After helping Myu get cleaned up. She flirted with me a bit more before we parted ways. I liked her personality. She was very intelligent and we would make good friends going forward.

With my bags full of shirts in hand and up my arms, I made my way back home. As I put one set of bags down to open the front door I suddenly heard a sniffle.

I looked around confused, wondering where it came from before I heard it again. It was very faint, but it sounded like it was coming from the back garden?

Putting my bags down, I walked around the side of the house to investigate. I was correct that the sniffling was coming from the garden as it got louder as I approached.

Upon entering the garden, I found the source of the sniffling. Janine was sitting there on the grass. Head in her knees crying silently to herself. My heart shattered seeing this and I walked over hastily.

"Janine? Why are you crying? What has happened?"

Upon hearing my voice, Janine jolted. "Apollo!" She began to rub her eyes clear of tears. "When did you get back? How was your day?"

I sat down beside her, pulling her back down as she was attempting to get up. "Forget my day, babe, what is going on? Why are there tears?" I asked, as I reached out and slowly caressed her cheek, rubbing a tear away with my thumb as I did so.

Janine sniffled again. "Ugh, it’s nothing Apollo. I am fine. Please. Forget it."

I shook my head. "It clearly is something Janine if it’s causing you to cry in the garden. Please. Tell me." I then continued to softly stroke her cheek for a moment before she burst into tears and pulled herself into my embrace.

"I can’t do it Apollo! I’ve tried and tried, but I am not smart enough!"

She then began to cry again and I pondered what she meant. Was it Psionics? I doubted it as she had been breezing through the work given to her and had not asked for my help at all since the weekly basic classes started. My only other thought was perhaps she was still struggling to get into her Mindspace fluidly? But we had been training that every other day and was on track for Auntie Beth’s class in a couple weeks.

Deciding the only way to understand what she meant was by asking, I asked. "What are you not smart enough to do? I find that notion inconceivable Janine. You are so smart and talented."

My words did not have the opposite effect as Janine pulled away from me and began crying into her hands before blubbering out. "I-I-I cannot make our perfect first date!"

I was visibly taken aback. "Wait, what?"

Sensing my confusion, Janine looked up at me and said coldly. "This is serious Apollo!"

Not wanting to take strays, my hands shot upwards in surrender. "Alright, alright. What I am hearing from you is that after your planning for quite a while, you cannot make our ’perfect’ first date? Can you tell me why?"

Janine looked me up and down while squinting at me for a few moments before letting out a long sigh and pouting.

"Well, I had already planned it out. I found a nice tree atop a nearby hillock that we would have gone up to. You know, as a reminder of the time we found out each other’s big secrets? Me being blue and you having weird eyes and doing science to your body for fun."

I smiled instantly hearing that. It was incredibly sweet and thoughtful. It made me feel like a complete tool for never thinking of something like that, but that’s why Janine was the best. "Ok, that sounds very nice. Why can’t we do that, Janine?"

"Because!" Janine started off high-strung before letting out a long dejected sign and calming down. "Because the whole point of going up the hillock was a picnic and you have recently gone on a picnic date with Hailey, not that I am jealous of that! Not at all! I think that was really sweet of you to do, it’s just... Now you have done that, it won’t be as special."

I looked at Jaine and put on a touched facial expression before reaching out to her shoulder. "Oh honey... You are talking absolute shite." Janine then perked up and looked me directly in the eyes, not expecting me to say that and I continued.

" ’Won’t be as special?’ Girl has all these kisses recently turned you simple? Janine, you are my best friend. And are now also my girlfriend. Do you understand how special that is? We literally loved each other so much that I began having sexual feelings for you while I thought you were still gay and you literally underwent risky science testing just to check if there was any possibility you could be attracted to me. How is this what we have now not special?

Janine, despite me not trying to be. I am rich. There is nothing you can plot, buy or give me on a date I cannot buy myself, no location I cannot go. But spending time with you? Somewhere you picked out for sentimental and loving reasons? That is invaluable. That is special.

That is something I would repeat time and time again unto eternity and would never not find it special. You are my girl, Janine. You need to take that into account the next time you plan our date, now come on. Get up, get in that house and get dressed into something appropriate for jungle traversal, we are going to that hillock now if you like it or not."

Janine’s gorgeous large blue eyes began to fill up with tears again, but this time I could tell it was not sadness. It was joy. "R-Really?"

I nodded my head. "Yes really, now hurry up before I pick you up and carry you the whole way there while whispering embarrassing sweet nothings into your ear the entire time."

I then reached down a hand to help Janine up, which she then took. She was about to step away before leaning closer and smelling me. "Is that? *Sniff sniff.* Sepiida bodily fluids?"

I nodded my head. "Yes, but not due to anything explicit."

"Okie dokie~" Janine said happily before running inside, leaving me standing there for a moment. I looked down at my shirt before bringing it up to my nose and inhaling. I then looked in the direction of the back door, confused. ’What is she? A basset hound?-Ooh! What a memory to unlock! I loved those dogs, I should go see if they exist here!’

...

Sapphire, who was just lying on Apollo’s bed in her smaller form, shot upwards suddenly and looked around in confusion. She had just gotten a really bad feeling about something she did not understand.

Not sensing any danger, Sapphire felt confused about her bad feeling. Her instincts didn’t usually flare up like this. She kept alert for a minute before suddenly feeling sleepy once again.

Deciding to remain alert in case the bad feeling returned, Sapphire decided to go back to sleep, but only a half sleep so she would be aware of her surroundings.

...

After getting Janine inside, I rushed back to the front of the house to retrieve my shirts. I decided to set up a little trap, to see if what Myu had said was true. Making my way upstairs, I entered my bedroom with all the shirts and hastily put them away. I then took all the shirts I had worn out of the wardrobe and into the laundry basket, making sure I then took off my current shirt and put it at the very bottom and then put on one of the new shirts, a casual t-shirt as anything else for what I had planned for the remainder of the night would be constricting.

I also replaced my pants for some comfy pants Hailey had bought me. After I was told all of my pants were too formal. I just took her word on that as I still had the brain of a child when it came to dressing myself.

I then threw my pants into the basket as well for good measure, though I had not seen any of my pants go missing. underwear however... ’Eww gross, they better not be smelling my underwear, that’s kind of weird.’ I thought, taking into account all of the ’weird’ and ’gross stuff I have done in my love for the hive. Keyla’s blood orgy came to mind.

’Nah, if they are stealing my undies, that’s weirder.’ I thought adamantly before finally spotting the adorable sight on the bed.

"Aww, aren’t you so cute when you sleep in that form? That’s worth some scratches later. For now though...’ I placed my laundry basket next to Sleeping Chonky and whispered, even though she was asleep. "Defend my shirts, don’t let the perverts take them."

I then planted a kiss on her cute little forehead before leaving the room.

I had a date.