The lights of the television bounce off the walls. Despite the lightning in the distance, nothing truly feels scary here. It does not matter what movie is playing. All that really matters is who is right beside me. On cold nights like these, she is the one who keeps me warm. I suppose that is what happens when you decide to marry someone. You commit yourself to the idea of love and union. Funnily enough, I used to hate the mere idea of commitment.
But with her? It doesn’t feel that scary of a concept. The frightening part is actually taking the plunge. Going to the altar makes anyone feel like they’re making a decision they can never take back, even a siren. It may be the right decision, but the finality of it is as cold as ice in your veins… Yet here I am, happily married for almost two years now. The seconds after taking the plunge are often the most calming and enjoyable, knowing that everything will be fine. For me, those seconds have lasted years.
Leaning my head on Sunset’s shoulder, I close my eyes, letting the blue light dance on my eyelids. The movie is a little boring to me, but it’s still nice to be here. Hugging her arm, it feels like nothing in the world could ruin this. I hate to admit it, but it’s hard to not smile.
“I love you,” I whisper in a quiet voice, making Sunset lay her head against me. In small nods, she rubs her head on mine, a hum emitting from her lips. The sound on the TV is noticeable, but I ignore it to listen to her breaths.
“As do I with you, Adagio,” Sunset responds in kind with another nod. Before long, a small chuckle escapes her lips, kissing the top of my head.
“What’s funny?” Looking up from her shoulder, I simply see a humorous expression painted across her face. All I feel is more confusion…
“Nothing. Nothing is funny, really,” Sunset tries to reassure me as she giggles a little more. It’s ironic that this statement does little to actually persuade me from thinking something is up. Raising my eyebrow, I poke her cheek with a shake of my head.
“I’m not going to take that for an answer.” My little comment makes Sunset laugh a little harder, trying to move away from me.
“I just find you really cute, you know that? You’re a needy siren.” Needy…? Sunset looks at me with some form of admiration and an adorable smile, but I’m just wondering what she meant. “You’re always craving some form of physical connection with me. Like hugs, cuddles or anything else like that. It’s kind of cute in a way.” Without any warning, Sunset presses her finger against my nose, sticking her tongue out at me. Normally, I’d find this action humorous, but… Well, let’s just say that I’m getting increasingly annoyed.
“What? If you don’t like it, you could just ask me to stop,” I tell her with a slight roll of my eyes, crossing my arms. “I may be pushy, but I wouldn’t cross your boundaries.”
“I love it,” Sunset tells me with a small nod, pressing her forehead against mine. “Trust me. It means a lot to me. I just found it funny since I doubt you could last a week without any physical affection.” I can’t help but scoff at her idea, looking at her as if she is crazy. To be fair, she sounds like it.
“I could definitely last that long, Sunset. It’s not like our relationship is exclusively built upon that concept.” As soon as the words leave my mouth, the movie ceremoniously ends with the credits. It’s not like the two of us were watching it, but it does make me wonder if it is a bad omen.
“Oh, really? So you’re confident you could last a week? Why not eight days?” Sunset asks me with a wink. “Our anniversary is only in eight days. I wonder whether you could last until then without a hug. Or holding my hand.” Hand holding is included in this? I guess it does technically count as physical affection… A lot of things count now that I think about it. When I first thought about this, I was thinking it would just be things like kisses. Maybe I… overestimated myself…
No. I didn’t. I can do this. This is not a problem. I spent thousands of years without it in Equestria. It will be easy. She, on the other hand, is not used to the same experiences. Surely she will crack first.
“Sunset, eight days is a walk in the park for me. Challenge accepted.”
Walking into the kitchen, I can feel my eyes trying to fail me. They feel as heavy as the world itself, beckoning me to fall into the sweet embrace of sleep once more. However, it would hurt if I did that right now. Collapsing to the ground sounds painful and it would be a major inconvenience to me personally. To anyone else? They would probably find it funny if someone was actually watching. The only person in the kitchen besides me is my much happier wife, making a pot of coffee.
Good. I need a cup right about now…
“Hello, Sunny,” I whisper with a smile, closing my eyes as I walk towards her with my arms outstretched. Feeling something press against my chest, I open my eyes to see Sunset hold me at arm’s length with a slight shake of her head. Huh… Did I do something wrong? Some wrong joke I made?
