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“Oh, what the shit?”
Raine lifts their gaze from their food just in time to see Eda spit a mouthful of juice back into her cup. Lovely.
“This is even grosser than usual,” Eda notes. She slides her cup across the table. “Raaainstooorm, can you do the whistle thingy?”
You wouldn’t expect Eda to make good puppy-dog-eyes, but perhaps it’s the very thing that lets her get away with all the pranks she pulls. Maybe it’s also part of why Raine can’t say no to her. Dropping their fork with a snort, they lift the cup to their lips and blow softly. The liquid inside begins to swirl and change color.
“You already spat in it, though. Are you still going to drink it?” They question as they slide it back to her.
“Duh,” Eda says. She downs the juice in one go before slamming the paper cup back down on the cafeteria table. She exhales in a satisfying ‘aah, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. “As good as always.”
“You have napkins right here,” Lilith points out. She sits next to her sister but is not active in the conversation. Her eyes scan the tens of pages of notes sprawled out before her, only pausing to take an occasional sip of water.
Sitting in front of the Clawthorne sisters, their polarity is striking. Eda munches on her food with gusto, chatting animatedly about the prank she’s planning to play on Bump later. Her posture is relaxed and effortless. Her shoulders sagged, a foot propped up on the bench so that her chin rests on her knee.
Lilith, on the other hand, is a rope about to snap. Her glasses do nothing but emphasize the dark bags under her sunken eyes, making her look older. Her visibly tangled hair falls on her face like curtains as she hunches over her notes.
The first bell rings in its familiar screech. It signals ten more minutes left of the lunch break, but it springs Lilith into action nonetheless. She scrambles to get a hold of all her papers. They end up in a messy heap clutched to her chest, most of them wrinkled. Her foot catches on the bench and she almost falls.
“See you guys later!” She calls offhandedly and hurries off to her next class.
“Is she okay?” questions Raine.
Eda shrugs. “Yeah. She’s been extra-stressed lately. The potions exam isn’t even until next week .”
“It’s kind of smart that she’s getting ahead,” Raine notes. “With all the grom preparations, nobody has time to study right now.”
For the last few days, the school has been buzzing with an electric excitement for the upcoming grom. Hushed but heated conversations about what to wear, stressed members of the Student Committee scrambling to decorate the gymnasium with the limited budget they have. Pitiful side-glances follow Odalia—this year’s grom queen— wherever she goes.
Raine would normally shudder at the thought of attending such a frivolous, social event. Making small talk with their peers. Dancing in front of said peers. But if there’s one person that would make the night unforgettable, it would be Eda.
People are being asked out left and right around school. Some students go all out with their proposals, complete with serenades and balloons and banshees (the latter did not turn out great), while others settle for simpler, more private ways of asking their special someone out.
Raine made up their mind about asking Eda out gradually. The idea first popped into their head as an intrusive thought, which they opted to mentally shoo away and pretend it was never there. The thoughts became more and more frequent, and before they knew it, they were brainstorming ways of asking her out.
Raine has a hunch that Eda would not appreciate being serenaded in front of the whole school in an extraordinary, romantic gesture. She would much rather prefer being asked the question during a casual conversation.
A conversation just like this one. Raine could ask her right here, in the middle of the cafeteria right before they head to class like they always do.
One glance at Eda will deteriorate Raine’s already withering courage, so they force their eyes to focus on the table.
“Hey, Eda?” They have no idea how they manage to find their voice.
“Hmm?” Eda chews through a mouthful, blissfully unaware of Raine’s internal panic.
Raine wipes their sweaty hands on their pants to prevent them from fidgeting. Their tongue feels like sandpaper, but it’s too late to back out now.
“I wanted to know if you… d’you wanna go to grom with me?”
The rattle of something falling onto the table catches their attention. Their gaze flicks up to the sandwich that slipped from Eda’s grasp. Her eyes are almost comically wide, her hands frozen as if they are holding the ghost of her fallen lunch. Her reaction starts to become unnerving.
“No.”
The butterflies in Raine’s stomach turn to a painful knot as their blood turns ice cold. They freeze in horror, a chill running down their spine. The word rattles in their head. No.
“O-oh,” they stutter.
“Raine,” Eda tries.
