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Asa has never felt particularly at home in her body. She blinks at the reflection in the mirror and tilts her head to the side, watching the way her hair falls. She wonders if this is how everyone else sees her.
Yoru appears in the mirror behind her, stalling Asa’s wandering thoughts as their eyes meet.
“You’re not ugly,” Yoru says.
Asa scowls. “I didn’t say I was.”
The corner of Yoru’s lip pulls up. “Of all the bodies I’ve inhabited, yours is my favorite.”
It’s the strangest compliment Asa has ever received, and it causes her cheeks to flare red. Yoru disappears, leaving Asa to stare at her reflection alone. The color in her cheeks dims, but only slightly, an unsettling flutter dancing through her stomach.
—
Asa finds her gaze drifting to Yoru more, her eyes exploring Yoru’s features—the similarities they hold to hers. They share the same body and yet Asa doesn’t recognize herself in Yoru.
Her stare is resting on Yoru’s lips when she gets caught in the act, the dangerous curve of the devil’s mouth the only indication that Asa needs to know she’s been detected.
“If you wanted to kiss me, you could’ve just asked.”
The words that come sputtering out of Asa’s mouth are unintelligible, a string of denials accompanied by a cherry-red face.
Yoru’s smile swallows her alive. Asa drowns in it, her heart pounding with each step that Yoru takes, closing the distance between them.
“You look nervous,” Yoru taunts.
The words light a fire inside Asa’s chest, and she remembers how to use her words.
“I would never kiss you,” Asa insists, turning her back to Yoru, who follows a step behind.
“Afraid you might like it?” Yoru teases. Her breath tickles the back of Asa’s neck, but when she turns around to protest, Yoru is gone.
—
Asa dreams of soft lips and a smile that twists her stomach into knots. She wakes to sweaty palms and a beating heart, annoyance grasping her as she gains awareness.
She can’t see Yoru, but she can feel her smugness.
“This doesn’t mean anything!” Asa groans. She drops her head onto her pillow with a frustrated grunt.
She can’t help the thoughts that filter through her mind. The memory of Yoru’s lips—of her lips. If Yoru is a good kisser, does that mean Asa is a good kisser?
“You could use some practice,” Yoru tells her, appearing at the end of her bed.
“Ugh!” Asa throws her covers over her head, hiding away from Yoru’s gaze. “Just go away. I’m tired of looking at you.”
“Really? I never get tired of looking at you.”
Asa’s body is warm, and it has nothing to do with the blanket covering her.
“You’re the worst,” Asa mumbles, the words barely audible over the pounding of her heart.
—
Asa stalls in front of the mirror, her gaze once again examining the face in front of her. She used to avoid the mirror, but lately, she finds herself seeking it out, her eyes lingering on the reflection staring back at her.
She pokes her cheek with her finger before dropping her hand to her side, attempting to curve her lips the way Yoru does.
She feels silly as the smile takes over her face, but beneath the embarrassment lives a flutter that makes its way through her chest.
Asa has never seen herself as ugly, but she’s never seen herself as beautiful, either.
For the first time in her life, she thinks she might be. It’s a strange revelation to have.
Yoru, of course, can’t let her have the moment to herself.
“If you’re beautiful, does that mean I’m beautiful, too?” Yoru asks with a grin.
Asa’s smile is replaced with a glare, but her pounding heart gives her away.
Yoru’s grin closes in on her. Asa’s eyes drift to the devil’s lips before her brain can catch up with her.
By the time she rips her gaze away, it’s too late.
She can’t help her curiosity. No one has ever looked at her the way Yoru does. No one has ever wanted to kiss her before.
She just wants to get it out of the way—that’s all this is. That’s the only reason she doesn’t pull away when Yoru closes the distance between them, soft lips ghosting over hers.
Asa is the one that pushes forward the rest of the way, a quiet grunt escaping Yoru at the impact. She lets out a satisfied hum and kisses back, trying to take the lead.
Ass doesn’t let her have it. This is her first kiss. She’s in charge of it.
She’s in charge of the muffled moan that escapes Yoru’s lips, and the way their tongues intertwine. The kiss is wet and warm and full of life. It’s terrifying in a way that Asa wants to chase.
So, she does. She chases Yoru’s lips until she’s breathless, her hand sliding to places it doesn’t belong, places she’s not ready to explore, and then she pushes the devil away.
Yoru’s lips are red, her eyes shining, and her vicious smile piercing into Asa.
“Turns out you didn’t need any practice after all,” Yoru says, sliding a finger across Asa’s swollen lips before she disappears, leaving Asa alone in the bathroom, surrounded by the sound of her beating heart and ragged breaths.