“Ah ah ah. You remember what deal we made last night, right?” she asks me with a teasing tone, finally returning my gaze. Yeah… That deal. Forgot about that. I usually start my mornings with a hug from her. Now it just feels… weird. I can do it though. It’s just a mild inconvenience. Surely Sunset will praise my strength by the time this is over. I’ll show her. I’m not needy.
“Forgot about it,” I respond with a shrug, dropping my arms to my side. Subconsciously, my mind is trying to tell me something is wrong here since I didn’t get the hug, but that’s probably because I got used to it. Funny. I was used to not hugging anyone for years. Now it feels off to not get a morning hug. A small chuckle comes from Sunset as she makes the coffee, making me raise my eyebrow. “Are you already getting a kick out of this? I told you that I forgot, Sunset. Not that I was trying to fail this challenge.”
“Sure, Adagio. Not like you were trying to sneak a hug without me noticing, huh?” she remarks in a teasing tone, giving me a small wink. After a few seconds, she finally pours the coffee into two cups, handing one to me. “Careful, needy kitty. It’s hot.” Sunset laughs at her own statement, moving her hand right above my shoulder as if she is petting me without actually making contact. In a way, my shoulder almost feels her touch…
“You’re a bitch,” I state while carefully drinking my beverage. Sunset sits down at the island in the middle of the kitchen, smiling at my insult.
“Well, I did learn from the best of them~” she whispers with a nod towards me, only serving to make my lips purse even further. I can’t believe she’s making me so heated that I want to pout… Me, a siren of all creatures, wanting to throw a fit at this. I’m better than this though. “Also, I wanted to ask you something. Do you still want to go to the movies with Rarity and Rainbow Dash tomorrow?” Sunset asks me in a kind tone, almost sounding apologetic for her rather heated teasing towards me.
Honestly, I forgot we were even supposed to go to the movies with them. It kind of slipped my mind. We’re supposed to watch Robodogs 5: Return of the Clowns then. It’s a rather stupid franchise, but it is something Sunset enjoys for the sheer idiocy of it. It’s fun to watch it with her. Even if I don’t understand half the jokes.
“Sure, I wouldn’t mind,” I tell her with a smile, wondering how I’m going to sit still if I can’t hold her hand…
With a final triumphant note, the movie ends with the credits finally rolling onto the screen. The lights come on in the theater just as the sound of multiple people getting up from their seats hits my ears.
“That was awesome!” Dash tells us with excitement in her voice, throwing her fist into the air. I wish I could share her enthusiasm. The plot of the movie was lost on me about twenty minutes in, but everyone else seems to be in good spirits. It would be a shame to ruin it by asking a bunch of questions. That’s for when Sunset and I are about to sleep so that I can annoy the hell out of her.
“Come on, Rainbow Dash. The movie has ended. We should go now,” Rarity tries to encourage our friend to get up since she’s the one closest to the aisle.
“I want to see if there is an end-credit scene,” Dash tells Rarity with a small wave of her hand while looking at the credits as if her life depends on it. After a few seconds, she finally looks towards us, subsequently frowning. “Fine. I guess I’ll have to look it up later.” Standing up from her seat, Dash lets us out with a roll of her eyes.
“None of the other movies had a scene at the end of the credits. I’m sure this one doesn’t either,” Sunset tries to reassure her with a small laugh. Rarity and Rainbow Dash lead the way out of the theater, but Sunset looks at me with a smirk. From that look, I can tell she has some idea brewing under the surface.
“Whatever machinations are going through your head, I am sure I don’t want to know.” Despite what I just said, Sunset gets closer to me, bringing her hand close to mine. From a glance, it looks like the two of us are holding hands. However, no contact is happening here. Our hands are hovering a mere centimeter apart from each other. Raising my eyebrow, I look over at her with nothing but confusion. It’s times like these that I wonder if she has truly lost it yet or not…
“We want to keep up appearances, right?” she asks me quietly, nodding towards our friends. She’s trying to lace her argument with some truth, but it’s fallible at best. We literally walked in here without holding hands and the two of them didn’t say a thing. Acting as if they are some elite detectives is idiosyncratic. I mean, one of them is Rainbow Dash. She’s witty, but sometimes not the sharpest. To act like we need to go about this with trepidation in case the other two suspect something is just illogical.
