Not My Sister

[SpaceCase]

Aria was pretty sure he was lying to spare her feelings, again, but once again, she wasn't gonna call him out on it. "Honestly, it's fine, don't worry about it." She offered him a smile, trying to reassure him that it really was okay, before taking another bite of her pasta. "Anyway, Declan, are you actually a nursing student, or only trying to impress one?"

 

[Gupi]

"I'm a business student," Decland admitted, with an uncomfortable laugh. "But I do actually find medicine interesting, it's not just to impress Melissa."

"It's mostly to impress her," Kloude teased.

 

[SpaceCase]

"Fair enough. I mean, as long as you find it interesting, really. It's better than literally only reading up on it for a girl." Aria shrugged slightly, an amused smile on her lips. "Besides, there are worse thing to study for fun."

 

[Gupi]

"Don't let him fool you, he does this with all his girlfriends," Kloude told her. "The last one had him researching the history of jazz."

 

[SpaceCase]

She couldn't help her laugh at that, although she quickly stifled it, pressing her hand to her mouth to try and hide her smile. "Really?"

 

[Gupi]

"Jazz is a really interesting music form!" Declan protested. "Angie just got me into it, it wasn't for her.

"Sure."

 

[SpaceCase]

Aria grinned at that, shaking her head slightly. "I mean, don't get me wrong, that's very sweet of you. But it is kind of suspicious sounding, Declan, you have to admit."

 

[Gupi]

"Come on, you're meant to be on my side. You take interest in stuff your boyfriend likes normally, right?" Declan asked, mostly rhetorically.

 

[SpaceCase]

Aria's smile shifted into something resembling a smirk. "I typically start by finding a shared interest, not creating one. Like I said, though, it's sweet of you."

 

[Gupi]

"It's not like I'm lying, I do actually find this stuff interesting," Declan told her.

Kloude stood up, taking the spot Nevae had freed up just before. It was nice seeing Aria a little more relaxed, and enjoying herself now.

 

[SpaceCase]

Aria waved a hand almost dismissively. "I know, I assumed. You don't seem like the type to completely fake an interest to get in a gir- Uhm. Sorry." She cleared her throat, already feeling her face beginning to heat back up in embarrassment. "I mean, uh. I didn't think you'd bother if you didn't care at all."

 

[Gupi]

Declan burst out laughing, surprised by her slip up. "I'll admit that I have before, but not as much as Klou's making it out to be. Besides, he's one to talk. His last girlfriend was really into theatre, and he sat through two plays and a musical before she realised he was lying about enjoying them."

"She only found out because I fell asleep during the last one."

 

[SpaceCase]

Aria let out a snort of laughter at that, shaking her head. "That's... Not exactly a defense, Kloude. Or even an excuse."

 

[Gupi]

"There's a difference in pretending to like something to make your girlfriend happy, and spending every night studying something to impress a girl who you're not even dating," Kloude argued.

 

[SpaceCase]

Aria considered this, frowning slightly. "I mean, there's a certain level of honesty that you expect when you're dating someone. Yeah, pretending to like something for your girlfriend's nice, but I'd rather not drag someone to something they don't even want to do to begin with. There isn't really that honesty yet before you start dating; everyone's just trying to impress the other person with a fake version of themselves that's arguably more appealing and-" She cut herself off, realizing somehow she'd let herself get onto the 'all love is fake and everyone lies' topic. "I mean, very few people are genuinely honest about themselves from the start of a relationship. It's not awesome, but it is just... Kind of how it is."

 

[Gupi]

Kloude raised an eyebrow, a little taken back by that little speech. He hadn't expected Aria to be so disillusioned, even if what she was saying sounded pretty true. "I guess I won't do that next time?"

 

[SpaceCase]

"I. Uh. Sorry." Aria exhaled, shaking her head slightly. "I just meant that neither is necessarily bad, and honestly, no, you shouldn't lie. But, realistically speaking, it happens all the time anyway." She hesitated a moment before adding, "Also, tickets to plays and stuff are expensive and that's just an unnecessary cost. Information is pretty much free. So, yeah."

 

[Gupi]

Kloude let out an uncomfortable laugh, and shifted in his seat. That conversation had taken an odd turn. "It was a huge waste of money in the end, I was the rebound and she dumped me as soon as her ex showed back up."

 

[SpaceCase]

Great work, Aria. You managed to completely kill the conversation. If you died right now, it'd practically be a mercy. Aria ducked her head, with another mumbled "Sorry," and buried herself back into her pasta, trying to sort out if there was a way to fix this conversation. "I didn't mean- I- Ah. Uhm, I'm. I'm sorry."

 

[Gupi]

Kloudes laughed again, relaxing back against the couch. It was cute seeing her all flustered. "What about you then? Seeing anyone?"

 

[SpaceCase]

"I- Well- I mean." Aria chewed on her lip, trying to sort out her thoughts. "I- Uh. No. I haven't for a while now. She-" Aria caught herself mid sentence, her face flushing a deeper shade of red. "We- Just. I'm not."

 

[Gupi]

"She?" Declan asked, confused, "Who?"

 

[SpaceCase]

Aria's lips pressed into a tight line, her eyes trained literally anywhere other than on either of them. "M- My ex."

 

[Gupi]

Kloude hoped his disappointment wasn't written all over his face. It most definitely was. "Oh. You're- Well. That's nice."

 

[SpaceCase]

Aria didn't have to look up to hear the disappointment in Kloude's voice. "It's. I mean." She bit her lip, using the slight pain to ground her. "What's- Don't- I... Wh-Why are you acting like there's something wrong with people being gay?"