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my highness: i just feel a bit lonely, i suppose
Annabel Lee dropped her phone on the bed with the deepest sign she finally had a privilege of exhaling. She was really trying not to regret sending that message to Lenore, she seriously couldn’t help herself. Today absolutely tore her last shreds of self-control up.
It wasn’t even The Paper Cut Accident. She definitely didn’t mind tending to Prospero’s shaking hand when he cut himself and she didn’t mind calming him down when the poor guy started uncontrollably crying, repeating that he will bleed out instantly or that surely, the cut will get infected and he’ll be six feet under the next day. She didn’t even mind him holding onto her arm so desperately that his hand left creases on her pristine uniform and she couldn’t flatten them in any way throughout the whole day. She didn’t mind having to kiss the bandaged “wound” better and affirming that it will not scar for the fifteenth time.
No, Annabel Lee was a good friend to those who deserved it. She would never leave him alone in such a disheveled state. Not only because it would harm each one of their reputations but because she genuinely liked Prospero and cared about him.
On the other hand, there was Ada.
Her relationship with that chaotic hurricane of endless obsession and lipgloss was, to put it mildly, complicated.
It appeared that Ada and Montresor broke up.
Again.
For the third time this week.
And it was Thursday.
Annabel Lee didn’t really know all the details, but she supposed the last breakup had something to do with the way Montresor smiled at the lunch lady for giving him extra cheese on his slice of pizza.
Long story short, Ada spent most of the free period crying in the bathroom over how he didn’t love her anymore, then the rest of it over how her eyes looked all red and puffy. Surely now, Montresor would choose the lunch lady and not her.
Despite some people believing that Annabel Lee didn’t have a heart that wasn’t frozen over, she was actually quite an emotional girl. She certainly understood what love did to a person. But sometimes, she couldn't escape the thought of Ada just being programmed that way - to be an absolute disaster of a romantic and bring hell with her because of it every single time someone smiled at her (or in this instance, on someone else).
Fortunately, after endless affirmations and three entire packets of tissues, Ada agreed to get out of the toilet stoll and, once again, run after her one true love, who likely didn’t even notice her disappearance.
Annabel Lee promised herself to introduce Ada to one of her senior friends later.
But right now, none of those problems really bothered Annabel Lee. Not to the extent of which her conversation with Ira Whitlock did.
Annabel Lee didn’t think of herself as a foolish girl. She was very much aware of her crucial role in the Whitlock family. She knew that once high school was over, her responsibility would be to start attending balls, charity parties and endless dates orchestrated by her father with people who she had no idea about. No, men who she had no idea about.
She was aware of all of that. She was also aware of the fact that there was nothing she could do to escape her fate.
But still, the first second she saw that pink flowery dress her father ordered specially made for her for one of the parties, she had an instant urge to rip it apart, burn it and let the ocean carry away all of the ashes.
But she didn’t. Because she’s grateful for the opportunities in her life provided by her father and his closest business partners. She’s grateful her father prides himself with her, how he complements her vastly and without a break to anyone who would listen.
Quite honestly, the least she could do was to be a good daughter for him.
But she wanted to be more than just a good daughter for the rest of her life.
Most of all, if not only, Annabel Lee wanted to be loved.
And she knew that none of the businessman’s sons would make her feel that way.
Because there was ultimately only one person who could.
She signed once again.
There was honestly no need for such dramatics. Her situation was unfortunate, but she wasn’t miserable.
Not yet, at least.
Annabel Lee shook her head violently at that thought.
She had to get her feelings under control. She had a reputation to upstate and take care of, after all. Precisely because so much depended on her choices, her game had to be pristine in every aspect.
Nothing less.
She couldn’t be anything less.
Finally, after she gathered herself up and stepped into the blue-tiled bathroom with a newfound motivation, her brown eyes met her reflection in the mirror.
Annabel Lee needed a spa day.
Despite all, it didn’t take her long to execute her extremely detailed evening routine, especially since she was so tired, the only thing she actually wanted to waste her time on was sleep.
She finally sat down in front of her vanity table and started to comb through her half dump hair. She reached for her headband and she was about to twist her hair around it when a sudden loud noise made her jump in her seat.
Her gaze followed it instantly but before she could register anything suspicious, the window opened with a goosebumps-inducing screech.
Annabel Lee grabbed for the first thing she could find that would be useful as a weapon and consequently landed on her hairbrush. She raised it before herself and stood confidently, waiting for any attacks.
Finally, the intruder's head appeared over the window seal and Annabel Lee’s heart skipped a bit. That nest of black and white hair could only belong to one person.
“Lenore?”
“Are you going to attack me with that?”
Lenore, now landing her mucky boots on Annabel Lee’s freshly cleaned carpet, raised her eyebrow, failing to resist an amused smile.
“I wouldn’t be entirely opposed to the idea, since you almost scared me to death!”
Annabel Lee really tried to sound offended, maybe even mad at Lenore, but her acting skills seemed to always abandon her while talking to the brunette.
“My apologies but someone here was too busy doing her-” Lenore paused assessing the vanity table behind Annabel Lee, “-heatless curls routine to answer the twenty text messages I sent half an hour ago”
“Oh!” was the only thing Annabel Lee could say to that. She looked around for her phone and found it between her two pillows. She looked at Lenore completely resigned. “I’m sorry, pet, I've been a bit unfocused today.”
“Yes, so I’ve heard.” Lenore murmured, not looking away from the other girl’s face expression. She seemed to be trying to deduce every single detail about the situation using only her persistent and unforgiving gaze. Thankfully, before Annabel Lee had a chance to get visibly flustered because of it, Lenore added cheerfully: “That’s why I’m here.”
