Chapter Text
10 years old
Love hit the brakes on her bike and frowned at Milk, stepping one foot to the ground to keep her bike from falling.
“That’s not a bicycle.” She stated, looking at her friend sitting down.
“No, it’s not.” Milk grinned, jumping from the curb. She stepped on the tail of her board, excited. “This is a skateboard.”
Love nodded slowly.
“I see that… But I thought we were going biking?”
Milk tilted her head, hoping that tone didn’t mean Love was really upset with her.
“I know! But you see, my aunt is visiting this weekend. The one who works in a sports company. And she gave me this.” Milk grabbed the board and twirled it on the ground to show her friend the design underneath it. It had a Pikachu illustration on it, with colorful waves as a background. “I wanted you to be the first one to see it.” She grinned back at Love, and the girl couldn’t help but roll her eyes and smile as well. Milk was too contagious. “Also, I wanted to try riding it with you!”
Now Love fully laughed, throwing her head back.
“No way in hell. I’ll fall and hurt myself all over.”
“Oh, come on, Love! It can be fun, we’ll learn together!” Milk pouted, tilting her head. Love knew this move, just like she knew Milk all too well. She always tried to pull this to get what she wanted- and truth be told, she almost always made it. But not this time.
“Sorry Milk, not happening.” She shook her head, stepping on her bike’s pedal again. “But let’s go, we’ll find an empty street so you can practice riding and I can practice laughing.”
“Sweet!” Milk smiled, throwing the board on the floor. “Oh wait.” She looked down at the board, then up at Love, biting her lips.
“What?”
“I…” A faint blush took over the girl’s cheeks. “I don’t know how to make this move? I guess I’ll have to walk.” She smiled awkwardly, making Love break out in laughter.
“Oh god… You’re impossible.” She gestured backwards, still chuckling. “Get on the back, I’ll ride us.”
Milk didn’t even answer, just nodded and flashed another gigantic grin. She placed the skateboard on the straps of her backpack and climbed on the back, her feet on the rails and her arms circling Love’s waist.
“Can we go fast?” She asked, resting her chin on her friend’s shoulder. Love giggled, pushing to put the bike in movement.
“I’m not sure I’m strong enough to carry us two and do it fast.”
“Oh, okay.” Milk nodded, and even though Love couldn’t see her, she was sure her friend was pouting. “We’ll get there eventually anyway, right?”
“Exactly!” Love grinned, finally being able to pedal and make them move, air brushing their faces as they rushed through the streets.
–
“This is too hard.” Milk complained, sitting on the floor. Love was sitting on the curb now, her bike leaning against a pole. They were on a dead end street, exactly at the end, where nobody would come with their cars, so it’d be safer.
“You’ve spent more time on the floor than on the board since we got here.” Love teased, and Milk gave her the tongue.
“I didn’t think it would be so complicated!” She growed, but got up again, patting on her pants to get the dust off of them- not that it would work, because she had been falling and rolling on the ground for about two hours so far. “People always stand on this, then push…” She took the board and stood on it. This was already progress, because Love spent half an hour holding Milk’s hand so she could stand on the thing without it rolling away. “And then they just… fly? And move their feet so the board does whatever they want it to?”
“Maybe you’re not moving your feet enough.” Love tilted her head to the side, closing one eye, trying to think of a way to help her friend. Milk was so excited about the board, she didn’t want her to give up so easily.
“But how? When I try, this thing attacks me!” She exclaimed, exasperated. It did occur, a few times. The board would snap from the floor directly to Milk’s face, or away from her, or even towards Love a few times, even though she had nothing to do with it. Still, it was amusing. At least for her, who wasn’t busting her butt for the last few hours. Love giggled, having fun seeing her friend so worked up.
“Maybe you need to get closer to it first!” She stood up and walked to Milk- and the board. “Like, you start getting to know each other before becoming friends, and then deepening your relationship.”
Milk frowned her nose at that.
“Love, I just want to ride it, not ask it to marry me. Besides, I’m too young for that.”
“Oh god.” She rolled her eyes, playfully pushing Milk’s shoulder. “I just think you need to, you know, get used to it. At least before trying tricks and difficult stuff.”
