I'm not normally a big fan of anime, but after marathoning two seasons and a movie, I think it is safe to say I am a Love Live fan.
In case you couldn't tell, my two favorite characters are Nico and Eli, but I'm really fond of Nozomi and Honoka as well.
This will probably be my only foray into the world of anime fan fiction...but who knows in the long run. I change my mind a lot.
"You are such a bed hog. And a blanket hog," Nico tugged at the edge of her pillow, trapped under Eli's back, "and a pillow hog to boot. Gimme!"
She received an ever patient laugh for her trouble as Eli let her snatch the pillow back.
"You should thank me for keeping it warm for you," she turned from her phone to grin at Nico, "I'm helpful."
"You're an idiot," Nico gave her an affectionate grumble, "truly, an idiot."
"I thought I was a bed hog? Wait no, a blanket hog," Eli turned to blink at her in mock confusion, "or no, wrong again. Am I a pillow hog?"
Nico smirked playfully. She could never spend enough time simply existing with Eli, in those moments where there was no job to be done, nothing to worry about, and no one else could possibly break into their private little world.
Eli's phone chirped. At once the younger girl was engaged, tapping at the screen eagerly to respond to whatever correspondence was so important.
Nico sighed- she had never been good at remaining any less than the center of attention for very long, and if Eli was going to keep her she should have known that. She should be used to it by now, even. She sighed again, this time a bit louder. And then again, more theatrically, to the lack of any response from Eli.
Perhaps Eli was too used to it.
"You know you're addicted to that thing, right?" Nico rolled to whine against Eli's shoulder, "What're you even doing on there?"
"Hmmm?" Eli's eyes didn't leave her screen for even an instant, "Just the usual."
"Real helpful," she ran her fingers through Eli's hair, and let the gold strands fall back to the mattress, "who are you texting anyway?"
"Nozomi," Eli yawned, "I haven't seen her in ages."
"But you saw her two days ago?" Nico frowned. Really though, two days was considered ages for those two to be apart. "What're you talking about?"
"Oh I don't know. Just stuff I guess," Eli had a smile in her voice and one tugging at the corners of her mouth, "Nothing major."
Nico grit her teeth. It was bad enough that Nozomi and Eli spent every waking moment together. Well, she corrected herself, every waking moment that she and Eli weren't together at least. She knew Eli. Eli didn't smile to herself for nothing.
It wasn't that she was jealous or anything like that, Nico reasoned, just… Nozomi and Eli had been best friends since they were kids, and the two seemed to get along almost perfectly. When Nico found herself butting heads with Eli (and eventually she butted heads with everyone) Nozomi would be standing behind the blonde young woman, never one for a disagreement with her best friend. The two had a thousand inside jokes, and a million shared anecdotes from growing up together that Nico simply couldn't match.
It wasn't that she even disliked Nozomi either, Nico frowned, she was her friend, after all. But the notion that Eli could spend as much time with Nozomi as herself was enough to spark a flame of annoyance. She'd never cared who Eli's friends were before.
But perhaps it had hurt more than she'd realized, the surprise on everyone's faces when they saw that it was going to be Nico and Eli together.
Because Eli had been supposed to end up with Nozomi, hadn't she?
She felt her fists clench and rolled away to the far edge of the bed, her back squarely to Eli.
Everyone had thought Eli and Nozomi were simply bound to be. Even, Nico swallowed, herself. The two were, or had been, inseparable. They'd been best friends practically since they could spell their names and they were, she had to admit, a rather complimentary pair. It had been obvious since she'd met them; Eli and Nozomi would eventually realize that they were, in fact, perfect for one another.
Nozomi wasn't agonizingly stubborn like Nico. Nozomi wouldn't argue like Eli until she got red faced and teary eyed. And no one was demanding like Nico.
Nozomi probably wouldn't have been lying awake and fuming over her if it was the other way around, Nico admitted to herself. And she wouldn't have a need to. Eli was nothing if not loyal, Nico knew that.
Nico could remember before when she and Eli were just friends, along with all the others girls. It had always seemed as though she and the others were just slightly outside the inner circle of friendship reserved for Nozomi and Eli exclusively.
And yet here she was, instead of Nozomi. And here Nico was, laying in bed with the beautiful Eli, fuming over some girl texting her girlfriend.
In the background she could still hear Eli texting, occasionally giggling quietly to herself, completely unconcerned by Nico's sighing and fidgeting it seemed.
Nico turned to glare at her smiling girlfriend, sighing theatrically once more, though Eli didn't even seem to hear her, too preoccupied with her phone. Well then. Nico set her jaw and slammed her hand against the light switch above them.
"Goodnight to you too," she heard Eli chuckle.
She snorted. Goodnight indeed.
If Eli wanted to stay up all night to chat with Nozomi instead of girlfriend, then she could do it on her own, Nico thought to herself. She'd have no part of that.
Nico heard the click of the light being flicked back on, and spun over to glare at Eli.
"What?" she hissed, "I'm trying to get some sleep, you need the light on to text, really?"
"I need the light on so I can see your face when you say sorry," Eli laughed sweetly, expertly tossing her phone gently at Nico, "now let me move over, it's cold all on my own."
Eli slid towards her in the sheets and planted a soft kiss on her cheek.
"You always were a cute little thing, even if a brat," she giggled, nuzzling into Nico's arm and closing her eyes.
Confused, though no less furious, Nico hotly snatched up the phone and skimmed over the conversation. A paper trail of texts between Eli and Nozomi confronted her, at least an hour's worth of it.
A. Eli: I can't believe how lucky I am to have her, y'know?
T. Nozomi: I know, trust me! I see how happy she makes you.
A. Eli: She's so damn funny, you wouldn't believe. And she's really sweet when she wants to be, too. I just really am so happy, I swear.
T. Nozomi: No wonder, Even though you two are very different, in a lot of ways you two are very similar. And in what ways you are not the other makes up for it. You compliment each other. You guys are a perfect match.
A. Eli: Yeah. Yeah, we are.
Nico turned the phone off and slid it onto the bedside table, flicking the light off again.
"I hope you know I'm-"
"Not actually going to say sorry? Yes, I know."
Nico closed her eyes and breathed in the cool night, she let her arm fall across Eli to make sure she was pulled in close.
"I'll admit it. I'm pretty lucky too."