Chapter Text
“Ms. Ragatha, who’s that?”
Ragatha tried not to sigh. Or express any emotion that would be taken as negative. It appeared the new hire was dead set in adding Ms. to her name despite Ragatha politely repeating that it wasn’t necessary. Of course the new hire was young and just wanted to be respectful, but she wasn’t any younger than Jax and Zooble and those two never bothered with formalities towards their seniors.
And speaking of those two…
“Jax, you’re going to break it.”
“No I’m not.” Bang! “This tried and true method has worked before.” Bang! “It’ll work again.” Bang! Bang!
“Ah, that darn copy machine. And our only copy machine…” Ragatha winced when Jax took another swing at it with their most effective repair tool: The Bat. “It’s surprisingly sturdy for a prototype. Caine discovered it from an advertisement. Said it was supposed to consume less ink.”
The copier suddenly whirred and shook and then stopped seconds later. Jax lowered the bat. “Is it working?”
Zooble eyed the control panel. “There’s a system update.”
“And?”
“It says, ‘Stop. This is abuse.’ ”
“So it’s still not working then. Great.” Jax raised the bat and resumed hitting the thing.
The new hire turned to her senior coworker with a smile. “Um, that is interesting and all Ms. Ragatha, but I wasn’t referring to that.”
“Huh? Oh that’s right! You haven’t met Jax and Zooble yet. Let’s introduce you to them!” She took the newbie’s hand and led the way towards the duo before she could protest. “Hey Jax! Hey Zooble!”
The two paused and turned their heads. Jax visibly lit up when he spotted the darling ragdoll approaching.
“Rags! Hey, I think our copy machine is busted. And by busted, I mean it’s trying to stage a mutiny. You got any solutions?”
He held back his snickers at her befuddled look.
“Um…” Could appliances even stage mutinies? “I’ll… make note of that over to Pomni! Anyway, I’d like you to meet our new recruit, Denia! Denia, this is Jax and Zooble.”
“Oooh, the fresh meat has arrived. Welcome your new hell Dennis.”
“Jax! Don’t be mean! It’s Denia.” Ragatha corrected him.
“Exactly what I said. Dennis just rolls off the tongue better.”
“But she doesn’t like-”
“It’s alright Ms. Ragatha. I’ve been called Dennis so many times growing up, it doesn’t phase me anymore.”
“Ms. Ragatha?” Zooble muttered low enough that only Jax picked it up. And he too found it odd.
Meanwhile, Ragatha looked at the new hire with confusion. “But… earlier you firmly stated that you hate being called-”
“Dennis, Denia, Nia, it’s all the same really,” Denia giggled. Hands clasped, she sighed and fluttered her eyes toward the tall purple rabbit. “Call me whatever you like Jax.”
Ragatha’s non-buttoned eye was the size of a dinner plate while Zooble silently raised their brow.
“Uh… noted I guess,” was all Jax could say to that, already finding the newbie to be pretty strange.
Unfortunately, his discomfort flew over her flower petaled head. “Great! I look forward to working with you.”
That he could respond to, his wide yellow grin mischievous. “Sure Dennis. We’ll see about that~”
Denia took his demeanor and tone in a completely different way however. She blushed.
Ragatha never felt the need to butt in so fast. Compared to the business meetings she partook in, even they paled to this. “I-I think we’ve wasted enough of their time! And there’s other places I need to show you!”
Denia half paid attention, waving goodbye to Jax (and only him it seemed) while being dragged away by Ragatha to another section of the building.
“The hell was that?” Jax muttered out loud once the ladies were out of sight.
Zooble knew exactly what just happened, but chose not to say it. They shrugged and took back their paper from the machine, into their folder.
“I’m going to Office Center. Again.”
Jax’s ears perked. “Oh! Can you get me something on the way there?”
“No. F@ck you.”
———
“Wow! I didn’t expect there to be handsome men working here!” Dania was practically floating as she dutifully followed Ragatha through the tour.
