Frey gazed out the window, caught up in a haze of confusion and a strange wanting for something.
It had been three weeks since the incident between her and Dolce, and some how Dolce had been able to avoid her at every turn.
Was it something I did?
Frey sighed, perching her head on her knuckles as she stared outside. By the Divine Winds, the weather was as gloomy as she was. Since winter had begun, the town of Selphia had been covered in a blanket of snow. Usually, Selphia had been lucky enough to have clear skies, making the snow have a shine to it, like a jewel.
But no, the sky just had to be cloudy, like her mood.
Frey slowly got up, rubbing sleep out of her eyes. Once again, she had gone back to tending the farm, which settled her worries. But sometimes, she couldn't help but think about Dolce. What she might think of her today.
Was it just a kiss?
Her thoughts were suddenly punctured by a knock on the door. She jumped, quickly scrambling to organize everything.
"Come in!" she called. The door creaked open as Margaret, elvish maiden and Frey's best friend, entered the room. "Oh...Meg! Hey."
"Morning, Frey." Margaret replied, her familiar cheery demeanor less present than usual. "Dreadful weather, huh?"
"Yeah…" Frey grinned sadly. "Is there something you want, Meg?"
"Not really. Just came to check on you." Margaret smiled pleasantly, sitting down by Frey. "People are sort of concerned about you, you know." She frowned slightly. "People say you haven't been getting a lot of sleep." Frey immediately felt a surge of guilt course through her. How could she have been so careless as to not tell Margaret, one of her closest friends?
"Meg, I'm sorry…"
"It's fine! Don't worry." Margaret laughed light-heartedly, ruffling Frey's hair. "We all know that you've been working hard on that farm. Must be hard, huh? I'm rooting for you." She grinned slightly. "You know who's been the most worried?" Frey shook her head, causing Margaret to sigh and shake her head. "You're clueless, aren't you? It's Dolce!"
"Dolce?" Frey repeated, feeling her heart skip a beat.
"Obviously! You two have gotten really close, so it's no wonder that she's worried. I think it's because she finally found another person that she can rely on." Margaret gave her a strange look. "You're sure that you didn't know?"
"Yeah." Frey sighed, pressing her forehead against the window. Hadn't Dolce been avoiding her? Would that truly mean that she would be able to speak with her again? After all, she had quite a lot of things to say…
Frey turned back around to face Margaret. "Thanks, Meg. Um...you visiting me means a lot." Margaret grinned whole-heartedly.
"Sure. Ooh, you know, that reminds me..." Meg smirked a little. Frey had a feeling that she was withholding information. "Vishnal's been really concerned too. You really should've seen him yesterday. I brought it up, and he started getting all red in the face! It was adorable!" She leaned forward excitedly. "I think he has a crush on you." Frey froze, unable to comprehend.
"Huh?" she asked blankly. "Me?" Margaret sighed impatiently.
"Yes, you! Again, you should've seen him. I asked, and he started getting all jittery." Frey clenched her hand and bit down on her fist, in case of saying anything stupid. How could this news come flying at her so suddenly? More importantly, how long had Vishnal taken a liking to her.
"W-well...we don't know unless I ask, right?" Frey replied, trying to grab at any logical threads. Margaret leaned forward, her expression disappointed.
"Right. I mean...it's kind of sad, isn't it? It's against the butler code for a servant to be in a relationship with their Master, right? That would mean Vishnal either has to let it go, or quit being a butler. We all know how passionate he is about his job, though."
"I'm stopping him." Frey said suddenly, feeling nothing less than awful about herself. "I'm an anchor holding him down." Margaret shook her head, her eyes wide.
"No, no! Frey, don't say that! Vishnal can't control who he likes. And besides, you're gonna ask him, right?" She paused, tilting her head. "Frey...are you blushing?"
"What?" Frey lifted her hand to feel her cheek, feeling a strong warmth. "Oh. Um...yeah. I guess I am." She said, trying not to give away the surprise in her voice. She had always thought of Vishnal as a friend, so why had she become so flustered?
More precisely, why did she have this exact same feeling when she thought about Dolce, too?
Margaret stood up, stretching slowly. "That's all, really." She grinned. "You should talk to him, though. Maybe I'll write a ballad about you two."
