Ass You Wish : Building Our Own Families — Ch. 04
“It’s not. Take a closer look at them.” They said as they reached out, grabbing the one with the tag attached. They began to wrap it around their wrist. “When I got you your collar, I wanted it to be something we could both keep with us. No matter how distant we’d have gotten from one another; no matter if we were on opposite ends of the country.” Ophelia had now noticed the clasps and holes in the one she still held. Closing her hand with it inside, she looked back over to Azuryn; specifically their wrist. “So I got two matching smaller collars and did a little arts and crafts with them.” They said as they finished buckling the modified collar around their wrist. “You never got to have your half. You never gave me a right time to talk about it.” Ophelia opened her hand. She looked at her matching piece and without thinking began to wrap, then buckle, it around her wrist.
“That’s because there’s no such thing as ‘a right time to talk,’ Ryn.” It was a weird feeling; having the fiber touch her skin after so long. Even though she’d never worn it around her wrist before, and rarely around her neck for that matter, it still felt like it had finally found its home
“I know that now, Lia. I’ve spent too much time waiting for the right moments, when I should’ve been making the moment right. I learned that a while ago. It’s still hard to grab ahold of each one; you gotta seize the moments.”
“More like you gotta seize the means of making the moments, am I right?” She laughed both with and at herself. All Azuryn could do was roll their eyes. Her sense of humor was almost as bad as theirs was. And yet no matter how many eye rolls ensued, it never failed to make them smile; even after so long: no matter what happened, no matter what will happen. As she closed the clasp around her wrist, she could’ve sworn she’d felt a jolt of energy surge through her arm and dissipate in her very core. At best, she’d have describe it as electrifying, except that it was nowhere near shocking. Turning her wrist over to see how her collar looked on her, she knew that it was in its proper place. ‘As it should be,’ she thought to herself; although she couldn’t tell if the thought was going in or coming out of her. After a split second though, she realized she didn’t mind; after all, she knew it was the natural state of her thoughts. Slipping in and out of her active awareness; and at times, not of her own volition. She felt the blush on her face deepen; not only that, but it felt as if it was flushing further across and down her body.
In the silence, the two of them continued to look their halves over. Azuryn rose their arm so as an excuse to steal glances at Ophelia; which she had to try hard to keep herself from returning with a smile. They both looked ridiculous; the pink strap coming off comically as it clashed strikingly with their attires. Azuryn’s black tie probably went better with the wristband than the rest of their dark blue, velvet suit did. And one would think that the pink strap would have at least looked somewhat coordinated with Ophelia’s scarlet dress, but the deep red was as just offset as the other outfit. Which wasn’t lost on either of them, as they had burst into laughter at the same time, seemingly without any cue.
“Wow! We look ridiculous, don’t we?” Azuryn attempted to say in between fits of giggling.
“Yeah, but then again, when have we ever not looked ridiculous while together?” Ophelia retorted in between snorts and gasps of air. She’d meant it in endearment, and hoped they’d still be able to see through the snide while laughing over it.
“I don’t know, but I love it!” Azuryn exclaimed as their laughter grew louder and heavier; its pitch progressing till it was practically primal.
“And I love you!” Ophelia blurted out in one of her almost asthmatic exhales.
The silence was abrupt; a déjà vu of awkwardness?