//Â Oh my god, oh my god, oh my godâ
 If he had turned her down flat then it wouldâve been the end of it. However, even though he was a stranger, she felt a sense of familiarity. By now Maeko would reveal that it was simply a joke but something within her felt as if this encounter would be something beneficial. If there was something that hadnât changed, it was that she always trusted her gut to make the right call.
 â R-Right! Of course Iâm payinâ! â Subconsciously, her accent followed his lead. She hadnât even realized that it turned informal. â Is that western diner good for you? â
 She clutched her school bag tightly and started stiffly walking towards the diner, peeking over her shoulder to check that he was following. The diner was close by but also wouldnât burn a hole in her pocket money. When they sat, her eyes were trained on the menu, beads of sweat dotting the nape of her neck.Â
  â I-Iâm Maeko by the way⊠Velasquezâ my last time is kinda hard to pronounce so just call me Maeko⊠sorry to drag you to dinner. Order whatever you want. â
Did she just copy his accent?
Not even when they were close before had she done that, or at least not enough that it was noticeable. Maybe it had been long enough at this point that he couldnât quite remember her normal dialect. His was pretty UNIQUE, it seemed, so the fact that she easily followed suit threw him off a bit. Maybe there was a small part of her that did remember. Somewhere deep down.
âWorks fine fer me. Yâlead the way.â
He carefully relaxed in the seat once they got the restaurant, humming softly to himself as he considered his options. At least one benefit to his lifestyle was that he could still enjoy foods without needed to think about it much... But his attention was quickly thrown off when he heard her say that name. He never knew Max wasnât her real name...
âNice tâmeet you Maeko...â Maybe it was best to withhold his name for now... Besides, she was quite TERRIFIED of him last time. If anything, itâd cause an unnecessary scene. âYâre not dragginâ me anywhere. I chose to go with ya. And I was jokinâ about the payment... Iâll get it. Get whatever yâwant as well.â
He decided on something a little ADVENTUROUS - a burger with jalapenos on it. It was new for him, at least.