Undying Embers

by D3stiny-Sm4sher

(Modern AU) Now in their 30's and long distanced from events that traumatized them both, Nika and Suletta are both divorcees who reconnect, discovering things they always had in common as mutual admiration resurfaces - a retired race car driver and her loyal mechanic reflect on the lives they've led until now, and what they could possibly hope awaits them beyond.

p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"It was cold that day. The bitter kind of cold that sunlight can't shake off, but a slight breeze will cause to pierce through you like a needle through cloth./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"Nika had tried to put some effort into her hair that day – she wanted to impress a bit, if doing so was even possible in this case. She couldn't help but suspect she'd get emsome /emspan style="font-style: normal;"kind of reaction. It /spanemhad /emspan style="font-style: normal;"been rather a long time since they'd met face-to-face... But with the weather like this, she had to face reality: her hair wasn't going to be as pristine as it could be if she was going to brave the elements, even briefly. After giving things one extra brush over, Nika popped on a cosy pair of earmuffs – they had little tire tread patterns on them, and were a little worse for wear given how old they were. They carried a certain sentimental value that Nika knew Suletta would appreciate./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika put on a plain beige coat, thick enough to keep the chill at bay, and headed out from her humble flat, a far cry from the cozy farm she had gotten used to but altogether enough to sustain her needs, for sure. Nika missed many things about the farm – the sights, sounds, and smells that only came with the arrival of dawn, for instance – but what she missed the most was having such a spacious old barn to tinker on cars with in her spare time. She had nothing of the sort now that she was back in Asticassia, and could nary afford such a luxury in a town such as this./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"At least she did still get to work with machines during her day job as a mechanic. She was on track to manage the place when her boss retired at the rate she was going. It wasn't as fancy as research work for GUND-Arm, but it was still rewarding in its own ways, and certainly less stressful. Besides, GUND-Arm probably wouldn't take an ex-con back into its prosthetic embrace, not without its CEO giving Nika preferential treatment. She knew it was a possibility if she offered, but... she just wasn't sure if that life was even something she wanted to step back into, especially given how traumatically it had gone last time./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Ridding herself of bad memories when the bitter cold outside snapped at her cheeks, Nika got into her tiny two-passenger compact car and rode down-town, parking at the hub lot and making a brisk walk toward their designated meeting place. She checked her phone – still no response from Ms. Rembran... But it wasn't as if she needed permission on this. It emhad /embeen over a year by that point.../p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"For formality's sake, she fired off a text message to make sure her appointment was still on track./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
ul
ul
li
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"( To: Suletta )/p
/li
li
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"( I'm nearly there! ^_^ )/p
/li
/ul
/ul
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"She received a reply instantly./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"( I'm already here. I'll wait for you by the front door. ) -/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
ul
ul
li
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"( I'll see you shortly. )/p
/li
/ul
/ul
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika's insides did a loop-the-loop. She sort of couldn't believe she was finally getting to see Suletta Samaya in person after all this time. And under such pretext, to boot! The tingle it sent up Nika's spine was divine as she rounded the corner to see a familiar shape from behind./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta was dressed in a red hooded jacket with white fleece lining the hood, which was drawn over her head. The hood had a couple of patches sewn in, which made sense, given how old the article was. There was a bittersweet tug at Nika's gut at the sight, for she knew that jacket was one half of a pair, and the owner of the other half... may have tossed it away by that point, given the circumstances.../p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta was gazing off down the street, as if expecting Nika to come from that direction. Nika didn't want to spook the poor woman, so she approached slowly, like one would a rabbit in the wood./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Suletta... ?" she softly greeted, tilting her figure to the right, hoping to ease her way into her old friend's peripheral vision./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's head twitched Nika's way, fumbling to see from within her hood, then her entire body stiffened with a jolt as she sputtered a greeting./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"M-Miss Panl-...! /spanemOoough-!/em span style="font-style: normal;"strongI-I mean/strong/spanspan style="font-style: normal;" Miss Nanaura... !"/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika couldn't help but chuckle softly. The way Suletta's voice had sharply dove deep during 'oough' just to skip with a crack at 'I mean.' The woman wasn't a teenager anymore – far beyond it – and yet some of her old mannerisms persisted, or perhaps had resurfaced. That hardened driver from a decade ago had bags hanging under eyes that looked like cracked jewels, clouded and dusty./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""It's-... Hah, it's fine, Suletta. We're not at work. Just call me Nika."