recolle | open || ain't no party like a birthday party

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open || ain't no party like a birthday party

WHO: Minako, Sakura, Ragna, and you!
WHERE: One of the arcade bars in the city.
WHEN: March 10th
WHAT: BIRTHDAY PARTY!
WARNINGS: None foreseen! Feel free to threadjack for Minako's Hot Potato Categories game.

[Welcome to the Emporium, an arcade bar that Minako and Sakura have decided to host their joint birthday party at! Come on in and have some fun playing games, eating junk food, and just hanging out with the birthday girls (and guy, if he decides to come).

There are, of course, the numerous arcade games that the place is known for, ranging from the old school 2v2 fighters to the shooting gallery kinds. But there are a smattering of other games as well, like DDR, darts, mini hoops, skeeball, and the pool table, too. There's also a wall of crane games in the back, with plenty of random and mostly cute prizes to win.

Make a stop by the purikura booth if you have time. Make some duck lips at the camera and then take the snaps home! (Or give them to the birthday girls for the memories.)

Oh, and be sure to exchange your money for tokens before you play all these games. The token machine seems kind of finicky, though. Maybe a strong (and hopefully discrete?) kick will help jumpstart it.

Walk to the dining area, and there'll be a feast waiting you! The arcade is providing a ton of pizza and wings, as well as alcohol, if you can show your ID. For dessert, there's the cake that Shuji made for the girls, as well as Minako's lemon tea cakes. Those are limited supply, though, so snag one before everyone eats it up.

Next to the dining area, there's a big sign that says "DUNK TANK OUTSIDE". Maybe take a look? Just be reaaaally sure you want to climb in before you do it, though. The towels provided by the arcade are pretty small.

And finally, if you need a break from the chaos, there's a couple of couches on the second floor. Take a load off and watch from above.]

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-No. Don't do that to her. Don't make it sound so tempting, because she knows Sakura still has no idea what was really going on. She couldn't. She loved her, but despite all that... May shook her head, slowly at first, as if doubt had crept into her own mind (it had).

The part of May that had worn the dress tonight, that wanted Sakura's attention, that wanted her love, that wanted all of this to be easy... loud as that part of May was, she was still just sober enough to know she couldn't listen to her because it *wasn't* going to turn out like some happy fairy tale. She knew too much of what was going on, both in her life and in Sakura's. Especially Sakura's.

It hurt, it cut so deeply, to say what she had to say. She had no choice.-

There are some things... I gotta face alone. And I know that's... not easy to hear. But when we're together like this, I feel like I ain't gotta worry about any of it, either. So... you can think of this as helping, right?

Right.

[The answer is immediate, conceding without a fight. She doesn't know how to push and wouldn't want to if she could. It's May's happiness against her own selfish desire to know every detail of her best friend -- of course there's only one choice to pick.]

Sorry, I didn't mean to push. But I trust you'll get through whatever is happening.

[A light shoulder bump, smile edging on her anxious expression]

And I'll still be here, too.

-That fragile look, the anxiety beneath, just twisted the knife deeper, and May almost felt like she was about to break out in tears again. They even welled up in her eyes, unable to hide the parts of her that desperately wanted to bare her soul. The war was taking a turn and she couldn't keep doing this...-

I know... I gotta keep believing that. It's what makes all of this worth it, you know?

[Oh no... don't cry, May, Sakura doesn't think she could stand it if you cried.

-- But she promised not to push, and that same promise chains her tongue, bids it still. She bites at her bottom lip]

... Mmhmm. I understand.

[She shifts, another sliver of weight leaned against the other girl]

Sometimes the belief is all that keeps you going.

Sakura... -She couldn't let this stay like this. She couldn't keep this up. She wasn't that strong. She wanted to not care anymore, to throw herself into abandon and stop believing the part of her that insisted this was all a terrible idea...-

I... -No. Stop. Let it be. Let those words die in your mouth like the coward you are.-

Y-yeah. If I didn't have you... I'd really be lost. Adrift. A sail with no wind... -Poetic, by her standards. And at least they were the most honest thing she could still say.-

[Yes, poetic, and Sakura smiles at the effort

without once thinking of why she's being given it.]

I'd be lost without you, too. [Said so honestly but with the same naivety May is probably used to. Sakura bumps their shoulders again] So you can always come talk to me about anything... or if you don't want to, I'll keep you company anyway.

Well so long as I've got that, I can be happy. Thanks, Sakura...

