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Sounds of footsteps echo through the mostly empty hallways of the base.
“Hey watch it!”
“Pardon!” Fade screams behind her, accidentally running into Clove who was one of the few still awake during this time.
Siktir, be okay!
The dream seer was breathing heavily and sweating by the time she reached the med bay.
Knock Knock
Fade mentally counts to ten then the door swishes open. A greeting was halfway out of Sage’s mouth when the sleep deprived woman pushed past.
“Tala!”
“Over here, Hazal!” Fade pushed past the bed, going for the farthest one that Neon favored. She’d nearly fell down on her knees to see a good half of the woman she adored covered in bandages.
“What are you doing? C’mere” Neon scooched to the side of the bed, patting at the space invitingly.
Fade blushed, a bit shy still with their still fresh relationship. She looks back, looking at Sage for permission. The healer rolled her eyes, waving her clipboard before turning around and attend to her paperwork.
Fade mutters a thank you under her breath. She was really uncomfortable with PDA.
She’d sat as close to the edge as she could, her eyes tracing over the various bandages, each one angering her more and more, wishing death to all those who harmed the woman.
“Am I that unsightly?” Neon pipes up, half her face sinking under the thin blanket.
“Ne? Hayır… I was just… lost in thought, pardon”
“Are you disappointed? We have to reschedule now…” Though they have officially declared their relationship to be girlfriends, they were never able to go out on their first date.
This was both Neon and Fade’s first, and they both wanted it to be the best for their partner. But being Earth’s defenders did not care for romance. Time and time again, Omega struck.
Brimstone couldn’t afford to give out any sort of leaves for months with Omega tracking their movement and potentially their comms. After a long and tiring fight, the enemy was finally losing drive and Brim let them have the week end off.
Fade couldn’t lie, she was excited. Neon let her plan out the date, she’d wanted to show off more of her past to her lover. To show the city of Istanbul, her favourite coffee shops, the animal sanctuary she funded, and of course… the home her brother left her.
It was a place that Fade was most vulnerable and she wanted Neon to bear witness to that.
She made sure to school her features. She won’t let Neon feel bad for something out of her control. She leans down, pressing a kiss on Neon’s forehead.
They had two days before their scheduled leave.
“Rest well, Tala. Our plans will not be delayed”
~
“Tell me again why I should help your ass?” Siktir, if you weren’t Neon’s best friend, I’d throttle you by now
“Because I have other people to talk to and I have limited time” Jett looks down at the list. Adobo, Palabok, Lumpia, Cheese Ramyeon. Neon’s favorites….
“If this is some sort of weird mating ritual of yours, you can consider me out” Fade’s face lit up in flames.
“Can you not be so crude about it? Tala’s injured… I just want to do something for her over the weekend…”
Practically everyone knew of what the weekend meant. Fade and Neon have been a total storm with every mission, both driven to finally have free time to spend with only one another.
Jett liked to be annoying, but she’s seen Fade running on empty for weeks just so Omega could finally be slowed down… It was one of the reasons why her own leave has finally been approved as well.
That said, Jett is Jett
“I want a rematch in super smash and don’t you dare choose that cheap ass Bayonetta”
~
Okay, food done. Time to set up one of the common rooms. It was a simple ask from Brim, they had multiple so sacrificing one wouldn’t inconvenience anyone.
Fade had Squish-Squish, Tala’s favourite beddings, and some pillows in her arms.
“Buzz off! I had the console first!”
“Nuh, uh. I had that thing reserved for weeks, mate! Unless you just askin’ for a beatin’!”
Yoru and Phoenix hear the soft thud of cotton hitting the floor followed by a piercing headache. The two are brought to their knees, clutching their heads in agony.
“Pislik, did none of you idiots read out the message I sent out?!” The sanguine smoke curled tighter around them, stopping anything from coming out beyond a groan.
The boys tried to stand, to get away from the pull of nightmare but it was too strong.
After a while, Fade closed her fist, calling back the nightmares.
The relief for the boys was instant, dizzyingly so that Phoenix ends up throwing his lunch out.
“You are both cleaning this shit up. I have to go check on Tala. This place better be spotless!” Fade gets two sets of thumbs ups and the sound of Yoru puking as well.
Must the world try to make this harder than it has to be?!
Phoenix was already stumbling to get to the cleaning supplies so Fade had to show mercy. She had other things to attend to anyways.
“Hazal! Finally!” and all of the tension in Fade’s shoulders suddenly dissipate. An easy smile replaces the scowl on her face and she makes her way next to Neon. Her girlfriend’s injuries were healing along nicely, she had severely less bandages and the light in her eyes sparked brighter.
Mükemmel, bruises never suited her face.
“Pardon, I’d have gone back sooner had there not been some… distractions” Nightmare clawed at the back of her mind, demanding that it feast on the two idiots back at the common room.
