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Inside of the Earth House hangar, Suletta stared up towards Aerial that had been docked within. Part of her wanted to crawl inside the cockpit to think since she had a lot on her mind. Most of those thoughts revolved around Miorine.
Soon enough, Suletta started to think anyway; over and over again until her head started to ache. Did she truly love Miorine? Did Miorine love her? How could she get the answers she sought? She wasn’t quite sure how she felt about Miorine yet. Although she did want to get to the bottom of it.
Suletta started to pace back and forth in front of Aerial. One of her arms crossed in front of her chest while the other had her chewing on her nails.
“That sure is an intense face you’re wearing there, Suletta.”
A sudden voice made Suletta jolt free from her thoughts. She yelped when she accidently bit her finger instead of her nail. Finally, she turned to see who had snuck up on her.
Nika stood in the now open doorway to the hangar. A clipboard was held close to her chest in one hand and a well used toolbox in the other. She smiled warmly as she walked farther in to put down said toolbox.
“O-Oh, Nika. Sorry, I was just thinking.” Suletta let out an awkward laugh and rubbed the back of her head.
“Hm, about what?” Nika asked while rummaging around her tools. “Maybe I can help.”
Suletta bit the corner of her lip.
“I was thinking about my relationship with Miorine. How do I know if I lo-” Suletta stopped short, blushed, then cleared her throat. “How do I know if I really care about her? How can I figure that out?”
“I see.” Nika giggled and partially hid a smile behind a closed fist. She turned her attention back to her clipboard. “Why not just ask her out?”
Nika’s words knocked the wind out of Suletta’s lungs.
“Ask her out? Wait a minute-”
“You said you wanted to see if you cared about her, right?” Nika interrupted. “Hanging out seems like the perfect way to figure that out, don’t you think?”
Suletta paused.
“I guess you’re right. What do you think I should do then?”
“I think I have an idea.” Nika waved Suletta over. “Come here.”
Sulleta’s grip on her pilot’s helmet tightened. After talking with Nika, Suletta messaged Miorine and asked her to meet her at Earth House that night. What she didn’t expect was how readily Miorine had agreed to meet.
Her anxiety continued to build and build as the seconds ticked by. She tapped her foot in an attempt to keep herself distracted. She took a deep breath to settle her nerves until the hangar’s doors squealed open.
Fake moonlight spilled into the hangar and cast a subtle shadow across the floor. Miorine now stood there in her own space suit. She looked slightly disgruntled, but nothing that Suletta wasn’t already used to with her.
“Okay, I’m here,” Miorine said. She brushed aside some of her hair. “Now why did you ask me to come over with my suit?”
“I wanted to surprise you.” Suletta swallowed to gather herself. “I want to take you out to see the stars.”
"You didn't need to drag me out in the middle of the night to see the stars," Miorine raised an eyebrow. “It’s space”
“It’s the easiest way for me to go out in Aerial without having to jump through a bunch of hoops!” Suletta pouted. “I want to see the stars with you. Please?”
Miorine braced her helmet against her hip and her other hand pinched the bridge of her nose. A sigh escaped her followed by a single chuckle.
“Fine. I can’t say no when you’re clearly so determined.”
Suletta beamed before pulling on her helmet. She reached out towards Miorine. She waited until Miorine placed her hand in hers then pulled her along towards the ladder leading up to Aerial’s cockpit. Even through the thick padding of their suits, Suletta’s palm burned. She at least let out a silent thanks that Miorine couldn’t feel just how sweaty it was too.
The hatch opened with a familiar, metallic creak. Suletta climbed in first and dropped into her seat. Once she settled in, she looked up at Miorine, waiting for her to follow suit.
Instead, she simply stood there, brows furrowed.
“And where do you expect me to sit?” Her voice came out distorted past the glass of her helmet.
“Uh, you see…” Suletta sheepishly tapped her index fingers together while looking away. “I thought you could… Sit on my lap.”
Suletta tried to ignore just how much her ears burned with a blush and how dry her mouth felt after saying that. She squeezed her eyes shut against the embarrassment.
Yet her eyes suddenly snapped open and she reflexively let out a grunt when a sudden weight dropped onto her lap.
Miorine had climbed into Aerial when Suletta’s eyes were shut only to place herself in Suletta’s lap. Their helmets clacked together from how close they were.
“M-Miorine! You don’t have to if you don’t want to!”
“And I wanted to. I wouldn’t have gotten in if I wasn’t okay with it,” Miorine bluntly replied. “Besides, it’s not like I haven’t been in this position before with you. Remember?”
“O-Oh, right. My first duel with Guel.”
“Exactly. Now,” Miorine wrapped her arms around Suletta’s neck to steady herself. “Shall we?”
Suletta nodded then began tapping the control panel in front of her to start the launch procedures. Normally, it would have been a multiple person job, but thanks to Nika’s help earlier, she was already prepared to depart. Once ready, she gripped the controls to Aerial and braced herself as they launched free from the Earth House bay.