"No thank you." Frey replied quickly, shoving Margaret and causing both of them to erupt into a fit of laughter. Frey suddenly realized how at home she felt, talking to Meg casually again. She didn't want to let the moment go.
"Aww, you're the sweetest." Margaret quickly moved in to hug her. "Take care, okay? We'll talk later." Frey waved after her as she exited and headed out the door, taking a deep breath as she left.
I'll talk to him, Meg. Don't worry...but there's something that I have to take care of first.
Slipping on a jacket and a worn scarf, Frey braced herself against the harsh winds as she walked outside, heading toward the clinic. Once Frey had made the short trip, she looked up at the destination before her, a snow-covered cottage turned clinic. She knocked on the door, waiting a couple of minutes before the door swung open in response. Standing in the doorway was none other than Dolce herself.
Dolce's eyes widened as she saw Frey standing there. "Frey…?" She rubbed her eyes. "What...are you doing here?"
"I came to see you. Can I come in?" Frey asked cautiously, swallowing the oncoming barrage of words. Dolce slowly nodded, a look of shock on her face.
"Yeah...um, yeah. Make yourself at home." Frey walked in, closing the door behind her as Dolce busied herself at the kitchen. "Nancy and Jones are away on a business trip. It's just me and Pico." Frey nodded, only then noticing that the ghost girl was absent. "Hope you don't mind."
"No…" Frey trailed off, stealing a glance at Dolce from behind. She couldn't help but notice how unbearingly clingy her camisole was, or how her rose-colored hair looked slightly tousled. In fact, it looked as though she had been asleep before Frey knocked on the door. It occurred to Frey that she hadn't seen Dolce with this little amount of clothes before on, being that she was always covered up. Or seeing her bare legs. Or her curves…
Frey blushed and quickly turned away, hoping that Dolce hadn't caught her staring.
"How do you like your tea?"
"Huh? Oh, um…" Frey looked down at her hands. "If you have any fruit…" Dolce nodded, fixing two cups and sitting down across from Frey. Frey nodded in thanks, quickly taking her cup.
"What did you come to talk to me for?" Dolce asked, her voice sounding...somewhat small. Not what Frey had expected.
"I heard that you were worried about me." Dolce looked up in surprise, but nodded just a tiny bit. "I was thinking...maybe you were ignoring me. Did I do something wrong?"
"Huh?! Oh...no, of course not!" Dolce sat up quickly. "Sorry. You must think I'm daft. I just...I thought you might be upset with me."
"Wait, what? Why would I be upset with you?" Dolce shook her head slowly, looking down at her hands guiltily. Frey looked at her, suddenly realizing why. "Dolce, do you think that I'm upset because I kissed you?" Dolce flinched, shrinking away like a violet.
"I violated you." she whispered. Frey leaned forward.
"No…" She smiled softly, feeling relieved. "You didn't...violate me, Dolce." Before even thinking, she said, "I kind of liked it." Dolce's head whipped up to stare at her. Now it was her turn to be surprised.
"You…" She fell silent. Frey didn't know what had caused her to say it. Maybe it was the lust earlier on that had spurred her on. Or the intentionally made small space between them. She could see every feature of Dolce's frame from here…
"I want more of it." Frey blurted out suddenly. "I'm sorry to have worried you." Without warning, she shot forward, pressing her lip against Dolce's. She quickly wrapped her arms around her for extra measure. Frey felt her go limp in her arms. She reached over and clutched the back of her head, losing herself briefly. Dolce's lips weren't just something to kiss...they were to be savored and remembered. They were soft and alive, and so much better than Frey imagined them to be. Before going deeper, to places more personal and sensitive, she quickly pulled away. Dolce was blushing a deep rose red, her mouth slightly open as she stared at Frey. Frey fought the urge to smile.
I caused that reaction…
"That's all." Frey said abruptly, reaching for her jacket and scarf. "Sorry to drop by so suddenly. I'll take off." She opened the doorway.
"W-wait a minute!" Dolce broke out of her trance, racing over to her. "We're going to talk again, right?" Frey let out the smile she had been fighting to hold back.
"You bet. Let's make it an important meeting." Frey replied as she walked outside and waved goodbye, heading down the street for a walk.
That was all she needed.