I see you in dreams
In realities that won't ever be mine
I reached out my hand, desperate to touch the you I so desired
My hand grasped the one under me, the one I want to desire
And I wonder to myself
Can both be the same thing?
"Haaa…"
A soft, barely audible sigh escaped from her lips, the girl cautiously turning her eyes over to the side. Peering further along the once crowded area, now laid empty and barren –devoid of life– her expression softened slightly, taking a moment to relax her tensed shoulders.
"Mmm, that's about it then," she gently muttered, sheathing the sharp blade she held in her hand back into its scabbard, which was attached firmly behind her rear. As the hilt of the blade clicked into place, she let the slight wariness of her eyelids take over, closing her eyes as she began to contemplate on what to do next.
She didn't notice the sound of a blade unsheathing from behind her back, nor the footsteps that loudly echoed along with it.
But what she did notice was the loud bang of something colliding with another, her head snapping behind her as she witnessed a figure being flung to the side, crashing somewhere far from where her eyes could not see.
The cause of such a collision was nothing but a giant paw-like leg, shooting out from a rift that seemed almost translucent in the air it floated so freely about, before disappearing like it was never there to begin with.
Before the girl could have a moment to register what she just saw, however, she felt her shoulders –especially her back– suddenly burdened with the weight of someone else.
Their arms wrapped around her neck, pulling her closer as she could even make out their overly excited breathing next to her ear.
She turned, noting the wide unabashed smile on the person's face as they began to speak.
"Mei! We'll get the strength of a hundred warriors with Mei around!"
Their voice was cheerful, overly joyous at that. Somehow, that eagerness felt so right for them, is what she thought.
She immediately scoffed at their words though, an abashed expression taking over her face as she gave the girl a confused frown.
"A hundred? I'm no ultra-woman…" She found her mouth uttering, a sentiment that seemed to only spurred the girl further along their infectious optimism.
"I mean that if Mei's around me, I can feel my power increase one-hundred fold!"
Once more, their words were nothing short of ridiculous, a statement that made hardly any sense to her. Yet the way they said it, their lips curled into a cheeky wide grin as they held their thumb up to her made it all the more impossible to reject nor doubt any of it.
Instead, she could only let out a chuckle, that brief expression of utter confusion and bafflement fading away, replaced only with a smile that felt oh so right to give them.
"That's really something that Kiana would say."
Aaaah…it's Kiana…
The name struck her mind like a hammer, her heart beating ever so faster at the simple mention of it, coming from her own voice of all things.
Kiana, a name that she somehow couldn't recall until the moment she said it.
Kiana, such a fitting name for the woman that was holding onto her so tightly, so warmly and filled with unending joy and happiness just to be around her again.
Kiana, the very sound of it made her heart skip a beat.
Kiana.
I remember now…I always remembered…
How long she had yearned for the chance to say it, how much longer had she continued to yearn for it even after she had spoken it.
A name that felt so dear and close to her beating heart, one that made her mind fade away into nothingness, the image of the smiling woman being the only thing she could see.
A name that meant everything to her.
A name that she wouldn't give for anything else, not even for the world.
A name that only she understood, only she could ever understand.
For that name belonged to the most important person of her life, the most cherished person she could ever have and always will.
A name she would do anything to hear herself speak off again.
"Kiana…oh Kiana…"
She can't bear it any longer, her voice sounding so far and yet so close all the same.
Kiana, the most precious thing she could ever have and want.
Kiana, the most beautiful thing unrivaled by anything else in the world.
Kiana, the brightest sun in her life, unfading and unwavering in its intensity and light.
Kiana, the only thing that mattered.
And…
"Kiana…"
She will always be hers.
"I love yo–"
"Meeeeeei…"
"...mmm.."
"Mei."
"...mmm?"
Mei hummed lightly, her eyes fluttering open as she peered into a familiar yet all the more strange sight. The world seemed to turn sideways, familiar objects laid along the stretched out surface in her cloudy, somewhat muddled vision.
Where…am I?
That was the first thought she had, the memories of what she just experienced still fresh in her mind.
