Chapter Text
The walk back down from the roof felt different from when I was walking up.
Instead of a looming sense of dread, I felt a sense of serenity.
Fang walked beside me, hands clasped together with mine. They weren't hiding anymore, and the weight that had been sitting on my chest all night had evaporated.
Suffice to say, the tense atmosphere was well and truly replaced by a strange, buoyant energy now.
We pushed open the double doors back into the gym.
The crowd had thinned out significantly.
Probably because we were up in that roof for so long…
The freshmen and sophomores had mostly cleared out, leaving the seniors and the die-hard party animals to run the show.
We hadn't taken three steps onto the gym floor before a certain tricera crossed our path.
Trish stood there, hands on her hips, tapping her foot with a rhythm that was a lot faster than the pop song currently playing.
She looked between me and Fang, her expression unreadable for a second. Then, her eyes narrowed.
“Took you long enough.” Trish huffed like a bull, crossing her arms. “I was one second away from marching up there and dragging you both back down.”
“Sorry, Trish.” I replied, rubbing the back of my neck. “We had a lot to talk about.”
Trish’s gaze softened as she looked at Fang. Fang looked back, a nervous smile on their snoot. Yet, they didn't shrink away.
“Fang?”
Trish asked, her voice losing its edge.
Fang looked at me, nervous at how Trish would react to what she was about to say.
I reassured her by clenching her hand firmly.
Fang took a deep breath.
“I'm…I'm joining. If that's okay. With…with both of you.”
The rigidity in Trish’s shoulders released. She let out a breath she must have been holding for an hour. Her snappy frown had swapped to a genuine, radiant smile.
“It's about damn time, feathers.”
Trish said, stepping forward to pull Fang into a hug.
“I told Anon. We don't do this without you.”
“Yeah, yeah…Don't get sappy on me now.”
Fang mumbled, though they leaned into the hug.
“Anon! What are you waiting for? Come here and join us!”
“Oh—uh, right.”
I joined them in their hugging session, and we enjoyed the sense of warmth that a hug could provide.
“Have any of you seen my tarot card?!”
Suddenly, a panicked voice interrupted the moment. It belonged to the Stego we’ve all come to know and look at weirdly…and a bit fondly.
“Oh, look at this.”
Not long after did a gentle voice chimed in along with the Stego.
We turned to see Rosa and Stella approaching. Rosa looked like a proud mother hen, her hands clasped together, while Stella was shuffling a deck of tarot cards, counting each one with great speed.
“76…77…It’s really gone!”
Stella exclaimed, looking around.
As everyone looked to see if they could find that missing card, I felt the urge to scratch my back, and as I did, I felt something in my backpocket that wasn’t there before.
I pulled it out, and…
The Lovers.
This card again?
Though, this time, it isn’t reversed…well, not like that means anything to me.
Now knowing that I had the card all this time, I pulled it out and handed it to Stella.
“Hey, Stella! Here’s your card.”
“*Gasp!* Thank you so much, Anon! Thankyouthankyouthankyou! Yippee~!”
Rosa just shook her head and smiled at us warmly, completely ignoring the joyful Stego jumping up and down with her cards.
“I knew you would figure it out…Especially you, Fang. You have look at peace, Fang. It suits you.”
“Thanks, Rosa. It was…a lot.”
“Ay, love is always a lot. ¿But three hearts can carry a heavy load better than two, no?”
Before I could process the wisdom of that, two more people arrived to greet us.
I looked to see Naser, with Naomi giving her usual “innocent” smile. Naser looked at Fang, then at Trish, then at me.
“So.”
Naser rumbled, his hands shuffling around his pockets.
“Is the drama resolved? Can we go five minutes without a crisis?”
“It's resolved, Naser.” Fang said, rolling their eyes, but there was no venom in it. “We're good.”
Naser stared at us for a long while, but eventually, like a roaring flame getting doused, he breathed a huge sigh of relief.
“Good, good.”
He spoke, his voice shaky.
“If this didn’t work out, I don’t know how I’d tell mom the bad news. Especially dad…I don’t want to know what would’ve happened if I told dad…wait, now I have to deal with them finding out about your relationship…agh…!”
As Naser lamented his Sisyphean life, Naomi stepped up to speak.
“Congratulations on a successful resolution!”
Naomi’s tone in her voice then shifted to something more questioning.
