Work Text:
Bored, bored, bored.
Kris has never been bored in class like they are today.
They're sitting here, bored and tired and failing to focus on Miss Alphys' words as she drones on about fuck all. It's the last week of the year, there's basically nothing left to learn, so who cares? Certainly not them.
And besides, the school's air conditioning is awful. Kris can barely breathe because the air is so thick with heat. They leaned back and tried to fan themselves with the collar of their sweater, but that only succeeds in blowing the stench of their own sweat in their face. Blegh.
Trying to distract themselves with anything they possibly can, they tuned into a conversation happening between Noelle and Berdly, who, despite being the known smartest and most attentive kids in class, were also not paying attention. Just goes to show how absolutely useless this lesson is.
"So yeah," The doe drawled, twirling her pencil between her fingers, "my mom's been getting this pool installed in out backyard. According to her, it should be done by tomorrow afternoon."
Kris perked up quickly hearing that. A pool? Maybe the Angel is merciful after all. A nice cold body of water is exactly what they need in boiling temperatures like these. But that's assuming Noelle even plans to invite them. Hopefully.
"Maybe I should ask Susie if she wants to come by for a swim…" Noelle whispered to herself, cheeks darkening. Her sapphic ass was no doubt picturing that reptilian body in all sorts of swimwear. Kris cleared their throat loudly, making her jump in her seat.
"O-oh, Kris!! Sorry, did you, um, want to come too…?"
"Anything to not be cooked alive," they fanned their face with their hand, "so yes, I'll be there."
The two of them looked expectantly at Berdly, whose eyes darted between them and the worksheet on his desk. He clicked his tongue a couple times and shook his head. "As wonderful as that sounds, I've got studying to do if I want to keep up my A+ streak."
Kris laughed at that and laid their legs across the desk, smirking at him. "Dude, school's basically over. Your perfect grades aren't gonna drop in the last week."
Berdly looked at them over his shoulder and frowned. "Place your feet back on the floor at once, Kris, you look utterly ridiculous."
"Make me."
The bluebird grumbled and turned back towards the front of the room. Kris' smug look grew, a lightbulb going off inside their head. They leaned back in their chair and declared;
"I guess we'll never know which one of us is the better swimmer, what a shame."
Berdly's hand froze halfway through writing something on his sheet, and he looked right back at them. Bingo.
"Is that a challenge I heard, Dreemurr? I don't think you know what you're getting yourself into." He narrowed his eyes, probably trying appear intimidating but only coming off as silly-looking.
"Why don't you find out?"
Berdly clenched his beak, annoyed but clearly convinced. "Fine, I'll come. But only so I can crush you under my superiority."
Kris smiled at him and finally brought their legs back down to the ground. Their job here was complete.
Berdly stepped out the back door of the Holiday residence, the bag containing his towel and other required gear hanging on his shoulder. He was sporting a pair of orange swimtrunks and a gray graphic tee he planned to remove before getting in the water. Noelle was already laying comfortably in one of the chairs on the deck, clad in a black one-piece with a towel tied around her waist, red nose buried into a fantasy romance novel. He set his things in the chair beside her and stretched his wings over his head.
He couldn't discern exactly why, but he was in a chipper mood today. Kris' comment about studying being unnecessary by this point stuck with him enough that he didn't cram the way he usually would last night, not to mention he wanted to save his energy so he could absolutely demolish the human in their swimming competition. And now, he was feeling surprisingly relaxed.
Which was probably just a happy coincidence. Nothing more, nothing less.
He sat by the pool's edge and dipped in his talons, immediately shuddering. Not that he could say he was surprised that a pool that belonged to Noelle's family would be freezing cold. The little blue tiles at the bottom were arranged so that the grout formed a snowflake pattern, which was also on-brand. He figured with how chilly the water is, he might have to limit his time in the pool so as not to contract hypothermia. For now, he sat there and watched the ripples from the movement of his swinging legs.
At least until he received a hard shove from behind, sending him tumbling directly in. He frantically found his footing- luckily, the pool was shallow enough that he could stand, and the water would reach up to his chest -and spun around to see the culprit's face, which was scaly and purple.
"Shoulda watched your back, nerd bird!!" Susie threw her head back and cackled like a witch. She was wearing a plain black and sporty-looking two piece, thick brown hair done up in a ponytail so it didn't get in her face constantly. Berdly gritted his teeth at her, face burning from humiliation.
He finally took notice of Kris standing beside her, who was laughing as well. They were sporting a wetsuit that covered most of their skin, dark indigo blue in color with lighter blue and green highlights. He locked eyes with them and they paused, looked down at themselves, then back at him and raised an eyebrow. A silent inquiry of his opinion, it seemed.
"Quite an efficient choice of swimwear on your part, Kris," he praised, "and dare I say, it suits you."
