Disclaimer: Elderburn Week Day 4: Roommate AU.
Winter watched through bleary eyes as the credits rolled across the screen from some really bad horror flick from thirty years ago. She honestly hadn't even registered the name, too eager to indulge in the weekly activity her roommate had suggested shortly after they moved in together. It started off as just a means of acclimating to each other's presence and had turned into a genuine bonding experience and a much needed method of letting off steam.
About a year ago, she'd exited the military service with the hope that transitioning to civilian life would be easy. Her sister, Weiss, had put her in touch with a young woman who attended her university and was looking for a roommate. It seemed like a suitable compromise; it wasn't moving back home but neither did it put the pressure on her to immediately find a full time job, instead relying on the residual payments from her time in the service to allow her a period of adjustment. That was how she'd come to share a living space with one Yang Xiao Long.
The blonde woman, a mere four years younger than herself, had an infectious laugh, a sharp sense of humor, and a positively glowing countenance, though she also had something of a temper and penchant for physically settling her accounts. At first, they'd hit a few rough patches, mostly due to Winter's maladjustment to living with others. Her term of service had mostly included single person living arrangements, standardized furniture, and strict regulations, so to suddenly have someone else sharing the space, someone who didn't mind leaving a coat thrown over the back of the couch or letting the dishes pile up in the sink for a few days. Yang didn't shy away from chores; she just didn't attend to them with the same rigid schedule that Winter did.
It had taken a month or so to… 'loosen up', as her roommate put it. The apartment was still cleaner than most and it probably wouldn't raise too many brows were it subjected to an impromptu inspection but she didn't feel a spike of irritation at the empty water bottle sitting on the table from Yang's workout that morning. She didn't feel the need to go over and grab the sweater left there from a few days ago and hang it up and she'd passed the sink earlier without immediately starting to clean the dishes. Honestly, Yang usually beat her to it nowadays anyway.
During the process of not being so rigid and instantaneous in her cleaning habits, her roommate had suggested a movie night to just sit next to each other on the couch and enjoy something together. At first, she'd thought the suggestion ridiculous, but relented purely from a lack of anything better to do. She'd started constructing her resume and applying for jobs, so the distraction helped.
It wasn't a genre she would've chosen herself. Winter preferred the sort of movies that made her think or drew her into the characters or story. Mindless action and jump scares were about as far from her tastes as one could get but, she had to admit, being encouraged to vocalize her displeasure certainly made them more bearable. Apparently, laughing at the poorly constructed plots, the nonsensical logic, and the terrible acting was the entire point of the exercise, and she could provide scathing critique in a never ending supply. Yang just turned them into jokes, turning phrases with such ease that it sometimes surprised the older woman, and she found herself laughing until she cried more often than she'd care to admit.
As she reached forward and grabbed the remote, Winter did her best not to move too much or too suddenly so she wouldn't wake the woman leaning against her. Yang had dropped off somewhere around midway through the movie, her jokes noticeably lacking through the first half. She'd been pulling double shifts a lot recently, making an excuse of saving up for something big that she never specified, and it left her more tired than usual.
Winter had landed a job- not a career, by any stretch of the imagination, but a job that paid the bills- about three months after exiting the service but didn't work nearly as many or as awkward hours as her roommate. The weekly movie nights became their primary source of prolonged interaction and, through them, they learned more about each other. It became less sitting on opposite sides of the couch and more sitting side-by-side and teasing each other almost as much as riffing on the movie in question.
With the television shut off, Winter internally debated with herself. Should she let Yang rest? The woman had fallen asleep leaning against her shoulder, snoring softly, and while the dead weight against her didn't bother her so much, the growing puddle of drool probably should. The former soldier had an early day and felt much more tired than usual, though, so it only occurred to her as a fleeting though. She was warm and comfortable, so moving didn't come in very high on her list of priorities. Maybe if she just laid them both down, they could take a nap and move to their respective bedrooms later, when they awoke. Or it would make the trip to the kitchen to make breakfast that much faster.
"Yang?" She mumbled, opting to put the question out there to see how deeply the woman slept. "Do you want to sleep out here?"
"Huh?" For a moment, the blonde nuzzled further into her side and groaned, then sat up a little. "Wha- the movie over?"
"Yes, it just ended." Winter sat up a little straighter. "You fell asleep."
"Aw, I'm sorry." She scrubbed at her eyes. "I just… I dunno, this week kicked my ass something fierce."
"It happens," she said, a small smile on her lips as she watched Yang stretch a little. "We should probably go to bed." Neither of them had work the following morning but they did have plans to go running shortly after sunrise. Though, in hindsight, perhaps sleeping in would be the better option. "Do you still want to go running tomorrow morning?"
"No," she replied with a little whine. "But I gotta. Can't skip on the cardio."
"Then we'd better get to bed." Reluctantly, they both got up, a pop or two coming from Winter's lower back; something about carrying several pounds on her back for miles on end didn't quite agree with her and she suspected it would get worse if she didn't keep up with her physical regimen. At least she had a very devoted workout companion.
A frown tugged at her lips. After getting out, Winter had made some friends and acquaintances, both fellow former soldiers and civilians. Some through work, some through networking, and a few through functions with her sister. She'd even relented to her sister's gentle nagging and went on a few dates. They didn't go anywhere but it had provided two boons. One, she made a few more friends.
Two, she had to confront the reality that she'd grown… very attached to Yang.
That made it sound cold, she thought as she turned off the lights in the living room and checked the lock on the apartment door, because one got 'attached' to things. It would be more accurate to say she'd grown fond of her roommate.
Yang could be vivacious, playful, downright aggravating, but she also proved to be deeply empathetic, overtly affectionate with even her most casual friends, and her sense of humor could brighten any day. Really, she found herself continuously surprised that the woman didn't have a steady relationship; just about anyone could fall in love with her. After the first two months of them living together, Yang didn't seem to go out on dates. She had close friends but no one she openly dated.
