Chapter Text
Agnes Digital loves her roomie, but it's been a very long day.
It's 6:47PM when the clacks of a keyboard finally stop. Agnes digital streches and yawns. It's earlier than she ever sleeps, but she's more tired than she's been in her life. She clicks submit on a half-assed essay on the history of American cleats and their eventual impact on Japanese races. It's nothing she cares about, aside from the American Umamusume Japanese Manufacturer whom she swears were dating. But history teachers don't care about that. They don't care about love. They only care about accuracy and books. Digital breathes in the freedom as party popper graphic appears on the page, and a graphic reading “SUBMITTED!” dances across the screen.
Then, Digital alt-tabs to her 190,254 word fanfiction, currently on the 52nd chapter and scans the entire WIP for grammatical errors. It's just a quick, 20 minute skim, but she finds more mistakes than she's used to making. Maybe it was just because it wasn't beta read yet, or perhaps it was the sleep deprivation. As she groaned and cracked her back she confirmed it was the latter.
It was all because of the stupid essay! It was given a month before, just the right amount of time to completely forget its existence and when she remembered, it was due the next day. She had to give a whole night to come up with a Thesis, introduction, and a body. Then, she had to attend class because all her morning classes had tests that day, followed by afternoon training that was cancelled the moment her trainer noticed the bags under her eyes. Which was nice of him, but also really inconsiderate considering she already already forced herself to stay awake for the session. Not that she was gonna sleep anyway. She still had an essay to conclude by 11:59.
As the clock hit seven, she was ready to throw in the towel. Grades be damned the essay was done. She could finally sleep, and that was all that mattered. So now, she groans with a stretch and throws herself onto the bed with a mighty sigh of relief. She hadn't felt this tired in a long time. She barely had time to hug her plushies before she felt her eyes collapse shut, and by then her arms were too dead to even wrap the blanket around her comfortably. She felt her consciousness fading, and her heartbeat and bloodflow slow down as she drifted off into a deep slumber, never to be disturbed.
Then, she felt the floor shake as someone ran through the dormitory hallway. Then a door slammed open.
“Digitan!” Her roommate said sternly. “I require immediate aid. Please help me.”
“Hrmmmphaaa” Digitan groaned into her pillow. “Not now, I'm gotta sleep”
“Sleep? That's odd, you usually stay up much later.” Tachyon notes before snapping her fingers. “Oh, I know! I just developed a new stimulant that should-”
“Noooooooononono Tachy please.” Digital pleaded pitifully. “Tachy, I'm sorry, but I just did an all nighter. I'm tired, and I really am so sorry and, like- you know I'd love to help. I'd do anything for my beloved umas, especially you. But I don't think I can do anything right now. I'm so tired.”
Agnes Digital didn't expect Tachyon to listen to her. If anything, she was expecting her roommate to insist that her help was vital to her research. But to her surprise, Tachyon stays silent, and whispers a quiet. “Okay.”
Then Digital hears the usually mad scientist slowly walk to the open window. Tachyon is never this silent, and when she is it's usually never this loud. Worry starts to creep in, but it's soon followed by a shot of exhaustion. Digital can't even bring herself up. Her eyes are heavy, and her mind goes blank.
But her Uma ears are sensitive. So no matter how quiet Tachyon whispered, Digital was bound to hear her whisper. “Pokke, what do I do about you?”
Suddenly the bedsheet exploded. Tachyon sheiked in surprise as Digital stopped inches away from her face.
“Sorry, what was that about Pokke?”
“Well, um-”
“Oh my god. Ohmygodohmygodohmygod.” Digitan repeats as she starts shaking. “Oh my GOD! I used to hope and pray for times like this. What did you do? What happened?”
“Well, um-” Tachyon stutters before returning to her usual, grandiose charm. “We did an experiment!”
“And?” Digitan leaned in closer. “What happened? Did you kiss her? Are you dating? Are you getting married? Are you filing your taxes together?”
Tachyon blinks. “No…”
“OK, then?” Digitan pushes, bouncing back on her bed and falling into a perfectly-cross legged sit. “What happened?”
“Not much.” Tachyon admits. “The results were rather satisfactory. I proved my hypothesis on friendship training, and Pokke seemed very pleased!”
Digitan gestures encouragingly. “Go on?”
“Um, we ran a rough average of 2.4% faster overall speed than what I recorded during solo training. Which isn't that impressive, but we did go on for about 2 hours longer. So it seems friendship training boosts willingness to continue and by extension length of training, rather than actual physicality itself!”
Digitan waits for more.
“That's it?”
“Yup. That was the test.” Tachyon beams proudly. “Overall very satisfactory results. I'm rather proud of them, actually.”
