Someday never comes [Tomo/Cecil]

As the realization of the days events settled over Nadia more firmly, She nibbled on a slice of apple. Her eyes unfocused as her thoughts took over. When Tomomi asked her a question they snapped back into focus towards him. "Hm? Oh, um...the front gate is fine. I'll lead you from there." She realized she hadn't told them where they were going yet. She opened her mouth to do so, but the words wouldn't come.

Instead she closed her mouth and stood up, giving Cecil a small peck on the cheek. "Go ahead and get that fresh air, you two. I'm going to head back to class early, I think..." She inclined her head towards the two, a little more formally than usually, and turned to leave them.

Cecil looks at Tomomi with a mildly suspicious look, but lets it go quickly as talk progresses. As Nadia moves to leave, he stops her and stands up, smiling concernedly. He brings her in for a hug, gently holding her in his arms. "Don't fret about it, alright? Relax while you can. Getting too wrapped up in things isn't going to help." As he knew well.

He plants a kiss on her forehead and lets her go to sit back down, watching her exit fondly but worriedly. After she leaves, he looks back to Tomomi, expressing a simple concern for his friend. "You don't have any obligation to us, you know? It'd be nice to have you there, but you already have to work hard to keep everything together, don't you? If you really are free, that's fine, but..."
He sighs. "Please tell us if doing these things is going to make life hard for you. We can at least try to help if you're set on this."

As Nadia explained where to meet, and stood to leave, Tomomi offered her a smile and a nod as a gesture of parting, waiting patiently as Cecil and Nadia exchanged kisses and Nadia left. When she did however, Cecil's turning on Tomomi caught the boy off guard, along with his following on questions.

Rubbing at the back of his neck, Tomomi offered a sheepish grin to Cecil, shrugging slightly. "I know I don't have any obliga... Obiga... Need to Cecil. I'll be fine, okay? I just want to make sure you and Nadia are alright, and doing that doesn't make life any harder on me."

Grabbing his book and paper filled bag, Tomomi stretched out and stood up, letting out a sigh. "That being said... Mind if you talk to Nadia about us getting ice cream after whatever she needs us for? I know it's not, um, ice cream season, but, that sounds like a nice thing to bond over, don't you think? Maybe sea salt flavoured..."

As he began to devolve into ice cream based mutterings, Tomomi also began to walk off, waving to Cecil. "I'll see you after classes."

The way Cecil caught her and hugged her unbidden sent chills down her spine in the best possible way. It was like a security blanket whose warmth followed her through the remaining day of classes, and kept a pleasant smile on her face as she leaned against the gate and waited for her boys to arrive. Her boys...she wondered when she'd started thinking of them in that regard. The one she loved, and the one she felt like she could tell anything to. Her boys. The thought made her giggle. She needed that giggle for what came next.

Cecil remained uncertain, but he wasn't going to press further. For now, he'd trust his friend on this one. "Alright." He nods, and a relaxed look settles onto his features. "Not a problem. Never a bad time for ice cream, right?"
He grins and waves Tomomi off. "See you later!"

Once Tomomi is gone too, he lets his face fall, letting out a quiet sigh. "I hope I'm not missing something again..."


As he walked out to see Nadia at the gates giggling away, a tiny measure of the tension he'd been carrying since lunch fell away. He walked over and met her lips with his, taking a moment to indulge and let some of the stress wash away. He parted again with a slightly dopey smile, chuckling under his breath. "Hey there."

After parting ways, the boy went about his classes, doing his best to keep up his fragile facade of calm and taking lots of notes like a studious student. The end of the day was a pleasant arrival, and so Tomomi walked off to meet Nadia and Cecil at the gates.

And lo and behold, both had arrived before him. Smiling, Tomomi walked forwards and waved, about to call about before noticing something quite scandalous. At Cecil locking lips with Nadia, the small boy flushed bright red, instantly averting his eyes and keeping at a distance, face down at the floor and just silently waiting uncomfortably for this to be over and for him to be called over.

Nadia wasn't sure what she was expecting when Cecil approached, but it wasn't a kiss. He was getting bolder, and she couldn't say she didn't like it, but public was a bit... "Mmm...!" Her breath caught as she took a moment, allowed herself to savor the exchange. She needed this more than she would have admitted. She came away feeling dazed, looking up at him with starry eyes...