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's frigid lower lip, which had propped itself awkwardly upward, slid down as she sighed./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"I'm /spanemso /emspan style="font-style: normal;"so sorry," she mumbled, her head sagging within its puffy hood. "I... I know how hard it is, being reminded of... -"/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's attempt at polite formality had backfired, and she'd used an outdated surname. Nika found herself wondering if she, too, might have made the same mistake had she attempted the formal route. If she would've said 'Mrs. Rembran-Samaya.' But she knew the paperwork had been processed, and it was... just 'Miss Samaya' now. It was difficult, even then, a year after the fact, to imagine Suletta as a being untethered, freely drifting through the cosmos./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"But, then, it was something Nika had reacquainted herself with the sensation of for a steady couple of years now: being untethered. And she knew full well it was, in many ways, a familiar place both of them had come from to begin with./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""It's fine," Nika insisted, layering her words with a coat of calm empathy. "We... -" Nika thought to touch on the topic of Ms. Panlunch, but... thought better to save such heavier stuff for later in the day. Ideally, there would be time for such discussions later, after their coffee. "We should get inside. It's... pretty cold out, isn't it?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"Mm, /spanemyea,/emspan style="font-style: normal;"" Suletta agreed, emitting a spark of cheer when Nika could read past it and into the hollow void beyond./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"span style="font-style: normal;"She was desperate to fill that void with /spanemsomething, /emspan style="font-style: normal;"anything, if only for an afternoon. It was the least the poor lady deserved, after all she had been through, and what sounded like months of isolation./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""After you," insisted Nika, reaching out and opening one of the cafe's glass double doors./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Thanks," muttered Suletta with that fizzling spark, trudging herself inside, hood still drawn up./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"span style="font-style: normal;"Suletta's hoodie, once a cheerful red, was faded in color from years of wear and tear. Even her vibrant red hair had a few gray strands Nika could see as it poked out a tuft across her right cheek. Nika was getting her own blank hair strands coming in here or there, but she persistently but dyed them out with blue hues or plucked them altogether to mask the onset of age. They weren't even that /spanemspan style="text-decoration: none;"old /span/emspan style="font-style: normal;"span style="text-decoration: none;"– Suletta had just turned 33 earlier that year, and Nika was close to hitting 35. But the things they'd seen on TV and the Internet had blinded them from the ever present march of time's arrow and its effect on hair strand coloration./span/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"The cafe they entered was familiar – very much so in some ways, as it had been the go-to drink spot for when the old team had wanted a quick fill of caffeine before a big race, or even a calm wind down after a long day at work prepping. And yet many aspects were different. The layout of tables, for instance. The art installations on the walls, once local photography and illustrations of landmarks from the rural town of Asticassia, now corporatized and generic buzzwords and cafe objects. The employees, likewise, were mostly younger and generally more tired-looking than their counterparts of a decade prior, and many faces seemed to cycle out every six months or so./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"That back corner, where Martin had confronted her about her involvement with Shaddiq.../p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"The ordering counter, where Chuchu had first held her hand.../p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"The outside table, where she'd witnessed Suletta and Miorine kiss for the first time (and hadn't been surprised in the slightest).../p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"This place managed to hold a lot of memories, and all by virtue of being an accessible go-between eatery near a number of the team's apartments. Sitcoms may have taught her that such innocuous locations could become special, and it had for once been accurate in that regard. But they hadn't taught her just how much pain such places could cause years later, when those fond memories had been turned to cuts and punctures, scabbed over with scars.../p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"span style="font-style: normal;"Nika knew Suletta was experiencing it, too – that tentative realization of /spanem'Oh. This place used to bring me happiness, but now I'm not so sure... ' – /emspan style="font-style: normal;"and yet the pair of them proceeded deeper inward, getting in line./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"... So," Nika said, piercing the gentle quiet that lingered between them. She unclipped her earmuffs and hung them around the nape of her neck. The line moved one person forward, and Nika had to nudge Suletta to stir her into moving along. "Um. How /spanemare /emspan style="font-style: normal;"you?"/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Huh? Me? I... -" Suletta swallowed a lump in her throat, her eyes darting sideways. She fumbled with her faux-furred hood, drawing it down, biding time to formulate a response. She unzipped the jacket delicately, its metal snagging a couple times as her right hand fumbled a little by tugging the jacket too hard. Nika twiddled her thumbs together in front of her waistline as she patiently waited, absorbing every detail of Suletta's body language. She already knew the answer to her question, now, it was just a matter of whether Suletta would admit it./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""emI'm/em... -" Suletta's voice pitched up as she lowered her speech to a murmur, brows furrowing as she gawked at the brown and cream tiled floor, tapping the toe of her hiking boot against it. Nika was tempted to place a hand upon Suletta's shoulder as a sign of encouragement and comfort, but Suletta shrank backward a half step, stuffing her hands into her pockets./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"At last, she replied honestly: "I'm not emsure. /emI-... I've been embetter/em... "/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""... Mm," cooed Nika in a hum of sympathy. Her own head had bobbed with solemnity at Suletta's delay, and as she realigned her head upward, she pushed back stray blue hairs behind her ear./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""... And... emyou?