"So… you usually do this?" Diana asked as she stood next to him. "Sorry, that's a stupid question. How else would you be able to remain this fit?"
"Heh, you're not wrong." Wren replied while squatting again, stretching his legs while returning back into a standing position.
That was dead wrong. He didn't want to be here at all… he was being forced by Nyx. At the corner of his vision, the system tab was still open.
[DAILY MISSION]
[50 Push-ups — Complete]
[50 Sit-ups — Complete]
[50 Squats — 40/50]
[2km Run — 0/2]
[Reward: 500 Credits]
[Punishment for failure: Reduction of Body Mass and Reduction of Dick Size by 0.5 inches]
'Nyx, you're a demon! What kind of threats are these?' He thought as he continued squatting and the system screen shifted.
[Naturally, your body is good but it needs to be maintained. How are you supposed to outperform husbands and boyfriends if you're as sedentary as they are? Work your body, Host! Work it and shake those hips!]
He was almost thankful he couldn't hear Nyx's voice out loud. How annoying would that be if she was actually talking?
[Excuse me… I am not annoying. You ungrateful bastard. In fact you should be bowing to me for giving your bland life meaning!]
He dismissed the screen and focused on Diana instead. The woman was attempting a squat but had gotten stuck halfway down.
"Ouch." She said with a puff of her cheeks as she pushed herself down completely. Her chest bounced and so did everything else. "It's been a while since I've done squats."
"Come on, it helps keep your body shapely." He said as he did another one and she glanced at him, rising and dropping at the same pace.
Soon both of them were sitting on the ground staring at a dark sky that was slowly beginning to show the first light of morning.
"My thighs hurt." Diana said with a pout, massaging them.
He had to actively stop himself from calling her cute. What kind of man would hurt a sweet woman like her? His father and her ex-husband, apparently.
"I can carry you inside if you like." He suggested and a small blush crossed her cheeks.
"Carry me inside?" Diana repeated and clenched her fist.
He was just her stepson… the simple act of carrying her inside wasn't going to mean anything. "Sure. But I want to feel the breeze a little longer. I trim these grasses every week and I wasn't even aware how comfortable they were."
Wren didn't speak for a while and Diana froze up, automatically assuming she had done something wrong then he sighed.
"I'm sorry…"
"Sorry?" Diana blinked. What was he apologizing for? "If it was for the squats then I genuinely enjoyed doing them with you."
"It isn't about that." Wren said while laying back on the grass. "I'm sorry for everything you've experienced up until this point. Even though I'm not the one that hurt you, it was my dad so I should apologize too."
"You shouldn't." Diana said while taking his hand. "It's the same for you, isn't it?"
He finally looked her in the eyes and in the little light that covered her face, she looked incredibly serious.
"Please don't mind what Zoe says. You'll always be welcome here. I'll be here for you and I'm sure eventually she'll feel the same, so you don't need to worry." She assured him with complete sincerity. "I'm here and I'll always be here for you."
Wren had a wry smile on his face.
"You know… if I didn't know better, I would think this was a love confession." Wren said and she blushed hard.
"L-love…? It's not a love confession and even if it was, boys your age shouldn't be fooling around with an older woman like me." Diana said while turning her head away. "Girls your age would be more fitting for yo—"
She was interrupted as Wren lifted her up completely with one hand under her back and the other pressing against her backside making her face lit up immediately. Was he even aware that he was touching her indecently?
"I mean, I don't really mind an older woman if it's you." He told her and walked toward the door they had come out from. She clung around his neck to stop herself from falling.
"W-Wren…" She looked at his serious face and sighed. "Well carry me to the kitchen then. I want to warm up some food."
"Your wish is my command, milady." He told her and she blushed harder as he carried her inside like she was royalty.
…
Priya ran along the roads of Harlow wearing a black singlet and black shorts, her long dark hair with the gold pieces still through it tied up in a ponytail that moved at the speed she was going.
