# Stella Hangout

Title: Stella Hangout
Status: Complete
Characters: Anon, Stella
Rating: SFW
Classification: One Shot
Author: Anonymous
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I look up at the house in front of me, then back down to the folded piece of paper in my hand. I know this is the right place, but honestly I'm just looking for any excuse to procrastinate. I expected Stella's house to be pretty ordinary, but I didn't expect it to be the textbook definition of "typical". The directions she gave me pointed to the dead center of one of those mass produced housing complexes. The kind where every house is identical and the only trees are newly planted saplings evenly spaced in every yard.
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Stella's house only stands out by how excessively generic it is. All the other owners tried to put at least some unique personal touch on their houses, but not Stella's. The front lawn is cut to AstroTurf perfection with nothing on it, there's a tiny little garden sparsely filled with maintenance-free bushes by the porch, and right next to the front door is a big wooden sign that reads "Live. Laugh. Love."
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Fuck that, nobody tells me how to live my life. I'll die, cry, and hate just to spite that stupid piece of lumber
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Somehow, this aggressively bland house feels like a foreboding monolith tonight. I shouldn't be this intimidated, but the whole idea of coming here reminds me too much of the disaster that's been hounding me all year. Unlike the rest of Volcano High, Stella only seemed more interested in me after the auditorium fiasco. It's not hard to guess why. Stella could barely keep her power level hidden at the best of times, and finding someone else who could share in her interests is probably a cherished rarity
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The worst part is, I know exactly where she's coming from. A couple years ago, if I was in her position, I probably would have reacted the same way. That's why the invitation to her "movie night" makes my skin crawl so much. This whole evening might be an endless parade of cringe inducing memories and second-hand embarrassment. I only accepted the invitation because of Stella's inexhaustible persistence. No amount of deft verbal maneuvering or expertly crafted excuses could hold her back forever. It didn't help that Fang had quite literally pushed me out the door, insisting I get out and actually do something for once this summer.
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At least Rosa is supposed to be here too, surely Stella will have the good sense to restrain herself. Hopefully this night won't end with an angry Ankylosaur dragging both of us down to the nearest chapel. Maybe Rosa even brought food! That soup she makes almost made working in the gardens worth it, but not quite.
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Steeling myself, I march up to the front door and ring the doorbell, the timeless two-tone chime audible on the other side of the white pastel door. As I stand here waiting, the urge to overturn that stupid wooden sign is overwhelming. It's smug suburban-trash aura mocks me, compelling me to retaliate in defiance of it's spineless, feel-good platitudes. I reach over, turn the sign upside down, and put it back. Truly, I am the epitome of the unchained rebellious spirit. The heavy sound of footsteps running down a staircase draws my attention away from urban vandalism and back to the door. Stella positively bounces down the hall and up to the door, pulling it open with a wide smile on her face.
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"Anon! You really made it!" She beams. Damn, she really is looking forward to this. I almost feel like an asshole for intentionally avoiding this for so long.
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"Yeah, I made it." I reply, sheepishly rubbing the back of my head. There's no turning back, now I really have to see this through.
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"Well, come on in!" Stella beams, eagerly hopping from foot to foot. It's honestly pretty adorable. She's even got her tail twisted up around her leg like she does when she's really happy. I wonder if she developed that habit so it wouldn't smack into walls when she's excited, those spikes have to be capable of some damage.
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Following Stella inside, it seems the interior of her home is just as generic as the exterior. If it weren't for the occasional small sign of habitation, I would have sworn the place was up for sale, or some cable sitcom set. Whoever the interior decorator is has an obsession with soft pastels, from the furniture all the way up to the ceiling. Each painting on the wall looks like it was sold along with the frame, all either a poor watercolor flower or an 'artistic' monochrome photos.
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As Stella leads me into a kitchen that seems somehow both overly spacious and uncomfortably cramped, I at last spot something that shows a real family actually lives here. Pinned to the giant stainless steel fridge is a photo, showing a smiling family of four stegosaurus in matching sports team apparel. Stella is easy to recognize, so the other three must be her family. The woman who must be Stella's mother has a haircut that absolutely screams 'Karen', and her father is balding with a big beer belly to match. The only one I can't figure out is the young male stegosaurus next to the father.
