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The rain poured down in sheets throughout Hometown, but Susie didn’t care; she had something else bouncing around her brain like the old DVD logo. Somehow, the rain revealed all of the secrets she refused to think about on sunny days. It was still early morning, and Susie sat by the window, watching the droplets dance down the windowpane.
Recently, her mind had been preoccupied with thoughts of a certain prince of darkness. Normally, this only happened with people that pissed her off. Her mind just wouldn’t let them leave, and she would fester in her hate and anger until she saw that person again. But this feeling was different, it was new. Susie felt warm and kinda itchy thinking about it… was she allergic to Ralsei?!
No, Susie was being to understand these feelings, that it was more than just having an amazing best friend. She wanted to spend every moment with him, cuddle him, maybe even kiss him? She felt so guilty for thinking these thoughts, but they kept falling like the rain, unrelenting and cold. She had to do something about it.
Susie raced through the storm, pulling her coat close to her chest, trying not to get completely soaked. When she arrived at the school, she made quick work of getting inside and making it to the closet. Unlike most times though, when Susie would jump straight in, she paused. What was she supposed to do when she found Ralsei? Make a goddamn love confession?! No way, Susie would never recover from the embarrassment. This was such a bad idea, what if he didn’t want to be her friend after this? The thought of losing him paralyzed Susie. She began to turn back, but she was too close to the edge, and tumbled down into the dark world.
Susie landed with a thud on the ground; she rubbed her head, belting out a few swears before getting up and dusting herself off.
“Ugh.. shit! That hurt…”
Sensing a Lightner, the prince of darkness rushed over, finding Susie rubbing her head.
“Oh, Susie! You’re hurt!!!” Ralsei exclaimed
“What, this? I’m good, don’t worry about me—“
Ralsei scurried up, wrapping her into a hug as he healed her. Susie couldn’t help but blush at the closeness of it all. A sense of shame washed over her as well. Would he still be hugging her like this if he knew why she was down here?
“All better now-?” Ralsei inquired.
“Uhh.. y-yea! All good!!!” Susie laughed nervously, scratching the back of her head. “Thank you, Ralsei”
As she smiled at Ralsei, she noticed a hint of pink glowing on his cheeks. Wait.. why was he blushing now? Did he know?!
“O-of course, Susie! I’m surprised that you came here by yourself though! Where’s Kris?”
“Kris? Oh, it was too early, so I didn’t bother waking them up. I would have had to drag them out of bed anyway, haha!”
“Oh, I see! But… why are you here so early, Susie?”
Susie’s cheeks tinted a dark purple once more, and she hid her face from behind her hair. Being in front of him now, staring at him with those adorable eyes, it was so much harder to say it out loud.
“I- I just… uh, wanted some cauldron-fresh cake! That’s all..” Susie mumbled out, clearly embarrassed. Yea, great excuse there.
“Aww, of course, Susie! You do remember that it won’t fill you up though, right? It’s… not real.” Ralsei turned back, a slightly puzzled look painted on his face. He also seemed slightly sad at his own remark.
“Well, it still tastes good, right? Besides, I can’t get a genuine toothpaste-boy cake from the Light World!” Susie laughed heartily, which made Ralsei erupt in a giggle as well.
“Okay! I’ll make you as many cakes as you would like, Susie!”
“Haha, yea dude, as if you could make that many—“
Walking into Castle Town, Susie could see that it was raining somewhere else too. The normally dark atmosphere with hints of blue felt foggy, and the colors muted. All the buildings were closed, and nobody was mingling around like normal. It would be easy to have a private conversation with Ralsei. At least, that’s what Susie thought before a darkner jumped out from the shadows, blocking the two in a magical barrier.
“W-what the hell?!” Susie shouted, spawning her axe.
“Mwehehehe~! You’re trapped!!! And now I shall make you two dance for your freedom!”
“Dance for our freedom..? What do you mean?” Ralsei questioned. Susie noticed how he had his hand tightly wrapped around hers.
“Yes, yes, yes!!! If you want to leave, you must dance! I want to see tension, heartfelt moves, and rain-wrapped drama~!”The darkner called out, raising a hand to the sky. As she did this, the streetlamps illuminated the area, and Susie and Ralsei were basked in a golden light. Colored tiles appeared on the ground, and each one corresponded with a piano cord.
“You want us to dance?! Why can’t we just fight you and move on?!?!” Susie was getting frustrated, and increasingly nervous.
“Violence is not allowed here~! Only love~”
“L-love?!” Ralsei shouted.
Oh dear god, what have they gotten themselves into?!
“M-maybe we should give it a try, Susie? Maybe it’s like when we had that dance battle with the SweetCap’nCakes! We could try ballroom dancing instead!” Ralsei suggested.
“Y-yea…sure, if you want to.” Susie responded nervously.
She reached out, delicately placing her large hands on Ralsei’s waist, and he wrapped his paws around her neck. Being so close made them blush and look away from each other.
One step at a time, they made it across the colored tiles. It created such a beautiful melody, and Ralsei looked entranced. Susie had to admit, the mix of rain and light had made Ralsei glisten. With small droplets on his glasses, to the light hitting his figure in every right way, she suddenly felt so sure of her feelings for him.
“R-Ralsei? I need to tell you something. Just promise not to laugh… okay?”
“I would never laugh at you, Susie! What is it..?”
The two danced together, hitting the tiles with their feet and creating a song with their movements.
“So, I’ve just been thinking..” Susie started, spinning Ralsei out towards a far tile, then pulling him back into her arms, causing him to yelp in surprise.
“Well… I’ve been thinking a lot about you.”
“About me?!” Ralsei seemed shocked, as if the very concept of someone caring about him was unbelievable.
“Uh, yea! You’re awesome, dude!” Susie grinned, picking up the pace as the music became faster.
“But anyway… I think it’s something more than friends…”
“More than friends..? What do you mean-?”
“Well… uh-“ Susie stuttered over her words, her composure breaking. She opened her eyes, staring into Ralsei’s, and the hopeful way they shined brought her confidence back.
“Well.. instead of just being friends, you could be my boyfriend! And I could be your.. g-girlfriend. We would cuddle, I could hold your hand, I could…” As the dance was coming to an end, Susie dipped Ralsei, and she could see just how rosy his cheeks were.
“I- I could kiss you…” Susie whispered breathlessly. It just came out, and she couldn’t take it back anymore.
“Please do” Ralsei responded, staring up at her as he leaned closer.
Their lips met, and everything felt right. Despite the chilly weather, it had never been so warm in their hearts. The lights got brighter, the colors more saturated, and the song met its grand finale! The kiss only lasted for a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity to them.
“Oh, bravo, bravo!!! Finally, a nice ship to write a song to! Toodles~!” The darkner disappeared, only leaving a small letter, sealed with a heart emblem, in her place.
After a beat, the two began to laugh, wrapping their arms around one another as the rain began to let up.
“W-what happens now..?” Ralsei asked, smiling through his strawberry cheeks.
“I don’t really know… you wanna just see where this goes-?” Susie held out a hand, ready to guide her Prince into the castle.
“I would love that!” Ralsei exclaimed, taking her hand as the two disappeared into the distance.
On the ground, the letter sat open, reading:
“On rainy days,
Feelings will fly
A dance and kiss
With a soft lullaby” ❤︎