"Well, Kiyomi, I had fun today talking with you. My other friends are nice to talk to, but you entertain me far more than any of them. I hope we can talk more from now on. I'd enjoy that," says Olympia.
"I'd enjoy talking to you more, too."
"It's gonna cost you."
"You just said you'd like to talk to me more, too!"
"Did you seriously think that you weren't gonna pay for today? Only two types of people get to talk to me for free: the person I talk to in the mirror and the homunculus inside of my head."
"So one is the least attractive person in the universe, and the other is something we aren't truly certain exists?"
"I'm telling my girlfriend I talk to while we admire ourselves in front of the bathroom mirrors that you called her repulsive and boring."
"I thought you were talking about yourself! Also, I didn't call them boring…"
"Freudian slip."
"Yes, it was."
"Bermudian trip!"
"Maybe it wasn't!"
She giggles. I'm genuinely shocked by how she was able to come up with that on the spot.
"Tomorrow, we'll go to the beach," she abruptly brings up.
"Isn't it too early to have a beach episode? I feel like we should save that for later."
"It'll take a while to get to Bermuda."
"You were serious about that!?"
"Hiccup. Sorry for that rather long hiccup. What I meant to say was tomorrow we'll voyage to Kagoshima!"
"I don't like where this is going…"
"Hiccup. Hiccup. Jeez, I need to drink some water while I'm upside down."
"I know a Shinji fellow who can help with that."
"I thought you didn't have any friends?"
"Never said I did. Just said I knew someone."
"Ah, my mistake. See, even someone like me can slip up."
"I don't recall leaving a banana peel on the floor."
"Pfft. You're so silly and so easy to talk to. It's hard to believe you don't have any friends. Well, enough banter for now. Let's talk about what we should do tomorrow."
"It's probably getting played out. Did you have anything in mind?"
"Maybe we can go to an arcade I know. Most people don't know this, but I'm a video game fanatic. I mainly play video games at home, and they're mainly single-player story-based games, but I sometimes indulge in multiplayer games where I don't need to think."
"I like playing video games, too. I mainly play solo because that's my only option. But sometimes I play online shooting games. I'm pretty bad at those, though. I have a really hard time coordinating with others."
"Ah, I see. That's a weird way of saying that you're a noob, but okay."
"I'll make you eat your words after you see my three-character name as the top score. Oto. Sounds cool, doesn't it?"
"Sounds super duper lame. Don't forget to include the corny smirk you had when you said that."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Anyways, you really must be an old soul if you think we're going to be playing those types of retro arcade games."
"Huh? What did you have in mind then?"
"There's a place I know where they let us use their newer consoles, like their new PlayStation and Xbox. I was thinking maybe we can play Mortal Kombat."
"Should I be concerned that you want to play a game where you beat me to death?"
"Only slightly."
"I hope this isn't some cruel foreshadowing…"
"If it was, you have a long future ahead of you."
Tell me about it.
"Wait, if they have recent consoles, do you think we can play Minecraft?" I ask
"You want to go to a super duper cool arcade just so you can play Minecraft? Might as well come over to my home then. I was looking forward to fatalitying you though…"
"Don't you know how horrifying Minecraft can be? Even if you're playing in Hardcore mode, you won't die from old age. You only die when you are killed, not by natural causes. Whether you're killed by yourself or others, you're stuck in a perpetual cycle of mining, building, farming, repeat. It's as if you were cursed to live. How would you feel if you couldn't grow old with any hope of dying in old age?"
"You have a lot of free time on your hands if you think about stuff like this. No wonder you don't have a girlfriend."
"I don't have a girlfriend by choice, not circumstance!"
"And a girl just invited you to play Minecraft at her home, and you aren't the slightest bit enjoyed. My ego… It aches…"
I hadn't processed the fact that I had just been invited by a girl to go to her home.
I'm all moist and clammy right now due to the realization.
"Don't hijack my narration!" I yell.
"I have no idea what you're talking about. So, which is it? Go to a super duper cool arcade with me, or come over to my home to play video games."
"Don't use italics like that as if anything else would occur. As much as I'd enjoy going over to your home, if we go to the super duper cool arcade, we can go to other places nearby, if there are any. Also, I'd like to see this arcade for myself. Seems like a zetta cool place."
"Cringe. Hiccup. I mean, I understand. You're only using me for my knowledge of locations and intend on taking your next victim there once you're done with me."
"That's not true!"
"Why didn't you add 'at all' to the end?"
"Foreshadowing?"
"Any girl who chooses to hang out with you must be dealing with severe mental issues."
"Was that foreshadowing?"
"Perchance."
"What an on-the-nose way to foreshadow."
"Butterflies don't even have noses, though?"
"I don't appreciate how you're making all of this tie together…"
"No matter where you are, everyone is always connected."
"It's rather surprising that you're well-versed in classic animes. I wouldn't expect that from someone like you."
"Someone like me, huh..."
I've said something wrong. I know I have. I've been given another shot at life, and I still made a stupid mistake. But haven't I said something like that just a while earlier?
"Well, I'll take you to the arcade tomorrow. Give me your number so we can keep in contact."
"Sure. Don't put something stupid as my contact name."
"I can't make any promises. Ciao!"
"Please don't make that your catchphrase for when you leave. The readers are probably already bored of the "super duper" saying."
"As if adding zetta is any cooler!"
"These were the last words exchanged between us today. Although I feel like I made up for the last time, that last remark is something that'll haunt me. How could I say something so insensitive?
Well, tomorrow is another day.