A Funny Idea of Romance
The warm hum of the overhead lights filled the air as Joy and Xy stood in the middle of the library, surrounded by towering bookshelves crammed with Riley’s lifetime of stories. The faint scent of paper and leather bindings clung to the space, though neither of the two lovebirds were remotely interested in reading tonight. Instead, they passed a soccer ball back and forth, its faint thuds muffled by the plush green carpet.
Riley was having one of those habitual early nights.
10:00pm. Too early for the emotions to start feeling tired. Especially for these two. Two of the most energy fueled emotions in all of headquarters.
It’s been over a month now since the Shame crisis was resolved. Riley and Cindy were closer than ever, seeing each other at least once a week. They’d be lying to themselves if they said they didn’t consider each other to be the bestest of besties. Val, Bree and Grace were all in good spirits, and most importantly, Jen was out of hospital. She was recommended by doctors to refrain from physical activity for another while though. She’d expressed the idea of giving up hockey altogether once she recovers, warming to the idea of taking up soccer instead as it was “infinitely safer.” Val and Riley had tried their hardest to convince her that the accident she had was a one in a million ordeal and that she should get back into hockey, but they might as well be talking to a brick wall.
Jen wouldn’t budge.
Instead, it only sparked Riley’s curiosity in soccer.
It sparked her emotions’ curiosity too.
“Okay, one more, let's go with our left feet this time!” Joy said with her ever-bright grin, bouncing the ball gently against the tip of her foot before nudging it toward Xy.
Her movements were smooth and full of energy, mimicking what they’d observed with Riley watching her first Premier League game with Cindy.
Xy shifted nervously, catching the ball against their shin before passing it back with a quick flick.
“Left feet? Joy, you know I have two of those!” Xy countered, her voice tinged with its signature anxiousness, though there was no real frustration.
If anything, she seemed pleased to be practicing some more, the perfect excuse to spend more time with the best girlfriend in the world.
“You’re doing great, Xylophone!” Joy encouraged, running a hand through her blue hair as she jogged backward to control the pass.
Her golden aura shimmered faintly in the dim light, her endless optimism glowing as she kept the mood light.
“C’mon on, didn’t you see how those Liverpool players were playing circles around Southampton like they were nothing? This is just practice! You’ll be scoring from corner kicks in no time!”
Xy tried for a smile but what came out instead was a nervous chuckle. She glanced nervously towards the ball as it left Joy’s feet and towards her own.
“Cindy says Southampton are bottom of the league…” Xy replied, raising her left foot to control the ball.
“So claiming Liverpool make it look easy isn’t exactly a meaningful statement, hehe…just please don’t laugh at me if I fall on my face!”
“Laugh at you? Xy, I’d never…oh, whoops! Incoming!” Joy shouted, deliberately overshooting her next pass.
The ball sailed wide, prompting Xy to scramble across the room with an awkward yelp.
She just managed to trap the ball underfoot, wobbling as she righted herself.
“Hey!” Xy complained, bending down to pick up the ball and holding it hostage.
“Don’t complain, you did good there.” Joy countered, hands on her hips, leaning slightly forward.
Her voice softened a fraction.
“No one’s here except us. You don’t have to be so hard on yourself.” She stepped closer, gesturing for the ball.
“Besides, mistakes are fun. They remind us we’re alive.”
Xy tilted their head slightly, her soft orange glow dimming and her wild orange hair drooping slightly. It was always the same with Joy. She never demanded that she should “cheer up” or “get over it”, just gently reminding her to try.
“I knew you’d say something like that.” Xy muttered, her tone halfway between a complaint and affection, before she passed the ball back.
Joy beamed.
“And I know deep down you believe me.” she teased.
They continued for a while longer, their movements becoming smoother with each exchange. Xy was smiling when Joy started spinning proudly in little celebratory circles after receiving a particularly awkward pass. The library, silent and reverent during the day, now felt alive with movement, its carefully maintained order accommodating their impromptu game. As they played, Joy occasionally shouted out things she remembered hearing from the commentators during the match Riley watched with Cindy.
Xy was laughing as she tried her best to keep up, clumsy as she was.
Finally, when Joy held up her hands to call for a break, both of them stood still, panting lightly and laughing. Xy’s glow had brightened, and she looked relaxed, something that used to be quite rare for her.
“See?” Joy said, tossing the ball lightly from hand to hand.
“Soccer’s not so bad, huh?”
Xy gave a slight laugh, collapsing onto one of the armchairs near the fancy fireplace.
“Maybe not…but I still don’t think Riley would ever forgive us for being this bad at it.”
Joy snorted and threw the ball onto Xy’s lap.
“Good thing she doesn’t know!”
Xy sat slouched in the armchair, idly spinning the soccer ball in her lap with delicate, deliberate movements. Her head hung low, not out of sadness or embarrassment, but the kind of pensive quiet Joy had come to recognise as Xy’s new trademark.
“What’re you thinkin’ about?” Joy asked, crossing the carpet and plopping herself down on the armrest beside her.
She leaned in, her golden glow warm and inviting.
Xy glanced up, her emerald gaze faintly amused.
“You…have a funny idea of romance. Football in a library? Pretty weird for a date.” she said, her tone lightly self-deprecating, though there was fondness in her words.
Joy let out a laugh, one of those sparkling, musical bursts that always felt like sunshine.
“Oh, you think this is weird? You shoulda seen Sadness in karaoke night!” She grinned wide at the memory.
“Let’s face it, I’ve learned from the best.”
Xy raised a brow but couldn’t hold back her smile.
“Are you saying I taught you how to be romantic?”
Joy smirked.
“You’re a great teacher.”
After a brief, comfortable silence, Joy stood abruptly from her armchair.
“Okay, break’s over!” she announced with her trademark enthusiasm.
Xy blinked, looking up from where she’d been absentmindedly rolling the soccer ball beneath her foot.
“Huh? Over?”
Joy bounced to her feet and extended her hand, a mischievous glint in her eye.
“Breaks are nice, but progress? That’s even better. Come on, teammate, let’s practice penalty kicks!”
Xy groaned, sinking deeper into the chair as though it could protect her.
“You mean… those stress-inducing, high-stakes kicks where the whole stadium is silent with all eyes on us?”
Joy laughed, her golden aura shimmering brighter as she clasped Xy’s hand and pulled her up with surprising strength.
“Exactly! Riley would love to try those, so we need to be prepared. And who better than us to teach her how to handle the pressure?”
Xy shuffled after Joy reluctantly, clutching the ball.
“Right, because I’m great under pressure.”
Joy glanced back over her shoulder with a grin, tugging Xy toward the open carpet.
“Well…you were pretty dang great last month.” she spoke with a softened voice.
