And while you are sitting indoors
waiting for the storm to pass
I will be outside dancing in the rain

❧

A lacking of attentiveness came over Mavis, the short girl figured there was no requirement to pay attention to her surroundings with the girl's dormitory in a brief walking distance from her. Each stride carried her closer, her attitude brightening as she closed the distance between her and her location of choice. The ravenette's thoughts began to dwell on what she would do with her downtime, discovering a plethora of ideas that would be shoved aside for today. She was unbeknownst to the tattooed man, Koda, quickening his pace in order to catch up to her. It was not a difficult task considering how short she was; it was quite the curse when one was trying to hastily escape people who had longer legs. The sound of footsteps did not reach her ears, her thoughts clouding senses and her earbuds acting as sound blockers.

The short girl was clueless to Koda's present until she felt a warm hand grab hers with the insistence of following. A glare was created as Mavis's sight caught the culprit who captured her hand, finding Koda. He was not an easy person to mistake with the strange eyes and plethora of tattoos with only the addition of a guitar strapped over his shoulder.

"What? Why the hell would I go with you?" Mavis asked.

Shortly afterwards she got dragged along to follow him, an annoyed sigh escaping her mouth. So far, time around Koda was associated with intense feelings of anger considering how much he enjoyed bothering her. Not to mention, the fact that he found it rather amusing to see her mad. There was a presence of annoyance with hints of grumpiness orbiting her, she had really wanted to just sit around her dorm for a couple of hours. However, she did not bother fighting for it, chances were if she did Koda would just kind a way to drag her along anyways.

"Where are you taking me? Can I at least change out of my school uniform?" Mavis began to question, she could not help it. "Better yet, what the hell are you planning? I swear if you're just trying to irritate me today I'm not in the mood!"

The short girl merely followed, slowly trudging behind Koda while she awaited the answers to her copious questions. Oddly enough, Mavis was still unable to understand why exactly the tattooed man was so keen on spending time with her. Was her company really that pleasant to him? The way she yelled, complained, and threatened? Most people did not find such things conventionally charming or pleasant to be around consistently. The concept made her uncharacteristically self-conscious and made her wonder if Koda was remotely offended or hurt by the way she acted. For a moment, she felt shocked, why did she care? His opinion did not matter, he was just some annoying teenager with the sole interest of bothering her and ruing her day. The concept was soon shoved away, what Koda thought should not matter to her; nobody's thoughts should.

506 ● Koda Dalton ● N/a

And while you are sitting indoors
waiting for the storm to pass
I will be outside dancing in the rain

❧

There was something odd about the way Koda smiled while in her company, it was almost a hint of child-like glee within his grin from spending time with her. Mavis could not begin to comprehend why exactly this man seemed happy when in her company. The very concept of somebody being comfortable enough to show their hidden colours was strange to the short-haired ravenette, but she found it pleasant. Never had she laid witness to something akin to this, thus the change was enjoyable to her, however, it also further piqued her curiosity. When Koda gave her an ambiguous answer, Mavis found herself feeling more annoyed with the tattoo covered boy. Considering the way Koda was, she could not help, but feel the need to be cautious in case this was merely a way to once again infuriate her or some scheme to try and kiss her again.

An irritated sigh escaped her lips. "Do you always lead girls out to random places without telling them your plans?" Mavis asked, feeling in a curious mood.

When Koda chuckled at her, the short girl could not help, but shoot him a glare. Why was he laughing at her? It was becoming increasingly obvious to Mavis that Koda had something planned out, but it was impossible for the ravenette to figure out what exactly it was. This ambiguity was annoying, but to Mavis it was also rather intriguing. A spontaneous outing was always a rather interesting surprise, although, she would mourn the loss of her relaxation time. For a moments, her thoughts focused on where Koda could be taking her, up until he called her cute. A slight tinge of red coloured her cheeks since there were a limited amount of people who stated such things; the ravenette was also not blinded in rage to ignore or punch him over the comment. She found herself enjoying the fact that Koda had complimented her, but she could not begin to rationalize why exactly that was.

