So I adore time loops and I think Sampo would be very fun in a time loop AU. Because despite having so many onscreen interactions with so many characters, he almost always seems to hold people at a certain careful distance, so it's fun to imagine what or who he's willing to use a time loop for, how far he's willing to go, how much he actually does care.
At the end of the Masquerade Duet companion quest, Sparkle mentions a catastrophe soon to befall Jarilo-VI. And some players have interpreted this as a past event (the catastrophe being the story quests we took part in there), but other players have speculated this as an upcoming disaster that Sampo is trying to mitigate.
And so, Gepard finds Sampo in Belobog, right after he was supposed to return from Penacony...or whatever it was called, Gepard had almost been too relieved to remember the name after Natasha assured him that Sampo was fine and not missing or dead, just on a trip since the planet was finally open for travel.
He had assumed this was some kind of vacation, or some shady business endeavor (valid), but when he sees him, Sampo looks. Exhausted.
His usual smirk is there, but there's something horribly off about it that Gepard can't put into words. His voice doesn't have the usual bounce in it. His gait slightly off. There are bags under his eyes, his hair is just the slightest bit out of place. Sampo looks exhausted.
His feet move without him really thinking, he goes up to Sampo to say...something. Maybe just ask him if he's ok. But he can't leave this alone and not do anything, because Gepard can feel it, something is wrong.
And that feeling sticks with him, like the persistent cold, like frostbite, all day. Gepard can't seem to shake it. There is a collective unease seeping through Belobog, sinking deep, tangling around their bones. And the only one who seems to be reacting truly different to it is Sampo.
Gepard tries to tail the guy a few times, anything he can do to learn about what's going on and ease this devouring dread, but Sampo seems to know where he's hiding and calls him out every single time.
He dodges every question (normal), slips out of every grab and grasp (normal), barely even looks at Gepard (decidedly NOT normal).
And maybe it's the darkness that seems to hover over them. The way the air feels like it is pressing down and smothering the breath out of his lungs. But Gepard's patience finally snaps, much sooner than he ever would have thought it would, and he finally grabs Sampo by the collar, hauls him up and forces his back against the brick wall of the alleyway. Because maybe Sampo makes his living double crossing and stabbing backs and he wouldn't understand this, but Gepard has a family, he has people he wants to protect, and so he needs to know what the fuck is going on.
And he knows he's crossed a line the moment he says it. He knows it's not true. Gepard has seen the way Sampo and Caelus sneak around in the Fragmentum or meander down the alleys, snickering with their arms slung around each other. He's seen the way Sampo lets Hook climb up his back onto his shoulders while he takes the moles on little adventures. He's seen the way he and Serval rib each other like it was natural, easy, and the way he goes out of his way for Natasha like he wouldn't any other client, had even trusted her with the knowledge that he was leaving off-planet.
Sampo has people he wants to protect, too, and Gepard shouldn't have accused him otherwise.
But before he can even apologize, Sampo does something stranger still.
Instead of telling him off, or taking a swing at him- both things Gepard would admit he deserved- Sampo just. Lifts one hand, lays it over Gepard's fists still balled in his jacket. Like he's keeping him there. Even through his gloves, his hand is warm.
And Sampo doesn't even really look at him, he leaves his head hung low as he quietly tells Gepard to just go home. Stay in with his family. Don't come out. Please. Please.
But eventually, the catastrophe strikes.
And Gepard can't. He can't stay safe inside his home while this is happening. He can't ignore this. He tells Serval and Lynx to stay in. Don't come out. And he dons his armor and marches out to protect as many people as he can.
When it's all said and done, all Gepard can see is rubble piled around him and a blackened sky. He can hear fire crackling. He can hear a voice he recognizes as Serval's wailing and screaming his name, and he knows she's not going to find him in time. She shouldn't even be out here.
A bloodied face swims into view, bright green eyes looking hollowed and haunted, posture weary and defeated. Gepard reaches out a shaking arm, trying to grab at Sampo's pantleg, trying to make any sound other than gurgling the blood filling his throat, because he knows it for certain now, he knew, Sampo knew.
