"Yuh gonna just stare or do ya got somethin' to say?"
I blink my eyes when I realize I'd been staring off into space. The woman standing across from me has her hands on her hips. There's a white streak in her auburn hair and she's got this sassy little smile on full lips.
My brain, naturally, goes right to wondering what they'd taste like, but Kitty you really need to reel yourself in.
"Uh. Sorry. My mind was elsewhere, I wasn't staring, I swear!" But I kinda wanted to now. She's wearing a tight tank top with a v-neck that goes way down, and over that a dark, see-through top that covers all of her skin.
"Uh huh. Now why do I not believe that, sugar?" The woman folds her arms and it's a struggle to keep my eyes on the green ocean of hers. I feel positively ordinary next to her. Even her accent is sexy. I can't quite place it. Mississippi or Georgia maybe.
The subway car is pulling to a stop, and it's my exit. I look at my watch, then at the doors are they open. I decide to just go for it. Life is for adventure right? "Can I buy you a coffee?"
The woman's expression falters, like she wasn't expecting me to ask something like that and she doesn't know how to deal with it. It makes me want to know more about her.
"I uh...sure. Why not."
We're walking towards this place I know, and I hold out my hand while I adjust my scarf with the other. "I'm Kitty."
"Anna." She shakes my hand and for the first time I notice the gloves. She's got this revealing shirt but all of her skin below her neck is covered. I'm now really curious, but I need to get her seated before I start prying. Because I'm gonna pry.
"Do ya always pick up strange women on the subway?" She gives me this playful smirk as we take our seats in the cafe.
"It's a hobby of mine, buying coffee for a pretty lady." One of my friends once accused me of having sexual tension with everything, up to and including houseplants. Right now I'm just hoping I'm not misreading signals. I've got enough secrets without embarrassing myself.
"Well I ain't impressed yet."
"Give me some time."
I walk Anna home. She's funny and snarky, both things I value in a friend, and when I take her hand she lets me. She lives in a run-down apartment a few blocks away from mine, and we stand awkwardly in front of the door. She searches for her keys while I search her eyes. We're both lonely. I don't need her to tell me that she is.
"Kitty," She says. "Thanks. I haven't really gotten to spend much time with people these days. I kinda have to be a shut in an' it's real nice to act like a person again."
She jerks away when I lift my hand to her cheek. "Don't! Don't touch me!"
"Why not?" I step forward, putting my hands on her shoulders and rubbing at them. Her skin is warm beneath the fabric and Anna lets off a strangled sound. "I'm not gonna hurt you…"
"Ain't what I'm worried 'bout," she whispers. "I'm worried 'bout hurtin' ya, sug."
"I'm tougher than I look. Anna, what's wrong?"
She rests her hands on my waist and her eyes scan my lips. "Ain't had no one to hold me in as long as I can remember, now. I got this...skin condition an' I don't want ya to get hurt."
"Your skin looks fantastic." I lean in again, close enough to give her a hint, close enough for our breath to mingle, but I don't force it past that. I want to see how she reacts.
"I'm..I'm...oh mah god I want to kiss you." She brings up a hand and presses her fingers between our lips. "But really, I can't an' if I told you why… well ya wouldn't want to be around me an' the last person I told nearly got me arrested."
"I'll trade you. A secret for a secret. I know you don't want to trust me, but unless you're planning on hurting people I'm good at keeping secrets." I moved my hands down her arms, and rested them at her elbows. "Please."
"I'm one of them." She lowered her voice, even though there couldn't possibly be anyone around us to hear. "A mutant, sugar. Mah skin kinda...drains people, I can't control it."
My thumbs rubbed in reassuring circles, before I lifted up a finger, and then phased it into her shoulder. "I'm one too."
Her mouth forms a little O shape. "Well damn! An' here I was all ready to bolt."
It's a dangerous thing to admit, being a mutant. If you're lucky you get arrested. If you're unlucky they put you in The Pit. If you've got something really useful, then you get the special treatment. The two of us both have something useful. I can walk through walls, and Anna? She can apparently pick up memories as well as life force.
We snuggle on her couch. There's a lot to say, too much for the moment so we put it off. I lift my scarf up and dangle it in front of her face. "It's light. It's thin…but it'll stop skin contact."
"Smart girl," she breathes, and both of her gloves hands slide into my blouse as she kisses me through the scarf.
"Anna…" Oh she has no idea how clever I am. I poke a finger against her cheek. The shock is quick and sharp. I like it. I like it a lot. Nothing like a little bit of danger to spice things up.
She hisses at me, "Kitty! Oh." Her eyes suddenly grow wide and her face turns red. "Oh mah lord. Those are some really amazin' ideas an' I do believe you're goin' to end up killin' me."
The redhead suddenly flips me onto my back and I come to the conclusion that she's probably going to kill me too. She isn't the only one who's been alone for a long time.
Anna takes the scarf, pushing my shirt up and trailing it over my skin, feathering kisses as she goes. Her hair is so soft against my stomach, and I reach down to take her hand. She looks up at me, and her eyes are as wet as mine. Her voice wavers. "Kitty, can ya stay tonight?"
"Yeah…" I say, fighting a quiver in my lips. "I'll stay as long as you need me to."