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“So, what do you think of the transfers?” Bridget asks, skipping along her best friend, who patiently allows their arms to be linked. Ella isn’t anywhere close to being a touchy person, but she normally doesn’t mind that Bridget is . She suffers Bridget’s enthusiasm and physicality with a patient sort of amusement.
She glances sideways at Bridget now as they slowly weave through the halls between other students. “They are… interesting,” she ventures to say in a way that is immediately apparent to her friend that she has many thoughts on the subject.
“Did you pick up anything… strange… about them?” Bridget prompts after a moment, insides vibrating in excitement.
Some of that energy fades as her friend frowns and glares off to the side at nothing in particular. “Yeah. Red has it… rough.”
Bridget’s enthusiasm dims even more at that. “Not really what I was getting at, but yeah- I got that too. She basically admitted to me that her mom hates her.” She sees Ella wince and sways apologetically into her. Moms have always been a bit of a touchy subject. “She actually reminds me a bit of you when we first met.”
“That’s not a good thing,” Ella huffs. “Actually, I’m pretty sure she has it worse. Worst my step-mom will do is make me sleep in the barn. Chloe broke a vase the other day, when they stopped by, and Red looked like she was waiting to get beat. Or waiting for me to get beat- one of the two.”
Bridget feels a painful twinge in her chest. For both her best friend and the red haired girl she just met. Not for the first time, she wishes she could just steal her friend away from the family who doesn’t want her, and it could be just them. They could make their own family, and Bridget can love her enough to erase all the other people who should have, but didn’t. They could take Red, too. And Chloe, if she wanted, since the two seem so inseparable.
She feels a squeeze on her arm, pulling her out of her thoughts, and she lifts her gaze to see Ella looking at her so softly with a small smile. It soothes the ache in her chest, and she feels another strong surge of affection she can hardly contain as she tilts her head to rest against her friend’s shoulder.
“If you weren’t talking about Red’s home life, what were you getting at?” Ella asks, and the reminder sends another thrill through her, though not nearly as strong as before. But she perks up regardless with a gasp and a bounce.
“Ohmygosh, so, hear me out, but I think they’re- you know- together . Like a couple.”
Ella rolls her eyes. “You can’t ship real people, B.”
“You can if they’re actually together ,” Bridget argues emphatically. “Have you ever just watched them interact when they are together? It’s like they have their own language, and they are always whispering together and disappearing together, and it’s like they live in their own little world. And have you seen them look at each other from across the room? There is so much tension.”
“Bridget,” Ella sighs.
“No, no, no, just-” Bridget spots a flash of blue and red and immediately ducks behind a column, dragging her friend with her. “ Look ,” she insists.
The pair in question stand close together, as they always do, next to the Castlecoming poster. Their heads are almost touching as they whisper together, making small gestures. They seem to be talking about something serious, something to do with Castlecoming, actually, based on their gestures to the poster, but when someone walks past them, Red’s hand reaches out. She takes Chloe’s in hers, tangling their fingers, and tugs them further away. Bridget hasn’t seen Red touch anyone except Chloe.
“That literally does not prove anything,” Ella drawls.
“They were obviously arguing about if they should go to Castlecoming together or not; they’re probably scared about how other people would react,” Bridget insists, and then gasps as an idea occurs to her. “Oh, what if we went together as a date-date so they can see that it’s okay?”
“B, I love you, but I’m not going to date you just to convince two girls we barely know, who might be into each other, that our school is more evolved than it actually is.”
“But you’d date me for another reason?” Bridget asks, morbidly curious. She’s been accused of masochism before... Mostly by Uliana.
Ella opens her mouth to respond, and then pauses, brows furrowing. “Bridget, are you in love with me?”
A flutter of anxiety and panic flits through her, and she bursts into motion, dropping her friend’s arm and turning to face her head on, holding both her arms out awkwardly straight at her sides. “Don’t be silly, you’re just my best friend. I want to do this for them .”
Bridget’s face feels flushed as Ella stares at her a moment longer before eventually flicking her eyes away. “I suppose if we wanted to hint at it in private to them, to see how they’d react, I’d be okay with that.”
Bridget can’t help the squeak of excitement that slips out of her, or the small bounce. Ella gives her a reluctantly amused smile and shakes her head in exasperation as Bridget attaches herself to her arm again.