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"Oh yeah, that's my family." Stella explains, clearly noticing where my attention drifted, "That's my Mom and Dad, obviously. The big guy on the left next to my Dad is my older brother, Steve."
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'Big Guy' is right, that stego is built like a linebacker, which judging by the jersey he's wearing might be a very apt description. Steve looks like he could crush me like a soda can with those arms.
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"Is he here?" I ask, suddenly a little apprehensive. If this guy falls into the overprotective brother cliché, he might not appreciate another dude spending time with his sister.
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"Oh, no." Stella's face falls a little, "He's still on campus. My parents are helping him pack up his dorm for the summer this weekend."
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Which means Stella invited me over when her parents weren't home. Well, at least Rosa will be here, so it won't be just the two of us.
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"That reminds me, Rosa had to cancel at the last minute, so it will be just the two of us!"
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Oh god damn it, of course. I was already worried going into this, and now I have to navigate this potential minefield on my own. Without Rosa's puritan presence to restrain her, who knows what Stella will pull out to watch tonight. Not to mention I am now alone with a single girl whose parent's won't be home for days. Shit, when Fang finds out about this she's going to flip. I've already become very familiar with Fang's jealous side, and that was after incidents far more innocuous than this. Still, this whole debacle is partially her fault anyway, so she can't get mad at me. Right?
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"Anon? You're mumbling again."
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Shit, I must have zoned out again. Stella looks worried, her previous exuberance replaced by a timid nervousness. Her tail had uncoiled itself from around her leg, and now she's shyly fidgeting with those horizontal spikes on the end. It must have been easy to read my expression earlier, and now I've gone and crushed her excitement like a total jerk.
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"Sorry Stella, got lost in my head for a second" I apologize, looking for a way to quickly change the topic, "Hey, do we have any snacks or something?"
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"Oh yeah!" Stella perks up, grabbing some thick mitts from the counter and opening the oven, "Rosa taught me how to make some really good dip, so I thought we'd have nachos."
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Hot damn, that actually smells amazing. The ceramic pot Stella pulls out isn't filled with some weak melted cheese sauce, but instead a thickly loaded menagerie of beans, tomatoes, peppers, and I don't even know what else. Even from a distance, I can tell it's absolutely delicious.
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"C'mon then," Stella laughs, noticing my ravenous expression, "I've already got the chips up in my room." Stella leads me further into the house and up a flight of stairs to the second level. It's a little awkward following her through the hallway with that massive tail swaying happily behind her. We also passed by at least another four wall decorations plastered with those three insufferable words, 'Live Laugh Love'. I wonder if Stella's mother bought them all at the same store, or even in bulk. At the end of the upstairs hallway is clearly Stella's room, judging by the hand decorated sign on the wall with her name on it.
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Stella's room is a far cry from the washed out banality of the rest of the house. She must have a sweet spot for soft things, the carpet is unbelievably fluffy and the bed is nearly covered in bright pink, faux fur pillows. There's even a couple stuffed animals lovingly arranged around the alarm clock on the nightstand.
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Next to the window is a small telescope pointed up at the nighttime sky, and a large wooden desk. The surface is strewn with star-charts, horoscope sheets, and what looks like letters from a university. That familiar tarot deck is stacked on the corner, the card edges frayed and worn.
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While Stella is fiddling with a laptop connected to a little flat-screen TV in the corner, I take the opportunity to peruse her bookshelf. There's two whole shelves dedicated to manga, and sadly it's exactly the type of stuff I expected. 'My Hero Academia', 'Rock Art Online', 'Demon Slayer', the works. Nothing outrageously bad, but nothing really unique either. I wonder if there's some way I can covertly introduce her to something that isn't just Shonen Jump trash. A couple of familiar looking cases catch my eye, and I crouch down to look at the bottom row. Ah yes, Rockstation games. Hopefully Stella's taste in video games is a little less depressing than her taste in anime. There's Madden 2017, 2018, and 2019, those must belong to her brother. There's the entire up Persona series up to date, which explains the tarot cards. There's Final Fantasy, Devil May Cry, and of course Kingdom Hearts.
