Mai knew it was coming. She had known ever since she'd received that text from him. But it still hurt. The finality of it stung.
Dear Miss Taniyama,
We regret to inform you…
She did not need to read any further. Tears slipped down her face and into her lap. From the floor, Luna meowed loudly at her. Mai reached down and scooped the kitten up.
"I'm sorry, Luna…" she whimpered. "I'm sorry."
Luna meowed again and curled up in Mai's lap.
"At least this way I can stay with you right? If I'd gone then I would have to leave you behind…"
She gently stroked the top of Luna's head. The softness of her fur soothed Mai a little.
Other parts of the email caught Mai's attention out of the corner of her eye.
...a lot of strong applicants this year…
...not received a place on the waiting list…
...all the best…
"All the best," Mai repeated. "How can they wish me all the best when they've crushed my hopes, huh? How is that fair?"
Luna did not answer.
Mai wiped her eyes and slammed the lid of her laptop down. Luna hissed at the sound, but Mai did not hear her. No, she was consumed by her own grief. She sobbed hysterically and without restraint.
For the second time in as many weeks, she chose to skip lectures for the day. She did not want to see her classmates. She did not want to see the people that had been accepted.
Mai did not hear the knock at the door, but she did notice it opening. She looked up.
"Oliver?"
She wiped her eyes and tried to get hold of her breathing.
"I boiled too much water," Oliver said. "So I brought you tea."
He placed a mug down on her desk.
"Thank you."
"Do you… Do you want company?" Oliver was staring at the floor.
"Oh no, it's okay," Mai managed to say. She sniffed and forced a smile. "I don't want to impose."
"Last week I pushed away someone I cared about when I was upset and later regretted it." He was still staring at the floor.
"Oliver, I know you're not—"
"I would not have come if I did not want to be here."
"I—"
"Are you trying to politely tell me to go away?" Oliver asked. He nodded, a slight frown marring his features. "I'll go away, I'm sorry."
He turned and began to walk away. Mai jumped up from the bed, startling poor Luna in the process. The cat slunk away as Mai reached after Oliver. She grabbed his t-shirt.
"Wait…" Oliver stopped and so Mai continued, "Does this… Does this change anything between us? Now that I'm not going?"
"I'm not a consolation prize."
"That's not what I meant…" Mai whispered. She let go of his t-shirt, but he did not move. "I wanted you just as much yesterday as today. You were the one that that…"
"I did not want to get hurt."
"I know."
"I'm still sca…"
"I know," Mai murmured.
"I was going to offer to look after Luna for you if you got in," Oliver said.
"Thank you…"
"You should drink your tea."
Mai nodded and retreated back into her room. She closed the door and sat down, with cup of tea in one hand.
Her shoulders sagged.
She sipped at the tea — watery and under brewed, honestly, consider how much Oliver liked tea, he had no patience to make it well — and tried to clear her head.
She was not going abroad. That meant she needed somewhere to live for the next academic year. She opened her laptop again and began writing an email to Luella, hoping she'd be allowed to stay on for another year. However awkward things might be between her and Oliver, the rent was too cheap to turn down.
What else? She wouldn't have to pick her courses for next year yet. There was nothing else she needed to worry about for now. Which meant she had nothing to distract her from thoughts of Oliver.
She scowled, downed the rest of the crappy tea, and stormed out of her room. She headed straight for Oliver's room and barged in without knocking.
Oliver, who had evidently been pacing up and down his room, paused and glanced around.
"Mai?"
"Yes," Mai agreed. "That's me."
"What do you want?"
"I want to point out that you're being ridiculous and that there is now no reason for us not to be together other than you being daft. I can only think of like three things that will change if we get together and quite frankly, every single one of them would be an improvement."
Oliver raised an eyebrow, but Mai did not back down.
"And those three things would be?"
"First, I will be making your tea from now on because your tea making is shit. Second, we get to spend more time together…"
"What was the third thing?" Oliver asked.
Mai opened her mouth to speak, went bright red and licked her lips.
"Well, uh…"
"Yes?"
"Maybe, I could get a hug off of you now and then…" Her voice progressively got quieter and quieter. "And maybe, a kiss, or something… I don't know…" Mai stared avidly at her fluffy socks.
"So you only want me for my body?"
Mai's eyes darted up.
