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"LUM YOU BITCH!"
Ran screamed at Lum violently, her curly hair frizzing up and helping her sharp fangs frame her fuming face. It was typical of her to blame Lum for every misfortune that was brought upon her, especially when those misfortunes involved Rei. But she always felt like her anger was justified, even though she recently started to learn that it kind of wasn't. Getting angry first then stopping when it turns out she was wrong seemed better to her than only getting angry once she finds out she was right. This time tho…
Lum decided to surprise her with a visit out of nowhere for whatever reason, just to find her in the middle of a date with Rei. And of course, all his attention shifted towards Lum and he started chasing her around the UFO. Just when Ran managed to bring him to her house, Lum came and messed it all up. It was always like this. Whenever she succeeded at getting his attention and they started getting closer, Lum would come in and ruin everything. Ran had to settle for him only caring about her food and staying with her just because she's feeding him, but that wasn't enough for Lum, she had to make her miserable.
"This is all your fault!! None of this would've happened if you weren't here!"
Lum just stood there awkwardly, while Ran continued her verbal attacks, accusing her of all sorts of shit, not listening to her or even letting her talk.
"You did this on purpose, didn't you!!!"
"Ran, calm down!" she said anxiously
"You just want to steal Rei for yourself, that's what you want!! That's why you came, isn't it?!"
"Ran, please listen to me"
"Of course, you regret breaking up with him and now you want him back! What else would it be!!"
"Did it look like I wanted him back there?!!" Lum snapped, stopping the angry girl's absurd rant.
Ran didn't say anything else. She remembered how annoyed Lum looked when she saw Rei, how angry she was at him, how she hit and zapped him and screamed at him calling him all sorts of names, and how she desperately tried to get rid of him while he clinged to her like a failed omelette sticking to the bottom of the pan. It was so stuck that, no matter how much butter you'd add, it wouldn't come off. It'd be better if you threw away the whole pan, which was what they did. And it made Rei leap through the door wanting to eat whatever was thrown, a perfect way to get rid of him.
That left them in the situation they were in now. When Ran really thought about it, Lum didn't deserve this kind of treatment, did she? After all, she's the only one who constantly helped her with him, the only one who was genuinely happy for her, who was there for her whenever she had a problem, and who always defended her and was ready to fight anyone who tried to hurt her. It wasn't really fair to blame her, was it? But Ran valued her relationship with Rei more.
"I'm so sorry Ran-chan!" she heard Lum say in a sweet comforting voice "I had no idea, if I had known I wouldn't have come! I'm sorry I should have waited, it just seemed important at the time, and you weren't answering my calls, I-"
Lum stopped talking when she noticed the tiny tears forming in Ran's eyes, and her weak attempt at suppressing them as she covered her face with her small hands. Whatever Lum came for could wait, her friend needed her right now. But before she could speak, Ran was already shouting at her again.
"Damn you, Lum!" she screamed without looking her in the eyes, her voice not having as much venom as before "Why does he have to love you so much! Why can't he like me back! It's not fair!"
"I'm sorry" it was all that Lum could to say.
"Even when I get him to pay attention to me, he's always still thinking of you!" she continued screaming, not even trying to hide her tears anymore "Why does it have to be like that! Don't I deserve to be happy?"
Lum felt really bad. And here she was being happy for her all this time. She put her hand on Ran's shoulder and did her best to console her.
"You don't have to keep doing this, Ran-chan! He's not worth it!"
But that didn't seem to have any effect on her.
"You don't understand" she protested
"Of course I understand, don'tcha see why I broke up with him long ago!"
"It's- It's not the same…"
Ran's tears intensified, turning into sobs. The girl was used to hiding her sadness with either violent rage or a sweet smile, Lum rarely saw her in that state. It made her heart break, and that heart break soon turned into anger.
"That monster!! That good-for-nothing cow! I'll get him for making you feel like this! I'll make sure he regrets every moment he dared hurt you! He'll be nothing but burned beef when I'm through with him!"
And to emphasize her point, electricity started leaking everywhere involuntarily. And as soon as she realised that, she tried to calm herself down before accidentally burning down the space ship. Ran didn't need that right now, she needed some love and support more than anything. So Lum carefully wrapped her hands around her friend and started caressing her hair in an effort to comfort her.
"There there, it's ok. I'm here now"
"Lum-chan, you really are a good friend!" She responded in a low voice, while trying to wipe her tears.
Lum didn't say a word. She just smiled and kept holding her, hoping it would make her feel better. They slowly parted when Ran's tears stopped, but Lum could tell the sadness didn't completely go away.
"You're way too good for him. You deserve so much better than that jerk" she added
"But… I love him!"
Lum cringed when hearing that, it pained her to see someone as good as Ran waste her love on an idiot like that.
"Honestly, Ran. You can do so much better!"
"Huh, you're one to talk"
"Well…" She knew exactly what she was talking about, but she didn't want to respond. This wasn't about him, this was about her friend. "If I was you I'd definitely break up with him. Heck, I was in your place and I did break up with him!"
The girl looked down and didn't respond, so Lum continued
"Ran-chan, you're so pretty and cute, and very fun to be around, and you can be nice and sweet sometimes. Literally anyone would love you, you can have anyone you want"
Ran raised her head, her eyes widening and her face brightening, and she looked a little more happy. This made Lum very glad, she gave her a warm smile and kept staring at her face. She noticed how color returned to her cheeks, making them as bright pink as her hair, this made her look so cute and further proved what Lum has just said.
"A-anyone?" asked Ran in her little lovely voice, not taking her eyes off of Lum.
"Definitely!" the girl responded without hesitation, her smile getting wider as if to confirm her statement.