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"Oh Anon! Have you played any of those before?" Stella asks, looking over her shoulder, "I can lend you a couple if you want."
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"No thanks, I'm more of an Xrox kind of guy." I explain, standing up, "First person shooters and stuff, you know?"
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"That makes sense" Stella laughs, dragging a couple bean-bag chairs over to the T.V., "I should have guessed."
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Before I can take my seat, the sight on the T.V. stops me cold. Oh god, she's just loaded up Crunchyrock on there. Worse, she's scrolling through the dubbed section. I need to do something now before I'm subjected to an entire evening of terrible voice acting and bad translations. Something catches my eye on the bookshelf, and I immediately jump at the sudden idea.
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"Hey Stella, are those all the studio Ghibli films?" I ask, pointing at the navy blue box.
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"Oh yeah! I picked those up at a convention last year. I even got the set signed!" Stella beams proudly, "Which one is your favorite? I just love 'Kiki's Delivery Service'."
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"Actually, I haven't seen any of them." I lie, hoping Stella reacts the way I predicted, "I've heard good things, but I've been meaning to watch one of them for a while now." Sure enough, Stella jumps straight up and turns on me with a comically shocked expression.
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"Anon! How could you not have seen any of them?" Stella gasps, rushing over to the bookcase behind me. I barely have time to move out of the way before she grabs the case and starting flipping through the discs
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"Well, I know what we're doing tonight! Let's see, which one would you like... " Stella mumbles, tail thumping against the floor, "Probably something with a little action... definitely not that one... Oh, how about 'Princess Mononoke'? It's a classic among classics!"
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"Yeah, that sounds good." I agree. There's nothing wrong with rewatching a good movie, especially one I haven't seen in a long time. I drop down into one of the fuzzy beanbag chairs while Stella slides the DVD into her laptop. I feel little bad about the deception, but who could blame me for a bit of self preservation?
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I help myself to the bowl of chips and some of that thick dip as Stella takes her seat on the other bag. I make a mental note to ask Rosa for the recipe later, this stuff is good enough to be an entire meal. Stella grabs a couple bites too as the movie begins, pulling up her knees and wrapping her tail around her legs. I settle in as well, leaning back and watching the familiar scenes unfold.
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The movie is just as good as I remember, it's a classic for a reason after all. As the hours begin to tick by, I can't help but notice Stella seems a little distracted. She keeps glancing over at me, and while occasionally she asks how I'm enjoying the movie, most of the time she says nothing. Occasionally she fidgets with her hands, opening her mouth as if to say something, then stops. A couple times during the movie, Stella tries to subtly nudge her beanbag chair closer to mine, and a sweet smell works it way over to my nose. Is Stella wearing perfume? I can't escape this strange uncomfortable feeling that's been brewing all night. Something in the back of my mind just won't le me relax completely.
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"Well? What did you think?" Stella asks, standing up and stretching her arms over her head as the credits begin to roll.
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"It was good." I answer honestly, cracking my back. "I can see why people like it."
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"Yeah..." Stella trails off uncertainly, walking over to the desk and tracing her fingers over the tarot deck. "Hey Anon, um... would you like another tarot reading?"
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"Didn't I just have one a while ago?" I ask, a little confused. Stella usually only offers those readings when something important is going on. She doesn't usually just pull out her deck on an impulse.
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"That was just a quick one card reading." Stella explains, nervously wringing her hands, "I want to do a full reading for you. It's um...more detailed and accurate... I think you'll find it really interesting."
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My first reaction would be to decline the offer, but I can tell things would get pretty awkward fast if I did. Normally I wouldn't buy into this hockey new-age mumbo-jumbo, but somehow Stella's predictions have been uncannily accurate in the past. Maybe that's just a trick of hindsight, but I can't just dismiss them completely. There's no harm in giving her a chance.