And then guilt. When she saw Tomomi out of the corner of her eye, she blushed. She hadn't expected to see anyone watching them, least of all Tomomi. Knowing how he felt about Cecil made her suddenly revolted by the part she played in this new pain. She cleared her throat, looking back up at Cecil with a bashful smile. She bit her lip a little, caught between her favorite pleasure and a secret pain, not sure which would win. "H-hey there yourself." She poked his chest feebly, playfully, and nodded to Tomomi, hoping Cecil would get the hint and draw back a pace.

Still leaning against the fence, she regarded both of them. "Thank you both for taking time away from your days to come with me....And sorry about not telling you before where we were going. I...Well, I need to see my father. And I don't want to go alone."

He chuckled and smirked to himself at Nadia's reaction - and then, transitioned into awkward laughter as he noticed who else was there, flushing a bit and backing off.
That, ah, wasn't supposed to happen...it wasn't like he hadn't noticed Tomomi felt a little awkward with displays like that. It was hard not to when he turned bright red and averted his eyes each time.
If he had thought, he'd have realised Tomomi was likely to show up in the middle of that, but just then he'd not thought much other than taking a little moment to enjoy himself before things weighed down on them.

Hearing what the subject of the day was did little to dissuade the idea that it was best to ditch as much tension as possible before they delved into it.

"Oh. Him." Cecil's demeanour chilled at the very mention of Nadia's family, a sense of resentment readily apparent from the shift that had come over him. "He's not dragging you in to pretend he cares now, is he?"

As Cecil and Nadia eventually stopped, and Tomomi joined them, albeit avoiding eye contact with Cecil for a while, Tomomi listened to Nadia's request before tilting his head. Going to see her father? The boy didn't know much about Nadia's home situation. In fact, all he really knew was that she was living alone, and so had evidently made the wrong assumption that she was an orphan like himself. At Cecil's reaction however, he got a rough idea, but decided to ask just in case.

"I um... S-sorry to ask something that probably seems obvious, but, um... What do you need to go see your dad about? I um... S-sorry, I just don't know much about your family situation, so, I want to be able to know how I can best help, if that's okay. I-if you just want me there to be a witness or something though then that's fine, you don't need to, um, tell me anything."

Nadia couldn't help but wince a little at Cecil's initial revulsion. When Tomomi asked his question, Nadia favored him with a forlorn smile. Apologetic and vulnerable. "It's not obvious, really...I decided to...to follow both of your advice, and get help." She wrung out her hands in front of her, clearly distressed by the decision. It was strange to think something was wrong with her head. But if they thought it was a good thing to do, then...

"But it's expensive. I can't afford it on my own. So, I'm going to my father." She finished. It helped to state it as a matter of business, pretending that there was no emotional component to the adventure. If she didn't need help right now, she very well might after the meeting with her father. "I was hoping you two would come for um...support? I don't really want to go alone. We can go somewhere after if you want-- There's a Chocolaterie not far from the estate." She offered with a sheepish smile. Surely Cecil didn't want to confront her family any more than she did. And Tomomi - well he didn't know enough. And sadly...she wasn't sure she could really have that conversation and keep the conviction to go. If he came...he would understand soon enough.

Cecil nods firmly. "If this is how things are...then I'm not going to leave you to deal with it alone."
Something seethed at the thought of Nadia's parents. There was a sense of wilful abandonment in that relationship that he just couldn't abide, an utter lack of attempt to actually take the role of a parent with their child that he absolutely couldn't stand. Locked up inside, abandoned but for the visits of a few tutors and whatever basic measures were taken to make sure they were fed.
It was no wonder Nadia felt so apart from the world. For a large chunk of her life, she basically was.

The blond started to fidget slightly, teeth gritted. Shaking his head, he forces a smile and tries to dispel the rising tension he feels, looking over to Tomomi. "What do you think, Tomomi? Chocolate, or ice cream?"

At Nadia's explanation, Tomomi nodded, not entirely understanding, but getting the picture generally. "Right. Yeah, I'll come with you and help as best I can! You can um, count rely on me! Is uh... Is that the saying?"

