Wallflower was unsurprised but mildly disappointed when she arrived at Sunset’s house and found Cozy at the kitchenette table (though this time with a juice box). “Hey,” she said.
“Hi, Wally! We’re writing poetry,” Cozy started. “I’ve actually got one about you!”
“Me?” Wallflower asked hesitantly. Maybe she’d been wrong. Maybe Cozy was just a little misunders-
“Roses are red, violets are black…” Cozy looked up, and her lip curled. “Why is your chest as flat as your back?”
Wallflower felt it like a punch to her stomach, and she had her hands up covering her breasts before she could stop herself. She’d never had that line directed at her before, but only because she’d always been that girl no one noticed. It certainly could have been; saying she was a ‘late bloomer’ would have been generous. Even now-
“Hey, girls,” Sunset said, coming out of the kitchenette and giving Wallflower a quick side-hug. “How’s the poem coming?”
“Great!” Cozy said, holding it out.
Sunset took it. “Aw, that’s sweet.”
“Sweet?!” Wallflower snatched it away. Her eyes flicked over it.
She sat back. Actually, that was sweet. It was effectively a love letter to their relationship and how perfect they were together.
It wasn’t like she imagined it, did she?
Was this all in her head?
“Sunset, can I talk to you?” Wallflower found herself asking.
“Sure.”
“Alone?”
“Sure,” Sunset said, a little more hesitantly this time. She led the way up into her loft.
Part of her was slightly amused that she was in her girlfriend’s bedroom, but that quickly faded. “I think something’s up with Cozy,” Wallflower blurted.
“Like what?”
“I don’t know,” Wallflower confessed. “It’s just… she says things and then says she didn’t, and…” Would Sunset look down on her for not being able to handle a little girl? “...it’s more of a gut feeling,” she finished lamely.
Sunset pursed her lips. “I think you might be feeling a little bit of jealousy towards Cozy-”
“I’m not jealous!” Wallflower said loudly, before realizing that this wasn’t helping her case.
“She’s had a hard life. There was a house fire one night and, well, her parents didn’t make it.”
Wallflower winced.
“If anything happens, she’s out of the group home and back in the system. I don’t want that.”
“Me either, but...” Wallflower exhaled.
“I think I know what’s going on,” Sunset said. “You’ve been getting down on yourself your whole life. And now that something’s finally going your way, you can’t process it. You think something’s going to go wrong.” She lifted her head. “But it’s not. You’ve got me.”
“I’ve got you,” Wallflower repeated hesitantly.
Sunset nodded. “Come on. You know how to snap, right? I think that’s a poetry thing.”
Wallflower nodded.
Wallflower sat in her garden and sighed. The poetry had been fine, but something still felt off.
She felt a friendly pat on the shoulder, and looked up to see-
“Muffins? How did you know I was here?”
Muffins shrugged.
Wallflower sighed, somehow feeling appreciated and pathetic at the same time.
Muffins tilted her head, as if asking for elaboration.
“It’s Cozy Glow,” she admitted. “Sunset seems to think she’s just a normal kid who needs a little help, but I think it’s all just a game to her. She just doesn’t see me as a person.” She paused, and slowly looked up. “She doesn’t… see me as a person,” she repeated slowly, a spark of hope springing up in her chest. “She’s not going to change her behavior, because she doesn’t see anything to change, which means…” She grabbed Muffins in a hug. “Thanks, Muffins!”
Muffins gave her a half-smile and an uncertain thumbs up, clearly convinced she hadn’t actually done anything to help.