"Not this time either, huh...?" The sigh he heaves isn't theatrical, for once. Somewhere, rubble groans and loudly collapses. Sampo doesn't even startle or turn to look at it. "I'll figure it out soon, I promise. There has to be a way to pull you through this alive. There has to be."
Something materializes in his hand, something red. Gepard's vision dims at the edges as he watches Sampo hold the mask over his face, as it seemingly attaches itself directly to his skin.
"See you on the next go around, Captain."
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Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: 薬屋のひとりごと - 日向夏 | Kusuriya no Hitorigoto - Hyuuga Natsu, 薬屋のひとりごと | Kusuriya no Hitorigoto | The Apothecary Diaries (Manga)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Jinshi/Maomao (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto), Rikuson & Maomao (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto), Loulan | Shisui & Maomao (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto)
Characters: Maomao (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto), Jinshi (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto), Rikuson (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto), Loulan | Shisui (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto), Suirei (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto), Xiaolan (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto)
Additional Tags: Secret Admirer, Fluff, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Jealousy, Petty Jinshi, Everyone Loves Maomao (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto), Oblivious, Fluff without Plot, Title from a Stray Kids Song, Romantic Comedy, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Open to Interpretation, SKZ EXchange Island did a number on me...so this happened
Series: Part 3 of Ka Corporate Holdings, Inc.
Summary:
Suirei realizes, belatedly, that here is where the other shoe drops, because Jinshi finally tears his gaze away from Maomao long enough to consider the situation in front of him. Her, with the capacity to occupy Maomao's thoughts with their shared love for medicinal herbs. Loulan and Xiaolan, who Maomao doesn't fully realize she has the softest spots for. Rikuson, who shared a childhood with Maomao and has had her ride his motorcycle before. If you look at it in the way only a lovesick, jealous guy like him would: he is in enemy territory.
Everybody just wants Maomao to choose them. Maomao just wants everyone to shut the hell up.
Office AU fluff, I think? Spoilers for up to LN 4/5 due to a couple of the characters; I think the GX manga has reached this point but it will take a while for BG manga to get here (at the time of posting it is currently at chapter 68). Anyway, happy new year! It's been a while since I last did this but for now I'm putting the entire fic under this post, as a treat hahaha. Also shoving all the office AU oneshots under an AO3 series for my own organization purposes...
---
You're the only reason why I really love you...
Rikuson watches Maomao as she chews through the big hunk of meat that Jinshi had just lovingly fed her; her cold gaze is obviously no match for the adoring, soft eyes aimed in her direction.
He can easily imagine heart shapes emanating out of the guy's sparkling eyes. Rikuson chuckles to himself, hiding his smirk behind his drink - he hadn't seen Maomao try to look that infuriated since the time when her biological parents tried putting her in girly frills for one of the numerous La family pictures.
While his chuckle may have been successfully hidden, the mirth in his eyes was definitely not hidden enough. That's why Maomao's gaze decides to target him next, her cold eyes seeping into his soul as they convey only one message: don't you even start.
At that, Rikuson puts his drink down so Maomao can see just how amused he is with the situation his dear childhood friend has landed herself in now. She balks as it finally sinks in: with her attention fully on avoiding Jinshi's affections, she hadn't realized she had left Rikuson to his own devices, and truly, he can start anything he damned wants to start.
"You look awfully pleased, Mister Family Friend," Loulan says, eyeing the silent battle of wills in front of her with interest. She's sitting on Jinshi's other side, batting his hands away as she succeeds in reaching over him and handing Maomao the drink she had just poured out. "Is watching our Maomao eat that interesting?"
"Very," Rikuson grins, turning the charm up to eleven, knowing full well that while Maomao had gotten distracted by her drink, it is now Jinshi who is glaring daggers through his skull. He cheerfully decides to pretend he doesn't see that. "It brings me back to when Xiaomao and I were kids - I had to feed her because back then, all she wanted to do with her hands was use them to read through her books about medicine."
