Sora and Cleo de Nile
Cleo looks among her peers. Everyone is enjoying themselves at the party. Everyone except her.
The mummy had never thought about how many parties until she started attending them alone.
Why is she alone you might ask?
Glancing over, the ghoul sees Deuce dancing with Rochelle. The gorgon had been confused with his feelings towards the gargoyle. But Cleo knew.
The breakup was mutual, but that does not mean it hurts Cleo any less.
Looking around, seeing her ghoulfriends with their dance partners does not make her feel any better.
To avoid any more hurting, the de Nile was about to leave when a certain normie called out to her.
"Hey, Cleo!" Sora walks up to her. "Where you going? The party's in here."
"I don't feel like it," the mummy turns to head to the exit and the normie follows her.
"At least eat something."
"I'm not hungry."
"That can't be true."
"How would you know!?" her stomach rumbles and sends blush to the ghoul's face.
If Sora heard it, he showed no signs of it. "Your parents have been calling around asking if everything's alright. You kept telling them you're fine, but they've noticed that you haven't been eating much."
Cleo looks away. "Nothing tastes right anymore," she admits. Suddenly, a hand grabs hers and the ghoul finds herself being dragged down the hall. "What in the name of Ra are you doing!?"
The spiked haired boy just turns to her with a smile. "To get you something to eat."
.oOo.
They soon find themselves in the Home Ick room and Sora is digging through the cabinets and fridge.
"Here we go!" he starts taking out ingredients and supplies.
Cleo sits at the end of the counter resting her head and elbow on it. "I really don't know why you bother."
"Because you're my friend," the boy simply answers as he starts cutting ingredients. "I don't like it when my friends are sad. You haven't really been the same since…" he stops himself.
"Since Deuce and I broke up," she looks down. "You don't have to watch what you're saying around me as if I were a china doll. We both agreed to it."
Sora briefly glances at the mummy as he starts putting all the ingredients together. "So, what happened anyone? The ghouls only told me that you just showed up for Fear practice and said you two were no longer together."
"Deuce was unsure of his feelings. He just didn't know it," Cleo takes out her iCoffin and brings up a picture of her and her former boofriend. "He had a fondness for Rochelle. She was able to look into his eyes without any worry."
"Makes sense," Sora nods as he begins he adds some spices. "Kinda hard to turn a stone statue into a stone statue."
"Indeed," the mummy smiles before letting it falter. "He didn't know it yet, but Deuce was falling for her. Even if he did realize it, I doubt he would have done anything. One of the things I loved most about him was his loyalty."
The normie is now preparing the dish. "If you loved him, why did you break up?"
"Because," tears start to fall from the ghoul's eyes. "If you truly care for someone, no matter how much it may hurt, you have to be willing to let them go."
Arms soon wraps around the ghoul and Cleo welcomes the embrace. She suddenly doesn't feel as cold anymore.
"It's not easy," Sora breaks away. "Feeling like you lost someone. I've lost friends myself and I've been lost myself," he goes back over to finish his cooking. "I've seen the way you were looking at everyone in the party. How almost everyone having a dance partner but yourself. I guess it makes you feel alone. But because you're alone doesn't mean you have to be lonely," he sets a plate in front of the ghoul. "You may not find another Deuce, but there's still a chance you could find a dance partner," he smiles. "Bon appetite!"
The dish that was before her was a rather small part of what he had prepared. It was rather simple. Cleo picks up a fork before asking, "What is it?"
"Ratatouille."
"Bless you!"
That got a laugh from the boy. "That's what its called. A Ratatouille."
"Kinda sounds Scarisian."
Sora was about to say something but stops to think. "Huh? It kinda does," he tilts his head.
Cleo uses her silverware to take a small piece of the unusual dish. She hesitantly takes a bite, and her eyes widen as soon as it touches her tongue. "Oh. My. Ra!" she quickly finishes the meal and lets out a moan. "That is the most delicious thing I've ever tasted!" the mummy holds here plate to the normie. "May I have some more, please?"
Sora lets out a small laugh. "No problem," he prepares seconds for the ghoul.
"Where on Earth did you learn to cook like this?" she eagerly waits for the next round.
"From a good friend of mine," the boy sets the new plate in front of her, and she readily starts eating it. "Little Chef taught me a lot about how to work in the kitchen. Though, the lessons were kinda involuntary."
"I would love to meet him sometime," Cleo finishes seconds and lets out a sigh. "I haven't eaten anything this good for a while," she looks up at the boy. "Thank you, Sora."
"Don't mention it," he flashes her that goofy contagious smile. "Feeling better?"
Cleo thought for a moment, and she had and honest answer. "I'm not sure yet. But I'm getting there," she smiles and reaches for Sora's hand. "Let's head back to the party."
"You sure?" he asks as the mummy starts leading him out of the room and down the hall.
"No, but I want to be," she smiles. "After all, I might have found a dance partner," she leans against him as they reached the entrance to the party.
End