/em" Suletta asked, cocking her head forward with a tilt of curiosity./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's expression in that moment was bittersweet, her eyes looking a hollow above a timid smile. Nika caught herself wondered if her old friend was feeling more than one or two of the same puzzling emotions she was in that moment./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"I'm /spanembetter/emspan style="font-style: normal;"," Nika said with collected, soft confidence. It felt good to say those words out loud and /spanemmean /emspan style="font-style: normal;"them for once. There was a pause. She'd spoken whilst gazing off toward the sunset dappled side walk outside. "Taking things one day at a time, just... -" She turned back to Suletta and offered a tender smile, her eyelids lowered slightly. "-... moving forward."/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika watched Suletta's eyes ignite like flint-stricken sapphires. It was the briefest of abashed flashes before they regained their cloudiness in a flurry of flustered blinks./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"R-Right, I guess... that's the only direction... -" As she mumbled, Suletta dusted sand from her weary eyes, flicking her immense mane of hair up and over her hood. "-... you /spanemcan /emspan style="font-style: normal;"move in. Huh?"/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika nodded sullenly, keeping her smile up while her eyes might've given away her melancholy./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"The line moved up, and it was their turn./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Hey, what can we get you?" asked the clerk, another face Nika didn't recognize. She missed the days when the one or two clerks would recognize her face, her name, and have 'the usual' memorized./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"With one arm crossed, propping the opposite elbow up, Nika tapped the side of her index finger against thoughtfully pouted lips for a couple seconds before arriving at the conclusion: "I'm in the mood for...blueberry muffins."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Mm," Suletta agreed, a tinge of hunger drifting out with her hum./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""And to drink with that?" asked the clerk./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika's response was immediate, known well ahead of time, and always the same this time of year: "I'll have a pumpkin spice latte, please."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""And for you?" The clerk glanced just past Nika's shoulder, toward her companion./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""emU-Um-/emspan style="font-style: normal;"...! I-...! " Suletta brows furrowed as her hands fidgeted squeamishly behind her back./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"It might've been that she was simply flustered from the whole ordeal, having likely not ordered out at a cafe for some while. It could have been being asked on the spot, and having not actually planned or thought out an order ahead of time – lost in a cloud of thought, as Suletta often was. Or it was simply that Suletta forgot what she typically ordered./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"So Nika stepped in, politely reciting, "How about... -" She made sure to catch Suletta's eye contact and remained locked as she recanted: "-... a venti vanilla caramel latte with extra cinnamon?" Suletta's lips wriggled into a nervous smile, and Nika squeezed the woman's upper bicep gently. "How does that sound?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"span style="font-style: normal;"Suletta's eyes darted away for a flash, a micro-expression – as if to process the thought /spanem'Has she memorized my usual order?' /emspan style="font-style: normal;"– before returning with regained confidence conveyed through a nod taut with courtesy and gratitude./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Y-Yea, that... sounds pretty good, actually." The way Suletta said this, and the particulars of how her face emoted – the very tamber of her voice – it was instantly familiar to Nika, despite how long they'd gone without speaking in person. It was that melancholic warmth that Suletta always carried, like a glowing chunk of charcoal: merely a dull black rock to passers-by, but an enduring, weathered source of eternal heat to anyone who got close enough to see it for what it truly was. Nika's grip on Suletta's shoulder tightened ever-so-slightly, ever-so-briefly, as an endeared laugh dripped from her nostrils, a flower-scenting sniff played in reverse./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Name?" asked the store clerk./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Nika Nanaura. But... just 'Nika' is fine."