Something in between a scream and a shiver wordlessly passes through Maomao's face. Yes, Rikuson grew up with Maomao, but he never really calls her Xiaomao. Well. Not as much as he used to. When she was still a Xiaomao, she was a cutie - or so Rikuson remembers his younger self thinking, as well as his current self, sometimes.
But that's neither here nor there. Right now, Jinshi's hands are balled up into fists under the tablecloth, so regardless of whether it was a lie or not...it was a wise choice.
"I like people who enjoy learning," Jinshi says, making a big show of sounding nonchalant as he tosses his beautiful long hair over his shoulder with a flick of his hand. "I think it's great for people to have something they're passionate about."
"Oh, really now, Mister Jinshi?" Xiaolan perks up suddenly, almost elbowing Suirei beside her in her haste to get the next words out. "Would you say that a passionate learner is your ideal type?" A big smile blooms across her face, as it always does when she gets her hands on something she considers interesting.
Jinshi grins back, clearly pleased that at least someone has been picking up the breadcrumbs he had set down. Maomao rolls her eyes and leans back in her chair, as if she already knows what he'll say next, but she isn't actively moving away from him, either. "Yes. I like passionate learners. I also like people who aren't picky eaters and love their alcohol."
"Aww, that puts me out of the running! I just like sweets and juice." Jinshi smiles kindly as Xiaolan fake-sighs, holding a hand to her head in an imitation of a swoon. "But that's good for you, right, Maomao?"
"How did this go back to me?" Maomao snaps back, but a tad softer that she usually would. After all, she really is a softie when it comes to Xiaolan. Loulan sometimes complains about such blatant favoritism, but when she does Maomao merely pulls her aside and says neither of them should possibly expect dear sweet Xiaolan to keep up with the best of their messes.
"Oh, you know what I mean." Xiaolan says, her sunny smile firmly in place as she leans forward, a woman on a mission. "Remember when that nice Mister invited you out to go to the night markets and you and I had a phone call the entire night before to talk about where you should bring hi--mmph phh hmm?"
"You should eat more meat, you know." Maomao swears up and down that the only reason Xiaolan ever got to say that much is because she was busy loading up her chopsticks with meat. Definitely not because she was committing the look of surprise from the guy beside her to memory. Damn, why does he still look pretty with his flushed cheeks and stupid mouth all wide open like that. "Have some more."
"Xiaomao, easy on the meat, her cheeks are looking very full." Rikuson chides. He keeps putting unnecessary emphasis on the nickname, and Jinshi still looks like he'd swallowed a frog. "Your big brother over here will gladly take the rest of it, though?"
Maomao really, really doesn't want to reach across the table and feed Rikuson, but she doesn't know what else to do with the meat when she doesn't want to eat all of it either. She's about to bring the chopsticks out to reach his side of the table when someone suddenly pulls on her sleeve.
"Hmm?"
"I want that cut; give it to me." Jinshi says, in a tone of voice that brooks no arguments. It's more than enough to make Rikuson smile crookedly and move away.
"Get your own damned meat."
"No, I want that cut, not those cuts."
"Are you a child?"
"You really let her talk to you like that, Mister?" Suirei wonders. For almost the entirety of this meal, she had been quietly listening to their conversation, letting Rikuson and Xiaolan on each side of her pile up on the meat as she diligently sliced bite-sized portions for her little sister, who, like Maomao, was more focused on the drinks than anything.
After a few gestures here and there, it looked like Maomao finally caught on that Jinshi had wanted her to feed him, so she does, begrudgingly. There's a satisfied, contented sparkle in Jinshi's eyes as he licks his lips, holding Maomao's gaze the entire time. Then he turns to Suirei. "I'd obviously let her do anything with me."
"Big words from someone who wouldn't let me feed him cordyceps." Maomao grunts. From the tone of her voice, this seems to be a recurring complaint.
"I was with you the whole way, until you said you'll lock me in with a random other person. Isn't a woman of science supposed to personally observe their data?"
