Work Text:
nene yashiro can easily describe herself in few words:
a hopeless romantic, feminine, a hard worker and... an idiot.
a big, stupid, radish-legged idiot!
that's what she's mentally calling herself while sulking behind the counter instead of working. meanwhile, the cause of her turmoil innocently sips on his americano- completely obvious to the storm cloud forming over her head.
she's been peeking up over the counter every now and then to glare at him, hoping she can... explode him with her mind? nene isn't exactly sure, but a part of her wants him to notice her sour mood and come fix it ...though she knows it means explaining that seeing him linger outside the door to talk to some lady is actually a really big issue.
(nene would rather eat used coffee grounds than tell him that's the reason she's so gloomy.)
his good mood is radiating, or maybe it seems that way from how the morning sun shines through the window just right- making his eyes sparkle just that extra amount it does when light hits it. either way, his shoulders are less stiff than usual and his lips are quirked a little upward like a ghost of a smile remains.
nene's itching to ask him what, or who specifically has him in such a good mood; but the potential answer makes her uncomfortable enough to not pester him about it.
she doesn't exactly understand why this has her so irritated, nene already made it clear that he isn't her type at all- so why does it affect her so much than he was talking to another girl?
a familiar voice pulls nene out of her thoughts, and like a jack in a box, nene springs up from behind the counter with a perfect customer service smile. though, it falters quickly when she notices it's just him.
"seriously, yashiro, slacking off?" he addresses her with mirth, leaning closer across the counter just to flick her forehead. yashiro wants to feel fluttery and light like she usually does around him, but she's too busy being petty and sour.
"you're the only person who comes in at 10am, amane-kun." she counters, and it's a good point. most days it's only her and amane in the cafe with the only other sound being the tapping of keys or the ambient noise of coffee machines.
amane shrugs, realising he can't exactly argue back, and turns his attention to the pastry display. nene watches him pretend to look at each pastry like some high-end critic. it's clear he's trying to pull a laugh out of her; out of nene, who's usually so easily amused and smiley at everything. resting her cheek in the palm of her hand, she forces out a little grin at his antics- just to humour him.
"all this, just to order the same donuts you always do?" with this, amane's eyes dart to her from the pastry display "hm? who says i'm going to get the usual?" he challenges, being argumentative for the sake of it.
yashiro deadpans, heading over to the display with a napkin and tongs in hand to grab a plain donut for amane- she swears he alone keeps them in demand. "the entire time i've worked here you haven't bought anything other than your usual doughnut and americano." she sighs, and when she holds it out for him to take, their hands brush in a way that sends electricity straight to her heart.
nene's skin tingles from the contact- amane's hands have always been colder than hers. instead of going to sit back down, amane continues leaning against the counter as he eats- and it makes nene uneasy. unwilling to face him, she busies herself with cleaning up a little here and there; wiping the counters, cleaning up the coffee machines.. just anything to distract herself from the fact that amane is staring at her.
analysing, is what he's doing. both him and tsukasa have the unnerving ability to read people like books.
nene can tell that he knows something is off about her today, there's no denying it. she looks at him briefly, and it's like she can physically see the cogs turning in his head, stringing words together to confront her about her behaviour, that is, until the bell on the cafe door jingles. it's another customer coming up to the counter (thank the heavens). amane lets out a quiet sigh and retreats back to his table, effectively saving her from an awkward conversation for the time being.
nene goes through the motions of serving up a latte with a slice of cheesecake for the customer before making herself a to-go cup of a coffee so ridiculously sweetened and loaded up with unnecessary sugars and toppings, it had to be considered a health hazard.
oh well, something has to get her through this shift; amane isn't the only thing weighing her down today, it's also the four or so hours of sleep she had that night. playing visual novel games until 3am is really biting her in the ass... but victor's route in 'my pretty everlasting love' was so tension filled and steamy! she needed to know what happened next! victor was definetly the best love interest by far in the game, the developers clearly favour him judging by his route length, and he treats the main character so well! he's devoted, handsome, prince-like.... and definitely wouldn't make nene jealous!
thinking about it, she can just use the lack of sleep as an excuse to why she's so moody today- it'll make sense too, since all of her friends know how snappy she can get when she's exhausted and her favourite character of whatever media she's decided to binge, dies or gets an unhappy ending. it's not like victor's route had a bad ending or anything, but she figures she can evoke that feeling of misery by remembering his route is over now, and she must betray her loyalty to him by moving onto one of the other love interests in game. oh, what tragedy...