“But how?” Milk placed her hands on her hips, making an angry face that Love perfectly knew was fake. “I don’t know what else to do!”
Love grinned, her smile suddenly bigger than her face. Milk widened her eyes at that, recognizing the glint in those eyes. Love clearly had an idea, and Milk knew better than trying to say no to it. Love always got what she wanted when she had that look in her eyes.
A few moments later, Milk was laughing like a little kid- well, she kind of was a little kid-, with the wind making her hair float around her.
“Woah!!! This is so cool!!” She screamed so Love could hear her from the bike. Her friend looked back just for a second, careful not to hit anything, also smiling broadly.
“Told you!!!” She screamed, pedalling faster. Milk was holding to one of her backpacks' previous strap, which they had taken off and tied to Love’s bike. Now she was easily sliding through the streets, with Love pulling her on the bike. Whenever she looked back, she could see Milk’s dark hair flowing in the wind, her mouth open in the brightest smile ever, and her eyes were always shining directly into Love, sharing her happiness. Just like they always did.
11 years old
“Can you film just one more?” Milk joined her hands on a plea, squishing her eyes closed. Love rolled her eyes affectionately, nodding.
“You don’t have to beg. Of course I’ll do it.” She pointed her phone at Milk again, ready to press play whenever the girl started riding. Milk had been training with the skateboard for over a year now, and she had gotten way better at it. Now not only could she stand and push, she was also learning some tricks. Which is why Love had taken the role of official cinegraphist. She’d come with Milk to empty parks and streets almost every night and film her trying new tricks, just so the girl could watch the videos in slow motion and understand what she was doing wrong, until she got the trick right.
Now, she was trying to learn how to ride a manual. The first time she showed it to Love- or rather tried to, because she fell on her ass-, she didn’t think it was physically possible. But now, Milk was almost doing it. She grinned and signed with a thumbs up so Milk could do it. The girl breathed deeply and closed her eyes for a second, before stepping on top of the board and giving it one slight push, before trying to balance herself on the back tail.
“Woah!! You’re doing it!!” Love screamed, just as excited as Milk. She watched her friend ride a few meters, before jumping off the board and running towards her. Milk crashed into her, half hugging and half trying to keep herself from falling. Love giggled, snoozing her head against Milk’s. “Amazing! I got it all!”
“Thank you, Love.” Milk kissed her hair, reaching for the phone. “God knows I wouldn’t even be able to stand on that thing if it weren’t for you.”
“I know, I know.” Love shrugged, making a smug face. “I’m the balance of your life.”
Milk rolled her eyes and tucked her phone into her back pocket. She usually watched all the clips before getting the trick right, but this one would be just a memory now. She wrapped her arm with Love’s resting against her.
“So, what do you want to do now? I’ve already kept you for too long here.”
Love looked up, thinking about something to do. The truth was that, at this hour, on a weekday, there wasn’t much to do in their town.
“We could sit on the beach for a while? Or go back to my house, watch something.”
“Can we go to the beach? The weather is so nice today, I want to explore it a little more.” She looked at Love, who was very up close now. Their cheeks were brushing, warm and familiar.
“You know I love the beach.” She grinned, nodding. “Are you riding there or do you want a lift?”
Milk bumped her forehead against Love’s playfully.
“Always a lift.”
Love rolled her eyes and pushed Milk away, but slid her hand to hold her friend’s.
“You’re too lazy.” She pulled Milk, who stumbled forward, giggling.
–
“The sea is beautiful.” Love said, her gaze lost in the waves. They were sitting on a towel on the sand, heads resting against each other.
“You always say that.” Milk teased her, shaking her shoulder slightly. Love let out a breathy laugh.
“Well, because it is! I can’t imagine a life without being able to see this whenever I want to.”
Milk nodded, agreeing. They were very used to the sea, but she was aware it was kind of a privilege.
“Can you believe some people live their whole lives without seeing it? Or they just see it first when they’re like… fifty years old?” She widened her eyes, shocked at her own thoughts. Fifty was a lot .