Digital blinks for far too long, and feels the sleepiness come back slightly. “Oh.”
“But the concerning part was what happened after, where she told me she loved me.”
The whole building could hear Agnes Digital's scream.
“WHAT?”
“Digitan-”
“SHE TOLD YOU WHAT?”
“Please calm down-”
Agnes Digital did not calm down, instead choosing to scream even louder. “Oh my god, I thought I was gonna get crumbs but this is an entire buffet! I am eating so GOOD TONIGHT I-! Ohmygodohmygod- She said she loved you?!”
Tachyon shifts nervously. “Well, yes…”
“Tachyon!” Digitan leans forward, suddenly stone cold serious. “What happened next? Did you accept her confession? Oh, who am I kidding of course you did! And then you kissed, didn't you? Did you tell her you loved her too? Are you going on a date? Marriage? Did you head straight to the bank to file your taxes together and open a joint account?”
Digital jumps up and down, shaking the whole apartment. “Did you tell her you loved her too? Did you tell her your feelings? Did you tell her-”
Digital’s phone suddenly pings. Tachyon leans in and reads the notification as Digital keeps rambling on about their prenup.
“Digitan?”
“Yes?”
“Cafe just sent a noise complaint.”
“Did she?” Digital asks. “Wait, imma call her.”
Tachyons's eyes go wide in panic “Wait-”
“Cafe! You will not believe what happened!”
“Let me guess.” The dark haired uma yawns. “Did Pokke confess?”
“Yes! Oh my god this is so exciting!” Digital squeals before pausing. “Wait, how did you know?”
“A little birdie screamed ‘oh my god pokke confessed’ at the top of her lungs.” Cafe deadpans as a sharp pain creeps through Tachyon. “I think the entire dorm knows now. Especially your downstairs neighbor.”
“I told you to be quiet!” Tachyon growls. “Now everybody knows about-” Suddenly her knees buckle. She feels weak and lightheaded, as if she just ran the Spring Tenno Sho. “M-me and-”
“Relax, we knew.”
Tachyon slowly turns to Digital's phone. “What?”
“I mean, c’mon. Neither of you are exactly subtle.” Cafe yawns again. “Honestly, good for you two. You've basically been dating since Satsuki Sho. It's about time you made it official.”
“O-official?” Tachyon's jaw drops. “Pardon? You a-and everybody knew she had a, y-y’know?”
“A crush? Yeah. Everybody knew. It was obvious.” Cafe deadpans. “Wait, did you not know?”
“No?” Tachyon panics. “W-what was obvious? And me and P-” Suddenly Tachyon feels her cheeks turn red hot, and she almost faints from the heat. cheeks go flush. ”D-dating? We're not! I never said that! We were never like that!”
“Yeah, I- wait.” Cafe stops. “You aren't dating?”
Before Tachyon can answer, Digital grabs her by the shoulders and pulls her in. “Tachyon, you said yes, right?”
Tachyon laughs nervously. “Well, it's a long story…”
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30 minutes ago
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“Bye, old man!” Pokke waved as her trainer got in his car. “Same time tomorrow, yeah?”
“Of course.” The trainer grunted. “But take it easy when you get home. You know how leg day is. I need you in shape.”
“You sure? C'mon, I hardly broke a sweat!” The champ grunted as she stretched sore muscles. “Man, I got this.”
The trainer furrowed his eyebrows. "You'll be feeling it tomorrow. Remember, the race is next week. Don't wear yourself out just yet.”
Pokke grins at the challenge. “Say, you think I can beat her now?”
The old man smiles and shrugs. “You could. No guarantees in racing. But then again, you're always faster when she's there, no?” He says with a smile. “Did you tell her goodbye?”
Pokke shifts. “Not yet.”
“Then go. It's good manners. I'm sure she sacrificed some of her precious research time with us, after all.” The old man tells her before leaning in with a teasing smile. “Besides, I know you wanna talk to her.”
Pokke feels the blood rush into her cheeks. “C'mon, of course I do. She's like, one of the strongest people here.”
Her trainer gives a sly smile. “Really? But I thought you were the strongest.”
Pokke rolls her eyes. “I said one of, and I am. I just gotta beat her first.” Pokke tries to say firmly, but she just can't fight back the smile on her face. “Now get ‘outta here, old man! Didn't you say goodbye already?”
“Well, you know I like to take things slow.” The trainer exhales before pulling out of his parking space. “Remember! Tomorrow we'll be working on polish and maintaining cardio, so training's gonna be light and long. Clear your schedule.”
“Got it!”
