Power Couple
Most schools tend to have an unofficial power couple, and theirs was no different.
Of course, there are rules.
The couple must be in love, or at least dating, to be accepted as powerful. While many consider this to be a strange and arbitrary condition, it's actually a symbol. It's a symbol that love is not weakness, that love is strength, and that love shouldn't be wasted, but appreciated.
Now, of course, each year group has a different power couple, and nobody really knows how they're voted to the top – it just happens. Naturally, power couples can change with breakups, newcomers, challengers, and just about any other loophole you can think to imagine.
Which is why Cinder can't stand them.
After all, what's the point in a position of power if it's only fleeting?
She usually despises them, hating the system and the way the students conform to it without question. She can't stand the way each new student sinks into the ladder of social hierarchy, but she can't help hoping that someone can come along and help her break, or at least change, the way it works.
Of course, it doesn't quite work out that way.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
When the new girl walks into the classroom with an apologetic look and an exasperated expression, Cinder's heart skips a beat. Quite literally.
She gasps, ending up whacking her head on the wall and groaning as the girl's brown eyes swivel to her as a reflex; she'd wanted to make a good impression on the new student.
Embarrassed, she slides into her seat and hopes that the girl is placed next to someone else. But noooo.
The girl flops down next to her, a bemused smile playing on her lips. "Scarlet."
"What?" Cinder asks, confused.
"My name. It's Scarlet," she explains.
"Oh. Cinder." Cinder waves a hand as a hello.
"Like the fire stuff?" Scarlet asks, frowning.
"You're named after a colour, at least fire is alive," Cinder mutters.
"Touché." Scarlet grins before the teacher politely tells the class to shut up.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
"Where on earth is lab ten?" Scarlet asks Cinder as they leave the classroom.
Cinder jumps, having expected the girl to flock towards the popular gang for information. It's not like she was an attractive sight, covered in oil from engineering class and her hair left hanging limply, with a cup of coffee in one hand.
"I'll show you, I'm headed there too," Cinder tells Scarlet, a tiny ember of hope lighting up inside of her.
Scarlet grins, looping an arm through hers with a determination that gives Cinder no choice but to let her, even if she does ask: "What are you doing?"
"You don't do this here? At my old school, linking arms was a sign of friendship."
"You've got so much to learn," Cinder sighs instead of answering, half of her wondering whether or not the new girl would want to stay friends after she figured out the ladder of popularity.
Scarlet seems creditably unfazed.
"Well then, I couldn't ask for a better teacher, could I?" Scarlet asks, acting as if the question is rhetorical rather than one Cinder could easily answer with a nod.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
"So you're the new girl?" someone asks haughtily, and it only takes Cinder a second to realise that it's Leva.
Well, technically, her full name is Levana, but apparently nicknames are superior and 'Ana' is just too mundane for the current power couple's female half.
That doesn't stop Cinder from thinking of her as 'Levana' anyway.
"I'm new and I'm a girl, so I guess so." Scarlet's immediate dislike of the girl is a shock to Cinder, who's watched countess newbies fall prey to Levana's sickly sweet charm or her boyfriend's dashing looks and adorable smile.
Not that Cinder had thought of Kai like that, no, of course not; she wouldn't dare. But even she can't help feeling sorry for the boy, the whole school knowing that he'd pretty much been dragged into the position based on his kind heart and inability to refuse a request.
"Feisty, are we?" Levana giggles, and it sounds so fake that even Kai winces, mouthing an apology to the two of them.
Scarlet snorts, and Cinder has to stifle a small laugh as she watched Levana regain her composure, then lace her pale hand into Kai's. "Well, I can see we're not welcome here. Come on Kai, let's moose."
"Vamoose, Leva. It's 'let's vamoose'," he corrects, clearly holding back a laugh.
"She'd make a rubbish moose," Scarlet comments as soon as they've turned away, "She's more like a peahen... Without the natural beauty."
"Everyone knows she's only tolerated because they don't want to offend Kai." Cinder rolls her eyes.
"Who's Kai? The pretty one behind her?"
"Exactly," Cinder confirms.
Scarlet grins. "Well, why hasn't anyone taken over?"
Cinder snorts. "They'd have to kidnap Kai or something."
