Chapter Text
Jade Claymore meets Kit Tanthalos at a crowded house show in a dingy basement.
She doesn’t know it yet, but the drummer she’s been eyeing all night- the one who’s been eyeing her back- is about to wreck her life.
In the way a wave wrecks a shore. Abrupt and sudden, expected and cyclic all the same. Nature and kismet will take charge, the stars will align and Kit will crash and burn into her life.
And it starts like this.
✫彡 .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.
Jade had absolutely no intentions of going out on this particular Friday evening. She had planned for a mellow night in. A book, a bath, and an edible to celebrate the end of the quarter, finals behind her.
How she ends up in a sea of sweaty college students is beyond her. Well, actually, it’s entirely definable. Her friend Elora insisted Jade accompany her to a party and house show that her Tinder match Airk had invited her to. Airk also happen to, conveniently, be the lead guitarist in the band playing. Currently, he has a pick in his mouth, fingers intent on nailing his solo.
Elora swoons beside her and so help Jade if she accidentally rolls her eyes at her friend’s standards.
“I think I love him,” Elora stage-whispers to Jade over the crowd, eyes glazed and cheeks flushed.
“Okay, babe, that’s enough of that.” Jade weans the red solo cup from Elora’s tipsy hand and offers it to a bystander, who chugs it eagerly.
Jade refrains from pinching the bridge of her nose and instead offers her arm as support.
“I think I love you.”
Jade suppresses a laugh and reminds herself to tease Elora for this in the morning, let her simply lean on Jade tonight.
She returns her attention to the band, who’s half-decent for a foursome that calls themselves The Royal Shitheads.
She returns her attention to perhaps her only saving grace at this too-loud party: the eye candy. Jade doesn’t make a habit of checking people out so shamelessly, so unabashedly, but she can’t help but notice this particular shaggy-haired drummer.
The way sweat sheens on flushed skin, concentration packed into a furrowed brow. Chiseled jaw, full lips, and toned arms. Jade isn’t vain but no harm in admiring beauty when she comes across it.
And on top of it all, said eye candy has been meeting her gaze time and time again through the entire set. Heavy and pointed. A question and an answer.
Jade is intrigued, at the very least.
“Elora,” she asks, picking her words carefully, “who all is in the band with Airk?”
Her fellow redhead pauses to consider this, answers as the song comes to an end. “Okay, so, Airk said the lead singer Boorman was his TA last year. I think he’s a grad student? And then there’s Graydon on bass, who was actually in my Environmental class the other semester. He’s, like, super sweet. And that’s Kit on drums. I haven’t met her before but she’s Airk’s twin sister. I hope she likes me. Do you think she’d like me? She’s so pretty, wow, they have amazing genes.”
Elora hiccups and Jade agrees. “Yes. To all of the above.”
Kit.
Kit is clad in a faded black wife-pleaser and baggy blue jeans, silver chains dangling between belt loops and around her neck. She meets Jade’s gaze again, drumsticks hanging from her hands. There’s a quirk in her lip and a glint in her eye.
And, of course, the name does little to ease Jade’s curiosity- rather, adds fuel to the flame.
♨ .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.
Airk invites Elora and Jade to join them around back after the show, as they load their instruments into Boorman’s van.
“You were so good!” Elora gushes to Airk, who grins in return, all dimples and charisma. He tugs her close with a bravado that Jade almost snorts at.
“Thanks, Dove.”
Elora turns a bashful red at something Airk whispers in her ear and he whisks her away, along with Jade’s expectations for a proper introduction.
She stands at the curb awkwardly, hands in her pockets, uncertain of whether to return to the party or call it a night.
“Thanks, Dove,” a voice rings out from around the van.
Kit steps into Jade’s view, shrugging on a too-big denim jacket. It takes a second for Jade to realize Kit is mocking her brother. The fake-gagging noise she conjures up serves as confirmation and Jade can’t fight the smile that breaks out at her candid antics.
Jade, in return, pitches her voice high and breathy, “OMG, you were so good up there, Airk.”
Kit matches Jade’s grin and extends a hand. “Kit. I’m assuming you’re a friend of the poor girl who’s fallen prey to my brother’s headassery?”
“Indeed, that seems to be the case. Jade. Pleasure.” Their hands meet, pump up and down, linger for a beat too long. “You were on drums,” Jade remarks. “In all seriousness, you were really good up there.”
The other girl glows much like her brother did at the compliment.
“Thanks,” she replies, hand smoothing her hair in a bashful manner, the only thing tainting her carefully crafted confidence. “And you were front and center, right?”
Jade’s eyebrows shoot up. She didn’t expect an acknowledgement of the uncanny eye contact they maintained throughout the night. In all honesty, Jade has just about convinced herself it was a figment of her imagination- that Kit had surely been looking elsewhere, or maybe accidentally zoned out on her.
But the way Kit is looking at her right now is piercing and curious- much like earlier in the night. Not so much accidental as purposeful, intentional, deliberate, gut-wrenching, knee-weakening.