“And remember your manners! Say goodbye!” He adds before driving off. Pokke flips off the speeding vehicle till it vanishes around the bend.
The parking lot grows quiet. Her trainer's words ring in her ears, for some reason. He was right. It was just a goodbye, but for some unknowable reason the idea itself seemed daunting. At that moment, Pokke spots her and her trainer in the corner of her eye discussing something. Probably the results and numbers from today.
Get a grip. It's just a goodbye.
“Hey! Tachyon!” She calls out to the pair. “I'm out! See ya!”
Tachyon's gaze snaps towards her. “Oh, Bucket! Wait! Before you go!” She responds while gesturing to Pokke to come closer. “I have a survey form you need to fill out!”
“Survey?” Pokke raises an eyebrow and turns back the mad scientist. “And it's Pokke, not Bucket.”
“It's for a study!” Tachyon ignores the correction and gestures even more intently. Pokke shrugs. At least she got to spend a little more time with Tachyon.
“Uh huh. Sure.” Pokke says as she takes the form out of Tachyon's hands. She flips through the questionnaire.
“Fill out this form and be as honest as possible! I need to record your exact feelings regarding me and this experiment.” Tachyon smiles.
“Dude, these are really weird questions.”
“Hm?” Tachyon turns with that unreadable smile. “How so? Is there a problem?”
“Oh, I dunno, just very personal. Like-” Pokke turns the form and points at a question. “Like, here. ‘agree or disagree: Agnes Tachyon negatively affected my training, and I would have performed better in her absence?’ What am I even supposed to answer?”
“The truth.” Tachyon answers plainly. “If you worry for my self esteem, then have no fear. I'm trying to get an objective grasp on your experience as a whole, not just what you enjoyed about me.”
“Still a weird question. Like, I'm not quite sure what you were expecting, asking your friends if they think they're better off without you." Pokke’s voice suddenly softens in a way that scares Tachyon. “I had fun, Tachy. I loved the run and I loved hanging out with ya. Everyone does.”
“Hm…” Tachyon considers this information and brings finger to her chin. “I will take that into consideration, but you still have to answer that specific question. Even if my wording was not the best, it's still vital information for the study. The crux of it, really.”
Pokke slouches. “Do I gotta?”
Tachyon nods. “Like I said, it is vital.”
“Fine.” Pokke concedes as she marked the double thumbs down. “What in the world are you studying anyway?”
Tachyon smiles brightly at the chance to talk about her research. “Well, I suppose I can tell you now. You see, I have very recently become fascinated with the effects of emotions on both training and overall race performance!”
“Really?” Pokke stifles a laugh. “You? Interested in emotions?”
“Indeed!” Tachyon beams with a smile so bright Pokke can't help but stare. “While it has been known that an athlete's personal feelings and mental state could greatly affect their performance, only recently have I begun to realize the extent of its effect! So, I did some experiments. Just some studies with you, the girls, my trainer, anyone really, and I've come to theorize that developing interpersonal relationships could be key in providing an emotional push to significantly improve training results!”
“Huh.” Pokke notes. “I mean, yeah. Training with other people helps. Anyone could tell you that.”
“True, but I wish to accurately quantify its effect. That's why I've been training with you and the others so regularly as of late, and why I'm detailing both your positive and negative opinions of me.” Tachyon admits. “I felt telling you sooner might skew the results, so I kept it hidden from you. But now that we're done, I suppose I can come clean!”
“Oooooh, that explains a lot actually.” Pokke gives a slight laugh. “I was actually wondering why you've been so social recently. You never really were the type to just hang.”
Tachyon’s tail flicks. “Well, don't get me wrong. I did want to “hang”, and I did enjoy spending time with you for the study.”
“Really?”
“Yes! I've even quantified how much I enjoyed it in my paper. Nines almost across the board!” Tachyon smiles brightly.
Pokke frowns. “Not tens?”
“You were a ten. The others…” Tachyon admits without much guilt. “Cafe sprained her ankle so I had to carry her to the infirmary with already aching legs and Dantsu had to leave early for a friend's birthday party on two separate occasions. No fault of their own, really, but I still dropped them to nine because it affected the experience.”
“Oh…” Pokke nods, feeling a little less special. “I see…”
Somehow, Tachyon notices her friend's emotional shift. So she tries to summon a smile and says “This study wouldn't work with people I didn't enjoy being with, Pokke. It's been fun.”
“Yeah?” Pokke smiles back. “Well, if ya enjoyed it that much, wanna keep it up? I got cardio tomorrow. Which, yeah, cardio is lame, but if training with friends helps that much then I'm sure it'll be better than training alone!”
“Very well, Bucket. But for now, focus on the survey. I need to record your exact feelings for the results to be as accurate as possible!”
