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"I'm so sorry, I can't go out tonight."
Ocean sat in her car, her head in her hands, listening to Constance speak hesitantly over the phone.
"What? Why?"
"I just," Ocean sighed, as she pulled out of her parking space at work and onto the main street. "I'm just tired. And I know it's not a good reason, and it's not fair on you guys for me to cancel so last minute–"
"It's fine, love, really."
Silence hangs between them for a while. Ocean takes her hair out of its slicked back bun, gently massaging her scalp.
Constance coughs quietly. "Do you think you could come over to my house?"
"Connie–"
"My parents aren't here, they brought Mattie to a friend's house, and they're gonna stay in a hotel nearby, so it's just myself at home."
"Did they not take you with them? Give you a break from all your studying?"
Constance laughs. "Can't take a break from studying that I'm not doing, Oce. Anyway, point is, it'll just be the two of us. We can relax, watch a movie? I'll text the others to say we're staying home, and I could definitely have a batch of cookies in the oven before you get here."
Despite the kind gesture, Ocean feels oddly like crying. "You're too kind."
"Is that a yes?"
"Sure."
Constance's squeals of delight were slightly broken up by her phone reception. "Yay! I should see you in..?"
"About half an hour? Maybe–" Ocean stops to lay on the horn. "Maybe longer if I keep getting stuck behind people who insist upon going 20 kilometres under the speed limit!" she spits at the driver in front of her.
"Alright, I'll see you then. Love you."
"I love you too."
Constance hangs up the phone, and Ocean tries to focus on the road and not on the rampant pain in her head, but she can't help it.
So she thinks of something else instead. She thinks of her girlfriend waiting for her at home. Well, it wasn't Ocean's home technically, but with how much time she spends at Constance's house, it might as well be. Connie's parents have basically taken her in as their own, and Mattie thinks she's super cool (Ocean definitely wouldn't use those particular words to describe herself, but she appreciates it).
But as much as she loves them, Ocean wishes she and Connie could have a place of their own. But Ocean's hotel receptionist job has shit pay, and Constance is still in college full-time, so it will be a long time until that wish could come true.
When Ocean finally gets to Constance's house, she feels like she might fall asleep before she stepped into the house. But when the door opens to reveal her wonderful partner, a small rush of energy fills her. "Hello, darling."
Constance gives her a quick kiss. "Hello, my love. Cookies are in the oven, but they'll be another while yet. But first;"
Constance leads Ocean into the living room. The sofa has been turned into a pillow fort, there are candles left around the room, Netflix is up on the TV, and on the table in front of the fort has a small bottle of Ibuprofen and a glass of water.
"You do too much, Connie."
Constance rests her chin on Ocean's shoulder. "Only for you."
"And," Ocean picks up the pill bottle, "I didn't even tell you about-"
"Yeah yeah, you were just 'tired'. My love, you're never 'tired', you're either fine or halfway to death. Now take some painkillers and pick a movie."
Ocean lies down in the fort as Constance steps into the hallway. "But I don't wanna pick. You pick."
"Why should I pick?" Constance yells from the kitchen. "This is for you."
"Yeah, well," Ocean takes the pills and takes a sip of water, "my head hurts, I don't wanna think."
Constance laughs as she walks back into the room with a glass and a freshly opened bottle of wine. She sits next to Ocean, who immediately rests her head in Constance's lap.
"Wine?"
Constance pours herself a glass. "Yeah, cos I studied for the first time this year."
Ocean raised an eyebrow. "This year?? Connie, it's January."
"And have I or have I not passed all my exams so far this year?"
"I mean, sure. But you should still study."
"And I did. Today." Constance sips at her wine. "Hence my celebratory wine."
"You celebrate too easily."
"College is hard, and I feel like celebrating the little stuff."
Ocean sighs and hands Constance the remote. "Movie?"
"Right, movie. I'm picking."
Constance scrolls through films for a couple seconds before Ocean sits up to kiss her. "I love you."
Constance grins and kisses her back. "I know."
Ocean gasps. "I'm sorry, 'I know'? 'I know'?!"
The two girls break down into quiet giggles, Ocean's feigned offence shattered by laughter.
"I love you too."
Ocean rolls her eyes, and kissed her cheek. "See, you could have said that the first time."