Even as she watches Scarlet smirk, an idea forms in her head. An idea that possibly involves the guy who practically rules detention and the new girl who, by the looks of it, is more than willing to help.
"You're plotting, aren't you?" Scarlet asks with a smile.
"You bet." Cinder smirks. "Want to cause chaos?"
"Did I mention that I like you?" Scarlet asks, her question substituting a simple nod.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
Turns out that between the two of them, recruiting Thorne isn't hard.
Of course, the two of them had spent an entire week trying to get in trouble before the teachers had finally accepted that a new student could in fact be a troublemaker. It had taken them three vandalised lockers, five different attempts at graffiti, and two late assignments before they'd been given a fortnight's detention.
Thorne claps as they walk in the room, laughing.
"What, you don't think girls can be mischievous?" Cinder asks, her hands on her hips.
"On the contrary. I was wondering when you'd succumb to the dark side to spend more time with me," Throne declares.
"You wish," Cinder retorts.
"If I didn't know better, I'd say you were flirting," Scarlet chuckles.
Cinder and Thorne lazily high-five before the three of them sit around a table and the girls start explaining their rather unplanned plan. Thorne listens intently, perking up considerably when they mention Kai, and nods along until they finish.
"This won't be hard," Thorne informs them, "Unless you're opposed to the idea of me slipping in my own ulterior motive."
"Like that comes as a shock." Cinder rolls her eyes.
"She's coming back, go go go." Scarlet pushes Cinder along so they can move up a seat and Thorne can slide into a different chair just as the teacher comes back in.
"You've got nice reflexes," Cinder observes.
"Thanks, I try," Scarlet whispers back.
The two of them don't notice Thorne's amused chuckle and knowing smile as they exchange a grin.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
"Ready?" Cinder asks under her breath, her heart beating unusually loud.
"Of course," Scarlet scoffs, but good-naturedly.
And so Cinder grins brightly as the smell of strawberries – Scarlet's perfume – fills her brain, and Scarlet links their arms together, their mismatched clothing and unruly hair a stark contrast to their euphoric posture and shining eyes.
She can already hear the whispers around her as the two of them walk to registration with a literal spring of victory in their step.
"It's working," Scarlet whispers, and the way she leans close to Cinder's ear must look like a kiss because one girl gasps, and immediately turns on her heel, probably to go find Levana.
It's working a little too well, Cinder thinks to herself, cursing the way Scarlet's cosy smile sends sparks of warmth dancing across her heart. Despite that, she nods her agreement, trying to stay subtle.
Only Thorne sees through her façade and calls her out on it by making a love heart in their direction while Scarlet has turned to grab something from her bag. Cinder glares at him but can't help the small smile that lifts the corner of her mouth up, and Thorne almost chokes on his own laughter.
"Would you pay attention, Thorne?" their teacher barks, sighing.
Cinder smirks as he mutters something under his breath, already doodling under the desk.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
Scarlet groans as she flops onto the bench, then lies down so her head is using Cinder's legs as a pillow. "I hate poetry."
"It's not that bad." Cinder tries to keep her voice steady, glancing down at Scarlet with an expression the other girl probably thinks is absolutely bizarre.
Scarlet grunts and shuts her eyes, Cinder leaning back and doing the same until something pokes her stomach. She jumps, her eyes flying open, and scowls as she sees Scarlet's finger hovering in front of her.
"What?" Scarlet winks.
Cinder doesn't even care, to be frank, but she pokes Scarlet back for the sake of revenge. Pretty soon, they're twisting around each other and stifling laughs until they roll off the bench and land on the cobbles, exhausted and exhilarated at the same time.
"You're so cute," Scarlet coos, poking Cinder's cheek.
"Ow," Cinder mumbles, but she's smiling and blushing and leaning her head on Scarlet's shoulder anyway. Scarlet tenses up for a second before laughing, relaxing into the gesture, her cheeks slightly rosy and her smile so much warmer.
"Thorne says that Levana is annoyed," Cinder says randomly.
"What, because we're so much better than her?" Scarlet smirks, folding her arms.
"I guess?" Cinder shrugs. "Either way, it means our plan is working."
"As expected. A title that relies on a boy isn't exactly reliable."
"I'd hope you're not referring to my kind." Thorne raises an eyebrow, flopping down opposite them.
"You know what we mean." Scarlet waves a dismissive hand.