Raine springs up from their seat. “It’s cool, I get it.” They go for a casual tone that fails miserably with the crack in their voice. This is mortifying. “Just forget I said anything—”
“I would totally go with you—,” Eda clarifies, rising from her seat as well. She raises her voice to cut Raine off. “—but I’m not going to grom.”
Raine tilts their head, perplexed. “So you— Wait, why not?”
The bell rings once again. Eda grabs her lunchbox and offers a disinterested shrug.
“Not really my thing.”
They walk to the potions homeroom. Bard class is on the other side of the school, but it has become a habit for Raine to walk Eda right to her class after lunch every day.
They don’t say much, which is a relief. Raine is too busy attempting to uncoil the string of emotions that make it hard to breathe. Desperate attempts to stomp out any flicker of hope before it grows. Careful not to show it on their face. Eda wants to go with them.
Shit, maybe she said she’s not attending grom to soften the blow of rejection. To dance around Raine’s loaded question while leaving their friendship intact. Would she do that? She faces everything head-on until it comes to the more important things, the ones that actually matter.
Oh, Raine just got rejected. It would have been fine if not for the fact that Eda pities them too much to be straightforward.
“Stop thinking so much, you’ll run out of brain cells.”
Raine barely catches what she says. The words bounce around their mind before they gain meaning.
“You have this constipated face when you overthink,” Eda goes on.
Raine would have spat a sassy retort on a good day, but their brain feels like it’s stuffed with cotton.
“I do not,” is everything they can conjure up on the spot. Judging by the snort in Eda’s laugh, it’s enough to keep her talking.
“Seriously,” she insists. “If I was going to grom, I’d go with you. Can you picture me there, though? Dressed in fancy clothes and drinking shitty punch with a bunch of sweaty teens. Pass.”
Raine can’t help but smile. “Come on, is Edalyn too much of a bad girl to go to a school dance? Is she gonna be busy snorting pixie dust and vandalizing stuff?”
“Oh, fuck you,” Eda snickers, knocking into them with her shoulder hard enough to send them staggering a couple of steps.
Just like that, the tension dissipates like it was never there in the first place. Raine swallows the gut feeling telling them that there’s more than what Eda lets on. She is not the kind of person they can push for answers. The slightest amount of pressure shuts her down.
Perhaps one day, Eda will be more open to hard conversations. In the meantime, all Raine can do is stand patiently outside her walls.
—
“Eda’s not here?”
“No, she got suspended for opening a portal to the ghost dimension in the girls’ bathroom.”
Lilith doesn’t look up from her botany cards as Raine sets their lunch down on the table and takes a seat in front of her. The bloodshot eyes hidden behind her glasses suggest she did not get any sleep.
“Huh, I didn’t think the ritual would work.” Raine thinks out loud. “I should go to her place to lend her my History notes.”
“That’s hardly necessary,” she scoffs. “With how effortlessly good she is at school she can be suspended for a year and still ace every class. Meanwhile, I’m still struggling to memorize the stupid ingredients for this plant brew.”
Raine can’t help but feel unnerved at the downright evil glare Lilith shoots her flashcards. They wordlessly reach over to her cup and blow a soft whistle, lacing the water with a calming potion before setting it back next to Lilith’s lunch.
“Give me your cards,” Raine suggests.
Lilith passes her notes over, taking a generous sip out of her cup. She doesn’t even seem to register the bitter aftertaste of her ‘water’.
“How many fairy tears do you need to begin?” Raine reads. “Also, what’s up with Eda not going to grom?”
“Thirty,” Lilith replies with a mouthful. Seems like not having the cards in front of her eased her nerves enough to properly eat her lunch. “And I’m surprised she told you she’s not going.”
“For how long do you have to stir the potion after adding the mandrake roots? And she kinda had to tell me when I asked her out yesterday…”
Raine fully expects Lilith’s jaw to drop, to ask a million questions, and tease Raine like she always does when it’s just the two of them. None of that comes. Lilith’s expression turns sour. She drops Raine’s gaze to stare at her food, poking it with her fork.
“For two minutes. And she told me you did.”
Raine flushes and sinks further down in their seat. “She did?”
