Eight's finger hovers over the the 'SEND' button as she briefly contemplates committing to things. On one hand, yeah, it's probably a good thing to do, on the other hand, FEELINGS ARE REALLY DUMB AND SCARY AND STUPID AND SHE- YOU KNOW, MAYBE IT WOULD BE BETTER IF SHE SWUNG THREE'S CAR DOOR OPEN AND LET HERSELF DIE.
But then she'd respawn, and then she'd be fined for killing herself, and Three would probably be there with Pearl and Marina and Four, and Three, in Three fashion, would ask her, "Hey, Eight, what the fuck?" which would definitely be the worst possible way to confess her feelings, so…
You, 5:22 PM: Hi, Four.. Umm, are you free RN?
Four, 5:24 PM: Yeah, I just finished up, what happened?
Four, 5:24 PM: You're with Dumbass Mcgee right?
Eight quietly snorts.
You, 5:24 PM: In the car, yes.
You, 5:24 PM: I… Think I screwed up
You, 5:24 PM: So we were getting ice cream and we left the building and I got a cup and finished mine but she got a cone so hers was running down her chin
You, 5:25 PM: She was wearing a white shirt from work and I didn't want it to get on her shirt so I panicked and then I licked her
You, 5:25 PM: So I think she hates me now because she hasn't talked at all during the car ride
Four, 5:25 PM: OK so
Four, 5:25 PM: 1: Tatzelwurm below I didn't think things were going to go like THAT when I left you alone
Four, 5:26 PM: 2: She doesn't hate you, trust me
You, 5:26 PM: How can you be sure?
Four, 5:26 PM: Well, where are you going?
You, 5:26 PM: Her place
Four, 5:26 PM: If she's inviting you to her place she obviously doesn't hate you
Four, 5:26 PM: I think you're one of like 3 people she's invited there
Four, 5:26 PM: Those people being me (her friend of 12 years), Capn (who is like family to her), and now you (someone she's known for like 2 months)
Four, 5:27 PM: So you can already see how much she trusts you
You, 5:27 PM: Oh.. Really?
Four, 5:27 PM: Yeah!
Four, 5:27 PM: Even if you only end up staying for like 10 mins before she kicks you out
Four, 5:27 PM: It's a pretty big display of trust
Four, 5:27 PM: Has she told you her name yet tho?
You, 5:27 PM: No, is she supposed to?
Four, 5:27 PM: Eh. Just wondering
You, 5:27 PM: Why? What is it?
Four, 5:28 PM: I'll let her tell you whenever she's ready uwu
You, 5:28 PM: What is uwu?
Four, 5:28 PM: Oh man we don't have time for that
You, 5:28 PM: Okay?
You, 5:28 PM: Well, um, while we're on that topic..
You, 5:28 PM: What is your name?
Four, 5:28 PM: It's Sarah
Four, 5:28 PM: But you can still call me 4 if you want
You, 5:28 PM: Yeah. I'd like that
Four, 5:29 PM: Sooo are you going to ask her?
You, 5:29 PM: Ask her what?
Four, 5:29 PM: Ask her out
Four, 5:29 PM: I know she'll say yes
You, 5:29 PM: That's scary though!
You, 5:29 PM: What if she doesn't?
Four, 5:29 PM: 8 I promise you she will
Four, 5:29 PM: You can do it!
You, 5:29 PM: Can I?
Four, 5:29 PM: YES!
Four, 5:30 PM: 8 you saved the world!
Four, 5:30 PM: If you can save the world you can ask 3 out
You, 5:30 PM: But this is differentttt
You, 5:30 PM: At least that time if I failed I wouldn't have to live with it.
Four, 5:30 PM: My god
Four, 5:30 PM: You really are perfect for each other
You, 5:30 PM: What?
Four, 5:30 PM: We don't have time to get into THAT but
Four, 5:30 PM: You should really, really ask her out! I promise you you'll be fine
You, 5:31 PM: ...Okay
Four, 5:31 PM: I'm serious! You're nice and sweet and a joy to be around
Four, 5:31 PM: Hell, that loser would be lucky to have someone like you
You, 5:31 PM: You really mean it..?
Four, 5:31 PM: Would I ever lie to you?
Four, 5:31 PM: Excluding all the times that I have
Four, 5:31 PM: Would I?
You, 5:31 PM: Well.. When you put it that way, I guess not
Three pulls into a parking spot and parks the car.
"We're, uh. Here," she mumbles, looking over at Eight. Eight feels her face heat up slightly. "So. Uh… Whenever you're ready."
"Oh, um… Right." Eight slips her phone into the hoodie's pocket and gets out of the car. It beeps after Three takes her keys out and locks it. "Soo..?"
