First Kiss with a Friend
Tristan and Beckett were having a lively debate while walking, hands flying as they tried to convince each other of something. Kallista sighed, weighted down by her heavy bag.
“What’s it this time?” a familiar voice asked.
Bredon appeared out of nowhere, shortsword on his hip and a bag slung over his other shoulder.
“You’d know if you stopped skipping class to go to the forge,” Kallista teased, poking at him. He dodged easily.
“That’s where all the swordsmen hang out though,” he said earnestly. Kallista stuck out her tongue.
“Fine. They’re arguing about the merits of using electrum as currency and why it fell out of favor in the larger kingdom. Tristan is arguing that it was safer for people to be able to carry a few electrum coins instead of needing a whole bag of silver or flashing gold in public. Beckett thinks that using electrum for coins was a mistake from the start, given how complicated the forging process can be. I guess he’s picked up a few things about smithing from you.” She laughed at the face he made.
“Gross. So, do you think they’d notice if we waited back for a minute?” Bredon looked away.
“What’s up?”
“I just want to talk to you about something.”
“Okay, that’s fine?” Kallista looked at Tristan, but he didn’t seem to notice that she and Bredon were trailing behind. Mind settled, she led Bredon over to a rock a few paces off the path.
“What’s going on?” Kallista asked, a bit impatient.
“So do you remember Faya, from the party last month?”
Kallista thought back. Faya was a half-elf, unusual for the area, but it didn’t do much other than make her a bit prettier than normal. Graceful, but kinder than expected. Not as snooty as some of the other girls their age in town. Likely because elves were sometimes cruel to their bastard children, even if their parents were contractually wed.
“Yes.”
“So she asked if I would dance with her during the pavane. And you know that means it’s a time to talk and then the musicians take a break and this ball will be with the Goldfrond’s and they have those beautiful gardens and–”
“Get to the point, please,” Kallista interrupted, albeit gently.
“What if she wants me to kiss her? I haven’t kissed anyone before,” he blurted out.
“You just put your lips on hers, right? What’s the big deal?”
“The big deal is that this will be my first kiss, and if I screw it up, it’s my first kiss ever and what if she won’t talk to me again?”
“Bredon, calm down! I have an idea but you might hate it.” Kallista spoke without thinking, again, even though she’d gotten caned at least three times that month for letting her mouth get ahead of her sense.
“What?” his fingers were tapping frantically on his sword, a sure sign of his distress.
“I could kiss you, and then you’ll have your first kiss,” Kallista said, pushing her hair behind her ear. “And I’ll talk to you again, even if it’s terrible. And then if you kiss her and it goes really well, you can tell everyone that that was your first kiss and it’ll be a secret that we did this.”
“You’d do that for me?”
Kallista looked at the ground. It wasn’t like she was important. She pulled it together and smiled back at her friend.
“Of course. We’re the sane ones, remember? We have to stick together. And that means helping, no matter what.”
Bredon got up, and walked around, pacing a circle. Kallista waited patiently. One circle, two, and then on the third, he sat back down and nodded.
“Okay, I’m ready.”
Kallista smiled, and tied her hair back with a strip of leather. She leaned forward, tilting her head as her lips touched his. It was fine, like she expected, although she was a little surprised that his lips were soft. She pulled away.
“How was that?” she asked, trying to make it sound like she didn’t care.
Bredon put a hand over his lips. “If it was good like that with you, I bet it’ll be great with Faya. Thanks, Lis, I really owe you.”
Kallista rolled her eyes and pushed herself up gracefully. “No, you don’t. Just have a good dance, alright? I’ll be in the rafters somewhere.”
Bredon laughed. “I’ll make sure someone tells you when it’s safe to come down. Now come on, let’s see if our compatriots have invented a new form of currency yet.”