A moment of silence passes before Pokke responds. “exact feelings, huh?”
“This is a study on emotions, after all.” Tachyon shrugs. “I, myself, struggle with them, so I understand if there is certain information you would rather not divulge. In fact, you need only answer the questions with an asterisk at the end! I encourage you to answer everything, truthfully and honestly, but if you can't, feel free to skip the question if it doesn't have the asterisk."
“Hm.” Pokke nods, staring at the paper without really reading it.
Suddenly, Pokke's heart started beating, which was a problem because her heart often moved before her brain did. When she felt something, she felt it, and she's never been good at stopping it. She joined Tracen on a whim, after all. Just because she saw Fuji Kiseki once and her heart decided that was what she wanted most. A shallow crush led her here, and then to the Yushun Derby and Japan Cup. And then her heart moves on. Perhaps deeper than she expected, but definitely faster.
“What if I had a crush on you, then?”
Tachyon laughs. “Pokke, you really are funny, you know that? Fill the form.”
“I'm serious though.” Pokke insists. “Would that skew the results?”
“I-” Tachyon stops and stutters. For the first time ever, Pokke thinks she sees a bit of red on her cheeks. “I am not sure, and I am already done with the experimenting phase so it's rather too late to account for the difference between love and friendship now.”
Then Tachyon brings her hand forward in a proud pose, as if she never flustered at all. “Besides, my study sought to prove a correlation between close bonds and training effectiveness! The nature of the bond doesn't matter as much, and its far too early to start dwelling on those specifics. As long as it's there, it counts as confirmation.”
“I think it matters.” Pokke argues, and Tachyon practically flinches.
“Why?”
“Because, well-” Pokke begins to shift nervously. “I can feel a difference. I've trained with friends before but with you, it feels better. Like, faster. So much faster. When I'm running with you, it feels like my feet hardly hit the ground and I could take off to the sky, so that means they must count for something, right? Better results, maybe?
With that, Tachyon's heart started beating a mile a minute, and she just finished cooling down. She tries to will herself to be calm. “Hm, I wonder why that is. Anyways-”
“Dude, I-” Pokke sighs loud enough to shut Tachyon up. “Look, I- I think it's because I like you. Was think’n of telling ya for a while, and just thought you oughta know if you're gonna be recording my emotions and shit.”
“Oh, well, that's good news!” Tachyon beams. She gestures to the form in Pokke's hand and smiles. “Please put that on the form there. Question… thirty-six?”
“What?”
“I mean, whether or not you like me is on the form, so-”
“Dude.” Pokke interrupts her. “I like you romantically.”
“...Oh I-” Tachyon stutters on her words. Her heart starts beating louder, much too loud to hear her own thoughts. “I didn't- I will take that into consideration.”
“Good to hear.” Pokke smiles back. “And what about you?”
“W-what?” Tachyon yelps, pitch higher than normal.
“I just wanted to ask, do you have feelings for anyone?” Pokke asks. “Do you like me too?”
Tachyon takes a moment to think. She hears the words and doesn't quite believe them. Pokke liked her romantically. The thought brings a shiver down her spine, but it was a good shiver? Are there good shivers? All sorts of questions fill her mind. Some useless, others bringing to light things she never thought possible. She struggles to make sense of it all, before focusing on that one, fatal question.
Did she like Pokke too?
Tachyon shrugs. “Oh, I dunno? Probably.”
“What?” Pokke asks, taking a few seconds to think. “Probably?”
Tachyon nods. “Mhm.”
Pokke's eyes light up with excitement. “W-what does ‘probably’ mean?”
“Well, simply put, Bucket-kun-” Tachyon snaps with a smile. "It's possible that I do like you, but I wouldn't bet on it!”
“Huh? What?” Pokke exclaims in complete and utter confusion. “Possible?”
“But not too probable.” Tachyon adds to Pokke’s annoyance.
“Wait, what? Dude, I-” Pokke runs her hand through her heir and tries to find her words. “I don't get it. So does that mean you like me or not?”
“No clue.”
“No clue?” Pokke echos in frustration.
“None at all!” Tachyon confirms a bit too gleefully. “But, I have to note that it is incredibly likely that I probably do.”
Pokke blinks. “I-what? I thought you said it wasn’t- whatever. Is that a yes?”
“No.”
“What?” Pokke asks, confused as hell while her own heart races. “So no? Cause, like, seriously. If you wanna stay friends, I can be oka-”
“No!” Tachyon protests.
“So you do like me?”
“...No.”
Pokke squints. “Huh? So, no, you don't?”
“No, not a no.”