"This way," she mutters, leading Eight inside. She presses the 'up' button the elevator and waits for the doors to slide open. Once they do, she steps inside and begins mashing the button for the fifth floor. The doors slide shut.
Eight checks her phone again, feeling it buzz.
Four, 5:31 PM: So are you going to do it?
Four, 5:34 PM: Hello?
You, 5:34 PM: Yeah.. I guess I should
Four, 5:34 PM: Well, I probably should have asked this earlier, but do you even want a relationship with 3?
You, 5:34 PM: Yes!
You, 5:35 PM: A lot!
Four, 5:35 PM: OK! So. You're going to have to tell her then
You, 5:35 PM: But.. Do I haaaave to?
Four, 5:35 PM: 8 there is literally a better chance of me winning the lottery than there is for 3 to grow up and ask you out
You, 5:35 PM: .. Fine
Four, 5:35 PM: If it matters she's a decent kisser
You, 5:35 PM: Why do you know that?
Four, 5:35 PM: 10th grade she freaked out over being a shit kisser so I had to sit her down and teach her
The elevator stops and Three walks out, giving Eight a slight nod. She follows her out.
You, 5:35 PM: I… Okay?
You, 5:35 PM: We're at her apartment now
You, 5:36 PM: I'll tell you how it goes!
Four, 5:36 PM: OK! Good luck c:
She turns her phone off and puts it in her pocket. Following Three to her apartment, she takes in a deep breath and gives Three an awkward smile as she holds the door open for her.
Her apartment is pretty barren. There's a beat-up, sad couch with a few sheets and blankets on it and a TV with a rounded screen and a thick layer of dust on top of it.
Three closes the door and kicks her shoes off. Eight gently slips hers off and sets them next to hers.
She flops down onto the couch and practically sinks into it. Three then sits up. "Uh… You can have a seat, if you want..?"
"Um… Okay." Eight sits down next to her. Does she just… Go ahead and say it? Does… She not? Gods, this is nerve-wracking.
She feels nervous. It's the kind of nervous rush she'd get when doing a test, the kind of nerves she'd feel when she felt the balloon bag on her back start to pulse… Almost.
Maybe Eight prefers the feeling of testing, because when she tested, she get to try again. Eight had a redo. A second chance, a third chance, a fourth, fifth, twelfth chance.
But this time?
Eight has one.
And Eight fucking hates that.
Her hands shake slightly. Her face is flushed a dark purple. She feels floaty and nervous and warm, acutely aware of every little moment Three makes.
Eight inhales slowly. Her exhale is shaky and even slower.
"... Eight, is something up?" Three asks, concern visible on her face. It doesn't look right. "Sorry if this isn't, like, my place to really say anything, but you've been pretty quiet and you're kind of worryi-"
"I LIKE YOU," she blurts out, the syllables mushed together. Her face warms even more, if something like that is even possible. "... I like you, Three. I… Have feelings for you. Romantic ones." Eight has to stop herself there. She has to stop herself before she tells Three how she dreams of her, how adorable she thinks she is, how she's memorized every crack in Three's lips and how badly she wants to kiss them. How Three's nigh-constant scowl makes her hearts race, how her smile belongs in a museum, how her laugh puts the Calamari Inkantation, the song that changed her life, to shame. How calloused and blistered her hands are and how Eight longs to hold them and kiss each mark, each scratch, each imperfection, kiss them all until they fade.
She manages to say one more thing, and it's an apology: "... Sorry. I… Know this is weird."
Three doesn't respond, not at first. No, at first she mouths the words Eight told her. Then her face flushes a deep, dark marigold as she realizes what Eight said. Eight's starting to think she made a major mistake, and then Three speaks.
"You… Do?" It's not so much speaking as it is croaking, or maybe a mix of the two. "I… Sorry, I just wasn't…" A laugh escapes her lips. "Fuck…" she whispers, and it's accompanied with a stupid, dorky grin.
"You're… Not mad?" Eight asks quietly, feeling her nerves threaten to chew through her.
Three shakes her head 'no.'
"I… No, I'm not."
"... Why?"
"I… I feel the same way," Three admits.
Emotions wash over Eight, ones she can't exactly pinpoint. Relief? Happiness? It barely matters anymore.
"Really?"
"Y-Yeah." She looks down at the floor and then laughs once more. Eight wants to hear it again. "I- Um, this is gonna sound dumb, but… Uh…" Three pauses a bit to try and find her words. "... You wanna, like… Date..?"
"I… Um, it… It's not dumb. At least, I don't think so. A-And, um, to… Answer your question, I… Um. Would enjoy that. A lot."
