Chapter Text
The things Zelda's father expected her to be perfect at were getting ridiculous. It seemed like he got an idea every summer about something she should do, and forced her into classes until she reached his standard of perfection.
The most recent seemed weirder than most: tap dancing. She understood when he wanted her to take ballroom dancing, since most of the boarding school kids she grew up with took it too, but tap? The first image in her head when she pictured tap dancing was a bunch of little kids clomping around in their loud tap shoes, blissfully unaware of the amount of noise they made.
But she supposed that she would have to do it. When he decided that she would excel at something it was no use arguing. All she could do was go along with it, do her best, and hope it would be good enough.
After all, there had been quite a list of them, and she had been decent at them all.
Last year it was government, and he shipped her off to a little camp to compete with other girls. The year before it was baking; that was a lonely year. Before that still had been painting, which she had hid her mistakes in under the guise of Impressionism.
All of those in addition to the normal lessons she had to take over every summer: piano, harp, and ballroom dance. Some kids, especially boarding school kids, looked forward to the freedom of the summer, but... She just hoped there was a kid in one of her classes who she could tolerate. The baking year had been especially terrible in that department, even if she enjoyed learning how to make her favorite fruitcake.
But now she stood in front of the door to the tap dancing studio, holding her breath before she entered. Mentally, she went through her checklist of things she had to do. In her bag were a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie, tap shoes to change into, a water bottle, and a granola bar for after class. Right now she had her hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, with only the pieces too short to fit left out. Se had earrings in, for once, in an attempt to look somewhat nice. No makeup, since she would probably sweat, green tank top and black leggings.
That felt like the right way to dress for a tap dancing class... Right?
But as soon as she walked into the room, she knew that she was underdressed. She wished that she had at least put on some waterproof mascara.
Across the room, helping a little boy of about five into his tap shoes, was the most beautiful girl she had ever seen. Her bright red braids were pulled back into a low ponytail, contrasting beautifully against her dark skin. There was a round, angelic quality to her face that Zelda couldn't help but fall in love with; every bit of her soft brows, long lashes, and full lips looked warm and kind. She was dressed similarly to herself, really, but she looked so amazing in her blue tank top and sleek black sweatpants that it may as well be totally opposite.
The little boy grinned up at her and scampered away, tap shoes loud against the hardwood floor as he clomped over to where some other kids were playing. She only smiled, gracefully standing back up. Maybe they were siblings, Zelda thought to herself. They might have dyed their hair that bright red together.
Then, as if this couldn't get worse (better?) the girl noticed her and walked over. There was a certain bounce to her step, but it was soft and gentle at the same time. Zelda noticed that it was to avoid making so much noise on the floor. Clever.
"Hi! I don't think I've seen you here before, are you new?" She asked in the sweetest, brightest voice Zelda had ever heard.
Swallowing and trying to pull her gay self together, she nodded.
"Welcome! I'm Mipha."
Her eyes were the most striking amber color she had ever seen, warm and cozy, with little green flakes throughout. She wasn't sure how eyes could be that color, but it was really, really pretty. Like honey, but with little leaves... Or something. Like seeing the sun set through a tree.
And suddenly she was very aware of the hand Mipha had been offering for a handshake this whole time. She blushed, and took it.
"Oh, I'm Zelda." She smiled, trying desperately to recover.
It was as if none of that awkward pause had happened, because Mipha just smiled a little wider. "It's good to meet you! You can set your bag over there... Sidon! Stop kicking that! I'm sorry, I'll be right back."
As she rushed off to deal with the little boy she had been helping earlier, Sidon, Zelda couldn't help but sigh, setting her bag down and putting on her shoes. Every time she looked up, there she was.
Maybe tap dancing wouldn't be so bad after all.
***
It had been weeks now, and Zelda was sure that Mipha would never catch on that she liked her. Sure, she was trying to keep mostly quiet about it, in case someone less supportive heard, but...
Her heart soared when she had learned that Mipha was bi. It was that final piece holding her back though, that last question: did she feel the same?
And now tap class was over, and it would be another dull weekend waiting for the next Monday when they would have class again. They both wandered over to their bags, wiping their sweaty foreheads. They had both been getting a lot better, but it was still more difficult than it looked. Mipha made it look effortless.
Besides, the room they were in tended to get pretty warm... And today Mipha was wearing little red shorts, the same color as her hair. Zelda had to make an effort to not stare. After the incident with the eyes, she couldn't afford to get caught awkwardly staring at her.
"Well, Zelda..." Mipha reached into her bag, pulling out her hoodie. "Are you doing anything tomorrow?"
Even if she was, Zelda would have given the same answer. "No, I'm free. Why?"
She smiled, so bright it was blinding. "Would you maybe... Want to go roller skating with me?"
"Of course!" Zelda tried, and failed, not to sound too excited. "What time?"
"Well, I..." Her eyes wandered to the floor. "I wanted to let you know... I meant for it to be a date... If you're not interested in that we can go as friends but-"
Zelda couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Are you being serious with me right now?"
She nodded.
"I've been trying to get the courage to ask you for weeks now!"
Mipha's whole face lit up. "Really, than-"
Zelda grinned, nodding enthusiastically.
"Girlfriends?"
A strike of fear hit Zelda.
"Shh," Zelda glanced over to make sure her dad wasn't here yet. "We'll have to keep it quiet, but... Yes. Girlfriends."
"Best friends, then." Mipha put air quotes around 'best friends,' grinning from ear to ear. "Sleepovers are allowed that way, anyway."
Instantly, she was blushing, bright red.
"I'm sorry, should I not have-"
"No, you're good." Zelda smiled. "I just wasn't expecting that, from you."
"Why not?"
"You just seem so... Innocent."
Mipha winked. "Here, we should exchange numbers, so we can work out the times later."
She agreed, and they exchanged numbers.
"Well, I guess..."
Zelda's heart was pounding, as if her body had just caught up to everything that just happened. She and Mipha were going in their first date tomorrow. That was really happening. The girl she had been crushing on for weeks now.
She leaned in slowly, then wet her dry lips. "May I kiss you?"
Mipha nodded, her eyes falling shut. Zelda gave one more glance over to make sure her dad wasn't there, and then...
"Hey, Mi-pha! Dad's here." Sidon's cheery little voice interrupted then, and they both took a step back.
"Oh, sorry, I..." Mipha looked down, bashful. "I guess I have to go."
"See you tomorrow?"
She smiled. "See you tomorrow."
As Mipha and Sidon walked away, Zelda could still easily hear them.
"Roller skating! Am I coming too?"
She laughed. "You'll have to ask dad."
"I'm coming." Sidon declared. "I like your friend, she's nice."
Mipha laughed again, then turned and waved at Zelda.
She waved back, and didn't stop smiling for the rest of the day.