They cracked a little smile, eyes still trained on him as they approached the pool ladder. "Did you just make a swimsuit pun?"
He gazed off for a second or two. "Not purposefully, no."
Kris chuckled, a strangely warm and enjoyable sound. He noticed that, despite Susie's barbaric attack on him, he was still bearing a wide, cheery smile. Speaking of that, he also remembered he was still wearing his shirt, which was soaked through with pool water now. He made a sound of mild disgust and pulled it off over his head, tossing it onto the deck with a splat.
Kris slid into the water beside him, their teeth chattering slightly. "It's cold."
"I'm well aware," Berdly replied. He looked at them and realized that, unlike him, whose shoulders were breaching the surface, his rival was submerged up to their neck. The ends of their maroon hair splayed slightly in the water, darkened from being wet. He bit his tongue so he wouldn't audibly laugh, but Kris noticed his observation regardless, and instantly grew annoyed.
"Not a word," They warned, shooting him a glare.
Berdly stifled a snicker. "No, no, of course not. I would never."
Kris' expression suggested that they didn't believe a word from his beak, which he couldn't fault them for. He watched them paddle closer to where Noelle was sitting, and, like the menace they were, started splashing pool water at her. She squealed and tried to shield her book with her body.
"Kris!! You're the worst, I swear!!" Despite her protests, she was giggling like mad, and Susie laughed along with her. Kris stuck their tongue out playfully, having the time of their life.
Berdly watched the whole exchange from a few paces away. Wondering why his cheeks felt sore, he glanced down at his reflection and found that he'd been smiling without realizing.
"Yo, Noelle, should we get some snacks out here?" Susie asked, currently in the middle of redoing her ponytail.
Noelle looked up from her novel with a big smile of approval at the suggestion. "We've got a watermelon in the fridge, maybe we could cut that up!"
"Aw, hell yeah!!" Susie lit up excitedly, already dragging Noelle to the door back inside the house. "Kris, Berdly, we'll be back in a jiff!"
Berdly acknowledged their departure with a tiny nod, standing in the middle of the pool. He was absentmindedly making little whirlpools with his fingers, occasionally glancing up to see Kris doggy paddling around. They came to a sudden halt, standing back up in the water and walking over to him.
He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "And what might you be plotting now, you little trouble maker?"
The response he got to that was a faceful of water splashed at him, making him sputter to avoid getting it inside his beak. Kris grinned cheekily. "That's what you get for calling me short earlier, jerk."
"I did no such thing, dear rival of mine," Berdly retorted, crossing his arms and turning up his nose at them. Then, a smirk grew on his face and he added, "but if I had, it would've been objectively true."
"Alright, that's it! C'mere, featherhead!"
Kris lept at Berdly, attempting to push him off balance. He squawked and flailed to regain his stance, then trapped them against his body with his wings. The human yelped and thrashed in protest of the manhandling, trying to kick him off. Both of them were laughing harder than ever.
Berdly hadn't been anticipating a test of strength, but he wasn't going to give in and accept a loss. Admittedly overzealous, he pushed Kris down into the water, only to pull them right back up in a panic when he realized what he was doing.
"Shit, shit, shit! Are you okay??"
Kris coughed, forehead resting on Berdly's shoulder. Between wheezes, they looked up with an amused sparkle in their eyes. "…Did I just hear you swear, Berdly?"
Scandalized, Berdly only managed to stutter for a moment, face darkening from embarrassment. "Sh-shut up- it- it was an appropriate reaction to the situation-"
He didn't get to continue defending himself, as Kris had started splashing him again. He tried to cover his face, unconsciously backing away from the water flying about.
"Aren't you gonna do something?" Kris asked him, still not relenting.
"Are you crazy??" Berdly opened one squinted eye to look at them, "I almost drowned you!!"
"Ohhh, so does that mean you're forfeiting?~"
"Ha, you wish, Kristopher!!"
Kris' splashes gave way to a series of playful punches, making the bluebird back up towards the far edge of the pool. They suddenly slammed their hands down on the rim, trapping him on either side, and lept up to latch onto his waist with their legs. In this position, they were finally able to tower above Berdly, casting a shadow over his frame with theirs.
"There," they panted between heavy, worn-out breathes, "now who's the short one…?"
Berdly couldn't retort, all the words had left his brain. Droplets of water trickled down Kris' amber skin and dripped from their hair. Their cheeks were painted in red tones, like from the exertion, and their eyes were narrowed tauntingly at him. He blinked a few times to be certain he was seeing things correctly.
Was it just the adrenaline talking, or was Kris sort of…pretty?
Kris' smug look of triumph faded of their face, giving way to wide-eyed shock at their predicament. Their focus starts to flicker all over the place, from his chest to his beak to his eyes, like they can't figure out where they should be looking right now. As if they can't decide which of his features deserves their attention over the others. But he could very well be projecting that thought, because he can't for the life of him choose one place to put his gaze either.
