The Good News

It was nice making new friends.

As she and Kaylee talked and laughed and nearly got themselves kicked out of the restaurant, she couldn’t help but think how rare this was for her - making a friend. She’d had pleasant conversations with people on the road before, had some fun times, but she tended to not linger too long, knowing that anything she forged would be gone as soon as the circus moved on to the next town. She had the troupe, but they were her family. Valerie was her sister. Belle was her girlfriend, and she loved her, but there was something to be said for this, having someone she could be close with, but not super close.

Tatiana decided she liked making friends. She was looking forward to doing it a lot more in the coming months, and getting to know Kaylee better. She had the impression there was far more to this woman than she let on, that she was only scratching the surface, and that they had more in common than either of them realized. It was like a present she couldn’t wait to unwrap.

Kaylee had this breezy, easy going personality that was easy to get sucked into. Belle was just as comforting, but in a different way. Her girlfriend was warm and caring, down-to-earth, a great listener and personable, but Kaylee had a gift for speaking and summarizing that drew Tatiana in. She remembered her father telling her once that some people just had a way of talking that made things sound right, even when they weren’t, and the blonde fit into that rare category.

She drew Tatiana is so well that the time seemed to fly. She never forgot about Belle, she was always in the back of her mind, but she worried less and less as the minutes ticked away. While she wanted them both here, the mission had been accomplished, and they could have another date some other time. So many stories to share between them, things to explain, ammo she could siphon out of Kaylee to tease Belle with in the future…

Their revelry came to a stop when Kaylee’s phone shook, and Tatiana lit up even more at the sound, if such a thing was possible. The smile dampened a bit when she heard it was an unlisted number, but heck, that kind of made sense - her phone was probably on the fritz.

The quizzical look came back, though, when she heard Belle saying she wanted to keep it secretive, though she was quick to blow it off with a shrug. Kind of made sense. She probably still thought they were in Secret Mode, playing up the act to keep things clean. It would be easy enough to set her straight.

Something about Belle’s voice, though, was off. Really off. Her girlfriend could be a little moody at times, she’d grown used to it, even found it cute in the right amounts, but this was different.

She leaned forward, her smile waning but still existent, and spoke on the phone, keeping it just low enough to avoid drawing too much attention. ”Hello, beautiful.” She kept her tone warm, trying to stay sweet for whatever was getting Belle down. ”Everything’s cool. I told Kaylee about us, and she’s been just...awesome. Seriously. A superstrong bestie candidate.” Which wasn’t saying too much, really, Kaylee was pretty much her best non-girlfriend friend by default, but she felt like giving the compliment anyway, and held up her fist for a little bump.

”Where, ah…” She scratched her head, still trying to put all the pieces together in a coherent way. ”Is your phone broke or something? Couldn’t find mine, sorry if you tried to reach me, but Kaylee’s been calling you a bit and stuff.”

Kaylee had gone quiet to let the two love birds chat. It had been quite some time since she had gotten a call like this, but after the initial confusion over the number she had put two and two together. This wasn't as dire as a hospital visit, so this left one thing on the table… at least Belle was coherent this time.

At Tatiana's opening greeting she placed her hands over her heart, giving the redhead a silent, gushing "awwww" for how adorable she was. The blond quirked a brow to Tatiana, spotting the offered fist she reached out to give it a playful knock, bringing it back with wiggling fingers as if it had just exploded from the impact.

"...Really? I…"

"Was there any doubt?" The blond hummed pleasantly before falling silent again, letting the two speak.

"I am… so sorry I'm not there right now… I should have been there. God damnit…"

Kaylee's lighthearted smile slowly faded leaving her tight lipped and stoic. She reached out, tapping the volume down a few levels to keep Belle's swearing from carrying to the other patrons.

"My phone is fine… I think. I was just… busy. Listen I will tell you all about it, but later. I don't have time now. Kaylee, you still there?"

"Always. We were just finishing up dinner so… where do you need us?" There was a slight coldness to her tone, like a disappointed parent who had been down this road before far too many times. Obligations however meant being there for Belle, through any of her faults or hardships.

"Can you take me off speaker?"

"Tatiana deserves to hear this too. You're a couple after all. You shouldn't be keeping secrets." Kaylee lectured the other woman softly in that motherly tone of hers. The line went quiet for a moment before Belle spoke up again.

"The Toshima MPD office, I'm in holding. You'll need to post bail."

"Alright. We should be leaving here as soon as possible to come get you." It was just that simple. She didn't ask any questions, didn't raise concerns or chide the other woman. This was just the way things were. The blond glanced over to Tatiana, giving her a moment to respond to the phone before she would start enacting the protocol for setting everything up.

Hearing Belle’s voice was a relief, just knowing that she was okay. She settled down thanks to Kaylee and food, but she’d grown used to having access to her girlfriend more or less 24/7, and there had always been that little tickle at the back of her head with them disconnected. But she could hear her voice, she was fine, she wasn’t in a hospital or something even worse. That was good to know.

In the coming days, she’d remember that little sense of comfort. It would be a good while before she felt it again.

It went away when she heard the way Belle was talking, apologizing for not being there, as if whatever happened was purely her fault. She wasn’t mad, couldn’t be mad, knew that she would never shirk this off if she could avoid it, but something about the look Kaylee made set her off the edge. That expectant, disappointed look, the kind she’d seen on her sister’s face a few times, but never pictured on this blonde until right that moment. It wasn’t a good sign, she could tell. Even if she couldn’t, what Belle said next would’ve been the tipoff.

”Hey…” Tatiana opened her mouth to speak when Belle asked to be put off spearkerphone, but Kaylee beat her to the punch and said what she wanted to say better than she would’ve said it. It was the weirdest thing to hear from her girlfriend. The two had so few secrets from each other. If something was bothering them, they talk about it. They shared. They were each other’s comfort zone. It was why they worked so well in the first place. Why try and keep her out of things when they were finally stepping into the light.

When Belle revealed where she was, Tatiana was speechless for a moment, shocked, not sure what to make of it. Her fingers went to her mouth before she knew it, gnawing on a manicured nail. Had her driver hit someone? Did someone try and pick a fight with her? Was it those monsters in the biker helmets? It just didn’t make any sense, and she was on the verge of letting all those questions spill out. ”But, I…”

Kaylee’s response stopped her cold, silently telling her the right way to handle this. Get Belle out, that was the first priority, and they had to move. Now. ”Okay.” She nodded to reassure herself. ”Okay. Just...just hold tight. I’m coming, we’re coming.” She clasped her hands together in front of her mouth, wanting to leave Belle with something encouraging, to help her before they arrived. There were only three she could settle on. ”I love you.”

Eager beyond words to get moving, she stood up and let Kaylee take the lead, following close behind without another word.