Chapter Text
“Have you ever kissed anybody?”
Raine startled, turning to look at their best friend with wide eyes and reddened cheeks. Sure, subtlety wasn’t Eda’s strong suit, but usually there was a bit of lead up or conversation with her before she blurted out random questions. Especially ones so special .
They had been hiding out in the detention track with the secret doors to all the other classrooms, Raine finding her after running out of a nerve-wracking performance and Eda peeking in on a beast keeping class. It was between periods now, and the two had lapsed into a comfortable silence, curled up in a corner of the room together.
“Uhh– what brought this on?” They nervously asked, fidgeting with their fingers in front of them. Eda shrugged nonchalantly, leaning back to her spine pressed against the cold stone of the wall.
“I saw Odalia and Alador kissing in the hall today. It seemed crazy to me that she was able to actually find someone who wants to kiss her.”
Raine didn’t hesitate to say, “Yeah, well, the way he and Darius look at each other makes me think that it’s probably a financial arrangement.”
Eda cackled, snorting in the cute, familiar way that made Raine’s chest warm, and she leaned her weight against their arm as she continued laughing. “Yeah, that sounds about right!”
Eda’s chuckling subsided and they fell into silence again. After a few moments, Eda turned back to them, eyes bright and cheeks lightly dusted, saying, “You never answered my question.”
“Hm?”
“About whether or not you’ve ever kissed anybody.”
“Oh.” Raine was distinctly aware of the feeling of their face heating up, and they became painfully aware of the way Eda’s fingers were gently intertwined with theirs as they rested in between their bodies. “No, I... I haven’t ever kissed anyone.”
Eda inched closer, her face cracking into a teasing, smug grin as she leaned forward and asked, “What, nobody’s ever caught the Raine Whispers’s eye?”
Raine didn’t have the guts to say she has, she just has no idea .
They had known for some time that the budding feelings they’d had for Eda weren’t going to go away anytime soon. At first, they tried to pass it off as a crush that they would get over in a few days. But every time they saw Eda, their heart hammered in their chest and their hands felt clammy. They love making her laugh, getting to see the joy on her face as she wreaked havoc around the entire school.
A discussion about kissing and crushes definitely wouldn’t end well, Raine was already worried they were being too obvious around Eda. Lilith knew, she’d told them as much.
“I wouldn’t say that...“ They mumbled, rubbing the back of their neck and praying that Eda couldn’t see how red their face was in the dark lighting of their hideout.
“Oh, so you do have a crush.” Eda’s grin was catlike, but there was a recognizable hint of sadness in her voice that threw them for a loop. But before they coil ask her about it, she cleared her voice and said, “Spill.”
Raine rushed to find a cover, but all that came out of their mouth was stutters and half-words. Eda laughed again, quickly saying, “I’m just teasing you, Rainstorm. Your secret crush lives on another day.” She collapsed against the wall again, picking at a loose string on her yellow pants as her face fell slightly. “Yeah, I’ve never kissed anyone either. I’d like to kiss somebody but... I don’t know if they feel the same.”
“Oh.” Raine’s voice came out like more of a squeak, and they felt their heart sink inside of their chest. They weren’t sure if she liked them back, but they didn’t know she liked somebody else . “Why, uh, why haven’t you told this person?”
Eda shrugged, her face turning up to look at the ceiling. “I dunno. I’ve never really had a crush before, I always thought Lily was the only person I’d ever need. But this person has been for me where Lily’s been absent, so it’s all new to me.”
Raine wracked through their mind to try and figure out who Eda could be talking about. They were sure that they were the closest person to her, besides Lilith, had she met someone else?
“You should.” Raine tried their best to keep their voice neutral. “Kiss them, I mean. Tell them how you feel.”
“Yeah, but what if they don’t feel the same? What if I screw everything up that I have with this person and lose one of the most treasured parts of my life?”
Another crack in their heart appeared, but Raine found it hard to believe that whoever Eda had her eyes on didn’t feel the same about her. She was an enigma, the star of any room she walked into, chaotic and beautiful and lovely.
“You never know if you don’t tell them. Besides, I find it had to believe they wouldn’t feel the ame about you.”
A beat of silence, before a soft, “Raine...?”
“Yeah?”
Before they could process what was happening, Eda’s hands were on Raine’s face and her lips were pressing against theirs.
The kiss only lasted for a few seconds before Eda pulled away. She caught herself and what she’d done, her face crimson as she backed up and started, “Oh Titan, I’m so sorry Raine I got caught up in the moment and–”
This time, Raine cut Eda off by pulling her into another kiss.
This one was slower. While the first had been quick and confident, their second kiss was more slow, shy and . It took a moment before Eda sunk into it, her hands reaching up to cup Raine’s face once more. Once they pulled away, a flushed Eda giggled and mused, “Wow.”
“ Wow .”
“I, uhh, like you too. In case you were worried about that.”
“I’m not anymore, but thanks.”
They were both silent before falling into a fit of giggles. Eda fitted herself against Raine’s side, resting her head on their shoulder as she picked up their hand and traced the lines of their knuckles. “I really like you, Rainstorm.”
“I really like you too, Calamity.”
Another beat of silence, before, “Do you... wanna keep kissing? And go out and stuff?”
Raine laughed, pressing a quick kiss to the crown of Eda’s head. “Very eloquent.” Eda punched their side playfully, but they continued. “Yes, I’d love to go out with you.”
“Cool.” Eda said, her face still red. They sat there quiet for a moment, before saying, “I am so gonna shove this in Odalia’s face. At least my partner likes kissing me and isn’t giving some other guy heart eyes.”
“Eda!”
Eda was wild and free and marched to the beat of her own drum, but Raine was happy to be in her orbit, like the Earth circling the sun. And they were even happier to finally call her their girlfriend.