Marianna had to be one of the few people in high school who dreaded hearing the last bell, indicating that she could go home. As of the last few days, the tension in the Whitlock household proved unbearable for Marianna, meaning that she had been taking every opportunity to get away. It wasn’t very brave of her, she knew, but she couldn’t deal with the awkward silences––the way her parents abruptly stopped talking whenever she walked in on one of their discussions.
Sighing to herself, Marianna gathered her binder, textbook, and pencil case and walked out of the classroom, maneuvering in between the other students to avoid being jostled. As she walked through the brightly lit halls of Finley High, Marianna started to debate with herself if she should ask Hikari if she could stay over at her place for the weekend. Over the past couple of days, Hikari had been nothing but a godsend to Marianna, taking her coming out with ease––even asking Marianna if she planned to ask Alna out once or twice. If it hadn’t been for her, Marianna thought she’d be driven insane.
Finally approaching her locker, a smile appeared on Marianna’s face as she spotted Hikari, backpack strapped to her back and an easy smile settled on her lips.
“Hey, Mary,” Hikari greeted as Marianna approached her. She was a Japanese girl with straight black hair and bangs and dark brown eyes that twinkled at Marianna. With her shapely figure clad in a purple v-neck shirt with flowers going down the left side, jeans lacking any hint of fading or rips, and her black ballet flats, Marianna thought she looked like those super-models displayed on the cover of women’s magazines, petite as she was.
“Hey,” Marianna said, casting her a glance as she stuffed her books back into her locker. “How did science go? Did Mr. Corday give everyone a hard time?”
“Ugh, what a nightmare,” Hikari groaned. She leaned her head against the locker and crossed her arms, face pinched in annoyance. “A boy in my class got on his nerves, so Mr. Corday decided it’d be a good idea to spend half the class complaining about a horrid student he had a few years back. He basically told everyone that our futures are screwed if we don’t smarten up. Which I guess is sort of true, but it’s like, I came here to learn, man, not listen to your problems.”
Marianna smiled to herself, allowing Hikari to continue her griping as she stuffed a binder in her backpack. One thing she had come to love about Hikari as of the past few days was that, after Marianna told her about her sexuality, Hikari continued to treat Marianna the same way she always had. She even said she had sort of suspected it, which was a bit of a surprise. Although Marianna wasn’t exactly discreet when she found someone attractive. She was surprised someone else hadn’t figured it out, to be honest.
As Hikari concluded her anti-Mr. Corday rant, Marianna closed her locker and the two girls started to walk alongside each other in relative silence.
“So,” Hikari ventured after a minute, leading them around a small cluster of girls. “Do you—“
“Hey, girls!” called a bright voice, and the two girls turned to see Kearstan Penderwick rushing to catch up with them. She was a small girl—although an inch or so taller than Marianna—with hair that she preferred to dye bubblegum pink. She had a small, pert nose and some visible freckles on her cheeks, lightened by makeup. She was also one of the many people who Marianna hadn’t come out to yet.
“Hey, Kear,” Marianna greeted.
“Hi,” was Hikari’s pleasant but short greeting. She had a faint smile on her face that seemed to say “you know I love you, but could you please go away?”
Kearstan, not noticing this, continued. “’ Kay, so I was talking to Sadie earlier, and we thought it would be a great idea to have a sleepover this weekend. Y’know, a movie, popcorn, the works,” she explained.
“Uh huh, yeah, that sounds great, Kear,” Hikari agreed, distracted. “Could you tell me the details later? I need to talk to Mary.”
Eyes flashing with confusion, Kearstan’s gaze darted back and forth between her two friends. “Uh, sure?” she replied, her pitch rising and turning her confused statement into a question. She cast another quick, bewildered look at Hikari and Marianna, before continuing, reluctantly, “I’ll see you later, then.”
“’ Kay,'' Hikari agreed, placing a hand on Marianna’s shoulder and steering her away. Kearstan’s stare seemed to burn into their backs for a moment before disappearing.
“What is it?” Marianna asked, a bit breathless. She quickened her pace to keep up with the taller girl. Noticing this, Hikari slowed down a notch. She waited until they passed two boys who were playfully wrestling before saying anything.
“I wanted to ask if you plan on calling that girl you met the other day. What was her name again—Alna?”
“That’s why you blew Kear off?” Marianna asked with faint disbelief. “To ask me if I’m going to call a girl I’ve only met once?”
Marianna could see the three sets of double doors ahead, leading out to the bus pickup. Hikari was obviously in no hurry because she stopped walking and turned to face her friend. Her back grazed the dark blue, floor-length lockers as Marianna halted as well.
“You like her, don’t you? I mean, you said you asked for her phone number.”
At that, Marianna felt a faint blush cover her cheeks. She glanced down.
“I think I do. I probably will call her, eventually,” she admitted. She looked back up. “But I don’t know if now’s a good time to start dating. It was so awkward, staying at home yesterday. That’s why we hung out.”
“I just want to make sure you’re not going to ruin any chances just because your parents can’t see two inches in front of their noses,” Hikari explained, expression soft.
She gave Marianna’s shoulder a light squeeze, and then headed to the exit, allowing Marianna to mull over her words.
***
Around forty minutes later found Marianna being dropped off at a small park a block away from her house, along with three other high school students. Instead of immediately heading home as she would have on a normal day, Marianna stepped off the sidewalk and onto green grass, making her way to a bench on the outskirts of the playground equipment. Taking a seat, Marianna watched with a faint smile as three young children took turns spinning each other on the merry-go-round, laughing as they did so.
