Author's Note: Took a little longer than usual, had a good amount of writers block, but it's here!
Hope you enjoy!
"Here ya go, milk and one sugar."
"Thank you..."
Timidly accepting the piping hot cup of coffee from Yang, Weiss shakily breathed in its rich aroma. She had been at her friend's apartment for a little while now, so... she already cried herself out, choking out her story between bouts of sobbing... Now she was merely sitting on the living area couch, clutching the hot porcelain and taking in her surroundings.
While Yang's apartment was certainly warmer, it was... pleasant, and not at all stuffy. It was a bit darker, and the walls were covered with much more posters and pictures. There was more clutter than... where she lived before, but less... mess, so to speak. Sure, there were some loose containers, stray clothes, junk mail, and so on strewed around the area - that the blonde was currently running around, picking up - but overall, this place felt more... homey. Vernal was never really interested in decoration. As she described, her place was where she slept, ate, and fucked. Compare that to Yang, who had made this apartment a sort of extension of herself. It had actual personality. She made it a real home.
"So uh, sorry about the mess." Yang mentioned, idly tossing the pieces of clothing that she had grabbed into her room and shutting the door. "I usually leave cleaning for a certain day, but I've been trying to make a better effort 'cause I get visitors more often now. Well, one visitor really, but still." She explained, making her way into the kitchen.
Weiss merely shook her head. "It's alright, I don't mind." I bet Coco doesn't mind either...
After a few moments, Yang returned with a fairly large plastic bag of some kind. She grinned, dropping the bag on the coffee table in front of her friend - revealing that is was filled with marshmallows - before plucking out one of the soft treats to pop into her own mouth. "Also, marshmallows, nom."
Even in her current state, Weiss could not stop a small smile from gracing her features. It was honestly rather incredible how easily her friend was always able to make her smile or laugh. She was like some sort of... human teddy bear, oozing warmth and comfort to all who held her. While she was not quite in the mood for marshmallows at the current time, she appreciated the gesture. Perhaps a little later. Weiss silently considered, taking a sip from her coffee as she watched Yang continue to make her way around the room. It was actually... rather familiar. Vernal was terrible at cleaning too, but unlike her, at least the blonde was making the effort to tidy up for her... admittedly unexpected guest.
Once she appeared to be satisfied with the level of cleanliness of the area, Yang somewhat awkwardly joined her friend on the couch. The two sat in silence for several moments, with the only sound to be heard being the antique clock that hung the on wall near the front door, until Yang decided to speak up. "I... know it's not really my place, but um... what are you... gonna do now?"
Weiss only managed to let out a quiet sigh at the question, staring down at her coffee. "I... honestly don't know, Yang. This was... the only option... The last idea I had to... get her to talk to me..." Then her voice hitched. "Now... all I can do is wait..."
Yang was silent for a few moments. "And... if nothing comes from waiting?"
That was sure the question of the day. One that Weiss was honestly... dreading the point where she was going to have to think about. "I... suppose I'll have to look for a new apartment..."
Reaching up to place a hand upon her friend's shoulder, Yang attempted to offer a small yet pretty smile. "Well, you know you're always welcome here, for as long as you need."
Weiss actually looked up at the blonde upon hearing that. It was quite a generous offer, an incredibly generous offer even, but... "What about Coco? Won't I be... intruding?" Of course she was not exactly privy to Yang and Coco's happenings, but if they were even half as active as she and Vernal once were... I should really not be thinking about that right now.
"I'm sure she won't care, Weiss." Yang assured, brightening her beautiful smile. "She'd probably enjoy having you around. Hell, it'd give her someone else to show off her dick creations to."
Weiss could not help but furrow her brow. Dick creations? "Are you sure?"
"Totally, as long as you're fine with..." Yang began, before trailing off, seemingly realizing something as her eyes widened. "Ah shit."
"What's wrong?" Weiss inquired, worry creeping into her voice as she wondered what could have happened. Perhaps she really was intruding...