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""How-... How much-... ?" Suletta began, having naturally not thought ahead on how they would be paying for this./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""It's on me," Nika insisted, gingerly taking a step forward as she slid her slight grip off of her friend's arm, digging it into her pocket to pull out her smartphone. She scanned her payment app to cover the cost of the order./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Are you sure?" Suletta asked, though she knew the answer before her lips had parted./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"Of course," Nika insisted, making sure her tone was balanced and bright, so as to not leave any room for Suletta to assume she'd caused /spanspan lang="en-US"span style="font-style: normal;"offense/span/spanspan style="font-style: normal;" at the /br /"Thank you," mumbled Suletta, her warm voice dusted with sorrow./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika watched Suletta's expression wane and wax, gratitude and self-deprecation. She knew Suletta's financial situation wasn't what it used to be – the woman didn't currently have a job and did have plenty in savings, no doubt, but personal spending money didn't seem to be as much as it once had been. And this was a small pittance, a treat, which Nika could afford given her much more stable income. But it was still a reminder, still a pinprick in Suletta's chest, no doubt, that she wasn't 'being useful enough' or some such./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""It's no problem," insisted Nika gently. She considered taking Suletta's hand, but thought better of it. Instead, her hand clamped lightly over Suletta's jacket, around her arm – even through the jacket she could tell that arm wasn't as burly as it had once been, nor as solid, but certainly still pleasant. Nika tugged a bit at the jacket's sleeve. "Why don't we go take a seat?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""Right," acknowledged Suletta. She knew she'd been caught acting a bit glum and overcompensated with a bright smile that Nika knew was simply a mask. It gave Nika's gut an uncomfortable pressure, but she led her companion to an empty table still washed in pale light from the setting sun./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"Suletta had briskly stepped just ahead of Nika in order to scoot out a chair, gesturing her friend to sit. Nika chuckled softly through her nose as she accepted. Some things didn't change, at least./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"They removed their coats, hanging them upon the chair backs, and Nika carefully set her earmuffs on the table beside the napkins. Nika at last let herself admire Suletta's form (just a little), watching the way the woman's muscles stretched as she realigned her wild, bushy hair behind her shoulders. While the woman wasn't quite the athletic powerhouse she'd once been, she certainly wasn't unrecognizable, either. Maybe not visiting the gym anymore but certainly still working out from home, it seemed.../p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""I... I've been meaning to say," Suletta tentatively began. She folded her hands together on the table, then fidgeted their orientation before setting them down in her lap instead. "Your hair, it... it looks good. I've never... seen it that long before."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"Nika beamed at the compliment, placing her hands into her own lap./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""Thanks," she responded. "Yours, too. Not that it's ever emnot /emspan style="font-style: normal;"been the case. Your hair's always looked great."/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"span style="font-style: normal;"Suletta's gaze wandered with doubt. "/spanemPff. /emspan style="font-style: normal;"Maybe if I took better care of it... " She trailed off, twirling her finger through the persistent curling side bang that often clung to her right cheek. "I'm starting to get gray hairs... And the split ends? /spanemUgh./emspan style="font-style: normal;""/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"span style="font-style: normal;"Nika laughed. She /spanemwished /emspan style="font-style: normal;"she had hair as naturally beautiful. She had to work hard to keep hers looking straight and clean and bodied. Suletta's just seemed naturally wild and wonderful, a happy chaos of strands that somehow ended up looking effortless./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""I still think it looks nice," Nika settled the matter./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"She watched as Suletta's expression contorted in a mixture between disagreeing pout and amused smirk./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""W-Well," Suletta shifted the topic adjacently, "I've never seen you grow your own so long. It's past your shoulders now."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika swept some stray locks off of her cheek and nodded, citing, "I felt like trying something new. It's never been this long since I was little. I'm... still deciding how I feel about it."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"Mm. I... I've thought about just... -" Suletta wiped her palm up and over her scalp, making a /spanem'bzzt' /emspan style="font-style: normal;"noise between her teeth./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""I'm sure that would look cute," Nika contemplated, trying to picture Suletta's facial structure unframed by red curls./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"It'd look /spanemugly,/emspan style="font-style: normal;"" Suletta dully dissented./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"With a bemused shrug, Nika countered, "I emdoubt /emthat. Although, you'd never know until you tried."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's brows flickered for a moment, her eyes darting at and away and back again to Nika's intent glance. As if she were deciphering what Nika wanted, when in fact, Nika had no preference. Hair grew back, anyway. At least, it would surely continue to do so for at least a good while.../p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"Even if I'd /spanemwanted /emspan style="font-style: normal;"to," Suletta put out, clearly uncertain herself, "it's not like my /spanemwife /emspan style="font-style: normal;"would've even let me /spanemlook /emspan style="font-style: normal;"at a clipp... -" She trailed off with a dour exhale, setting her elbow on the table and glumly planting her cheek into her palm with a petulant grimace./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"For just a moment, Nika saw some of Chuchu's influence in her./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika cautiously placed her hands palms-down on the table's edge, one overlapping the other, and she straightened her posture out a little, letting the tension of the moment pass./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika didn't need to even say it. Suletta knew./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"span style="font-style: normal;"There was a freedom gained in the loss. Suletta could do whatever she /spanemwanted /emspan style="font-style: normal;"with herself now. Was that freedom /spanemworth /emspan style="font-style: normal;"what was lost? Perhaps not. But it was still a silver lining, all the same./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"And Nika knew the conversation would inevitably require arriving at this place, one way or the other. So she decided to take this opportunity to ask the question./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Are you and Miorine... still in touch?