"You up yet?"
That thought was quickly drowned away by a familiar voice, one that made her heart flutter ever so slightly.
It was then she realized where she was, and her body shifted, lifting her head that was previously laying across the hard surface of her desk.
She remembered now.
She was in an office. Her office.
The empty and colorless wall staring back at her was all she needed to figure that out, the occasional office noise echoing around them only hammered in that fact.
As she turned her head to the side of her, her gaze slowly trailed upwards, and what met her was none other than–
"You look tired, Mei."
–Was her friend, a woman whose silver hair flowed along her table that she sat on, back hunched forward as she gave Mei a quizzical look. Those sharp gray eyes blinked, a casualness in her demeanor that marked a contrast to the environment they were in, only helped by the similar colored sweater she wore underneath her unbuttoned uniform jacket.
"...Good morning, Bronya," Mei simply said, sitting herself a bit more properly onto her chair now as she recovered from the drowsiness of slumber.
Though even amidst her sudden wake clouding her train of thoughts a bit, she could still make out an odd look on her friend's face, who seemed almost hesitant to tell her something.
"What is it?" she asked, leaning her head forward a bit.
"It's uh…already the evening, Mei," the girl replied curtly, an almost deadpan delivery to it.
"Oh."
She uttered, an awkwardness seeping into the air between them as Mei flicked her gaze from the girl, slight embarrassment slowly creeping onto her cheeks.
How long had she passed out?
No…rather, the better question would be when she seemed to lose track of time itself.
The woman didn't know, a fact that only made her more flustered as she tried to recall it.
The headache that was growing more prominent within her head certainly didn't help.
"Are you alright?" Bronya's voice snapped her out of her momentary trance, quickly whipping her head back to give the girl a reassuring nod. At least, she hoped it looked like one.
"Mmm, I am," she softly responded, rubbing her eyes for a bit as she adjusted to the slight dizziness in her head. "I'm still a bit tired, that's all."
"I figured that," Bronya sighed, pushing herself off the desk, her feet landing onto the floor with a firm thud. She dusted herself, before making her way over the open doorway of the small office space Mei was in, one hand clutching the side as she turned her neck back a bit to meet Mei's eyes. "I'll get you some tea. It won't be exactly to your taste but, you look like you need anything right now."
"Hmmm…"
"Badly at that."
"...Alright, thank you Bronya," she reluctantly agreed, before giving a slightly strained smile. "But it's okay if there aren't any, I'll be fine."
"Sure sure," the girl nonchalantly replied, waving her hand back to Mei in a casual motion.
"Oh, right. Before I go," Bronya suddenly said, one leg before the other as she was just about to step out of the office fully, craning her head back again. "You were muttering something in your sleep. Ki or Kia something I think it was, what was it?"
"Aah," Mei uttered, her gaze wavering slightly as she looked at Bronya. "That's…it was nothing."
"Really?"
"Mhm," she nodded, a faint smile still plastered onto her face. "It's just a dream I had."
Her hands clenched together as she said that.
"A dream huh? Alright then," Bronya quickly accepted the answer, resuming her exit out of the door as she lightly waved her hand behind her back towards Mei. "Wait for me, okay? I'll be back soon."
"I will."
With that, the woman vanished from sight, leaving Mei alone to her thoughts, and the subtle sounds of keyboard clicking and voices from other people around her small office.
Mei lowered her head soon after, a muted expression immediately taking over the failing smile she was just giving to Bronya prior. Eventually, her eyelids closed shut, a long drawn-out sigh echoing to no one in particular.
"Just a dream…"
"Here."
With a cup of tea in her hand, Bronya tentatively extended it towards Mei, who gently took it with a soft, albeit tired smile.
"Thank you," she said, taking a small elegant sip from the cup before letting out a gentle sigh. It wasn't the kind of tea she would normally drink, but it was enough to sate the slight drowsiness from her mind.
"Don't mention it," Bronya replied, finding her seat on Mei's desk once more as she pressed her palm against the surface. "Sooo…wanna talk about it?"