“Well… Jax is the charm of this company. And Zooble prefers they/them pronouns, just so you’re aware.”
The flower girl nodded, though Ragatha knew Zooble wasn’t the one taking up space in her mind.
“Did you see the way he looked at me?” Dania fanned herself. “That grin… and his voice! My petals are turning red just thinking about it!”
Something in the pit of Ragatha’s stomach churned in a way that felt unpleasant.
She felt sick.
She held her good-natured smile.
“L-Listen. About Jax… he’s not the most… approachable person. I-In fact, you may not like the way he treats you moving forward…”
Every word that came out of her mouth was the truth, so why did they feel like poison? Like she wanted to sabotage this innocent girl’s chances in the guise of warning her.
“Wait. So he’s…” Denia’s eyes sparkled. “A bad boy?”
Ragatha blinked, taken aback by her reaction. “Um… I guess that’s a way to describe him.”
The doll jumped at her squeal of delight.
“Oh he’s perfect! And he’s single?”
Her question was equivalent to a gut punch. It left her winded. Technically, he was. They never put a name to their relationship. They never talked about it. The most they’ve ever done was occasionally sneak kisses behind secluded rooms. They were fleeting, easy to forget. Not for Ragatha, but for Jax? Probably. Between that and all his pranks and teasing, it was hard to determine what Jax truly thought of her.
“Ms. Ragatha?”
The raggedy doll flinched, now realizing why she didn’t like the title so much. It made her feel old.
But that was the truth, wasn’t it? She was much older. Old and ugly, with her mismatched eyes, wild yarn hair, and her saggy ragdoll body. It was astounding Jax would even give her the time of day.
Well, no more.
“He is.” She spoke. It took everything to keep her voice at a steady level, and not fly off the rails. “He’s single.”
“That’s… That’s great!”
“Yeah… it is.” Ragatha smiled and took the young woman's hands, which were whole gardenia flowers. Soft to the touch and very beautiful.
Everything about Denia was beautiful, the way those petals framed her snow white face and rosy cheeks, her beady eyes and sculpted lips vibrant and expressive. Her beauty matched that of an art piece. Jax would have to be an idiot to not see it too.
“You know… it might be difficult, but I have a feeling you’ll grow on him.” Ragatha realized her wording too late and chuckled sheepishly. “Sorry, pun not intended.”
The flower girl laughed. “You’re fine. I love flower puns! They’re iris-istable!”
Denia smiled brightly when she got the doll to laugh. She leaped up to hug her. Ragatha did not anticipate the action and stumbled.
“Your kindness and hospitality has been so wonderful this whole tour. I just really want you to know that I’m so thankful to be working with such a person.”
Ragatha was touched and happy she felt tears coming for a good reason. She held onto it and returned the hug. “Aw, it’s no problem at all! I always do my best to be there for everyone. And that will include you, Denia. Don’t be afraid to come to me for anything.”
“I will, don’t you worry!” The two separate. “You seem to know a lot about Jax. I’ll definitely come to you for advice!”
Dread came crashing down on her all over again. “O-Oh. Well, I meant…”
No matter what she felt, the look of hope on her face made it impossible for Ragatha to say no.
“I mean s-sure. Of course!”
She let herself be hugged again. She kept reminding herself that she was doing a good thing.
She was.
Even while her heart was slowly breaking.
She was doing a good thing.
———
Ragatha became a sort of mentor and beacon of guidance for Denia as she slowly assimilated herself into the accounting team of C&A.
The ragdoll was perfectly fine with this. It wasn’t her first rodeo. She’d done the same for Gangle during her first few weeks and that girl needed a lot of assistance, which Ragatha was happy to give.
Kinger had been her own beacon back when she got hired, before he grew further withdrawn and mentally detached. A lot of who she became now was thanks to his good heart. They both believed that everyone deserved an easy head start, especially in this crazy company.
So no, Ragatha didn’t mind taking Denia under her metaphorical wing.
She just… never anticipated it would bring forth a lot of eyes on them.