time passes, and amane hasn't come back up to the counter since. with lunch rush steadily approaching, nene's focus is on serving the increase of customers, and amane is presumably working on whatever teachers in training work on; all she knows is that it's a ton of boring planning and worksheet marking.
it's perfect.
it means that amane can't interrogate her while the wound is still fresh, more time to prepare a carefully constructed and amazingly acted out sequence on how she's just so.. so.. sleepy and her favourite story route has finally come to a close after dedicating hours to it. it's a fool-proof plan on convincing amane she's absolutely fine and dandy, though nene knows that she's going to be lectured for not sleeping properly. future nene can deal with that, present nene needs mitsuba to arrive for his shift so she can get some help on the lunch rush.
"daikon-senpai~" mitsuba sings out as he slips behind the counter with his work bag hanging loosely on one shoulder, and she feels hers slump in relief at his arrival. usually she's alone for the morning, mitsuba arrives for lunch and lemon joins them later in the afternoon when the cafe is comfortably full with students and workers coming to either relax or catch up on some extra work.
nene likes their little trio, it's often filled with gossip and teasing and the occasional chaotic moments, sometimes it feels like they're a little family- her heart feels warm at the thought.
"mitsuba-kun! on time to help me with the rush, as always! hurry up though.. please.. it's extra busy today!" nene laughs, a little airy as she tries to juggle making several different types of coffees and and simultaneously preparing baked goods and sandwiches others have ordered. mitsuba grumbles under his breath about how nene wouldn't be able to survive without his help as he slips into the back to put his apron on, which is true, but she won't boost his already inflated ego.
thankfully he comes back to the counter a minute later and nene relays some of the orders that need to be completed as mitsuba heads over to the cash register to try control the growing line of people. the two do a good job of shrinking the line, tables slowly filling up as the cafe grows lively with customer chatter.
it's only at around two in the afternoon when the two can take a breather and clean up the chaos that resulted from the sudden influx of customers. nene isn't sure if she'll ever get used to how overwhelming it can get.
they finish wiping down and arranging sauces, flavourings and toppings back in place when mitsuba shoos her off so she can clear up tables and interact with people- admittedly, she is the best at talking to customers out of the three of them, so nene has no complaints when she leaves to gather any plates, napkins and empty coffee cups.
though it means amane has the perfect opportunity to tug on her apron as she passes his table to grab her attention.
"hm? what is it, amane-kun?" yashiro looks down at him, he has his head tilted to the side slightly, glasses slipping down his nose in a way that makes him look... attractive. and professional, but very, very attractive.
"you finish at five tonight, right? should we grab dinner at the place down the street?" amane asks and yashiro's thoughts immediately go to the food, her guilty pleasure since becoming an adult has been eating oyakodon at the nearby restaurant which amane more often than not joins her at.
with a playful sigh, yashiro shrugs "well... i really shouldn't be eating out so often but... i guess it wouldn't hurt".
amane's lips curl up into a small smile as he leans back against his chair, giving the hem of her apron a small tug before letting go. "i knew you wouldn't be able to resist. i'll come pick you up at five, yeah?" and she nods in agreement with a smile of her own on her face.
yashiro lingers for a moment, then leaves to pick up the rest of the plates to bring behind the counter.
she finds mitsuba looking at her with a raised brow and smirk. "flirting with customers on shift, daikon-senpai? how uncouth! how perverted!" the boy cackles and nene believes him to be very lucky that her hands are full otherwise she'd smack him for being so irritating, nene feels her face warm up as she scowls at him while heading into the back to set down the plates.
he can wash those up, since he wants to tease her.
mitsuba has been teasing her about amane ever since they became friends- when amane was just a regular she'd make small talk with. nene thought he would stop once he realised that amane is actually a mutual friend of theirs, knowing kou and akane very well, but it became more frequent instead.
between their bickering, serving customers and eventually, lemon's arrival to clock in, nene realises that amane went home. his usual table now occupied by a group of giggling highschoolers, which made her realise she only has around two or less hours to go before she can indulge in a hearty bowl of oyakudon and face amane's questioning, though with both mitsuba and lemon here, she figures time is going to pass by relatively fast. and it does, as the bell jingles just as amane walks in wearing more casual clothing than we was earlier.
nene waves at him, then turning to mitsuba and lemon to let the two know she's finished for the day; she places her apron in the employee room, and throws on her favourite sweater. its a light grey and oversized just perfectly to feel cozy and warm, and makes her usual cafe uniform (black pants and a frilly short-sleeve white button up) feel more casual. nene grabs her bag and meets amane on the other side of the counter so they can try grab their favourite table, they go there frequently enough that the owners, a sweet elderly couple, know their orders by heart and often ask them questions on life and work.
