1398/Delicious In Dorm Room -- Spilling Tea

Delicious In Dorm Room -- Spilling Tea
Date of Scene:	06 April 2024
Location:	Dorms #1
Synopsis:	After the prom, Rashmi comes up to her dorm and finds a miserable Chiyo. Time for simple pleasures; Ice cream, American movies, and deep conversation!
Cast of Characters:	Chiyo Sakai, Rashmi Terios

---

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
It was relatively late. Prom had ended awhile ago, and the cleanup portion had at least done a preliminary sweep to ensure that there was nothing left behind that wouldn't last till the next morning after people had some rest to properly clean up. Exactly why Chiyo was getting back to the dorms around this time.

Still in her prom dress she steps inside, trying to be quiet, as she slips her shoes off to padd further in. They're dropped with a little careless thump at the base of her bunk bed as she just tips her head back to stare up at it wishing for a moment that it wasn't up high. All she wanted to do was flop down and that was hard to do when you had to *climb* first.

Her eyes press shut with a deep sigh of having to commit to this. It was either this or grab a pillow and a blanket to just flop on the floor. Also tempting.

instead she grabs hold of the ladder on the side of the bed. One hand over the other, feet pushing up, and a few short steps later she's at least able to flop face first down into the bedding even if it's at an awkward angle with one foot still hanging over the edge of the bed.

Meh.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
When the prom had wound down, Rashmi had made a round to thank the people who came in to help the committees, and load them up with leftovers, exactly how her Papi would have advised.

    "If people do you a big favor, Sunshine, *always* make sure they're glad they did. Otherwise, might be as you'll have less help the next time."

So it's about a half hour when Rashmi shows up at her dorm room, still trailing -- thankfully, metaphorical -- sparkles behind her. Still humming to herself, she unwinds her copper-coin belt, peels off the headdress, looks up--

--And everything stops, as she sees Chiyo facedown on the bed, leg hanging over, doing a fair impression of a rug on her bed. All humming ceases, as if shut off with a remote.

"...Chiyo-chan...?" Rashmi says, hesitantly. "...What happened?"

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Maybe if she just buried her nose deeper in the comforter she could suffocate... No. Tempting to just not exist for a few as it may be she wasn't *that* far gone. It had just been a very long, emotionally tiring night toward the end of it.

When Rashmi enters she becomes aware of it, and even thinks she ought to move, but all she can find the strength to do for the moment is inhale deeply. This was going to require some explanation after all.

Her head rises at least bending up and back awkwardly so that she can at least turn her head to the side. Only to flop back down peering with one-eye over toward Rashmi. The other was half-buried in the comforter. Now came the question: What to say.

"Boys suck."

Yep that sums it up.

"It was actually kind of going well. Other than him dressing like a Yakuza. He got up on stage and played violin for me between the sets. Then Mamoru and Usagi chan showed up, and we chatted awhile, and I realized the sweets were running low so I went to restock and then I couldn't find him at all and didn't see him again until clean up."

Here she pauses to just. Stare off into space.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
With her part of the closet open, and the jewelry carefully placed on the upper shelf -- for all that the headpiece was a surprisingly cheap thing made of mass-produced chain and tinted glass -- Rashmi freezes, when she hears 'I didn't see him again.' "...Wait, what?"

And here the redhead turns, stray moonlight catching her glasses for a moment, turning the large round lenses opaque. "...He just *vanished?!*"

She falls silent a moment, then nods to herself, tapping Nicomachea's gem and coming away with an entire-ass taiyaki, its wrapper proclaiming it to be filled with chocolate pudding. This, practically pressed into Chiyo's nose. "Here. It's a start until we can get some ice cream. Who was it and what happened?"

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Taiyaki? That gets her attention. The smell of it earns a little wriggle onto her side, then to push to sit up with her legs dangling off the side of the bed. It's taken and she takes a good healthy bite of it with a small sound of apparent approval. The sweetness helped a bit.

"He'd run into a friend who asked him to dance, and then they went to talk on the roof. Apparently he 'lost track of time'." Oh boy.

"While I was cleaning up, they showed up and he apologized saying he'd lost track of me during the dance otherwise he would have *invited me to join them watching the moon*..."

"And. AND. He'd forgotten to even tell her that he was there with me as a date and so then SHE was upset too."

