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Mira's breath caught in her throat as she walked into the living room. Zoey stood on the balcony, leaning on the railing and looking out over the city. The sun gleamed in her hair as she turned and when she spotted Mira she had a sunburst smile.
She was outside on the balcony before she knew her feet were moving, "Hey, you're up early."
"Whats up?" Zoey tucked some hair behind her ears.
Reaching over, Mira brushed some more strands out of her face, caught herself, and pulled her hand back as Zoey's cheeks darkened, "Trying to decide what I wanted to do with an entire day off."
"I've got a few ideas." Zoey's fingers played with the edge of Mira's bathrobe for a few seconds too long before she slipped out of range and walked back inside.
Mira stood there a moment, the ghost memory of Zoey's fingers against her stomach, then followed her inside, "I'm not skateboarding down the building again."
"That was one time!" Zoey spun around, backed up, hit the back of the couch and flipped over it. Somehow she twisted herself around on the way down and casually ended up in a sitting position.
Laughing, Mira joined her on the couch, "I like bungie jumping better."
"Oh, that was fun." Zoey leaned in a bit, peering up at Mira through her eyelashes.
She could kiss her. She wanted to. Zoey was so close, leaning in like that, looking at her like she could eat her up. Mira's heart fluttered, her mind racing with possibilities and consequences but she hesitated too long and Zoey leaned back, a flicker of something on her face. Disappointment? Confusion?
Both, if she was at all feeling the same thing Mira was just then.
"Anyway, we should go somewhere for lunch." Zoey bounced to her feet, looking back at Mira over her shoulder. "I'll go poke Rumi."
And then she was gone before Mira could say or do anything else. She rubbed her face, muttering, "Keep it in your pants, it's not like that."
Right? It can't be like that.
"What the hell was that."
💋
Rumi grumbled when she heard a knock on her door, rolling over and pulling her pillow over her head.
The knock sounded again, a little louder, and she heard the unmistakable sound of Zoey humming her name in that way she did when she knew Rumi was awake.
Groaning, Rumi grabbed her phone and looked at the time. Oh, she'd slept in anyway.
Sitting up, she armed herself, "All right Zoey, come in."
As soon as the door opened, Rumi launched her pillow at Zoey's head, smacking her in the face. Flailing, Zoey stumbled back, hugging the pillow to her chest. Then squeezed it a little bit, an odd, muffled contented sound coming from her.
Okay?
Zoey closed the door behind her, almost marching to the bed while snuggling Rumi's pillow like it was a particularly wonderful cat.
It was a nice pillow, Rumi reasoned, as Zoey plunked herself down on the bed, then smacked her in the face with her own pillow.
Laughing, she grabbed it, "I deserved that."
"You smell nice," Zoey said, smiling at her with soft eyes that made Rumi's breath catch in her throat.
"Thanks?" Rumi hugged her pillow to her chest as her cheeks burned. Zoey was suddenly really close, not in any bad sort of way. A really nice sort of way. Rumi was used to her proximity, like a warm comfortable blanket, but there was something a little different today.
Rumi searched Zoey's eyes and before she could help herself, lifted a hand and brushed some hair behind Zoey's ear, her fingers passing over Zoey's skin almost reverently. She caught the sound of Zoey's breath hitching, the way her mouth opened slightly.
I want to kiss her.
Heart fluttering at that epiphany, Rumi dropped her hand down the side of Zoey's neck, fingers moving to stroke lightly at the nape of her neck. She could. She really could. Before she knew it she'd started to lean in.
Zoey suddenly stood, face the color of Mira's hair, "We'regoingtolunchgetdressed." Before Rumi could respond, Zoey bolted from the room.
A low rumble drew her attention to the blue-furred spectral tiger that had decided to just hang out in her room sometimes, and she gestured towards the still open door, "What the hell was that?!"
💋
Splashing water on her face, Zoey stared at herself in the mirror. Her breathing was still a little irregular and her skin felt like it was on fire.
"What the hell was that," She breathed, staring at herself.
Mira had been a little hesitant, like she couldn't quite believe what was happening and was cautious. Rumi, on the other hand, had immediately leaned into it. YOLO and everything.
"What am I doing."
She'd just seen Mira, looking brilliant in the morning sunlight, in her dorky (mental note: never tell her that) pink robe, fresh from a shower. She'd looked breathtaking and Zoey's mouth had … done what her mouth did sometimes which was say directly what was on her brain.