"well, how was work?" amane makes small talk, and yashiro looks up at him while they walk since he's fairly tall- kou has told her in the past how amane was always shorter than him while they still went to school together- but now they're around the same height. "lunch rush was super evil today! you saw, right amane-kun?" yashiro huffs, still feeling the exhaustion of it hours later as she rolls her shoulders with a weak sigh.
amane looks amused listening to yashiro rant about particular customers who tried to find any issue possible in their drinks or food and about mitsuba who seemingly finds joy in making her life more difficult (though she gets her revenge when mitsuba is stuck scrubbing at plates). it lasts long enough that when yashiro finishes, they're at the restaurant doors.
stepping inside greets them with an environment that nene has become so accustomed spending time in; warm lighting, a comfortable temperature and the smell of food. the two quickly find their favourite corner and sit down just as the elderly man walks up to their table.
"my favourite customers, how have you been today? nene-chan, did the cafe treat you well today?" he smiles warmly at the two, reaching out to pat her head. she's come to think of them as grandparents with how caring and protective they are of her, and nene always pays back their kindness by bringing them a small box of pastries from their cafe. "it was a little busier than usual, but fine thank you! these are for you and obaachan!" she smiles, her hands bringing out the box from her work bag to hand to him.
"my, aren't you sweet as always? i'll get you two the usual, extra for yugi-kun, a growing young man needs to eat well to care for his lady." the old man wags a finger at amane before heading into the kitchen, amane left a little flustered at his words. if nene is their adopted granddaughter, then it seems the couple have assigned amane the role of her husband- which is completely untrue! but they both know better to try argue against an elderly couple.
he smiles with a soft huff, before turning his attention to nene. "r-right. i've been meaning to ask this, but what had you so miserable this morning?" there it is, the question.
"oh! uh.. well... i might've... stayed up late playing games.. but in my defence it was super interesting! i would've been distracted all day if i didn't finish it..." yashiro replies with ease, since she's been rehearsing it all day anyways. amane seems to believe her answer well enough to launch into a lecture, "yashiro! have you been sleeping at all this week? you complain you're tired, but stay up late regardless, tut tut!" he leans forward to flick her forehead, making yashiro bat his hand away with one of hers as the other covers her forehead.
"don't be a hypocrite, amane-kun! i know you stay up late too, i've seen you reply immediately at three am!" she retorts, trying to reach out and whack him- though amane manages to avoid it all with a loud laugh.
their bickering doesn't continue for long as the elderly lady walks to their table holding a bowl of oyakodon and a larger bowl of gyudon.
"now now, quit arguing you two, eat while its still hot okay? nene-chan, dear, thank you for the pastries." the bowls are set down, steam swirling up into the air as the two give her their thanks before digging in.
they trade pieces of beef, chicken and egg while talking about anything and everything, it's some of nene's favourite moments because she feels she can just rewind and be herself. though, she notes how amane doesn't mention this mystery girl she saw this morning- which means she's either no one important or so important that she needs to be kept secret. nene isn't sure which one is worse, actually.
their bowls are empty by the end of it, and their liveliness has simmered down into something akin to a soft sleepiness. the food is paid for and they stand around a little longer to say goodbye to the restaurant owners before leaving to go home. nene's apartment is on the way to amane's, so they begin walking there first; the air is colder now, but not enough for it to be uncomfortable.
amane clears his throat, "y'know how i mentioned going to that one record store? i uh, actually bought a vinyl- 'a way of life' by suicide... if you wanna come over and listen some day?" he offers, and yashiro suddenly feels a little shy. the offer is nothing new, amane loves buying vinyls and inviting her over to have a little listening party- she gets a lot of her music taste from him.
the quiet makes her realise she hasn't replied to him "oh! uh, yeah of course! i'll make sure to give every song a full review!"
when yashiro says 'a lot of her music taste', what she really means is 'the few rare songs from bands like the smiths, the cure and david bowie, the more known bands rather than the niche ones amane best likes.
they agree to meet next week saturday, when amane is less stumped with class work and grading papers, right as they stop outside the door to her apartment complex.
