Gulp-
Tyler couldn't help but momentarily freeze as Olivia walked past him.
Her body's curves seemed to only be accentuated by the darkness of the night and by the warm and scarce light of the streetlamps.
She was still dressed in the same nightwear she had on earlier, and Tyler could almost swear her clothes had grown even tighter around her.
Olivia had thrown a bathrobe on top and had tightly tied its belt.
The bathrobe was mostly there for the cold, as it, in no significant manner, concealed anything.
Seeing her so close for the first time, Tyler was visibly taken aback.
He would usually only see Olivia through his window or when passing her by, the latter being an occurrence during which Tyler would completely ignore her, often turning to look in the other direction or pulling out his phone to check nothing in particular.
Gulp-
Tyler felt nervous, but he managed to get over it.
'If it weren't for the boost in my Composure Stat, I might have made an excuse to leave already.'
Of course, there was no way to know for sure, but it certainly felt that way.
"You're not cold?" Olivia asked, glancing at him.
His tank top allowed the light from the streetlamps to enhance his muscle definition, making his biceps and shoulders pop as shadows accentuated the muscles' outline.
"I guess I wasn't planning on walking around." Tyler chuckled, walking to join her side.
"Sorry," She scratched her head, smiling apologetically. "I need to clear my mind and... Would rather not walk alone at night."
"It's fine." He nodded. "It's not every day I get to meet a stalker of mine."
"I just saw them passing by a couple of times. Don't make me out to be weird. In fact, I don't even know your name."
"Sounds like what a stalker would say." Tyler shrugged.
"Well," She turned to face him and extended a hand. "My name is Olivia. It's nice to meet you."
Tyler stared at her hand for a moment before taking it.
"Nice to meet you, Olivia."
"Now you can drop the stalker thing, alright?"
Tyler nodded silently with a smile.
The two shook hands and walked in silence for a bit.
"So... How long have you been living here?" Olivia asked.
"Two months or so," Tyler answered.
"And why is a young man like you living in this neighbourhood?"
"Why shouldn't a young man like me live in this neighbourhood?"
"It's pretty far from any university," Olivia answered. "Rent here is cheap, but we're cut off from a lot of things."
"Yeah," Tyler sighed. "I guess this is where people with problems end up."
Olivia stared at him for a moment before letting out a chuckle, hand hovering over her mouth. "You got that right..."
Olivia's words trailed off as she noticed him.
He was lurking in the darkness of the night. Dishevelled, dirty, and creepy-looking.
Had she been alone, Olivia would have probably screamed out of fear and surprise.
Tyler was walking between Olivia and the street, which meant that the creepy-looking old man lurking was closer to her, lurking in the darkness that filled the space between two apartment complexes.
She had stopped walking right away, and it only took a moment for Tyler to notice.
He immediately walked past Olivia, positioning himself between her and the creepy lurker.
"Hey!" Tyler shouted.
Olivia gulped, and before she knew it, her hands were around Tyler's left arm.
The sudden shout had made the lurker run away, disappearing into the shadows.
"Tsk." Tyler clicked his tongue.
Olivia, standing by his side, couldn't help but stare at his profile in surprise. Not only was there not even an ounce of fear or surprise on his face, but he was actively trying to confront the stranger.
"W-We should probably head back." Olivia said, pulling his arm.
"Hm?" Tyler turned towards her, raising an eyebrow. "Oh, yeah, sure."
Following her pull, Tyler started walking.
What Olivia had assumed to be bravery and aggressiveness was actually something different.
'I'm pretty sure it was that old bum.' Tyler thought to himself. 'Still can't believe that the bum knocked me out. I mean... I got this strange System thing out of it, but... Hm. Was it really him lurking there...?'
Tyler's thoughts trailed off as he finally noticed.
His heart suddenly started beating faster.
Olivia had her hands on him. Her arms were practically around his left arm.
They were walking while making physical contact.
Gulp-
Tyler found himself glancing at her hands repeatedly.
Long, well-kept red nails. Pale, perfect... And hot skin. Her hands felt like they were burning up, like they were warming up his arm, like they were squeezing his muscles to feel them.