Her hand lifts to scrub over her face. "I mean he was really apologetic, and then she even brought out a speaker and demanded he at least give me a dance since we hadn't, and then I tried to suggest he walk her home since I mean it sounded like THEY were having a romantic night, but she insisted he take ME home since I was his actual date."

The taiyaki gets bitten in half with a grump.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Rashmi's eyes grow wider and wider behind her glasses, and as Chiyo talks a very quick mental conversation is going on.

<< Nicomachea, this is an emergency. I need to find a way to source two liters of ice cream immediately, without having to move. >>

    << UNDERSTOOD, MASTER. THERE ARE THREE SHOPS UPON THE PERIPHERY OF THE CAMPUS THAT HAVE REMAINED OPEN TO SERVE STUDENTS. >>

<< Great. How many deliver? >>

<< TWO, MASTER. IF IT EASES SELECTION, ONE IS CAT-THEMED. >>

"Oh, Chiyo," she says aloud, practically *radiating* the 'comforting big sister' vibes, as she half-scales Chiyo's ladder to lean over and give the poor girl a one-arm hug. "That's... *astoundingly* stupid of him, even if everything he said was 100% honest. Do you want your friends to ruin him? Because we will *happily* ruin him. Also, what ice cream d'you like best?"

<< Cat-themed. Perfect. Do they sell custom spoons? >>

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo sucks in a quick breath when Rashmi one-armed hugs her. That was kind of nice. She hadn't even really realized she needed a hug, and ends up leaning in against Rashmi lightly with her half-eaten tailyaki left in hand. It did help a bit to put something yummy in her.

"Choco-mint," she blurts out without hesitation. Definitely team choco-mint here, clearly, and there's no hesitation or apology for the sometimes controversial flavor.

"I mean... Ugh. I wasn't sure about him to begin with but it seemed to be going... it was going well. I thought." A small frown creases her brows together.

"He'd invited me out because his sister had ruined my last date with Kukai and he didn't want me to maybe miss out on going to the dance. So I wasn't expecting much, but... And then this. PLUS his sister was there with Kukai too," she utters mumbling.

Tailyaki is similarily nommed on violently till she's left licking her fingertips.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
<< One liter of choco-mint, and one liter of vanilla-caramel, >> Rashmi tells Nicomachea. << And if there's a spoon that looks like Bonito, that. >>

    << COMMAND INPUT EXECUTE, >> is Nicomachea's reply. << ETA -- Twenty minutes >>

"...So," Rashmi says slowly, "He was thoughtful, and nice, and then *incredibly* stupid and thoughtless, and... oh lord his sister is Utau?! Of all the--"

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Rashmi heaves the sigh of the put-upon. "...Well I mean if it'll help, I have a line on when the best opportunities to get her back will be? But that's later. Right now there's ice cream on the way, and boys to gripe about."

Not once does she compare Chiyo's date to Chrono, even though it'd be so easy its *absence* is probably notable all its own. Because it's not about how great *Rashmi's* night was, but how terrible *Chiyo's* ended up.

"I'm sorry your prom ended so rotten, Chiyo. You *really* didn't deserve that, and it would've been *less* painful to be the *second* person to get judo-flipped tonight."

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo nods slowly over it all. Her lips purse together a bit as Rashmi gets it right on the head. Thoughtful, then thoughtless. For a moment she just gives a chuffed half-laugh as she thinks aloud, "He's a cat chara-bearer. I guess he didn't have the braincell all evening."

Somewhere, Bonito sneezes over that remark. Not here though. He was out doing pretend-cat things.

"I'm just tired, Rashmi. I feel achy and sore even though I didn't fight anyone. Plus I feel like I can't even be that mad at him?" Her head shakes a bit at the entire situation.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Well *yeah* you are," Rashmi agrees, straightening to sit up on the bed, tapping on the slats of the frame with one hand. "You worked your butt off, helped make sure *everyone else* had a great time... then your emotions got pushed off a roof. I'd feel run over too. And if you can't be mad at him, that's even kinda worse? Because what can you even *do* about it?"

    << *BONG!* >> goes the charm attached to Rashmi's hair, and her head snaps up.

"Ice cream. You can have ice cream and we'll put on something silly with no romance after. How's that sound?"

She can't really wait for an answer, because ice cream is waiting downstairs, so she hops off the bed with a "be right back!" and pelts out the door.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo lifts her head again when the evening is summed up so easily. Rashmi was right: She had every reason to be tired. It was just usually a good-tired feeling after helping to make sure people had a good time and enjoyed her snacks. This time it was a different sort of emotion that was wearing her down.

