>you wound up sleeping in this morning, sitting up and rubbing your eyes, your thoughts of what you were going to do this Saturday stopped abruptly as a big scaled hand clapped to your chest
>"Lay back down, you're still warm, and I'm not getting up."
>Susie pulls you back down to lay with her with minimal effort
>oh yeah, that's right, you shared a bed with her and the two of you had touched each other for quite awhile
>okay it was more than -just- touching
>nice.
>as you laid there mentally playing back what had happened, the dragon draped an arm around you and nestled closer, idly nosing at the top of your head
>so she's affectionate when just waking up, that's pretty damn cute
>you weren't really wanting to go back to sleep at the moment, and moving was out of the question, so you decided to lay there and stew in your thoughts
>what the fuck were YOU gonna do to help Susie seeing as she's expelled?
>you had mentioned the diner to her last night, yeah but what can you do to help her with that?
>you frown, maybe there isn't anything you can do alone, but maybe you could get some extra help...
>wait a second, wasn't there someone who worked there you've spotted at school too? That kinda goth looking cat girl, Catti was her name
>maybe you can go talk to her now about this, you sit up once more, and are promptly pulled back down, this time a muscled arm hooks around you entirely, trapping you in place
>"Stay." Susie half mumbled and half growled
>maybe staying put was a better idea, Susie's had it rough all week, after all
>and you're pretty sure she'd duct tape you to the wall like she did back in the fifth grade if it meant keeping you here
>it was pretty warm and cozy anyway, and despite your earlier thoughts of getting up, sleep comes to you once more
>the rest of the weekend goes smoother than the last one, that's for sure, you can tell Susie's still troubled about this whole thing and you can't put her at fault, a lot of shit in her life just kinda fell apart
>but there's no moody sulks, no yelling, and no crying, thankfully. You've seen enough of that from her to last you for a long, long time.
>you go back home on Sunday evening, and you decide to tell your dad what the hell is going on
>the both of you have a long discussion about what should be done, while at this point Susie is 18, your old man thinks she shouldn't be on her own, foster care might be needed
>you tell him she isn't on her own, you've got her back and you plan on helping her get a job
>years ago your old man would have probably shut you down, but seeing the look in your eyes, he decides to give you a chance to stay true to your word
>Monday morning comes, and you slide out of bed, you feel more focused and ready for the week than you have in a few years
>Susie still joins you in your walk, though she looks a little less than thrilled, that armless kid passes you both, which is odd because he usually walks on the other side of the street
>"Mornin' dude! Yo Susie, hope you're doing okay!" the mauve dragon pauses, watching the kid trot off towards the school, putting her hands in her jacket pockets
>"...He's never said my name to me before. You were serious about that whole 'hero' thing, weren't you?" she turned her head and gave you a look of bewilderment
>you smile and nod, it's not often you get to see her look so baffled, but it was cute, though you knew better not to say anything about that
>"Well... I can't get any closer than this, nerd, I'm not allowed to get within a certain distance of the school." She her expression darkens, "...Part of the agreement to keep myself from getting in hot water."
>you pat Susie's back, without even really thinking about it, you give it a slight rub as well, the monster girl tenses a little in surprise and plants a hand on the small of your back, pushing you forward toward the school, you stagger forward a bit and nearly fall flat on your face "Oh go on you nerd, I'll catch you later afterwards."
>you glance over your shoulder as you step onto the sidewalk in front of the school, looking back at Susie just standing there with her hands tucked away back in her jacket
>the thought of her being alone like this, fills you with determination.
>you'll find a way to help.
>the day seems to go by quickly, you find yourself going through assignments with less trouble, and when it was finally lunch break, you make your way outside where the weird kids hang out, which is saying something given this school
>sure enough, seated at one of the tables with the same 'I really don't want to be here' expression as always, was Catti, Temmie was there too, standing on the table and slightly vibrating, and she spots you first
>"hOI HUMAN!" she flopped onto her side, still vibrating as she rattled along the table, it sounded like a cellphone on vibrate
>Catti quietly taps away at her phone, not even looking up at you, "Yeah?"
>you're distracted for a moment as you watch Temmie vibrate off the table and land on her feet, vibrating along the cement, snapping out of it you turn your full attention to texting monster
>"Look, I need to talk to you, it's about... ah... Susie."
>tap tap click... "She's gone, right?"
>you heave a sigh, "Yeah, and there's some... other issues too, but I know you work at the diner and all that... I saw a 'now hiring' sign in the window the other day..."
>tap click... She actually looks up from her phone for a moment, "Want my help to get her hired?"
>"Yes!" you blurt out, clearing your throat and calming down a little, "...Please, this might be her only shot."
>Catti looks at you for a few more moments, her eyes swinging back down to her phone, "Sure. Bring her to the diner later today." tap tap, click...
>another sigh escapes from you, this one of relief, "Thank you, Catti, we'll be there, you can co-" your sentence is cut off as something bumps against your leg, glancing down at Temmie bumping off your leg once more, you pick her up carefully, though the vibrations jitter up your arm and to your head, causing your vision to get blurry before you set her back on the table and saying goodbye to the two monster girls
>"Later."
>"THX huMEN! BAI!"
>you were eager to break the promising news to Susie, the rest of the day went pretty well, only one football was thrown at your head, and it wasn't even that hard
>the only downside was a small rash on the back of your hand you had to scratch at every so often, one of Temmie's legs must have touched your hand as you picked her up, damn it.
>you practically sprinted down the sidewalk as school ended, eager to tell Susie the good news, rounding the corner you run right into the dragon, felt similar to running into a brick wall, you didn't even budge her an inch as you bounce off and hit the damp sidewalk with a thump
>"Watch where you're going, dumbass!" It was good to hear Susie's usual self, she pulls you up onto your feet, "What's the hurry?"