The thought that Olivia had used those very hands, just a while ago, to tease her breasts, to play with herself, to pleasure her...
Tyler felt the need to take a deep breath.
He needed to think about something else.
Tyler wasn't worried about getting a physical reaction from this. It had already happened. His cock was completely erect below his boxers and shorts.
Still, he needed to think about something else. For his Composure's sake.
'Younger men really are something else.' Olivia thought to herself, not really knowing why.
It was a combination of the muscles she was feeling, as well as the way he had acted when that stranger had appeared.
"Comes with the cheap rent, huh?" Tyler joked to break the silence, which had lasted a bit too long for his taste.
"W-Well, it is past 1 am," Olivia whispered after stuttering, caught in deep thought.
"Good thing I came out when I did, then."
"Yes," She chuckled. "If you ever hear shouting again when it's past midnight, make sure to knock on my door and take me for a walk."
"Yeah..." Tyler whispered as he stepped away.
They had arrived at her building's entrance.
"Will do." He added with a smile.
Looking at him, Olivia couldn't help but blush slightly.
"I-I'm sorry again. For the disturbance and... And all..."
"It's no problem. In fact, it's my pleasure, taking a wonderful lady out on a midnight stroll, stalker or not."
"Right." She chuckled, gaze awkwardly moving from Tyler to her building's entrance. "So, um... Good night? I hope you'll be able to get enough sleep despite... You know..."
"Yeah." Tyler nodded. "Good night."
Olivia pressed her lips together, waved awkwardly, and started walking towards the building's entrance.
Tyler couldn't help but enjoy the view for the couple of seconds he had left.
Before he could look away,
"Make sure you sleep soon!" Olivia said, suddenly turning around. "I'll keep an eye on you." She added, pointing at his apartment's window. "No college students skip class in my neighbourhood!"
Tyler couldn't help but smile. It was obviously a joke, but...
"It's um..." He scratched his head. "The middle of summer vacation right now."
"Oh... Oh, right. Um, well, alright..." Olivia gulped, feeling more awkward than ever. "G-Good night!"
"Yeah." Tyler chuckled with a nod, and Olivia entered her building, disappearing.
Having waited for her to enter the building, Tyler turned away.
"Hm..." He stood around for a moment. "That went well, I think?" Tyler whispered to himself before he started walking towards his apartment building. "System, aren't you forgetting something?"
[Quest "Dear Neighbour" Progress: 99%.]
[Reach the Fourth and Final Location to Clear the Quest.]
'Fine.' Tyler sighed.
Thankfully, following the System Arrow led him into his apartment building, into his apartment, and into his own bed.
Meanwhile,
"Ugh..." Olivia was standing inside her own apartment, forehead against the wall. "No college students skip class in my neighbourhood? What kind of old hag must I have sounded like to him?" She let out the deepest sigh and let herself fall on her bed. "Hm...?" Olivia raised an eyebrow, slightly confused. 'My heart is beating... Pretty fast.'
The thought that the young man might have been the cause crossed her mind, but Olivia quickly shook her head.
'No way. An older woman like me... I should be into older men. In the first place, he wouldn't...'
Olivia's thoughts drifted, and just when she was about to fall asleep, her eyes shot open.
"I..." Her voice was almost panicky. "I didn't ask for his name..."
The Night Stroll Between Neighbours had indeed taken Olivia's mind off the argument with her ex-husband, and had filled it with thoughts about the mysterious young man living next door.
Sleeping to the latter thoughts turned out much easier and much more pleasant.
[Quest "Dear Neighbour" Progress: 100%!]
'What was the point of making me go out in shorts and a tank top anyway?' Tyler sighed, lying on his bed with his hands below his head.
[The Sub-Quest "Comfy Clothing" has been Cleared!]
[You have received 1 Stat Point to assign to the Stat of your choosing.]
[The Sub-Quest "A Night Stroll Between Neighbours" has been Cleared!]
[You have received 50 SPs(SystemPoints)!]
[The Quest "Dear Neighbour" has been Cleared!]
[You have received 1 "Mild Stat Improvement Coupon".]