Morning after

Rina: You guys’re cool with the Kimchi, right? Sorry I didn’t ask before making it.

Nia: S’good.

Emery: No complaints from me either. Thanks for the food!

We sat around the small dining table situated in the corner of Rina’s living room, eating and sipping our morning coffee.

Emery: I’ve never actually had this dish before, so this is another new experience I can thank you for.

Rina brushed her hair behind her ear and chuckled.

Rina: Pssh. C’mon, it’s nothing special. Kimchi eggs and some toast aren’t exactly rare in homes like mine.

Had she meant for Koreans living in the Americas, or was she referring to Korean college students? I supposed the exact meaning was mostly irrelevant, whatever the case.

Emery: The novelty of it doesn’t actually matter that much to me, I appreciate that you made it for us — not to mention you bought both of our meals last night.

Nia: Mmhmm.

Nia shot our host a thumbs up while her mouth was full.

Rina: Nah dude, It’s the least I could do all things considered. I’m happy you’re happy.

Rina: Speaking of, you doing alright Nia? You’ve been kinda quiet.

Emery: Yeah she’s fine, just doesn’t do well in the mornings. She’ll perk up after the coffee’s in her veins.

My love once again gave us a thumbs up, and continued blearily eating her food.

Rina: That’s a relief, I was worried she was super sore. Funny though, I always pictured her as a morning person.

Emery: Nope, she’s always been terrible in the mornings haha. Although since you mentioned it, can we borrow that ointment you have? If it’s not too much trouble.

Nia shot me a defiant middle finger.

Rina: Heheh yeah dude, no trouble at all.

We ate quietly after that, picking at our plates and sipping caffeinated lifeblood. I enjoyed these moments. It felt “home-y”, for lack of a better word. Rina and Nia were rather…animated people when it came to conversation, so times like these felt special. More personal.

A familiar feeling reared its head, however, as Rina suddenly cleared her throat and motioned to begin speaking again. She had done this at dinner last night as well. It wasn’t as if this was strange behavior on its own, but the fact that she seemed to pick the soonest possible moment… I wondered if she found a lack of conversation unpleasant.

Rina: You two have any plans for today?

Emery: I’ve got one class that starts at four-thirty, but other than that? Not really.

Rina: Eugh, on the weekends? Reminds me of my years in prep school. Guess there’s a reason why you’re in the top one percent.

Emery: It’s not too bad. I had way more work in third year.

She grimaced at that, then looked at her phone.

Rina: Well it’s only noon, so you’ve got time. You guys are more than welcome to hang here til you get going.

Nia abruptly downed her coffee and raised a finger in the air, signaling us the wait.

Nia: We gotta talk about last night and what we’re doing going forward. Since we’re on a time limit and we don’t know how long that’s gonna take, we should start ASAP.

That was true. In the peaceful morning climate it had slipped my mind that we were having conventionally disturbing fetish sex into the early hours of the day.

Rina: Haha, totally forgot about that. Prolly a good idea, yeah. Don’t want anyone in bad spirits for the rest of the day.

She stretched in her seat, before snatching our dishes away and moving to the kitchen.

Rina: I’ll take care of these and make some more coffee. You go get cozy on the couch, or wherever ya wanna do the deed.