Hey y'all! Doing a thing for day 2 of @eurydice-week. (Which I'm hosting by the way!!!!) The prompt for today is anything Orphydice related, so obviously I wrote something for it lol.
The rain had never been Eurydice’s friend. She hated it ever since she could remember, when loud thunderstorms made her crawl into her mother’s bed when she was small.
Although thunderstorms weren’t an issue for her when she grew up, the rain still was. When she lived on the streets, storms always seemed to come at a time when she couldn’t find shelter, and whatever she was saving to eat that day got ruined, as well as her getting soaked to the bone.
Now she was living with Orpheus, who had shelter from the rain, but with spring suddenly coming back, random downpours were always common.
Like the one that was happening right now.
Eurydice had woken up to the familiar sound of rain pelting on her roof, and she immediately buried her face into her pillow, hoping that by some miracle, she could sleep through it.
She did not, for the next thing she noticed was that the space beside her was empty.
Groaning, Eurydice propped herself up on her elbows, looking out at the open doorway.
“Orpheus?” she called out, hoping that he was at least inside the house.
Eurydice sighed. He was outside.
Shaking her head, Eurydice rolled out of bed and left her bedroom, knowing exactly where her lover was.
Lately, Orpheus had grown a fascination with sitting outside in the rain. It’s for inspiration, he claimed after the third time had done it. I need something new to work with.
Eurydice just thought he had a death wish.
Sure enough, Eurydice found Orpheus sitting on their front porch, staring intently at their yard. Rolling her eyes, Eurydice opened the front door and poked her head out.
“Good morning,” she said. Orpheus jolted in surprise, looking back at her with wide eyes.
“Oh! Hey! You scared me,” Orpheus said, grinning at her. Eurydice did not grin back.
“How’s the rain treating you?” she asked.
“Pretty good, actually,” Orpheus said cheerfully. “You should come sit with me.”
“And catch my death? No thanks,” Eurydice said, starting to shut the door.
“C’mon, Eurydice, I’m not asking you to go in the rain. Just sit on the porch with me,” Orpheus pleaded, hitting her with a smile that he knew Eurydice couldn’t say no to.
Eurydice breathed in a heavy sigh. “Fine,” she grumbled, stepping outside and sitting down on the front step next to Orpheus. Her lover wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close and kissing her cheek.
“Thank you,” he murmured in her ear. Eurydice leaned her head on his shoulder, watching the rain bounce off the stone steps they had leading up to their house.
This wasn’t really how she wanted to spend her morning, but she loved spending time with Orpheus.
The two just sat there on the porch for a long time, with a strange bliss falling over Eurydice. Something about how rhythmic the rain was falling…
Is this how Orpheus sees the rain? Beautiful, despite the cold and gray it brings?
Eurydice silently laughed at herself. Look who was turning into the poet now.
Speaking of the poet, Orpheus let out a sudden sigh, squeezing Eurydice’s shoulder.
“I just can’t figure it out,” he said.
“Figure out what?” Eurydice asked.
“What I’m trying to figure out,” Orpheus said. “I’m trying to think of something… awe-inspiring about this rain. Something that really makes you stop and appreciate it, y’know? But… I can’t think of anything.”
“Yeah, that’s because rain sucks,” Eurydice said.
“I think you and rain just need a… reintroduction,” Orpheus said.
Eurydice scoffed. “I think you should stop treating the rain like a person.”
Orpheus tilted his head. “Well, if you think about it in terms of the gods controlling it-“
“What? I’m just saying,” Orpheus said, gazing wistfully out at the rain. Eurydice stared at him, a sense of dread building in her stomach.
“You’re gonna do something stupid, aren’t you?”
“Orpheus, I swear to Poseidon himself-“
“I’m not going to do anything,” Orpheus said, withdrawing his arm from Eurydice’s shoulders. “I’m just going to stand in the rain for a little bit.”
“Orpheus, that is something stupid-“
“I’ll be right back, it’s just to see if the perspective changes.”
Eurydice sighed. “Okay, fine, but if you wake up with a fever in the middle of the night, I am not going to take care of you.”
Orpheus laughed. “Relax, Eurydice, I won’t be out that long.”
He stood up, gingerly stepping off the porch and into the rain. Immediately, his face broke out in a grin, and he turned around to look at Eurydice, eyes sparkling like a little kid.