“Dude, can you just be straight with me? Do you like me?”
“Evidence seems to suggest so.”
“What?” Pokke asks, exasperated. She can feel a slight migraine come on. “Evidence?”
“Indeed!” Tachyon smiles brightly. “You see, I am currently observing an elevated heart rate. My heart is pounding right now. I can feel it in my chest, and I can feel side effects of the rise in blood pressure such as the sudden heat in my cheeks, also known as blush. Or it could be from the training. Who knows? I also noticed I feel good whenever I am next to you, hinting at a rise in endorphins, which in turn could signify potential romantic feelings.”
Then, Tachyon brings her hand to her chin, deep in thought. “I also noticed a significant bias towards you in both my actions and my thoughts these past few months. Not a conscious one, mind you. Just a rather frequent tendency to favor you in my studies and my own personal thoughts-slash-feelings. Even in my personal time, I find myself thinking of you very often. So all in all, it is very likely that I have… those feelings for you.”
Pokke just stares in stunned silence for a few seconds. “So, is that a yes?”
“No.” Tachyon says coldly. “Just a hypothesis.”
Pokke grits her teeth. “And the hypothesis is?”
“Which one?”
“Huh???” Pokke feels like she's going to explode. “There's more than one?”
“Well, of course! Did you not listen in science class?” Tachyon answers with a smile. “I prefer using null hypothesis in my papers, but you can also use-”
“Okay, null hypothesis! What is the null hypothesis?”
“Hm…” Tachyon thinks. “As it stands, the null hypothesis would be “I do not have feelings for Jungle Pocket.”
A pang of pain goes off in Pokke's chest. “So, that you're saying you don't like me?”
“No. I said that it was the null hypothesis, silly! And I think it can be disproven."
“Disprove that you don't like me?”
“Yes.”
“So, that's a double negative! Meaning… you do like me?”
Tachyon thinks for a moment, then shrugs. “Oh, I dunno. Probably.”
Pokke suddenly goes silent.
“Bucket?” Tachyon calls. “Yoo hoooo, are you still here?”
Pokke doesn't respond. Instead, she puts both her hands on Tachyon's shoulders and grips hard. She grits her teeth and growls “Tachyon…”
And Tachyon starts to sweat. “...what?”
“ANSWER NORMALLY!” Pokke yells into Tachyon's face. “DO YOU LIKE ME OR NOT!”
Before Tachyon can say probably, Jungle Pocket shakes her violently. “AND DO NOT GIVE ME THAT HYPOTHESIS SCHMYPOTHESIS BULLSHIT! YES OR NO? DO YOU LIKE ME? GO!”
And in that moment time stops and fear strikes Tachyon down to her very soul. A chill runs down her spine as she realized she has been cornered. No more non-answers. No more running, and she is scared to admit when she already knows.
Unless…
No, no. That answer would just make everything worse. She can't hide anymore. She has to admit her feelings. Besides, that answer would be suicide, either by Pokke's rage or by herself because she would have no other choice kill herself in shame of saying that. She has to be direct. She has to say it. So, she tries to steel herself in that split second of decision.
But it's too late. The split second has passed, and the answer comes out.
“Or.”
Pokke's jaw drops. Neither of them really know what to say at this point. If Tachyon wasn't sweating before, she was now. But Pokke is frozen like a baroque statue. Tachyon's mind drifts to Ugolino and his Sons.
“Pokke?” She whispers in concern.
“I hate you.” Pokke whispers back. “I hate you so much.”
Tachyon's ears go down like a kicked puppy. “You hate me?”
Pokke chokes. “What? No! I-”
“You know what, of course you do. With everything I've done to you, I understand.” Tachyon whispers, not just to Pokke but also to herself. “I-I'm sorry.”
“DUDE!” Pokke shouts. “I LIKE YOU, YOU FUCKING IDIOT! SHUT THE FUCK UP! I JUST TOLD YOU I LIKED YOU!”
“But you said you hated me.”
Pokke tightens her grip on Tachyon's shoulders. “OH, I DO!”
“But… You like me?”
“YES!”
“Oh. Okay, so-” Tachyon stills, trying to add too much logic to a really basic emotion. “Huh?”
“Dude…” Pokke slumps. “It's cuz I like you that much. I- it's beyond like, ya know? I just-” Pokke sighs.
“I think I love you.” She says. “I love you a lot. Maybe too much. And yeah, you're infuriating, but that doesn't matter. You piss me off. You annoy me on purpose and you're constantly testing my patience, and you almost ruined my life those times you beat me, and that one time you quit. But I just love you too much. So no matter how much you make me hate you, with all your infuriating quirks and all this bullshit, I think I'll still love you.”