She should have known, because again, Denia was a very beautiful, very attractive, young woman.
Furthermore, she discovered that the flower girl took her job with confidence and with grace. Denia had once unveiled that she grew up from a family of dancers and Ragatha could see a lot of it through her movements. With her head high and her steps feather light, she was mesmerizing to watch.
It was understandable they’d get stares and whispers in every room they enter. And it didn’t seem to bother or phase Denia, likely more than used it, being born and raised a performer.
Ragatha, however, was not used to it. She was social and open to conversation, but going anywhere with Denia felt akin to being scrutinized under a lens. She didn’t like comparing herself to other people, but it was impossible to ignore with all the eyes and all the whispering.
Ragatha could be overreacting. She had to be. Everyone was too focused on Denia to even acknowledge her.
But…
But what if they were also talking about her?
The two of them together were night and day and Ragatha was all the more aware of her flaws. No doubt everyone else would see it.
She wasn’t graceful.
She wasn’t pretty.
She couldn’t balance stacks of documents and binders and maneuver through narrow pathways and obstacles as easily as Denia could.
She even caught Gangle’s happy mask inches before it met the ground.
Messy.
Unreliable.
Useless-
“Look out!”
Ragatha had only just opened the door to the filing/storage room before Denia yanked her back by her shirt. In her shock, the doll barely registered something falling inches close to her face. It hit the floor, then rolled a couple feet away from her.
It was a yellow plastic bucket and what spilled across the floor appeared to be wet soil.
And what must be over a dozen centipedes.
Just the sight of so many clumped together and crawling around had Ragatha turn white as a sheet.
“Wow. Jax really has it out for you Ms. Ragatha.” Denia gently led her backwards a few steps from the mess and tidied her clothes. “I know you said this is normal, but I counted up to thirty attempts these past two weeks.”
“T-T-That many…”
“Yup. They picked up after about a week or so.” The flower girl patted her back once she was deemed presentable in her eyes. She tapped her chin. “Come to think of it, he seems rather irritated lately. At first I thought it was because I keep thwarting all of his pranks from hitting us. He’s so cute when he gets mad~”
She giggled. Then suddenly, she gasped so loud, Ragatha jumped in fear!
“What?! Is there one on me?!”
Denia grasped her wrists before the doll could ruin her appearance again. “No! I think I know why!”
“Why? Is he going through that phase I warned you about?”
“Worse!” She let go and pressed her flower hands to her cheeks, looking bashful. “He’s likely upset at you for hogging all of my attention!”
Ragatha slumped and stared at her. At a loss for words, all she could say was, “…What?”
“I know! Oh, you were right Ms. Ragatha. That boy is trouble! But I didn’t think he was so needy for me to go this far. Such a bad boy indeed~”
Ragatha didn’t know if she could laugh. Or cry. Or give any sort of reaction while Denia swooned, flying off to her own little fantasy world.
“Um-”
“Don’t worry Ms. Ragatha. I’ll solve this! You shouldn’t be picked on so much because of me. Oh look, here he comes now!”
Ragatha all of a sudden grew very nervous. Has Jax really been upset? To be perfectly honest, she hadn’t been paying much attention to her rabbit coworker. Too lost in thought about coming to terms with her decision and wallowing in the pit of her insecurities, work was the only thing that could distract her successfully.
She didn’t even notice there had been that many pranks! And that Denia had saved her from all of them. Ragatha swallowed.
That was…
Not good.
When she spotted him, she saw that despite his numerous failures in a row, Jax still seemed determined to get her one way or another. But, the ominous aura he gave, masked under his laid back countenance, told a deeper story. He was not pleased that his fun was being spoiled.
And sure enough, when he saw his bucket on the ground and there wasn’t a speck on the doll, his mood visibly soured.
“Well Rags, looks like your lapdog came to your rescue again,” he sneered. “Almost getting old, don’t you think?”
“Jax!”
