Irhaboggle Pride (2018) 30 Days, 30 Stories

First Realization

AN: I know I'm a bit late, but I've decided to do a little something-something for Pride Month. In essence, it's going to be one short story a day about some LGBT character or relationship from fandoms that I'm in. Every odd day will be a fanfic, every even day will be a story from my original work. I hope you like them and have a happy Pride! (Just for the record, I'm a cis-female, pansexual, panromantic who is an LGBT enthusiast and going to my first Pride Parade this month. Woot woot!)

Elphaba's nose was buried in a book. That much was nothing new. What was new was the type of book she was reading. It was full of adventure, love, chivalry, daring and humor. It was her ultimate guilty pleasure, something she adored, but was always made fun of for adoring. In the back of her mind, the green girl couldn't help but wonder if romance might someday be possible for her, too. Of course, she knew the odds were low, but... Whenever she read these novels, she couldn't help but dream! The books made it seem like anything was possible!

And that was the thing, she was actually a huge romantic. The world just never let her show it, and that rejection, in turn, hardened her heart. But the romantic was still very much alive inside of her. Why else would she secretly love romance novels so much? But sometimes, the books made her feel very sad and lonely, and she finally shut the one she was reading with a small, unhappy sigh. The prince and princess had just shared their first kiss and it had been so romantic and touching that it made Elphaba mourn her own lonely, empty life all the more. What prince would ever want to kiss someone like her?

"Oh, Elphie!?" a voice at the door sing-songed. Elphaba sighed again, but this time, she smiled as she did so. This voice belonged to her bubbly blond roommate, Glinda Upland. Once upon a time, the two had been bitter rivals, but after a hat, a prank gone wrong, an apology and a dance, the two had become friends. Best friends, even. As impossible as it seemed, it had happened all the same. There was just something so special, powerful, beautiful and wonderful about the bond that they shared, and the sheer improbability of it happening made it all the sweeter.

Already, Elphaba knew that Glinda was someone she wanted to keep in her life, no matter how much things changed. And already, Elphaba knew that Glinda would be the one to try to stay with Elphaba, too, no matter how hard life became. It was this inexplicable knowledge that made Elphaba smile whenever Glinda walked in the room. She was going to be one of the few people Elphaba kept willingly in her life. And she was going to be one of the few people happy to keep Elphaba in hers. A lifetime with Glinda sounded like paradise...

"Hey, Glinda," the green girl replied as Glinda pranced into their room.

"Do you wanna go down to the quad with me later? I know there's going to be a great firework show to celebrate the end of term!" she asked.

"Ah, you know me, I'm not really into loud noises or public places," Elphaba winced.

"Awww, what? Come on, everyone loves a good firework show!" Glinda pleaded. She gave her roommate her best puppy-eyes.

"No, Glinda, I'm sorry, I just don't feel comfortable going to a firework show," Elphaba continued to insist.

They went back and forth a few more times before Glinda finally accepted defeat.

"Ok, Elphie, I get it. You win," she sighed unhappily.

"You can go with some of your other friends," Elphaba suggested, feeling guilty that she'd disappointed Glinda.

"But I don't want to go with them!" Glinda insisted almost childishly. "I want to go with you!"

"But why me? I'm not exactly the life of a party," Elphaba grinned dryly.

"Doesn't matter. You're my friend. You mean something to me. Isn't that enough for me to want to spend time with you?" Glinda asked.

There was an unusual amount of sincerity in her voice, and it was enough to give Elphaba pause. Sure, she still hated fireworks and public events, but as she thought about Glinda's proposal, the more and more fun it seemed. It wasn't because the fireworks were going to be cool, it was because Glinda would be there. And Elphaba had to admit, anywhere that Glinda went was always a fun place to be.

"How about we compromise?" Elphaba suggested finally. Glinda gave her an interested look, eyes widening hopefully. "Let's say we go to the beginning of the firework show. We can stay for maybe an hour? Then we can come back and spend the rest of the night here. We can even watch the finale from the rooftops because, if what you're saying is true, I have no doubt that everyone from here to the Emerald City will be able to see it," Elphaba paused to chuckle while Glinda clapped her hands excitedly.

"Ooooh! What a great idea, Elphie! Half the night at the party and half the night alone together! I like it!" And so, the deal was set.

Many hours later, the two were sitting on the roof of their dorm, a rope of bedsheets trailing from their window to the roof.

"This really has been a wonderful night," Elphaba told her roommate as they sat and watched the fireworks together.

"Hasn't it?" Glinda agreed, voice hushed with awe as she leaned against Elphaba's side, wide eyes staring at the rainbow-speckled sky. Then, slowly, she turned to Elphaba and kissed her cheek. It was a small, soft, gentle little gesture that could've meant nothing in the long run, but, for some reason, the moment her lips touched Elphaba's face, Elphaba felt fireworks going off in her own mind as more of them whistled into the sky.

Even after Glinda pulled away, staring up at the fireworks again, Elphaba couldn't help but keep watching the little blond, transfixed. Then, little by little, second after second, Elphaba began to wonder if she was... maybe... a little bit in love with Glinda. It wasn't something she'd ever considered before, but when Glinda's kiss refused to leave her mind, even after she and Glinda had climbed back down into their dorm, Elphaba couldn't help but wonder. And the rainbow sky wasn't helping.

In time, though, Elphaba would wonder how she could've ever felt such passion for Glinda and not realized what it was sooner. She supposed that being raised alone, and in a relatively romance and sex negative environment, meant that such feelings were unknown to her. Perhaps that was why she had no clue what it felt like to be in love. Heteronormativity was one heck of a blinder, and being raised without friends meant that even the smallest of kind interactions could be interpreted as anything.

Now, though, she was 100% sure that she loved Glinda. She, Elphaba Thropp, was in love with Glinda Upland. It was romantic, it was sensual, it was powerful, and it was real. Even if it had taken her a while to figure it out, there was no doubt in her mind now. And when that first realization finally sunk in, Elphaba felt the fireworks going off once more, and she smiled all the way into her dreamland where Glinda waited for her on the other side.

AN: Kicking it off, we have my first ever LGBT OTP. Thanks to them, I realized I was also LGBT! So yeah, this is just an ode to Wicked for helping me figure out my sexuality before I even realized it needed to be figured out! LOL!