Xy didn’t need to be a detective to work out what Joy was referring to.
*******
The main control room was bathed in soft, ambient light as Riley slept soundly. Anger sat on the old, red sofa, his arms crossed and his expression set in his usual scowl. The monitor glowed softly on the console in front of him, showing a peaceful, surreal montage of Riley’s dreams flitting by, fragments of her week morphing into fantastical, nonsensical sequences. Despite Riley’s calm evening, Anger felt antsy. His brows furrowed as he stared at the screen. Ennui sat beside him, arm draping limply over his square head, her slim figure nearly melting into the sofa. Her other hand was occupied with her phone, scrolling aimlessly. Her deep purple glow and distant expression were, to Anger, deeply calming in a strange way. The other emotions were all scattered around the place, engrossed in their own activities. Sadness, Embarrassment and Disgust were sitting in a circle on the floor in front of an intense board game. Envy and Fear were absent but they could’ve been anywhere in headquarters. Anger wasn’t thinking about what the others were up to, truthfully. Instead, his focus was on Ennui.
“I thought you got over being glued to that thing since…y’know.” Anger grumbled, side-eyeing her.
Ennui didn’t look up. She simply gave a small, nonchalant shrug.
“I did.” she murmured.
Anger scoffed at her detached tone, which he found endearing. Despite himself, he reached up and touched Ennui’s hand that was hanging just in front of his head.
“Then why are you glued to it right now?” he asked suddenly and sharply, making Ennui raise a tired brow in amusement.
“Because it’s early.” Ennui replied dryly.
She leaned against him with lazy ease, barely looking up from her screen.
“Time is our enemy in moments such as this…boredom prevails.”
Anger turned his head toward her, his ember-like brows furrowing in indignation.
“Sure thing, Plato.” he said, his tone sharper than his intent.
A faint chuckle escaped Ennui’s lips as she gave him a sidelong glance, finally putting her phone back in her pocket and removing her arm from his head.
“Hmm” she muttered.
Anger groaned loudly.
“Ennui, sitting here and withering away might be on your agenda tonight, but it sure as heck ain’t on mine.”
Ennui stayed quiet for a moment, a loud groan escaped her as she stretched.
Then, when she finished, she spoke. Her voice was dry as ever and her expression blank. She didn’t even look at Anger.
“Give me a few minutes. I’m gonna heat up some rice.” she said, rising from her spot.
“And then we can get warm in bed.” she said bluntly.
Anger froze, his flames sputtering faintly as her words processed. He blinked up at her, utterly derailed from his frustration.
“Wait… we can get warm?” he asked slowly, the irritation melting from his tone.
Ennui turned slightly, her half-lidded eyes meeting him. Her usual detached demeanor had shifted just slightly, a hint of playfulness dancing in her faint smile.
“We can get VERY warm.” she said smoothly, her tone deliberately suggestive.
Anger stared, his face turning the colour of glowing embers. For a moment, his trademark grumbling was nowhere to be found.
He sat quietly, caught off-guard by how effortlessly and bluntly she could make such a suggestion. A smile cracked across his face, his flames dimming slightly as he let out a low chuckle.
“Okay.” he said, leaning back into the couch with a smile and a sigh.
“I like that plan. I’ll hold out while you enjoy your boring, tasteless rice.”
Ennui rolled her eyes and made her way towards the kitchen.
“The things you choose to be patient for…” she said without turning around.
“Your room in half an hour, mon cheri...”
Ennui waved a hand behind her, her pace slow and unbothered. Anger snorted, shaking his head. He hopped off the sofa and headed in the direction of the library.
“Half an hour,” he mumbled to himself before stepping into the hall.
His grin widened slightly.
Though he stomped through one of the hallways towards the library, Anger couldn’t deny the truth.
Some intimate time with Ennui sounded like exactly what he needed after a frustrating day.
Anger strolled into the library with his newspaper tucked under his arm, feeling unusually at ease for this time of the night. The soft glow of the lights and the faint scent of paper usually calmed him after a long day, but tonight his mind wasn’t on his usual ritual. As he ambled between the towering shelves, a smirk played against his naturally fiery features.
He was daydreaming, though he’d never admit it. His thoughts strayed to Ennui, imagining her on the edge of his bed beckoning him to join her. Her smirk would be subtle, her tone dripping with calm authority. It made his internal fire flare, though not in the way it usually did. It was a warmth that he still, to this day, did not understand but wasn’t against whatsoever.
For him, it was about relieving stress, while to her it was simply something to do so she wouldn’t be bored out of her mind. But the one thing about the activity that connected them both was lust.
A lust for one another that neither of them could resist.
Lost in the thought, Anger barely noticed the shift in his surroundings until a clearing opened up before him. A shocking sight brought him to a standstill. Books lay scattered across the carpet and a soccer ball lazily rolled to one side. The mess offended every structured bone in Anger’s body.
“What the…?” he muttered, eyes wide, as he stepped into the chaos.
He glanced up and down the shelves, hoping this was just some glitch in the system rather than deliberate destruction.
Before he could take another step, a loud thud echoed from somewhere above him. Anger looked up, narrowing his eyes suspiciously, when suddenly, a large, heavy book slipped from its precarious perch and dropped straight onto his head with a resounding smack.
“Ow!” Anger yelped, staggering slightly as his flames erupted into a fiery blaze.
Rubbing his head with one hand, he whipped around furiously, just in time to see the soccer ball come to a stop against the base of a shelf.
“What in the hell is…” His words trailed off when he spotted them: Joy and Xy, standing frozen at the other end of the clearing, their guilty expressions illuminated by the warm lights above.
Xy had a foot halfway raised as if she’d been mid-kick, and Joy stood there with her hands clasped behind her back, rocking on her heels like a kid caught red-handed.
“Uh… howdy, Anger!” Joy said with her most disarming smile, her golden glow shimmering awkwardly.
“Will somebody fill me in with what the HECK is going on here?!” Anger bellowed, his head erupting like Vesuvius.
He gestured wildly at the scattered books and pointed furiously at the offending soccer ball.
“What is this, HUH?!”
Xy winced, lowering her foot and raising her hands defensively.
“It was… Joy’s idea!”
“Hey!” Joy interjected, her smile twitching slightly.
“You joined me!” She cleared her throat and clasped her hands tighter behind her back.
“But c’mon, it’s practice for Riley! Soccer’s becoming more prevalent in her life thanks to Cindy. I’m sensing a new island of personality in the works.”
Anger, now fuming in more ways than one, threw his newspaper to the ground. He stomped over to the soccer ball and grabbed it, his small hands shaking with barely restrained frustration, and squeezed until the ball let out a mournful hiss. The air drained from it in seconds, leaving a deflated, lifeless lump in his grip.