She had Ellie Aelish playing through her headphones and her feet hitting the ground in a steady pace.
'Wren came back…'
She took several more strides, her breath coming even with sweat trailing down her face and neck into her singlet.
'He actually came back…'
When she had looked at his face at Merle's she could tell it was the same Wren.
Sure he looked more like one of those Looksmaxers that based their whole personality on their looks and sharp jawlines but deep down underneath all of those muscles was the Wren she knew.
She could tell from the way he had carried Dani back, that was exactly how he used to carry her when they were kids, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
'I'm so happy…'
She felt like she could run forever. She hadn't felt like this in years. There were so many things she wanted to ask him and talk to him about especially who that Leah girl was but then her eyes darkened.
'I'm dating Derek though…'
Derek had been there when she was at her lowest.
When Wren had left and she didn't know how to explain to herself why that felt like the floor had been taken out from under her, Derek had just been there consistently. She'd kept him in the friendzone for years and eventually it had felt wrong to keep doing that to someone who cared that much so she'd said yes.
And it was fine. They were happy. They hadn't done anything past holding hands since she had made it clear she was waiting until marriage, and he had accepted that without making her feel bad about it.
'I don't know what to do.' She thought. She didn't want to hurt Derek but she also didn't know what to do with whatever was happening in her chest every time Wren's face came into her head.
She wasn't watching where she was going.
Something grabbed her and pulled her back sharply into a solid chest and she flinched hard, turning to see who had her.
"Wren…?" Her cheeks went pink immediately.
He smelled like woody cologne and it suited him too, was this what all guys in the city wore? "Why are you holding me?"
"Look ahead." He said.
She looked. There was a pithole in the ground directly where her next step would have landed… It was a large open gap where the construction crew was laying the new network tower foundation.
Her father had mentioned it last week.
"You should be more alert when you're running." Wren said. "Try not to get into accidents."
"O-okay…" She said. Her body felt like it had been hit by electricity and wasn't entirely cooperating.
He let go and she stood properly, pulling her headphones down to her neck.
"It's been a while, I can't believe you're the same Priya. You really became a college belle from novels, huh?" Wren said, once again, he only knew about this stuff since Leah technically retold the novels she read to him. "I was surprised to find out you have a boyfriend yesterday, especially someone as nice as Derek. Seems like you two are going to have a happy future together."
She didn't know why but hearing him say it like that made her chest hurt so she bit her lip.
"You're right." She said, putting a hand on her waist to avoid giving into her trembling legs. "So were you running or were you just stalking me?"
"I was doing both." Wren said. "I saw a pretty cute girl running while I was on my run too so I wanted to get her number then I realized it was you."
Her face brightened and she started to respond but the words caught in her throat.
Was she really cute to him? After all the girls he must have seen in Bostara? She didn't think of herself as comparable to city girls especially without their makeup and styling but if he thought so she would take it.
"I'm kidding." Wren said. "I was finishing my run and I need to head to the Lodge."
She almost deflated completely.
He needed to complete some missions… now that the daily was done he might as well clear the others.
Kissing a woman in a committed relationship, getting Diana's panties and cleaning the ground floor.
The only women he knew right now who were in relationships were Cara and Priya. He could try with Cara later that evening on their date, but it was too early for that. As for Priya… how was he even supposed to kiss her? Just take her lips? That had to be some kind of offense under the law.
"You're heading to the Langford Lodge area?" Priya asked.
When the Lodge had still been running it was where they used to sneak off to play as kids. It had been sitting abandoned for nearly a decade now. "Great, I'm going in that direction. Why don't we run there?"
"Run? What do I get if I win?" Wren asked.
"If you win…" She thought about it. "I'll do anything you want. As long as it's not too perverted. I'll do it to the best of my abilities."
"I see." Wren said and immediately took off past her, clearing a significant gap before she registered what had happened.
"See you when I get there!"
Priya laughed and broke into a sprint after him.
"Wait up!"