LOVE
The restaurant was empty save for a couple on the other side of theirs holding each other's hands over the table and talking softly.
Mysaria made the order for the both of them bragging about how she has the most and only experience out of the both of them.
The special order was corn.
A hot cup of sweet corn with extra butter and a dash of sugar on top with a simple splash of salt to balance the taste.
Rhaenyra was skeptical at first, but when the first spoonful slid through her canal and cleansed the cold air out of it replacing it with complete warmth. She smiled.
Mysaria watched. Carelessly. Like she's not paying attention to how Rhaenyra's jaw flexes with every bite, how, under the white lights of the restaurant, she could see a small tattoo on the side of her neck, vertical letters.
And how insanely blue her eyes are.
"This was so unexpectedly delicious" She scooped the last few corns from the cup and put it down, sighing in full satisfaction. "I've never had corn before"
Mysaria blinked out of her haze, ignoring the glistening blue eyes that's staring at her with joy. From something so simple.
"Excuse me!? You've never had corn?!
"Nope!" Rhaenyra casually nodded her head, taking in her surroundings and staring at the small restaurant, "do you come here often?"
Mysaria put her cup of corn down, still half full, "The friend I told you about? He used to own it then he sold it to his cousin. We came here whenever we wanted to storm ideas about games and such"
"I see.." Rhaenyra could see the visible pain in Mysaria's eyes even though she spoke lightly about it. "I'm sorry for your loss" blaming the night for making her not say it the first time she heard about him.
Mysaria waved her hand carelessly but the breath she took before speaking told Rhaenyra all she needed to know. "It's alright, he was peaceful. It was all sudden and hectic but he was never angry or mad at the world..he was so aligned with it. I was the one acting out."
"How long has it been?"
"Three years, I knew him for the same amount."
Rhaenyra smiled with a sense of comfort "how did you know him?"
"We worked together although he was more of a nepo-baby because his father owns the company, we clicked right away and became close..I'm an only child and he always wanted a sister since he had 4 brothers"
"And you? Do you have siblings?"
"No.."Rhaenyra's voice, a whisper, softly replied, "they tried but it was to no avail."
"That's a shame..." Mysaria huffed as she played with her hair, looking everywhere but at the silver haired woman, Rhaenyra watched, long beautiful deliciously soft locks dancing in between thin fingers before she started to gather it up into a messy bun. strands of it were left at bay.
They locked eyes just as she was done tucking away one stray behind her ear, blue met dark brown. "Such great genes"
Rhaenyra held the contact, fake confidence is better than none at all, "are you calling me sexy?"
Mysaria laughed sweetly, "I did NOT say that"
"Not literally..." Rhaenyra stretched her back and sat straight, eyes still locked. "However, you're staring."
"You're staring as well!"
Rhaenyra shurged with her cheeks red as wine, "you started it"
"It's the hair!" And the face. The sharp and delicate screaming softness of her lips, the sweet force in her blue blue blue eyes and the roaring melodic silk of her voice.
Rhaenyra, unaware of Mysaria's inner thoughts but she could guess what the main theme is by the way her eyes were tracing all over her, she took her coat off along with the suit jacket and rolled the sleeves of her shirt, the bare sight of her forearms, one wrist with a watch on it and the other a thin silver bracelet, adding more thoughts.
But Mysaria just whistled teasingly, "No wonder you've never had corn with that expensive taste of yours" referring to both the suit and the bracelet. Eyes scanning both.
"I'm sure we share the same taste"
And they did. Rhaenyra's suit was expensive, yes, the bracelet? definitely, but so are the earrings Mysaria was wearing, signature Cartier. Gleaming in the lights of the well lit place.
"I'm not on the royal level of things" Mysaria replied with a guarded but still playful tone "I wasn't rich but even after I've made enough money I still don't spend too much."
"One.." Rhaenyra pointed a finger "I'm not royalty. It's old ancient and some blood money and two.." she pointed a second finger, at the earrings Mysaria was sporting, "they only made fifty of them and finally, three.." she pointed a third finger, at the couple on the other side that were now full on making out, "we need to get out of here before I do something drastic"
Mysaria laughed and leaned in, close to the pale hand that was stretched in front of her, Rhaenyra freezed, startled by the sudden closeness of the other woman's face. Her mouth.
The proximity was dangerous and warm.
So dangerous Rhaenyra's hand reshaped itself to a palm, as if she was about to cup Mysaria face and finally get to test if that jawline was as cutting as it seemed.
Her thumb twitched, begging to sweep over soft and shiny butter glossed lips.
"You're staring, again."
