Hisao and Lilly's Married Life: Chapter 10 (Patreon)

Can someone please tell me how a blind woman has better handwriting than I do? Rai thought to herself as she looked over Lilly’s notes. The young woman may have walked away from yesterday with less alcohol in her than her indulgent friend, but the paperwork that was placed in front of her now was giving her a headache.

Lilly was unable to make it to class today, so it fell to the assistants to lead class in her stead. That responsibility fell to Rai for today, and the others would remain as assistants to their students, as well as one would ensure Ben got to class. Rai groaned as she had sat at Lilly’s desk and read her plan for the day. ‘A guided introduction to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.’ 

Rai hated Shakespeare. No. She LOATHED it. She recalled taking her College Writing class, and having to analyze the entirety of Hamlet and his stupid speech… She reached up and tugged at her hair, whining. 

“Okay, come on. You only have a little while until-”

The ringing of the bell ending first period interrupted her.

“Noooooooo…”

Lilly couldn’t determine which option seemed worse, getting out or staying in bed. On one hand, if she got out of bed, then she could use Akira’s cure-all drink that Hisao had left for her, and he hang-over would be gone in a moment. That meant getting up though, a task which seemed all but impossible with how her head was currently swimming, and walking all the way to the kitchen. On the other hand, she could lay in bed quite literally all day. Her head would still be sore for a while, but it’d eventually fade… She could lie there all morning, like a vegetable… or a fruit.

It was that last thought that made Lilly pop up on her bed, which instantly made her crumble back down, groaning in pain.

“Okay. Okay. Gentle.” She whispered to herself, and slowly sat up towards the edge of her bed. She swung her feet over the edge, placing the bare skin of her heels on the ground. She tried standing, struggled for a moment, and fell back as her stomachs weight pressed down on her with an “Oof.” The bed springs bounced beneath her and she groaned as another reminder of her weight quiet literally shook her. She felt sick, and knew it would only get worse until she drank that tonic.

Placing one hand on her stomach to calm it and the other on her bed, Lilly lifted herself forwards, and managed to actually make it. Her stomach growled at her in annoyance, and Lilly could swear it felt like she was still digesting food. 

What even happened last night? She asked herself. She didn’t remember walking to bed, her last memory being eating the pie and having the last of her glass of wine whilst she had waited for her husband to come home. A spark of memory occurred to her, more the feeling of her pants tearing along the seams, and her hands flew to her sides. She was bare, there, only her underwear as her saving grace. She’d eaten herself right out of her pants.

Her brain chose that moment to send a spike of pain through her body, and she felt herself gag.

“I’m going, alright alright calm down.” She said, tiredly, to her aching body. The floorboards creaked beneath her as she walked, but she paid it no mind as she felt along the wall, counting her steps towards the kitchen. A faint smell wafted throughout the area, but Lilly couldn’t recognize it as it was masked by a heavy stench. Lilly knew exactly what it was, yet the smell of the concoction was still revolting enough for her stomach to moan at her. 

One good thing about the stench was that it made the drink easy enough to find. Lilly walked over to the area at a heavy pace, moaning as her stomach grumbled at her in protest. With long fingers, she brushed her hand against the drink’s glass. Hisao had used a plastic cup, which pleased her greatly, because the last time they’d made it, it had stained the glass with a sticky texture that wouldn’t come off no matter what cleaning supplies they had tried.

Lilly raised the cup, pinching her nose closed with her other hand. ‘Remember, it has to be all of it in one.’ Lilly could hear Akira’s years old warning. Unladylike? Sure, but it’d be worth it. She tilted her head back, bringing the drink to her mouth and beginning to chug it. She could feel the cold and sticky texture of the drink enter her mouth, and had to force herself to keep going. One swallow, two swallows, three, the woman chugged the drink down past her mouth and she could feel the heavy drink almost plop down her throat and into her stomach. 

She finished the drink with a gasp, fresh air rapidly filling her lungs.

She slammed the cup onto the counter as the spices of the drink began to eat through the muck. She quickly found their glass cabinet, and pulled out one. She went to the sink and filled it to the brim with water from their sink, and quickly took a pull from it, trying to wash whatever remained down. She did this twice more before her throat began to feel better, and placed the glass into the sink, gripping the edges of the sink in either hand as she painted over it. She felt her stomach rise and fall with each breath, and only then did she realize that she had been in her underwear this entire time. 