Ragatha wasn’t fast enough to think of what to say and was at the verge of pulling her yarn hair when she watched Denia stroll to him with purpose. Either she was completely blind to the obvious warning signs or she really truly believed Jax was into her.
The rabbit’s expression didn’t change, looking down at the newbie like she was weeds to step on. “What is it now Dennis? You come to rub it in?”
She shook her head. “We understand now why you’re upset and we’re sorry, but please don’t take it out on poor Ms. Ragatha. The fault is completely mine!”
Jax raised a brow, seemingly intrigued about this turn of events. Hand on his hip, he waited for her to continue. “Oh? So you’re sorry?”
The flower girl nodded, her hands clasped together. “I promise I’ll pay more attention to you from now on. Anything you need from me, I’ll do it in a heartbeat!”
Jax’s expression was unreadable, but by those words alone, Ragatha knew where this could lead and she really should stop Denia from digging herself a deeper hole. She tried stepping between them. “Um, actually-”
“Quiet Rags, she’s actually talking sense for once.” He was grinning, seeing a golden opportunity to take advantage. And he wasn’t about to lose it.
“Jax-”
“ Anything , you say?” He ignored the ragdoll.
Denia nodded again, smiling like a happy schoolgirl getting noticed by her crush. “Yes! Anything for you Jax!”
Jax’s grin grew devious.
“Denia, you’re making a huge mistake- wah! ”
Yellow gloved hand in her face, Ragatha was pushed to the ground.
Before the flower girl could react and support her new friend, she was grabbed by the chin. Next thing she knew, she was looking into intense yellow eyes and piercing black irises. She froze.
“You really wanna do that?” His voice was deceptively low and alluring. “I won’t allow you to take it back~”
Denia was pulled in, utterly bewitched by his charm.
“Yes.” She breathed. “I’ll do anything you ask of me.”
Ragatha meanwhile, slowly sat up and rubbed the sore spot on her lower back. When she opened her eye, everything slowly came to a halt around her minus the scene playing out before her.
The nauseous feeling came back as she watched their faces be inches close.
Jax hadn’t been that close to his other admirers before. He’d flirt if there was something he could get from them, but he’d otherwise keep a physical distance.
And granted, none of them had ever been as bold and forward as Denia. While others would fancy him from afar, she’d be in pursuit, driven by her confidence and overall passionate nature. She never seemed to be intimidated by him either, fully believing her feelings were returned.
Perhaps there’s truth to that, Ragatha thought as she sat and watched. Maybe Jax did like her after all. And that’s good!
This is good.
Right?
Denia would make a much better girlfriend than her anyway.
“How cute that you want to be so reliable~” Jax teased. “And since you offered, I was asked to deliver some stuff to the marketing department and then the IT department. The problem is I don’t have the time so…”
He assertively brought her forward so they were dangerously close. Denia gasped.
“Think you can lighten the load for me?” He asked in a huskier tone.
The new girl shivered, her petals turning bright red.
“Awesome!” He pushed her back and shoved a bunch of papers in her arms. “You’re a lifesaver Dennis~”
Denia didn’t appear to be all there as she forced her legs to move, shaky and not so elegant for once. “O-Of course… always good to be… helpful…”
Ragatha picked herself off the ground and watched the poor girl stumble until she was out of sight. She sighed and glared at Jax.
“Was that really necessary?”
“Yes.” Jax responded without a hint of shame. He too sighed and rubbed his face. “F#cking finally. I thought she’d never get off your back.”
“What is that supposed to mea- ah! Jax!”
“Shut it.” Was all he said as he pulled her along by her wrist.
Ragatha stumbled a bit, being forced to follow him through room after room. No matter how much she tried to question what Jax was up to, she’d get no answer or she’d be told to shut up again.
He brought them into a dark space that seemed devoid of anyone but them. Seeming satisfied, Jax shut the door, pushed Ragatha to the wall and claimed her lips.
The doll made a noise of surprise and she grabbed onto him by the shoulders. Jax kissed her with the type of hunger and anger that confused her as to where it came from. Her doll hands shook when he then pried her mouth open to taste her better.
