb?"

This time, it was her turn to be silent. She only spoke after a few moments of thought.

"Truthfully... I think the Fingers are all despicable. The Associations do nothing to them because they 'manage territory'. They mainly focus on the peace of the Nests, completely ignoring the Fingers in the Backstreets as they torture us!" Mei seethed through her teeth, digging her nails into his skin unconsciously.

Asher knew a bit more than Mei did. The Hana Association did have a bottom line for the actions of the Fingers, shown by the bounty they put on the Pinky. But considering the common extortions of the Thumb, their bottom line was very low.

"What about the Index?" Asher laid motionless, allowing Mei's nails to scratch on his skin. He made sure not to let any pain out in his voice, though it didn't hurt that much in the first place.

"...My mama used to tell me horror stories about the Index and their Prescripts. Then she died after not completing her own."

"I-I'm sorry." Asher didn't know what to say. He didn't remember his mother, so he could only apologize sympathetically.

"That's why I pay the Thumb directly instead of going through those bullshit Prescripts. They lure you in with easy ones at first, but-"

She paused to collect herself.

"My mother's last one was to stab me through the eyelid with a rusty nail in my sleep. When I was fifteen. A Messenger forced her to read it out loud. In front of me." Mei's tone was flat and uncaring, at least on the outside. The way she shivered proved otherwise.

Horrified, Asher pulled her into his arms in an attempt to calm her down. Mei dragged in a shuddering breath and wept into his chest, wrapping her legs around his waist.

"She didn't do it, of course. She knew that she would be punished for it, but she just waited, telling me how to live after she died. Then a Proxy finally came for her and... murdered her right in front of me. Why couldn't I have died with her? Why did it leave after killing her?!"

Asher stroked her hair gently, speechless. Soon, her choked wails subsided into muffled sobs.

"I say nice things about little Yan... and she's truly a good person... But she has to do her job as a Messenger, you know? You've seen how her expression changes after she gets a Prescript, right? If she doesn't deliver her Prescripts, then she'll die too. I can't blame her," Mei sighed.

Asher kept stroking her hair, and she didn't mind the feeling of his hand on her head.

"It's okay. I'm here for you," Asher whispered quietly.

Mei barked with laughter, mocking him.

"Pft. Then apologize to Sophie. She sacrificed her arm trying to save me, all for your sake." Asher opened his mouth to argue, but quickly realized it was pointless. He shouldn't ruin his disguises just for momentary satisfaction.

Instead, he hummed in agreement, whispering in her ear.

"Don't worry, I will."

The atmosphere suddenly turned rosy. The two of them simultaneously locked eyes with each other.

The conversation escalated unknowingly to the point that their bodies were nearly glued together.

"Damn, kid... You think you're pretty slick, huh?" She pulled away from him, smirking as he stammered. Her body was sticky with sweat, her plain white shirt almost transparent.

"N-No, I didn't mean it like that-"

Mei chuckled.

"I know, silly~ Thanks for comforting me, Asher; I never had anyone to talk to about it until today. Now turn around, I gotta change out of this shirt." As Asher turned around, Mei peeled her sticky shirt off, replacing it with a dry, light pink one.

Asher turned back once she was finished.

"What time is it? I want to look for something if there's still time left."

Mei took out her phone, squinting at the display.

"You still have two hours left until night, so you should be fine. What are you looking for?"

Asher hurriedly swung out of bed, dashing out the door.

"I'm gonna buy some lights from the Neon District for us! See ya!"

"Wait! That place is-"

The door slammed shut.

"-dangerous..." Mei looked at where Asher was a few seconds earlier.

She smiled. Asher was the one who saved her; she didn't need to worry. She recalled the conversation they had about how her house had no lights. He must have left because of that.

'Even though he's still a kid, he's already so mature and responsible...'

Mei had never dared to go to the Neon Districts other than the trip to the Thumb nightclub yesterday.

Being female, a pretty one at that, was a legitimate occupational hazard in the Backstreets, so Asher's kind gesture touched her heart.

She began to think about what to prepare for dinner. It was going to be fancy, she decided.