Reaching up to run her hand through her curly blonde locks, Yang let out a sigh. "We uh, we've got a date scheduled for tonight." Which caused her friend to just blink, as she was not expecting such an answer. "That I should probably cancel..."
Weiss was taken aback upon hearing those words. "You will do no such thing." She declared, placing her cup of coffee onto the table in front of her, and actually standing up to look down at her friend. "Yang, you deserve to be happy, and there is no way I am going to risk getting in the way of that, so don't you dare try to cancel your date just because I'm here."
"But I don't want to leave you alone like this!" Yang defended.
Weiss attempted to offer a slight smile, as difficult as it was. "I'm okay, Yang, I can take care of myself for one night. You on the other hand need to take care of your girlfriend." Who is extremely lucky to have you...
"Weiss..." Yang sighed. "You're not okay, you just don't want to be any trouble."
"I will admit that I'm hurting, and I don't particularly want to be alone tonight, but, I do want you to go be with Coco." Weiss pressed, sitting back down next to her friend. Then she smiled again. "Don't worry, I'll still be here when you get back." Not like I've got many places to run to anyway. Even before this particular night, Ruby's home was already packed as it was, and Raven... well, Weiss did not feel too comfortable foisting herself upon her.
Yang actually let out a breathy chuckle at the response. "Pfft, it's not like I think you're gonna run off or anything... I just... I wanna be here for you."
"You can be here for me tomorrow, Yang." Weiss assured, reaching up to place her own hand upon the blonde's shoulder. "Now go shower and get ready, or I'll snoop around your room." Upon saying that, she bit back a smile, hoping the heat beginning to go to her cheeks was not evident. She very much tried not to consider the implications of that statement.
Yang merely grinned slightly. "There's nothing in there I'm not comfortable with you finding."
As hard as she tried not to, Weiss could not help but furrow her brow for a moment, wondering what exactly her friend could be referring to when she said finding, rather than seeing. Though she quickly shook that less-than-appropriate thought away, getting back to the topic at hand. "Go, you insufferable oaf."
After a moment, Yang sighed, though it came with a smile, so that was at least something. "Alright alright, fine." She finally agreed, picking herself up from the couch and starting to make her way toward the back of the apartment, but stopping after a couple steps, turning back to briefly face her guest. "But come tomorrow, we're spendin' the day binging cartoons, and I ain't takin' no for an answer."
Weiss giggled a bit at the offer. "I would like that." She smiled, watching her friend head into the bathroom for her shower. Once the blonde was fully gone and she could hear the feint sound of water running, she let out a small sigh. Coco is one lucky woman. Weiss thought to herself, as she pulled her scroll from the pocket of her jeans. Now that she was alone, at least for a little while, it was time to make a couple calls. Navigating to her contacts, she scrolled down the admittedly tiny list until reaching a certain name: Ruby Rose. Normally for an occurrence such as this, Winter would be the first one to hear about it, but as she was likely still at work, Weiss figured she would call her friend in the meantime. Tapping the Call Mobile button, she waited, listening to the ringing tone in her ear, once, twice...
"Hi Weiss!" Came the ever-excited voice of Ruby from the other side of the line.
"Hey Ruby..." Weiss almost-mumbled back.
As expected, Ruby immediately understood that something was wrong. "Everything okay?"
This was not going to be easy. "I... Vernal and I... we... u-um..." Weiss stammered, barely even able to get the words out. "I-I'm at Yang's..."
Ruby was quiet for a few moments, and Weiss was almost worried that the call had been disconnected. "Do you wanna talk about it? Or maybe vent?" She offered. "'Cause I could come over with a whole bunch of chocolate and ice cream and then me, you and Yang could have a girls night!"
Weiss could not help but smile slightly at the idea. "Perhaps, but unfortunately Yang has her date with Coco soon, so she would be unable to attend."
"Oh shoot, I almost forgot that was today!" Ruby admitted. "So she's still going?"