Then Pokke breathes. “For you, I'll do anything. I'll bear it all. All the bullshit and whatever because it's you, and I love it, and it's just that good and so, so worth it. But for now, please Tachyon, no bullshit. Be straight with me, do you feel the same?”
And then, her voice cracks, and something else glimmers in Pokke's eyes. “Please, Tachy. Tell me, do you?
Once again, Tachyon was cornered.
Pokke was genuine, and Tachyon was afraid.
Pokke feels a sting, and looks down to find a needle in her tummy.
“Are you fucking serious?” Is all she says before her vision fades to black, and she falls into a deep, 1-3 hour slumber.
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“And that brings us to now!” Tachyon summarises to a rather horrified looking crowd. “So any advice?”
Agnes Digital stares at her with murder in her eyes.
“Digitan?” Tachyon asks. “You still here?”
“Are you fucking serious?” Cafe's crunchy voice screams through the phone
Tachyon blinks. “Huh?” She scrambles to the phone. “You're still there?”
“Tachyon…” Digital asks with a shaky voice. Tachyon turns to her in concern.
“...yes?”
“You're an idiot.”
“Hey!”
“Yeah, you're an idiot.” Cafe agrees over the mic.
Tachyon pouts. “You too?”
“You drugged her?” Digital clarifies, but Tachyon dismisses the statement with a wave.
“Yes, I did.” Tachyon answers. “But I drug her all the time so it should be fine.”
Digital's jaw drops. “Excuse me? What? So, you just jab her with needles a lot?”
“Yes.”
“Tachyon…” Digital cries. “Why?”
“For research.”
“And then you just left her there?”
“What? No. I would never.” Tachyon suddenly gets defensive. “I picked her up and left her at her dormitory.”
“And you brought her to her room?”
Tachyon stays silent.
"Tachyon?” Digital repeats with worry. “You brought Pokke back to her room, right?”
“I left her at the building doorstep and texted Fuji Kiseki to pick her up.”
Agnes Digital feels like crying. “Tachyon…” She pleads with a cracking voice. “Oh my god...”
“Okay-” Tachyon admits with her hands up. "Alright, girls, Digitan, Cafe. Maybe I could have handled that better.”
“Maybe?” Cafe screams as Digital starts sobbing uncontrollably.
“My OTP!” the pink haired uma screams into her pillow, soaking it in tears. “It's deaaaaaad! My ship is SINKING!”
“No! We still have a chance!” Tachyon tries to defend herself to neither of her friend's amusement.
“No you don't.” Cafe crunches through the speaker. “Genuinely, what did you mean ‘Maybe probably like you?’”
“I meant what I said!” Tachyon insists. “there was perhaps potential that I did like her! There was a possibility, I don't know why she'd be so mad about that.”
Digital starts crying harder, and Cafe stays dead silent.
“...Cafe?”
“If I confessed to somebody, and they told me they might perhaps potential like me, and then knocked me out with local anaesthesia, I would kill myself on the spot.”
Tachyon girls her teeth. “You're not helping, Café.”
“I don't think I can!” Cafe replies. “How do you even salvage this? She confessed and you knocked her out, Tachyon! You drugged her and left her at the doorstep of-”
Tachyon hangs up before she hears anything else and turns to Digital. “Alright, girl, Digitan, roomie. Maybe I could have handled it better.”
“Maybe?” Digital asks, voice still muffled by the pillow she cried into.
“Definitely.” Tachyon finally concedes. “I definitely could have handled that better.”
“Oh my god-” Digital creams as she slams her pillow with her fist.
“BUT-” Tachyon announces. “I left her a handwritten note accepting her offer to train cardio together tomorrow. That must count for something!”
Digital looks up at Tachyon. “Tachy, I don't think that's enough…”
“No, it has to be.” Tachyon pleads, sitting beside Digital and holding her hand. “Please, Digitan, you're the only one I know who can help me. You're the only one I know who's an expert on these… relationship things. You've got to help me Digitan. You're my only hope.”
“No, you're right.” Digitan sniffs before a steely look of determination spark in her eyes. “You're right! I-I can't let true love fade like this! I can't let my OTP die! Not without a fight.”
Then Digital clasps tachyon's hands firmly. “I swear on my honor, I swear on my life! I swear on my heart and my soul, and the heart and soul of my trainer! I will not let my ship sink! I will do anything! I will move a thousand mountains before I let Poketaki die!”
“Excellent!” Tachyon agrees while wondering what on earth a Poketaki is. “Now what do we do?”
Digital freezes, then scratches the back of her head.
“Wait, yeah. What do we do?”