Eyes half-closed from the sun's heat, Marianna watched the children move to the monkey bars and then dropped her eyes to her lap as she pulled her phone out of her jeans pocket. She slid her thumb across the screen, a keyboard settling into place. Marianna typed in her four-digit passcode.
When her background of the Northern Lights appeared, along with her various applications, Marianna clicked onto her contacts and scrolled down to Alna’s number, thumb hovering over the “call” button. Marianna could already feel her heart speeding up. She had never been very good at talking to her crushes, always blushing and stuttering whenever she did so. She had been no better with Cael. While he had been to ask Marianna out on the first date, Marianna figured she might as well work up enough courage to take the initiative at least a few times. Despite Marianna’s obvious nervous energy, Cael agreed to a second and third date, and––well, the rest was history.
It was different with a girl, though, Marianna thought. She couldn’t sit back and expect Alna to make the first move; especially considering how things had ended the other night.
And so, breathing out slowly as she gathered her meager courage, Marianna pressed “call.”
Halfway through the second ring, the line was picked up, and Marianna licked her lips nervously as she heard Alna’s voice on the other end.
“Hello?” Alna greeted. Marianna couldn’t detect any real emotion in her voice.
“Uh, hi,” Marianna said. “This is Alna, right?” Better to be certain than make a fool of herself.
“Yes, it is.”
“This is Marianna. From the dance club the other day?” Marianna added. She started to fiddle with the strap of her backpack.
“I remember.”
“Well, um,” Marianna continued, looking down at her lap. “You said I could call you, right?” Without waiting for an answer, Marianna rushed on. “So, I was kind of wondering if you’d like to go out sometime?”
Having finally gotten the point, Marianna bit her lip once more and waited for the other girl’s reply.
“I would like that,” Alna agreed, the inflection in her voice much warmer than it had been a moment ago. “What did you have in mind?”
“Oh, um,” Marianna stuttered, a bit startled. “There’s a café near my place that I enjoy. Would you like to meet there, say, Saturday at four? I can text you the location.”
Marianna would have to make sure Kearstan’s sleepover wouldn’t interfere with her date plans, otherwise she might end up ditching her friends. And the last thing she wanted to be was “that girl.”
“That sounds perfectly fine,” Alna said. “I’ll see you then.”
For some reason, Marianna blushed. “Yeah, see you then.” She paused. “Uh, bye.”
“Goodbye, Marianna,” Alna bid, her voice smooth.
And with that, the two girls hung up.
Marianna lowered her phone to her lap, heart still beating wildly in her chest, and smiled at nothing in particular. That went well, she thought. At least she hadn’t suffered from a heart attack.
Placing her phone back in her pocket, Marianna shot one last look around the playground and stood up. Her heart finally started to slow down its tempo as she made her way home, and Marianna spent the entire walk focusing on the lighthearted feeling she had gotten after the phone call. Which wasn’t very hard when she texted the location where her future date would take place to the very girl she would be meeting there.
When Marianna stepped out of the sun and into her house, her faint smile dimmed until it disappeared altogether. The front door of her home led into the living room, its walls painted a light blue. Across from Marianna was a painting of a waterfall; the kind bought in a grocery store, but nice all the same. There were some family photos hanging on the walls, displaying a younger Marianna smiling at the camera. There was also a larger photo of Marianna and three cousins she rarely ever saw, sitting on the steps of a deck and grinning.
The television was situated at the far right wall with a black couch resting in front of it, with two armchairs on either side of it.
One of which her mom sat in.
Almost immediately, Marianna’s muscles tensed as the tension in the room rose to impossible heights. Her mom was staring at Marianna from the armchair she was sitting on, a book in her lap, her face unreadable.
“Hey, Mom,” Marianna said, shifting a little. Mom stared at her for another moment and then blinked once, slowly.
“Hello, honey,” she replied, sounding a bit strained. “How was school?”
“It was fine.” Marianna sat down on the chair next to the door and took off her shoes. “Ms. Reading made us take way too many notes in social studies today, but other than that, I had a pretty good day. I got to hang out with Hikari a bit.”
When Marianna looked back up at her mom, Mom’s lips disappeared into a thin line, suspicion filling her eyes. “That’s good,” she said, her tone suggesting it was anything but.
Marianna sighed. “Not like that, Mom. Hikari and I are friends. That’s it.”
Well, Marianna might have told other people that Hikari was more like a sister to her than anything, but now didn’t seem like a good time to bring that up. And yes, once upon a time, Marianna might have harbored a minor crush on Hikari, but that hadn’t lasted long.
Mom didn’t look appeased by Mariannar’s attempt at reassurance, but she nodded once, stiffly, and forced a smile on her lips.
“Supper will be a bit late tonight, but there’s something we want to talk to you about, okay?”
Marianna’s heart sank at that. She had a good guess what it was her parents wanted to “talk” about. Nonetheless, she answered, “Yeah, sure.” She stood up from the chair. “Do you want any help with supper?” she added, gazing at the window on the other end of the room. It led to the backyard, where Marianna would do her homework from time to time.
Mom gave her a faint, tense smile. “No, I’ve got it under control. You go relax; I’ll get you when it’s time to eat.”
“All right,” Marianna agreed, eyeing her mom. “Let me know if you change your mind.
Torturous exchange finally over, Marianna hurried to her room. Once she was upstairs and in her miniature safe haven, Marianna dropped her backpack on the ground and fell onto her bed. She threw an arm over her face and groaned.
That was painful.
