SOTF Archive/SOTF Classic

“Well, aside from the art museum, not much else,” Yuki responded, “I might continue my reading.”

Yuki tilted her head toward her book.

“Oh! Although,” she continued, her eyebrows raised in realization, “Our birthday is in a couple of days. Maybe I’ll talk to my sisters about what we can do to celebrate.”

The trip would continue until the 8th of June. Before then, the Hayashibara’s would be celebrating their next birthday on the 3rd. Their parents had given each of them an extra hundred dollars to spend on whatever they wanted during the trip.

“I might go to the mall and see what I can find for my sisters.”

Willow concentrated on that last bit of nail painting. She had the tendency to cut corners at the end of tasks, less out of laziness and more out of restlessness. After doing the same task for too long, Willow would start to become bored and start thinking about other things. It was in this situation, however, that Willow did her best to clear her mind and finish what she started. As she was carefully applying the nail polish on the final fingers, she held her breath unintentionally. She finished, and the job was okay. It wasn't perfect, Willow never painted someone else's nails, but it was fine. From a distance, you wouldn't notice the small nudge here and there.

"Phew," she put back the applier in the container then pointed Yuki's nails, "and it's done. Hope you like it!"

She smiled and then looked at Kelly. While Willow was concentrating on her prior task, she still managed to keep half an ear out for her. "Mhm, today?" She scratched her scalp. Willow wanted to eat out. Something really greasy like hamburgers with fries, but also something nice and fresh like a raspberry sorbet. "Probably will eat out somewhere, or order something. I'm getting hungry."

Willow turned toward Yuki and continued talking about her plans. They were not the best plan she's ever made, but they were there. Willow wanted to get food, get souvenirs, get clothes, and visits museums. She could probably achieve that in 3 days, but instead, she had 8. "I think I'll go to the mall tomorrow. Just to buy things like... clothes and the usual 'I Love New York' shirt.

...wait, we're not in New York."

Willow cackled.

Kelly nodded enthusiastically at Yuki's idea, a big grin on her face. A big old shopping trip was always good, always safe. Well, not safe in the conventional sense, but safe as a conversation topic, like how Lightroom was the best app for general photo edits - perhaps you couldn't get the deepest ideas out of it, the most precise changes, but it covered a wide variety of things, something for everyone to pick up and run with. It was good, all good.

Perhaps a bit more good than Willow’s plans to be honest. She listened, just the same, putting in the requisite nods to showcase her comprehension, but honestly, she herself wasn’t all that hungry. Still, they were roommates, and it would be a bit rude just to go and put a plain old no there.

“Hmm,” she pursed her lips, thinking. “Maybe something light, then?”

Compromise was good, yup, meeting in the middle always the best. The cackle that emerged from Willow after her little New York joke took her more than a bit aback, but the most important thing to do was keep smiling. No abatement in facial expression, as if there had been no change in the mood at all. All the better to keep people happy. “Yeah, I guess so. Still, DC does look pretty good.”

Was alright, honestly, photo opportunities abound, sure, but there were definitely better places to go. Didn’t mean this was bad, though. Not at all.