Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Sorry, dude, got a date with Noelle later,” Susie shrugged. “It’s gonna have to wait.”

Kris stared. She never could tell what their deal was, when it came to stuff with Noelle. This wasn’t especially weirder than usual for them, and for all she knew, they were pouting incessantly with their eyes beneath their bangs – trying to go for that ‘kicked puppy’ look that they used whenever they thought they could get something from her out of it. Susie could just kinda feel them watching her closely, now. Whatever.

“Leaving me all alone on a Friday night,” Kris deadpanned. “How pathetic.”

She rolled her eyes. “You say that like we don’t hang out like, every other day of the week.”

“You say that like Noelle isn’t taking you out on dates like, all the time,” they mimicked.

They were just fucking around, probably, but see, this was why Susie couldn’t actually tell what their problem was. It was all light-hearted, yeah, and Kris would obviously never get in the way of her and Noelle, but sometimes they just got a bit… funny about it. Clingy, kinda whiny… Sometimes they just kept talking like they knew something she didn’t, and hell if that didn’t piss her off.

But like, Kris and Noelle had been friends since they were little kids, right? Maybe Kris was the one Noelle went to for gossip, or whatever. So maybe Kris was just kinda fed up of having to hear so much about her and Noelle – heh, third-wheeling even in a duo, right?

Susie definitely got that. Every time she had to listen to Berdly prattle on about his supposed romantic endeavours, she wanted to tear a vital organ out. Mainly from him, but maybe also a little form himself. Like, romance was pretty lame in general, to be honest, and anything Berdly-related already made any potential ‘cool factor’ plummet right to rock bottom. But even if she tried to picture herself listening to Kris talk about a date or something… It just felt weird.

So she tried not to judge them for it. For all she knew, maybe they were just surprised that she was actually in a relationship, which, heh, that would make two of them. Susie still wasn’t really sure she got Noelle apparently having some massive crush on her, but hey, dates were fun, and having Noelle as her girlfriend still meant she had an extra of some type of friend. It was in the name, right? Noelle was a girl, and Noelle was a friend!

“Think you’re just jealous,” lazily, she huffed.

The bottom of Kris’s face scrunched up. “Bros before hoes.”

“Oh my god,” Susie snorted. “You did not just say that about Noelle.”

They just smirked at her, and Susie though about maybe play-wrestling with them or something to get it wiped right off of their face. Fucking annoying was what it was. Yeah, Kris was such a pain. Her pain, though – no one else was fucking around with them like this.

Both of them settled for a bit after that, and Susie assumed they must have finally accepted that this was just one night she wasn’t free to go vandalise the cop station – or whatever they had planned – with them. But then she looked over at them, and, huh. They seemed kinda… conflicted? They were just chilling under a tree together, so she could see pretty close-up to them, and they were definitely biting their lip. Seemed like a nervous habit. Their shoulders also seemed more tense than what she was used to from their casual hang-outs…

“…I’m not actually upset,” they said, after a little longer.

“Huh?” Susie blinked. “I mean, yeah, dude. It’s not that big of a deal, is it?”

Kris frowned. “It is to Noelle.”

Well, yeah, for some reason, being on dates with Susie did seem to make Noelle unreasonably happy. Like, Susie was good to be the cause of that – it did feel good to do good stuff like that, and Noelle was chill, so her attitude could be infectious – but that didn’t mean she got it, exactly. The romance stuff, or whatever. She figured Noelle probably had more experience or knowledge or something, because yeah, it was awesome to hang out like that, but privately, she’d never been exactly sure what the difference between a date and hang-out was, anyway.

“Yeah, she, uh… Heh,” Susie grinned. “She likes this kinda shit. So that’s why you need to stop with the weird dog imitation stuff and accept that I’m just busy tonight. With her.”

She’d set it up so Kris would just start barking or howling or some crap. They did that all the time, whenever she called them out for it. It was somewhere between pretty weird and kinda funny, but in either case, it was Kris, so that meant it was still endearing.

“Do you not?” they asked, tilting their head.

And, uh, huh. That wasn’t a dog noise. Fucking obviously. To be honest though, she wasn’t even sure what they were asking. Did she not like what?

“Uh.” She squinted. “The hell’s that supposed to mean?”

“Going on dates. The stuff you said she liked,” they said. “Do you not like them?”

Susie shoved her hands in her pockets. “Never said that…” she huffed. “They’re whatever. I mean, I like being around her. I just don’t really care if it’s super romantic or whatever. Same difference.” She paused. “But I know it means a lot to her, so…”

Kris hummed affirmatively, and any other day, that would have been the signal that they’d let it go, but they were still sitting kinda weird. Clenching their jaw, probably squinting, that kinda stuff. What was the problem now?

“What do you like about her?” they asked.