“Only after I pestered her when we came home yesterday. She seemed… sad , I suppose,” Lilith sighs. “She would’ve been so happy about that if it weren’t for the curse.”
Raine’s brows furrow. They swallow down their furiously beating heart that threatens to leap into their throat. “What does the curse have to do with it?”
Lilith doesn’t speak right away. The pained look in her face suggests she’s taking her time to decide whether or not to share what’s on her mind.
“She’s struggling to control the owl beast, even with the potions. Loud noises, bright lights; they make it worse. We tried to talk her into going anyway and just taking a potion with her, but she doesn’t want to risk it.”
“Potion?” Raine furrows their brows.
“One she found at the night market. It’s the only thing that is working so far to keep the curse at bay.”
Guilt bubbles up in the pit of Raine’s stomach. They know how serious the curse is—hell, everyone in the Boiling Isles is aware of its severity—, but it’s learning this crucial information from someone else that renders Raine helpless. Their best friend is struggling with things Raine can’t even begin to fathom every day and still manages to act like everything is normal. Raine is nothing but a distant bystander in a time when they should be her support.
Maybe Raine is not trying hard enough, their efforts aren’t good enough; but what else is there to try? How do you help someone who doesn’t want to be helped?
Raine scoffs. “Why doesn’t she tell me these things?”
They didn’t mean to sound so sharp, so they hide behind their first as they pretend to clear their throat.
Lilith offers a smile that doesn’t reach her eyes.
“You know Eda. She hates looking weak.”
—
The grudgby field is alive with students warming up. Some are stretching, others are perfecting the spells they plan on using in the field. Raine spots Eda with ease as they make their way to her, right next to the bleachers. She is gathering her wild, ginger hair into a ponytail to keep it off her face.
Raine got a glimpse of Eda earlier today in the hallway. They’re surprised Eda’s suspension only lasted two days, which shouldn’t be much of a shock considering Vice-Principal Bump’s soft spot for her.
“Eda!” Raine calls as they get closer. Eda turns at the mention of her name with curiosity that melts into a toothy grin when she spots Raine.
“Is the face paint really necessary? It’s just practice.”
“It’s part of the uniform, Rainstorm, and it makes my eyes pop.”
Eda makes a show of batting her lashes at them. The shocks of electric yellow that streak her cheeks do contrast her amber eyes nicely. They look almost golden.
Raine drops their bag on the bleacher. They rummage through the mess of books and scattered papers until their fingers brush against what they’re looking for. With a triumphant ‘aha!’ they pull the hardcover novel out.
“You staying?” Eda asks.
There’s no point in asking at this point. Raine adopted the habit of waiting for Eda by the bleachers ever since they became friends. They wait for her despite the taunts and teasing from the other grudgby players. “You waiting on your girlfriend?”
It’s cute that Eda feels the need to ask every time. Raine is more than happy saying ‘yes’ to the repetitive question just to see her eyes light up again and again. To see the corners of her lips curl in a subtle, satisfied smile as she nods and then makes her way to where her teammates are.
Grudgby is one of those sports Raine will never fully understand. The chaos of vines and fire and ice that unfolds in the field is nonsensical; nothing more than a jumble of hazardous spells, one after the other.
Despite this, Raine can’t look away. Their book remains shut on their lap throughout the practice. It’s the third time they borrowed it from the library, but Raine can’t bring themselves to miss out on the way Eda flies like she was born for it. It’s rare occasions like these in which they get to see that fire in Eda’s eyes, the one that makes her look alive.
Practice is over as soon as it starts. The players all disperse, many going back inside the school building for a trip to the infirmary. Raine stands up and slings their bag over their shoulder, nodding to Eda in a ‘let’s go’ motion. Eda follows along.
Getting up the creaky set of wooden stairs and past the door to Raine’s room, Eda leaves her staff to lean on a wall. She does so with a care that directly contrasts how she drops her schoolbag off her shoulder and onto the floor with a dull thump.
“Ughhh,” Eda grunts. “My back hurts from carrying the match. I’m exhausted .”
Raine picks their violin up from their desk, placing it under their chin in anticipation of what they know will come next.