"I just don't like getting it dirty, it's kind of a pain to wash," Mavis responded quietly.

In a silence, Mavis followed in wonder at what the tattoo man had planned for her today. The short girl's quietness only remained for a small period of time. When the word date was brought up, Mavis shot another glare at Koda, but she kept following nonetheless.

"DATE?! When did I agree to this?!" Mavis said in a loud outburst. "Why should I just go along with it?! What if I had something planned tonight?"

Despite how opposed she sounded, Mavis kept following Koda along the path. There was uncertainty whether it was curiosity or something else, but she merely kept walking behind her. While she trailed behind him, her dark chocolate eyes looked down at the hand that held hers. It was strange how the contact bothered her little, almost as though it was something welcomed. Eventually, her eyes trailed up to gaze at Koda with a curious gleam in her eyes. Whatever was happening, Mavis could not begin to understand it.

512 ● Koda Dalton ● N/a

And while you are sitting indoors
waiting for the storm to pass
I will be outside dancing in the rain

❧

With little choice, Mavis continued following Koda towards the bus stop, her plans of relaxation long abandoned due to the interruption. Even as they stopped to wait for the bus, Mavis did not attempt to release her hand from the tattooed man. Unlike most people, holding Koda's hand barely bothered her, however, she was uncertain if she was merely feeling nice today or perhaps it was something else. When he began to chuckle, Mavis could not help, but shoot him a quick glare. The short girl could not begin to comprehend what he was finding so funny about her, but she merely shrugged off his chuckling. Attention returned to Koda when Mavis heard him begin to talk about dates and how an agreement between the two participants was not necessary.

"Oh, really?" There was a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "Cause people definitely don't make other plans which could make it not possible to go on one of these sudden dates and because you would totally know my schedule."

The sarcasm in her voice was obvious, which was clearly the ravenette's objective. Her dark chocolate eyes watched him for a few moments, noting how he looked up at the blue sky above. Koda was definitely somebody who kept the short girl's attention, especially considering how much of an oddity he made himself out to be when they first met. The curiosity Mavis had for Koda had been created during the first couple of times she had interacted with him. It was strange to meet someone who she threatened, but cared little for the violence she displayed. When he stated that she had nothing planned, Mavis raised an eyebrow until he stated her call; she had stated what if. Instantly, Mavis shot him a glare, thoughts raking for a comeback, but there was nothing. Upon the realization she had no retorts, her gaze drifted to the ground.

"Shut up," she muttered quietly. An annoyed sigh escaped her lips. "Fine, I will come on your stupid date. But, I am only doing this cause you bandaged my hand that one time!"

Honestly, she desired to attend the date solely on curiosity alone, but there was no possible way she would allow Koda to know that. Admitting the concept would probably only plunge her in a world of teasing at the hands of the tattooed covered man. The ravenette followed the dark haired boy onto the bus and got into the chosen seat where she placed her bag on her lap.

"So how long exactly are you going to keep what we are doing a secret?" Mavis asked.

The ravenette's gaze remained pinned on Koda as she awaited an answer. A thought soon popped into her head, she was probably sounding impatient and she hated the very concept sounding that way, however, Mavis could not understand why. What Koda thought of her should not matter, yet there was a minor feeling of concerned over any possible negative thoughts he may have. This confused the short girl, but she decided to ignore it for the time being.

514 ● Koda Dalton ● N/a

And while you are sitting indoors
waiting for the storm to pass
I will be outside dancing in the rain

❧

It was an oddity to Mavis that was flirtatious behavior she had been introduced to had been dropped for this other version of Koda she had not seen. Curiosity for the tattoo covered man increased, he definitely was different from the other men she had met. The short girl did not struggle from Koda's grip, it was likely pointless anyways. Not to mention, her curiosity drove her towards the date idea opposed to spending hours at home doing nothing. When Koda mentioned her lack of struggle, Mavis shot him a glare. The ravenette began to rake her mind for an ample defense, until she discovered one in the depths of her mind.

