Time Traveling Hero

She turned around to face him, and the wind slowly started to die down, as the two faced each other, one in awe and the other in disbelief. And when the wind finally vanished, and the air was calm, it was the girl who spoke first.

"Why, why did you follow me?" Prez asked, shocked at my sudden appearance.

"As if I could leave when our 'Date" isn't even over yet!" I was scared. Not a fearful scared, but a nervous scared, like when you're about to do something, and after you do, it's completely out of your control. That sort of fear.

Regardless, I took one step closer towards my final answer.

"You didn't have to. I'm fine on my own," she responded quietly, holding her arm as she gazed downward.

Another step.

"Even if that were the case, you can't go off deciding that you're the winner of the contest! I mean, who decided that!?" I had no clue if this place I as in was real. I could say it was, and choose the easy way out, but that would mean I would have to admit that entire moment with my Mom was a lie.

I wasn't about to do that. Two more steps.

"Of course you won, especially how you treated me so well after the skating rink and karaoke, I would be a fool if I didn't say you were the clear and decisive winner." One step, faltering as I hear her words.

"I refuse to believe that. After you made that face when you left, I lost so many points that I'm probably in the negatives by now!" I was going to treat this situation, no, I was going to treat her with the respect she deserves. I wasn't about to trample on her feelings like that, especially when I consider my own...

Three steps now, at the halfway point now.

"What face could you possibly mean?" She asked, turning back around to face the city. As if she didn't know. That look that screamed out that she had no hope, one that had given up on hearing the response to her confession, content knowing that she was able to do it at all. And even though she may think she was content, the tears on her cheek said it all.

Two steps, and then a sudden stoppage.

"It was a look I was all too familiar with. Unable to change your current situation, you decide to be content with it all, taking on the cruel world's abuse instead. And I hate that look." It appeared on my sister's face, and I was unable to do a damn thing about it then. But, right now, there was no need for her to have that look, especially not on the girl that I...

Three more steps, with only two more before I reached it.

"You hate it? Knowing full well that there's nothing to be done. Please, just go already! It was already painful enough, and I know I can't have it, but you being here, makes it hurt so much more!"

One step.

"I know that damnit! Why do you think I'm here, to torture you even further!? What type of person do you think I am anyway!?" Honestly, it might've been better for me to never have come. That way, she would've known her answer already. Me being here, might make it more painful for the both of us. But even so...

"I don't want it! I don't want that false hope, that slimmer of a chance! I'd much rather...!" She blurted, and she whirled around to face me, her resolve to hear the worst answer possible almost complete.

It was then I took the final step, towards my ultimate decision. Sorry Prez, but this won't be the answer you or the Trial will expect from out of me.

I grabbed her arms and slammed our foreheads together, keeping them together before yelling out my answer to her confession of love.

"Yes, yah big idiot! I love you too!"

It was a brief moment of silence, as her eyes widened at my answer. But it wasn't over yet.

"I love you, but I can't be together with you. I'm, I'm sorry." I released her from my grip and took a step back, the deed done.

She slowly raised her hands up to cover her mouth, the flood of tears coming.

"So, so mean." Her body started to shake, as her emotions was at a delicate balance of happiness and sadness.

Yeah, it really was. I stared out into the night sky, angry at the cause of this damn mess. I decided to leave it alone for now though.

I brought her in fierce embrace, holding her shaking body as tightly as I could without hurting her.

"I can't be with you, but I can offer you the rest of the night together."

"So, so mean."

I brought her head down into my shoulder. "Yeah, I know."

"So mean!" She wailed, and she embraced me too, sobbing into me.

I looked back up at the night sky and let the tears fall.

"Yeah, it really was."

"Success."

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We were back in Prez's apartment, the two of us sitting together on the couch in silence. It was 30 minutes till midnight, and all the lights were off, the only source being the waning moon and the city lights coming in from the windows.

"How long?" I asked awkwardly, looking down at the floor.