Ragatha moaned. Her mind struggled to get her thoughts in order, because this… shouldn’t be happening. Not anymore. But the unintended sound she made was caught in Jax’s keen ears and he saw it as the go ahead to continue.
Jax had never been the one to initiate their little ‘private meetings’ before. He rather enjoyed riling her up until she blew a fuse and took the leap first. Ragatha assumed it was because he liked seeing her desperate. But she didn’t really know why. She never asked, fearing if she did she’d make him uncomfortable. Because as far as either of them knew, these interactions were only that and not anything special. Despite liking him, she knew it wasn’t possible for a relationship to happen between them. She was just a fixation. A distraction.
Nothing more.
So this sudden change was questionable. Ragatha could only guess what it meant as Jax separated from her mouth and took his lips down her neck, where he nipped and sucked at spots he knew were sensitive.
“J-Jax…” Her back arched when he sucked hard at a spot he knew she liked. She bit her lip to prevent more embarrassing sounds from slipping. “Jax we should stop…”
The rabbit chuckled against her skin, causing her to shiver. “Clearly, you don’t want me to.”
She really didn’t, but that wasn’t the point.
“Jax- mmm!”
He recaptured her lips before she could say more. And he knew how to wind her up to the point where she gave in. The doll took his face in both her hands and kissed him back.
Her skirt rode up when Jax hoisted her off the ground. He transferred them to a table nearby and got her laying on her back. Not once did they separate. In fact, the kisses just grew hotter and more intense.
Ragatha snapped out of it when Jax’s hand traveled up her exposed leg and to her plush upper thigh. She felt the hand squeeze around it and she had to put a stop to it now.
She turned her head, effectively ending the kiss, but that only got Jax to aim for her neck again.
“Jaaaaax,” she whined and tried to push him off. “Seriously, that’s enough.”
Growling, the rabbit stopped and looked down at her. “Are you for real right now?”
Ragatha shifted nervously under his angered stare. “I-I just… have a lot to do today.”
“No you don’t.”
“You don’t know that!”
A hand slams on the table, right next to her head. She flinched, looking up at Jax who’s grin did not reach his eyes. “Yes. I do. No one here gets neck deep in work, for two weeks straight, unless it’s by choice.”
Ragatha swallowed, having been caught. “I-”
“Do you know how annoying it is being ignored all the time?” Jax confessed between teeth. “Not only that, but to have all my pranks, all of them, not do anything? And you don’t even notice! Because you’re either too focused on that new girl or something else that isn’t…”
He paused, almost letting whatever he was going to say slip. And what that could be wasn’t lost on Ragatha as observed his panicked look with concern.
Denia was right.
“Jax?”
“Forget it. Forget I said anything.”
The rabbit had longer and faster legs for him to make his quick departure. However Ragatha, being the determined doll she was, caught up before he had his hand on the doorknob. She wrapped her arms around his midsection and in a tight hug.
Jax cursed. He coughed. More than once he’d underestimate how strong she was for a ragdoll. This was one of those times.
“Jeez… A little warning next time you sneak attack?”
“I’m sorry.”
He rolled his eyes. “Relax, you didn’t kill me. Well, you might have left me a bruise, but I’ll live.”
“That’s not… Well, I’m sorry for that too, but…”
Jax tried to pry himself free, but Ragatha tightened her grip. Seeing he wasn’t getting out of this, he sighed.
“Get to the point dollface.”
She buried her face into his back. She felt him flinch. Unbeknownst to her, however, her small action would cause Jax’s face to flush an incredibly dark purple.
“I didn’t mean to ignore you or any of your pranks. I didn’t even realize I was doing it. And I know how much you hate it when any of your hijinks don’t go as planned. It just… never crossed my mind how important it was for you to see me trip or slip or be covered in centipedes.”
“It’s not that important,” he muttered. “It’s just not fun seeing you happy all the time.”
Ragatha fought the urge to laugh. She could practically hear the pout in his voice.
