The Greatest Mecha-Chapter 47: Old Friends, New Faces 3

The next day, Alto woke up with a bit of a headache, but it was nothing he could not handle on his own. He knew if he had a mild painkiller, it would do the work just yet. He started his day by checking the mech designer protocol for any mission, but there was none given. He quickly cleaned up and headed out of his room with the books in hand.

The time he had gotten up was close to being the same time he had met Kram the day before. He had asked Alto to meet him at the same time the next day. Though he had not agreed to it because he was unsure what the bully wanted from him, he still felt inclined to go and at least hear what he had to say.

On his way, Alto thought about the note in the professor’s book. He doubted she had wanted him to see that. He thought if perhaps it was related to why she was staying on planet Soto with the mech division. He knew whatever it was about had nothing to do with him, but Alto’s curious nature persisted. Still, he thought it would be best to return the book as early as possible to avoid things getting ugly for him.

As he walked with the bundle of books in hand, he took a glance at his wrist comm device and saw the time. He was running a bit late to meet Kram, and that annoyed him.

Alto and Kram were never on good terms, so why was he now wanting to see him anyway? They never started as friends. Alto was just that one kid everyone wanted to step over, and Kram was the big boy who made fun of him. His stomach churned as he thought of what Kram might have in mind for him, but he knew it would not be physical. For as long as Alto had known Kram, he had never once assaulted him physically despite their bad falling out with each other.

Just then, Kram’s voice echoed over to him. "I’m telling you, he’ll be here any moment now. You know how late he usually is." ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

Alto tried to see who it was that Kram was speaking to. "Did he call someone to beat me up instead?"

Then Kram’s voice came directed at him. "Well, there he is. Speak of the devil." His voice sounded loud and bold, the energy that he always carried with him.

Alto gulped down, expecting Kram to make fun of him any moment then, but then a thought came to his mind. Why should he care what Kram thought about him? He was pursuing his own path, and Kram was here trying to slow him down. With that thought, he continued to walk forward with a confident stride.

"Hey Kram, why did you really want to see me?" Alto said in a bold voice, but Kram said nothing in return. Another voice spoke, one that caused his eyes to burst open.

"Al?" It was the same sweet, melodic voice he had fallen in love with three years ago.

Alto’s steps came to a sudden halt, his face freezing, his heart could be heard beating rapidly against his ribcage just at the mention of that voice. The emotion he felt was rather one of fear and agitation than one of love.

"Amy?" Alto lowered the book slightly so he could see her.

There she was—Amy, with her plum red cheeks, her red hair, red eyes, beautiful rounded face. She wore the compulsory cadet uniform. Looking at her from head to toe, she looked more mature and feminine, her beauty more elaborate. Alto’s eyes began to water as he gazed at her.

Amy’s breath left her lungs as she looked at her childhood friend, his soft brown hair looking fuller, his face more masculine and cleaner. He looked to have grown more capable in the past few years. Amy would not hold it in anymore. She exploded into a sprint and closed the distance between them in mere seconds. Reaching him, she threw herself into him. The impact sent them both flying through the air and crashing down on the ground, the books he had once held in his hand scattering around them.

Alto groaned as he felt the weight of Amy on him. She still held tight to him, almost seeming as if she was afraid to let him go for a fraction of a second. Alto wanted to offer her some comfort, so he hugged her back, feeling her familiar warmth hit him again.

Alto could feel her warm tears dripping on his cheek as she pulled her head back slightly to look at his face. "You’ve grown into a more capable man, Al."

Alto smiled as he looked at her beautiful face. "I wouldn’t say that, but it’s good to see you again, Amy."

They both stayed there for seconds, their gazes locked. They could both feel their warm breath on their faces, clearly lost for words.

Amy was the first to speak. "I missed you, Alto. I really did."

Before Alto could respond, Kram, who had been standing at a short distance with his back to the wall, interrupted. "Come on, why don’t you two just kiss already? Truly disgusting twerp, slaying the girl."

Alto did not understand what Kram meant by his last words, but through a bit of forethought, he was able to come to the conclusion that Kram had told Amy of his existence and arranged this get-together. But why he did this was hard for Alto to understand.

Amy pushed herself off of Alto and pulled him to his feet. They proceeded to help him pack up the textbooks he had scattered around on the floor. Kram politely chose not to help in any way, but he did manage to whistle into Alto’s ear. "Now you owe me two."

Alto nodded, ending their conversation shortly. They both walked side by side and headed to the mech engineering department. On the way, they talked about their experiences in the past three years, with Amy doing most of the talking. Soon Kram was excited to join in and share his own adventures. That moment filled Alto with so much joy he could not express.

A figure walked by where Alto and Amy had collided some time later and managed to catch sight of a piece of paper hidden in the textbook. The figure bent down to pick it up and have a look at it. "Now, what’s this?"