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Zoe had never felt so exhausted in her entire life. What had felt like years might have been a few hours, but she felt exhausted nonetheless.
After everything was in the machine and the police took their statements, Zoe felt like she could sleep for a week straight, something she was sure Mio could relate to as well.
The two had exited the building, the lights of police cars and the ambulance blinding them, but neither had the energy to look away; their gazes were far away, each absorbing everything they had gone through.
Physically, they were fine, but mentally? That was an entirely different story. Zoe was sure Mio was thinking about everything she had been forced to confront; sure, it all turned out well in the end, but well, nobody likes being forced to confront their issues now, do they?
She jumped as she felt Mio tug at her sleeve, glancing down, she did her best to smile at her friend-best friend-but she was sure it came out as more of a grimace than anything else.
Mio stared at her with a flat, tired look. "How far is your apartment?"
...shit
Her face must have shown her panic and dread because Mio let out a light snort, "Yeah, I thought so..." The two found themselves in silence before Mio looked back at her. "Would you...Would you like to come over to my place? I took a taxi, but it's somewhat close."
Zoe blinked. "Yeah, that sounds nice."
She hopes she doesn't sound to eager, Zoe begs to god that her face doesn't show how exited she is to spend the night at Mio's place; perhaps it was selfish of her, maybe even childish, but after the journey they went through in the simulation part of her didn't feel ready to let go of Mio just yet. Something inside of her screamed to stay by her side, and she had to physically restrain herself from grabbing her hand in an attempt to ground herself.
Without a word, Mio nudged her head and off they went.
The walk, despite it being thirty minutes, was almost an hour at least. Her mind was reeling the whole walk to Mio's home; neither had said a word, simply using each other's presence to ground themselves, though Zoe was sure she had been a bit too close to Mio, but Mio hadn't said anything against it, so she supposed it was okay.
She really, really, tried not to show how happy she was about that.
"Come on in" Mio finally said as she opened the door "Sorry about the mess" her voice echoed throughout the very small apartment; Zoe hadn't shown a sign of disgust, her place was in a much worse state so she wasn't in any position to judge, and simply stood there in a daze until she jumped as a pair of clothes was practically thrown in her face.
Grabbing the shirt from her face, she frowned and turned to look at Mio, who was looking at her with a raised eyebrow. "You good?"
"...not really?" she shrugged pathetically
"Hah," Mio let out a chuff. "I get it." There was a slight pause. "I um...My couch isn't big enough for you, and I'd feel bad having you take it, so take my bed and I'll take the couch-"
"No!" Zoe shook her head. "I'll take the couch."
"Zoe, I'm not making you sleep on a dirty and smelly small couch," Mio said sternly, a tone Zoe had become quite familiar with throughout their whole journey. "Take the bed."
Zoe crossed her arms "No."
"Zoe," Mio glared
"It's your apartment! It would be rude of me to-" Zoe paused, noticing how loud they were getting, not yelling but certainly not in a normal speaking voice, she inhaled. "How about we just share?"
"...Share?" Mio blinked. "You mean the bed?"
"What else would I be talking about?" she raised an eyebrow
"I-" Mio began, but sighed, "You're not going to stop fighting this, are you?" She shook her head at that, which got a groan from the other girl, "Ugh, why do you have to be so stubborn?"
Zoe simply grinned at that, or did her best to at least. She was still tired after all.
"Fine," she huffed. "Now go get changed" she pointed at the bathroom. "And yes, there's a toothbrush under the sink that's brand new for you to use."
Soon she found herself in a small, albeit comforting, bathroom. Brushing her teeth and letting her hair down made her feel relaxed in a way she never had before; then again, it was probably due to all the different stories they had gone through.
They had run from, fought against actual threats- like a dragon! And yet they had come out of the bubble as clean as they had entered it. Bizarre. Yet it had taken its toll on them nonetheless.
It wasn't too soon that she found herself staring at her reflection, she was wearing a Star Wars shirt- she rolled her eyes fondly- and what seemed to be oversized red shorts. The shirt was also oversized. Hm, did Mio like to sleep in clothes like these?
Zoe paused when she realized she was wearing Mio's clothes. She stared at the clothes and felt something warm bloom inside of her, a small smile formed on her face, and she couldn't help but pull the shirt up a bit and sniff-
Oh god
She let go quickly and blinked rapidly
Too soon, Zoe...Wait, too soon for what? It's not like she and Mio were anything like that! They had JUST become friends!
With a shake of her head, she exited the room with her clothes folded. With a turn of her head, she found a door open and, after a hesitant knock, which got no response, she stepped inside.
Mio was already lying in her bed, asleep and softly snoring. Zoe let out a soft snort and stepped inside, closing the door behind her and placing her folded clothes on the bedside table.
Zoe slowly lay on the bed, so softly as not to wake her friend up, and turned the light off.
She shut her eyes...and couldn't go to sleep.
