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"Claggor, it's your turn"
The boy brought his hand to the bottle and turned it on its own axis, hoping for it to point to...
"Mylo, of course"
Jinx spoke irritably, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms over her chest. There seemed to be some sort of magnet between the two of them when the bottle had to pick the pairs; so far in the game, they'd only had to answer questions and propose challenges to each other. And being best friends, of course they weren't going to give it the same thrill. They know exactly what they can't dig up on each other in front of others, and even though Mylo is always bugging him, he had clear boundaries as to what was too private to make him answer in front of other people.
"The bottle has decided, Jinx", said the spiky-haired young man, mockingly. "It just bothers you that you don’t get paired up with me and he does"
"Ugh, in your dreams. Come on, let's get this over with", she looked at Claggor with determination and crossed her legs, now looking at the other players.
The group was made up of people from both Zaun and Piltover. There were Jinx, Claggor, Mylo and Vi on Zaun’s side, and Jayce, Mel, Viktor and Caitlyn on Piltover's side. The game was an adapted version of the bottle game, and the rules were fairly simple. You have to choose between truth or dare, and if you refuse to do or answer what you are asked, in addition to losing points for your team, you are obliged to drink a beverage that Jinx had prepared with Thieram's help. The smile on the blue-haired girl's face at the idea of someone having to drink the repulsive mixture had been enough for everyone to avoid refusing at all costs and, as embarrassing as it was, to do and answer absolutely every single dare and question.
"Claggor", Mylo spoke again, this time turning to his friend to get his attention. "Truth or dare?"
"Er... True"
"What's the most disgusting thing you've done this week?"
Everyone present was attentive to the response. Claggor was particularly neat in the eyes of the others, so none of the players expected an answer too far out of line.
"Maybe... Eat Vi's leftovers, I guess?"
"I doubt that's the grossest thing you've done, but I guess that counts, right?", asked Mylo, nodding when Jinx gave him the go-ahead as she rolled her blue eyes to continue the game and not waste any more time with the two boys.
"Now it's Jayce's turn"
The young man spun the bottle, too hard for the other’s liking, who felt dizzy just watching it spin round and round at full speed. A few more spins and the nozzle of the glass vessel slowly stopped on Vi.
"This should be interesting", Vi spoke for the first time, rubbing her hands together and laughing at the look on Jayce's face, trying to hide his terror.
"Don't go too far with me, pinkhead"
"No promises, pretty boy", she winked teasingly and asked the question: "Truth or dare?"
"Dare"
" Uhh…!", she replied excitedly at the confidence of the young man from the opposing group. "Are you sure?"
Vi enjoyed seeing how the others were genuinely dreading being paired up with her, which is why she was so surprised that one the eldest of the Piltover’s team decided to choose a dare instead of answering a simple question. They knew that, no matter how embarrassing these were, they wouldn't compare to the disturbing challenges the pinkhead would come up with. Jayce nodded, probably trying to impress the others in a pathetic attempt to prove that Vi wasn't as perverse as they thought.
"I dare you to...", Vi surveyed the other participants and smiled mischievously when she saw Viktor distracted, "put one of Viktor’s socks in your mouth for ten seconds"
"What!? No way!"
All the participants, on both sides, burst into laughter, some laughing so hard that their stomachs began to hurt shortly after. Mel, for her part, wiped away the tears that had formed in her eyes from the laughter that came from seeing the shocked faces of her two friends. Jayce kept yelling at Vi to give him a real dare, begging for mercy.
"If you're not up to the challenges of a zaunite, you know what you have to do...", Vi pointed to the drink Jinx had made as she grinned wickedly in Jayce's direction.
He looked at Viktor; saw his terrified face and the hurried way he shook his head in denial. He wasn't going to give him his sock, and Jayce didn't know which would taste worse, the drink or his piece of clothing. Jayce sighed defeatedly and got up from the floor, where they were all sitting in a circle, and walked over to the table where the glass pitcher filled with a bubbling brown liquid sat. He poured a small glass as everyone watched and held his nose to drink. One gulp was enough for him to cough the sip away, while the others continued to laugh.
"Jinx, you're such an evil genius", Mel interjected with a chuckle.
"Tell me something I don't know", she said with a smirk, she looked back at the boy, finding that he was trying to leave the glass on the table, trying to be inconspicuous. "Jayce, you know you have to drink the whole glass"
"This is disgusting!"
"But it's better than my sock!"
