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- Crystal
It was a very honest assumption. Anyone who didn’t know them well probably thought the same. It was move in day, freshman year of college. Kori and Crystal had clicked immediately, already joking and chattering after only knowing each other for a few hours prior. Kori had been hesitant, the only one in the group to go with a random roommate in college. Sam and Jewels had been destined to be college roommates since they were born, at least if their mothers had anything to say about it. It got a little more complicated when it came to Kori, Lydia, and Suzie. Kori and Lydia had been friends their whole lives just like all the others, the only difference was that they’d started dating in sophomore year of high school. Meanwhile, Suzie and Lydia were the best of friends. Everyone in the group was closer than a lot of others they knew, but there had always been something different about Lydia and Suzie. They just got each other. So, Kori decided she would take one for the team and let them be roommates. They thought it was a healthy choice for their relationship anyway, and it seemed to be working out well enough.
“You and Lydia are so cute together, she’s so sweet,” Crystal gushed, folding her clothes as she unpacked them from her suitcase. “All of your friends are so nice! It’s cool that you all came to the same school.”
“Yeah, it always just felt like the only option,” Kori admitted, a sheepish smile on her face. “There’s really not a lot that we do separately.”
It was true. Ever since elementary school, the group had been tight knit. They’d went through so many different phases together, highs and lows, lots of different firsts. Going to the same college was never a question.
Crystal just smiled though like she understood. “That’s really sweet,” she grinned. “A lot of my friends went to the same school, but this seemed like the right choice for me.”
Now Kori couldn’t help but smile. “Well, I for one am glad you came here. I don’t know what I’d do if I got someone who I didn’t get along with at all. And now you have a whole group of us to hang out with.
Crystal beamed at that. “I can’t wait to get to know everyone better. So, let me make sure I have everyone straight. You and Lydia are dating, but you’re all childhood friends who grew up together. Sam and… Jewels are cousins. And Jewels and Suzie are together too, right?”
Kori had been nodding along until the last part, where the burst out laughing, shaking her head. Crystal couldn’t help but laugh along too.
“I’m sorry! Did I mix someone up?” She giggled, her cheeks red.
“No, no, it’s not you, girl,” Kori assured, though she couldn’t help but wheeze out another laugh. “That’s just so funny, you have no idea. Jewels and Suzie aren’t a couple.”
Crystal raised an eyebrow, pausing her clothes folding to actually cross her arms. “Wait, really? But I thought-“
“They’re sickening, aren’t they? They’ve been like that since like, junior year, maybe. You’ll see once you spend more time with them. It’s like everyone knows they have feelings for each other except each other. It’s getting insufferable but Lydia only allows me to bully Suzie very minimally about it,” Kori explained.
“They just seem so affectionate with each other,” Crystal mused, still a little surprised. “I thought I saw them holding hands before.”
Kori waved her off. “Yeah, they do that. Don’t get me wrong, this whole friend group is probably more affectionate than most, but those two are just as bad as me and Lyds, and they’re, quote unquote, ‘not dating’,” she huffed. “You’ll get used to it.”
“Well, maybe they’ll get together eventually. They’d be adorable. Especially since they have matching curly hair,” Crystal grinned.
Kori snorted softly, still shaking her head. “I’ll believe it when I see it. You don’t know what you’ve got yourself into- front row seats to the most lesbian pining you’ll ever see.”
*
2. Lydia
It was a cold, cold day outside. They’d come back from winter break this week and no one was quite ready to come back after the few weeks off of holidays and family and relaxation. The girls decided to reward themselves with a movie night after they’d finished their first week of the new semester. They were all squished into Lydia and Suzie’s dorm, pretty much all of the extra blankets and pillows brought out so the whole floor was essentially a big nest. The only problem with this was that it was winter and it got dark and 5 pm and pretty much everyone was already asleep. Lydia glanced around the room and rolled her eyes when she saw everyone passed out. They’d only made it through one movie.
Her gaze landed on Suzie and Jewels, curled up in their own little corner. Suzie was propped against a mountain of pillows in a hoodie that was so big it practically swallowed her. And under the pile of blankets on top of her, Jewels was tucked against her side, head resting on Suzie’s shoulder. Lydia couldn’t help but smile. The two of them always seemed to gravitate toward each other. She jumped slightly when Suzie suddenly opened her eyes, the rest of her staying still.
“God, I hate when you do that, you’re so creepy,” Lydia whispered, settling back down against Kori’s chest.
