Meliora - Extricate - 28

[lady_mab]

Lysander Stavros

I hold open the door for the bar open for Ayn, and she ducks in under my arm. “Welcome to the Temple Fusion.”

Her eyes go wide as she does a quick sweep of the place. “Very fancy. I haven’t actually been here before.”

“I promise I won’t be offended on Kaito’s behalf if you say it’s because there are places closer.” I shrug off my jacket and unwind the scarf. The weather has gotten increasingly chilly as it ticks closer to Christmas. Still no snow, but there have been a few days of driving rain and biting winds.

Ayn grins at me over her shoulder. “I’m glad you understand.” Her eyes make another lap around the room before she finds what she is looking for. “Oh, he actually did come.” She sounds oddly pleased with this fact, and when I follow the direction she’s looking, I spot Fletcher sitting, frowning, next to Jonas.

I almost think I’m seeing things, but Jonas’ hair is incredibly noticeable. Even in the lowered lights of the club, with a mass of bodies between us, the purple curls stand out. I think, out of the corner of my eye, I can see Jun’s pink hair as well. In a sea of browns and blondes and blacks, those two stand out the most.

“You invited Fletcher?” The question slips from my mouth before I can stop it. While I normally enjoy engaging in being terribly petty if the occasion calls for it, jealous is not up on my list of emotions that I like to express.

“Of course. It was an open invitation, and despite the fact that you don’t like him, he is my friend.” The look she gives me could be meant as a challenge, but she turns away before I could rise to the bait. “Unless you had other plans? You always seem awkward when the subject of Meliora is brought up. I thought I would spare you that.”

It’s true. This far, I’ve avoided talking to her about it. She was the one that suggested our second date to coincide with this so we could walk over together. ‘It’s nice to not have to keep these plans from you,’ she said. But I haven’t made any effort to try and engage with her in the subject of this game, or what her plans are if she makes it to the end.

Because I know that I plan on leaving. Regardless of what happens, I will be on that train out of Eminence.

“I am extending you the offer of coming to say hello, you know.” She hasn’t moved away, though I can see her leaning in that direction.

I spot Kaito and Rhys at a table in the middle of the room, though Kaito quickly leaves as the announcement for Mia’s performance rings out over the speakers. “Yeah, I think I’ll pass.”

She looks like she wants to say something, but in the end she presses her lips into a thin line. “Alright. I’ll see you later then.” Ayn rises up on her tiptoes and presses a soft kiss to the corner of my mouth, then pulls away and dives into the crowd.

I don’t bother watching her go, because I know where she’s headed. Instead, I turn my sights on Rhys and weave through the people to reach him. “Hey. So, what did I miss?”

“Nothing,” Rhys says. “Because Kaito’s going to give you a lecture when he gets back.”

I pause as I drape my scarf and jacket over the edge of the table. “Wait, a lecture?”

Rhys gives a pointed look in the direction that Ayn went and I give a slight groan. “Is that who you took to see the twins?”

“Yeah, we were out when you called.”

He drops his gaze and fiddles with his watch. “I apologize for interrupting your date.”

“It’s… fine… She wanted to go see artsy cinema.” I had mostly agreed for the sake of being able to spend more time with her. It wasn’t a terrible thing to have to skip the movie. “It came… as a bit of a shock when I found out she was in Meliora.”

Rhys makes a small sound in the back of his throat and gives me an odd look. “You didn’t know?”

“No. How would I? She’s a Participant. I just…” I trail off and wave a hand dismissively.

Another nod and another sound. “I see. I will refrain from asking too many questions so you don’t have to repeat yourself when Kaito returns.”

“Or you could do me a solid and tell him when I’m not around.” I look for our third friend, but there are too many people in the way. Still not to capacity, or Rhys would look far more nervous than he does. There are a lot of Informants that I recognize, though not all of them are hanging out with their teams.

Makes me feel a little better. Jun and Zoné don’t need me hovering over their shoulder if they’re trying to hang out with friends.

The lights in the club dim and a spotlight shines down on the stage in the back of the club. Normally, it’s designed for people who want to dance a little bit above the crowd. Instead, a tall, gangly girl holding a guitar in one hand and a stool in the other makes her way onto the stage to a chorus of cheers. “Hi-hi! I’m Mia Udagawa, or as some of you might know me, Miss-Understood-Actions. Kaito was gracious enough to let me borrow your attention for a little bit.” She proceeds with setting up and tuning, then launches into a few holiday songs that have people singing along.

