Fresh Starts and Fresh Coffee

----
Adora

She looks down at the fresh tattoo on her arm, still wrapped in plastic, as she walks up the steps to her apartment. She’s had a smile plastered to her face since she left the tattoo shop, and it doesn’t seem that it’ll leave any time soon.

Adora unlocks the door and slowly steps in. It is pretty late, after all.

The last thing she expects to see when she steps into her apartment is Glimmer and Bow standing directly in front of her with panicked looks in their eyes as they glance between the plastic-wrapped on her forearm and her face.

Adora raises a brow at their panic, “What’s… up, guys?” Her voice gets smaller and smaller the more she speaks.

Glimmer speaks first, “We were worried sick! We had movie night planned for tonight, but you never showed up. You weren’t answering your phone, either, and we thought something bad happened to you.” She quickly glances at Adora’s forearm with a worried look on her face.

Adora realizes what Glimmer’s implying almost immediately, and her first instinct is to get angry. This is why she didn’t want anyone to know about her past here. Why she wanted a fresh start in the first place. To get away from the pitying looks she would get whenever people would see her wandering the streets of the Crimson Waste, or whenever they would see her arms.

She hoped this time would be different.

That mindset is quickly replaced by guilt, along with gratitude. Glimmer and Bow are just looking out for her. They just want to make sure she’s okay. The looks on their faces aren’t pity, they’re worried for her safety. She shouldn’t be so ungrateful to her best friends. They’ve only been kind to her, and it’s not fair for Adora to blame them for caring.

Adora sighs, “I’m fine, Glimmer. I hung out with Catra for a bit. I must’ve muted my phone or something, but nothing bad happened, don’t worry. And this is a tattoo! Do you like it?”

Glimmer and Bow’s anxious looks are swiftly replaced with confusion.

“A what?”

Adora’s giddy smile returns, “A tattoo. Catra did it for me! It’s one of her drawings, see?” She sticks her forearm out for the two of them to see. Despite being wrapped, the artwork is still visible to anyone who looks.

Glimmer and Bow inspect the work diligently, looking for what, Adora has no idea. Their distressed faces slowly soften into smiles as they look at all of the precise details that Catra put into the drawing, despite the ridged skin she was working on. It’s obvious the tattoo was made with all the care in the world.

Bow is the first to look up this time, “Adora… It’s beautiful. What inspired you to get it so suddenly?”

“Oh, I saw this drawing the first time I met Catra, and I’ve always liked it. Catra added the flowers today, and I liked it so much that I decided to get it as a tattoo.”

She makes sure to not include the part where they almost kissed. She would definitely be keeping that to herself.

Glimmer raises her head up, a skeptical look in her eyes, “The first time you met Catra? You mean, the time when she was a total bitch to you?”

Bow scolds the purple-haired girl with a quiet, but squeaky “Glimmer!”

Adora rubs her hand on the back of her neck, “Yeah, but she’s been really nice to me in the past few months. I think she’s really changed.”

Glimmer’s still skeptical of this, and she’s definitely being vocal about it. “I don’t know, Adora. We’ve all tried being Catra’s friend before, but she’s never been anything but rude to us. Why is she acting so differently to you? It’s a little suspicious if you ask me. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

Adora bites her tongue to avoid retorting with a snarky remark, instead opting to cross her arms tightly. She immediately regrets the decision when her freshly tattooed skin stings, but she doesn’t relent.

Despite her annoyance at Glimmer’s harsh words, Adora can’t find the strength to be angry at her shorter friend. She just wants what’s best for Adora, and for her to not get hurt.

“It’s fine, Glimmer. I’ll tell you if Catra ever tries to pull anything on me, okay?” Her words are a little more sarcastic than she was expecting, but her voice is gentle.

Glimmer sighs, relenting quickly, “Fine, but just know we’re always here for you if you want to talk, okay?”

Adora smiles, “Yeah, I know. Thanks, you guys. I couldn’t ask for better best friends.”

Bow squeals, “Best Friend Squad hug!” He pulls the two girls into a tight hug, all of them laughing and almost falling onto the floor.

As they get back up and move onto the couch for the later-than-planned movie night, Adora remembers something Mermista said yesterday at work.

Adora looks over to her two friends, who are fighting over one spot on the couch. “Hey, guys?”

The two stop and look over at the blonde. They don’t say anything, just give Adora their undivided attention and wait for her to continue.