Even her shirt seemed to have come off at some point last night, and she stood in the kitchen in just her bra and panties. 

And suddenly, as if a wave started to crash over her mind, Lilly remembered. She remembered the feeling of her sweater wrapped tightly beneath her breasts, her stomach of full display as she chewed more and more and more of the pie. She remembered moaning at how full she had been as she caressed her stomach. She remembered the feeling of strong arms lifting her and placing her in her bed. She remembered telling him about how huge she’d gotten, how much weight she’d gained, and he’d responded by massaging her stuffed stomach. How that feeling had made her start to moan, and how she’d gotten turned on from him pinching her fluffed out sides. How she’d admitted to loving the feeling of being stuffed… And how he’d called her beautiful…

Lilly unconsciously pinched at her stomach now, and dropped it, it jiggling slightly as she let it bounce. She bit her lip, thinking about her husband’s strong arms enveloping her and holding her close to his chest. Could it actually be possible that he like her like this?

There’s no way, a voice spoke in her mind, although it wasn’t too confident. Then she remembered his voice mail, and that he’d be coming home for lunch. The playful idea of answering the door like this entered and left her mind in a single moment, as she remembered Rai may be coming as well. 

She was about hurry off to their bedroom to get dressed, when she smelled what had been the faint smell that was masked by the concoction. The smell was sweet and delicious, and she instantly recognized it as cinnamon rolls. Hisao must have baked some for breakfast.

Lilly’s stomach vibrated at the scent. She remembered what Akira said, about the cure-all giving an increased appetite. Oh dear, she thought to herself. I’ve already been- her stomach moaned at her, impatiently, and not without a bit of pain.

Lilly slid over to where the smell was coming from and felt out the edge of the kitchen counter. Inward, she felt her hand brush against a plate, and then the sticky pastries that occupied it. She felt herself grinning unconsciously as she rose one of the baked goods to her mouth, taking a large bite of it. It occurred to her once more that she was still wearing her underwear, and she quickly scampered off to change into her clothes for the day, before she’d come back and finish her breakfast. 

Quickly, Lilly changed into her recently purchased tank top and skirt, her stomach and mind impatiently wanting for more food. She practically skipped back to the kitchen, delighted to be feeling better as well as to have something to eat. Thoughts of what to make them all for lunch took over her mind, as she ate the remaining rolls, pushing the question of her own physical appearance to the back of it… for now.

Lilly wasn’t the only one enduring a rough day, as it turned out. 

As Rai began class, she could tell the students seemed a bit uppity about the lack of the authority figure standing in her usual place. Rai closed the door as the bell rang, only for it to be opened again as she walked away when a student who’d been slightly behind hurried in and silently took his seat. He’d left the door open. Another assistant closed it, but Rai couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

She addressed the class, informing them of the sad news that their teacher would be absent for the evening, as she was feeling ill. Numerous questions followed, and Rai could swear she’d heard a whispered remark that she couldn’t fit out the door, but she spoke over the class and settled them, telling that Mrs. Nakai had left her lesson plan in their care, and that they would still proceed with class as directed. At the mention of starting a new novel, some of the students let out a groan. She emphasized, knowing Shakespeare was hard enough for students that even spoke the language fluently, however she told the students that because of their hard work, they would find themselves more than capable of working through the proceedings together.

Rai handed out an article and a worksheet to complete off of the article, and surmised for the students that today would be an introductory way on how Shakespearian plays were done. She allowed them to work in groups on the article, knowing that this was the preferred way for students who had issues with sight to be able to communicate the article together. The students quickly divided themselves, and Rai had sat at Lilly’s desk to look over the article and answer key herself when Benjamin approached her. 

“Ms. Kato?” He’d asked her. “If Mrs. Nakai is absent, does that mean she’ll miss cooking club as well?”

Rai perked her lips in thought. “Hmm, I suppose it does. Sorry, Benjamin.”

“Oh…” Ben said, looking down. The poor boy looked crushed as he returned to his desk.

Rai returned to the article, her thoughts fresh of thought about Lilly. She’d hoped she wasn’t too sick… Maybe she should have stayed and had that drink with her after all. There’s no way she’d have kept going on her own, right?

After a few minutes, Rai summoned the students’ attention back to her. They went over the article together, and when they finished Rai asked if they had had any questions. A group of girls that had been working together raised their hands.