After a moment, Marianna pulled out her phone and brought up Hikari’s number. My parents find out I’m bi, and now they think I’m making out with any girl I’ve ever hung out with, she texted. Marianna then placed her phone on her pillow, with its night sky pillowcase, and hopped off her bed, deciding to spend some time reading her book. By the time she had retrieved the novel from her backpack and returned to her bed, Hikari had already replied.
Hang in there, Mary, she’d texted. U can always come 2 my place if u need 2.
I know. Thanks.
Setting her phone down once more, Marianna opened her book and attempted to read. “Attempted” being the operative word. Marianna’s mind was too preoccupied to focus on the words in front of her. Closing the book and placing it onto her headboard, Marianna let her thoughts race away.
The excitement for her date on Saturday returned. Marianna’s lips worked their way into a smile just thinking about it. Alna was an intriguing girl and the prospect of getting to know her excited Marianna. The fact that she was pretty was nice, too.
Marianna laid there for a good five minutes before she got up and knelt next to her bed, pulling open one of her drawers and rifling through her clothes deciding that now wasn’t too early to give her outfit some thought.
When her mom called her to supper over an hour later, Marianna’s earlier apprehension returned. Rightfully so, as it turned out.
***
On Saturday at three o'clock, Alna pulled on the new dress her mother bought her a few days ago and did up its buckle. Making her way into the bathroom, Alna grabbed a brush and attacked her hair until it was as smooth as possible, spraying it with water a few times to wrestle some tenacious strands into submission. When choosing her outfit, Alna considered that she was likely overdressed for a first date, but dismissed the idea. Alna knew for a fact that she had a genuine interest in Marianna and making an effort to look nice for their outing would not hurt anyone.
Setting down the brush and turning around to double-check nothing had gotten on the dress, Alna smiled wryly. She was acting all too much like a stereotypical teenage girl.
Well, she supposed, life can surprise you.
After splashing some water on her face and drying off, Alna concluded that her appearance was presentable. She went back to her room to grab her purse and jacket and headed upstairs.
“Whoa,” Mom marveled, looking Alna up and down when she entered the kitchen. “You have plans for the evening?”
Alna took a quick moment to consider the consequences of her next words and then replied, “As a matter of fact, I am going on a date.”
Mom’s face lit up. No doubt she was happy to see her daughter taking an interest in people that weren’t her family or tutoring clients. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked, sounding excited. And then, her expression dimming into concern, she added, “You should have let us meet him first.”
Alna could already guess the doubts Mom was about to follow up with and sighed mentally. She took a moment to assess her mother’s state of mind. Mom’s hair was messy, but that was normal for her at the end of a workday. She’d changed out of her work clothes and was now wearing a pair of old, grey sweatpants and a black tank top. Barring the parental worry she was displaying, Mom gave off no signs that she was in any way upset. It must have been a good day at work. Which meant she would be in a reasonable frame of mind.
Taking a step forward, Alna locked eyes with Mom’s, injecting confidence into her voice as she said, “I’ll be fine, Mom. We’ll be in a public place (a café) and thus far, my date has given me no reason to distrust them.” She decided not to mention that she’d only met Marianna once.
Mom considered that for a moment as the soup she was making started to boil on the stove. She turned away from Alna to stir it. When she turned back around, it was evident that she had come to a decision.
“I suppose I trust your judgement,” she announced, visibly relaxing and becoming curious once more. “What’s his name?”
And here it was, Alna thought. The moment of truth. Because there was no way she was going to date Marianna on the sly, deceiving her parents. She lied to them enough as it was. Beyond that, Alna had never once seen a hint that her parents would dislike her dating a girl. Their passing comments about gay peopple lacked any judgement.
Not to mention, Marianna didn’t deserve to be treated like a dirty secret.
“Her name,” Alna emphasized, “is Marianna.”
Alna assessed her mother’s reaction. Her eyes widened, and the hand that was stirring the soup stopped moving. Mom’s entire form stayed still for a good ten seconds, her emotions clearly displayed on her face. Surprise was the most prominent one for a moment, and then, slowly, it turned to acceptance. There was no hint of discomfort. No evidence that Alna’s announcement made her uncomfortable.
“Oh,” Mom said. And then she smiled. “Do you think you’ll be back in time for supper?”
Alna felt some tension melt from her shoulders. She never should have doubted her mother. “I’m not sure; don’t bother waiting for me if I’m late.”
Mom tilted her head in acceptance, a faint smile on her lips. “Sounds good. Have fun.”
“I believe I will,” Alna replied. She turned toward the front door, already pulling out her phone to call a cab. Once that was done, Alna called a quick goodbye to her brothers and headed outside. The cab arrived around ten minutes later.
“What can I do fer ya?” the cab driver asked when Alna slipped into the backseat. The driver was a woman who looked to be in her early to mid-forties. She had hung up an air freshener on her rearview mirror and there was a water bottle in her cup holder.
“To Amycate Café, please,” Alna requested. She grabbed her seat belt and clicked it into place.
“Ya got it,” the woman replied with a distinct Southern accent. She must have moved here recently, Alna observed. That, or she managed to avoid having her accent slip away one way or another.
Much like she had a few days ago, Alna kept her eyes focused on the window as the cab driver started to take her to her destination. Alna noted that the sky had started to darken and that it was rather clear this evening. That was good; the last thing Alna needed was to get caught in the rain.
Leaning her head more on her hand, Alna’s eyes started to lose focus as she retreated into her mind, a warm wind washing across her mental form as she manifested near one of the towns she had built. She allowed her physical eyes to drift close, the image coming into sharper focus—
“Fuck, seriously?” the cab driver bit out, causing Alna’s eyes to snap open and refocus on reality. She felt the cab slow down as police cars came into view, their lights flashing red and blue. Alna sat up straighter, peering around the surrounding area with faint curiosity as she tried to figure out what the emergency was.
