I don't wanna spend another minute another second without you, babe
Rio stared at the message, absent-midedly chewing at the skin of her thumb. It definitely could be worse; the fact that Agatha had messaged her, rather than blocking her immediately, was already the best case scenario, so Rio was pretty happy. Scratch that, she was fucking ecstatic - it was not every day a stunningly gorgeous girl she had become ever so slightly (read: very) obsessed with messaged her.
Actually, this was the first time that had ever happened.
Unfortunately, she had absolutely no idea how to talk to people like a normal human being. Already, she had deleted ten different responses, all of which followed the same path of starting off with a simple ‘yes that was me!’ before her fingers developed a life of their own and ended the text with something along the lines of ‘I need you to kiss me until my lips bleed’ which, according to google, was not an appropriate first text to send someone on instagram. Apparently it was okay for dating apps though.
Shoving her face into her pillow, Rio let out an irritated growl. Agatha could definitely see that Rio had opened her message so she really needed to think of something to say before she was considered rude, as well as creepy and weird.
She was almost desperate enough to message Alice (not that she was much better than Rio) when she realised she couldn’t breath with her face pressed quite so forcefully into her pillow, so, to prevent herself from suffocating, Rio rolled onto her back, raising her phone to her eyes before promptly dropping it on her face. Agatha had sent another message.
You know I can see you typing, right?
For fucks sake. Fuck.
‘Just message her you fucking idiot,’ Rio thought to herself, rolling gracelessly back onto her stomach, this time using her elbows to hold herself up, ‘it can’t get much worse.’
no i did not know that
but yea i am the girl with the crazy eyes who fell asleep
thanks for the muffin
Excellent. She didn’t even hint that she wanted Agatha to pin her to a wall and kiss her until she died from suffocation or anything.
No problem, you looked dead, I figured you could use it
you really know how to compliment a girl, huh
Was Rio actually flirting?
Well you made a very pretty dead girl, if that makes you feel better
I don’t give free food to just anyone
Was Rio flirting successfully? Fucking hell. What planet is this?
i feel honoured
She was halfway through typing ‘I better be the last person you ever give free food to’ before she caught herself and deleted it all. She wanted to avoid scaring Agatha away for as long as she could.
You’re actually the first person I’ve given free food to
Though technically you stole it cause I didn’t mark it down like I’m supposed to
This time Rio couldn’t stop herself, her fingers pressing send too quickly for the logical part of her brain to keep up.
i better be the last too
i don’t mind stealing
Okay. That was out there.
Rio would consider googling how to delete Instagram messages but that would be redundant; Agatha was already typing again.
Your wish is my command, darling
Mostly because I’d quite like to keep my job
choosing to ignore that second message
you’re totally just doing whatever i tell you to
That’s not really my vibe
I don’t take well to being told what to do
what if i bat my crazy eyes really prettily and say please?
You’d have to be in front of me to do that
send me your location and i will be
Rio bit her lip. Fuck. Had she gone too far?
I’m at work
Feel like keeping your word?
Apparently not.
give me twenty min
Rio had never jumped out of bed quicker.
It was a ten minute walk from her house to the café, which gave Rio nowhere near enough time to get ready, but it would have to do. Raking her hands through her hair and tying it up with the hairband on her wrist, she made her way to the bathroom, deciding that washing her face would be a good place to start. At the very least the cold water should calm her down a little.
While she did so, she mentally ran through all the clothes in her cupboards, trying desperately to come up with something that fell somewhere between ‘fuck me’ and ‘I’m totally not trying, I just look this good all the time’, which proved to be far more difficult than she thought, and she hadn’t been under the impression it was going to be easy.
By the time she had finished her make-up (a little concealer, mascara and her prized eyeliner) Rio had settled on a fitted grey tank top, a pair of low-waisted jeans and her trusty washed-out black zip-up hoodie that was about two sizes too big but always made her feel just that bit more confident. It wasn't a breathtaking outfit, but it was comfortable, casual and easy to wear.
Thankfully, she found everything she wanted quickly and without making a complete mess of her room, before proceeding to dress herself at an almost inhuman speed.
Pausing to look at herself in the mirror, Rio hummed quietly in consideration. She had let her hair down after finishing her makeup and she quickly ran her fingers through it, smoothing it slightly. It was still a little messy when she was done - just grazing her shoulders and holding a slight wave - but that was how Rio liked it. Her vest top clung to her just right, showing off her lean figure and enunciating the slight curve of her waist. She could even make out the slight protrusion of her belly button piercing.
She looked like herself, which was terrifying.
Somehow, an outfit intended to make herself look good for Agatha had ended up just showing Rio, in all her awkward, androgynous, messy glory.
