Two Hearts || Sydney x Dina

Two Hearts

Dina looked so beautiful, so goddamn beautiful.

The way she smiled at Syd made her feel as though she was going to collapse onto the hall's linoleum floor and never get back up again. The rose-pink dress flowed down to her calves, its colour matching the flushed tint on both their cheeks, brushing against Sydney's hand as it itched to hold Dina's. They both padded through the gym's doors, and Sydney's heart threatened to jump through her chest.

She could feel non-existent gazes drawn to the both of them, shivering slightly under the inferiority. But it seemed that when Dina looked to her, the auditorium would start spinning just a little bit more, and the people around them would just disappear. And then it was just Syd and Dina. Alone; alone together.

The smiles displayed on each of their faces were brighter than all of the hanging fairy lights combined. Sydney thought she'd never smiled just as much as she had at that moment.

But then she looked around, seen all the people around them, seeing their own smiles, thinking about the looks of disgust which were probably behind their facades. Then she had seen Stan, with his date, who wasn't even keeping a mask over her contempt.

Stan, god, he made her feel so guilty. He had been so nice to her since everything that had happened. From that day in the bowling alley, to everything which happened in the fucking library. Guilt had started gnawing away at her.

She separated, unwillingly, from Dina's side, offering her a sheepish grin, making her way up to the bleachers. She plopped herself in the empty spot beside Stan, nudging him with her shoulder.

"I thought you weren't coming?" He turned his head, away from Syd, looking out to the dancefloor.

"Me neither," she said, looking to him, hoping for him to catch onto her smug grin; yet he continued looking onwards.

She felt as though she was the one carrying the conversation, and, for once, she actually wanted it to continue. She wouldn't stop trying to make him talk until he smiled back, until they could go back to being friends.

She wished that she could return his feelings, truly. She wished that she could grin back at him with something more than mere friendship. But her eyes scanned the open hall and her gaze fell on Dina again. The halo above her head seemed to stand out against anyone else, and she knew, it was always going to be her.

"I'm here with Dina." She couldn't hold back as the edges of her lips curled upwards, and she couldn't help but laugh as Stan cocked his head and raised his eyebrows at her. They were going to be okay.

Hands entwined, they made their way over to Dina, who's uncomfortable expression immediately turned into a grin at the two of them.

And that stung. In all honesty it stung more than seeing Stan's heartbreak painted so clearly on his face. 

It stung because she really didn't deserve that smile.

Even when Dina and Brad were together, she always had that smile reserved solely for Syd. One where her eyes lit up in an instant, trained just on her, curling the edges of her lips upwards.

She didn't deserve that smile because she could still remember that look of pure shock painted upon Dina's face that night, the way the both of them had jumped up and out of that bed, just staring at each other, eyes laced with confusion. The sounds of joy division making their way to her ears, drowning out the persistent ringing she could hear.

She could still feel the tingles of Dina's soft breath across her neck, the way their hands curled together. She could still feel the ghost of her lips pressed on hers.