“Don’t we have that get-together thing with everyone in a few days?”

Glimmer immediately perks up at that. She looks like she’s practically shimmering with excitement. “Yeah! It’s gonna be so fun! It’s not as fancy as Princess Prom, it’s more to just talk to our friends and hang out. We’re going to the ice rink downtown.”

Adora nods, going through the information given to her in her head. She pauses when she realizes what her purple-haired friend just said.

“Wait, there’s an ice rink here?”

Bow answers this time, “Yeah! They open once a year and it’s the best!”

Adora raises a brow, “Aren’t ice rinks usually open all year round? Since they're, you know, inside and all?”

“Yeah, that’s because the ice rink is outdoors! It’s too hot in the summer to keep it open, so they only open it when it’s below thirty-two degrees Fahrenheit.”

Adora’s never heard of an outdoor ice rink before. Then again, the Crimson Waste isn’t exactly known for its freezing temperatures. Despite only being a few hours south of Brightmoon, it almost felt like a desert there because of how hot it was in the summers. Adora’s grateful that she was homeless there and not in Brightmoon since heatstroke sounds easier than hypothermia.

Glimmer adds, “Have you ever skated before, Adora?”

The blonde fidgets with her fingers, “...No. Is it hard?”

The shorter girl almost seems happier than Adora doesn’t know how to skate, “No! Not at all. Oh, I can help you find your skate size! And I could teach you! Not to brag or anything, but I’d say I’m a pretty good skater.”

Bow gives her an incredulous look, “Glimmer, you fall every two minutes.”

Glimmer huffs, “No, I don’t! You’ll see, when we get there I’ll be a skating pro.”

Adora and Bow laugh at Glimmer’s overconfidence and, after being grumpy for a few more seconds, Glimmer laughs with them.

Eventually, they actually watch the movie they picked out for today. Something called ‘Booksmart’ if Adora remembers correctly.

Bow starts the movie, and they all get comfortable in their spots, with Adora on the big couch with Glimmer while Bow sits on the single couch on the side of the living room closer to Glimmer.

While they watch the movie and add their commentary, Adora can’t help but raise a skeptical eye at her two friends.

They’re being a lot more… flirty than usual. And that’s saying a lot, considering how Glimmer always acts with Bow. Adora doesn’t say anything about it, hoping that her friends would tell her if anything ever happened between them.

----
Catra

She puts all her materials back into their intended spots after Adora leaves before heading upstairs. She’s smiling the entire time but tries to stifle it when she walks into her apartment. Don’t want Scorpia getting suspicious and bombarding her with personal questions.

Despite her best efforts to hold in her bursting joy, a small smile still creeps onto her face as she takes off her shoes.

She’s so busy taking off her shoes and going over what just happened downstairs that she doesn’t notice that Scorpia and Entrapta have been sitting in the living room the entire time, watching her with puzzled looks.

Scorpia breaks the silence, making sure to stay quiet to not scare Catra off, “Hey, Wildcat.”

Catra still jumps, even with Scorpia’s hushed voice. The brunette looks up, panicked, “What are you guys doing here? I thought you’d be asleep by now.”

Entrapta chimes in, “Well, we live here, so we would most likely always be here during this time. It is a little odd for you to come in so late, though. Fascinating… ” She stands up, recorder in hand, and walks to her room. Muffled talking can be heard from her room as she talks into the box.

Scorpia looks up at Catra with a knowing smile.

Catra blushes and crosses her arms, “What?”

“Where have you been the past few hours?” Her tone isn’t accusatory, or curious. More teasing, if anything. Like an older sister making fun of her younger sibling for having a crush.

“I- Me- Nowhere! I was just in the shop.” Catra walks over and plops down onto the couch, sitting beside Scorpia.

Scorpia turns to look at her, “You were in the shop hours after it’s closed? Seems a little suspicious to me. Were you with anyone?” Again, her tone is more teasing than anything else.

That makes Catra blush more as she buries her face into a pillow.

Scorpia gasps, “So you WERE with someone! Who was it! Wait, let me guess-”

Catra interjects before Scorpia can finish, “Don’t guess!”

Scorpia proceeds to guess, “Was it… Adora?”

Catra didn’t think it was possible for her to blush more than she already is, but her face manages to do just that.