“Let’s go catch up with them and invite them to hang out,” she enthuses. She’s never hung out with anyone except Ella before. Even if their plan doesn’t work, she’d still love to have more friends. “You’re not still grounded, are you?”
“I’m always grounded,” Ella says, “but my step-mother and sisters left this morning to some boutique out of town and won’t be back until tomorrow.”
“Perfect,” she cheers, “Let’s go.” They catch up to them quickly because they hadn’t gone far, just tucking into an out of the way alcove couples normally meet up in to make out in between classes. She would take another moment to spy, but she’s too excited not to interrupt. Besides, Ella would probably get impatient with it and then change her mind. “Red, Chloe!” she calls, and the two girls immediately take a step away from each other, looking a bit frazzled.
Chloe’s eyes, predictably, land on Ella first, and she gets a bit awkward and starry like she has every time she’s laid eyes on her friend. Bridget thinks it’s cute how much the girl seems to look up to Ella and seek her approval, and it’s made even more endearing with the fact that Ella feels so awkward and doesn’t really know what to do about it.
Red, on the other hand, looks at Bridget very oddly. A bit weary and lost. It’s a look that screams that she needs a hug, but when Bridget tried before, she hadn’t reacted well, only getting more bewildered. So she stomps down on that instinct and gives her most enthusiastic smile to compensate.
“Hey guys, Ella and I were wondering if you’d want to hang out today after school?”
Chloe’s eyes are reluctantly dragged over to Bridget with an apologetic grimace. “I’m sorry, I don’t think we can make it; we have to go home.”
“No we don’t,” Red immediately says, looking sharply at her friend.
Chloe returns the look, reaching out to touch Red’s elbow, and Red doesn’t pull away, only lifting her hand and absently gripping Chloe’s elbow back. “We can’t delay forever. You have to face your mom eventually,” Chloe says softly, voice dropping to a low murmur.
Bridget’s stomach sinks, and she feels Ella stiffen at her side, but the other girls don’t pay them much mind. They are entirely focussed on each other and what sounds like a continued conversation. Maybe the very one they interrupted.
“Not… yet. Please? Just… a few more days. Just in case. After ,” Red pleads, fisting her hand in Chloe’s jacket while the other comes up to pull, distressed, on a lock of her own hair.
“What’s going on?” Bridget asks, trying to keep her voice light and open.
Both of them turn back to Bridget, hesitating, and Red shifts in discomfort. Red is the one to reluctantly answer. “My mom was on a bit of a… warpath… when we left. I just want to make sure she’s… calmed down before going home.” The girls exchange significant looks, doing their silent conversation thing that they’ve been doing since they showed up a couple days ago. Chloe’s other hand comes up to catch Red’s free one, face written in concern.
A shiver goes down Bridget’s spine.
Chloe sighs deeply. “Okay,” she murmurs. “After Castlecoming.”
“I’m sorry,” Red grimaces. “I know you miss your mom.”
Chloe drops her arms, catching her hand instead as she sways sideways to bump their shoulders. “I do. But it’s only a few more days. Besides,” she glances at Bridget and Ella again, “this will give us a chance to actually get to know these lovely ladies.”
Bridget’s smile feels shakier than normal, but she fights to keep it on when Red meets her eyes. “So, meet in my room after classes?”
“Sure,” Red says, offering her own uncertain smile.
“Great!” she chirps, tugging her quiet friend along with her. “Come on, Ella, I need your help planning some activities- this is going to be so fun!”
As they walk away, she lets her strained feeling smile drop. “...So, change of plans?” Ella asks once they get out of earshot.
“No, I still think they are definitely together- even arguing, they were all over each other. Maybe Red’s mom found out and isn’t happy about it?”
Bridget is gifted another exasperated smile as Ella looks at her, full enough of affection that it makes her heart jolt. “You’re not going to let this go, are you?”
“Absolutely not. I’m invested now. And maybe if we get them to open up about this , they can trust us enough to come to us about other things. Right?”
“You know you don’t have to try so hard, right? They like you already.”
Bridget bites her lip. “Chloe likes you and hasn’t really interacted with me much. They stood up for us against Uliana, but Red gets all uncomfortable and weird around me. I want her to feel comfortable.” Her stomach turns in self-consciousness and shame, and she knows she shouldn’t feel that way. But what Uliana said about her trying to bribe people with treats to be her friend rings a little too true. She’s tried making friends. The treats are supposed to be a good opener.
