“Ding! Ding!” 

A small bell chimed as they entered the brightly lit store, a sharp contrast from the dusty alleyway. Hearing them enter a slightly disheveled man propped his head up from behind the counter.

He almost felt out of place amongst all the pristine gems glistening in the shop. His outfit was too… casual. A thick canvas apron was loosely tied over his thin sweater and black twill pants. Soft brown curls grazed his shoulders, with half of it haphazardly pulled up into a loose bun held together by some sort of metal pin. The shop worker wore thick glasses adorned to a thin golden chain that had somehow become tangled up into his curls, giving his entire appearance that of someone who just had woken up. Disheveled, but in a welcoming way.

“Oh, you must be Maddi!” He swiftly pulled a small key from his apron pocket and within a blink had made the move to one of the cases near the back of the shop. “I have your custom order here just like we talked about! Let me quickly grab it!” 

A second word now. Eccentric, Bee thought. 

But, what was this order the two were discussing? Bee didn’t show it on her face, but it was as though Maddi could still read her thoughts, turning to her stating, “It’s a surprise!” 

The two girls were led to sit down in a small waiting area. With a few “creaks” they were comfortably seated together on the antique loveseat. 

Glancing around she soon realized this was truly a craftsman’s shop. Bee may not have known much about this expertise, but she could sense from his movements and from the aura in this space it was all due to his hard work. He was clearly the metalsmith, the jeweler, the artisan, the owner. This lively man seemed to do it all. 

Bee was growing even more curious to what Maddi had requested from him.

The small sofa was a tight squeeze for the two of them, and Maddi had not let go of Bee’s hand the entire time. She even seemed a bit nervous as her grip would tighten here and there as they continued to wait for the artisan to return. 

All Bee could do was permit her to abuse the poor hand. It was however starting to hurt as Maddi’s grip continued to tighten without any reprieve. Tighter and tighter… She was about to finally give up and pull away when the vice grip finally relaxed. The curly haired man had at some point hopped back in front of them, placing a black velvet tray atop the worn wooden coffee table. 

The man had pulled up a short wooden stool to sit beneath them at the table, looking a bit like an adult at the kids table… Or maybe that wasn’t right, with his mess of hair maybe he was more like a kid at the grown-up’s table… Bee internally had a small chuckle at this image, but the thoughts were quickly dispersed as the satin cloth was removed from the tray.

A gleaming pair of rings were uncovered. 

Each had its own distinct design, but even so, you could easily tell that they were a set. Small hints of matching were there.

They both consisted of a silver double stacked band, and each had a base band that was slightly thicker than the secondary band sitting lower on the finger. 

These two were then connected by a single sword-like metal motif that was striking down the center of the finger, and at the top of the little blade, where it intersected the band, a round black gemstone was set. And on one ring, a few additional stones were inlayed down the sword. 

Without a word, as if in a trance, Maddi reached for one of the rings. Skipping over the single stone ring, she picked up the one with three additional smaller black gemstones on the spear.

“Creak” The loveseat gave way again as she repositioned herself on the worn out set, breaking the silence in the shop. 

Maddi’s hands were trembling like a butterfly’s wing as she gingerly lifted Bee’s left hand from her lap, and softly, still without a word, placed the four gemmed ring onto her finger. 

The left hand, the fourth finger, the vein of love.

Bee realized that Maddi was connecting their hearts.

⬡⬡⬡

Nausea… She wanted to… She needed to… 

The pain, the guilt, the weight of it all was piled up and churning. It needed to come out. This relationship was built on false words forced out by system prompts. Bee had no memory, all she had was fear of death, and that fear led her to Maddi as her one and only salvation. 

I can’t continue this, this isn’t fair to her or her love.

Spiraling thoughts were driving her deeper into the abyss of her own mind, but before she could plummet too far a sudden outburst came from the forgotten third party. 

“How is the fit for you both? We can always adjust them if needed!” 

The shop wonder continued on his own, perfectly fine with conversing to himself, or maybe simply used to others not responding. “These rings were such a beautiful request! The inclusion of the tourmaline stones for protection was so loving! You can each continue to present that positive energy towards one another so long as you always have these rings by your side!!” 

Bee’s eyes twitched at the final comments as she glared at the ring that had been forced upon her frail, shaking finger. 

Loving protection…

Maddi was honestly and openly offering up her heart to her. Bee thought back to the first day of her recent memory loss, the first day of the horrific SELECTION boxes, the day she had lived through again after a forced death…

“Let’s be together now, and in the future.”

Right. She had made a promise that day. She had sworn her love to her and accepted her. 

…

But it was a lie.

It had just been in order to survive the SELECTION.

⬡⬡⬡

“Thump, thump, thump…” Bee’s heart was now echoing loudly in her ears. The third party in the room was still ranting about the rings, but she couldn’t hear it. Nothing could reach her beyond the drumming of her own heart. Her throat was closing up again, the familiar tightness of silence. Because all she wanted to do at this moment was confess to the innocent girl before her. 

And there it was… missing the familiar DING she saw them. 

[SELECTION]

Still in a daze and unsure if this was real, she tilted her head towards fluttering butterfly creatures, letting her heart still. No expression could be gleaned on her face as she read her options. 

[EXPLAIN] // [EMBRACE]

Explain what exactly?! The other two individuals in the room remained unaware of the brightly glowing box, leaving Bee to quietly contemplate. 

Embrace should be decently straightforward, I think? It should likely involve Maddi and myself.

Explain… This option… It couldn’t be?

Could it really be an answer to her guilt? Was the SELECTION attempting to actually help her in being truthful to Maddi about everything? 

Did it read her thoughts?! 

But… Would it actually let her explain the memory loss, and allow her to start fresh with Maddi? She wouldn’t have control over the words it spoke using her body. It would be a gamble.

Bee’s eyes shifted down, avoiding the screen as she continued to think it through, catching a glance of the ring on her finger. 

Positive energy. Bee recalled the curly haired man had said something about that before the butterflies had appeared. 

She was ready to take a chance.

If the rings are meant to block negativity, then lets just hope both options are safe this time. 

Positive thoughts. Positive thoughts. Positive thou- 

Repeating these words in her mind like a prayer, she raised her twitching left hand and chose to [EXPLAIN].

Bee desperately desired to come clean, and since she could only have a voice through the SELECTION, this was her perfect opportunity.

Lowering her hand on top of Maddi’s, ring over ring, she gave a light squeeze of her fingers. Golden eyes gazed deeply into those pure silver orbs, fully unaware of the last winged creature that dropped onto her own neck as the SELECTION’s blue light faded.

A dry voice cracked out as it had been some time since her last use, finally able to now speak again.

“Maddi, can we go somewhere more private?”