The taller girl wraps her prosthetic arms around Catra, “Aww, that’s so cute!! Was it a date? Was it romantic? What did you guys do? Did you have fun? Wer-”

Catra scrambles out of Scorpia’s arms with an embarrassed look, “It wasn’t a date! We just… talked.”

Scorpia raises a brow, “Talked? For the past few hours? That’s it?”

Catra nods, but it’s an obvious lie. “Yup.” She pops the ‘p’ sound.

Scorpia continues to look at her. Catra fidgets with her fingers in her lap.

“Okay, and maybe IalsotattooedAdora’sarm.” She says that last part so quickly but Scorpia still hears it.

Scorpia gasps again, much more dramatic than before. “You what?! Oh, that’s so sweet, Catra! Did you guys both get matching tattoos?”

Catra crosses her arms again, “No! I just tattooed one of my drawings on her arm. It’s not a big deal.”

Scorpia’s eyes look like they’re about to pop out of her head, “So you’re telling me that Adora got a tattoo from you of a drawing you made, and you still think she doesn’t have feelings for you? That’s one of the most romantic things I’ve ever heard anyone do.”

Catra’s blush makes a return, “Are you ridiculous?! It’s just a little drawing, and it was just a coincidence that I did it. And besides, friends can give each other tattoos! That’s a completely normal thing friends do.”

“Uh… I’m not so sure about that, Catra.”

“It is!”

Scorpia decides to spare Catra. For now. She sighs, “If you say so, Wildcat.” She changes the subject, “So, are you going to that get-together in a few days?”

Catra leans back on the couch, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, ok. Well, a group of people who work along this street are going to the ice rink downtown. Do you want to come?”

Catra glances over at the white-haired girl, “Do I want to hang out with a bunch of lame princesses? I’ll pass, thanks.”

Scorpia sighs, “Oh come on, Catra. The people here are great! I’m sure if you got to know them, you would have fun. And besides, since you work on this street you’re technically a princess, too.”

Catra’s eyes widen as Scorpia giggles, “Never say something that scary.” She points an accusatory finger at a still laughing Scorpia.

Catra actually considers going, but she wants to make sure a specific person will be going before she agrees.

“Is… Is Adora going?” Catra looks down at the floor.

Scorpia smiles warmly at the brunette, “Yes, Adora is going.”

Catra nods, but it’s more to amp herself up for seeing Adora again than anything else. “Okay, then I’ll go.”

Scorpia cheers, and Catra laughs before the taller girl pulls her into a tight hug. “This is going to be so much fun! You’ll love everyone there, they’re so great! Oh, and you’ll get to meet Perfuma!”

Catra pauses. Why did Scorpia single out one of the people? She pushes herself back to look Scorpia in the eyes, “Who’s Perfuma?”

Scorpia blushes, “Oh geez, I never told you? Well, Perfuma’s my girlfriend!”

Catra’s eyes widen at that, “You have a girlfriend?! And you never told me?” Her voice is quieter in the last sentence. The idea that Scorpia doesn’t trust Catra hurts more than she thought it would.

Scorpia seems to sense why Catra’s upset. “It’s not because I don’t trust you! I do trust you, very much. But we started dating right after Princess Prom and I thought it would be mean for me to brag while you had a black eye.”

So while Catra was being sucker-punched in a drenched banquet hall, Scorpia was making out with Perfuma. Great.

Despite that, Catra really was happy for Scorpia. It’s about time someone realized how great her friend is.

“It’s okay, Scorpia. You didn’t have to hide it from me, though, you big doof.” She light-heartedly punches Scorpia in the shoulder.

Scorpia chuckles, “Okay, sorry.”

“It’s fine, dude. Just don’t hide things like that from me, okay? I do actually want to know what’s going on in your life, believe it or not.”

A warm smile appears again on Scorpia’s face, “Only if you don’t hide anything from me, either.”

Catra reciprocates the taller girl's smile with one of her own, “Okay, I pinky promise.”

The brunette holds out her pinky. Scorpia wraps her much larger one around Catra’s and they shake their joined hands in agreement, before bursting into a fit of giggles.

----
Adora, Four Days Later

She stares at herself in the mirror. They have half an hour left before they have to leave for the ice rink.