Loulan laughs at that, Rikuson quickly following along, and Xiaolan turns to the woman beside her in sheer confusion. "What's a cordyceps, Suirei-jie? What are they talking about?"
Unfortunately, due to her line of work, Suirei knows exactly how a cordyceps would be used, so she also knows in what purpose this Mister Jinshi is hoping to use it with their seemingly oblivious friend. "Trust me, Xiaolan, you're lucky to not know what they mean."
---
After the meal is done - which also means, after Jinshi had finally finished making Maomao feed him everything, up to and including half the plate of grilled silkworm that Loulan had ordered on a whim - Suirei tells them something that's been weighing on her for a while now.
"I realized we're going to have a problem on our way back."
Suirei had bought a four-seater sedan, but between all the medicinal herbs she and Maomao had haggled, the cute stuff Xiaolan bought for her new apartment, and Loulan's haul of assorted knickknacks, the back seat might as well not exist for human seating.
Rikuson had bumped into them at the market and went along with them to the restaurant, but he only has a motorcycle with him. He does have an extra helmet, though, so someone could possibly ride with him - not someone taller like Suirei or Jinshi, though.
Jinshi had insisted on bringing Maomao to her meeting place with the other three girls with the intention of just dropping her off and going back home, but when he had seen Maomao recognize Rikuson in the crowd and call out to said family friend with such familiarity, he suddenly didn't want to leave. If only he knew he was going to stay this long, he would have opted for his four-seater as well - now he just has his two-seater sports car.
"I don't see a problem," Maomao says, fully aware of the eyes that are suddenly on her. "Each vehicle can ride two people, and there's six of us. Easily said and done."
"Xiaomao, the helmet still fits on you, so you can ride behind me like you used to." Gods above, Rikuson thinks, behind his smile, Maomao's guy really needs to take a chill pill. But I guess I'm not helping.
"Call me Xiaomao one more time and I'll--" Make sure one of yours becomes small, is how Maomao usually ends this threat. It's a testament to her inner growth, or maybe how tired she is, that instead of completing that sentence, she takes a deep breath and stops herself. She massages her temple, seemingly nursing a headache. "Ugh. You know what? It doesn't matter."
"So that's a yes?"
"I take that more as a no," Loulan murmurs across the table so quietly that Rikuson suspects it's only meant for his ears. Then, louder, she speaks again: "I call dibs on me and Maomao riding jiejie's car home!" Loulan says in her usual bright voice. "I'm a super duper safe driver, and Xiaolan said before that she wanted to ride a motorcycle at least once."
"Uh, I wanted to ride with Maomao too, though?" Xiaolan says, her cheeks slightly flushed. "Just like last time. It was fun to ride behind her on the scooter..." The faint flush on her cheeks may be from the prospect of having to wrap her arms around an unfamiliar young man like Rikuson, but Maomao doesn't know what to do with the troubled look the young woman sends her direction.
"Xiaolan, I don't think we can ride together this time. I don't have a license so I can only ride my scooter, but I didn't bring it today." Come to think of it, that was Jinshi's fault. He smiles beatifically beside her.
"Then it's settled, Xiaolan and Mister Family Friend on the bike, me and Maomao in the car! I wouldn't want to separate her from her herbs after all."
"Little sister, where am I supposed to ride in this scenario, if you've taken my car...?"
"Oh, you and Mister Jinshi are similar heights so I just thought if he can fit in the sports car, you can too, jiejie!"
Suirei and Jinshi exchange looks. Literally the only things they have in common are their heights and a surprisingly soft spot for Maomao - his more prevalent than hers. That doesn't mean I'll automatically give way, she thinks, and chalks that sudden burst of pettiness up to how Jinshi had earlier made it an unspoken competition of who can buy Maomao more interesting medicinal raw materials.
"Wouldn't you have more fun in a fancy sports car with all the bells and whistles, though, meimei? I know you like driving fast." Suirei wonders aloud, a serene smile on her face. "Also, you did tell me before that you like talking to passionate people with clear-cut goals. As a businessman, I would guess Mister Jinshi would fit that description."