“That would be me. Front and center.”
“You stuck around for our whole set?”
It’s more of a statement than a question but Jade answers anyhow.
“Like I said. You were pretty good.”
Kit steps closer, runs a hand through her soft brown hair. From here, Jade can finally place Kit’s eye color: a cloudy grey that glints baby blue in her denim-on-denim ensemble.
Jade swallows when she realizes Kit is giving her a once-over, slow and lush. And then-
“I have to get going,” Kit frowns, regretful, “but I would love to see you again sometime. Without the drums or the drunks. If you’d want.”
She outstretches her phone and Jade pieces together the fact that Kit of The Royal Shitheads is asking for her number. Jade bites back the smile that threatens to undo her feigned nonchalance and accepts Kit’s phone. She hands her own to Kit in return.
“I’d want,” Jade confirms, thumbing her contact info into the text fields.
Kit grind, pockets her phone when Jade is finished. “Cool.”
“Cool.”
“It was nice meeting you.”
“Likewise.”
“Have a good night.”
“You too.”
And then Kit is off, waving at her from the passenger seat of Boorman’s orange and white Volkswagen.
Jade’s phone buzzes the second Kit is out of sight. Kit, who saved her name in Jade’s phone with a crown emoji.
Hey
Is it too soon to say hey?
Heyyy
Probably :P
But I don’t mind
♕.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.
Jade starts at the bowl of fruit that clangs down on the coffee table, shoots upright in her place on the couch. She turns her phone off and accepts the fork her sister dangles in front of her with a thanks.
“Okay,” Scorpia begins, “you know I honor and respect your privacy and your choices-”
Jade slowly forks a strawberry into her mouth, wide-eyed, anticipating a but-
“-but you have been obsessed with your phone all weekend. I’m concerned your thumbs are gonna fall off if you keep texting so incessantly. Who the hell has you all spellbound, little sister?”
She groans. “Sco, it’s not like that.”
“Scoot.” Jade lifts her legs up and places them back down on Scorpia’s lap when she sinks into the couch beside her. “I’d believe you if your cheeks weren’t red as your hair, Jade.”
Jade’s phone dings at the end of Scorpia’s sentence, as if to emphasize her point.
Scorpia’s brow quirks and Jade snatches her phone up, fumbling with the ringer.
“At least tell me her name.”
“It’s not like that,” Jade repeats with a huff. “Anyway, I don’t even know if she’s into girls.”
“Babe, you know my gaydar is excellent.” Scorpia opens her mouth expectantly and Jade feeds her a kiwi on cue. Her sister continues, sing-song, “I could help you, you know.”
Begrudgingly, Jade searches her camera roll for the handful of pictures she took that night- as if she hadn’t stared at these pictures one too many times in the past two days- and passes her phone to Scorpia.
“Gay,” Scorpia decides at first glance. “They’re all queer. Which one are we talking about?”
“The drummer,” Jade zooms in.
“She is so gay,” Scorpia deadpans without offering further explanation. And then, she scrolls over the photo towards the singer. “Wait a minute… is that Boorman? Is your girl in The Royal Shitheads?”
Jade gaps. “You know him?”
“Something like that.”
Scorpia is staring intrigued at Boorman’s face lighting up the screen and Jade refrains from gagging.
“You’re seeing him, aren’t you!”
“Hey, you’re not the only one with a love life.”
She reaches over and ruffles Jade’s hair affectionately.
“I’m just surprised you’ve been able to make time to date,” Jade shrugs. “You seem so busy with work.”
Work being the non-profit that Scorpia founded following law school. Scorpia is the Executive Director at Wildwood, an organization that advocates for workplace justice and calls for action against dangerous labor conditions in big corporations.
Big girl work that Jade is immensely proud of- but also, admittedly, very occasionally, only slightly, envious of. She misses having her sister to herself, looping her in on all the little things, hearing about all the little things. This is the first weekend Scorpia’s been home in a while and Jade realizes with a poke of guilt that she’s been too cooped up texting Kit to realize it.
She silences her phone and directs her attention to her sister. Scorpia has bags under her eyes, her hair tied up with a green headwrap. Jade sits up to engulf her in a hug and Scorpia blinks, surprised.
“I’ve missed you,” Jade admits.
Scorpia sighs, relaxes into Jade. “I’m sorry I’ve been so caught up with Wildwood. I know it takes up a lot of my time and I’ve realized lately that I need to set more boundaries with work. I told the Bone Reavers I’ll be off the grid every other weekend from now out and to only text me if there’s an emergency. This was my first weekend off.”
“I’m so glad you were able to set those boundaries,” Jade beams. Then, abashedly. “And I’m sorry I spent the whole weekend texting a girl.”
“It’s okay, love,” Scorpia nuzzles her hair. “Now will you at least tell me her name? And how you met?”
“Fine. But only if you tell me about Boorman. Fling or partner trajectory?”