"Agree to disagree, ladies."
The two of them snort, knowing exactly why he's saying that but neither of them wanting to voice it until they're absolutely sure. Which is something that probably won't take long, considering that Thorne isn't one for subtlety.
Then again, neither are they.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
"Cinder!" Scarlet yells, making Cinder jump and almost drop the drill she was plugging in.
"What now?" Cinder asks with one eyebrow raised.
"Levana's off school."
"She's what?" Cinder asks, not really surprised because it's sports day and that girl is absolutely obsessed with keeping her make-up flawless.
"She's not in school. What are you, deaf?"
"Says the girl who thought the teacher asked for a fishing net," Cinder quips, grinning.
Scarlet waits as Cinder plugs the drill back into the socket before grabbing her hand and pulling her to the window. "Come on, you have to see this."
"See what?" Cinder asks, then gasps as she sees Winter and Jacin putting up the school leavers' dance posters.
That in itself wouldn't be anything new, but the addition of a new potential power couple is a moderate surprise. Cinder grins as she sees her and Scarlet's name, something inside of her wishing it was for real and not a ploy designed to destroy the educational ranking.
"Levana could have stopped this if she was in school…" Cinder realises, elbowing Scarlet as the other girl rolls her eyes smugly.
"Now, we need to do that stupid English project," Scarlet announces.
"Can't we do that tomorrow? I want to buy a new glue gun," Cinder complains.
"Fine, I'll buy my ingredients too," Scarlet concedes, something that she does an awful lot when it comes to Cinder, but never for anyone else. "Meet you at the gates after school?"
Cinder hums her acknowledgement, going back to her project as Scarlet softly smiles at her, a longing expression on her face – but an expression that Cinder doesn't see.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
"What on earth did yo-" Cinder stops herself from finishing her question as she walks in to see Scarlet frowning at herself, half her wardrobe strewn across the floor.
"I look horrible in all of these," Scarlet moans, and Cinder can immediately tell Levana must have done something to bring her spirits down.
Instead of pointlessly trying to convince her otherwise – a method that never quite works due to them both harbouring the talent to be incredibly stubborn – Cinder pulls her present out from behind her back, clearing her throat to grab the other girl's attention.
Scarlet whirls around and frowns at the minimally wrapped, squishy package in Cinder's hands. "Is that for me?"
"No, it's for your pet dog," Cinder says, sarcasm dripping from her tone.
"I don't have a dog," Scarlet laughs.
"Exactly." She pushes the present into Scarlet's hands, smiling.
Scarlet makes a face but carefully unwraps it, gasping as she sees the red hoodie inside. Not just any old red hoodie, but a scarlet one that looks like it could be warmer than the hug of a polar bear.
"You didn't!" She exclaims, her eyes shining like melted chocolate when she looks back at Cinder.
"I don't know if it's the right size…" Cinder grins sheepishly, even though she's almost sure it is.
"Yes you do, you liar." And, before Cinder can blink, Scarlet's wrapping her arms around her neck and breathing a thank you as they hug.
Cinder smiles into the embrace, absolutely loving the way Scarlet hugs as if her life depends on it. She loves the way the two of them fit like puzzle pieces, Scarlet's cuddly body frame the perfect match to her own rather boyish one.
"You're the best," Scarlet murmurs as they pull away, and the tint on her cheeks matches her name exactly.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
"I thought you weren't in this class?" Cinder questions Scarlet as the girl settles beside her.
"I wasn't," Scarlet grins mysteriously, then laces their fingers together and winks. "Kai pulled some strings a thank you."
"I'll be sure to thank him," Cinder whispers, wishing that her hands didn't sweat so much, "And Thorne, because it was probably him."
"What makes you say that?"
"Uh…" Cinder coughs, "He thinks our plan isn't exactly… pretend."
Scarlet goes silent, considering this for so long that Cinder's heart almost slows; she doesn't want to lose the friendship they have.
"And?" Scarlet inquires eventually.
"What?"
"Would that be a bad thing?" Scarlet asks quietly, so quietly that she sounds unlike herself.
Cinder blinks. "I don't… I mean…"
Scarlet shakes her head. "Don't worry about it."
They don't get to continue their conversation because the teacher splits them up to do the assessment neither of them had prepared for, having spent their revision time just messing around together.
