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Dialo winced as Chelan’s foot came in contact with her stomach again. Dialo had had seven intrusive thoughts about tying the angel’s hands and feet down, and it was only 12:30 am.
Chelan was… a restless sleeper, to say the least. They had pushed their beds together hoping for a little bit more physical contact between the two, but this wasn’t exactly what Dialo had had in mind when she said “physical contact.” Even when they DID snuggle, it was never for long. Chelan would always find a way to wiggle (or on more aggressive nights, push) her way out of Dialo’s arms.
But… Dialo wouldn’t give it up for the world. Sure, Chelan hogged the blankets most of the time, but Dialo still loved Chelan more than anything in the universe.
The two met in elementary school, as if by fate. Chelan was introduced to Dialo’s class mid-January, when snow blanketed the ground and made the world quieter.
Speaking of silence, Chelan never really spoke to anyone. Because of this, Chelan didn’t have too many friends. Most people just assumed she had nothing to say. How can you know someone has nothing to say unless you try talking to them yourself?
Dialo didn’t think too much about Chelan until Yosafire took the time to introduce them. Dialo envied Yosafire; she could befriend anybody without trouble.
The years went by, and before they knew it, Dialo and Chelan were best friends. They always worked together for group projects, they always played together at recess, and they always made sure they were sitting next to each other at any given moment. They were inseparable.
Junior high rolled around, sweeping the girls off their feet before they had a proper chance to say goodbye to their elementary school years.
It was a big change, going from one big class to multiple several classes. Dialo was indifferent towards the change; she got used to things pretty fast.
But that’s not what was bothering Dialo, no. It was not being able to see Chelan every day. Sure, they had homeroom together, and they could always text during the day. But it was actually seeing Chelan; it was the emerald eyes that shone brightly with hope, the golden hair that glittered when the sun kissed it. Seeing that girl filled her with the motivation to keep her chin up the rest of the day.
In the Gray Village, it was perfectly legal to move out and buy a house when you were 14 years of age, as long as you were approved by the royal council as someone who could responsibly own one. This meant you had to be in at least two AP classes, and had 10 college credits.
Dialo was 12 at the time; so she had plenty of time to meet the requirements needed to spend the rest of her life with her best friend in the world.
Chelan, on the other end, had no idea Dialo had even been trying. She knew something was going on. But she didn’t expect it to change her life in such a drastic matter.
Dialo never forgot the look on Chelan’s face when Dialo broke the news to her. The face could best be describes as the face of someone who just won the lottery while striking gold with a metal detector. Dialo remembers Chelan’s arms around her neck; she remembers hearing Chelan sobbing from happiness into her shoulder.
A lot of different feelings went through Dialo at that time. She was overjoyed at finally being able to spend hopefully what was going to be the rest of her life with Chelan. She was euphoric above all. But the strongest feeling that went through her… was love.
Dialo fell in love with Chelan. She fell in love with her gentle smile, her soft, pale, face, her kindness and generosity.
Dialo had never fallen in love with anybody before. This was a foreign feeling to her. She had no idea what to do with it; should she embrace it, or should she keep it a secret?
Unbeknownst to Dialo, keeping your crush a secret was virtually impossible; especially when you lived with her, and had to face her every day. Dialo’s heart rate would speed up, and her face would burn red if she so as much looked into the angel’s eyes. It even got so bad, that she barely spent any time with Chelan, which upset the little angel.
Dialo didn’t know how her actions were affecting her friend until she heard… the most heartbreaking sound in the world. She had become nervous when Chelan hadn’t come downstairs all evening. Hoping the angel was just asleep, she came upstairs to check up on Chelan, hoping she was alright.
Dialo knocked on the door, loud enough to get Chelan’s attention, but not loud enough to disrupt her. When she got no reply, she decided to let herself in, severely worried at this point. What she saw felt like a knife to the heart.
The small form of the angel was cocooned in blankets, sobbing loudly into the pillows, soaking them with tears.
Dialo was quick to react. Cursing under her breath, she feverishly retrieved Chelan from under the sheets. Chelan didn’t try to fight back.
Upon inquiry of her predicament, Chelan explained to Dialo how she felt like Dialo didn’t care about her anymore. How she felt like Dialo didn’t want to be a part of her life anymore.
Hearing this almost brought Dialo to tears. How foolish could she be; hurting her friend’s feelings to disguise her own?
Dialo gathered Chelan into her arms. She apologized, saying she never wanted to leave Chelan’s side. She held Chelan a bit tighter. She told Chelan everything; she told Chelan how she valued Chelan’s life more so than her own. She told Chelan she would always be there; because she wanted to spend the rest of her life with Chelan, and then some. Dialo stroked Chelan’s face, catching the tears that trailed down her pale cheeks, which were red and splotchy from crying. Her fingers brushed Chelan’s long, dark eyelashes, sending a chill down the demon’s spine.
