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“Be there or be square!”
Rover watched Chixia depart, a bounce in her step as there always had been since they met. She sighed, glancing up at the night sky. It had been a long couple of days, this whole lost memory thing was starting to really frustrate her.
“Do you have a place to stay, Rover?”
Yangyang asked quietly into the space between them, brushing feathery hair from her face. Rover examined the other woman, feeling her heart jump. Yangyang had been nothing but helpful to her, she really appreciated her calming presence. Part of her felt disappointed that she did in fact have a place to stay, in the city hall. If anything at least it would be comfortable.
Before Rover got a chance to answer, however, seeming to sense her hesitation Yangyang smiled, “You can come and stay with me, in my home, if you’d like?”
She nodded slowly, growing nervous suddenly. Yangyang reached out a hand and gently placed it on Rover’s arm, the pads of her fingers surprisingly soft for a swordswoman. It was hard to focus on anything that wasn’t her hand on her arm, but Rover eventually cleared her throat and replied, “That would be nice, thank you Yangyang.”
“Of course, we couldn’t do with our beloved Rover being out on the streets.” She giggled and Rover couldn’t help but think that it was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen. Gently, Yangyang pulled on Rover’s arm and began to lead her toward the residential area of the city. Rover simply followed, taking in the sights around her, but mostly staring at the back of Yangyang’s head. She wondered what her home looked like, if there would be enough space to house her for the night. Would they have to share a bed?
Before she knew it, the pair arrived at a quaint apartment building that Yangyang unlocked the door to. She led Rover inside and locked the door shut behind them, heading for the stairs. Rover followed dutifully, glancing at the traditional paintings hung on the wall and photographs depicting what looked like an old Jinzhou City.
Rover stopped suddenly to avoid walking into the back of her host, peeking around her as she unlocked another door. They were at Yangyang’s apartment. The moment Rover stepped inside she could tell that it was her friend’s, from the immaculate state of the room to the small potted plants and other homely decorations. Yangyang brushed a hand on her lower back as she passed and Rover shuddered.
“Is it alright if I take a shower? I’ll set you up in the spare room after.”
Pushing the thought of Yangyang in the shower from her head, Rover nodded an affirmative, “Where should I..?”
“Just sit anywhere, help yourself to the kitchen!”
“Ok..” Rover watched her disappear down the hall and moved to sit down on the nearby couch, posture rigid. She wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do in this situation or how to act, she didn’t have memories of her name let alone customs or acceptable behaviours. She obviously knew right from wrong, but not what to do in another woman’s house. Especially when she… Might possibly like the woman in more than a friendly way, which she wasn’t even sure was acceptable in Huanglong.
She considered getting something to eat from Yangyang’s kitchen but even though she’d already approved it it felt rude, so Rover stayed seated, knee gently jumping up and down whilst she waited. She didn’t actually know how much sleep she would manage to get, since she’d been running non stop and still was, body full of adrenaline. Honestly, she wasn’t even tired.
The shower turned on down the hall and Rover’s head turned toward it. How long would Yangyang take? It wouldn’t hurt to check out this spare room, would it? Slowly, Rover got up and headed down the hall, pausing at the bathroom door. It was cracked open, light falling out into the dark hallway. She hesitated, then quickly continued past the door. Invading Yangyang’s privacy like that would be… Terrible. Glancing into one of the rooms, she assumed she’d found Yangyang’s room. It was like the rest of the apartment, the bed was neatly made and a photo of her, Yangyang and a pink haired woman was propped up on the bedside table.
Rover stepped into the room, looking around. She hadn’t realised but the shower had turned off and footsteps padded toward the room she was in, “Oh!”
She turned suddenly, mouth opening to apologise when she saw Yangyang in nothing but a towel. Her hair was damp and fell around her face and shoulders in curls, water droplets sliding down her cheeks still, and the skin of her shoulders and chest tinged pink from the heat. Rover’s mouth turned dry, her stomach growing warm.
“It’s alright!” Yangyang reassured her quickly, “The spare room is the other door.”
Rover nodded and fled from the room, entering the spare room and almost slamming the sliding door closed. She kept her hands pressed against the canvas and wood frame for a beat, face so warm that she could almost say she’d taken a hot shower herself. She shouldn’t have moved from the couch.
A few minutes passed and eventually there was a faint knock against the door, “Rover? Are you ok?”
She was, wasn’t she? It wasn’t a big deal, they were friends, friends probably shared moments like that all the time. How could she decide what friends did and didn’t experience? Exhaling, she slid the door open. Yangyang was dressed now in a loose sleep shirt and pants, the image of her in a towel flashing behind Rover’s eyes immediately, making her blush.
“I’m alright. I’m sorry for going into your room without asking, I shouldn’t have-”
“Oh no, no it’s fine! Really!” Yangyang insisted, moving closer to Rover. At first Rover thought she might, but then she moved around her toward the bed and started pulling spare sheets from a box beneath the bed. She watched her prepare the bed for the night, pulling the sheet over the corners of the mattress and setting up the blanket. It was warm enough that Rover was sure she wouldn’t even need it.
Once she was done, she looked back at Rover with a little smile. It looked knowing, like she could peer inside of Rover’s head and had figured out all of the dastardly little thoughts she’d been having. Yangyang approached Rover and, once again, rested a hand on her arm.
“I hope this is alright?”
Rover hummed, eyes glued to her host’s rather than the bed she’d made up. Yangyang’s eyebrows raised and she leaned in. Rover’s eyes closed then, holding her breath and preparing for the worst only for Yangyang to kiss her cheek.
“Goodnight, Rover.”
And then she was gone. Rover raised her fingers to brush over where she’d been kissed, feeling all sorts of warm and fuzzy. That moment would be ingrained in her mind for… A long time after this. She only hoped that maybe… It was more than a friend thing, something they’d be able to explore once this whole thing was done with and the tacet discords died down, if they ever did. Rover sat on the edge of the bed made for her with a little smile, similar to the one Yangyang had had, and laid back.
Staring at the ceiling, she decided then that she wouldn’t let anything bad happen to Yangyang, no matter what. She was going to protect her with her life.