This time, neither of them hesitated. The kiss was deep and long, and their hearts raced in unison as their inhibitions finally broke. When Lily finally pulled away, she was out of breath, her excitement too great to breathe properly.
"I loved it too," a red faced Mia said as she looked up at Lily. She pulled the taller girl in, and whispered in her ear: "I hope you know this is just the beginning, now that I've gotten a taste, there's no way I am letting you go."
"Who said anything about leaving?" Lily replied with a smile, and the petite girl smiled back. Time seemed to stop as they stared into each other's eyes, but eventually Mia looked away.
"We'll continue this later, I promise," Mia whispered, getting up to clear the picnic table. Lily took a few moments to clear her head and get her thoughts in order.
Things were moving much faster than she was used to, but she knew there was no point in resisting. Not that I want to resist, she thought with a smile, as she looked at Mia longingly. Besides, this is a new world, and a new me. Maybe being bolder is who I am now.
She got up to help her companion, and soon everything was packed up into the basket. "It's time for us to make our way over to the theater," Mia said. "I'll donate the leftovers, there is a place by the exit."
Lily nodded, and in response Mia held out her free hand. Lily grabbed it without hesitation, and they made their way back across the bridge, onto the mainland. They walked back the way they came from, stopping only near the guardhouse at the entrance for Mia to drop off the food, and soon they found themselves back on the street where the carriage had dropped them off.
Mia explained that she knew Lily was very interested in learning more about Lundin and Teras in general, and while carriage rides were all well and good, the only proper way to learn about a town was on foot. Lily made no objections, for she had always liked walks, so the girls set out for the theater. Carriages and people were going about their business all around, and it took Lily some time to adjust to the bustling noises. The noise levels weren't so bad as to be unpleasant, but Lily could see the downsides of her enhanced senses. One more reason to avoid crowds, she thought as they exited into a side alley.
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Mia explained that they were in one of the old residential neighborhoods, built back when the whole town was still inside the walls. Houses were packed one on top of another, with no space in-between. The solid mass of stone was only broken up by small streets meeting at right angles. It was certainly different from what Lily had seen up to that point. The temple district was just as old, but those were public buildings built with ample space and maintained with reverence. Here, the buildings truly showed their age, from their cracked facades and chipped stonework to the ancient looking windows and patched roofs. Even the tall chimneys seemed to look down on people with disdain of centuries long past.
Small stores sat on the corners where the streets intersected, selling everything from food to magical items. When Lily suggested entering one, Mia explained that she'd find nothing of value there, and promised to take her to the main market when they had the time. Lily accepted, but as they were exiting the neighborhood, she noticed a small store with an ice cream cone as its sign.
"I love ice cream, I didn't know you had it here," she said, pointing at it. "Let's grab some, my treat."
Mia gave no sign of protest, instead leading Lily inside. An older, mustached gentleman stood behind a glass counter filled with various flavors of ice cream.
"Welcome to Bassingtons, the home of the best ice cream in all of Entara," he exclaimed in a jolly voice when he noticed the girls entering. "What can I get you?"
"I'll have a classic vanilla cone, please," Mia answered, as Lily browsed the available options. There were flavors she recognized from Earth, like chocolate, strawberry or vanilla, but there were other, more exotic ones too, and she wasn't sure which one she should pick.
"Here you go," the man said as he handed Mia her cone. "And for your lovely girlfriend?" he asked, turning to Lily.
"I'll have a chocolate one," she responded after a pause, unaware that Mia was staring at her.
"Oh, such an interesting pairing," the man commented as he handed Lily her cone. She thanked him, and paid for both, before following Mia outside. She gave her cone a tentative lick, and was pleasantly surprised that it tasted just like chocolate back on Earth did.
"I might not be the best judge, being new around here, but I don't think he was exaggerating when he said 'best ice cream in all of Entara'," Lily said. "I am glad we made the stop."
"I am glad too," Mia responded. "After all, one must keep one's girlfriend happy, don't you think?" Her tone was serious, but her smile betrayed her true feelings.
"Indeed, which is how people end up doing silly things like having picnics under giant trees," Lily replied, managing to keep a straight face until she noticed that Mia was nearly jumping up and down from excitement.
How does she keep inventing new ways to look even cuter, Lily thought as she ate some more of her ice cream. Good thing I have a fresh new heart, or it might have exploded from cuteness overload.
I did it,Lily really thinks of me as her girlfriend, Mia thought as she finished her ice cream. Her heart was trying to escape out of her chest, and she took a deep breath to calm herself down. Just have to calm down, and not screw it up.