But no one really takes her seriously, or even really likes her outside of a casual exchange.
Her projected mood drops quickly with the detour of her thoughts, and she knows from experience that if she lets herself sit in it too long, it will quickly overwhelm her. So she tries to physically shake it off as she lets go of her friend and bounces forward.
“B,” Ella starts softly, but Bridget shamelessly bulldozes right over her. It’s best not to dwell on the negatives- she can go pretty dark, and she doesn’t like herself when she gets that way. And no one else would, either.
“Anyway!” she exclaims, “If you are still okay with it, we are going to go forward with the plan, and we are going to make a super safe space, and it’s going to be super fun! You’ll see.”
………………
Bridget’s excitement is to the point of nearly bursting as she opens her door to the two girls she’s hoping to become good friends with. Her nervousness is nearly just as strong, but she shoves that unhelpful part as far down as possible.
“You made it!” she gasps out in relief, even though it was only a small part that doubted the girls would show.
Red and Chloe both offer their own nervous smiles. Bridget watches them as they come into her room, taking in everything about them. They seem calmer- more at ease. Their shoulders are missing the tension they held earlier with the discussion of going home or not.
“Hi, Ella,” Chloe chirps happily, visibly perking even more when she spots her friend already sitting on the bed.
Ella waves. “Hey Chloe, Red,” she greets.
“Okay, so, first-” Bridget hurriedly closes the door and rushes to her desk to pick up the plate of cookies she spent the entire last period cooking. “Treats. And then we can kind of just sit down and get to know each other? Sit wherever you want.”
Chloe accepts the plate with a smile, taking a cookie and then passing the entire thing to Red. Red stares down at it with wide eyes, much like she had when offered a cupcake on her first day.
“You can have as many as you want of these,” Bridget encourages. “I didn’t use any magical ingredients this time.”
“Okay,” she says, and takes a small, hesitant, bite. Her face lights up, and then the rest of the cookie is stuffed into her mouth as she reaches for another one. Chloe sits in the armchair, and has to tug Red a couple times to get her to sit down on the ground in front of it. Two more have already disappeared off the plate by the time she settles down, cookie platter balancing in the lap of her crossed legs.
“Don’t eat too many. You’re going to give yourself a stomach ache again,” Chloe murmurs to her, poking her in the shoulder. Red responds by lifting her chin and sticking her tongue out before shoving another cookie in her mouth. Chloe rolls her eyes. “I’m not holding your hair back when you throw up.”
Bridget feels abruptly alarmed at that. “Throw up?!”
Red’s shoulders lift toward her ears at Bridget’s sudden loud exclamation, pausing with the cookie half in her mouth. Chloe looks faintly embarrassed.
“Not that there’s anything wrong with your cookies- they are very good! Just, Red wasn’t allowed sweets and now she has zero restraint. The other day, she ate way too many from the cafeteria and made herself sick.”
“Oh,” Bridget frowns. “...Should I take them away?”
“She might bite you if you try,” Chloe says wryly, showing off her hand that has slightly scabbing indents.
“Shut up,” Red says, before staring down and contemplating the plate for a moment. Then she takes a handful of cookies, one still dangling from her mouth, and reluctantly passes off the plate. “Please keep them away from me,” she sighs mournfully, eating the treats much slower now.
“Anyway,” Bridget says, taking the plate away and carefully setting it back across the room. “I was thinking we could just talk and get to know each other better?”
The two girls exchange looks. And then, while Red busies herself with chewing, Chloe shifts forward. “Yeah, we’d really like that. Like- what do you guys want to be when you grow up?”
“Free, mostly,” Ella sighs, leaning back on her hands. “You’ve seen my step-monster, I just want to be in charge of myself. Seamstress might be cool. I like sewing.”
If Bridget doesn’t miss the sharp look Red gets at Ella’s words, her friend definitely doesn’t.
“I just want to be a good queen for my people. A kind queen.” And now that look is biting into her. Intense. Bitter as she looks down at her cookies and bites into one. Bridget looks intently at the red-head. “What about you?”
“Dunno,” Red says without inflection. “Next.”
“Oh, I’m going to be a knight!” Chloe enthuses, smiling broadly as she touches the sheathed sword she carries around when not in class. Bridget hadn’t realized it was for anything functional; she had assumed it was a royal custom for her kingdom.
