Raeda Oneshots

sensory overload (hurt/comfort)

A/N : Tw for sensory overload. Also, Autistic!Raine because have you seen them

Raine had been fidgeting all day. They were pretty good at keeping it subtle, but Eda knew them well enough to recognize it. Thankfully, it was almost free period, so Eda could ask what was wrong without drawing attention to the both of them in the middle of class. Not that she would ever do that anyway. She knew about Raine's problems with having too much attention on themself. She just wanted to make sure they were okay.

Class let out, and they both had free period. Their schedules aligned well enough. Eda technically didn't have a bard class but she always sat in anyways. It annoyed the staff but she had escaped detention enough times to where they no longer tried to stop her. "Just let her sit in the other classes" Principal Bump had said "She'll grow out of it"

Eda, of course, would never grow out of it but that didn't really matter at the time.

"Hey!" Eda called as she caught up to Raine in the hall. "Oh, hey Eda" they replied, voice slightly shaky. Eda had seen them freak out enough times and immediately recognized that shakiness. "Hey, Rainestorm" Eda said to get the bard's attention once more, as they had gotten back into that anxious, zoned-out trance they often went into. "Y-Yes, Edalyn?" Raine replied, sounding slightly startled

"You wanna go to our spot?" Eda asked with a small smile of understanding. The "detention track" had a big tunnel full of doors to different places in the school, and Eda would often take the bard there if they seemed anxious or overstimulated. It was their spot. The one place in the school that the two could just hang out in without risking being shouted at by a teacher. Plus, it was quiet and had a lot of dark corners which was great for when Raine got overwhelmed or Eda's curse was acting up.

"S-Sure" Raine replied with a shaky smile. The two snuck off down a hall when no one was paying attention and ran into the detention room. The teacher was asleep, so the two of them crawled into the small entranceway quietly, closing the door behind them.

Eda turned around to see Raine scurrying off to one of the dark corners and gave a small, worried sigh as she followed after them. She eventually found them curled up in a dark corner by one of the trapdoors. "Hey" she said quietly as she sat next to them, noticing that they were still fidgeting with their hands. "What's wrong?" She asked quietly and Raine just looked at her with a nervous expression.

"Don't feel like talking?" Eda asked, and it was a genuine question. There was no sarcasm or malice in her tone. She knew that Raine could go nonverbal if they felt too overwhelmed, so it was routine at this point to ask if that was happening. Raine just nodded shakily in response with a small smile of appreciation. Eda always seemed to remember all the little things. They liked that about her.

"Well, that's alright" Eda replied, unbothered. "Is it okay if I put an arm around you?" she asked. Raine nodded in confirmation, so the ginger gently put her arm over the bard's back, chuckling slightly as she felt them lean into the touch slightly. It was these quiet moments with Raine where Eda truly felt at peace with the world. It was just the two of them, and nothing could take that away.

"You're shaking" Eda pointed out as she gently reached out to hold their hand. Raine shakily accepted it and chuckled slightly at the comment. Eda was right. They were shaking. They had somehow not noticed until she had pointed it out. "You're okay" Eda said quietly. Raine was appreciative of the small comforts, though was also growing frustrated at the same time.

They silently took their other hand and tapped Eda three times, a signal that they just needed quiet. They had a whole little system for times like these, that way Raine could communicate without forcing themself to talk, as that could be extremely difficult and stressful for them when they were already in a distressed state. "Right" Eda replied quietly "I'll shut up now"

Raine playfully elbowed the girl, gaining a small chuckle in response. With the quiet, the darkness, and the warmth of the girl they were curled up against, Raine was able to get through the overstimulation. Eda was also at peace, just thinking about school and enjoying the constant tapping that Raine was performing on her hand. She knew it was just one of Raine's stims, but she couldn't help but feel like it was some sort of sign of their closeness.

Peace had returned to the universe, even if for only a short time.