She woke, bolting up in bed, covered in sweat. Morning light cast the room in golden splendor.

The sheets clung to her naked form. It took several long moments of breathing before her heart steadied and she stopped trembling.

Beside her, the covers stirred. Groaning, Sunset sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"Adagio? You okay? You look-"

"What do I look like?" she snapped. "A witch? A hag? A monster?"

"I was going to say unwell."

Adagio closed her eyes, curling her digits around the sheets til her knuckles hurt.

A shuddering breath escaped her, like a mighty gust of wind to bring the empire in her dreams crumbling down.

"I had a dream."

"Sounds more like a nightmare."

"Maybe."

Sunset placed an arm around her shoulder, and rest her chin atop.

"Why do you love me?"

The words came without thinking. Immediately, she wanted them back.

"Because you're beautiful, and strong, and smart."

"I doubt that more and more every day."

"I know. But how you view yourself will never change the way I view you."

Adagio breathed in sharply.

"I love you," she said.

Sunset kissed her on the lips.

Adagio loved her crimson hair.

"I love you, too."

Author's Note

The inspiration for this story came to me thanks to this song by Billie Eilish.

Before writing it, I'd forgotten how much I loved SunDagio. I'm glad this was the first thing I've officially written for them.

Because, despite the name of the story, and though nothing can ever be perfect, this is the closest I feel anything of mine has come to perfection. Never before have I had to pack so much into so little.

Regardless, I'm curious to hear what you think, both general opinions/feedback as well as what meanings you read into this piece.

Lastly, this story was written for the 2023 'A Thousand Words' contest, in the 'Drama' and 'Experimental' categories. If you enjoyed this story and would like to receive one of your own, see here for more details.