solarhippie | Voicemail

Karolina was smiling like a smitten idiot at the photo, no lie. It took her a moment to even text back.

Because 6 didn't like Stephanie.

Why she thought Six spelled her name with just the number, even she couldn't explain. It had just felt like it? Everything about her had just been so... well-crafted? Like she wasn't entirely a person, but a concept.

Anyway.

Not like I like you.

You know, Beau was used to getting the wind knocked out of her. Enjoyed it, even, because few things got her adrenaline going like a good fight. That was basically how she felt right now: not so much with the blood and inevitable bruises, but the exact same high and pleasantly breathless feeling, otherwise.

So Karolina wasn't the only one looking at her phone and just grinning like a giant dork.

I don't think Stephanie disliked her? But she wasn't thinking about kissing her basically all the time either.

Which was . . . as close as she got to comfortably expressing her feelings, but she was trying.

I think she looked pretty kissable.

But that was easy to say, because she had the same face. Just with makeup that was waaay less bold. Also it was mostly a joke.

Wait, are you saying you think about kissing me all the time?

No, she'd definitely got that the first time. It just made her chest feel fluttery to repeat it.

Maybe. She kind of reminded me of people I couldn't stand though, so not the same. Like at all.

That had really bugged her, to be honest.

And yeah, I do. Among other things. You kind of take up a lot of room in my brain lately.

The upside of text messages: that couldn't come out sounding like an inadvertent complaint. Which it so definitely wasn't.

The downside was that Karolina couldn't see the way Beau was grinning while she typed that.

No, but Karolina could feel her own grin getting wider, and while that wasn't as good, it was still something.

Yeah? Hard same.

She was very much a product of her environment, sometimes.

I mean, you do too. In my brain.

Just your brain? Beauregard, behave.

Sure you don't want to come over and make sure I'm really me? There was still time to reconsider whether you really wanted to be stuck with this, Karolina.

Idk my bed is reaaaally comfy.

That was followed up with another semi-sleepy selfie. You could definitely tell how comfy a bed it was. Look how content she looked!

Yeah, the next incoming message was an answering semi-sleepy selfie, only this time Beau had managed to capture the honestly kind of super schmoopy (well, for her) look on her face when she'd seen the one Karolina sent.

Look at all this smiling you made her do, Karolina. Her face wasn't used to all that.

It is pretty comfy. I could come over there instead.

She'd still have to get up to let you in, Beau. Come on now.

Karolina was saving that one. Well, obviously, she was saving all of Beau's photos but she was extra saving that one.

But, the door...

That was as close as she could get to a whine in writing. Because of course she would realize she'd still have to drag herself away from the supreme comfort of her bed to get the door.

Beau could pretty much imagine the whine when she read the text. She'd spent enough time around Karolina by now.

I could go up the side of the building and come in the window instead?

. . . seriously, Beauregard? Seriously?

Okay that's waaaaaaaaaaay too dangerous, Beau.

All those As were called for. Because, no.

It'll be totally fine!!!!!!!!!!!!! Beau would argue that all the exclamation points were just as called for. I've had a whole Kar-snuggles deprivation situation going on here for days now. It's getting dire.

That was unnecessarily dramatic, Beau. Also possibly the mushiest thing you had ever said in your life.

Are you going to give me a Look if I try and convince you I can do it?

You couldn't distract Karolina with your mushiness, Beau! At least not much.

Okay, at least enough for her to okay the idea.

Suuuch a Look. You can't fly so there's nothing to help you if you fall!

Unlike some people.

Way too dangerous. Maybe you just have to wait for your snuggle fix. And everything else.

Beau just sent her a sad, puppy-eyed selfie back. Or that was the intent, but it had a touch of looking slightly like she was uncomfortable and a little cranky about it, which probably muted the impact somewhat.

Okay, fiiiiiiine. But only because I like you that much.

Really, any other time she might have gone ahead and tried to climb the building anyway. Go figure, dating Karolina might have more success at teaching Beau to be at least a little bit patient than the monks had in all those months of trying and failing.

Aww, and now Karolina felt vaguely bad about... not signing off on dangerous stunts. It was a perfectly reasonable thing to feel bad about with her background, okay!

But we can tooootally see each other later today! You know, once this bed stops feeling like a magnet.

For as short as the next text message was, there was a good minute or so of the little on-screen indicator that Beau was still typing.

Yes. Please. I missed you.

Being that up front about her feelings (and asking politely, to be honest) was hard, you know?

Karolina was starting to learn that about her, yes.

I'll order lunch to your place? We can have a lunch date.

That'd probably stretch into a dinner date and whatever.

It at least counted for something that she was trying, didn't it?

Sounds dope. Let's do it.

Today was probably not going to be the day that it occurred to them that they didn't have to be all over each other all the time.

Probably not. But the weekend counted as an extenuating circumstance, anyway!

See you then, babe. <3

No, today was probably for clinging.

So much clinging. More than Beau would admit to, really, but the memory of Six walking away while looking so much like Karolina had managed to poke her squarely in her insecurities.

Guess I'll get my workout in before then. Kinda can't wait.

And in the meantime, Karolina would have at least one mid-pushup selfie coming to her.

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