Did you know you're my hero?

A fluttering heart

Agent Eight was excited. Her heart always beat a little faster whenever she got to spend time with Three, and today was no exception.

She hadn't even left the house yet, so her glee was quite amusing to the idol pair.

"Gosh but seeing her like this is the cutest thing." Pearl said to Marina as the two of them observed from around the corner.

The younger Octoling had expressed no small amount of worry when she'd gotten to the surface about where in the world she'd be staying, and it was a quick decision of the pair's part to let her crash with them until she found something better. Of course, that had only been a month ago and Pearl and Marina had already grown quite attached to this new addition to their home. They had this motherly affection for her, though they'd be hard-pressed to actually describe it that way themselves.

Marina chuckled. "I'm glad she's not too spooked by stuff like this anymore. She used to hate going out by herself."

"I mean, she's still working on that."

"Definitely."

"But progress is progress and I'm proud of her! Three's a good influence."

Eight hadn't heard a word, she was too busy fussing over her appearance in the mirror. Cuttlefish had lent her his coat as a comfort item, and she wore it everywhere with some other shoes she bought that she thought matched, but her headgear took a bit more time to arrange. She'd saw an Inkling in the plaza wearing them and had ordered it without really knowing what that meant. Luckily Pearl and Marina had lent her money to actually buy it from Murch.

The headband itself wasn't the difficult part: that honor went to the sequins that came with it. She didn't know why, but despite her crippling anxiety she didn't feel at all self-conscious with the glittery things under her eyes. She felt almost confident, enough to almost ignore the attention the high-grade and stand-outy gear got her at times.

Once she had finished affixing the final sequin to her face, she looked herself over. She felt like blue ink today; cotton candy blue, to be specific. After a few turf war matches, she'd settled on a favorite color pretty fast.

She twirled a bit in the mirror, looking herself up and down once last time, before dissolving into a small giggle fit. Gosh if she wasn't excited!

Her giggling made Pearl and Marina laugh in turn, which finally managed to catch 8's attention. She blushed a little. "H-have you two been w-watching this whole time?"

Marina held a hand over her lip. "Sorry, we couldn't help it! It's just nice to see you so happy is all!"

The light blue Octoling blushed a bit more, rubbing the back of her neck in embarrassment. "G-guys..."

Pearl snickered. "Should we lend you some money? What do you two plan on doing, anyway?"

The agent shook her head, brushing away the bashful feeling with another smile. "Y-you don't need to do that, I've been trying to earn my own money, s-so I don't impose more than I already am..."

The sole Inkling in the room scoffed. "You aren't imposing, Eight."

"B-but you've done so much for me and-"

The other got a fierce look in her eye. "And we're gonna continue to do so where we can because we love and support you! Get with the program!!"

The little Octoling looked touched, and also like she going to cry. "P-Pearl..."

Marina smiled softly, entering the room properly and putting her hands on Eight's shoulders. "I know you don't want to feel like a burden, Eight, but you don't need to worry! We just want you to have fun on your date!"

The blush on the smaller one's face came back in full force. She put her hands up defensively. "I-i-it's not a date, Marina! Gosh, I'd be way too embarrassed if it was, Three is way too cool for me."

Pearl scoffed again. "Whaaaaat, you're definitely cool, kid! You're the coolest!"

Eight scratched her cheek. "It's nice that you think so, b-but it's still not a d-date." She blushed a bit brighter at the word. "We're just gonna go h-hang out, maybe get some soda or something."

The Inkling grinned a sly grin. "C'mon kid, we're gonna get you to admit it one of these days. You know you've got a thing for her~"

Eight covered her face. "Y-you know, I think I'll leave early! I d-don't want her to worry about me!" She yelped as she rushed out the door, nearly tripping as she did so.

Marina sighed. "Come on Pearlie, she left so fast I didn't even get to give her the spare cash."

She scratched her cheek in slight embarrassment. "Haha, oops, sorry."

"You're going to splat her one day with all your teasing, you know."

"Oh come on I know you ship it too."

The Octoling laughed. "You can't prove anything, Pearlie!"