Darkstache Mini-Stories

Story Sixteen

Hey whores, I'm here to destroy your heart with a one-word prompt! The word was "practice", given to me by my lovely friend Codi. There's nothing triggering this chapter, but it is pretty heart-wrenching. Enjoy the gay!
Everywhere they went, Dark heard the phrase. "Practice makes perfect!" Spoken with a cheery tone, as if one single phrase could cure every hint of doubt in someone's mind. One single phrase. It could be used with everything - art, cooking, singing, speaking, writing, listening - Everything. Except for love.
Because how on earth would you "practice" loving someone? You can't. Love isn't something that can be learned, it's not something that you can handle alone, you have to understand love in order to truly feel it. Because love isn't a hobby, it's a feeling.
It was a feeling that they had never experienced. Of course, they thought they were in love, they had felt a draw to a certain galling demon...But that wasn't love, that was just a gaggle of emotions that didn't teach them anything, that didn't make them happy.
They didn't know what love was, the word tasted sour in their mouth, the thought made their mind split and their defenses raise, the feeling burned in their throat. The idea was wrong. Simply, completely, totally, utterly wrong. An all powerful demon, falling in love? It was a laughable idea.
At least, that's what they thought, until one fateful day.
The rain pattered against the windows in a soothing rhythm, quickly, but calmly. It was a cold night, cold and rainy, the type of weather that forced you to stay inside. Dark was sitting on their couch, staring at the darling that lay asleep on their shoulder, wearing a bright and peaceful expression.
They had done everything they could to look away, listening to the rain, staring into the fireplace, watching the garbage programs on their television...But they couldn't keep their eyes off of him. No matter how hard they tried, he was all they could think about.
Wilford Motherloving Warfstache.
It was the name he had chosen, a name that rolled off his tongue with ease, as if this was always who he was met to be. He seemed happy like this. He was happy. They could tell by that adorable smile he always wore - the corners of his lips would tilt up, barely visible under his bright pink mustache, and then he would grin this bright, ecstatic grin, showing his perfection to the world.
He was smiling now, resting on their shoulder with his cheeks shaded a rosy pink, his eyes closed in content, and his breathing slowed to a comfortable tempo. He was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. Not just because he was attractive, but because he had this glow around him, a bright pink glow that seemed to fill every room with a pop of color.
They gently brushed his curls away from his face, not only because they assumed it was uncomfortable, but because they wanted to see him clearly. His lips looked so soft and inviting, and Dark couldn't help but run their thumb over them. They were perfectly soft and warm, like a rose petal on a summer afternoon.
The feeling made them pull away, as if it was impossible for someone to be made so perfectly. But Wil whined in protest, clearly upset with the fact that he was being disturbed, so they slowly moved towards him again. After a moment, they raised their hand to gently cradle his cheek, and that was when they felt it.
There was a warm feeling through their body, like his skin had given them static shock, and they felt their face flare up with an incredible heat. Were they blushing? What on earth could make them do something so...Human? Their eyes gazed over his face, searching for answers, begging to know what this feeling was.
His lips looked so inviting, and his skin was soft to the touch...
Before they knew what they were doing, Wil opened his eyes. He didn't seem startled, he simply giggled softly, a bubbly sound that made Dark want to cry, scream, and smile all at once.
"Well, Darki, at least take me on a date first."
His sleepy voice pulled them out of their daze, and they finally pulled away, realizing that their lips were only inches from his. Their face was painted a deep grey, and they fumbled on the couch, as if they were shocked to hear him speak at all.
"Whoa, whoa! I was only joking, hey, it's okay!"
They cleared their throat when they heard him speak again, turning to sit up straight, poised, as if nothing had happened.
"Go back to bed, Wil. You just had something on your face, I didn't mean to wake you."
The words were spoken softly, and anyone could tell that the demon was nervous for the others' response. They were lying through their teeth, obviously, but they knew it didn't take much for Wilford to believe them.
"Really? Oh, well thank you for helping then..."
He believed them, they knew because he wiped his hand across his chin as if he was worried they had left something behind, but his tone had flattened. It was almost as if he was...Disappointed. Still, he laid against their shoulder again and closed his eyes, leaving Dark to rethink their feelings in peace.
What was that feeling? Why did they like it? Was this what everyone had spoken of, this feeling of safety and warmth? Was this...Love?
They looked down at him, starting to fall back into a peaceful sleep, and they felt their heart start to pound against their chest - could this feeling have started their heart again? No, that was impossible...
They had too many questions, too many feelings, and they couldn't keep still. The idea of love danced through their head, and the thoughts wouldn't leave them. Could they have been wrong?
Maybe love could be practiced, maybe it was a feeling that could be learned with the proper person, maybe it was more than just a silly trope in storybooks...Maybe, just maybe, they were in love.