The initial force pushed her back into her chair and subsequently pressed Miorine into her chest. She braced herself until the pressure eased up and they were floating aimlessly in the vacuum of space.
Suletta silently guided Aerial to a more open space around the school so they could easily see the abundance of stars that surrounded them. Once she was satisfied with their spot, she turned off the thrusters so they could lazily drift in place.
It felt eerily quiet once Aerial stopped moving. The only sounds around were the occasional beeps of the emergency life support proving it was operational and the soft hiss of oxygen filling their helmets.
“It’s peaceful out here,” Suletta said, finally breaking the silence.
Miorine hummed in agreement.
“It almost feels like we’d be able to escape just like this.” A dry chuckle shook Miorine’s shoulders. “But I know that wouldn’t work. The security around here is insane. They’d catch us immediately.”
Miorine hummed again. She looked out into the distant vastness of space. Her expression softened, and the hint of a smile danced on her lips.
"Someday I'll go to Earth, Suletta." Miorine's arms tightened around Suletta's neck. "And I think when I do, I want you by my side to see it with me."
Suletta wasn’t sure what she wanted to say to that. Deep inside, she felt… Happy. Happy that it seemed like Miorine really did care about her. At least enough that she wanted to keep her around after she finally reached her goal and made it to Earth. That alone sent a pang of relief into her chest.
So this is what it feels like to be in love? Suletta wondered. Her hands fidgeted with Aerial’s controls. It’s so… Warm.
She smiled gently to herself then leaned into Miorine’s side as best as she could. Miorine didn’t seem to mind since she curled up in Suletta’s lap to get more comfortable. Once they settled in, they both went silent, simply enjoying each other’s company as they looked out into the stars.
It wasn’t until a high pitched beep bounced around the cockpit and wrenched them free from their relaxed stupors. It was a warning alert telling them they were starting to run low on oxygen. Neither of them noticed they had been sitting silently for almost an hour.
“I guess we better go back,” Suletta said while reaching for the controls.
She thought she saw Miorine frown, but she brushed it aside as she restarted Aerial’s thrusters. Slowly, she retraced her steps back towards the Earth House hangar. Within minutes, they were back on school grounds.
The thrusters on Aerial’s feet kicked up a thick layer of dust and dirt when Suletta docked. While the landing procedures started, she didn’t want them to end.
She grew accustomed to having Miorine so close to her. She didn’t want her to unwrap her arms from her neck. She wanted them to stay that way forever. The weight of Miorine in Suletta’s lap and from her leaning against her chest felt comfortable and natural. Suletta’s grip tightened around the Gundam’s control sticks, making her gloves creak against the metal.
“Hey, Miorine,” Suletta mumbled.
“Yeah?”
“I think I finally realized something tonight.”
“That would be?” Miorine’s head tilted slightly.
“I…” Suletta swallowed. Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth as she fought to find her words. She cleared her throat in an attempt to loosen the knot there. “I… Think I love you…”
She winced and clenched her eyes shut, waiting for Miorine to scoff and brush aside her confession. Her voice caught in her throat as she waited in the now intense silence.
Suddenly, she felt her helmet start to move. A quiet hiss filled her ears when it was pulled off her head. She blinked when Miorine dropped the helmet onto the cockpit floor. Miorine then reached up to pull off her own helmet.
Suletta couldn’t see it before past both of their visors, but she could now easily see a blush on Miorine’s cheeks that stood out against her white hair. Suletta’s mouth opened slightly as if to say something only for her train of thought to be lost immediately. Everything around her froze when Miorine cupped her face in her hands.
“I thought I’d never hear you say that,” Miorine said before pulling her down into a kiss.
Suletta’s eyes widened. Her heart thudded hard enough in her chest that it hurt. She was sure that Miorine could feel it through their thick suits. Yet past all that, her mind went blank. All she could focus on was how lightheaded she felt and the feeling of Miorine’s lips on hers.
Her hands finally released the control sticks from her iron grip so she could tightly wrap her arms around Miorine’s waist instead. Her hands grasped at Miorine’s back as if her life depended on it. She finally leaned into the kiss to savor the moment. It was her first kiss and she was determined to burn the experience into her memory.
Suletta gasped for air when Miorine broke the kiss. She felt lightheaded in the best possible way. Her chest heaved with several pants as she fought to regain her bearings.
“I love you too, Suletta.” Miorine rubbed small circles against Suletta’s cheeks with her thumbs. “For once, I’m glad that I have a groom. I'm glad that it’s you.”
Suletta could feel tears stinging the corners of her eyes. A wave of relief and happiness washed over her. Without warning, the tears spilled over when she grinned. She pressed her forehead against Miorine’s and held her as close as she could against her chest. She sniffled then thought back to the single thing Miorine brought up during their time out among the stars.
“I’ll get you to Earth.” Suletta locked eyes with Miorine. “And we’ll be happy together once we make it. I promise.”