"No," Mya retorted as she rummaged through the cupboards in her bedroom, with Jesse following her. "I just don't appreciate him sticking his nose into my business. His nose is highly out of joint because of Sawyer. He has no right to get involved in my relationship with him. Sawyer has been the first guy I've actually wanted to be serious with!"

Jesse exhaled, laying across Mya's bed with a tablet in hand, trying to follow the conversation of the angry woman. However, there was a repeated tangent of 'all the things that were wrong with Richie,' while Mya continued to search through her clothes for what she was looking for.

Jesse really hadn't cared for the millionth time during this particular rant. It was the same thing with no real substance besides the fact that they were both angry at each other.

Thankfully, a knock on the door interrupted the tirade. Mya's company grew as Jasmine and Eko both entered, sporting awkwardly large and very nervous smiles.

"As long as you're just here to be here and not lecture me," Mya said, focusing her attention on Jasmine, who waved her hands in defense.

"Just moral support, babe," Jasmine replied with a smile. "And to raid your shoe collection."

"Moral support as well!" Eko squeaked, raising her hands in solidarity.

Mya stepped away from the door and back into the room, with Eko following and Jasmine leading her towards the bed where Jesse was sitting and reading her tablet. Eko took a seat beside Jesse, allowing the red-haired soldier to prop herself up and readjust her body.

Laying her head then back down on Eko's legs, the two watched Jasmine, with ulterior motives, bend down in front of Mya's wardrobe and begin rummaging through her closet.

"I need your red open-toed Ferragamo's," Jasmine began, dismissing Mya, who stood there with folded arms, glaring at the woman and even more annoyed for going through her neatly stacked shoes. "I still can't believe you found a pair! Why did he have to die during the war? He made fabulous shoes."

"Jaz, you actually don't," Mya insisted, still highly strung from what had just happened. "They are my favorite pair. Do not touch them. Go find your own!"

"I don't have that kind of money! And you found these! These were essentially free, and I need them for the graduation!" Jasmine whined, trying to dig through Mya's closet between her own clothes and Mackenzie's.

It proved challenging amidst the chaos before her, even if Mya insisted that everything was categorized properly.

Structured chaos was not a proper organizational method.

"Graduation?" Eko asked between the girls. She felt Jesse look up at her, nodding, and it brought the sky blues of Eko's eyes down to her.

"First, there are war games as part of the cadets final training, which is actually starting tomorrow as we all know. So they all sign in, get prepped, yada, yada... Then there is the graduation for those that passed at the end of next week," Jesse explained.

"Right," Eko nodded.

"It's really a lovely event," Mya began, calmer than before, pushing Jasmine forward into her closet if only just to annoy her.

"Hey," Jasmine's high-pitched voice began, trying to gather herself before pulling back from Mya's rude attitude.

"Jesse runs the committee with Jasmine. Each year has been amazing!" Mya continued

"And this one will top it all," Jasmine, leaning on her knees, turned to the three women. "We're going with a masked event. We haven't done one of those in a while. I am soooo, utterly excited for this!"

"Jasmine's idea," Jesse exhaled, lazily collecting the tablet to read again the article she was engrossed with. "Next year, we are back to the simple black tie. But she won our little bet, so she got to choose the theme."

"So this is an actual thing," Eko laughed, perking up. "Fascinating." She was so ready to attend a formal event, having actually loved them back home when her mama allowed them.

"Of course it is. Cadets look forward to this," Mya explained. "Those who successfully graduate are either granted residency here. In cases of low scores, arrangements are made for them to be transferred to other academies. The same process applies to those graduating from other bases. If we identify cadets with outstanding scores from other locations, they may, in turn, be offered a place at Allegiant."

"So how do you stop growing, rotate everyone? To ensure you don't over-capitalize here." Eko was curious about the structure.

"Cid and Matthew discuss this during their quarterly meetings with the headmasters to address the growth, and they decide on building another academy. The funding is allocated, and the ones like Belle and Ace, which are under construction right now, are established," Jesse clarified without looking up. "Then, individuals with a higher rank assume leadership roles, and we commence the process of shifting around soldiers and cadets. Some individuals retire from this life, while others continue until older ages. Not all soldiers who experienced the war with Ezra have an entirely long lifespan, as you can imagine."

