#borlina

He had made her cry again. 

As she turned her face away to hide her tears, Boris tried to piece together where the interaction had gone wrong. It was hard for him to try and understand Evallina’s ways and why she was so sensitive. He felt like a giant trying to tiptoe and not break anything, but his clumsy body had done it again. 

She prepared to flee the scene, as she always did. She would disappear for a bit and then come back as if nothing had happened. But he knew there was a big turmoil going on inside of her and he wanted to help her. 

That’s why, when she tried to run away, Boris grabbed her by the wrist.

This time, she was staying.

Evallina turned around, the blue irises contrasting against the red puffy eyes, shiny with the tears that still streamed down her face. Her nose was tinted with an intense shade of pink. She had to look up to look him in the eye and as he towered over her, he couldn’t help but think it was kind of cute. 

This was his weakness. 

Boris would never admit it, but he thought Evallina looked adorable when she cried. It was an awful, guilty thought, to think a girl is cute when she’s suffering. But he couldn’t help it.

---

The woman behind the counter shifted uncomfortably, not sure of the intentions of the two tall Russians that had entered the store. Boris cleared his throat before he spoke. “I’m looking for an engagement ring.”

Yuriy was in a state of complete shock but he didn’t utter a single word. 

“Of course, do you know what style you are looking for?” 

He pointed at the store display, where a ring composed of two silver wings cradling a diamong in the centre rested. “That one.”

“Oh.” The colour left the woman’s face. “That one is very expensive sir, are you sur-?”

Boris hit the counter with force, the glass display threatening to break under his brute force. Realising his action, he let in a deep breath before continuing. “I have the cash.”

He felt his cheeks heating, one of his first times experiencing his face blushing. His ears felt hot as he finally managed to get words out of his mouth. “You’re not going until you tell me what’s wrong.”

Her eyes widened with surprise. “I thought you didn’t care.”

“You’re my teammate. Of course, I care.” His answer came out fast with the taste of regret. 

Why would he say something so corny? 

The Neoborg team barely referred to each other as teammates. Or friends. Or anything other than their names or silent, but well-understood nods. All the affection between them was left unsaid. They just liked to be in the same space and they would feel good about the companionship. But Evallina was the odd one out, of course. She didn’t see the horrors of the abbey, she didn’t grow up with them and she didn’t develop the body language to allow them to communicate. She needed words. She needed the reassurance that she belonged. 

So, Boris’ words were everything to her. 

At first, she thought it was some sort of prank. Boris never liked her. She joined the team so suddenly and he hated now having to deal with a girl joining his boys’ club. He didn’t think much of her as a blader, also. She wanted to prove herself, but he wouldn’t even stay and watch. So why, all of sudden, was he trying to help her? But, realising that there was no punchline or hidden camera, Evallina started to realise it was very much real. 

So she allowed her heart to skip a beat. Just this once, her feelings could show. She would open up to him and once he rejected her, she could finally move on.

The snowflakes interrupted her thoughts. From where they stood, they could see the city roofs becoming white. Seeing the change in landscape, she decided it was finally time.

“I like you, Boris.” 

“Why me?” His reaction wasn’t what she was anticipating it to be. “Yuriy is the one the girls go for. He is like… pretty. And Sergei is the kind one who is always with you. So why me?”

This wasn’t the right thing to say, as the girl started crying again. But this time, instead of running away, she got angry. “Why are you always like this? Why am I so invisible to you?”

His heart was pounding fast as he checked for the millionth time if the small, delicate box, was still in his pocket. That was it, this was the moment. 

She was anything but invisible to Boris. From day one. 

He was at first annoyed with her presence, but he would notice her in the small moments. Fixing his blade, caring for him when he got sick, stepping into his chaos and bringing comfort. He reached for her, knowing he had messed up again.

“Look, I’m sorry. I’m just too honest, I think.” He said. “I don’t want to keep hurting you.”

He tucked a rogue strand of blue hair behind her ear. 

“It’s just unbelievable to me that you like me.” He couldn’t keep himself from smiling. “Because I like you too.”

He hugged her and felt her body shaking in his arms. They stood there for a while, just sinking into each other as their hearts tried to slow down. 

Boris released her from his hold, as his hand brushed against her cheek, catching the last tear that lingered behind. “Come on, you can’t be crying for our first kiss.”

And saying that, he leaned in and their lips finally met.

She used to tell him this park was where the birds came to rest, as she failed for the third time to help a raven that had stopped flying. She cried and mourned them, but she also found beauty in how those creatures chose where they would die.

Evallina stared at him, confused, as he went down on one knee.