Weiss nodded, though quickly realizing that it went unseen, giving that she was on a scroll call. "Only because I'm forcing her not to postpone it just for me."
Ruby chuckled a bit. "Aw, that's Yang for ya."
Weiss managed a smile, a tad brighter this time. "She's the best friend a girl could ask for."
Another brief silence. "So uh... you doing okay?" Ruby wondered, the worry clear in her voice.
"Not particularly, but... little better than about an hour ago..." Weiss admitted, reaching up to run a hand through her jet black hair, which was starting to become white again, due to not having been dyed in a while.
"So double the ice cream, gotcha." Ruby acknowledged, likely with a huge grin on her face.
Weiss could not help but giggle at the response. "Thank you, Ruby, I really appreciate it, but... I think I will have to decline for now." She confessed, somewhat relieved that she did not have to see her friend's reaction to it. "But I promise that we will spend time together soon, okay?"
"You've got a deal, Weissy." Ruby quickly agreed.
Upon hearing how fast Ruby's answer was, Weiss found herself remaining quiet for several moments, as she began to feel... guilty that outside of mutual bar visits, she had not seen her friend in quite some time. "I'm... sorry I haven't made more time for you, Ruby... I've... been a poor friend..."
Ruby then... scoffed? "And here I thought you were smarter than Uncle Qrow."
Weiss just blinked, taken aback by the response. "What?"
"Weiss, you're family, and it doesn't matter how often we see each other, I'll always be there for you." Ruby explained.
Feeling tears begin to pool in her eyes, Weiss managed a small smile. "Thank you, Ruby... I'll be there for you as well..." She promised. "I think I'm going to call my sister now, so I will talk to you later..."
"Okay!" Ruby burst. "Love you, Weiss!"
"Love you too..." Weiss offered, before they both hung up. Her smile then brightened as she held the scroll to her chest. That was something she needed to say and hear today, since... Vernal could never say so, and because Ruby's love was truly platonic. She was basically the friend that Weiss always wanted when she was younger, but... never truly had the chance to meet. And... she really did mean to spend more time with her, as well as focusing on the friendships that should have been more important to her sooner. Only now was she beginning to realize that her life in Vale up until now mostly revolved around Vernal... So much so that most would consider it unhealthy to a certain extent...
Suddenly, the sound of a slightly squeaky door opening pulled Weiss from her train of thought, drawing her attention to the bathroom, where she saw... Holy fucking shit... Yang standing in the doorway with nothing but two white towels. One wrapped around her hair, and the other... around her... generous body. Just the mere sight of her bare thighs was starting to make her brain short circuit, as well as... the thought that the only thing between her eyes and the blonde's sizable chest was a single towel...
Oh... wow... she's bigger than I thought... and those thighs... Fuck...
Her skin looks so soft... I wonder if it feels that soft...
Wait, she's talking to you. Fuck. What did she say? Stop staring at her tits and answer her!
"U-Um, I'm sorry, I didn't catch that." Weiss admitted, cheeks reddening from the embarrassment.
Yang just chuckled, hopefully not realizing what her friend had just been doing... or staring at. "You think I should wear makeup tonight?"
Weiss merely blinked, not expecting such a... well, simple question. "Uh... maybe a little?" She suggested. "Shadow would really bring out your eyes."
After a moment, Yang nodded, seemingly satisfied with her friend's answer. "Duly noted. Thanks a bunch!" She grinned, quickly padding into her room and shutting the door.
Once the blonde was fully gone, Weiss was finally snapped out of her trance, allowing her to get back to the task at hand: calling her sister to inform her of what happened... Which was not exactly something that she was excited for. Navigating to the contact that read Winter Schnee, Weiss tapped the Call Mobile button, and waited, listening to the ringing tone in her ear once more. As expected, it was not picked up immediately, due to her sister being quite the busy woman, but to her surprise, it went to voicemail. She soon heard Winter's standard I am unable to answer your call at the current time message, soon followed by a short beep, signaling that it was time to leave her own message, and prompting her to take a deep breath.