Eda all but jumps on Raine’s bed, intending on burying herself under the pile of neatly arranged pillows. Raine plucks at a string with their index finger right as her body is about to collide on the bed. The soundwave glows gold as it passes right through Eda, growing in size until it disperses. She freezes in midair, silhouette gleaming red with Raine’s magic. Her startled expression quickly morphs into annoyance.
“Seriously?”
“You’re not getting in my bed all sweaty like that. You stink.” With a G sharp, Raine moves Eda off the bed and drops her unceremoniously on the floor, ignoring her indignant squawk.
“Alright, fine! I’m taking a shower, but I’m using your fancy soaps,” she declares, sticking her tongue out for good measure before disappearing into the hallway.
Raine gasps in indignation. “Eda!”
—
Eda staying over at Raine’s for the night is a common occurrence. She even jokes about it often, claiming she’s more used to Raine’s bed than her own.
These nights are always hectic. They shove and elbow each other as they stand in the cramped bathroom, brushing their teeth. They race to the bedroom, both hoping to get the left side of the bed to themselves. Their sleep is sometimes interrupted by shrill whisper-shouts of “Shit! Your feet are freezing!”, and “Did your toenails just scratch my leg?!”
Tonight, however, sleep does not come easy for the two. They lay on their backs, shoulders brushing. Chests rising and falling in a steady pattern; wide awake as they stare at the ceiling above.
“You’re not sleeping,” Raine points out. It’s a stupid observation, but it does its job of opening the door for a hushed conversation.
“You’re not either,” Eda replies.
Her voice is quiet, almost timid. There’s always this unexplainable need to be as quiet as possible at night, as not to disturb the dark.
“When you asked me to grom,” —Eda’s voice cracks, so she clears her throat— “what did you mean?”
Raine’s heart skips a beat. They shouldn’t have said anything.
“What do you mean ‘ what do I mean ’?”
Raine would very much love to kick themselves.
“You’re too smart for that.”
Raine doesn’t respond. They don’t even open their mouth to try. Silence is good right now. It’s safe.
They’re hyper-aware of the movement next to them but don’t acknowledge it. The rustling of the blankets, the mattress dipping as Eda turns to lay on her side, facing them. Raine doesn’t even risk a peek from the corner of their eye.
Instead, they focus on the stars on their ceiling. Eda had gotten them for Raine as a gift a few months ago, claiming they were from another dimension. That would explain why they seem to lack any trace of magic, yet still emit a faint, greenish glow as soon as the room goes dark. There are tens of them, all varying in sizes, plastered over the roof above their heads.
“Did you want me to go as your friend?” Eda presses. “Or your date?”
There is no way to conceal Raine’s sharp intake of breath. Eda’s not going to make this easy for them, is she?
Raine’s intentions with the invitation are clear as day, there’s no denying that. They always felt like there was something there, in their friendship, hidden behind closed curtains and brushed off with jokes. Raine always told themselves that they were just looking too deep into things, imagining what they wanted to see.
But Eda wouldn’t insist if she didn’t reciprocate. If she wasn’t aware of the something . Maybe she just wants Raine to admit it first. An I’ll-say-it-if-you-say-it kind of deal. There’s no way to know for sure. The uncertainty of her motives makes Raine’s chest feel tight, too tight.
“If”— Raine takes a moment to take a deep breath. Eda doesn’t rush them. “If I meant it as a date, would… that be okay?”
It’s as good as an admission. It’s off their chest and out in the open, laid out for Eda. What she decides to do with this information is up to her, and that’s the most terrifying part.
“Yeah.”
Raine’s head whips around so quickly that they think they might have pulled a muscle. “Really?”
Eda laughs. “Yes, dumbass!”
“...Nice.”
Not the smoothest response, but excuse Raine for not being the most clever person while under pressure.
Eda averts her gaze. “I know school dances are lame and everything, but… it would’ve been nice to go with you. We would’ve been the hottest couple there.”
Raine snorts. “Yeah, well, I don’t think you’re missing much. With my anxiety, we probably wouldn’t even have danced.”
Eda frowns. Raine holds back the urge to smooth the creases between her brows with their thumb.
“I like spending time with you,” Eda argues, conviction bordering on harshness. “We could be the only ones at grom and still have a blast.”
Holy shit.
That's it!
“You really mean it?” Raine can’t help but ask, the question rolling off their tongue at the same time it pops in their head.
