She was usually an early riser, but for some reason, she didn't wake up until past eleven am, her and Padparadscha's body caught in a tangled, albeit comfy mess. Her body almost entirely resting on top of the redhead who had their arms wrapped securely around her waist.

Pad had attempted to coarse her into to spending a few more minutes in bed, but Rutile had grudgingly turned them down, she just knew they'd be in bed all afternoon if she let herself fall back to sleep with them and she hadn't forgotten her trip.

After they'd both showered and she'd changed into regular clothes, they shared a last breakfast before Rutile was once again in the parking, her lab coat over her shoulders and bag in hand.

"I'll be sure to text you as soon as I settle down in the hotel," Rutile said as she typed in Pad's name on the new contact number and smiled at Padparadscha, of all the millions of people she could have bumped into at a bar on a whim it was this good-natured nerd. She didn't believe in destiny or faith, but boy did it feel like this was meant to happen.

"I'll be waiting for it" they replied as she put her bag in the passenger seat and turned back to them. Turning back she blushed lightly and gazed up at those ruby eyes of theirs.

"Does it sound a bit clingy if I say I want us to meet up again really soon?" she asked, averting her gaze ever so slight and leaning back against her car. Placing a hand on their Padparadscha laughed lightly and glanced back at their apartment building. They were dressed in a casual hoodie and blue shorts

"Well, I'm turning twenty-six in a month and my friends will be visiting the capital to hang out so we could meet up then" Padparadscha said as they brought their gaze back to her, "Tomorrow I'll just pack my stuff up and checking out, we haven't really decided on a venue yet so feel free text to me whenever your free" they stated with a wink as they gave her another top-down glance. "I guess this is goodbye until then though.

"Yeah, but it won't be that long" Rutile said with a confident smile, that was definitely a great time to visit. Their gaze lingered a bit longer than it needed, but she didn't care. With a small smile, she stepped forward and planted a kiss on their lips, her arms caressing Pad's cheeks lovingly. There was momentary wince that had her nervous, but Pad almost immediately returned the gesture, holding her waist and kissing back chastely.

It only lasted a few seconds, but it felt like a lifetime for Rutile as she pulled and looked back at Pad with the blush on her cheek spread a bit further. Padparadscha also a light but noticeable hint of pink on their cheeks, so she was a bit comforted not being the only flustered one. "Woah, its not my birthday just yet Rutile. What was that for?" Pad asked with a sheepish smile as they ran a finger over their mouth, the kiss still lingered a bit for both of them.

"Just a thank you, for all you've done for me" she replied, prompting Padparadscha to pull her into a hug, a grin plastered on their lips.

"Well I guess next time we meet I'll have to get something for you as well" they flirted as she hugged them back.

"Only way to beat that would be telling your gender" she teased, though she supposed that really didn't matter at this point. She liked the Pad for who they were and not what parts they had between their legs.

"I may just do that, not just yet though. It needs to be a super special occasion" they said pulling away and letting Rutile step into her car seat. "Just remember to pace yourself on the road this time Hun, I prefer you in one piece for that occasion," they said as she closed her door and pulled her seatbelt on.

"One Padparadscha's all I need, so I won't be stopping at any towns just to relax… But I suppose I can manage one break along the way" she replied as she felt Pad's fingers trace along her cheek and hair.

"I'm glad to hear that, I might have to kill any clones I see next to you otherwise," they said, it was a joke, but she could feel the slightest tinge of assertiveness in their tone. She didn't comment on it though.

"That would be quite a spectacle… I guess I'll see you around then Padparadscha" she said as the engine roared to life and she smiled up at them.

"Yeah, it was a pleasure having yah" they replied with a wink before stepping back so she could pull out of the driveway. There was a lot of work to be done when she arrived but at least now she had a new bond that she suspected would be around for a very long now.

With one last glance at Padparadscha, she drove out of the parking lot.


She was such an idiot! How could she have let it happen?!

She couldn't think of a single thing that didn't entail shouting profanity at her own carelessness. After spending three days at her destination it had all went well, she'd booked a room in the hotel and unpacked, how did things end up like this? her phone was now sprawled on her dressing table, or at least what was left of it. The screen not just shattered but caved in on itself like a mashed potatoe. But the last nail in the coffin was the sim that held all her contacts left with nothing but a few tiny scrapes.