Withdrawing her fingers, she spoke those three words some people wait their whole lives to hear. Dialo had nothing in her heart but love for this girl and she was going to make it known, even if that meant sacrificing her most treasured friendship. Bottling up feelings never ended well for anybody.
She almost expected Chelan to be disgusted, that a girl was in love with her; to want to move out, to never want to see her again, to stop being Dialo’s best friend.
Chelan did stop being Dialo’s best friend, in a way, when the corners of her mouth turned up slightly and her arms wrapped tightly around the demon in front of her. She buried her face in Dialo’s shoulder, sending a fresh wave of tears down her face. Through muffled sobs, she loudly reciprocated Dialo’s feelings.
It was a good thing Chelan couldn’t see Dialo’s face; her cheeks rivaled her hair in color. Dialo felt her own eyes start to moisten almost involuntarily. Before she could properly dry her eyes, she felt more and more tears cascade down her vermillion cheeks.
This was it. They were together; they could finally be recognized as a formal, proper relationship. But most importantly, they were in love.
Telling your friend group that you and another girl in said friend group had started dating is easier said than done. For one, it doesn’t help knowing a certain green-haired girl would probably explode with happiness, and maybe envy as well.
Believe it or not; it actually went pretty okay. Froze and Macarona were terse with their reactions. Others… were more colorful with theirs. Yosafire had acted like the two were practically engaged. She had beamed, and embraced the two in a firm hug, nearly suffocating them in the act. It could have been worse though. Yosafire didn’t actually explode.
It was hard keeping their relationship a secret. Dialo got flustered very easily, and dating an incredibly clingy girl didn’t really help. For example, if Chelan held Dialo’s hand in public, Dialo’s face would get so red that some certain girls (meaning Yosafire and Rawberry, though Macarona was sometimes guilty of this) would treat like they were making out in public. This included shouting stuff like “Get a room, you two!” It was all in good fun, but it sort of made Dialo ashamed of giving her girlfriend affection in public without it being seen as some profound act.
It wasn’t against school rules to kiss your significant other in the halls before class, as long as you were civil about it.
Chelan… took advantage of this. She had seen girls kissing their boyfriends in public, and vice versa, but knew if she tried to kiss Dialo in public, she would die of embarrassment.
It’s not that Dialo didn’t want to kiss Chelan because of this. She always wanted to kiss Chelan, but always chickened out at the last second due to nerves. Chelan seemed a little disappointed every time, which made Dialo feel awful. Chelan had been ready for their first kiss for a while, but Dialo… wasn’t, for lack of a better term.
Dialo surprised Chelan one day by gently grabbing her hand about 15 minutes before class started and pulled her to a side of the school where there were few classrooms, let alone any their friends would be in. Dialo finally halted when they reached a dead end.
Chelan sharply pulled her hand out of Dialo’s. Chelan asked why she took her here, far away from her class.
Without saying a word, Dialo leaned forward and pressed her lips against Chelan’s. Her eyes slowly closed, pulling Chelan closer, holding their bodies together. The warmth between the two was greater than the sun's.
Chelan didn’t protest, not once.
They told no one about their little rendezvous; they could figure it out by themselves.
Despite the advice from their advisors, Chelan and Dialo had gotten married straight out of high school. As a matter of fact, Dialo had actually incorporated her proposal into her graduation speech. She remembers the stunned silence, she remembers the applause. But what she remembers most vividly was the look on Chelan’s face. Dialo remembers seeing Chelan’s viridescent eyes light up and fill with tears before nodding vigorously.
Yosafire, who happened to be sitting next to Chelan, took the liberty to let everyone know Chelan’s answer, by screaming it so that all the other graduates could hear. This caused the initial uproar to increase in volume, and enthusiasm.
But Dialo and Chelan were able to tune out the noise. They were in their own little world in that moment.
The day they got married was the best day of their lives.
They were able to pull together just enough for a medium-sized traditional ceremony using money they earned at several part time jobs.
Wodahs gave Chelan away, since Chelan didn’t have any parents to speak of, let alone a father.
Dialo couldn’t take her eyes off her bride. She was gorgeous; donned in a glittering white dress that shone like the sun.
Dialo and Chelan paid little attention to the words Etihw (who was marrying them) said, and instead just focused on each other. They focused on the softness of each other’s hands; they focused on the many, many years they would spend together, as wives. They focused on each other.
When they kissed at the altar, it was more than just that—a kiss. It was a pledge, a promise, a commitment. It was a sign that told each other, and everyone else, that they would love each other for the rest of their lives.
And they would never break that promise.
Dialo shifts through these memories with a smile on her face, and love in her heart. She wrapped her arms around Chelan, who was sleeping peacefully beside her (albeit snoring loudly.) She kissed the back of her wife’s head, and made a promise to never let her go.
And she would never break that promise.