Chapter Theme Music ~ Feast of Lights (Final Fantasy XIII-3 OST)
<10/12/2018 - 15:02 | Peachtree Street, Atlanta, GA, USA>
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"It's so different seeing this place up close and personal!"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMqZontgx0N
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"I knew you would enjoy it," I replied with a powerful smirk of victory and energy. Neither one of us could hide our excitement, which made it a little tougher on me earlier when I had to hide it from my family. Lumina has never seen the city of Atlanta so directly like this, as I was standing right on the city streets on a brief walk from the hotel.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1qZrwevC2k
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All this time, I knew deep down that Atlanta was not the most impressive place to see in the world, but it was still a very new experience for us both. The ability to hang out with Lumina at the same time is what drove our excitement through the roof.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh3qCsUov0j
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Not long ago, my mother and Peterson planned a single night's trip to Atlanta, as a kind of well-deserved vacation. We could have gone anywhere, yet we ended up here, set later to go out onto the lake with those swan boats and tour the Cola factory, even though I didn't care for Coke. The sights and sounds were different than the countryside we were both used to seeing. Instead of tall and widespread trees of wildlife pines, the place here was instead fully immersed in tall vertical structures of concrete and buildings, with nothing but roads and streets in the middle. Because of the nearby location and area of the hotel, the zone I walked in with Lumina was mostly designed with pleasing aesthetics, with a nearby Ferris wheel.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHd49Y3suLl
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"It's Christmas time, in the city!" Lumina started laughing at me as I sang with a fake deep telepathic voice, while twirling my body around the don't walk pole aside the crosswalk, caring not what cringy attention I added onto myself from afar.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp7cTmKsitP
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"Christmas is a long way off from now."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZSp7Sn1pWh
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"Don't you know the rule established by the Renegade Constabulary channel? Every single day it's not Christmas, Christmas is coming."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1FOKPQPZ7R
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"The what Constabulary now?" Lumina has no potential context for that YouTube channel, since she isn't really a gamer herself. I don't watch them that often either, except when I'm parallel playing the same games Vasco and Tek are; somehow, it's a little more fun that way.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRiWFwwVu4f
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"Don't worry about it. Just remember that it's exciting to be exploring the city with you, especially when Christmas is coming."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ572FJjCRf3
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"You celebrate it so much."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPibACpbPWW
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"Obviously because of what people do, what it represents, and how often it brings cold weather to our doorstep." I've long since abandoned Christianity and their preaching altogether, never to look back anymore. Even so, I don't need religion to celebrate that favorite time of the year. Christmas for me and Lumina is about the both of us hanging out together romantically, giving and receiving gifts to others, and cold weather. That's still plenty reason I can get behind celebrating the day with everyone else.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC7ffaxVpM4
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"Maybe you're just happy to be exploring the city with me."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8CFDZtfMjL
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"Guilty as charged." "Ah-hoguhoughhough!" I spun around with my hands curved up and out, laughing and moving like a tard, wondering how much more shared embarrassment Lumina could withstand.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEN7LiM3oo3
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"You obviously don't care that people are looking at you like a loon."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBcbr97fKnx
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"Not when I'm with you, my love." I really couldn't care less, just so long as I could see Lumina laugh or smile some more, and given the chill in the air, I could feel any excitement she didn't project as easily.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡasGgUUt0U3
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"I've never seen you this slap happy before."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnigvwf8pPk
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"I'm always this happy when I'm with you; I just don't show it as much as I should." For reference, I was doing everything I could think of to look like an idiot on the sidewalk, passing people by as I lifted and shifted my arms in the goofiest walking strut I could craft on the spot. It only made Lumina more embarrassed to be associated with my silliness, which made me want to keep it going more. Through it all, I started laughing too, revealing to her the cutest smile I've ever let out in such a long time with my shimmering eyes of life. With the music playing in my ear buds, it was easier to keep this behavior going too, altering my movements to keep the theme of it alive.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIROmi0rx6b
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"Oh my god Reed! If I were there with you right now, I'd make sure you regret this by making you too embarrassed to be near me."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBH7g82pzeh
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"Yeah? That sounds like a challenge you can't win." I knew I was right. Ever see someone with ADHD fully embracing their inner goof? I'm not really ADHD myself, but I've seen enough of it to mimic the behavior if I'm ever this happy, and despite what others might think of me, I have an inner goof too. Doesn't matter how nerdy or dorky it makes me look; I can't resist the fun of teasing or taunting Lumina; it seems to be working too. If we were to really engage in a physical game of trying to embarrass the other in public, I'm sure I'd win hands down.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfHWIvB8N6J
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"You sure about that? You and I haven't played a game of truth or dare for a really long time. I think I won last time."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ElmGd6xjo
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"It was a draw."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRVaQHyWYkM
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"No, I think I managed to make you more—"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMzV7iHxT2T
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"It was a draw," I adamantly repeated. "Even if we could play it again, there wouldn't be that much of a game. I mean, we already know everything there is to know about each other, so it would really just be 'dare or dare'. I know you'd have infinite fun getting me to do embarrassing things in the city, but without you here in person, it's harder for me to come up with something for you."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ49cvDTnY3T
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"Sounds like crappy excuses to avoid challenging the master."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Y46GleOQ9
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Oh, so that's how it is, huh? "I'm sure I can think of something. If we really went at it, we'd probably defeat each other in many epic ways. I mean, what kind of dare would you have me do anyway? You realize I don't embarrass easily, right?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLu1ZZCG6FX
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"I don't really buy that," she tested. "I wonder if I could get you to walk around in the city naked."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa8gCVYw4P6
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"Wh—what?!" My eyes dilated quickly just at the thought, and I wasn't sure if I heard her right.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH3trC35Dxr
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"You heard me. I know you would never do it, since it's too dangerous; I mean, I wouldn't want to get you arrested or anything, but I wonder if it's a dare you would carry out with those risks removed."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMnC77GVXes
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Don't think about it! Don't think about it! Don't think about! Stop thinking about it... Okay, good, I reacted in a desperate sigh for calm. I can't believe Lumina would bring that up now. I have to block the thought from my mind entirely, or else I'll have something to deal with down in front where others might see. Getting hard isn't something I wanted to let show in public... Still, why did she have to go there? She knows how I feel about this kind of stuff. "Please stop talking about that kind of stuff. Now isn't the time for that."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt5526WILVy
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Noticing my reaction, Lumina nearly broke to the ground in laughter. "Seems like you're easier to arouse than I thought. I never would have guessed so long ago that public exhibitionism would turn you on faster than the snap of my hand. You probably shouldn't have revealed your ultimate weakness to me."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUpzjBkx8ty
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Is she getting off right now on trying to get me off? I can't tell without seeing her face directly. "You're the one who begged and pleaded to hear about all my weaknesses. Besides, don't you have any fetishes I could use against you?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9r3C59au4P
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"Not particularly."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB5ddBd3jYH
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Ah, so she keeps her cards closer to her chest than I do. "I'm getting back at you soon, when you least suspect it."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9qIpV600J6
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"Sure, keep telling yourself that."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe4QwkjZ6Zw
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"I don't know if this is my fault, but Lumina, you've been a little naughtier than you used to be."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfLo3j2PhNv
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"Says the one trembling at the thought of walking the city bare."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡumN9aDsLxw
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"Lumina! That's it; you are so getting punished later."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDwHVJvL5NY
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"Is it really punishment if we enjoy it so much?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCBzBkw2cyq
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Damn! I can't win against her this way. In a battle of suggestive wits, she still wins against me almost every time. "You'll learn to behave yourself tonight, that is if you really want to go up on the Ferris wheel with me."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIcgsTtDR4h
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"You're going on the Ferris wheel later?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdSaYJjhnhs
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"Yeah! Did you forget why we're here?" My question was rhetorical, though I waited on Lumina to respond just as I finally found the entrance area to the hotel again. As much as I enjoyed that moment with her just now, I still have to be careful later to hide my reactions from everyone else. I didn't get to Atlanta on my own today. I was driven here by my mom, Peterson, and Ivan, my brother. All of us are here to unwind and relax, but even the other little things, like going on the pond or other sight-seeing activities will rely heavily on where my folks go. For now, that's the game I must play.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP8WPQ4J2W6
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"We're here to have fun, and I'm having the best time today!" I could easily here the cheer in her voice, a new mood I have not seen in Lumina for such a long time, and my reaction to it was to match the same mood, seeing her so happy to be here with me now.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrFH0tmFMYy
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"That's right. Best not to forget it. Just keep your energy levels high, and I'll keep mine high too. Everything should work out fine."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa2XuEMmKbu
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Just as I had promised, things went well that night. We did everything we promised we would and more, exploring different restaurants, bars, and other zones. Even one of the building parking lots was an adventure in itself. I normally am not one for city life, but being here with Lumina today made every moment of it enjoyable. It's been too long since she and I went on a date like this, and the end of the night only opened my eyes to the desire for so much more.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6GvYIdDb7h
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We all stayed in the same hotel room that night, only to have to leave and return home tomorrow morning, when it warmed up. That's okay. I can always come back here later, on my own if I set things up right and Uber my way back to this very same hotel.
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