Susie groaned a little. “Okay, why does that matter? Dude, if you’re pissed ‘cause you had proper plans or something, then just say that. No need to spout a bunch of obtuse crap.”

They shook their hair out of their face to show her them rolling their eyes. She let out a little huff of laughter.

“Not upset,” they insisted, a little petulantly. “Just curious.”

“I mean, I dunno?” She began to fidget. “Isn’t that question just like, always super hard to answer?”

“She could answer it about you,” Kris smirked.

“And she has like, a super embarrassing crush on me,” Susie laughed. “Isn’t that just the kinda cringy shit having a crush makes you realise?”

Noelle also just rambled a lot in general, and not just about Susie. She always had a lot to say about Kris too, didn’t she? Maybe it was just easier for some people than others. Susie really didn’t think it was any kind of big deal; she just liked Noelle because she was nice and stuff. Fun to hang around. And she played Dragon Blazers with Susie, and Susie hadn’t gotten to do that since she was a little kid.

Kris leant over and elbowed her. “You’re dating her, so don’t you have a ‘super embarrassing crush’ on her too?”

“Uh, I mean,” she shrugged, fumbling as she didn’t know what exactly to say and also really didn’t want to think about it mid-sentence, “probably. You’re right – I am dating her, so…”

She was pretty sure descriptions of crushes were just way overblown. That was also probably at least part of why seeing it all actually be like that for Noelle towards her was weird – firstly, it was her, and secondly, wasn’t that just a movie thing?

Susie liked Noelle. Obviously. She liked being around her, so she was dating her for a reason and stuff… But with Noelle it had been like… she’d been strangely nice, that first day in school, so Susie hadn’t wanted to pick on her, and then Noelle had actually started hanging around her and… It was nice to have friends, right? She just wanted friends. She got excited by the prospect of new people who weren’t Berdly wanting to hang around her. That wasn’t weird!

But then, she did think of Noelle slightly more than she thought of other people? At least as much as Kris anyway, and Kris was her bro. Her best friend. Her confidant. So that probably wasn’t part of a crush. But the feeling of excitement about getting to hang around Noelle probably was. Kinda underwhelming compared to what everyone said, and to what Noelle herself seemed to be apparently be feeling, but whatever, she didn’t need it to be all mushy.

Although… She’d also been notably excited to hang around Kris, after that first adventure together… Shit, uh… Did she have a crush on Kris too? Was that it!?

Whatever. Who even gave a shit? She was with Noelle, and she was happy with Noelle, so… Yeah, it was all pointless to put too much thought into. Her situation with actually having friends, and a girlfriend too, yeah, was the best it had ever been, so she wasn’t about to push her luck. Maybe she’d just ask Ralsei about it, since if anyone was going to have weird views that would make her feel slightly better about her own, it was him. Obviously.

“So what do you like about her?” Kris repeated, being frustratingly stubborn about this.

“I told you, that’s a hard question!” she growled. “I just… She’s nice to be around? I just like her! Nothing more descriptive than that.”

“It’s not hard,” Kris insisted, frowning. She was a little startled by the intensity of it, now that she could see them putting their whole face into it. “I like you because you don’t give a shit. You just laugh when weird stuff happens, and you’re always just as weird anyway. It’s funny.” They shrugged. “And you’re kinda badass sometimes. S’cool.”

“Wha…” her jaw dropped slightly.

It wasn’t like Kris had given like, uncomfortable amounts of detail, but they also usually didn’t even speak this much in one go. Let alone just give out free compliments. Was it actually normal to be able to make specifics like that? Susie just liked people that she could kinda just be around.

“And Noelle,” they continued, unperturbed, “I don’t need to say stuff to her. She thinks it’s weird when I compliment her, so she doesn’t expect it from me. She used to… She is… She can be comfortable around me.” They stopped, made a face, and then adjusted. “She always used to be comfortable around me. Doesn’t point out that I’m different and stuff. And she was… she was always there and…” They shook their head. “And she gives me free pencils.”

The free pencils were cool, but…

“Kris, you…” Susie didn’t quite know what to say. How the fuck was anyone supposed to respond to a tirade like that!? “You’re really fucking weird sometimes, you know that?”

They huffed. “It’s not weird.”

“It is! Picking out detail like that’s hard! Not like I’m always just staring into her eyes and thinking up sappy ways to describe her or some shit!”

“You’re the one with the crush,” they argued.

Susie bristled, clamping her fists down in the insides of her pockets. This was kinda riling her up, and she wasn’t entirely sure why. Like, it really hadn’t been a big deal before, and she didn’t think her relationship with Noelle particularly needed some cheesy introspection to work. They just were! And yeah, Kris and Noelle were friends or whatever, but she also didn’t get why they cared at all! They just laughed at whatever like, probably fake romantic bullshit Berdly went on about!