Icecream does sound tempting though, and she cracks a grin. "Okay. Let me change..." Rashmi's already off though. Which leaves her just enough time to clamber down from the bunk to the closet. An old but super soft house robe and a pair of pajamas are taken out and carried to the bathroom to change.

It's not long, and then she's back with her dress in hand to hang up in the closet.

For a moment she stares at it hanging there only to nudge it further back out of sight for the time being with a sigh. "At least it wasn't that horrible pink one from last time."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Rashmi is much more out of breath when she returns, still in her dress with delivery bag in hand, and privately congratulating herself for choosing flats.

Taking that many stairs at speed in heels? No-o-o-o thank you.

But she lifts the bag in a gesture of victory, crossing the room to deposit it on Chiyo's desk. "Vanilla-caramel's mine," she says, "I need to change too. Also there's something else in there for you, because your friends care."

Giving the purple-haired girl a quick hug, she snatches her PJs out of the closet, and bops off to the bathroom to get changed like the red-headed kindness tsunami she is.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
THAT is a curious remark. Chiyo nods in agreement. "Not a problem. Good flavor combo but not my favorite," she has to admit as she opens the bag to reach inside... And pull out the containers with their different flavors. The cat paw prints over it were cute, but what was really cute was the little white and ginger cat spoon that she finds in there as well.

While Rashmi is in the other room changing she can hear a little delighted squeal from Chiyo before a quick, "Thank you!" comes after. At least that had cheered her up a bit.

"What do you want to watch?"

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Up to you!" Rashmi calls from the bathroom. "And I'm glad you like the spoon!" Emerging with dress over her arm and baggy gray pajamas on, Rashmi grins at Chiyo. "My only request is that it's funny. If I haven't seen it before, even better! This is *your* night, Chiyo, I'm just here to provide the ice cream."

Slipping aside, she hangs her dress up, glances at Chiyo's dress with a brief frown, then firmly closes the closet door. "So! Ice cream, sillies, and chatting!"

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo settles in to sit on the couch comfortably already with her icecream pulled up into her lap. The spoon was going to definitely get some use. "Yes, but it was your night, too earlier," she responds with a bit of a smile toward her friend.

"... Thank you. I'm glad you seem to have had a good night at least. So did Wako." A little amused grin comes, "I made a little banner for while she was singing." At least she had SOME fun moments tonight it seemed.

Turning her attention to the television she flips it on seeking through the offerings of the online streaming services before settling on an American comedy. "Tucker and Dale versus Evil. Sounds interesting."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Yeah but my night ends in a smile too," Rashmi points out, settling in next to Chiyo and popping the top off her ice cream. "It was always gonna, I just wanted to make sure *yours* did too."

At the mention of her and Wako's night, Rashmi lifts a shoulder. "I mean... I *still* don't know how I managed the trick, myself, and Wako-chan's boyfriends are *both* apparently smitten with each other too. But yeah, we had a great time-- wait, banner? Whaddi miss?"

Thrown by the mental image of Chiyo holding up an 'APPLAUSE' board for Wako, she looks to the TV, and nods faintly. "Definitely don't know that one... Sure!"

Chiyo will learn very, very shortly about Rashmi's tolerance for the... goopier... kinds of horror movie.

Even if she will insist on watching it all the way to the end.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"Oh, I made it last night real quick, so it wasn't great but I made a banner with gold glitter paint that said 'Wako is our idol'. I made Sugata hold up the other end."

As for the movie? Chiyo feels a bit guilty about that, but it was... comedic. The fact that she ends up grabbed several times is met with a chuckle and an arm slung around Rashmi to give a reassuring squeeze. "You know they make the fake blood with the same ingredients as candies a lot of times," she points out wincing as one of the boys runs and trips and falls into a wood chipper. "Er maybe don't watch that part."

"I admit I'm a little... Not *jealous* really of Wako, but I see how good they all are together and it's like. Kind of comfy looking?" She chuckles a bit at that. "Though I guess Usagi and Mamoru are in a similar situation of sorts. Only with him and his boyfriend."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Too late," Rashmi says around her hands, the gleam of one eye peeking out between her fingers. "...Oh god he's draggin it over his face-- um. Yeah, uh... wow."