"Talk about what?" She glanced over to Bronya.
"About you obviously," Bronya uttered, raising one knee up onto the table as she pressed her cheek against the palm of her hand. "You've been falling asleep at work a lot lately. Something happened?"
"Mmm…" Mei hummed, her eyes awkwardly drifting away from Bronya's questioning gaze. Her grip on the cup tightened ever so slightly, gently swaying the object in her grasp. "It's nothing really. I just had some personal work to go through lately."
"Really?"
Mei nodded.
"What kind of work?"
Mei gripped tighter onto the cup, already knowing that the girl would ask her that. She numerated over what to answer her with, her lips thinned as she struggled to find the proper words to say.
After all, there was nothing she could possibly say that isn't outright confessing what she did.
"...Sorry," instead, she could only utter that single word, turning her gaze firmly away as she placed the cup back down on the desk.
"..." Bronya held her gaze over the odd woman for a moment, before breaking away as she huffed a sigh. "It's fine, don't worry about it. I won't pry if you don't wanna tell me."
"Mmm."
"...Hah," the girl let out an audible exhale. "You're a handful sometimes, you know."
"I'm sorry."
"It's fineee," she exclaimed, throwing her head back as she planted both palms onto the desk behind her back, then looked back at Mei. "Just take care of yourself, alright? You work too much."
"Mmm, I will. Thank you."
Though the faint smile she wanted to give to Bronya faded quickly once she saw the small scowl the girl was giving her.
"Did I say something wrong?"
"...You're way too proper," her friend suddenly remarked, earning a brief look of confusion on Mei's face.
"Is that a bad thing?" Mei asked.
"Uh, yeah?" the girl uttered, as if she couldn't believe that Mei would even ask that. "It feels like I'm talking to myself, only just really dull and boring. And that's with me as your friend, imagine how you sound to others."
"That's not…" Mei tried to deny it, but quickly found the drive to do so dissipating once she mulled over it.
Her friend wasn't wrong. She has been a bit more formal than usual.
Mei had always been that way to everyone, but she didn't want it to start bleeding into her conversation with Bronya too. Especially not her.
"...I'm sorry," it was almost by instinct that she uttered those words.
"There you go again," Bronya exclaimed, her voice just a little too loud for the public working space they were occupying in. "Seriously, you don't have to say 'thank you' or 'I'm sorry' all the time to everyone. You're just going to tire yourself out like that sooner or later."
"Mmm, I'll try."
The words didn't come out as strong or as convincing as Mei would have wanted, only prompting Bronya to blink away the small frown she had before turning away.
Silence overtook the two girls, with Mei keeping her eyes down on the table, and Bronya's to the side.
Then, Mei slowly glanced back up to her friend, finding Bronya sitting quietly, unusual even for her.
The sight tugged at her heart, prompting her to want to say something. Anything.
But she couldn't, the words dying just at the tip of her tongue as she clasped her lips shut, her fingers curling around the cup as she let the heat slowly seep into her skin.
What should I…
She thought to herself, finding the sight of her friend unbearable. She never wanted her to feel this way, not towards her. Not again.
She wanted to resolve this so badly, to tell her everything that she's been holding in. Everything that she had been holding in for so long now.
But she can't. Not then. Not now.
She can't risk it. She can't risk dragging her only friend into her mess, not when she can't even begin to understand Bronya's.
So instead, all she could do…
Was standing up, slowly and quietly, leaving the hot cup on the table as she inched her way over to the only person she could call her closest friend, and partner in everything.
And wrapped her arms behind the girl, her head gently nuzzled into Bronya's back, taking in the softness of her silver-hair sticking lightly onto her face as she breathed in the faintly sweet aroma of her hair.
Bronya nearly yelped from the sensation, her gaze snapping to the side to find Mei leaning onto her so intimately and without restraints.
"Um…What are you doing?" the girl asked, confused by the sudden action.
"Mmm…" Mei hummed. "...Being less formal, I guess."
The girl opened her mouth as if to say something back, only to close it as she lowered her head, before leaning just a bit into Mei's embrace.