“I just always feel you watching me, you’re the creep,” Suzie mumbled sleepily, looking absolutely content.
Lydia shook her head. “I’m no creepier than you,” she huffed. She quieted for a moment, just watching. “You know something?”
“I know lots of things,” Suzie grinned lazily.
Lydia rolled her eyes incredibly hard. “Well, this is something you don’t know.”
“And what might that be?”
Lydia grinned smugly. “You two look just like us right now,” she hummed. When Suzie raised a brow in confusion, she went on. “You and Jewels. You look just like me and Kori. All on top of each other and bundled up like that. Anyone else would think you’re the perfect picture of a happy couple. I should put you on Pinterest.”
Suzie’s face got hot at that. “Shut up,” she mumbled.
It was true though. Jewels was curled against her like it was her most favorite place in the world. Her guard was completely down. She trusted Suzie. Trusted her to keep her warm, not let anyone disturb her, to wake her gently. She’d always had.
Lydia looked absolutely tickled. “You’re so cute,” she crooned. “I love you guys. I love love.”
It took everything in Suzie not to groan and disturb everyone else who was asleep. “And you are a pain in the ass,” she huffed.
“But you love me,” Lydia beamed.
And she did. Of course she did. Even though she was a brat. Later, as everyone began to stir, Lydia kept her eyes on Jewels and Suzie. She knew. Even if they didn’t want to believe it quite yet.
*
3. Kori
For what it’s worth, Kori knew when to be serious. As jokingly as she took and made everything, she could keep her mouth shut when she had to and know when it wasn’t the time to tease. And one night at Sam’s house in senior year of high school had been one of those times.
They’d all gotten together for a sleepover, tucked into the basement like they always did. They’d been lamenting about college applications and their classes and teachers and how they would probably end up missing high school even after all the complaining they did about it. They’d all been caught up chatting that it took them a minute to realize that Jewels and Suzie were gone.
“Jewels better not be ransacking my closet right now,” Sam groaned, moving to stand up.
“Let me go, I want to see if I can scare them,” Kori grinned.
Lydia and Sam both laughed, nodding eagerly. “You’re so mean,” Lydia snickered, but she clearly wasn’t objecting the idea.
Kori crept up the stairs, careful to be quiet. She could hear voices coming from Sam’s room and the door was cracked slightly. She was ready to burst in, loud and fast to startle them, but the high pitched sob from behind the door made her stop in her tracks. Oh. She didn’t know if she should stay or go, but she couldn’t help but overhear part of the conversation anyway.
“What if I d-don’t get in with you guys? And you all leave me here and- and I get forgotten about? You’re all so much smarter than I am and g-good at different things,” Jewels hiccuped.
Kori could just barely see them through the crack in the door. Jewels was buried in Suzie’s lap as Suzie rubbed up and down her back soothingly, her face troubled.
“Baby, just breathe for a second. You’re gonna make yourself sick,” Suzie murmured. “You’re gonna get in. You’re smart and good at plenty of things. And even if, absolute worst case scenario, you didn’t, how could we forget about you? We could never forget about you. That’s the silliest thing I’ve ever heard.”
Kori saw her lean down and whisper something that she couldn’t hear, but it made Jewels let out a little laugh, sniffling softly.
“I just… I can’t imagine not seeing you everyday. I would miss you so much,” Jewels whimpered.
Suzie shook her head. “You don’t have to worry about that. I’m not going anywhere that you’re not.”
“You promise?” Jewels asked shakily, still burrowed against Suzie.
“I promise. You can’t get rid of me that easily,” Suzie smiled, brushing her hair back.
Kori stepped back after that. She didn’t want to intrude any further. She went back downstairs, making up something about how they’d gone up to the roof from Sam’s window, one of the group’s favorite spots, and said they’d be down soon.
“They’re probably kissing up there,” Lydia grinned, her eyes sparkling.
“Ugh, probably,” Sam groaned. “They’re gonna be just as bad as y’all one day, I swear.”
“No one could be as bad as us,” Kori promised, pressing a kiss to Lydia’s lips just to prove it.
Sam fake gagged as exaggeratedly as she could.
They fell back into a conversation, eventually putting on another movie. When Suzie and Jewels did creep back in, they looked normal. Only Kori seemed to notice the slightly puffy look to Jewels’ eyes in the dark room and how they seemed to be holding hands under the covers. She could tell that how Suzie felt toward Jewels was different than the others. She just wondered if she would ever do anything about it.
