Blush

By Slothy Astronaut

Nepeta stood at the entrance to the gymnasium, dressed in a simple, single strap dress, with thin accent lines of olive. She could hear the music loud and clear, a mixture of some old song mixed with something new, creating a rather odd symphony of sound. She liked it. It sounded like something she could dance to, but that'd have to wait. First, she had to find that special someone to dance with. But who? Nepeta already knew the answer to that question. Karkat. Karkat Vantas, that one crabby troll she found herself inexplicably attracted to. Yes, she would find him here and ask him to dance with her. Or should she let him do all the talking? Would there be talking, or just music? She pushed those thoughts from her mind. She had to find him first.

Maneuvering her way through the crowd, she tried to spot her "prey". She passed by a few of her friends, seeing Eridan and Feferi sitting quietly at a corner table. They were looking at each other with a look that was, well, something she wanted to see from Karkat. A look of flushed emotion. Nepeta looked away, resuming her search. Several songs passed as she walked all around the gymnasium, but Karkat was nowhere to be found. She sighed, letting her shoulders droop a bit. Maybe he wasn't even here…

She turned to leave, her short heels making a tiny click, clack with each step. She moved through the crowd, heading for the exit. Right before she stepped out, she turned her head, looking down a hallway. Her breath caught in her chest, and she stopped.

There he was. There he was, and he wasn't alone. He had Terezi pinned against the wall, and she was kissing him passionately. He had that look she wanted to see, but it wasn't directed at her. He didn't care about her, she realized, and Nepeta's heart broke. Tears welled up and flowed freely down her face. A sob caught in her throat, and she ran out the door into the cool evening air. She kept running for a minute or so, before her chest began to burn and she slowed down. She kept stumbling on, her heels interfering with her balance, and she kicked them off. She eventually stopped when she reached a lone tree, its branches drooping low and creating a sort of tent-like canopy. Many an afternoon she had spent underneath this tree, and now she crawled under it, no longer caring about her dress. She sat, her back against the trunk, and sobbed, her breaths ragged from running. Leaves and dirt covered the lower part of her dress, but she didn't care, clutching her wrists, hugging her legs to her chest. Tears spilled down her face.

She stayed there for a few minutes, continuing to cry, until the sound of footsteps caused her to lift her head. There was little light, despite there being a full moon, but she could vaguely make out the outline of a figure standing by the tree.

"G-go away, Karkat!" she cried, wiping her eyes with a shaky hand.

Whoever it was, they didn't leave, instead crouching to crawl under the canopy. She saw now just how large the person was, their broad shoulders shaking the branches.

"Nepeta?" the person asked, in a deep, gruff voice.

Equius. It was Equius.

She choked back a sob.

"Y-yeah, it's me…"

Equius crawled forward until he was in front of her, then sat cross-legged. He didn't resist when Nepeta moved, shifting herself into his lap and burying her face in his shirt. He felt her breathing raggedly, and felt as her tears soaked into his shirt, but he didn't care. He slowly put his arms around her, holding her gingerly.

"What happened?" he asked quietly.

"I just- I wanted him to dance with me…" she said, clutching Equius' shirt in her tiny fists. "But he, he was with Terezi…"

She broke down again, bawling pitifully. Equius gently rubbed her back. That always helped whenever she was worked up over something.

He stayed sitting there with her for several minutes, gently rubbing her back. Slowly, she had stopped crying, and her breathing began to return to normal. She looked up at him. He had pulled his hair back in a simple ponytail, and he wasn't wearing his glasses. He looked handsome, even in the dim light. She looked at his chest, and saw that he too was dressed up, in a simple dress shirt and coat, a small patch now soaked olive green from her tears.

"Equius?" she asked quietly.

He looked down at his moirail.

"Yes, Nepeta?"

"Will you," she asked slowly, her voice shaky, "Will you dance with me?"

Equius smiled.

"Yes, I'll dance with you." He said.

Nepeta smiled and climbed off of him, and he helped to wipe away her tears with his sleeve. He shifted some of the branches up, allowing her to easily crawl out. He followed her out, and pulled two small objects from his coat.

"Nepeta, would you like your heels back?" he asked, the shoes held out in one hand. She shook her head.

"No, that's okay, it feels better without." She said. He picked up my heels, she thought. How sweet of him.

She placed her hands around his chest, unable to reach his shoulder. He was over a foot taller than her, but he was always so gentle…

He gently placed his hands on her hips, and she began to sway, stepping from side to side. He followed suit, in a slow sidestep, then gently grasped her hand and twirled her around. She laughed, letting him twirl her around, feeling the breeze blowing through her hair.

They continued their dance, and every few minutes or so he would spin her around again, getting a laugh every time. Eventually, she slowed down, and she rested her head on his chest. He put his arms around her shoulders, and he could feel her heart beating. He wondered, even, if this was no longer pale, but going red slowly.

"Equius?" she asked softly.

"Yes?" he responded, still holding her.

"Thank you for dancing with me," she said, reaching up gently to tug on his collar. He leaned down, and when he was at her height she put her arms around his neck.

Nepeta looked into his eyes, the eyes of her moirail, who had always been there for her, and saw only red as she closed her eyes and kissed him softly.

He didn't break the kiss, didn't turn away, instead picking her up and holding her in his arms. After a few seconds, she broke the kiss, and he looked at her, smiling.

"You're welcome," he replied, as she blushed a little. He moved his hands, holding her up with one arm under her legs, the other on her back. She rested her head on his shoulder, her arms loosely holding onto his coat.
"Equius, I had a great time tonight…" she said, yawning as she slowly drifted off.

He smiled, blushing the lightest shade of blue.

"Me too, Nepeta." He said, as he slowly began to walk home, with her in his arms. His path was illuminated by the light of the moon. He stopped for a moment, realizing he had left her heels back at the tree. That was alright, he thought, they'd be back there sooner or later. She shifted against him unconsciously, tightening her grip and nuzzling into his neck.

The moon may be bright and pale, he thought, but she was going flushed for him.

Good thing he felt the same way about her.

The End.