Akko started to turn, folding her pillow to cover both her ears. After a minute of the fruitless endeavor to fall back to sleep she threw in the towel. The city had begun to wake up, rising with the blinding sun. Despite being early Saturday, cars still came out in droves, suffocating the streets right below their apartment.
She could hear the muffled yelling and car horns from outside the bedroom window. The apartment the two got had been supposed to be temporary until they found a better place. It was next to the harbor and downtown. If the people didn't shout loud enough to wake her it was the ships coming in that did. After a month, Amanda fell in love with it. From the loud neighbors above and the small living room which had transformed into a homey den.
She reached out to pull the curtains away from the window, suffocating the room in daylight.
Akko groaned in loud whispers. "Stupid ball of gas, just hovering over us like it owns the place."
Akko grew more or less accustomed to the loud construction workers operating on, seemingly, every street in the city. Her small accent and looks gave her away as a foreigner and she had only gotten into a yelling match with a pedestrian twice. They had decided to stay, it was close to their favorite diner and she knew that Amanda had been home sick during their time at Luna Nova.
Akko peered down and saw the top of orange hair cuddled in her belly. Amanda had her legs wrapped across Akko's hips, deep into sleep. She gave a small pet to her hair and began unweaving herself from the body.
No matter how much screaming occurred, Amanda would never wake up before ten. She held a loose grip on Akko's small frame. Akko didn't think twice before carelessly shoving the body off of her. The snoring meant that again, Amanda hadn't even felt the push. A thin line of drool slipping down from her mouth.
Akko gave off a long yawn, rubbing her eyes to get the sleep off. Her hair had grown tangled. She hadn't gone to a barber in a while, not since the last time she couldn't understand the accent of the barber and he translated what she said to end up looking like Dolly Parton from the 70's.
After half an hour in the bathroom she came out, rubbing off the excess water with a towel and sat in the small couch they had. Amanda had borrowed a small television from her parents and a small wooden desk next to it. They had bought the couch from a small antique store that was closing.
Most of the picture frames on the wall were brought by Akko. Amanda put up one of her with Constanze and Jasminka during a road trip to Dublin. All three had their arms around each other and flower crowns adorned.
The only things on the desk were two pictures of their covens in Luna Nova and a corked glass bottle of belladonna that Sucy had given as a parting gift. The pale purple flowers glowing from the faint sunlight reaching it.
Akko brushed off the dust from the frame and wiped the rest of the glass with a small handkerchief. She glanced at the picture of them during graduation. It had been a year now, and she still kept up with Lotte. Sucy had gone rogue like she always did, traveling the world searching for new species to add to her toxicology collection.
A package would arrive carrying a poison and other concoction once in a while to reassure Akko that she was still alive. Lotte would send in a message through her Crystal Ball showing off the new Night Fall book or cosplay.
She took a few more seconds for nostalgic sake, feeling heavy over the fact that it had been so long since she had seen them and the school. They had promised to meet up during winter and exchange gifts.
Akko was the first to mention moving in together. After graduation, Amanda told her she'd move back to Boston and Akko demanded to be taken along. Amanda gave in, hoping that Akko would be stubborn enough to stick with her.
She spent a week back in Japan, organizing things with her parents about her new address. She told them that it was for a study program with a professor she had met in Luna Nova. The social tension she faced meant Amanda never came up at all.
She had promised to herself that she would confess to her parents after a few months had passed. Living with Amanda was permanent at that point and she was across another continent. That phone call never happened and the last she spoke, she only talked about how the weather was so much worse in the States.
After her stomach woke up and began grumbling Akko rummaged around on the bottom cabinets, pulling out a small pan to cook with. She opened the fridge for a few eggs when she closed it and peered out to the counter and saw the sugar and salt canisters.
Their spice rack consisted of every spice in a metal container spread across a panel of countertop in the kitchen. Each was still in the bottle they came in except the salt and sugar which had come in a bag. The only thing distinguishing them being a cursive handwritten label "Sugar" and "Salt".
Amanda would take ten spoonfuls of sugar in her coffee every morning, a disturbingly unhealthy practice if it weren't for the fact that Akko would eat a whole package of cannoli for breakfast.
Akko sneaked across the tile floor, looking across to hear that Amanda was still snoring. She opened both canisters and reached back into the bottom cabinet for the sugar package. Akko dumped the sugar canister back into the package. Switching up the two containers and replacing the missing sugar only took a matter of seconds. She refilled the empty salt and cleaned up, placing everything back into their original place.
After a brief pause laughter exploded out so hard that her sides began to hurt. The thought of Amanda's face when she tastes the salted coffee drove her to nonstop giggling.
She cracked some eggs opened and began whistling a tune to the sound of the oil cracking in the pan. The toaster had been broken for a while and she planned to get it fixed after lunch. They would just have to finish up yesterday's bagels.