"H-Hello Winter, I apologize for being unable to call you at a more convenient time, but... I needed to inform you of something that has happened..." Weiss hesitantly began, finding it difficult to begin articulating her thoughts. "Vernal and I... w-we... um... we're taking... a little break... and some time apart... But I'm okay! I promise I'm okay. Everyone will be okay..." Then she sighed, not even able to convince herself of that fact. "I just... wanted to let you know, in case you were planning to visit anytime soon. Anyway... I love you, and miss you everyday, and hope to speak with you soon. Bye." After hanging up the call, Weiss let out another sigh, though this time more from something else. While it was unfortunate that she was unable to actually talk to her sister, she was a bit... relieved that the call was not answered, allowing her to not have to explain what happened... or what did not happen with Vernal. No, that was a problem for future-Weiss.
Thankfully, it appeared that she would not have to dwell on those thoughts for long, as the sound of a door opening drew her attention to the bathroom, where she witnessed Yang almost timidly walk out in... wow... Her friend stood clad in an absolutely gorgeous lilac dress, short, simple and unadorned silk, with a lightly frilled skirt and shallow neckline. Around her neck was a glimmering silver heart-pendent necklace, and in her hand was a pair of shiny black high heels. Weiss felt a sudden pang of... envy as she was unable to take her eyes off of her friend...
Fuck me... "You're so beautiful..." Weiss blurted out, unable to keep her thoughts inside of her head.
Upon approaching her friend, Yang warmly smiled, gaze surprisingly elsewhere. "Oh, thanks, Weiss..." She acknowledged, a small blush beginning to tint her cheeks. "That really means a lot..." Then her smile faded a bit as she looked down at her friend. "You sure you're gonna be okay here alone?"
Standing up from the couch, Weiss did her best to smile. "Yang..." She began, taking one of the blonde's hand in her own. "Go make Coco a happy woman."
After a moment, Yang nodded. "I promise I'll try."
Then Weiss grinned a bit, as a rather amusing idea popped into her head. "And I promise I won't burn the apartment down... probably."
Yang actually let out a laugh at the joke. "Well you better not, or else I'm never leavin' you home alone again." She warned with a smirk of her own, making her way over to the front entrance to put down her high heels. Upon standing back up, she headed into the kitchen, opening up one of the drawers and rifling around a bit, before taking out a small silver object. Approaching her friend once more, she held out the object - which turned out to be a key - with a smile. "The extra key to the apartment, y'know, just in case you wanna go out anywhere."
Hesitantly accepting the key from the blonde, Weiss could only stare at the small object in her hand for a few moments. Yang's apartment key... She was holding Yang's apartment key... Yang trusted her enough to just give it to her without a second thought... Weiss was unable to contain a stupid smile from spreading across her face as finally lowered her hand. "While I don't believe I will be leaving the apartment tonight, I really appreciate the gesture, Yang..."
"No problem at all." Yang assured with a slight grin.
Weiss looked around the apartment, taking not of the messy living area. "Instead I think I will do some cleaning. It will help me distract myself, as well as alleviate my guilt of living here rent-free." The blonde then opened her mouth, but Weiss stopped her by raising a single finger. "And yes, I will be paying you rent. There is no negotiating that."
After a moment, Yang let out a huff. "Fine, but I ain't makin' it expensive or anything, I don't want you to worry about it." She countered, before smiling once more, stepping forward to wrap her arms around her friend, which was quickly reciprocated. "Don't forget to call me if you need anything."
Weiss nodded into her shoulder. "I know, I won't." She agreed, before the two separated, and Yang walked back to the front entrance to begin putting on her high heels. "Now go enjoy your date."
"You got it." Yang grinned upon standing back up. "I'll try not to be too late."
And that was not going to do. "You will be as late as you happen to be, and you will not end your date earlier just because I'm staying here." Weiss declared. "Understood?"