“No!” Xy cried, yanking on her hair in horror as Anger tossed the squashed remains in Joy’s direction.
“Clean. This. Up. Now.” Anger snarled through gritted teeth.
He pointed an accusatory finger directly at Xy, then swung it toward Joy.
“BOTH OF YOU!”
He bent down slightly to retrieve his newspaper from the floor. He huffed so hard smoke rose faintly from his ears.
“But…!” Joy started, stepping forward.
“No buts! This library is for reading and thinking! Not…cup finals!” Anger snapped, cutting her off.
He didn’t even wait for a response.
“Next time I’m here, this place better look like new, or so help me…!”
Joy and Xy exchanged wary glances, their guilty expressions softening slightly once Anger had turned his back and left the room.
“Well, it was fun while it lasted.” Joy said, nudging the deflated ball in front of her with her foot.
She earned a half-hearted eye roll from Xy.
********
With a final huff, Anger stomped through the hallway he just came from, having just left the library with his crumpled newspaper still in hand. He didn’t look back, the chaos of the mess and the recklessness of Joy and Xy’s antics making his temper simmer even hotter.
In the hallway, he stopped for a moment and let out a long, slow exhale. Thinking about Ennui waiting upstairs helped cool the flames that lingered around his head. A faint smile replaced his scowl as he tucked his newspaper back under his arm, muttering under his breath,
“Guess it’s back in the control room for now.”
He didn’t like his reading plans being interrupted, but there was something massively reassuring about the idea of blowing off steam in the bedroom with Ennui. Dealing with Joy and Xy’s silly behavior only confirmed that for sure. He resumed his pace, heading off to find a quieter corner, counting down the minutes until the half-hour mark when things might finally take a more peaceful, warmer turn.
********
Xy sighed and mournfully placed the deflated soccer ball on a chair like it was some sort of animal that’d just died.
Her movements were slow as she made her way to the mess of scattered books.
“I hope Anger doesn’t hate us for the rest of the week.” she murmured, bending down to organise the books into a neat pile.
She worked quietly, focused on cleaning up the mess regardless of when Anger planned to come back.
On the other side of the library, Joy stood back, watching her girlfriend work. Her golden glow still shimmered brightly, fueled by the residual energy of the day. Helping Riley power through schoolwork, practicing soccer moves, and keeping spirits high had left Joy practically buzzing.
Cleaning up? Right now?
Seriously?
She glanced toward the door, rolling her eyes at Anger’s earlier rant.
“What’s he gonna do? Burn down headquarters?” she thought, a playful smirk crossing her face.
Her eyes drifted back to Xy, who was now tiptoeing to put a couple of books back in their correct spots, carefully inspecting the spines to ensure none were damaged. A mischievous grin spread across Joy’s face as an idea popped into her head.
It was too good to resist.
Steadying her footing, Joy stepped closer, staying light on her feet to avoid detection. She crept behind Xy, keeping her giggles bottled up as much as she could. And then, with precision only Joy could muster, she reached out and gave Xy’s lower back a firm, playful pinch.
“WAHHH!!” Xy yelped, jumping up in surprise, causing the books to fall back out of their spots.
The sudden noise echoed through the library.
Xy spun around, her orange glow flaring as she stared at Joy in shocked surprise.
“What was that for?!”
Joy had already burst into laughter, holding her sides as she swayed with giddy amusement.
“Somehow I know you’re never gonna stop jumping at my touch.” she teased, raising her hand to make a mock finger gun.
With a confident wink, she brought the imaginary barrel to her lips and blew softly.
“Bullseye.”
Xy narrowed her eyes, but she wasn’t close to being annoyed. Her lips twitched, and a smile crept through her faux glare.
“Nice shootin’, Tex.” she muttered in her best Wild West impression.
She shook her head as she started picking up the books again.
But Joy wasn’t finished yet.
“And…you’re too slow!” she sang, darting away from Xy in a blur of glowing energy.
Her laughter trailed behind her as she ducked around a nearby shelf.
Xy’s smile widened as she dropped the books she was holding.
“Ooh, is that how it’s gonna be?” She dusted off her hands and lifted them, forming her own playful finger guns.
“Game on, Joy!”
With that, she dashed after Joy, her giggles joining her girlfriend’s as they wove through the towering bookshelves. The library might have been a mess, but at that moment, neither cared about cleaning. It was just about the game, and the sheer joy of being together.
********
Headquarters hummed with a peaceful, subdued energy as the emotions continued to settle into their quiet evening. Riley’s dream flickered softly on the monitor in the background, casting a kaleidoscope of surreal, dreamlike images. It wasn’t a particularly eventful dream, just Riley exploring a maze with her friends, but the calm pace suited the mood.
At the dining table, Ennui sat alone, a bowl of plain white rice with soy sauce in front of her. She ate very slowly, her movements unhurried and precise. The glow around her only deepened the stillness of her presence, like a calm oasis amid the mild bustle. She tilted her head to watch the others with a faint, uninterested gaze as she chewed.
On the floor nearby, Sadness, Disgust, and Embarrassment were locked in their board game. Sadness moved her piece with deliberate care, Disgust’s cunning green eyes darted across the board to find her advantage, and Embarrassment squirmed nervously every time it was his turn, twiddling his thumbs in quiet apprehension.
In a corner of the room, Anger had managed to doze off in a spinning chair, his stubby feet hanging off the edge. His flame burned low and calm, flickering gently as he snored lightly.
The peaceful atmosphere was disrupted when Joy burst into the room, her golden glow as vibrant as ever. With her hands shaped into finger guns, she dashed forward, firing imaginary shots into the air.
“Pow, pow! Pow!” she declared, pretending to take aim at an invisible target.
Her energy was boundless, her laugh echoing as she mimicked a gunslinger from the old west.
Without pausing, Joy darted around the room, bumping into Ennui who was eating her plain rice. Ennui didn’t move or react much, except that the force caused her to jolt slightly. Keeping her deadpan expression, she simply blinked at Joy before resuming her meal.
Joy scrambled back to her feet with a sheepish giggle and dashed off through another door.
Moments later, Xy ran into the control room, finger guns drawn and orange glow sharp.
Lone-Star Joy had better watch out. Sheriff Xy was on her trail.
The other emotions hardly reacted to their colleague’s shenanigans.
Sadness moved her game piece; Embarrassment shifted in place; Ennui continued her meal, glancing idly at Xy’s dramatic entrance. Even Anger shifted slightly in his sleep, his chair squeaking faintly.
Xy, undeterred by the lack of audience, narrowed her eyes and scanned the room for any sign of movement. Her gaze landed on Embarrassment, who was hunched over the board game, his large frame making for a convenient hiding spot. A smirk played on her lips. If Joy were anywhere, she might be using him as cover.