They continued to laugh after Viktor's intervention, and Jinx proposed to continue as Jayce made a superhuman effort to get the liquid into his body, gagging countless times. Now it was Caitlyn's turn, and when she turned the bottle over, she found herself wishing with all her might that it wouldn't end up pointing to a specific person. She just hoped it would stop at anyone but her. The odds were high because of the number of players, and so it was almost impossible that it would end up on Jinx.
It was common knowledge that Jinx didn't particularly like Caitlyn, even if she herself had nothing against her. Still, she didn't even want to imagine what would happen if the tip of the bottle stopped to point at the other blue-haired; it was clear to her that it would force her to do very devious things or answer way too embarrassing questions, with an answer that couldn't reach the ears of the other participants under any circumstances.
"Jinx", said Mylo as the tip of the bottle was pointed at her, watching for reactions from both of them. "This is only getting better"
Jinx looked at Caitlyn seriously, and she couldn't help but feel intimidated under the younger girl's empty stare. Vi looked back and forth, watching them both, and decided to break the awkward silence that had formed, trying to somehow diffuse the tension.
"Maybe we can turn the bottle agai-"
" No", Caitlyn interrupted Vi. "The rules are the rules"
Jinx smiled in satisfaction and asked the question. Caitlyn knew that if she chose truth, she would try to bring out the worst in her or, on the other hand, the most embarrassing for others to mock, and she wasn't about to lose her integrity over a simple game.
"Dare"
"Wise choice", Jinx replied, devising a challenge as she bit her lip, as she always did when she was excited. "I dare you to take one of the players into a room and be alone with them for seven minutes"
Everyone was silent, even Jayce, who had just finished his glass with difficulty. Caitlyn surveyed all the participants. Her attention fell on Jayce, who was still standing, waiting for the girl's choice. She knew that if she went with him, everyone would be speculating stupid things about the two of them, even though it was so obvious that the only thing between them was friendship, nothing more. Besides, after drinking that repulsive mixture, being locked up for so long with him doesn’t sound like the best of all possible scenarios.
"Does it have to be seven minutes?", Caitlyn asked, looking at Jinx defiantly.
"Seven minutes, not one more, not one less", she smiled, knowing that it was going to be an eternity for the girl, and that she herself was going to enjoy every single second of her torture.
"Good"
Caitlyn stood up from the floor, wiping the back of her trousers and holding out her hand to Vi. Vi gave her a puzzled look, thinking that she would be the last person to cross her mind when faced with such a dare. Jinx clenched her jaw when she saw her sister grab Caitlyn's hand, then being dragged into the very room she shares with her. Unable to say anything about it, she watched as they disappeared down the stairs by the bar. What was originally going to be torture for Caitlyn had turned into the worst nightmare for the young woman, who could only imagine what they would talk about in there.
"Caitlyn, wait!"
Vi tugged softly on Caitlyn's arm as she almost caused her to slip down the stairs when they entered her room, pulling her with the same impetus with which she had come out of where they were playing when she took her hand. At the gentle tug, the named turned. Vi noticed how the taller one's cheeks, despite the dim light that enveloped them after they had entered her room, were tinged with a sweet blush. Their hands were still held, and when Vi noticed this she pulled them apart to move away to close the door, watching as Caitlyn crossed her arms and avoided meeting her gaze.
"Why did you choose me?"
"I didn't want to choose Jayce", she replied after a few seconds, as if she had had to think about her answer. She seemed a little distracted by the walls decorated with Jinx's drawings, "I don't want them to think things they aren’t meant to".
Vi laughed with some bitterness, catching Caitlyn's attention, who turned to look at her.
"What makes you think they won't think the same about us?"
Vi crossed her arms and sat on the bed, tapping it with her hand for the other girl to sit next to her. Caitlyn declined with a wave of her hand and tucked some strands of hair behind her ear, now drawing the attention of her eyes to the floor.
"I don't know. I guess they think I don't..."
"That you don't…"
Vi dragged out the last word, waiting for Caitlyn to finish the sentence. When they made eye contact, Caitlyn exhaled and shook her head. Vi, knowing that she wasn't going to get the answer under any circumstances, sighed and combed her pink hair back with her fingers. She dropped down on the bed where she was still sitting, resting her head on her arm as a pillow. Meanwhile, her free hand played with the empty grenades Jinx had hung under her own bed on the bunk bed, generating metallic noises as they clinked together.
