Mia looked away.
"Cid didn't tell you anything?"
"Not a thing. He just said the evening had gone badly."
Mia sighed.
"What else could he have told you, other than that Lara deliberately threw herself into the water and accused me of pushing her?"
Rose frowned.
"She acted quickly."
"And Cid took her side."
Rose slapped her forehead.
"That man is completely blind!"
Mia gave a small, sad smile.
"It really hurt me."
She sat down on the edge of the bed.
"I thought…"
She hesitated.
"Even though we've only known each other for a few days, I thought he'd gotten to know me well enough to know that I would never do something like that."
Her voice grew quieter.
"But I see I was wrong."
Rose sat down beside her.
"Mia…"
"I wasn't asking him to automatically take my side. I just wanted him to know me well enough to understand what kind of person I am."
Rose remained silent for a few seconds.
Then she placed a hand on Mia's shoulder.
"Forgive him."
Mia looked at her in surprise.
"Why?"
"Because lately, Cid seems completely confused."
"Confused?"
Rose smiled slightly.
"And you're certainly one of the things confusing him."
Mia's eyes widened.
"Me? What do you mean?"
Rose put on a falsely innocent expression.
"Tell me something instead… who do you like?"
"What?"
"Cid or…"
She paused.
"Your mysterious friend?"
Mia immediately understood.
"Fran?"
Rose straightened up.
"His name is Fran?"
Mia froze.
"Uh… yes."
Rose's expression barely changed.
"Fran…"
She repeated the name softly.
"Fran…"
Something about the name seemed to elude her.
A feeling.
A memory.
Someone whose name she might have heard mentioned before.
"Fran…"
"Rose?"
There was no reaction.
"Rose?"
Still nothing.
Mia frowned.
"Rose…"
Silence.
"ROSE!"
Rose jumped.
"Huh? What?"
Mia burst out laughing.
"I've been calling you for a while now! It's like you were off in the clouds."
Rose blinked several times.
"Oh… sorry. I was thinking about something."
"About what?"
"It's just…"
She hesitated.
"That name sounds familiar to me."
"Fran?"
"Yes."
Rose frowned slightly.
"I feel like I've heard it somewhere before. But I'm probably mistaken."
Mia shrugged.
"Maybe."
Rose quickly regained her smile.
"Okay! Now tell me more about this Fran."
"You're really curious."
"Of course!"
Mia then began telling her about her evening.
She talked about the lake, the dinner, the moon, Fran's jokes, and the sense of peace she had felt.
But she carefully kept part of the truth to herself.
She didn't mention the reaper. Nor the hundred days. Nor their contract.
Those secrets were ones she couldn't reveal just yet.