Karma x Rio

Cafe Time 2 Electric Boogaloo + A/N

Note: This'll be a short one bc i'm just trying to provide an adequate end to the previous chapter (it's actually been 3 years since the last time i updated lol)

Pls ignore all continuity errors because my memory is bad.
_________________________________________
After classes end for the day and Karma finally escapes everyone who wants to talk to him, he opens his phone for the first time since lunchtime. Upon seeing a voicemail from Rio, he recalls her depressed demeanor during class and nervously clicks on the play icon, awaiting tears, screaming, or worse, an emergency that he's too late to respond to.

"Um....Karma can you come here? I'm near a cafe called Anteiku and some strange stuff is happening right now, please hurry I-"

The voicemail ends abruptly and Karma shudders at the thoughts that pop into his head.

He looks up "Anteiku" on a map and walks briskly in that direction, eventually breaking into a jog as more intrusive thoughts swim through his mind.

I'll never forgive myself if the last thing that I said to my own girlfriend was a dismissive comment about her nightmare. I know she's tough and unbothered on the outside but sometimes those kinds of people are the ones who need the most support.

He reaches the cafe and the lights are already out, with the sign flipped to closed. There were some gory sounds coming from the back of the shop that Karma really hoped was none of his business. He peeked around the corner to see 3 people in cafe uniforms with... tentacles??/wings??/snakes??? coming out of their backs. He didn't see Rio in the fray and decided it was best not to engage with whoever they were. Once he reached a safe enough distance from the sight he just witnessed, he decided to call Rio back. As he was about to dial her number, he noticed a familiar blonde head behind a large tree in the nearby park.

Rio's POV
Tired of waiting for Karma, I sat under a tree that was far enough away from the ruckus that I witnessed earlier, but still close enough for him to spot me (if he ever decided to show up). Vague memories of the nightmare I had last night flash in my mind as I hold my knees closer to my chest and sip on my americano.

I thought he cared about me... was I looking at him through rose-tinted glasses these past few months? I guess he's technically known for his laidback demeanor or "semi-senioritis" but shouldn't he care a little bit more about my feelings? I even got him strawberry cake from that creepy cafe because I know he likes it. What has he done for me??

Omniscient POV
As Rio's mind spirals a bit towards her anxieties, a familiar head of red hair sits down beside her.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't comfort you about your nightmare when it clearly took a toll on your mental state. I'm sorry I didn't make it up to you during lunch and instead stayed to listen to Maehara ramble on about his stupid fixations. And I'm sorry that I wasn't there for you today when you were in danger and needed me." Karma sighs, even more disappointed in his lack of effort now than he had ever been with exams and classwork. This time, it wasn't just a grade he was sacrificing; it was a relationship with a real person that he let down. And it made him feel much worse.

The sniffling coming from Rio quickly grew to complete sobs as she listened to his heartfelt apology. The entire day, she felt like she was making a big deal out of nothing, like her brain's goal was to invalidate the emotions that she felt, and it was actually winning. In reality, she didn't care about some stupid nightmare, but rather what it represented. She was afraid of losing the first person she'd ever had a real connection to, and that nightmare had visualized all her fears and insecurities for her to mull over.

A thumb came up to wipe away her tears as Karma let her rest her head on his shoulder.

"Let it all out. It's ok to not be ok sometimes. In the future, I'll be more attentive and make sure you never doubt how I feel about you."

His lips curved into a sad smile as he wrapped an arm around her and felt her ragged breaths eventually normalize. He wished someone had been there for him when he was feeling like this. Everyone always placed so many expectations on him that he was never truly able to tune in with his emotions, especially not as a teenage boy. 

Once Rio had calmed down somewhat and the sun was beginning its descent toward the horizon, she looked at him and laughed a bit. "Thanks for that. I'll do my best to share any worries I have about us in the future, and I hope you're able to do the same someday. Oh yeah, I also got you a strawberry cake from that creepy cafe before I got the hell out of there. I know you like strawberries :)"

The cake box was a bit crushed under Karma's butt when he sat down next to Rio, and a bit of whipped cream was stuck on his pants. They both laughed it off and shared the cake as they watched the golden sun dip below the horizon, signaling the end of their stressful day as the heavens prepared for the next. 🌙

END
_________________________________________
A/N
I thought this would only be a few paragraphs and a fast way to end this series (just bc I promised a 2nd part to the few readers who follow this story and I felt bad about leaving this on a cliffhanger for 3 years), but I just love typing out my silly little words on the silly little page. Anyways, I will not be continuing this because I'm getting secondhand embarrassment from my own writing from years ago and I only really remembered this existed because ao3 is down and I needed a story in my brain 😀.

Seeing how much my writing and vocabulary has improved in a few years has been very rewarding for me, especially since I've never really considered myself a writer. I could've done better on some of the romance parts since this is supposed to be a romance fic but I am aroace and trying my best. I sure hope that after I post this I don't get hit with the ff writer's curse and my entire bloodline drops dead. That would be bad.