Puppets in Uniform ~~ An Apply Fic

𝕃𝕚𝕒𝕟𝕒

There are times when sudden realizations- like that someone is in love with you- are so joyful and so surprising at the same time that it's difficult to know just what to do.

In my case, the idea or the truth- that Andy loved me romantically even with all our problems and fights, made my knees buckle and my heart race. It was almost like a panic attack!

It was at that moment, I remembered our shouting match, she had been right. I wasn't trying to or even choosing to get better. I noticed how irritated I was making her and I still chose to flirt with her, even when I had told her I didn't know how to love her I still lead her on...

"Hey Lia?" Someone called out, their voice echoing against the walls. It was singsongy and an accent tainted it slightly. What kind of accent was that?

"I'm over here!" I replied, walking out of the corner Zay and I had gone to. This was my free period before 7th period.

Andy smiled at me warmly, running over and giving me a hug.

"I'm so sorry for shouting at you earlier! I was being mean and it wasn't right of me to say those things." She apologized, but for some reason I focused more on the smell of snow that covered her. "Lia? Oh shit! Sorry, I didn't mean to hug you without asking!" Andy exclaimed, about to pull away. I held onto her, nuzzling a little into her neck. She stiffened at the affection.

"It's okay. I'm sorry I was acting the way I was. You were right." I admitted somewhat nervous of what she would say.

"I was... but I also taking out my frustrations and bad feelings on you. That wasn't okay of me to do and I'm sorry too." Andy apologized, pulling out of the hug with a slightly red face.

My arms had goosebumps from where she had touched me. Oh my god...

"Well, do you wanna head to the dining hall?" I asked, letting go of her waist. She nodded with a smile, tugging on her hair.

"Yeah I want to eat something." Andy yawned, looking over at me before winking. She giggled as heat covered over my face, looking away with a hand covering her smile.

~~~

Anya was smiling while Andy was rambling about something excitedly. She had sugar stuck to the top of her lip from the donut she was munching on.

Someone nudged me, Val then grinned, humor glittered in her hazel eyes. She leaned over, propping herself up on her elbows.

"Staring at someone in particular?" Val asked, looking over at the two. I shrugged, picking at my pasta with a fork. The other two were giggling at something.

"Nah what about you?" I replied, noticing how she was staring at something. Or was it someone?

"Nope!" Val popped the 'p' smiling at me. "I'm happy with Kylie." She added, finishing the rest of her cauliflower. I smiled and nodded, the bell rang and the dining hall descended into chaos.

~~~

We were all quietly studying in the dorm, Zay was off with one of her friends, Val had taken Anya off to the cat cafe so they could catch up from Winter break. It left me and Andy alone.

"I don't think they know we made up." She snorted, still scribbling away at something for Art class. Her pile of books and homework had slowly shifted from the left "start" pile to the "finish" right side pile.

"I may have to agree with you. We all know Zay doesn't have any friends!" I joked, partially to see if I could hear a loud scoff from behind the door. Instead Andy wheezed, throwing herself back onto her bed.

"That's mean!" She giggled, turning over to look at me. Her hair had gotten longer since I had seen her, her bangs were becoming curtain bangs!

"Maybe I just have a mean personality." I shrugged, looking back to my French homework with a small shrug. I could hear blankets rustling, and then a floorboard creek.

Andy landed on top of me with a thump, making my stomach lurch slightly.

"You don't have a mean personality. We're just mentally ill!" She grinned, joking about it but the hint of sincerity in her eyes saying even more. Her hair was tickling my stomach. She gave me a fist bump, making sure I actually reciprocated the first bump.

My phone vibrated on the bed, making Andy's head perk up like a dog. A very excited dog. Dad's contact name was on it, making her stiffen before sighing.

"I'm going to take this..." I mumbled, swiping my phone off the bed and leaving the dorm for the rose gardens. Andy gave me a thumbs up, smiling somewhat emptily.