"...You know," she finally brought herself to utter. "We could do it."
"Do?"
"Movies, I mean. We could do a movie night tomorrow; weekend and all that. How about it? It's been a while since we last did one."
"That…sounds wonderful," Mei truthfully answered, a soft smile spread across her lips as she felt the warmth from Bronya's back seeping through her body, her hands finding their way to rest around the girl's shoulders.
But the smile quickly died along with her voice. "But…"
"...Personal work?" Bronya finished for her, to which the woman reluctantly nodded.
"Personal work," she repeated anyways.
"And you can't say?" Bronya asked, finding her head leaning to the side, her cheek resting on top of Mei's head, who was laying on her shoulders.
"Can't say," Mei uttered, the admission so reluctant and tired in its confession.
"It's fine," Bronya uttered after a sigh, her hand reaching up to gently grasp the woman's palm below her neck. "Just…take care of yourself, alright?"
"I will. I promise."
"...You're such a handful."
"Mhm, I know," Mei nuzzled into her shoulder a bit more. "Do you hate me for it?"
"Of course not," Bronya answered, the words quick to leave her lips. "Just makes it hard to get you sometimes."
"Mmm, I'm sorry."
I'm sorry, Bronya.
"It's fine, not like I hate it."
I really am sorry.
"Mmm, then can I stay like this for a little longer?"
"Feel free."
Mei smiled, her arms tightening around her friend's neck just a bit more. She closed her eyes, letting the steady rhythm of Bronya's heartbeat soothed her tired mind, even for just a moment.
Yet it was a moment she cherished nonetheless, even as her heart weeped for her inability to do or say any more.
I wish I could tell you. I wished that I could.
But I won't. I can't.
You don't deserve to know such things. Not you. I won't let myself do it. I swear.
The woman sank deeper into the peacefulness of the embrace, content with letting her mind drift away for just a little bit.
Bronya sat in silence, her palm lightly traced over Mei's warm hands.
"...Idiot," the girl mumbled, though a soft, sad smile still crept onto her lips as she spoke.
It didn't take long before she too closed her eyes, letting herself indulge in this embrace, however long they could have it.
The office was quiet, save for the constant clattering of keyboards and machines humming faintly in the background.
Inside one of the many office spaces, most of which had already emptied out and left in the dark, was Mei, her eyes glued to the bright monitor screen as she continued to type away in the darkness.
Several minutes passed by as she maintained her pace, her gaze never once breaking away from the monitor, eyelids closing just a bit from the brightness of the screen. Even so, she didn't stop, her fingers gliding along the keyboard laid in front of her.
It took several more minutes before Mei finally stopped, her hands falling to a rest at the surface of the desk.
Mei then sighed, finally lowering her gaze from the monitor as she blinked, the action making her eyes a bit watery. Keeping it shut, she leaned back into her chair, letting the softness of her seat take a hold of her form for a moment as she pressed her head further into the cushion.
One hand slowly made its way up to her forehead, resting firmly between both eyes as she breathed, feeling the rise and fall of her chest through each inhale and exhale.
She repeated this action several more times before she pulled her arm away, her head craned forward as she set her eyes back onto the monitor. Immediately her eyelids narrowed, taking a moment for her to focus onto the rightmost bottom of the screen.
"….6:50pm…" She quietly muttered, resisting the urge to sigh again.
At least I got everything done.
She had managed to finish all her work for the weekend, even if it meant she had to stay way later than she would have liked. Nonetheless, it would leave her free to do whatever she wanted for the rest of this week, the thought of which put some relief on her mind.
Her thoughts drifted to Bronya's offer from earlier this evening, the memory of which brought a small smile on her thin lips. If this was any other occasion, she would have happily accepted the girl's offer.
But…
That smile faded, a complicated expression taking hold instead. There was a tinge of regret in her eyes, aimlessly wandering from one side of her desk to the other.
There was a reason why she had to finish everything by today after all. She couldn't afford to do so if she left it until tomorrow or the day after.
Or rather, she didn't want to spend her time doing it, while having something else in mind.