“Crazy.” Love said, quietly. She shifted a bit, scooting closer to Milk. “We have this, so beautiful, next to us everyday. I really do feel like I have to state it every time I see it, otherwise I’ll forget to appreciate it properly.”
“Wow, you’re so deep.” Milk said, but this time it wasn’t teasing. She actually enjoyed listening to Love talk about things that were important to her. Just like her friend was always with her when she needed help with skateboarding, she wanted to be there for whatever was important to Love. “I’ll try to remember that.”
“It works for other stuff too, you know.” Love added, still lost on the sight of the waves crashing on the shore. Milk nodded, her head scratching against Love’s. She was right, the weather was nice and this moment was even nicer.
12 years old
“Good morning loverrukk!” Milk grinned, standing on Love’s front door. This time, she didn’t have a board in hand. Instead, she held a basket in one hand and a backpack on her shoulders.
Love squeezed her eyes, slightly annoyed by the sun. But she couldn’t deny to herself that she was excited- even if it was too damn early.
“Morning Miw…” She said, wrapping her arms around her friend. “You’re getting taller than me, when will it stop?”
“Aw, why do you want it to?” Milk slid her free hand around Love’s shoulder. “I like being tall.”
Love thought about pouting and sulking for a second, but she was too tired for that. So she just nodded, resting her weight on her friend.
“If you like it, I won’t complain.” She closed the door behind her and started walking, still glued to Milk. “But I will complain if you didn’t bring enough food in that basket.”
“I would never put myself in such a dangerous situation.” Milk said, squeezing her friend’s shoulder. “I have all your favorites.”
“Hmmm.. great.” Love nodded, her eyes almost closing.
They walked in silence, enjoying each other’s company as a way to stay a bit warmer in the morning breeze. The sun was out already, but the wind coming from the beach made it a little cold. It would get warm eventually, so they didn’t need coats, but for now some human heat was comfortable.
“Look, I have a new beach towel.” Milk said, freeing herself from the embrace. Love groaned, missing the heat already. “It reminds me of you.”
Milk threw her backpack on the sand, not caring about it getting dirty, then fished said beach towel from inside. She shook it, letting the wind do the job of unrolling it, and looked at Love smiling.
“That’s cute…” Love giggled, seeing the pattern. It was pink, filled with hearts. Looked like a kid’s towel, but Milk was smiling so adorably that she didn’t want to mention it and spoil it for her. “Is it because it’s pink?”
“Yeah!” Milk nodded, sitting down on the towel and gesturing for Love to sit next to her, as she did promptly. “Also because of the hearts! Love!”
“Love reminds you of me?” She giggled again.
“Of course, it’s your name.”
“And?” She gave milk a smug smirk, her lips sealed together. Milk narrowed her eyes, holding Love’s gaze for a few moments. But she couldn’t hold herself, so she rolled her eyes with affection and nodded, giving up.
“And I love you. Since forever.”
Love giggled and clapped her hands, excited.
“Yes!” She squeezed Milk’s cheeks. “And I love you too, my friend.” She winked, and Milk blushed. They both liked this affection, and being close to each other. Milk was the only person Love truly felt comfortable with, and Love was the only one Milk completely trusted in. “Now, give me the food.”
Milk groaned, pushing Love off playfully.
“Okay little ogre. Look what I brought today.” She opened the basket and started pulling delicious food out of it. “First, of course, fruit. Strawberries and mangos.” She placed two pots on the towel. “Something salty, sliced tomatoes and pieces of cheese.” She let it rest on her lap. “Drinks: water, orange juice and hibiscus tea.” She showed Love the bottles, but left them inside, so they’d stay cool. “And, of course, something sweet.”
Love wiggled her hands towards the package, excited to see what was inside. Milk chuckled and gave it to her, knowing damn well Love would start with the sweets, no matter what order she showed her the food.
“What is it?” Love asked, already tearing apart the foil that covered the thing. “Woah! This looks so fancy!” She opened her mouth in a soft “o”, exaggerating a bit while she looked at Milk.
“It looks like it, but it’s actually simple.” Milk shrugged, finishing the job of opening the plate and tossing the foil back on the basket. “My mother helped me cook it.”