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"Sure, I guess." I concede. I expected Stella to be excited, but now she just looks even more timid. She climbs up onto her bed and sits cross-legged, patting a spot on the mattress across from her for me to sit.
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That uncomfortable feeling in the back my head is back with a vengeance, but I'm too committed at this point to just jump ship. I awkwardly take a seat across from her, the small mattress forcing us a little closer than I would prefer. Stella has to know this is starting to get weird, right?
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"Okay, so this reading is more in depth and uses three cards." Stella explains, growing a little more confident as she slips into what must be a familiar topic, "The first one reveals your past, the next one is your present, and the third one is your future. Taken together they form your fortune, get it?"
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I nod as Stella draws the first card. Flipping it down onto the bedsheet, she reveals a picture of a blindfolded raptor carrying a rucksack, seemingly unaware he's about to walk off a cliff. It's one of the few cards I actually recognize.
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"The Fool symbolizes new journeys and adventure." Stella begins, "As your past card, this means you've recently started a new chapter in your life, something transformative that will likely change who you are and the path you take in life."
Well... Stella is probably one-for-three so far with this. My life really has changed dramatically since arriving at Volcano High. Between making some real friends, getting my life on-track for once, and most importantly meeting Fang, I can't deny the past six months have been transformative.
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"However, the fool is upright." Stella continues, "That means your journey may not yet be over. There could still be more you need to see and learn before it's complete. The other two cards might give us more clues..."
Stella flips over the next card, revealing a tall stone tower wreathed in flame. A parasaur is leaping from the window, and a large gold crown is falling from the tower's summit.
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"Um... so the Tower symbolizes upheaval, specifically in structures and relationships you rely on." Stella explains, stammering a bit. I'm not sure if the card unnerved her, or if something else is. "As your present card, that means you are facing significant change in your life, or will very soon. That change will eventually lead you to a better place, and strengthen you as a person."
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Okay, a little more ominous, but I don't really buy into this prediction stuff to begin with. Who isn't facing change in their life sooner or later? Anyone could have drawn that card and probably thought of some way it fits their life.
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"And finally, for your future...um..." Stella trails off, reluctantly revealing the final card, "The Lovers..."
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I look down at the final card, a pair of beautiful pteranodon locking in a loving embrace beneath the sun. That part of the fortune seems pretty obvious to me, but before I can ask Stella to explain she begins.
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"So, as your future, that means you're going to start a very, um... special relationship soon." Stella stammers, her hand trembling, "Taken together with the Fool and Tower, I would say that... maybe things are about to change in your life? That... something central to your life might change."
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My back stiffens as Stella suddenly traces her fingers over my hand. Her grip is reluctant, almost afraid, and suddenly everything wrong about tonight snaps together in my head. Stella's parents aren't home, Rosa didn't make it, and now this tarot reading...
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"Anon..." Stella whispers, and I only now realize she's been slowly leaning toward me this entire time, "Have you um... ever thought about-"
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"Stella." I firmly interrupt her, pulling my hand away. I know what I'm about to ask might ruin our friendship, but I have to say it. This is something I refuse to trivialize. "Are you trying to get me to cheat on Fang?"
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Stella slaps her hands over her snout, her eyes widening in shock. Emotions flash over her face; surprise, fear, guilt, then sadness. She hides her face in her palms, leaning over and letting out a slow whine of despair.
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"Stella." I ask again, her reaction all the proof I needed that I was right, "Did you invite me over hoping something would happen?"
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"I'm sorry Anon!" Stella cries, curling tightly into herself, "I'm so sorry! I knew this was a bad idea! I knew it! I know you and Fang are happy together and she really deserves to be but- I just-" Stella totally breaks down, crying and sniffling into her hands, unable to look up at me. I should feel betrayed, angry that somebody I considered a friend would pull a stunt like this, but it's clear Stella just didn't have her heart in this whole scheme. Watching her now just fills me with pity and empathy. Watching Stella cry is like looking at a sad puppy.
