Chapter Text
Sumia wasn’t really a party person, to be honest. She preferred to be curled up at home with a book or her paintbrushes, not in some house with music loud enough that it shook the walls. She didn’t like the crowds, the noise, or, honestly, she didn’t like much of the alcohol either (she was not a beer person. There was always a decent amount of beer). But she had promised Sully she’d come for at least a little bit, so here she was, drinking and pretending to listen to one of the track guys brag about his… jump height? Really, she had no idea what he was talking about, she had tuned it out a long time ago. She didn’t even know his name, either, and he looked like the most average guy ever.
Sully was all the way across the room talking to Stahl. Sumia wasn’t a stranger to Stahl, but she didn’t feel comfortable intruding on his and Sully’s talking. They were close, not as close as Sully and Sumia, but close enough that it felt weird to butt in on them without being invited.
“And so then I learned how to…”
Sumia wished this guy would see someone hotter and walk away right about now. She did not give a shit about his track and field history, his scholarship, or anything else about him, really. She must not have looked bored enough to him, because he just kept talking. She took more sips of her beer and hoped to God she’d find an out of this conversation.
“There you are,” a voice said from behind her.
Sumia turned her head, seeing Cordelia. They didn’t know each other well, and really only knew of each other. They never talked, never really interacted, and overall were in different crowds. Sumia was an art major and spent her time mostly with quiet people who did not go to parties like this (Sully was obviously the exception, they’ve known each other for a long time). Cordelia was an English major and athlete and was probably at these parties a lot more than Sumia was. She was totally more of a people person than Sumia would ever be.
“Hi,” Sumia replied, thanking the universe for the out. “Sorry, I didn’t see you around.”
Cordelia smiled. “No worries,” she lightly grabbed her hand. “Come on, I have something to show you.”
Sumia shot an apologetic look at the guy (pretending that she wasn’t secretly celebrating Cordelia’s interference) and let the other girl drag her away.
“Sorry, I know that was kinda weird,” Cordelia said once they were far enough away.
“No, thank you so much,” Sumia let out a deep sigh. “He would not leave me alone.”
“I could tell,” Cordelia laughed. “Virion doesn’t really know when to stop talking.”
“Oh, that’s his name,” she paused. “ Oh .”
“You… didn’t know that was Virion?”
“I’m not usually at this kind of thing,” Sumia replied. “And I’m bad with names.”
Cordelia smiled. “Yeah, I guess I’ve never really seen you at parties before.”
“Sully asked me to come,” she said, taking another sip. “Not my first choice, but I show up for her every once in a while.”
Cordelia hummed, taking a sip out of her own cup. “I get it,” she replied. “This isn’t really the quietest place to be on a Friday night.”
“No kidding,” Sumia snorted. “But, you know, free booze.”
“True,” Cordelia smiled, holding her cup up. “Makes it more manageable.”
“Not a fan either?”
She shrugged. “Not always,” she replied. “I usually go with the old Valmese goodbye.”
Sumia smiled. “My personal favorite.”
Cordelia nodded. “You know, I didn’t catch you after the art show last week, but your piece there was incredible.”
Sumia knew the piece well. She hadn’t been sleeping well the week she painted it, so she had always thought it wasn’t her best work, but everyone else had loved it. It was her silhouette dancing with someone else, surrounded by ivy, in front of the sunset. She’d drawn inspiration from her soulmark, which ran across her entire upper right arm (she’d never seen anything like it anywhere. She loved it).
She felt her cheeks turn pink. “Thanks,” she replied. “I didn’t know you were there.”
She shrugged. “I like going every once in a while,” she said.
“Didn’t take you for an art enjoyer.”
Cordelia flashed a grin (Sumia always knew she was hot, but her smile was… something else, right now. Maybe she was just a little tipsy). “There’s a lot you don’t know about me.”
Sumia raised her eyebrows. “Oh?”
Sumia wasn’t quite sure how long she and Cordelia had ended up talking, but she did know that she was not going home tonight. Cordelia’s arm was intertwined with hers as they made their way to her apartment building, laughing and flirting the whole fifteen-minute walk. She wasn’t quite sure when the energy between them had shifted, either, but she was definitely enjoying it.