Adora’s already wearing her outfit. A thick sweater with a pair of grey leggings and winter boots. There’s something missing, though…

She continues staring with a puzzled look until it hits her. She pulls her sleeves up to her forearms and admires the now unwrapped tattoo on her left forearm. The colours on it are vibrant, but not overwhelmingly bright, and the lines are precise and detailed. She looks up at the mirror again.

Her outfit finally looks complete. All she needed was that little hint of Catra.

Adora frowns when she notices that the few scars on her right forearm will also be visible. While the majority are on her left arm, she did decide to switch it up some days and go for her right arm. As she’s looking at her arm with a disappointed look, she remembers what Catra said when she first saw them.

“You don’t have to be ashamed of these.”

Upon remembering the words, her confidence flies up and she decides to leave her forearms showing. It’s still scary, though. This is the first time anyone here other than Catra and Huntara will see them for the first time. What if they judge her? Or think she’s crazy, or something?

She tries to block out those thoughts. Adora sighs and looks up into her reflection’s eyes, “You can do this.” It’s a hushed whisper so that Bow and Glimmer don’t hear her talking to herself.

With that, she grabs her phone and leaves her room.

Upon entering the living room, she sees Bow and Glimmer already done and lounging on the couches. Adora must’ve spent more time figuring out her outfit than she thought.

Glimmer looks up at her, “Hey, Adora. Cute outfit!”

Adora stands awkwardly in front of them. She completely forgot that Bow and Glimmer never knew about the scars, so this will be the first time they find out, too. Adora was always too scared to tell them, even though she knew they would only respond with unconditional love. “Hi, guys.” Her arms are stick straight beside her, making her look like a soldier on duty.

Bow seems to notice her behaviour and frowns in concern as he scans her body for anything wrong. “Are you okay?”

Adora nods, but it’s stiff and the other two definitely notice. “Yeah, I’m just… I’m nervous.”

“Why? Do you not want to go? We can resched-” Glimmer trails off quietly as she notices the angry scars that lie on the inside of Adora’s forearms. Bow follows her line of vision. They both have sad looks on their faces as they look at the marks. The two were so busy gawking at Adora’ tattoo earlier that they didn’t even notice the lines that are scattered across her forearms. The silence is deafening for Adora.

“I’m sorry. Should I… cover them?” Her voice is small, but Bow and Glimmer still hear because of how quiet it is. She sounds so… child-like.

Suddenly, Bow and Glimmer look up at her with panicked faces. They both stand up and envelop Adora in a hug. It’s much looser than usual, to allow Adora the opportunity to get out.

Glimmer is the first to speak, “No, Adora. You don’t need to cover them, not ever. You’re our best friend, and we don’t think any less of you, you got that?”

Adora smiles brightly and hugs them tighter, “Thank you. So much. You’re both so amazing, and I love you guys.”

Bow responds this time, “We love you too, Adora.”

They stay like that until Adora finds enough courage to go. She separates from the group hug, and the other two look at her questioningly.

“So, what do you guys say we go skating now?”

Glimmer’s excitement for the day returns, “Yay! Ice skating!”

They grab their winter coats but don’t bring any skates with them. They’ll just rent when they get there. The three depart from their apartment laughing and smiling.

----
Catra

She and Scorpia sit on the edge of the ice rink while they wait for everyone to show up. Scorpia insisted on coming fifteen minutes earlier than planned so that Catra could meet Perfuma one-on-one before everyone shows up and they’re all swept up in conversations.

Soon enough, Catra sees a tall, tan woman with light blonde hair and a flower crown in her hair walking in their direction with a bright smile on her face. ‘She’s definitely Scorpia’s type,’ Catra thinks inwardly with a small grin.

The happy blonde comes up in front of them as Catra and Scorpia stand to greet her.

“Hi, Scorpia,” she giggles. Scorpia tries to stifle her smile and fails miserably. The entire interaction is so cute that Catra struggles to contain her groan of disgust. At least her friend is happy, right?

Perfuma turns to the shorter brunette, “Hello, Catra! It’s so nice to meet you. Scorpia’s told me a lot about you.”

That makes Catra a little nervous. Scorpia is the absolute worst at keeping secrets. “All good stuff, I hope.”

Perfuma chuckles, “Yes, of course! Ooh, where’s Adora?”

Catra feels her face burn up slightly as she turns to glare at Scorpia with a face that reads ‘Are you kidding me?’ At least Scorpia has the decency to look guilty as she shrugs back.