What is jiejie talking about? Loulan has met Jinshi for the first time in her life today, but she has heard more than enough of him from Maomao and seen them together around the office enough to know that if that guy has one passion in life...yep, it's probably Maomao herself. But that aside - "Jiejie, I was talking about Maomao back then! I want to talk with her more! Jiejie already hogged all her attention with all the medicine talks you had earlier. I wanted in too! Maomao!"
"Like I said, it doesn't matter to me either way," Maomao says, somehow grasping the fact that she is now the center of this entire conversation, without actually committing enough to listen to any of their debates. "The motorcycle is okay, either of the cars is okay. Just let me know whatever you've decided."
"But Maomao - come on, ride with me, you'll love it!" Loulan...sparkles, there's no other word for it, her eyes are sparkling up at Maomao's nonplussed expression as she shoves Jinshi out of the way to look at her friend better. "Don't you love me enough to share the ride home with me?"
Suirei realizes, belatedly, that here is where the other shoe drops, because Jinshi finally tears his gaze away from Maomao long enough to consider the situation in front of him. Her, with the capacity to occupy Maomao's thoughts with their shared love for medicinal herbs. Loulan and Xiaolan, who Maomao doesn't fully realize she has the softest spots for. Rikuson, who shared a childhood with Maomao and has had her ride his motorcycle before. If you look at it in the way only a lovesick, jealous guy like him would: he is in enemy territory.
What will he do now?
Maomao sighs and hangs her bag across her torso, readying herself to leave with her coat tucked into her arm. "We should go, then. If Rikuson and Xiaolan are taking the motorcycle, I think we should leave for the city before it gets dark out there."
Jinshi still appears lost in the train of thought he'd hitched a ride on, long enough that Maomao takes one good, long look at him and drapes his overcoat over his shoulders, unclipping his car keys from his belt loop and putting it snugly in his clasped hands for good measure.
They really do work well together, Xiaolan thinks. Too bad that for all their shared intelligence it appears like they cannot even fathom that when it comes to this, they're on the exact same page.
Jinshi blinks back to life when they're out of the restaurant, Loulan happily twirling Suirei's keys around her index finger as she herds Maomao towards her sister's sedan. "...wait."
Neither Maomao nor Loulan manage to get a word in before Jinshi catches up to them on his long, long legs and clasps his hand around Maomao's wrist. No pulling. He just holds her. "We live in the same floor of the same apartment building, I'll drive her home."
This is apparently news to Rikuson, who looks at Xiaolan in curiosity. She gives him back a timid smile that probably says, yeah, that surprised us, too.
"I live in the same apartment building as you two, boss." Loulan smirks back, her arm wrapping around Maomao's free arm. Suirei makes an astute observation that the picture they make almost resembles the tug of war scenes in the dramas Loulan loves to make her watch. This is, considering her dramatic little sister, probably done on purpose. "Maomao gave me the okay. Also, I called dibs first."
"Maomao and I had plans after this, the original idea was that I drop her off and come back for her when you're done." In spite of the confidence in his tone, there's something in the way Jinshi says Maomao's name that tells Loulan he doesn't really call her by that as often as he wants to. "Since we're already together, it only makes sense for us to go to the next location together."
"Jiejie, Xiaolan, Maomao and I are going to have a sleepover in my unit. In the same apartment building you're going home to. We are literally going to go to the same next location." The first vestiges of any pulling are coming from Loulan's side - Maomao winces, sometimes the girl really does not comprehend just how much upper body strength she actually does have. "The only one who's actually going somewhere else is Mister Family Friend over there, but he isn't complaining over Maomao not riding with him."
"Actually," Rikuson smiles curiously. "Uncle Loumen's staying over at Xiaomao's unit for the night and we're heading back home tomorrow, so I'm crashing on her couch for tonight too. We're all going to the same place."
Maomao blinks in confusion. "Ah. That was today? I thought that was tomorrow?"
"There was a mishap at the ticketing office and we got compensatory tickets for tomorrow morning. Lahan-ge's work, as expected."
