CHAPTER 24: CHAPTER 24: NUTCRACKER

Just as the name suggested, Lake Square was near a lake.

It was 12:39, and Erika had already arrived.

She was sitting on one of the benches in the square.

She was impeccable. She wore a delicate white dress made of light fabric, which hugged her curves naturally and fell softly to mid-thigh. Over it, a soft pink cardigan with long sleeves added a gentle contrast, giving her a graceful air. On her feet, low-heeled sandals made her legs look even more elegant.

Small hoop earrings gleamed discreetly, and the necklace Zayden had given her hung around her neck, while her golden-blonde hair, in curly waves, cascaded over her shoulders, with her bangs partially covering one of her eyes. The emerald green of her irises seemed even more intense, reflecting the anxiety and anticipation of the occasion.

Erika seemed a bit anxious, occasionally glancing around until she spotted Zayden and brightened up.

She stood up.

"Oh, you finally decided to go out with us?"

Next to her, a pair of boys with earrings and dyed hair—one with a red mohawk and the other blonde—were bothering Erika.

When he saw that, Zayden quickened his pace.

"Get lost!" Erika said loudly and clearly.

"So fierce, I like that~!" The mohawk guy reached out toward Erika’s hand.

However, before he could grab her hand, with a fierce look, Erika delivered a kick between the boy’s legs.

*Pow!*

"Ahhhhhhhh! MY BALLS!"

Zayden stopped for a moment. It was as if he could feel the man’s pain, and he even felt a little sorry for him...

The other guy looked at Erika in horror, until he cursed: "You bitch, I’m gonna..."

Before he could finish what he was about to say, Zayden appeared in front of Erika, facing the blonde guy.

"You’re gonna what?" Zayden, nearly two meters tall, narrowed his eyes dangerously.

The blonde guy swallowed hard, choking on his words.

He looked intimidated, like a lamb that had seen a lion.

The mohawk guy, who also noticed Zayden’s arrival, seemed even more horrified: "It’s you...!"

What he meant by that was unclear, but the possibility that he recognized Zayden from his delinquent days was high.

"Take your rooster friend and get out of here." Zayden said coldly while pointing in the opposite direction.

The blonde didn’t hesitate; he helped the mohawk guy lean on him and limped away from the square with him.

"Tsk." Zayden clicked his tongue in displeasure.

"Zayden-kun."

Turning to face Erika, he finally smiled: "Sorry for being late. If I had gotten here earlier, you wouldn’t have had to deal with something so unpleasant."

"It wasn’t a big deal... I only got here 5 minutes ago, and those annoying guys showed up." She replied.

"Changing the subject." He touched his chin while looking her up and down and said: "Wow! I had noticed, but wow, you look incredible. You’re even more beautiful than you usually are."

"Moooh! I’m happy... I’m happy with what you said, but... But, seriously!" She gave a few weak punches to his chest, which honestly made her seem even cuter to the point that Zayden laughed a little.

"God, you’re so cute, Erika." He touched her chin and made her tilt her head up.

When she understood his intention, the girl with ruby-red lips parted her mouth slightly, revealing pearly white teeth and warm breath with a sweet minty scent.

When their lips met, Erika stood on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck.

A passionate kiss, like the reunion of two lovers who hadn’t seen each other in years, took place right there in the public square.

The kiss lasted a full minute.

When their lips parted, Erika gasped for air while her emerald-green eyes were slightly misty.

Zayden loved her passionate eyes.

However, he didn’t want to put on a show for the other people in the square.

Stepping back from the girl and taking her hand, he said: "Erika, shall we get going?"

"Yes..." She replied dreamily.

When she realized they were in a public square with people watching, it was as if reality knocked on the girl’s door, and Erika lowered her head shyly.

Erika’s face was slowly starting to turn red. It was almost as if an invisible red brush were painting her face.

*SLAPP!*

"No matter how many promises a bastard like you makes, it’s nothing but hot air coming out of your ass, because people like you aren’t worthy of my trust."

Before they left, a dramatic scene unfolded.

Two women and a man.

There was a woman, about 1.70 m tall, who cursed and slapped the man, and another shorter one who looked like a scared rabbit hiding behind the man, who was saying something like: "I can explain."

Even out of context, it was a predictable scene.

The taller woman had caught her boyfriend/husband cheating on her and, in a fit of rage, slapped him.

"Hibiki, let me explain..."

Turning and glaring at the man furiously, she said through gritted teeth: "Don’t... Touch... Me... I swear to God... If you don’t let me go... I’ll end you!"

The man flinched and let go of her arm.

Spinning on her heel, she turned and walked away with class, and everyone applauded...

Okay, there was no applause, but there were some sarcastic and malicious comments about the man and plenty of laughter.

"Someone’s filming." Zayden saw it and lit a candle for the man.

"Where?" Erika looked in the same direction as him and saw a girl filming everything with her smartphone.

"If that ends up online, it won’t take long to go viral..." Zayden shook his head and left the square with Erika.

...

Erika’s idea for the date was a marine aquarium.

"There’s a tunnel you walk through and see the marine animals swimming, it’s amazing. Seriously!" Erika said, holding his hand and looking a bit excited.

"I believe you." Zayden smiled.

When they entered, the number of ’sugoi’ they heard must have exceeded double digits.

[Sugoi: "amazing," "magnificent," "extraordinary," or "wonderful."]

Soon Zayden understood why.

The tunnel Erika mentioned was obviously real.

But hearing about it and seeing it in person were completely different stories.

It was an underwater tunnel made of transparent acrylic glass.

You could see the marine animals swimming up close from all sides.

And, right above them, a huge shark had just swum by, causing some screams, a mix of pretend and genuine fear.

When he felt Erika’s tighter grip as she clung to his arm, Zayden said: "It’s okay."

She looked at him and nodded, but didn’t loosen her grip.