"so, i'll see you then?" amane asks, his voice a little gentler as he tilts his head to the side with a smile. yashiro smiles back, reminding him "you'll see me tomorrow." in which he replies with a quiet 'oh', forgetting he told yashiro back at the restaurant he'd be at the cafe since it'll be a sunday.
neither of them move afterwards, lingering outside her apartment door in a way that feels like a new couple trying to prolong their date- that thought alone makes nene clear her throat and finally tear her eyes away from amane. "well, i'll get going then... get home safe, amane-kun..."
"yeah.. bye yashiro." he replies, taking a few slow steps backwards to watch yashiro take out her keys and unlock the main door. the night ends with her feeling like she's floating. she wonders if this is what it'd be like to date amane, but with the addition of hand holding.... hugging for no reason and ... kissing. yashiro doesn't want to think about that too much, for the sake of her own sanity.
nene crawls into bed and opens up a web comic she needs to finish, letting any tension of the day drain from her shoulders.
ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁
when nene clocks into work the next morning, her heart feels ten times lighter than the previous day. she didn’t think about the mystery lady she saw amane with at all since she went home!
so, at the early hours of eight, she sets up her favourite playlist at a comfortable volume while she sets things up to open at nine. nene hums along to several of the songs with a pep in her step, today was going to be amazing, she could just feel it! nene even put a little extra into her hair today, styling it into a side ponytail since her hair is especially wavy today, finishing it off with her magatama clips nestled at the ponytail base.
.. not like she’s doing it for amane, though. she never knows when a handsome guy could walk through the cafe doors and flash her a smile that could make her swoon!
just on time, the bell jingles to signal the first customers of the day, plural, by the sound of chatter coming through the door. nene turns around and her smile turns more strained she sees amane with the mystery lady, but with akane and aoi with them too.
first of all, aoi never told her about this- about this new girl or the fact she's out with them, and aoi tells her everything. second of all, a double date at the cafe she works at? seriously?
way to rub it in her face that she can't get a date.
“heyyy, guys! what can I get you all?” nene leans forwards, an artificial cheer in her voice as her eyes flicker between them all.
akane has aoi take her order before his, since he’s insistent on paying for anything she wants. then its her turn. she moves to the counter, brushing a piece of hair behind her ear as she orders a simple vanilla latte.
“ah, wait- i think i left my wallet…” she takes a step back and bats her eyelashes, letting her head hang a little lower “i’ll just pass this time.”
of course amane, who hates awkward situations, pipes up and stands beside her with a smile. “don't stress watanabe-san, i’ll cover it yeah?” the mystery lady, watanabe, smiles and thanks amane- even going as far as putting her hand on his arm. “amane-kun, what are you getting?” nene asks, breaking the cute little moment they were having right in front of her.
“yashiro, aren’t i your favourite customer? i thought you knew my order by now?” amane huffs, nudging her hands towards the cash register so he can pay already. yashiro rolls her eyes and adds his order in.
of course i know what you like to get, but since all of you are decided to just go out without me, god knows what can change! she thinks to herself, bitter yet again.
“your drinks will be ready soon.” nene calls out as she moves away to get started on aoi and akane’s drinks first. when she sees the group walk away to go sit at a table she lets out a quiet sigh. nene almost wishes mitsuba was here with her, though she doesn’t know if he’d make it worse or better.
akane picks up his and aoi’s drinks and pastries first, exchanging quick pleasantries with her as he takes the tray.
its a few minutes of silence until amane comes up to the pick-up point just as she’s holding his plain donut in the pastry tongs.“yaashiroo~ how did you sleep? i hope better than yesterday?” amane asks, his hand enveloping her wrist to bring it forwards so he could take a bite of the donut.
yashiro’s heart almost stops beating. she briefly imagines amane grabbing her hand instead, pulling her from behind the counter and out of the cafe where it’ll be just amane and yashiro, not amane and watanabe! she blinks, remembering that amane had just asked her a question.