Perfuma sees Catra’s embarrassed look and backtracks slightly, “Oh, don’t worry! I won’t say anything to her if that’s what you’re worried about.” Catra wasn't, but she definitely is now. Perfuma continues, “If you want, I could lead you through guided meditation. It really works wonders, you know!”

“Uhmm…” Catra takes a slight step back. She doesn’t want to flat-out say no, but she also would rather watch paint dry than meditate. She’s saved from answering by the others arriving. Catra sighs in relief and turns to the loud group coming towards them. She immediately starts looking for a specific blonde.

Her eyes skim over the coffee shop employees, the Horde employees, the older couple that owns the flower shop, and the younger girl that works at the ice cream shop.

Her heart flutters once her mismatched eyes land on her. She’s wearing a thick sweater with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, her tattoo out for everyone to see. Catra’s face reddens significantly, from Adora’s muscular arms and also the fact that Adora wants everyone to see Catra’s work and would sacrifice staying warm in the cold of Brightmoon in February to do that.

Catra is so focused on Adora that she doesn’t notice that everyone else can see her blushing very brightly at Adora. The blonde in question is completely oblivious to all of this, of course.

Adora is the first to speak, “So, where do we get our rentals?”

Thankfully, the rest of them don’t mention what they just saw and the group goes to get their skates. They all grab their sizes and head to sit down on a bench.

Catra glances over at Adora while everyone is lacing up their skates to see her struggling to tie them up. She’s getting more and more frustrated when she can’t figure it out. The brunette snickers quietly at her struggling.

She stands up and, while wobbling on her skates, walks over to kneel in front of Adora. The blonde’s face reddens, or maybe it was always like that from the cold. Regardless, Catra thinks she looks absolutely ethereal. The sun is hitting her face and making it look like there’s a halo around her blonde hair, despite how cold it is. Her nose and cheeks are slightly red, and her eyes are so blue in the light they look like they’re almost glowing.

“Relax, dummy. I’m just lacing up your skates.”

Adora sighs at that and chuckles, “Thanks. I’ve never ice skated before.”

Catra raises a brow at that, “Really? And you decided to try it out for the first time in front of all your friends? Are you trying to embarrass the shit out of yourself?”

Adora’s eyes widen and she looks forward as Catra cackles. “I… I never thought about that.”

Catra’s laughing stops when she notices that Adora actually looks nervous. After finishing tying the skates, she puts a hand on her knee, and the blonde turns her anxious gaze back down to her. “Hey, don’t worry. I’ll teach you, okay? It’ll be fun, and I’ll make sure nobody makes fun of you if you fall. Only I get that privilege, you got that, Princess?”

Adora laughs loudly with Catra, snorting throughout the laugh. It’s one of the best sounds Catra’s ever heard. Some of the other skaters look over to them with judging eyes, but neither of them cares. The brunette can definitely see Scorpia and some of the other people with her looking at Catra and Adora with pure heart eyes, but she ignores it.

She puts all her focus into Adora, who has stopped laughing and is now smiling at Catra with that one specific smile that she’s only seen Adora do to her.

“Thank you, Catra. I really appreciate that.”

Catra smiles back, “Of course. Now, what do you say we go and practice some ice skating, huh?”

----
Adora

Catra stands and outstretches a hand for Adora, which she takes gratefully. Adora must not have realized how unstable she would be on skates, because she starts leaning backwards and almost falls flat on her butt. Almost, because Catra catches her before she can.

They stay like that for a few seconds, Adora leaned back and Catra leaning forward with a hand on the small of Adora’s back. Eventually, Catra blinks back and stands up fully, bringing Adora up with her. Thankfully, everyone else is already on the ice so they didn’t see that.

The two slowly walk over to the short wooden wall that surrounds the ice. Catra gets on first and skates in a small circle.

Adora stands on wobbly feet in awe at how easy Catra makes ice skating look. “Where did you learn to skate like that?!”

Catra turns around to look at her, “Oh, I took ice skating lessons as a kid. I’m surprised I still remember anything from them.”

Despite how long it’s been since Catra’s ice skated, she is still a million times more elegant than Adora could ever be. The blonde continues to stare at Catra while she skates in a few loops with her jaw hanging open.

Catra glances over to Adora and, upon seeing the look on her face, giggles. She glides over to where Adora is still standing and extends a hand out for her. “You coming?”