The pink on Ran's face intensified and turned to bright red, and Lum was caught off guard by how quickly that turned to a red of anger, and how her expressions shifted out of nowhere. She stood up and banged her hands on the table, screaming.
"Hey! You're not trying to break us up just so you can get with him again, are you?!"
"Why would I wanna get with him again, weren'tcha listening to me?" Lum shot back, wary of Ran's reaction. She then hesitantly added "Besides, I already have Darling!"
Ran seemed to calm down a little, but there was still some jealousy visible on her face.
"As if your Darling is any better!" she said harshly. "He's way too pathetic, and you're so out of his league! He doesn't deserve you either!"
"Well he does have his good side! He can be kind and caring, and funny. And at least he does love me!"
"I couldn't care less!!" responded Ran abruptly, not meeting the Oni girl in the eyes.
Lum wondered when did the conversation shift to being about Ataru, but at least it distracted Ran from Rei for a bit. Although she wished they kept talking about him, because at least it was better than the silence that soon came after. She feared Ran might go back to thinking about that stupid ox, since she could see sadness returning to her face, but she couldn't bring herself to say anything. So they both kept staring around at nothing for a while, waiting for the other to speak, until Lum's attention was caught by the other alien's small sigh.
"Look at all this food I made for him!" she complained "I put so much love and care into it and now it's going to waste"
"Don'tcha worry, Ran-chan" reassured Lum with a hopeful smile "It won't be wasted if it gets eaten by someone who cares about you too, right?"
She aggressively dug in right away without waiting for an answer. And from the first bite, she felt her brain blow up and her senses explode from how good it tasted. She was so used to earth's bland dishes that she forgot how tasty alien food can be, but even then she was surprised by how amazingly delicious that was. Sweet but with a hint of spiciness that was well balanced and perfectly tailored to her Oni taste bugs. She knew Ran was a good cook, but it seems like she went all out with this, trying to impress someone who wasn't worth impressing. Well good thing she was here, Lum thought, imagine if that cow ate it, what a waste that would be.
"It's so good, Ran-chan! You out did yourself!!" she said enthusiastically, giving Ran her biggest smile yet.
"R-really?"
"Mhm! You're amazing, Ran-chan!"
"Thanks!" Ran responded with a smile of her own.
Of course she was amazing, she knew that. But still, she couldn't stop herself from blushing at the compliment. She was used to working hard trying to improve her cooking in order to please Rei, just for all her efforts to go unnoticed. This was the first time someone acknowledged her talent, it felt… nice. It also felt nice to see someone eat her food slowly and try to savour the taste, instead of shoveling it down on one go and asking for more. She could see the content and enjoyment on Lum's face, it made her feel so seen and appreciated and…
"TEA!"
Lum looked up from her plate in confusion, just to see Ran's face was bright red. Was she angry again?
"Omg, how could I forget the tea! I'll go make some for you Lum-chan, don't move!"
She excused herself and tried to make her way to the kitchen as quickly as possible, but was stopped by Lum's flying form telling her to not tire herself and that she'll handle it. After some protests, Lum managed to make a couch rise from the ground with a few buttons, then made Ran lay on it, telling her to rest, and switched on her galactic tv on her UFO screen.
"You need to relax a little Ran-chan, you've been putting yourself through a lot all day. I'll take care of everything for ya!"
Those were her exact words, so sweet. She looked so pretty, flying away gracefully with her face all smiles. As long as she didn't see Ran's embarrassing face, it didn't matter who made the tea. Ran just hoped her face would tone down a little by the time she came back.
Meanwhile, Lum was standing in the kitchen trying to figure out where everything was. She boiled some water with some alien tech and put the tea leaves in. Her thoughts started drifting towards Ran. She wanted to make something for her, as a thank you for the food and sorry for intruding, as well as to make her feel better, she hated seeing her sad. So what's better to make for her other than Lum's specialty and the only thing she knew how to make, those spicy star shaped snacks. Unlike those tasteless humans, Ran could handle her food, and she was sure she'd like it too! So she put on some apron and went to work quickly, hoping Ran wouldn't get bored or lonely without her.
Ran, in the meantime, hasn't moved an inch from her spot on the couch and was attempting to watch tv with what little energy she had left in her. It was taking her all her willpower and more not to fall asleep right then and there. She could barely keep her eyelids from closing anymore. At this rate, morning would come and Lum would still be in the kitchen.
'What's taking her so long?' she wondered, sleep finally winning over. And with a big yawn, she gave into her tiredness and closed her eyes. She could rest for a moment, Lum would wake her up when she comes back.
"I'm back!!" came Lum's voice a few moments later "Sorry to keep you wait- Huh"
She was so excited for her friend to see what she made for her, just to find her asleep on the couch. She got a bit disappointed, but it was fair, she thought, Ran must've been really tired. She was kind of sad she couldn't make it on time to surprise her, but there was always tomorrow morning, and it meant they wouldn't have to make breakfast so it wasn't all bad.
The Oni girl put the food away and turned off the tv, she then made her way to Ran. She lifted her up in her arms bridal style and flew her to her room before carefully tucking her to bed and covering her, doing her best to make sure she was comfortable. The small alien's sleeping face looked so pretty and peaceful, with not a single trace of anger or sorrow left. If anything, her lips were curving to a small smile, it made Lum's heart warm. She must be having a nice dream, Lum noted. She wondered what it was about, but didn't dwell on it too much. She instead went to sleep on the couch, but before leaving she took one last glance at Ran, and her heart warmed again. She fled the room right away before her heart would melt from how much warm it got, and left the other girl smiling in her nice dream.
Sunlight danced around Ran's eyes as she clinged desperately to the last bit of sleep, trying to continue whatever was left of her dream. It was a nice dream, she remembered that much. But her brain seemed to throw out every related memory as if doing it out of spite. It was a lost cause, the more time passed, the more she forgot rather than remembered. Whatever, she'll get out of bed eventually.
