Weeks Later
Friday night. Linka and Jordan are nice and snug with blankets wrapped around them while sitting on the latter's notoriously drab couch. A bowl of popcorn sits between them, their eyes are glued to the television screen.
On the monitor, a girl with sandy blonde hair done in a French braid and a complementing blue bow walks alongside a boy in an orange polo. He had white hair and big shoes.
It was one of those obscure animes that Jordan really liked and Linka had never even heard of, but she was willing to at least give the first episode a try. For obvious reasons.
It didn't disappoint, but she definitely wouldn't have watched all the way up to chapter six if it wasn't for Jordan buying her so much "prizza," as they called it.
The boy and the girl stand outside of an arcade ala Royal Woods' very own Gus's Games N' Grub, and after meeting each other's eyes with loving and wanting looks, they finally crash their lips together for a long overdue kiss.
"TOUCHDOWN!" Jordan excitedly shouts, flailing her hands into the air and nearly knocking over the popcorn bowl. Linka just smiles like an idiot at the romantic display, sniffling because of allergies and something in her eye… not anything else.
The credits to the show begin to roll, and Jordan meets Linka with a wide, exuberant smile.
"That was so good. What did you think?" she asks.
Linka wipes a tear from her eye as she sniffles again. "It was so beautiful," she admits. She feels so spazzy for saying it that way though, and quickly clears her throat before sitting up straight. "I mean… It was good. It was nice."
Jordan laughs. "Yeah, it was nice. And totally cheesy," she says, playfully nudging Linka with her elbow before picking up the remote beside of her and seeing what's up on Fletnix.
"Okay… Uh, it doesn't say whether or not anymore episodes are coming out. Have you heard anything about it?" Linka points out.
"Beats me," Jordan says with a shrug. "The dude who made it got all weird after Live to Win. He said he was gonna do something Tanya and Fernando, but then he ended up doing all this other crap-"
"Hey, Left in the Dark was good," Linka defends.
"Okay, yeah. But still. Anything's better than the stuff he does now," she says with a shiver.
"Yeah," Linka says with a confounded, sickly wince. "Uh… Wanna watch Wanderers?" she asks with a straight face.
Jordan looks to her with scornfully perplexed expression, but then a little smile creeps on Linka's face, and the two burst into laughter.
"HAHAHAHAHA!"
"Oh man, you almost had me going there!" Jordan says, wiping a tear from her eye as she holds her rib with her free hand.
"Pffft, yeah right. That stuff sucks," Linka bluntly states.
"No lie," Jordan agrees before continuing to browse Fletnix's award winning and acclaimed selections. (And whatever the heck Devices and Mechanizations was supposed to be about.) ;D
They find nothing worth spending their time on though, and Jordan decides to toss the remote to the side while letting out a careless "Pfffffffft… Lame."
Nights like these became the norm for Linka and Girl Jordan. Ever since that fateful Monday several weeks back, the two were nearly inseparable. When they had class without each other, they texted each other the freshest of memes. When they saw each other in the halls, they would attack each other with Don't Look at Me all while trying to sneak forks and pencil's into each other's pockets.
They went to the market together, they went to Heaven's Night together to eat more subpar meals while making fun of Jane's ginger self, and they always ended up coming back to one another's dorms for food and Fletnix.
Life for Linka Loud had been good the last few weeks. Great, even. Everyone at home was doing fantastic. Loki and Bebe were doing great with their infant son Luis. Loni was moving his way up the ladder at Reiningers. Luke and Carl Pingrey were getting serious. Lane had a "Fifty Reasons to Hate Me" act that left crowds in stitches. Lynn was being number one at everything, per usual. Lars, Leif, Lexx, and Levi were doing great in school; Levi especially…
And Leon was coming into his own, developing his own unique personality. But that's a story for another time…
Ronaldo and the Casagrandes were as happy as ever, Claudia was making strides as the valedictorian at Royal Woods University.
