headcanon! river and mc shared their first kiss, it was a messy affair lol.
do you mean in their childhood, anon? if so, it would've been when they were in elementary school and messy is an understatement methinks. (not canon) but an innocent lil kiss with mc would've quite literally put river out of commission for a while and i don't necessarily mean in a they're-so-in-love-with-mc kinda way
(although maybe they come to that realization quicker? unsure, river's mind works in mysterious ways)
but 1) if mc initiated the kiss, their instinctual reaction would've been to push mc away, glower at them, and not talk to them for 2-3 business days as they Process (i'm not convinced they'd come to a mature conclusion about how their relationship would progress lol river would've most likely pretended the kiss never happened) or 2) if they initiated the kiss, it would've mainly been for the sake of curiosity rather than feelings that go deeper than friendship. they were always attached to the mc but romantic feelings aren't realized until they're older so either way, it's river's brain going "but–but mc is friend-shaped :("
needless to say, first (canon) kiss with older river will unfold very differently
HER LIPS are warm —- that's the first thing he takes note of once the two of of them have closed the distance required to finally, properly kiss. Usually, warmth burns his freezing skin, it brings forth only pain, but he believes that the coldness of his own have an effect akin for her in turn. She doesn't move away however, and thus neither does he. Her arms wrap around Victor's metallic shoulders, and he can feel her fingers come to rest on the back of his head. He cups her face with a pair of unfeeling, robotic hands, and he presses his lips more firmly against hers.
It's as though the indistinguishable mess that the world is, finally clears up; it's as though everything makes sense again. Nothing has ever been as confusing to him as life has been these past few years. What is the point of all of this? Everything has become irrelevant, miniscule and dull. Objects, people, animals: they have only been what they quite literally are, instead of what they are usually seen as. Sacks of meat, material objects, pointless lives that don't matter in the bigger picture.
Koonak however, has been the only one that's made things worth it throughout her absence. The boy isn't just a plain human being, but someone with a soul, someone the anti-villain genuinely cares for. And lately, due to not only him, but several different causes, the world's been slowly regaining its color.
Nora is the one to make everything come alive at last. Like the last finishing touch on a large painting, her kiss, her love, has everything become more relevant once more. She makes him not feel like a criminal or a monster, but simply the person he truly is underneath, or the person he once was, at the very least. Victor Fries is still alive, and he does care, he does have emotions, his life isn't pointless and neither is anything else. Not really.
If anyone asks though, this is not the case —- a part of him will urge him to remain cautious and cold towards strangers and enemies for a while longer, but he'll need not hide any of this to her. She chose him, she came back, she doesn't mind, and therefore he'll give her his heart. He'll give her the real him.
She deserves it, she deserves to feel loved and appreciated after being handcuffed to a man who's treated her so poorly for years. She deserves the truth, she deserves the gentleness and affections, the poetic words and the unarguable sense of safety she says she feels with Freeze. He'll shield her from any and all pain to the best of his abilities, he'll respect her and adore her for as long as she'll have him. He wants nothing more than for her to be safe and happy. How that's achieved though, is her choice to make entirely —- she's free to leave if she ever thinks it best, or she can stay if she finds this is what she wants.
The chaste kiss doesn't last nearly as long as either of them would like, for the temperature of each other's skin ends up eventually overwhelming the nerve endings of the other. When they pull away, her hands move to rest on his shoulders. Victor opens his dark eyes and looks at her, showing the vulnerability and raw depth of his emotions for her in them. "I love you too," he tells her, softly, as though it's a secret. Her following smile has his non-existant heart melting into a puddle all over again.
Remember the time you drove all night
Just to meet me in the morning?
And I thought it was strange, you said everything changed
You felt as if you just woke up
And you said
"This is the first day of my life
I'm glad I didn't die before I met you
But now I don't care, I could go anywhere with you
And I'd probably be happy"