Neon tugs Fade down onto the bed, the cheeky duelist hiding her face against Fade’s collarbone.
“When are you going to tell me what your plans are for our date? You’ve been awfully secretive, Eyletmez” Neon may be able to get Fade to do a lot of things, but keeping secrets was a skill she’s long since perfected.
“A little patience would do you some good, Tala” Fade could feel her lover pout against her skin, Neon pressing her face just a tad bit tighter against the dream seer.
“What would actually help is if you slept here tonight. I can see how tired you are” Fade flinches when Neon runs her thumb below her eyes, the damning eye bags giving her away.
“You’re the one injured, aşkım. Why must you constantly be worried about me?” Neon huffs, poking Fade’s side.
“Then maybe stop worrying me! You’re giving me grey hairs with all the shit you get up to!” A fair point, Fade has been acting ridiculously reckless lately. She’d been wanting to show off a bit after Neon kept complementing Iso for his MVP streak lately.
What can she say, she’s a possessive woman at heart. Who wouldn’t having such a marvel as their partner.
The dream seer feels herself get tucked underneath Neon’s chin, the blanket covering Fade entirely.
“C’mon, you stubborn ass. Let go. I’m okay, and I’ll be here when you’re awake”
Fade can slowly feel her heart beat slowing down, her thoughts beginning to quiet. Before she let sleep overtake her, Fade had one impacting thought.
I will not disappoint you
~
The bed was annoyingly cold and Neon knew exactly why.
“Haazaaaal! You fucker! Your ass should still be in bed!” God, that woman did not know how to rest. Then again, that was one of the things that endeared Neon to the other woman. She’ll never say it out loud of course lest she lose the effect of her scoldings.
It was her day to be discharged anyways so she changes into the pajama set that Fade helpfully set out. As she picks up the bottoms though, a note falls out.
“Nuyun?”
“Come to the third-floor common room. I have a surprise for you
- Love, your faithful Shadow”
“You and your surprises…”
~
Neon walked with a lot less urgency than usual. It’s not like she doubted Fade’s ability to surprise her, but she hates it when Fade pushes herself too much. She’s tried to reassure her partner that just being there was more than enough, that she never had to go above and beyond.
“I just want to be perfect for you…”
And that made Neon’s heart weep. She never fell in love with a goddess. She fell in love with the shadows, the darkness, the sharp edges. Neon refuses to watch Fade bleed unnecessarily.
The doors of the common room finally come into view.
Neon takes a deep breath and schools her features.
It’s, okay. She’ll be happy as long as Fade is happy either way.
The duelist pushes through, and the first thing that hits her is the savory, salty scent of Adobo.
"Holy shit” Fade gives a lopsided grin at the words.
“I hope that’s a good ‘holy shit’?” Neon chuckles, going straight for the delicious smelling aroma “Of course it is you, dork”
Neon takes a fork and stabs it into the chicken, and she barely pushes the prongs down does the meat part with the bone “When did you get have the time for all this?”
As she nibbles on the tender meat, she sees the cozy set up, snacks of all sorts beyond the hearty meal she will not be sharing. The soft pillows, cushions, and comforters laid around comfortably, probably arranged to accommodate for Neon’s injuries, and the string of Tagalog cursing coming from the TV which tells Neon that Fade found films from her home country to watch to.
She over extended herself again…
“Oh, I asked Jett to cook for me as favor though, I owe her a game rematch. The pillows and cushions were arranged with Sage’s help since she’s intimately more aware how I would not aggravate your injuries”
When Neon takes a long time to give any sort of reaction, Fade starts to get nervous. Was their date ruined? Was this all too simple?
Fade’s breathing started to pick up.
Congratulations, you’ve shown her how pathetic you truly are.
Came the taunts of nightmare. This is it. The little time she had with Neon was worth it at least but— maybe she could still do something, say that this wasn’t what their first date is!
“This— this is just a precursor anyways” The dream seer lets out a little oomph, a pleasurable little shock runs down her sides.
“You are the best!” Neon— Neon loved it? Fade looks down and sees the wide smile her girlfriend had.
Neon loved it! She wraps her arms around the shorter woman, gentle yet firm.
“All for you, tatlım”
~
Their first date may not have been grand, may not have gone all according to plan. But as Neon watches the shitty Filipino parody of train to Busan while her girlfriend’s head lay soundly on her lap, she could care less about the grandness of it all.
She was with the person she loved most in the coziest place in both Omega and Alpha Earth.
“Mahal kita, Hazal” Neon whispers, afraid that even speaking above the threshold would disturb the peace that has draped over Fade.
“Mahal rin kita…” And oh do her cheeks redden. She’d leaned over to see that her lover was asleep and Fade definitely had her eyes shut close. The pronunciation was heavily accented by Fade's Turkish dialect but just the fact she learned how to say it was more than enough.
Yeah… This is the best first date Neon could ever dream of.