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There she was, as lovely as ever, if only I could summon up the courage, the guts, and well strength to strike up a conversation with her. As usual she was drowning in a book, although I’m not sure which one or if it was even a book or her own diary or something. Whatever it was, I wish I could be as interesting to look at. Oh well. As soon as I got up I caught sight of my best bro - Gamzee, he seemed pretty off today, but at least he could still see straight and walk too. “Uh hey Gamzee, what’s going on bro?” I asked since he seemed less spaced than usual. “Nothing motherfucking new with me. I see you’re watching her again, motherfuck she looks all sorts of fucking lonely and shit today, why don’t you talk to her again? I’ll help you this time, brother,” he smiled and said as his voice fluctuated in volume, luckily for me we were far enough from her that she couldn’t hear, but I caught her glance our way. “Okay, just please don’t bring up anything too weird about me, you usually drop some weird, uhh… stuff… and well… I guess, we should get this over with. I… uhh mean started… yeah.”
Finally we got to her after what felt like miles of Gamzee talking about his mirthful messiahs and how miraculous his day was, I was impressed really with how he really is so faithful to whatever his “saviors” if you could call them that. Finally I snapped out of my thoughts and tried to calm my nerves by playing with an old set of dice that were still in your pockets from your last LARP session. Gamzee luckily initiated the conversation, and I managed to turn away slightly to hide my flushed cheeks. Ignoring Gamzee’s story on how the way his fridge miraculously filled with another pie. I somehow wound up back in my own plague of thoughts about her and trying my best to be cool and as fun as she believed me to be. “Uh hey Gamzee why don’t we sit with her, and not be so rude. Aradia you don’t mind right and hey great session last night right?” I smiled as I sat between her and my bro.
“Tavros, last night was so much fun, I still can’t believe we managed to explore that cave Nepeta goes on about, remember that one with the big dragon in it. It was crazy. Vriska seemed to be trying to trick us again, but we sure did make a great team messing up her plans! That reminds me, I found this cool book on the whole archeology of the caves around here, it’s pretty neat.” Gamzee noticed us talking more and took it upon himself to leave and follow his miracles and probably practice his unicycle skills elsewhere. “Talk to you later bro… uhh I guess he’s got some other plans or something to go do or whatever.” She responded with a nod and a smile while she opened her book to the maps of the caves and the cliffs nearby.
“We should go explore together or something it’d be fun, especially with you,” she said quietly as she got up and pulled me up, while I blushed again. This time the trembling started my knees felt weak too, and I felt my hands shake as she held it and lead me forward. “Uhh you know you don’t have to.”
“I know I don’t have to, but I want to, why are you all shaky now anyways? We always do things like this in FLARP,” she asked innocently still pulling me forward and leading us to the start of the cliffside caverns and caves.
“It’s just… uh… well… whenever we do those things it’s in a group you know, I don’t know. I just get nervous around pretty trolls… ooh oops.” I covered my mouth with my freehand and pulled away my other hand trying to cover my now bright red face, thinking how stupid I was for letting that slip, and wishing to all my ancestors that I could have been more like confident like my hero Rufio. “I am sorry, I didn’t mean to like uh… come off as stupid… Ugh why can’t I be as cool as Rufio…” I mumbled as I reached for her hand again slowly. I slowly laced my fingers between hers and finally did the bravest thing I could, or so I think, “Uhm… uh… Aradia, I’m sorry I’m awkward and not as cool as Sollux or anyone, but uh… I…I…” and then my hearing faded, and everything went wobbly and before I knew it I was waking up to Aradia’s face pressed close to mine, apparently I fainted, luckily that’s not the first time she’s had to deal with my weak self. She and I were sitting underneath the huge tree that was just before the cliffs. I wondered now did she carry me, or did I just blank out and pass out after confessing.
”Just so you know I well feel the same way actually, or at least I think I do… you never really finished your whole sentence, you just kept repeating something about Rufio saving you and something else, it was kind of well, incoherent to me. I got worried so I made you sit down with me here, and then you repeated yourself from the beginning and just we… passed out,” it’s been a few hours though so it’s not a big deal I was getting worried though, and I had Terezi check up on Vriska to make sure that she wasn’t messing with you. Anyway isn’t Rufio one of the characters in the whole Pupa Pan story, I haven’t heard that one in so long, and it’s pretty late now, want to come over to my hive, or can I stay at yours or something?”
I smiled and nodded, as I rubbed my eyes. “Uhh okay you can stay or whatever, but before anything let me say what I was going to say. So… uh… like I was saying, I know you might not feel the same way, but well….. I really mean it, uh, you’re really beautiful, and I really like you, not the pale sort of ways, like the flushed ways. I’m sorry if that makes things awkward, I finally managed to strike up the confidence though, sorry if I got weird or anything I think I spaced out like Gamzee does at times. I really don’t do that, and I’m pretty sure you know that, but uh… yeah… Still want to hang out at my hive I’m sure Tinkerbull wouldn’t mind besides there’s plenty of room, it’s just a matter of getting there faster.”
”Oh okay, I guess my hive’s closer, I’m sure my lusus wouldn’t really care, since it’s you,” and she came closer and kissed my cheek, “I feel the same way, but let’s take things slow.”
I guess that’s how this all started, and that’s why I’m writing this all to you, thank you Rufio for giving me the confidence to really tell her my feelings. I’m sure Aradia also thanks you, we’re still together thanks to both you and Gamzee, and I know you’re fictional now, but still you really helped make me become who I am today, although I’m still not all that confident, I can manage to deal with some of my nerves, especially with Aradia and even dealing with Vriska!
- Your Biggest Fan,
Tavros Nitram }:)
Tavros closed up his letter and placed it inside the cover of his Pupa Pan book, and smiled as he read the story to Aradia quietly as she fell asleep in his bed. He closed the book after reading the first two chapters and kissed the now sleeping troll as she snuggled closer to him burying her face deeper into his chest and wrapping her arm around him loosely.