"I really wish..."

I snapped out of my trance after hearing Izzy's voice,

"Haha, nevermind! Forget I said anything," she dismissively laughs.

This girl always had something to hide. Jeez. What's even the point of hiding something you already started teasing on?

I sigh.

Come on Izzy, I'm dying to know. Might as well just spill the beans at this point.

"Come on! You know you can tell me anything, right?" I reassure her.

Come on, Stevie. You can definitely do this! Remember what they taught you in the Philippines. What do you do when you want someone to feel comfortable again?

Appeal to their senses.

"It's just that, these past few months had been the best months of my life, and it's all because of you. I really wish you can just stay here with me," she mutters under her breath.

Did she just try to hide her words from me?

...

Cute.

"What do you mean? I'm always here with you, am I not?" I strike her a gentle smile.

She didn't seem to buy it, only giving me a half smile.

"Oh? Why? Is there anything else you wanted to tell me?"

"It's because you didn't understand-- nevermind, I'll be fine!"

She tries to give a wider smile but to no avail, she eventually transitions back to pouting. She folds her knees and hugs them.

"There's absolutely no need to worry about me, we should focus to the task and matter at hand."

She seems distressed.

Did I somehow mess things up?

Ugh, how in the heck did I manage to destroy such a beautiful atmosphere with such a beautiful lady?

I pat her back, trying to comfort her.

. . .

She's shivering?

She must be cold. Understandable. It's cold here at night.

I take off my jacket and cover her with it. She turns to look at me and genuinely smiles. There we go! That golden smile we know and love. The smile so powerful that it can shine the way through this cold, cold night. Sitting on top of Haggrew Hill, facing the full moon right in front of us. I look up to the moon, she stares down again, smiling.

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Wait, is she turning red?

Damn, it's that cold huh?

"How many weeks have we known each other, Izzy?"

"Hmm, who knows? I don't keep count, I just enjoy the moments," she smiles as she looks up the moon with me. Her eyes glimmering under the moonlight. Her eyes look...

beautiful.

Really beautiful.

I sigh and laugh.

She looks at me like I had just insulted a whole city.

"What? Why are you laughing all of the sudden?" She asks me confusingly.

She doesn't know it but I'm actually laughing at the fact that I'm really loving it here in the past. Most of it was primarily because she chose to accompany me in this journey. Having such a beautiful companion in this quest of mine, it really does make everything seem simpler. I got to remember to thank her for this, or for accepting me, a visitor from the future.

It's reassuring that Izzy believes me in my knowledge on what's about to happen next. She calls it a "vision", I call it a superpower-- even though I got all the knowledge from all the hard work I had put on researching about this neighborhood.

Honestly, once I catch that "Triggerman" and all this is finally over, I don't even know if I want to come back to my time. I might just settle here.

Yes,

I'd probably miss the wonderful world of technology,

but I'm utterly sure that I'd be happier here.

. . .

Definitely.

Staying here with this beauty, life would absolutely be a dream. This beauty...

"Hey, Stevie"

"What, beauty-- I mean, Izzy?"

What the hell was that, Steven? You almost messed things up! Stupid, stupi--

She looks down smiling, turning red once again.

This cold must be too much for her. I have to do something. I rub my hands together and hold her cheeks to keep them calm, it's the least I could do. She turns even more red, does my warm hands not work? I could've sworn--

"What're you doing, silly," she laughs while still not trying to shake my hands off.

"Well, you were turning red, I thought you were cold or something," I reply.

"Yeah...cold," she mutters silently.

It goes silent for a while.

Could it be that I'm falling for this girl?

No, it couldn't be! She's decades older and... how will we even make it work? Is it a crime to fall in love with someone from the past? Oh, she was saying something, right? Whoops.

"You were saying something earlier? I'm sorry for interrupting by the way," I chuckle nervously. She takes my hands off her cheek and holds them. Suddenly, I don't feel the cold of the night anymore.

"Well, I forgot what I was gonna say, but that's okay," she smiles at me.

How cute.

"Cute,"

Wait, did I just say what's on my mind...? She didn't push me away for that. I guess that's a good sign then.

"Well, you, Mr. 'I'm from the future', your looks are very unique, I like it," she smiles.

Oh, how I love that smile of hers. Her eyes close as she smiles. It's adorable, I'm not gonna lie.

Not only is it unique, Ms. Elliott, if only you knew just how much a hassle my bloodline is. It's probably for the best that she doesn't find out, or rather, her father not finding out, that could mean the end of me.

"Also, we best get goin'! Papa might be looking for us already!" She stands up after saying these words.

"Sandali!" ("Wait!" In Filipino)

...

What did I just say, self? Hope there aren't any veterans around. Welp,

I'm doomed,

unless...

Nah, I might not be, I trust her.

"....sorry, what did you say? It's too windy, I couldn't hear," she asks confusingly.

"Um, I mean-- uh, wait!"

"Why?"

"You haven't explained to me yet what you told me an hour ago! The curiosity is killing me!"

She just smiled and turned around,

"Dense as always, Stevie. One of the things I liked about you,"

That's a good thing, right?

"If what you're saying is true...

And you're really from the future...

I really wish you can just stay with me here in 1927 for the rest of our lives!

...

But I know you can't."