[Marlene Lovechild]

It was past 3 AM.

The streets were well-lit, but empty. Even most of the party-goers and night-dwellers would feel sleepy by now, and stay somewhere cozy. One place that was not asleep, was the Seven-Eleven convenience store. Its windows were lit, and its doors open, for whoever would visit at such an ungodly hour, be it a night-time worker, a stray punk looking for a snack, or just people with insomnia, or a crippling fear of crowds. There was only one person in the shop, serving as the cashier, the manager, and the stocker. A short girl with pale skin and red hair, wearing a black shirt with a big number 7, painted in green. A hat covering her head. She monotonously moved around the shop, placing things where they should be.

Marlene worked here, whenever she was not at the UA academy, or needed at home.

She was rarely needed at home. Mother, more often than not, was not too thrilled about her presence. To not annoy her creator, the automaton girl preferred to stay out of sight. Her time would come, one day, to make her mother happy. But it was a work in progress. And there was a lot of progress to be made. At least, here she could be useful, and bring money to family budget. Her employers loved her, as she was able to work 7 days a week, every night, not needing sleep, and without complaint.

Though it was getting lonely, being here. The machine's normally focused and one-track mind was beginning to wander. She reviewed the events of the past days. The yacht party, the meeting of other students at the Academy... Her dates with Zenkai... The latter being a particular subject of scrutiny and analysis. He was ... a silly person. But also very affectionate towards her. And very patient. He did not seem to notice her machine-like mannerisms. But... Marlene knew this would not last long. Her mother was the same, once. The novelty wears off, eventually. She'd have to do better.

Holding a small mirror in front of her, finding a moment, she practiced smiling. Trying to make it look natural and welcoming. The best she got today was a weary, forced smile. Which... wasn't particularly out of place for a night-shift Seven-Eleven clerk. Except... that was not the intention. She did not wish to convey upsettedness, or a lack of cordiality. And yet, here she was.

The bell rang, making the automaton put down the mirror, and look up. Someone was coming. A customer, maybe? She did her best to do a welcoming smile, as static and rubbery as it looked. Eyes looking up at whoever came around.

"Welcome to Seven-Eleven, dear customer. My name is Marlene. How may I help you?"

Was it a familiar face?

[Zenkai Hatake]

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[attr="class","ZenkaiTitle"]Throughout Heaven And Earth [attr="class","ZenkaiSubtitle"]I Alone Am The Honored One [attr="class","ZenkaiTags"]Marlene Lovechild [attr="class","ZenkaiNotes"]

[attr="class","ZenkaiExposition"]Nights were quiet, peaceful and lacked people, it was the perfect time to be awake, especially if you required little sleep. Zenkai didn't exactly require little sleep but he could function well enough. Besides he could just sleep in his classes if he needed sleep. Night was also the only time of day that the sapphire-eyed titan felt comfortable enough to train. While he abhorred try hards and sweats, the people who trained hard to show off how great of a hero their going to be, he did realize the necessity of training. It wasn't like he actually wanted to be a hero or anything. No, he was definitely totally still against that. They had just realized that they kept running into situations where either they, or their friends put their life on the line. The only way to make sure that no one got hurt or lost their life was to make sure that his body was as capable as possible.

Tonight was just a run, they had definitely convinced himself that it was just a run to tire him out so they could sleep better and definitely not endurance and speed training. They had been running for a few miles before they came across a familiar looking Seven-Eleven and decided it was time for a break and get refreshed before continuing their run. They even had it on good authority that the night clerk on duty was a cutie patootie.

"You look tired." The golden boi spoke as he walked into the store, glancing over at his girlfriend's weary smile, even her eyes look exhausted, something Zenkai had never seen in the Andriod before. It made sense to Zen in an odd way. She was here every night, he couldn't imagine how boring that would become after a day or two.

Leaning on the counter, the titan bent over to move his face closer to his partner's "Cute uniform though, glad to see you wearing something different, dork."

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[Marlene Lovechild]

"Oh, it's you."

Marlene attempted another smile. It seemed more genuine, this time around, though it still needed work. She did not expect Zenkai to come over and see her during her working hours. Most people would be sleeping by now. Still, his presence was appreciated. Beat the monotony of placing cans of beers on shelves and blowing dust away from the counter. Even if he insisted on calling her a dork for some reason.

"I cannot be made tired. It must be the lighting." - the automaton said, stoically. Maybe it was her mood that seemed tired, rather than expression? She did not know. She never practiced appearing tired. Though the backhanded compliment about her outfit did manage to make Marlene roll her eyes a bit back. A maneuver she was more practiced with. "It is a standard uniform. Everyone who works here wears one. It is not particularly tasteful." - she stated, briefly crossing her arms. She liked her dress a lot more. It was a gift. This was ... a uniform handed to her for the job. Nothing more. 

"Is there anything you would like to buy?" - Marlene asked, compelled to continue her store clerk spiel. It was a duty - there were cameras around. If she did not say the things she needed to say, the manager would have questions in the morning. Something something corporate policy. Like saying hello and good bye, and if they wanted a paper bag for their groceries. Whatever the fellow would say he wanted, she would get him. And after store duties were out of the way, the automaton would say:

"I was thinking about you, not too long ago."

A strange thing to hear, from a machine. 