Maomao shrugs, or as much as she could with one girl clinging to her arm and one guy holding her hand. "That's fine. I'll bring out the blankets for you, if you really don't mind the couch."
Hey Xiaomao, what about we share your bed like old times - is what Rikuson would probably say, if only the guy in front of him with an obvious burning crush on Maomao hadn't been riled up enough already. He keeps that little tidbit in the back pocket for future reference, instead. Nobody has to know that the only reason younger Maomao clung on to younger him back then was because she was dreaming and mistook his arm for a ginseng root, of all things.
"Maomaooooo." Loulan just about whines, her eyes sparkling as she tugs onto Maomao another time, attempting to pull her away from her coworker just enough so that she can run with Maomao into the sunset. "Come on, it's cold out and we have to go!"
At this point, Maomao can't budge, not even if she had wanted to, because Jinshi's hand has since moved down to interlock his fingers with hers. It's not exactly a position Maomao wants to be caught dead in, but his hand is warm and his fingers slot perfectly in between hers and Maomao can't quite understand why but she feels something quite like contentment settle deep into her chest. She will never tell the man in front of her that, of course. His pretty head is already filled with hot air as it is; she's not gonna add to that.
Maomao looks up at the guy in question, most probably to tell him to let her go so Loulan can stop sulking and actually drive, but the expression that greets her on that celestial beauty's face makes her stop dead in her tracks. His eyes, usually guarded behind his public smile or clear and open to match his real childish huffiness, are now glossy with unshed tears. His lips, glossy with a distracting sheen that Maomao knows full well came from all the meat she was feeding him earlier, are trembling. And his hand, the only part of his that tethered him to her, clasps even tighter against her fingers.
"I'll get you anything you want, Maomao, just please ride with me." Jinshi blurts out, his voice a complete 180 from the cool, calm, collected voice he was using when talking to everyone earlier. He sounds more desperate, more raw - it's the same tone of voice that convinces Maomao to do stuff she normally doesn't like gently tend to his wounds or let him cling to her as he sobbed and told her about his poor excuse of a father. And she's hearing it again now, all because these naughty kids she unfortunately calls friends have made a good game out of messing with him, somehow.
Xiaolan can't help but wish she had enough popcorn to pair with all this cheese, and shares an amused side glance with Rikuson beside her. He grins with her, in solidarity, because guess who's going to go home and tell Big Brother Lahan all about their littlest sister's budding workplace romance?
As Loulan pulls her closer, crushing her arm against her sizable bosom, Maomao shoots her a warning glance - that her friend, of course, gleefully ignores. "Bribery isn't fair, Mister Jinshi." Loulan chides, her words at a complete odds against her resplendent smile. "Maomao's coming with me and you can talk to her later!"
In response to that, Jinshi sniffles, which tells Maomao that he's about to blubber out more nonsense, stuff like "don't leave me behind!" or "will you abandon me like this!?" Maomao is (unfortunately) the number one protector of Jinshi when he's in such a delicate state, which means she has to bring Jinshi back to his usual state fast. So she decides to throw him a bone, for once.
"Wait a sec, Loulan, let's let him talk. What do you mean when you say anything?"
"As expected from our Maomao," Loulan coos, leaning her head against Maomao's shoulder. "You're just too nice!"
"When I mean anything I mean anything." Jinshi says, staring Maomao and Loulan down with a renewed confidence. "Just tell me what it is, and it's yours."
Maomao balks at that. "I don't think that having my boring ass in the passenger seat for a two-hour car ride is worth that much, actually, so don't be that vague -"
"You said before that you needed more cordyceps for your experiment. I can get a couple more, and throw in some saffron and rosy periwinkle for good measure."
Loulan knows exactly when she lost Maomao because she gets that shine in her eye that only appears when rare herbs are concerned. So she lets go of the arm she had been clinging to, and watches her walk away with interest. "I'll write up an IOU to hold you on that when we get home," Maomao tells Jinshi, doing nothing about her hand still interlaced with his as they walk back to his car.
