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Palmer walked out of her changing room, stretching out her tired muscles. Her training had just ended for the day, and she was getting ready to take a break to rest from the tiresome day, until she saw her best friend and current crush, Daitaku Helios, waiting for her outside her changing room, waving happily at Palmer as she ran up to her, still full of energy despite the training they’ve both went through.
“Palmer! Palmer! Guess what my beloved Ruby did today!” Helios says, pressing her hands together with the widest grin on her face. “She said Good Morning to me! She greeted me! I can’t believe it! It was so brief, but I still felt so, so loved! Oh, what will she do next?! Will she eat with me, ask me out?!” Helios squealed in excitement as she imagined the possibilities in her head.
Mejiro Palmer stood next to Helios as she went on and on about her crush, Daiichi Ruby, saying nothing as she looks down, simply sipping on a juice box. Palmer knew that Ruby likely didn’t like her back, given how little she acknowledged Helios and overall reacted very little to her advances, but that just made the energetic Uma cherish every gesture from her even more. Palmer simply stayed quiet, letting a small feeling boil in her chest as Helios kept talking about Ruby with the most starstruck look on her face.
“I hope one day she’ll truly see me for who I am! Maybe she’ll finally give me the attention I need so badly! I don’t think I’ve ever loved someone as much as I love her! She’s the bestest, cutest Uma ever!” Helios said with a huge smile on her face.
Palmer slightly tightened her grip on her juice box, that feeling in her chest growing a little stronger. “That’s nice, Helios.” She said, her voice a little tense. She couldn’t help but tense up and get annoyed at the constant mentions of Daiichi Ruby. While Daitaku Helios always talks about Daiichi Ruby and how she’s the most perfect, prettiest, sweetest Uma ever, all after she met her ONCE, while simultaneously being oblivious to Palmer’s own attraction to her. She’s been trying to signal to her for ages, trying to leave small hints in her words, her actions, and even giving her chocolates and taking her for a night out on Valentine’s Day once, but even so, she’s never managed to pick up on the hints, too absorbed into her own feelings for Ruby to even notice any of Palmer’s gestures for what they were.
“Oh, I think I got a bit carried away, but still, thanks for always being there and listening to me ramble, Palmer! You never get tired of listening to my talking all the time, even after all that training. This is why you’re my bestest friend ever!” Helios said as she raised up a hand for a high five. Palmer tensed up at the words that came out of her mouth. ‘Best friend’. Is that really all she was to Helios? Her best friend, and nothing more? After all Palmer has done for her, that’s still what she saw her as? Has all her attempts not even registered in her head?
Apparently her anger that she had been holding in became visible on her face, because Helios stopped talking when she noticed Palmer’s expression, pulling her hand down and her face becoming a bit more serious and confused. “Palmer, what’s the matter? Are you angry? Did I do some-“
She gets cut off as Palmer drops her juice box on the floor, forgetting about it and pinning Helios to the wall, putting her hand on the wall so she can’t escape. The small boil in her chest had exploded now, and there was no stopping it. Helios lets out a surprised gasp, clearly not expecting this turn of events, but Palmer cuts her off before she can say anything.
“I’m not going to keep lying to myself anymore. I’m not. I can’t just keep standing here, acting like it’s all okay. Because it’s not. I can’t stand it, hearing you talk all about Ruby and how much you love her and how good and pretty and perfect she is, all the while I’VE LOVED YOU!” She noticed Helios’s eyes widen in shock at the sudden confession, but she didn’t care, and she kept on going.
“I’ve had a crush on you for so long, Helios… After all those times training together, hanging out together, all those times we’d spend time together, just the two of us… I just wanted to be someone special for you… I want you to talk about me how you talk about Ruby, to think about me how you think about Ruby... To make you *feel* how you feel about Ruby... None of her, just me, all for you..”
Helios, stared, seemingly shell shocked by this sudden information. How could she not? Her best friend had just confessed to her, and so suddenly too. Her entire view of Palmer has suddenly been flipped upside down. Her lips were parted slightly in disbelief. Her best friend, the one she always hung out with, spent time with, grew close with. Palmer looked down at Helios’s lips. They were glossy and tempting, and for a moment Palmer leaned in, getting so close that she could feel her breathing on her lips, before her inner voice started to talk. ‘Palmer, you idiot; stop! Don’t you know she probably doesn’t like you back?! You’ve already ruined your friendship already, do you want to push her away further?! Stop, run, now, before it’s too late!’
Palmer’s eyes widened, and she quickly pulled away from Helios, who was still too shocked to do much, and the she ran. Ran faster than she ever thought she could. She thought she heard something, maybe Helios calling out to her, but she ignored it. Buried it deep to where her voice was a faint whisper. She ran from Helios like there was something chasing her. Maybe there was. Running away wouldn’t fix anything. But it’d stop her from making things worse. “That’s right, I nearly forgot”, she thought, “That there isn’t any space in her heart left for me.”