Love looked at Milk, then back at the sweet on her hands. It looked like a handmade truffle. She examined it, feeling the chocolate scent hit her veins.
“Is this like an ice cream?” She asked, already dying to taste it.
“Kind of. It’s fruit jam covered in chocolate, and frozen. I guess you can eat it melted, but then it’d make a mess.” Milk explained, already grabbing one to feed it to Love, whose hands were still busy holding the plate. “Try it, we used raspberries.”
Love nodded and opened her mouth, eager to taste the thing.
It exploded in her mouth, sweet from the chocolate and acid from the berry. Amazing. She almost moaned, closing her eyes and savouring the flavor.
“Amazing.” She nodded, speaking with her mouth still full. “This is amazing, and you’re even more amazing for giving me this.”
“You just want more sweets.” Milk flicked Love’s arm, light but teasing. Love giggled, showing her tongue. It was redder than usual, from the raspberry jam.
“Stop it. You know I love you anyway.” She said that, but reached for another piece of chocolate. She looked sideways at Milk, offering a bite. “But I do like you more when you give me sweets.”
Milk bit, and realised Love wasn’t being dramatic. The thing was this good. Love only let her have one bite, before taking the chocolate back into her mouth, licking her fingers.
“Then I’ll always give you sweets, so you’ll like me more everyday.” Milk blew her a kiss, and Love grinned.
“You’re a dork.” She tried to tease, but the way she looked at Milk with stars in her eyes didn’t help. Milk nodded, humming, not affected at all. “Let’s eat the rest.” Love reached for the fruits as Milk opened the juice bottle, and they continued their picnic.
13 years old
“It's raining.”
Milk stated just as Love opened her door.
“I can see that.” Love chuckled, looking at her friend, soaked on her doorstep. “You look like a wet puppy.”
Milk frowned and crossed her arms. It was supposed to look angry, but Love only thought it was cute as hell. Her hair was dripping, her clothes were sticking to her body and her sneakers made a funny noise whenever Milk moved. Sounded like a duck.
“I'm taller than you. You're the puppy!”
“Okay.” Love ran her hands over Milk's face, pushing away the excess of water. “But I'm not wet.” She said, with a defiant smile.
“Oh you're about to get.” Milk teased, before plunging forward and wrapping her arms around Love, pressing their bodies together so the smaller girl would share some of the rain with her.
“Stop!” Love half screamed, half laughed. The rain was deadly cold, but at least Milk's embrace was warm. Still, she didn't want to wet herself. She tried to push Milk off, but it was clearly unsuccessful.
“Oh so we share everything, but you don't want to share a little rain water?” Milk asked, laughing as well. She wiggled so she could wet Love a little more. Her friend giggled, shaking her head. She had already given up.
“If you two don't want to also share the punishment, you better not be ruining my entryway with water and mud!” Love’s mom screamed from the kitchen, and Milk and Love stirred right at that second. They looked down and realized they had made a mess. Both of them clung to each other tighter now, not out of mockery but kind of protecting themselves from the scold. “Milk, go take a shower so you don't get sick.” She screamed again, but now in a more caring tone. “But first you two better clean everything up.”
“Dude I can't have your mother hating me.” Milk whispered, her mouth at the same height as Love's ear. She was growing too tall. Way taller than Love.
“Don't be stupid.” Love slapped her arm, but didn’t let go of their embrace. “She loves you since we couldn't read. But I do think we should do just what she said.”
Milk nodded and they moved to start cleaning up, before Love's mother could come out and find the mess they had made.
–
“I don't think I'll be able to keep borrowing your clothes for too long.” Milk said, coming out of the bathroom. Love, laying on the bed, turned to look at her and burst out laughing. “Hey!” Milk pouted, and dropped on the bed next to Love, lightly pushing her.
“I'm sorry, you just look funny.” Love breathed deeply to control her laugh, but it was difficult. She gave Milk her biggest shirt, but it was still riding up her belly and clearly too tight at the arms. Her borrowed pants were hanging just below the knees, instead of at the ankles, where they should be. “It's like you're a giant wearing kid's clothes.”
“Well, I'm wearing this kid's clothes.” Milk poked Love, teasing her.