“Can we present the play?” One of the girls, had asked. A few girls had ooo’d at the idea, and some of them got huge blushes.

“Like act the whole thing out? Hmmm… I’d have to ask Mrs. Nakai about that. She has that we’ll be doing a guided reading, maybe we can turn it into a presentation.” Rai remarked, at first liking the idea.

It was after that that she started to regret it.

“Dibbs on Mercutio!” said a student, a small lean boy with thick rimmed glasses.

“I wanna be Paris!” said a normally quiet and reserved girl.

“You can’t be Paris, he’s a boy!” said her friend.

“Juliet would have to be the most popular girl.” Said the girl Rai suspected had whispered the remark about Lilly earlier, who flicked her hair over her shoulder.

“If she’s gonna be Juliet, who will be Romeo?” Said someone else.

The class devolved into students calling out parts excitedly as Rai tried to get them under control as one of the other assistants just smiled at her.

Shortly after, the bell had rung, and the students were dismissed off to their next period, with Rai completely unsure if her final calls of “No promises!” affected them at all.

She plopped down in Lilly’s chair. “Blllllaaaahhh” She moaned, head firmly placed between her palms.

“I call dibbs on NOT playing Romeo.” Said a voice. Rai looked up to see the assistant that had been smiling at her, Ichigo Kemuri standing in front of the desk. He was smiling even now, short black hair combed to the side. He was pretty handsome, by Rai’s standards, but given how her last relationship turned out she wasn’t exactly looking for a new one. “Gruesome death isn’t exactly my thing.” He said, laughing. “Now Macbeth! That’s a role I can get behind.”

“Macbeth dies too, you know. In a worse way, if I remember right.” Rai remarks, pointedly.

“Ah, but you see,” Ichigo said conspiratorially. He paused, as if to build tension. “I don’t know any other Shakespearian plays.” He finished lamely.

That had made Rai laugh, and the man seemed pleased with his joke. “Well, I can tell you, not many of them end well for their namesakes. Ugh, I hate Shakespeare.” She said, bitterly. “Don’t get me wrong, I love Lilly’s class, but, like, why Shakespeare?”

“Well, it is an English class.” Ichigo said, amused.

“Yea but any other play would have been so much nicer. I know these backwards to front, I had to analyze a lot of Shakespeare in college.” She explained. “I never gained any sort of appreciation for them, and the guy can honestly shove his quill up his-” she cut off herself, as she noticed a rather impressively muscled looking man standing in the door leaning on it with the smuggest look on his face. His stance, arm above his head and opposing hand in his pocket, only accentuated his physical look, his suit jacket unbuttoned likely because he couldn’t close it over his broad chest.

“He’s actually her favorite writer.” Hisao Nakai said, pealing himself off of the wall and entering the class. “She’s got the braille version of all of his plays in a collection. I gave it to her as an anniversary present.” He said. He winked at Rai, who had a horrified expression on her face. 

Ichigo turned and looked back and forth, apparently unfamiliar.

“Hello, nice to meet you.” Hisao said, sticking his hand out to Ichigo. “Hisao Nakai, Lilly is my wife.”

“Ah,” Ichigo said, taking his hand and shaking it. “You’ve got a nice firm grip there.” 

“Oh, haha, sorry.” Hisao remarked, placing his hand behind his head with a smile. “I’ve been working out a lot recently. Rai,” he said, turning to the smaller girl. “Would you be interested in getting lunch with Lilly and myself at our home? We’d be honored to have you.” He said. “It’s just a short walk from the school, although I’m sure you know that after last night.” He said, winking. 

Rai, whose face was as red as her hair, nodded her head. “Umm, yes, Hisao. I’d love to.”

She stood up, gathering her things as well as scooping up Lilly’s notes before realizing she had, placing them back down, still flushed. She went to behind Lilly’s desk, to a small fridge that the teachers and assistants were allowed to keep for their lunches in, as Hisao and Ichigo made conversation whilst she did. Rai overheard them talking about sports, and something about the track team, until Rai was ready and they set off, bidding Ichigo a farewell.

They walked in silence for a few moments, Rai sneaking looks at Hisao, who still had that smug smile on his face. “You’re not gonna tell her I said that, right?” She said, still embarrassed.

