Estella shot up from her large bed, her chest heaving, as she tries to anchor herself back into awoken reality.
The sunny day was quiet and tranquil, as it often is in the valley. Her bedroom was on the second floor, and so even the animal and labour noises typical of country living went mostly unheard.
However, the tranquillity of her environment did not translate to a tranquillity to her heart. The auburn-haired girl had been having another dream, a blissful and happy one, but then she awoke feeling nothing but dread.
This was nothing new. She had been having these dreams for months, now, to the point she is close to take on the doctor's offer to talk to a psychologist. They depicted a future of a happy and blissful relationship, days passed by with lazy, languid kisses and longing and loving stares. The dreams were everything anyone could ever want out of a romantic relationship.
If it was just the general situation, Estella would have been perfectly fine about those oneiric trips every other night. The problem, however, laid with who starred in these fantasies.
Sam had been her best friend since early childhood. A long time ago, before her father passed away and his had been shipped away to war, his family had been tenants at the farm, and so Estella had been encouraged to spend time with the hyper blond boy around the property.
Over time, the relationship blossomed, even after Kent enlisted and was sent beyond the Gem Sea, after Jodi moved with the children into town. They had seen all of each other's important milestones, they had been there for each other through everything, good and bad. She had always thought of Sam as a brother, just like she did Vincent.
That was, until the dreams began.
Suddenly his very presence made her stomach erupt with fireworks and roses bloom on her cheeks. Every smile he sent her made the girl nervous and every bit of contact made goosebumps arise on her otherwise soft skin.
It did not help at all that her friendship with Sam had always been touchy. From a young age, the two of them would hold hands or hug often. Many nights the two of them could be found cuddling on the large living room couch downstairs, her head on his chest, his arm wrapped around her waist, and her legs tangled together.
It had never bothered her before, despite many, many, many innuendos from her granddad, but suddenly every touch made her skin burn.
It was not as if they never had fallen in love before! Both of them had their own romantic adventures with other people, and they have always been honest about those, without any drama or jealousy. Why that insanity now?!
Estella knew it was horribly cliche, this whole thing about falling in love with her best friend, but the dreams made it an inevitability. She could not escape her fantasies of a domestic life with Sam, but there was too much at stake for her to ever reveal her feelings.
She could not even think about the possibility of him rejecting her without shuddering. At the very least, their friend group would shatter. She knew people would take sides and most of their friends would pick the lovable doof Sam over entitled princess Estella. Then, she would be forced to hang out with Haley, or worse, her own mother.
It was also not too difficult to conclude that, if Sam did not feel the same for her, she would lose him forever. She could not bear the thought of a life completely devoid of him. She would rather suffer the curse of eternal friendzone than the anguish of a ruined relationship, not to mention the fact that she would lose her relationship with Jodi, Kent and Vincent. They were like her second family and she could never hazard the possibility of ruining that.
So, Estella tried to pull back slightly, hoping that the distance would help rid her of those blasted feelings. Of course, the girl did not disappear completely from town, she was not able to stand the idea of that. She just… Stopped touching him as much and she spent more time in the farm than at the town square with him.
The auburn-haired girl could not tell if he noticed or not, but she dearly hoped that it all went on under the radar and he believed that everything was fine.
Estella looked around her room, realizing that the birds were not chirping on the trees near her window, and so it must already be well into the day. She spared a glance at the alarm clock on her bedside table and realized it was almost noon, which was very surprising, as she often rose at no later than seven o'clock.
She groaned as she realized that she was supposed to meet Sam nearly an hour ago. She hoped he would not be too angry that she overslept.
The farm owner's granddaughter sighed and got up, her feet padding towards her dresser. She took a glance at herself in the mirror, grimacing at the messiness of her long and soft hair. She smiled, though, when she realized that, in last night's sleep-induced haze, she had pulled one of Sam's jumpers over her head.
She took a deep breath, inhaling the remnants of his scent on the sweater. He had forgotten the article of clothing at her house almost a season ago, when he trekked through snow for a movie night, but was driven back home on her mother's garish pink convertible. The stupid infatuation was picking up steam by them, and so she hid it under her bed, wishing she could keep it for herself.
Luckily, Sam never seemed to notice he was down a sweater. Jodi must have thought he had ripped it irreversibly on a skateboard accident, as it often happens.
Her deep thoughts were interrupted by a sharp knock at the door. She frowned and smoothed down her hair, unsure of who it could be.
She walked over and opened the door, only to be met by Sam barrelling through the doorframe.
"Sam?" Estella squeaked, surprise overtaking her. "How did you get up here?"
Sam ran a hand through his blond, stupidly spiky hair and turned to face her. "You really think that your family could stop me from checking on you?"
It was a lie, of course. He was deathly afraid of her mother, and had a profound reverence towards her grandfather. If either of them had told him he could not come up, he would never try to disobey.