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"That sourness to Suletta's body language softened, molded over into empty sorrow. And Nika knew the answer./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"We... /spanemwere/emspan style="font-style: normal;"," grumbled Suletta before a sigh spilled like a milk glass intentionally knocked over. There was a bitterness to Suletta as she explained, "But then we got into a fight. Because /spanemI /emspan style="font-style: normal;"couldn't keep myself from... doing what /spanemmyself /emspan style="font-style: normal;"always /spanemdoes/emspan style="font-style: normal;"... "/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"The edge to Suletta's expression was uncharacteristically sharp, but expectedly self-directed. That sentence she'd spoken was like a rusted knife making yet another cut upon Suletta's own arm./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika was certainly curious as to what, specifically, Suletta meant by this cryptic statement. But she didn't think much could be gained from prying, for either of them. All the same, she didn't like the sight of it./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""It's natural to... need some space after a divorce," Nika pointed out, trying to deflect things away from this self-loathing path she knew full-well that Suletta often insisted upon./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"It's been a /spanemyear/emspan style="font-style: normal;"," Suletta groaned quietly. She sat up and ran her hands across her face. Muffled words grunted out, "A year and two months, one week. It's not like we /spanemnever /emspan style="font-style: normal;"talk, we /spanemdo, /emspan style="font-style: normal;"I just-... I don't want us to just never be friends/span span style="font-style: normal;"again... And it-... " She shook her head slightly, gazing down at the wood grains in the table as she scratched at her nose. "It doesn't feel like we're even /spanemfriends /emspan style="font-style: normal;"anymore... "/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"span style="font-style: normal;"Nika swallowed the lump in her throat. Given how these things often went, it was... an honest possibility that any conversation Suletta had with Miorine /spanemcould /emspan style="font-style: normal;"very well be the last, especially given how that woman lived her life. But Nika wanted to be optimistic, and to share some of that hope./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"W-Well, it... /spanemdid /emspan style="font-style: normal;"take some time, but... Chuchu and I do still spend time together. Once every now and again."/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's hands finished running down her face like eggs and she took a deep breath, exhaling through a sagging head./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""She told me the last time I saw her," Suletta explained./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"span style="font-style: normal;"Nika didn't know when that last was, but it wasn't surprising. Chuchu didn't have many friends, after all, and Suletta was the sort to hold tightly onto whichever ones remained. It was mutually beneficial for them both, and honestly, even if... what was maybe about to start happening /spanemdid /emspan style="font-style: normal;"indeed start happening, Nika truly wanted Chuchu and Suletta to continue having a healthy friendship, more so than she did between herself and Ms. Panlunch, even./span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta followed up, "Sorry, I'm not trying to get... envious about it, I just... -"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;""span style="font-style: normal;"It's all right. I wasn't meaning to rub anything in, I... I wanted to prove friendships /spanemcan /emspan style="font-style: normal;"last, even beyond this kind of thing. The fact that you and Miorine broke up so... amicably, I mean... that's a good sign. And it's more than most people get to have."/span/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Wait," Suletta murmured, her head twisting in a slight shake before gazing right into Nika's eyes. "I thought things between you and Chuchu were... -?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"em'Still good?'/em/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""We're fine," Nika assuaged with a lulling nod of her head. "That's what I'm saying. We still meet up, we stay in touch. It's... from a safe distance, at times. emMost /emtimes, I suppose. But there's no ill will, no bitterness. At least, I don't emthink /emthere is. It can... -" Nika trailed off warily, starting to second-guess things now that she was speaking out loud on the subject./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta finished her thought with an endeared smirk: "It can be hard to tell with Chuchu. emI/em know."