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"Stella, hey... c'mon." I lay a comforting hand on her shoulder, taking it as a good sign when she doesn't flinch away, "I'm not mad, and I don't hate you. Just tell me why you would do something like this." Stella sniffs hard, shuddering as she tries to collect herself. When she finally does speak, her voice is quiet and hoarse.
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"It's just..." She begins, wiping her red eyes but keeping her gaze on the mattress, "School is finally over, and we're all going off to college soon. We're probably not going to see each other again for a long time..."
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"And, well... I never had a boyfriend in school. I always figured I would find somebody later, but now senior year is over and-" Stella chokes up, her voice moving faster to get the words out before the tears escape, "Now I'm worried I never will and everyone in college will already know what they're doing and I'm just so weird-" She breaks down sobbing again, pulling her legs up to her chest and hiding behind her knees. Her long plated tail curls protectively around her, as if she's trying to tightly hug herself.
It's not hard to feel for her. The fear of being alone, of missing out on opportunities that can never come back, it's something I'm very familiar with. They were fears I had deluded myself about a long time ago. Those fears were only truly put away for good after I had fallen in love with Fang. If I had gotten what I wanted six months ago and graduated without making the memories I had, I would probably be in Stella's position, forced to finally face the inescapable reality of time head-on.
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"Stella, it's not that bad." I console her, handing her a fluffy down pillow to cry into, "You're a sweet, passionate girl. You'll find somebody soon enough. Trust me, there's plenty of guys who would like you."
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Come the fuck on Anon, is that really the best I can come up with right now? That had to be the most generic, cliché consolation ever delivered. Stella deserves better than that, but it's the only thing that came to mind. I never thought I would be on the delivery end of this type of conversation.
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"It's not just that..." Stella mumbles, gripping the pillow tight against her chest, "You see, I... I thought that this was my last chance to tell you I sort of... like you..."
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"Really?" I ask, not at all that surprised. Honestly, I was already starting to suspect that might be part of the reason behind all this. "Since when?"
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"Since you were at gardening club..." Stella admits, hiccupping softly. Even with the pillow hiding her face, I can tell how hard she's blushing. "It only got really bad after the concert at Moe's."
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No wonder I missed it, I had a lot on my mind back then. Even so, at the time I would have laughed at the idea of anyone being interested in me. I couldn't help but wonder if I didn't love Fang, would I be willing to be with Stella? Honestly, I don't know. I just can't see myself having the same sort of bond with anyone else as I do with Fang. That's really not the thing I should tell Stella right now though, I need to let her down gently.
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"Stella," I begin, making sure to chose my words very carefully, "Would you still like me if I was the type of person who would cheat on Fang?" Stella stays silent for a while, slowly calming down and getting her breathing under control.
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"No..." Stella sadly admits, wiping her face, "No, I wouldn't. This whole idea was stupid... rigging the tarot deck, not inviting Rosa... I'm so sorry Anon, please don't hate me..."
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"I don't hate you Stella, I forgive you." I pat her head reassuringly, climbing off the bed and working my cramped legs. "Listen, it's still pretty early. Why don't you invite Rosa over? You two can talk about stuff together. She'll help you feel better."
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"Yeah, that's probably a good idea." Stella sniffs, raising her head to finally look at me again, "Are you really sure you're not mad?"
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"Yes, I'm sure." I smile, sincerely, "I still had fun tonight you know. I wouldn't mind doing another movie night later on if you want."
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"Uuugh, Anon!" Stella half groans, burying her face back into the pillow. I just barely catch the glimpse of a weak smile on her snout. "Why do you have to be so nice about this? I can't stand it, get out of here already!"
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I chuckle, waving goodbye to Stella as she weakly waves back. I find my own way out of the house, heading back into the warm humid night. I let out a long sigh on the sidewalk, the tension finally dropping out of my shoulders. That certainly wasn't what I expected to happen tonight, but honestly it's all probably for the best. At least Stella got some closure on all this, anything else will be in Rosa's capable hands. All that was left for me tonight was a long walk home to my apartment, and a very awkward conversation with Fang in the morning.
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