"Wake up at zero-six?" Yang yawned as she spoke over her shoulder, making every word sound rounded at the edges.
She couldn't help but grin as they walked towards the bedroom doors, still impressed at how quickly the other woman had picked up on military time and changed her own vernacular to accommodate. "Sounds perfect."
"Great. Night, see you in the morning." The woman stopped in front of her door and turned, almost as if she'd forgotten something. Then, much to Winter's shock and surprise, Yang brushed a soft, almost there kiss against her cheek. "Love you."
The former soldier froze in the hallway, eyes wide in surprise. She registered that her roommate had slipped into her room and shut her door, but it took a solid five minutes before she'd processed what had happened and another two to enter her own room and close her door behind her. Then she leaned back against the wood and tried to rationalize it.
Yang was tired, obviously. She'd given friends kisses on their cheeks in greeting and parting before, though that seemed restricted to her younger sister and her childhood friend. It probably didn't mean anything more than that she was sleepy and not thinking clearly. She shouldn't take it as anything more than that.
Shaking her head- and ignoring any sinking in her chest that she might or might not have felt- Winter started towards her bed, seeing as she was already in her pajamas.
She got about halfway there when there was a soft, almost inaudible knock on her door.
Winter went back to the door and opened it, eyebrows raising as she found her roommate standing on the other side. Her presence wasn't much of a surprise but the rather impressive blush on her cheeks did count as one.
"Hey. So." The blonde ran a hand through her hair. "Did I, uh… did I just imagine that or did I kiss you?"
"You did. And you said you love me," she said, seeing no reason to sugarcoat the events. Obviously, her previous assumption that the woman was too tired to recognize her actions had proven true, and she steadfastly ignored the second pang that resonated through her chest.
Yang cringed. "Dang. I, heh, really thought I'd be smoother the first time saying that." Lilac eyes darted up to meet her own, then looked away. "Uh. I. Well."
"You're tired. It's understandable."
"… right." Her roommate laughed, scratching at her head and shrugging. "You're… yeah, I should just… we should just go to bed and forget about it."
The nervous energy radiating from the younger woman was almost palpable. It seemed most prudent for Winter to be as accommodating as possible; the last thing she wanted to do was make things uncomfortable between them.
"Of course." She offered a smile. "It's quite alright, Yang. These sorts of things happen."
Yang nodded, looking down and shoulders slumping somewhat. "Yeah, you're right. I guess I'll just… head to bed I guess. Night."
"Goodnight," she replied, closing her door and standing there with brows furrowed. It didn't seem like the woman had been comforted at all by her understanding response.
Perhaps she should call Weiss; she'd known Yang longer and perhaps had encountered something similar. Then again, she couldn't imagine what would-
Suddenly, a thought occurred to her. Were the shoe on the other foot- had she done something potentially unwanted, especially involving Yang- she'd likely confront it as soon as possible, to prevent misunderstandings. She'd do her best to explain her actions and if, for some reason, her roommate tried to play it off as nothing… she'd run with it. But it would hurt.
And Yang said she loved people- her father, her sister, her friends- all the time. She'd never said it to Winter of course-
Oh.
Shit.
Opening her door, Winter went to Yang's and knocked three times, wincing at how loud the bangs sounded in comparison. When the door opened, she opted to get to the point.
"Did you mean that in a romantic context?"
"What?"
"Did you mean that in a romantic context?" The second time was followed by an explanation. "I've seen you kiss family or friends. If you see me in that light, that's fine. However, if you mean it in a romantic context, that's different."
The woman blinked at her. "How?"
"Because if it's not romantic…" she paused, searching for the right words. "Then I'll have to adjust my own expectations. I wouldn't want you to feel pressured into returning something you don't feel yourself."
"Are you… saying…" Yang shook her head, scrubbing a hand over her face. "I am way too tired for this- are you into me? Let's just- just cut past the bull, would you date me?"
"Yes," she replied, tilting her head slightly. "Honestly, I've considered asking you out for about a month now."
"For a- are you serious?" Rather than be angry, the other woman laughed, mirth wiping away the nervousness and concern from before. "Man, I'm glad I waited. That could've been awkward."
"Wait, when did you start having these feelings?" Winter crossed her arms over her chest, a little annoyed that she seemed to be the one slow on the uptake.
"Eh, six months? Give or take?" She shrugged. "I dunno. After a few months of living together, it just started feeling weird to go out on dates. Like, I immediately had no interest the moment they did something that wasn't like you. So, I just, ya know, stopped. Figured it'd either work out or pass."
"And you remained silent this whole time because…?"
"What, was I supposed to tell you 'hey, since you're Winter, can I be your permanent space heater' and expect that to work?"
"It very well might've, now that you mention it," she replied, rubbing a hand at her temple. "We're both too tired for this." She held up both hands. "Here's a plan: we go to bed now and, on our run in the morning, we can talk about this."
Yang smiled. "Yeah! Okay! Works for me!"
"I'm glad you're so agreeable." She turned, preparing to head for her room before she stopped.
Should she?
May as well.
"Uh, Winter?"
"One more thing," she said, turning back and lightly grabbing the other woman's chin, guiding her into a proper but rather chaste kiss. When she pulled back, she offered a smirk. "That is a goodnight kiss."
"I'll, uh, keep that in mind." Yang looked back at her with the goofiest grin. "Night, Winter."
"Goodnight, Yang."
When she closed her bedroom door again, she didn't get the sinking feeling. However, she also found it extremely hard to fall asleep. It was nice to be excited over something so potentially beautiful an she eagerly looked forward to the conversation that would come in just a few, short hours.