"So… I'm wagering that they are out." The girl jabbed, playfully.
"I saw your mother going out with the car, and your granddad is usually out on the fields at this hour." He said with a flaunt, his commentary clearly intended to be a joke but the frown on his face ruining the effect.
She laughed softly, though the sound was hollow. She wrung her hands, preparing the apology that was about to spill from her lips.
"Listen, Sam…" Estella started, avoiding his gaze.
"What did I do wrong?" He asked suddenly, interrupting her in a most abrupt manner.
She froze, unsure of what to say. It seems that her hopes of counting on her friend's overall detachment were about to be dashed.
"Because I think that you've been avoiding me and now, you're not showing up for our plans, and I don't know what I did!" He said quickly, the words spilling from his lips desperately.
She shuffled awkwardly in her place, next to the dresser.
"I didn't mean to not show up this morning…" The girl said, meekly, trying to diffuse the situation.
Sam furrowed his thick eyebrows.
"So, you did remember that we had plans?" The boy questioned.
She looked up at him with an apologetic look.
"Of course, I remembered." She said. "I just overslept."
Sam let out a sigh of relief, his shoulders slumping.
"I feel quite dumb now!" He joked with a laugh. "I overreacted quite a bit, don't you think?"
Estella gave him a forced smile, knowing that, while he had been wrong about her ditching plans, she had, in fact, been actively trying to avoid him.
Sam flopped dramatically onto her bed, kicking off his shoes in the process.
"Please hold me. It's been a day!" He said with a playful grin on his face, his arms outstretched to welcome her into his embrace.
She laughed and made her way towards him.
"Sam, it's not even noon yet." The auburn-haired replied with a smile. "Wouldn't you prefer to at least have lunch beforehand?"
Despite her token resistance, Estella clamoured into bed next to him, feeling the warmth of his strong arms around her needy body.
"What about our plans?" She asked softly. "I thought we'd go to the community centre."
Sam let out a non-committal noise and pulled his totally-platonic friend closer.
"We can always go next weekend. I want to hang out just you and me." He said, earnestly. "I've missed spending time with my girl."
His careless words sent a jolt of electricity up her spine. She snuggled closer into his chest, pretending for a moment that maybe he wanted her the way that she wanted him.
Several hours later, Estella woke up, still curled up next to Sam. At some point, the two of them had fallen asleep in her bed. She looked up to look at his sleeping face, admiring how his eyelashes fluttered against his skin. She reached up and poked his cheek, causing him to stir slightly.
"Wake up, sleepyhead." She said softly in his ear.
He groaned, stretching out his legs and his back. He reached up a hand and rubbed his droopy eyes. He seemed dazed and half asleep, not fully aware of what was going on. He looked at her face and she saw a gentle smile grace his lips.
"I think that you might be my soulmate…" He murmured softly, his eyes half-lidded and his voice groggy.
Estella felt her face fall in shock.
"What?" She whispered out numbly.
Sam seemed to wake up fully then, shooting up to sit in the bed. He put his head in his hands.
"Fuck." He grumbled. "I didn't mean to say that."
She sat up, brushing hair away from her face, and removed her hands from his face.
"Sam, honey." She breathed, trying to keep her voice even. "Why would you say something like that?"
He looked at his lap, avoiding her gaze.
"I've been having these dreams, you know?" He began to explain. "Where you and I are, I don't know, together, I guess. Happily married, boyfriend and girlfriend, something like that."
It took everything in her not to gasp at his words. It was just like her own.
"Everything that happens in the dreams is just so perfect, and I know that you're so perfect, even in the real world. If I could have a Stardrop here and now, I know that it'd show those dreams becoming reality. I really, really want to be with you, and this is my heart's fondest desire." He said softly.
Estella sat on the bed in shocked silence, unsure of what to say. How was that possible? That they had both been dreaming of one another?
"And now you're turning so quiet, and I'm pretty sure that I just messed everything up, but I think that I love you." The blond boy admitted. "I know I've always been shit at sorting out my own feelings, but something about these dreams seems too real for them to mean nothing."
His voice was filled with nothing but sincerity, his eyes downcast as he took her silence as a rejection.
"I've been dreaming of you, too." Estella finally admitted.
He looked up at his crush with a wide-eyed expression, a shocked smile spreading across his face.
"You have?" He questioned breathily.
The girl nodded shyly.
"I have. And I think you might be right." She said softly. "I really do think we might be soulmates."
Sam let out an airy laugh before tackling her into a bear hug. He was feeling so damn excited that he could swim to the Fern Islands and back. She giggled as he pressed a quick kiss to her cheek and tickled her side.
"Sam!" Estella shrieked in excitement, slapping his shoulder playfully to make him stop teasing her.
"Hey, get used to it!" He said playfully. "I am your soulmate, after all."
