The Great Prank War

Lingling sat at the counter of Blooming Beans, sipping her coffee with a sharp glare aimed at Becky and Freen. The two had been relentless with their teasing all week. Whether it was Lingling's clinginess during her recent bout of sickness or her usual icy demeanor, they never missed an opportunity to poke fun.

"I swear," Lingling muttered to Orm, who was cleaning up behind the counter, "if Becky calls me 'clingy Lingy' one more time, I'll—"

"Relax, babe," Orm said, smirking. "I have an idea. Something to put them in their place."

Lingling raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What did you have in mind?"

Orm leaned in, her grin widening. "We stage a fight. A big one. Something dramatic enough to make them think we're about to break up."

Lingling blinked. "Break up? Orm, that's not funny."

"It's not real," Orm reassured her, placing a hand on hers. "Think of it as payback for all the grief they've given you. Besides, they deserve a taste of their own medicine."

Lingling considered it, her icy expression softening. "Alright. But if we're going to do this, it has to be convincing."

Orm grinned. "Oh, it will be. Trust me."

The next day, the café was bustling with its usual morning rush. Becky and Freen were stationed at the back, sorting inventory, but their ears perked up when they heard Orm's voice rise above the chatter.

"I can't believe you, Ling!" Orm yelled, slamming a coffee mug onto the counter with a loud clatter. "You're impossible to live with!"

Lingling, standing at the register, crossed her arms, her icy glare sharpening. "Oh, I'm impossible? You're the one who acts like everything's a joke! You don't take anything seriously!"

Becky and Freen froze, eyes wide as they exchanged glances. Becky leaned closer. "Is this... what I think it is?"

"Trouble in paradise," Freen whispered, her grin growing. "This is better than Netflix."

Orm threw up her hands dramatically. "All you do is criticize! The coffee beans aren't good enough, the tables aren't arranged perfectly, my clothes are too casual—nothing I do is ever right!"

"That's because someone in this relationship has standards!" Lingling shot back. "Maybe if you put in some effort, we wouldn't have these problems!"

Becky audibly gasped, clutching Freen's arm. "Oh my god. Did she just standards?"

"She did," Freen said, grinning wickedly. "This is getting good."

Lingling grabbed her bag with a dramatic flourish. "I don't need to deal with this. I'm leaving."

"Fine!" Orm shouted back. "Maybe some space will do us good!"

Lingling stormed out of the café, stomping. Becky and Freen stared after her, jaws slack. Orm slumped against the counter, sighing loudly and shaking her head.

Freen, never one to miss an opportunity, sidled up to Orm. "Hey, uh... you good?"

Orm groaned, running a hand through her hair. "No. Lingling's impossible. She micromanages everything I do."

"Well," Freen said, trying to sound sympathetic but failing miserably, "she can be... intense."

"Intense?!" Orm snapped, throwing her arms in the air. "She's a tyrant! She even organizes the fridge by expiration date!"

Becky, hovering nearby, wrung her hands. "You're not... you're not thinking of breaking up, are you?"

Orm sighed deeply, her expression pained. "I don't know, Becky. I love her, but... I don't know if I can do this anymore."

Becky let out a strangled cry. "No! You can't break up! You're the perfect couple!"

Freen, biting back laughter, muttered, "Perfectly unhinged, maybe."

The Intervention

By that evening, Becky and Freen had devised a plan. They invited Lingling and Orm to the same restaurant, pretending it was a spontaneous dinner but secretly intending to mediate the "breakup."

Lingling arrived first, looking regal as always despite the apparent tension. She froze when she saw Orm already seated. "What is she doing here?"

Orm looked up, feigning surprise. "I could ask you the same thing."

Becky jumped in nervously. "Wow, what are the odds? Two of my favorite people, in the same place! What a coincidence!"

"Very small world," Freen added, stuffing bread into her mouth to hide her grin.

Lingling sighed, sitting down reluctantly. "Fine. Let's get this over with."

The argument resumed in full force, with Lingling accusing Orm of being irresponsible and Orm countering that Lingling was too controlling. Becky and Freen watched in mounting horror as the shouting escalated.

"Okay, okay!" Becky interrupted, practically waving a napkin like a white flag. "Let's calm down! You two are great together. You just need to talk things out!"

Freen nodded, though her grin betrayed her amusement. "Yeah, no couple is perfect. You balance each other out. Like fire and ice!"

"Oh, please," Lingling huffed. "I feel like I'm the only one putting in effort!"

"You're joking, right?" Orm shot back. "I'm the one who's constantly compromising for you! Do you know how hard it is to rearrange the throw pillows in a specific order every day?"

Becky looked genuinely distraught. "You're... you're not really going to break up, are you? Because I don't think I can handle it."

Freen leaned closer to Becky, whispering, "Do we have an emergency backup plan?"

"I don't know!" Becky hissed back. "We're not trained for this!"

Just as the tension reached its peak, Orm couldn't hold back her laughter any longer. She burst out laughing, nearly doubling over in her chair. Lingling followed suit, her icy demeanor cracking into soft giggles.

Becky and Freen stared in utter shock. "Wait," Becky said slowly. "What's going on?"

Orm wiped a tear from her eye. "It was a prank! We were never actually fighting."

"A... prank?" Freen repeated, her jaw dropping. "You two staged this whole thing?"

"Yup," Lingling said, smirking. "Consider it payback for all the teasing you've put me through."

Becky groaned, collapsing against the table. "I thought you were going to break up. I almost had a heart attack!"

Freen crossed her arms, pouting. "You're both terrible people. Brilliant, but terrible."

Orm leaned back in her chair, her smirk triumphant. "We'll take that as a compliment."

Later that night, as Lingling and Orm cuddled on the couch, Lingling sighed softly. "You know, pretending to fight with you was... unpleasant."

Orm tilted her head. "Really? I thought we nailed it."

Lingling shook her head. "It just made me realize I never want to fight with you for real. I can't imagine breaking up with you, not even as a joke."

Orm smiled, pulling Lingling closer. "Good thing you won't have to. You're stuck with me forever."

"Forever sounds nice," Lingling murmured, resting her head on Orm's shoulder.

In the background, their phones buzzed with texts from Becky and Freen, plotting their revenge. But for now, the two of them were content, wrapped up in each other and the peace they had built together.