Chapter Text
It started with a date. Specifically, one between Lightbulb and Paintbrush.
The two were going out to dinner together at a restaurant they, as well as their other partners Fan and Test Tube, had been to many times before. Having the whole polycule together was fun, but everyone agreed that sometimes it was nice to be alone with just one partner.
“So what do you think of those salad stacks from China?” Lightbulb asked, before launching into a ramble about her latest fixation. Paintbrush tried their best to pay attention, for their girlfriend's sake. Lightbulb's words were a blur, however, and their brain wasn't processing as fast as she was talking.
They swear their eyes strayed for only a moment- but that moment was all they needed to spot her. A chubby and frankly quite attractive young lady walked up to the table across the walkway from theirs, awkwardly smiling. She had sepia-dark skin smattered with patches of vitiligo and dark hair with blue and green streaks. She wore a sky blue halter dress with an ombre down to emerald as it approached its cut at her knees. Paintbrush felt themself freeze, and their breath hitched, but not in a bad way.
They must have zoned out, (how long, they weren’t sure) as the next thing they were made aware of was Lightbulb’s hand waving in their face. “Uh, Earth to Painty!” she called, snapping her fingers. “Hellooo? Are you there?”
Just like that they were jolted back to reality. Their face felt warm, though they didn’t remember when they’d started to blush. “Uh- sorry,” they chuckled, taking a sudden interest in their white canvas shoes. “Where were you again?”
“Right, right!” Lightbulb nodded, and quickly continued pattering on. Paintbrush tried to listen closer this time, but they still couldn’t resist stealing a glance at the girl. She was pretty, but they felt a little guilty looking at her. Especially because judging by the small, androgynous redhead sitting and laughing with her, she was already in a relationship. It made them feel so rotten. They tried not to let that show, though.
For anyone else, that might have worked. But once Lightbulb noticed, there was no hiding their feelings from her. She might not have been the most perceptive in other situations, sure, but she could always tell if Paintbrush wasn’t at their best. She recognized that bottled-up look immediately, and she caught herself wondering when they were gonna learn their poker face didn’t work on her. They’d probably explode with anger (maybe literally) if she ever asked them that out loud, though, so she shook the thought from her mind.
Regardless of what she did or didn’t say, she knew it was best to check in. “You cool, sweetie?” she asked as she leaned onto the table, her head slightly tilted to the side.
Paintbrush stayed quiet for a good minute, their amber eyes slightly widened. “Yeah,” they answered. “Just…” Their gaze strayed to the girl at the other table again. Lightbulb looked over with them, this time.
“Oh, I see what's going on here,” Lightbulb chuckled. “You think she's cute, don't ya?”
Paintbrush nodded. “But she already has someone, and I don't want to hurt them.”
Alright, Lightbulb got that. But she didn't see the harm as long as they were good with sharing. She'd have to ask them about that when they left…
It was closing time before they knew it. Lightbulb made a quick excuse to Paintbrush, and then a beeline for the redhead, as soon as they got out the door. With a tap on their shoulder, she whispered, “Can I like, talk to you in private for a sec?”
“Uh, sure,” they said. They then turned to their girlfriend and told her, “I'm gonna go talk to this girl a sec, Book. Wait right here, aight?”
“Alright…” the girl Lightbulb now knew was called Book responded. And with that, Lightbulb dragged the redhead away.
When she was sure Paintbrush and Book were out of earshot, Lightbulb finally got to the point. “Hey, my partner thinks your girlfriend is cute,” she said. “You cool with sharing her?”
“‘Course I'm cool with that,” the redhead replied. “And I already do. Plus I caught her sneaking glances at your table too.”
Lightbulb gave a little “yes!” before continuing. “We should totally help them get together!!” she giggled excitedly. “I don't think I got your name by the way?”
“The name's Price Tag! But call me Taggy,” they said, crossing their arms. (Lightbulb noticed one was prosthetic.) “Yours?”
“Lightbulb!” she told them. “And my number is 914-533-2011, just so we can plan this wingman act long-distance.”
“Cool, so we talk about this more tonight?” Taggy asked, quickly inputting the number into their phone. Lightbulb nodded. Taggy gave a peace sign and ran back to Book. Lightbulb quickly glanced around and then headed back to Paintbrush in turn.