“Though, statistically speaking, polyamorous relationships require two to four times more communication to avoid catastrophic failure. So I suggest—”
“Shut up, Naomi.”
“Shut up.”
“Shush, bitch.”
Immediately, all three of us interrupted the paraloon and told her to shut up.
Never before was I so sure that we were going to be just fine together without any external “help”.
Naser finally stopped his great lament and congratulated us, clapping a heavy hand on my shoulder.
“Just…make them happy, man.”
“I will.”
“Hey! Dudes!”
A cloud of thick, pungent smoke wafted toward us, followed by a blue T-Rex costume.
Reed waddled over, the tail of the costume knocking over an empty plastic chair. Smoke was billowing out of everywhere.
“Reed?” I coughed, waving the air. “Are you… are you smoking inside the suit?”
“It's a primitive atmosphere simulation, bro.”
Reed’s muffled voice came from inside.
“Reed, show your face.”
With a command from Trish, Reed lifted the mask, revealing bloodshot eyes and a grin wide enough to split his face.
“Whoa. The vibes here are immaculate. Did we achieve world peace?”
Fang chuckled.
“Something like that.”
“Cool~”
Reed nodded sagely, then scratched himself (not in a druggie way) with an awkward expression.
“But, uh, bad news, amigos. DJ’s starting to pack up. He said this track is the closer.”
My heart sank. I looked at Trish and Fang.
One song. Two partners.
“One song? Seriously?”
"Yeah. Curfew and stuff.”
I looked between them and was met with a dilemmar.
Trish, who had been waiting all night for this dance.
And Fang, who had just poured their heart to me.
I couldn't choose. I wouldn't choose.
But physics didn't allow for a three-person slow dance that wouldn’t end in failure.
“I…uh…”
I stammered. Trying to come up with a solution that would satisfy all of us.
“Effective immediately.”
But then, a deep, gravelly voice boomed from directly behind my ear, practically busting my eardrums out.
“The operational parameters of this event have been extended.”
I jumped about a foot in the air.
We all spun around to find the originator of that booming voice.
Principal Spears was standing there, his shaded eyes looking down at us, his figure looked particularly menacing in the disco lights.
He stood at perfect attention, hands clasped behind his back.
“The School Administration has authorized a supplementary engagement period.”
Spears stated promptly.
“To account for…technical delays experienced earlier in the evening due to unauthorized area excursions.”
He looked directly at me and Fang.
He knew. Of course he knew. He probably heard everything with those superhuman ears of his.
“Therefore, there will be two final musical selections. Ensure you utilize the allocated time efficiently. That is all.”
He turned on his heel with military precision and walked toward the DJ booth, presumably to ‘persuade’ the DJ into staying.
For a second, we were all silent.
Did… did Spears just wingman for us?
Poor DJ; just doing his job. But it was good news for us. Because now—
“First one is mine, skinnie. You owe me.”
Trish said quickly. She turned to me, a fire lighting in her eyes. She didn't wait for an answer.
She grabbed my hand and yanked me toward the dance floor.
As we fell into step, the music was an upbeat, driving track. We moved together, the frustration of the night melting away into the rhythm. Trish leaned toward me, her lips inching closer to my ear.
“You really did it.”
She said over the music, her hands firm on my shoulders.
“You actually got all of us a happy ending.”
“I had great support.”
I smiled, spinning her.
“Damn straight.”
She pulled me close, her forehead resting against mine for a moment.
“I love you, Anon. Even if you are a magnet for drama.”
"I love you too, Trish. Even if have the emotional maturity of a nuclear bomb."
We finished the dance with an end that earned a few cheers from the remaining crowd. As the song faded, Trish pulled me down, kissing me quickly, and pushed me gently toward the end of the dance floor.
“Your turn, feathers!”
Fang was standing by the punch bowl, looking like a deer in headlights as the opening notes of a slower, melodic song began to play.
I danced over, extending a hand.
“May I?”
“Stop acting like that, Anon. You look like a dweeb.”
Despite the absolute judgement, Fang hesitated, their eyes darted around the room.
“Anon, I…I can't dance with you. People are looking.”
“Let them look. All that matters is us. Come on.”
“Hng…Fine! Just don't step on my dress.”
Fang grumbled, but eagerly took my hand.
We moved to the center of the floor. Fang was stiff at first, their wings held tight against their body, and their movements jerky.