“Oh, yeah?” she said, pushing to get right up in their face. “‘Cause you know what, dude? Kinda sounds like you are, actually!”

She had just been joking, saying whatever crap she could think of – whatever would get them off of her back and stuff. But even if it was kinda shady under the tree, she was used to the dark, and she caught when they abruptly paled at that.

“…Shut up,” they offered, shockingly weakly.

“No,” reflexively, she returned, “what? What the fuck? Kris!?”

They pushed their hair back down over their face, and refused to meet her eye. Shuffled away, towards the other side of the tree trunk as well. She stood up to chase them, and followed them around the tree until she was looming.

“Hey!” she hissed. “The hell kinda response is that!?”

“…Not a big deal,” they murmured, after another long moment.

“Like hell it isn’t!” incredulously, she scoffed. “You were the one just saying how it was to me! Because it’d matter to Noelle, right!?”

“Yeah, when it’s you.” They shook their head. “…This is different. Forget it.”

Usually when Kris said that, she probably would. Like, she didn’t actually want to press them too much because, yeah, they were obviously a pretty private person, and she usually just went with the idea that they didn’t have anything worth digging for, because they already shared everything that could concern her with her. Except… Except this!?

Because hold on, that wasn’t just Noelle they’d been describing… It had been her first. Fuck.

They hadn’t even denied her accusation yet. They hadn’t told her they’d been able to ramble because they and Noelle had just known each other for so long, and because Susie and them were as thick as thieves. They hadn’t brushed off the joke at all like she’d expected them to. But hell, if that was because it had hit too close to home… Them too!?

Susie didn’t get it. Like, the crush stuff. Or, uh, specifically the idea of people having a crush on her. Obviously she knew what the movies and shit – and Kris and Noelle – told her it was like, and she knew what she felt, but it was just the idea of someone feeling that strongly about her. Multiple people feeling that strongly about her, apparently. Was it normal for that to be kinda incomprehensible? She usually tried not to give too much of a crap, and it wasn’t like it weirded her out in a bad way, but what the fuck!? Kris, they… They were that attached!?

“No, no, no way. You can’t just leave it at that!”

“I can,” they said.

They looked like they were about to bolt. She would be able to stop them, obviously, but fuck man, were they really about to make her tackle them?

“No, dude, like… this changes stuff, right? Right!?”

“Doesn’t have to,” they huffed quietly, nose twitching in obvious discomfort.

Susie knelt down before them and grabbed their shoulder.

“Okay, but why not?” she asked. “Kris, if you, er… like me and Noelle… We gotta at least tell Noelle, right?”

Because maybe hearing about that piece of Kris that they’d clearly been working to keep hidden would reassure her. She’d mentioned not really knowing where she stood with Kris before multiple times, and to be honest, Susie had been equally as confused from the outside.

Noelle said everything with them was forced in a way it wasn’t with Susie, but then looked like she was having her hand torn off when Kris refused to meet her eye. And then like, Kris themself? Super weird around her. And not even in the usual Kris way – because their avoidance was silence, and trying to stand between Kris and Noelle often felt like she was having to slice through unspoken sentences hanging in the air.

So this was the answer? It did kinda make sense, right? More sense than the, uh, Kris liking her part as well, anyway.

“What?” incredulously, they croaked. “You’re the one with the important crush. With the relationship with her.”

Maybe it clicked in the face of that. The feeling of inadequacy or whatever, because Kris had just poured their heart out without even thinking – just to win an argument or something – and she still couldn’t really even understand it.

“I don’t even know if I do have a crush on her, dude!” she blurted, and they immediately recoiled right back into the tree.

“What the fuck?” they hissed. “Susie?”

“Not like that!” She ran a hand down her face. “I like being with her! I really do! But fuck. I don’t know if I do actually feel like, that strongly about her? I dunno! You just made it sound so intense, and Noelle, she’s great – you’re great – but it’s like… You get lost in it? Huh!?”

Kris began to claw at the grass beneath them and still refused to meet her eye, though they also seemed marginally less tense. Less like they were just about to make a run for it, anyway.

“…You mentioned me.”

“Oh, yeah, uh,” she frowned, “guess I did. I dunno. Like, maybe if you’d asked me first, I’d have been down for that too. I dunno. But that’s not the point!”

“So you don’t feel differently about me and Noelle?” they pressed.

“Fuck, I dunno! Maybe not? Why are you asking!?”

“So would do you not care who it is? What if Catti had asked you out?” they continued.

Yeah, not likely. That was the day hell froze over, right? Catti fucking hated her, even if Kris seemed to have forgotten that right now. Though, then again… Kris must have thought that she hated them up until super recently…

…So was that like, a thing? A real thing? Hating someone then, uh. Crushing on them? Weird…

“She hates me,” Susie answered. “I’m pretty sure I’d just assume it was prank and then bite her fucking face off for trying that shit on me.”