“Please, respect me. I’m officially a teenager now.” Love lifted her chin, trying to look respectable. But just one glance from Milk made her melt and shake her head, giggling. “Come on, lay down.”
“What, did you call me here to nap together?” Milk asked, but she was already making herself comfortable on top of Love’s pillows, resting her head on top of Love’s.
“No!” She yawned, and both of them chuckled at the timing. “Okay maybe… But it’s raining, so I thought we could watch a movie? Going outside is not an option right now.”
“Yeah, tell me that…” Milk widened her eyes, remembering the storm she had faced just before getting there. “We can watch a teenager movie, miss now-i’m-a-teenager.”
“You have such smart ideas.” Love said, pressing the remote to search for something interesting. Milk was already ready to answer something smug, but Love continued talking. “Too bad it’s only once a year.”
“Wow.” Milk sighed, making a scene. “You wound me, Love. I’m trying my best, you know.”
“I know Miw… Your best is amazing, relax.” Love pulled Milk’s arm around her and placed a kiss on her hand. “Can we watch this one?” Love hovered the cursor over The Perks Of Being A Wallflower.
“Sure. Whatever you want.” Milk said, snuggling to her friend. She ran her eyes through the synopsis and squeezed Love’s hand. “Isn’t this one kind of sad?”
“I guess?” Love pressed play and said, her voice kind of distant already. She had a way of entering completely the universe of a movie that Milk kind of envied. “But I think I need this. I’m kind of… afraid I guess? Of entering high school this year.”
Milk shifted, careful not to move too much- they were too comfortable-, but trying to be in a position that she could see Love’s face. She couldn’t see much of the movie now, but the tone in her friend’s voice worried her.
“What’s in that to be afraid of?”
“Everything?” Love sounded truly terrified, like a kid watching a horror movie. “People can be mean, they can hate me, talk shit about me… like bully me or something? Teenagers always look so scary in the movies.” She stopped talking for a second, loosening up a little with a scoff. “Well, in real life too.”
“Love, come on. Everyone in school will like you. You don’t have to worry about any of that.” Milk gently tapped Love’s arm, trying to reassure her. But Love wasn’t having it, so she sighed dramatically and rolled her eyes.
“Easy for you to say! You’re tall, and gorgeous, and athletic, and you talk to everyone everywhere we go. People are used to loving you.”
Milk tried really hard not to laugh at the pout on Love’s lips right now. The movie was playing in the background, kind of forgotten in the middle of their argument.
“No, you are used to loving me. That’s why you see so much allegedly nice stuff about me.” She felt Love shake her shoulders, probably holding back a laugh. That was a good sign at least. “You’re the only one who actually stands me. But you, loverrukk, on the other hand…” She grabbed the top of Love’s head and shook it jokingly. “You’re pretty, and tiny, and funny, and kind, and a smart ass. You’re literally everything people like. I’m sure you’ll be a heartbreaker in high school, people will fight to sit next to you during recess.”
Love shrugged, pushing Milk off her, just to roll to her side and face her friend. She looked serious, and Milk tried to match her expression. Which was difficult, and only made both of them break into laughing.
“Okay, stupid.” Love flicked Milk’s arm, rolling her eyes. “I don’t fully believe in you yet. I don’t even want all of that… I just don’t want to be hated by everyone.” She pouted again, and Milk couldn’t hold back the grin flashing through her face. Love was adorable.
“That would never happen, Love. You have me! I won’t ever hate you!” She pulled her friend into a hug, letting her snuggle her head into her chest. “But if you do become a heartbreaker, promise not to break my heart.” She joked, but the sigh Love let out sounded a bit serious.
“I won’t. Ever.” Love snuggled closer, her breath warm against Milk’s skin. “Your heart is my favorite thing in the world.”
Milk smiled so broadly that Love could feel her cheeks moving against her head. She smiled too, feeling a little more at ease.
“So, should we continue the movie? For our cozy day in?” Milk suggested, trying to get Love’s mind away from the problems. The smaller girl nodded, her cheek brushing against Milk’s chest. They pressed play again, the rain outside turning Love’s bedroom and their embrace a small perfect universe.