"Aye, justin’ pointin’ out at de fact she looks good mate, someone who’d be worth gittin’ t’ know f’r sure. Who knows, ya may actually find yer self feelin’ somethin’ deep wit’ ‘er. Believe me, Oi was de same way once. Ignorant t’ those who ‘ad feelin’s towards me, dat is until Oi managed t’ quit bein’ so ignorant ‘bout dem." The rugged fisherman spoke to Dallen in a sage, wise tone, which Dallen relaxed at the sound of.
In all of the ten years that Dallen had known her, Akia had never really shown any sort of... affection towards Dallen. She was more like a sister than anything, and yet... Dallen was glad that Ricky had opened his eyes to this, for some reason. Maybe he had actually had feelings for her all these years, and hadn't noticed it. Maybe he should draw her one of these days.
"By de way, how’s dat plan t’ gittin’ ‘ome goin’ mate?" Ricky's candid question brought him reeling back to reality. Looking back up at the Wave Guard's rugged face, Dallen said, "Well, I was hoping that if maybe you could stand here for until she passed, then moved behind me, so she couldn't see me from behind, I could walk quickly home, and then meet you at the Pier." Chancing a glance at Akia, Dallen ducked back behind Ricky's massive form. As the redhead walked past, Dallen glimpsed her slender frame, and felt a pang of...something. This was evident by the look on his face, which resembled one of longing. Shaking his head, Dallen whispered, "Okay, let's go."
Stepping quickly down the stone street, Dallen's head stuck above most of the rest, and slouching, Dallen tried to make himself less visible. When he reached West Street, he breathed a sigh of relief and stood straight up. This was a mistake, however, for when he did, a light, pretty-sounding voice called out, "Dallen McHenderson, there you are! Slow down!" Akia, rust hair flying about wildly, sprinted up to him. Huffing, she said, "Well, Dallen, I heard you were near the docks today, but when you weren't there, I decided to check at your house." Flashing him a dazzling grin, she continued, "It turns out that my gamble was profitable." Looking towards Ricky, she nudged Dallen in the ribs with her elbow. "Dallen, why didn't you introduce me to your friend here?" Holding out her hand, she said, "Hello, my name is Akia Gratton, and I am Dallen's best friend, who are you?" As she stood there smiling brightly at Ricky, Dallen stood to the side, embarrassed. Putting his hand behind his head, he shrugged, embarrassed.