"We're going to be here for a while, you might want to make yourself comfortable"
"Seven minutes is not so long…"
Vi raised her head slightly to look at her and smiled with a shaking of her head, letting it rest on her arm once again.
"Only if you are having a good time"
Caitlyn blushed, unable to identify if that sentence had a double meaning behind it. She began to twirl her hair nervously, looking away with urgency, until she felt movement on the bed that made her turn around once more. She could see Vi sitting up again, her elbows resting on her thighs as she stared at her.
"What's your suggestion then?", asked Caitlyn, somewhat sarcastically.
"There are so many things you can do in here", Vi opened her hands and moved them, pointing to all the corners of her room. "I'll let you choose your favourite one"
Caitlyn scoffed, blowing out her nose with a small laugh. Vi waited for a response as she watched Caitlyn start walking, heading towards her. Instantly, she felt every corner of her body tighten. She didn't know the older girl's intentions, but she was afraid of what she was going to propose. The thought made her mad; she had realised that now she was the one who was afraid of the other players' ideas.
Caitlyn finally made room for herself beside her on the bed, far enough for Vi to loosen her shoulders and neck again.
"Their questions suck, they really don't know how to have a good time"
"You mean the game?"
"Yes", Caitlyn looked at Vi, crossing her legs and resting her weight elegantly on one of her arms as she continued talking, "what's your biggest fear? Please... I knew this game was for kids, but I didn't expect them to be so... boring. Especially considering the amount of things you can ask".
"Things like what?"
Caitlyn fixed her gaze on her companion's, scanning her face and smiling as she shook her head almost imperceptibly, then returning her attention to the wall to avoid answering her question.
"Seriously, what question can you think of that's so unboring?", the irony in Vi's voice gave way to Caitlyn continuing to speak, finally allowing herself to blurt out what she had wanted to know for so long.
"For example... Who was your first kiss?"
Vi swallowed hard. Out of all the questions she could imagine hearing, that was definitely the one she least expected to come from Caitlyn's lips. She shrank in place, appearing even smaller than she was in comparison to the other girl, and stroking the back of her neck in an attempt to maintain her composure. For some reason, the floor had become the most interesting thing in her room, especially now, when she wanted to avoid the blue-haired's judgmental gaze at all costs. Caitlyn noticed the sudden change in Vi's manner and looked at her again, quizzical.
"Wait, you have not...?"
Vi felt a rush of heat rise up her neck and she cleared her throat, trying to separate the clothes that suddenly bothered her so much.
"You haven’t had your first kiss?"
"I, uh…"
"Wow", Caitlyn laughed incredulously, "who knew?"
"Ugh, it's not even that important. Kissing is for weak people who have feelings and stuff... stupid stuff"
"Oh, come on. Don't pretend you don't have feelings"
Vi clicked her tongue in annoyance. If there was one thing she hated, it was being seen to be vulnerable. And it looked like Caitlyn was making sure to hit all her weak spots.
"Hey", Caitlyn grabbed Vi's shoulder, making her startle, "it's okay if you haven't had your first kiss. I think it's better to wait for the right person". She paused for a moment, waiting for Vi to absorb her words. "That's why you haven't kissed anyone, isn't it?"
"I don't... I don't know. I haven't had time to think about it"
Caitlyn noticed how Vi loosened the hardness in her gaze and was now playing with her hands, as if she was nervous to continue expressing herself.
"Anyway, I don't think there's anyone who wants to, you know... kiss me"
Caitlyn, still with her hand on the other girl's shoulder, sighed sadly, dropping her head slowly to continue speaking in whispers.
"I...", The sound of Caitlyn's soft voice, along with a soft bitter laugh, made Vi look back up into her eyes. "I thought it was a no-brainer, if I'm being honest"
"What do you mean?"
Vi was very confused. She didn't understand why Caitlyn was suddenly so sad.
No. She wasn't sad, sadness didn't look like that.
She was disappointed.
"Caitlyn?", Vi asked, trying to get the older girl to react and answer. "What did you think was so obvious?"
"How bad I want to…"
"To what, Caitlyn?"
"To kiss you, Violet"
Caitlyn looked directly into Vi's pearly eyes, and Vi gulped for air as best as she could. The heat in her neck had increased exponentially, and now it was spreading all over her face and ears. She was sure she'd never blushed so much in her life as she did now. And if she already thought that she looked pathetic when she was vulnerable, she was sure that how she was now, exposed like this, must be worthy of a show.
