tam gets crush culture by conan gray

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--tam song--

Linh is already waiting at the front door, rambling about Marella and the sleepover we're heading to soon, once I finish getting ready.

Linh seems over-the-moon excited about the night we're about to have. I'm...well, it'll be fun, I guess. I know Linh doesn't need protecting anymore, but something still draws me to wherever she goes like an invisible string that I can't cut.

And it'll be nice to see Biana, of course.

"Almost ready!" I call over my shoulder as I'm the final touches of black eyeliner to my face- a touch Biana showed me a couple of months ago that Biana said makes me look awesome. I took that compliment to heart.

"But Dex'll be mad if we arrive late!" Linh whined, clutching her ocean-themed tote.

I sigh as I mess up the eyeliner and try my best to fix it up. "Dex can wait a few minutes. Wait."

I ignore Linh's groaning and put on a hoodie. "Do you think this sweater makes my eye look nice?" she asks, now standing in the doorway of my bedroom and anxiously picking at her blue and orange cardigan.

"You look beautiful, Linh," I say sincerely. She seems satisfied- at least satisfied enough to stop picking lint off herself. She is now inspecting my clothing, and she is doing her disdainful wrinkly face, so I suppress a sigh of relief when she nods approvingly and we walk to the door.

"You look like that girl from the human movie we watched," she comments as I hold up my leaping crystal.

"We've watched quite a few human movies, Linh. You might have to narrow it down," I chuckle.

"The monster hotel one."

"Hotel Transylvania? Mavis?" I wrinkle my own nose this time.

Linh laughs. "Oh come on, it could be so much worse. And hey, at least Mavis is cute."

I sigh in defeat and smile. "Alright, I'll give you that. Mavis is...attractive."

Linh grins wickedly. "Speaking of cute girls..."

I groan and teleport Linh and I to Rimeshire before Linh brings up the girl that's now stuck in my head, and has been for a while.

The cold air immediately stings my skin and I shiver at its lingering touch. Rimeshire looks as glittery as ever- its polished icy surfaces gleaming in the late afternoon light. The numerous windows are decorated with royal blue curtains and the castle-like home possesses an air of warmth and welcoming to it that you wouldn't expect from such a place. Dex and Juline worked together last winter to wire a system that provides thermal energy to the home and the area surrounding it while not affecting the melting of the snow on the ground. I express my silent gratitude to Dex's genius the closer we get to the castle, as the warmth hugs my skin and I don't feel the need for my hoodie anymore.

Linh rings the doorbell when we arrive on the porch. A shriek erupts from the home and Linh and I laugh at whatever triplet stubbed their toe on a couch or something along those lines. Rex opens the door with a fried egg in his hair.

"Come!" he giggles insanely and runs off, leaving us to close the door ourselves. Linh and I step inside and find the staircase, massive and decked in royal blue carpet, offering three different paths up. We take the left one and open the door to Dex's living room.

The far wall in the  pretty huge room is taken up by an ice-encased window, royal blue curtains on the side. A gray couch leans against the left wall and a bookshelf takes up the right. In the middle is a coffee table with cups and steaming kettles.

"Oh, there you are!" Dex exclaims, running up to us, eager to take our coats. He has grown so used to the cold that he doesn't even feel it anymore, so he is wearing a daisy-adorned shirt and jeans. His hair is styled more than usual. "Would you like some tea?"

My ears perk up. "Tea, you say."

Dex grins. "I knew you'd approve." He looks me up and down. "You look like a tea person."

I snort. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Linh and Dex exchange amused glances. I groan. "What flavors do you have?"

"Lemon, one called Blood Orange Vigilance, mint, green, this weird honey vanilla tea my mom bought in the human world that is supposed to give you future-seeing abilities, and lavender."

Linh answers first. "I'll take the foresight tea, thank you very much," she replies playfully. Dex pours one of the kettles on the table into a cup and hands it to Linh. She drinks the slightly golden liquid.

"Green, please," I say. Dex pours that, too.

"I'll have the orange, please."

A girl stands behind me. At first I don't recognize her orange hair, but then I see the ice blue eyes and casual smirk, and it clicks.

"How long have you been there?" Dex asks Marella, one eyebrow raised. Marella only snickers to herself.

"When did you dye your hair?" I ask her.

"Just now, actually."

"And Dex and Linh aren't surprised?"

"Nah. I called them." Marella takes off her own coat and hangs it up. She looks around the room and whistles. "Not bad." She stalks over to the table and pours herself a cup of blood orange tea. "I don't really taste much vigilance, but maybe my taste buds are asleep."

"Ever heard of a metaphor?" Dex grins at her. She rolls her eyes at him, but I can't help but notice he has strayed closer to the coffee table than before.

"Metaphors are cool, but for tea names?" She takes a sip. "Corporate scam."

"I taste the foresight in this, so your taste buds might be asleep after all," Linh says with a teasing smile.

Marella snorts. "Linh, you go to a store and see two items: peach pie and Enchanting Dessert of Summer Fields. What sounds more appealing?"

"The peach pie, obviously," Dex laughs. "Who wants to eat dessert made from a field?"

"Ew, maggots." Linh giggles.

"And dirt."

"And cow poop!"

Dex and Linh laugh hysterically when Marella shakes her head fondly at the two.

Dex stops laughing when he glances out the window and grins. "The Vackers are here."