I wanted Mira to kiss me.
There. She admitted it. Gripping the counter, Zoey stared herself down in the mirror, "I should have kissed her."
But then Rumi's pillow had smelled like her, this sweet floral fragrance that had made her instantly dizzy but also instantly calm, and safe. But the thought of her fingers and the intense way she'd stared at her had lit her whole body on fire and then Rumi was leaning in and—
"Okay. It's fine." Totally fine. The two most important people in her life just wanted to kiss her. Like she'd ever be able to choose. Clearly, she just needed to stop flirting accidently on purpose with them.
Easy.
Drying her face, Zoey pulled on one of her favorite incognito outfits, and quietly padded out of her room.
Rumi and Mira had also dressed and were standing near Couch™ really close to each other. Mira was leaning down a bit, smiling fondly in that way that made Zoey melt, as Rumi spoke. Rumi's eyes looked up at her with the same affectionate intensity that still had Zoey feeling like her stomach was in free fall.
Mira had her hand casually on Rumi's arm, thumb brushing back and forth over a pattern. Careful, gentle, loving. Absently, Rumi ran her fingers through some of Mira's hair near her waist as they talked.
They hadn't noticed her. Zoey was pretty sure they hadn't noticed themselves.
Now, the obvious conclusion was that Zoey was horribly wrong and misreading the entire situation, be that them with her or them with them and she might very well have destroyed everything that she'd ever wanted and needed or maybe they were all just a little into each other; and she had no idea how to handle this.
A large, fuzzy head bumped her hand, and she looked down at the derpy tiger. Who she just kind of called Derpy in her head but that felt kind of rude, "What is it?"
He blinked at her, then one eye turned towards Rumi and Mira. He looked at her again, then headbutted her leg.
"I mean they look pretty intimate…" Another headbutt and Zoey took the hint, quietly approaching them.
They'd both gone still, as if they'd had the same thought at the same time. About how close they were. About how easy it would be to lean in and kiss. Like how Rumi had been so close to Zoey, and how close to Mira Zoey had been.
"Don't move," Zoey said, before they could notice her and pull apart.
Mira did jerk a bit, but otherwise remained still as Zoey put a hand on her hip, feeling the heat through her shirt.
"Zoey?" Rumi asked, her throat bobbing as she swallowed, as she turned a look with barely disguised want towards her.
I want us all to kiss.
"Derpy thinks we should all kiss," Zoey said by way of excuse (when in doubt blame the cat) then pulled Mira's head down and did just that.
There was a half second of surprise, then Mira was kissing her back, her lips demanding. It lingered, a flickering heat that started to build towards something inexorable. Rumi's hand slid along her arm, building up another sort of heat that left Zoey's head spinning.
Zoey pulled back, panting, but barely had a moment to recover before Rumi had pulled her into a kiss as well, hands warm on her face. She felt fingers in her hair —Mira— caressing, stroking, playing with strands as Rumi kissed her like she was starving.
When Rumi made a sound not unlike a growl, Zoey was pretty sure she saw God. Dazed, Zoey broke the kiss, grinning like she'd just written the best lyrics of her life.
"Now you," She managed to say. Because this wasn't going to work otherwise. Because now she could look back and see all the little hints and subconscious touches, not just between her and them but between them and them.
Rumi and Mira exchanged a look, seeking, asking, giving and then Mira pulled Rumi in and pressed her lips to her. One of Rumi's hands grabbed Zoey's as the other arm wrapped around Mira, and Zoey kept her hand on Mira's hip. When the two pulled away, Zoey could feel the energy in the air between the three of them like a tangible thing.
One (both?) of them pulled Zoey in closer, and she let herself bask in them. For some reason, though, it felt like they were basking in her. Rumi moved her hand to Zoey's back, and then the back of her neck, "I think we should order delivery."
"Yeah, I'm thinking I don't want to share you two with the world today," Zoey agreed. If they let go of her she'd fall over and crack her head open and die which would be a tragedy in light of all this kissing and then Rumi and Mira would wallow in misery. Can't have that.
Mira smiled, "Same."
And they were looking at her again.
Like that.
Soft intensity, fond affection, and a word that Zoey wasn't sure any of them were ready to say just yet.