And it was then in the midst of her thinking that the events of yesterday kicked in. Wait, didn't she sleep on the couch? What was she doing here? And where's Lum? Did she go home and leave her alone? That asshole!! Ran would show her next time they met!
Ran angrily left her bed, her desire to sleep more leaving her body, and stomped out of her room. But her expression softened the moment she was greeted by Lum's smiling face wishing her a good morning, having already set up the table for breakfast. It looks like she spent the night there and prepared breakfast, without wrecking the spaceship, she had to give her that.
The two sat and started eating, stealing glances at each other from time to time. Lum could tell Ran was feeling better than yesterday, but there's still something off about her. Ran didn't show it, she put on her sweet smiley face and didn't say anything, but Lum could see some… worry? Disappointment, maybe? She couldn't tell, all she knew is that she wanted to cheer her up and didn't know how.
She started thinking. What did Ran like? She liked sweets, and cooking, and looking cute. She also liked blowing things up, and shooting guns, and screaming at people. Those were guaranteed to lift her spirit. They were also guaranteed to destroy Tomobiki more than their daily hijinks normally do, and kill some people in the process, not that Ran would find a problem with that. She had to think of something less dangerous, maybe arcade shooting games?
Then it hit her. Whenever Lum felt upset, her Darling would take her out on a date to make her feel better. Maybe if she took Ran on a date, she'll feel better too. Plus, it would be so fun! She was already thinking of all the fun activities they can do together, they'd have such a great time. Yes, a normal idea a girl might have for another girl who she totally considers just a friend. Now, how to ask her out.
"Um, Ran-chan?" Lum started saying hesitantly, which grabbed Ran's attention and made her stare at her, waiting for what she had to say.
"Would'cha, eh, like to, maybe, go on a date… with me?" She gulped, hoping for the best.
Ran's face started getting bright red and her expression was almost unreadable. She sure made her angry, Lum thought, she'd better clear things up before she started screaming at her.
"Wait! I didn't mean it like that! I meant a friendly date, between friends, like a friendly outing except it's also a date, just gals being pals, nothing more, hhh"
Ran seemed to calm down a little, but her cheeks were still red and there was some bitterness in her face. Lum feared she would snap, she was almost certain she'd turn her down, and maybe make some sassy remark.
"O-ok"
"Huh?" That made Lum very surprised, but also overjoyed. She did a little flip in the air then went over to hug her future date immediately.
"I'm so glad, Ran-chan!" She exclaimed "I promise we'll have a lot of fun, you won't regret it!"
She let go of her and flew towards the door. And before Ran could ask when or where their date would be taking place, or why was she leaving, Lum continued talking.
"We both need time to get ready, so meet'cha by the fountain at 10!"
"Wait, you mean today?"
"When else? The sooner the better, right?"
"I guess" Ran didn't know how to respond or what to say. She was feeling nervous. What if it turned out to be a prank or a plan to humiliate her? What if she'd get stood up? She wanted to scream at Lum and accuse her of that, to get her to make her intentions clear or at least make her promise she had no ulterior motive. But she couldn't. Part of her feared the date would get cancelled if she spoke, and that part really wanted to go. And Lum never left her a chance to talk anyway, so she had an excuse for not saying anything.
"By the way, you don't have to cook or bring anything with you, I want'cha to relax and enjoy your time! See ya!"
And with those last words, Lum flew away leaving the other girl feeling conflicted, trying to distract herself with thoughts of what to wear.
Ran was standing right next to the fountain just like they agreed, and Lum had yet to show up. "She's late!!" Ran was getting annoyed, she had been standing there tapping her feet anxiously waiting for Lum for what felt like an hour. Well, it was actually just five minutes, but it was long enough to make her run out of patience. So she sat by the edge of the fountain, her feet getting tired of standing up, if she was gonna wait another eternity she might as well rest.
"She's not coming!... Well, I'm not staying here! If she doesn't show up right this instant I'll leave immediately!"
Going to this date was a mistake, she thought, all she'd do is get embarrassed and go home sad, she shouldn't have agreed, she should've said no! It still wasn't too late to go back, she still had time to stand up and walk her way home. Although… she went to all that trouble to get ready, it'd be a shame to go back to her UFO then. And the weather was nice that day actually, what were the odds the weather would be just as nice the day after, huh? So there's no harm in staying another five minutes, if Lum happened to come by then it'd be a plus, she was definitely not waiting for her.
"She's not coming! She really is not coming! A friend she is! At this point, i don't care, even if she comes it'll be too la-"
"Ran-chan! Ran-chan!" Ran suddenly heard a familiar voice calling out to her and getting closer, and with that her grumpy face lit up instantly, having no trace of anger left, only a bright welcoming smile. It was like a dark cloud had been lifted. So she stood up immediately and turned around, wasting no time to call for the girl in a cutesy voice.
"Lum-chan!"
And then her expression turned to what seemed like a mix of surprise, confusion and disdain. It was not Lum. It wasn’t even Lum's baby cousin, nor one of Lum's earth friends. No! It was indeed Lum's idiot excuse of a boyfriend all dressed up for the occasion, and stepping towards her.
"Yo, Ran-chan! Lum told me about you two's date"
Ran backed away on reflex, dodging his attempt to put his hand on her shoulder.
"No, don't worry, it's not what you think, I'm not against it." He started talking with his fake serious voice, thinking that it'd make whatever random words that left his mouth sound more deep and convincing. "Know that my happiness lies with your own happiness. How could I be against such strong blooming romance! Who am I to come between true love!"
'Just WHAT did Lum tell him?!'
