Chapter 34
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Cat
I wake up the next day determined to make the most of my remaining time at IAX. Following a quick breakfast of a KIND bar and hotel room coffee, I get back into cosplay, taking extra care with my makeup. As I draw on my eyeliner, I mentally go through my agenda for the day: hit up the main exhibit floor as soon as it opens, get in on the latest demo of Ouroboros Guild , stop by the artists’ alley and spend no more than a hundred dollars on pins/stickers/fan art, and—if I have time—check out the Heartrender mainstage event at three. Oh, and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.
Thank god this costume is easy to pee in.
By nine, I’m out the door and in the elevator with two other cosplayers, a horrified mom, and a wide-eyed kid who keeps reaching out a grubby hand to pet the tail of one of my compatriots ( ōkami ’s Amaterasu, I’m delighted to see). We exchange knowing glances as the mom shunts her offspring out of the elevator at the thirteenth floor, evidently hoping to catch a more peaceful ride in the next carriage and muttering about “crazy furries.” I’m not miffed that she doesn’t know the difference between a furry and a cosplayer. Today is a day for nerds, and nothing can take that away from me. Joke’s on you, normie white lady. May all your elevator rides for the next twenty-four hours be full of Narutos and BO.
Thanks to Rosalie’s OP badge, I bypass the line snaking around the convention center lobby and sail straight through bag-and-ticket check with the other VIPs. I tack myself onto the end of the Ouroboros Guild queue and shift from foot to foot as I wait my turn. A couple of con-goers ask for my picture, but for the most part no one pays any attention to me given my second-rate crafting skills. It’s just as well; with fewer interruptions, I get more done, and by the time noon rolls around, I’ve demo’d five new games, crushed an overconfident thirty-some-year-old at Tetris Attack , and bought the latest Settlers of Catan expansion as another apology gift for Sally. And I’ve spent only $136.22 on new posters for my bedroom walls.
Restraint. I haz it.
I’m on my way back to my hotel room with my purchases when a shout waylays me. “Oh my god, so cute, can I take a picture of you two?”
Under my scarf, I smile beneficently. There must be a Zelda nearby. Dropping my bags to my feet, I search the immediate vicinity for a white ball gown and lavender bodice.
And freeze.
There, standing not five feet away from me, is Link, looking about as irritable as a DMV employee. Except it’s not Link. It’s Andi Zhang, in a handmade cosplay .
I don’t know if she recognizes me in my Sheik cosplay, since everything about my face is covered except my eyes, but we don’t have time to make it awkward. The fanboy who accosted us pushes us up against each other. My kunai jabs Andi’s master shield, and we both tilt out of the shoulder-brushing contact.
“Thanks,” he gushes. “I love Link and Sheik, and I haven’t seen a couples cosplay yet all day.”
“We’re not …,” I begin before thinking better of it. If Andi hasn’t figured out my identity yet, I’m not about to help her along by speaking out loud.
I hold my body taut as the fanboy works different angles, heedless of the traffic jam he’s causing. A handful of shutter clicks in, he tsks and pouts at me. “Sheik, you look kind of constipated, which is impressive given how covered up you are. And Link, shouldn’t you be looking at Sheik? Can you two, like, I don’t know, act more badass and less American Gothic ?”
“What?” Andi and I say at the same time.
“Why don’t you two face off, actually?” the fanboy suggests. “Like you’re locked in battle. Better yet, forget your weapons. Link, grab Sheik and stare into their eyes like you’re searching for the Zelda within .” He starfishes his hands theatrically.
“You have got to be kidding me,” Andi mutters, peeling away. My shoulder goes cold without her next to me. She’s forced back by my side a second later, though, thanks to the crowd that’s now gathered around us.
“One real pose. Something cool,” someone yells.
“ Ocarina of Time is still the best Zelda game ever,” a genderbent Chun-Li crows. “Change my mind.”
“Please?” a girl in a Toadette onesie wheedles. She’s as cute as a button and all of five years old, which means if Andi and I don’t comply, we’re the assholes.
I hear Andi curse, then throw her sword to the ground. “C’mon,” she hisses, so close to my ear I shiver. “Let’s give ’em what they want and get this over with.”
My eyes widen. So she does know who I am. Ignoring the heat skittering down my neck and spine, I respond to the question in her expression with a nod.
Slowly, gently—like she doesn’t want to hurt me—she balls up the front of my shirt in her fist and pulls me in toward her. This close, I can detect whatever product she used in her hair this morning, something warm and lightly woodsy. The smell reminds me of the one time I went skiing in college with my sorority. I still remember the relief I felt stepping inside the lodge after hours of being half-frozen, the warmth of fire and static and hot drinks served in chipped mugs.
It’s only chemicals , I tell myself. Grounding into my stance, I breathe lightly.
She tugs and my body responds. We’re making full eye contact now. Her pupils are blown out to the edges. Mine are too, I’d wager. I tumble into their dark depths, like they’re twin black holes and we’re moving at the speed of light with the world around us falling away.
She whispers something, I think, except her mouth barely moves. My name? But why would— Then her lips part and she shifts like she wants to close the gap between us. I stop breathing entirely. I’m certain she can feel my heartbeat; the back of her hand is pressed up against my chest, after all. I let her tug me yet a millimeter closer.
A strand of her hair falls forward and grazes my forehead. I sweep my tongue along the inside of my lower lip. Swallow. Then—
“Yesss,” the fanboy raves. “The chemistry . You two are giving me life . So good. How long have you been dating?”
Before I can react, Andi lets go of me like I have a disease she’s afraid of catching. Quick as smoke, she melts back into the throng, leaving me alone with our fanboy and my thundering pulse.