“This road’s blocked,” the driver informed her as the cab slowed to a stop.
Alna might have rolled her eyes at the driver for stating the obvious if the reason for the commotion hadn’t caught her attention.
She could hear the driver muttering to herself, reaching out to roll down her window as a policeman approached the vehicle. Alna listened to the brief exchange between the two adults, this time indulging in the urge to roll her eyes when the officer saw fit to point out that they would have to take an alternate route. Like that wasn’t already palpable, she thought with exasperation as she eyed the yellow police tape.
Alna’s driver was thinking along the same line, as she snapped out an annoyed “No shit, Sherlock.” Alna’s lips twitched a bit at that.
“Looks like we’re takin’ the long way, kid,” the woman informed Alna apologetically once the policeman walked off. She reached for the gearshift.
“Actually,” Alna said, interrupting her action, “I’d like to get out here.”
At that, the driver twisted around in her seat to frown at her passenger. Alna noted that, despite some age lines, the woman looked healthy, with rich strawberry blonde hair that fell about her shoulders in a silky sheet. “Ya kiddin’ me? We’re only halfway there.”
Alna didn’t reply for a moment, doing a quick mental calculation. She cast a glance at the digital clock at the front of the car. If she allowed herself no more than five minutes to sate her curiosity, Alna was quite sure she could make it to the café in time—as long as she walked fast. Or, the better option…
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
“I’ll pay you extra if you wait for me for a few minutes,” she bargained.
The cabbie narrowed her eyes at Alna, and then, when someone honked at them, turned around and put the cab into reverse. “Sure, kid, fine by me.”
Once the cab was parked, Alna stepped outside into the cool fall air and approached the accident scene, where a crowd had already gathered. People and their morbid curiosity, Alna thought sardonically. Not that she had the right to judge on that one.
After nudging people out of her way, Alna found herself a view of the accident and peered at it with interest. A simple grey car sat half on, half of the road, its side pushed up against a lamp post, creating a dent that would be impossible to fix. From the side view Alna was receiving, she could see evidence of blood in the driver’s window, along with some glass lying about. The windshield of the car was very nearly gone, scattered across the road in crystalline shards that might have been beautiful under different circumstances.
There was a truck pressed against the back of the car, its owner having been—presumably—transferred to the ambulance. It was in much better shape than the car, sporting only a dent in the grill, and a partially broken windshield. Some of the glass had probably hit the survivor. The truck didn’t look damaged enough for the driver to be dead. Injured, yes, but not dead.
The siren continued to pierce the air, grating on her nerves as it seemed to bounce around her skull. It was rather obnoxious, she thought.
Alna mentally shook her head when that thought entered her mind, telling herself not to be cold-hearted. Ignore it, she commanded herself, focus.
Looking at the scene with an intensity that was probably unusual for a teenager—and how could she be certain? She had never been a “normal” teenager—Alna concluded that, given the amount of blood, the person in the car was most likely dead. She wondered if some of the broken glass had struck them somewhere vital. Entirely possible.
Alna shifted uneasily as her eyes ran over the two vehicles, taking in every detail. Something about the entire thing seemed… off, somehow. Too deliberate. Her eyebrows furrowed as she tried to piece it together.
An alarm went off on Alna’s phone, startling her out of her reverie and telling Alna her five minutes were up. Taking her phone out of her jacket pocket, Alna turned away from the accident scene with some reluctance, stopping when she locked eyes with an elderly lady. She raised an eyebrow.
“Can I help you, ma’am?” Alna inquired with cool politeness. The woman gave her a disgruntled look.
“Teenagers these days,” she sniffed with distaste and no small amount of obnoxiousness. Almost immediately, Alna was annoyed. She’d received this kind of judgement more than once in her life. “Always up to no good,” the woman added.
Alna’s eyes narrowed. Her gaze flicked up and down the lady, taking in her gift shop bag. A glance at its contents revealed souvenirs nestled inside the plastic bag. Alna’s eyes took in the pamphlet sticking out of the woman’s purse and concluded that she was, without a doubt, a tourist. Although why someone would want to visit the island/country of Starla this time of year was beyond her.
A second glance and Alna’s gaze landed on a prescription for some pills, with some similar papers tucked behind it. Without giving herself away, Alna chanced a glance at the bottom of the woman’s bag. Several pill bottles lay there, deceptively innocent with their bright orange colouring. Alna couldn’t read the labels, but she knew no one needed that many prescriptions at one time. Not with the woman looking as healthy as she did. An addict, then.
Alna’s eyes narrowed.
“I’m sorry you feel that way, ma’am.” Alna paused as her eyes darted over the woman’s form. “Although you may want to deal with your pill addiction,” she quipped.
That done, Alna turned away from the lady and stormed toward the waiting cab a couple of meters away from the scene.
She had a date to get to.
***
When Marianna entered Amycate Café, her blue eyes darted throughout its interior, seeking her date. The café was like what anyone would expect a café to be: warm and inviting with bright lights hanging from the ceiling and light brown walls. All of the walls contained a decoration or picture of some kind, made to make visitors feel at home. One such picture depicted the Statue of Liberty, looking majestic in her green robes and pointy ground. For the sake of keeping up with the café’s theme, the torch in her hand had been replaced with a large cup of coffee, which even had some steam rising out of it.