I kept it simple, just a slow sway, one hand on their waist, the other holding their hand.
“Relax. Just follow me.”
I whispered into their ear, holding them closer to me.
Slowly, the tension left Fang's frame. They looked up at me, their amber eyes searching mine. The anxiety that had eminated from them all night was beginning to fade, replaced by a tentative peace.
“I really thought I ruined this.”
Fang murmured.
“You didn't ruin anything. Look at us—does this cry ‘ruined’ to you?”
Fang’s grip on my hand tightened. They rested their head against my chest, their wings finally relaxing.
“Thank you, Anon.” Fang whispered into my suit. “For not giving up on me. For being stubborn enough to want…all of this.”
“I'm a greedy guy.”
Fang chuckled, the vibration warm against my chest. They pulled back slightly to look at me again. The music swelled to its climax.
“I’m going to try, Anon.” Fang said, their voice steady. “I promise. I’m going to try my hardest to make this work. To satisfy you…and Trish. I won't run away again. I promise.”
“I know you won’t.”
Fang leaned in and kissed me, causing shock to ripple through the crowd around us, though, that didn’t matter.
This time, it wasn't like the desperate, tear-stained kisses from the roof.
This was slow, deliberate, sweet.
It was the kind of kiss that didn't ask for reassurance but gave it freely.
When Fang pulled back, their face was flushed, but their grin was wide and genuine.
“I look forward to kissing you like this for the rest of my life.”
I felt the heat rush to my face instantly as I registered Fang’s teasing remark.
“W-what?”
Fang laughed at my embarassmen.
“Look at you! You're bright red! You are such a dweeb!”
“You can't just drop a line like that and expect me not to blush!”
“Well, get used to expecting them—because you’re going to be experiencing that every day now.”
As the song faded out and the lights in the gym came up, signaling the true end of the night, we walked back over to Trish. She was leaning against a table, scrolling through her phone, looking impatient.
“Finally. You guys sure did take the scenic route, huh?”
She groaned, shoving her phone into her makeshift pocket(i.e. Her breasts).
“Shut up, Trish.”
Fang smirked, but they reached out and took Trish’s hand. Trish didn't pull away; she interlaced her fingers with Fang's.
“So, now that you're officially part of the 'Putting Up With The Skinnie' committee, there's somethings you need to see.”
She whipped her phone back out and started tapping furiously.
It only took me a moment to realize what Trish was doing, and I was not willing to let her do it.
“Trish, you can’t—”
“Oh, really? Then what do you prefer? No cosplay, or this?”
…Fuck. I can’t let her show Fang those pics…but I also can’t live without Trish’s cosplay.
Taking my silence as consent, Trish proceeded to continue with her revealing of my embarrassing past.
She grinned, turning the screen to Fang.
“Check this out. This is him in the past…He used to unironically photoshop anime women with him, acting like they were his girlfriends. Pfft! Can you believe this guy? And the worst part? He fucking leaked it to the rest of his school!"
Fang leaned in, their eyes lighting up with delight.
“No way. Is that…real?”
“Yup!”
Trish cackled.
“Hey! That’s confidential material!”
I protested, half-assedly trying to grab the phone.
Fang batted my hand away, laughing as they scrolled through the gallery with Trish.
“Oh my God, send me all of these.”
“Done.” Trish said.
I stood there, watching my two favorite people in the world bond over my past humiliation. Both of them were laughing, and smiling, the stress of everything finally gone.
I sighed, shaking my head, but I couldn't stop the smile spreading across my face.
Before, I would’ve been devastated about letting people know about what happened in the past—the reason that I went here in the first place.
But now?
Knowing that it’s what brought me to have these two beautiful people as my partners, I see it more as a kind, albeit humiliating gesture from fate.
I looked on as they continued to their talk to other things we would be doing now that we’re together.
If I could see my face, I bet I’d be having the biggest smile right now.
…Yeah. I could get used to this.
-END-
EXTRA:
Trish: Oh, and let me tell you what he’s like in bed…
Fang: W-what?!
Anon: Wait, wait, wait, Trish! At least wait until we’re somewhere more private!
Fang: S-s-s-so how is it? Is it-is it good?
Trish: Oh, it’s more than just ‘good’. You’ll see soon enough.
Anon: Hey! Stop ignoring me!