Author's note: I wrote this after a recent trip to Paris over Halloween. While visiting the Catacombs there, this story came to me. Enjoy!
"I don't like this, Gail. It's seriously creeping me out," Holly said as she looked around, an uneasy frown on her face. "Why did I let you bring me here?"
"Because it's Halloween and we're in France, a country that does not celebrate my favorite holiday. There are no ghosts, witches, goblins or jack-o-lanterns. Not even a single candy corn. So we are at least going to walk around some underground tunnels full of human skulls. And anyway, you work with the dead for a living, why does this freak you out so much?" Gail replied with a smirk.
It was a fair question. Holly saw dead bodies all the time. It was part of her job. But she examined those bodies in a lab, a well-lit lab, above ground. And it was usually just one body at a time. The catacombs were none of those things. They were dark and dank and really just gave her the willies. So many human bones stacked up together, some growing green with mold or moss or whatever the hell that was. No, this was not like her job.
But it was Halloween and Gail was right – France did not observe Halloween. They had seen one window display on their way to the catacombs. Her poor wife had stopped and peered longingly through the glass at the orange and black macaroons sitting next to a cartoon print out of a bat. And even though the concept of a tunnel full of human bones had made Holly shiver with anticipation, she had sucked it up so Gail could enjoy the holiday.
Gail was crazy for Halloween. It shouldn't surprise anyone that someone with such a dark sense of humor would love skeletons and werewolves and vampires (the real ones; not the sparkly kind, Gail always clarified). With as much actual darkness as Gail had experienced in her life, one might think she'd shy away from the macabre holiday. But Holly suspected she loved it because it was a kind of darkness that she didn't have to fear. She had seen real darkness so haunted houses and gory costumes – they were part of a darkness she could accept, one that didn't have any control over her.
And so despite her misgivings, Holly had agreed to venture into the vast cavern of human bones.
"Because my lab isn't dark and damp and," Holly started, but before she could fully explain the myriad reasons she was currently feeling anxious, the lights in the cavern flickered quickly and then went out completely. She froze, fists clenched, a gasp catching in her throat, heart pounding wildly in her chest. The initial terror left her speechless, unable to put words to the fear spreading through her limbs.
"This is the best Halloween ever!" Gail said triumphantly from a few feet away.
Gail's exclamation startled Holly into speaking through labored breaths, "Gail. Gail, I'm freaking out a little bit."
The blonde could hear the strain and panic in her wife's voice. "Hey, it's ok. I'm sure the lights will come back on in a minute. Probably just a storm."
Holly heard the words, but they didn't sink in. The buzz of fear was too loud in her mind. "Gail, where are you? I need you to come over here. Can you please come over here?"
Gail, of all people, recognized the beginnings of a panic attack when she heard one. "Hey, ok, take some deep breaths and just talk so I can find you. Don't move, just talk ok?"
Holly couldn't have stopped herself from rambling even if she wanted to. "I don't know why I'm so freaked out. I mean I know it's just bones. But it's like thousands of them or more like millions of them in a dark, slimy tunnel underground. And now it's pitch black and we don't know when the lights are going to come back on and there's milky bone water dripping in my hair and I'm pregnant so my hormones are a little out of control so I can't really think rationally..."
Gail's hands finally reached Holly's arms causing the babbling brunette to gasp and then push forward into Gail's arms. "I'm freaking out a little bit," Holly whispered, still panting with panic.
"Yes, you are. So just take some breaths, ok? We are fine. If the lights don't come back on soon, they will send people down with flashlights. We're ok," Gail soothed. Holly nodded, despite the fact that Gail couldn't see her, and then leaned forward so her forehead rested on her wife's shoulder as she tried to get her breathing under control. Gail rubbed her back with one hand and smoothed her hair with the other.
After a few minutes, Holly had calmed down considerably. Gail moved some of the brunette's hair out of the way and tilted her head so she could speak softly into her ear. "Holly?"
"Yeah, I'm ok. I'm better," Holly said softly.
Gail nodded slightly and slipped her hand onto the back of her wife's neck. "Good, good. But um, did you say that you are pregnant?"