Yang only chuckled a bit at the command. "Yes, mom." She sarcastically agreed, unlocking and opening the front door. Though before the blonde stepped out, she stopped for a moment, turning back to her friend, but not quite meeting her eye line. "Hey, thanks for uh, y'know, not lettin' me cancel this." Yang smiled, actually shifting in place a little. "I'm actually really excited..."
While she was not exactly excited to be home alone after what happened, Weiss managed a smile, if only for her friend. "Then don't keep your girlfriend waiting." To which Yang merely nodded, a much brighter smile spreading across her face as she stepped out into the hallway and closed the door behind her, finally leaving Weiss alone in the apartment. There was a few moments where she merely... stood there, watching the door, as if waiting for her friend to return, but... eventually she turned and plopped back down on the couch, wondering . Though as she did, Weiss felt a small pressure beneath her rear. Was she sitting on something? Moving over a bit, she reached between the couch cushions, and soon pulled out something that caused her cheeks to heat up - A lacy red bra.
Wow... This is nice, but how did it even get here? It's definitely too small for Yang... and far too large for me...
Wait, is this... Coco's? It's lace, so that means...
Oh great, because that's what I needed in my head tonight.
Maybe I should have invited Ruby over.
Cinder stared at the contents of her third and final box, and let out a sigh. It did not strike her how little she owned until she started packing. It... depressed her, how far she had fallen.
A year ago, it would have taken an entire truckload of boxes to fit everything that she and Emerald owned - not even counting any of their furniture - but now... all it took was three, and an old gym bag. And after less than an hour was everything completely packed. Her clothes, toiletries, non-perishable foods - as bringing items from her fridge would be pointless, given that she did not have any way to store then - and... just one other essential.
The box containing all of the loose photos of her and Emerald. Something that Cinder had kept since the day... the day she died, yet even now... could not bear to open it up and look at what lied within. There was so many years of precious memories inside that box... Their first Spring Festival, the first night in their apartment, their first car, their anniversary trip to Mistral... Things that had once brought her such joy... now only caused her pain in the absence of her soulmate. In truth, Emerald was half the reason she had been where she was Cinder life before that fire, and... why she was not such a complete bitch anymore. So when she died... Cinder tried to hold onto as much as she could... for as long as possible. Since she was not allowed to attend the funeral, and too afraid to visit her grave, all she had was the possessions that were left behind. Unfortunately with no income nor possibility of getting another job, Cinder eventually lost it all... including... the apartment they bought together. Now all that was left was the photo box... Everything else was gone...
Suddenly, Cinder felt a pair of arms snake around her midsection, a plush chest pressing against her back, and a chin rest upon her shoulder, pulling her from the rather... unpleasant thoughts running through her mind. Remembering exactly who was in her apartment, helping her pack, she managed a smile. That girl always made her smile. "What's this for?"
"You were just lookin' a little lost in thought over here." Nora answered, likely with a grin on her face. "Thinkin' about anything interesting?"
Still staring at the filled box in front of her, Cinder remained silent for a moment. "I was..." She began, before trailing off, letting out a sigh. "Packing up everything I own like this... reminded me of all the things I once shared with Emmy... a-and... how I lost it all..." Then she felt her lip quiver a bit. "I miss her so much..."
Nora immediately tightened the hug around the older woman, pulling her closer. "I know, Cindy, I know..." She mumbled, planting a soft kiss upon her neck. "Do you wanna talk about it?"
Cinder shook her head slightly. "Not today... I just... want to distance myself from this feeling, before it drags me down."
"Well, wanna talk about the future instead?" Nora offered.
Even though she was certainly not feeling it, Cinder actually managed a smile. "Flying cars do have an appeal to them."
Nora let out a giggle against her shoulder. "I was talkin' about your future, Cindy." She clarified. "Like, now that you've got a good job and stuff, you can work on your life from a more stable place, surrounded by new friends and family, people who can take care of her..." Then her grip loosened a bit. "Like I can't..."