I lean back against the table to enjoy the concert.

When the house lights come back up, Kaito makes a dramatic reappearance, bearing a tray of drinks and sliding in between the two of us. He receives the uneasy look from Rhys with his usual grace. “You know I wouldn’t make you pay for it anyway.” He presses the glass into Rhys’ hands. “I wouldn’t be surprised if you’re keeping very close tabs over how many drinks everyone has had so far.”

“Perhaps.”

Kaito hands a glass out towards me, but jerks it away at the last second before I can grab it. “And who was that cute little ginger on your arm?”

Here we go. “A girl.”

“No, that I could see,” he says with an eye roll. “I meant who is she to you.”

This is practiced routine by now. In the two years that I have known the two of them, Kaito and I have endlessly ribbed each other over the girls we see the other with. His questions that are now directed at Ayn are rote at this point. “Just someone I used to know from Before Eminence.” Hoping that that is answer enough, I make another grab for it.

It’s apparently not, because he slips to the other side of Rhys to put more distance between us. Not that it makes much of a difference with it being a round table.

“How did you meet her? What’s her name? And why haven’t you brought the date over to meet us?”

I should have prepared myself mentally for this. “This isn’t a date.” The date ended as soon as we walked in the door, and she had made that much clear before we went out to dinner. I don’t like the idea of mixing my personal life with Meliora, despite the irony of the statement.

My personal life is inherently tied to the outcome of Meliora, but until it becomes a greater issue than it already is, I want to keep on the same path.

“But she’s your girlfriend.”

“Yeah? So?” Technically she’s not because she hasn’t agreed yet when I’ve asked, but it’s easier to just agree. “We don’t have to do Meliora-related things together, do we?”

He pouts but finally relinquishes the glass. “I suppose not, but I still would have liked to meet her. Wouldn’t you, Rhys?”

At the sound of his name, Rhys looks up and blinks at us in surprise. He pauses long enough to consider an answer. “He must be terribly embarrassed by us if he won’t introduce her to us.”

I let out a laugh despite myself, and Kaito responds by dramatically falling against the table. “I can’t believe it. His very best friends. An embarrassment.” He proceeds to act just like an embarrassment, drawing a huff of laughter from Rhys at the same time. “It’s almost as if he just doesn’t want to show off how much more awesome we are than him.”

Rhys can’t fight down the smile as he attempts to shove Kaito upright. “Correction: I think it’s just you that’s the embarrassment.”

“Oh, ouch.” Kaito looks at me, eyebrows furrowed. I’m trying very hard not to burst out laughing. “Tell him that he’s wrong. Tell him that you really do love us and that there is some other reason you’re not introducing us to her.”

I lift a hand with the intention of holding up my fingers like a scout, but it’s hard to manage it around the budding laughter. “I shan’t tell lies.”

“Rude.” Kaito rightens himself and salutes us with his glass. “I’m going to go say hello.”

My smile drops away, though I don’t really know how I feel about this response. He is, of course, free to go say hi to her. He’s also more chummy with Jonas than I am, so it is possible that it wouldn’t be as awkward as it would have been if it were me.

Rhys steps in to my rescue. “Don’t be a pest, Kaito.”

“I’m never a pest.”

“You’re going to go and bother her with intrusive questions.”

It’s not really him questioning her that I’m hesitant about. It’s just the idea that it’s more portions of Meliora and my personal life meshing. I blame Meliora for keeping me from Kaito and Rhys. We don’t hang out as nearly as much as we used to, but it’s been one thing after another with this game. The last few weeks have been a pause, but the two forced check-ins between Halloween and last week are odd.

No other messages. Near radio silence.

Kaito interrupts my thoughts when he says my name. “Lysander, tell our good mother hen of a friend that I’m not going to pester your girlfriend with intrusive questions.”

I wish he would stop calling her that, because it implies a level of commitment that I’m not really prepared for. “Short of physically holding him back, there’s nothing much I can do on that end.” I manage to keep a grin on my face and shrug.

Rhys frowns and fiddles with his drink in an attempt to distract himself.

Kaito sighs and puts his own cup down. “Dude, that’s only glass one. You can’t pretend that you’ve had too much to drink and ignore that one.”