They both knew she wouldn’t actually do that by this point, but damn, it was still a nice thought, right?

“Okay, then what about Berdly?” they tried, but they couldn’t hide a slight unsteady smirk that had Susie know they weren’t being serious this time.

“Dude.” She fake gagged. “You’d have to literally pay me to spend any kind of time with Berdly. No way.”

“Don’t let him know. He might take you up on that.” And then before she had a chance to protest, or better, gag again, Kris kept going, “But what about Ralsei?”

Ugh. She’d rather just keep making jokes at Berdly’s expense than actually think about uncomfortable crap like this, to be honest. Would Susie date Ralsei? She didn’t know. Maybe? Like, she was comfortable around him, and even if he was a total loser, he was her friend, so… Was that really all it took? Like, she did like seeing him and stuff, so was that really all the indicator it would take?

She couldn’t exactly imagine going on dates with Ralsei, but she was more so pretty sure that was because the idea of Ralsei actually asking her out on one was laughable. He was way too awkward and stuck up in his own goddamn head for that, she was pretty sure.

“I dunno,” she said again, shrugging. “I don’t think I’d hate it. Doesn’t feel… like, right right, but it also doesn’t feel totally different, and he’s our friend, so… If he really wanted, I’d probably give it a try.”

Kris stared at her for moment, and she felt really, really judged. What was the point of all of these questions again? Wasn’t this supposed to be about Kris and their probably-crushes?

“Susie,” they announced, after a moment, “you know what we’re always thinking about Berdly and his supposed ‘deep romantic loves’?”

“What, that he doesn’t actually know what the fuck he’s talking about and has never had a crush on a girl in his life?” she mused, and then a second too late, realisation hit. “Oh, ew. Dude. Don’t compare me to fucking Berdly.”

“Maybe you’re not attracted to anyone,” they said, then smirked again. “Like we think he isn’t.”

Fuck, dude. She couldn’t have ‘didn’t understand what a crush was so thought they had one on Noelle’ in common with Berdly. That was cringy as hell! And lame! And weird! And like, she did like Noelle, and being in a relationship and stuff with her, so hah!

“But I like dating her or whatever,” she argued.

“What do you guys actually do on dates?” Kris asked, and she couldn’t tell if this was still relevant, or if they were just being annoyingly curious again.

“You know. Get food and stuff. Play video games. She, uh, got all dressed up with that dark makeup for me once, and that was kinda cool. Looked kinda funny because it was Noelle, but also, y’know, badass and all that. And we,” she paused, and looked away because somehow this was the most embarrassing and cringy thing on the list, “hold hands or whatever, sometimes.”

Kris leaned around her with their hair drifting off of their forehead enough for her to see them raise an eyebrow. “We all see that last one.”

“Shut up,” she growled. “It’s not weird. Don‘t make it weird.”

Kris sighed, and retreated. When they spoke up again, it was quieter. “It’s not weird,” they insisted. “Yeah. But… You know that stuff doesn’t have to be romantic, right?”

“I guess, but…” She scowled. “Doesn’t matter, dude. This wasn’t even supposed to be about me!”

“It does,” Kris replied. “She’ll be upset if you suddenly don’t like something, even if you don’t realise you don’t until the moment. What do she wants to kiss you? Would you mind that?”

“K-Kiss!?” Susie squeaked. “Dude, oh my god, dude, can you just ask that?”

Honestly, she had no idea what kissing was like, so how was she supposed to know if she’d like it or not? It was kind of a weird idea, but maybe it wasn’t terrible, but she honestly had no idea.

“Susie,” they said.

“Wait, I really don’t know!” she complained. “Hold on, lemme test real quick.” Well, there was only one person around right now, and definitely only one that she trusted with this. “Kris! Kris, dude, you’ve gotta help me! If I don’t know, I gotta figure it out!”

Oh, man, they were blushing right now. Like, a lot. Huh, had they always been like this around her and she’d missed it? That, uh… All of that kinda stuff that Kris had all but straight-up admitted to still felt kinda unreal, to be honest. But they were blushing super hard, and their hair absolutely could not hide it. Despite the franticness she’d been feeling a moment ago, she couldn’t help laughing a little at the sight.

They didn’t immediately deny her, so she probably hadn’t made things super weird, at least. And then, at last, they bit their lip once, before shuffling abruptly closer.

“…fine,” they mumbled. They cupped her cheek. “It doesn’t mean anything, so… Isn’t hurting Noelle.”

Susie had no idea if it meant anything or not, but if Kris said it was fine, then she was kinda morbidly curious if there was something that it was going to make to click and feel cool, so she was down to try.

“Do we, uh, need the hand?” she checked.

They shrugged, accidentally jutting their shoulder up against her. “Helps, I think.”

