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The girl with blue hair was hard to miss. Especially when she was belting out rock riffs while lifting 50 pound dumbbells with an ease that should not be possible given her slender arms.
It made Ekko a bit nervous to approach, but the music from her headphones was blaring loudly and her off tune singing was obnoxious.
“What's up big boy?” she'd asked when she'd seen Ekko approach her. “Need someone to work out with?”
And he'd never even gotten a chance to tell her to lower her volume because she had engulfed him in her vibrant as her hair personality. Whenever or not he wanted to, he was adopted by Jinx into becoming her workout partner.
Her personality was so infectious, that pretty soon her erratic behavior and crass tongue grew on him, endeared itself to him. Going to the gym became a pleasant activity rather than a dreaded one. Soon he was looking forward to his workouts, finding himself sometimes laughing so hard at the conversation between him and Jinx that he felt he didn't even need the workout in order to get abs.
Texts about finding time for gym soon grew into texts about class, about games, about interests and hobbies and then into asking how their day had gone. They went out to get lunch, or to the library to study. Jinx was as bright as she was strong, which was to say was almost inhumane for her slender size.
Ekko found himself more often than not staring at her during their workouts, the sweat condensing on her skin, making it look like her cloud tattoos were raining. He tries not to stare but she meets his eyes with a smirk and throws him a towel to 'wipe the drool away' before she walks away with a tilt to her hips.
She's interested, given her flirtations and flexing in front of him, which is why it confuses him. Sometimes he'll see her across campus and wave hello, or call out to her, only to be ignored. One time he snuck up behind her and slung an arm around her shoulders and she'd shoved him off and run.
A few times his schedule had caused him to go to the gym earlier and he'd seen her there, running on the treadmill. When he'd approached her she had staunchly ignored him.
It hurt him to see her act like this but he figured she didn't want to be bothered.
It wasn't until Jinx had kissed him after a night out on town, both drunk on illegally procured drinks and youth, and Ekko had tried to kiss Jinx back that he'd been slapped in the face.
“Stop harassing me!” Jinx had cried out, tears in the corners of her eyes. The slap resounding, drawing the attention of all those in the cafe who had been up early to get coffee before class. Ekko's heart plummeted to his feet. Shame burned through him, as did anger, whirling into a heated blaze.
“Why?” he demanded, blinking back tears. “Why are you like this?”
“What are you talking about?” she scoffed, backing away from him. “You're the one who tried to kiss me!”
“You were the one who kissed me!” he exclaimed, all too painfully aware of the audience. “Why do you pretend you don't know me! I've tried to be okay with it, but it hurts my feelings.”
Suddenly Jinx's eyes went wide before she let out a groan. “Oh my god,” she muttered before she grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him away. He followed after her, confused.
“Where are you taking me?” he asked, going along so he could get answers.
“Hold on,” she said and lead him to the dorms. She scanned her card and let him in. then she tugged him up the stairs to the second floor, to a door before she unlocked it. He entered a room that looked like it was going through an identity crisis. One side was neat and orderly, with pink bed-sheets and posters of theater productions on the wall.
The other half was messy, with black bed-sheets half on the floor, posters of rock hung up haphazardly on the wall and a blue haired girl sitting cross legged at a desk, humming to herself as she scribbled something down.
“Powder, what are you doing back here? I thought you were going to class,” Jinx asked as Ekko's eyes went wide. He looked at Jinx, to the girl- Powder- who had brought him here. They looked the same.
“I brought your boyfriend back.”
As this Jinx's head jerked up and her eyes went wide as she took in Ekko's shocked face and Powder's indignant one.
“Oops-”
“You can't just keep doing this!” Powder declared. “I am tired of your boyfriends mistaking you for me. Tell them!”
Jinx hopped off the chair, coming closer. “But it's so much fun this way!” She exclaimed. At Powder's dour face she added, “you're no fun, older sis.”
“There's two of you?” Ekko finally came to, overcoming his shock.
“We're twins,” Powder said, unimpressed. She crossed her arms over her chest. “Honestly, I don't know how people keep mistaking me for her.” She jerked her head at Jinx who slung her arm over Powder's shoulder only to be shrugged off.
Ekko looked between them. Their faces were the same, even the way they wore their hair in braids down their back, and the pitch of their voice. They even wore black clothing! Except Powder's seemed to have more of a formal air to them.
“We look nothing alike,” Powder concluded before tossing a braid over her shoulder and going back to her class. “Later, loser,” she flipped her sister off who laughed.
“So,” Jinx slinked over to the door, closing shut and leaning against it. “Boyfriend. Got class anytime soon?” she asked, looking at his lips and biting down on her own.
His calculus professor wouldn't mind. Surely. “No,” he said and crossed the room to meet her.