“Both,” Scorpia admits with a soft glint in her eye, secrets in her smile. Jade beams, looking up at Scorpia like they’re seventeen and twenty-two again, like they’re meeting for the first time again- catching up on years apart.
She likes seeing Scorpia like this- easy and gentle, lazying around in sweats. A break from her endless responsibilities.
Her sister explains her meet-cute with Boorman, where they stand now. Jade listens intently, reacts exaggeratedly, before fulfilling her own end of the bargain.
They spend the remainder of their Sunday giggling and gossiping and Jade’s heart buzzes with content.
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.
“So,” Elora is breathless on the other end of the phone. “Guess what. Airk just texted me asking if you, Jade, are into girls. And I thought that was kind of weird of him to ask so I called him and, basically, Airk told me that Kit asked him to casually suss out from me whether or not you are into girls. Oh my goddess? Explain? I didn’t know you two were talking!”
“She what? Elora. What did you tell him?”
“Oh, don’t worry, I confirmed that you are in fact a useless gay and I mentioned that you thought Kit was hot.”
“When did I say that? ”
“At the party!”
“When?!”
“When I said Kit was really pretty and you agreed!”
“Elora…”
“Tell me you don’t think so and I’ll rescind my statement.”
“I’m hanging up now.”
“Wait! Jade, I didn’t even get to hear about-”
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.
The newly-spring air smells of pollen and sunshine, beginnings and endings. It buzzes with bees and nostalgia. Jade loves this time of year specifically for its rainbow weather.
A rainbow glistens in the sky today- between clouds and skyscrapers. Jade has to crane her neck to see it whole.
“Hey,” Kit approaches Jade from the end of the rainbow. A pot of gold.
Kit’s eyes glow, her lips upturned.
Apparently Kit in the dark of a dimly-lit basement and Kit in the dark of the night do no justice to Kit in the light of the day. And Jade does everything in her power not to melt at this realization.
Instead, she swallows. “Hi.”
“Hi.”
“Hey.”
They laugh. And, goddess, Jade might just be nervous. Jade and Kit have been talking, flirting, non-stop in the days since the party. It’s not that Jade hasn’t been here before- the talking stage- with all the questions and the answers, the banter and the chatter. The chase. It’s always a little breathless, but this is different. Jade doesn’t feel anxious, she feels comfortable here. With Kit. As if they’ve been here before, met a few lifetimes ago.
Kit holds out one of the two cups she’s carrying. Chipped black nail polish, a pair of dirtied red high-top All-Stars tattooed with black Sharpie ink.
“Your coffee order.”
Which is actually a matcha with oat milk. Jade sneaks a peak at the tiny label on the side and her insides warm before she even takes a sip.
“Thanks,” Jade smiles. “You really didn’t have to.”
She shrugs, her knit sweater bobbing up and down with the motion. “It was more for myself. Needed to confirm if an oat milk matcha with a pump of brown sugar syrup deserves the hype you’ve given it.”
Jade cannot wrap her head around the fact that Kit, who she’s only just meeting for the second time, has memorized her coffee order.
(Later, when she enlightens Scorpia with this fact, her sisters mutters something under her breath about these damn U-Haul lesbians.)
“And what’s the verdict?”
“Unexpectedly delightful. It’s kind of mellow. With notes of, like, cottagecore and dark academia. Oh, and frogcore.”
“Only everything I inspire to embody.”
“You have good taste.”
“Yeah,” Jade gives Kit a sly once-over. “I most definitely do.”
Kit bumps her shoulder- soft and playful- and Jade’s breath catches when she realizes that she could get used to this.
Somehow, already is.
Used to this: falling into step, navigating the bustling city streets together.
“So. How was your day?”
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.
“I don’t know if that was a date,” Jade groans into a pillow, “or if that was just a hang.” Elora squeals. She’s over for a mandatory spring break girls night, complete with face masks and cucumbers.
“Jade, she brought you a matcha.”
“Okay, but in a bestie way?”
“You spoon-fed each other açaí bowls in a park.”
“Just girls being girls?”
“Jade!”
“Useless lesbians,” Scorpia hollers from the kitchen.
Jade’s phone dings- once, twice- and Elora squeals again. Scorpia, who is closest to Jade’s phone announces that it’s a text from Kit, offers to read it out loud. Elora pleads and Jade agrees, cheeks heating.
“She said-” Scorpia pauses dramatically.
“Go on, woman!” Elora, lending a voice to Jade’s innermost thoughts.
“Had such a good time, an emoji I can’t decipher, and Do it again sometime? ”
Elora coos and Jade groans, “Okay, but that could still be platonic.”
Her phone buzzes with another text.
Scorpia snorts. “Jade, I love you, but we need to recalibrate your gaydar. She said Thanks for a lovely date. Smiley face.”
And Jade gives into the birds singing in her chest, the butterflies fluttering in her stomach, ladybugs crawling through her veins.
Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. ☾
And that is how it starts.
Soft and serene.
But, oh, how the moon can wane,
and the tide can turn.