They were happy, and Linka was happy for them. It didn't stop her from calling and texting them all as much as possible, sometimes even with Jordan. Rita and Lynn Sr had more to say to her during their last webchat than they did their own daughter.
Yes, things were great.
It was also a long day to end a long week, though; and Linka finds herself letting out a loud yawn just as Jordan does the same.
They laugh at the fact, and Jordan lightly punches Linka's arm. It's more like a tap of the knuckles, really, it's so weak.
"Don't tell me you're getting tired already," she says to her guest.
"It's funny. If it were Monday, and I had some big exam or presentation to worry about; I'd be all over the place. But tonight?..." Linka answers with tired eyes.
Jordan chuckles. "Yeah… Me too, actually."
For a moment, they sit in silence, kind of just looking at the bright lights radiating from the television screen, but not really paying attention to what's on it.
Linka shakes herself to check the time though, and sees that it is currently 9:59.
"Ughhh… We're so lame," she complains.
"Speak for yourself," Jordan ripostes. "This morning, I took twenty minutes to cut out coupons for my next trip to the market. The Golden Girls would be so proud of me."
"Dang girl. If I were a boy, you would have just hit the jackpot," Linka jokes.
Jordan laughs. "Ehh, I did hit the jackpot," she says. "...If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have anyone to borrow biology notes from."
"Wow. You really know how to make a girl feel special," Linka jokes back.
For a moment, the two are quiet again after laughing about their banter. Suddenly, Jordan perks up, and scoots a little closer to Linka before crossing her legs Indian style.
"Okay, we need to do something to pass the time. We have to at least stay up until eleven at least. I don't want to feel all old and junk," she tells Linka.
"Or, Or… Maybe we could just go to bed? Then tomorrow will be here. And we can go to the arcade sooner," Linka suggests.
It earns her a scornful scowl from Girl Jordan. "And wake up before noon? What the heck is the matter with you?"
She straightens up her back with a little shake and shuffle, and slaps her thighs. "Okay. Let's play a game."
"If you say Don't Look at Me-"
"No, dummy. That's only fun when I catch you off guard," Jordan tells Linka before putting on a thinking face. "Hmm… Alright! How about 20 questions?"
Linka rolls her eyes. "20 Questions? What are you, twelve?"
"Hey! 20 Questions is awesome!" Jordan rebuts, but she concedes nevertheless. "Okay, why don't we try two truths and a lie?"
Linka furrows her brow at the other girl. "Someone's been spending too much time reminiscing about their theatre class glory days," she snarkily claims.
Jordan lethargically blows a raspberry. "Fair enough."
She pipes down, leaving Linka feeling a little remorseful for her behavior. "Sorry if I'm being boring. I'm just tired," she explains.
"I know," Jordan somewhat sullenly responds, looking again to the TV screen before her. There is a certain somberness to her now. Was Linka being that big a buzzkill?
"Hey, you good?" she asks.
Jordan sighs. "Yeah, I'm fine," she says, allowing a weak little smile to come to her face as she looks to Linka. She just looks at her for a moment with piteous amber eyes, and it brings a sadness to Linka's heart. What was really going on here?
"Uhm… Are you sure? Is this about not getting any more Fernando?" she says in an attempt to lighten the mood.
It elicits a little grin from Jordan, who looks away again, this time to the carpet beneath her. She wraps her fingers around a stray string of plastic protruding from it, and slowly yanks it until it's been pulled off completely.
"Can- can I ask you something, Link?" she begins, studying the plastic string.
"Sure?" Linka simply responds.
Jordan doesn't answer right away. She carefully considers what she wants to say.
"Do you ever think of like… What things will be like in the future? Like, not even far away? Just, how maybe you may not be the person you are today in a few weeks, or even a few days?"
Unsure how to respond, Linka can feel her chest heavying, and her ears burning up as they're liable to do.