However, Sunset is always odd… I’d be lying if I said it isn’t one of the reasons why I love her. And… I have been missing the closeness. Missing is not the same as craving. I can handle a week of this…
“You’re weird,” I tell her quietly, walking forward. As we follow our friends, we try to keep our hands from touching yet keeping them as close as possible.
“And you’re beautiful,” Sunset whispers in response, giving me a warm smile. Those irresistible eyes stare into my very soul. Unlike any creature I’ve ever met, she reads my soul… My hand almost tingles from how much I want to close the distance between our fingers.
I can do this. I think…
I have to admit that it is a horrible sensation to sit on the other side of the couch from her. It has been six days and the last two nights, I’ve had a horrible time trying to sleep. Now, here she is, playing on her phone. It’s hard to focus on anything else, even the book in my hands. At this point, I’m purely surviving off her gaze alone since she hasn’t touched me in almost a week. Ever since she pushed me to arm’s length in the kitchen, she and I have kept our distance. I honestly thought she would break by now, but all I can think about is the last time she touched me and how much my body wants to embrace hers.
It’s not normal to obsess over the last touch. Not unless you’re some schoolgirl with her first crush or a touch starved loner. God, is this what it feels like to be touch starved? To think about how nice it would feel to have her hand on my cheek. Just something?! Despite the inner turmoil, my body is holding up surprisingly well. I’d like to think I haven’t shown a sign of struggle or conflict, but I don’t know what Sunset can see. Even if I’m not showing anything, I sure as hell want to feel her touch again… If I were to compare it to a physical feeling, it’s like my body itches and burns constantly, but there’s no actual pain. Just this constant… buzzing. This feeling as if I am being touched, but I know nothing is actually there. My mind is playing tricks on me…
Does that imply a lack of physical affection can be bad for my health? If my mind is already going down the drain, what is next? ‘Here lies Adagio Dazzle, died from a lack of touch’? That would really prove Sunset right… She’s wrong, of course. I’m a siren who has lived for thousands of years. Something like this wouldn’t kill me.
Then why is it playing tricks on my mind? Why do I want her to look away from her goddamn phone? Look at me… Look at me. Is it really that hard? It’s not touching… Just look at me.
“What do you want for dinner?” I ask her with a curious tone, watching her scroll that device. Conversation usually implies eye contact. However, Sunset shrugs without turning her gaze towards me.
“I don’t know, honestly. I’m not that hungry,” Sunset responds in a bored hum. If she’s really that bored with her phone, she could, I don’t know, look at me? “I was actually thinking of going to bed sometime soon.” Yeah… Bed. The place where I have to make sure not to cuddle her for the seventh night in a row? Not looking forward to it. If anything, that makes me feel a little annoyed. It’s just one more day. Tomorrow is the last day before our anniversary. Come on, Dazzle. Pull yourself together.
Closing my book, I put it down on the coffee table, moving closer to her on the couch. Even now, she looks at her phone rather than giving me attention. Fine. Maybe I do want attention. I mean, I deserve it, but I’m not needy. Wanting it is… different. Pressing my hand down on the couch close to her shoulder, I notice her turning her head.
“Don’t look,” I whisper with a monotone voice, making her stop. “For someone who is so engrossed in that phone, you sure act like you’re bored while ignoring me,” I whisper, bringing my lips within an inch of her cheek. I can almost feel the warmth of her face on my lips. Honestly, I can’t help but chuckle. I can feel my lips tingle, wanting to touch her. It would be so easy to fail here. From the way she blushes, I can tell she wants it too. At least I’m not the only one suffering.
If we’re both wanting this to end, then why not make this the worst hell imaginable?
Bringing my lips closer, I pretend to kiss her cheek without touching her. The hitch in her breath is just barely audible. Her finger has stopped scrolling her phone. Instead, the nerves make her almost shake in place.
“Steady,” I whisper, placing another kiss in the air right above her cheek. “You don’t want nerves to end this little game, do you?” It’s ironic that she’s blushing a deep shade of red here. She’s been the one teasing me this whole week. She pretended to hold my hand, wrap her arm around me, and even pet me. As soon as I do the same, she can't handle it. All I’ve done is up the ante a little.
