Mercer just spun around once in front of the mirror and nodded: "Whatever I wear has style anyway, alright, let's go with this."
"Oh, come on, you look like a gang leader no matter what you wear..." Lucy said, but she couldn't take her eyes off him for quite some time.
Indeed... it looks pretty good, quite imposing.
She fixed her gaze on Mercer's hair: "You need to get a haircut tomorrow."
"Sure, you can cut it for me." Mercer didn't really mind, as long as she didn't give him a 'trendy side shave' or anything.
After choosing the clothes and providing basic measurements like waist and shoulder width, Mercer turned off the VR. It was already past midnight, and it was pitch black outside the window.
Dog Town's basic electricity only runs until ten at night, meaning after ten, there's no street lighting or anything like that.
Mercer's base was relatively isolated, and as their fame grew, the Netherworld Dog often patrolled nearby, even the homeless seemed to vanish.
So now there was even a window made of bulletproof glass in the dormitory, allowing them to look outside at the scenery.
Mercer turned to look out the window, while Lucy, after taking off the VR headset, turned her head to look at Mercer. Lying on her side, she stared at his profile and finally spoke the words she'd been holding back: "I thought you'd ask V or Rebecca... or Qiwei to accompany you."
"Why? Not confident in yourself?" Mercer pulled back his gaze, casually drawing the curtains, smiling at her.
Lucy didn't flinch, just met his gaze and softly said: "No, it's just a bit unexpected..."
She teased, "It is an 'adult situation' after all, aren't you afraid people might mock you for hanging out with a minor?"
"You look way older than Rebecca now." Mercer joked, then softly chuckled: "What? Not happy?"
"I'm happy... somewhat happy."
She reluctantly acknowledged verbally, but her eyes sparkled. Lying on the bed, the two finally locked gazes after a long time. She hesitated for a moment, then moved closer, burying her face in his embrace:
"Just to be clear, I don't know how to be the companion of a big shot. If I embarrass you, don't blame me."
Mercer inhaled the scent from her body, smiling as he wrapped his arms around her. Lucy's body trembled slightly, but then she simply extended her arms, holding him tight.
"Just smile next to me, and that's enough for me. I'm guessing Hansen just wants to use me as a trophy, anyway.
You know, he wants to sell the armor at a good price to boost his finances, so he needs my face as the design expert of the Spark Team to show up.
After that, I have some talks planned with council members and some company heads. Just keep them occupied with your chat as a companion or assistant, let me have a few minutes alone with them.
As for the rest... just watch the performance, listen to some music, and soak up the so-called high-society atmosphere.
In Dog Town, we don't need me to handle business. We'll just do our own thing."
Mercer finished speaking, and Lucy couldn't help but hug him tighter: "What if Arasaka's people take the opportunity to mess with you? With so many people there, what if there's an assassination or something..."
"That's why I asked V to be my bodyguard in armor." Mercer reassured: "That place will be full of socialites from Night City; who dares to launch an armed attack there? Even Arasaka has to consider the impact.
I guess, at most, someone might attempt a subtle assassination. More likely, someone will sneak into Dog Town to do some preliminary reconnaissance work..."
Lucy sighed: "Anyway, I can't help much... just not dragging you down is good enough."
"How can you say you're not helping? Just having you by my side is already a huge help."
Mercer lowered his head, their faces touched, and affectionately nuzzled against her, locking eyes: "If it weren't for you holding me up all this time, I would've quit long ago. So much crap, just thinking about it is annoying..."
"..." Lucy's face slightly warmed, the orange eyeshadow above her gentle prismatic eyes, looking at Mercer, and after a while, she suddenly raised her head to give him a kiss.
The kiss came so suddenly, Mercer didn't even have time to savor it.
She pulled back, burying her face in his neck, whispering: "Gosh, don't say things like that at times like this... if I can't resist and you push me away again, I would be heartbroken."
On Christmas night, a single man and woman alone in a room, and he invited her to be the hostess of his banquet tomorrow—for Lucy, this had already made her heart race, and he still had to say sweet things.
How could anyone resist that?
Mercer just pursed his lips, then chuckled as he held her, gently patting her back: "Don't you think time flies?"
"...Yeah." Lucy sighed: "Another year..."
"Hmm, your birthday is at the end of the year, so it's not until the end of '74..." Mercer said, and Lucy, with a dark face, reached out to pinch his cheek: "No! My ID says I'll be an adult then! Next year! I'll be an adult next year!"
"Ha~ so does that make you older than Rebecca? She still has to wait till mid-'74…" Mercer teased, and Lucy, for her part, stubbornly replied: "Then how come you're turning nineteen this year?"
"I'm actually not nineteen; I'm eighteen." Mercer cheekily countered, pinching her waist, making her laugh and squirm from the tickling: "Forever eighteen? What a shameless thing to say!"