Adora looks down at Catra’s hand then back up into her eyes with a bright grin. She grips Catra’s hand tightly as she places one of her skates onto the ice. She immediately begins wobbling, so Catra grabs her other hand to stabilize her. Once Adora’s stopped moving, she places her other skate onto the ice. Her grip on Catra’s hands tightens as she struggles to not fall. Catra laughs at Adora’s panicked face as she wobbles endlessly on the ice.

Eventually, Adora manages to stand up straight without moving at all. “Catra, look! I’m doing it! I’m skating!”

Catra laughs louder at that, and Adora’s smile widens. Her face turns slightly red when she realizes she’s still holding Catra’s hands as they look into each other’s eyes.

Catra’s blushing slightly, too. “No, you’re not. You’re standing on skates. Come on, let’s go and actually skate!”

The brunette skates backwards and leads a still blushing Adora across the rink. Catra is moving with ease while Adora is struggling to move in a line without slipping. They slowly get into a nice rhythm, with Catra pulling Adora across the ice. At some point, Adora starts pushing herself forward, too.

With Catra going backwards as she skates, she doesn’t notice that the two are gliding straight into the wall. Adora notices fairly quickly, though. She tries to warn Catra, but it’s too late, “Catra, watch out-”

The two bump into the wall hard and fall onto the ice, sitting beside each other on the floor. At first, they sit there in shock of what just happened. Then, they both burst into fits of laughter. They’re laughing so loud that they catch the attention of one of their friends, who comes to their rescue.

Perfuma glides over to the two laughing girls on the floor. “Do you two need any help?”

Catra looks up at her with a defeated nod. Adora stays silent but has a smile on her face as she tries to stifle her laugh.

Perfuma helps Catra up first, and then Adora. While Perfuma is helping the blonde stand up, she catches a glimpse of the tattoo on her forearm. After she’s stood up, Perfuma flips over Adora’s arm gently and gasps when she sees the work on her arm, “Wow, it’s beautiful. Who made this?”

Catra smiles at the indirect compliment, “I did.”

Perfuma looks down at the flowers, then smiles brightly with a small giggle. It’s obvious she knows something that the other two don’t. Perfuma turns back to Catra, “Well, you did an amazing job. The tattoo suits Adora perfectly. Catra smiles back at her and is about to respond when she hears Scorpia call her from across the rink. She turns to her tall friend, “I’ll be right back.” She quickly glides away from Perfuma and Adora.

Perfuma turns towards Adora with a knowing look, “So, Adora. Do you know what kind of flowers those are?” Despite not working in the flower shop with Spinnerella and Netossa, Perfuma knows a lot about flowers.

Adora looks down at the ink on her arm with a frown as she tries to think. She doesn’t remember Catra ever mentioning what type of flowers she tattooed on her arm. “Uh… I don’t know. What are they?”

“They’re Red Camellias and Yellow Daffodils.”

Well, that was anticlimactic. Adora is still confused about why Perfuma still has that smile on her face. Perfuma continues, despite Adora’s confusion, “Do you know what those flowers symbolize?”

Adora shakes her head.

Perfuma’s smile softens more, “Love and new beginnings.”

Adora’s eyes widened at that. Catra tattooed flowers that symbolize love on her arm? Why would she do that? Does that mean that she could possible have feeli-

Perfuma gently places her hands on each of Adora’s shoulders to stop her from spiralling further into her thoughts. “Adora? Are you alright?”

Adora looks up at Perfuma, “It’s probably just a coincidence, right?” She’s whispering, but Perfuma still hears her. The taller blonde smiles down at her.

“I don’t know, Adora. I’ve seen the way that girl looks at you. Maybe she has feelings for you, too.”

Adora shakes her head. There’s no way Catra could actually have feelings for Adora. There’s no way she could reciprocate the feelings that Adora has for her. She won’t get her hopes up just to have it all taken away. She can't. Not again.

Perfuma slowly moves her hands up and down Adora’s arms to ground her. It works surprisingly well. “It’s hard, keeping your heart open. It makes you vulnerable, but it doesn’t make you weak and… I have to believe it's worth it.”

Adora notices just then how much she’s shaking as she looks down at the ice, “Do you really think so? That being vulnerable is worth it?”

Perfuma pulls Adora into a loose hug, “Yes, I do.”

Adora doesn’t know if she believes her, but she wants to try to be vulnerable again. One last time. Just to see if it really is worth it.