"Uhm, I don't know. Where is this coming from?" Linka follows.
Jordan shakes her head. "Just forget it. It's stupid."
Linka fixes her own posture, and faces Jordan now. "Hey. It's not stupid. If there's something on your mind, you can talk to me about it."
Jordan glumly looks to the ground before meeting Linka's eyes with her own once more. "Well like, don't think I'm depressed or anything, because I'm not. I just…"
She stops herself, unsure of how to continue. She takes a deep breath, and hopes to be able to say how she feels well enough.
"I've had a lot of fun these last few days. You know that, right?"
Linka meets the question with some confusion, but she does her best to keep a level head. "Yeah. I have too," she replies.
Jordan nods. "Well, you know it won't last forever, right?"
Linka doesn't say anything. What is she supposed to say to that?
Jordan faintly smiles before pressing forward. "One day, you're gonna be a different person, and so will I. We'll meet new people, make new friends, maybe even find true love and start families. I'll get tired of vampires, you'll get tired of superheroes… We'll be really old, and really lame. Like Kenan Thompson…"
Linka smirks at Jordan's little joke. It was a good enough indicator that she was okay. She was fine. Conversely, there was much conviction in her words. She had to be the supportive friend here, and she gladly would. Maybe not for just anyone and there problems, but for Jordan? Definitely.
"Yeah, well, we were apart for four years, and here we are now. Friends again. I'd like to think that won't change," she states, a soft smile curving on her face.
"But what if I never had to move? Who's to say we wouldn't have gotten sick of each other? Who's to say we still won't get sick of each other?" Jordan argues.
Linka firms her resolve. "Jordan, that's not going to happen," she begins. "Getting you back after so long made me realize how much I like having you around."
Jordan says nothing for a moment, sitting quietly to consider Linka's words.
"I don't know Linka. I guess… I guess my problem is; I'm happy."
"That's a problem?" Linka questions.
"Maybe," Jordan answers. "The more I think about it, and the happier I get, the more it hurts to think of losing this."
It was a sad thought. It's true that nothing lasts forever, but was there really a reason to prepare for things changing again? So soon, at least?
Again, Linka steels herself, and composes a well thought out response.
"Don't think I don't feel the same way sometimes. I mean, sure. Maybe something could happen. But, I'm going to try really hard to make sure it doesn't. We don't have to be perfect or whatever. We just… We just…" she stutters, losing what momentum she had.
"Linka, I like what we've got going on. I guess I'm just trying to say, I don't wanna screw it up," Jordan clarifies, a weak little smile creeping on her face now.
She traps Linka in the web of her amber eyes once again, just as she's been known to do. She was unbeatable when she did this, and Linka wasn't able to figure out why.
She doesn't really care anymore either. She just knows it feels good.
"I don't either," she agrees.
They take some time to let the words linger, and to subside some of the fluttering in their hearts. Talks like these were getting easier. Jordan was beginning to let more of her personality bleed through the cracks, and Linka appreciated it.
A lot, actually.
"Alright… I think I've made it lame enough. I'm gonna have some Ben & Jerry's and then hit the hay," Jordan says before standing up from her comfy little spot.
"Pfffft… Where's the Jordan from five minutes ago? The one who said, 'let's stay up till eleven at least,'" Linka teases.
"You know how I'm always saying, 'sleep is for the weak?'" Jordan asks with a sly grin. "Well, I'm weak," she adds.
She turns to make her way into the kitchen, and Linka lets out a hardy yawn. She was weak too.
Again, the white haired girl turns to check the time. An impressively long six minutes have passed since last looking. Her eyelids are a lot heavier now then. Her body was heavier period.
Dang… Her dorm was so far away too…
"IIIIIIIIIIIII'm the maaaaaaaaaan in the couch…" she sluggishly sings, followed by a pitiful little "uh huh huh…"
"Stick to your day job, Kakarot," Jordan comments from the kitchen. "Oh hey. Don't forget your phone charger here again. I almost took it with me to class yesterday," she adds upon remembering.
