Sacrifice

Chapter Twelve

~Friday afternoon~

Crybaby had been home from school for about an hour and a half now. It was almost half past four. Things with Angelita were somewhat going well; they had worked up to hugging hello and goodbye, and Angelita seemed more in love every time she spent time with Crybaby. For the past three days, they made sure to remind one another of their upcoming plans. It was almost time. Crybaby opened up the doors of her wardrobe and browsed through her clothing. She found a soft, plain purple shirt with long sleeves and layered ruffles at the end of each. It was slightly long at the bottom where it was ruffled as well, like a short dress. She decided she would wear that and black leggings, paired with white socks and of course, Mary Jane shoes. She went into her bathroom to brush her hair and spray some perfume on before she left. Once she was done getting ready, the time was 4:41. Her mother was asleep. Crybaby knew her mother wouldn't care that she was leaving, so she carefully snuck out the house without making much noise. She exhaled and smiled to herself after quietly shutting the door.

~5:01~

Crybaby entered the plaza at almost the perfect time. She sat down on the short circular wall that surrounded the fountain water and looked around for Angelita. She couldn't find her, so she waited and played with the water. She ran her finger through it, then two fingers, then all of them, and soon her whole hand as she tried not to wet her sleeve. She appreciated the cool water on a warm, late afternoon. "Crybaby!" She heard a voice shout from a distance. She looked up and scanned the area, finding that Angelita was already running up to her. "Hi!" Crybaby said in excitement as she stood up to hug her.

"Hey," Angelita responded out of breath. It was clear that she was running for a bit. Crybaby pulled back from the hug and kept one hand on Angelita's shoulder and gently waved her wet hand in the air to dry.

"Your outfit is cute," Angelita complimented after she caught her breath.

"Thanks. You're cuter," Crybaby giggled. Angelita felt a familiar urge just to squeeze Crybaby's face. "So... Where are we going?" Angelita asked.

Crybaby shrugged, "My main plan was to just walk around, hold hands, talk about everything under the fucking sun," She explained. Angelita laughed, "Sounds like fun." She took Crybaby's hand in hers and they began making their way through the plaza happily.

~Half an hour later~

As always, the two were having a great conversation. Angelita had requested Crybaby to re-tell the story of her first love and how it ended.

"...So, I tell him, like, 'It's the same shit over and over again. I can't be with you forever if I'm the only one taking it seriously,' I just-" Crybaby stuttered as she made hand movements. Angelita laughed, "And then you basically told him to go fuck himself."

"Pretty much. He shouldn't get to think he's better than me. It's a relationship, not a competition."

"God, I hate love sometimes," Angelita sighed. Crybaby looked at her concerned, "What? What do you mean?"

"Love is just so... dangerous. It takes over you and you end up in situations you don't want to be in. It turns you into an idiot. And most of the time you get hurt in the end, anyway," Angelita ranted.

"Since when have you had this mindset about love?" Crybaby questioned.

"For a while now..."

Crybaby stopped walking and turned to her, "How long?"

Angelita looked away from her. "Since sometime when were in K-12," She answered without thinking.

"And what made you feel this way?"

Angelita got chills. This was it. Uphill or downhill from here. She inhaled sharply, "I don't know what caused it. Maybe it was seeing you on that stage surrounded by fake people acting like they loved you even though they couldn't care less about you," She started. Crybaby listened silently, trying to ignore the inner voice of Celeste reminding her of the risk she had taken.

"I realized again how lucky I am to have someone like you in my life. You're the most genuine, beautiful person I've ever met. You're everything to me... And I just can't help but think of you as more than a friend."

Crybaby felt the air pull from her lungs. She stared at her best friend breathlessly.

Angelita was overtaken in her feelings. They were out in the open now; she was heard. She knew was understood. And she felt oddly safe. She let out a deep breath and looked Crybaby in the eyes. As both of them stood there in silence, Angelita put her hand on Crybaby's upper arm and moved closer to her, "Is this okay?"

Crybaby nodded, hoping to see what would come of this. Angelita softly smiled and leaned in, presumably to kiss her.

"Wait," Crybaby exhaled. She was still so far behind, in so much disbelief. Angelita let go of Crybaby's arm, "Is something wrong?"

"So, you have had feelings for me. All this time. Why didn't you tell me?" Crybaby asked sympathetically.

"Because I was scared. Terrified. But lately, I guess I haven't been so afraid. You've been acting like you felt the same way..." Angelita paused and looked at Crybaby for a moment, "I guess that's why I felt comfortable enough to, uh... Try that, just now..." She trailed off in a mutter.

Crybaby looked down and took a few seconds to think. She'd acted too fast and now Angelita had the wrong impression. Celeste's voice was nagging Crybaby in her head, but she knew she could still make things right.

For now, she needed to keep playing along for Angelita's sake. It would be wrong to shoot her down right then as she confessed.

So, Crybaby sighed and looked back up at her with a sympathetic smile. It was a quick and hard decision to make, but she decided to make a sacrifice for Angelita. She leaned in first and then Angelita leaned in, and their lips were brought together for a few seconds.