----
Adora, a few hours later

Most of the people who came for today’s get together have already gone back home. The sun is setting, and everyone is tired from skating and talking for hours. The only people still here are Bow, Glimmer, Adora, Catra, and Scorpia.

Now that Adora’s gotten better at skating, she and Catra race each other around the rink. They’re shoving each other and going way too fast for a tiny rink at dusk. Bow, Glimmer, and Scorpia glide haphazardly in circles in the center of the rink, talking calmly and avoiding their two extremely competitive friends.

Adora’s about to catch up with Catra, who’s a couple of feet away from her. She’s almost there when Catra turns back to look at her.

The orange sunset in the distance glows behind her and makes Catra look like she’s a glowing angel as she smiles brightly. Her hair is whipping in the wind as the setting sun casts sharp shadows into her curls. Her eyes are shining brightly in the sunshine, especially her yellow eye, which looks more like an orange in this lighting. Her high-pitched laugh bounces into Adora’s ears and straight to her heart. How did she get so lucky to meet someone like Catra?

At that moment, Adora knows she’ll never love anyone as much as she loves the girl in front of her. She doesn’t know whether to be terrified about that or filled with joy, but she’s a little bit of both right now.

She’s so busy gawking at the brunette that she forgets that she’s still ice skating. Adora bends forward a little too far in an effort to balance herself and manages to flip hard onto her face, effectively having just face-planted into ice. She hears the sliding sound of Catra’s skates on the ice stop as she turns and starts cackling loudly at Adora’s accident. The blonde flushes in embarrassment.

Catra skates over towards Adora, still laughing, “You okay there, princess?”

Adora lifts her head up to look at Catra, who’s laughing quickly dies out as she looks at Adora’s forehead. She hisses a little at the sight of blood dripping down her face.

The blonde raises a hand up to her head and feels the warm liquid slowly rolling down her face. “Whoops.” She gives a sheepish smile.

Catra shoves her shoulder lightly as she giggles, “You’re such an idiot.” She stands up and helps Adora up.

Once Adora is up, Glimmer, Bow, and Scorpia quickly skate over with worried looks on their faces. They must have seen the cut already. Glimmer places a hand near to the cut, “What happened? Are you okay? Do you have a concussion? Are you dizzy right n-”

Adora cuts off her flurry of questions as she takes the shorter girl’s hand off her face, “I’m fine, Glimmer. I just slipped and hit my head a little. I’m not dizzy, and I don’t have a concussion, okay?”

Glimmer sighs in relief, then sends a hard glare in Catra’s direction. She’s about to go on a rant about how this is all Catra’s fault when Adora interrupts, “Okay! Well, I have to go clean this cut up. Catra, wanna come with me?” The brunette sends her a look that says ‘Thanks for the save’ as the two quickly glide away from the seething purple-haired girl. Adora can faintly hear Bow and Scorpia try to calm Glimmer down.

Catra and Adora get off the rink and, after changing back into regular shoes, walk towards a washroom nearby in almost complete silence, ‘almost’ being the keyword here.

“So, are you really okay? That looked like a hard hit.”

Adora grins at her, but the smile falters when she sees Catra’s concerned face. She was planning on a snarky remark, but she decides to save that for another day. “Yeah, I’m okay.”

Catra nods and they continue the walk to the washroom.

Once they make it to the washroom, Catra takes some toilet paper and, after adding some water to it, uses it to wipe the blood off Adora’s face. Catra’s focused on Adora’s forehead, so Adora takes this as an opportunity to look at the brunette who's close to her face.

Her cheeks and nose are slightly red from being out in the February cold all day, but the fluorescent lights give her skin cooler undertones. Her eyes are still vibrant as always, but now the blue one is brighter than the yellow one. Adora loves Catra’s eyes.

Catra drops her gaze from Adora’s forehead to her eyes, “ I can feel you staring at me.” Her tone is teasing as she smirks, but her cheeks redden as she smiles.

Adora smiles sheepishly as she blurts out, “Sorry, you’re just so pretty.” Her eyes widened at what she just said. Adora blames it on her head injury, but she knows better.

Catra’s blushes more and rubs the back of her neck, “Thanks.” Her voice is quieter than before. She looks down, “I’m done with your cut, by the way.”

