Inevitable {Tech}

Chapter Twenty Five: Mutual Adoration

"Hm...I give it a week, tops. And if I win, you boys have to clean the parlor—top to bottom. I want it shining like Canto Bight in here," Cid smirked and gestured to the vast room.

"Deal," Hunter affirmed with a nod and crossed his arms. "But let's leave them to it...Omega, why don't you practice your shots again."

"You got it," Omega firmly nodded and raised her bow, sticking her tongue out against her bottom lip as she concentrated.

She fired her first shot and failed miserably. The boys consoled her and kept giving her constructive criticism, like telling her to keep her chin forward and not to let her fingers waver.

As the Batch ran their small firing session, Cass continued watching Tech's fingers fly and warp around the puzzle pieces.

"If my calculations are correct, I should be able to finish the puzzle in about...hm...eleven more moves," Tech mumbled aloud as he laced a thumb along the edges of the pieces.

"Are you sure?" Cass smirked and tilted her head.

"What-what do you mean?" Tech's voice wavered as he drew the puzzle closer to his face and scanned the surface area like it was his mission.

"I see how you can complete it in nine moves," she puckered her lips to the side to hold back her amused tone.

Tech hummed and froze, allowing his brain a moment to put all its effort towards finding the specific algorithm. Cass smiled lazily as she watched his honey eyes dart around and squint—a clear indicator that he was thinking hard. She could sense his concentration and it was quite admirable and adorable.

She listened as he whispered to himself and thoughtfully moved the pieces.

"One, two, three..."

Cass watched intently, glancing back and forth between the puzzle and the man behind it.

"Four, five...six, seven..."

She bit back a wide grin—he had figured it out.

He arranged the last two moves, and lo and behold he completed it in nine—just like she said.

"Your intelligence never ceases to amaze me," Tech confessed and gently placed the wooden pyramid on the table between them.

"I think the very same thing about you every, oh I don't know...probably every five minutes or so," she laughed and sat up straighter, then rested her chin in her hands.

Both of them blushed profusely, staring at each other like two kids who couldn't care less who saw them. Tech's intense gaze caused Cass to avert her eyes, which only made it easier for Tech to examine every feature of hers.

"Would you like to see what other games are here?" Tech cleared his throat and finally looked away to gesture around the room.

"Sure," Cass bit the inside of her lip and nodded sheepishly.

She followed behind the taller clone as they surveyed the games that lined the walls. Pinball machines and digotto stations scattered along the back while dejarik tables and lugjack ports covered the majority of the front.