With a low groan, she opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling of Mio's apartment. From the outside, she could hear cars honking and the sound of police sirens crying out in the distance. Once it would have annoyed her, but at the moment, it felt comforting, it proved she was back in reality and no longer in the simulation anymore.
...How long had it been since she allowed someone in like this?
Zoe turned to look at Mio's back, which was softly rising up and down; Mio was the first person who had gotten to know her, the real her, in a long time. Oh sure, she hadn't held people at arm's length like Mio did when they first met, but she certainly hadn't let anyone in.
When Ella passed, it was like part of her was shattered and was never put back together. Not because she didn't want to fix it, but because it couldn't.
Part of Zoe knew that her parents resented her for what happened on that day, she knew damn well that although they didn't show it -no matter what her "Spiritual Guides" told her in the simulation- she knew that part of them had wished she had been the one that drowned on that fateful day.
She had broken the rules, had led Ella there, and hadn't been able to let go.
Sometimes...Sometimes Zoe can still feel it. The warmth in her palms as Ella's hands slipped from hers. Sometimes, she can remember the scream she let out as she tried and failed to save her twin sister. And she can still see the sight of her sister's pale and slumped corpse in her father's arms.
Since that day, Zoe hadn't allowed anyone in; her happiness and her smile were torn, and although she eventually learned to smile again, she had never learned to be happy. She had simply gotten better at faking it.
Having "friends" had made it easier but she had never allowed herself to get attached. After all, the one person who was meant to be her best friend, her other half, her twin, had been killed by her actions. What hope was there for her would make friends?
It hurt not to allow anyone in.
Until now, at least.
Everything changed the moment Mio fell into her story.
All of a sudden, she was going through the journey of a lifetime with someone who could be best described as her total opposite. There were times Zoe had wanted to scream at how stubborn she was being, but then again, she hadn't been the best at the time either. And then, as they continued forward, Zoe began to realize that the two had a lot in common.
And as they got closer, Zoe began to slowly let her walls down; It was...fun. Being able to be open with someone else, and it was terrifying when she began to realize that Mio was the only person who had seen who she was inside.
It was terrifying...yet exciting.
Zoe found herself having fun, actually being herself with someone else. And it was nice to see Mio open up to her slowly, the walls weren't down completely but it warmed her heart when she realized that Mio was finally beginning to trust her.
It was... addictive. To know that finally, after years, she knew she had someone to have her back.
Her eyes softened, and she reached forward to grasp the edge of Mio's shirt in an attempt to comfort herself. She was a touchy person, had been a touchy person before she closed in on herself, but knew better than to cross Mio's boundaries.
She knew better than to cross the line. Mio was her friend, her first real friend in years...she didn't want to lose her.
Maybe it was selfish, but part of her wanted to keep Mio all to herself.
That doesn't sound so bad
Zoe's eyes slowly began to close, and before she knew it, she had fallen asleep.
Feeling warmer and safer than she ever had in years.
0
O
o
"...Ngh"
Mio grunted as her eyes blinked open, she let out a yawn and squinted her eyes as she stared out the window; it was still dark, and raining. Pausing to stare at the clock beside her bed, she couldn't help but grumble
4:34 AM
It was still too early. Thank god the diner she worked at understood and gave her the rest of the week off. She stretched-...or attempted to.
Mio's eyes blinked and looked down at her waist, only to see a pair of arms wrapped around her. Tightly. She looked over her head and was immediately met with the sight of a sleeping Zoe.
Blood immediately rushed to her cheeks, and she tried to get out of the grip. Emphasis on tried.
Zoe was, shockingly, stronger than she looked. The more Mio struggled, the tighter the hold got.
The blonde grumbled, and due to how close they were, she was able to hear what was being said, "...Stop"
Her breath warmed Mio's ear, she had to hold back the shiver that ran down her spine and physically restrain herself from arching her back. She shut her eyes and couldn't help but glance around in panic.
She needed to get out of this hold, she shuffled a bit and-
*Chomp
Mio completely froze, hands slapped over her mouth with wide eyes
Did Zoe just bite her?
...
Did Zoe bite her?!?!?!
Said blonde shuffled and buried her face on the back of Mio's neck, making her face even redder, and she felt close to fainting as she felt Zoe nibble on the back of her neck. It was taking everything she had so as not to let out a noise.
Oh god.
Oh god, was she LIKING THIS??
Oh hell no. She is WAY too sober to deal with the fact she may have a biting kink...or would it be bitten kink?-
GAH!
StopStopStopStop-
Zoe had since stopped nibbling, and her breaths became deeper and slower; she was asleep again. Mio let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. She stayed still for a long time before she, begrudgingly, let her body relax, much to the delight of sleeping Zoe, who hummed in pleasure and nuzzled the back of her head.
Mio inhaled sharply and shut her eyes as she let out a whine.
God, this girl was going to be the death of her
And part of her didn't care a single bit about it
Getting stuck in a simulation hadn't been what MIo had planned, and facing her 'dark' self also wasn't part of the plan, but here she was, lying in bed with a woman she met a couple of hours ago, yet felt like she could trust her with her life.
