Chapter Text
She held her breath almost until she reached her dusty house, the only one on the street that still didn't have Christmas decorations. The snow was piling up at the entrance, and Agatha cursed herself out loud for letting Rio disturb her once again.
She went down to remove the snow with displeasure, so her car could enter. She was sure she wouldn't go to Alice's party that night. The Wuu family parties were very different from Lilia's. At Alice's house, there were at least eighty guests, and most of them were eccentric artists like her mother.
There was a dress code protocol that, when they were girls, the girls always broke, going with costumes or matching pajamas. Alice's mother, Lorna, always got angry, but over time she got used to it, and the joke lost its charm.
Now, the girls were just another ornament of society, as Alice would dramatically say when she scolded them for not wanting to follow the joke. Besides, with the breakup of Agatha and Rio, the group didn't feel complete.
Agatha calmed down remembering this while taking a shower once she entered her house. She remembered that it was also at one of Alice's parties that she and Rio had sex for the first time. Well, their first time in a "semi-public" place.
As if it seemed like a curse, she felt her center throb at the memory. She lowered her hand under the water to calm her desire, which she had been repressing for hours. She could lie and say it had been since the moment she got out of Rio's bed, but it had really been building up since she saw her walk in with her shirt unbuttoned, her hair tied up, and high heels. Rio was a magnetic and sexual being that she was still completely in love with.
As she dealt with her frustration, Agatha couldn't help but think about the way Rio had kissed her that morning. The way her body had reacted, the way her heart had beaten strongly. It was as if her body was programmed to respond to Rio, no matter how hard she tried to resist. And with that in mind, she came.
Agatha laughed bitterly. She was pathetic. Even after everything that had happened, she still felt attracted to Rio. She still felt in love.
The shower ended, and Agatha came out of the bathroom, wrapping herself in a towel. She looked at herself in the mirror and was surprised to see that her eyes were teary. She hadn't cried in a long time, but something in the way Rio had looked at her that morning had awakened something inside her.
Agatha dried her eyes and got dressed in comfortable clothes, trying to get Rio out of her mind. She sat down on the couch, surrounded by silence, and closed her eyes, trying to relax.
But her tranquility didn't last long. Her phone rang, and Agatha opened her eyes to see a message from Alice on the screen.
Agatha dried her eyes and got dressed in comfortable clothes. She sat down on the couch, trying not to think about Rio. And it worked, because Alice sent her a message:
"Billy never came to one of the parties dressed up. Please come."
Attached to the message was a series of specifications in which Alice demanded that Agatha wear her old witch costume from a previous Halloween. Unfortunately, Agatha didn't have the excuse she used to use at work for not dressing up in such things when she said "that she had it at her mother's house", because it was actually there.
Evanora had never approved of her relationship with Rio and was the only one who was happy when they broke up. She had always said that Rio distracted Agatha from her real goals. Although her teenage "self" with a broken heart had agreed with Evanora at the time, she was a bitch just the same.
Agatha was about to decline the invitation when a call from Billy came in. She would have also declined the call if she didn't feel guilty for almost hitting him the day before.
"Billy, I'm not going to Alice's party," Agatha said immediately upon answering.
"What? Why not?" Billy asked.
"I'm not in the mood for parties yet. I'm still not recovering from yesterday, and besides, I'm still upset about yesterday," Agatha said.
"But... but it's Christmas, Agatha. And Alice will be very disappointed if you don't go. Besides, I'll be there," Billy said.
"I know, but no, Billy. Sorry. I really don't want to go," Agatha replied.
"Come on, Agatha. Don't be like that. Just come for a while. For me," Billy begged.
"No, Billy. I'm not going," Agatha insisted.
"Well, if you don't go, then I won't be able to forgive you for what you did to me yesterday," Billy said with a more serious tone. "You really scared me."
"What does that have to do with the party?" Agatha asked.
"Nothing, but if you don't go, then I won't be able to forget what happened. And I don't want things to get ugly between us," Billy said.
Agatha sighed. This kid had learned a lot from her about manipulating people, even if he was now using it against her.
"Billy, it's not fair that you're making me feel guilty for this, when it was your fault in the first place," Agatha said.
"I'm sorry, Agatha. But it's just that I really want you to come to the party. And I know that if you don't come, then Alice will be very disappointed," Billy begged. "I just bought a divine wicked witch costume that I really want to wear."
Agatha remained silent for a moment. The kid was definitely her Achilles' heel.
"Okay, Billy. I'll go. But just for a little while," Agatha said finally.
"Great! Thank you so much, Agatha!" Billy exclaimed.
Agatha laughed. "You're welcome, Billy. But I'll be miles away from the green witch." Billy didn't understand the reason for the name, but he definitely knew who she was talking about.
"It doesn't matter! Just come!" Billy said before hanging up the phone.
The urge to bang her head against the wall took over her. She was going to see Rio more times in one week than she had in five years. The idea made her sick.
She felt a bit like in the movie "The Parent Trap", without the incredible style of the mother, just the initial neurosis. About seeing the author of her nightmares and wet dreams again in less than twenty-four hours, and with a ridiculous dress, if you could say so.
In high school, Lilia was against the marketing of witches and how they are exposed to the world. So, on one Halloween, her friends dressed up as witches just to bother her. But in the end, they gave her a dress like Glinda's from "The Wizard of Oz", and of course, Agatha was Elphaba.
The dress itself wasn't ugly, and if you looked at it well, it even made her look sexy. Maybe Agatha was judging it wrongly for having used it with her face covered in green paint, which she was clearly not willing to use today. She was going to be a witch, not the Grinch.
As she looked at herself in the mirror, she knew that was a terrible idea. Although the dress fit her great, she felt stupid. But Billy was flooding her message inbox, telling her how excited he was to see everyone.
Agatha got into her truck and started the engine with a gesture of annoyance. As she adjusted the rearview mirror and put on her seatbelt, she couldn't help but feel a slight nervousness.