"What? No!"
Oliver's face broke into a smirk. Mai narrowed her eyes at him.
"You're teasing me!" she accused. "I'm trying to be serious here!"
Oliver's smirk relaxed into a smile.
"I would have hugged you earlier if you had accepted my offer of comfort."
"I want hugs when I'm not upset too," Mai said, pouting. "Not all the time, I know you're not big on physical stuff but just… Just occasionally..."
"I'm sure that can be arranged."
"So… Does that mean we can…?" Mai stepped closer to Oliver and stared up into his eyes.
He matched her gaze, and his smile did not falter.
"Mai, would you… Would you like to be my girlfriend?"
Mai beamed.
"Yes, I would."
Oliver reached down and pressed a light kiss to Mai's forehead.
A sudden loud meow caused them both to look down at Luna.
"Have you fed her yet this morning?" Oliver asked.
"Crap, no I haven't."
Mai started towards the bedroom door, Luna racing ahead of her.
"And you mentioned making me tea?" Oliver called.
Mai rolled her eyes. Oliver followed her down to the kitchen and located a packet of biscuits. Mai fed Luna and made two cups of tea. The two young adults made their way through to the lounge and took a seat on the sofa.
Oliver offered an arm out and Mai frowned.
"You said you wanted hugs?"
"I don't want to—"
"I would not have offered," Oliver said, "If I was not happy with it."
"Promise?"
"Promise."
Mai smiled and leant into her boyfriend. She giggled at the very thought. Oliver offered her a biscuit, which she took, and they sat in silence for a few minutes.
"I think you should come and stay with my parents over the winter break," Oliver said.
"Why?"
"Well, otherwise you'll be alone here," he reasoned. "Whereas if you come and stay, you can keep my mother off my back and you won't be alone."
"I feel like this is a better deal for you, than me," Mai teased.
"Mai, if you stay here, we'll have to keep the heating and electricity on for two weeks for only one person. It's not very environmentally friendly or particularly efficient."
"I think you care more for efficiency than the environment. But supposing that I agree to this, would your parents mind? What about Gene?"
"Gene still feels guilty enough about last week that he'd agree to being skinned alive if I suggested it to him right now."
Mai pulled a face.
"And your parents?"
Oliver dug his phone out from his pocket and phoned his mother. He put the call on speakerphone.
"Noll? Is that you? Has Gene done something stupid again?" Luella's voice burst out of the speaker.
"No, Mother. Not as far as I am aware," Oliver replied with a heavy sigh.
"Then why are you calling me? Aren't you supposed to be in lectures?"
"I don't have a lecture right now."
"Then—"
"I want Mai to stay with us over the holidays so we don't have to heat the whole house with only one person in it."
"Mai? Now if I've got this right," Luella said. "Gene said she was the girl you fancied, is that right? The one he told your secret to?"
"How do you—"
"I gave Gene a good scolding after your last call."
Mai bit her lip and buried her head into Oliver's chest. She felt like she was intruding, but Oliver had not taken the call off of speaker.
"Good. But Mai's stalker punched him and her cat shat on his bed so we've made up now."
"Oliver! Language!"
"Fine, Mai's cat defecated on Gene's bed—"
"And what do you mean by 'Mai's stalker'? How can you possibly think of letting her stay in that house alone if she has a stalker! Have you gone to the police?"
"He's been warned by the police to leave her alone," Oliver said.
"Well she is coming here, I will not hear another word about the matter. And you said she has a cat? The cat will have to come too, but I'll be covering up the nice furniture. Is the animal trained?"
"She uses a litter tray?"
"Excellent. Okay well, do you have enough room in your car to bring her back too?"
"Yes."
"Because I can come and get you all if—"
"It'll be fine."
"Okay, well if you're sure."
"I am, oh and Mother?"
"Yes?"
"Mai's my girlfriend."
Oliver hit the 'end call' button and promptly turned his phone off.
"You can't just hang up on her!" Mai squealed.
"I can. Besides, she'll be revolting if I don't. This way she might have calmed down by the weekend."
At that moment, Luna jumped up onto the sofa and crept over Mai's lap and tried to squeeze into the small gap between Mai and Oliver's legs.
"I think someone is jealous," Oliver muttered.
Mai just laughed.
Author's note: Because these two have to have a happy ending right?