*
4. Sam
It was getting dark outside when it occurred to Sam that she hadn’t seen Jewels all day. The last time she saw her was when they’d both left for their 8 am classes, tiredly mumbling to each other about how much they didn’t want to go as they got dressed. Now, it had been nearly 12 hours and she realized she hadn’t seen her cousin since.
Before she could spend much time wondering if she should be concerned, the door burst open, and there was Jewels.
“Jesus, I haven’t seen you all day and now you’re trying to give me a heart attack!” Sam yelped. “Where have you been anyway?”
Jewels grinned sheepishly, throwing her backpack down and bustling around the room, looking for something.
“Just hanging out with Suze. She isn’t feeling good so I had to come back and grab some things, but I’m going back,” Jewels hummed.
Sam raised a very suspicious brow. “You only had two classes today. You’re telling me you’ve been doting over Suzanne since 1 pm?”
Jewels rolled her eyes, but the way her cheeks reddened didn’t go unnoticed. “We were just having a good time. We’ve just been cozy and watching tv,” she insisted. “And Lydia’s not home right now, so I didn’t want Suzie to be alone if she doesn’t feel well.”
“Right… Lydia conveniently isn’t home while y’all two have been in there for hours,” Sam smirked.
Jewels groaned, finally finding her heating pad that she’d been looking for and shoving it into her backpack after dumping out its contents on her bed. “You irritate me, do you know that, Samantha?”
“I really do know it, Jewelsie,” Sam nodded contently.
She watched Jewels dig through her medicine, looking them over before throwing a few different kinds in the backpack. Jewels had always been an extremely considerate person and she was one of those people who was good at comforting others. But it was too a greater extent with Suzie.
“You know, she’s the only person you’d do this for,” Sam mused.
“What are you talking about? I just nursed you back to health after that awful cold you had. And I always comfort the girls when they’re sick,” Jewels frowned.
“No, babe. I mean, Suzie is the only one you’ll drop everything for without a second thought and who you don’t want to leave when something is wrong. She’s the one you want to take care of the most. She’s… a little more special to you. And I think you should tell her,” Sam concluded.
Jewels wasn’t impressed. “Are you done?” She asked, zipping up her bag and throwing it over her shoulders.
“Mm, no. And I won’t be until you tell her how you feel, because she obviously feels the same,” Sam insisted.
“No, Sammy, she obviously doesn’t,” Jewels sighed. She couldn’t seem to wrap her I head around the idea that Suzie could even possibly like her back. “And her friendship is too important to me. It’s good what we have. Why mess it up?”
She smiled, a little wistful, and pulled Sam into a side hug.
“I’m going. Sorry for being MIA, I’ll text next time,” Jewels hummed, leaving and shutting the door behind her.
Sam sighed. As considerate and caring as Jewels was, she was probably doubly as stubborn. She had never been one to wear her heart on her sleeve and neither had Suzie. Sam hoped one day, they would just be honest. And thankfully, soon enough, they were.
+1 Suzie and Jewels
It was raining outside. It was chilly and wet and everyone else was doing something who knows where. But not Suzie and Jewels. They were curled up in bed facing each other, Suzie’s comforter over their heads. They were so close together that their noses could touch. They hadn’t said much. Just listening to the sound of each other breathing softly. Jewels’ hand was on Suzie’s waist, gently gripping the fabric of her hoodie. Suzie had slid her cold hand under Jewels’ shirt to rest against the warm skin of her stomach. Jewels didn’t complain. She could never. She didn’t know how she’d gone so long without this.
“Sometimes I think about how silly we were,” Jewels whispered, careful not to be too loud in their perfect little bubble.
“What do you mean?” Suzie asked softly.
Jewels smiled softly. “We used to be so afraid to tell each other how we were feeling. We could’ve had this the whole time. But we were scared. But it doesn’t matter anymore because we finally have each other,” she whispered, leaning close and pressing her lips against Suzie’s.
Suzie smiled against her mouth. “Sometimes I still can’t believe it’s real. I felt this way about you for so long and tried to hide it. Now I get to love you as loudly as I want.”
“Now that we have that, it’s almost hard to remember what it was like without it. I never want to go without it again. You’ve spoiled me,” Jewels grinned lovingly.
“I promise I’ll never stop,” Suzie whispered, kissing her again.
They stayed like that for awhile. Curled perfectly against each other like they were always meant to be. Every look and touch shared between them was soft and careful and so, so loving. Neither of them knew how they’d gone so long without being like this. But they were never going back.