The second they were inside Cordelia had pressed her against the wall, locking her into a heated kiss. Sumia wrapped her arms around the back of Cordelia’s neck as Cordelia’s hands fiddled with the hem of her shirt. They wandered to her stomach; it was like fire dancing on her skin. Each pattern that Cordelia traced was burning into her skin, bleeding together like ink on a page. They were soft and delicate, and Sumia was sure she was going to melt.
Cordelia paused, her hands tugging the hem of Sumia’s shirt. “This is okay?” she whispered.
“More than okay,” Sumia replied.
She hummed in response, guiding Sumia’s shirt up. Sumia lifted her arms, and Cordelia let the shirt fall to the floor.
Cordelia seemed to freeze, for a moment. Her eyes were staring at the ivy running up Sumia’s arm as if it was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen. Sumia cocked her head to the side, and Cordelia broke out of the trance, her arms reaching down and tugging off her own shirt.
And then Sumia understood, because on Cordelia’s left arm was a matching mark. Ivy running down her arm, a stark contrast from her pale skin. They should probably talk about it, but honestly, Sumia could care much less right now.
----
Sumia’s head was so fuzzy when she opened her eyes. She… went to a party with Sully, last night. That was a fact. And then she’d had a few drinks, talked to some guy she could care less about, and then ran into Cordelia.
Oh. Oh . That.
The memories from last night came rushing back, and she became acutely aware she was not in her apartment, or her room, for that matter. She remembered talking with Cordelia for a while, before things got super fuzzy. And then she remembered leaving the party, walking to Cordelia’s apartment, and then finding out they were soulmates.
“Shit,” She groaned, sitting up. “That totally happened.”
She looked around Cordelia’s room, now incredibly curious about it. They had been too preoccupied with other… things (each other, mostly) last night, and she hadn’t really looked around much. She had a desk in the corner, and stacks of textbooks and notebooks littered the top and the area around the desk. A number of post-it notes were stuck on the wall, too. Right across from the bed was her dresser, which had a mirror above it (and Sumia could see how atrocious her bedhead was) and a few trophies lined up. They all looked like softball trophies, which made sense. She was one of the best players on the team, according to Sully, who paid way more attention to the sports here than she ever probably would.
She spotted a folded shirt and sweatpants at the foot of the bed, and Sumia then remembered she was definitely not wearing any clothes, and most of hers were probably strung around the path to Cordelia’s bedroom. Thankful for Cordelia’s thoughtfulness, she tugged the shirt on and climbed out of the bed, pulling the pants on as she walked to the door.
She opened it and could immediately smell coffee from the kitchen. She vaguely remembered the layout of the apartment and made her way to where the kitchen probably was (she definitely didn’t pump her fist when she was totally right about it).
Cordelia was at the counter, her back turned to the hall and humming. In front of her was a coffee maker and two mugs, both seemingly empty. She apparently heard Sumia’s footsteps because the humming stopped and she turned around, a soft smile on her face.
“Hey,” Sumia said dumbly.
“Hey yourself,” Cordelia replied. “Sleep okay?”
She smiled. “Definitely.”
Cordelia hummed, turning back around. “Do you want any cream or sugar?”
“Cream, yeah,” Sumia replied, “and maybe like a little sugar.”
She nodded, and a few moments later, she placed a cup of coffee in front of Sumia before walking around the counter and sitting next to her with her own cup.
“So…” Cordelia said, taking a sip.
“Yeah,” Sumia replied. “We’re… y’know.”
“Soulmates,” she finished. “Yeah.”
Sumia chuckled. “Glad to see neither of us really know what to say about it.”
“Didn’t really expect to meet mine anytime soon,” Cordelia replied. “Figured I would at least have graduated, first.”
“Yeah, me too,” Sumia said. “And I wasn’t really looking either. Thought it would just happen one day.”
“We should probably talk about it,” Cordelia took another sip of her coffee.
“That’s the adult thing to do, probably,” she replied. “Honestly, I have no clue how to approach this.”
“Me neither,” she laughed. “I guess, y’know, we could just figure it out together. We’re both in the same boat. Kind of.”
“Yeah,” Sumia nodded. “I like that.”
Cordelia smiled. “Me too.”