“Aren’t you a princess?” Ella asks a bit critically. Bridget knows she doesn’t really mean anything by it, it’s just how her friend comes across sometimes. She’s a bit cynical. But people think she’s a bit naive, so she likes to think she balances her friend out fairly well. “Is that even allowed?”
Chloe’s smile wavers. “I mean, I’m not crown princess, so I don’t see why it wouldn’t be.”
“Because you’re a girl?” And, oh, Bridget forgets that’s a thing out here. And they say Wonderland is full of nonsense. She finds the outside world a lot more flabbergasting.
“Oh!” Chloe’s eyes suddenly widen, and then she gets a bit nervous. “Well, see, where I’m from, that stuff doesn’t matter. I mean, sexism isn’t entirely gone, but it wouldn’t stop me from doing anything I really want in Arua-”
“-Blue,” Red says sharply, cutting her off, and her jaw clicks shut with a flush spilling across her cheeks.
“Red’s going to be an artist,” she blurts. Red shoots her a sharp glare that Bridget is surprised the other girl doesn’t wilt under. If anything, her spine seems to straighten, and she becomes even more bold, meeting her narrowed eyes with earnestness. “What? You leave your drawings laying around all over the place. They’re good.” She can easily see how they could have fallen together.
Red’s scowl falters as a blush crawls up her neck, and Bridget resists squealing. When she darts an expectant look at Ella, her friend only rolls her eyes.
“How did you guys meet?” Bridget can’t help asking.
They are slow to drag their eyes away from each other. “Um… school. Welcome Ceremony. Very boring. What’s Wonderland like?”
It goes on like that for a while, asking questions back and forth, and Bridget finds herself a bit disappointed, even though she tries not to be. She tries to be very open with her answers, but when she asks any, the two girls are very vague about anything to do with their homes or where they came from. She’s only soothed that they do seem genuinely interested in Ella and Bridget’s responses.
At some point, they all end up on the floor together as Bridget tries to teach them the card game Hearts. Despite not knowing how to play, when it comes time for Red to shuffle, the cards look at home in her hands as she does the normal shuffle and bridge, and then threads the cards through her fingers in a playful little show that has Bridget clapping happily.
Red smiles a little bit, head tilted as she peeks at her.
“That’s amazing,” she gushes, and watches a blush creep across the red-head’s cheeks as she ducks her head.
“When I was a kid, I taught myself a whole bunch of card tricks, hoping I could impress my mom with them. I’d spend hours on them.”
“Well, it paid off,” Bridget says, not asking if it worked. From what she’s heard of the girl’s mother, no, it didn’t. The grin she gets in response is worth not learning more right away. Hopefully she will open up in time.
As Red deals, the cards keep almost sliding together, and at first, Chloe dutifully fixes them appropriately, pushing them into their proper piles. Then one of her cards accidently flips over as it’s being dealt, showing the queen of spades to everyone before she can hide it, making Red pause.
They look at each other for a moment, and then Chloe trades the queen for one of Red’s top cards. Red snatches it out of her hand before she can add it to her own and flicks the queen back at her before continuing dealing the rest of the cards. As she does, Chloe once again attempts swapping their cards.
Bridget tries to hide her smile behind her hand as Red huffs, shoves her pile between her legs, and hunches over it to guard it. But that doesn’t deter Chloe at all, her eyes narrowed.
While Red is reaching, she snatches a card quickly, flicking the queen at Red as she hastily leans away, dodging her friend’s swipe. Chloe laughs as Red tackles her, sending the rest of the cards flying.
They wrestle for the seven of clubs, bending the card sharply as Chloe tries to use her body to hide it, but Red just wiggles her hand under and they end up rolling around on the floor. They’d have to redeal the cards anyway with how they are getting all mixed together, but Bridget thinks it’s the principal of the thing that Red is trying so hard to get her card back. Besides, they both are giggling as they fight for it.
Bridget excitedly grabs Ella by the shoulders and shakes her as they watch the two girls who are so obviously a thing- Ella can’t deny it after all this. They are so cute together.
The fight ends when there is a tearing sound, and Red sits back on her heels with the bottom half of the card in her hand.
“Shit,” she winces as she turns suddenly weary eyes toward her. “Bridget, I’m so sorry-”
“Don’t worry about it,” she quickly reassures. “I have, like, so many decks.” She doesn't like the sudden tension in the other girl’s frame, even when her companion sits up and bumps their shoulders together, so she quickly presses on. “So you guys are going to Castlecoming, right? Any plans for dates?”
