What have I done?

  I stood near the fountain in the shopping district. The water spray from the fountain couldn't reach me at the edge where I stood. The plaza was somewhat crowded since the schools were on break. The summer sun was climbing into the sky, and the temperature was rising as fast as my thoughts were racing.

  The day before, I had saved Lucy from a truck in the park, and Chika's face confirmed my fears that even childhood friends could be turned away in paranoia at the thought of the unknown. Not to mention my mind turning on me which is becoming a reoccurring problem. My thoughts went wild in my head.

  I need to get her to understand... understand what? That I'm an assassin from a dismal future where everyone I loved was taken from me? That I can undo most any bodily harm done to me and do almost anything to anyone I feel like while they and everyone else is frozen in time? That'll go over well.

  I looked around for her and checked the time. 8:12am. Eighteen minutes before we were supposed to meet. Old habits die hard, I guess.

  I looked around some more and felt a sudden and almost violent breeze go across my face. I looked around to see nothing out of the ordinary. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her walking up. She was in a nice sundress with a wide hat that shaded her shoulders and comfortable-looking sandals. Even with my abysmal fashion sense, the outfit worked well together. I couldn't help but stare for a moment as she got closer.

  Every time I find myself noticing how cute she is, it still feels wrong.

  "Hi, Kazu, been waiting long?" She said when she walked up.

  "Nah," I answered. "Just a few minutes." I had been there since before 8:00.

  "Thanks for coming out with me today," she started as we walked into the covered part of the district.

  She seemed shy today, probably still shaken by what happened the day before.

  "It's already getting hot, huh? I'm glad I went with this instead of the other outfit I thought about."

  "I think the other one would have looked good too," I replied. "But whichever makes you feel more comfortable is better."

  "You like this one?" She asked with her tilted head. The hat almost seemed comical at this point.

  "Mmhmm, it looks good on you. Oh! It's late enough, let's get some ice cream."

  My sweet tooth came back after being repressed and completely took over. I hurried over to get us a spot in the line that was already growing.

  "Jeez, Kazu, you're such a child sometimes."

  She walked up with a smile on her face. I think I eased her mind a bit. I won't push the subject of yesterday unless she brings it up. For now, I'll just enjoy this time with her.

  We got our ice cream and sat down at a table. There was a gentle breeze that made the heat melt away. Chika's favorite ice cream since we were kids was always plain vanilla. She would always go on these long tirades when someone would make fun of the flavor. It's true what's been said about food being able to bring back memories.

  Since I'd come back, every meal seems to bring back more memories that I thought were lost. Even my mint chip ice cream tastes like a time that was stolen from me. I was finishing mine when another strong breeze came through. I looked around again to see a man fallen over from the breeze spilling his tray. I looked back to my cup to see the last scoop gone. Across from me was Chika with a spoonful of my ice cream and her empty cup in front of her.

  "Excuse me! You don't even like mint!"

  Her mischievous smile had returned, and she quickly shoved the spoon in her mouth.

  "That's what you get for spacing out, Kazu," she said triumphantly after dropping her spoon in my cup.

  Some make up this is.

  After she finished both of our treats, we went on through the district. Our first stop was a clothing store.

  "Help me pick out a swimsuit, Kazu. We're all going to the water park in a few weeks, right?"

  Swimsuit choices again? When will people learn that I have no fashion sense?

  "I don't think I'll be much help, but I'll try."

  She grabbed a handful of different suits and ran into the changing room.

  "Stand out here and wait for me, okay?" Her expression changed. "And no peeking." I turned away flustered.

  Definitely illegal, even if we're the same age right now.

  This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  I stood outside the changing rooms looking at clothes to pass the time.

  "Oh? Kazuma, what a surprise," a voice near me said. I turned to see my mother and sister.

  "Zuzu, I had no idea you were going shopping today," Yui was obviously lying. "I told mom that I wanted to look for a new swimsuit and some dresses." She definitely somehow heard us arranging our meeting today.

  "Kazu, are you ready to be captivated?" As they walked up, Chika pulled back the curtain to reveal a vibrantly colored two piece.

  This... has turned into a difficult situation.

  The moment she saw Chika, an intense look — no, a bloodlust — filled Yui's eyes.

  I have to find a way to deal with that obsession of hers.

  Chika's face went beet red when she saw my mother and sister, and she quickly spun back around into the changing room. Before it could get any worse, my mother swooped up Yui and started walking away.