“Yeah,” Eda half-sighs, half-laughs. She shifts closer to Raine until they are sharing the same pillow.
Asking the school to make accommodations for Eda is an idea Raine immediately dismisses. She’d kill them for that. But how would she react to a more private thing? No flashing lights; no loud, sudden noises. Just the two of them, alone in a mostly symbolic and homemade version of the real deal. If Raine commits to the idea, they’d have to scramble to start planning right away. They have two days until Friday.
It had been a long day. Eda is exhausted, carrying the weight of her sleep deprivation and muscles that ache after a gudgby practice she took way too seriously. She’s wearing one of Raine’s old, faded shirts.
But she’s so nice to look at.
She’s looking at Raine like they’re the sun. Her eyes shine bright despite the dark circles under them, expression open and riddled with affection. For once, she looks vulnerable. She gets away with not getting close enough to anybody but trusts Raine enough to lie in their bed, next to them.
A scary desire to kiss the smile on her lips crosses Raine’s mind.
Eda is so close. Raine barely has to move their hand to rest it against her rosy cheek. They move closer to her and close the distance.
It’s a shy press of lips that lasts no more than a few seconds. Some people wouldn’t even consider it a proper kiss.
A rush of affection surges through Raine when Eda lets out an incredulous giggle. Eda just giggled like a fucking teenager and it makes Raine’s own lips stretch into a smile and they’re so damn happy that they kiss her again.
Sometimes, Raine’s subconscious got the better of them. Or perhaps their self-control is weak enough to allow Raine to wonder what it would be like to kiss Eda. They naturally assumed Eda would kiss the same way she does everything else; with confidence. Devoid of any shadow of hesitation most people would have.
Instead, Eda moves her lips against Raine’s with caution. Tentatively, afraid of messing up. She tests the waters by snaking an arm around Raine’s waist, hand coming to rest between their shoulder blades. Presses closer when Raine sighs contently against her lips.
They eventually pull apart with reluctance. They stare at each other, processing what they’ve done. What this means for them.
And Eda just has to ruin it.
“ Damn , bitch.”
“I hate you so much —”
Any other complaint Raine could’ve had is drowned out by Eda’s laughter. She shakes the whole bed as she writhes around like she’s possessed. Her snickers keep breaking into adorable snorts and it’s not long before Raine cracks. Her laughter is contagious, and soon Raine’s shoulders tremble in an effort to keep their chuckles down.
“Shit,” Eda sighs, breathless. Her whole face is on fire. “There’s no way I’m gonna get any sleep now.”
Raine sits up, wiping their eyes. Their cheeks are wet with tears.
“We have to, though,” they point out. They can’t stop smiling. “It’s a school night.”
“We could always skip,” Eda suggests.
“Don’t you have a match tomorrow?”
“...Fuck you.”
Translation: ‘you’re right.’ The chuckle Eda pulls from Raine causes them to mess up their light spell. They get it right on the second try, a tiny source of light that casts a golden glow in the room. Raine reaches out and gets a hold of the glass of water on their nightstand.
“What are you doing?” Eda asks when Raine starts to whistle a sharp note into the cup.
Raine takes a few sips of the now simmering liquid. “Sleeping potion,” they explain.
They wordlessly pass the cup over to Eda, who tips her head back with the intention of downing the rest of its contents. Raine scrambles to snatch the glass from her hand as soon as she takes a few sips.
“Are you trying to put yourself in a coma or something?”
“Shut up,” Eda grunts as she stretches before laying back down on the bed.
Raine follows suit. As soon as their back hits the mattress, Eda shuffles closer and lays her head on their chest. The rest of her body presses snugly against theirs, her arm casually thrown over their stomach. Raine lays a tentative hand on her hair, fingers lazy as they run through wild strands.
“Your heart’s beating fast,” Eda murmurs, mostly to herself. Raine smiles at how her voice is already groggy with sleep.
The potion takes almost immediate effect. Despite their racing pulse, Raine’s eyelids grow heavier and heavier until they slip shut. Their breath evens out.
—
Raine fills their lungs with air before pinching their bottom lip with two fingers. The piercing whistle that follows awakens their magic. Their feet lift off the ground, higher and higher until he’s hovering right outside Eda’s window.