Her arms found resting on her sides, fingers gently clasped onto the hem of her skirt, feeling the fabric grazing against her fingertips. It was a soothing sensation, helping her calm the nervousness in her breathing before she finally inhaled, gaining the energy to push onwards for just a little longer.
She stood up, making sure to turn her monitor off as she put away all the items into the bag below her desk, checking to see if she had missed anything. Once done, she promptly walked out of the open doorway of her office space, taking one last look behind her before finding herself pacing along the empty quiet corridors leading down the staircase.
"I need to get home soon," she uttered, each step quickening in its pace as she traveled down each flight of stairs. She was only on the second floor of the building, making it easier to walk down instead of just using the elevator. Though the main reason for that was really just to give herself time.
Time to think of what she should buy for them.
Mei looked through the long tray of premade food trays lined across the store's row, her eyes darting through the names of each box.
"Mmmm…" she hummed, unsure of what to really pick. They all seemed wildly different from one another.
She could easily just pick one that looked the best, but she didn't buy these things to begin with, so knowing what is "good" or "bad" was a hard concept for her to discern, especially with how small the portions looked given the price tags.
Instead, she decided it would just be better to pick one that she believed they would like, her hand hovering over one of the trays hesitantly as she read and re-read the name of the product.
"Sweet Pepper Curry Rice"...she might like this, won't she?
Mei hoped she did, taking the tray off the shelf as she made her way over to the cashier, quickly paying it with cash before exiting the store with a small plastic bag in hand. She had asked them to heat up the product for her, something she was surprised that it was a thing.
It was certainly helpful, as the place she was staying didn't have anything that could heat such a thing, and she would rather not take too long to give them something to eat.
"Got to hurry…" she whispered, quickly pacing down the quiet road as she made her way back home. It had already been close to an hour since she left her workplace, and even longer since they had last eaten anything properly.
The thought only made her stomach turn, biting her lips as she found her legs picking up pace, just shy from running to avoid messing up the newly bought, freshly microwaved food tray.
Click
Locking the door of her house, Mei quickly made her way over to the counter beside her kitchen, placing the small plastic bag down along with her work bag.
She reached into the plastic, her fingers grazing the now lukewarm box, taking it out as she breathed a slight sigh of relief that the contents inside hadn't been roughed up from her trip back home.
Though the fact that she can hardly feel any heat emanating from the plastic wrapped tray made it clear that she can't rely on buying one every night for them. Today was just the exception.
She unwrapped the box, lifting the see-through container as immediately, a faint, almost sweet fragrance drafted up front the small box.
That doesn't smell all that bad.
She quickly searched for a spoon inside her very bare kitchen, finding just the one as she stuck it gently to the edge of the tray, before holding it in her firm hands as she made her way out of the kitchen and onto a hallway.
Not even a minute passed before she arrived at a certain door near the end of the hall, a sharp turn situated at the very edge of her eyesight before she turned to the door.
Taking a moment to compose herself, she perked her ears to try to discern any sounds emanating from the room, finding nothing.
The realization didn't calm her at all.
She reached for the handle, careful as to not drop the tray as she opened the door. She was immediately greeted with a faintly dimmed room, a single light bulb situated atop the ceiling above her.
Her eyes immediately locked onto a figure sitting on the floor at the very corner of the room, their upper body hidden away from the small light cone that barely reached their ankles. Their uniform skirt hiked up just a bit from how they flinched at the sight of Mei, bringing their legs inwards as they nearly curled into themselves.
Mei thinned her lips, before resolving herself to step through the door and approach the small figure. Each step only seemed to frightened them more as they began to tremble.
Mei stood just a bit from them, kneeling down as she rested the tray down in front of her, before sitting down with her legs tucked behind her knees.
The figure didn't make any attempt to move out of the cramped corner they had bawled themselves in, determined in their endeavor to hide their face from her.
Mei gripped tightly onto the hem of her skirt, glancing to the side as she took note of the mattress laying not too far from them. It was all she could fit inside this tiny room, once used as a simple storage place a long time ago.
