❝Love was sometimes more foreign a thing than she would have liked to admit.❞

The phone rang from across the room, and Dahlia reluctantly pulled herself out of the chair she was sitting on to go get it. It was late. Eloise had already gone to sleep, the curtains drawn against the night. But it seemed she wasn't the only one awake.

Her cell phone screen lit up with a familiar name, that of someone she had missed dearly. Even so, with the late hour she was tempted not to pick up. Dahlia pondered it for a minute, then picked up the phone if only to silence its ringing.

"You called?" she asked with a yawn, the phone pressing against her ear. Tiredly, she made her way back over to the chair at the table. She had been working on the budget for Leonora's.

"Sorry, I know it's late. I just haven't had time to call, and I haven't heard from you in a minute – so I found time," a voice laughed breathlessly on the other line.

Dahlia smiled softly. "Eva, I know you've been busy. It's alright." It was alright, but the sound of her sister's familiar voice felt like a punch to the stomach. Maybe she'd been more homesick than she had thought she was. Homesick. Was that the word?

"No, seriously, I need to call you more often. How have you been? Tell me everything."

She pictured her sister's eager face with a smile. "Well, I've been working at a women's shelter in Roaner. It's this small town we ended up finding. I never got the chance to tell you, but Eloise ended up coming with me – he can drive – and we ended up finding this place. I've been doing really well, actually. I've been getting counselling from the women's shelter, and I've made some good friends here."

"You'll have to tour me around Roaner sometime when you're not busy," Eva implored. "Some other time, then. Tell me about Eloise. What's he like? I've never talked to him, but he seems about my age."

Dahlia forgot that he was a few years younger than her sometimes. "He's been great, actually. He wanted to get out of the palace and find some peace and quiet. We're living together in an apartment now, but he's been nothing but good company. I think you'd like him, actually."

"You'll have to introduce me sometime."

"Of course. Now, tell me about the palace. How have you been? Nothing very exciting is happening around here."

Dahlia wanted to hear news of her mate, as much as she felt like denying it. Every now and then when she focused a bit too much on the wrong thing, her heart would ache and her eyes would well with tears, full of a feeling she couldn't even describe. Without realizing it she'd attached her identity to him at some point, and tearing yourself in half was none too pleasant.

After talking things through with Ms. Amest, she wasn't even sure she loved him anymore (she had no fucking clue what love was), but she knew this: she missed him terribly.

Eva, being her sister, picked up on it right away. "Oh, so you want to know news about the love of your life?"

"Well," she couldn't even outright deny it, "I just want to hear about palace affairs more than Roaner."

"Lester left the palace soon after you, actually. I should tell you this, I suppose. The poor boy was tearing himself up in your absence. Work, work, work. We had to stage an intervention and ship him and Dallon's old best friend off to some small town to give him a rest before he lost his mind."

Dahlia's heart dropped in her chest. For some reason, she'd thought he might be just fine without her in his life, but it seemed that wasn't the case. "Is he alright now?"

"Yes, we've been writing regularly—"

"—Evanna Keegan, you should've led with that you little asshole."

"What can I say? I love a good reaction. Anyways, no need to worry, he's doing fine. Onto the more important things. I've got a lot to tell you. So, you know about me and Cayce right?"

"Onto more important things," Dahlia mumbled under her breath, unimpressed. "Yes, Lester and I saw you making out against a wall a while back and you've only gotten all the subtler."

A throat cleared on the other end of the line, and she pictured her sister's cheeks flushed bright red. "Don't go talking like we're oh-so-promiscuous when you and Lester, drunk, then went off to have some steamy sex."

It was Dahlia's turn to stutter and blush. "How do you know that?"

"Retiring early tipsy from your own party claiming you want 'rest' – but together – is only so noticeable. Talk about subtleties, sweetheart." Eva's smile could be heard in her voice. "Okay, back to me. So, you've never asked, but our relationship isn't really serious, we're mostly just fooling around."

"You're kidding." Dahlia propped up an elbow on the table and leaned forward, intrigued. They had always seemed too close for friends, too intimate not to be more than lovers. "I thought you two were mates."

"We thought so too, at first," Eva admitted, "but we don't think so anymore. Our chemistry is off the walls, don't get me wrong, it's just that our bond feels weaker than it should be. If we have one, I guess. It's like we've got something faint together, but it doesn't affect us in the way I've seen it absolutely steamroll you—"

"Thanks for that."

"—Anytime. My point is, it probably isn't since we're not going to die when we're separated, you know? So, we're kind of doing the friends-with-benefits sort of thing right now, just until we find our mates."

"Your mates won't care that you didn't save yourselves?"

"Our mates are going to be bad bitches that don't give two flying fucks. Mine's going to be so pretty I might die, I'll have you know."

"Whatever you say."

"Damn straight." Eva was spunkier than she had been when she'd first arrived at the palace, more so than Dahlia had ever recounted her to be. Was it because of Cayce Raure?

"Are you sure you don't have feelings for Cayce?" Dahlia asked, voicing her question.

The hesitation on the other line was profound. "I never said that," Eva admitted gently. "I do like her, a lot. But these feelings are probably only temporary until I find my mate."

"Eva, you can't just go falling in love with the leader of the whole nation casually. I would know."

"I know, I know, but the sex is just too good—"

"Stop, stop, stop, before I need to cleanse my ears."

"I'm kidding, I just wanted a reaction out of you."

"Mm-hmm." Dahlia yawned again, wincing as she tried to keep her eyes open. "I'm glad you've been having an okay time over there, regardless."

"Sorry, it's late," Eva said softly into her ear. "We can call another time. It sounds like you need some rest."

Dahlia didn't have the energy to protest. Instead, she just nodded, forgetting her sister couldn't see her. "G'night Eva. Miss you lots over here."

"Love you, silly. Sweet dreams."

It was no sooner than Dahlia putting down the phone on the table next to her, that she slumped against the table and her eyes shut as she slipped into her own dreams.

⋄

if you have any suggestions for the LHF playlist, would love to hear them. i'm still trying to decide what i want to put on it. what kind of vibe, you know. good stuff. (leave your suggestions in the comments.)

i'm traveling atm so sorry for the spotty updates!! i'm in germany & totally thrilled about it. if anyone else has summer plans please drop them bc ahhhh summer of '22 haha <33