Hisao laughed. “Of course not. Between you and me,” he said, looking over with a wink, “I can’t stand him either. Like why does everything have to end in tragedy?”

“I know, right!? I mean… I know that there are happier plays, comedies and whatnot, but all of the most popular stuff is so…”

“Dark.” Hisao finished.

“Yea, that’s a good way to put it.” Rai said, nodding her head. “It’s all families hating families and conflict, and I know why that can be good, I just want to read something light sometimes, you know?”

“Hmm, sounds like you watch a lot of TV.” Hisao said.

“Oh gosh,” Rai said, with a huff. “I had to stop myself from asking Ichigo how he got his name because I watched too much Anime when I was a teenager.” Rai lied. She watched it regularly, including the one where she had plucked his name from.

“How old are you, if you don’t mind me asking?” Hisao inquired, curiously.

“I’m 21!” Rai said. 

“Ah, congratulations.” Hisao remarked, smiling. “Lilly and I just passed 23 earlier this year.”

“Oh, I thought you might be older than she was.” Rai said. They reached the familiar apartment as they walked, and entered the lobby. Hisao inserted a key into the elevator, which was something Rai must have missed Lilly doing the previous night, and pressed a button, summoning it down.

Maybe I was a bit tipsier than I thought, she thought to herself, biting her lip.

Hisao chuckled. “No, actually, she has about two months on me. She was born in February and myself in April.”

That’d explain the fool-ness Rai thought to herself as she pressed the fifth floor with a smirk. 

They rode up the elevator in a comfortable silence, and as the elevator doors opened they were greeted by the wonderful smells of cooking.

Hisao laughed to himself as he stepped forwards, walking a short distance to the familiar door. 5B, Rai noted to herself. He opened it with a greeting.

“Angel? We’re here.” He announced. Rai noticed how he said we’re to announce her presence as well. She supposed that there was a lot that the pair said through unspoken words to assist one another. The thought made her smile.

Lilly called back to them, but Rai couldn’t well make out what she had said.

“Come on in.” Hisao said, holding the door.

Rai entered and saw the table ahead of them. There was a large bowl of fried rice and noodles, as well as what looked like some shrimp and steak with it. Lilly entered from her kitchen area, carrying a trey with some delicious looking fish. She looked in her element as she cooked. “Wonderful!” she called out to the pair. I just finished. She placed the fish onto the table with a large smile on her face.

“This looks amazing!” Hisao called out. “Honey, you really went all out. I see Akira’s drink did wonders.” He said happily.

Lilly was already loading up a plate. “Oh, it did more than that. I’m starving.” She said. She picked a piece of steak off of the plate with her bare hands and ate it, still grabbing more. “Mhmm, ‘elp yoorselfs.” She said, covering her mouth with her hand as she chewed.

Hisao scooped up a plate and began gathering food onto it, and Rai followed. “This looks amazing Lilly.”

She took a moment to respond, swallowing down food. “Ahh, thank you Rai.” She then dipped a piece of shrimp into a little bowl of sauce, raising it to her lips and biting at it. It was apparent just how hungry the girl must have been, as she almost demolished her plate.

The group sat down and Rai began to eat. The food was exceptionally good, better than some restaurants made it, and there was just so much! She felt like she was at dinner more than lunch. Hisao stood up, patting his wife’s shoulder. “Would you like something to drink?” He asked her?

“Oh, goodness!” She said. “I’m so sorry, I had completely forgotten.”

Hisao chuckled. “Don’t worry, I remember Akira’s drink. I got something special for you.” He walked off to the kitchen, returning with three cans of pop. He opened up Lilly’s before giving it to her, and a wide smile graced her face. She took a deep drink as Hisao handed Rai hers, and sighed contently before returning to her meal.

“Who is Akira?” Rai asked.

“Oh, she’s Lilly’s sister. She’s living in Scotland right now.”

“I really need to call her.” Lilly mused. “Perhaps when you two return to school. Speaking of which, how was class today Rai?”

“Weeeeeelll…” Rai paused. The other woman halted at her tone, food halfway to her mouth. “The student’s may be… under the impression… that we’ll be presenting Romeo and Juliet together.” She said, slightly cringing.

“That sounds like an excellent idea!” Lilly exclaimed. “I was planning on us doing guided readings, but getting the students involved is a wonderful thought. You’ll have to do that with the other classes as well.” Lilly said. Rai felt relief spread through her, then a bit of embarrassment as she heard the other woman’s stomach groan. Lilly, a bit of a blush on her face, returned to her meal. In between bites she spoke. “We’ll have to decide parts.”