Well, if they said so…

Kris leaned in, and did all of the work finessing them both into positions where they could, uh. Kiss and stuff. They were gentle about, kinda more tactful than she’d been expecting, but…

…Okay, this wasn’t working. It wasn’t terrible, but like, it was… Kinda gross, right? Susie had no problem putting weird shit in her mouth, but this was just kinda odd, and it wasn’t really doing anything for her. It was just like clicking dolls together or something, as if pressing them up close somehow actually meant something, and her ending up as one of those dolls in this scenario just didn’t feel entirely right. She didn’t hate it enough to pull away, but that probably didn’t mean everything she thought it did.

Carefully, Kris pulled back, and began to obviously study her for a reaction. They chuckled at whatever face she was making.

“So?” they asked, as if they hadn’t already somehow found their answer.

“I dunno,” she frowned. “Not sure I get why people like to so much. But if it would make Noelle happy…”

“If it doesn’t make you happy, don’t do it,” firmly, they said. “She’s nice, but don’t put her in a position where she’s forcing you to do something. Don’t, Susie.”

She stared, wide-eyed, and then forced herself to blink it off. “Wasn’t planning on it.”

“Okay,” they flopped back over her knee, seemingly without thinking – touch as casual as could be. “Should probably tell her, then. About all of this.”

“Won’t it like, upset her?”

The last thing she wanted to do was upset Noelle. She’d done like, exactly jack shit wrong, because as ever, this was kinda just Susie being weird. Or, uh, apparently possibly not experiencing romantic attraction. So like… Not having a crush on the girl she was dating and actually enjoying dating. Okay, that was just weird, probably.

“Depends. Do you want to break up with her?” Kris asked.

“What?” she pulled a face. “No, don’t be stupid, dude.”

“Probably not then,” they decided.

Hmm, but… Now that they’d put it into her head… Fuck, what if Noelle did start wanting to kiss and stuff, and what if she could tell Susie didn’t really care about it? And what if Susie just wanted to say no, and that would just upset her? She didn’t want to have to deal with that! Fuck, fuck.

Or, wait…

Once again, she’d gotten distracted because Kris had made this all about her after she’d admitted that stuff about not understanding crushes or whatever, but this had been about Kris’s apparent crushes, actually. Kris’s apparent crushes on her and Noelle that they still hadn’t denied, and Kris’s crushes, one of whom they’d just been casually making out with upon a single request. So if she wanted both Kris and Noelle happy, which she did…

Heh. Susie had an idea.

“Nah, hold on…” She began to grin. “Do you trust me?”

She knew the answer, but she asked anyway. Kris rolled over to eye her suspiciously.

“…What? Yeah?”

With a wicked grin, she stood up, pulling Kris by the hand with her. They wiggled about a little, but quickly seemed to pick up on the fact that they were absolutely already roped into whatever she was planning. Their expression dropped when they noticed hers, and presumably began to guess at where she was going with this.

“Susie no,” they protested.

“Susie yes!” she cackled.

She began to run back off towards town, dragging Kris along with her. Noelle probably wouldn’t mind seeing her or Kris early. And she could only hope Noelle also wouldn’t mind suddenly having a double-whammy confession shoved on her from both of them, but as far as Susie was concerned, this was the best way to actually make all three of them happy.

So what if she didn’t get romances or crushes, right? Because if apparently Kris and Noelle did, and she would be happy dating both of them…

“O-Oh, Susie!” Noelle startled. “You’re, uhm, early! You know we agreed, erm, this evening, right, fahah?” Noelle startled, upon Susie and Kris finding her in the library. Or, uh, ‘Librarby’, whatever.

Berdly was there too, but Susie was choosing to tune him out whenever he tried to start talking. She had more important things right now than his squawking.

“Yep,” she grinned. “But me ‘n Kris gotta talk to you. C’mon.”

She grabbed Noelle with her free hand, and then moved to hoist both her and Kris out to a quiet spot just behind the school. She’d gone there a few times before when she was skipping class, and it was pretty chill. Private enough for this conversation, she was pretty sure.

Kris had given up trying to fight her over this a little bit ago, and had been wearing a dull expression ever since. Noelle was now just gawking, and when Susie set the three of them down, she turned quickly to Kris to try and silently ask for an explanation or something; Kris didn’t bother reacting. So they were just completely resigned to their fate, then…

Well, okay, if they really protested, Susie wouldn’t out them to Noelle, but they hadn’t really tried that hard, and y’know, they had agreed to kiss her and stuff earlier, which was surely way more of a commitment than just sitting here whilst she ran her mouth, anyway.

“So, uh, hey,” she said.

“H-Hey yourself!?l Noelle stammered, eyes wide in incredible confusion.

“Oh my god,” Kris muttered, head in hands.