They rub their upper arms in a feeble attempt to conserve heat. The night breeze bites at their face and hands, at every inch of uncovered skin. A general sense of discomfort settles deep, all the way down to their bones. The knot in their stomach coils tighter as Raine lifts a hand to knock on the glass. If only the nerves didn’t have such power over their body.
They haven’t properly talked about what the other night could mean for them. The next day, Eda got up and got ready for school as if nothing happened. For a terrifying moment, it seemed that the kiss would be one more thing to be swept under the rug.
That was until Eda held Raine’s hand and laced their fingers together on their way to school.
Taking it slow was an unspoken decision. There’s no rush. For now, both of them are content with no longer shying away from their feelings.
“Eda!” they whisper-shout, tapping insistently against the glass window at the lack of response.
Nothing. Eda’s curtains are drawn, so Raine has no idea if she’s even there.
“Eda, goddamn you—”
The windows push open so violently that Raine barely has time to duck to avoid being hit.
“Rainstorm? What are you doing here?”
Eda stands before them, rubbing her eyes. Her hair is even wilder than usual, with some strands sticking in odd directions. She squints as she stares at Raine, getting used to the light from outside.
“Did I wake you?”
One of the few things they know about the curse is that it has taken a toll on Eda’s sleep schedule. Lilith had mentioned a while back something about how there’s always noise coming from Eda’s room, no matter the time. She’s always awake, avoiding sleep like the plague.
Guilt washes over Raine. They just interrupted Eda’s already scarce rest. This stupid plan better leave her fucking starstruck.
“Why aren’t you at grom?” Eda asks instead.
She eyes Raine’s clothes with apprehension. An off-white poet shirt that is slightly too big on them, complete with ruffles on the sleeves, tucked into their dark dress pants. It is a stark contrast to Eda’s pajama pants and bunny slippers. She wears an oversized shirt with the familiar Emperor’s Coven sigil, most likely from last year’s coven convention.
Apprehension turns to defeat as Eda sighs through her nose, shoulders sagging. “Look, if this is your last attempt to take me to grom—”
Raine panics when Eda begins to close her window.
“I’m not taking you to grom!” Raine hurries to say. “Well, not Hexide’s grom, anyway. Just—just follow me.”
“What?”
Raine extends their hand before they lose the guts. “Do you trust me?”
“Who are you, Aladdin?” she snorts. She reaches over for her staff and holds onto Raine’s hand for purchase as she climbs out her window. Raine lowers them both to the ground.
“Who?” they ask.
Eda shakes her head. “Don’t worry about it.” Her palisman flutters his wings as Eda climbs on her staff. ”Just hop on.”
The staff jolts upwards into the night sky, Raine’s stomach dropping at the sudden movement. Both Eda and her palisman are fucking adrenaline junkies.
“Where to?” Eda asks.
“Our spot,” says Raine. That is enough for Eda’s excited grin to stretch further.
She wastes no time zooming forward so violently that Raine scrambles to wrap their arms her waist. They’d enjoy the proximity if it weren’t for all the trees they only narrowly miss, their branches brushing against Raine’s ear more than once.
—
Tuition at St. Epiderm wasn’t cheap. The only way Raine could afford to attend in the first place was by working hard to be a student worth showing off. They usually would never skip school, but the thought of practical evaluations was enough to lodge their heart in their throat. Standing in front of the class with tens of eyes judging their every move sounded like torture. For the first time, breaking the rules seemed more appealing.
It was also the first time Raine felt grateful for their stage fright. It led them far, far away in search of a place where they would never be found, straight to a prairie hidden in the outskirts of The Knee.
It didn’t take long for Raine to share their discovery with their best friend. Eda showed an unexpected interest in Bard magic, and they needed a peaceful place to practice.
“What’s all this?” Eda asks as they approach the ground.
Vines and wildflowers decorate the prairie. Tiny light spells hover in a neat arrangement that wraps around the improvised dance floor, casting a soft glow that contrasts the harsh stage lights that are most likely adorning Hexide at this very moment.
They land right next to a picnic blanket Raine set up near the food table. Eda wordlessly climbs off her staff.
“Did you do this?” She asks.