"Now with that said," aand he's back to his insufferable voice again "considering Lum considers me her fiancé, it wouldn't hurt if I joined iiIIINNSDFGHJKL" now that was the third one of his main set of voices, the sound someone would make when they get hit by lightning.
"I TOLDCHA NOT TO COME WITH MEE" and that was the sound an angry Oni would make when her darling does something bad or stupid, complete with lightning surrounding her as she dessended from the sky, set on electrocuting him so bad he was left as a limp twitching bundle of limbs where his body once stood.
Lum's feet touched the ground and she smiled at Ran warmly, which made the girl's heart slightly flutter. There she was, standing there in her fun colorful outfit, looking so effortlessly pretty that Ran couldn't tear her eyes away. You don't see her in casual clothes that often, so it's always cute and special when she wears one. Maybe- maybe that was the reason Ran felt her cheeks heating up right then.
"Sorry for being late! I had some trouble as you can see. I took care of it now!" she kicked the limp twitching bundle that used to be Ataru behind her.
"Will he be ok?" asked Ran apathetically, pointing at the limp no longer twitching bundle.
"Oh dontcha worry, he's used to it. Give him a few minutes and he'll be back on his feet like it was nothing!" she took a quick glance at him "So we better hurry before those few minutes pass!"
They both started walking with no precise destination in mind, each stepping on the limp bundle on their way. Oh look, it was twitching again! Not that any of them noticed anyway, they were focused on their own conversation as they walked, Ran speaking first.
"You came after all! Ran-chan is so happy!!"
"Of course I came! I promised you, didn'tch I? "
Seeing Ran happy made Lum happy as well. Lum took a moment to admire the girl next to her. She was cute as always, wearing a nice girly dress. It was good to see her in something other than an apron, she looked so cute without it. Lum couldn't understand why she kept on wearing it, especially to her dates with Rei, it made her look like his house wife, an image that Lum hated so much. Especially considering all Ran did was cook for him, it made that image more true which made her hate it more.
"So" Lum said, snapping herself out. "Where dcha wanna go?"
"I don't know, you have more experience with dates, you should pick!"
"Well it's still early for lunch, we can go see a movie, but earth movies may be boring for you, we should do something fun…" Lum trailed off trying to think of a place. She was so determined to make her friend happy, she wouldn't settle for anything mundane. She wanted some place that Ran can enjoy and have fun in.
"Oh I know!" she said enthusiastically, snapping her fingers. "There's a roller disco with an arcade that opened up about a month ago! Why don't we give it a try?!"
"A roller disco? As in a spinning record?" asked Ran in confusion.
"No, that's a rolling disc" corrected Lum, trying to explain the concept to her "A roller disco is a-"
But Ran interrupted immediately trying to guess for herself, not wanting there to be something Lum knew that she didn't.
"Isn't it a disagreement between people?"
"Nope, that's discord. A dico-"
"Oh… I thought discord is where people chat with each other"
"That's the app. Anyways, a dico is-"
"Is it, like, a… a debate?"
"No, that's discourse. Disco is where-"
"Oh I know! Is it… umm… finding something new?"
"That's discover" Lum corrected yet again, her patience running out as her attempts of getting the meaning across went in vain "I'm telling ya, a disco is-"
"Wait! is it… eh… to stop?"
"That's discontinue. Just listen to me, a disco is-"
"Hold on! Is it… uhm… is it a dance club?"
"For the hundredth time, no! That's a- Wait, yess! That's a disco!"
"Great!!… Now what's a roller?"
THUD
Lum fell on the ground from disbelief when hearing that question, her supposed victory turned out short lived. She picked herself up and smiled again, the excitement of going to a roller disco surpassed her momentary irritation.
"It's like a disco but with roller skates, it's really fun!" she eagerly explained, unable to keep her feet on the ground "And there's an arcade in there, it has good games too! Not as good as the games from our planet but still fun!" She rotated in the air as she kept explaining, a big smile never leaving her face. "After that, we'll have lunch, then go to the amusement park, then take a short walk in the park before going home! Whatcha say?"
The date hasn't even started yet and it seemed like Lum was having a blast already. That's how she was, always full of energy, finding excitement in the smallest of things. Ran admitted she liked that about her, even though she found her irritating at times, it was nice to have someone optimistic to balance out her grumpiness. She told herself it was the main reason she liked her company so much.
"Lead the way" she answered, with just as big of a smile on her face. Maybe agreeing to this date wasn't a mistake after all, maybe she'd even enjoy it.
The girls arrived at the roller disco after a short walk. Lum hadn't stopped talking the entire way, which Ran said she found annoying, but despite that, she didn't attempt to stop her once.
Ran took a moment to admire the place. Despite living on earth for so long, there were many places she hadn't discovered yet, thinking they weren't worth her time. But then, she was starting to change her mind. The room was large and crowded, the upbeat music playing was loud enough to blow her ears off. It was dark, lighted only by the colorful neon lights that seemed more blinding than illuminating. She then took a look at the rink that was crowded with people dancing and skating together without any room to breath. Surrounding it were all sorts of games where kids and teenagers gathered. And by the side were a number of tables serving food. The place seemed very obnoxious at first, but the more she looked at the people having fun, the more inviting it felt. It had its weird charm. It may not match her general taste and aesthetic, it was more Lum's style, but she'd try to enjoy it.
Speaking of Lum, the girl had made her way to the counter, leaving Ran to her admiration, and came back with two pairs of roller skates in her hands. The two girls put their shoes on and joined the people in the rink. Then, out of nowhere, Ran felt a warm hand take hers. She looked up to see Lum's head slightly turning back towards her as she was trying to lead the way, the smile that never left her face still present.
"I'm good at skating! I don't need your help!" It took Ran some time to say that. She tried to look mad, but her small blush and the fact that she wasn't trying to tear her hand away betrayed her.