"Who can say? It was gradual I think, and I finally realized when you joined the club. What about you?"

Crap I did something really embarrassing again, didn't I? "You were already attractive to begin with, so that was always there at least."

"Hmph, so your love is just about looks, hmm?"

"That's not it at all!" I turned back to face Prez, and I could barely see her face, flushed red with embarrassment. Yep, I really did do something embarrassing. "In any case, it was today."

"What about it?"

"Seeing that side of you, I don't know, it made me realize something. And once you confessed, it just all clicked together inside. Playing boyfriend and girlfriend definitely helped too."

She started to m.o.a.n. "Oh, thinking back on it, we did some really embarrassing stuff, didn't we?" She stuffed her face into a nearby pillow, and I couldn't help but chuckle.

"Do you regret it, falling in love with a girl like me?"

I plucked the pillow away from Prez's face, which had turned into a somber look. "I mean, why else would you say what said?"

"I don't regret it!" She turned back to look at me, her eyes shining. "I will never regret it, no matter how much time passes!"

"Then why!?"

"Because, because I have prior engagements. If I didn't have to fulfill a promise, trust me, I would've taken you to be mine while we were up on the roof."

Her face flashed a bright red. "Idiot, what the hell are you saying!?" However, that quickly faded away into a smile. "I see, so you really don't regret it then..."

The only one to blame is the damn Trial. But I can't tell her that. If I wasn't in here right now, I could care less what the TRTF says, I would take her immediately. I mean, look at her.

I stared at her beautiful face, and felt a warmth spread through me. Yep, no doubt about it.

"Well, what do you wanna do for the rest of the night?"

She snapped out of her blissful daze and looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"Well, the 'Date' isn't over yet, is it? We'll spend the rest of the night together, until the sun comes up on the morrow." I got up from the couch and offered a hand out to her.

"So, let's go on a date then. A real one." She took my hand and got up too, and we both looked outside toward the city.

"What are we even going to do, this late at night?"

"Whatever we want, wherever we want. We'll take this city by storm!"

"Alright then, but you're paying for everything then!" She said excitedly as she raced towards the door.

"Oi, we both love each other, so why don't we split the bill this time!?"

"Nope, the contest isn't over after all!" I really managed to get myself into something strange, didn't I? I smiled before shaking my head. Well, even if it is strange, I'm going to spend what little time we have together, with as much fun as possible.

"Hey, wait for me!" And I raced after her, and our real date began.

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"I'm just realizing this, but what places are even open right now that would take kids our age anyway?"

Me and Prez were walking together near the outskirts of town, close to the sea. Prez was on top a railing, balancing herself so she wouldn't fall down into the water below.

"Don't be like that! Even if there isn't a place open, we can always make our own fun!" I said, carefully walking next to her to catch her if she fell.

"What perverted thoughts about me are in your head now?"

"You and your damn misunderstandings." She giggled before hopping off, running out of railing before spinning around to face me.

"So, what do you think we should do?"

The quintessential question indeed. My gaze wandered around, before I laid my eyes on a nearby convenience store.

"The beach is nearby, so wanna go there?"

"This late at night? Won't people wonder what we're doing?"

I cleared my throat before pointing at all of our surroundings, pointing out the flaw in her logic.

"Ah, I guess there aren't that many people here, huh?" She spun back around and started to walk again, her hands clasped behind her back.

"That convenience store probably has some fireworks too," I continued, catching up to her before matching her pace.

"Fireworks!?" Her face lit up, and I could see the excitement gleaming in her hazel eyes.

"Yeah, let me get some, and then we can set them off at the beach."

She nodded, and a merry pep was added to her step, as she started to hum to another tune.

"I wish we at least got some food first though," I grumbled, my stomach starving for attention.

"It's your own fault for not stopping at a nearby restaurant, isn't it? You big o'l cheapskate!"

"Keep it up, and I won't buy you anything from the store."