"... Cool."
Silence settles over them.
"So, uh." Three breaks it. "What do you, uh, wanna do?"
She looks over at the TV. "... You want to watch a movie?"
"Oh, it's, uh. Broken."
"Why do you still have it, then..?"
"... I'm too lazy to get it fixed. Or… Get rid of it."
Eight laughs. Three, never change.
"I have a deck of cards in my bag?" she offers.
"What, you wanna play Strip Poker?"
"At least take me out to dinner first," Eight teases with another laugh, taking delight in the marigold hue to Three's face.
"We just went for ice cream, is that not good enough?"
"Yeah, ice cream that I paid for!"
"I offered!"
"So?" Eight glares at Three. Three glares back.
A few seconds pass, and then they both start laughing.
"You butt," Eight mumbles, taking her hand in hers.
"You… Scrotum."
"Charming."
"... Look, you know I'm not good under pressure." She shifts awkwardly on the cushion.
"That's what you call pressure? You know you're an NSS agent, right?"
"Yeah, but that's, like, a different pressure." Three sighs. "I'm talking about a, uh, social… Pressure. Thing."
"A social pressure thing," Eight repeats to herself and laughs.
"I-" Three flushes a darker hue. "You know what I mean."
Eight leans back into the couch, scooting a little closer to Three. "You're cute," she tells her, simply voicing the words that come to mind, "And I really wanna kiss you."
Wow, Eight didn't think Three could get yellower. Or marigolder. Whatever! Word choice isn't important, the fact that her new girlfriend WHICH IS A REALLY COOL THING TO SAY? AAAAAAA is blushing, like, a lot is. Sometimes, Eight worries for her health. Blushing like that all the time is bound to do some damage, right..? Though, Eight will be damned if it's not one of the cutest and most endearing things she's seen on the surface so far.
"I, um, it, yeah, okay, if you want, you can, uh, do. It. I mean. Up to you, mhm, yeah, totally, you-" Eight gives Three's hand a gentle squeeze. "RIGHT YEP IT CAN HAPPEN YEAH TOTALLY CONSENT IS A THING I'M DOING IT YOU CAN, YEAH, YES, BUT ONLY IF YOU WANT, IT'S NOT ABOUT ME IT'S ABOUT YOU AND WHAT YOU WANT AND IT YEAH."
"Wow," Eight mumbles. "Four was right."
"I-It, she, uh, what?" Three furrows her brow slightly.
"Um… You remember last week, right?" She nods. "Yeah, Four told me about that time in high school whe-"
"Oh, that fucking bitch," she mutters.
"If… You don't mind me asking, how old were you then?" Eight asks. "Since… I figured it was, like, early high school, right?" Three makes a face. Eight raises an eyebrow. "Don't tell me…"
"... Seventeen." Eight bites back a laugh. "And it- Y'know, I- There was, like, NSS shit, and- Oh, come on, at least try a little harder!"
"Three. How old are you right now?"
"Eighteen, but-" She rolls her eyes. "Don't… Don't look at me like that. Come on."
"You," Eight states, "Are the dumbest, stupidest, cutest moron."
"SPEEEAAAAAAAAKINNNNnnnng of," she… Announces? Transitions? Tries-to-say-smoothly-but-fails-horribly? "You. I, uh, do you. Wanna kiss."
"Yeah," Eight says, voice soft. "I'd really, really like that."
She lets go of Three's hand and brings it up to her cheek, cupping her face. Eight can feel how stupidly warm she is and she briefly wonders if Three has a fever or something because there's no way this kind of thing can really be normal but at the same time her face also feels hot and then the reality sets in and then-
They're close. Extremely close.
Eight's breath mingles with Three's as she stares into her eyes. The heterochromia is unique and special and stunning and Eight finds herself enamored with them. The dark red hue of her left, and the blazing blue hue of her right. She knows Three hates her scar, especially that one in particular, even if she never says anything about it. Eight sees how uncomfortable she gets when young inklings in the Square ask about it since "It's so fresh!" and Eight notices the edge to her voice when she tells them whatever excuse comes to mind first. To be fair, Eight doesn't blame her for hating it.
She just wishes Three could see how beautiful it - and how beautiful all of Three is - to her.
Eight tenderly strokes Three's cheek. She blushes more when she does.
"You're stunning," she whispers.
"Um. You… Too."
Eight moves closer and Three wraps her arms around Eight, and then their lips meet, and-
It's like the whole world just fades away.
The kiss is so much better than any dream she's ever had, and the gods know she's had a lot. Her lips aren't the softest - they're chapped and a little raw in places - but they still manage to be wonderful nonetheless.
