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“That girl keeps looking at us,” Lizzie hummed. She sat next to Jay at a table, at the tavern they were at. “The mancore with the gold horn. In the corner.”
“It’s probably nothing,” Jay replied, eyes following Lizzie’s gaze. Her eyes landed on Kira, sitting by herself at a table. “Or… Maybe not.”
What was Kira doing here?
She felt Lizzie’s eyes on her.
“Isn’t she the one that was with your dad? She’s with RAFT .” Lizzie frowned. “If she’s here, there’s probably others.”
“Jay, can I talk to you? It won’t take long. But we need to talk. Please. It’s just me here.” Jay heard in her head.
Kira’s voice.
She looked back at Kira once more, then back at Lizzie.
“I’ll meet you on the porch. Give me a couple of minutes, alright?” Jay responded to Kira.
“Jay?” Lizzie prompted.
“I… Yeah. It is. It’s complicated.” Jay said vaguely. “I’ll be back in a few minutes, alright?”
“Don’t tell me you’re doing what I think you’re doing.” Lizzie frowned.
“She’s not going to hurt me. She just wants to talk.” Jay moved to stand. “I’ll be fine. If I’m not, I’ll yell for help.”
“You’re sure?” Lizzie asked. “If I hear you crying out in pain, I’m gonna come out there.”
Jay grinned. “Perfect.”
After convincing Lizzie that she would be fine, Jay made her way over to the bar. She ordered another drink for herself, and after figuring out what Kira had been drinking, ordered one for her, too.
Soon enough, Jay made her way out to the porch, where Kira stood. She was facing away from the door, staring out at the dock over the buildings. Her wavy blonde hair cascaded down her neck, down from the ponytail she usually wore it in.
“Hey,” Jay said quietly, setting the drinks on the railing. “You alright?”
“Kind of surprised you actually came out here,” Kira chuckled softly. “I’ve been better, that’s for sure.”
“What did you wanna talk about?” Jay asked. “You look stressed.”
Kira hesitated, for just a moment. “I… I don’t know if you remember the last time we saw each other. That thing that I mentioned.”
Jay stilled. “You mean… You mean the promotion?”
“That. Yes.” Kira sucked in a breath. “I got it. It’s… It’s mine if I want it.”
“Oh,” Jay responded uncertainly. “I… Wow. That’s… Wow.”
“Yeah.” Kira looked down. “I didn’t think… I don’t know what to do.”
She was unsure. Jay could still read Kira well enough to know that, at least.
If Kira took that promotion, after what Jay had read…
It could very well mean saying goodbye to her friend.
“What do you mean?” Jay asked. “About what?”
Kira sank onto the bench that sat behind her, crossing her arms. “I don’t want to fight you, Jay. I never wanted that. You know that, even when we were kids.”
Jay sat next to her, shifting to face Kira. “You don’t have to. You know that, right? You don’t–You don’t have to accept the position. If that’s what you’re worried about.”
Kira didn’t meet her eyes, instead still staring forward.
“Kira,” Jay nudged her. “Look at me. Please.”
“I can’t just… I can’t just leave. You know it’s not that easy, Jay.” Kira glanced at her. “You , of everyone, should know that. It’s complicated.”
Jay sighed softly. “I know. But I’m asking you to. At least consider it, okay? For me?”
Please.
After a few moments, Kira gave a small nod. “I just… What am I gonna do, if I leave? Where do I go?”
“You could come with us,” Jay suggested, offering a soft smile. “It might take some convincing, but… I’m sure Lizzie will listen.”
Kira scoffed quietly. “After her crew barged in on the fight last time? I’m not sure she has the highest opinion of me. I doubt any of them do.”
“Since when have you cared about that?” Jay chuckled softly, nudging Kira. “I don’t remember you ever caring about what people thought of you. Not when we were kids.”
Kira leaned her head back against the bench, staring up at the moon through the slatted roof.
“Yeah, well… A lot has changed since then. A lot more people know who I am, and… And are expecting things from me.” Kira said quietly.
Jay slipped a hand into Kira’s. “It doesn’t have to be like that.”
“I know. But right now, it is.”
“What if it wasn’t?”
“I don’t know. It is right now, though.” Kira frowned. Jay studied the golden freckles on her face, spread across from ear to ear. “Even if it’s not like that, those people will still look for me. If I–Jay, if I leave, they’re going to look for me.”
“They’ll only do that if you leave and become, like, a pirate.” Jay said, unconfidently.
She didn’t know if that was the case.
“Would they?” Kira asked quietly. “Realistically, Jay… What else am I going to do, if I do leave? What do you even do after… After all that training, after over two years of experience? What do you do with all of that?”
“If you just go back home, it’ll be fine. Hey, you could work with my mom.” Jay offered a grin. “And then I could come see you both at the same time. I know she’d love that.”
Kira chuckled, shaking her head. “I love your mom, but… I don’t wanna go home. If I go home, I have to explain why I would have turned down an offer like that. When there’s not really a reason , just that… I don’t know.”
Jay nodded. She understood what Kira meant. The two had known each other for so long, and had helped each other through a lot.
She wished that she could help now. But whether or not Kira actually wanted her help, Jay couldn’t tell.
“Well… That’s okay, then. I guess you wouldn’t really wanna be left here, on some island where you don’t know anybody, either.” Jay took a drink. “I have some friends on Canella. We’re heading back there, anyways. You could always come with us, if you wanted. Check the place out. See if you like it, if… If you’d want to stay there for a while, maybe.”
Kira elected not to answer, instead taking a sip of her own drink before looking back up.
The two sat in silence for a couple minutes more. It reminded Jay of times past, when they would sit up together as kids.
“Hey, I’m… I’m gonna give you some space to think, alright?” Jay offered. “But I’ll be inside, if you want to talk again.”
She squeezed Kira’s hand one more time before letting go, giving her a reassuring smile as she walked back inside.
Lizzie greeted her with a nod as Jay took her seat once more.
“What was all that about?” She asked.
“Nothing. Just…She was trying to make a decision.” Jay said vaguely.
“And she wanted your help?” Lizzie raised an eyebrow. “You two know each other from before all this?”
Boy, did they.
Jay chuckled softly. “She was my best friend. We hadn’t seen each other in months before I left. She’d gotten an assignment off–island, so… The next time I saw her didn’t go all that well, and last time … Also didn’t.”
“Understatement.” Lizzie murmured. “You care about her, don’t you?”
Jay nodded. “I do. A lot, and… And I don’t like seeing her like this. It’s not like her. I don’t want her to get so stuck in how she feels like she’s supposed to be that she forgets who she is.”
“Did you tell her that?”
“I tried.” Jay glanced at the doorway. “We’ll just have to see if she knows what she wants.”
It wasn’t long before Kira made her way back inside. She made brief eye contact with Jay, dropping a note on the table before taking her now-empty glasses to the counter.
Jay unfurled the note, quickly scanning it.
I hate how you’re so convincing. And always right. It said, in Kira’s scrawling handwriting.
And I hate that I’m throwing everything I’ve worked towards away.
But I’d rather lose that than lose you as a friend, and have to walk away from you again.
– K
Jay chuckled softly, glancing at Kira. She was watching from the edge of the stairs, hesitancy in her gaze.
Maybe they would be alright.
Jay offered a smile and a small nod, and Kira nodded back before turning to go back up to where Jay assumed she was staying.
Yeah, they would be alright.