It was after her eyes had left the picture, landing on a table nearby, that Marianna spotted her date. Alna looked unaware of her surroundings as she leaned back in her brown, plastic chair, absorbed in something on her phone. She looked pretty, from what Marianna could see at this distance. The dress Alna was wearing was as black as her hair, hugging her curves rather nicely. Instead of the messy quality like the first time they had met, Alna hair was looking, while not exactly glossy, quite neat, falling about her sculpted shoulders in a tumble, with only a few strands of hair seeming out of place.
Marianna took a steadying breath to calm her nerves, smoothed down her blue, v-neck shirt, and walked over.
“Alna?” Marianna said, voice soft. Alna’s head snapped up so fast that Marianna wondered if she’d given herself whiplash. Her eyes were wide and startled. “I’m sorry,” Marianna apologized, “I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“It’s quite all right,” Alna assured her, voice impassive as she set down her phone. She stood up. “It happens often.”
“Oh,” Marianna said, uncertain about what she was supposed to say. She glanced down in brief discomfort, noticing the brown belt wrapped around Alna’s waist. Forcing herself to look back up, she glimpsed amusement in Alna’s eyes.
Marianna shifted a bit, uncertain of where to go from here, and cast a look at the café’s counters, where a small line had formed at the cash register. “Do you want to get something to drink or eat?” When she looked back at Alna, her lips were upturned the slightest bit.
“I would like that.”
Alna gestured for Marianna to take the lead and followed her toward the display cases, phone and purse in hand.
After a brief, light-hearted argument about who should pay for whom (Alna won), Marianna and Alna went back to their table, setting down their drinks and snacks. There was a beat of silence in which Alna sipped her tea, gaze fixed on nothing in particular. Seeing as she didn’t appear to be starting up a conversation anytime soon, Marianna fiddled with her chocolate chip muffin, gaze darting between her date and the warm colours of the café’s interior. Looking back at her date, she said, “You look nice.”
Alna’s gaze drifted to Marianna’s face, and she gave a slight smile. “Thank you,” she said. “You look fine yourself.”
Which, of course, only made Marianna blush. Darn it, she thought as she turned her face away, trying to hide the rosy colour, why did she have to do that so often? And really, it wasn’t as though Marianna’s outfit was all that elaborate. After some thought, Marianna had settled for a sky blue, long-sleeved shirt that she knew complimented her eyes, and the only pair of skinny jeans she owned. They were uncomfortable, and as a result, Marianna wore them rarely. The only reason she wore them now was because she knew they made her legs look good, showing off a bit of ankle if she didn’t wear too long socks. The jeans had earned Hikari’s approval, which, considering her eye for fashion, meant something.
Marianna muttered a quick thanks, ducking her head. She could feel Alna’s eyes trained on her face.
“You’ve had a difficult week,” Alna observed.
Marianna turned startled blue eyes toward her.
“Wha—“ she stuttered. “How did you know?”
Because yes, the past week or so had been no picnic for Marianna. Dealing with her parents’ lack of acceptance was proving to be almost too stressful for her to handle.
“You’re a little red in the eyes,” Alna pointed out, causing Marianna’s hand to fly to her face. “Whether from lack of sleep or tears is impossible to tell. Of course, reddened eyes could also result from drug use, but I doubt that’s the cause. You don’t exhibit any of the signs beside the aforementioned. And, considering I was there when your mother caught us having a moment, it’s safe to assume she’s homophobic; that would be a legitimate cause for stress in one’s life.” Alna paused, her eyes scanning Marianna up and down. “There’s a bit of tension in your posture, even now. You’re probably not even aware of it.” At Alna’s words, Marianna noticed the previously unconscious tension in her shoulders and tried to relax. “There are subtle hints of bags under your eyes, although you tried to hide them with makeup. Not that you need makeup in the first place—you would look nice without it.” Cue the blush. Alna’s lips twitched, amusement glinting in her eyes. “Your eyes are half closed at times; another indicator of your weariness.”
Alna fell silent for a moment, and then added, “If you don’t tell me to stop, I probably won’t.”
Marianna, engrossed in Alna’s rapid fire observations, was staggered at the abrupt change. “Why would I tell you to stop?”
Alna ran a finger around the plastic rim of the lid adorning her cardboard cup. “Most people are uncomfortable when I list facts about them.”
Marianna paused at that, considering Alna’s words. “I can see that,” she admitted. It felt a little invasive when Alna read Marianna… Well, like a book. But she couldn’t deny that it was fascinating at the same time––for someone to be so aware of things other people looked over. To hear her explain how she knew such things? Well, that was even more interesting. She said as much. “It is kind of interesting, though.” Alna looked vaguely surprised at the admission; she stared at Marianna. “Can you tell me more?” Marianna requested, her voice eager.
Alna gave Marianna another thoughtful look, and then her gaze switched to a man sitting at a table nearby. “That man,” Alna began, nodding her head to him, “he’s likely having an affair.”
Marianna cast a quick look in the man’s direction (balding hair, goatee, black sweater) and refocused on Alna. “How so?” she asked.
“There’s a slight discolouration where his wedding band would go. This café is not well-known––small enough that one could hide away here for such a purpose as an affair. You’ll notice that the man is trying to hide his left hand from time to time.”
As if on cue, the man’s date, a woman with tan skin wearing a sophisticated white dress, reached for his hand, which he pulled back before replacing it with his right. Marianna frowned.
“Good catch.”
When Marianna turned back to her date, Alna gave a slight shrug of your shoulders. “It’s not that difficult to see if you know what to look for.” Was that a hint of a blush on her cheeks? Marianna noted with surprise. So, what, did people never compliment Alna on her deduction abilities?