Low, sensual, alluring, stripped of shyness. Mysaria teased and toyed with the palm next to her face, coming so close before withdrawing. A sly smile on her face.
Rhaenyra cleared her throat and claimed her hand back, sinking into her own chair.
"You're a sick individual"
Mysaria just giggled while gesturing for the waiter, asking for the bill.
Rhaenyra fumbled through her coat and pulled her wallet out, Mysaria clicked her tongue, "Uh uh, I'm paying."
"That's absurd, Mysaria, I'm the silver spoon, let me"
It was the first time Rhaenyra spoke her name, and it was so perfect she wanted to hear it again, and again.
"I brought you here, Rhaenyra, and it's probably fifteen dollars so calm your royal horses and put that leather back in it's place"
Rhaenyra narrowed her eyes at her but didn't fight back and when the check came it was in fact fifteen dollars.
Seven and a half dollar for each cup.
Rhaenyra took a look at her watch, 9.30pm. "it's getting late" she said, "would you-" She hesitated, although she was the one who asked to leave. Together.
"Would I?..."
Rhaenyra shock her head as if it was a vile thought, "Never mind, do you need a ride home or.."
"Well...i-" but she was interrupted, not rudely but hastily. "I've got a car..I mean my car...it's parked near."
Mysaria nodded with a quirky eyebrow "I'm sure you do.." her face turned serious and she came closer, the table becoming the most unbearable barrier between them and now Rhaenyra just wants to chew all it's woods till nothing is lifted between her and Mysaria.
"Do you like music?"
The couple on the other side were taking a break from kissing now and just touching each other's faces. Rhaenyra winced.
"Who the fuck hates music?!" Mysaria said a little too loudly resulting in a confused Rhaenyra and her jumping eyes.
"No, no, I don't hate it, I was-" She lowered her voice to a whisper, "I was looking at them."
"That's even worse, you hate love?"
Rhaenyra scoffed "that's not love!"
"What is it then?"
"It's affection."
"The same thing."
"No they're not." Rhaenyra was serious. Deadpan.
"Explain yourself" Mysaria said with no weight in her words and unlike Rhaenyra, body tense, she was relaxed. Too relaxed. And madly curious.
"One is as easy as drinking water the other is difficult and honestly, demonic."
"Ouch! You're being hard on love here"
"I'm not..." Rhaenyra looked away from Mysaria, hands dancing in the air as she spoke, "it gives you no agency over who you love and it makes you do stupid, stupid, things. It's possessive and it's possession. " her face twisted in disgust,"it's supernaturally fucked"
Mysaria just giggled, again, that damned giggle. "And affection?"
"Ugh!" Look of disgust unchanged "it's like drugs you get high and it's great then you either get sick of the same shit or fall off the edge"
"The weather is getting to your heart." Mysaria said it with a harmless tone but Rhaenyra knew it to be true. It's not just the weather.
"Well, I disagree." Mysaria said, annoyingly, confidently, beautifully, "for one, affection doesn't come easy especially if you're not a touchy person by nature and that's where love plays a part because it makes you do things you wouldn't normally do, they're the same thing because they mix together well."
"Some people give affection even when they're not in love" Rhaenyra said, again, too serious.
"Then it's not affection, Rhaenyra, it's just touches and kisses"
"That's my point!" Again, too serious. Rhaenyra moved in her chair restlessly.
"For two! Let me finish.." Mysaria scolded her like a kid and Rhaenyra rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest like one.
"This."
The table vanished from Rhaenyra's vision and the restaurant disappeared, the surrounding sounds and lights even the annoying kissy couple disappeared from sight.
Warmth of eden if eden was a touch of a woman's hand.
Mysaria reached over the table and landed her hand right on the cold, right forearm that was folded over the left and the stars exploded.
"This is not as easy as drinking water, not for you or for me. But for them.." she gestured towards the couple with only her head, "it is and it's because of love."
It was hers but Mysaria didn't want to take her hand back now that it was happily resting over smooth strong milky forearm, the slight tremble from Rhaenyra masked her own trembling fingers as if she wasn't effected by this.
She stood, her hand still in contact with an unmoving, dumbfounded, taken by utter tenderness Rhaenyra, Mysaria moved it until their hands touched then tugged her up.
"Enough about love! Let's go"
The threat of holding hands only lasted for a few seconds before Mysaria started to walk away, slowly, lingering by, as Rhaenyra put on her coat.
"Allow me to cleanse you with some music, Love Hater!"
And Rhaenyra followed her out of the restaurant onto dim lights and freezing cold.
Freezing cold they both no longer felt.
Thanks to the touch of a burning sun. A weapon against the breeze.