“Rai was telling me that she’s quite knowledgeable in Shakespeare.” Hisao spoke. He winked at Rai, who was looking at him in horror.

Lilly seemed overjoyed to hear that though. “Truly? Marvelous!” She smiled widely in Rai’s direction until she raised a hand to her mouth. “Oof. Apologies. Akira developed a... cure-all, for when situations such as last night’s indulgence would debilitate. Without her, I’d be stuck in bed all day. However, as I’m sure you’ve noticed,” she said jokingly, her hand holding up her empty plate, “it makes one exceptionally hungry.”

“Well, you can always have more. We’ll have a lot of leftovers, I suspect.” Hisao said, pushing his own cleared plate forward. Rai had also finished hers, although she’d eaten much less than either of the pair. “We have to be headed back to school.” Hisao told his wife. Rai checked her phone, and saw that it was true.

“Really? So soon?” Lilly said, pouting over her drink.

“I’m afraid so, sweetheart.” Hisao said. He stood from his spot and kissed his wife’s head. Her hand raised, gripping his shoulder. In her tank top, Rai could see that her belly wasn’t the only place filling out, and her upward movement only accentuated the woman’s enhanced curves.

“I’ll give you two a moment.” Rai said. “I will see you tomorrow Lilly.” Rai said cheerfully.

“Oh yes, we’ll talk all about our favorite plays.” Lilly said back to her. Rai just laughed in a manner she hoped didn’t sound awkward and stepped from the apartment, soda in hand. The door hadn’t closed all the way behind her, and she heard a sharp girlish giggle from the cracked door. After a few moments quiet, Hisao stepped from the room, a large smile on his face.

“Will she be alright cleaning up on her own?” Rai asked him.

“Hmm?” Hisao said, distracted. “Oh, yea. Don’t worry about her.” He said with a smile. “Lilly can certainly find her way around the kitchen.”

The blush had not yet left Lilly’s face as she returned to her seat. Hisao had lifted her shirt up, placing his hand upon her stomach as they kissed, and pinched it. 

It was so strange, something she’d never thought would happen to her, and yet her she was. She patted her own middle now, rubbing it circularly. She couldn’t see how much leftovers there were, but she knew there’d be plenty.

… Maybe she could have just a bit more.

Lilly huffed as she sat down on the couch. Their living room was a bit small, however given the lack of a need for something like a TV for entertainment, they were able to make the most of it. They had a small television that was pretty much only ever used for news, because the pair only ever used their books for when they had received free time.

If they ever received free time.

Lilly moaned, her stomach almost painfully full after her meal. She’d finished an entire extra plate before packing all of the leftovers into the fridge. There was enough for a few more meals in there, although if she ate as she had today… well, then it wouldn’t last so long.

She rubbed her hand on her stomach, the skin felt taunt due to her stuffing. It felt wonderful, for some odd reason. She couldn’t figure it out, and she didn’t even know if she had really wanted to, but she loved this feeling of fullness. 

She reached out to her side table, where she kept a notepad as well as a voice recorder. She decided that she would need to do some work, and plan out how her class would go about presenting a play that even English speaking students deemed hard to read. The play endured the same issue that anything old and outdated did, in that it’s language was far out of reach. Such as the famous balcony scene, where Juliet is asking “Wherefore art thou Romeo?” Many people interpret it as her asking WHERE Romeo is, but in reality she is asking WHY he is. Why he is a Montague to her Capulet, why their families must be at war. If she were to give the roles to the students, many of them will have issues with pronunciation, and some who had issues with sight might not be able to read the script at all. Sure, she had copies in braille ready for students like Benjamin, who’d gone out of their way to learn, but even so…

“Ooohhh.” She moaned, her stomach gurgled as it digested. It didn’t seem in the mood to debate the topic of roles and students. However, Lilly knew she’d have to come up with something. Then, an idea struck her. If the students would have issue presenting the main parts of the play… yes, that may work! Afterall, Rai said she knew Shakespeare well. Lilly smiled as she wrote down her idea. Her stomach gurgled again and she realized that her breathing had gotten slower, heavier.

Would it be so wrong to maybe just close her eyes?

