Survival Of The Fittest

{{Hiro Fukuyama continued from Perfect}}

Hiro was never really much for just hanging out in public places by herself all that much. Even that little stint with the maze was a rare occurrence when she just wanted to be out of the house for a while. So she wasn't entirely comfortable just sitting around at a food court table by herself, nursing a small Orange Julius as she waited for Zeke to arrive.

Sitting there gave her plenty of time to worry about anything and everything, though. Was the mall the right place for a first date? Was she wearing the right clothing? She'd gone with a slightly nicer-looking t-shirt and jacket than usual. Was it too fancy? Not fancy enough? Did she tell Zeke the right time? Did she bring enough money? Seriously, the mall? You couldn't come up with a better place for a first date? Now he's going to think she's cheap, and are you SURE you told him the right time? For all she knew, she zonked out and told him the wrong time, and he came an hour earlier, waited, and then got fed up and left and will probably never speak to her again GAAH STUPID STUPI-

Oh wait, there he is.

Hiro bolted upright so quickly that she almost knocked the Orange Julius over, straightening out her jacket, her shirt, her hair, so much so that one would think she'd getting ready for a job interview instead of a date.

Aaaaaand it wasn't him after all.

Hiro sank back into her seat, feeling a little embarrassed that she made a spectacle over the wrong person. Taking another sip of her Orange Julius, she contined to wait.

-----

Uh...this is taking quite a while. Is she sure she said the right time? Maybe she should call him again, just to make sure.

...

Huh. Voice mail. Well...uh, that's okay. Maybe he's already on his way, and just forgot his phone. Or maybe he came to fully realize who he agreed to go on a date with and decided to just ignore the pathetic anemic girl until she goes awa-

No. He's coming. He's definitely coming.

-----

He's not coming.

The Orange Julius was finished about an hour ago, and the longer she sat at the table, the more uncomfortable she felt. She could almost feel everybody's eyes on her. 'Hey, isn't that the girl from an hour or two ago? Why is she still sitting there? What the hell's her problem?' Hiro shifted in her seat, feeling an odd mixture of disappointment and shame. Of course he didn't show up. Who the hell would want to go out with someone like her? He was probably just doing it out of pity. Poor tiny sick girl probably never even had a boyfriend at all in her life. He can't possibly turn her down to her face. No, instead he can just let her sit by herself at the mall for a couple hours and make a fool of herself.

Hiro got up, nearly forgetting to throw the empty plastic cup away as she quickly got the hell out, wanting somewhere more private to feel ashamed and embarrassed.

{{continued elsewhere}}