you always go out of your way (to show me that i'm your priority)
Rio’s heart had dropped when Agatha told her.
She knew what it was like.
She was too familiar with the sting, the pain, the helplessness of it all.
She hated having to see Agatha like this.
So she resolved to help her girl in every way possible.
* * *
At lunch, Agatha was silent. She’d confessed to Rio earlier that day that underneath her right sleeve, bruises were scattered about like wicked decorations on Halloween. She hadn’t shown her, but Rio could imagine how badly they must hurt. Rio chatted with Alice, momentarily asking Agatha to weigh in on their current debate in hopes of her snapping out of her silent daze. Agatha’s answers were one or two words, agreeing with the more basic argument. Rio signaled to Alice that they’d finish the conversation later as she caught a glimpse of the empty area in front of Agatha’s seat. “No lunch?”
“Nope,” Agatha replied, popping the ‘p.’
“Why, what happened?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Okay.” Rio pressed a quick kiss to Agatha’s temple. “Here,” she held out the other half of her cookie, hoping Agatha would eat something. If there’s one thing she knew about her girlfriend, it was that she could never turn down something sweet.
Agatha looked at it for a bit and then sighed. “Okay,” she reluctantly plucked it from Rio’s fingers and began to eat it piece by piece. After a few seconds, Rio held out an orange slice, a silent question in her eyes. Agatha pushed her hand back, shaking her head as an answer.
Rio pushed her hand forward again, tilting her head. “Something healthy?” Agatha didn’t reply as she took the slice. Then she offered Agatha her bag of chips, which she also refused. Rio moved closer to Agatha, setting her head on her shoulder. “Baby, you have to eat,” she mumbled, knowing how Agatha melted at the name. “Please?”
Agatha simply sighed again. “Fine,” she mumbled. Rio beamed, marveling at how easily she had gotten her to agree. For the rest of lunch, Rio gave Agatha a bite of her food every time she took one, ensuring her girlfriend wouldn’t starve.
“I love you,” Rio whispered into her ear as everyone cleaned up and prepared to go to their next class. Agatha showed the faintest hint of a smile on her lips. “I love you too.”
* * *
Agatha walked into AP Psychology, tired as fuck. She was grateful that she sat next to Rio, or she didn’t know how she would’ve gotten through the period. She flipped open her spiral notebook with a sigh, twiddling her pen between her fingers as she waited for Rio to show up. She had the bathroom pass with her when Agatha saw her in the hallway, so Agatha assumed she was taking a piss, as any logical human being would do.
She paused when she saw a folded piece of paper on the page she had left off on. Slowly picking it up, she unfolded it to reveal Rio’s chicken-scratch handwriting. Agatha read the note and smiled genuinely for the first time in what felt like forever.
Hey Aggie <3,
You’re literally the most gorgeous person I know, and I love, love, love it when you smile. Also, your laughter magically makes my days better (witchcraft, I know), and when you do that snort-laugh thing, I really, really wanna kiss you. I hope that doesn’t come off as creepy and that this doesn’t fall out of your psychology notebook and some random ass dude doesn’t end up reading it in the middle of the hallway. You’re adorable and my favorite person and my best friend, and I hate it when you’re sad. I promise I’ll do everything in my power to make you happy. (Deep for 18, I know.)
Check your locker after school :D
I love you more than you love me.
- Ri <3
Agatha almost giggled at the note. Giggled. Shaking her head, she copied down the instructions from their absent teacher and listened as the substitute called out names for attendance–paying special attention when she got to the V’s to tell her that Rio Vidal was in the bathroom. Rio skipped into the room a few minutes later, grinning like she’d just won the lottery. “Hey,” She scooted her desk a little closer to Agatha’s.
“Hey,” Agatha replied, chucking a pen in Rio’s direction, knowing she never had one. They quieted as the sub went over the usual things like “no phones out” and “no cheating,” even though they all knew the worksheets would be graded on completion anyway.
“Why’d you tell me to check my locker?” Agatha spoke up after she’d gotten through enough questions on the worksheet to make it look like she had gotten work done.
Rio shrugged. “You’ll have to find out.”
Agatha rolled her eyes and threw her eraser at Rio, her mood instantly improving.
* * *