Lum took a quick glance at their intertwined hands then back again at Ran. She paused for a second, looking for something to say.
"Oh… Ok then" and with that said, she let go of her hand like it was nothing and resumed skating slowly.
"You idiot!" Ran yelled at her immediately, taken back by her response. "Who said you can let go!"
Lum giggled and turned back towards her, taking her hand again, then continued skating forward. "I thought you said you were good at skating, didnt'cha?"
"Well what if I get lost in the crowd, huh? Of course you didn't think of that!"
"Uh huh"
Ran had nothing else to say, and she really didn't want to say anything. She just let Lum turn around and take her other hand, and watched her make them move together across the rink at full speed, skating backwards and giggling loudly. And Ran couldn't help but join her, their laughters turning into one, only slowing down when reaching the center of the rink. And with that, their skating slowed down as well, and turned into rythymic moves to the beat of the music.
Lum started moving her body without letting go of Ran's hands, dancing freely and spontaneously, not worrying about how good her dancing is, only the joy of the moment. She moved her shoulders and arms in a way that invited Ran to dance with her, and Ran was trying, maybe trying too much. She was too concerned on how to do it and what moves she should make next, it made her mouvements awkward and stiff, she couldn't get them to be smooth and relaxed like Lum.
Maybe that's the main problem, she couldn't get herself to relax, this place wasn't letting her. The beat was getting faster and faster, caughting up with the beats of her heart. And the environment was making her quite hot. She started feeling self-conscious. She didn't know what to do exactly, or dance in this situation. And it didn't help that Lum's face was two inches away from hers, making it hard to focus on anything else just as it was getting hard to breathe. She just prayed that the colorful lights of the disco would hide the intense red on her face.
"Ran-chan, what's wrong? Aren'tcha having fun?"
Ran cursed herself, she wasn't doing good enough of a job hiding her awkwardness, Lum must've sensed it. She ruined the date for sure, best case scenario was she'd embarrass herself and the awkwardness would never leave till the end of the day. Shit, she remembered she had to say something, so she answered shyly.
"I- Ran-chan doesn't know how to dance like Lum-chan"
"Well then, just watch me and do what I do, and you'll get the hang of it!"
But despite Lum's efforts to reassure her, Ran was still hesitant.
"Don'tcha worry, I'm sure you'll be great!"
Lum let go of her hands and moved back a little, but made sure to stay close enough that Ran could still see her. Then she started doing her funny little dance, her wide smile returning once again. Ran took a good look at her, at the way she moved with the beat, her feet skating rhythmically, spinning and dancing and laughing without a care in the world. The pink, yellow and blue lights of the disco were reflecting on her hair, changing its color and complementing her complexion perfectly. She looked like an angel gracing the dance floor, so good at doing anything, no wonder everyone loved her.
Ran tried to follow her moves and dance like her, clumsily copying all her mouvements. She could tell she failed at being as good, but heck it was a lot of fun. After a while she started doing her own dance, feeling the rhythm and following her instincts. She closed her eyes, to help her feel the beat better and dance more freely without focusing on the looks of those around her. She could hear Lum giggle beside her and make all sorts of excited noises, which felt like music to Ran's ears, better than any music they were playing. And she could smell her distinctive scent, the smell of ozone that tinted the air around her signalling her excitement, and to Ran it smelled better than any flower or perfume.
Lum looked at her friend dancing, she was so glad Ran was having a lot of fun. She skated towards her and took her hands again then started spinning. Lum's laughter only grew louder, and Ran soon joined her. And for a moment it was only them, holding hands and looking at each other's eyes, all people became blurry thanks to their spinning, and their combined laughter drowned all the noise. They kept looking at each other's eyes while smiling at each other widely, the moment couldn't get more perfect, and it would be such a shame if Lum's hands suddenly slipped and Ran's momentum made her skate back rapidly and crash.
"Oops" Lum said nervously, 'cause that's exactly what happened.
After getting tired, they went to play some of the arcade games. They checked out almost every game, but Ran's favorites were the shooting games. She had quite the experience with guns, she kept playing over and over. Lum left Ran to her game and went to get them something to drink and returned to see a big crowd forming around her, when she got closer she could see they were a bunch of middle schoolers, some watching with awe and some waiting patiently for their turns. Ran looked so adorable when she was focused, Lum couldn't bring herself to disturb her. She decided to watch her as she played, just to see what the fuss was about, and totally not to keep looking at her cute face. She was sure her best friend's talent was impressive, she had to witness it.
The sound of applause could be heard from afar as Ran won another round, a kid approached her as she put in another coin
"Eh miss, aren't you done yet? You've been hogging the game for too long"
"Step back, kid! Wait for your turn!" She barked at him aggressively, scaring him for a moment. Then she positioned her gun, ready for the game to start "Watch and learn!"
She shooted at the virtual targets mercilessly, without missing a single one. She kept hearing murmurs of amazement from the crowd and getting comments from impressed kids as she kept scoring points. Then the rounds of applause returned when she won once again, her new best high score appearing on the screen.
"Wow! She's good!" "That was so cool!" "Amazing" "How did you get so good!"
"Huh, I've been playing with guns ever since I can remember. Hell, when I was your age I got my own personal gun" She said confidently which made the kids gush more.
"Ran-chan!" She turned around to see Lum making her way through the crowd, two cups of soda in hand. She stepped aside, letting the next person take her place, and made her way towards Lum, who handed her her cup and started sipping from her own and biting the straw.
"That was awesome! You were so good!" she said, her voice filled with admiration and her eyes shimmering under the lights. She watched Ran bury her face in her drink and take a sip, Lum couldn't tell if she was blushing or if it was the lights but it complimented her cute face regardless.