"Are you serious?"
"Of course, why would I joke about such a thing?"
"But I thought you-"
"Yes, Vi. I like women, I know, unbelievable", Caitlyn rolled her eyes at the obviousness. It wasn't that she'd tried to hide it, but she did consider it something that was crystal clear, and it annoyed her when people didn't even consider it to be a possibility.
"No, not that", Vi continued, playing it down, even though on the inside she was more excited than would be considered normal about the confirmation of her suspicions about Caitlyn. "I thought you didn't like me"
"Well, now you know…"
Tension could be cut with scissors, no matter how dull they were. Caitlyn had been watching her for a long time. She'd been observing every detail, the way she moved, the way she laughed... Now Vi knew, and Caitlyn was prepared for the most monumental rejection in history.
"Cait, I like you too"
"What?"
Now they were both blushing hot and cold. Caitlyn tried to pull her hand away from Vi's shoulder in surprise, but Vi caught it halfway, putting it back on her own shoulder grabbing her lightly by the wrist. Vi turned to her, looking into her beautiful deep blue eyes, her awkward smile, and her cute tooth gap. Vi had also spent more time than she'd like to admit fixating on every little detail about Caitlyn, but when she realised that she'd started spending every chance she got imagining all sorts of scenarios with her, she knew she was starting to lose herself.
"I like you, Caitlyn"
The blue haired shook her head gently in denial as she smiled uncomfortably. She didn't believe what she was hearing. Nor had she expected Vi to be so forthright with the confession, let alone that seven minutes could be so long.
"Could you be my first kiss?"
Vi asked, her cheeks completely tinged crimson, drowning in her own body heat. She was looking at Caitlyn with the sweetest eyes the girl had ever stared into. She felt the pleasurable strokes of Vi's hand against hers, which she didn't know if it was calming her or making her even more nervous. The blue haired girl would swear that this moment was going to be the cause of her early death.
"But you... you're waiting for someone special"
"That's why I'm asking you. I want you to be my first kiss, Cait"
Caitlyn swallowed, staring at Vi's flushed cheeks, now almost the same colour as her hair. She turned her body, facing her direction now, and held Vi's heated face in her hands, stroking her cheek with her thumb tenderly. Vi rested her own hand on top of Caitlyn's cool hand, feeling the contrast of their temperatures. She placed a kiss on her palm with narrowed eyes. Caitlyn leaned in gently as Vi gave her full attention. The older of the two swore she'd never seen a more beautiful person until Vi had come into her life.
Caitlyn felt the girl melt to her touch and finally brought her lips to hers in the softest of kisses.
Vi's first kiss.
Caitlyn had kissed other people, of course, but on none of those occasions, with any of those persons, had she ever felt the way she was feeling kissing Vi. She could have sworn there were a thousand fireworks exploding inside her stomach at once, that her cheeks were going to explode at any moment at the sultry sensation. She'd be lying if she said she hadn't imagined kissing her, several times in fact, but she hadn't thought anywhere near the fact that doing so would make her feel that way.
They both smiled tenderly as they parted their lips from the brief, but loving kiss. Caitlyn brought her other hand up to Vi's face, giving her another kiss, this time more intense. Their lips played and made funny sounds that they both giggled at with the softness of cotton wool.
"Well...", Caitlyn whispered for the first time after the first kiss, her forehead pressed against the other girl's and her eyes closed, treasuring every second. "What do you think of your first kiss?"
"I'd be lying if I told you I hadn't been fantasising about this for a long time", Vi whispered smiling, with her hands caressing the back of Caitlyn's neck. "You're so sweet"
"Shut up"
They both laughed, enjoying the moment. They intended to continue the sugary, affectionate kisses, but were forced to part abruptly when they heard a persistent knocking at the door.
"Seven minutes have already passed!"
"We're coming, Pow!"
"You two better get out of there in less than ten seconds"
Caitlyn and Vi looked at each other, laughing at the urgency in Jinx's voice. They decided that what had happened was going to stay between the two of them, and allowed themselves one last kiss just before they left the room to sit back down in a circle with the others.
Although the reddish colour of both their skins did not go unnoticed by absolutely no one, especially Jinx, they all decided not to say anything about it. Both Caitlyn and Vi glanced at each other every few seconds for the remaining of the game, unable to help but smile as they remembered the most precious seven minutes they had spent together.