Scratching at his head, Tomomi turned to face Cecil at his question, trying to get the feelings from before out of his expression before pondering the question, quickly glancing at a somewhat perked up Nadia. "Um... W-well, it might be busy at the chocolate fear place... Plus, well, um... Chocolate can get pretty costy right? So, um, I vote on Ice Cream, but, over all, it is up to Nadia!" He declared, grinning and nodding to Nadia with gusto.

Nadia had definitely perked up when Ice cream was mentioned. She'd only had icecream on a few occasions, and she was excited to go get icecream with her friends. She'd never done that before. It would definitely be a lovely cap to an otherwise bitter experience. "Icecream sounds absolutely wonderful." She said, with a smile.

"But...lets get going. I've already made an appointment, and if I'm late, he probably won't let us in." She sombered a bit before starting to lead them to the train station. The quickest way from here was to take the train to East Eden, where her family's Villa was located. "Come on. We'll take the train." She offered in explanation, before leading them away.

-------------

A short train ride later, they were walking on a path in East Eden, the brittle fall wind was blowing dried leaves up around their ankles, and Nadia had been quiet for most of the journey, unless spoken to. She was getting into character, sadly. The quiet and dutiful daughter who stayed out of sight when she wasn't wanted. Now, as they walked up the long path that led up to her family's rather large estate, to the house's main gate, her expression had lost all emotion. The large white mansion could be seen on the other side of the gate. It had been pieced back together immaculately since the fall of Endymion. But she supposed that was to be expected working for this government.

She glanced to the side, where there was a keypad and intercom system. She bit her lip, reached her hand out and plugged in the numbers she remembered. A sharp buz alerted her that the code was wrong. They had changed the password and hadn't told her the new code. She tried to be surprised, but it didn't work. With a sigh, she looked back at the boys for a note of encouragement before pressing the button for the intercom.

A voice echoed from the other side, garbled by the sound of static. "State your name and business."

Nadia cleared her throat, and when she spoke, her voice had none of the emotive reticence she usual had, it was drained and clear like clear water. "Nadia Marquee. I have an appointment with Mr. Marquee today."

There was a pause, and a click, and the large gates started to open. With another look to the boys, Nadia started to move forward, then stopped, her feet just on the edge of the cobbled stone path that led through the courtyard to the mansions's front steps in the distance. "It's been two...almost three years since I've been back here. I never thought I would come back..." She said wistfully, and a bit sadly. It was easy, just one foot in front of the other, but for some reason her foot just wouldn't move.

Cecil scowled when he heard that. Nadia's father definitely couldn't be accused of sentimentality if this was any indication.
"Alright. Let's get going."


A pristine white mansion, tucked away behind the gates from the rest of the world. It looked like a way to show off rather than someplace you'd actually live, to him.
An angry in his voice whispered that the only semblance of life within these premises would be the staff.
His eyes turned to Nadia, who seemed more of an empty vessel than an actual human being right now. The sight killed him inside, and he found himself glaring up at the mansion again, furiously attempting to male his gaze pierce through and send chills to the man inside.
It was a fruitless effort.

As Nadia hesitated, he stepped up and looked down to the frozen girl, trying to look reassuring as his fingers locked with hers. He smiled, but forested eyes quaked with anger. "You can do this. I know you can."

At Nadia explaining that they might not be let in if they were late, Tomomi began to grow more concerned; what sort of father was this guy if he would be willing to not talk to his own daughter?

Well, as the train arrived, and the trio arrived before the mansion, Tomomi began to hazard a guess, looking up at the monolith of wealth with a blank look that seemed to express more surprise than anything else. Even when he was with his parents back in Japan, their home was nothing near this extra. In fact, Tomomi would go so far as to say that this is less fancy and more gaudy. It almost sickened him, the disparity between this lifestyle and those less fortunate. Or, it would, if he knew what the word disparity was.

Still, unlike Cecil's fury, all Tomomi felt was concern for Nadia, holding no wrath towards her parents. Instead, as Cecil locked fingers with Nadia, Tomomi walked to the other side of her, and offered his hand for her to hold if she needed. If not, then he'd simply let his hand be at his side, and stand there in solidarity to support her. There, without really saying much, Tomomi just nodded to Nadia, and gave her a soft, reassuring smile.