I'm Still... Eating This Burger (MiaRina)
"Here, Mia." Rina slid into the booth beside Mia. Strangely, there was a completely free pair of seat across the table. Mia didn't mind too much as soon as she saw their orders sat on the tray. She quickly took one, muttering a thanks in English before biting into it.
"They're not as big as the ones back home but, they're tasty." The same comment left Mia's lips as she indulged in the hamburger. Rina brought a board to her face, expressing an emotion of happiness at the blonde before taking her own hamburger.
"You have been eating better now, right?" Rina asked, her bites tiny in comparison to Mia's hefty tears in her burger. There was a momentary silence as they both chewed, the hum of surrounding patrons filling the air.
Mia nodded, taking a pause to sip from her soda. "It's been uh, better. But that app you told me that delivers even late at night has been really handy when I'm up late composing."
Rina set her burger down, flipping quick to another face on her board. "That's good. Rina-chan board: Relieved. I bought a bunch, so feel free to have more, Mia."
"Thanks!" Mia did just that, unwrapping another burger before biting into it without any care for manners or how she looked. It was one perk she grew to like hanging around Rina. The girl never judged for her crude language, dismissive tones, or constant hunger for hamburgers. It was the opposite to her 'friend' Lanzhu.
With Rina, she felt like she was free to speak her mind. And she has, and it had felt like a weight was removed from her shoulders. "...This is nice."
"Hm?" Rina perked up, halfway into her burger. From how tiny her hands were, it made the food look larger. Mia wasn't any different, but she always made short work of hamburgers no matter the size. "What was that, Mia?"
"Uh, it's nothing." The blonde muttered, turning away. Rina shook her head, leaning closer with wide golden eyes.
"You can tell me anything. We're friends, right?" she asked in a certain shyness that ground Mia's mind to a halt, piercing gold rendering her like a deer in headlights.
"Uh..." Mia stuttered a breath, unable to look away.
"We're not?"
"W-We are!" Mia snapped, startling Rina. She held a hand up, sliding an inch back on the booth seat. "Sorry, I didn't mean to yell."
"It's okay," Rina said in the unchanging monotone expression. Mia offered a grimace, glancing away to the unopened pile of burgers on the tray. She ordered a lot for her, knowing that two or three wouldn't be enough.
Mia sighed, looking down at the half-eaten hamburger in her hand. "Anything, you say?"
"That's right." Rina nodded, her eyebrows ever so slightly slanted downward. Yet, Mia understood plenty the conviction in her words. Of course, a determined look from the Rina-chan board was all to confirm it. "Rina-chan board: Serious!"
"Then..." Mia trailed off, her mind a whirlwind. What did she want to say? Hell, what was she trying to hide in the first place? She never believed Lanzhu's faff that the School Idol Club was their enemy. To her, they were rivals at best. To her, Rina was a friend. She said so herself.
Were friends supposed to make you feel nervous?
"Mia?" Rina's voice brought her out from the internal spiral. She was closer now, the distance between them nearly nonexistent. Golden eyes, pure, unwavering, and dazzling.
Mia shoved her burger in her mouth, taking as much as she could into her mouth. With puffed cheeks, she met Rina's gaze.
"Mmpfhfhf."
"...What?" Rina moved a confused iteration of her board on her chest, visualizing her confusion. Mia swallowed, a short pause for a drink of soda before she nodded. "Could you say that again, Mia."
"Oh, sure. I- Mmffhfpfh." Mia's words muffled, the rest of the burger in her mouth. Light laughter left Rina's lips, watching the blonde move for another burger. "Did you catch it this time, Rina?"
Mia nodded, removing wrapper as metallic lavender eyes fluttered closed. "Then, do you want me to say it again?"
Rina nodded, leaning in.
"I- Mpffh." Mia's muffled words, or was it laughter, filled the space between them. Rina, showing a drawing of a pout, lightly smacked her shoulder in impatience. Rina would have to wait, though. Mia still had an entire tray of hamburgers left.