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“I'm going to kill her.” Fuji Kiseki growls. Seeing the head of the Ritto dormitory angry was a rare sight, and when she did get angry, chances were you wouldn't tell. But now her rage was worn plain, because this wasn't just any uma. This was her friend.
The freshly awoken Jungle Pocket looks up at her. “C'mon, man. Don't joke like that.” She says bringing a glass to her lips. The Amber liquid brings a fruity taste to her lips. She savors it, then breathes out with a gasp.
“I'm not joking.” Fuji Kiseki insists. “What she did to you was really bad.”
“I know, I know.” Pokke agrees as she swirls the amber liquid and watches it dance. “Just, like, don't kill her, I guess.” She adds before kissing the glass and drinking the spit.
“There, there.” Dantsu Flame attempts to sooth as she places a hand on Pokke's shoulder. When Pokke finishes her glass, she leans forward and rubs her heartbroken friends's shoulders. “Would you like more apple juice, Pokke?”
“Mhm.” Pokke sighs as she hands Dantsu her glass. “You know, she's always like this. Always dancing around me and everybody, toying with my feelings like it's nothing, because she doesn't have any feelings unless it's about racing. God, does she feel anything?”
Pokke sighs again. “You know, she's always been like this. I should have expected it! I've been chasing her since the start of my career, since Satsuki Sho. Remember that? Shit, how long have I been trying to catch up to her? And right as I do, right as I start making her sweat on the track, right as we're closer than we've ever been, and we're hanging out daily, and she lets me get closer, I lose it! I fucking lose it, and I lose her. She kicks me in the shins and flies away, because my dumbass had to fall in love then confess like an idiot. Now she's spooked! Now she's gone. Gone forever. And the worst part? I still wanna chase her!”
Pokke screams in anguish. “I hate loving her, man! Goddamn!”
Fuji Kiseki leans closer. “Wait you still love her?”
Pokke sighs. “Yeah. Unfortunately.”
Dantsu gives her a look of concern. “Seriously? Are you sure you still like her?”
“I mean, yeah. I wouldn't feel like shit right now if I didn't.” Pokke answers before turning to Dantsu. “Why?”
“Because, well, Pokke…” Dantsu tries to find the right words. “Pokke, she drugged you. For most people that would be a dealbreaker.”
“Yeah. It's a bit of a red flag.” Fuji Kiseki agrees.
“Mhm.” Dantsu nods. “Instant ick, personally.”
Poke groans. “You don't get it.”
“Don't get it?” Fuji kiseki echoes in surprise. “Pokke, she stabbed you with a chloroform needle!”
“Yeah! That's kinda scary.”
Pokke smiles a bit. “Yeah. I suppose, yeah, it was kinda scary. But I dunno.” She says as leans forward, placing her head on the table. “I guess I’m just used to it.”
“Used to it?” Danstu asks, just to make sure she heard right. “Wait, so does she drug you often?”
“I wouldn't say often, but you know, every once in a while.” Pokke answers longingly. “And, yeah, it was scary at first. The first time it happened, man, I thought I was gonna die. But you know, she kept doing it more and more often, and I am her favorite guinea pig, after all. It just kept happening and happening and eventually, I dunno. I guess I just started looking forward to it. Walking around, losing my balance, closing my eyes, and suddenly opening them to see her.”
Pokke buries her face in her arms and groans. “Man, I miss her. I fumbled so BAAAAD!”
Dantsu rubs her heartbroken friend’s shoulders in a sad attempt to sooth before looking at Fuji and whispering “Girl, what the fuck?”
Fuji Kiseki shrugs. “I dunno, man!” She whispers back. “I knew Tachyon was rather… strange, but what the hell? She's kidnapping Pokke?”
“Giiiirl!” Danstu agrees with a silent shout. “What do I even say? She's been Pavlov-ed into enjoying chloroform so she can see her crush!”
“I can hear you.” Pokke interrupts them. “And I don't know what a pav-love is, but yeah! I am in love! It's more than a crush, and I don't care if it's pav because, really! I loved her, man! And I threw it away like an idiot! Dammit!”
Then suddenly, Pokke stops. She looks right at Kiseki Fuji with hurt and wet eyes. “Hey, Fuji-” She says. “You’re always asking people out and going on dates and stuff. What do you do when they reject you?”
“Um, I dunno, girl.” Fuji Kiseki answers nervously. “I, um, I've never been… rejected.”
Pokke screams into her arms and Danstu gives Kiseki Fuji a death glare.
“Well, uh I can tell you what they always do when I reject them, if it makes you feel any better!” Fuji Kiseki tries to salvage the situation. Pokke groans again.
