Mark The Corner Of Our Own Universe
By Anya
A/N: Sorry I don't update my stories as often, you now, I went from high speed to dial up so I'm kind of shooting myself lol!! Well hope you like my AxA oneshot!
Disclaimer: Don't own CotT or Barenaked Ladies" Falling For The First Time"
"You're such a dork Arch!" Atlanta laughed, "You can't even keep up?"
The red-head was racing her best friend, yet again. And she was winning. Nothing new here.
Archie watched from a few feet behind. Atlanta was so beautiful and yet, he was a loser. Well technically a dork, but they're all one and the same after a while. He sighed and poured on power. He sped past Atlanta, but she quickly regained the lead.
"Nice power surge Arch!" She complimented and Archie flushed. The red-head was too busy concentrating on the road to notice this however. "Wanna break? There is a park up ahead."
"Sure." Archie agreed, slowing down enough to stop. They sat on the swings, their wind returning slowly to them.
Anyone walking by would think they were a couple and yet Archie knew they weren't. But they weren't just friends either. They were best friends. They lived in the same house and they shared the same interests.
'But what does that make us?' Archie wondered.
I'm so cool, too bad I'm a loser
I'm so smart; too bad I can't get anything figured out
"Archie, what are you thinking about?" Atlanta asked, confused by the depressed look on her best friends face. Archie took a deep breath and prepared to tell her.
'I'm thinking about how beautiful you are, and the way you smile when I enter the room. And the way you don't care what anyone thinks, yet when you ask my opinion it seems to mean the world. The way your hair sometimes droops when it's wet and how you smell of the forest and earth. The way you are Atlanta, and way to good to know my name and we're best friends. And the way that that's all we will ever be…'
Archie closed his mouth.
"Nothin'."
I'm so brave, too bad I'm a baby
Atlanta laughed.
"Well, didn't think you were capable of thought but by the look on your face a second ago I was wondering! So you wanna come down the slide with me?" She questioned eagerly. Archie nodded and she helped him up. They raced to the red stairs and raced across the bridge. Archie walked into a bar and Atlanta laughed at him. He smiled and they sat down side by side in the racing slide.
"Ready?" She asked.
"Set?"
"GO!" Atlanta squealed launching herself off the metal part. Archie swiftly followed, only to land in a heap beside Atlanta on the sand. "I am so never getting the sand out of my hair now!" She complained, still smiling giddily.
"That was fun!" Archie commented, chuckling at the red-head, who was shaking her head as though she was a dog.
"Yeah, and I so beat you! It felt almost like we were falling…" Atlanta said. She glanced at Archie and caught his sea-blue eyes. They stared at each other for a few seconds and unconsciously leaned towards each other.
'I only fall for you Atlanta…just you.' Archie thought.
I'm so fly, that's probably why it
Feels just like I'm falling for the first time
Atlanta pulled away, a slight pink tinting her face. She quickly jumped up and raced to the swings, praying her best friend hadn't seen her blushing. She sat on one of the swings and watched the clouds make their slow journey across the sky.
"Hey Lanta. What are you doing?" Archie asked, coming to stand beside her swing, holding gently onto the chain. She smiled up at his pale form, noticing the way his light blue eyes seemed shadowed in the light.
'Watching you…' She thought, instantly glad that her big mouth hadn't opened too quickly this time. "Just watching the clouds Arch, they're really pretty. They make you feel kinda insignificant you know? Like it doesn't really matter that we are fighting a god and saving the world."
Archie laughed at her thoughts. How true they were.
"Well, no one really knows we are saving the world…" Archie replied softly. Atlanta scowled.
"Yeah, but I mean, even if we weren't saving the world, they make you seem small. Like, this life may be the only one you will get, but the clouds will always be there. They will always return. They may disappear and become the sea, but eventually they go back to being clouds. We don't do that, we just die and even if a few people remember us ultimately they will die too."
"Well aren't you a little bundle of happiness…" Archie grumbled. Atlanta laughed and punched his shoulder.
"Hey, I find myself quite interesting and happy thank you. Now push me."
"I'm no slave!"
"No, but you will do it." Atlanta stated, grinning at him. He sighed, knowing full well that the first time the red-head had smiled and laughed, she wrapped his free will into a little neatly wrapped package and thrown it in a garborator.
"I hate you…" He muttered, positioning himself behind the swing. "And you so owe me for this."