Holly tensed. She had blurted that out during her panic-fueled rant, hadn't she? Whoops. "So that was not how I had intended to tell you that. I was going to tell you tonight at dinner. I was going to make a toast, I mean with water for me, of course and I was going to say something cheesy, like 'to our family' or 'to the baby' but I was freaking out and it just sort of slipped out and God, I'm sorry..."
Her rant was cut off when Gail abruptly turned Holly's head with a hand at her cheek and swallowed her words with a soft, slow kiss. When she leaned back, Gail said tenderly, "It was perfect, Lunchbox. You're perfect and I love you."
"You can't see me, but I'm crying right now," Holly whispered wetly.
"That's ok. So am I," Gail replied softly.
Holly brought her hand up to Gail's cheek, wiped a tear away with her thumb and then leaned forward for another kiss. She sighed, "I love you. And I really wish I could see your face right now."
Gail took a breath to compose herself a little. "Well, don't worry, Lunchbox. I'm pretty sure I'm going to have the same look on my face for nine months. It's a mixture of terror, awe and adoration." A worrisome thought suddenly occurred to her. "Holly, is it ok for you to be down here? I mean should you be breathing in this skeleton air? There was a warning sign at the entrance." She slid her hands down to grip Holly's wrists. "Shit, Holly, why did you let me bring you down here?"
Holly chuckled at how quickly Gail had moved into protective panic mode. It was adorable. She put her hands on Gail's hips and squeezed. "Honey, it's fine. Its perfectly safe."
"Ok, but I need to get you out of here." Gail thought for a moment and then snapped her fingers. "Duh! We can use the light on my phone." Gail was in solution mode now, focused on getting her wife back above ground. She pulled her phone from her pocket and turned on the light. She shined it around them, looking for a sign pointing toward the exit. When she found the way, she turned back to face Holly and grabbed one hand. "Ok, follow me, but watch your step and don't let go of my hand. I think we're pretty close to the exit."
Holly smiled at Gail suddenly taking charge. If she were being honest, she'd have to admit it was damn sexy, and that wasn't just the hormones talking.
For five minutes, they slowly made their way toward the exit, Gail pointing out every puddle, crack and slippery spot for Holly to avoid along the way. When they finally reached the stairwell that lead to the exit, Gail stopped and spun around. "Wait, this is a lot of stairs and it's a really tiny spiral staircase, I think we should wait for the lights to come back on."
Holly smiled, "Honey, I can walk up stairs. I've been doing it all day in the metro."
"Yeah, but that was before I knew you were pregnant. What if you lose your balance or get dizzy? Have you been dizzy at all?" With the light of the phone, Holly could just make out the way Gail's brow was furrowed in concern.
Chuckling, Holly said, "I'm fine, sweetie. But I'm gonna be even better when we are above ground again."
Gail was too concerned for Holly's welfare to catch the joke. "Ok, but you go first so I can stand behind you just in case."
Holly shook her head, but still took the light and started up the steps. She walked slowly because the sharp curve of the staircase prevented more than a few steps from being illuminated at a time. Gail followed closely behind, sometimes placing her hand on the small of Holly's back.
When they finally reached the top and exited onto the street, Holly breathed a deep sigh of relief. It was still light out and she could see that the power outage hadn't affected the surrounding buildings. She pointed toward an intersection at the end of the street and started walking toward it. "The book said the metro would be this way."
Gail grabbed Holly's hand and pulled her back. "Wait." At Holly's questioning look, Gail said, "Tell me again."
Holly smiled curiously, "Tell you what again? The metro is that way?" She gestured toward the end of the street.
Gail put both hands on Holly's hips and pulled so their bodies were flush against each other. "No, not that. Tell me your news again." Gail's smile was bright.
It took Holly a second to realize what Gail meant, but when it hit her, her eyes instantly shined with tears. She smiled warmly and put her hand on Gail's cheek. "I'm pregnant, Gail."
Kneeling on the ground, her hands still resting on Holly's hips, Gail tenderly kissed her wife's stomach. Tears shining in her eyes, she stared up at her wife and grinned, "Best Halloween ever."
Holly would forever be grateful that Gail had stopped them, that she had urged her to relive that moment that she broke the news. Because the look on Gail's face was one she would never forget. It was terror. And it was awe. But mostly? It was adoration.