Shaking her head, she grasps at the conversational straw, bobbing her head. "I saw what you mean, and like... I understand being jealous of it? I probably would have been, a year ago. I don't... really know how to describe how Chrono and I got together, except that it started out as an informed choice, and then we just... sort of... fell into each other's lives? Like we were friends first, then saw there was room for the dating thing and went there. I don't... really know how to describe it, but... I *do* know I would've been happy with us being friends, if I hadn't had the idea there was a chance for more, y'know?"

With a shrug, she falls silent for a moment with her ice cream, staring wide-eyed as another idiot college student gets himself demised. "What do you *want* in a boyfriend, Chiyo? Cos that matters too."

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"I... I'm not sure anymore. Or if I ever was sure," Chiyo has to admit after a few moments of thought, and another spoon of icecream. "Mm. The guy *I* had a crush on was kind of quiet but had a nice smile, and was kind and thoughtful. He also liked cooking recipes his grandmother taught him," she responds as she considers it all. "I'd say we were friends first, too, before I realized I kind of liked him. So that's also important, yes."

Another bite, and the spoon hangs in her mouth. Then she shrugs. "I wasn't expecting a boyfriend out of tonight. It was just after the nice things he did I started to kind of... I guess soften up to him?"

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Honestly," Rashmi chuckles, "any guy who wants to spend much time around you had *better* know that food is love. You and my Papi have a lot in common, actually, but you somehow go a step further than he ever knew he could, and make *magic* out of food too. So trust me, this is coming from a cookery brat; there's a *high* bar for whoever succeeds in earning your heart, Chiyo-chan."

Discreetly, she mines out an entire spoonful of caramel ribbon, watching Dale be incredibly awkward toward the object of his affections, for the umpteenth time. "Y'know... it sounds a little like that," she says, nodding at the screen. "Except where this guy lucks out and manages to do the *right* things half by accident, Ikuko-san seems to have stepped in every puddle he possibly could have. So... I guess what I'm asking is, d'you think it's worth making a friend out of him? Maybe see what happens way down the road, when it doesn't sting anymore?"

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai stabs her spoon back into the icecream. A bit roughly until she remembers it's a SPECIAL KITTY SPOON. Gently she wiggles it back and forth to get it out of the harder still-frozen portion to scoop normally. "I think friends is all we can be. It pretty much sounded like he and Yuki-chan had decided on a lot more by the end of the evening. Though I guess they'll have their own issues to work through after the mis-step of not telling her he'd asked me to the dance."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"That makes sense," Rashmi says, nodding. "Sorry, too... I didn't mean to get upsetting again, just..."

Falling silent for a bit, the redhead shrugs. "When we started, I told Chrono 'I have no idea what I'm doing, so I'm probably gonna end up screwing something up.' And... I think that took some of the pressure off him, because he didn't know what he was doing either. I'd be surprised if *anyone* does."

The spoon hangs out of her mouth, now, as she considers her next words for a moment. "Maybe that'll help? If you start dating someone, tell him that? And if he says he *does* know what he's doing, well... bad luck to start a relationship off with a lie, right?"

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai smiles slightly over at Rashmi as she listens. It was good advice at least, but she just gives a small shake of her head. "I've never gotten that far into a relationship to begin with yet. I guess at least I can say I haven't wasted my first kiss on any of these guys." A quiet chuckle breaks from her as she looks back to her icecream.

"The guy I had a crush on is already with someone, but we're still friends. ... I think maybe that's partially why I tried going out with Kukai and Ikuto. I thought I'd give it a shot?"

"... It's a little easier now. I mean. That 'crush' isn't really... I just kind of feel a bit sore now instead of feeling like it's still there."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"That's good," Rashmi says, nodding. "And hey, at least you gave it the shot! Now you know, and you don't have to wait a year or two to realize it wouldn't work. Which would be *so* much worse."

Shrugging, she watches the high-body-count hijinks for a bit longer, then leans over and nudges Chiyo's shoulder. "Seriously though... Let me know if you need this again. Because I will *make* any time I need to if you're feeling rotten."

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai just... starts to zone out a bit letting the comedic awfulness of this love story for awkward people play out. At least things weren't quite that bad, but even she could see Dale was sweet if unconventional.

The nudge to her shoulder earns a little smile. "Thanks, Rashmi. I should be okay but... thank you. Seriously."