Atlanta laughed as Archie pushed her. She swung her feet like a pendulum and acted like a seven year old on crack. Archie gave up all thoughts of animosity towards her, just seeing her laugh made it all worth it.
"Underduck!" He yelled, warning the girl of what was coming. He snatched her swing and pushed it over his head while he ran past the entire swing set. He cleared the swing and turned around to watch how much fun his red head was having.
Too much apparently. She was laughing like there was no tomorrow and her eyes were shining brightly. Her swing was starting to twist and she moved to and fro. Archie was going to stop her when she surprised him.
"Catch me!" She cried and threw herself off the swing. Archie fell back as Atlanta landed on him. He had caught her safely, but tripped when absorbing the shock. They were lying in the sand once again, only this time Atlanta was on top of him.
"Hey Lanta, having fun?" He asked. She grinned and laid her head on his chest.
"I can hear your heart beat." She whispered. Archie smiled slightly and was tempted to wrap an arm around the girl. He refrained, settling for the fact that the girl he loved was lying on him.
"Glad to know I'm still alive." He commented.
"Mmmm…" Atlanta replied softly, not even moving her head. Archie chuckled slightly, quite enjoying her slow breathing being in rhythm with his. He ran a hand through his hair, before letting it rest softly on the small of Atlanta's back. He noticed his hair was a sandy mess, and looking at Atlanta's, he figured there was no way they would ever be un-sandy again.
Those thoughts were lost in a moment, when he thought about where he had just placed his hand.
I'm so green, it's really amazing
I'm so clean, too bad I can't get all the dirt off of me.
Atlanta moved her head slightly to look at Archie. He smiled at her, trying to hide his nervousness. She smiled back at him.
"Hey wanna go on the slide? The big one, not the racing one?" She asked quietly. He didn't really want to, but he knew she would get her way anyways.
"Alright." She rolled onto the ground and Archie picked himself up and dusted himself off. He turned to help Atlanta up.
"Carry me." She commanded. She was feeling childish today and Archie was going to have to deal with it. He smirked.
'Uh-oh, I know that look. It's always right before he….' Atlanta squealed as Archie flung her over his shoulder, running towards the stairs to the playground.
"There you go, your highness, a royal dose of potato sack carrying." He bowed mockingly to her at the top of the playground. She grinned.
"Thank-you Jester, if I need your services again I'll just ring my servant bell pull." She pulled herself into the slide entrance, waiting for Archie.
"Har-de-har-har. Now go." Archie laughed sarcastically.
"Aren't you coming?" She asked, patting the yellow plastic of the slide. Archie flushed faintly but nodded, slipping his legs around the slender girl and pushing them off.
The slide was fairly long, and fast. It was a tunnel and it twisted a lot, making it hard to balance. Especially if you have a hyperactive Atlanta in front of you.
I'm so sane, it's driving me crazy
It's so strange, I can't believe it
Feels just like I'm falling for the first time
Despite the fact that Archie was now sitting with his legs around the girl he wanted so badly, he knew he would never actually get her. They were best friends, he had no chance.
"Wee!" Atlanta screamed joyfully. Archie smiled.
'It doesn't matter. As long as I'm near her, I could be dressed as a pork dumpling for the rest of my life and I wouldn't care.' He thought; glad when the end of the slide made them fall into the sand again.
"We seem to have a thing for sand." Archie commented dryly.
Her hazel eyes were shining with suppressed mirth. His blue eyes were filled with affection and laughter. They connected instantaneously and Archie tried to remember every single perfect detail of that moment.
'She's beautiful. I want her so bad, but I know I can't have her. It's the cost I have to pay to be near her. She shows me the light in life. She is the light in my life.'
Anyone perfect must be lying, anything easy has its cost
Anyone plain can be lovely, anyone loved can be lost
What if I lost my direction? What if I lost sense of time?
What if I nursed this infection? Maybe the worst is behind
It feels just like I'm falling for the first time
It feels just like I'm falling for the first time
"Archie…." Atlanta stammered. Archie came back from his own little dream world to notice the tanned huntress was shaking him softly.
"What?!" He asked, shaking his head.
"You so just zoned out on me! What were you thinking about?" She asked, something clouding her clear eyes. It looked like unhappiness.
Archie couldn't have that could he?
"Sorry Lanta, I was just thinking about, well actually, I was thinking about you." He coughed uncomfortably, running a hand through his messed purple hair.
"Really?" She brightened and Archie nodded reassuringly. He twiddled with his hand, staring at it like it was about to become inflated into a green balloon.