"You're just lucky my other plans are more insufferable than you!" Mavis began. "Otherwise, I would never EVER go on a date with you!"

Naturally, the part of her original plans being insufferable was a lie, but it was all the short girl had to defend herself. Besides, based on how Koda acted during their first few conversations, Mavis was presuming that she was not going to enjoy this. However, if that was the case it did not explain why she had not tried to escape yet and merely went along with it. Annoyance soon entered Mavis as she got irritated by the fact that she had not struggled against Koda's grip at all. Her dark chocolate eyes looked back at her company, who smirked and made a comment meant to tease her. Immediately, Mavis narrowed her eyes at the boy.

"Of course it is! I wouldn't even think about dating you in a million years!" Mavis retorted.

The short girl crossed her arms and leaned back into the bus seat, her gaze drifting to Koda then to the window and back again when he spoke. Quietly, she listened, her back straightening and the look in her eyes softening. There was a feeling of sympathy for the tattoo covered man, she herself was friendless due to her violent outbursts. Usually nobody wanted to be around a girl who could swing a fist at them over something petty or because she felt infuriated. A barely audible chuckle escaped her mouth and the corners of her lips tugged up in a small grin; who knew she would have something in common with Koda of all people.

"Same here, people don't like being around me for obvious reasons. So surprisingly, we're in the same boat there," Mavis stated. Afterwards, she added, "I mean, most people would have left me alone by now and would never even think about trying to get close, let alone, dragging me out on a date. So I must say, your bravery to deal with me is somewhat impressive."

Although she hated to admit it, the fact was true that Mavis was remotely impressed that Koda was brave enough to be around somebody violent like her. Perhaps he enjoyed the danger? The concept was an oddly a small comfort to her self-conscious feelings, but she was clueless to the reason.

503 ● Koda Dalton ● N/a

And while you are sitting indoors
waiting for the storm to pass
I will be outside dancing in the rain

❧

Upon the over-dramatic display of "heartbreaking" followed up by chuckle, Mavis found herself rolling her eyes. It was certainly funny, but definitely an oddity considering how smoothly Koda seemed to almost enjoy her threats. Understanding it was beyond Mavis at this point, but nonetheless she found herself slightly amused by the joke with slight undertones of joy over somebody being able to tolerate her threat slinging tongue. This company, despite how peculiar and unfamiliar to Mavis it was, possessed comfort in having some form of companionship; even if it involved irritability and annoyance at times. As she watched him, finding herself only paying mild attention to her surroundings, her curiosity and interest remained. It was a rarity for Mavis to get lost in a realm of curiosity to lengths of attending some occasion with a boy who during their first encounter infuriated her to stunning points.

When Koda's hands came closer to her face, tugging the corners into a smile, not even the slightest sign of a flinch came across Mavis's face. If necessary, she could always work out a revenge plan later and lastly the close quarters of the bus seat provided little escape room. Her dark chocolate coloured eyes caught the smirk that had crawled back onto Koda's face; it appeared to be a trait he wore a lot. The statement he made about her smiling more merely made her shrug; considering she was renowned getting into fights and being angry she doubted that. Only a few moments later was his hands removed and the point she had thought was spoken. The slightest hint of rose touched her cheeks when he called her cute, it was another thing about Koda that Mavis had difficulty understanding.

"Don't think that's possible," she mumbled quietly. "I've been like this for a long time, doubt I could change anything about it."

For a few moments she remained silently, staring out the window. Koda seemed like a mystery to her considering not too long ago he purposefully attempted to make her angry, of which he succeeded. However, another question came to her mind while she stared out at the passing scenes playing outside the bus.

"Koda, why do you think I am so cute anyways? All I do is yell and threaten you," Mavis asked.

Although she would not admit it out loud, she found herself curious about him again. She shifted positions, leaning back into the seat and glancing over at Koda, awaiting to hear what he would say. Perhaps it would solve her reasoning for this curiosity or simply end it altogether, however, the latter seemed unlikely.

436 ● Koda Dalton ● The post has finally arrived!