"Bleh!" She stuck her tongue at me before running ahead. "I'll meet you at the beach, okay!?"

"Got it!" I waved her goodbye, and she disappeared off into the distance. I put my hands in my pockets and made my way into the store.

"Welcome!" The clerk offered a usual greeting, and I nodded in there direction before browsing the items they offered.

After a quick go around, getting everything I needed, I made my way to the register, missing only one item.

"Will that be all for today?" The clerk asked me, his hands quickly getting to work as he scanned my items and started to place them in bags.

"Actually, I was wondering if you have any more fireworks?" I asked, and he stopped doing his job briefly to get a look at me.

"Little late in the year for that, don't you think?"

"Better late than never, right?"

He chuckled before continuing to scan my items. "What do you need them for anyway?"

"A hot date. My first and last one with her."

He looked me at curiously before nodding. "Alright, I have a special bargain for you then. I'll give you the rest that we have in storage for free, but in return, you make sure that this date lasts."

I shot him a thumbs up. "As if I needed to be told that. No way am I going to disappoint!"

He smiled. "Ah youth, what it's like to be young again. Wait here for a sec."

"Alright, thank you very much!"

He simply waved off my thanks before disappearing into what I presumed was the storage room. About seven minutes later, he came out with a whole bunch of fireworks, all of them in bags for me to carry.

I couldn't help but look a little shocked. "You had that much left?"

"People don't really come out to this quaint little store too often, so we mostly keep them until the next year. It would've been put to waste in there, so make sure to use all of them."

I finished paying for the stuff that I bought and slung the bag of fireworks over my shoulder before grabbing the rest.

"I, I don't really know what to say."

"Don't worry kid. Just live out your youth the best you can. That's all anyone your age can do anyway." His brown eyes shined warmth, and although he wasn't that old, probably about Eris' age, it seemed to me that he had been through quite a bit.

"I'll come back here as often as I can!" I said, the least I could do.

"Alright then, just hopefully not this late I hope?"

Ah, he got me there. I nervously chuckled before giving him another round of thanks, and then I left, making my way toward the beach.

I reached the top of one of the sand dunes, and scanned around, looking for Prez.

"Hey! Over here!" In the distance, Prez had managed to walk quite a bit of distance away from where we parted. Ugh, this stuff was kinda heavy to lug around for a long period of time.

Regardless, I made my way to the girl that I hopelessly fallen for, trudging through the sand as I heard the quiet lapping of the waves next to me.

"You're so slow! I guess you aren't number one in speed, aren't you!?" If she had to carry this crap, she would be even slower, 100% guaranteed.

I finally made my way to her, collapsing onto the soft sand, tired from the amount of walking I had done all day.

"Whoa, there's so many fireworks! How did you pay for all these!?"

I sat up and looked up at Prez's half-happy, half-worried face. "Don't worry, I didn't pay for any of the fireworks. The clerk was nice enough to give us the left-overs from the summer."

"Really!? Was he into you or something?"

"Stop that, it wasn't like that at all!" I stood up and faced out towards the sea. "I just get the feeling, he wanted us to enjoy ourselves, what precious little time we have together anyway, without any regrets."

Silence from Prez, and she too also looked out towards the sea, gazing at the calm waters.

"Alright, well I'm going to eat something. I got plenty of food and drinks, especially caffeine, since we'll be partying till the sun comes up."

"Wait, you were serious about that!?"

I took off my shoes and socks and rummaged through one of the bags, grabbing some sweets and tossing them towards Prez.

"I'm probably broke now, but love is worth it," I muttered, accepting my fate.

I sat back down and started to hungrily make my way through our snacks, while also downing some soda with caffeine in it.

Prez looked at me dumbfounded. "What are you waiting on, an invitation? If you must insist, you can sit on my l.a.p if you please."

She just shook her head. "Boys will be boys I suppose." She took off her heels and sat down next to me and started to eat her way through the snacks as well.

