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“Nice costume!” A blood-stained doctor said to Daria.
“Thanks.” Daria said, ensuring to bare her frighteningly large and sharp teeth.
“Um, maybe a little too nice.” He said, a little frightened by her display and retreating quickly with his red solo cup.
Jane smirked at her friend’s reaction, her red lips a proud backdrop to her own sharp vampiric teeth. “Oh come on Daria, you need to lighten up! It’s Halloween, we can finally relax and show our true nature!”
“And I did, my nature is just to bare my fangs and scare off people.” Daria, dressed very much like her usual self but partially transformed into her beastly form, took a sip from her own cup, filled with some fruity concoction and alcohol.
“Mhmm.” Jane hummed thoughtfully, dressed to the nines as a faithful recreation of Dracula and her cape fluttered slightly as she shifted her weight and cocked an eyebrow at her friend, “And that’s why Jason dumped you for some sorority girl.”
“Hey, I dumped him when I walked in on them making out on our couch.” She tried to hide the anger but still instinctively bared her teeth again. “Who even brings their date to their girlfriend’s apartment?”
“Just lighten up tonight, Dar! Chug some more drinks, have a little liquid courage and you’ll be in the bed of some stranger tonight.” Jane led her somber friend over to the counter and poured them two shots. “To living our best life!” She cheerfully held up her cup and Daria ‘clinked’ it in good humor before downing the shot.
Then another, and another, and before long Daria was feeling the intoxicating effect of the strong alcohol and began to let loose. She began to slur her words and mish-mash philosophy with romantic era literature, her fangs proudly on display. Always clinging to Jane though, she was her life line in the house party where she knew next to no people. The rest of the night began to pass in a daze of embarrassing dancing, a mix of late 90’s and early 2000’s alt rock and red lips and before long, Daria awoke with a headache in a strange-but-familiar place. It took her a moment to find her glasses, haphazardly sitting on the edge of a night stand, but she fumbled about and put them on.
With her now well clear sight, her eyes began to adjust to the early morning sun intruding through the blackout curtains of what she was certain was Jane’s room in their shared apartment. Confused, she looked back to the empty bed, sighing slightly with relief, and a tinge of disappointment. A moment later she bolted out of bed and into the bathroom, heeding the call of nature quickly. She washed off her hands and went to leave Jane’s bedroom but instead bumped directly into her.
“Oh. Um.” Daria started before realizing that Jane was holding two cups of steaming hot coffee, one that she offered to her flustered friend, who graciously accepted and took a tentative sip.
“Well you didn’t end up in a stranger’s bed but you’ve certainly found a strange bed.” Jane chuckled, attempting to lighten the mood although her face betrayed her anxiety. She looked down before suddenly darting her eyes to the left. “Oh. Uh, your shirt. It’s over there.” Pointing at a lump of cloth on the floor
Daria looked down and for the first time noticed her bare chest for the world to see, she quickly set down her coffee and grabbed her shirt and worked to put it on as fast as possible. “So, uh, did we?” She began to question, still intent on not facing Jane.
“Just some light making out, a little breast fondling here and there between friends.” Although only Daria’s back was to her, Jane looked around at everything except Daria.
Daria inhaled and gathered her courage to turn to face Jane again. “So should we talk about how cliché our lives are?”
Jane was able to look into Daria’s eyes. “That two close friends discover they’re more than friends after a night of heavy drinking?”
“Yup.”
“Not really.”
“Good.”
There was a pause, it was heavy and awkward but still there, Daria was no longer in her beastly form and Jane’s teeth were hidden again within her mouth. They looked like two normal people just set with the burden of their now exposed feelings and the possibility of ruining the one friendship they both always relied on.
“We don’t even have to make a big deal about this.” Jane finally broke the silence. “We can just... carry on with our lives.”
“I agree.” Daria said, feeling a little more bold, “Was it really that bad huh?”
Jane gave her friend the usual lopsided smirk, feeling bold enough to take a step forward. “Well if you need a reminder, you’re not a bad kisser.”
Daria smiled slightly, moved closer to Jane and tentatively began to wrap her arms around the taller woman. “Maybe you can remind me then?”
“With pleasure.” Jane wrapped Daria in her arms and leaned down slightly, kissing her tenderly as they melted into each other and their worries went away.