-No, that's not true. But she desperately wants it to be. But there's still a pain in her eyes, and in her altered state, there was nothing she could do to hide it. She didn't even know it was there. An exhaustion with putting up this front that she was satisfied with their relationship. That this was all she could ever want. It was all a lie and it was slowly eating her inside...-

[May-chan, if you keep looking at her like that--

Sakura's gonna start assuming the problem is her.

Which is not a thought allowed to seed. It's absurd, for one, and not because Sakura thinks herself infallible; she just knows how careful she is with May, always putting her best foot forward. She can think of no area where she recently tripped up.

And so after turning her thoughts around in her head, examining each one for clues, she eventually gives up and takes a sip from the flask before she passes it to May.]

... Even if you can't talk to me, maybe... [A pause] Sometimes I visit Shigaraki-san when I need advice.

[She knows May knows him. It's why his name comes up at all.] Maybe he can help...?

-Well. That wakes her back up to reality.-

Oh, Kei, well, uh... I mean I definitely talk to him. I talked about this thing bothering me too. It's easier talking to him than the padre, at least. He's smart without the piety.

It's just the following his advice part that's hard. -It was killing her, even, but she knew she had to do this. Eventually the pain would fade, or she'd at least grow numb to it, and they could just go back to being *normal* best friends again.-

[... Oh. Kei knows and she doesn't.

Well.

That's fine. It's the exact reason Sakura brought him up in the first place, so there's no harm in knowing May had jumped at the chance already. Slowly, she nods in agreement.]

If it's advice he gave you, then I trust that it's good.

I'm trying real hard to have faith in the long-term goal of it... -Well maybe that was a little too honest, but it's also hard not to notice Sakura's slight change in expression.-

Hey don't... don't think because I'm handling this alone that I don't... that I don't value everything you do for me. Just like sunshine breaking through a storm cloud. -Stop. You're getting dangerously close to that point again.-

... Sorry.

[Because she knows she's been caught looking petty. She sinks into her seat, disappointed with herself.]

I'm not upset, though! [Not completely, at least] You're just... you're important to me, so I want to see you happy.

-Shot through the heart. That look is like a siren's song, drawing May closer, wanting to comfort, to surround Sakura in her strength and assure her of everything. Her strength, her love...

Well, she snuggles closer at any rate, poking at Sakura's cheek.-

You do make me happy. Happier than anything ever has. And I'm not trying to make it sound too sappy, but... -Good save.-

You light up my life, yanno? -Aaaaand she lost it again.-

[... Well. She can't pout with her cheek being attacked like this. It pulls a smile and a giggle out of her]

Hehe... careful, you're gonna disappoint any suitors who fancy you in that pretty dress.

[Just some gentle teasing]

-A critical blow. But at least it confirmed that Sakura didn't suspect anything yet. Or maybe she did, and was going to parse how to continue from May's reaction. This was it. The moment she needed to steel herself, think over every word as carefully as possible, but she couldn't take forever to plan her counter. Any diversion would just make things more suspicious.

The fact she had to do any of this... made her just as angry as it made her anxious or depressed. But she kept reminding herself it was for Sakura's sake. For her, she had to destroy this selfish love...-

Eh, I'm pretty satisfied being single. -Nailed it. At least... she hoped. It did take some time for her to get it out, and it... lacked sincerity. It was weak, but it was the best she could do, with the rum warming her blood the way it was, with Sakura so close...-

[... For the record, it's not the wording Sakura has a problem with. It's the emotion behind it, that just itches strangely against her ear. She's not sure what to think of it.

But a slight shadow of doubt seems to cross her face]

Oh... [Nodding slowly again, letting a fragile silence fill between them.] Tired of dating after Augustine-san?

-At least she could talk about the Augustine situation and not feel like she was in a war with herself. Mostly.

May sighed, shaking her head.- You know, Augustine's a great friend but... he definitely didn't really get what he was getting into with me, you know? And I feel like that's gonna happen again and again until I actually find the right person. So rather than set myself up for failure, I'm okay with just letting things be as they are...

-No, that was... very honest, wasn't it? But she's not really worried about Sakura reacting to her, the whole her, the purest form of her, the way Augustine did. Sakura had already accepted everything about her...

... Well. Everything but the one truth she still kept in her heart. But that truth was just too selfish and volatile to let free.-

[That's a sensible answer. It helps that Sakura doesn't pick up any strange emptiness this time. Some of the doubt eases away from her expression, and she chances a small smile]

Well, I know you'll find that person some day. It just might take a little time.