"By the way, I've never actually set off fireworks before." I coughed as I almost choked on what I was eating. "I wanted to do it with the Hidden Club last summer, but it never happened due to various reasons."

I scratched my head a little bit before looking my way through the firework bags. I found what I wanted and handed it to her.

"A snake? What's it do?"

I pulled out some matches I bought at the store and motioned for her to open the package. She did as she was told and set it down on the ground. I lit a match, and the glowing red flame erupted from the tip.

"Now, watch carefully." I put the flame towards one of the ends, and when it caught fire, I blew out the match and watched the snake do it's magic.

"Whoa! It's, it's growing!" It started to extend in length, unfurling itself on the grainy sand. Prez's eyes started to sparkle like a school kid who saw dinosaurs for the first time (AKA, me).

When it finished, Prez just looked back and forth at the newly formed snake and me, in complete awe at what just happened.

"That was the prequel. Hurry up and eat so we can get to the main story." She nodded and started to stuff her cheeks full of the snacks I bought, until she had chipmunk cheeks. I couldn't help but laugh as I offered her my soda.

"Ah, thanks Hiro! I got too excited there I guess," she said, giggling nervously. Oh please, stop being so cute I say!

And so, we ate and conducted small talk while getting an ocean view, laughing and goofing around like the awkward teens we were. Well, I didn't really mind. I was having fun, fun I thought wasn't possible.

And when we finished, our fireworks show began, with me as the troupe leader and Prez in the audience.

"Now, for our first trick, we shall have one volunteer from the crowd! Someone, anyone? How about the cute young thang in the front, how about you help with my show today!?"

She couldn't help but laugh at my corny persona of a circus leader. "Why, of course! What shall we be doing first?"

"A sparkler battle! Best two out of three!" I tossed her two sparklers and gave myself two of them before lighting all four of them.

"Now, let the game begin ah!" I got into my stance, my sparklers at the ready.

Prez just looked down at them, confused. "So, what do these do besides sparkle?"

"Only that! Now come, let us dance till the morning sun!" I proceeded to pretend fight her with my sparklers, and she quickly got the hang of my idea.

After having our sparkler battle, in which Prez was the winner (Let's say I let her win that. Yep, that's what happened), I proceeded onward towards my next trick. I pulled out the key component of my next trick and set them all over the ground.

"Now, for my next trick, we'll be playing hide and seek! Whoever finds who first is the winner!"

She tilted her head in confusion. "But where are we going to hide?"

I pulled out another one of my tricks and lit a match before setting it off. Smoke started to come out to obscure our vision. "Among the smoke of course! Whoever finds who first is the winner! But, you have to tackle them in order to win of course! Whoever's on top will be declared the winner!"

I then proceeded to light up all the smoke bombs, until we got a giant multicolored blob of smoke. "Alright, let the game begin! And no tricks either Prez!" I heard a loud voice of complaint come through the smoke. "I won't use mine either, so it'll be fair, I swear!"

"Ready? GO!" Prez and I entered the blob of smoke at the same time, and the second game began of fireworks began.

The smoke bombs actually lasted quite a while, without much need for me to add new ones in. It was a close game, with many times it being close as we playfully wrestled with each other in the smoke, and getting free from each others holds, but when the smoke finally cleared, I was victorious, pinning Prez down as I straddled her.

"Aw man, I can't believe I lost!" She pouted and turned away from me, still somehow looking cute.

"I'm more surprised you're not embarrassed by the position we're in. Are you really that forward?" My response was a glare and a swift headbutt, knocking me back into the sand.

"Ouch! Okay, I probably deserved that!" I said, laughing. Soon, Prez started to laugh as well, and after our laughing fit was over with, I proceeded unto my next trick.

"Okay, ladies and gentlewaman, gals and girls, welcome to our main event! We will now begin to shoot off our actual fireworks! Who like to help me shoot them off!?"

"Ooh! Pick me, pick me!"

"Alright, the cutie with the golden-brown hair it is! Now, let's start off with some novelties, shall we?"