"I'm afraid that was the last game they have" she said again, wanting to break the silence before it even gets created.
"I'm getting tired of this place anyways, where are we supposed to go next?"
Lum got a little disappointed when she heard that and lowered her head. "I'm sorry it wasn't to your taste" she spoke. Her first priority was making Ran happy, and if she got bored it ment she failed at that.
"Are you kidding, I had a lot of fun! It was all thanks to you Lum-chan, you made Ran-chan so happy!" she responded giggling.
Seeing Ran smiling and giggling like that and looking overall very happy filled Lum's heart with so much warmth. Ran was an angel, the world didn't deserve her. Lum wanted to hold her tight and protect her at all costs, to hunt down and kill whoever dared remove that pure smile from her face.
Lum threw the empty cup in the trash can then made her way towards Ran. She took her hand suddenly, noting how sweaty her palms were, and rushed her out of the place. She looked back at her, even when she was confused she looked so cute, literally every face she made was so precious.
"There's a good place where we can have lunch!" Said Lum trying to explain her actions "Tho the walk there is kind of long but it's worth it, and we get to spend some quiet time together, isn't that great!"
"I- I guess"
Lum couldn't quite read the other girl's thoughts, but she could see the smile never leaving her face.
"I'm so glad you had fun Ran-chan! I'm so happy!"
They made their way to the restaurant and ordered their food. It felt no different than when they visited each other's UFOs and had some tea, except now they didn't have a giant screen in front of them to distract them when there was silence, and they were surrounded by a bunch of people who would hear and see their every move. So what, it was more like when they hang out with the other girls, except it was just the two of them. And she had to say something to break the silence before it got awkward, but what to say. It was just the two of them and for some reason this was different than talking or humming when they walked together. Mostly different because then Ran hummed with her, to maintain her cute image in public, but Lum liked to think she enjoyed acting that way for more than just her image and that part of it was genuine.
And here she was getting distracted thinking about Ran again, when she should instead be thinking of something to say.
"Lum-chan, is everything ok?"
"Huh?" Lum got snapped out of her train of thoughts by Ran's sweet worried voice "Dontcha worry, Ran-chan. I'm alright!"
She then smiled at her, and Ran felt herself melt. That was the first time the smile left Lum's face that whole day, so it had Ran worried for a moment. But she wasn't ready for how much seeing that smile return would reassure her, or how much better it made Lum look.
"I'm glad!" Ran returned the smile then took a gulp of water. It's weird, Lum noted, Ran has been drinking a lot since back at the arcade, and she's been rubbing and scratching her neck too, it looks like she has a sore throat. It made sense since it was really hot outside, Lum was feeling the heat herself.
"So," she started to say, determined not to let the situation get awkward. But as soon as she began her sentence, the waiter came with their food. Neither waited a moment to dig in, especially Lum who was violently biting and chewing on everything in front of her, putting her sharp fangs to good use. The waiter basically brought them a distraction as well as a topic for talks. So they talked about the food, about how good it is and comparing it to their own cooking, finding ways to complement each other. Then they trailed off to other topics, with the occasional comfortable silence covered by them eating.
It was nice for both of them. When they finished eating, they split the bill and headed outside. Lum took hold of Ran's hand again and marched to the amusement park. She seemed excited about it, it was really fun according to what she said. Ran had so much fun the whole time, she couldn't know how it could get better. But then again being with Lum alone was fun no matter what it was they were doing, as long as Lum was with her she was sure to have a good time.
So here they were, the amusement park. It was very big and full with different rides and attractions, figures Lum would get excited about silly little games like that. Of course they were nothing compared to the amusement parks they have in their home world, but that wouldn't make it less fun, going by the arcade. It has a nice retro feel that you don't see anymore on her planet, she guessed that was what made this planet so charming. She couldn't believe she kept herself too busy to explore the place she's been living in for so long, and for what?
Lum took her hand and guided her from ride to ride, insisting they wouldn't go home until they tried every one of them.
That was the most fun Ran had ever had since she could remember. She wished Rei would take her to fun dates like that, almost all their dates involve her feeding him and nothing more. She did like cooking for him, but she wished he'd pay more attention to her than food from time to time. She wished he'd look at her the way Lum does, smile at her the way Lum does, hold her hands the way Lum does. Did Lum- did Lum hold him like that too when they used to date? Was she able to get him to look at her? But then again any sighted person wouldn't be able to keep their eyes away from her, it wasn't a question! Did she kiss him, maybe? That bitch! And then she dared hold Ran's hand afterwards! The thought of her and Rei being together made her so… so… so angry!! Her curly hair started to stand up and her fangs became more visible, and then-
"Come on, Ran-chan, let's go!"
The ride ended, ending her upcoming outburst with it. Hearing Lum's sweet voice call her name like that made all her anger leave, just like people were leaving the ride letting new different people get on board, she let new different emotions fill her. And then Lum held her hand again, and it didn't matter how many hands she held before, Ran's heartbeat seemed to pick up its paste every time they touched. She wondered if the sweaty palms she was feeling were her own.
After successfully managing to try out every ride, then a few minutes of walking together, their feet finally led them to the Tomobiki park. It was a rather average park, they both walked in it plenty of times, and it was nothing compared to the sub dimensional forest.
"So, this is the walk in the park part of the date" muttered Ran. It wasn't a question, it was more like a disappointed statement. She was having a lot of fun on this date and she didn't want it to end like that, in fact she didn't want it to end at all.
"Pretty boring, huh?" she heard Lum respond as she let go of her hand and started to float beside her, having the same smile she had on all day. Ran admired how cheerful and carefree Lum was, it was one of the things that made her so lovable, and yet she felt a bit disappointed that Lum wasn't as sad as she was about their date ending.