Adora turns to look at herself in the mirror and, sure enough, her face is completely clean of any blood and the cut isn’t bleeding as much anymore. It’ll probably turn into a scab soon as the blood dries.

The blonde turns back to Catra, “Thank you, Catra. You’re really nice, you know that?” Adora would definitely regret saying everything that’s going through her head later.

Catra frowns and stares a hole into the ground, “Do you really think that?” She sounds genuinely curious, which breaks Adora’s heart. She wonders who told Catra that she’s anything other than the kindest, strongest, most beautiful person in the Universe, and why Catra believes them.

The level of confidence Adora has right now could only be explained by hitting her head on the ice. She places both her hands on either side of Catra’s face to get her to make eye contact with her. Once Catra lifts her head up again, Adora smiles at her, “Of course I do.” Adora rubs her thumbs gently on Catra's cheeks.

Catra leans into the embrace as she places a hand on top of one of Adora’s. She smiles softly at the blonde as her eyes glisten.

Adora decides to take a chance. She leans forward as her eyes flicker down to Catra’s lips and back up to her eyes with a questioning look. Catra nods wordlessly and they both move forward until their lips touch.

It’s not the longest kiss either of them has ever had, or the most passionate, but they both know it’s the best they've ever experienced.

Catra is the first to pull away, with a hand on Adora's chest and a conflicted look on her face. Her brows furrow and her mouth keeps opening and closing again, as if she can’t find her words.

Adora places her hand on top of Catra’s on her chest, but Catra pulls her hand away and takes a step back. Adora has a sinking feeling in her stomach that she knows where this is going. She begs whatever deities are listening that this doesn’t end the way Adora thinks it will. The way that countless friendships have ended for Adora. Where the other person will leave just when Adora thinks they’ll actually stay.

Catra looks up at Adora wearily, “I don’t… I can’t. No- you...” The brunette continues to stutter endlessly, but Adora connects the dots in her head.

I don’t want you.

I can’t care about you.

You ruined everything.

Adora can feel tears prick her eyes as her vision clouds and she takes a step back. Her heartbeat pounds in her chest and she can faintly feel her throat closing up with emotions. It’s happening again.

Catra notices her panic and stretches a hand towards her, “Adora, wait. Let me explain.” Her voice is shaky and there are tears in her eyes, threatening to fall out.

Adora turns around and runs out of the washroom, not knowing where she’s going. What she doesn’t know is that Bow, Glimmer, and Scorpia are outside waiting for them.

When Adora runs out of the washroom, she runs directly into Bow. The two don’t fall onto the floor, since Bow saw her coming and braced himself. He instantly wraps her into a hug as she shakes. He looks down at her, “What happened?” Adora can see Scorpia run into the washroom to look for Catra.

Adora shakes her head, “Can we go home, please?”

Bow nods and, with Glimmer’s help, they lead the blonde to their car while also helping her breathe.

By the time they make it into the car, with Bow in the driver’s seat and Glimmer with Adora in the backseat, Adora has calmed down immensely. The cold air outside did wonders for her breathing.

Adora leans her head on Glimmer’s shoulder and is about to fall asleep when the purple-haired girl asks, “Did Catra do this?” She doesn’t seem as angry as Adora thought she’d be, but she’s probably just holding in her anger for later.

Adora shakes her head, “This is all my fault.”

----
Catra

Adora just ran out of the washroom, and she can faintly hear the blonde crying outside.

Catra walks backwards until she hits a wall. Her knees give out and she slumps down on the washroom floor pitifully. Tears quickly pour out of her eyes as she drops her head onto her knees.

Why did she push Adora away? It’s not like she didn’t want Adora to kiss her. It’s all she’s wanted for weeks, and she ruined it. It’s ridiculous, but she knows exactly why she did it.

While she wants Adora, Catra doesn’t want Adora to have to deal with her issues. All Catra has done to Adora is hurt her, what makes her sure she won’t do it again if they follow their feelings? The last thing Catra wants is to hurt Adora more than she’s already been hurt in her life.

She almost laughs at the irony of the situation. Catra pushes Adora away because she doesn’t want to hurt Adora, but she’s hurting Adora by pushing her away.

She hears someone run into the washroom and panics, hoping it’s not Adora.

The person kneels down next to Catra, “What happened, Wildcat?” Catra almost sighs in relief at the sound of her best friend.

She looks up with tears still coming out of her eyes, “This is all my fault.”