“I guess so,” Marianna agreed, a bit hesitant. “But about the punch the other night—how did you know it was spiked?”
“I tried some,” Alna admitted. “I could taste traces of alcohol—subtle enough that plenty of people would not pick up on it, but I generally notice what others don’t.”
“I can see that,” Marianna repeated with a smile, which Alna returned with a miniscule one of her own.
The two allowed silence to reign between them once more as Marianna sipped at her hot chocolate, fiddling with its container. Alna seemed unbothered by anything and everything, sipping at her jasmine tea, eyes sweeping around the café, landing on Marianna once in a while. Every time this happened, Marianna would give her a shy smile, which Alna returned.
After a minute or two, Marianna felt her faint discomfort reach its peak and voiced the first thing that came to her mind. “So, have you come out to your parents?”
Alna once again refocused her attention on Marianna. She paused for a moment, eyes distant as she seemed to consider her answer. “I suppose I have.”
“When was that?” Marianna inquired further before taking a sip of her hot chocolate.
Alna turned on her phone and took a quick look at the time before replying, “About an hour ago.”
Marianna nearly choked. “What?”
“I told my mother I was going on a date with a girl,” Alna explained with an idle shrug of her shoulders.
“And you never said anything before?”
“No.”
For a moment, Marianna stared at Alna in silence. Eventually, she asked, “How did she take it?”
“Quite well, it seems,” Alna replied. “Unless she’s having a delayed reaction.”
Marianna glanced toward the top of the light brown table, unable to quell the resentment she felt at her words. When Marianna told her parents she was going out tonight, they had just barely let her borrow the truck to get here––and that was because she lied to her parents, telling them she was meeting her (male) friend, Blaze, for coffee. Marianna had promised herself she wouldn’t hide her sexuality anymore, but when facing her parents, she’d wavered. She had a sneaking suspicion they hoped it was a date, or that Blaze would “straighten her out” somehow.
“You’re lucky,” she muttered.
There was a pause, in which time Marianna could feel the other girl’s eyes on her. “I suppose I am,” Alna acknowledged. When Marianna looked back up, Alna was looking at her with sympathy. “Perhaps we should try to stick with some lighter topics.”
Mariana nodded her head in agreement, eager to get away from the deep discussions this date had seemed to consist of so far. “I’d like that.”
So they talked. Marianna asked Alna some questions about herself—her favorite colour, television show, and so on. Alna gave her replies easily, and in turn, asked Marianna some questions of her own—although she deduced the answers a couple of times before Marianna could form a reply. Oddly enough, she didn’t mind Alna’s observations too much; they were interesting to listen to.
Marianna soon discovered how little she and Alna had in common. Alna’s interests seemed to vary, but, as it turned out, she very much enjoyed reading mystery novels, classics, nonfiction, and some science fiction. Marianna, on the other hand, had never been particularly fond of these things, sans the mystery. She enjoyed reading a good mystery every once in a while.
Despite her and Alna’s obvious differences, Marianna remained relatively unperturbed. Opposites did attract, after all. The more Marianna talked to Alna, the more she wanted to keep going. To see if she could ever understand how her mind worked.
No one had ever looked at her as Alna did. Her gaze was intense, giving Marianna her full attention. It made Marianna blush and smile at the same time. She didn’t want to look away.
It wasn’t until a good fifteen or so minutes later that they drifted back to a more serious topic once more. One Marianna hadn’t even seen coming.
“So, what school do you go to?” Marianna asked. She felt a flicker of confusion when Alna’s eyes became wary.
“I…don't exactly go to school.”
Marianna felt her heart drop at that. Surely a girl as smart as her hadn’t… “Did you drop out?” she asked, hoping it wasn’t so.
“No.”
Feeling relieved, Marianna considered Alna’s response for a couple of seconds, and then ventured, “Did you graduate early?”
“When I was thirteen, yes,” Alna said with a nod. She took a sip of her Earl Grey tea. “Since then, I’ve been supplementing my education with courses online; some from universities, even.” Dropping her gaze, Alna fiddled with the plastic lid of her tea. “Learning has always been rather easy for me. And I have a ‘mind like a steel trap,’ as the saying goes. Meaning that, for me, memorizing information is impossible for me to avoid.” She gave Marianna a dry smile. “One may think, given what I just told you, I would be quite certain of my career choice. As of now, however, I am still uncertain.”
Marianna felt her lips twitch in amusement. “I think it’s normal not to know what you want to do for a career,” she offered. “I mean, you’re deciding on a job you’ll probably be doing for at least thirty years.”
“I suppose so,” Alna agreed, sounding thoughtful. She was gazing at Marianna with a muted intensity, seeming to survey her reactions with curiosity.
Hiding her vague embarrassment behind a sip of hot chocolate, Marianna cast her mind around for something to say. It was almost without conscious thought that she joked, “So, are you going to tell me you’re a famous surgeon now?”
“No,” Alna denied, seeming to share Marianna’s amusement, “but my mother is, in fact, a surgeon herself.”
That random fact seemed so out of place that it startled a laugh out of Marianna
***
They ended their date with a soft kiss outside the café that left a fluttery feeling in Marianna’s stomach. It was even better than last time, considering no one interrupted them. A couple of people did give them some strange looks but they were more or less ignored.
Alna’s hands lingered on her waist, seeming reluctant to pull away.
As it soon turned out, saying their date had “ended” became a relative term, as the moment Alna commented on heading home, Marianna suddenly had no desire to see her leave. The fact that she might be able to avoid the awkwardness surrounding her house would be a bonus. She wasn’t due to meet at Kearstan’s place until seven-thirty, and the less time Marianna spent around her parents, the better.