“I have, uh, convened us all here today to discuss important matters,” Susie announced. “Namely…”

She might as well just get it all out out front. Like, Kris told her Noelle probably wouldn’t mind her deal, and surely she wouldn’t have a problem with the whole Kris’s crushes situation either, so…

“Namely???” Noelle laughed.

“My apparent lack of attraction to people in general, and Kris’s raging crushes on both of us.”

Noelle stared at her for a moment like she expected Susie to be joking. Kris’s head sank further into their hands.

“Y-Your?” She blinked. “Wait, Kris’s what!?”

“My nothing…” they groaned. “It’s nothing…”

“Not what you said earlier,” Susie snorted. “Anyway! So like… I was talking to Kris, and like, apparently I don’t really know what a crush is? Or how it feels? But don’t worry! I don’t wanna break up! I just… Dunno, apparently it was important to tell you? That I’m, uh… Is there a word for it? Whatever, doesn’t matter. But it’s okay, because we’re good as is, and if not, uh…” she gestured vaguely at Kris. “Hey! They like you too! Like, actually like you, so it’s all good!”

It was a messy explanation, but Susie was pretty sure it was suffice. Or, uh, she had been, until she noticed Noelle’s expression abruptly fall when she finally managed to parse the brain dump Susie had just exposited at her. Oh fuck. Was that a bad expression? Had she said something wrong?

“Susie, I…”

She looked pale.

Hastily, Kris intervened. “She doesn’t mean it like that,” they said, quietly. “She just found out like, ten minutes ago that she’s probably aroace, and I think she thinks that you’ll be upset, so she’s trying to dump me in the way.”

Well, first, wow, harsh. Never would have seen such cruelty coming from her best friend. Or, okay, it was Kris, so maybe she would have, but still! Damn! And second, dump Kris in the way!? What the hell!? No, no, this was supposed to be about setting them up with Noelle as well on the side! Because they probably both had romantic feelings for each other, she thought, even if she was apparently a little crap at actually recognising what those felt like.

“Dump you in the way? Kris… That’s not…” Noelle took in a deep breath. “Okay, both of you, listen. Uhm. That was kind of a lot!?”

“Oh, uh, yeah,” Susie grunted. “Sorry about that. Just didn’t see the point in holding it back.”

“No, it’s alright, I just… Let… Let me get this straight.” First, she pointed at Susie. “You never actually had a crush on me, but you… you do want to keep dating, right?”

“Yeah?” Susie was confused. “Didn’t I already say that?”

Had she rambled so much that that had gotten lost in what she’d said? Fucking weak…

“Yeah, you did… I just, erm… Uhm… I wanted to check…”

Noelle was blushing deeply, and it usually made her feel better when Susie was affectionate when she got like that, so Susie shuffled in closer to be able to grab and then squeeze her hand. She hoped that helped, at least a little.

“Great, so what were you saying?” she asked.

“Right, I just… You said all that, but then you also started blabbing about Kris, and… Okay, second, Kris, uhm, cheesus Kris, what!? Me and Susie!? Or, uhm… I kinda figured Susie, b-but me as well? Is that… true…?”

Wait, figured her!? It had been obvious!? She– No, no, there were more important matters right now than stuff she already knew she wouldn’t get.

Susie wasn’t sure that she wasn’t expecting Kris to finally give a denial now, right at the most inconvenient moment, even when they’d basically confirmed it to her before. Or, uh, maybe that was just what she would do. But also… Apparently it was different for her. Apparently all of that incomprehensibility wasn’t universal, so for Noelle and Kris…

To be honest, she sort of just wanted them both to show her what this was really supposed to be like. Crushes and romance and dating and all of that.

“…Sometimes people used to tell me it was really obvious,” they murmured. “That it was the only reason they could think of that I would pick on you.”

“Oh, Kris… I…”

“That wasn’t it, for the record,” they said, looking up to meet Noelle’s eye from behind their bangs carefully. “I just thought it was funny seeing you scream. But… Susie… She’s… Not wrong… exactly.”

The two of them fell silent, and Susie didn’t especially feel like interrupting.

Noelle was staring, and though Susie thought her expression should have been familiar from when they had first gotten together, it seemed entirely unknown. Typically, Noelle wasn’t too hard to read, because she emoted loudly – blushed and stammered prominently from embarrassment, smiled brighter than anyone else Susie knew from any joy, and when sad, even her antlers seemed to wilt – but this was like trying to read expressions in a blurry mirror.

Kris was no better obviously, but Susie usually had trouble reading them. She was getting that they were a little off put by all of this, but that was probably to be expected. They were blushing slightly, she was pretty sure, but their hair was hung all the way down across their face right now – surely intentionally placed to hide as much as it could.

