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“Truth or dare?”
“Dare.”
It was around one in the morning on a summer night. The two were laying on their backs on top of the roof to one of their houses. The air was damp and smelled like fresh rain, and the full moon overhead illuminated them both.
“I dare you,” said Lily, “to tell me your biggest secret.”
“That’s cheating!” Raven cried , sitting up quickly to look over at her with a pout. “You can’t do that!”
“Says who?”
“Says me!”
Lily propped herself up on an elbow, resting her head on her hand. “Well, fine then. I dare you…” She frowned, thinking in silence for a long moment.
Raven held her breath. Any time Lily had that face, it meant bad things. What was her friend planning now?
Lily’s frown slowly turned into a smirk, “...to confess to your crush by the end of the week.”
Raven froze, “...say again?”
Lily's smirk became a wide grin, her sky-blue eyes gleaming with mischief. “I dare you to confess to your crush by the end of the week. No cheating either, they have to hear you say it.”
Raven whined, “Oh, come on! That's evil!”
Lily shrugged one shoulder unsympathetically. “Too bad. You can do the other one, instead.”
Raven huffed, taking a moment to think as she laid back down, shuffling over to be closer to Lily. “...fine. Before the end of the week then. My turn now. Truth or dare?”
“Truth. Because I’m not a coward.” Lily grinned, watching as Raven turned over to face her, a more serious expression on the girl's features.
“Have you ever thought about running away?”
Lily paused. They'd danced around the topic before, talked about how much they each hated their parents, how much easier things would be if they didn't have to deal with them. But this was the first time they were addressing it directly.
The answer came as easily as breathing.
“Every day.”
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Raven got the text at around 10 pm. Rain was pouring down in heavy sheets that beat against the windows, blurring the lights just outside her room.
closetgremlin: I need you to come pick me up.
She didn’t hesitate.
CarRave: on my way
Raven stepped into the living room. The living room that was far too large, too empty, never lived in. The room where nothing ever happened.
She couldn’t worry about that right now. She had bigger issues. She grabbed her father’s keys off the ring they were hung from, and paused when she noticed the man himself sitting on a chair nearby, staring down at his laptop and tapping away.
“I’m taking your car.”
“Okay, dear.” He didn’t look up. No flicker of emotion or recognition. Her hands clenched tighter, knuckles whitening over the keys in her grip.
“I’m not coming back.” She struggled not to let her voice break. Would he notice? Would he acknowledge her?
“That’s nice, dear.” Of course not.
She took her father’s car, driving through the rainy night towards Lily’s house. She pulled into the driveway, lights illuminating the girl in question standing there, rain soaking through her hair.
Raven opened the door, letting Lily in.
Lily didn’t ask about who she got the car from.
Raven, in turn, didn’t ask about the bruises.
She just put her foot to the gas and drove off into the night.
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“I am,” Lily began dramatically, “the burger king.”
They were in a burger king at around 11 pm, the lights above buzzing and humming with electricity. Lily had just very carefully and very seriously placed a paper crown atop her head, looking incredibly smug. Raven stared back at her, vaguely amused.
“Of course, your highness. What do you desire?” Raven struggled to keep the laughter from her voice, taking another bite from her burger and grinning.
Lily puffed out her chest and extended a hand. “I want… Your fries. Gimme.”
Raven actually did laugh that time, grabbing the small box of fries and extending them to Lily with both hands, lowering her head dramatically. “Your fries, my lord.”
Lily reached out regally, lifting her chin before grabbing the box and proceeding to devour the fries by the fistful, cackling.
Raven burst out into loud, bright laughter, hitting the table as she watched. “I thought you said you were royalty?”
Lily grinned smugly, her cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk from the fries she’d stuffed her face with. “Just because I’m a king doesn’t mean I can’t eat like a horse.”
Raven threw her head back, laughing and holding her sides, the sound echoing in the empty restaurant.
Lily watched with a smile, resting her chin on her hand as her eyes softened at the sight.
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Raven was driving down the road again later in the night, around two in the morning. The downpour had become a drizzle, blurring the city lights through the side windows as they talked.
Lily was talking animatedly in her seat, her hands moving all over the place to emphasize her points. “-and I wanna go to the aquarium, and the beach, and the park, and- OH! OH! Let’s visit the beach at night! I’ve never gotten to do that! And then I wanna sit on a roof together, and-”
Raven listened intently, smiling happily as they drove, radio humming in the background as Lily continued to talk about all the things they could do now.
Then, familiar notes began to play as the last song on the radio faded out. And Lily shrieked.
“OH MY GOD, IT’S MY SONG!!”
Raven practically jumped out of her seat, glancing over at Lily. “Jesus Lily, little warning next time? What do you mean your song?”
