Work Text:
Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
The faint sound of a clock ticking is the only sound in the room, save for the odd scritch-scratching of pen on paper. The room is bathed in a warm orange as Dia Kurosawa keeps a steady pace, reading over club proposals and making notes on each before deciding their fate.
Student Council work is a kind of therapy for Dia. It helped her cope when things in her life got out of hand; her only constant (aside from Ruby) in a sea full of turmoil and emotion. When all else failed, she knew that it would always be there for her.
Life has changed for her in many ways since she became Student Council President, though. A whirlwind of change in the form of Chika Takami brought her so many conflicting emotions, but she wouldn’t change it for the world because it brought back her two best friends-
No, wait. Girlfriends.
The sound of pen on paper comes to a halt as Dia takes a moment to compose herself. It really had been an unexpected development, their newfound relationship. She allows herself a small smile as she remembers how it all came about, a balmy evening wherein Mari was over the top and Kanan so suave and charming and everything felt right with the world.
Still, Dia had her reservations about the whole thing. She’d insisted they keep it a secret from the rest of Aqours for the time being (despite Mari’s insistence that it would be “SHINY!”), and even though they had been getting on fine…
She wondered sometimes whether she belonged in the relationship.
Of course, she would never voice those concerns! She knew it was silly to think that way; she knew just how much Mari and Kanan loved her, and how much she loved them in return; but that wouldn’t stop the nagging thoughts living inside her, gnawing away at her. She saw the way Kanan and Mari had an almost telepathic connection sometimes, she couldn’t help not see it. They fit so well together, and there she was, plain old Dia Kurosawa, like the square trying so desperately to fit itself inside the triangle that was Kanan and Mari.
When she felt like this, even though she knew it to be untrue, it would tear her up inside. So she would turn to Student Council work and bury herself in it until she either got tired or worked through her emotions.
She took a slow, deep breath, and continued to work.
-
The sun had dipped ever lower in the sky by the time Dia was finished with her work. She allowed herself to stretch, leaning back and closing her eyes. When she opened them again, she found herself looking right into a pair of eyes.
“Dia~!”
Startled, Dia jumped back in her seat.
“M-Mari! Where did you come from!?”
A small giggle and a mysterious smile was Mari’s only response. Sighing, Dia stood up.
“We’ve been here a while, Dia.” Dia turned round to see Kanan stood behind her, by the window. “You were so into your work, you didn’t even notice your girlfriends come in for 20 minutes…”
Dia felt a blush creep up her face. Had it really been that long? “Y-you could have said something…”
“We did, Dia.” Kanan had a small, knowing smile on her face, which made Dia blush even harder.
“But it’s okay!” Mari chimed in. “Because now that you’ve noticed us…”
Dia suddenly felt a pair of arms around her. Kanan was behind her, holding her in an embrace.
“We can launch our special hug attack~!”
Mari launched herself at Dia, grabbing her and sending the three of them tumbling to the floor in a tangle of arms, laughter from Kanan and Mari, and indignant squawks from Dia as she tried desperately to process just what was happening.
They eventually wound up in a more comfortable position, Mari moving off Dia slightly so that even though they were on the floor, they weren’t so tangled. Dia eventually opened her mouth to say something, but Mari pressed a finger to her lips.
“Ah-ah-ah, no words Dia.” Dia gave her a questioning look, but it was Kanan who responded from behind her.
“We could tell something’s bugging you, Dia.” Dia turned her head to look at Kanan as best she could. “You weren’t your usual self during practice earlier. We figured you’d be here.”
Dia felt the blush come back to her face. They’d noticed? Was she really that obvious? She thought she’d managed to keep a good facade up.
“You know you can count on us, right Dia?” Mari lent her head into Dia, planting a kiss on her cheek.
“You don’t have to tell us what’s wrong now,” Kanan lent in and placed a kiss on Dia’s other cheek, and if Dia was blushing before, she was surely crimson by now. “Any time you want to talk, we’re here…”
Dia could feel her heart overflowing with love for the two girls with her in this moment, wondering just how she’d gotten so lucky to have such understanding and caring girlfriends. She chose not to talk, lest her words betray her, instead letting herself be cocooned in the warmth and love surrounding her in the moment.
Maybe she did belong, after all.