Chapter Text
-8:45pm-
Katy should be home by now. She normally got off work around 6:50 and made it home in between 7 and 7:30. If she was later then normal, she would let them know what was keeping her. But, other than that, Katy always hurried home after work.
Ma-san stared at the pages in her book, fidgeting with the corners. She didn't like how late Katy was. She should've been home right now. She wouldn't openly admit it, but it was eating away at her how off this was. But, she couldn't let it overwhelm her. After all, she wasn't the only one who was worried. She turned her head slightly, letting her eyes drift to the other side of the couch.
Lammy laid curled up, staring blankly at the TV. Despite her laying position, she was anything but relaxed. She too noticed the unusual absence of their feline partner. Aside from the clicking taps from her hooves, she was dead silent. The only noise other than the TV was the nervous fidgeting between the two. Even without words, they both conveyed the same emotions.
"...Did you text her?" Lammy muttered, the first one to break the 'silence.' "#@!, %!!$~+#...(Yep, still nothing back...)" Ma-san answered, equally as soft as Lammy. Said lamb huffed at the lack of response from Katy. She should've been able to answer them, she's off work. She should be home by now. "!@^/>!!~... (She'll be home...)" the mouse squeaked. "I-I hope so..." was her response. She hoped so too. Worrying was the last thing she wanted to do.
-9:30pm-
Ma-San stared blankly at the kettle on the stove. She decided to brew her and Lammy some tea. Just to ease the nerves. And her mind. Her mind was in a place she really didn't want to be in. Speaking of Lammy, she was a complete mess. She paced around the living room with her phone glued to her ear, desperate to anything other than startup ringing and Katy's voicemail. Each failed attempt to call her was met with a disgruntled snort or a exasperated sigh.
The mouse wrenched her eyes from the brewing pot to glance at the pacing lamb. She hated seeing her girlfriend like this, it broke her heart. And at the same time, it irritated her. Seeing Lammy be a worried mess only made her into a worried mess. And she didn't want to worry right now. Before Lammy could scream at her phone after her 15th missed call, the kettle whistled loudly. With one swift motion, Ma-san moved the kettle to the cold stove eye, an effort to spare them both from the grating noise.
Lammy plopped herself down on the couch and continued her, seemingly fruitless, endeavor of reaching Katy. She barely paid attention to the soft clink of the teacups hitting the coffee table. She had to get through, she HAD to... and for a moment, she thought she did. The startup ringing cut earlier than last time, causing her shoot up from her original spot. But, before she could speak a single word....
Dial tone...
No voicemail, no ringing, nothing.
'What just happened? Why did it do that?' That was the only thing Ma-san could think. Seeing it play out in real time only served to confuse and rile her up more. Why did the ringing cut early? Shouldn't that mean someone picked up? Her grip on the book tightened... Katy wouldn't just leave them with no answers. She would've let them know if something happened. She glared at the pages harder, trying to focus on the printed words.
Something had to be up. SOMETHING HAD TO HAVE HAPPENED. She snatched up her teacup and downed it in one gulp. She needed to calm down...She couldn't lose her cool now, not when Lammy already better at doing that then she was. Ma-san turned slightly to look at the lamb, only to see her directing an empty glare at the floor. Her expression was unreadable. Before Ma-san could register what she was doing, she set down her book and pushed herself into Lammy, her hands gently caressing her arm. She was trying to calm the lamb as well as herself-
"...Why are you so calm?" The lamb's voice was low, with a hint of annoyance. "We h-haven't been able to reach Katy for t-the past two hours... and... a-and...y-you've been so u-unbothered-" "$~@#%<!... (You think I'm not worried...?)" Lammy stopped. "...~%#*/~#@%- (...You think I'm not stressed out too...? )" The mouse's words were building with anger, the fuse in her head sparking to life. "I-I didn't mean..." Lammy whispered.
"@#-#^-%+>! (I'm just as worried as you are!)" Ma-san squeaked "%^$,-#%~@! (But oh, excuse me for not wanting to panic with you!)" Lammy kept quiet at the mouse's angry rant. "#!#@$%$^! (Apologies for not wanting to think something bad happened!)" She huffed, her small body shivering with a mixture of feelings she didn't want to feel. If she got too absorbed in these feelings, she'd be restless. "...I didn't mean it...like that.....sorry." Lammy spoke solemnly, watching her smaller partner pour another cup of tea and gulp it all down in the same time frame.
Ma-san sighed, burying her face into her hands. "#-...*$@%*-$!~ (I-...no. I'm sorry...)" She scooted closer to the lamb, leaning against her. ".../^@-#@°/$#! (I'm just- really, really on edge. )" Lammy hummed and wrapped her arm around the mouse. "I-It's okay... I think Katy just caught up in something. You know how PaRappa Town is..." She said jokingly. "$<*!, %/>°~... (Yeah, right...)" Ma-san responded, uncertainty still laced in her words. Lammy shared that feeling, but she wanted to give the same comfort the mouse gave to her. "I-I'm sure she'll be back any-"
*Click*
The sound of the door lock being worked on cut the lamb's sentence. Katy has a key. Without a second of hesitation, both of them jumped from their spots and rushed to the door. Lammy clumsily unlocked the door as Ma-san circled around her, chirping all the while.
Before Katy could get her apologies out, she was nearly tackled by the other two band members. The lamb squeezed her from the front, while the mouse wrapped her limbs around the cat's lower back. "Whoa! H-Hi guys... sorry for bein' late, the craziest thing happened..." Katy started, before stopping at no reply from either of her partners. The reason for her tardiness wasn't their main thought right now. They were just happy she's here and safe.
Katy simply smiled. "Well, the details don't matter right now..." she shrugged, practically being dragged indoors "...I'm just glad to be home."