When Eight breaks it, she feels warm and dazed and good.
"So, um…" she starts, breaking the silence that settled over them. "Did you… Like it?"
"I- Um. Maybe. Maybe I would… Enjoy another, uh, taste."
Eight rolls her eyes. "That's so corny, you butt."
"Y-Yeah, well..?" She huffs. "I, um… Please?"
With a quiet laugh, she swings her leg over Three's to straddle her and wraps her arms around Three's neck.
"Okay," she says, "But only 'cause you asked nicely."
"Thanks…" And, right before their lips meet, she adds, "And, uh, I'm… I'm not a butt. So. Stop calling me one."
"Yes you are! You're my butt."
"... I- Shut up and kiss me, nerd."
Eight laughs softly. "Dork," she mumbles, complying anyways.
… Gods, Eight could stay here forever.
Three lets out a soft pleasured noise that sends a shiver down Eight's spine. Which is: 1. Really cute and 2. Oh great Gods Eight would die to hear that again.
Her fingers curl into Eight's shirt, pulling her closer, closer, and closer still, a silent plea for more. And, well, who is Eight to deny that?
They stay like that for a while, only pausing for brief half-moments for small breaths of air. Eight doesn't know long they spent there. And, well, to be frank, Eight doesn't care. Time stops mattering to her at some point, and she lets herself get lost in the sensation, a pure warm, euphoric bliss.
Eight pulls away, resting her forehead against Three's, both of them panting slightly. Slowly, her eyes open to the sight of Three's eyes staring back at her.
"Was that enough of a second taste for you?" she asks.
Three rolls her eyes. "You probably should have asked that, like, ten minutes ago."
"Aw, don't be grumpy, you butt." Eight pulls her head away. "Besides, you're the one that moaned."
"... It's not my fault you're good at this," Three grumbles.
"You're such a dorky, grumpy butt," she tells her as she climbs off her. Sitting down beside her on the couch, she sighs, taking her hand in hers. Three mumbles something that she doesn't catch, but it makes Eight smile anyways.
"Actually," Three starts, "Why are you so good at this, anyways?"
"You flatter me so much."
"No, like- Didn't Pearl have to explain what romance was to you, like, two weeks ago?"
"I… Who told you?"
"The mayo goblin herself." Aha. "So… I was just kinda curious, I guess."
"... Okay? Well, I, um… It's not like you're the first person I was ever in a relationship with. Octarian romance exists, but… It's not nearly as defined. Inkling courting rituals are just so… Y'know… Convoluted. And stupid. We'd probably be together a lot earlier if it wasn't for that." Eight pauses. "Although… With how dorky and stupid you sound all the time, maybe not."
"I don't sound dorky and stupid!" the stupid dork snaps. "You're the dork here."
"Nuh-uh. You're not getting away dork-free."
"Why not?" Three whines, resting her head on Eight's shoulder. Eight snorts quietly.
"'Cause you're a dork," she states. "If you aren't a dork, what are you?"
Three stops to think. "As ass."
"A butt," Eight corrects. "You're either a dork or a butt."
"You suck."
"And you swallow." Three lets out a loud, wheeze-like laugh that's followed by a coughing fit. "What?"
"Where the fuck," she says between coughs, "Did you learn that?"
"I think it was Four," Eight replies plainly. "Either her or Pearl."
"Fucking hell," Three swears, wiping her mouth.
"Sorry," she mumbles, not sorry at all. "But, um… What exactly do you want to do?"
"Uh." Three pauses. "... I dunno. I don't, like, have a lot here."
Eight nods. "I know."
"... You ever played Monopoly?"
"I don't think so." Three takes that as enough of an answer and ungracefully gets off the couch. "I guess I'd like to try it."
"Sweet." She drops to her knees with a dull thud as she starts rummaging from beneath the couch. Three swears softly and pulls out a box. The lettering on it is faded and the top of it is coated with dust, but Three wipes it away and then smears dust on the couch… Which is kinda gross, but Eight's kind of expecting it. "Just watch out, I'm fucking great at this game."
Eight rolls her eyes with a gentle laugh. "Okay, Three. But… Please remember to teach me how to play."
"Aw, but then you might win."
"Gods, you're such a loser."
"You're an assface." Three sets the box onto the coffee table and starts setting up the board.
"Well," Eight muses, "It's a lot better than scrotum, you butt."
"Oh, now you've done it." Three gives her a lopsided grin that Eight's sure she's returning. "Prepare to lose."
"I'd love to see you try."
(Somewhere in the universe, Four feels a deep, unbearable weight get lifted off her shoulders.)
("Finally," she whispers. Marie cocks an eyebrow, but she doesn't dare question it.)