>"I spoke with Catti at school today about getting hired at the diner, she said to meet us there after schO-AH!" your reply is cut off as she lifts you overhead and sprints off towards the diner
>Susie at least has the courtesy to put you back on your feet as the two of you arrive at the door of the diner, it's funny, normally you two go without a second thought, but it seems a little more imposing at the moment
>"Alright, let's do this." Susie says out loud, maybe more to her herself than you, and the two of you enter
>it's business as usual in the diner, and the manager, a good natured rabbit woman is behind the counter, wiping it spotless, you nudge Susie in the arm with your elbow, whispering up to her, "Well, there she is, go apply."
>"I can see her, dummy, just... lemme handle this." she hisses in response, you hang back, taking a seat at a nearby empty booth and watching from afar
>you can't hear them, but you watch the manager's face as she talks with the dragon, her eyebrows raise up, and for a moment her eyes glance over in your direction, you quickly take interest in the menu in front of you, trying and failing to play it cool, watching from the corner of your eye
>the manager's attention is turned back to Susie, smiling and reaching under the counter, handing her a sheet of paper, the dragon must be saying something else, because the manager nods happily and fishes out a pencil and passes it to her next
>Susie pushes you further back into the booth, "Move nerd, I gotta fill this out." she sounds equally nervous and excited, you help her in filling out the application sheet, in no time flat everything is filled out, and you watch Susie march right back up to the counter
>more conversation you can't hear, but you can still her stubby tail wiggling a little as the manager says something else, Susie returns to the booth again, nudging at your arm, "Outside, we gotta talk." you raise an eyebrow but follow
>as you step outside you notice Susie's shoulders are tense, getting a little concerned now she leads you to the backside of the diner, stopping
>"...Sus? What did she s-"
>"I GOT THE JOB!" you're cut off and picked up in the air, the dragon spinning you around and pulling you into a tight hug, "She said they need the extra help so we're gonna skip the interview, my training starts tomorrow!"
>before you can say anything else you're promptly dropped, you're making good friends with the ground lately
>"Oh my god, my training starts tomorrow. I gotta go and try to get ready for that, I'll meet you back at my place later nerd!"
>Susie dashes off before you can say anything else, leaving you seated on the cold and wet asphalt
>footsteps come charging back in your direction and you're picked up again, a huge smooch is planted on your cheek, "Thanks again, Anon, you're a lifesaver!"
>you're dropped once more and greet your new friend the ground as those footsteps grow distant
>you wait for a moment just to make sure you're not about to be tossed around anymore before finally standing up, sweeping the gravel and dampness off your pants, you realized you left your backpack in the diner
>as you go back inside and grab your pack, you see the rabbit lady beckoning you over with a finger, you shoulder your pack and approach the counter
>"Catti told me what you did, hun."
>"Look uh, I can explain-"
>the manager casually waved a paw, smiling warmly "Don't have to, you're a sweet boy, and a good man to her."
>your cheeks flush at that remark
>"She'll do just fine here. Don't you worry about that."
>thanking her you make your way out, passing by Catti just finishing writing down an order for an excitable looking dog looking monster, his neck was starting to extend upwards
>Catti notices your concerned stare, "He does that."
>you watch his head bump against the ceiling, tongue lolling out as he pants happily, looking back to her, "Hey, thanks again, you don't know how much this means to her..."
>the corner of Catti's mouth curls up ever so slightly, "No problem. Gotta get back to work. Later."
>you make your way back to Susie's, for once a Monday didn't completely suck.
>again, the week seemed to fly by, every night you talked with Susie about her new job, she said it wasn't as bad as she was worried, carrying trays and orders was easy for her, so was tossing the trash out, making a remark she's had a lot of practice with that thanks to you.
>by this time it was early march, and thankfully it was starting to warm up a little, so at lunch on Friday you decided you wanted to grab something to eat at the diner and for no other reason whatsoever
>you're terrible at lying even to yourself.
>you slide into the booth you usually share with Susie, and idly run your eyes along the menu, you can hear those familiar boots thump along the floor
>"Hey nerd, what's your order?"
>you look up to see the dragon wearing a white dress similar to the one Catti wears, to be honest you think Sus looks way better in her normal clothes, you're amazed they let her wear the boots still though, looking further up you see her normally long and unkempt hair is now cleaner and tied back in a ponytail
>oh yeah, you're into that.
>"The ponytail looks really cute on you, Sus." You remark, which as expected makes her equally frustrated and flustered, giving you a look like she wants to drop you into a trash can.
>"Look, I don't want to get fired because I had to kick your ass on the job." She whispered out, narrowing her eyes down at you, her cheeks reddening,  "The manager lady said it helps if the customers can see my whole face, so don't get used to this, now whaddya want?"
>"Bor-... Cheeseburger" you correct yourself, you're still a little distracted from that pony tail
>Susie rolls her eyes and scribbles on her notepad, "Alright, I'll have that right out to ya... You want ketchup with that too, don't you?"
>you just nod, you've both eaten here enough times that it just seems second nature
>not more than give minutes later, the mauve waitress is back with a tray, sliding you a plate with your lunch on it, along with a bottle of ketchup and a coke, "The drink's on me, dork."
>you watch her walk off, that stubby tail wiggling the way it does, nice.
>you should probably get to eating lunch and get back before you're late, flipping the top bun off your burger, you pick up the ketchup bottle and tilt it downwards, giving a light squeeze
>the lid pops off and your burger is drenched in a wave of ketchup, looking up back to Susie from the other side of the restaurant, a huge toothy grin spread across her face and giving you a wave, because you know she can't flip you off right now
>well, it's a good thing you like ketchup.
>...you still leave a tip for her though.