Chapter 26
1304 Words
26
With a sore wrist but a notebook full of names, Astrid and I handed in the binder. We left with a big grin, feeling rather accomplished.
“We did well,” Astrid complimented. “Good teamwork.”
“Agreed.” I gave her an amiable pat on the shoulder. “I can’t believe the librarian thanked us for trying to bring justice. In the beginning, she didn’t even want to give us the logs.”
“Yes, but you made it personal. That was smart.”
“And you! A last message for her parents. Amazing.”
We exchanged a look, realising we hadn’t said anything mean or harsh to each other for an entire hour.
Astrid scrunched her nose. “No, I don’t like us being friendly. It’s weird.”
“Totally.” I threw her the notebooks and swung my bag over my shoulder. “Have fun going over all the names.”
“What? Where are you going?”
“I got other things to do.” I waved at her as I broke away, earning a signature glare. Much better. Some people were meant to be best friends, but Astrid and I weren’t like that. This frenemy situation suited us just fine.
Relieved to be rid of the vial of nightroot and feeling accomplished, I returned to my room. If I remembered correctly, Ryoko should be finishing her last class of the day and she’d be back soon.
The door shrieked open and an excited dust bunny hopped around me as I took off my shoes.
“Hey, Pickles.”
“Hff!” The bunny briefly nibbled on my shoelaces and followed me further into the room. “Hff?”
I stared at her greedy, vacant eyes. “I don’t think it’s food time yet.”
“Hff.” She turned her back to me and fluffed her tail. With a disgruntled huff, she disappeared under Ryoko’s bed and back into her cage.
“Moody,” I muttered. I checked the time and lied down on my bed, waiting for Ryoko. I only saw her in the morning and I wanted to turn our brief goodbye kiss into a longer one.
Just thinking about her soft lips awoke the silver wind in my stomach. It tickled through me, building up a gentle anticipation that could only be satisfied by my beautiful roommate. I wasn’t sure how I’d become so infatuated with her, I just knew I had.
The sound of the lock had both me and Pickles jumping up. The bunny beat me to the door where she hopped around Ryoko’s feet.
“Hello, Pickles.” Ryoko’s wide smile grew even wider as she saw me. “Hello, Ylva. I’m home.”
Butterflies burst free in my stomach. “Hey. Welcome back.”
Pickles jumped around the Dragon, but Ryoko only had eyes for me. The mattress dipped as she leaned her hand down so she could reach me.
I leaned back against the wall, luring her further onto the bed until she had no choice but to climb on. A short chuckle and a twinkle in her eyes told me she knew exactly what I was doing, but she did it anyway.
“Hey.” My lips curled up into a smirk.
“Hi,” she breathed. A strand of dark hair fell from behind her ear and hit me in the face. Her cheeks flushed. “Oops. Sorry.”
The blush only made her cuter. It added colour to her pale features, highlighting the sparkle in her eyes and just how beautiful she was.
I brushed her hair back as an excuse and extended the gesture into a caress. “That’s alright. How are you?”
“Good.” She brought her head forward and connected our lips in the softest kiss. With her breath still warm on my mouth, she spoke again. “You?”
“Never been better,” I grinned.
“Smooth.” With an amused chortle, she pushed herself away and sat down next to me. She let her legs dangle, leaving something for Pickles to growl at. She rested her head on my shoulders and I rested mine on hers.
“I think she wants food.”
“I’m sure she does. She’s always hungry.” Ryoko looked up at me, her dark eyes warm and vibrant.
“True,” I replied, caught in the eternal sun.
“I better feed her.” Yet, she made no attempts to get up.
“You should.”
We inched closer until we met in a longer, more intimate kiss. Her hand trailed up my leg while I tangled one of mine in her hair. She sighed, her breath tickling my lips, only tempting them for more. An invite I couldn’t refuse. I wanted more kisses, more touches. Just more of everything, more of Ryoko.
“Hff!”
Our tender kiss morphed into a giggle. We broke apart, the sun that Ryoko carried now part of me.
“I guess I better feed Pickles before she shoots her spines at me,” she said, leaving me with just a peck. The bed dipped as she got up with much more grace than I had. Supple like a leaf in the wind, she crossed the room to feed the impatient dust bunny a handful of cotton balls.
“That should keep her satisfied for… five minutes,” I joked.
Ryoko’s bemusement highlighted her eyes. “That’s generous. Maybe four.”
“That’s all I need.” I jumped up from the bed, eager not to waste any second I could have with her. Every moment mattered.
My roommate chuckled in my arms. “When did you become so smooth?”
“I’ve been practising,” I teased.
That somehow tickled her and she burst out into laughter.
“What?” I frowned, only fake-insulted. “What’s so funny?”
She hid behind her hand. “I’m sorry. I can just imagine you standing in the mirror, trying out pick-up lines and confusing yourself.”
I fought the smile bubbling in my gut and pulled my lips down in a pout. “You’re so mean.”
“Awww.” She gently pinched my cheek. “Kawaii.”
“Kawawhat?”
“Ka-wai-i. It just means I think you’re cute,” she explained, batting her eyes down.
“Oh.” My cheeks heated up, but not from embarrassment. Something I didn’t know was possible. “You’re cute too.”
My compliment brought sparks to Ryoko’s eyes, something I’d gotten better at noticing. The more attention I paid to her, the more I noticed the small details. The freckle hiding under her lip, the dimple in her left cheek, the way her lips formed a heart when she said my name.
As I stared at her, the smile evaporated and made way for something that resembled a frown.
“Everything okay?” I asked, wondering what brought the change of mood.
“Yes, I…” She broke out of our embrace and sat down on her own bed. “I actually wanted to talk to you about something.”
Oh-oh.
I decided against my own bed and gestured to the end of hers. “Can I sit?”
“Yes, please do.” She patted the sheet, temporarily distracting Pickles. The dust bunny quickly returned to chomping on her cotton balls, not caring that I stepped over her so I could sit down.
I drew a deep breath. “Okay. Talk.”
“Well…” She picked at her shirt and played with her tie. “So we’ve been kind of… I don’t know… Dating? Is that the right word?”
I scratched my leg, testing the definition in my head. Dating. Were we dating?
With the question fresh on my mind, I looked at her and things just clicked. “Yes, dating sounds right.”
A relieved expression brightened her face. “Oh, good. Well… I guess I just want to say something, but you don’t have to answer.”
“Okay?”
“I’m not dating anyone else and I’m not planning on either,” she blurted out, immediately blushing red and staring at her hands.
“Oh.” I studied the Dragon. The thought of dating someone else hadn’t even crossed my mind. It just wasn’t a thing in our culture.
I waited for her to say more, only to be met with silence.
Carefully, I nudged the conversation. “I’m not dating anyone else either?”
Ryoko finally looked back at me, her dark eyes shimmering with an emotion I didn’t understand. Her frown knitted her eyebrows together, but somehow, she was also smiling. “Really?”
“Yes.” Maybe she wanted a complicated answer or long explanation, but there wasn’t any. I was into her and only her.
“So… We’re kind of an item?” The unknown emotion ebbed away and her eyes pooled with hope.
A smile tugged on my lips. “Not kind of. We are an item.”
- Writer