“I’m not,” he says defensively. “I’m just thinking ahead about how much work I’m going to have to do tomorrow. Unless you’ve forgotten that I’m going to be the reason you don’t go bankrupt by the new year?” He indicates to the entire building. “And now I’m thinking if I’m going to have to start setting aside money for lawsuits for you harassing people.”

My jaw, which had started to drop during his little speech, falls completely in shock. “Ouch,” I say, the word echoed by Kaito.

I feel like I might have stepped into some kind of growing spat that I haven’t been aware of. That’s what happens when I don’t keep up with them.

“I’ll have you know,” Kaito says, “I am very professional when charming people.”

“Just watch out for her tongue,” I say. She’s changed quite a bit in the last six years, but I do remember the way she would lash out when upset.

That she definitely inherited from her mother.

However, I realize that I should have picked a better set of words, because Kaito grins as his eyebrows climb and Rhys finally breaks character as ‘the serious one’ as he doubles over laughter.

“Is that permission, sir?” Kaito asks.

“Fuck--no, that’s not what I mean!” The laughter I had been holding back finally slips out. “I mean, er… what do I mean?”

“A rapier wit?” Rhys offers.

“Yes,” I say with a nod. “One of those.”

Kaito wiggles his eyebrows in response. “I’m sure that’s what some people might call it.” He nudges Rhys in the side a few times until he finally looks over. “If I don’t come back with a literal slap in the face, you have to try and enjoy yourself, okay?”

To my surprise, Rhys doesn’t frown and wave off the suggestion. “Don’t think it will be that easy.”

I wonder what kind of mental picture they’re painting of Ayn at this point, but I don’t get the chance to ask before Kaito winks and whirls around to make his way through the crowd.

Chuckles dying down, Rhys pulls off his glasses and rubs them off on his shirt.

I watch him, waiting until his specs are back in place. “You doing okay?” I ask, because we haven’t seen each other since nearly the beginning of this game. “After that check in…”

He rubs the back of his neck, a crooked smile hanging in place. “Yes, thank you. I was prepared to run out of that restaurant and head straight for them.”

“Restaurant?” I cross my arms over my chest and shift my weight so I can lean in closer over the table. “Who were you with?” In the two years that I’ve known him, Rhys has always been a very solitary person. He maintains focus on a very specific set of people, and not one of them had ever been a significant other.

“No one special,” he says quickly. “Kaito took me out. I was offered a promotion at work, and he wanted to celebrate.”

“What? Really? Congratulations!”

He shakes his head, gaze focused on his hands. “I didn’t take it.”

“Why not?”

“I… well, it sounds silly now, but I know that I don’t plan on staying. Why take a promotion if I’m going to be leaving. That is, if we make it to the end.” Rhys slouches, raking his fingers back through his dark hair. “There’s a chance that we don’t leave, and then I turned it down for no reason.”

I take a long pull from my glass. “Are you sure that’s how you want to think?” How hypocritical. I’m taking that same approach to Ayn.

Rhys finally looks up at me, gaze hardened behind his glasses. “Yes. I like the flexibility I have with my clients right now. And I don’t think I would be able to handle more work on top of taking care of the twins and Meliora.” He distracts himself with a drink as well, draining half his beer before sighing.

“Is this what you want?” I ask, reaching out for his shoulder.

“If the twins want to leave, I will leave.”

“That’s not an answer.”

“They turn seventeen in February, Lysander,” he says, pushing himself up straighter. “Neither of them know what they want to do after secondary school. I leave them alone for a year, and look at what happens.”

I remain silent save the exhale through my nose. I try for a joke instead. “Okay, here’s an idea: we can switch roles. I’ll leave and take care of the twins, you can stay here and take that promotion.”

Startled, Rhys can only stare at me for several seconds before his lips part in a wry smile. “Please, like you can raise kids.”

“Hey, I’m already a secondary school teacher. I think I can manage the twins for a few years.” I tap my glass against his in a cheers and he chuckles as he shakes his head. “They’re already pretty self reliant. I wouldn’t have to do much.”

“And you’ll settle down in Bainbridge for however many years it will take?” he challenges, catching me in my own history.

‘Settling down’ is not in my vocabulary, and he knows it.

“Best education is on the road,” I counter, and this time he rolls his eyes fondly.

The remainder of the evening sees us settling into familiar banter, and I realize how much I’ve missed this over the last few months. Meliora has changed too much, and I’m desperate to maintain any scraps of how it used to be before ALICE swept in to change our ‘world views’.

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