"Hey, how about I take you flying instead, whatcha say?"
Lum didn't wait for Ran to respond as she quickly put her arms under hers and held her tightly by the waist. Ran felt her cheeks begin to warm from the sudden close contact, and that feeling slowly turned to excitement as she was being lifted up and started to float. Her body became so weightless and she felt as light as a feather, no wonder Lum liked to float all the time.
"Ready?" asked Lum, tightening her grip on her friend's waist, and as soon as she got a nod she moved forward and started to drift away. People were shrinking and buildings were becoming smaller as Lum kept on lifting her higher and higher. An overview of the park slowly turned to an overview of the town as they flew over Tomobiki. Ran could see her UFO from here secluded from the rest of the buildings, as well as Lum's UFO parked in the sky above her Darling's house where she stayed. She then spotted their school on the other side of town, and all the places they went to today.
Ran felt overjoyed by the sensation, it felt so wonderful to fly freely in the sky with Lum by her side, their bodies pressing tightly against each other and their warm skins brushing lightly. Every thought and worry left her mind completely as she dwelled on the feeling of being pressed against Lum. She felt shivers on her skin, it had to be from the wind gliding over her body. And the air was so thin, that's why she felt light headed. And the strange feeling in her stomach, definitely from the height. She kept thinking that to herself. But despite the wind or the thinness of the air, she did not feel cold like she was supposed to, instead she felt very hot and her face was completely flushed. She was thankful Lum made that sound when she flew, because without it she was sure her fast heartbeat would be audible. So she closed her eyes and listened to the sound, hoping that feeling would go away. But it did not go, if anything it kept increasing, and it actually felt good. That's what flying must feel like, she thought.
"This is so good!" she exclaimed giggling.
"I know right! It gets better!"
They soared through the clouds as Lum flew higher. The sun had begun to set and the view was simply beautiful. Ran marveled at the sky's color, a pretty shade of pink complemented by the orange of the big setting sun with white clouds decorating it beautifully. Ran could see all of Tomobiki now, with all its buildings and streets that she got to know so well, places she would've never known if it wasn't for the girl who was now holding her tightly, the girl who she usually liked to blame for all her problems, and who she left her planet for and followed in the name of 'revenge'. Even if she liked to believe sometimes that her life would be better if they'd never met, she knew inside that it would be so dull without her.
After some time, the flying slowed down steadily then stopped over a roof top of some tall house, they both settled next to each other and sat there in silence. Ran turned her head as far away from Lum as possible, trying her best to hide the blush that was spreading across her face. A few seconds later, she figured the other girl wasn't staring at her so she lifted her head and decided to focus on the sky instead, admiring the beautiful view. The sun had set completely, shades of magenta, purple and dark blue tinted the sky as darkness began to surround them and the first evening stars became more visible.
Ran turned her eyes away slowly and tried to steal glances at Lum. As soon as she turned her head she jumped slightly, surprised at how little distance there was between them. Have they been sitting this close the whole time or did Lum scoot closer when Ran was looking away? It didn't matter, she decided to focus on her face instead. Lum's head was tilted up looking at the sky, her pretty features peaceful and relaxed. Her blue eyes glimmered under the starlight and her colorful hair strands danced with the evening breeze. Ran then noted the rosy shade of her cheeks, slightly darker than before.
Lum must've felt her staring cause she suddenly turned her head towards her, causing Ran to avert her eyes. Though it didn't take long for her to return her gaze towards Lum, just to see she was still staring at her and giving her a big smile.
Ran's heart skipped a beat and her stomach started doing flip flops again, she couldn't help but smile back, her pink eyes never leaving the blue ones that were transfixed on hers. For a moment, she forgot how to breathe, and it didn't help that Lum's ozone sent was suffocating her. Her flutter increased abruptly when she felt a soft hand holding hers and squeezing it gently, the heat rose from her stomach to her chest and her heart was violently trying to pound out of her body.
There was no reason for her to panic, she thought to herself, she and Lum held hands the whole day. So why was she feeling like this? It couldn't be that, now could it. There's no way, it couldn't! She begged for it to not be what she feared it was. She just couldn't! It couldn't be! She couldn't she couldn't she couldn't!
"LUM YOU BITCH!"
Ran jerked her hand away and stood up suddenly, her voice becoming aggressive. Her face completely shifted to her usual blind rage and she stared daggers at Lum, whose face was filled with shock and hurt. That was exactly what Lum feared would happen, and with how things were going she hoped it wouldn't. She stood up slowly and tried to calm down her angry friend.
"Ran-chan, what is it? Is everything alright?"
"This is all YOUR fault!!!"
"Whatcha talking about?"
"Don't play dumb, you bitch! It's all part of your plan, isn't it?! You're trying to make me fall in love with you so I would forget Rei and you can have him all for yourself, that's it!"
The hurt on Lum's face started turning to frustration and she snapped back.
"I already toldcha I don't want your stupid Rei, I already have my Darling!"
But hearing Darling's name only seemed to further trigger Ran as her anger kept on increasing until it turned into tears.
"You idiot! It worked, ok! Your stupid plot worked, you happy now!"
Lum was stunned. Every bit of frustration that might have been there faded away at once. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, neither did she know what to say. Did Ran, unintentionally and in her weird way, declare her love for her? Was she- was she crying? Lum stood there in silence, not able to meet Ran's eyes, anxious for what she might say next.
"You greedy bastard!" were her next words, her voice thankfully decreasing in volume as she spoke. "You couldn't be happy with just your Darling, or Rei, or your dozens of admirers! You had to make everybody else love you as well" She stopped to wipe her tears. She couldn't let herself cry in front of Lum, at least not right then.
