Archive of Our Own

The thrum of the bass faded behind them as Coco’s hand tightly gripped Agott’s, pulling her down the dimly lit pavement. Their footsteps echoed loudly against the empty storefronts, occasionally accompanied by burst after burst of laughter and giggles. They didn't stop until they hit the footbridge three blocks away, breathless and entirely out of reach of the crowded house party.

“Did anyone see us?” Coco gasped, leaning against the metal railing, her cheeks flushed pink as her laughter finally settled into a soft smile.

“Even if they did, nobody was in any state to stop us,” Agott said, letting out a sharp breath as she leaned her elbows against the cold barrier. She adjusted the jacket slung over her arm, though her hand never loosened its grip on Coco's fingers. “I swear, if I had to hear another word about that guy's DJ set, I was going to throw myself off the balcony.”

Coco chuckled, turning her body so her shoulder pressed gently against Agott's arm. “Oh, come on. You didn't enjoy being squeezed between a coat rack and a giant monstera plant?”

“It was the only quiet spot in the entire house,” Agott muttered defensively, a faint flush of red touching her cheeks under the streetlights. “Until people started using it as a trash can...”

“Fair, fair,” Coco conceded warmly, squeezing Agott's hand. She looked down at the low hum of late-night traffic passing beneath the bridge, the night air crisp against her skin. “I thought I was supposed to be the social one, but honestly? It was way too much. Someone spilled sticky punch near my sneakers within ten minutes of us getting there.”

Agott glanced sideways through her bangs, her sharp gaze softening as she looked at her girlfriend. “You could have said something earlier. We would have left sooner.”

“I know,” Coco murmured, leaning her head against Agott's shoulder. “But you were trying so hard to stick it out for me.”

“I was not,” Agott lied immediately, though her thumb began tracing slow, soothing circles over the knuckles of Coco's hand. “I just... knew how much you were looking forward to going.”

“And I realized the only person I actually wanted to hang out with was the girl hiding behind the houseplant looking like she wanted to burn the place down,” Coco teased, tilting her head up to catch Agott's eye. “Stealing away was definitely the right call.”

Agott let out a quiet sigh, leaning down slightly so her forehead brushed against Coco's temple. “Yeah. It was.”

They walked together down the length of the footbridge, their fingers remaining closely intertwined as the noise of the neighborhood faded completely into the background. Agott slowed her pace to match Coco’s, steering them toward a small, secluded courtyard just off the main strip—a quiet patch of brick path tucked beneath a wooden pergola draped in sleeping vines.

“This is much better,” Coco sighed, stepping onto the brickwork and breathing in the cool, night-chilled air. She let go of Agott’s hand only to lean back against one of the thick wooden posts, crossing her arms comfortably as she looked at her girlfriend. “No spilled drinks, or drunk under age teenagers. God, we might've dodged a nuke,”

“And a lecture from the principals, a punishment, and two weeks of suspension” Agott added.

Agott stopped a few feet away, leaning her side against the adjacent post and watching Coco with an nhurried gaze. “You looked exhausted back there, you know. You don't have to pretend to enjoy those things just because everyone else goes.”

“I know,” Coco said softly, her expression softening into an affectionate smile. “It's just easy to get caught up in the idea of it. Everyone talks about house parties like they're nice, or something... But… being out here with you feels a thousand times better than whatever bullshit they were talking about.”

“Language, Colynn,” Agott lightly scolded. Though she could feel her cheeks heating up when Coco giggled. It was her favorite sound. “Custas is rubbing off you again,”

‘Could've been the weather…’ She tried to reason with herself.

“And that's because parties are a huge waste of energy,” Agott replied plainly, though the subtle shift by stepping a little closer, where her hand reached out to gently adjust the collar of Coco's jacket, betraying how much she cared. “You waste two hours trying to hear someone speak, only to realize they aren't saying anything interesting anyway.”

Coco laughed, a sound that seemed to linger in the still air between them. She reached up, catching Agott's wrist and lightly running her thumb over the warm skin there. “You really have no patience for people, do you?”

