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The party was far too loud for Abolish's liking. It was quieter than most parties he'd been to, sure, but it was still chaotic and uncomfortable. He'd been hiding in a corner for the past hour trying to avoid everyone.
He nearly jumped out of his skin when someone tapped him on the shoulder. He quickly looked up from his phone, pulling it to his chest, only for the person standing in front of him to quickly step back.
"Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Apo murmured, voice barely audible over the sounds of everyone talking around them. He felt himself relax just slightly.
"You're fine," he responded, turning his phone off. "Do you need something?"
"No, I…" She trailed off, her hands in her pockets as her gaze swept the room. They were wearing a simple dark red sweater and loose navy jeans. Her auburn hair was swept back in a ponytail that looked like it hadn't been combed in a while; somehow, it still looked pretty on void.
Clearing voids throat, void quickly said, "You look like you're enjoying this as much as I am." Abolish could tell from her expression that she wasn't enjoying this in the slightest.
"Yeah," it sighed, slipping its phone into its pocket. "I am… not a fan of parties."
"Neither am I."
The two stared at each other for a few moments. With the boots Abolish was wearing - it'd taken to always wearing platforms to at least give it a little more height - it was almost eye level with the woman in front of it. Almost.
"Do you want to go take a walk?" Abolish asked suddenly, surprising himself a bit. That seemed to surprise Apo as well, their reddish brown eyes going slightly wide.
"Oh, uh, sure," she said, watching him closely as he pushed himself away from the wall he'd been leaning against. "Anything to get out of here."
"Great." Abolish started to walk, heading towards the door. He did his best to avoid bumping into anyone or letting anyone notice him, since the last thing he wanted was anyone asking questions about where he was going, while Apo followed close behind him. He opened the door for her before the two of them hurried outside.
It was much colder than when he'd first arrived, the sky a dark, cloudy gray that warned of storms tonight. The wind hit his face hard and knocked some of his hair into his eyes almost the second he stepped through the door. With a glance over at Apo, he could tell they weren't faring any better, brushing hair out of their eyes and squinting.
The door clicked shut and Abolish said, "Well, at least it's quiet out here."
"It is." It really was quiet, save for the sound of the wind. He supposed it was too cold for many bugs or small animals to be out. "Freezing cold, too."
"Yeah," Abolish said with a soft exhale that was almost a laugh. "I'm sure it'll start snowing soon enough."
It walked down the sidewalk, Apo quickly matching its pace to stay beside it. The wind kept pushing hair into both of their faces, but it honestly couldn't be bothered to care all that much. They walked in silence for maybe a minute before Apo looped her arm through its and spoke up.
"Thank you, by the way," she said, making it look up at her in confusion. "I don't think I ever told you that."
It paused for a few moments, trying to figure out what void could be thanking it for, before slowly saying, "For what exactly…?"
"For helping to talk me out of dying." Apo didn't look him in the eye as rose said that, staring out ahead of the two of them. There was something almost nervous about her expression.
"You don't need to thank me for that." Abolish slid his hand down to hold theirs. "Besides, Cherri did most of the work there."
"You did a lot more than you think." She let out a sigh. "You just…" Slowly, she trailed off, looking down at him. She stopped underneath a street light, and Abolish quickly came to a halt as well.
"I could tell you were upset when I suggested it, and it really made me think, because I never see you get upset," Apo began, squeezing his hand lightly as rose spoke. "I knew you weren't upset at me, but I couldn't figure out why you were so upset. And then I remembered how your sire had died-" The mention of Legundo made Abolish feel like he was being punched right in the stomach, even after all this time. "-which had only been a decade or two earlier at that point."
She took a deep breath, deep red-brown gaze a bit cloudy. The warm light shone down on her and made her hair look almost like it was glowing red. They'd never drank enough blood for their hair to get even a little paler, since they still had their fear of blood, and she didn't want any of her vampiric instincts to take over ever again. It was an understandable decision, but Abolish still worried for voids health at times.
"Cherri had been asking me to turn her too," she continued after a few moments. "She didn't want me to have to watch me kill myself, and I think she knew I couldn't bear to see her die. And you were perfectly content being immortal, living your life normally, almost like it didn't even matter that you weren't ever going to die. It was like-" There was a frown on their face as they paused for a moment. "It's like you just wake up every day not thinking about how you're going to be doing this forever, just… Just living each day as it comes. And I wanted that, even if I didn't realize that at the time."
Apo stared down at him, finally meeting his eyes. She had a soft but unreadable look on her face, brows creased just slightly, the wind picking up a bit again and blowing a bit of hair into her face.
"You and Cherri both made me want to keep living," rose said softly, reaching up to brush hair out of roses face again. "Even after everything. So thank you for that."
Abolish wasn't sure what to say. Thankfully, he didn't have to say anything, because only a few seconds later Apo was leaning down and kissing him. His heartbeat quickened and he nearly gasped with surprise, but instead he closed his eyes and stepped just slightly closer to her.
It only lasted maybe five seconds before Apo was pulling back, and as much as Abolish wanted to lean in and kiss her again, he opened his eyes and stepped back again. Blinking a few times, he quietly said, "It's- It's no problem. Thank you for being here."
Apo gave a slight shake of her head, a warm smile on their face. "I've been meaning to ask, since Cherri's been telling me I should… Assuming you don't have any other plans, would you want to come over for Christmas? You don't have to bring anything, I just want you to be there."
"I'd love to." Abolish felt something on his hand, and with a glance around he realized it was starting to snow. "And of course I'm going to bring something, I already have gifts for you. We should probably head back before we freeze, though."
"Gifts, plural?" Apo questioned as he started to walk back to the house, gently tugging her along behind him.
"Yeah. You'll see."