God Eater: Fates Entwined

4 - Attachment

Alisa tried her best to ignore the silence in front of her. It certainly looked like a father was only waiting for the best opportunity to privately scold his child, and Mayu was playing along with the scene perfectly well, keeping her head low and sitting still by the male God Eater's side. Lenka and Kota are seated in the front, silent, and she had moved to the end of the jeep closest to them. "Y-You really saved us, Mayu," she told the little girl.

The other lifted her head slightly and turned to her, a small, shy smile appearing on her lips. "I didn't get to kill it though. I should have hit it in the torso and extract the core, but I messed up and hit the skirt instead."

"It's fine though! At least it isn't chasing us anymore. You did a good job!"

There was a short grumbling sound that she was certain came from Soma. "Does the Major even know you're out here?" He asked, eyebrows creased and forehead in slight wrinkles.

"Y-Yes, Papa..." The blonde squeaked. "She allowed me to go with the Director's permission." When he said nothing but a single huff, Mayu lowered her head again and kept her hands entwined together. This wasn't the first time she'd been scolded. After all, she had her own share of stubborn scenarios in the past, and most of those didn't really end all too well.

Her father worries a little too much, or so she would think every time she gets scolded for something reckless. They said he was never a man who is good with his emotions and every time she tries to understand—she tries to understand why he can't trust her with herself. Mayu shuffled silently and shifted in her seat, moving so that she could wrap one arm around the dark-skinned male's torso and bury her face to his side. "I love you, Dad..." She whispered softly.

She felt a gentle stroke on her head. "Look, Petal," he began in an equally hushed voice. "As the damn old man puts it, as long as you're here, you're under my wing." Mayu didn't look up, but she figured he wasn't looking down on her, but far into the horizon, just like her father in this kind of situation. "Anything you do, I'll be held responsible for it." There was an attempt to stop that small, delighted smile from appearing on her lips, but it was futile, and she only buried herself further to the male. Dad... and Soma-san has so many things alike.

And at times like this, she only misses him more. She missed the times she would curl up on him and they would snuggle in comfortable silence, because he was still sad about her mother's death. She missed the times they would walk to the training room together and he would teach her everything he had ever learned about God Eating. She missed the times he'd let her sit in his office and just listen to whatever story she has in store—no matter how pointless or senseless they are.

As she held the dark-skinned male tighter, Mayu could only think of him; when this is all over and she had fixed everything, she is going to come back home and hug him and tell him how much she loves him and apologize for even running away. She would apologize for leaving like her mother had done, because he doesn't deserve that. He doesn't deserve to be left alone again.

She would bring her mother back home and make him happier than he'd ever been.

And it was a sweet sight to behold, because they all knew Soma was never the affectionate one among the team. But Alisa couldn't help the small smile that tugged on her lips as she watched them from the corner of her blue eyes. At the very least, Soma was has something else to busy himself with other than his work, and it might just be the same thing running on the Director's head when he welcomed Mayu into the First Unit with open arms. The girl does carry a few questions. After all, she did mention about extracting the Deusphage's core. Regular God Eater like them are advised not to engage Deusphages as much as possible and yet this child, who has very little combat experience, charged into battle and unbound its skirt without much effort.