First Date
Elphaba very gently took hold of Glinda's hand as they made their way down to the water front. Glinda blushed slightly and smiled shyly at her, and Elphaba smiled shyly back. The two girls were best friends, as well as roommates at the college they were both attending, Shiz University. They were also both gay, and they had recently fallen in love and started dating. Tonight was their first date. Elphaba had wanted everything to be perfect for their first date, so she had arranged for the two of them to go on a romantic boat ride down the river that ran through the grounds of Shiz. It was a Friday night, so the river route would be lit by beautiful paper lanterns with purple designs on them. Elphaba had suggested the idea to Glinda three weeks ago, and she had been ecstatic. So that's what Elphaba had decided on. The two girls felt their excitement building as they reached the dock. One of their fellow students, a young man in his blue and white school uniform, was standing at the dock, a boat bobbing in the water beside him. He smiled at Glinda when they reached the dock, but he didn't even glance at Elphaba. "Here's your boat Miss Upland." he said softly, addressing Glinda. "Enjoy your evening." "Thank you." Glinda answered softly. The boy nodded as he helped Glinda into the boat. Elphaba climbed in after her, and then he was gone. The two sat down facing each other, and then Elphaba untied the boat from the dock and gently pushed them into the slow-moving current. As the boat began its journey down the river, Elphaba turned and looked back at Glinda, and the two girls took each other's hands in their own. Elphaba looked at Glinda in the light from the lanterns, and she felt like the breath had been stolen right out of her lungs. Glinda looked like an angel with the soft glow of the lamps reflecting off her ivory skin, and her sapphire eyes glowing in the starlight. Elphaba had helped her braid her long, golden hair, entwining pink roses in with her hair. Glinda usually wore makeup, but tonight she hadn't. She hadn't had time to put any on, and Elphaba smiled, always having preferred the natural color in Glinda's cheeks over the blush she usually used. Glinda noticed Elphaba staring at her, and she blushed as Elphaba looked down. "I'm sorry Glinda." she said softly. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. You're just so beautiful!" Glinda blushed a little deeper and said, "Thanks Elphie. You're beautiful too!" Glinda looked up at her girlfriend and smiled warmly as Elphaba blushed. "Thanks Glinny." she whispered. "You're welcome." Glinda replied softly. Elphaba had been born with emerald green skin, which was glowing in the soft light from the lanterns. Her mocha eyes looked bright, and they seemed to sparkle behind her black-framed glasses. She had braided her long, curly, raven hair, and her braid was falling over her left shoulder. It was the middle of summer, so both girls were wearing long, short-sleeved dressed, and they were both barefoot. However, Glinda's dress was pink, and Elphaba's was black, their favorite colors. A warm, gentle breeze was blowing up from the south, blowing loose tendrils of their hair across their faces. It was a perfect night for a boat ride, and a perfect night for them to have their first date. "I'm really glad you arranged this Elphie!" Glinda said, gently brushing her thumbs over Elphaba's knuckled. Elphaba grinned and replied softly, "I'm glad you like it Glinny! I knew this would be a perfect first date!" "It is!" The two girls looked at each other and started giggling. Even though they had only been dating for about a month now, and even though this was their first date, the two girls had been friends for long enough that things didn't feel awkward between them. They both felt perfectly comfortable and safe around each other, probably because they were both outcasts and they had learned to depend on each other for friendship and love. Glinda was more popular than Elphaba, and she was more accepted by their classmates, but there were still times when the whole student body wanted nothing to do with her, and they had shunned her and ridiculed her before. The student body had shunned and ridiculed both of them in the two years that they had been at Shiz. Glinda because she was gay, and Elphaba because she was gay and had green skin. But what their schoolmates thought of them had never mattered to either girl. They knew that the other loved them for who they were, and that was all that mattered. They were both strong because of the humiliation and ridicule they had been forced to endure, and that had made their love even stronger. As their boat floated along, soft music began playing from speakers that the school's headmistress, Madame Morrible, had had set up along the river. Both girls gasped and smiled when, at the same time, they realized they knew the song that was playing. It was a love song, and one that had been very popular in recent months. "Oh I love this song!" Glinda whispered, her eyes glowing. Elphaba chuckled softly and whispered back, "Me too!" Glinda gently reached up and cupped Elphaba's cheek. "Will you please sing with me Elphie?" she asked softly. Elphaba nodded, smiling warmly. Glinda smiled back, and then softly began to sing… "All those days, watching from the windows. All those years, outside looking in. All that time, never even knowing just how blind I'd been! Now I'm here, blinking in the starlight. Now I'm here, suddenly I see, standing here, it's oh so clear! I'm where I'm meant to be! And at last I see the light! And it's like the fog has lifted. And at last I see the light! And it's like the sky is new. And it's warm and real and bright, and the world has somehow shifted. All at once, everything looks different, now that I see you." When Glinda finished singing, there was a short music break, and then Elphaba, smiling at the beautiful girl across from her, softly sang back to her. "All those days, chasing down a daydream. All those years, living in a blur. All that time, never truly seeing things the way they were! Now she's here, shining in the starlight. Now she's here, suddenly I know! If she's here, it's crystal clear, I'm where I'm meant to go!" The two girls looked into each other's eyes as they sang the next line together, Glinda's soprano mixing well with Elphaba's alto. "And at last I see the light!" Elphaba smiled and sang the next line, before they sang together again and Glinda sang back to her. "And it's like the fog has lifted!" "And at last I see the light!" "And it's like the sky is new!" The two girls leaned in to each other and pressed their foreheads together as they finished the song together, their beautiful voices ringing out over the calm, still water. "And it's warm and real and bright, and the world has somehow shifted! All at once, everything looks different, now that I see you! Now that I see you…" When the last note died on their lips, the two girls' faces were only inches apart. They had both closed their eyes when they had leaned into each other, but then they opened them and looked into each other's eyes again as their hearts melted. Elphaba reached up and softly cupped Glinda's cheek. Glinda looked at her with soft, tender eyes, and, without another thought, Elphaba leaned in and kissed the blonde girl… Glinda was a little surprised at first, but then she smiled and softly kissed Elphaba back. Neither girl had ever been kissed before, but they had dreamed about kissing each other for a long time (even though neither one of them had ever admitted it to the other). They kissed for several seconds, and then pulled away slowly. The both smiled shyly at each other, and Glinda whispered. "That was awesome Elphie!" Elphaba chuckled softly. "I'm glad you liked it my sweet!" "This is the best first date ever!" "I agree!" And as the two leaned in and kissed each other again, they both knew that this relationship was something that was meant to last. Most people would say that you couldn't tell that from a first date, but they could. They felt drawn to each other, and nothing would ever change that. Their eyes had been opened that night, and they had both seen the light: the good in their relationship, and the strength in their love that would last them for years to come.