Just for a little bit…

‘I’ll finish up with this soon,’ she thought to herself. She yawned softly, and felt her head lolling to the side. After all, she had all day.

Lilly closed her eyes, and she slept.

*BZZZZT*

“Mhhhfff” Lilly moaned.

*BZZZZT*

She opened her eyes, more out of instinct than any meaning. Was that the door buzzer? She hefted herself up, realizing as it fell that her shirt had somehow come up while she slept and exposed her stomach. She must have been rubbing it unconsciously…

*BZZZZT*

“I’m coming.” Lilly said to nobody. She walked to the door and had to feel around for the buzzer switch. They never had guests come without their being there, especially not when she was home alone. What time is it even? She asked herself. It certainly wasn’t Hisao, he had a key as well. She felt her hand skate over what felt like a speaker, and thumbed the button beneath it.

“Yes? Who is this?” she called down through the transmitter.

“It’s Rai.” Said a happy voice on the other end.

“And Benjamin!” Called another voice. 

Lilly recognized them both, although it was quite odd for the pair to be visiting her.

“Oh. Umm, come on up.” She said. She pressed the unlock button on the keypad, and heard Rai moan.

“Awww, isn’t there one for the elevator?”

Lilly chuckled to herself. If the two of them found it so important to wake her, then they were free to use the stairs. She walked to the bathroom to comb her long hair as they did, she was sure it looked as if she’d just woken up. 

After a minute or two, a knock on her door signified that they had made the trip. Lilly opened the door and was greeted by the fresh smell of baking.

“Hello Lilly.”

“Good evening Mrs. Nakai.”

The two voices spoke in unison, and their respective owners laughed.

“Good evening to the both of you.” Lilly said, smiling in a manner which she hoped was patiently. “Is there something I can do to assist you?”

“Well-” they both started and stopped. If it weren’t for Benjamin, Lilly’d have rolled her eyes in exasperation. Instead, she just giggled.

“W-well…” Benjamin said. “I- uh- I mean, we, we wanted to drop you off some cookies that we’d made in cooking club.” He’d said. 

“You don’t need to be so modest.” Rai said to him. “It was Benjamin’s idea.” She said to Lilly. Lilly blushed slightly. “Oh my,” she said, raising a hand to her cheek. “How sweet of you.” She said, a large smile on her face. 

“H-here.” He said, nervously. Lilly heard what sounded like rattling as Benjamin held out what must have been a container. Her face perked as she reached out and took it. It was a metal circular container, with little grooves along the side and the top. The cookies must have been placed inside.

“My my, thank you Benjamin.” She said, inclining her head towards where he’d spoken.

“No problem!” he said, a bit too excited. Lilly just smiled. “Umm, that container is one of the ones for the cooking club. Since you’re an official member, mom told me to make sure you knew that you can keep it. Ms. Kato got one too. Mom said to bring it to every meeting, so that you can be sure to take home things.” 

Lilly smiled at the boy. “You must tell her thank you from me.” She said, bowing her head again. “This is very lovely. I’m sure I’ll be able to put it to good use.”

“Okay! I mean, that’s good! I hope that, umm, I hope that you’re feeling better.” Benjamin said.

“I feel wonderful now, much better than this morning. Thank you.” Lilly said.

“Alright, come on Ben. Your mother will have the car downstairs waiting for you.” Rai said.

“Okay.” Ben responded to her. “Have a good night, Mrs. Nakai.”

“Goodnight Ben.” She said. “And goodnight to you as well Rai.” She said, bowing towards her.

“It was no issue.” Rai said. Lilly made to close the door, and as it was swinging shut she heard Rai whisper, “Good job, Ben.”

Lilly smiled. She had suspected that the boy had held something of a crush on her, but all the same this was exceptionally sweet on his part. He was going to make a woman very happy someday.

He may have made one very happy today, in fact. She thought to herself. She walked over to the kitchen table and felt the metal container. The lid of the container had a few symbols on it, spelling out the school name in Japanese. Lilly had remembered how it was trying to learn how to write in Japanese, using only her fingers to trace and memorize the symbols… what a nightmare that’d been.

She popped open the container, and the scent of chocolate chipped cookies instantly filled the apartment. She reached down and took one in her hand. It was still warm, and she felt the chocolate melting onto her fingers.

“Well,” she thought to herself, not for the first time that evening. “It is my day off…”