Without hesitation, Xy leaped around Embarrassment, finger guns drawn.
“Gotcha!”
But there was no one there.
Embarrassment blinked in confusion, his face flushing even redder.
“Hmm?” He said, shifting uncomfortably as he tried to process why he was suddenly being used as a battle zone.
Xy straightened up and, in her best dramatic western accent, tilted an invisible cowboy hat.
“Much obliged, good sir,” she said, smiling.
“You keep an eye out for Lone-Star Joy, y’hear? She sure is a tricky one.”
Embarrassment, still bewildered, gave a small nod.
“Hmm.” He managed with a sheepish, yet confused smile.
That was all she needed. With a determined grin, she whirled back around and sprinted off, finger guns still drawn, ready to hunt down the elusive outlaw.
Disgust sighed loudly as she moved her game piece.
“Remind me to glue their hands to the wall when they’re done.” she said, earning a small chuckle from Sadness.
******
Xy sprinted through headquarters, her face beaming with excitement as she kept her finger guns raised, eyes scanning for any sign of her mischievous girlfriend.
“You’re goin’ away for a long time, Lone-Star Joy!” she called, her voice carrying a dramatic twang.
From somewhere in the distance, Joy’s laughter rang out.
“You’ll have to catch me first, Sheriff!”
With a determined grin, Xy took off, her shoes skidding slightly on the smooth floor as she pursued Joy through the twisting hallways of Riley’s mind.
*********
Their chase led them into a room where floating islands and half-formed dreamscapes shimmered like watercolour paintings. Joy leaped across a bridge made of giant playing cards, spinning midair before landing gracefully on the other side. Xy was right behind her, vaulting over a gumdrop boulder before firing off a few rapid shots.
“Pow, powpow, pow!”
Joy ducked behind a candy cane tree.
“Missed me!” she teased before dashing into the next room.
Xy didn’t hesitate, following her into the next room, but the second she stepped in, her own form wobbled and stretched like a Picasso painting. Joy, already used to the room’s strange physics, cartwheeled away, her body shifting between cubist shapes and fluid streaks of colour.
“All hat and no cattle, partner!” Joy laughed, reshaping herself as she dashed out again.
Shaking off the weirdness, Xy ran after her, their game continuing into a room that looked like outer space. Joy floated through the beautiful purple galaxy as she fired off more imaginary shots.
“Pow, pow, pow!”
Xy floated along too, her eyes fixed on her opponent. The two of them dodged, twirled and spun through the uncanny environment before Joy swam through another door that was floating nearby. The chase wound through even more parts of headquarters, through the Joke Archive, where ridiculous puns floated through the air in neon letters; and into the Emotion Gym, where punching bags shaped like negative thoughts swung lazily from the ceiling.
The entire time, their “pow, pow, pows” echoed against the walls, mingling with breathless giggles and playful shouts. Every time Xy thought she had Joy cornered, Joy would slip away with an acrobatic dodge or a cheeky taunt.
The chase led them into a room unlike any other in headquarters, a massive space resembling the tabletop of a school classroom, impossibly large as if it had no right to fit within Riley’s mind at all. The surface stretched endlessly beneath them, scattered with oversized stationery: giant pencils, towering textbooks, and paper sheets as big as blankets. Joy skidded across the smooth wooden surface, her breathless laughter echoing through the cavernous space. In her haste, her foot bumped into a small plastic container, sending its golden glittery contents spilling across the tabletop.
“Oops,” she giggled, barely slowing down.
Xy, finger guns drawn, advanced with a confident smirk, catching Joy in the open.
“There’s only room for one gunslinger on this ‘ere tabletop!” she declared, her voice thick with exaggerated western bravado.
Joy, ever the performer, raised her hands in mock surrender, her blue eyes twinkling with amusement.
“Aw, who am I to retaliate with nowhere else to run!” she said in her own western accent, her grin wide.
Before Xy could arrest the outlaw, a sudden ding filled the air.
Both turned to see the giant interactive whiteboard flicker to life, its glow illuminating the vast tabletop. The screen displayed animated versions of themselves, Joy and Xy, comically sweeping a floor with oversized brooms.
Xy’s grin faltered.
Her playful posture stiffened as she slowly turned to glance behind her. The golden mess of spilled glitter glimmered under the overhead light, its presence now glaringly obvious.
In an instant, her anxiety kicked in.
This wasn’t a time for playing, they were supposed to be cleaning the library.
Yet here they were, running around with finger guns.
Anger had already been furious with them for making a mess, and now they were making another one in an entirely different room.
Xy’s mind raced, what if this glitter took even longer to clean up? What if Joy got distracted again? What if the others got mad at them for slacking off? Her shoulders tensed as her thoughts spiraled. With her back turned, she exhaled slowly, trying to refocus.
But when she turned back around, finger guns still half-heartedly raised…
Joy was gone.
Xy blinked, momentarily stunned. The spot where Joy had stood, hands raised in surrender, was now empty. Her eyes scanned the tabletop, searching for any sign of that familiar golden glow.
“J…Joy?”
Silence.
A slow, dawning realisation crept over Xy’s face as she groaned, rubbing a hand over her face.
Joy had slipped away.
Again.
Her girlfriend, the master of mischief, had used Xy’s moment of distraction to make a sneaky escape. She sighed, hands on her hips, shaking her head with a small, reluctant smile.
“Oh, Joy. You slippery soap bar…” she muttered under her breath.
Cleaning up?
With desperate gunslingers like Joy on the loose?
Not likely.
Xy adjusted her imaginary cowboy hat, her orange glow bright with determination. She decided then that she wouldn’t rest until she’d tracked the desperada down.
Slipping through a door, she found herself in one of the long, brightly lit hallways of headquarters, this one bathed in soft purple light. The air felt still, cinematic, like the moment before an old-fashioned duel. At the far end of the hallway, Joy stood, her stance wide, arms poised, fingers twitching at her imaginary holsters. A playful smirk danced on her lips.
Xy narrowed her eyes, quickly mirroring the stance. The two locked eyes, neither moving, both silently agreeing to play this out to the very end.
For a moment, the world around them shifted. They weren’t in headquarters anymore. In their minds, they were in the Wild West, standing in the middle of a dusty, sunbaked street. A tumbleweed rolled past. Somewhere in the distance, a harmonica wailed a slow, dramatic tune.
One step forward.
Then another.
Their imaginary boots kicked up dust with every movement, their gazes unwavering.
Xy’s pulse quickened. She knew Joy. They had the same thought at the same time. And as if they had a telepathic link, they both reached for their finger guns.
But Xy was faster.
“POW, POW!” she declared triumphantly.
