Once Upon An Enchanted Ball ( A Rise of Red/Glassheart Fanfic)

Chapter 7: Rather Be With You

"Can you guys not make out here while I'm gone. I would rather not traumatise my stuffed animals." Bridget shudders, going through her dresser of clothes. Once again, she's frantic.

Nowadays, Red would be considered a regular visitor of Chloe and Bridgets dorm, usually camping before or after classes to meet up and plan for the Ball. It beat being alone in her room but it didn't help that Bridget was always present while Chloe took a shower or did her morning errands.

"For the last time, Bridget," Red groans, rolling over on Chloe's bed this time around, "Chloe and I were not making out at the pond.". It had been a couple of days since the pond incident and to say Bridget was shocked to see Red and Chloe at such a close proximity was an understatement.

"I saw what I saw," Bridget hums to herself, skimming through her dresser.

"She saved me from drowning in a pond."

"It's two feet deep," Bridget rolls her eyes, "You would've survived a bit of water damage."

"She was just being Chloe. She would've beat herself up if she let me fall."

Bridget paused, turning to face Red with an all-knowing grin. "But she didn't. She held you in her arms, and you enjoyed it."

"Did not, you perv!" Red shot up from the bed, her cheeks flushing an even deeper shade of red.

Bridget laughed, delighted by the reaction she'd provoked. The tint in Red's cheeks and the slight tremor in her voice told Bridget everything she needed to know. Teasing Red had become a guilty pleasure, and watching her squirm was just too entertaining to resist.

"I'm just teasing. Just surprised I was actually right, you guys are getting along. " Bridget continues the search through her drawers as Red is left fuming. Maybe she was being a bit immature but she couldn't help it. Bridget was accusing her of crimes against humanity. Enjoying being held in Chloe's arms? Blasphemous.

"You're impossible," Red sighed, letting herself sink deeper into Chloe's bed. The soft sheets smelled like daisies and enchanted grass, a soothing contrast to the overwhelming floral perfume Bridget had doused herself in that morning.

"And you're soft," Bridget retorted with a teasing grin. Red shot her cousin a look, mouth open to fire back, but the sound of the door creaking open made her words catch in her throat. Chloe had arrived, and the girl always had something to say.

"Could you please stop torturing Red? I'm sure you have other friends to bug, not mine," Chloe chimed in, her voice carrying a mix of amusement and annoyance as she entered the room. The heavy stack of books she was balancing in her arms landed with a soft thud on the nearby desk.

The fact that Chloe had called Red her friend wasn't lost on either of them. Chloe had been referring to Red as a friend for days now, and while Red would never admit it out loud, she had started to feel the same way. It was an odd, unexpected development in their dynamic, but not an unwelcome one.

Red sat up a little straighter, her previous irritation dissolving into something more like curiosity. "You think I'm your friend now?" she asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

Chloe glanced over her shoulder, a small, genuine smile playing on her lips. "Either that or you're one of Bridget's hostages. I guess you're both."

Bridget watched the exchange with a knowing smile, her earlier teasing forgotten. She could sense the subtle shift in the atmosphere, the way Chloe and Red were slowly starting to orbit around each other in a natural and comfortable way. Maybe all the teasing was starting to pay off, or maybe this was just the way things were meant to be.