“This is definitely changing things!” he said excitedly, spreading his arms out and turning his face upward towards the rainfall. Eurydice hid her smile behind her hand, watching Orpheus spin around in the rain to some invisible beat.
Gods, why did she have to go and fall in love with an idiot?
At least he was a cute idiot.
“You should come out here!” Orpheus called out to her. “It’s really fun!”
Eurydice shook her head. “No thanks! I’m good!”
“Oh, come on, Eurydice, please?” Orpheus begged. “Just for a little bit?”
“Is it going to help with your thought process?”
“One hundred percent!” Orpheus said. Eurydice pursed her lips.
A little rain wouldn’t hurt, she supposed.
“Okay, okay, I’m coming,” Eurydice said, standing up. Orpheus immediately ran over to her, scooping her into his arms and pulling her into the rain before she could even process it.
Eurydice hadn’t been caught in a rainstorm like this for a few months, so the rain pelting her body was a bit of a shock. She clung tight to Orpheus, letting out a yelp of surprise.
“Isn’t it interesting?” Orpheus asked.
“That’s a good word for it,” Eurydice grumbled.
“C’mon, it’s not that bad,” Orpheus said, swaying Eurydice back and forth. “Just let yourself enjoy it.”
Eurydice closed her eyes, trying to understand exactly what Orpheus was feeling that was so amazing. However, all she could understand was that he liked being cold and soaked.
“How exactly is this helping you?” Eurydice asked, cracking open one eye. Orpheus shrugged, setting Eurydice down on her feet.
“I don’t know. There’s just something about… being in the rain that makes me… get it. The force, the power, the beauty, the rhythm, everything.”
“Okay. And why did you drag me out here?”
Orpheus grinned at her. “So I could do this.”
Quickly, Orpheus pulled Eurydice into him again and kissed her.
And then it clicked inside Eurydice’s head. Suddenly, all the things about the rain that used to be terrible were, in that moment, beautiful. The taste of Orpheus’ lips, the rain dripping off his hair onto her face, the damp fabric of his jacket…
Orpheus pulled away, resting his forehead on Eurydice’s.
“And that,” he whispered. “Is a good idea for a song.”
Eurydice met his gaze. “What’s a good idea?”
Orpheus pushed a dripping lock of hair behind her ear. “You felt it, didn’t you?”
Eurydice smiled. “Kiss me again and I’ll tell you.”
Orpheus beamed back, doing what he was told without a second to think. Instantly, the magical feeling returned, and Eurydice sunk herself deeper into him, wrapping her arms around his neck.
She could’ve stayed there forever, with the rain pouring down on them.
It was funny, thinking about the rain now… she could barely feel it anymore. All she felt was him.
The two stayed in the kiss for a long time, past the moment when Eurydice was sure the rain would’ve stopped.
And then Orpheus broke it again, taking her hands in his.
Eurydice laughed. “Yeah, I felt it that time.”
“Good,” Orpheus said. “And if you were to give me three words to describe that-“
“You’re the poet, you give me the words,” Eurydice interrupted. Orpheus sighed, scrunching up his nose in thought.
“Breathtaking, gorgeous, unforgettable.”
Eurydice scoffed. “Aren’t you supposed to be describing the rain?”
“I never was,” Orpheus said. “I was just looking for more metaphors to describe you.”
Eurydice blinked at him. “You were comparing me to the… rain?”
“Yeah. You and the rain are a lot alike. Rough, yet soothing. Powerful, yet gentle-“
“You are the worst,” Eurydice groaned. “How could you compare me to something I hate?”
“Well, you don’t hate it anymore, do you?” Orpheus pointed out. Eurydice sighed.
“I only don’t hate it when you kiss me in it,” she said. Orpheus shrugged.
“It’s a start, at least,” he said, looking up at the sky. “We should probably go back inside.”
Eurydice nodded slowly. “Yeah. Dry off.”
Orpheus tilted his head. “Or… we could not do that and catch our deaths staying out here.”
Eurydice smiled. “Y’know, I kinda like that plan better.”
“Great, because I do, too,” Orpheus agreed. “Now c’mere-“
Orpheus kissed Eurydice for a third time, this time as passionately as he could. Eurydice suppressed a laugh against his lips, running her fingers through his hair.
And realized maybe she liked rain after all.
Just a little bit, though.