They let out a shaky breath that flowed over his face like a waterfall and made him shiver. It was warm and smelled like chlorine, likely from accidentally ingesting water when he had dunked their head. Their widened eyes softened, and they leaned into him by an inch or two, making his throat hold his breath in place.
For what felt like a eternity to him, all movement ceased. They were frozen in place and he was still paralyzed, mesmerized by them. The both of them could turn into statues right here, locked together in this little dreamland they'd created for the rest of time, and he'd welcome it.
Then Kris finally did move. And there was not a world where he could've been prepared for it.
Their left hand lifted from the edge of the pool and relocated on his shoulder, the right one following suit. Berdly quickly grabbed onto them for support, making any stray thoughts in his head die when his brain caught up with his hands, and he realized he was holding them by the waist, and all while their thighs were still resting on his hips. His lanky bird legs trembled under the weight of them both, but he willed them to hold out, knowing he'd never forgive himself if he let such a magical moment end that way.
One of their hands slipped from his shoulder to his neck, and traveled up until it touched the underside of his beak. He made a tiny sound in the back of his throat and was instantly ashamed of it, but Kris didn't acknowledge it out loud, didn't speak at all, in fact. They just tilted his head up and kept their eyes on his face, breathing slowly but delibiritely, as if fighting to remain calm and collected.
Berdly is sure that he's going to pass out or melt into a puddle or something. He's cold from the water yet also hot from the hunger to be touched. Kris' forehead is almost touching his, but they don't do anything else for a long while, and it's downright cruel. He has to say something. Say something, idiot.
"Kris…?"
Well, he did, but he sounded like a rubber chicken being stepped on, the way their name came out as a squeak from his mouth.
Kris looked startled, almost confused, even, like they'd completely forgotten where and who they were right now. Their eyes fell down to his beak, then rose to his eyes again, too fast to not be a concious effort on their part. Shit, is this actually happening? What even is 'this'?
They parted their lips slightly but said nothing, so Berdly gulped and summoned all his courage.
"Whatever you're about to do," he breathed, "just-"
The back door flew open with a loud slam.
Kris practically flew out of his arms, jumping back down into the water in what felt like mere seconds. Berdly was left standing there looking foolish with his beak hanging open, watching them paddle over to Susie and Noelle, who were carrying plates of watermelon slices.
"Sorry we took so long, faha…"
"Hope you dorks are hungry!!"
Berdly swayed in place, catching himself on the rim of the pool. His body was gradually starting to cool down, but his soul was still thrumming within him.
What just happened?
Berdly wrapped the towel he'd brought with him around his shoulders, sitting down in a circle with the other three teens, the plates of watermelon placed in the center. Half of them were cut quite neatly, and the other half were uneven and chunky. It wasn't too hard to figure out which slices had been done by whom.
He watched Kris snatch one of the uneven slices and scarf it down in big slobbery bites, which managed to get a little laugh out of him. He reached out and wiped away some of the juice with his thumb, but stopped himself when Kris looked at him all startled. He muttered an apology, and Kris replied with a tiny awkward nod. Susie and Noelle exchanged a confused glance.
Berdly stood up and cleared his throat. "Er, well, this has been quite fun, but I believe it's time I be on my way."
"It was nice having you!" Noelle told him, while Susie gave him a thumbs up and a big grin. Kris, on the other hand, looked down at the ground and said nothing. His soul sunk a little in his chest.
He started gathering up his belongings and putting them in his bag, which he hoisted onto his shoulder. He shuffled timidly away, heading around the house to the front yard. As he reached the gate, though, he heard footsteps and a shaky voice behind him.
"Berdly, wait."
He stopped right there and slowly turned towards Kris, hope blooming in his soul.
"You, uh, forgot your shirt."
Oh. Well, so much for that.
Kris tossed the wet crumpled fabric into his arms and he tried to mask his disappointment. For a moment, he stared into their eyes, trying to will something more out of them, but it didn't seem to be working. He sighed and turned around again, ready to leave, when he heard another meek comment for them.
"I'm sorry."
Berdly froze in his tracks, trying to understand their words. Once he did, he clenched his beak and prepared his reply.
"Don't apologize," he assured them, "that was one of the best things that's happened to me."
He audibly heard Kris' breath snag inside their throat. Overwhelmed with emotion, he turned back towards them and yanked them into a hug, feeling them tense and then relax.
"I'll let you have time to think about it, but we're gonna talk about this, okay?" He looked up at them from his head's spot on their shoulder.
After a good few seconds of silence, Kris carefully hugged back. "…Okay. Thank you."
Berdly nodded against them, sensing that they were starting to shut down verbally. Understandable, considering how overwhelming the day had been. He pulled back and turned his attention to the gate again, stepping through and shutting it behind him with a click.
Kris watched his departure with a goofy little smile on their face.