She'd just been walking down the packed city streets when her, in midst of an important call with her boss when some teenagers on skateboards rammed into her and tossing her cell onto the freeway where it was crumpled and kicked about several times by traffic before it got close enough to the street for her to retrieve it. Of course, knowing what they're antics had caused they booked it out of there as fast as possible while she tried to get it back, a few street goers saw the whole event unfold but couldn't be bothered to apprehend them. It was all beyond infuriating that she'd lost her phone in such mundane fashion, not through her own carelessness but merely being at the wrong place at the wrong time and a way that was more infuriating.

She'd taken it to phone service shop the very next day, sure she could have just bought a new one, but Padparadscha's number was the only way she knew how to reach the redhead, and by now they'd have already long left that apartment. Of course, there was nothing anyone could do, a cracked screen could be replaced, but when the whole device was crushed beyond recognition, it was beyond saving. In the end, she had to head back home with her head low, knowing she had work to do the next day but feeling incredibly anxious about the possibility she'd never get to see Padparadscha again.

Still, she did her job, despite always having those thoughts at the back of her head, when she wasn't in the operating room, she was filling through emails and x-rays on her office monitor. But as soon she'd get home she'd almost instantly resume looking up ways of trying to somehow get some of her contacts off the phone, she knew there were few electronic hardware experts that handled that stuff at exorbitant prices but could supposedly extract files from motherboards. She'd coughed up over close to ten grand to have it mailed to them and fixed within two weeks, dangerously close to Pad's birthday. Only to have it sent back a week early with a refund letter saying there was nothing they could… She was pretty sure that was the moment her heart shattered.

She still had to focus on work for the next week, and though she'd ask for a two-day absence on accounts of personal issues, she knew she wasn't doing herself any favours with how much the hospital valued her skilled hands in the operating room. She'd gotten the leave and she ended up taking the train straight to the capital city. Where she checked some of the major orchestra's hoping to find anything on Padparadscha. Their name had to be rare so surely, they could find them with relative ease. She was wrong.

As it turned, it wasn't uncommon for Orchestra performers to have stage names that they could use as both aliases and give off a strong impression on crowds, though it was much more common among solo performers apparently. She ended up spending the whole two days just following hunches the musicians she'd met gave on where she could find Pad, none of it bore any fruit in the end, and after checking out on the next evening, she was sulky the whole trip back.

"You sure you weren't a little ahead if yourself though?" her co-worker Jade asked as she sipped her milkshake and sat back on the couch. It was now a full year since she'd seen Padparadscha and it felt like she'd missed out on a once a lifetime opportunity. "I mean you only just met this person for one night and you're telling me you spent a whole day playing Romeo and Juliet together? Doesn't sound like you at all"

"Perhaps I was, but I really admired them. I was completely aware that we hardly knew each other well enough to be as familiar as we were but I couldn't help it" Rutile admitted as she stared at her coffee reminiscently, a bitter smile forming on her lips as she remembered the fateful day she lost her phone. "Of course Padparadscha probably thinks I choose to cut them off now… Feels like I had a chance at something special and wasted it Jade" Rutile admitted, her voice was even but her eyes had a certain sadness as she sipped her coffee.

"Ugh, it sounds like you found your soul mate. You're never this sappy so I have to believe you" they said reaching out to pat her wrist. "Look, maybe this Padparadscha was your prince charming or maybe you'd have gotten to know each other and realise you were better off as good friends. I don't know but the regular Rutile I know isn't one to ponder over what could have been. Your still twenty-three and have your whole life ahead of you" Jade said with a reassuring smile as Rutile glanced up at them, smiling slightly despite her self-loathing.

"Thanks Jade… I don't know if I'll ever completely get over it but I guess I'm ready to try" Rutile said, recalling the playful texts she'd shared with Padparadscha the night before it happened. Just chatting about how Padparadscha thought of going solo in her music the next year when she'd gotten financially stable enough. It was just idle chit-chat, but in a way, it was reassuring knowing that wherever they were in the world right now, they were probably working towards that goal. Even if they probably hated her now.

"I hope so, this memories done nothing but weigh you down all year and its got me worried" they stated. Well, she still had someone that cared in the form of Jade… Yeah, she'd be just fine.

Fin


And that concludes this little fic. Thanks for reading and do leave a review if you feel so inclined, all feedback helps.

As to regards to a sequel, I may just write one if the mood strikes me. Or if enough people ask me to write one. Otherwise, the next piece I write will probably a different story entirely.