“Fine.” Pokke says. “I'll take anything.”
“Well, you see-” Fuji Kiseki starts before realizing she never sees those girls ever again, and if she did she probably didn't recognize them. “Um- t-they, uhhh…”
Pokke just stares, waiting, and Dantsu Flame elbows her hard.
“...sorry.”
Pokke screams again before calming down and bluntly declaring. “I have got to kill myself.”
And Fuji Kiseki knows she wants to. “Please don't.”
“Please don't.” Dantsu Flame agrees. “There are plenty of fish in the sea, and some of them might not drug you.”
“But I don't want other fish. I want Tachyon to like me again.”
“Well, she didn't say that she didn't like you.” Fuji throws out there. It falls flat with her friends, who stare at her blankly
“Fuji-” Dantsu pleads her to stop, but Fuji Kiseki continues.
“I mean, this is Tachyon we're talking about. Did she say that she didn't?”
“She said ‘probably’.” Pokke answers before burying her head in her arms again. “She might as well have.”
Fuji snaps her fingers. “But she didn't. She said ‘maybe’, panicked, and ran away.”
Dantsu blinks. “Wait. You might actually be on to something.”
“What? That Tachy didn't say yes? I know bro. Stop rubbing it in.” Pokke argues from within her arms.
“When does Tachyon say anything?” Dantsu counters. “She didn't say yes, but she couldn't bring herself to say no. And when is Tachyon ever direct about anything?”
“Exactly!” Fuji Kiseki agrees. “She keeps a lot of secrets. She kept her legs a secret, even when they were about to snap in half. She keeps her experiments secret, she keeps her life a secret, and she never lets anyone close.”
“Well, then why would she keep this? I asked her directly if she liked me. If she did, why the hell wouldn't she say yes?”
“Same reason she didn't say everything else.” Fuji Kiseki answers. “She was scared.”
Pokke seems to flinch at the answer. She's still for a moment too long, and Fuji Kiseki and Dantsu are with her every second of silence. When Pokke does speak, its nothing like before. It's soft and silent, and there's a tremble in every word.
“But I'm scared too.” The champion whimpers. “I know I scared her. I shouldn't have sprung her like that. I don't want her to hate me.”
Then even softer, Pokke cries. “I don't want her to hate me.”
Fuji Kiseki gives her a sweet, comforting smile. “It's okay to be a little scared.”
“Yeah.” Dantsu adds with a smile of her own. “We're with you every step of the way.”
The rigidity in Pokke's shoulders disappears, and the umamusume seems to relax. Her friends can't hear her words with her face still buried in her arms, but they know her well enough to understand what she says.
“No problem.” Fuji accepts it.
“Is there anything else we could do for you?” Dantsu offers.
Pokke stays silent for a moment before answering with a single word. “Parfait...”
Another moment passes before she adds “please…” but Dantsu’s already moving. Soon enough, they have parfaits for three, and the conversation shifts. They talk for an hour, and one hour becomes more, and by late night things seem to settle. Dantsu yawns. She was the responsible one, after all. She went to bed earlier than this, and almost fell asleep walking up the stairs to her room. Pokke and Fuji accompany her to make sure she doesn't fall, and after they greet her goodnight, they look at each other and nod.
“Thanks.” Pokke says.
“Don't mention it.” Fuji answers. “I enjoyed the parfaits.”
“Yeah. They were great!” Pokke agrees. “Dantsu's a great chef, man, I just, I really needed some tonight. So really. Thanks.”
Fuji Kiseki knows she isn't talking about parfaits, but she smiles anyway. “Don't mention it. What are friends for?” She says before pulling Pokke into a surprise bear hug. Pokke yelps a little before smiling.
“What's this for?” The often brash champion protests, but doesn't fight back. She seems to melt into it, and Kiseki Fuji gladly supports the weight.
“Dunno. Felt like it.” Fuji answers before letting go. “Good night now. You sleep well, okay? We still have school tomorrow."
“Yeah, yeah. Whatever.” Pokke says, some of the old, joyful and headstrong energy returning to her. “Good night.”
“G’night” Fuji Kiseki tells her again. She watches Pokke enter her room.
With the hallway now silent, Fuji smiles at nothing in particular. Pokke has had a long day. The head of Ritto Dormitory trusts she'll be sleeping very hard, very soon. Everyone in the building is probably asleep now. Fuji thinks she ought to do the same. She stretches and yawns. Tired bones crack in the empty space, ready to rest. But before she does, she breathes in the dormitory air, turns off the hallway light and wishes everyone on this floor sweet dreams and a very good night’s rest.
If they don't get that, at least Fuji will be there tomorrow; smiling as always and happy to help