She doesn’t look at Raine. Her wide eyes are too busy roaming her surroundings. Raine did their best with what they could find at such short notice; hopefully it’s enough. The place recreates a softer, more muted version of the grom everyone from Hexide is currently at.
Eda wears an unreadable expression when her eyes snap back to Raine. They stare down at their shoes; can’t stand the sheer intensity of her gaze to make eye contact. They shrug, shoulders brushing their ears.
“I didn’t want you to miss out on grom because of the curse.”
Raine spent so long tip-toeing around the curse that it feels wrong to address it so bluntly in front of Eda.
Panic dawns on them when Eda’s eyes start to water.
“Fuck you,” Eda laughs in disbelief. She drops her head into her hands and lets out a groan that sounds a bit too similar to a sob.
Raine takes desperate steps toward her, their hands reaching out to hold onto her shoulders but stopping just before they touch her.
“Is it that bad?!”
Was it because Raine talked about the curse? Or did this makeshift, sad excuse of a grom only serve to make her feel even more singled out?
“I love it.”
Raine’s heart starts beating again. Their relieved sigh is quickly punched out of them as Eda throws her arms around them and collides against their chest in a hug.
“Oh Titan, I really thought I fucked up there for a second,” Raine breathes. Eda’s slowly growing taller, which allows Raine to comfortably drop their head on her shoulder and bury their smile in the crook of her neck. Eda squeezes tighter.
“You’re not in the clear until I try the food,” Eda threatens. She pulls back and blinks away the unshed tears. She straightens up and releases one last shaky breath, and just like that, she closes the curtains. Raine lets it slide for now.
‘She’s gonna love this,’ they think instead, eyes drifting to the inconspicuous glass bowl that sits innocently at the table.
“Try the punch!” Raine urges. Doesn’t even wait for Eda’s response before they go and pour the red liquid until it threatens to overflow the cup.
They pass it over to Eda, biting back a smile. She raises it to her lips, eyebrows furrowed as she takes a wary sniff.
“This is appleblood in a bowl, Rainstorm,” she deadpans.
Raine rolls their eyes. “Just try it!.”
Eda shrugs . ‘Here goes nothing’, she seems to think as she takes a sip.
“It kinda tastes funny…” she muses.
“I spiked it,” Raine giggles.
Eda freezes. “You did? Where did you even get the booze?”
“I got my sources,” they brag. They stole it from their parents’ cabinet and will totally get grounded for a year, but she doesn’t need to know the details. They make Raine sound less cool.
An incredulous chuckle leaves Eda’s lips. She raises her cup in Raine’s direction.
“Well, cheers to that, I guess.” She once again lifts the cup to her lips and tips her head back, downing the rest of her cup in one big gulp.
“Eda, I used a whole liquor bottle! What’s with you and chugging random stuff?!”
—
“Man, I feel underdressed. You should’ve told me it was a formal event.” Eda looks down at her attire, then at Raine’s.
They’re slow dancing to the first slow song Eda could find before blasting it from her scroll’s speaker. Raine’s hands rest on Eda’s waist, thumbs tracing delicate circles against the worn-out shirt. Eda has her arms circle Raine’s neck. They sway to the music from side to side, reveling in each other’s company.
“I kinda like being the best dressed for once,” Raine sasses.
“Please, I’d smoke you even if I was wearing a potato sack.”
“What’s a potato?”
“I dunno, I think that’s just human slang.”
It is a drastically different pace from what they are used to. In between school and pranks and everything going on in their lives, they never really took a day off to just exist alongside each other. It is nicer than Raine imagined. Peaceful.
They pull Eda closer. She tightens her arms around their neck.
“Hey, how did you know I couldn’t go to grom?” she wonders.
“Lilith kinda told me.”
Throwing Lilith under the bus is the last thing they want to do, but there’s no fooling Eda. She can see right through them. She can see right through anything.
Eda rolls her eyes. “I hate to admit it, but I’m glad she ran her mouth.”
Raine was so lucky to see Eda this up close. The wrinkles at the corners of her bright eyes. The subtle quirk of the corners of her lips; a smile so subtle it would have gone unnoticed if they stood any farther.
“This is nice, Raine.”
“You deserve it,” they murmur. Anything above a whisper is pointless when they’re so close.