Joy gasped, clutching her chest as if she’d just been hit. With a dramatic stagger, she spun on her heel and flopped onto the ground, limbs sprawled out. Her tongue lolled from her mouth as she played dead.
Xy grinned, sauntering over, hands still at her imaginary holsters. She lifted her finger gun to her lips and gave the barrel a slow, confident blow.
Just like Joy did earlier.
“Bullseye.” she said.
Joy peeked open one eye before letting out a giggle, sitting up slightly.
“Alright, alright,” she said through laughter.
“You got me, Sheriff.”
Their giggles filled the hallway, the lingering tension melting into something soft, something warm. As the laughter faded, Joy, still on the ground, looked up at Xy with that ever-present twinkle in her eyes.
“Jokes aside though, I think you’re probably right.”
Xy raised a brow.
“Um..about what exactly?”
“That we have a funny idea of romance.” said Joy softly
Xy tapped a finger against her chin, pretending to think it over.
“Hmmm…what’s your definition of ‘funny’?”
Joy grinned.
But before she could reply, Xy mounted on top of her, curling her fingers through her blue hair with one hand and caressing her cheek with the other.
And then, she kissed her.
It was deep, unhurried, and full of unspoken laughter, their smiles pressing against each other before softening into something more. Joy felt Xy’s warmth seep into her, grounding her in a way that only she could. Her yellow hand tugged on Xy’s sweater, pulling her closer. For a moment, the chase was forgotten, the mess in the library didn’t matter, and all that existed was this, two cowgirls lost in their own little world.
Joy and Xy were completely lost in each other, the warmth of their kiss blocking out everything else, until a little voice sliced through the moment.
“Ohmygosh!”
They broke apart, glancing up to see Envy standing at the end of the hallway clasping her hands over her mouth. Her pupils were massive like she’d just watched her favourite television couple kiss for the first time.
She let out an amused giggle at the sight of the two lovebirds.
“Look at what we have here, love in the hallway!” she teased.
“Girls, I thought I wanted a boyfriend but truthfully, I could probably stand here and watch you two all night!”
Joy and Xy exchanged mischievous glances, a silent agreement forming instantly. Envy instantly regretted her own presence in the hallway.
“Aaaaand that sounded a lot weirder than it was meant to…” she said, scratching her head sheepishly.
Joy grinned, standing up and adjusting her imaginary cowboy hat.
“Well, well, well…” she drawled, stepping forward.
“Looks like we got ourselves a new bandit in town.”
Xy smirked, drawing her finger guns.
“And you know what we do to bandits ‘round these parts.”
Envy’s eyes widened slightly, taking a cautious step back.
“Uh…I just remembered, I have to uh…floss! ” She turned on her heel to make a swift exit, but it was already too late.
Joy and Xy sprang into action, fingers forming their ever-reliable guns, taking off after her with a chorus of sound effects.
“WAGHHH!!!” Envy cried, breaking into a full sprint, arms flailing.
The chase led straight into the main control room, where the rest of the emotions were still winding down for the night.
Embarrassment, Sadness, and Disgust were still hunched over their board game on the floor, deep in concentration. Fear, now by the kitchenette, was carefully stirring sugar into his coffee. Anger was now awake in his spinning chair near the memory shelves, deeply engrossed in his newspaper.
Bursting into the room, Envy frantically scanned for cover before making a beeline for Anger.
“Help me!” she yelped, ducking behind him like he was some kind of human shield.
Anger barely looked up from his paper.
“Huh?”
Before Envy could breathe a sigh of relief, Joy and Xy cornered her from opposite sides of Anger’s chair, their playful grins widening as they spotted their target.
“There’s nowhere to run, outlaw,” Xy declared, pointing a finger gun directly at Envy.
Joy mirrored her, cutting off any escape route.
“Surrender now, we gotcha surrounded!”
The room fell into silence as all the other emotions turned to watch, dread creeping over their faces.
Sadness, looking up from her board game, paled.
“Oh no.”
Embarrassment swallowed hard, his hands frozen mid-move on the board game.
Disgust rubbed her temples.
It happened all at once.
Fear started stammering, coffee in hand.
“Joy, Anxiety, I…I really don’t think you should...”
Joy and Xy lunged at Envy, who let out a startled yell and tried to duck away, but in the chaos, all three of them tumbled into Anger’s chair at the same time. Anger, who had just been peacefully reading his paper, let out an alarmed shout as the force knocked him and his chair over.
CRASH.
The four of them found themselves in a tangled, sprawling heap on the floor, arms and legs flailing in every direction. A stunned silence followed, broken only by the sound of Anger groaning as he shoved Joy’s elbow out of his face.
From the kitchenette, Fear shrugged.
“Oh well, I tried.”
Embarrassment cringed behind his hands.
Sadness blinked slowly, before lowering her head, wanting to distance herself from being involved.
Disgust sighed, standing up and fixing off her dress.
“Alright, that’s it! No more Mountain Dew for those two!”
Anger, now flat on his back with Envy half-crushed under him, clenched his fists. His face slowly turned red, steam already curling from the top of his head.
“Somebody,” he growled through gritted teeth,
“TELL ME THAT DIDN’T JUST HAPPEN!!” his head burst into flames like it always did in fits of rage.
Joy, still tangled in the mess, grinned guiltily.
“Uh… it did?”
Xy, catching sight of Anger’s very unamused glare, quickly tried to untangle herself.
“We, uh…yeah, we were just having a quick break in the middle of…cleaning up, heheh.” she said hastily.
Envy groaned from beneath the pile.
“A break? My back’s gonna break!”
Joy and Xy groaned on the floor, still untangling themselves from the chaotic heap they had created. Envy was finally back on her feet again. She swung a flurry of futile punches against Joy’s arm in which she barely flinched at.
Above them, Anger loomed, fists clenched, steam curling from the top of his head. His fiery eyes locked onto the two troublemakers, and the room collectively held its breath.
Fear gripped his coffee cup tighter. Sadness, Envy, Disgust, and Embarrassment braced themselves. Any second now, Anger was going to explode.
But then…
He smiled.
The flames on his head flickered out. Without a word, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a scrunched-up brown object. Slowly, he unfolded it, revealing a battered cowboy hat.
The room blinked.
Then, he dug back into his pocket and retrieved something else, a shiny sheriff’s star. He placed it firmly on the front of the hat, then set the whole thing atop his head.
“Well,” he declared, voice full of authority,
“if it’s the wild west they want, I’ll give it to ‘em.”
Joy and Xy sat up, their expressions confused.
Anger reached into his pocket one more time and pulled out another sheriff’s badge. He turned to Embarrassment, who pointed at himself in surprise.
“Here, you’re my deputy,” Anger said, tossing him the badge.
Embarrassment caught it, then pinned it to his chest at a crooked angle.