[The girl's a romantic at heart, what she can say? And damn it, May is her best friend, so of course she must have a happy ending waiting for her.]

-It just sort of... happened. Like anything that came with inebriation. A loss of faculties, the clumsy grasping of the world around her and not being aware of falling into a snare, ready to snap her clean off her feat. That's what her next words were like, spoken softly, almost a whisper.-

Sometimes I think I already have.

-No. No no no that's not what she wanted to say. As soon as she was even aware of it, there was a visible twitch, and she had to pinch her own nose, as if a sudden headache had come on, anything to pretend that hadn't just happened.-

Oh wow... I think I've had enough for the night, ha ha! -What hollow laughter. What empty sentiment. Please let it work, please... She wasn't ready for this. Neither of them were. This couldn't be allowed to shatter, not here, not now, not *ever*.-

[... Oh.

Ooooooh

And like the sky clearing, Sakura's face lightens as if she suddenly understands something. She turns the full weight of her smile on May]

Is that what it is? [Just steamrolling over May's will in her excitement, but she can't help it this time. Her friend has a crush on someone at the party? -- well in that case, no wonder she's miserable. They're by the couches, but she glances around as if she might be able to guess]

-- Oh, sorry. You didn't want me to know... [For... some reason. But that's fine! The mystery has been solved and in her childish glee, Sakura decides that's enough for her. She flops back into the couch with a sympathetic tilt of her head]

I won't get involved if you don't want me to, but please know that I'm rooting for you.

H-hey, don't get the wrong idea here, that was just daydream drunk talk. -May immediately protested because for some fucking reason the only thing worse than Sakura finding out she had feelings for her was assuming she had feelings for *someone else*. But wouldn't that only benefit her in the end?

... It was only just more dishonest.-

Whatever you're thinking, it's definitely not the case. -May sighed, shaking her head, and pulling away finally, releasing herself from that warmth that was intoxicating her tongue just as badly as the drink.-

I mean... I really wish it was that simple, but it ain't. But... I am glad to know you're pulling for me, all the same.

[... At this point, Sakura isn't certain she believes her friend anymore.

And what a poisoned thought that is, except she doesn't have any other leads to go off of besides the one May herself shot down. Sakura's mouth pulls to the side, half-frustrated and bemused as she looks around the room again. ]

So... it's not that you like anyone here?

Look, just... -Damnit. She could see that look in Sakura's eyes. She'd let her get too close, and now the pushing was hurting them both. In that moment, she really had to scream at herself and ask, in teary desperation, was this worth it? Would Sakura truly be better off not knowing? Would she? She'd tried so hard to convince herself, lie after lie after lie. The weight was getting to the point where she had to be drunk just to be at a fucking birthday party. She wasn't careful enough to keep this from destroying her... or Sakura as well.-

Can we... Can we go outside for a bit and talk there? -What she did know is she needed air. She was suffocating inside, unable to breath, unable to think. If she was going to repair this situation, she needed a moment to sober up, to clear her head, and... and put Sakura on some kind of path that didn't have her making faces like *that*. That look cut more deeply than anything else, and she couldn't just let it stand...-

... Okay.

[Said with some measure of guilt because Sakura knows she showed too much of her hand on her expression. Wonderful. Now they're both unhappy at her birthday party.

With a nod, she scoots towards the edge of the couch to stand up, warming some feeling into her legs and straightening out her skirt.]

-May stumbled a bit herself to get off of the plush of the couch, her head spinning slightly as she did so, but once they were outside, the fresh, cool night air helped clear her senses some. But damn, she could really use some sea air to help even more, but...

Yeah. She needed to breathe. Just breathe for a bit and let everything settle in her mind. Down the street, she could hear the dull thumping of a jam band at another bar. It sounded like a cover of Kings of Leon song...-

Alright, so... It's like this.

-A deep sigh, before turning to Sakura with a worn smile.-

I'm basically in a sucky situation, but it's not gonna drag me down. I can't say anything about it, even to my best friend, or I could mess things up. But if I tough this out, I'm sure I'll be a better person for it.

I gotta ask you, Sakura, as the person closest to me in this moment... to have some faith in my ability to handle this on my own, okay? I don't want you getting dragged down by the last of my bullshit I still gotta get past...

-Not a single word of that was a lie. It was just a careful, calculated, surprisingly sober omission of the complete truth. Kei would probably be proud of her, if he were capable of that.-

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