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“Raaaan~.”
“What?”
“What d’you think it’d be like if we dated?”
The Haneoka rooftop (colloquially referred to as “the Afterglow rooftop”) was a prime spot for entertainment: each day it hosted all five members. At different intervals it would be enjoyed by anywhere from one to all of them - excluding the lunch hour, where all five would surely be in attendance - and more than once a certain zealous president and their anxious vice had thrown a highly illegal fireworks show. Sometimes Tomoe even brought Ako aboard, and at others a few familiar faces may have come to visit, usually with purpose.
Today, the rooftop hosted a low capacity with only two in tow. Moca reclined on Ran’s lap, luxuriously basking in the sun’s mild rays; it was one of the few times where Ran would allow them to without complaint, her guard down with no-one else around.
Unfortunately, it seemed that Ran should have been alert enough to keep her guard up.
“Why do you ask?”
That question had trickster Moca stench all over it; Ran readied herself for an assault of comedic jabs, each one accurate enough to offend.
“Mm… Just thinking.”
Oh. Moca was serious.
Ran felt guilty for doubting them so quickly. But then again, since when had Moca ever shown interest in dating? Sure, they joked about finding a fair maiden or smoking hot celebrity girlfriend from time to time, but Ran knew that was just another scandalous ploy, scientifically engineered to get under others’ skin.
“Like…” They plastered their pointer finger under their chin, allowing their head to rest on their thumb. “What’d be different? We’re already soulmates… Two star-crossed lovers in this crazy world…”
A prompt thwap to their head.
“Get serious.”
“Owie…”
Ran sighed. It looked like she had to take it upon herself to redirect the mood. “Couples usually, um… kiss, and stuff… And we don’t do that, so… I guess we’d kiss.”
“... Do you want to kiss?”
“The hell…?” she cursed under her breath. “Are you saying that you wanna date, or?”
Looking down at them, it seemed as if Moca was seriously pondering the question - then, as if erasing any crumb of genuinity from their mind, they forced on a worn grin. “Ohhh, you’re asking me out? How forward of you, Ran~.”
A second thwap to their head: lighter this time.
“That’s two strikes. Hit three and you’re on thin fucking ice. One more after that and you’re out.” Glancing away, Ran tangled her fingers in Moca’s hair, like she was seeking stability. “I’ll be serious if you will.”
“... I don’t wanna kiss you. I don’t wanna kiss anyone. Is that…” They seemed to reconsider the idea. “Nah, forget it. That sounds stupid.”
“It’s not stupid,” reassured Ran, an instinctive speed to her words. “Um, if it helps… I wouldn’t mind trying, but I don’t think I’d like it either.”
Trying to stumble past their emotional awkwardness, neither of them spoke for a minute. The sun’s rays seemed a little harsher, and Moca felt like the hand in their hair was getting more restrictive.
“Um… You didn’t answer my question, you know.”
But Moca tried to let Ran’s movements soothe them again.
“That’s ‘cause I… apart from that, I still don’t know what would be different.”
“What?” Ran asked, as if calling out for the sake of it. “Are you saying that, like… we’re practically dating already?”
“Like an old married couple~,” they joked. “But… we aren’t dating.”
Ran hummed in agreement. “We get weird looks from people who don’t know us, though. Because we act too differently to most friends.”
“We’ve been together for years, though. That pretty much guarantees we’re leagues closer than everyone else.”
“... That isn’t all there is to it and you know it,” she admitted, mustering up the determination to do it. “There’s something different about us.”
“... Don’t say that—”
“Why not?”
Stunned into silence, Moca shifted in Ran’s lap, turning their body away from her. “Dunno.”
“You seriously don’t know, or what?”
They merely shrugged. “I guess… If we can’t work out what’s different, then I don’t wanna think about it. Too much for Moca-chan’s lil’ noggin.”
“Why don’t we just try working it out then?” suggested Ran. “I guess I don’t mind that.”
“... I don’t wanna find out I’m crushing on you,” Moca confessed, face still turned away from the light with purpose. “I like how we are now.”
“Moca,” Ran spoke firmly. “If you don’t want to crush on me, because you don’t want to date me, then you probably aren’t. Things will just stay the same as always between us.”
“Ohhh~ There’s that catchphrase again~,” they celebrated, rolling over in delight. “Bingo~!”
“What’d you even get three in a row of to get bingo?”
“A magician never reveals their secrets.”
Ran sighed. “You still haven’t officially answered my question yet. Hurry up. I’m getting exhausted just looking at you.”
“Aww, babe…” they cooed. “Do I have to?”
“Clearly.”
“If I must,” Moca conceded, huffing. “I don’t think I wanna date you, but… I doubt we’re all buddy-buddy either. And I guess I… don’t really wanna be.”
“What do you mean, “buddy-buddy”?”
“Like. Well, you said it,” they deflected. “We get funny looks ‘cause we don’t act like friends. But I bet we’d be a reaaaal weird pair of lovers~.”
“It’s a good thing we’re not, then,” Ran commented, smiling. “You know, you’ve fucked with my whole perception of attraction.”
Moca gasped theatrically, their hands slamming to their chest. “Lil’ old me?”
Throwing their head off of her lap, Ran laughed breathlessly, before pulling their head back on again. Moca was extremely useful as a stress ball. “Yes, you. This isn’t the first time I’ve thought about how weird we are. I mean, there’s been… this girl…” Moca wiggled their eyebrows, a mischievous grin growing on their face. Ran ignored it. “... And I can’t tell if I like her or wanna be friends with her because of how confusing our relationship is. I guess we’re platonic, but it’s not the same with others as it is with you, and a lot of the stuff we do… Well, I want that with her.”
Moca reached up to grab… some part of Ran to shake, it seemed. “Who is iiiit?”
“... Not telling.”
“Pleaaase?” they begged. “I thought we were besties.”
“Never say that word again,” ordered Ran, her tone one of steel. “But you’re really close to her. You’d just go run and tell her.”
Clicking their tongue for effect, Moca winked simultaneously. “So it’s Lisa-san. Got it.”
Choking out some guttural noise that only served to confirm Moca’s guess (that was another one for bingo), Ran’s cheeks flushed with red. “As if.”
“I’ve obtained all I need to know.”
“... Damn it,” cursed Ran - not for the first time that hour, and certainly not for the last. “Don’t you have any crushes I can make fun of you for?”
“Moca-chan has no such weakness~.”
“... Fine.”
Despite their warmth, the sun’s rays had some sort of cooling effect on Moca, relaxing their tired frame. Ran, on the other hand, was steaming from irritation and anxiety.
“Raaan~.”
“What?”
“You really think we’re weird?”
Combing through Moca’s hair, their head fitting comfortably in her lap, Ran thought about the question.
She didn’t take much time at all.
“No,” she answered confidently. “I think we’re just fine.”