Her eyes flutter closed around the dim darkness of her room as she imagines what it's like to be next to Amelia right now, what it's like to huddle her close after another horror game or movie, though she'll never admit to the cuddled close huddling to calm her fears.
She remembers the first time that they shared coffee right after midnight, laughing over spilled books, and smiling at each other past their still dazed minds.
Daina loves just how Amelia makes her feel full and loved with barely a word needed to remind her of that fact as she nestles under the covers and imagines Amelia's arms around her, because nothing is more soothing than her girlfriend's sweet touch and gentle voice, lulling her to sleep after a long and tiresome day.
She loves the bright energy of the apartment whenever Amelia's shuffling through it, the way something is always sparking to life at her touch, and yet the apartment looks so dull now with only a few things out of place.
They'd lived together for so long, especially before they became a couple, before they admitted to the soft butterflies rising up to their chests from their stomachs, taking flight whenever they saw joy shine so brightly on one another's face.
Even now, it feels kind of cold to sleep without Amelia's arms around her yet it isn't from lack of necessity as she'd been sleeping like this for three months, ever since Amelia got that new job that left her busy and traveling all of the time to balance it.
Daina may have not heard from her today, but tomorrow will surely come faster if she sleeps now and certainly she'll need the rest for her own job that sadly is more stationary.
Sunlight dances around the field as they sit and talk; it feels like the first time they've had a moment's peace and like forever as if everyday was just as beautiful.
Daina's hair falls down her shoulders thickly, and her green eyes are locked on the woman beside her, beautiful blond hair standing out against lightly tanned skin, and big, beautiful blue eyes that tell of more joy than the sun or stars could even have known in all this time.
She leans against the steady embrace of the other woman, relaxing against her side, and enjoying the way the blond seemed more riveted on her than on the lush scenery around them.
"Where are we?" Daina breathes as if it would break and run away if she spoke even a smidgen louder.
"Barcelona, Spain, somewhere, may be England or France or America or Canada. I don't remember anymore." Amelia giggles as she leans against Daina's side, meeting her shoulder with a steady push, mirroring the way that Daina had taken to leaning on to Amelia's side just earlier.
"Oh," Daina mutters, but it isn't enough, not nearly enough in this deserted plain with blooming flowers of all shapes and sizes, of bright colors, and soft greens; she can't quite feel the grass beneath her and idly wonders why that is.
"Yeah," Amelia beams, "What matters though is not where we are, but that we're together." Perhaps Amelia sounds more philosophical today, but to Daina something's lost in the cadence of her voice.
"No," Daina steadies herself for words that almost weakly leave her throat, "What matters is that we're happy."
To Daina, all that matters in the world is that her other half is happy; Daina understands the itch beneath Amelia's skin to travel just as well as she understands her own desire to stay put, she understands that Amelia has dreams, and no loving relationship comes with steady and perfect ease. There will be sacrifices and tough choices made and compromises established.
Daina startles awake once she realizes that Amelia's going to be gone for at least another three months; the dream is almost bittersweet, reminding her of patience and how perfect it can be to wait, how distance makes the heart grow fonder, and yet reminding her of how desperately she wishes that Amelia was here.
Her green eyes blink blearily open as she catches a beeping noise in the room that she fumbles for, still lost in a dream beyond her mind as the memory of it slowly fades away; she latches on to her phone with a steady barrage of texts: 'Hey, I know that you're probably still asleep or just fell asleep, but I made it back to the hotel in one piece, just I miss you, and wish that I could lay down right by your side right now. Hotel beds are not the same as your arms.'
Daina half laughs, half chokes on her laughter as she goes and hits the call button, knowing that if she doesn't, Amelia will keep spamming her phone with text messages including the recently arriving, 'I love you.'
It's not easy, Daina distantly remembers, balancing all of this when the heart begs for something a little more, some simple proximity, and yet she loves how strong they both are and how deep their love proves itself to be.
They love each other enough to stay faithful, to try to talk every day that they can, and to definitely miss each other enough that their hearts grow even fonder.
"Hey, Amelia." She bites back a yawn, because tiredness doesn't matter as Amelia is on the phone, "I love you too."
"You sound so cute when you are just waking up." Amelia's half teasing, half serious, and Daina realizes that she knows her too well to even manage to hide behind any guise of not being tired.
"What gave me away?" Daina asks curiously and yet nothing seems to prepare her for the level of affection her girlfriend can give out even being miles upon miles away.
"You didn't answer my first text or read it until just now, and your voice drops adorably low when you are sleepy. I love you so much, and thank you for always responding as soon as you see my messages." Amelia hums, and Daina loves her more despite the distance between them.
"I can't help but want to talk to you as soon as I can as well. I love you too, Amelia." Daina's smile is so wide that it practically hurts.
It's funny in a way how much distance makes her appreciate the little things like every 'I love you' text, every cadence of Amelia's voice over the phone, how gorgeous Amelia looks over the video camera when she's sitting on a hotel bed with messy hair and wearing pajamas, trying to hide her sleepy eyes.
She's learned to appreciate even the things that she'd grown far too used to in the past and lost the ability to notice and adore them; she loves every little thing she discovers about Amelia, every moment that she can't help but memorize all that they are.
Daina knows that she appreciates Amelia's random bursts of wisdom that don't always feel like wisdom yet when thought back on are Amelia's own brand of wisdom, a level of understanding that many don't catch from Amelia at first glance.
Sure, Daina misses the bubbly air of the apartment, coffee brewing in the morning with the sound of Amelia shuffling around, hopefully not knocking anything over as she adjusts to the world around her, but there are many things that she doesn't get the chance to miss and is thankful for the presence of like seeing Amelia's bedhead over the webcam, hearing every loving tone over the phone, every treasured 'I love you,' and every single text message, just telling her about her day and wondering about hers.
She loves so much about Amelia that sometimes it feels so unreal, and she can't help but cherish them all the more.
Three months feels like a lifetime to wait and yet she knows that time flies by whenever Amelia's near or speaking to her, so she'll say her 'I love you's with all of her heart, wear it on her sleeve for her girlfriend, and then grow giddy hearing those words spoken so truthfully from Amelia's lips and know that before they know it, she'll be home to make the apartment lively again, to fill Daina with a sort of joy that only Amelia has brought her.
She'll listen to every word spoken from Amelia's lips or written in text and try to sculpt it into her heart for safe keeping; they are only growing much more in love with every passing day, and Daina's more than thankful for a girlfriend like her.
Three months more is all that you make it; either way, she hopes that her work isn't extended another six months more, because she's not sure how she'll balance a year without her happy go lucky roommate, some cuddles especially after horror movies, and gentle kisses when they can't help but sip each other's lips like the fine wine that they can't afford.
Daina loves Amelia with all that she's got, and no distance can erase that love.