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika mirrored that knowing little smile, folding her hands upward, supported by her elbows./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"The sensation of Chuchu's cottony bulb of hair enveloping Nika's fingers on a breeze-sprinkled evening by the salt-scented sea air, the waves licking at their sand-crusted toes.../p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"It was a lovely memory, but that's all it was. It could not be revisited, and Nika did not wish to revisit it./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""... Mm." Suletta had hummed her acceptance and nodded a bit, but still carried that silent frustration. "It's just-... " Suletta's lips hung open, a painful phrase dangling but unspoken. She closed her mouth, and her eyes along with it, her expression flinching with some kind of shame./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""What?" Nika pressed, gently – like poking at a flower just about to bloom. "What is it?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's eyes opened, gazing up at Nika at first before retreated to the side./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""I thought Miorine was my soul mate," Suletta sighed out, an ache reverberating through her entire being, echoed in the way her voice slightly trembled at the confession. "Like... we were emmeant /emto be together... "/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika pondered this notion for a few moments, a fog drifting across the pair of them as they wallowed in their mutual losses./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""I'm not... -" Nika began cautiously. "... I don't really embelieve /emin that idea. 'Soulmates,' I mean. I think... that anyone can potentially... be with anyone else. It's a matter of conditions, of intent, of actions and... and choices, and... -" She sucked in a deep breath through her nose as she watched Suletta uncertainly nod in concession, letting the idea seep. "I'm sure there's another version of events where you two worked out. Where me and Chuchu worked out. But that's... not the version of reality we're currently living in. So we make the best with what we have. That's-... I guess that's how I look at it."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""emHm/em," Suletta responded in her forlorn but considering hum, nodding to herself as she processed this. She was hunched forward over the table, her chin planted against crossed arms. "We can't undo the things we've done," she mumbled, gripping her left hand against her right wrist, tugging at the fabric of her shirt. "But I also can't... just stop being emme. /emEven if I tried... "/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""And you emshouldn't /emstop being you, Suletta. You-... You're a wonderful person. More than any of us ever were. If it wasn't for you, then-... "/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""That wasn't because of emme, /emthat was... because of my mom."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika was scanning Suletta's every micro-expression in that moment, attempting to work out what was wrong, exactly. There was a process to this – she emwas /ema mechanic, after all. Human beings weren't race cars or monster trucks, no, but just like any machine, there were always signs when something was broken, you just had to understand how the particular model functioned. And Nika had come to understand rather well, she wanted to think, how Suletta Samaya functioned. The 'Mercury Witch' had been The Holder in the national Benerit Circuit for emyears/em, and she had grown to act almost like a different person when behind the wheel of the now infamous Aerial. The 'Mercury Witch' and the silver streak her chrome car would leave behind (appearing almost like a stream of liquid mercury dumped onto the track) were by now things of the past./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Aerial had been dismantled by the end – Nika had been the one to oversee it, herself, after so many years of service to the machine. And it had been emmore /emthan a machine, of course. It had been like family. Nika could never quite pinpoint how or why, but Suletta almost seemed to have believed the vehicle her mother had designed was emliterally /ema member of her family, so seeing it be destroyed after illegal technologies had come to light, it... had been a harrowing time for the team. Part of Nika was scarred with regret for the pain she had indirectly caused, the sheer look of desperate loss on Suletta's face upon seeing the scrap left behind. It was nothing compared to what she had done in collaborating with Shaddiq Zenelli, no – emthat /emhad cost some people their lives. The tangle of A.I., military grade tech research, government and business espionage, it had really thrown everyone's lives sideways in ways Nika wasn't sure they'd ever recover fully from./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Even with her sentence served, Nika wasn't sure she'd ever forgive herself for her own part in it all, even if her ex-wife, her friends, and the law eventually had. And yet, despite this, it was dismantling the race car that had been the literal vehicle to fame and fortune which Nika found herself more haunted by, in ways she still couldn't explain, years after the fact. Maybe it was just knowing the pain it had caused the woman in front of her – a woman who had become very dear to Nika, certainly more than most./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Years in prison would've made many people harder, colder, sterner, and fiercer. Nika liked to tell herself that it emhad /emmade her those things in the ways that mattered. At the very least, she'd certainly become more assertive. It was how the two of them were right there, right then, in that cafe, in the particular circumstances they were. But Nika had been forced to spend a emlot /emof time with herself. And that had led to a lot of questions, considerations, imaginary conversations, theoretical explorations, meditations, soul-searching, book-reading, on and on and on... What it had never led to was robbing Nika of an indelible trait she possessed: loyalty and deep, boundless love and affection. Her marriage had strained in those years, for sure. She had never given up, even when Chuchu had. They'd really tried to make it work after the fact, and for a time it emdid /emwork, because Chuchu was relentlessly stubborn and Nika was untiringly in love. But some wounds... just didn't heal with time. Not fully. Some mistakes could not be undone, and in the end, not everyone carried that undying ember of em'I will try, I will try... for you, for you.' /em/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"But Nika knew that Suletta carried that flame, the glow in the coal she carried everywhere she went./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Suletta, emall /emof us had to face things our parents left for us to deal with. The burdens they had us carry on for them. Those don't define who we are."