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Things get rough past the honeymoon period. You've been with your girlfriend a while now, the better part of a year in fact - but she's working, always working, and while you love her for the way that she never gives up you can't help but feel lonely when in bed your arms close on the empty air where she should be.
She still shouts, "I love you!" when rushing out of the door to her latest appointment, still gives you a hurried kiss on the cheek when snatching a single slice of toast from the breakfast you made for her. It doesn't feel as though she means to be cold to you, but when the closest you've been in the past month is cuddling her exhausted, barely-responsive body on the couch you know something has to be done.
You almost don't catch her before she's out the door to meet her work friends. You keep her back, a hand lightly around her wrist.
"Calli, i'm missing you. Date night this week? I'll get it all ready, just give me a time."
She hesitates, kind red eyes soft and sad. She glances back to her waiting friends, clearly anxious to get going.
"I- I dunno about that, Anon. It's embarrassing. My schedule..."
Your arm drops slack. She said it in the moment, she's in a rush, she probably didn't mean it - but... embarrassing? Without your arm to hold her there, she slips away with a 'sorry' on her face. You watch her go, and a couple of her friends shoot you quietly sympathetic looks.
The day passes, and you can't find the motivation to do anything much. You flick through some streaming shows but don't settle on anything to watch. You don't feel up to doing your /fit/ness reps, and you end up sitting quietly on the couch playing the short exchange from the morning over and over in your head until it starts getting dark outside.
Eventually you hear a knock at the door. You leap up to your feet before remembering that Mori wouldn't knock, and then drag your heels the whole way. You work the knob and are greeted by a shock of orange hair.
"Oh. Kiara." You react dead-pan. "What do you want?" There was never much love lost between the pair of you, seeing how obsessed she always was with your girlfriend. The most that had passed between you were a few tensely polite greetings, but she beams up at you all the same.
"Kikkeriki!" she shouts, disregarding your lacklustre greeting. "Majestic phoenix Takanashi Kiara is here to fix a broken heart!"
You shut the door.
She doesn't seem to take it well, immediately hammering on the thick wood.
"Calli sent me! Okay? She's worried about you!" Reluctantly you open back up, sighing moodily. She brandishes a red-and-white bucket in your face, and the delicious smell reminds you that you haven't eaten. "This morning you looked like you weren't feeling so good, so I brought you some KFP!"
Your stomach taking that moment to growl, you invite her in. The two of you share the bucket of fried 'phoenix' - and she only gives you the briefest bit of stink-eye when you say it tastes like chicken. A little bit of smalltalk passes between you, and Kiara insists on putting a terrible musical on the plasma while you eat.
"This... is the worst thing i've ever seen." You're almost in awe, the way a classic musical had been butchered into an uncanny valley scream-fest that the producers tried to carry with Star Power alone.
"It is not the worst! It's the best!" Kiara insists defensively. It's honestly pretty cute. "It's a modern classic that I guess most people are just too stupid to appreciate!"
You let out a strained laugh at the absurdity of that statement, playing along for perversity's sake. "Sure, Kiara. Fine. It's a masterpiece."
"Then we're agreed! It's the single best movie to come out in our lifetimes!" Her wheezing laugh comes out in gasps, and though the two of you didn't get off on the best foot you are glad she came to keep you company. She gives you a hug and presses her face to your chest.
"She really was sorry, but the new song... well, she'll be back soon." Kiara gives you a sympathetic smile as she gets up to go. "Hang in there, Anon."
