Work Text:
#NorEmmaWeek2019 Day 2
Theme: Timelines: Childhood/Present
Summary: Norman recalls a particular childhood game that Ray had set him up, never imagining how much of a matchmaker Ray could be and how dense Emma was with reading people's feelings.
"Norman!" The chirpy familiar sound of one of his favorite, if not favorite, person called out to the snow white-haired boy, causing him to give a small smile to the younger girl that was tugging on his sleeve before looking behind him.
His nonexistent doubts were confirmed as he saw a ray of sunshine reincarnated as a person running to him.
Her ginger locks flew with the wind behind her until settle down as she stopped running. He noticed that her breathing pace was a bit faster than usual and her chest moved in a way to prove it, yet he couldn't help but finding cute the eagerness that the girl seemed to always have.
"Did something happened Emma?" Norman asked, the grip on his sleeve fading as Shelly ran off to join another kid that was calling out to her, leaving the two older ´siblings´ by themselves.
Before saying anything, the ginger-haired gave him her usual large grin and reached out to grab his hand, a simple movement that was still able to make Norman feel like he could pass out or that his fragile heart would jump out of his chest with the intensity it was beating "Come with me"
He could only nod as his voice refused to let itself be heard, a nervous gulp being the other reply from him but it seemed to not had been caught by the excited girl, who was now dragging him. To where? He didn't have a clue but it was Emma that he was trusting in so he should be fine. Right?
Norman let himself being dragged, entering the house, passing by the kitchen and continue walking deeper into the house. Silence overtook the air, only their steps could be heard as the rest of the children and mama were outside.
A soft smile showed up in the albino's face while his heart still tried to calm down. His hand was warm, the warmth of Emma's hand engulfed into his made a familiar heat crawl into his cheeks. She held his hand gently, her mind not seemingly to wonder much about it but for Norman, it was difficult to not be aware of the contact.
He had already lost count of how many dreams he had where it would be just the two of them, where he would be able to hold her without being embarrassed to do it and feel free to hold her hand as they walked side-by-side. He knew that Ray thought of what Norman was feeling like a simple puppy-love crush but Norman knew better:
He knew that he had, somewhere and somehow, fallen in love with his best friend.
Her smile could illuminate even the darkest of the nights, her laugh was a more enchanting melody than a siren's song and her emerald eyes shone with such innocence that it almost hid the fierce determination the girl carried with her.
His trail of thoughts came to an end when Emma stopped, a wood door stood closed in front of them. Never letting go of his hand, she used her free one to open the door, to his surprise, to find Ray there, his arms hiding something behind his back as Norman realized that the other boy in the room was fighting back a smirk.
Suddenly, Norman feared for his safety.
" You took a while." Ray told them, his eyes holding a mischievous glint as he revealed what he had been hiding behind his back. It was a small box with a single word on it and it confused Norman why were they hiding candy and where did Ray even got it. "Emma wanted to play a game and I suggested to her to play this game with you."
"Heh?" Norman looked confused at his two best friends, not understanding how playing with food could be considered a game but nonetheless - and mostly seeing Emma so eagerly to ´play´ - he just agreed, allowing Ray to explain the rules.
"So... You just have to eat the candy and however break away first loses?" Emma ended up repeating the instructions in a simpler way, holding one of the strawberry topping covered cookie.
"That's it. Simple right?" Ray asked, a smirk on his lips as he ignored the discrete glare that Norman sent him, his face a straight-up red as the albino had quickly caught on the scheme.
"Norman, it looks fun, doesn't it? What do you think?"
Under the excited ginger-haired, Norman just couldn't deny her request so with a sigh, he nodded "Hm, alright, just once then."
"Yay!" Emma waved her arms in the air, expressing her happiness and Norman could only try to keep his breathing even to not pass out.
Slowly but surely, and even slower from Norman's side as he looked anywhere but the girl in front of him, the candy was getting shorter and shorter, only a soft nomming sound as the cookie was eaten.
Nom. Nom.
So close. Norman could even feel Emma's breathing due to the proximity between them.
Nom. Nom. Crack.
With a furious bite when their lips finally met, Norman quickly backed away, his face burning up and seeing how Emma looked at him with her eyes a little widened, a small lasting piece of the cookie still being held in her mouth but she quickly finished it, claiming her victory.
"I win!" She exclaimed "Can we play again Norman?" Emma asked, already taking out another pocky from the box but before Norman could reply, a woman's voice made itself heard as Isabella had found the trio.
"What are you three up to now?"
Nevertheless, it was excused to say that they had gotten a small scold about not eating candy before lunch and the box had been confiscated from Ray, leaving them with no way to continue their supposed game.
Norman still smiled gratefully at the childhood memory from back in Grace Field, seeing Emma sleeping soundlessly on her side of the bed that they shared ever since passing for the human's world, being thankful for all the memories that he created with her in his past, the blessing of being able to be with her every day and the hope of spending each day next to her in the future that the two would share.