“I have patience for you,” Agott corrected quietly, looking straight into Coco's eyes. “That's about it.”

Coco's smile broadened, a genuine, radiant warmth lighting up her face despite the late hour. “I'll take it. In fact, I'm going to hold you to that.”

They had originally planned to walk down to the late-night diner at the edge of the district for fries, but a low rumble of thunder rolled across the sky, swiftly followed by a sudden, heavy downpour.

Coco ducked under the wooden pergola, crossing her arms against the sudden chill as water began to cascade off the edge of the roof in a thick curtain. “Awh, damn it,” she groaned, her shoulders slumping as she watched the rain instantly drench the courtyard path. “We were just getting to the good part of the night. Now we're stuck here.”

While Coco stood sighing at the weather, Agott silently stepped out from under the wooden shelter, walking straight into the open rain.

“Wait–Agott, what are you doing?!” Coco called out, her eyes widening in disbelief as her girlfriend's hair and jacket instantly soaked through. “You're going to freeze– or get sick! Get back under here!”

Agott turned around slowly in the middle of the deluge. She lifted her face toward the sky, wiping a stream of rainwater from her eyes, and then looked back at Coco.

A genuine, soft smile broke across Agott’s face—not her usual guarded smirk, but a completely open, fond expression reserved entirely for Coco. She held out one hand into the downpour, pointing her palm upward in a silent invitation.

“It's just water,” Agott said, her voice easily cutting through the sound of the falling rain. “And we don't have anywhere else to be. Come here.”

Coco froze, the protest dying instantly in her throat as she stared at the sight of Agott standing there, looking so bright and unbothered beneath the storm.

Agott took a slow step back, her hand remaining extended. “I'm offering you a dance, Coco. Are you going to leave me standing out here by myself?”

Coco didn't hesitate for another second. A wide, helpless grin spread across her face as she broke into a run, stepping right out from under the shelter of the wooden pergola and charging directly into the downpour.

“You are completely crazy, you know that?” Coco laughed, her voice ringing out through the quiet courtyard as the rain soaked through her clothes in seconds.

“Maybe,” Agott said softly, but her eyes brightened as Coco closed the distance between them.

Before Agott could say anything else, Coco threw her arms around her neck, sliding her wet shoes against the slick brick floor and closing the gap between them entirely. Agott caught her instinctively by the waist, bracing her footing on the wet ground as they spun slightly from the momentum, both of them bursting into breathless laughter.

“I'm accepting the offer,” Coco murmured, pulling back just far enough to look Agott in the eyes, rainwater dripping from the tips of her dark hair down onto her cheeks. “Show me what you've got.”

Agott's hand moved down to rest securely against the small of Coco's back, while her other hand reached out to clasp Coco's palm, intertwining their wet fingers tightly. “Don't expect anything fancy,” Agott warned, though her smile stayed fixed in place as she began to sway them slowly from side to side in the heavy rain.

“Anything you do is perfect,” Coco replied softly, stepping closer until there was no space left between them, letting the rhythm of the falling water guide their quiet, spontaneous slow dance.

The heavy downpour softened into a steady, rhythmic cadence around them, turning the courtyard into a blurred world of falling water and warm yellow streetlight. From the open window of an apartment complex just down the block, the smooth, driving bassline of the song echoing faintly over the rain, filling the quiet space around them.

Agott pulled Coco in a little closer, guiding her through a gentle, unhurried turn on the slick brick path. Water was dripping from the ends of Agott's damp bangs, but her eyes were entirely fixed on Coco, completely unbothered by the cold.

“Is that... music?” Coco asked, letting out a quiet laugh as she rested her hands lightly on Agott’s shoulders, catching the distant melody floating through the storm.

“Sounds like it,” Agott murmured, stepping carefully as she led them into another slow sway. “Consider it our personal background track.”

