[center][h2][color=6ecff6]Vignette IV[/color][/h2] [h3][color=7bcdc8]Code Red (Part 2)[/color][/h3][/center] [hr] Aurelia was unsure of why she felt tense around Crash. He treated her nicely, so she should not feel pressured by any form of harm he could give her. He did not look scary, so she had no reason to be scared of his looks. And apparently, he was a veterinarian; that was not a scary job. For some reason, however, she could not help but feel nervous around him. "It's been a while," he said as he walked over and sat at a bench in a hallway. "Actually, it's probably more than just 'a while.' How were you?" "F-... Fine," she spoke softly as he made himself comfortable. "I think I'm doing fine..." "Well, that's good to hear! A lot of my friends seem to be having the time of their lives these days," Crash said with a smirk. "Fashion outlets, anime stores, flower shops... Business has been booming for them and, well, I can't say the same for me. But I finally managed to pay off a bit of that one debt I told you about!" Aurelia nodded. "Do you mean... the motorbike acc-" As soon as Crash froze deathly still, the girl zipped her mouth shut and blushed in embarrassment. She swore that she would not forget that the particular debt Crash had stemmed from one of his very own "noodle incidents." "O-On another note," the dark-haired girl attempted to change the subject as her brain plucked out the right words, "I managed to get... a job." The redhead's eyes widened as his idle expression turned into that of a mix of pleasant surprise and curiosity. "[b]Seriously?![/b] Wow, isn't that a really good thing? So you [i]have[/i] been doing more than just fine!" The beet red girl nodded. "I'm... w-working at a restaurant now," Aurelia managed to muster up her courage to share details on her new job to the veterinarian. "It's a family restaurant... Alegria. I-I'm still trying to learn the ropes." Sighing with a small grin, Crash crossed his arms as he told her, "I think I've actually been there before. Maybe there's a chance we could see each other there?" "..." "..." ... ... ... "T-Then again, maybe that's kinda awkward." Aurelia nodded, her redness somehow exceeding the absolute limit of "red." If there was one person she had wanted to meet again aside from her friends and family, Crash would easily count as a nominee simply because he had a lighthearted and comforting tone on most of the things he talked about. Some people took her final choice out of her job hunts as something done out of dire conditions. That was far from the case; she just wanted to help her family by doing something that would not hurt the people around her that much. In a work environment involving business and the likes, she would inevitably fall behind not necessarily due to her intelligence, but simply because of stress. She did not have a sturdy mental fortitude to keep up with both the physical and emotional strains most jobs pop up with. So she picked out the easiest route, as pathetic as that sounded to herself. Crash made it sound like a perfectly reasonable thing to her, and that made her feel less doubtful about making the wrong choice. She felt a bit worried about his presence as much as she calmed down around him, for sometimes she felt that he made her feel too important. That could have been her embarrassment getting the better of her, of course. The thoughts clouded with kind Crashes and stupid job issues made her feel lightheaded. Staring off at a wall beside Crash, Aurelia zoned out for a few seconds as she said absentmindedly, "It... would be great if we exchanged numbers..." "...?" The veterinarian blinked, noticing the girl's blank stare into nothingness as he nudged her softly. "Uh... Did you say something?" "...?" Crash stared at her with slightly widened eyes, wondering if she was not feeling well. "You said something about a great thing... I didn't hear the last bit, though." Aurelia blinked, wondering what he was talking about. "Oh wait, nevermind, I think I understood what you said!" Crash exclaimed as he took out a phone with a smile. "We should exchange phone numbers to keep in touch with each other more often!" "..." ... ... ... [i]Beep beep beep. Beep.[/i] Crash stared at his phone with an intense look, unaware of the fact that steam emitted from the person next to him. "Darn, I think I forgot my own phone number," Crash muttered, bewildered that he could go as far as to forget about what his own number even was. "Okay, I got it! Aurelia, let's- "...Aurelia?" Heat building up in her head, the girl trembled with a half-terrified, half-shocked look as she covered her face with her hands. She mumbled something in a sad tone, though it came out completely muffled. [i]This is why I can't have nice things,[/i] she thought as Crash began to ask if she ate something weird. [hr] Crash's phone number sat in Aurelia's contact list. [i]I... ended up getting his number,[/i] the timid woman thought as she headed over to Xander's hospital room. He told her that he would either call her or send her a message on the things he had not talked about during their brief conversation. The redhead said that he liked talking to his friends. A friend... [i]Am I... his friend?[/i] She thought, her heart warming at the thought. Unbeknownst to her, a very small smile crept into her blushing face as she opened Xander's door. As soon as she opened it, she found Yutaka playing a banjo with Cortez slamming her hands against a bongo right next to a blond man who looked like he was on the verge of dying out of aggravation. Reggie lay still on a couch, unconscious due to the sheer annoyingness of the two's little performance. "Oh, hi, Aurelia!" Yutaka shouted even though his banjo wasn't [i]that[/i] loud. "Come on and join us!" Aurelia politely refused by running away. [hr] "Welcome!" Cortez exclaimed. The brink of the afternoon had arrived, and that meant Alegria was back in business. "We just opened~!" Walking into the family restaurant with a grey shoulder bag filled with camera lenses, a red-haired woman nodded with a smile. "I think I've been arriving very early these days," she commented, getting a giggle from the short-haired, adventurous cook. As the photographer walked over to a table, Cortez squealed, "So Kathy, Kathy, Kathy, Kathy, Kathy! What pictures did you take? Do you have pictures? [i]Are they fantastic like usual?![/i]" Katherine Argall sighed and shook her head. "I managed to get some good shots, but I think I need to put more time into them. There's something left to be desired in them..." "But you always say that~. He he! Do you want the usual? I'll try cutting the price a bit more. Mr. Ito would probably understand if it's you!" Though the photographer opened her mouth to say something, Cortez sped off to the kitchen excitedly. She remained still for a brief moment before smiling at the sight of the excited cook chattering to her co-workers. Kathy turned to the wide window next to her and took a deep breath. [i]Maybe I should visit him soon,[/i] she thought as she relaxed. [right][h3]Vignette IV -END-[/h3][/right]