Instead of responding, Lily opened her mouth… and started to sing.
Badly.
“Sometimes, I feel the fear of… Uncertainty, stinging clear!”
It was bad. She was off-key, and out of sync. But it was distinctly her.
“And I, I can't help but ask myself how much I’ll let the fear- come on, Raven, sing it with me!”
Raven rolled her eyes. But she was smiling. And she started singing too.
“It’s driven me before, and it seems to have a vague, haunting mass appeal!”
Raven’s voice cracked, but they kept going, singing for nobody but themselves as they laughed together through the words.
“Whatever tomorrow brings, I’ll be there! With open arms, and open eyes, yeah! Wait, shit, I jumped ahead a few lines-”
Lily laughed. A bright, vibrant sound. Raven tried not to stare.
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The electronic bell chimed as the two girls walked into a corner store, Lily hurrying off to look at the aisles as Raven hung behind to get a basket before following slowly after the more energetic girl.
“Look! Look! They have Kinder Eggs!” Lily picked one up, holding it out for Raven to see. “I thought they didn’t allow those into the country?”
Raven looked at them, shrugging. “Guess they changed their mind? Or snuck it over, one of the two.”
Lily put the egg back, sticking her arms into her pockets and stretching out the coat like penguin wings. “Why don’t they allow them in, anyways? They’re good, I don’t see what the big deal is.”
Raven frowned for a moment in thought. “I think it was something about the toy bits inside? Honestly, not sure. Think it might be some kind of leftover thing from world war 2.”
Lily huffed. “Well, that’s dumb. These are good.” She hesitated for a moment, before moving further down the aisle. “Ooo! Look! Pringles!!”
Raven sighed softly, following after her as Lily continued to point out more snacks she wanted.
Once they got to checkout, Raven paid for the food while Lily rocked back and forth on her feet.
Right up until she spotted a small collectible on the counter.
“Raven! Look! They have a little keychain of Snorlax!”
Raven glanced over, spotting the slightly off-painted keychain of Snorlax. “Lily, they forgot to paint his face.”
“I know!! Isn’t it adorable? I think it adds character.”
Raven rolled her eyes. “Lily. C’mon. We already got a bunch of snacks we didn’t need. Let’s go.”
Lily visibly wilted, kicking at the ground as she walked away. “Okaaaay….”
As a result, she didn’t see when Raven silently slid the keychain to the clerk, making a hushing motion at them as they swiped it.
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“You know, I haven’t really had the opportunity to see the night sky very often.” Lily leaned back from where she was sitting on Raven’s shoulders, gazing up at the night sky with shining eyes. “What, with the curfew and all.”
Raven glanced up, nodding shortly in acknowledgement. She tightened her hold on Lily, making sure she didn't fall. “Yeah? Guess there’s a lot we can both do now that we’re out, huh?”
Lily grinned, leaning down and over Raven so they were face to face. “Yeah! Like, now we can hang out like this without worrying about whether or not our parents will call us. And we can get the food we want!”
Raven nodded again, kicking at the sand as she walked. “And go on the beach when we’re not supposed to?”
Lily smirked. “Exactly! It's so peaceful out here, y'know? The stars are really pretty. I didn't get to see them much from my house.”
Raven tried to ignore the way her heart pounded in her chest as she responded. “I get what you mean. It's a lot quieter.”
Lily leaned back up again, looking out over the beach. “Look! We have the whole beach to ourselves! All on our own, nobody to say anything when we laugh or cry or talk. It’s… freeing, y’know?”
Raven hummed in acknowledgement, looking out with her as she desperately fought down the urge to say what she wanted to.
Not yet.
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Lily scooted across the hood of the car to be closer to Raven, shivering slightly in the cold night air as they stared up at the twinkling night sky. “Y’know, it’s pretty quiet at night, huh? I like talking to you better.”
Raven took a moment to process the words Lily spoke, staring at her before Lily glanced over and they locked eyes. She quickly glanced away, mumbling out a few words. “I like talking to you too.”
Lily tilted her head, shuffling closer towards Raven's face. "What did you say? You were mumbling a lot."
Raven sputtered for a moment, before turning away. “Uh, what if we did truth or dare? We never really finished that game a few days ago, so, y’know, I just figured…”
Lily’s eyes sparkled as she sat up, grinning wide. “Yeah! Let’s do it! You go first. Truth or dare?”
Raven blinked, then huffed, suppressing a grin. “Again? Fine. Truth.”
Lily frowned for a moment, sticking her tongue out a bit like she always did when she was deep in thought. “Hmmmm… Have you had fun tonight?”
Raven blinked, then smiled, relaxing a bit and leaning closer. “Absolutely.”