Mio glanced down at the arms wrapped around her waist, her lips twitched into a smile. Zoe Foster, the only person on the planet who had gotten the chance to know her inside out.
Her smile turned bitter.
Knowing what she did now, she felt like the worst person on the planet. Mio had always held people at an arm's length, never having friends and simply "acquaintances", angry at the world and more than willing to scream and shout instead. And she had done the same thing with Zoe...until she had gotten the chance to know her.
From the beginning, she had pegged Zoe's cheery attitude as fake, a shield to protect her from the world. But as they continued through the simulation, she had gotten to know her and had realized that it was so much deeper than that.
Finding out about Ella had felt like a bullet going through her chest. All this time, while Mio had let the anger of what was happening to her father consume her, Zoe had been dealing with the guilt of her own twin's death. She had been shocked when she found out, and even more so when she realized how much Zoe blamed herself for it.
Zoe had lost her sister and had taken all the jabs Mio had shot at her like a champ, not letting them faze her.
Facing Zoe's guilty coincidence had opened her eyes as to who Zoe was. She was hurt, broken, and barely put back together, but so determined to make it; she was determined to prove people wrong, to rise against them even when they disliked her or tried to push her down.
Zoe was the strongest person she had ever met.
Mio paused and looked over her shoulder again, staring at Zoe's sleeping expression with soft eyes. She hesitated before she managed to spin around in the hold to face Zoe, her eyes ran over her face, and she frowned when she noticed just how tired Zoe looked.
She had looked tired after all the shit they went through but Zoe might as well look like death. But, she supposed, having to confront your twin's death and your guilty conscious would do that for you.
Having someone's touch surrounding her was...overwhelming, but a good kind of overwhelming. Besides her father, no one had ever had the chance to hug her, let alone touch her, so having Zoe suffocating her to death with cuddles was something else.
Not that she didn't mind, she was practically curling up in an attempt to have more of Zoe's touch.
It was embarrassing, and she prayed to god that Zoe didn't wake up because she would die right there in the spot.
Mio's eyes opened a bit before she closed them again with a soft sigh. Slowly, at the pace of a snail, she lifted her arms and wrapped them around Zoe. She was smaller, by at least a few inches at least, so it was easy for her slightly smaller frame to fit around her.
She could feel Zoe's arm gently squeeze her, a sleepy mumble leaving her as they continued to cuddle. Mio let out a soft laugh and simply allowed herself to relax.
She soon fell asleep.
"..ngh" Zoe blinked her eyes open, wincing at the light coming through the window. She blinked her eyes, rubbing her eyes to get rid of te sleepiness she was feeling.
"Oh. Good, you're finally awake."
She jumped and looked down, being met with the sight of Mio all but lying her head on her chest as she played with her other hand, touching her fingers and running her own against her palm.
Zoe squinted her eyes as she tried to remember what led them to this position, which she very much enjoyed and- Oh. OH
Mio snorted, "Judging by the fact you resemble a tomato right now, I'm guessing you remember biting me and practically smothering me?"
"I- Uh..." Zoe didn't even know how to respond and simply began to lift her arms in an attempt to let go of her "Sorry-"
"It's fine" Mio cut her off and grabbed her hand, pulling it back and playing with it. "I...Kinda needed it," a pause before she fumbled. "The hugging, not the biting, by the way, hah, that would be weird."
"Really?" she blinked
"Hm"
For others, this would all be awkward, but for them, it was weirdly calming; neither of them said anything, Mio playing with her hand and her running a hand through her hair = as she hummed a small tune.
"What song is that?"
"Oh. It's just a tune Ella came up with," she shrugged, "I quite like it."
"Yeah..." Mio nodded. "Who knows, maybe you can make a song about it."
Zoe snorted, "I doubt it, I sound like a screeching cat when I sing."
Mio threw her head back and laughed at that, making Zoe blink and feel her heart skip a beat at the sound of it
Be cool, Zoe, be cool.
They fell silent before Zoe mumbled into Mio's hair, "We should get up."
Mio let out a long hum before she shook her head and buried her face into her shoulder, Zoe's face went redder, and she stayed still for a very long time before she slowly wrapped her arms around her. She doesn't say anything and lets them lie in silence
"Let's..." Mio swallowed slightly. "Let's stay like this for a while, okay? It feels nice."
"Yeah," Zoe nodded, "Okay."
Both of them are quite safe for the mumbles Mio lets out as she plays with her hand, all the while Zoe smiles softly at the sight of the usually tough girl being all soft and mushy.
It wasn't long before the two were once again drifting off; by that point, Mio had decided to simply hold her hand as she drifted off while she used Zoe's other arm as a pillow as the blonde's forehead was pressed against her own.
Neither would be willing to admit it out loud, at least not to anyone besides each other.
But it was the warmest and happiest they had ever felt in a long time.