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"Can we talk?"
You never liked those three words, especially when they were coming from Tzuyu's mouth. It always sounded like she was about to break up with you, or accuse you of something, or start an argument that was hardly necessary. Not that it happened often, of course- you and Tzuyu shared that relationship that most others dreamed about- nothing but flowers and rainbows for the entirety of your relationship together.
Those words were rare, basically nonexistent, but once in a blue moon they were spoken, but even then, it never lead to anything that caused a problem. Most times, Tzuyu only wanted to rant to you about school or work experiences, or sometimes she wanted to ask you a serious question. However, sometimes, even more rare than those three words themselves, "can we talk" did lead to something less than pleasant.
One of those times happened to be right now, when you had been nose deep into your homework for the fifth night in a row, after hours of class, followed by practice, with hardly any time to see your girlfriend. Tzuyu had texted you, asking to come over, and you were reluctant at first, telling her that you were too busy, but she had insisted, and with time you gave in, telling her to be over in ten minutes.
It was the first time you had seen Tzuyu in two weeks. Her constant invitations to hang out were frequently declined by you, your focus set solely on your own schedule. You had been busy, so utterly busy, that there was no time for hanging out, and you didn't give a second thought to anything except your current tasks at hand- your finals that were approaching much too soon, your soccer championship that had been stressing you out for the past month, and the lack of sleep you had been getting from it all.
She arrived at your dorm shortly after you told her to, her blank expression matching yours perfectly. "Hey." she whispered as you welcomed her into your room. Under most circumstances, you probably would have commented on her lack of expression, but your mind was elsewhere, as it had been for weeks.
"Hey." You greeted in return, wandering back to your desk to continue with your work. You scribbled furiously all over your papers, with formulas, definitions, pointless material, doodles, anything and everything that came to your mind as you worked. "What's up?"
Tzuyu took a seat at your small table in the corner of the room, eyes staring down at her hands as you paid no mind to her, feeling a sad sensation crawl through her chest that anyone else would have described as heartbreak. She was silent, and you didn't even notice.
Your thoughts surrounded the books and notes in front of you, eyes darting back and forth between the colorful pages of your textbook, taking in any information you could possibly retain, and you had been on a roll until Tzuyu spoke up so suddenly.
"Can we talk?"
You paused from your writing just for a moment to respond. "Sure, what is it?" You questioned half heartedly as you picked up your pencil to continue with your studying.
Tzuyu sighed. "Are we.. are we okay?" She asked quietly, and you barely caught what she said. You turned to glance at her briefly, noticing her eyes staring into yours, but what you didn't notice was the sad expression she wore.
"Of course we're okay, Yoda." You said, returning to your books once again. You didn't give a second thought as to why she asked that, and figured it was just her feeling a bit vunerable and in need of a bit of reassurance.
Tzuyu leaned forward in her chair, trying to get you to look at her again, without any luck. "It doesn't feel like we are." She huffed after giving up on getting your attention. When you didn't respond, Tzuyu could have sworn she felt her blood boiling. "Can you look at me, please?" She snapped angrily.
Tzuyu's sudden outburst startled you, and you dropped your pencil as you jumped slightly in your seat, turning to meet your girlfriend's eyes, all while looking like a deer caught in headlights.
"It doesn't feel like we're okay, (Y/N)." Tzuyu commented softly, greatly contrasting her anger just a moment ago. "I barely see you anymore. You always shoot me down when I ask to make plans. I know you have finals coming up, but is there really no room for your girlfriend? Or are you avoiding me?"
"What? No, Tzuyu, I'm not av-" Your voice caught in your throat as you noticed the tears that had fallen from Tzuyu's eyes, and in that moment, you felt your heart sink. Tzuyu rarely cried, and on the rare occasions that she did, you reacted as if it were the end of the world. "Hey!" You yelped, springing up from your seat at your desk, nearly tripping on your own feet as you rushed to Tzuyu's side. "Hey, don't cry! I'm not avoiding you, I promise, I- I've just been so busy with studying and practice, and-"
Tzuyu sniffled and looked down at her lap as another tear fell from her eyes, her cheeks red and blotchy from crying. "You could have just told me that from the start," she choked, shrugging away from your touch as you reached for her arm, "instead of blowing me off with no explanation. That's not fair."
You felt awful, knowing that Tzuyu was right and this was your fault. It was true that you had been blowing her off, but only because you were swarmed with so many different tasks with such a small time frame to complete them in, plus the soccer championships coming up right around the corner. You were overwhelmed, and you pushed Tzuyu away because of it.
"I know, I'm sorry, Yoda." You sighed, reaching out for her again, which this time she neither rejected nor accepted. She just sat there, looking away while you rubbed her back gently, your eyes staring sadly at your girlfriend. "I'm under a lot of stress right now," you began with another sigh, rubbing your forehead, "and I've been working nonstop. I should have told you that. That was stupid of me."
Tzuyu nodded in agreement that yes, that was stupid of you. "I thought you were getting tired of me." Tzuyu admitted sadly. "I thought you didn't want to see me."
"I'm sorry." You repeated in a defeated tone, hanging your head in shame. "I suck."
"You do." Tzuyu huffed.
You planted a swift kiss on Tzuyu's head that she tried to swat away, but you beat her to it. "I could never get tired of you, Yoda." You reassured her with a gentle squeeze on her shoulder. "I promise you that. And I promise I'll stop being a crap girlfriend and actually let you know what's going on with me."
"Good."
You sat there with Tzuyu for a few more moments, constantly apologizing just about every two seconds, until you had a thought. "Tell you what," You smiled, pulling her up from her chair, "how about I take a break from studying and we go get ice cream?"
As soon as Tzuyu nodded, you were pulling her out the door, more than happy to finally enjoy the break you deserved with your favorite girl.
