Somehow it felt as though fate was laughing at her, an exaggeration at best. Was this meant to be an elaborate and expensive prank? What were the odds that her friend would know this guy?
Anzu couldn’t be quick enough to duck around the corner of Prism Tower. By the time she realized who this familiar face was, it was too late. They had already locked eyes and he was approaching her. And she would rather not look like a coward in front of others by ditching him before he could even speak to her. For once, she would have to swallow her pride and go along with it for now.
“So it’s you, huh?” Anzu glared at him, taking note of his nervous disposition. How embarrassing. She crossed her arms and gave a long glance at Kid’s appearance. It seemed that he put a bit more thought into his attire than she did with hers. If she recalled correctly, he was dressed similarly when they first met.
Their first meeting didn’t leave a great first impression, and yet Kid still insisted on trying to become friendly with her, despite their clashing personalities. Kid was a positive and polite, yet naive guy. Anzu, on the other hand, was rash, crude and blunt with her words. Ever the sore loser, she left in a bad mood after their battle. She remembered snapping at him before he could get a chance to talk to her further. Why would anyone want to be friends with someone who treated them that coldly? She just didn’t get it.
“Let’s just get this over with.” She didn’t attempt to hide the dissatisfaction in her voice. She turned her back to her date, approaching the entrance to the tower.
The ride up the elevator felt awkward, as Anzu had kept to herself the entire time. Other people seemed to have the same idea of coming up here for their romantic evenings, making the elevator feel a bit crowded and uncomfortable.
After arriving at their destination, the pair found a less crowded window to enjoy the view for themselves. The sky had grown darker as evening set in and the city lights slowly began to shine from below. It was similar to how Castelia City lit up in the evening, a view she had missed. Olivine City, though quiet and calm under the starry night sky, just wasn’t the same as her hometown. Lumiose City seemed to have a more attractive shine to it at night. Perhaps it was just part of the thrill of being in a far-off location. Either way, she didn’t mind it. It was almost worth the trip, even if the company wasn’t exactly what she had hoped for.
“So…” Her voice broke the awkward silence between them. “How do you know Rachel?”
Rachel seemed to know a lot of people around Castelia City, from Pokemon battles to late night mixers and random encounters. But Anzu just couldn’t see a connection between the two.
“I mean, you don’t seem like the type of guy to get involved with people like us. You get yourself into some kinda trouble?” She questioned, wondering if this was part of some bet he had lost.
Anzu’s response left much to be desired, not that he was expecting much anyhow. He should have known that she wouldn’t be happy to see him. Let’s face it, no matter how badly he wanted to be friends with her, this wasn’t exactly a thrill for him either. Even still, he wasn’t going to give up if she didn’t either. Maybe it was the optimist in him, but he wanted to think that this could all still end up okay somehow. Not amazing, but... okay. It’s all he could really hope for, anyhow. Anything else would be wishful thinking.
Kid chuckled uncomfortably. “Y-Yeah! It’s me.” He wanted to say more, but his mind was blanking. He uttered a barely audible “uh...” that he hoped she didn’t hear. There was an horrible pause for just a few brief moments before Anzu spoke again.
“Let’s just get this over with.”
Well, at least she was to the point. Kid nodded to her, though she’d already turned away. She was more unhappy with this situation than he was, no doubt. He almost wanted to bolt from here and leave her to spend her time alone in Lumiose City. It’d probably be more pleasant for her, but... well, he’d seem like such an asshole, and she already didn’t like him. Kid supposed he’d go along with this weak date charade until she got sick of him and wanted to stop.
Kid followed her up into the elevator of Prism Tower. Tourists had filled the thing up already and the two were forced to squeeze into an unpleasantly small space. Neither spoke, and he was fine with that. All these people in here... it was already loud. It felt like an eternity to the top, but it was so worth it when it was finally over. Kid had chosen this place for a reason. It was beautiful, and beautiful enough for him to be distracted from his current predicament for just a few moments.
Lumiose City really was one of the most wonderful places in the world. People always hyped up Castelia City, but it just wasn’t the same. It couldn’t even compare. Maybe it was because Kid had grown up there his whole life, but it just didn’t have that magic that Kalos did. He’d never leave Kalos if his heart wasn’t so set on travelling the entire world. Maybe eventually. The lights trailed across the city and offset the darkness of the evening. And the architecture! Oh, who could forget that? The Kalosians knew how to do it right.
Kid was taken out of his thoughts by Anzu finally breaking their silence. She asked him a simple question: how did he know their apparently mutual friend? But there was more to it than that. She wondered if Kid had gotten into trouble.
“Oh, no! Not at all! She’s not really the type of person I’m friends with usually, sure, but there’s nothing wrong with that! See, I met her at this little hole-in-the-wall place in Castelia one time. It was kind of empty since it was pretty late, ‘cause I’d just gotten back from this trip to Nimbasa. I don’t remember which of us starting the conversation, but I guess she seemed fun. We talked a lot and we ended up being kind-of friends. I don’t really see her a lot, and we don’t talk a whole lot, but she’s cool! And she offered to set me up with somebody, so I mean... I had to take the chance, you know? I can’t remember the last time I went on a date.”
Kid wasn’t sure if he should admit that, but hey, he wasn’t ashamed of it. He wondered, did Anzu get many dates? Perhaps not if she was willing to do a blind date of this caliber, but... well, anything was possible! Maybe she just had expensive tastes in dates! But God, it was awkward. He knew had to keep the conversation going since she was obviously trying to, which he did appreciate. Not that he’d tell her that because it’d probably get on her nerves.
“Well, how do you know her? She is kinda more your style than mine. Are you two good friends?”