She watched as her reflection dragged their teeth over their bottom lip and pulled at their top.
Sighing, she grabbed her phone off of her bed and unlocked it. She didn’t have time to change.
—
The walk to the café had never felt so long.
At one point Rio genuinely considered running, and Rio did not run. Ever.
Thankfully, the purple sign for the café came into view before her legs got any crazy ideas, and she felt herself relax slightly as excitement coiled around her chest, filling her with a pleasant buzz that, while being completely unfamiliar, caused a smile to spread across her face. She found her pace quickening despite herself.
The first thing she saw as she took in the inviting warmth of the café, was Agatha serving a disgruntled looking blonde woman, clearly putting all her effort and attention into being as irritating as possible without actually giving the customer a reason to assault her.
Rio was going to have to put aside some time later to evaluate why she found that so hot, for now, though, she took advantage of Agatha’s focus being on the blonde to slip into the queue unnoticed.
There were only two people, besides the blonde woman, ahead of Rio, so it wasn't long until she was standing in front of Agatha and, despite having spent the last two minutes staring at her, Rio found her breath was completely stolen as soon as blue eyes locked on to her own.
Gathering herself as quickly as she could, and stubbornly ignoring the explosion of butterflies that had taken residency in her gut, Rio widened her eyes comically and batted her eyelashes in the most exaggerated way possible.
‘I'm here to ask you to pretty pretty please never give free food to anyone but me.’
Her tone was sickly sweet, a smirk pinching at the corners of her lips, but she meant what she was saying in a way that was both exhilarating and a little scary. She was desperate for Agatha to see the sincerity behind her sarcasm, but, at the same time, she didn’t want Agatha to be able to read her like that; Rio had always thrived by hiding behind humour and lies, and she really didn’t think she would handle losing that armour well.
She watched Agatha’s expressions closely, pride swelling in her chest as she noticed the slight upturn of the brunette's lips and the clear amusement in her eyes.
‘Well, as you did such a good job of asking me so nicely it would be rude of me to not at least consider it.’
Rio’s heart skipped a beat and she leaned forwards onto the counter, resting her head in her hand in such a way that she was looking up at Agatha through her eyelashes.
She batted her eyes a few more times for effect, ‘How many times do I have to say please before you just agree?’
Agatha bit her lip - which gave new life to the butterflies Rio had just managed to calm - and tilted her head in mock consideration.
‘I’d like to hear it once more.’
Really, Rio should have felt some hint of embarrassment as she all but begged a girl she had just met, in front of a pretty full café and a growing line of impatient customers, but as Rio put on the most pathetic whiny, sugar-coated voice and said ‘please’ any trace of shame was shoved to the side as Agatha’s face broke out in a grin more genuine than Rio had seen in any of her Instagram posts (and Rio had looked at them all. Thoroughly).
‘Okay.’ She said, her voice a touch deeper now, and lacking quite as heavy of a teasing tone, ‘I will never give free food to anyone but you.’
Rio grinned, bright and honest, ‘Thank you, that’s all I ask.’
Agatha had just opened her mouth to reply when she was cut off by the man behind Rio.
‘Hey! If you aren’t going to order anything can you fuck off so I can get some fucking coffee.’
Rio turned to face him, something strangely protective coiling in her stomach. He was tall, but old and weak-looking, meaning the anger radiating off of him made him look more comical than intimidating and Rio was more than willing to give him a vulgar and violent piece of her mind. She was about to speak, a plethora of abusive insults poised on the tip of her tongue, but was stopped by a warm hand wrapping around her bicep.
‘I reserve the right to refuse customers service.’ Agatha said, cold confidence lacing her tone, ‘go and get your fucking coffee elsewhere.’
Rio watched, enthralled, as the man seemed to physically shrink in the face of Agatha’s words. As he started to back away, Rio shifted her focus to Agatha, who was still watching the man as he retreated.
She looks so fucking hot, Rio thought, as she took the opportunity of the other girls focus being elsewhere to study her face up-close. Her nose was immediately Rio’s favorite of her features, closely followed by her lips.
Rio’s eyes continued to dart across Agatha’s face greedily, taking in every little thing she could. This close to her, Rio could see almost everything; from the hint of acne scars under the barista’s light make-up, to the thin, almost invisible hairs that covered her entire face. Her eyes consumed every millimeter of the other girl's face like a starved animal, committing it all to memory.
She found herself completely unable to look anywhere but Agatha, even as the older girl turned back to Rio - the old man long gone - she couldn't tear her eyes away and she was faced with a feeling she couldn’t even begin to describe. It was all consuming, bordering on overwhelming, and made Rio feel like her blood was warmer than it had ever been before.
I think I want to lick her face.