1.
Her first crush was a boy. A persistent, kind of annoying but kind of nice boy. He noticed her interests and paid attention to her, and when she really thought about how he made her feel, she kind of got all warm and fuzzy inside. Part of her wonders if this is how Iris feels when she looks at her romance, or how Auriana feels when she meets the flavor of the week.
It's a good feeling.
Kyle takes her for a walk around the neighborhood and buys her ice cream and they talk into the sunset, and it's the first time she hasn't worried about Iris too badly to enjoy herself.
She doesn't let herself analyze the Iris thing.
He kisses her forehead once, shyly, after he catches her hand and pulls her closer.
The night sky is stunning.
She really, really likes this boy.
2.
The second is a brat.
White hair, ephedian, a traitor. He snuck up on her when she left the house to pick up some snacks, trying to con her into something about turning on the other princesses.
She rolls her eyes and shoves him into the brick wall.
Lev, the nasty little brat, likes it.
He coos, asking her to pull his hair too, and she gets a hand around his jaw.
"Are you going to back off?" her eyebrow goes up.
He pouts, one hand sliding to her hip. "But princess, I'm dying to know more about you."
"As if."
"I'm being honest! I wanna know how you look when I'm on my knEES-"
She shoved him down as he spoke.
His eyes as he looked up at her were really nice.
"Do I…" He brushes a thumb over her hipbone where her tank top has tugged up to expose it, and there's this vulnerable want to his gaze that almost makes her stay, almost makes her say yes.
But Iris is at home.
"As if."
3.
The third is a man.
He's only a couple years older than her- two, three, maximum. That was part of the thrill, what drew her eyes. He was tall and smart and a musician and-
The kicker, related to Auriana.
They didn't share any moments together, but she couldn't help but lay down in bed slowly, thinking about how it'd feel to have him there next to her, counting the stars and talking about hopes and dreams. She thinks she'd even be willing to live in Volta, for him.
4.
Sometimes lightning struck twice, she guessed.
The fourth was a boy.
Handsome, a little bland by earth standards. He had the same brownish blonde as all the other boys, the same blue eyes as all the other boys, the same muscles. They'd even helped him once before, on a talent show stage where Iris tried to help an old friend and he didn't want to accept her help.
Iris confided in her after that debacle, about the relationship the two had in high school. They dated for a while, had a good time with it, and then he had to leave for college. His parents insisted on going far away, not wanting to waste his future.
Talia met him at one of their concerts.
He did love their band, loved her guitar solos. Wanted to be a guest in a song or something, he said.
Talia kissed him to shut him up.
She guessed they were dating for a little while. A few weeks, texting pictures of things that didn't matter and talking about books, movies, music, how they wanted to press their cheeks together again and how he wanted to feel her against him and how she wanted to see the merits of his silk scarf in person.
He talked about never wanting to do long distance ever again. She realized what he meant and dumped him.
For his good, nothing else, she told herself.
5.
The fifth had skin soft as juniper petals and eyes that absolutely enraptured her. She was a snarky little thing, and she was all woman.
Talia knew that Lyna was stunning when she saw her on Ephedia. Beautiful girl, beautiful eyes, and a wonderful mastery of the levitation spell.
She steals a kiss one night on earth, the television played some old school thriller and the rain pattering against the window panes. Auriana, Carissa, and Iris were in bed by then, with just the scattered take-out containers left keeping her and the other girl company.
Lyna had glanced over at her slowly with half lidded, dusky violet eyes.
The kiss was sweet and salt, a wave crashing into a candy shop, a tidal wave caressing the slope of her tongue. They kissed like their lives depended on it.
It was nice.
It didn't last.
One.
Nathaniel was… an odd one.
Originally, Talia had suspected that he and Iris were an item, or perhaps crushing. Then Iris dropped the bombshells- liking Zach, liking Lev, falling in love with Mephisto, and she quickly realized she had misjudged the smoothie connoisseur.
His eyes were this pretty blue color- and she hated to think that, reminding herself of all the other blue-eyed pretty boys she'd broken the hearts of- and his smile made her want to smile too. His jokes were funny in an honest way, and when Talia was around him she saw a better version of herself developing out of who she was.
He slid a blueberry passionfruit smoothie her direction and she hummed her thanks, picturing how it would go.
Maybe he would hold her hand and kiss her cheeks sometimes, and they'd sit together and watch movies and eat popcorn and strawberries. Iris always mentioned how he liked them.
Maybe he'd be uninterested in a girl like her. He had told Iris once that he hated liars, so wouldn't he hold it against her? She was an alien, and had encouraged his best friend to keep the biggest plot twist of her life secret. What if he resented her for it, held it against her, turned to the dark side and helped the twins against her?
Or he could be stupidly in love with her, and sit with her in the library and fantasize about meeting her sister and eat weird Xerin food when she could bargain for it to be sent through the portal. They could kiss and plan out their life together, and decide when they'd be on Earth and when they'd be on Ephedia, how they'd balance his family with hers and the fact that they were both aliens to each other.
Maybe they'd have a hot and heavy relationship, quick and infinite and devastating.
"Talia?"
She blinked, lifting her gaze from her smoothie to his face. "Huh? Sorry, got a bit distracted."
"Go ahead, try it! I think you'd like it." His smile is stunning, brightening up his whole face and crinkling his eyes at the corner. She can imagine what he'd look like on the dock behind Iris' house, looking at her as if she'd been made in the Melzor's image, or the garden of the castle back home, in the early morning light before anyone else was awake, his shirt open and the flowers blooming around them-
Talia lowered her eyes and took a big sip from the smoothie.
"Oh, that's really good! Kind of, um, fruity." She stammered, blushing a bit. Why was she so flustered? Get it together, girl!
"I think that's the point." He's laughing with her, stepping back. "We just got the passionfruit in, dragonfruit too. Ever want some of that in-"
"Dragonfruit? How did you get fruit from a dragon? They seem like they'd be very difficult." She frowned at him. "Are you pulling my leg?"
Nathaniel stared at her for a moment, then shook his head, laughing more. "I don't know what the smoothie bar would be without you, Talia."
"Why does that sound like an insult?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Did it now?"
"Mm-hmm." She sipped the smoothie, keeping an eye on him.
The staring match persists until they both break down laughing. It was infectious to be around him, such a good personality and such a genuinely nice person.
Talia needed nice. She liked nice.
It felt good, and she would do anything to keep some good in her life.
"So, is there a concert tonight?"
"Hm? Oh, yeah. We're opening for Quicksand Ferret again, and after they're taking us out to dinner at that really expensive yacht restaurant, the one with the-"
"Lights and the photographer and the soft jazz? My Aunt owns that yacht! You know, I could always tag along…"
"And I could save you a seat at the table. Better you than some random groupies." Talia wasn't sure what was happening right now.
"It's a date?"
She blinked.
"I… yes. It's a date."
He threw his towel over his shoulder, nodding and smiling. "Awesome."
Even as he walked away to go wipe some tables down, she watched how his jeans moved, and couldn't help but think that she desperately needed a nicer dress for the night.
"Iris? SOS."