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""N-No, I emget /emthat, of course I do, but-... I was never anything sp-"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""emYou /emwere and still emare /ema beautiful, kind-hearted, thoughtful, emdetermined /emhuman being."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika's words had laid dormant for years, but had burst forth at long last as if awoken from a cryo sleep. She soaked in Suletta's aghast gawking as she went on./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""You are someone I have emalways /emadmired. emAlways /emrespected, looked up to, emwished /emI could embe/em. Every day I spent in prison, I aspired to be just a emlittle /emmore like you by the time my sentence was up. I emknow /emthings have been hard for you but so, emso /emmany others in your position... they would've given up. They would've thrown away that emgood /eminside of them. But you never did. I have-... I have emno /emidea how, or... or emwhy /emMiorine could even emconsider /emletting a person like you go, but... I know life can get in the way. Goals can get in way, responsibilities can... emget in the way. /emBut that doesn't make emyou /emany less of a person, any less valuable or... or wonderful. Being abandoned, or used, or discarded, none of that changes the fact that you are an emamazing /emperson and I am... embetter, /emas a human being, because I have known you. All right?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika had started crying a little, and she hurriedly dabbed away her tears with the edge of her sleeve, steadying her breathing./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's lips were quivering, her eyes wet and her nose beginning to run./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Nika... you-... " Suletta swallowed, coughed, blew her nose on a napkin, and inhaled deeply./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika puffed out a laugh, sniffing as she recovered from this ages-old emotion that had released itself./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"She wondered aloud, "Why-...? Why does it feel like I cry more often now that I'm an adult than I ever did as a kid...?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta smiled feebly, crumpling her used napkin and sighing./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"She posited, "Maybe it's because we understand ourselves enough now to really get what we've lost, and... what we still have."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"The two smiled dumbly at each other for a few moments, revelling in their connection, still a sturdy chain made of so many links, each link a memory, unrusted by time./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""It's funny," Nika said, Suletta's poignant notion having reminded her, "I spoke with ChuChu last weekend. About us. About emthis, /emus meeting in this way, and, um-... She said she wasn't surprised. She started... pointing out all of these small details, you know? Things she'd noticed that I would do. Or say. Things I had totally forgotten about that she had remembered. And it... was this reminder of how if I knew back then what I know today, I might've-... "/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika dropped the thought. It was in the past, anyway./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""I... I was a emmess /emback then, myself," Suletta admitted, wiping a palm over her scalp. "You were... the first one who helped me. The first person at Asticassia who treated me like a emfriend./em Back when I never... really knew what having one was emlike. /emAnd you helped teach me that. I haven't forgotten emthat, /emat least."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Neither had Nika./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""It was a mutually shared lesson," said Nika. "We were both trying to fit in. Find our niche."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"They both lingered in the hot spring of nostalgia for a moment or two, and then:/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Nigh-kuh Nah-now-roo-uh?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"The jarring voice of her name being butchered by the poor workers facing a steady but seemingly endless line of customers caught Nika and Suletta off guard. Nika hadn't even asked for her surname, why was that even... -?/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"But before Nika had even risen from her seat, Suletta had bounced up from hers, chirping, "I'll get it," through somewhat shaky breath. As the woman eagerly swept over to the counter, Nika could easily picture Suletta's younger self, garbed in her racing gear, huffing under her breath, em'Gotta work hard, gotta work hard, gotta work hard,' /emas she assisted with errands like picking up lunch for the crew./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"In this small window of solitude, half bathed in the golden hour's rays from the open panes of wall glass to her right, Nika checked her phone./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"There had been a reply./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"( What is it you're looking for, exactly? My blessing, or something? ) -br /( Fine. You have it. I really couldn't be bothered either way. ) -/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"( I just want her to be happy. I'd tell you to not fuck it up, since you dropped the ball with your past wife, but what do you know? So did I. So who am I to talk?) -/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"( Just don't break her heart. She's had to put it back together enough times. ) -/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika was surprised at the flurry of multiple messages from Ms. Rembran. Even the