“But Jax…” She let him go and gently turned him around so they were face to face. “You didn’t need to go this far to seek my attention. Simply talking it out would have sufficed.”
Jax blinked with his big yellow eyes before he gave the ragdoll his coy smile.
“Talking? Me? ” He leaned until they were dangerously close to kissing again, even going further by tracing his thumb over her plump bottom lip. Ragatha blushed. “You know that I would literally do anything else. Especially when I got options that work just fine~”
“Oh you…” Ragatha huffed and gently but firmly pushed him backward. When she walked around him, the doll missed the look of confusion and disappointment on his face. “One day, you’ll have no other choice but to talk to someone.”
Jax stared at her back, her yarn hair bouncing as she headed to the door.
“I’ll talk to Denia, let her know that she doesn’t need to save me from you all the time.” Ragatha paused as she was about to step out. “Oh! We plan to stop at this hole-in-the-wall bar Zooble found after work. You’re welcome to join us.”
“I’ll think about it,” Jax said and waved her away, signaling that he was done with this conversation.
With a smile, Ragatha nodded. And she left.
Now alone again with his thoughts, Jax’s mind raced. His foot began to tap rapidly.
On one hand, he was relieved. She wasn’t avoiding him on purpose.
But something was off. He could tell.
The problem was why would he care so much?
Well, he knew why, but he wasn’t about to confront those feelings anytime soon. Not yet anyway.
For now, they stay buried.
———
Ragatha went off searching for Denia, since she did have some free time at the moment.
She was surprised to learn from both marketing and IT that the new hire did not come to see either departments since she left.
That wasn’t like her at all. She always did her tasks the moment she was given them.
Unless…
“Jax…” The doll facepalmed. She just knew he gave her some false information in those documents.
But now how was she going to find her? Where was she led astray to?
Suddenly, Ragatha felt a vibration in her skirt pocket.
Of course! They exchanged numbers since day one. That must be her texting. Ragatha hoped she was alright.
The doll fished out her phone and breathed a relieved sigh to the messages were indeed from Denia.
But that relief was short-lived.
(I’m terribly sorry to bother you Ms. Ragatha, but…)
(Please help?)
———
The roof.
The goddamn roof.
Ragatha was panting like a dog by the time she arrived at the top of the building. The elevators were jammed today. Not to mention, if one wasn’t informed to wedge the door to the roof upon entering, they’d be completely trapped.
It happened to Pomni once. And to Gangle a few times. All caused by Jax of course.
“Oh Ms. Ragatha, you’re a goddess! If I wasn’t already attracted to someone else, I could kiss you!”
Ragatha fell to her knees under the shaded spot Denia sat. The many flights of stairs plus the heat outside wore her out. Water bottles and snacks from the vending machines spill from her arms. Denia didn’t ask for snacks, only water, but Ragatha felt she deserved something more as a form of apology.
Denia didn’t look worse than Ragatha, but she was obviously tired. And her petals were looking dry.
“I’m going… to strangle him…” the doll said between heavy breaths.
Denia laughed. “There’s no need Ms. Rags. For once, I’ve been duped. I’m sure Jax will be delighted to know that. And besides, the view from up here was very nice to look at before realizing I was locked outside.”
“Yeah we really need to do something about that door. I’m sorry for not warning you sooner.”
“It’s not your fault, but you’re forgiven.”
The younger woman opened one of the plastic bottles and instead of drinking it like Ragatha would expect someone to do, she dumped it all on her head, wetting her hair and clothes as a result. Ragatha sat there with her mouth agape.
“D-Denia?”
“It’s alright. This is necessary for me.” She explained, shaking away some of the excess. “Besides, it’s only water.”
She smiled and took another bottle to drink out of it this time. She did look a little fresher. And despite being soaked, she was somehow a lot prettier, the way those circular droplets latched onto her white petals. Ragatha could not help but feel a little envious. She would turn out like a soggy beanbag when wet.
