allie :
(3)
As they keep waiting, Ellis looks up at her.
“You really don’t have to be this careful with everything for me. I can handle things on my own too, you know.”
Nico shrugs lightly, hands in her pockets.
“I know you can. But I’d rather not take the chance. You spend all day taking care of everyone else’s problems, someone has to make sure you get home safe, and on time, and actually get to rest.”
Ellis falls quiet for a moment, then says softly.
“I don’t know how I’d keep track of anything without you, Nico. Seriously.”
---------
One afternoon, Ellis stays behind for an emergency meeting that ran way longer than expected. Only Rui and Nico wait outside the faculty room, leaning against the wall.
“Seriously, Nico,” Rui starts, grinning at her.
“You know her order, her schedule, when she gets tired, which seat she prefers on the jeep, even that she hates wet socks… it’s like you have her whole life saved in your head.”
Nico just smiles, glancing at the closed door.
“It’s just habit, I guess. We’ve been best friends for years.”
“Habit my foot!” Rui nudges her arm playfully. “I’m telling you, you must’ve been her mom in a past life! Who else memorizes every single tiny detail like that?”
Nico chuckles, shaking her head.
“Or maybe I just care enough to pay attention.”
“Sure, sure,” Rui winks. “Whatever you say… ‘Mom’.”
Nico rolls her eyes, but she’s smiling.
When Ellis finally walks out, looking worn out but relieved, Nico hands her a cold bottle of water, exactly the brand she likes, already opened for her.
“Here. Drink slowly. Did they give you a hard time?”
Ellis takes it, sighing softly.
“Just a lot of last-minute changes. But… this helps. Thank you, Nico. Always.”
Rui just watches them, shaking her head with a teasing grin, thinking: “Are these two really just friends? I feel like such a third wheel standing here.”
No one says it out loud, but it’s so obvious:
Nico doesn’t just know Ellis’s likes and dislikes. She knows her heart.
End.
2026-07-21 02:52:55