It works. The tension eases some. “Yeah, we’re going, but no dates. We were kind of hoping to maybe just tag along with you guys as one friend group?” Chloe says, absently reaching out to squeeze Red’s hand.
Bridget feels a thrill go through her, making her so happy she wants to burst. They want to be friends . But the plan…
“Oh, well, Ella and I are kind of going as more than friends now?” she ventures, linking her arm with her friend and leaning into her side. “Like a date? But we would still absolutely love to spend time with you guys- seriously, it will be so great!”
“What?” Chloe’s smile instantly drops, face paling. “But- you can’t. That’s not-” Chloe scrambles up from the floor, and Red slowly follows, pushing herself to her feet and watching her blue friend. “That’s not how it’s supposed to go.”
Bridget’s heart drops at the unexpected- negative - reaction, and she tries to sit up to reverse the situation, but Ella’s arm tightens, holding her there. “So you’re progressive enough to have a woman knight, just not date one?”
“What?” Chloe repeats, still looking shellshocked. “No, no, I’m not- I’m not homophobic. How can I be homophobic when I’m- shit- you just can’t date Bridget. This isn’t how it’s supposed to go .” Panic seeps into her movements, and Red snatches her wrist, tugging her toward the ensuite bathroom.
“Excuse us for a moment,” she mutters, pulling the door shut behind them, and leaving them in a very abrupt, deafening, quiet.
“I think,” Bridget says slowly, “I may have miscalculated.”
“No- actually, I think you were on to something,” Ella says, looking at the door curiously. “Something is definitely going on- that was not a normal reaction, even for a homophobe. But I don’t think they’ve made it to the actually dating part yet.” She stares for a moment longer, before releasing Bridget’s arm. “Come on,” she says, creeping across the floor and kneeling next to the door.
“What? But, Ella-”
“Shh,” she hisses, putting her ear to the door.
Bridget hesitates, but in the end, she only feels slightly guilty as she crawls closer to mimic her friend’s position on the opposite side. She’s momentarily distracted by her friend’s focused face suddenly so close to hers, the blue curls falling just so around her shoulders to frame her face, but then Bridget determinedly closes her eyes so she can concentrate.
The voices are muffled, but the clear distress in Chloe’s voice makes the words distinguishable. “-screwed up. How did we screw up?! Red-”
“Maybe not,” Red says, slightly fainter, like she’s farther away, or making a dedicated effort to keep quiet.
“Castlecoming is where my mom and dad fell in love. That’s how it goes. That’s how it always goes. They can’t- Red, it’s not right.”
Bridget shifts, feeling deeply uncomfortable about the words, the conviction, and she winces slightly. She’s not used to this. This was never a thing in Wonderland. Sexism, homophobia. Gender was just never taken into account where she grew up, for anything.
And slowly, doubts start to wiggle in, and she’s even more aware of her proximity to her friend. Does Ella think this? Is she making her uncomfortable with this silly plan she wanted to do- did she push too hard for it?
Red’s voice is hesitant as she answers, but still has that quiet, calm reassurance. “Maybe it is. Yes, your parents fell in love at Castlecoming, but maybe this is supposed to happen, too? Princess-” Their voices drop too quiet to make out clearly.
“Red…can’t…”
“Breathe…our moms…okay?”
Bridget blinks her eyes open and pulls her ear away from the door. Her insides feel all twisted up. She hadn’t meant to make either of them so distressed. Even then, she expected that it would have been Red with all the issues, being that she has such a strict mom.
“Ella,” she says softly, “I think we shouldn’t interfere anymore.”
“Yeah,” she says, sitting back on her heels. “Was a nice thought, though. Maybe it will at least get them talking.”
“But if they weren’t already talking about it, what are they always whispering about and disappearing together for?”
Ella shrugs. “Come on, let’s give them space,” she says, scooting back across the floor away from the door. “Teach me a two player card game.”
“Alright,” she agrees, standing up to grab another deck that doesn’t have any torn cards. Her attention is only half on the game, though, as the other half worries about her new friends having a crisis on the other side of the door.
When they finally come out, Red looks tired and Chloe no longer has that startled panic, though she does wring her fingers in nervousness. Red goes to the desk and collects another handful of cookies before slouching sideways into the armchair.
“I want to apologize for how I was acting earlier. For what I said,” Chloe says. “But I promise, what I was reacting to was not you or the fact that you are both girls. I’m not homophobic,” she says again firmly.