"Yea, makes sense." Eko nodded.

"It just adds to the portfolio of academies which I've been delegated to look after thanks to your mate," Jesse smirked, her green eyes meeting Eko's as she poked her tongue out.

"It's not delegation when you're a control freak that loves that stuff," Eko countered.

"Oi..." Mya folded her arms and stared at Jesse. "What are you reading anyway? Why are you here and there?"

Jesse turned her head to the woman tapping her foot. Patience was not a virtue with Mya.

"I'm reading a new column piece by Adelaide, Mom," Jesse replied sarcastically.

Mya shook her head in disapproval, while Jasmine let out a scoff as she held up two shoes that were just a touch too small on her. Eko, on the other hand, furrowed her eyebrows once again. "Adelaide?"

Jesse tilted her head and looked up at Eko, "You know, the royal columnist? She has an opinion on everything."

Eko tilted her head slightly, knowing that she typically stayed away from the gossip section of the publishing houses. What she loved reading was what she wore and the amazing photos the publishing houses took of her. She was a sucker for that, but the gossip side of stuff? Nope, no, she steered clear of that.

"I don't really read her articles," Eko admitted, "butttt... I'm curious now. What is she saying?"

"Agreed." Mya rolled her eyes, "what was so interesting that you barely heard what I was saying?"

"I heard what you were saying," Jesse stuck her tongue out playfully, "but you were bitching about the same thing, babe, with Richie. We get it. Honestly, he's a dick, and I love him, but... sometimes guys like him don't get over the stuff you guys went through."

"Like?" Eko cocked her head. Nobody had still told her exactly what happened, and Matthew was tight-lipped about it. Jasmine, however, waved ferociously at her, signaling her to cut Jesse off and not egg Mya on with her furious state.

"Like, he's a fucken asshole, and I don't know how I even had a kid with that dick! I don't even know what the hell I was thinking, even liking him in the first place! I want to just smack his smug face in, chop off his stupid fucken man bun, and just stab him!"

Three mouths dropped in worry at Mya's rage.

"Do you, like...neeeeed...coffee?" Eko managed, knowing it was the one default thing she resorted to since knowing Mya.

"Oh! I could do coffee," Jasmine quickly jumped onto the diversion, wanting to move away from that conversation.

"Okay, let's do that!" Jesse pushed herself upright from lying down. "I need to be with the cadets and Matthew once he's done with Cid."

"Maybe I am actually hungry," Mya exhaled, "and I need to eat before I start my shift."

"Wait, aren't you supposed to head out on the first run?" Jasmine asked, holding one of Mya's blue velvet high heels and eyeing it as if she was considering stealing it.

"No, it's the fifth run for me, unless the schedule changes. I have three days before my field exam for my doctorate," Mya replied, grabbing a navy jacket from her closet to combat the evening chill. It was colder than the other nights had been, and she wasn't used to the weather this far down the coast.

"Let's grab some food aswell I'm sure Richie is with Mac, and the cafeteria won't be a warzone with you guys," Jesse suggested, getting up from the bed with Eko.

"You're right," Mya mumbled, "Sawyer should be done anyway, so I'll catch up with him hopefully later tonight. Honestly, it was just the nerve of that man."

Mya had now completely sounded like herself, bar coffee, Eko noted, rather than the barking wild hyena from only half an hour ago. How could she find out more about this story without truly prying?

A voice pulled Eko back from her thoughts, as the frustrated groan of Mya with the whole situation echoed around them, "I just can't afford to have any more hate in my head. My hate is at capacity."

Which in turn forced Jasmine to rise from the floor, leaving half the wardrobe bombarded by the hurricane that she had been, and looked over to her friend that had been shaking her head.

"Let's eat." Jasmine offered. "we'll order all the dessert from Cassie, she's on duty tonight, and then you can come back and snog your boyfriend."

"Jasmine." Mya whined at the kissing effects and puckering of lips that the purple-haired woman was making towards Mya.

Jesse laughed, grabbing Eko's hand, as she pulled her forward, "let's go!"

awwww.... who doesn't love some close girlfrienddssssss #bless

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