Linka looks over to her charger, and her bookbag, and the door, and- she was right to boo hoo. She's so tired.
"I don't wanna get up," she bemoans.
Jordan makes her way in, and checks her face for any ice cream residue in the mirror. She's clean, but she also finds herself stretching and cracking her back.
"Oh poop… You're old. And you make me old," she tells Linka.
Linka says nothing. She just wearily looks skyward.
"No comeback? I don't blame you. It's like Sleepy Hollow in here all of a sudden," Jordan remarks.
"I don't think that's how Sleepy Hollow works," Linka corrects her.
"I don't even care right now. I just wanna stuff my face in my fluffy pillow and drift off to slumberland," Jordan says with a pseudo-petulant tone.
"Sigh… You and me, both," Linka agrees.
"Did you just say 'sigh?'" Jordan asks, and she studies her for a moment, eyeing her up down as she idles on her couch. "Or you could just leave a big dent in my couch with your blobby butt," she jokes.
Linka shares an obscene finger gesture with her in response, to which Jordan simply laughs.
Then, she stays quiet for a second as she eyes a spot on the floor. She keeps staring at it until she notices Linka lifting her head up again, and the two girls look to one another.
"Hey uh… You know… If you're really that tired…" Jordan starts. "You could just stay here tonight."
Linka's mind was already a bit cloudy. But now she felt a little taken back. For one, she loved her own bed. Sure, it would really blow Chunks if she had to actually get off this couch and walk back to her dorm to get to it, but… it was her bed.
Secondly…
"Uh, I appreciate the offer, J. But- and don't take this the wrong way, I really don't wanna sleep on your couch," she tells the other girl.
Jordan amusedly smiles. "Uh, I would let you sleep in my bed, but it's whatever you wanna do," she says before disregarding her with a shrug and making her way to the restroom.
Linka takes the time to consider Jordan's offer. Was Jordan really willing to give up her bed for her tonight? There had to be a catch. Lane had called her up and this was all some elaborate scheme. Ronaldo and Levi were in on it too. For reasons!
Even so, there was no denying it any longer. The poor girl just wants to go to bed, and at this point, it doesn't matter if it's Jordan's or her own. And the benefits of not having to haul all of her crap back to her dorm tonight or risk forgetting about it in the morning outweighed the results of potential nefarious scheming on the part of her friend Girl Jordan.
"The heck with it," she grumbles to herself before feeling this surge of energy come to her, this lightning like motivation to actually somehow get her skinny fat butt off the couch and walk over to somewhere!
"Jordan!" she calls out.
"Yeah?!" the other girl responds while brushing her teeth. Gross.
"I'm gonna take you up on your offer. I'm crashing in your bed," she states.
"Alright. That's fine," Jordan belatedly replies.
"Night!" Linka says with the last of her newfound mettle. It all quickly fades as she crashes down on Jordan's mattress face first, not even checking to see if she'll land safely.
She does, fortunately. And, oh wow… Jordan's bed was really nice. It smelled good, the sheets were made, and it cozy, warm, comfortable…
"Don't hog the whole bed, Lardka," she hears Jordan say from the doorway.
She musters the strength to sit up and look to her, seeing her standing there with her same confident smirk she so often wears.
And Linka just sits there like a deer caught in headlights.
"Well?" Jordan says.
"Well what?" Linka confusedly questions.
"Well, aren't you going to make room for me?" Jordan follows.
Linka fumbles her words for a moment, but is able to work something out of her drying mouth.
"Uhh, I didn't realize you meant we'd be sharing the bed. I thought you just- like…"
"Oh, don't be such a prude," Jordan teases. "Look, I'm going to sleep, and I'm doing it in my own bed. You do whatever you want," she proclaims.
Yet, Linka still meets her with the same dubiousness, until Jordan makes a motioning gesture to get her to scoot over.