[Zenkai Hatake]

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[attr="class","ZenkaiTitle"]Throughout Heaven And Earth [attr="class","ZenkaiSubtitle"]I Alone Am The Honored One [attr="class","ZenkaiTags"]Marlene Lovechild [attr="class","ZenkaiNotes"]

[attr="class","ZenkaiExposition"]It was hard to ignore the pleasant feeling Zenkai felt everytime he laid eyes upon the red-haired robot. She wasn't just pleasant to look at, her dorky attitude and determination to be the best human she could be was rather endearing. For some reason seeing Marlene in the middle of the night felt more intimate than all the other times they had been with her. It was just the two of them in the empty store, just like when they first met in the library but this time they didn't have the threat of a librarian looming over them.

"Well, I like it! I think it's a cute uniform" The titan teased, regardless of what Marlene said the change of clothes was rather refreshing, though they still didn't believe her when it came to her being tired, they wouldn't press it, Marlene probably wouldn't understand. "We definitely need to take you clothes shopping for our next date. I'll buy you something so that you have more than just that dr…lovely black dress to wear." They had to stop themselves from insulting the dress. It was a gift from her mom and she new she treasured it dearly, even if it was a tad too formal.

After letting his girlfriend gather all of his items which consisted of six milk teas, ten beef croquets and a concerning amount of rice balls the titan pulled out his wallet to get ready to pay for everything. That was until Marlene mentioned she had been thinking about him, which, for some reason sounded weird. Why on earth was an android thinking about him when he wasn't there.

"OH? Why were you thinking about me?"

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[Marlene Lovechild]

Beep, beep, beep.

Marlene shied away from the question, instead focusing on beeping through the various items that Zenkai chose to buy. Their volume and number helped - it gave the automaton time to think. She was ... uncertain if it was something that she should tell him. He did already do so much for her, every time they met. Burdening a person with more of one's own personal worries and issues was ... immodest, and cumbersome. 'Perhaps, I should have kept my mouth shut, instead of peaking interest.' - the automaton thought to herself. Her chest rose and fell, slightly. She resigned. Her eyes went up to meet Zen's. She spoke.

"I was reliving and reviewing our time together since we first met." - Marlene started from afar. She averted her gaze, a little. "You've been very kind to me. You spent a lot of time with me and showed me new things. Thank you."

Another awkward silence hung in the air. Marlene sought to occupy herself by putting the items into the bag, printing the check, and so forth. There was a bit of haste in her motions, it seemed. A bit of ... erraticness. And the way she opened her mouth as if to say something again, but then closing it, without letting out a sound, left very little doubt in one's mind.

It was not everything that Marlene had to say. Instead, the price for the things appeared on the screen. She looked up.

"Would you prefer to pay with a card, or cash?"

[Zenkai Hatake]

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[attr="class","ZenkaiTitle"]Throughout Heaven And Earth [attr="class","ZenkaiSubtitle"]I Alone Am The Honored One [attr="class","ZenkaiTags"]Marlene Lovechild [attr="class","ZenkaiNotes"]

[attr="class","ZenkaiExposition"]Most of the time, Marlene was stoic or aloof, not really seeming to care much about anything or anyone. It was the one part of her that always felt robotic which made sense, when you didn't exactly have feelings it was hard to get attached to the goings on around you but right now, in the 7-11, her general demeanor felt like the least robotic part of her. The golden boi didn't have much experience with people who were shying away from a specific subject but it was pretty clear that Marlene was anxious about something. Zenkai couldn't think of a time before when Marlene refused to make eye contact with him, she always made sure to look at him when she spoke, at least until now.

"You're welcome? I mean, that's what I promised wasn't it? You don't have to thank me for anything" The sapphire-eyed titan waved her off with a blush on his cheeks. He appreciated the compliment even if it did make him feel flustered. He wanted to help her achieve her goal, she deserved to feel what everyone around her felt. It was just what he wanted to do, he didn't need to be thanked for it. Besides it wasn't like he didn't get anything out of it.

Taking his card as out of his pocket, Zenkai held it in the air in front of Marlene but didn't give it to her. "Card...But first" The golden boi grinned, waving the card in front of Marlene's face "You're going to have to finish that thought." He instructed, His girlfriend wasn't going to get away that easy, She wanted to tell him something and she was going to tell him. "As cute as it is to so you all shy and anxious, I would like to know what you want to talk about"

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[Marlene Lovechild]

Marlene's eyes followed the card being waved in front of her face, as one would follow a hypnotist's clock. 

Except, she could not be hypnotized. But she could be slightly annoyed. It was to bring her out of the melancholy of her decision-making processes, if just a little. "Please wave the card in front of the scanner, not in front of my face. It is not a scanner. It cannot process your payment." - she stated the obvious. It would continue, until Zen would choose to stop. But, in a way, this distraction was favorable to Marlene. It gave the uncertain automaton a little bit more time to think.

Machines were not known for lying. Or avoiding difficult subjects. Or other weaknesses of character that could have made them more human. Eventually, she would speak.

"The way we interact right now reminds me of the time spent with my mother, when she first met me. She was elated and happy, and said many things you did, to me." - there was a fraction of warmth, barely noticeable, in those words. Marlene remembered those days with fondness.

"But then, I assume, the novelty wore off. Elation was replaced with disappointment. Whatever she was looking for in our relationship, I was unable to give."

She looked back up at Zen, with that eerie, unblinking stare of hers. 

"I do not wish for that to happen again. I was considering my options, on what I could do, to avoid a similar outcome."

Marlene stopped, briefly, reviewing the vocabulary she has been using. The way she talked was very ... bookish. Longwinded sentences with complex words. People rarely talked like that. So, she made an effort to jot her thoughts into something more clear and concise.

"I do not want to lose you."