"I'll gladly sign any paper that Maomao wants me to sign," Jinshi says, the fondness clear as day in his tone as he happily opens his passenger car door for Maomao. Wow, that's enough sparkles to drown Maomao in, probably. Still a better option than letting him break down and sob in front of everyone - Maomao knows how to deal with this annoying guy's handsomeness by now. She does not want to watch him cry again.
"Well, that's that on that, change of plans. Mister Family Friend, I'm going with you." Loulan says, matter-of-factly, taking the extra helmet from Xiaolan's arms and exchanging it with her sister's keys. "Jiejie, I can entrust our sweet Xiaolan in your hands."
There's a look on the young woman's face that tells Rikuson she's not doing this out of affinity with him - she had, in fact, been sizing both him and Jinshi up with matching glares whenever she thought Maomao was not looking. But nevertheless, Rikuson still thinks there's no harm in asking her what she's planning to do. "Miss Loulan, right? How can I help you?"
"You could've helped if only you rode with the boss," Loulan mutters under her breath, before turning to Rikuson with a blinding grin on her face. "How fast can you go on your bike?"
He still doesn't quite know where she's going with this. "Fast enough...within legal limits."
"That's good enough. Let's go and get close enough to ruin any romantic mood that settles in between them."
"Suirei-jie," Xiaolan whispers, as the odd pair makes their way to where Rikuson is parked, "I thought Loulan likes Maomao and Mister Jinshi's romance?"
"I don't know, Xiaolan," Suirei sighs, a hand behind Xiaolan's shoulders as she leads her to their ride. "Your guess is as good as mine."
---
End notes:
i'm drafting an entirely different fic but it's postponed now since i just came back from watching skz code episode 44, final episode of their self-proclaimed jeju dating show and it's a hot mess and literally the only idea taking up my brainspace right now. for context, this is felix. see the things he says at 18 and 33 minutes into the video respectively:
like him, jinshi tries to be cool and calm when it comes to maomao but he isn't above freaking out and going straight to bribery. let us all pray for this lost little child. fun fact the title/beginning note is from the exact song we hear in the background when he says what he says in minute 18. wanted to have jinshi panic and be awkward even more but i felt that if he escalated maomao would actually shake him by the shoulders so just left it at this LOL
this was originally supposed to be a single scene from the fic i was drafting in the first place but i kept expounding on it and it became like this so here it is anyway. also as a bonus i wanted to keep track of who was sitting beside who so i made a seating chart, but i blinked and suddenly it became this. enjoy
i just want you to know watching aforementioned video woke me up in the last hours of 2023 with the urge to write down this mess in my brain and put it into words so everything came in a daydream and aside from this i don't think i can explain much else. so i guess, happy new year, stay healthy, etc. see you around and hoped you liked this!
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Thena thanks Gil for bringing back Olympia. Kiss on the cheek?
"He's in there."
"Thank you."
Gil straightened up as the door opened an, instead of the club doctor Ajak walking in, it was Thena. She had sent him to get checked by Ajak after rescuing Olympia, of course, but he watched her take Olympia back to the stables herself. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to see how you're faring," she said gently, in that pretty accent she had. She closed the door behind her, walking in, still in her boots and her white sweater dress. He could see where she had gotten mud on her from hugging Olympia and wiped it off after.
"Ah, I'll be okay," he smiled, hoping to downplay his current state. He naturally went to rub at the back of his neck, but flinched his hand away before he could upset the burns on his palms. "Nothing to worry about."
Thena visibly chose not to believe him, seating herself on the stool across from the examination bench. "Gil, really--how are you?"
He sighed. He was exhausted. He hadn't exactly prepared for a mountain hike at top speed this afternoon. And even once he had found Olympia, it was no easy feat, getting a horse back up through the woods to the club grounds.
And that was ignoring when Olympia had fallen and he had to all but pick her up, or when she had stumbled and crushed him into a tree with her rib cage, or when she had headbutted him any number of times in her panic. He'd had a rough day.
"I'm okay," he admitted, his shoulders sagging. Thena looked like he had completely lied to her but he raised his hands and shrugged, "really! I mean, it's nothing serious, is all."