CEO's self-deprecation was startlingly refreshing, given just how hostile the woman had been only weeks before at the subject of Suletta daring to do anything with her life that didn't serve GUND-Arm Inc. Suletta had been assisting with prosthetics research and testing, and somehow Miorine expected that to continue well past a complete unending of the woman's lifestyle... Eventually, she'd been made to see reason, and Nika figured things were complicated, but at least she sounded much more open-minded now./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""What're you reading?" came Suletta's curiosity as she arrived with a tray of snacks and coffee. "I-If you don't... mind my asking. I mean," she added with rapid sheepishness./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika put her phone back into her pocket as she gave a vaguely dismissive gesture with her head./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Just... a reply from Miorine," Nika answered bluntly and honestly./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's perky pep froze up like she'd stepped into a puddle of ice water, but she recovered quickly and sat herself down, distributing her own muffin and cup before sliding the tray across the table without a word./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""I... -" Nika began, considering her words carefully. "I wanted to make sure that... she knew about us meeting like this... "/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""N-No, I understand," Suletta eased, scratching her temple and sifting crimson strands behind her ear. "I... emalso... /emmade sure to check that it was... OK."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika hummed with acknowledgement as she retrieved a small bottle of disinfectant to cleanse her hands before eating. Suletta nodded to herself, and to the quiet that fell between them, a bubble in a boisterous cafe. At last, Suletta asked the follow-up question Nika anticipated./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""Umm... Wh-What did she emsay?/em"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's voice eked down in pitch with some nervousness as she arrived at this inquiry./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika took a cautious sip of her coffee – a little too hot yet! – and made sure to give Suletta direct eye contact while she answered./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""She said if I was looking for her blessing, then I have it. As long as I... don't break your heart?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika's voice did an upward rise in pitch, conversely, when she ended her statement, accompanied by a wary shrug./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's face went pink, which Nika found adorable./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"This emwas /ema date, after all, and yet the ramifications only seemed to have crossed Suletta's mind in that very instant at the phrase em'don't break your heart?'/em/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""I'm not... some naïve emschoolgirl,/em" Suletta balked, wide-eyed and flustered. She collected herself and sipped at her drink in subtle defiance. "emWaugh- ! /emHot, hot... !"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Fanning her burnt tongue, Suletta set her cup down, and Nika giggled into her palm./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""I'm convinced at your Very Adult-like behavior," Nika teased with a narrow-eyed glint./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta exaggerated her own embarrassment with a sad frown, comically pouting before chomping into her muffin. As she ate, the moment cooled back down as a glaze of melancholy encased them both once again./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"They ate a bit, then drank a little, than ate a bit more, exchanging coy glances and making small observations in each other's body language and appearance./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"It felt, for a minute or two, as if they existed together within a crystal, frozen in time together, separate from the rest of the world and protected from it./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""It... -" started Suletta, but she stopped. She blinked downward, at her half-eaten muffin. "I, umm... -" Another failed attempt to form a sentence while Nika's attentive gaze was not reciprocated. Suletta cleared her throat beneath squinted eyes, then opened them directly to face Nika./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"With that bold determination about her that Nika had admired from the day they'd met, Suletta spoke./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""I'm glad you asked me out on a date. Will you-... W-Would you like to... go for a walk? After this? A-And maybe... let me cook you dinner?"/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika was enraptured. She'd witnessed this exact sensation so many times across the years. emSo /emmany./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"It reminded me of the way she'd been swept off her feet – quite literally – when Suletta had rescued her, so many years ago, from an attempt on her life, back when things had been chaotic and conspiratorial. For so long in those times, Nika had wondered, em'Am I in awe of Suletta's machine, of her ability as a driver, or by her as a human being?' /emand it was that moment which had given a clear answer./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Nika extended her hand across the table, beaming. She twisted her palm up, inviting Suletta to accept her hand./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""I'd love that very much, I think."/p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;"Suletta's undying ember melted her icey determination away to reveal relief and a bit of excitement as she placed her hand overtop Nika's./p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;" /p
p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; font-style: normal;""L-Let's... gain two, then," Suletta decided, bursting out an embarrassed, shaky laugh as she squeezed Nika's hand. "Even if it's just for today."/p