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“Looks like it’s gonna rain, huh?” Cross spoke quietly, looking up at the darkened sky above. Epic stumbled in front, taking a moment to look up at the sky.
“Oh shoot..” Epic frowned, watching the clouds continue to grow in size. Originally, the plan was to take an afternoon hike together for fun. Epic had invited Cross out to explore the forest like they used to, but he hadn’t accounted for today’s weather. He hoped it wouldn’t sour Cross’ already crummy mood even further.
That pre-rain smell began to hit their noses, causing them to scrunch up their face. An unappetizing taste invaded their mouths; it was salty. The humidity started to make the two uncomfortable as their clothes awkwardly clung to their bones.
“We should find cover before the rain starts to downpour,” Epic suggested, grabbing Cross’ wrist. Cross nodded in response, allowing him to lead the way.
“There might be a cave nearby, I remember seeing one.” Cross mentioned as he rushed his hood on to shield himself from the oncoming rain. They paced through the grass, climbing over rocks and logs that tried to hinder their journey. Passing through some unkempt bushes, Epic pushed the leaves aside and set eyes on the shelter in front of them.
“You were totally right, bruh!” Epic exclaimed, quickly dragging Cross into the cave.
The cave was small and cramped, but large enough to fit the both of them. Epic took the chance to release his grip on Cross and sit down. He patted the empty spot next to him, signaling for Cross to sit by him. Cross’ eyes glanced over, getting a feel of the dimly lit cave before making a move. He slowly walked over, sitting on the hard surface in a criss-cross. Looking over at Cross’ face, Epic noted that he was visibly stressed.
Epic wanted to cheer him up with the hike; Cross had been feeling down for the past few days and Epic hated seeing his best friend like that.
“I’m sorry about that, bruh.” Epic sighed. He leaned forward the moment he heard the rain start to harshly pour. Occasionally, little drops of rain hit the two due to the wind pushing the rain towards the cave. Cross closed his eyes, mostly shielding his friend from most of the drops.
“I just wanted to make you feel better. I didn’t know it was going to rain,” Epic elaborated. Cross stared back at him in silence, only the sound of the storm echoed off the walls of the cave. His stare was piercing, but then it lightened up. Instead of a scold, or even an unprecedented attack, a quiet laugh was the last thing Epic expected.
“Dude, it’s okay. Don’t beat yourself up about it.” Cross relaxed his body against the wall. “We can’t control the weather. I really appreciate you bringing me out here.” He snickered as his voice lowered. Epic’s face brightened up, allowing a smile to creep back on his face. An idea struck his mind at the same time thunder roared in the sky.
“We don’t have to stay here the entire time. Let’s make the most of it, bruh!” Epic pushed himself off of the ground. He ran out of the cave, allowing the onslaught of rain to attack his body. He stretched his arms out and began to spin around, laughing as his speed ramped up. Cross could only watch from inside the cave in awe before deciding to join him. He stood up, patting himself down to brush off the remaining dirt that stuck to his body. He walked over to the opening of the cave, feeling the sprinkle wash his face.
Hesitantly, he stuck a hand out, allowing the rain to pour on his bones. It was cold, yet soothing to the crevices of his warm phalanges. It felt nice.
“C’mon, bruh! Come out here before I get struck by lightning!” Epic called out, watching Cross tug tighter on his hood with his dry hand. Gathering the courage, Cross took a step out. And then another. Until he could feel the rain sinking into his clothes. He stood still, stoic and unmoving, simply watching the other skeleton jump around in the puddles that drowned the grass with his boots.
It was the small, careless actions that Cross found endearing about Epic. He knew exactly how to make Cross feel better. He almost forgot what had been upsetting him in the first place.
Maybe the storm was the best possible outcome after all.
“Yo, Cross! I have an idea.” Epic ran up to Cross, who had made an imprint on the soggy grass with how long he had been standing there. “Let’s dance!” Epic extended a hand to his friend to which Cross smiled and took it eagerly. The scientist never cared about how drenched he got– or cared for any mud that had splattered on his clothing while he was haphazardly messing around in the puddles. He was having fun and wanted his best friend to join him.
“I’ve never really… danced with anybody,” Cross admitted, his gaze lowering in slight embarrassment.
“Me either! But is that gonna stop me? No, bruh!” Epic confidently boasted, dragging Cross into a twirl. A light purple tint brushed Cross’ cheeks as a hand was wrapped around his waist, pulling him closer towards Epic’s body. His own hands trailed up to Epic’s shoulders, phalanges digging deep into his sleeves. A chuckle spilled out of Epic, leading into an eruption of laughter between the two as they stepped around, awkwardly dancing like a couple of novices. The raindrops continued to trickle down their faces. It was refreshing for the both of them.
Epic gazed into Cross’ eyes, studying how his pupils would shift down to their feet to make sure he wasn’t stepping on him, before looking back up with a small bashful smile. Watching Cross try his damnedest not to mess up made his soul swoon, distracting him. It caused him to misstep and slip instead.
He held tightly onto what he could grasp; fingers clenched around Cross’ lower back. He expected to accidentally drag the knight down with him into the grass, but was pleasantly surprised to feel nothing harshly hitting his back. Cross had caught him before he landed, positioning them in a low dip. Their faces shaded their respectful hues the moment they locked eyes. Neither of them dared to speak yet they still waited for the other to be the one to break the silence. Cross lifted him back up; the placement of their hands remained the same.
“You caught me,” Epic lightly snickered, finally speaking up. Cross, worriedly, moved his hand to the other’s cheek.
“Are you okay? I would’ve caught you sooner if it wasn’t so slippery.” Cross smirked. Epic could only nod as he noticed the more physical Cross got, the closer he leaned in. Another wave of silence struck the two as they stood in the rain, their chests gently rising with every breath they took. Cross could almost feel the magic radiating off of Epic with how close he had gotten.
The world went completely silent as soon as Cross closed the gap between them. Whatever was equivalent to a skeleton’s eardrums, consider them bursted. Epic closed his eye, leaning even closer into the kiss. His grip on Cross’ jacket loosened as soon as their teeth connected. He didn’t want to let go. Cross rubbed soothing circles into Epic’s back as they continued to hold each other. Eventually, they pulled away as Cross quickly swiped his hand away from Epic’s cheek. His flustered expression ignited something in Epic’s soul he hadn’t felt before.
“Dude–I didn’t..” Cross spoke, most likely the start of an apology, but was quickly shushed as Epic shook his head. Epic comforted him through an assuring smile, letting him know he enjoyed it as much as Cross did.
“Hey, the sky cleared up!” Epic motioned his head upwards to which Cross followed suit. “So, uh..” Epic started, but couldn’t find the right words as he stared into the blue above. If he looked close enough, he could almost see a small rainbow forming in between the clouds that were dissipating. It was the calm after the storm.
“Do you.. wanna hop over to my place and change?” Epic remembered his trailed off thought.
“Yeah. I’d like that. And a movie, too.” Cross began to become more passionate in tone. He took Epic’s hand in his, giving it a light squeeze. “I love you, dude.”
“I love me too!” Epic joked, fake wincing at the light punch Cross tapped his shoulder with.
“Thank you. I really.. appreciate this,” Cross quieted down. “I wanted to do that for a while,” he spoke almost in a whisper.
“Don’t mention it, bruh. I love you too.” Epic smiled, leaning into his side.