There was something so comforting about Xavier, something about his presence that was deeply soothing to Daiane. So, this accidental distance between the two of them had been very noticeable, at least to her, and she was really, truly glad to have run into him at this carnival. “It definitely has been way too long,” she agreed. “Let’s never do that again.”
“You won? Hey Mr. Soccer Star, congrats!” She linked her arm through his, beginning to walk with him through the carnival, though she had no particular destination in mind. “Starting the season with a win is the best feeling, and I think it’s a good omen.” Yes, she did speak with experience, as she had played a little soccer back in her (little kid) days. Of course, nothing to Xavier’s current level, but enough to know a few things about the sport. “Not trying to jinx you or anything but it feels like it’s gonna be a winning season for you guys—let me know when your next game is coming up, I’ll come watch and cheer, bring one of those large, embarrasing, brightly-coloured signs.” Dai flashed a good-natured grin his way. “The MOST adoring of fans. Just a step down from the “sign my boobs” type of fan, which—I love you Xay, but thanks no thanks,” she added with a laugh.
“I’ve been… good. I, um…” Her sentence trailed off as she paused, chewing on the inside of her cheek for a moment. Daiane’s gaze returned to Xavier, her voice dropping a few decibels as she spoke again. “You remember Embry, my ex? … got back with her again, yeah. But we’re keeping it quiet for now because, well, her parents are not a fan of me, to say the least.” She laughed, but it was devoid of its usual mirth—it really bothered her to know how far their relationship had fallen, especially as she was usually so good with parents. “But I don’t know, I’m hoping it’s just a time thing—that I just have to wait for them to, to like me again or something again because the hiding and secrets, it’s not very fun.” It’s not like you have anyone else to blame, though, she thought, the words leaving a stain in her conscious. The smile she then pulled across her lips eclipsed the stain, a temporary block to the sour note of the truth. “I’ve been good though! Really great.” The ride closest to them was a ferris wheel, and wanting a distraction, Daiane pulled him towards it, pointing up at it. “Hey, want to check that out?”
She hadn’t entirely waited for an answer, and so unsurprisingly, now they stood in the line for the famed Ferris wheel. They hadn’t been standing there for very long at all when the sensation of being watched sent a prickle across the back of her neck. Dai instinctively looked up, eyes flitting around the surrounding people for a few brief moments before they landed on the obvious starer, Hera.
It had been awhile since she had properly thought about Hera, but gosh was she thinking about them now, memories she’d thought she’d forgotten floating up the surface: their first kiss, the mark of tears still on her cheeks when Hera’s soft lips met hers, a previously emotional moment turned emotion-full and warm; her brief streak of (relative) rebellion as she fell deeper, love fuelling more outbursts and class skips; the way Hera held her as she fell apart.
Daiane looked away sharply, suddenly blinking away tears, her mind back in the slow moment of devastating clarity as it had been in when she realized Hera was breaking up with her. However, the devastation wasn’t in being broken up with, as one would expect, rather, in the unopposition she felt towards the breakup. Heavy, ocean-deep sadness she had expected, hot, burning anger too—all her imagined emotions were fighting ones, so unlike this resignation that instead settled over her. Like she wanted to stop fighting. Yet it was never a lack of love—she loved them too much, maybe—rather, that love wasn’t enough. Dai had never understood it when people said that, but then finally, finally she got it. It went deeper than just love, it was a core difference, a wrong place wrong time sort of thing. The breakup had been a long time coming, really, but maybe they both hadn’t wanted to see it until it was impossible to ignore. It turned out, though, that a breakup didn’t necessarily end the feelings experienced within the relationship.
She moved to whisper to Xavier that Hera was here, maybe looking to grab him and bolt from the ride line, but then he was getting on the ride with someone who was decidedly not her, and so she was alone with Hera. Her heart was beating a mile a minute, but she did her best not to show it, a polite smile on her face as they sat next to her.
“Hera. Hi.” Daiane looked up at her ex, taking in her beautiful, bald head with a light smile dusting her lips. “Your head—it’s different. Good different. It looks good on you,” she said softly, before she looked away again, out the window, watching the ground get farther and farther away. The hair—well, lack thereof—wasn’t really a new thing, she knew, but it felt like it was, to her. She remembered how, at the beginning, she’d find endless reasons to play with their hair, twisting strand over strand and pulling them into careful braids, just because she liked the feeling of her fingers in their hair. It almost felt like a loss—which was irrational, she knew, but since when were her feelings ever rational?
“I love ferris wheels,” she said almost immediately, choosing a topic that would be the easiest and least confrontational. “I love being up so high, and it’s not something like a roller coaster, which practically rips my heart out of my chest.”
@raviola - Hera
@/Caticorn - Xavier, Bry mentioned