Linka's heart to drowns out all her sense with the sound of its beating. Almost mindlessly, she just makes way for Jordan. Maybe it's because she's so tired, maybe it's because she doesn't want to be even more awkweird than she already is. Whatever it is, she's scooching over to the left side of the bed until she's somewhat comfortable in her own little spot, and Jordan paces her way over to the other side.
Almost like a little rabbit, Linka defensively lies still on her side facing towards the wall as she feels Jordan's weight dipping down on the mattress. They'd slept together before as kids. Why did she care now? What was the big deal?
"I normally sleep on that side of the bed," Jordan says to her as she makes herself cozy.
"What? Oh, sorry," Linka tells her.
"I'm just messin' with ya," Jordan simply says, her exhaustion evident in her tired tone.
For a little while, the other girl says nothing, leaving Linka alone to quarrel the feelings of discomfort. She takes yoga breaths like Loki taught her, relaxing herself with every inhale and exhale.
"See? This isn't so bad. Cozy bed, sleepover with Jordan… It's all good, Link. Just rest easy."
"I suppose I should at least say good night or something though. Make her think I'm somewhat normal."
She glances over her shoulder, not enough to see Jordan, but enough to make herself heard clearly.
"Thanks for letting me stay here, dude. Good night," she says to her.
She doesn't get a response.
She rolls herself over, half expecting to find an almost drunken-like Jordan snoring loudly like in the cartoons, dead to the world.
Instead, she sees her just sort of lying there. She rests her head over her right hand, letting her left lie on her tummy as she looks to the wall ahead of her. Maybe not so much the wall though. Maybe just… whatever…
Her face is tired, but it also seems a little sad. Her eyes do anyway. It could be that she's just not smiling that snide smile of hers, but it could be so much more. Especially considering all the things she said in the other room not too long ago.
Well, now Linka's mind is racing. She can't go to bed until she at least tries to ask what's up.
"Is everything alright, J?" she asks, sitting up to face her now.
Jordan meets her gaze. "Huh? Oh. Yeah. Yeah I'm alright," she answers. "Why?" she adds with a little less confidence.
Linka studies her face in this lighting for a moment. The bluish hue from the outside moonlight bleeding in through the windows just barely reveals her face, but enough to do so perfectly.
And she couldn't tell what this was in her eyes she was seeing. Pain, sorrow?
Or what?
Was she scared?
"I'm just making sure," Linka settles for, still meeting her friends eyes to let her know that this much was certainly true.
Jordan conveys the same piteous, almost desperate and beseeching look. But then, the corner of her lip curves up, just a little. Just enough.
"You know something, Linka?" she begins. "I think maybe I'm the most alright I've ever been."
It was… the perfect response. For whatever reason, Linka was smiling too now, and the familiar warm feeling in her chest was swelling again.
"Why is that?" she asks.
Jordan… the words are there. It's finding them, though.
"Because, you know everything I said earlier? The stuff about- losing this or whatever?... Forget I even said it. I'm just… I'm just happy to have you here now."
Linka beams from ear to ear. She had heard it before, sure. But she really loved hearing it again.
But someone had to save the moment by ruining it, and she decided to take initiative this time.
"Alright, stop telling me your stupid Confucius quotes and let me go to sleep now," she quips, resting her head back down on the mattress, still facing Jordan.
The brunette softly, endearingly smiles at that, and like so many times before, they just get lost for a little while looking at each other and being in this moment together.
There were tense, awkward silences, and then there were these ones. The ones that made life way more easy than it had any right to be. The ones where things could just be taken in stride, where the finest things could be appreciated.
And Jordan? She's pretty great.
At least, Linka thinks so.
…
"Don't look at me," Jordan says to break the silence.
Of… course…
Linka rolls her eyes and smiles, and Jordan just smiles back before straightening up a bit.
"Seriously. Don't look at me. I can't sleep with you staring at me like that," she tells her.