"I didn't ask about the severity," she huffed, but didn't lecture him the way she had lectured Olympia about running off and causing trouble. She reached out, running her thumb over some scratches on his cheek from branches hitting him in the face.
He nearly leaned into it, her touch was so cool and so soft. But he restrained himself, trying not to seem like a pathetic fanboy or something. He cleared his throat, "is Olympia okay?"
Thena rolled her eyes as if he were asking about a child they babysat or co-parented. "Do not worry for that spoiled mare, she is safe and snuggled up in a blanket."
Gil chuckled, though. "I know how worried you were."
Thena's more stern facade melted, and the times he had seen this side of her were some of his favourites. She far preferred her horse's company to that of any person here at the club. And she cared for that horse like her own child. "She is uninjured, for the most part. And although she may lack confidence for the next few days, I believe her recovery will not be so hard a road."
Gil hunched even further, resting his elbows on his knees, "that's good."
Thena looked at him again, tilting her sandy blonde eyebrows. "It is thanks to you that she's home safe and sound."
"Hey," he shrugged, rising as she did the same. "I'd do it again--in a heartbeat!"
"I know, Gil."
He blinked, suddenly finding her hands on his. He blushed, but Thena turned his hands over, examining the balm that had been applied to the raw skin there. He hissed as she pressed.
She glared at him, "nothing severe?"
He gave her his most innocent shrug, "Ajak fixed me right up. So I'll have to wear gloves for the next few days. These things happen."
Her eyes flicked up at him, making her annoyance clear as she examined his palms, then the tiny cuts and scratches anywhere else she could see, even pulling his sleeves up just a little. "These things do not simply happen. They happen because someone is...careless."
It would be easy to think she was referring to him, but he caught the downturn of her lips and the little knot between her eyebrows. "Thena, there wasn't anything you could have done."
She tugged his sleeves down for him again, developing a hunch in her own usually immaculate posture. "I should have been out there watching her. I should have gone after her. You wouldn't have-"
"Thena, listen," he cut her off, happy to interrupt her this one and only time. "Look, I won't say it was easy to get her back. But are you capable of lifting half a horse's weight?"
She looked away, not that she really wanted to admit that she couldn't.
"If you had gone after Olympia I would have been out there trying to track both of you. Then it would just be the three of us stuck out there," he chuckled, imagining poor Thena trying to get Olympia's award winning haunches up a mudslide. "I'm glad you didn't have to."
"You do entirely too much for us." He wasn't sure if she meant 'us' as in the club as a whole, or just her and Olympia. And if she was referring to just herself and her mare, then she was entirely correct. It was almost enough for him to have to worry about favouritism. But not quite.
"I do my job, Thena," he corrected, still with a smile. She pursed her lips at him and he just this once admired how the pink colour of them caught the light. "The rest is just because Olympia is, like, my only friend here."
Thena paused for a minute before clearing her throat. He tilted his head but she swatted his hands away from her, "oh, your only friend?"
She crossed her arms and raised her eyebrow at him. She was unhappy to be excluded from that.
Gil blushed. "W-Well, I-I mean, I didn't, uh...wanna assume-"
Thena stood from the stool, swiping her lips over his cheek on her way up. "You are so adept at reading the horses, Gilgamesh. I suggest you brush up on your ability to read humans, as well."
Gil had to grin, although he successfully bit back a chuckle; that was rich coming from the Ice Queen. But he his cheek tingled and he felt like he had been given morphine, or maybe pure adrenaline. "I'll study up on that."
"Hm," Thena sufficed to say, collecting herself to leave as if she hadn't kissed his cheek like it was the most natural thing in the world for her.
"Leaving so soon?" Ajak asked, catching her on her way out.
"I came to see how he was doing," Thena used in her own defense, looking down at Ajak and then back at Gil. She kept her expression unreadable but he liked to believe he could see a hint of a smile on her lips. "And he seems fine, now."
He was much more than fine, maybe the best he'd felt in months.
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