Anger adjusted the cowboy hat on his head and squared his shoulders, stepping into full character.
“As the new sheriff of this here headquarters,” he bellowed,
“It is my duty to lay down the law against no-good, trouble-makin’ gunslingers!” He shot a pointed glare at Joy and Xy, who were still sitting on the floor, grinning like they had just been caught stealing candy.
On cue, Embarrassment, silent but ever-obedient, strode forward, towering over them. With surprising ease, he reached down, grabbed Joy in one arm and Xy in the other, and hoisted them both over his massive pink shoulder like they weighed nothing.
“Hey!” Joy yelped, kicking her legs.
Xy, though caught off guard, started to panic.
“Guys, we are so, so sorry!”
Embarrassment sighed but couldn’t resist the smile tugging at the corner of his lips. Even he was starting to enjoy the theatrics just a tiny bit.
Anger crossed his arms and smirked.
“Deputy, take ‘em in.”
He turned on his heel, striding toward the hallway.
“Let’s go, let’s get movin’!”
Sadness, Disgust, Fear, and Envy all exchanged looks before shrugging and following behind him, fully buying into the ridiculousness of the moment.
“Why do I feel like we’re being taken to trial?” Joy asked from Embarrassment’s shoulder.
Xy sighed dramatically.
“Because we are.”
Envy walked beside them, smirking up at Joy.
“Hope you two got good lawyers.”
Joy rolled her eyes
“Hope you’re a fair jury.” she countered.
As the group made their way through headquarters, the only emotion not present in the procession was Ennui who seemed to have gone missing.
Eventually, they all arrived at their destination, the giant classroom tabletop.
The moment they stepped inside, Joy and Xy looked around.
“Back here, huh?” Joy quipped.
The enormous interactive whiteboard still loomed on the wall, the desks and chairs stretched out like a landscape of furniture, and, most importantly, the golden glitter mess they had left behind earlier was still there, twinkling on the floor like a spilled galaxy.
Joy grinned, glancing at Xy.
“It’s our old stompin’ grounds.”
Xy raised an eyebrow.
“And also the scene of the crime.”
“The SECOND crime.” Joy corrected, earning a slight chuckle from Xy, serving as a reminder that the library was still in a state.
Anger stomped ahead and spun around, hands on his hips.
“Alright, we’re settin’ up court right here!”
He pointed at a giant black stapler.
“That’s the judge’s bench.”
Sadness slowly trudged toward the stapler.
“I’ll be the judge,” she mumbled, climbing onto the stapler and plopping herself on top.
The stapler looked absolutely nothing like a judge’s bench whatsoever, but everyone was playing along. Sadness reached into her bottomless pocket and pulled out a squeaky mallet. She looked ridiculous sitting on the stapler with her feet dangling.
Anger jabbed a finger at a pencil that was laying on the ground.
“Jury sits there.”
“Ooh, that’s us!” Envy exclaimed with excitement as she joined Disgust and Fear by the pencil.
Without complaint, the three of them sat on the pencil together in a setup which once again, looked terribly silly, more like three teenagers sitting on a curb than a serious jury.
“And the defendants…” Anger smirked at Joy and Xy, still slung over Embarrassment’s shoulder.
“Jail?” Xy guessed nervously.
Embarrassment said nothing but set them down in front of the judge, jury and giant interactive whiteboard with a soft thud.
As soon as Joy and Xy were standing in place, the giant interactive whiteboard on the wall let out a cheerful ding! The screen flickered before displaying a series of cartoonish punishments in bright, exaggerated visuals. The first option showed a comical image of Joy and Xy stuffed inside an enormous glass jar, their faces squished against the sides as the jar was carried away to Riley’s Vault of Secrets.
Joy raised an eyebrow.
“Whoa. Again? Really?”
Xy fidgeted with the collar of her sweater.
“After all this time I guess it's only fair that I get a taste of…the bottle…eheh..” she said.
The jury, now fully invested in the trial, exchanged uncertain glances. Envy leaned over to Disgust.
“What’d you guys think? Two days? Maybe three? We can get some Phase Corp clones to cover for them.”
Disgust shuddered.
“I was going insane after five minutes.” she said, wrinkling her nose.
Before the decision could be made, Embarrassment, still looming at Anger’s side, suddenly knelt down and cupped a hand to Anger’s ear, whispering something only he could hear.
Anger grunted, stroking his chin thoughtfully.
“Hm… yeah. That’s probably a little harsh…” He muttered under his breath, still eyeing the screen.
Xy and Joy exchanged a quick glance. Even they were slightly relieved.
Then, with another ding, the whiteboard changed again. This time, the cartoon Joy and Xy were animatedly mopping headquarters, their little drawn selves dragging oversized mops through various rooms with exaggerated exhaustion.
Anger grinned.
“Now that sounds perfect.”
Turning to “Judge” Sadness, he cleared his throat.
“Your honor, I present the case of these reckless outlaws who have been found guilty of vandalism on an irritating scale!”
Disgust scoffed.
“That’s one way to put it.”
Anger continued, gesturing dramatically.
“They ransacked the library, caused unnecessary mayhem, and have been menaces to civilian society…”
“Ooh, that’s also us!” Envy declared, giggling.
“Therefore, I propose that their punishment should be the cleaning up of headquarters over mandatory Dream Duty, effective immediately!” Anger declared, slamming a fist into his palm.
“Starting right here, with that awful mess of glitter!”
Xy sighed, rubbing her temple.
“Oooh…” she groaned.
Sadness, still perched on top of the stapler, blinked drowsily.
“All in favor, say ‘aye.’”
“Aye!” Fear, Disgust, Embarrassment, Envy, and even Anger all responded in unison.
Sadness weakly lifted her flimsy toy mallet and brought it down onto the space next to her with a squeak.
“Then the guilty verdict is official.”
Joy and Xy groaned.
“Well,” Joy muttered.
“It coulda been worse.” Joy grinned, not all that bothered.
She took Xy’s hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.
“And, we had an awesometastic shootout.”
Xy couldn’t help but smirk slightly, nodding her head.
“I guess we did.”
“That’s the spirit.”
Before they could say anything else, they both looked up, only to see Embarrassment already standing in front of them, silently holding out a bucket and two mops.
******
As Anger stepped back into the main control room with the others, the lively energy from the “trial” had already begun to fade. The big screen continued playing Riley’s dream, casting soft flickers of light across the room. The atmosphere was calm, a breath of fresh air from the chaos of earlier. With a sigh, Anger pulled the cowboy hat off his head and stared at it, turning it over in his hands. The whole sheriff act was fun in the moment, but now, it felt foolish. He shook his head, scoffing at the thought of Joy and Xy messing around like wild outlaws.
