[b]November 3rd, 2019
10:35 AM, PT
Buffy’s, Coast City[/b]

[hr][center][h3][color=#22ff00][u]Echo[/u][/color][/h3][/center]

There were few things Ezra would ever regret more than betting on Ives, even though it had been informal and nothing had been wagered it was still going to go down as the day a happy go lucky kid turned half an hour into an eternal stretch of hell.

As the first round came to a close Kyle was worried, but defiant. He buckled down and stuck to his previous words, loudly insisting Hayes would win and cheering for the man exuberantly. He was a constant stream of facts and opinions mixed together in a never ending spew of words Ezra couldn’t keep up with, which was fine in Kyle’s book who was so absorbed in the match he never once looked away from the screen and bounced energetically in place, mock dodging and punching excitedly as the next round came on screen.

Then Hayes won, and Kyle went ballistic. Ezra wasn’t entirely sure what he’d said to the kid in the haze of happy celebration that followed, but whatever it was only made him more excitable as he lorded his victory over the entire gym. His efforts to calm the kid down were utterly fruitless, but he was saved when Farha finally arrived.

The muslim woman stepped into the shop, taking off her sunglasses and letting her eyes adjust to the new lighting for a second, and then just stood there taking in the scene for a long moment. Quiet Ezra, usually bored to tears and desperately patrolling his phone for something to read or watch or do, eagerly awaiting her arrival so he could finally go home- was instead replaced by a very stressed Ezra, smiling uncomfortably at a bouncing jibbering child flouncing all over the gym equipment and vomiting a range of words as he crowed his joy for all to hear. In the back a couple of young men were whispering to each other as they watched the scene, presumably taking a break from their workout to watch the mayhem unfold.

It very soon became apparent the kid was excited about a boxing match, as he returned to the TV and cried [i]’"MIRACULOUUUSSS" MAARVVIIINN HAAAAAYYYEEEEESSS!’[/i] in a faux deep voice.

In the second it took the kid to take a breath, Ezra pounced. “Oh Farha!” He said loudly, catching the kids attention that someone new had turned up. “Well, sorry kid, looks like my shifts over. How ‘bout we find your mom so I can go home and get some work done, huh?”

“Aww man!” The kid moaned, “Can’t I stay a little longer? He’s only just got his trophy!” 

“Nope, sorry, but it’s Farha’s turn now. Wouldn’t want to disturb the nice lady while she’s getting ready for her shift would we?” Ezra reasoned, but Farha knew that was all talk, she’d started her shift amidst five separate blaring radios a few times, on those days when the gym was packed and every speaker there was turned up to max, some playing different songs. She could handle a noisy rambunctious kid, this was clearly Ezra trying to make a hasty escape.

She considered protesting, getting Ezra and the kid to stay, she was awfully curious about her secretive coworker, and this random child would be sure to shed some light on his life, but before she could act on her half finished plan the child shot her a [i]look[/i], as if piercing into her very soul and rummaging for secrets. “Yeah, okay.” He said quietly, still looking her in the eyes and sounding suddenly very serious. What was that about?

Then they were gone, and Farha was left standing in the entrance trying to reorient herself.

Ezra took Kyle’s hand in his right, and with his left pulled a small backpack over one shoulder. He was a bit curious about why the kid suddenly switched tracks like that, and he was a bit concerned over how far his mood had fallen. He didn’t have to wait long to find out though, as Kyle looked and searched his eyes; “Do you ever get tired of hiding?” He asked, softly.

It was a short walk to the flower shop next door, where Kyle had said his mom would be earlier. They reached it after only a few seconds, but Ezra made no move to go in, and for a long moment the two aliens shared a moment of silence as they pondered their lives and their secrets. “Yeah.” He finally admitted, but it wasn’t a topic he was ready to broach, especially with an insightful child who may or may not read minds.

He opened the door and relaxed, hit with the smell of flowers. It was a nice place, but he’d never been inside before, had never had any reason to buy flowers. He wondered what reason Lauren had for buying them. Decoration? Had she met someone? Were they human? Maybe they were for family, how many of hers were here on Earth? Were they okay? He rolled his eyes at his train of thought, none of that was his business.

He spied the familiar woman talking to another girl ([@Korkoa]), presumably someone who worked here, and let go of Kyle’s hand. The kid bounded over to his mother, smile beginning to return, probably anticipating telling her all about Hayes’ victory. She looked over after greeting her son, giving Ezra a motherly smile and called over to where he lingered by the entrance; “Thanks Ezra! See you at The Small soon?”

He gave a noncomittal shrug at first, he was awfully busy, but then let out a reluctant; “Sure, see you then.” He gave a final wave before leaving, sparing a final small glance at the flower shop girl as he went.

Now he just had to get home, he had so much classwork due...