  "I'm sorry, sweetie. I just remembered we have to go to a neighborhood ladies gathering this morning."

  As she walked away, I caught a glimpse of her side eye and smirked. Yui fought her the entire way out of the store.

  "That witch, that seductress, let me at her!"

  I leaned back against the wall trying to take in the last ten seconds. Chika was silent in the changing room. After a few minutes, she poked her head out.

  "Are they gone?" I looked back and nodded my head.

  She opened the curtain again, this time with a cute shyness. She still had on the two-piece. It fit her snuggly which made it hard to take my eyes off of her.

  "You look good," I said, trying to look away.

  At that, she closed the curtain. She changed into a one piece then another two-piece before finishing.

  "Which did you like the best?" she asked when she came back out.

  "I liked them all... but I guess the third one?"

  She gave me her tilted glance as I tried to look away. She giggled and put the other two back before paying for the third.

  "Oh, Kazu," she started as we left. "I need a new bag too."

  She took off towards another store, and I followed behind. The breeze picked up as I went into the store.

  Something's wrong. Once is coincidence; twice is suspicious; thrice is a pattern.

  Time came to a halt as I walked back out of the store and looked around. Nothing was obviously out of place. People walking to and fro. Birds flying overhead. Lives being lived. I went back inside, and everyone started to move again. Chika was staring at a small bag. It kind of resembled her in a way: cute and not overly ornate.

  "Is that the one you're getting?" I asked. She shook her head.

  "Nah, I've already spent a lot today, and I need to save some for later." She walked away from it, and I looked at it again as I passed it by.

  We spent a few more minutes looking at just bags before she wanted to move on to shoes. What seemed like hours went by as she meticulously sifted through the aisles of different styles.

  "These are cute, but I could only wear them with this..." she was thinking out loud.

  She was so absorbed, I had a few minutes to slip away. I went back to the bag she had stared at and bought it. Her birthday was coming up before the next time our group would get together, so this would be my gift to her. When I went back, she was in the same spot staring at three different shoes.

  "These are expensive, but these could go with more outfits, and these..." she was still thinking out loud. I took the bag, adjusted it to her height, and put it on her shoulder.

  "Huh?" She turned around and looked at it. "Kazu?"

  "You were staring at it pretty hard. Happy early birthday, Chika," I said with a smile.

  She looked at it, looked at me, blushed, and turned around to put away the shoes. Before I could offer to help, they were away, and she was pulling me out of the store. When we got out, her usual smile came out, and I realized I had made a mistake.

  "Oh? Kazu bought me a gift just because I stared at it?" she said in a teasing voice. "Maybe I should take you to a jewelry store and stare at a ring then. Would you buy it for me, Kazu?" She gave me puppy eyes.

  "Hmph. See if I ever do something nice for you again."

  "Aww, Kazu is flustered. Don't be upset, Kazu. I know you want to be with me forever, so we can take our time."

  "Why, you-" The wind picked up, and I went into hyper alert.

  At its strongest, I slowed time on a whim to see someone in a hoodie already running beside me... with the bag that I just bought Chika. Even with the passage of time slowed to a crawl, they were running at near full speed.

  The wind was caused by a meta, a speedster. A thief. I ran after them and brought the crawl to a stop completely. They were in the middle of turning a corner into an alley.

  How convenient.

  I grabbed their hoodie and pinned them against the wall where I resumed the flow. They crashed and were extremely disoriented as expected.

  Speedsters have incredibly fast, well, everything. Their bodies need to be able to handle their speed, so their reflexes are heightened as well as their ability to repair muscles. The speedster had broken their nose when they ran into the wall at such a high speed and couldn't get their bearings to run away.

  "Alright, thief," I said in my best commanding voice. "Give me back the bag you took." I turned them around and the hood fell off.

  Before me was a girl a little younger than me with brown hair and hazel eyes. The bag fell to the ground, and she tried to speed away. I froze time again and flipped her over with a throw. Again, she was disoriented when time resumed.

  "What the hell?" she muttered. She tried to get up again, and time slowed as slow as I could make it. Even her movements were like watching a sloth. I walked over to her and picked her up by the hoodie.

  "Not such an easy life when the playing field is evened out, huh, thief?"

  I had broken one of the rules of assassinations: no theatrics. Out of nowhere, a punch landed on my left cheek, and the speedster wiggled free and ran away, leaving the bag. Deeper in the alley stood another in a hoodie.