The blonde straightened up at that.
“What could you possibly mean?”
Annabel Lee’s confusion wasn’t a daily sight so Lenore seemed to bask in it for a couple of seconds before pulling a plastic bag from behind her back. She chuckled after seeing the girl give her a skeptical look.
“I brought some sweet treats. Well, and some candles. Aromatic ones, they help with anxiety. Supposedly. And- well, remember when you told me one of my hoodies was the most comfortable thing you ever wore? Here you have it. You can- borrow it. If you want, no pressure. It’s clean, though- obviously. I wouldn’t lend it to you if it wasn’t- Annabel Lee, why are you looking at me like that?”
Annabel Lee wouldn’t be surprised if her pupils turned into little hearts and that was the reason why Lenore was asking. She felt something rising in her chest, something trying to get out, something dangerous, something unseemingly. She was very aware of how silly she looked, just staring at Lenore, not knowing what to say, failing to even consider any appropriate options.
“Why?”
Annabel Lee’s voice was lost, only a small noise escaping her lips. She could honestly barely look at Lenore now, so she opted for landing her gaze on the hoodie which was now laid out on the bed. It probably smelled like her.
“Oh, well- I was quite worried about you. You told me you felt lonely, remember? And we can’t have that now, can we?” Lenore scratched her head and Annabel Lee noticed the gesture looking almost shy. Then, the girl crossed her arms over her chest and leaned on the dresser next to her. Annabel Lee’s eyebrows furrowed despite herself.
How could she not notice sooner?
“You’re a mess. Where’s your cane?” Lenore pouted at that trying to look as mad and offended as she possibly could.
“Rude. I’m fine. Are you, though?” She glanced at Annabel Lee’s loose waves of hair that cascaded past her elbows. Annabel Lee’s face turned bright pink at the sudden thought of Lenore seeing her hair like that for the first time. She cleared her throat forcefully and started cleaning the vanity table without any peaceful thought in mind at the moment.
“Yes. I’m sorry for the inconvenience-”
It didn’t take Lenore that long to realize where that sentence was going.
“Wow, what inconvenience are you talking about, princess? It was a pleasure, seriously-”
Annabel Lee dropped everything she was holding on the table, making a whole lot of noise and turned quickly to face Lenore. The expression she gave her was enough to make Lenore’s eyes widen in surprise. And conveniently, also to shut her up.
“Could you, please, stop?! Can’t you see I’m a step away from losing all of my composure?”
Lenore stilled abruptly.
Annabel Lee hated seeing her like that, she hated that doubtful expression, the confusion expressing just how much she did not actually understand Annabel Lee.
But what she hated so much more endlessly was the overwhelming determination that drowned Lenore’s eyes the literal second after. It was lethal, this hope unintentionally given to Annabel Lee. This hope that Lenore desperately wanted to understand her.
“You know I’ve got you, right? Whatever your anxieties are, whatever you need help with, I’m here for you. You can let it all out. You can lean on me, Annabel Lee.”
Fine.
Annabel Lee did exactly that when she finally took a step towards Lenore, put a hand on the back of the girl’s neck and pulled her down, as close as possible. Their lips met and it felt like the end of the world.
She felt the other girl tense and the dark thoughts started creeping into her mind relentlessly.
It’s over. It’s over. It’s over.
That was until Annabel Lee felt a gentle arm around her waist steading her and the less gentle deepening of the kiss. She melted right into it, absolutely, divinely relieved. She knew it wasn’t as romantic as she had imagined (and she did imagine it thousands of times), she knew that they were both in her childhood bedroom, she knew she was wearing her light blue robe, she knew that she had no make-up on and she knew that her hair was completely unstyled, but then Lenore’s fingers were tangling into it delicately and she cared a little less about all of that.
Annabel Lee was sure Lenore could tell how that touch sent a shiver down her spine because she pulled away from her slowly.
Annabel Lee knew it was to check if she was alright but she still wanted to curse Lenore for being so considerate.
Didn't she already know she felt safest with her?
That she was completely defenseless with her?
When Annabel Lee opened her eyes, she couldn’t exactly tell why she felt like laughing but she’d got some guesses. Maybe it was Lenore’s flushed face, mercilessly apparent on her pale skin, maybe it was the way Lenore looked at her, with those sparkling blue eyes and maybe it was her utterly shocked expression. Or maybe it was the fact that, in that moment, Annabel Lee was looked at with so much love and adoration that she couldn’t help but feel giddy, fuzzy and hot all around.
Before any of them could decide what to say, the thing which actually broke the silence was Annabel Lee’s father’s knocking. They both looked at the door and then at each other again, this time with panic in their eyes.
A soft voice behind the doors followed:
“Annabel Lee? Can we talk? I wanted to apologize to you, my dear.”
“Just a second, dad!” The blonde yelled, hastily scanning her room for a good hiding place. Then she felt a cold hand caressing her cheek, guiding her to look up.
When she did, she saw Lenore staring at her softly, the corners of her mouth lifted up lightly. She leaned down and kissed Annabel Lee again, this time allowing their lips to meet only barely and only for a little while.
“Dream about me?” She whispered softly and headed to the window leaving Annabel Lee hopelessly stunned.
Lenore waved at her swiftly and disappeared into the darkness. The only things left of her were a silent curse when she landed ungracefully after climbing down the wall and heavy footsteps following her leave.
And of course, the phantom feeling of the kisses on Annabel Lee’s lips.