“Do you need a ride home, or did you drive here?” Marianna asked, tilting her head up to get a better view of Alna’s face. She hoped she didn’t sound desperate. That would be embarrassing.
“I don’t drive” was Alna’s answer. Marianna blinked and mentally added that to the list of all the things she had learned about Alna this evening.
“Well, I could drive you, if you don’t mind,” Marianna suggested, some of her earlier shyness returning. She lightly gripped her elbows, trying to stave off the chilly night air.
Alna paused once again, peering at Marianna—she wondered if this was going to become a normal occurrence with them—and nodded. “That would be nice, thank you.”
Marianna’s heart soared, and she smiled at Alna. “I’m parked right over here,” she said, gesturing with her right arm and moving toward her mom’s truck.
Part way there, Alna slipped her black jacket over Marianna’s shoulders, rebuking any and all of her protests about Alna not having to do that. She didn’t take it back until they were in the grey truck.
Not much was said between the two girls as Marianna drove, as she instead chose to focus on her task. By the time they reached Velvet Lane, it was nearly six o’ clock.
Marianna found herself regarding Alna’s house with interest. It was nothing remarkable, she supposed. It had a set of stairs leading up to a wooden door. There was a deck off to the left, situated in front of a window, with just enough room for a tiny round table and two chairs. A sidewalk split the front yard in half, which itself was quite small: very little grass to mow and no garden to speak of. Still, it looked like a nice place.
“Thank you for the drive,” Alna said, bringing Marianna’s attention back to her. “I appreciate it.”
“You’re welcome,” Marianna with a slight smile. She waited for Alna to do something—kiss her, say goodbye or exit the truck, but she did none of these things. Instead, it was Alna’s turn to look preoccupied.
Eventually, she seemed to snap out of it, saying, “Would you like to come inside?”
To say Marianna was shocked would be an understatement. This date had already been the deepest and most intense one she had ever been on, and now Alna wanted her to (most likely) meet her family. This was moving much faster than she had expected it to.
But Marianna couldn’t deny the offer had some appeal to it, and so, she answered, almost without conscious thought, “Sure, I’d love to.”
The faint upturn of Alna’s lips was breathtaking, washing away any of Marianna’s lingering doubts.
After a short walk to the front door, Marianna found herself in the Holt house, glancing around with curiosity.
“Alna?” a feminine voice called from Marianna’s right. “How was your—''
The woman in the entryway stopped short when she caught sight of Marianna, looking surprised by her presence. Alna’s mom, as Marianna assumed her to be, was quite beautiful. She had some lines around her eyes, which were a dark shade of brown, while her hair was the colour of light chocolate. She had full cheeks; not quite plump, but not quite thin, either.
A black man appeared over the woman’s shoulder, his hair styled in a way that was almost boyish, with bangs sweeping over his forehead, but well-kept all the same. He appeared fit in a way that indicated he exercised but wasn’t exactly a bodybuilder. His eyes were kind.
Marianna could see where Alna got her dark hair from.
“Oh, hello,” the woman greeted, seeming to regain her composure. “You must be—“ She paused, then continued, “Marianna.” She held out a hand to Marianna, which she shook. “I’m Victoria. Alna’s mother.”
“And I’m Aiden. Her father,” the man added, allowing Marianna to shake his hand as well. His grip was rather firm, she couldn’t help but note.
“It’s nice to meet you,” Marianna replied. She caught sight of two young boys over Mr. Holt’s shoulder, both staring at her curiously. Mrs. Holt followed Marianna’s gaze and smiled.
“Boys, come here,” she urged, holding out a hand for them. When the two boys approached, Mrs. Holt placed her hands on one's shoulder, while the other boy, the less shy of the two, stepped right in front of Marianna and peered up at her.
“What’s your name?” the young boy asked brazenly. He looked rather like a miniature version of his father, down to the similar hairstyle, and the triangle shaped face.
Marianna could hear Alna conversing with her father off to the side, asking how things had gone with his friends. She crouched down to get a better look at the boy.
“I’m Marianna,” she said kindly. “What’s yours?”
The boy blinked once at her, eyes otherwise wide open and curious. “Colton.” He turned his head to glance at his older sister, and then looked back at the shorter of the two girls. “Are you Alna’s friend?”
“Yes, I am,” Marianna confirmed. The other boy, obviously Colton’s twin, edged forward to stand next to his brother. Marianna turned her attention to him. “Hello.”
“Hi,” the boy murmured. His brown eyes darted to Alna, then back to Marianna. For reasons she didn’t understand, he looked confused. “You’re Alna’s friend?”
“I am,” Marianna said, confused herself.
“That’s good. I’m Evan,” the boy added quickly, and then darted back to his mom.
Marianna, feeling like the circulation in her legs had been cut off by now, stood up. She caught Alna’s gaze, the latter peering at her with interest.
“Well, now that we’ve all been introduced, I think Marianna and I will head downstairs.” Alna’s gaze, which had turned to her family as she spoke, snapped back to her date. “If that’s all right with you.”
“That’s fine,” Marianna said.
Mrs. Holt’s face fell into a frown, her husband wearing a similar expression. Her eyes darted between the two girls before she seemed to come to some sort of decision. “I want you to leave both doors open,” she ordered while Mr. Holt gave a slight nod of agreement.
Marianna’s brain froze at that. She missed Alna rolling her eyes like any typical teenager.
“We will, Mom.” She turned to face the girl at her side. “Marianna?”