Coco leaned her head forward, resting her forehead gently against Agott's damp shoulder, taking in the steady warmth radiating from her girlfriend despite the soaking rain. Agott tightened her grip around Coco's waist, bringing her hand up to gently tuck a strand of wet hair behind Coco's ear. The gesture was so soft, so completely uncharacteristic of Agott's usual sharp exterior, that Coco couldn't help but smile into the fabric of Agott's jacket.

“Your hands are still warm,” Coco whispered, tilting her face up to catch Agott looking down at her with that kind of fondness that always made her heart flutter against her ribs.

“That's because I'm holding onto you,” Agott replied simply.

“Remember when we first met?” Coco whispered, a fond smile breaking across her lips as she matched Agott's gentle steps. “I remember thinking you were so intimidating. You would barely even look across the room at me.”

“I was busy,” Agott murmured softly, though her fingers gently squeezed Coco's waist, pulling her a fraction closer. “And you were too loud.”

“Loud enough to catch your attention, though,” Coco teased, resting her cheek against Agott's chest, listening to the steady beat of her heart underneath her soaked jacket.

The song carried on, its upbeat rhythm contrasting with the quiet, tender pace of their slow dance. Agott lifted their joined hands, guiding Coco into a slow, careful spin before drawing her back into her arms. Rainwater trickled down Coco's neck, but she barely felt the cold, wrapped completely in Agott's warmth.

Agott rested her forehead atop Coco's head, her breath evening out as they continued to sway. “I'm glad you brought me out here,” Agott admitted quietly into the rain. “I'm glad it's just us.”

Coco lifted her head, her heart melting at the quiet confession. “Me too, Agott. Always.”

As the energetic final chords of the track faded into the rain, their movements slowed to a gentle, motionless sway.

Eventually, the downpour had tapered off into mist, leaving the air cool around them. Agott loosened her hold around Coco's waist, letting her arms fall slightly, though her hands remained resting against Coco’s hips. Water trickled down from their hair, catching the faint yellow glow of the streetlight above, but neither of them made a move to step back into the dry shelter of the pergola.

Coco tilted her head up, her breath catching as she met Agott’s eyes. The usual facade that Agott kept up around everyone else was completely gone, replaced by an unreserved warmth meant for Coco alone.

Without saying a word, Agott leaned in, closing the last remaining distance between them. She brought one hand up to brush gently against Coco’s jawline, resting her forehead softly against Coco's. They stayed like that for a long heartbeat, their warm breaths mingling in the cool night air, the steady sound of rainwater dripping off the surrounding roofs.

“Agott…” Coco whispered, her voice barely louder than the mist around them.

Agott didn't answer with words. She leaned forward the final fraction of an inch, pressing her lips gently against Coco's.

The kiss was slow and sweet, completely washing away the cold of the rain and the noise of the night they'd left behind.

Coco’s eyes fluttered shut as she raised her hands, framing Agott’s neck and drawing her closer, melting into the warmth.

When they finally pulled back just a few inches, their foreheads rested together once more, both of them smiling softly into the quiet stillness of the empty courtyard.

They stayed wrapped in each other's arms long after the kiss, the cool mist settling over their clothes while the city hummed quietly in the distance.

Coco let out a long, contented sigh, her hands resting against the back of Agott’s wet jacket as she nuzzled her face into the crook of Agott's neck. “We are going to be so sick tomorrow,” she murmured, a tired, happy laugh trailing off her lips.

“Worth it,” Agott said softly. She unzipped her jacket, pulling the dry-ish lining around Coco to shield her from the wind. “Though if you catch a cold, I'm never letting you choose the exit route again.”

“Hey, you were the one who walked out into the rain first!” Coco teased, tilting her head back to look at Agott with a triumphant grin. “I was perfectly content standing under the roof like a sensible person.”

Agott pressed a soft, warm kiss to Coco’s forehead, effectively cutting off the teasing. “And miss out on this?”

Coco blinked, her grin softening into a gentle, helpless smile. She tightened her arms around Agott’s waist, resting her forehead against Agott’s shoulder once more as the last few drops of rain trickled from the leaves above. “No way,” Coco whispered softly. “I wouldn't trade this for anything.”