She nodded excitedly, her fists clenched tightly in front of her. She was getting into now, a look of delight spreading across her face.

I pointed towards a long line of miniature tanks, all of their cannons facing towards the sea. I pulled out a lighter instead of a match, a long one at that, and offered it to her.

"Would like to do the honors milady?"

"Oh, I would be so ever grateful!" She grabbed it and lit it, and proceeded to run down the long line of tanks, setting them off as the fuse got lit.

"Now, let the Hiro's Fireworks Bonanza begin!" And the little tanks all shot out their fireworks, sending out a variety of images hovering into the night sky, signaling the start of the show.

After that, we spent the remaining night shooting off our fireworks, playing around with firecrackers, using firecrackers to set off fireworks, and otherwise enjoying the short time we had left together.

Until finally, there was one more left, the biggest one for last, a true Grade A firework, complete with different phases, and big enough to probably alert the sleeping residents of the city that there were two goofballs messing around at the beach.

Well, not that we cared.

"Alright then, here comes the big banger! On three!" Prez nodded, and we opened the lid of the large can before bringing out the single fuse that would ignite it all.

"One!" I yelled out, and we lit up our lighter.

"Two!" Prez yelled out, and we directed it towards the fuse.

We both looked at each other in the eyes, and we grinned before yelling out the final number.

"Three!" We lit the fuse and ran back to get some distance, and we sat on a nearby sand dune to watch the event unfold.

And what an event it was. The booms that resonated from each shot was enough to make our ears ring, but the light-show that we got mesmerized us both into complete awe. And while the boy didn't know this at the time, but the store clerk was watching the fireworks show from afar, smiling as he saw the couple hold hands and lean against each other.

He nodded before staring back at the fireworks display. "Yes, what a youth those two will experience indeed. Let us hope it will not end in tragedy." And with those words, he vanished, as if he was never there to begin with.

And when the show was over, so too was our date. We stayed there, our eyes locked into the sky, trying hard to burn that bittersweet memory of those rockets into our memories.

"It's, it's over, isn't it?" She asked, her gaze wandering back down to the sea.

"Of course it's not, the sun hasn't even-!" and right on cue, the sky slowly started to get brighter and brighter, until a bright yellow sun slowly came up from the horizon, its glow making the sea sparkle and glow.

Prez grabbed her heels and ran down towards the sea, before stopping at the edge, her feet barely getting wet by the water. I followed her downward and stopped just behind her.

"I guess, it is over then." I said, shocked at how fast the time went. Crap, I need more time!

"I'll be okay."

I gazed down at Prez, and she had a warm, understanding smile on her face as she gazed out towards the sea.

"I'll be okay, because even if we can't be together, the memory of today will always be with us, or something corny like that. But, it's all I got, so I'll take what I can get."

"But-!"

"There's something else too, although I don't think we have enough time. Who won? The contest I mean."

I wrapped my arms around her, my body starting to tremble.

"Of course, it was you! No way in hell I could win by pulling a stunt like that!" My voice started to crack, and I could feel my eyes starting to water.

"I see." She gave my hands a quick squeeze before turning around and escaping my embrace.

"Prez..."

"Promise me. That'll you'll never forget this day, okay?"

I wiped my eyes, refusing to let the tears come out. "As if I could forget a day as unforgettable as this," I said, a smile appearing on my face.

"Okay, then let me have this one thing."

"What one-!" I was suddenly stopped by a sudden kiss from Prez, and my eyes widened in shock. I didn't even notice the other thing she did, the small envelope she put in my b.r.e.a.s.t pocket.

She took a couple steps back, and she gave me her greatest smile, the sun radiating behind her accentuating her already gorgeous features.

"See you later, Hiro."

And the entire scene faded to white, leaving Prez alone in front of me as a statue. I reached out my hands towards the girl but ended up falling short of touching her stone figure.

And thus, the Trial of the Present was completed at last.