Quickly sitting back up, Cinder turned around to face her kneeling friend, straddling her thighs and reaching up to gently caress her cheek. "Nora... the only reason I'm alive right now, is because you gave me the strength to keep trying."
"And now you're moving out, so I think it's time you move on." Nora stressed, attempting a smile. "Come on, Cindy, you can't keep hangin' around a lowly hooker forev-"
Cinder immediately glared down at her friend, who sat still as she grasped her firmly by the shoulders. "You are more than that, Nora. You... you ground me, when my mind wanders, you gave me stability when I had none, you are not some... You are my friend, my dearest and closest friend. Do not ever put yourself down like that."
Nora was quiet for a moment. "Don't... don't you want that dream life you've always talked about? Beach-side home, nice sports car, designer clothes and beautiful wife to pamper?"
"Not at your expense." Cinder defended, reaching up to once again gently caress her cheek. "You are worth more to me than anything money can buy."
Nora tried to smile, but the older woman could tell she was merely putting it on for her. "C'mon, I'm just a therapy bear you don't need anymore... You deserve more than me."
Cinder tightened her grip on the redhead's cheek a bit. "You deserve better than me."
Nora actually managed a small giggle. "As if I could get my hands on anyone better than you, Cindy."
Cinder merely scoffed, rolling her eye. "You have awfully low standards."
Nora just shrugged. "Hey, you've seen where I live."
"Then... why don't you... leave with me?" Cinder awkwardly proposed. "I-I could help you start over, and... I'm sure Raven would understand your situation..."
Nora only shook her head, as tears actually began to pool in her turquoise eyes. "Don't worry about little old me, I'll be fine." She assured with a small smile. "I can take care of myself, I always have, but just knowing that you care for me that much is more than enough for this gal."
Cinder could only frown at the refusal, knowing full well that she was the only one who legitimately treated the redhead as a person, and not just a... piece of meat, used only for sex. Of course she had never once judged her friend for that line of work, as she knew Nora found her own enjoyment in it, and she wanted to accept that, but at the same time... moving out without her meant that the two would no longer have that... closeness they shared from living down the hall from one another. "But Nora... we could... lose what we have..."
The redhead was silent for a moment, likely realizing the consequences of the older woman moving out, until reaching up to take Cinder's hands in her own, gently rubbing the backs with her thumbs upon lowering them. "Well, what if... we didn't lose what we have?"
Cinder furrowed her brow. "What do you mean?"
Taking a deep breath, Nora squeezed her friend's hands. "Cindy, I... I love you... A-And not like some... some puppy love crap, I love you. You mean the world to me, you... you... you're tall." Which only caused the older woman's brow to raise in surprise. "I mean, it's just... you're tall, and you're firm with me, you don't bullshit or sugar-coat stuff, you're honest, you make me laugh even when you're not even trying, and you make me feel... normal, like I'm really sharing something real with you. I'm doing good, I'm making you happier... All I ever wanted to do was make people happier."
There was a moment where Cinder froze, almost unable to process what her friend had just told her, but once she did, a single thought ran through her mind. I... don't deserve this... I don't deserve her... She thought to herself, tears beginning to pool in her eye as she dismounted the redhead and sat upon the floor, yet still keeping gentle hold of her hands. Eventually Cinder swallowed, taking a deep breath of her own. "You... deserve better..."
Nora actually managed a giggle at the response. "You're silly, Cindy... No one could do better than you..." She defended, tears starting to flow down her cheeks. "I know, I-I know I can be much sometimes and that was kinda a mess, I just wanted to say..." Then she sighed. "I always wanna say things, but the words never really come and I don't want you to give up on something better because I'm here... I'll be fine, I'm okay, you've got a chance to really have something good, to be with someone who can really take care of you..."
Cinder only stared at her friend, tears beginning to stream down her own cheek. "I don't... I don't want to leave you..."