“Heh…those two.” he muttered through a smile.
Still, it wasn’t worth staying mad over it. He tossed the hat onto the sofa near the console, watching as it landed. The role of wild west sheriff was over for the night.
The other emotions scattered to their own routines. Embarrassment, still wearing the badge that Anger gave him, plopped down beside Sadness and Disgust, resuming their board game. Fear, now looking tired, busied himself doing some washing up at the kitchenette. Envy sat cross-legged near the console, absentmindedly watching Riley’s dream play out.
Everything felt normal again. But something was missing.
Anger furrowed his brow. He scanned the room, taking note of everyone’s presence, until he realised who wasn’t there.
Ennui.
She was still missing.
His eyes flickered to the clock on the wall. 10:42 PM.
Still early by headquarters standards. Most of them wouldn’t go to bed just yet, but Ennui… she was usually around. Either sitting at the dining table with her phone, slouched in a chair, or at least making some snide remark about how dull the day had been.
But right now? Nowhere in sight.
A slow smirk tugged at the corner of Anger’s mouth as he remembered. She was probably in his room already.
His mind immediately flashed back to their earlier conversation. The way she had suggested so casually that they could get steamy in bed, played in his mind.
Heat bubbled in his chest, a different kind of heat than his usual frustration. This one was slow, simmering, anticipatory.
He rolled his shoulders, exhaling as he turned away from the control room.
“Where are you headed?” Disgust asked, barely looking up from the board game.
“Upstairs,” Anger replied simply.
Disgust raised a brow, then smirked at him.
“Have fun.” she remarked, as if she knew exactly what Anger was going to get up to.
Anger responded with an audible grumble.
The other emotions barely acknowledged this exchange, or Anger’s departure, probably relieved that their short-tempered teammate wasn’t going to explode anymore for the day. He made his way toward the staircase, each step a little faster than usual. His mind was already elsewhere, thinking about what was waiting for him behind that red door.
As he reached the top of the stairs, he cracked his knuckles absently. His smirk deepened.
“Time to get warm.” he thought to himself.
Anger pushed open the red door to his room and stepped inside. The familiar warmth of his space settled around him, the deep red walls, the simple but sturdy furniture, the faint scent of spice and embers lingering in the air. Everything was just as he had left it, except for one detail.
The sound of running water.
His eyes immediately flicked toward the bathroom. The door was slightly ajar, left carelessly open with steam curling out from the crack like a lazy whisper.
Anger exhaled slowly.
Ennui was using his shower.
In recent times, she’d made herself rather comfortable in his space, moving through it like she belonged there.
And truth be told? She did.
And it was the same with the other way round, with Anger in Ennui’s room.
Normally, Anger was territorial when it came to his room, his bed, his space, his rules. But Ennui was the only one he made a special exception for.
He smiled to himself, shaking his head. He had no idea what to call this thing between them.
Were they a couple? That didn’t seem like the right word. There was no romantic fluff between them, no sweet confessions, no chocolates and flowers.
Ennui was never really the chocolate and flowers kind of girl anyway.
That just wasn’t how either of them worked.
But they weren’t just friends, either. Normal friends didn’t get tangled up in bedsheets the way they did. Attraction, familiarity, ease. That was what defined them. A pull that neither of them questioned too much.
Anger chuckled lightly, rubbing the back of his neck as the thought crossed his mind.
Still… it was something. During the Shame crisis, Anger was beginning to question if there was something more to them than just a friendship with lust. If there was something deeper going on with his relationship with Ennui which went beyond just ‘liking’ her or being attracted to her.
But that was a conversation for another day.
His eyes flicked back to the bathroom door.
He could sneak a peek. It would be so easy, just a quick glance. It’s not like she would care much anyway. Heck, she’d probably drag him inside with her.
Maybe he could make some offhand comment to get a reaction out of her.
But he resisted the temptations.
Instead, he decided to train himself with patience.
He turned away and busied himself with something else, something that would make the atmosphere just a little more… fitting.
Reaching for the small tin of candles on his bedside table, he popped the lid off and began setting them up around the room. With a snap of his fingers, he lit each wick, the flames flickering to life one by one. The scent of zesty citrus filled the air, blending with the natural heat of the room. The warm glow of the candlelight cast soft shadows against the deep red walls, making the space feel even cozier.
Some would say the atmosphere would seem romantic. But to Anger and Ennui, this was sensual.
By the time he was done, the shower shut off.
The sudden absence of running water made the room feel quieter. Anger stood in the centre of the bedroom and glanced towards the bathroom door, waiting.
A few seconds later, the door swung open fully, and Ennui stepped out.
She was damp, wrapped loosely in a towel, her long purple hair slightly darker from the water. Her usual half-lidded gaze settled on Anger, and when she noticed what he had done with the candles, a small smile played on her lips.
“Hmm. Fruity.” she said, voice low and lazy.
Anger simply smiled back, crossing his arms.
“Honey with the perfect hint of fresh citrus,” he teased.
Ennui raised a brow, but didn’t question it. Instead, she walked past him, leaving behind the faint scent of lavender and heat.
Anger watched her go, blushing a deep shade.
Whatever they were, he wasn’t in a rush to define it.
Anger pulled his shirt over his head, tossing it onto the chair in the corner of his room. The heat in the space was growing, but it had nothing to do with the candlelight flickering around them. He unbuckled his pants and stepped out of them, leaving himself in nothing but a pair of white boxers.
Across the room, Ennui moved at her own slow, unbothered pace.
She removed her towel and replaced it with an oversized dark grey T-shirt, sliding it over her head. The fabric draped loosely over her frame, falling just to her thighs, covering enough but still leaving plenty of her long legs bare. Her expression remained as effortlessly deadpan as always, but there was something about the way she moved, fluid, deliberate, comfortable.
By the time Anger turned back around, she was already gracefully slipping into bed, her head sinking into the pillow, her arms stretching out in a way that invited him to join her without a word.
Anger didn’t hesitate.
He climbed in beside her, shifting so that his smaller frame fit against her taller one. The contrast had always been there, the height difference, the way she draped herself over him so effortlessly, but they had long since learned how to make it work. And right now, that difference was the furthest thing from Anger’s mind. The room felt warmer, the tension building between them like a steady flame.
Anger reached for her first, fingertips trailing over her thigh, her hip, the curve of her waist.
Ennui barely reacted at first, her expression unreadable. But then she shifted slightly, turning her head toward him, her heavy-lidded gaze settling on him with that quiet amusement.
“You’re so impatient.” she murmured, voice low and slow.
Anger smirked, his grip on her tightening slightly.
“Yeah? What’s it to you?”
Ennui hummed softly, her hand drifting to his back, her fingers pressing, tracing, exploring.