This was all probably a lot on Noelle, yeah, but… Crap, was it a big deal? Susie had no idea how to gauge it, because all this kinda stuff meant so generally little to her. Kris had a crush on her? Cool. Kinda weird, and she couldn’t get it, but it wasn’t a big deal. She didn’t actually have romantic feelings for Noelle? Well, the relationship still wasn’t a problem, so as long as that didn’t hurt Noelle, it hardly even mattered. But maybe there was something more intrinsic and powerful to these kinda reveals when you, uh, did feel romantic feelings and stuff.

Hesitantly, Noelle eventually tilted her head to the side. “You… You make it sound like it’s been a long time…”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Kris mumbled.

“Okay,” Noelle nodded, voice soft. “Okay. Then… What exactly is going on right now?” She went bright read, the weird mix of glass and ice over her expression breaking as her cheeks heated up, and she quickly moved to bury a squeak into her hands. “With the three of us?”

“Well, uh,” Susie intervened, ignoring the scratchiness of her own voice up against all of the quiet things concealed within Kris and Noelle’s, “I wasn’t think that anything had to change with, uh, you know. Just the two of us… Unless you’re upset?”

“I’m not upset, Susie,” Noelle quickly interrupted, peaking up through her fingers. “I-It, I mean, even if you don’t feel romantic feelings at all, then you still like me enough to have wanted to date me, s-so… So it’s fine!”

Susie smiled slightly. “Uh, yeah. Thanks.” She cleared her throat. “I mean, I like being with you, y’know? I really do! Even if we weren’t dating, you’d be one of my best friends, and that’s… Heh, I never even had a best friend at all until I moved here.”

“Fahah, r-really!? No way! But you… You’re… I’ve never understood why people don’t wanna be around you,” Noelle said. “I know you can look scary, but… You’re really…”

“Cool,” Kris volunteered. Susie and Noelle turned their heads to watch them; they quickly averted their gaze into shoddily feigned disinterest.

“Yeah, what they said. Cool,” Noelle nodded, after a moment.

Susie still didn’t really know how to speak up to tell people exactly how much they meant to her. She did her best to compensate, but… Ah, hell, screw it. She would still just do her best to compensate!

Determinedly, she pulled Noelle in, and gave her a wink as she parted their hands to wrap her whole arm around Noelle’s body.

“Heh, just what makes you guys the best,” she tried. Noelle began to blush somehow even harder, which flustered Susie in turn. “I mean, uh…” she spluttered. “A-Anyway, so like… You’re not upset, so we’re chill, but there’s also Kris…”

“Y-Yeah. What, uhm… What about them? Are you talking for them, or…?”

“Decidedly against my will,” Kris announced.

Noelle began to squint. “…Right.”

“I was just thinking,” Susie said, “there might be stuff that like, I don’t wanna do, at some point. Relationship stuff, I mean. But… Kris likes you, and I thought maybe you liked Kris as well, and you already know we’re close, so…”

“Haha, you thought I had a crush on Kris?” Noelle laughed nervously. Shrilly, too.

“Uh, I dunno. Probably,” Susie replied, trying not to get psyched out by what she hoped was just embarrassment.

“That’s cool,” Noelle continued, smiling straining at the edges.

Susie felt Kris shuffle up closer to her, and felt a little protective sting go through her. Noelle didn’t have a cruel bone in her body, so she wasn’t about to say something horrible surely, but… But fuck, if whatever came next still might hurt Kris…

Well, it would be her fault. So it was on her to make sure that didn’t happen.

“So do you?” she pushed.

“You can’t ask like that,” Kris whispered sharply. Susie just rolled her eyes; she really didn’t give two shits about the ritualistic hows of it, by now.

“I…” Something about that forced something through to Noelle clearly, because her laughter turned more genuine, and the creases around her eyes softened. “Oh, Susie… I guess I never really thought about it, because with you, it’s like… An inferno. Everyone told me I was really bad around you! Like, super obvious! But you were new, and you really excited me, so I guess it was really obvious for me as well. But Kris…”

Beside the both of them, Kris noticeable tensed. Susie elbowed them playfully in an attempt to get them to lighten up.

“That’s because you were super obvious,” instead, they blurted.

“Kris!” Noelle whined. “Oh my gosh, I know! You didn’t need to point it out!” But she was still smiling and laughing. “You should count yourself lucky I’ve always liked people who push me.”

“Wait, Noelle…” haltingly, Kris said.

“No, listen, I… I really hadn’t thought about it, because I never had to feel so explosively about you. You were just there for so many years whenever I wanted you, and when you started to pull away… I didn’t want to think about any of it. I missed you, Kris. And I guess, thinking now… That longing, that should have always been proof enough for me.”

“…But you want Susie more,” they decided.

Damn, Kris was fumbling. How embarrassing for them. Lucky Susie was here to do damage control, huh?

“Dude, are you deaf?” she snorted. “No way!”