After a few minutes, the door creaked open and Amanda appeared in the door frame. She had unyielding bedhead and the back of her hair was sticking out like a duck's tail. She was still wearing her Everton FC jersey from watching the game yesterday.
Akko chortled at her girlfriend. "Mornin'. How did you sleep?"
"Mmm." Amanda let out loud yawn and trudged her feet to the kitchen. Her pajamas had been wrinkled and her shirt was slightly lifted, showing a small inch of stomach.
"I made some coffee for you. And eggs if you're hungry." Akko turned to hide her grin, salivating at her prank.
Amanda leaned down and gave Akko a dry kiss on the top of her head. "I feel dead inside."
Akko's voice was ringing. "Well drink some coffee and see how you feel."
Amanda took a whiff around her and reached at the plate of eggs and bagels left. She carried it over to the table. She took a solemn bite out of the bagel, slowly loosening out from the morning gloom.
The coffee timer rang with a shrill alert. Amanda got up with a yawn, stretching her arms out behind her. She picked up a black mug from the dish rack and began pouring from the pot. Every step she made towards the sugar canister, Akko felt her heart jump a clear feet.
It went past nine spoonfuls of salt before Amanda stopped. Every sound the spoon made against the ceramic forced Akko to tense, second guessing if she should have. Amanda's face was blank, staring off past the window at the clear sky. After a minute Amanda stopped twirling the spoon and tossed it into the sink, metal ringing off metal. She made eye contact with Akko.
Akko stared back, slowly widening her eyes in fear as Amanda gave a death glare straightforward. Akko felt the hair across her arms curl up, and her brain short circuiting as Amanda called her bluff.
She put the cup to her lips and took a long drag of the entire eight ounce drink. Those twenty seconds seemed to be an eternity of internal screaming for Akko. Massive amounts of stuttering came out as she tried to warn Amanda.
The mug hit the granite countertop with a loud clack as Amanda slammed it down. The silence and tension was only made larger by Akko's stillness. Sweat pouring out from every pore. Amanda took the collar of her shirt and wiped the few drops left from her lips. Her lips let off on a small grin.
After a respectable solid minute of being the alpha, Amanda's facade broke. Her face turned into glass and she slightly hurled, a violent gurgling escaping her throat. She disappeared from Akko's eyes, rushing into the bathroom.
Akko froze in her chair before reacting to the awful noises echoing off the bathroom walls. She rushed inside to see Amanda cowering over the toilet seat, the coffee making a vicious exit out of her body.
Akko asked quietly. "Are you okay Amanda?" She reached to pull back the loose hair over Amanda's eyes.
"Blaaaaarrrrrrgggghhhh." Amanda responded.
She was more than sure that the people next to them were hearing the large scale overthrow of Amanda's stomach. Almost immediately after this thought the clanks of pots and pans erupted through the thin walls, as breakfast began for their neighbors.
Amanda had flashbacks to her meal and threw up the last of the bagel and eggs. After a few minutes, the shaking within her body stopped and the hurling became minimal. Amanda let her forehead rest on the toilet seat.
Akko sat next to her reaching to tuck some loose strands behind Amanda's ear. "You okay?"
Her voice croaked with regret. "I'm dying."
"No you're not." Akko said.
Amanda winced as she vomited another round. "Damn, that's a shame."
The rest of the day was spent with Amanda lying almost in an almost comatose state in bed. With Akko asking for forgiveness by her side. If she couldn't tease Akko standing up then laying down would be the next best option.
Akko put her hands together pleading. "Maaaandy. I'm sorry."
Amanda's arm covered the smirk in her mouth. "Atsuko. When you bury me, have Diana come to my funeral to be my pallbearer so she finally lets someone down."
Akko began tugging to get her off the bed. "Amanda. Not funny. Come on, let's go get checked out. I'll call the doctor."
Amanda remained lax. Shrugging off Akko's worries. "I'm a full grown witch, salt won't kill me. Probably."
"Amaaaanda." Akko leaned forward, hovering above until Amanda turned her head so she could plant a small kiss on her lips.
Amanda had green fire in her eyes, pulling on the back of Akko's head and reaching for more kisses. She let Akko climb up the bed and saddle her hips, pulling on her loose shirt to have her face closer.
A wide smile played on Akko's face as Amanda showered salted kisses across her face.
Akko gagged. "Ugh, gross I can still smell the vomit."
Amanda stuck her tongue out. "Serves you right for messing with my coffee."
"After years of having Sucy sneaking in snail and dried anchovies into my drinks I thought I got you finally."
Amanda gave a cute snort. "I knew you tried to do something. I know you too well. And besides I have no weakness."
Akko responded back, tickling Amanda's jaw. "Really? Because just ten minutes ago you were all like 'Akko, woe is me, blaargh blargh blargh.'"
Amanda pouted. "Lame." She arced forward closing her eyes, intertwining her fingers into Akko's hair and met her lips in a sweet kiss. Neither moved for a while, simply basking together in the late morning together.