"Oh… Sorry," Linka says, and she slowly rolls back over to give Jordan her privacy. "Good night," she tells her, almost saddening at the fact that this moment is ending.
It was good too though. It was one of many more they would have together as friends. Good friends. Best friends.
Really, they were more than that. Even after so long, there was still something special between them. An unshakable bond that made these moments so easy and cherishable.
It didn't really matter what it was called or if it even had a name, but Linka knew she loved it. She loved feeling secure here, even after having those doubts.
What she loved even more though, was knowing deep down that Jordan trusted these feelings too.
It was a nice thought to have before closing her eyes and deciding to finally go to sleep. There wasn't really a better way to end an already great day with… her.
…
Jordan, on the other hand…
She can't close her eyes. She can't look away. She steels herself, feeling the gentle pitter pattering in her chest becoming a pounding. Maybe this was stupid, maybe she was in the wrong. But dang it, it feels right. It feels like this is something she just needs to do, something she needs to try.
Slowly, she scoots herself closer to Linka. Linka can feel her shuffling from behind her, but she doesn't move. It's probably nothing…
But she can feel the bed dipping more and more.
Then, she feels Jordan's arm wrapping around her waist, her knees brushing against her calves, her chest pressing against her back.
Her breath on her neck.
Her heart starts racing... Jordan is cuddling with her.
"Wh- what are you doing?" Linka timidly asks, feeling her best friend's warmth against her.
Quietly, coyly, Jordan responds. "Is this okay?"
Linka cautiously turns her head so that she can see Jordan's face. Her sweet, friendly face she'd grown quite fond of. Her gentle face. Her… beautiful face.
It shows a little fear, but something much more desirable. Jordan cares about her. She sees it in those enchanting amber eyes, more so than she's ever recognized before.
This was that something more that made their relationship what it was.
She doesn't know what to call it, and she really doesn't care.
Linka likes it.
"Yeah. You're okay," she answers.
With that, they meet eyes for just a moment, just so that this understanding can be made, almost like a promise to let it last through the night, and to let it seethe into the morning after.
Jordan smiles, and Linka smiles too.
The white haired girl lets her head rest back down easy, and the girl she affectionately calls Girl Jordan decides to do the same. She nuzzles her forehead against the back of Linka's neck, getting comfortable in her considerate embrace before happily shutting her eyes.
Linka takes solace in the wonderfully exciting sensation brewing in her heart, the one Jordan has caused. Even more so, she decides she really likes the way her arm feels wrapped around her waist, and she decides she'd feel even better resting her own arm on top of hers.
All those years away, all the things that changed; it didn't matter now. The only thing that mattered was that Jordan was able to show just how she truly felt, and Linka was able to reciprocate it without fear. This was who they were, and who they were meant to be.
It wasn't going to last forever, and it would never be perfect. There would be a lot more awkweird moments, and there would be even more badly timed jokes to ruin the sweet ones.
But in a way, knowing this brings Linka comfort. There wasn't time to worry about how things could or should be, or the way they used to be.
What matters is the way they are now, and enjoying this for what it was. If she was lucky, she could see it grow.
But seeing as how Jordan decided it was okay to bring her to bed and snuggle with her, now snoring like that cartoon Linka visualized, she was now certain.
She wouldn't trade it for the world.
Okay, real quick. This will be the penultimate chapter. That's a big word for "second to last."
I made more references in this chapter then I think I ever have ever. There are lots of great authors in this fandom, y'all.
And today's not so subtle subtlety involves "Man in the Box" by the GOAT: Alice In Chains.
I just wanna thank all of you for reading and being good little minions. I don't foresee myself doing anymore AN's for this, except maybe an afterword, because… I like to talk a lot. XD
Anyway, thanks a whole huggy bunch, and I hope you enjoy these last two chapters, true believers. Thanks again for making 2017 and 2018 some of the best years of my life.