“Uhm, yeah, no offence, Kris, but if you get to have two crushes, why don’t I as well?”

“It’s not like that,” they frowned.

Susie elbowed them again. “Dude, Kris, how are you actively doing worse than me right now at this?”

“Shut up,” they hissed, clearly holding back a snort of laughter. Heh.

“Kris, I just don’t see why…” Noelle gave them a fierce look. “If I want you and Susie, and you want me and Susie, and Susie, uhm…”

“I’m just chilling,” Susie said. “I want what’s gonna back you two like, actually happy or whatever, and since you apparently both have, uh… massive crushes on me…”

“Exactly! So if you want Kris… Why don’t you just… join us? That’s what Susie wanted to suggest from the beginning, right?”

She hadn’t asked Kris before first beginning to enact her plan, she got that, but she also knew Kris was slippery when they wanted to be, so if they really hadn’t wanted to be here… She caught their eye through the gaps in their bangs; she recognised the look from seeing them stare at pianos.

Then they were all fine. She’d figured out a lot of things about both herself and her close friends today, but hell, all’s well was about to end well, or however the fuck that saying went, so Susie was content.

“I’d like that,” Kris finally admitted.

“Fuck yeah,” Susie grinned.

“Y-Yeah?” Noelle affirmed. “Great! Then, uhm… Would you like to… join us, this evening? We’re just going to the diner. If you have other plans, that’s fine! But, if you want to…”

“They have no plans,” Susie laughed. “They were about to be pathetically alone tonight before I got their ass in gear about this.”

Kris gave her a lazy smirk. “Pretty sure I started the debate.”

“What? No way, dude. That can’t be right!”

But then she thought about it, and… Crap, they kinda had been the one to start digging…

Though, that got her kinda thinking – had Kris always suspected something about her? Was that why they’d started prying so much about Noelle? Or was that just because of their own crushes? It probably didn’t matter, and she kinda still didn’t need to know the exact inner workings of the mysterious Kris. Just, uh, food for thought and stuff.

She had an argument to bluff her way through now, anyway.

“Refusing to admit that you were going to leave me alone on a Friday night with no extra word on the matter,” Kris repeated. “How pathetic.”

“Fuck off!” she huffed. “You’re not alone now, so who cares!”

They started making puppy dog eyes, and scuffed their ‘paws’ against the ground. Fucking hell…

“Erm, thank you for bringing it up then, Kris? If that is what happened???” Noelle said. She seemed as baffled as ever at their antics.

Kris abruptly looked away bashfully. “It’s whatever.”

Susie rested her chin on Noelle’s shoulder contently.

“Can I get a thanks too?” she grunted.

“If you want,” Noelle laughed, only shifting slightly. “…In exchange for my freedom? I can’t actually leave Berdly hanging forever, you know. He does kind of need me to help him study, and I already agreed before all of this…”

“Ugh.” Susie had to remove her chin from Noelle’s shoulder all too early. How terrible. Fucking Berdly… “Fine.”

“Thank you, Susie!” Noelle said, extra-sweetly.

“Yeah, whatever…”

Noelle stood up, and began to brush grass off of her skirt. Some of it kinda flopped down onto Susie, probably in her hair and stuff too, but she didn’t)t really care. All the more to throw at Kris later for being such a dumbass today.

“Wait, Noelle, before you go…” Kris intoned, voice somewhat low and creepy like it always was when they were about to pull a true Kris-ism and start screwing around.

“Y-Yeah?” Noelle prompted, seemingly also having picked up on the nature of their tone.

“I did my work with helping Susie realise she’s aroace, so…” They smirked. “Do us all a favour and maybe prompt Berdly in the same direction?”

“You want me to discuss romance with Berdly!?” Noelle snorted harshly.

“It’s a favour,” Kris said simply, but the shit-eating grin gave them away. “Now that we’re dating.”

“You’re awful,” she giggled. “But… Maybe he could use someone to help him out a little, fahahah…”

“Shouldn’t that be Kris, then?” Susie said. “Because they were just so helpful for me?”

“Oh, yeah, I can help him,” they snickered.

Oh, fuck, they were making her actually want to be there for that, and that was a rarity, given who else would be involved.

“…On second thoughts, it should definitely be me,” Noelle sighed. “Alright, I really do need to go though. See you both later?”

“Hell yeah,” Susie responded, waving freely.

“See you later,” Kris agreed.

Noelle was quick to leave after that, but still with a blush and a smile evident enough on her face to keep it obvious that her haste really was just out of necessity.

Susie smiled after her, and just next to her, upon a quick look, she found that Kris looked eminently content. It was rare look on them, when they usually trudged around with such a notably gloomy expression, but she knew better to point it out. She felt a little lighter herself, honestly, for having figured all of that out, and then also sorted it with Noelle.

Good feelings all around, she supposed. None of them were alone.