Bridget rushes to reassure her, still feeling guilty, “That’s ok-”
“That wasn’t an apology,” Ella cuts her off firmly.
Chloe wilts a bit under her gaze. “I’m sorry,” she says softly, kneeling down on the ground. “I didn’t mean to insult either of you, or make you feel bad. I shouldn’t have let my surprise or my own issues be taken out on you.”
“Thank you,” Ella says, softening a little bit. “Did you figure things out?”
Chloe shares another glance with Red, a worried look on her face. “No, not really. We’re still working on it.”
“Then I hope everything works out for you.”
“How about we talk about something else?” Bridget suggests, eager to get things back on track for the night. “This is supposed to be fun, so let’s just… get back to that, yeah? All is forgiven.”
…………….
Bridget fidgets, nervously shuffling her deck of cards, and her enthusiasm for the ball dims the longer she stands by the doors, waiting for her friend. It’s nearly twenty minutes past their agreed upon meeting time, and she worries if something might have happened.
Maybe Ella’s stepmother plied her with last minute chores, or locked her in the cellar again. No, best not to think about it. She’ll be there. But the longer she waits, the more sure she is that something’s gone wrong.
“Oh, Faye,” Bridget gasps as the friendly girl drifts past, frowning down at her eerily glowing wand. Bridget is careful to keep away from the end of it, well aware of all the mishaps the fairy tends to have while attempting magic. The wand seems to grow brighter as she turns to face her. “You wouldn’t happen to have seen Ella, have you?”
“Oh, no. But those other two girls you were hanging out with are over by the food table,” she says distractedly, and then walks past her out the door, following the glow of her wand with a frown. “Where is this thing taking me?” she mutters.
Bridget shakes her head and, biting her lip, ventures into the party.
She spots the blue and red haired girls easily, even with the masks that do nothing to hide their identities. Red is balancing a plate high with brownies and other sweets as Chloe looks around the room with shining eyes and a wide smile. It sparks some of the enthusiasm back into her chest, and she crosses over to them with a little bounce.
“Hey guys! Have you seen Ella anywhere?”
Chloe’s eyes widen slightly, and she shuffles a bit, glancing at Red. “I think she’s just running late. She’ll be here,” she says so firmly, that Bridget feels reassured. She hopes her friend will be there in time for her dance performance.
Then Bridget gets a better view of her new friends, and she pauses. “Are those…? Are those from the drama department?” she asks.
Red seems to freeze as the blue haired girl slowly turns to her. “You said you didn’t steal these.”
“And you believed me?” Red snorts, shoving another brownie into her mouth. “Come on, what money do we have? Besides, it’s only borrowing as long as we put it back.”
“You are unbelievable,” Chloe fumes, tugging on the front of her Victorian style dress. It actually looks really good on her, but she bites back the over-enthusiastic flow of compliments that want to spill out. “This is so wrong.”
“You’re already wearing it,” Red rolls her eyes. Then she smirks and leans into her friend’s space. “What are you going to do, take it off in front of everyone?”
She suppresses a squeal as Chloe's face pinkens at the proximity. The way she said it was undeniably flirty. “You’re such a-” she cuts herself off, and Red’s eyes shine .
“Oh, finish that,” she begs in a teasing way that only seems to fluster Chloe more. “Are you about to curse at me, Miss Goody-goody?”
“You-” she struggles for a moment before grabbing onto Red’s wrist. “Come here,” she demands, dragging her toward the dancefloor.
“Wait, my food!” Red yelps, juggling her plate, and then lightly pushes it into Bridget’s hands. Bridget laughs, watching the girls interact. There is… undeniably something there. Chloe seems to melt as Red laughs at something she says, her feigned anger disappearing as they move around each other.
Bridget glances around, feeling a longing pull as she searches for her friend again. She has to start getting ready for her set soon. She glances down at the plate in her hand and then carefully sets it onto the table. Then, with another look at the happy couple circling around each other, she starts toward the stage.
If Ella still hasn’t arrived by the time she’s finished performing, she’ll go look for her. Even if that means helping with chores the rest of the night, or whispering back and forth through a window, that seems more fun than standing around trying to figure out what to do with herself.
As Bridget warms up, practicing her more difficult card maneuvers, Chloe and Red come running up to her side. She can’t help noticing their linked hands. “Hey,” Red pants slightly, “still no Ella?”