Cinder can't help glancing at Scarlet each time she can, wondering if the new girl was serious or if she was messing around because, the more she thinks about it, she less she minds the idea of her suggestion.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
"Scarlet!" Cinder calls, "Slow down!"
She doesn't turn around but she slows enough for Cinder to catch up and sigh with relief. "I was thinking…"
Scarlet looks to her with a reluctant hope in her eyes and Cinder smiles as if her face was meant to express joy when looking at the other girl. "I wouldn't mind."
"You wouldn't mind?" Scarlet echoes.
"You know, if it wasn't pretend," Cinder explains shyly.
Scarlet beams, and leans to brush her lips against Cinder's defined cheekbones. "Me too."
Someone squeals behind them, and they both dissolve into laughter, linking their arms and walking a little faster.
Even though they don't make it obvious to one another, both of them are internally screaming with delight and trying as hard as they can to stop their facial blood rush, as well as thinking of a way to thank the boys for pushing them to admit it.
Much to the rage of Levana and much to the fake rage of Kai, the two of them walk around school with their hands practically glued together and their gazes locked on one another, both of them carefree not because they have nothing to worry over, but because they have better things to think about – each other.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
Cinder stifles her shriek as Scarlet hugs her from behind.
"Stop doing that!"
"You love it really!" Scarlet teases.
"Oh, would you two stop flirting so early in the morning," Thorne whines, rolling his eyes.
Without a second thought, they both throw a piece of scrunched up paper at his head. He yelps and glares at them, folding his arms crossly. That is, until Levana marches up to the three of them with an angry scowl on her face.
"How dare you!"
"With surprising ease," Cinder replies, smiling when Scarlet snorts.
Levana groans, "Why would you do this?"
"Oh, because you're a fake and we felt like a little bit of hierarchical chaos." Thorne couldn't possibly sound any more nonchalant.
"I will take my title back!"
"You and what army?" Scarlet asks, casually clicking her fingers.
Levana's smile darkens into a scowl as she sees something over their shoulder, and she pulls Kai behind her, but not before he blows a kiss at Thorne, who promptly turns as red as a tomato and loses his relaxed composure.
Ignoring him, Scarlet throws an arm around Cinder. "So, you never confirmed my statement."
"Yes, yes, I do love it really," Cinder answers without missing a beat, chuckling when Scarlet's face once again perfectly reflects her name.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
"This wasn't my plan…" Cinder trails off as the two of them are announced as the new power couple.
She'd planned to eradicate the whole system, not suddenly land herself at the top of it.
"Is it really that bad?" Scarlet asks her, interlocking their fingers together and sending her one of those smiles, the ones that make Cinder melt.
As Thorne whistles and Levana fumes, Cinder considers, and decides that a change of plans isn't the end of the world. After all, if she's at the top of the ladder with someone as wonderful as Scarlet, she can fix the little things that used to bug her.
"I suppose not," Cinder admits.
Scarlet smiles. "You know, I used to worry that moving schools was a bad idea, that leaving the guy I thought I'd end up marrying was a huge problem, and that having to socialise would be a bore," she confesses, pausing, "but I think you've proved me wrong."
Cinder's cheeks heat up as the words sink in but Scarlet doesn't let her recover, softly pressing their lips together as Thorne whistles in the background. Cinder gasps, but soon melts into the gesture, the scent of fruit and sand mixing between them to create a scent they'd both love as a candle.
"I love you," Scarlet whispers quietly.
"I love you," Cinder fires back, her eyes shining like the moon.
And now she gets why people make such a big deal of kissing.
-CINDERxSCARLET-
In the end, the school doesn't dissolve its unofficial social hierarchy, but there is a new power couple that people watch out for.
It's not that they're selfish or dangerous, but messing with one of them is a one way ticket to karma via the other one. It's now a new unspoken rule to respect the two girls, and never speak badly about either of them.
Neither of them are particularly bothered about it, still occasionally getting detention and turning up late because their completely jovial argument had gone on longer than planned, but they are known to deflect pointless drama with methods no-one can recognise.
Thorne uses this to his advantage, claiming that their confessions of love are to his credit, and the girls let him because they know it's partially true, even if he does exaggerate and change the story each time he tells it.
Cinder and Scarlet are a fierce power couple, and no-one can say otherwise.
Not even them.
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