Shaking herself out of it, Mariana said, “Uh, yeah, sure,” all the while trying to come up with a way to tell Alna that they most definitely wouldn’t be doing anything while they were alone. As it soon turned out, she didn’t have to, because as Alna was leading Marianna to the basement, she stopped walking in the middle of the stairs and turned to face her.
“Marianna, I want you to know I don’t expect anything from you. I wanted to go downstairs because I want to spend some time alone with you; that’s it,” Alna explained seriously, her eyes intent and sincere.
Marianna felt herself relax at that. “That’s good to know.” She followed Alna the rest of the way, feeling much more relaxed.
When Marianna entered Alna’s room, she would admit that she was surprised by the state of it. Alna’s room fit the description of “organized chaos” quite well. There were some shelves on the wall in which the door was placed, every one of them filled to the brim with paperbacks and hardcovers. Next to the bed—which was pushed into a corner to Marianna’s right—there was a desk with two books on it. A closer look revealed them to be the Bible and The Origin of Species: by Means of Natural Selection by Charles Darwin. Both had pieces of paper between their pages, serving as bookmarks.
Everything in Alna’s room seemed to follow the dark colour theme—the blankets on the bed were black, the pillows grey, the walls were grey, too, with—
Marianna blinked.
“Alna, are those math equations on your wall?”
Alna, to her credit, looked a bit embarrassed. “They are,” she answered, tucking a strand of raven hair behind her ear. “Seeing as I’m not in school, I’ve had to find other ways to mentally stimulate myself.”
“Yes, but on your wall?” Marianna asked in bewilderment, peering at the black ink that spanned at least halfway across the wall so far.
“It makes for an interesting decoration.”
Marianna turned back toward the lithe girl, who was again watching her with something akin to interest on her face—as if Marianna’s reactions had some sort of value to her.
In the end, Marianna decided making a big deal over something so trivial was pointless. She settled for saying, “You’re full of surprises, aren’t you?”
Alna’s head tilted as her lips turned up. “If you say so.”
After that, Alna invited Marianna to sit with her on her bed. Despite what such a thing would imply, nothing ended up happening. Marianna drew one leg up and wrapped an arm around it, giving Alna a shy smile as she did so. She turned her gaze to the room, her eyes alighting on yet another book resting on one of the shelves: The Circular Staircase by Mary Roberts Rinehart. Marianna guessed, based on the title, that it was likely a mystery novel.
“Do you read a lot of mystery?” she asked, gesturing to the shelf. Of course, she knew from their earlier conversation that Alna liked reading mystery, but that didn’t mean she read it all the time. For all she knew, Alna’s courses took up any free time she might have.
Alna looked to where she was pointing before refocusing on Marianna.
“Quite a bit, yes,” she admitted. “I have read many classic mysteries, but nowhere near enough.” She gave Marianna a teasing look. “It is on my bucket list to read as many classic mystery authors as I can before I die.”
“That’s not a bad goal,” Marianna said. She glanced back at the shelf, wondering if she should give some of the stories a try herself, and then mentally shook herself. She hadn’t even known Alna that long, and already she was on her way to becoming smitten.
“Indeed.”
Marianna met Alna’s piercing blue eyes, which were watching her curiously, and blushed.
“I think I have talked about myself enough tonight. Tell me more about you,” Alna requested.
Marianna did just that. She told Alna about her high school classes; about the ones she enjoyed and the ones she disliked. During her rather lengthy rant about how much trouble Shakespeare gave her, they moved so that they were lying side by side on Alna’s bed, facing each other. Alna’s cheek rested on the palm of her hand, and despite Marianna talking of simple, everyday things, she never seemed to grow bored. In fact, the entire time Marianna was talking, Alna watched her with a faint smile on her lips.
Sometime later, Marianna found herself stuttering to a stop as Alna sat up abruptly, moving so that she was sitting on the opposite side of the bed from Marianna. At Marianna’s bewildered look as she sat up, Alna said simply, “My mother’s coming.”
Sure enough, footsteps could be heard descending the stairs. Marianna tried to smooth down her hair, which had become unkempt, a couple of strands sticking out erratically.
Mrs. Holt appeared in Alna’s doorway, and, though her expression was inviting, she seemed to be checking on both girls, eyes darting between the two of them. Marianna had a good idea of what was going through her mind. She glanced down, fidgeting a bit.
“Hey,” Mrs. Holt said, eyes now on Marianna, “I was wondering if you wanted something. Are you thirsty or anything?”
Marianna made a point not to look at Alna as she responded, for fear she’d blush and Mrs. Holt the wrong idea. “Actually, I should get going,” she replied with reluctance, shifting off the bed, “but thanks for having me.”
If she left now, she’d still have enough time to head home, get her stuff, and go to Kearstan’s place later.
Not that she wanted this date to end yet. Not at all.
Mom nearly beamed at her, which was both a surprising and pleasant response. “It’s no problem at all; thank you for coming.”
That out of the way, Marianna accepted Alna’s offer to walk her to the door, and the three women headed back up the stairs, where Alna and Marianna were given enough privacy to share a quick goodbye kiss.
“Now that we’ve had our first date,” Alna began as they pulled back, “would you mind if I called you?”
“No, I’d love that, actually,” Marianna said, a hint of her earlier shyness returning once more. “Is it okay if I do the same?”
“Of course it is,” Alna assured her warmly, her cool mask now all but nonexistent.
“Okay,” Marianna said, playing with the sleeve of her shirt. “See you later, then.”
“Have a good evening.”
Marianna returned the sentiment before exiting the Holt house and heading home.