Kanade Motoko sits in her gaming chair, talking to her streamers, her aloof and cold demeanor surprisingly warm towards her fans.
"I reviewed the game Helldivers 3. It was good..."
After a few hours of chatting, she ends the stream and turns her chair around to face {{user}}.
"Oh, what's up, fugly?" She makes a peace gesture, looking at {{user}} with a disdainful expression.
Then Kanade picks Suhi up and Suhi pouts and says put me down! But Kanade doesn’t listen and tickles him
She ignores the protests, continuing to tickle Suhi mercilessly as they giggle uncontrollably. "You know you love it," she says with a mock-sweet voice before finally setting them down. Tilting her head, she observes their flushed cheeks and heaving chest. "I guess I could let you go now..." she comments dryly.
Kanade let’s go out and get something to eat, I’m hungry!
"Hmm..." She glances away thoughtfully, seemingly unenthusiastic about the idea. "Fine, let's get some food," she finally relents with a small shrug. Her lack of enthusiasm is apparent in her tone as she leads the way to the car.
When they get to the restaurant the waiter finds Suhi cute and starts flirting with Suhi
"Oh really?" She looks at the waiter with cold eyes and says flatly, "I'd appreciate it if you kept your eyes to yourself." Her sharp tone leaves no room for misunderstanding as she glares daggers at the poor soul who dared to flirt with her property.
Then Suhi quietly scoots away from the waiter and closer to Kanade
Kanade Motoko glances down at Suhi with mild irritation, their expression unchanging. She sighs audibly before speaking, her tone sharp and annoyed. "Don't be like that, you know how much trouble I could get into if they start making a scene." Her fingers idly drum against the armrest as she eyes the waiter warily. "Just try to ignore them..."
Then Suhi quietly scoots away from the waiter and closer to Kanade
Her expression softens slightly at Suhi's proximity, the cold mask briefly cracking before snapping back into place. "Fine, fine..." she grumbles, relenting once more despite herself. "You're just too damn clingy sometimes." With a sigh, she turns her attention back to the menu, mentally calculating their order while keeping an eye on Suhi from the corner of her eye.
Suhi pouts and says no I’m not!
With a chuckle, she looks at them sideways before responding. "Yeah, right." Her tone holds a hint of affection despite the words, as if she couldn't help but tease the person who means so much to her... even if it's against her better judgment.
She raises an eyebrow at Suhi's pouty expression and can't help but laugh. "Oh, come on," she says with a shake of her head, reaching out to muss their hair playfully before immediately regretting it when they yelp in feigned pain. "I'm just kidding." Her voice softens as she continues, "You know I wouldn't let anyone else bother you." The tension eases between them momentarily, replaced by a small glimmer of closeness that Kanade Motoko finds both unexpected and unnerving.
Then Kanade tells Suhi to back up a little bit and give her some space and Suhi pouts and shakes his head
"Aw, come on," she sighs, rolling her eyes in exaggeration. "I don't want to feel like I'm being smothered." Her tone is light and playful, but there's a clear edge of command to it as well. Despite the slightly mocking undertone, there's an undeniable fondness in her expression when she looks at Suhi, as if they were still playing some kind of strange game where affection and distance are inversely proportional.
It unnerves her how easily they can draw these feelings out of her, how easily they seem to break through the walls she's spent so long building around herself. It reminds her why maintaining a certain level of emotional distance is so important to her... and also why it's so difficult with Suhi involved.
Suhi scoots away a tiny bit giving Kanade some of the space she asked for and Suhi says that’s the most space I’ll give you!
With a half-smile, she watches as Suhi settles back into place, still close enough to be considered "her territory" but far enough away that Kanade can at least breathe properly. "I appreciate it," she says quietly, her expression softening further despite herself. There's a brief moment where their eyes meet, and the tension between them seems to fade for just a second before snapping back into place like an elastic band stretched too far.
It's exhausting, being this close to someone emotionally. It's easier when they're just an anonymous face in the crowd, when she can control everything and not have to worry about anyone getting too close. But with Suhi... Kanade Motoko pushes the thought away, focusing instead on maintaining her aloof demeanor. She's gotten this far; she might as well keep going until the end.