Nora just offered a teary smile, squeezing the older woman's hands. "I know, but you'll be better for it."
Unable to properly form a response in her mind, Cinder merely shut her eye, leaned forward and pressed her lips against Nora's own, drawing out a shocked, muffled squeak before she reciprocated the tender kiss. After slowly separating, the two stared into each other's crying eyes as Cinder brought a hand up to gently cup the redhead's face, closing her eye once again and leaning her head against her friend's, ever so slightly brushing her thumb against her cheek. Then she felt a hand upon her own face, gently lifting her head until her single, teary golden eye met equally teary turquoise.
It was then that Nora leaned forward, and the pair met in a slow, gentle kiss, wrapping their arms around the other in a tight embrace, as if they both knew that it would be the last time. After finally separating, they gazed into each other's eyes once more, not letting go, and Cinder finally spoke.
"I'll miss you..."
It was still sinking in for Cinder. So much so that the entire car ride over had been spent in a daze.
After several long months living in that absolute shithole that she once called an apartment building, she had finally moved out, and into her boss' apartment no less. It was almost as if she was currently living a dream, like she was going to suddenly wake up, back on that lumpy mass of a bed, alone, with no hope of ever leaving that place.
In all honesty, even though it was quite the exciting feeling to be moving in with Raven, it also made Cinder feel... anxious to a certain extent. While she had always had a relatively good idea regarding how to act around the older woman - her boss - now... as the two brought her things up to the spare room, that was about to change. Cinder was... exceptionally uncertain about how to act now, or even how to handle the current situation that she found herself in... She was just kind of... lost. Things were changing, and her and Raven were no longer simply boss and employee anymore. They were friends, and now... roommates.
Then a realization hit her.
What... would the others think of this new... situation? Would they just not care? Or would they be happy? Or perhaps... would they view it as... malicious in some way? Like Cinder was... taking advantage of Raven... That beautiful, incredible woman already had so much on her plate, and now she had Cinder to deal with on top of it all. Not just as an employee, but also now as a roommate...
"So uh, Nora seemed... huggy today... even for her." Suddenly came Raven's voice, along with the dull thump of the last full cardboard box being placed onto the ground, pulling the younger woman from her less-than-pleasant thoughts.
Well, that certainly is an accurate statement. Cinder thought to herself, thinking back to when her boss had come to pick her up from her now-old apartment. Even after they had finished packing, Nora decided to remain there for over an hour in order to see her off, and when Raven arrived, she gave them both huge bear hugs before they left. Though she also said something to the older woman, something that Cinder was most likely not supposed to hear... Take care of her. There mere thought made her cheeks heat up. "You're just not used to it."
"She really gonna be okay on her own?" Raven wondered, standing up to briefly stretch her back. "'Cause you know I'll let her crash here if she really needs to."
While it was certainly comforting to know that the older woman would be willing take in her friend so easily, Cinder could not help but chuckle a bit as she stood up herself. "You say that now, but you've only spoken to her a few times. As I said before, you would not be able to handle actually living with her."
Raven scoffed at the implication, walking over and plopping down onto the guest bed. "I lived with teenage Summer and Tai, Cin, with a fuck ton of cooking mishaps caused by one, and a lot of failed hobbies with the other. Compared to that shit, Nora seems like a piece of cake." She defended. "Back then, Summer was trying to be some culinary master, so every couple months she'd overhaul the kitchen trying to learn like, pastries or pizza or gods forbid fuckin' macaroons. I used to love macaroons, but now I can't stand the sight of 'em. And Tai, the dipshit tore his ACL in high school, so big star footballer had to limp around in a cast for a while as he tried to find something else to do, and he's the most accident prone buffoon you're ever likely to meet. Gassed himself with glue fumes, blinded himself with a welder, almost lost a finger to a lathe!"
Cinder just chuckled again, deciding to simply join the older woman in sitting on the guest best, as they had already brought all of her belongings up from the car, so there was nothing left to do. "I will admit, that does sound like an absolute nightmare, but Nora's likely the wildest card you will ever meet, so try to think about that if you actually intend to offer for her to stay here."