“o-oh! uh, yeah, i slept well.. um, you?”
he laughs, clearly not buying her words, “uh huh… why don’t i believe you?” he says with a teasing lilt in his voice. yashiro forces herself to look away, her face burning. “j-just take your tray away!” she huffs, setting the donut down and placing the tongs back in the pastry display box. when yashiro turns around, amane is still stood there with a smile, and he doesn't leave until nene shoos him away with her hands.
the cafe being so empty means there isn't anything for nene to do distraction-wise. she’s forced to listen to their laughter and the odd word she can hear from their table. opportunity strikes when one of her regulars, a pair of middle aged ladies, walk in. they like their drinks taken to their table, so nene can use it to perhaps, maybe, potentially, coincidentally listen in to their conversation?
okay, maybe it's wrong to eavesdrop on her friends’ double date, but she knows nothing about this mystery lady when seemingly everyone else does! its only natural for curiosity to get the better of her.
preparing their drinks only takes a few minutes, so nene carries the tray of two cups of tea (with slices of cake on the house) to the middle aged couple, who just so happened to seat themselves close enough to the group that nene can listen in and talk to the couple.
“nene-chan! its been a while since we’ve come by, why don't you come sit with us for a little while you’re not busy?” the elegant one, sachiko-san, asks (and of course nene won't turn down this golden opportunity!) so she sits with them, multi tasking so she can listen to them and whatever her friends - minus watanabe - are talking about.
from her information gathering skills, nene manages to hear watanabe ask how aoi and akane ended up dating, the story being a ‘you had to be there’ kind of thing, and if amane dated anyone in highschool. why does she want to know, huh?
well, that was all nene could hear since the two ladies dragged her into a conversation on relationships, the kind of man she should find and if she had any ‘wife like skills’.
“nene-chan, maybe i should introduce you to our son?” the softer lady, mio-san asks, placing her hand over sachiko’s. she can only awkwardly laugh, unsure of how to feel about this offer. maybe she should accept? she’s never seen mio and sachiko’s son, despite the two mentioning him and his studies and well paying job quite frequently.
two hands land on her shoulder, sliding down to the top of her arms “yashiro, slacking off work are we?” she hears amane’s voice by her ear, causing her to jump. “eek! amane-kun?! did you need me for something? uh- do you need more drinks?”
sachiko puts a hand up to her mouth, “my, nene-chan, you should've just told us you had a boyfriend!” yashiro blinks, her hands waving frantically as she tries to stutter out words to explain herself “n-no! that’s not it, uh, those are my friends over there…”
mio decides to interrupt this time, “so we can introduce you to our touya-kun?” before yashiro can answer, amane tugs her arm “we need to borrow yashiro, sorry ladies!”. she manages to apologise before she’s pulled to sit between aoi and amane at their table.
(sachiko and mio quietly laugh together, realising the situation)
“nene-chan! is mistuba-kun working tonight?” her best friend asks, and nene can’t help but glare at her a little. she’s feeling petty, sue her. “hello to you too, ao-chan.” nene smiles, though its a forced once, and aoi knows she’s going to need to do a lot of explaining on the phone to nene later. “ahaha… um..-” nene interrupts aoi's awkward laughter, deciding to answer her original question.
“yeah, mitsuba-kun is working tonight, why?” she's more confused than bitter now, unless they wanted to speak to mitsuba so they could all make plans and hang out without nene knowing (okay, maybe she’s still bitter). akane speaks up this time, “well, kou-kun was wondering, since minamoto-kaichou gave the kid some free time for once.”
“oh? ohoho? yeah! yep, mitsuba-kun is in today! he’ll be here in around… two hours or so?” nene grins, realising this is the perfect opportunity to tease mitsuba. it doesn't come by often, since kou is so busy with his family’s business. over the years of being friends with them, she’s noticed kou slowly becoming more flustered around mitsuba and offering to do acts of service for him- it reminds her of something straight from a romance novel!
amane nudges her with a smile, leaning in to ask her “you're also in on playing cupid, yashiro?”, she rolls her eyes and nudges him back, which is how she notices that watanabe has been awfully quiet. she pushes long blue hair behind her ear while looking down at her latte, and yashiro begins to feel guilty for some reason.