Finally, she turned her attention back to the frightened person, mustering a deep breath before she uttered, doing her best to keep her voice as calm and as soft as possible for their sake.
"Hello…Kiana."
The name made them flinch, a short gasp escaped from their audibly dried throat. The sound just made Mei tighten her hold onto her clothes. They haven't been drinking either.
"I…bought you something to eat. It was getting late so I couldn't prepare you something better," she tried to inject a sense of casualness to the one-sided conversation, only finding it yielding nothing but frantic breathing from the figure.
"...I'm sorry," she uttered, though it was unclear if she meant being late or something else. "I'll…try to be home earlier."
Still no answer.
She shut her eyes tightly for a moment, her shoulders rose as she took in a deep breath before reopening them. Her hands shot forward from the tight grip she had on her skirt just a moment ago, gently poking at the tray as she moved it closer to the figure.
"Kiana," she whispered now to them, no longer trying to hide the clear concern and worry she had in her voice. "You need to eat. It's been days, so–"
"Please…"
Their voice made her eyes widened, immediately leaning further to hear better.
"Yes?" She muttered, having realized this was the first word they had spoken to her in weeks.
"...Please…" they continued, their voice so hoarse and painfully dried. "Please let me…
"Let me go…please…"
"..."
Mei didn't reply, merely biting her lower lip as she leaned back, settling onto her knees again.
"I…can't do that," she finally brings herself to answer, her indigo eyes drifting to the side.
"...Why…" their words lightly echoed, a sound that just made Mei squirm in place, unable to elaborate on what she meant any more than just that.
"I…" she uselessly muttered instead, her voice so utterly lost in what to say.
"Why are you doing this…"
Mei didn't answer this time. She didn't know how.
Not because she had none, but because she had too many.
Reasons that she can't even begin to make heads or tails of. Reasons she can't even begin to understand properly herself.
Reasons that…drove her to do what she did in the first place. To put herself and this person into this position right now in the first place.
Reasons that made her heart flutter, yet unable to voice aloud even as she so desperately wanted to.
Because Mei knew…that it would only sound like rambles of a mad woman.
Isn't she?
She didn't want to think about that. There was a time and place for it. This is not one of them.
Instead, she steadied her nerves, leaning forward towards the terrified person as she pushed the box closer. Right now, it wasn't important for her to know the answer to these questions. What was important was getting Kiana to eat something.
"Please, Kiana," she said, her voice dropping to a low, almost breathy sound. "You have to e–"
The woman didn't get a chance to finish her sentence, before the sound of something slammed across the wall beside her.
Her head snapped to the side, finding the familiar tray splattered on the floor, its contents spilled all over. She could barely make out when it had flown right from under her grasp.
Hence, it took her a moment longer to register a pair of hands reaching up to her neck, shoving her violently onto her back as she fell with thud.
"Agh!" She yelped, the impact sending a jolt of pain through her spin as she felt the weight of a person fully straddling her waist, their hands tightly gripped around her throat.
"Let me go."
She heard them, their voice broken and utterly terrified, even as they were laying on top of her.
She could finally make out their appearance, their face now no longer obscured by the darkness.
And what she saw made her laid in stunned silence, even as she felt the hands tightening their hold around her neck.
Kiana was looking down at her, her long messy white hair cascaded down on either side of Mei's head, dirtied and unkempt after so long. Her face was even worse, tear stains marked her dried up skin as she gritted her teeth, her cobalt eyes shone through the faint light with such intensity that it made Mei unable to even gasp out the girl's name in panic.
She could see tears struggling to leave the girl's eyes, so utterly dried up from all the crying she had done already. Her frail arms continued to pressed down onto Mei, her dirtied uniform looking grossly big for her frame now with how thin she had become.
"Let me go…let me go…" If the girl could scream, she would. But all that came out of her was pitiful pleas of pure anguish and agony, barely loud enough to reach Mei's ears.
Eventually, the grip on her neck finally proved to be painful enough to snap Mei out of her frozen stare, hands clasped against Kiana's wrists as she tried to remove them from her, doing her best not to hurt the girl in the process.