Lily giggled, grinning wide in a way that made Raven struggle to breathe for a moment. “My turn! I wanna do truth too.”
Raven groaned. “You’re supposed to wait for me to ask!”
Lily stuck her tongue out, closing her eyes as she did for emphasis. “Too slow!”
Raven chuckled softly, sitting up and thinking for a moment. “Hmm…”
Raven paused for longer than was usual. Lily frowned, watching her with a concerned expression as she waited.
“...will you stay with me?” Raven immediately made a face, shaking her head. “That was stupid, I’m sorry, I can think of a better one-”
Lily reached out, putting a hand on top of Raven’s, her expression more serious. “Always. Of course I will.”
Raven went quiet, looking down at their hands in silence for a long moment. “...it was always gonna be you, wasn’t it?”
Lily froze. She went silent for a long, uncomfortable moment before speaking quietly. “...what?”
Raven’s heart dropped into her stomach. “Nothing. It’s nothing. It’s stupid. I’m stupid, I shouldn’t have fuckin’ said anything, why did I think that was a good idea-”
Lily raised a hand, putting a finger to Raven’s lips, her expression deadly serious. “Raven. Stop. Take a breath.”
Raven’s breath hitched as she turned away rapidly, staring down at the ground in front of them. “...you remember a few days ago, when you dared me to confess to my crush before the end of the week?”
Lily frowned, nodding slowly. “Yeah, I do. Why? What’s wrong? Do you not wanna do it? You don’t have to do the dare, really, it’s okay-”
“It’s you.”
Lily blinked. Slowly, she started to open her mouth to speak, before Raven cut her off.
“It’s always been you. It was always going to be you. The way you light up a room, the way you laugh, and smile, and the way you look at me. God, you have no idea what that does, do you? The effect you have on me. Making me feel like someone cares. Like someone sees me. You’re always so casual, and close, and it makes me feel like I’m at home. A real home. And you don’t even realize. You’re the only person I could POSSIBLY look at like that. Of course it’s you.” Raven had tears in her eyes now, her voice choking and breaking as she spoke, unable to get the words out fast enough or with enough emphasis to truly get the strength of her emotions across.
Lily paused, watching Raven in silence for a moment. Then, wordlessly, she reached a hand up, cupping Raven’s cheek. “Hey. Look at me.”
Raven took in a shaky breath, looking up at Lily as she leaned into the touch after a moment’s hesitation.
“It’s you, too.”
Raven froze, inhaling sharply as her eyes widened slowly- before Lily frowned deeply.
“Wait. I mean- I mean that I love you too, not that- not that you should be in love with yourself- I mean, I don’t think that’s really possible, unless you’re that one Greek guy. What was his name? Sisyphus? Something like that. Wait, no, that’s not the point-”
Raven blinked. Then blinked again, reaching up to rub tears out of her eyes as she started laughing. Slowly, she leaned forward, resting her forehead against Lily’s.
“You’re a dork.”
Lily smiled, pausing in her stream of babble to lean against Raven. “But now I’m your dork.”
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Raven sat up slowly in the front seat, grumbling loudly as she stretched out, the coat she’d set over herself the previous night sliding off of her. Slowly, she glanced around, the memories of the previous night returning as Raven stiffened for a moment - before spotting Lily sleeping under a pile of blankets and coats in the back seat, breathing out a sigh of relief. Slowly, she reached back, digging through the pile to tussle Lily’s hair, eliciting a loud huff as the mound of fabric stirred, disorganized blonde hair emerging from the pile. Dazed blue eyes blinked at her slowly, sleep still dulling Lily’s movements.
“Morning, sleepyhead. C’mere, your hair is a mess.” Raven stuck a hand out for Lily to grab, helping her into the front when she did.
Lily yawned slowly as she sat down, leaning towards Raven to let her work. Raven slowly reached out, straightening out Lily’s hair for a moment, her fingers lingering on the ends of her bangs for a moment longer than necessary. Slowly, she brushed them out of the way, looking into Lily’s eyes for a long second, before leaning in, pressing a soft kiss against her forehead.
Lily froze up for a moment, before leaning into Raven, letting out a happy hum. Once Raven pulled back, Lily grinned up at her, eyes sparkling. “Well, good morning to you too.”
Raven smiled softly, sitting back in her seat properly as she opened the sun roof, letting some fresh air in. “We got a car, and nobody can stop us. So, where to next?”
Lily frowned for a moment in thought before grinning. “Oh! Oh! I’ve always wanted to visit Oregon! Let’s go there!”
Raven blinked, then chuckled. “Let me guess. You wanna go to Boring and take a picture with the sign?”
Lily tilted her head, that wide dorky smile on her face that made Raven struggle to breathe. “Obviously.”