Aftermath (for SuckerPunch)

[CaptainL]

All was still for a moment. When Yuki at last breached the question...she was, in all honesty, surprised by the response. She would have been sure that Kelsea was coming on to her before, yet now that Yuki had asked her of her intents, she seemed to be taken by surprise! At the sight of it, Yuki froze, her body going tense and rigid as she stood up straighter. If her hands were free, she'd have clasped them over her mouth. Had she upset Kelsea? The last thing she wanted to do was to rub her friend the wrong way.

"Sorry-!" she blurted out, but a moment later...Kelsea asked the question herself. Yuki fell silent, and the pause between them seemed to last for an eternity, as the raven-haired girl stood trying to piece together the right words to respond with. In raising the question to begin with, Yuki had been prepared for an affirmative answer. Kelsea was a nice girl, and she was truly flattered by how much she cared about her, and was willing to cheer her on. Her cheerfulness was just what she found she needed to temper her aloof attitude and lift her spirits, bringing levity to a life she took very seriously. Being around her made her burdens feel a little bit lighter, and despite how much she couldn't be contained, being around her energized her in its own way. She had hardly anything in common with Yuki, and yet the two seemed to be two halves of one whole.

And she couldn't deny, as she looked up and down the girl before her...Kelsea was pretty. Her bright face, her curvy frame, the fact the two of them were so close, and how much it made Yuki feel so strangely content...

She cleared her throat, then, and met eyes with the blonde once more, after what felt like an eternity. "...I wouldn't mind, no. At the very least...some time we could get to know each other more. Is there any time you'd like to meet up? Any place you'd like to go?"

[SuckerPunch]

Kelsea listened to her friend... And maybe more? She watched her as she hesitated and squirmed in her embrace. As Yuki moved to look in her eyes she brought a hand to her face, to wipe away her tears. She wanted to see the woman's face, her intent, with absolute clarity. She wanted her own feelings to be undeniable.

And yet... "T-that wasn't a yes." She frowned softly. Yuki's words hit her like a blow to the belly. She felt a sudden deluge of anxiety. Of fear. She was being silly. After all, how could a beautiful, athletic woman like Yuki be attracted to her. She shook her head, as if trying to shake off the negative feelings that embraced her as tightly as she currently held the object of her affection.

"B-but it wasn't a no!" She smiled then. Her arms uncoiling from about Yuki as she attempted to slip away from her. Her hands instead trailing down the girls shoulders, down her arms, and finally, taking her hands into her own. She'd meet this challenge head on! Like she did every obstacle that had ever been put in her way! For... Better or worse. "Let's get to know each other then! I'd like that more than anything in the world!" She nodded before giggling. The anxiety seemingly swept away by a crashing wave of positivity. Kelsea couldn't stay sad for long. That had always been an asset of hers.

"If it's with you, anywhere is fine! I'll be back here for the big show on Sunday! I'm sure you'll be here too, right? Howabout after that?" She nodded firmly. Sagely. She looked back into Yuki's eyes then for her declaration. "It's. A. Date!" She smiled as her cheeks were flooded with red. A swell of raw excitement coursed through her body for Yuki to see. She always did wear her emotions on her sleeve!

[CaptainL]

Yuki paused for a moment as Kelsea responded to her offer. Her grip on her slackened ever so slightly, as a look crossed her face, reflecting the feelings - was it disappointment? - she was feeling within her. Had she said the wrong thing? She was, she had to admit, curious about Kelsea, and there was a part of her that yearned to explore these feelings more. But it all seemed so sudden. She hadn't known this girl for much more than a week, after all. To be...official like that, so soon? It didn't seem like the best idea. Yuki had always been one to plan and to let things develop, and to only act when the time was right - and this was how she approached such personal issues with the same precision she would use in the ring. It seemed so soon to say anything - but was that what Kelsea wanted?

But a mere moment later, Kelsea's tension broke, and Yuki too felt the relief. As she felt Kelsea's hands grasp hers, she looked back up toward her as a smile crossed her face. Perhaps things were hazy between them, for now. But that could change - and Yuki was willing to see how it did. Hearing how happy it made the blonde made Yuki blush harder; she had no idea she would ever mean this much to her. But seeing her smile...it was worth it. "It would-? Then...okay! I'd love to talk to you more, Kelsea!"

Then, she brought up Sunday, and that's what set off a bell in Yuki's mind. "Oh-!!" She gasped, looking up to a poster on the wall - and sure enough, Kelsea was exactly right! We Are LAW - the biggest night of the year for the promotion - was right around the corner, and Yuki hadn't considered what she was going to do for that week! But just like that, that question in her mind was answered!

"Of course I'll be here! In fact..." A confident grin beamed on Yuki's face now; she felt ready for anything! "I'm going to see if I can get on the card! If I went up against the champion, I'm sure I deserve such a place!" Knowing what lay before her, Yuki's loss no longer seemed so devastating. She could rebound from this - and she'd prove to everyone that she still had what it took by coming back with a victory at the PPV! And she'd prove that to Kelsea, too! She was sure she'd find the girl in the front row during her match, and she would resolve to do her best for her!

"I won't let this loss get me down. If Aoi thinks I can do it...then I'll do it! And afterward..." Her eyes locked on Kelsea's, and she nodded to her, even if the words made her cheeks flush a bit brighter.

"Yeah. It's a date!"

[SuckerPunch]

"Ganbare Yuki!" She threw her hands up excitedly as Yuki declared that she was going to make an appearance at this Sunday's show! She was, of course, one of the lightweight divisions main eventers now! Of course she would be featured at the Pay-Per-View. "I can't wait to see you perform again! And afterwards! We can meet! And talk! And get to know eachother better!" She clapped her hands together excitedly. The bleary eyed emotion having faded entirely.

"Oh my gosh! What should we do!?" She rubbed her chin as she considered. "I bet after you win your match on Sunday you're going to be awful sore! Maybe we should get massages!? Or you might be exhausted... Then we can soak at a bathhouse instead! Or you might be hungry... Oh gosh! Should we get dinner? That seems so..." She blushed a bit thinking about it. "Intimate." She whispered before giggling. As if somehow the dinner idea was more scandalous than the other, stranger suggestions.

"I promise I'll be there!" She nodded, suddenly switching tracks! "And I'll meet you back here! After your match! Just like tonight! And we can go wherever you choose! I don't care where it is! As long as I'm with you!" She put her thumb up, reassuring Yuki! Before leaping at her and giving her one last big hug!

The two women didn't know it at the time... But this event would be a flash point in both of their lives... Something that would alter the course of their careers and personal lives drastically.

Beneath the saccharine sweet innocence of a budding romance swam something more sinister. Something that would weigh the strength of their characters... When they were pushed to their very limits... Would they be found wanting?

-----Fin----