"Ever since we were children, you made everybody love you, everyone loved you and only you! And I- " her voice slowly returned soft and vulnerable "I- I- I loved you so much… and mom- I always got punished for it…"
She couldn't bring herself to finish her sentence as the tears fell freely from her eyes, she didn't even bother to wipe them.
Lum didn't know what to say or what to do, so she did what she thought was best and wrapped her arms around Ran, pulling her in a protective embrace.
"Ran-chan" she whispered, her voice soft and comforting, relief washed over her as the girl's stiff body softened in her arms and she felt her hug back and squeezing gently. Not a single word was uttered as they stood there in silence, holding each other so tight they almost became one, while Ran continued crying on Lum's shoulder. Lum knew that underneath the angry fassade, Ran was very vulnerable, that's why she always tried to be patient with her and never hold it against her. She more than anyone understood her true feelings, at least she thought she did.
'Ran-chan, if only I knew you felt this way' Lum thought to herself, feeling some tears gather on the edge of her eyes. She brought her hand upward and started stroking the girl's curly hair as they both sat down on the rooftop again, never leaving each other's comforting arms.
Time seemed to freeze for both of them as their heartfelt hug felt never-ending. Ran never felt more safe, it reminded her of when they were children and Lum used to comfort her when bad things happened, her gentle arms wrapped around her frail body like a warm blanket, and her delicate fingers running through her hair driving all negative thoughts and emotions out of her head. She let herself relax under the affectionate embrace, not knowing when exactly did the tears stop falling. She wished they would never be apart, a part of her thinking that if she let go now she may never experience this again.
But to her disappointment, Lum pulled away slowly and instead fixed her gaze on her, a soft smile decorating her lips. Lum took a moment to admire Ran's face. She looked soft and vulnerable. Her eyes, puffy and red from crying, were looking at her with wonder and nervousness, the tears making them shine under the moonlight. Lum had to admit, it made her look really cute, well she always looked cute. She wondered how such sweet and innocent features can transform to the mad and angry expression she knew. But she didn't hate that, she actually liked her grumpy Ran the best, that's when she was at her cutest in Lum's opinion. But that doesn't mean she wasn't cute then, she was very cute. The shade of pink on her cheeks was darker than the pink of her hair, and her soft perfect lips were just as pink. They looked so inviting, a perfect tool for sucking people's energy.
Lum wondered what they might feel like against hers. Almost every girl she knew was kissed by Ran, except her. Well, getting their energy sucked out is more like it, but it still must've felt nice, they should consider themselves lucky. If Ran wanted to suck her energy she'd let her do it anytime, but to her despair she never tried to before. Maybe right now, with her lips parted, her eyes closed, her head slightly tilted and her face approaching steadily. She could feel Ran's warm breath tickling her own lips, the rising heat was rapidly spreading all over her body and sparks of lightning danced around her as she struggled to keep them under control. Now was not the time to panic! She didn't want to ruin it. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down, which was pretty difficult as she found it hard to breath, her face getting redder and redder.
'Stupid Lum' she thought to herself, as it hit her that Ran could suck energy, so her electricity wouldn't be a prolem.
So she took a deep breath again and closed her eyes, then let her shaking hand cup Ran's small face drawing her closer. All remaining thoughts inside her brain were silenced when their lips finally met, a thrill washed over her and she could only focus on how tender and slow the kiss was, how soft Ran felt against her mouth and how she invaded all of her senses. Her warm lips surpassed every expectation Lum had of how nice they felt, she couldn't help but savour their sweet taste, deepening their kiss in the process. Lum was sure if they weren't sitting at that moment her knees would've given up on her and she'd be floating freely right then. And as if the way she kissed her wasn't enough, Ran draped both arms around her small frame bringing their bodies closer.
Ran has kissed many people before, but she considered this her first real kiss. She knew what kissing ment but she never knew how amazing it could feel, she only saw it as a tool for sucking energy, and her awkward kiss with Rei did nothing to disprove that. But kissing Lum there and then, and feeling her kiss back passionately and curl her arms around her, she has never felt something so nice and enjoyable and overwhelmingly exciting before. All the flutter she felt before was nothing compared to her flutter now, and it made the experience so much better. And the best part was that she knew Lum felt exactly the same, and that made her so happy! She could feel their body heat combining and hear their hearts beating as one, and she doubted her inability to breathe was just because of the ozone that was intensely leaking out of Lum's body.
The two girls parted slowly, each panting heavily trying to catch their breaths. Ran turned away slightly, still embarrassed about the deep blush that hadn't left her face, she couldn't stop giggling which made Lum smile again. She went back to gazing at the stars above, replaying the kiss in her head, still lost in the sensation. She rested her head on Lum's shoulder, who wrapped an arm around hers and pulled her close, gently rubbing her arm. Ran snuggles up against her side making herself comfortable, then asked softly
"Can we stay like this all night?"
Lum missed hearing that sweet voice, the moments felt like they lasted so long that she forgot its sound. She answered with an 'mhm' without thinking twice.
"What if I fall asleep?" asked Ran again
"Then I'll fly you to your UFO and tuck you to bed! And I won't leave your side!"
That was all Ran needed to hear, she closed her eyes and let Lum cuddle her, while her conscience slowly drifted away.
Lum replayed all the events of the day in her mind, her smile growing wider with each memory. She was so happy, and it made her even happier that she could make Ran happy as well. One worry that wouldn't leave her mind was her Darling. She didn't want to hide it from him, but she didn't want to break up with him either, and she still wanted to date Ran. He'd accept, she was sure he would, afterall she doubted he'd be jealous of another girl. If anything he'd want to join in, but that was another matter altogether. So she dropped the subject from her thoughts, she'd worry about stuff like that later, now she'd let herself enjoy her time with her new girlfriend.