"Well, then I guess you weren't ignoring me after all." She declared.
'I'm done trying Atlanta. I'm not even going to attempt subtlety anymore, you just don't take it very well. I will just tell you…now!' Archie thought.
He opened his mouth, but nothing came out.
'Well that was a successful mission Arch-meister. Okay…Now!'
Archie let out a small croak. He shook his head furiously.
"You okay Arch?" Atlanta asked concerned. He nodded.
'You moron. You are so cool! You fall in love with this great girl, become closer to her than anyone and then when you finally want to actually do something about your growing feelings you can't even croak out a word!' He mentally berated himself.
I'm so chill, no wonder it's freezing
I'm so still, I just can't keep my fingers out of anything
I'm so thrilled to finally be failing
I'm so done, turn me over cause it
Feels just like I'm falling for the first time
"Archie, you wanna climb up on top of that, the sun is setting." Atlanta proposed, pointing to a large plastic roof that covered the slides. It was purple and bird poo probably coated it, but it was most likely a great view from there. Archie nodded, and helped Atlanta up. They climbed up the playground again, only to find themselves in front of the slides once again.
Jumping onto a metal bar, Archie let his hand drop for Atlanta. She didn't need it, and he knew it, but she took it anyways. He smiled internally. They climbed to the roof and Archie slipped off his signature hoodie and laid it down for Atlanta to sit on.
"My Lady." He bowed and she smiled, tapping the corner of the sweater for him. He sat down and they studied the dissipating clouds again.
"Somehow I don't feel so insignificant with you…" Atlanta murmured.
"Probably cause you are important here, you mean more than the clouds here, in our own corner of the universe." Archie replied softly, studying her features intently. He didn't even realize what he said until she turned to him.
"But I can die Arch, I can just leave the world, and I won't come back." She murmured questioning his previous statement with her eyes he adored so much.
"Yes, but I would miss you. The clouds we take for granted because they come and go every day. They just disappear from one moment to the next and no one even realizes they are gone. You will eventually die Atlanta, so will I, but we will not disappear. Traces of us will always be here." He reassured her gently. She still didn't look convinced.
Anything plain can be lovely, anything loved can be lost
Maybe I lost my direction, what if our love is the cost?
"What part of us will be here? I haven't really made a big impact." She asked. Archie grinned and pulled out his whip.
"You have made a huge impact on me, I mean, you are my best friend and all," He blushed. "But here, we will leave her mark on this tower."
He carved "A+A" but before he got to finish it, Atlanta took his whip.
He looked at her and she smiled shyly. Since when was Atlanta shy? Archie was still puzzled, but when Atlanta returned to the carving Archie smiled.
She finished it with a heart.
Archie smiled back at her. She leaned over and kissed him softly. He returned his whip to his pocket and moved Atlanta closer.
"I love you." Archie whispered. Atlanta sighed.
Anyone perfect must be lying, anything easy has its cost
Anyone plain can be lovely, anyone loved can be lost
"I know, but you took so long to say it." She murmured back.
"Sorry 'bout that, but it isn't like you gave me any warning you felt that way too…"
"Carry me?" She stated. Archie doubled over in laughter.
"Yeah, I suppose that was obvious. Only Theresa pulls that one." Archie replied. She grinned, laying her head on his chest.
"Oh and Arch?" She muttered. He looked at her. "I love you too."
"So the queen falls in love with the court jester?"
"I prefer the princess falls in love with the warrior."
"So now you are a princess?"
"No, I was referring to you, I am a warrior."
Archie laughed and kissed her gently on the nose. They held hands and watched the sun set into the sky, seeing the last of the clouds fade into oblivion, never to be spared a passing thought from any onlookers.
"You won't remember them tomorrow." Atlanta whispered. Archie shook his head.
"No, I may not, but I will remember what they told me."
"And what's that?"
"Sometimes you just need to make your mark."
Atlanta laughed and ran her hand over the scratching in the purple roof.
"I think we made ours." She whispered, loving the feeling of Archie's strong arm around her waist.
What if I lost my direction? What if I lost sense of time?
What if I nursed this infection? Maybe the worst is behind
A/N: Did you like it?I didn't really but I couldn't figure out what it needed! Oh well! Please review, it makes me feel happy and then I do not need to eat a chocolate bar for a temporary state of joy!!! Wow I sound like some sort of depressed chocolate obsessed kid!! LOL!