“Say, you’ve been surprisingly calm about all this,” the doll observed after chugging half of hers. “Which is good! Just something I’ve noticed.”
“I guess it’s from experience. I grew up with cousins who would do this sort thing all the time. You sort of know what to expect after a while. And how to avoid them, which would work… 90% of the time.”
“That sounds like a rough childhood.”
“Oh, it would be hell for sure. But nowadays, they know better,” Denia giggled. “I always remember this quote and I love it so much: ‘Girls do not start fights- ”
“ -but they can finish them.’ ” The two finish in unison.
Denia squealed. “You’ve seen the movie too?!”
Ragatha sheepishly chuckled. “It’s a classic.”
“We should see it together sometime!” She proposed. “Wait. Better yet. Movie night! We can invite Pomni and Gangle. And Zooble too if they’re interested. Make a sleepover out of it!”
Her excitement was contagious and adorable and Ragatha was helplessly pulled into her charm. “That’s a great idea! We’ll ask them and plan a day.”
After that, the girls continued to talk and chat about whatever came to mind while slowly regaining their energy. Within their conversation, Ragatha brought up Jax’s pranks and explained how Denia didn’t necessarily need to save her from all of them. That she was more than used to it.
“Are you sure?”
Ragatha nodded. “He’ll tone it down thanks to you.”
“That’s good to hear.” She sighed dreamily. “He’s such a troublemaker. It’s funny seeing the look on his face whenever his pranks don’t land successfully.”
“I will admit, it is nice to finally have someone who knows how to outsmart him. Will certainly make things interesting around here.”
“Say, Ms. Ragatha?
“Hm?”
“How… long has it been since I left?”
Ragatha looked at the time on her phone, pondering. “I think it’s been more than an hour.”
“I really should deliver these then and get back to work.” She stood up, documents in hand. “I should have known the directions written here were wrong.”
“That’s Jax for you.” Ragatha followed suit, patting her skirt. “I’ll be happy to direct you, no problem.”
Denia smiled appreciatively. “You’re always so kind Ms. Rags.”
“I always try. But are you sure you want to go now? Your clothes are still wet.”
“It’s alright if I’m a little unkempt sometimes. My body still needs moisture after the exercise and sitting out in the sun. You’ll be amazed how often we plants do this.”
In that case, if she was okay with it, then Ragatha shouldn’t worry over it. How strange to have someone be so… unbothered. And so put together. It clashes so hard with the chaos she sees every day. Within herself too.
The two made their slow trek down the stairs. The elevators were still not functioning and would likely stay that way until hopefully tomorrow. What would tend to always happen in C&A Co. was what eventually got fixed, another thing would break immediately after. So, it was best to adapt to the unexpected.
As Ragatha led the way, she noticed Denia silently staring at her, her eyes hard and sharp, and it made the doll anxious.
“Um, is something wrong?” She asked.
Those eyes narrowed and Denia responded with a question of her own. “So when were you going to tell me?”
“About what?”
The younger woman smiled like she had her figured out. “About your boyfriend of course.”
“Boyfriend?!” Ragatha screeched. “I-I-I don’t have-”
“Or your girlfriend? Come on Ms. Ragatha, we’re friends! You don’t need to hide these things from me~” She used her flower hands to contain her laughter. “Because I’m sorry to say, you’re not very good at hiding it.”
It took a few seconds for her to understand what she meant. Face red, she quickly covered the left side of her neck.
The hickeys!
Dammit Jax!
“I never knew you were the adventurous type! Please tell me everything!”
The doll turned redder. “I-I…”
“Who is this person? What are they like? What do you like about them?”
“Uhh…”
“How do they make you feel?”
“Y-You know, shouldn’t we focus on this task?”
“We can do both!”
If there was ever a moment Ragatha wanted to disappear, it would be now.
What did she say about this girl being put together? Apparently when it came to romance, Denia was uncontrollable.
Now Ragatha had to somehow come up with a decent, convincing lie.
And, most importantly, make sure Jax never attempts to mark her again.