“No,” she confirms. “I think her stepmom has her locked up. I’ll go break her out after my performance.”
Suddenly, the music quiets as the orchestra takes the stage, and soon a slower song starts up. A waltz- and Bridget sighs happily as couples slowly take the floor. She doesn’t know what makes her look up toward the staircase. A murmur in the cowed. A shift. But she turns her head and her breath catches.
That’s not the dress design Ella had shown her she was working on. But it is, undoubtedly, Ella. She looks a bit uncomfortable as she descends the stairs- unsure- but there is the strong certainty of knowing exactly who she is. Everyone seems to be looking at her- the way her dress seems to gleam is like magic. Like a fairytale.
She takes a step forward, heart beating hard in her chest. And then Bridget’s view of her friend is blocked as someone steps in front of her on the bottom step, and bows.
Hesitantly, Ella takes his hand.
The awe Bridget was feeling melts into something heavy as she watches her friend get guided onto the dance floor. As she seems to melt into Prince Charming’s arms. And there’s… something there, too.
Bridget breaks her gaze, staring down at her cards. Her hands are shaking. The deck scatters as she attempts to keep warming up, and hands cover hers as she bends down to collect them. “Bridget…” Red says, looking at her so sympathetically, and she blinks several times to keep the tears from falling. She smiles widely, heart hurting.
“It’s fine!” she chirps. “We weren’t… I’m mean, I never actually told her…”
Red helps her stand, and she’s actually touching her, squeezing her hands.
“I can’t believe…” Chloe murmurs, staring at the dance floor. Then she breaks her gaze and looks back at them, expression so lost.
“Oh, don’t think bad of Ella,” Bridget quickly says, and carefully touches the corners of her eyes to make sure her makeup hasn’t smudged. “We, um, just told you that we were dating because we thought- I thought- that you two might feel more comfortable coming here together if you knew there was another girl couple.”
“What?” Chloe frowns. “But we’re not…”
“Yeah, it was pretty stupid of me,” she laughs wetly, giving all of her attention to sorting her cards. She can still feel Red’s gaze boring into her, though.
Her hand hasn’t left Bridget’s arm, and it’s really rather sweet for someone who doesn’t like physical contact. “But you actually… have feelings for her, don’t you,” Red determines softly.
“It’s fine!” she chirps again, trying to get her enthusiasm back. The song is winding down, which means she’ll be going on soon, and she really can’t have her hands still shaking when she takes the stage. She closes her eyes, taking deep breaths to try and calm down- get focused.
And then Ella comes trotting over, breathing slightly elevated from the dancing. “There you guys are. You’re never going to believe what happened.”
Bridget immediately breaks into her widest smile and nudges her friend. “You dancing with Prince Charming ? You seemed pretty cozy out there. I thought I was the only royal you could stand.”
Ella rolls her eyes slightly, but she can’t hide the flush on her cheeks. “Turns out he’s not so bad. But that’s not what I was talking about. My stepmother went all wicked step-monster on me and destroyed my dress and Faye showed up. She magicked this, and then turned a pumpkin into a carriage, can you believe it?”
“ Really ?” Bridget gasps. “And you got into it? How did you know it’d actually take you to the right place? Or not- like- collapse on you?”
“I don’t know, it was just…”
“Magical,” Chloe says softly, getting a glance from Ella.
“Yeah,” she agrees with a smile. “How’s it going so far? I didn’t miss you going on, did I?”
“No, no, I’m up next,” Bridget confirms, and winces as her cards scatter again.
Chloe and Red exchange looks before Chloe lightly places a hand on Ella’s shoulder. “Why don’t we give Bridget some space so she can concentrate?”
“Oh, yeah,” her friend says, eyes flicking over Bridget as she quickly gathers her cards. Bridget's playful, self-deprecating laugh feels a bit too watery, a bit too forced, as she accepts the few cards Red collected for her again. Ella's face softens, and she reaches out to squeeze Bridget’s arm. “Just breathe. You'll do great.”
Her heart leaps at the touch, and she gives a shaky thumbs up. Then it’s just her and Red, who shifts awkwardly. “...You okay?” she asks.
She lets her painful smile fade as she shrugs. “It is what it is. I’m happy for her, really. She deserves a fairytale, and they looked good together. She’s been pretending to not actually like him for ages so this is… good.”
