“Oh, it’s just that… well, I’ve been seeing someone. Someone really nice.” Ten tried to act nonchalant, but she knew she was blushing to the tip of her pointed ears.

“Ten-jie, you did not keep that from us for so long! Where did you meet them? What are they like?” The way Six suddenly perked up, for a brief second Ten felt as though she was back in secondary school, when she still had close friends who would bug her about her romantic life. So unlike the masked girl she'd become, who changes her disguise with as much ease as most changes their clothes.

“Ahh, well, how do I say this? Kind of my opposite, actually. But I think… maybe that’s my type? Bright and cheery and all that.” Perhaps it was the familiarity of the topic, but for the first time words dropped easily from her mouth. But that didn't mean she was any less embarrassed to be rambling like a schoolgirl on her first crush, and Ten spent the rest of the evening skirting around any further prodding.

She rubbed her ears, attempting to cover — or possibly rub away — the redness. “Yeah yeah. Oh don’t be like Ma… I mean my mother. She likes asking about relationships too. You know how the older generation gets. Wanting grandchildren… wanting me to marry at the ripe age of twenty-four.”