Raine notices they stopped moving when they catch Eda looking down at their mouth. Amber eyes flick up to Raine’s, features softening, gaze turning half-lidded. The hand she rests against their face is cool against their burning cheek, pulling a content sigh from them. Raine leans into the touch. Closes their eyes only for them to snap back open as the touch is ripped away from them.
Raine thinks Eda snatched her hand away until they register the unmistakable thump of something hitting the ground by their feet. Absolutely nothing could have prepared Raine for the sight they are struck with as they curiously look down at the ground.
Lying motionlessly on the grass is Eda’s severed hand.
“What the fuck?!” shrieks Raine. Their glasses almost fall from their face as they jump about a foot in the air and stagger backward, anywhere but away from the fucking hand what the fuck —
“What a mood killer,” she complains. With a drawn-out groan, she crouches down and reaches for her hand with the same naturality as she would pick up a fallen pencil.
Raine’s breaths come out ragged and shallow. Their vision starts to black out around the edges.
“Are you okay?! Do you need a healer?!”
There must be something they can do. Where’s their violin again? It’s impossible to think with the blood roaring in their ears. The mounting nausea doubles in intensity because Eda is trying to pop her fucking hand back into its socket—
“Oh, Titans,” Eda laughs at Raine’s dry heaving. “Relax.”
She pops the hand back in place and wiggles her fingers experimentally. “It’s just a side effect of the curse.”
Eda looks completely normal, if not a bit annoyed. Leaning on wobbly knees, Raine hurries over to Eda. They reach for her wrist with quivering hands to examine the damage. Absolutely no trace of it ever being detached. No visible wounds or scars, just pearly skin that runs smooth down her arm to her fingertips.
At this point, Raine’s lungs begin to work normally again. They half-expect Eda to burst out laughing, to make fun of them for falling for yet another prank. But Eda’s resting face shows no signs of cracking.
“...Seriously?” Raine questions. “You’re not messing with me?”
Eda rolls her eyes. “If I wanted to mess with you, I wouldn’t do it right as I was about to kiss you.”
Huh?
“But— but your hand just fell off!”
“Don’t know about you, but I don’t need a hand to kiss you,” Eda teases. She reaches for her right hand and twists it off her wrist with a sickening crack .
“See? Now pucker up, Rainstorm.”
Raine squeaks and sputters, taking hurried steps back. “Are you insane?! Oh, Titan getthatthingawayfromme—!”
“What’s that? You want to see it up close?”
The scream that rips out from Raine’s throat as Eda all but shoves her severed hand on their face is something Raine will deny until the day they die. They turn their face away and furiously slap the air in front of them in an attempt to shield themselves.
“Eda!”
“I wanna kiss youuuu,” Eda whines. She’s not even trying to hide her amusement at this point. She holds the detached hand to her lips and blows kisses in their general direction with it.
The sheer absurdity of it all gets to Raine. They laugh because Eda’s sense of humor is gross, but also because they’re so happy. Eda’s laugh is infectious and she wants Raine to kiss her . She wants to be with Raine the same way Raine aches to be with her. She inspired them to make the most of their Friday night in the little prairie on the outskirts of The Knee, and she’s the reason why their heart is about to burst.
Squishing Eda’s cheeks until her lips pucker comically, Raine pecks her lips and pulls away with an over-the-top mwah. They openly laugh at her starstruck expression.
“Now put your hand back on!”
Eda does as she’s told but still steps closer to Raine until she’s well past the boundary of their personal space.
“Kiss me again,” she pleads.
“You’re a dick,” Raine kindly informs her.
The glint in her eyes shines brighter.
“What does that say about your taste?”
Raine’s exasperated sigh is unconvincing paired with the giddy smile that lights up their face. It’s okay, though. Eda deserves to know how happy she makes them.
This is less of a kiss than the previous one, unbelievable as it sounds. They try to make it work, to move their lips the way they’ve seen others do. In between the inexperience and the giddiness, it’s impossible to go a second without breaking out in grins and nervous laugher. And to think Raine and Eda poked fun at so many lovesick couples at school.
They will learn, though. They have plenty of time to learn how to kiss. How to fit this new something into their lives. How to find other ways around Eda’s curse.
They have plenty of time to figure out how to love.