“What are you doing?” Sunset asks me in the quietest voice she can muster. Her screen has gone dark by now from inactivity. While most people might turn their phone back on when this happens, her thumb stays an inch away from her phone with no motivation to scroll again.
“Now you’re paying attention to me?” I ask her with a chuckle, pretending to kiss her again. “You were clearly more interested in that screen than eating with me a minute ago. What changed?” My heart is beating faster now than it has in the past week. One little slip and our challenge is done. She’s clearly enjoying it too. Every nerve in my body screams at me to kiss her. To end this. For once, I’m the one in control here.
“This is c-cheating,” Sunset stammers out, trying to act angry, but I know she doesn’t want this to stop. It’s cute how she acts like I’m cheating when she did practically the same thing to me this whole week.
“I don’t see how, but if you insist~” I whisper in response. Laying one last kiss in the air, I back away from her, chuckling to myself. Sunset turns her gaze to me, still blushing brightly. It looks like she wants to say something to me, but nothing comes out. Moving back to my end of the couch, I grab my book with an oddly satisfied feeling. Even though I never actually kissed her, my body doesn’t feel touch starved anymore. The way she looks at me almost seems like she is in disbelief that I actually stopped. It’s only one more day, Shimmer…
Holding the cup in my hand, I keep my lips wrapped around the straw, even when I’m not drinking from it. The movie we’re watching is one of our favorites, but, at this moment, it’s not nearly as interesting as this drink. Sunset’s drink… She wouldn’t believe me if I explained that I took it by accident. Even I find that excuse flimsy. Maybe it was my subconscious trying to get anything. Even when it comes to an indirect kiss like this, it feels… really nice. It’s an hour away from midnight, yet my body is still acting like it’s an eternity away. To say this challenge has been hell on Earth is an understatement.
“That was my drink,” Sunset mentions quietly, sitting idly to herself. She makes no attempt to stop me, but I can tell she wants to intervene. Probably just to take it back and get an indirect kiss as well.
“You left it unattended,” I tell her without letting the straw go from my lips. Even though our anniversary is in less than sixty minutes, this small action feels like my only lifeline until then. Who knows? Maybe I will die if I let go of the straw. A spontaneous combustion of frustration that has been building up to this point would be the cause of my death. You never can be too careful… Knowing how my body has been reacting to this last week, I would not be surprised if that happens. I’ve never known how it feels to be touched starved before. I never needed to know… I only loved myself before.
Now, I can’t help but love her with every cell in my body. Of course that means every part of me wants to feel her embrace by now… As the blue lights dance across my eyes, I can still feel her gaze on me. Despite how much I want to kiss her, I have to live with this for now. The closest thing I can get by drinking from her cup. I’ve dealt with this for almost eight days now. I should be allowed some help like this during the final stretch.
In my peripheral vision, I can see Sunset move closer to me. She’s probably going to try and take the drink back… Sitting next to me, Sunset reaches towards the cup, prompting me to hold it away from her. However, her fingers grab my chin, making me look towards her. The feeling of her touching me instantly makes me feel lighter. The way she stares into my eyes makes the sound of the TV disappear. A look of desperation mixed with conflict fills her gaze. She doesn’t seem to be after the drink. Instead, she sits there, looking into my eyes for what feels like an eternity. The way her fingers hold my chin makes me feel kind of dizzy. It’s nice.
“You know that this is cheating, ri-” Before I can finish my sentence, Sunset pulls me closer. In an instant, her lips press against mine, igniting a fire in my heart. My nerves go haywire. The way she’s kissing me feels like it’s as if her life depends on this one innocuous action. I feel really happy… Butterflies flutter around in my stomach. I’d never admit that, but it’s true. She’s the only person who can make me feel like this. To make a siren quiver under her touch… She should be honored.
Finally, Sunset pulls away, locking her gaze with mine once again. Her hand is holding my cheek. Her stare looks like she’s afraid of losing me if she lets go for even a second. She’s adorable when she’s like this…
“We only had an hour left to go,” I whisper, watching the light of the TV bounce off her face. Her eyes sparkle in this dimly lit room, but I can tell exactly how she feels. “Why?”
“It’s simple,” Sunset responds in the same quiet tone, moving her body closer to mine. The way she stares into my eyes is full of love, her hand reassuring me she has no plan of letting me go tonight. “I couldn’t wait any longer.”