“I’m never one…to rush…you know that…” she whispered.
Anger loved this side of Ennui. The side that craved his voice and his touch.
She leaned in, letting the anticipation stretch between them for just a moment longer before finally closing the distance. There was nothing hurried in the way they touched, only slow, deliberate movements, a quiet intensity that built steadily.
The warmth between them grew, filling the space around.
Anger and Ennui melted into each and savoured their private moment of winding down.
*******
Sometime later, the room was quiet except for the soft crackling of the candles and the steady rhythm of their breaths.
Anger lay on his back, staring up at the ceiling, his body warm, his mind pleasantly hazy. The tension that had once simmered in his chest had faded, replaced by a quiet satisfaction.
Ennui rested against him, her head nestled against his chest, their usual height difference erased in this moment of stillness. Her long arm was draped all over him, fingers resting on his chest, her touch light and absentminded. In her other hand, her phone screen cast a faint glow, illuminating her calm, unreadable expression as she scrolled through her emails.
Anger huffed lightly, still feeling the remnants of their earlier heat lingering in the air. He wasn’t sure what time it was now, but it had to be late. Not that he cared.
He’d earned this moment with Ennui.
“Back on the screen?” he muttered, raising a brow as he tilted his head slightly to look at her.
Ennui gave a slow, lazy blink but didn’t bother looking up.
“You’ve got one too now.” she murmured.
Anger rolled his eyes.
“Yeah but, y’know…I’m not living in mine.”
“You live in your newspaper. There’s no difference.”
Ennui got him there. She was right.
Whenever Ennui was with him, he was always more mellowed. That was just what she could do to him. Because that’s just how she was. Always detached, always unhurried, always so cool, calm and collected.
It was infectious.
She was the complete opposite to him.
And yet, despite her usual indifference, she had stayed close, her body pressed against his, her fingers lightly tracing patterns on his skin as she held her phone in her other hand.
Anger exhaled, his gaze drifting back to the ceiling as the warmth of her steady presence settled over him.
Neither of them spoke for a while. There was no need.
Just quiet. Just warmth. Just them.
Anger’s gaze remained fixed on the ceiling, but his mind wandered.
He imagined Joy and Xy back in the schoolroom, reluctantly pushing mops across the floor, cleaning up the mess they had left behind. Well, mostly Xy. Joy would probably be grinning the entire time, trying to spin the chore into something fun, maybe pretending the mop was a horse or challenging Xy to a race.
Anger scowled slightly. Those two had way too much energy between them. He had already caught them goofing off once tonight, who was to say they weren’t doing it again? He could already picture it now: Joy tipping her imaginary cowboy hat, calling Xy “partner” while dodging another imaginary bullet. Xy, sighing but playing along, finger guns at the ready.
He huffed quietly.
How did they even work as a couple?
He and Ennui were so different. Their arrangement, whatever it was, was so simple.
No running around headquarters like a couple of lunatics, no games, no silly giggling. They didn’t chase each other through rooms or cause a scene in front of everyone. Their connection was quieter, more physical, more…adult.
And yet, he couldn’t shake the weird feeling in his chest. Not jealousy, but…curiosity.
He frowned without realising it.
“You’re pouting, mon chéri.”
Ennui’s voice cut through the silence, smooth and knowing.
Anger blinked, pulled from his thoughts.
“What?”
Ennui still didn’t look up from her phone.
“You’re pouting.” Her tone was as flat as ever, but he could hear the amusement beneath it.
Anger scowled.
“I don’t pout.”
Ennui slowly turned her head, finally glancing at him with half-lidded eyes.
“Why’re you pouting?”
Her fingers lightly tapped against his chest in lazy amusement before she looked back at her screen. Anger let out a long, gruff sigh, staring up at the ceiling as he finally gave in.
“I just keep thinking about Joy and Anxiety.” he admitted, rubbing a hand over his face.
“I imagine them screwing around instead of cleaning up. Knowing them, they’re probably practicing their fencing skills with the mops we gave ‘em.”
At that, Ennui groaned and lowered her phone. She tossed it carelessly onto the towel that was on the floor next to the bed. Slowly, she stretched out, resting her long, lanky arms over his chest and peering at him with her usual half-lidded expression. She made sure not to let her pointed nose get in the way.
“Mon chéri, you stress too much,” she murmured, her voice smooth and nonchalant.
Anger huffed, shifting slightly beneath her weight.
“Yeah, well, someone’s gotta. Unless you wanna live in a playground.”
Ennui didn’t argue. She simply rested against him.
For a moment, they lay in silence. But Anger’s thoughts still churned. It wasn’t just about Joy and Xy slacking off. That wasn’t the only thing that was bugging him.
After a pause, he muttered,
“That’s not all I’m thinking about.”
Ennui blinked lazily.
“Mmm?”
Anger sighed again, running a hand down his face.
“I keep… comparing. Not in an Envy kinda way but just… thinking.”
“Comparing?” Ennui’s fingers drummed against his chest.
“What’re you comparing?”
Anger’s frown deepened.
“Me and you. Versus them.”
That actually got a reaction. Ennui arched a thin brow.
“Quoi?”
Anger exhaled sharply.
“I just don’t get it. How do Joy and Anxiety always seem so… lovey-dovey, blissful, whatever you wanna call it? They’re all over each other, constantly laughing, running around, acting like they’re in some fairytale romance. Meanwhile… us?”
He gestured vaguely between them.
“We’re just… casual.”
Ennui didn’t miss a beat.
“Because it is casual.”
She said it as a simple fact. Like it was obvious.
Anger furrowed his brows, waiting for some kind of elaboration. But none came. Ennui just kept lying there, perfectly at ease.
“…That’s it?” he asked, giving her a skeptical look.
Ennui finally lifted her head slightly, studying him with a lazy curiosity. There was a flicker of thoughtfulness in her deep purple eyes.
Then, after a moment, she murmured,
“Or maybe you and I…have a funny idea of romance.”
Anger paused.
He turned his head, looking down at Ennui resting on his chest. Slowly, he reached over, hugging her head, pulling her closer. His hands ran through her silky smooth, deep purple hair. It was delicate beneath his fingers, like fine velvet. The height difference was so immense that Anger’s feet were level with Ennui’s chest.
Then, he chuckled.
A funny idea of romance.
“Yeah… maybe you’re right,” he admitted.
“Neither of us are exactly the romantic type.”
Ennui let out a soft scoff, as if to say, ‘obviously.’
They stayed like that for a moment, just lying together in comfortable silence. There was no rush, no urgency, no need to fill the quiet with anything.
Then, in her usual deadpan but undeniably suggestive tone, Ennui muttered,
“One more round?”
Anger didn’t hesitate.
With a smirk, he dove under the covers as the night heated up once again.