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White.

The two Blakes were still sitting opposite each other with opposite expressions.

"You really enjoyed the beginning of your new life, huh?", the satisfied boy spoke.

No response.

"It must have been pretty awful for you once things started slowing down again."

No response.

The two sat in silence for a while. But eventually, the sullen boy responded.

"...Maybe at first. 

But now, I look back on those days much more fondly."

*Beep*
The doctor removed the thermometer from Blake's mouth.

"Temperatures are normal."

It had already been a few days since the incident at the mall and Blake showed no signs of damage physical or otherwise. Despite this, Lena still had her doubts.

"What about the other tests?", she asked.

Flipping the page of a clipboard, the doctor responded dismissively.

"His blood pressure and vitals are fine too. There's nothing wrong with him as far as I can see. How old did you say he was again?"

"He just turned 18."

"Hmm? Isn't he a little too old for you to be coddling him like this?"

Blake's eyebrow twitched in response to this. But he kept his annoyance to himself until the two left the office.

"I told you I was fine. This was pointless.", Blake sighed.

"You haven't had a checkup in years, anyway, so just get over it."

Flinching slightly in response to her tone, Blake looked away and saw someone who caught his attention.

Miles was sitting in the waiting area and the second his and Blake's eyes met, he smiled and waved from across the room. 

*Vroom*
A car drove down the road at a steady pace. Lena was sitting behind the steering wheel with Blake next to her in the passenger's seat. This left a deeply confused Miles alone in the back seat of the car. 

"Why am I here again?"

He was ignored as Blake rolled down his window. 

"Close it. The AC is on.", Lena said immediately.

Flinching slightly in response to her tone again, Blake complied with her demand, but not without any protest. 

"...Are you mad at me or something?"

It was Lena's turn to flinch now. She shifted her eyes over to him for a brief moment before softening her gaze and changing the topic.

"...Will you be okay?"

"You heard the doctor; I'm not injured or anything."

"That's not what I meant."

The car came to stop.

Blake looked out the front window and instantly realized what she was getting at as his own house stared back at him.

"...It's fine. I'm used to it."

Without saying anything else, he unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the car.

"Um, excuse me...", Miles raised his hand.

Before he could ask his question, Blake opened one of the car's back doors and dragged Miles out and onto his front porch.

"You wanted to bring me to your house?"

"So, you can remove what you left inside."

"...W-Whaaaat? What do you mean by that? Aha..."

He was even worse at acting than Lena.

"Just get inside already."

Upon entering, the two were greeted by Blake's mother exiting the kitchen. She paid Miles no mind as she passed by. 

Miles got to work immediately, drilling a small hole in Blake's wall and retrieving the listening device he'd left inside it.

"Now that that's taken care of, there's something else I need to talk to you about."

A brief pause.

"I need access to my dad's workspace. Can you take me there?"

"You want me to do what? Sorry kid, but that's a no."

"Come on, you owe me. I saved yours and Ethan's lives, didn't I?"

Before responding, Miles leaned on the door to the room. 

"Which is why I removed the bugs for you. But that's the most I can do. Ethan would kill me if he found out I helped you with something like this."

"And who says he needs to find out about this? As long as neither of us say anything, it should be fine right?"

"No way! You saw how bad I am at lying."

"Isn't there anything I can do-"

"Nope."

"But I-"

"No."

He was completely adamant in his position. For the first time, Blake had reached a complete dead end in his negotiations. 

After the room had gone silent however, Miles began to consider something in his head. He then tapped his finger against his arm a couple of times before speaking up. 

"You know what? Fine, but on one condition."

Blake looked up immediately and waited with bated breath for what Miles would say. 

*Buzz Buzz*
Lena checked her phone and then raised an eyebrow in response to the message she'd received. And before she had time to process it, there was a knock at her door.

She opened it and there stood Blake and Miles. One was completely ecstatic and the other just seemed done with life.

"Good evening, ma'am! You're looking absolutely stunning today.", Miles exclaimed.

Lena looked at him, a bit confused, for a while before turning to Blake.

"Who's this guy again?"

Miles instantly deflated.

"This is Miles, remember? Ethan's partner."

Stroking her chin, Lena took one more look at Miles before brushing him off again.

"Well, whatever. What're you doing here?"

"Well..."

Blake scratched the back of his head as he recalled the rest of his conversation with Miles.

"You know what? Fine, but on one condition."

"Name it."

"...Lena. Set me up with her."

Complete silence.

"...W-What?"

It took a lot of repeating for Blake to fully understand what he had just heard. Miles could have asked for the actual impossible and it would have made more sense than what he really did.

"But didn't she..."

"Yes."

"And in the-"

"Yes! Moving on. Can you do it or not?"

He couldn’t possibly be serious, Blake assumed. This must be a joke, he thought. But no, Miles was indeed serious. He meant what he said. The sheer conviction he had when asking for something so juvenile was honestly astounding.

But juvenile or not, Blake wasn't going to let an opportunity go to waste. And that was how he ended up in this situation.

Blake's arm dropped to his side again as he finally responded to Lena's question. 

"It's a bit of a long story. Could we come in first?"

After a moment's contemplation, Lena widened the gap in the door behind her and stood aside to let the two enter. And with zero hesitation, Miles stepped inside with glee. 

Blake took noticeably longer though. For whatever reason, he couldn't bring himself to step forward. 

The space inside just seemed so far away from him. 

"Blake hurry up. You'll catch a cold if you stay out there too long."

The distant look in Blake's eyes slowly faded as he was brought back to his senses and finally allowed himself to return to the place he'd left all those years ago.