“Okay,” Red says carefully. “Do you want me to stay, or…”
“Can I actually have a minute? I’ll catch up with you guys after my performance.”
“Alright,” she agrees, and then leaves with one more lingering glance back. Bridget takes several deep breaths and focuses hard on bringing up the bubble of positivity she’s worked so hard on curating for herself. It’s fine. She can bury the hurt and then move on. One. Two… Three.
She moves determinedly to the stage.
……………….
There is a bubbly, revitalized energy in Bridget as she bounces down the steps of the stage and the people around her congratulate her and compliment her. Her routine went perfectly, and she feels… She feels amazing, urged on by her classmate’s enthusiasm.
When she finally breaks from the crowd closest to the stage, she’s engulfed in a warm hug that sends her heart breathing even faster and a flush to her cheeks. Ella is grinning at her when she pulls away.
“You killed it, B. That was amazing.”
“Thanks!” she heaves a gusting sigh of relief. “I was really nervous.”
“You shouldn’t have been,” Chloe says, coming up and touching her shoulder in support. “Everyone loved it.”
Bridget’s eyes land on Red next, who is back to keeping her distance, absently dodging the press of bodies around them, but she offers her a genuinely pleased smile.
“Well, let’s go dance!” Bridget cheers, tugging her friends back toward the dance floor where a new song has already started playing from the speakers. She’s stopped short by the feeling of resistance, and turns back to her worried looking friend.
“I-I can’t,” she says, backing toward the doors. “It’s almost midnight, I have to get back before my stepmom. I really should have left by now, but I just had to see you perform.”
“O-oh,” Bridget says. That was hardly any time at all.
“I’m sorry, I love you, but I have to go,” she says hurriedly, and then picks up her skirts and makes a dash for the stairs. A voice rises up from the crowd just over the music.
“Hey, Ella, wait up!” But Ella doesn’t wait or glance back. Not even when one of her shoes slips off. Red takes a step toward it, and then suddenly stops as her arm is grabbed by her friend.
Then Charming pushes all the way out of the crowd and stops at the bottom step. He bends down and picks up the gleaming heel, and looks after Bridget’s retreating friend with a frown.
“Come on,” Red says, breaking Bridget’s gaze as she takes her hand. She gives a small tug. “Let’s dance.”
Her cheeks heat, embarrassed, but she allows her new friends to attempt distracting her. And after a while, it works. It’s… nice having friends other than Ella. It’s nice that they care. So she only smiles as they bounce around her, and she feels giddy when Chloe spins into Red’s arms and they giggle together.
She wishes Ella were here to witness it, but retelling it to her the next time they see each other will be just as exciting. But they aren’t only wrapped up in each other. Chloe pulls her around a lot, matching her for energy. They take frequent passes by the dessert table for Red, and it’s nearly the best night ever. Only Ella being there for the rest of it would make it better.
As the night winds down, she finds herself wandering the empty lawns of their school with the other two girls, laughing and chatting. They come to a stop just before it’s time for them to split off toward their dorms.
“Thank you both so much for tonight. I probably would have left not too long after Ella had if it weren’t for you two. It was really fun.”
“Absolutely,” Chloe enthuses. “It was really great getting to know you, and Ella.”
“Yeah, I… Yeah,” Red agrees. She has a soft wistful look on her face again that’s only broken by Chloe’s elbow nudging her. They trade a short glance that has Red slightly stiffening. “But it’s time for us to go home now.”
“Oh, yeah, you mentioned that.” Bridget’s smile fades as she thinks about what might be waiting at home for these two girls, especially Red who looks so nervous at the prospect. She wishes she could dart in and hug the other girl properly, but Red was very clear about that boundary from the start, and she’s made no moves to break it herself except in regards to Chloe. “You’ll be back in time for school on Monday, though, right?”
They look at each other again. Longer this time. “Yeah,” Red says, turning her eyes downward. “See you Monday.” Bridget’s stomach squirms in discomfort. Something feels… wrong . But she takes a step back and brings her smile back to her face.
She doesn’t feel that it’s her place to press. Maybe one day, once they grow closer. For now, she will just have to consol herself that she can see their health for herself come school on Monday. She’s had to do it before with Ella, too, or risk making it worse.
“Okay,” she says. “Goodnight.” Could she steal them all away to her kingdom?
“Night,” they chime together, faintly, and then Chloe picks up Red’s hand and pulls her away.