“well.. i gotta go back up, prepare for lunch and all..” nene stands up, tucking their empty tray under her arm and collecting akane’s empty cup to take back with her. they wave her goodbye as she busies herself with sandwich prep and making sure everything is organised and presentable for the chaos to come.
kou walks in around forty minutes later, and his good mood is infectious. nene always saw him as a golden retriever of sorts, thanks to his unwavering kindness to others. though, with mitsuba coming in soon she’ll be a seventh wheel. is it too late to ask the couple to bring their son in? “kou-kun! its been a while, what can i get you?”
to the surprise of no one within their circle, kou puts in a special request for something so disgustingly green and healthy, it could probably knock out tsukasa (who has a crazy sweet tooth). well, she’s not drinking it, so she complies and finds the little sticky note that holds the recipe nene made for him.
it’s midway through making the concoction when mitsuba’s voice rings out through the cafe, “hella lame traffic safety earring boy?! what the hell?!” and nene swears she hears snickering from amane’s table. nene looks over her shoulder to see kou spin mitsuba around in a crushing hug, and she’s torn between fangirling and teasing the two- but she has a drink to make, so nene spares them for now.
“oi, daikon-senpai! why didn't you tell me he would be coming!” mitsuba hisses at her once he manages to escape kou and get behind the counter. nene plays innocent and shrugs “i didn't know! i was busy working!” but mitsuba scowls at her reply anyways.
he then leans in, standing right beside her with his voice lowering to a whisper, “senpai.. who’s that girl with crazy knife?” the ‘crazy knife’ in question being amane, nicknamed after a cooking challenge went wrong- but that's not relevant right now, as nene’s reminded of the double date going on.
“i… don’t know.” she admits with a frown, shoving the spinach into the blender with extra force than necessary. nene doesn't want to dampen the mood, so she puts on a smile and gently elbows mitsuba. “so, are you glad to see kou-kun? he looked pretty glad to see you!” she teases, and mitsuba’s face turns the same hue as his hair.
“i-in your dreams! and of course he’d be glad to see someone as cute as me! its a blessing to anyone to see me!” he argues, and nene simply drowns out the rest of his rambling with the flick of the blender. when mitsuba realises she isn’t listening, he huffs and goes to the staff room to shove his stuff away and put his apron on.
meanwhile, nene pours the green toxic gloop into a cup with a straw and calls out to kou to come retrieve it, and she can almost see perked up ears and a wagging tail as he rushes over to grab it and take a sip. “delicious as always, senpai!” he praises before going back to amane’s table, where she spots watanabe leaning into his space and laughing.
nene bites her lip and looks away just to find mitsuba looking at her with a pitying expression. “daikon-senpai, are you jealous?” he doesn't have his usual teasing voice, but a quieter, honest one.
“i just can’t believe they're having a double date right in front of me! it's like they’re rubbing it in my face that i’m single. and i thought me and amane-kun were friends! why did no one tell me anything about this mystery girl?” nene rambles, making sure to keep her voice quiet as the two start shifting around to start taking the orders of lunch rush customers.
“ao-chan especially! those two tell me everything! i guess i just feel a little left out.” she finishes with a huff and mitsuba pats her shoulder as he passes by. nene retracts her previous debate, mitsuba being here does make her feel better.
actually, she retracts her entire previous statement as mitsuba hesitantly asks, “are you sure you’re not jealous of the fact another girl is with amane?”.. nene thinks she’s going to lose her mind. of course she isn't jealous that another girl is with amane, they're just friends! nene’s just uncomfortable with change, and if he were to date watanabe, then it means spending less time with her best friend and it means seventh wheeling more often. it's a completely valid concern to have!
mitsuba realises that nene doesn't want to have this conversation and decides to leave her be, the two working together to serve customers and clean tables. his words keep ringing in her head, mainly because it's so wrong. in what world is nene jealous of watanabe liking amane?
she chooses to ignore it all for the rest of her shift, even when the group left after two or so hours, even now as she walks home, she’s quiet. nene keeps asking herself if she’s blowing everything out of proportion, if she’s being too childish and dramatic.
aoi and amane are their own people, they’re not required to tell her everything. but it’d still be nice of them to do so, since she tells them all about the people she meets and if she’s hanging out with other people.
her original plan of calling aoi to ask about everything fall through. nene should grow up and let them do what they want, she thinks as she slowly steps up to her apartment door.
nene crawls into bed early and stares at her phone beside her.
no new notifications.
she sighs and decides to sleep early tonight.