"K-Kiana!" She uttered, yet that didn't get any response from her. "P-please wait!"
"Let me go!" Her voice was practically gone by this point, the words sounding so small now.
Mei gritted her teeth, her finger dug into the girl's frail wrists before she twisted her lower body in a sudden motion, finally knocking the girl off her with a roll to the side.
The action was too sudden and too strong however, practically throwing the girl off her body and slammed against the wall.
A singular, barely audible "Agh" could be heard the moment she impacted against the wall, before Kiana simply went limp.
Mei's eyes transfixed onto her immobile form, the realization hitting her in an instant as she frantically crawled over to Kiana, turning the girl's weak body to the side as she fearfully called out to the girl.
"Kiana! Kiana! Kiana!" She kept calling, but the girl didn't answer.
Mei nearly went into a panic attack before she realized that the girl was still breathing, albeit extremely lightly. The realization sent a wave of relief over her, her shoulders slumped from the tension building up this entire time before she gasped, her arms clenched firmly around Kiana's unconscious form as she held the girl closer to her stomach.
She's alive…she's alive…
She repeated inside her head, as if to confirm the known fact over and over just to relieve her frantic beating heart.
"She's real. She's real…"
She muttered, her hand reached for the lock of hair stuck in front of Kiana's hair as she brushed it back, giving her a better look at the girl's messy face. It made her heart ache so much to see this girl like this, the last way she wanted to see her.
The girl was breathing. She was real.
Mei can confirm that. She can tell that it was through the way her body laid in her arms, as light and unmoving as it was.
She can feel that. She knew that the girl was here, that she wasn't just another dream of hers like countless before.
Ever since the day Mei found her, ever since she talked to her for the first time, she knew that the girl was real.
That realization made her so happy.
But happy was hardly the word she could use to describe the state this girl was in now, each gentle caressing against the girl's face only driving that point clearer into her mind.
What should I do…
She pondered, looking to the side as she found the box still laid messy on the floor. Another night, another empty stomach.
She needed to do something. No, she needed to do better.
For her.
For her Kiana.
"I swear it…"
She whispered, leaning down to plant a soft kiss on the girl's cheek, a gesture that felt so natural to her.
She will do everything that she can for this girl. Whatever it takes to get the girl to get better, she'll do it. That's all that Mei wanted after all.
She couldn't care less about how things even got to this point.
No…that wasn't right.
There was no point in thinking about it. Mei would tell herself that.
Not when Kiana was laying in her arms. Not when she needed to care and nurture this girl back to health.
Mei will focus on just that. She'll focus on doing just that, and ignore everything else; bury everything else.
It didn't matter how she really felt any more. What mattered was her and her alone.
Because she deserved it.
Because she was the most beautiful thing to Mei.
Because she was the brightest thing Mei had ever witnessed.
Because she was the most important thing that ever mattered to her.
Because she was her everything.
And Kiana will always be hers.
AN: Ahoy, glad you went and read this chapter for those that came from the latest chapter that talked about this. For those that haven't, and are just starting this story new, hey there! And sorry!
This chapter is a rewritten version of the original chapter I had for AYNM, now with proper direction and cohesion in its plot, and generally just written better in general. I haven't altered too much of the original scenes for this one, as most of it did work relatively fine, but I did expand on a certain relationship a bit more, which would hopefully help to set up their dynamic better. I had fun writing that :)
As for those that are starting this series anew, welcome and I'm glad you're giving this story a shot! I'll be doing subsequent rewrites for the other chapters as well, but that would take some time. I'll try to get two chapters out on a monthly basis tho; one rewrite and one new chapter respectively. But if you want to read the original version of this chapter just to not be confused by the next couple chapters having radically different characterization and plot, then I'll leave a link down for you to find the old story archive!
Anyhow, hope you enjoyed this newly rewritten version of Chapter 1, and look forward to the next! I have a lot I wanna do for Chapter 2 that's for sure kewk.
See y'all!
P.S: For the original chapter, go to my profile and find AYNM(Old) where I archived it!