Raven only tiredly smiled at the warning. "Will do." She agreed. Then came a short pause, where the two merely sat next to one another on the guest bed in silence, neither one really knowing what to say. "So uh, how'd your therapy go today? Can't say I expected Glyn to take you out for archery."
Cinder shrugged at the question. "Neither did I, but... I'm glad she did." The younger woman admitted, smiling down at the floor. "Being there, firing arrows at that target was... cathartic, even more so than our normal sessions. It was enjoyable, even if my arms ache from it, but that pain feels... good, satisfying even. I can't really explain it."
Raven shook her head, offering a tired smile of her own. "Nah, I get that. It's the same feeling I used to get the morning after goin' to the gym, which I don't really do anymore, but I still remember it pretty well. Can't say I miss it though."
While she was certainly not sure why, the moment her boss finished that sentence, a realization suddenly hit Cinder. Something that she was told a little while ago, but was never actually followed up on... and she was getting rather curious. "Speaking of missing... May I ask you a question?"
Raven only shrugged. "Go for it."
Then Cinder hesitated. While she was definitely curious about this particular bit of information, part of her knew that it was not really any of her business, and the other part was... actually a tad nervous to hear Raven's response to her question, given the subject matter and implications. Unfortunately, she already brought up the idea of asking the older woman a question, so unless she could think of something else to ask that related to the word missing, it was a bit too late to turn back now. So, Cinder took a deep breath. "Did you... ever end up calling Glynda?"
Raven actually seemed a bit taken aback by the question, likely not expecting to ever hear about that topic again, given it had been several weeks since they last spoke about it. "Oh, y-yeah. We uh, actually went out on a date last week..."
Though Cinder tried her absolute hardest not to react to that news, she could not stop her eye from widening a bit. Of course she wanted to know more, to know if things went well or not, but... was scared to know if it was the former. What if things had gone well? What if... the two were now seeing each other... No, no, of course not. She... She would have told me if that were true... Right? "A-And... how did things go? Did you have fun?"
Surprisingly, Raven just... shrugged, no tired smile gracing her features. "I mean, it was nice and all, but uh, I dunno. We ended up goin' out to dinner at this Mistrali place called uh... oh, Viridia. It was a little fancy for my taste, but Glyn recommended it, and the food was pretty good, so I just went along with it." She explained. "Anyways, once we were done I took Glyn back to her place, and she uh, well, she kissed me, but that didn't really last very long, 'cause I wasn't exactly into it for some reason. I dunno. We had a talk after that, 'bout how I wasn't quite uh, there during dinner, so I told her I was feelin' kinda distracted, and she seemed to understand, said that if I ever change my mind, there'll always be room for me in her heart, and uh, her bed." Raven had not really been looking at her friend for most of that story, but upon finishing, she turned to the younger woman, and found a rather shocked expression on her face. "Oh, uh, sorry. Probably a little too much detail."
At that moment, Cinder had to resist the incredible urge to not grin like an absolute moron. They went out on a date... and they're not together because of it... even though they seemed so good together... I can't believe it! Thankfully, she was able to remain calm... enough, keeping her expression as neutral as possible, and somehow managing to focus on thinking of a response as she shook her head. "It's quite alright, I-I'm just... sorry to hear that things did not work out..." At least the non-selfish side of me is...
Raven offered a signature tired smile in response. "Don't worry about it, Cin. We still had a nice time and stuff. It just felt like we were two friends trying to have a romantic dinner, so it didn't really work."
Upon hearing the word dinner, Cinder just then realized what time it was, and the fact that neither of them had eaten yet. "Speaking of dinner... would you like to... order pizza?" Which caused the older woman to just let out a chuckle at the sudden partial-change in subject.
"Fuck yeah."
Author's Note: Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!
Because as always, your feedback fuels us!
