Reality only started to sink in once Ellie had found herself leaving the festival behind, strolling down the main avenue with Dina's hand softly clasping her own, urging her forward. This was really happening. She didn't imagine the kiss, or Dina's advances. Everything felt real, though she expected to wake up in her bed at any moment, having never gone to the festival in the first place. That nagging feeling slowly began to grow, becoming more and more apparent until it became the only thing she was thinking about.

The moon was poking through a thick layer of clouds overhead, casting a soft glow on the town around them. A small shiver ran down her spine as the wind picked up; the telltale sign that a storm was coming. It wasn't long before the moon had disappeared behind the clouds again, leaving nothing but darkness beyond the street lights lining the road.

Dina was saying something, her expression animated, but Ellie only tuned in about halfway through. "-and they're having a party at Josh's place tomorrow. We should totally go. Just imagine: less people, lots of beer, actual music?" Dina turned to face her with an inquisitive look. "Hey, Earth to Ellie, are you there?"

"Oh, uh…" She mentally slapped herself, her smile growing wider in an attempt to look like she'd been listening. In the fluorescent glow of the street lights, it was unsurprisingly easy to find herself looking towards her friend – or was it girlfriend now? – and being left mesmerized. Her rampant thoughts only compounded the issue. "Uh, yeah… that sounds great." Her words stumbled over each other, and she received a worried glance in return, the shorter girl stopping in the middle of the road.

She pulled another strand of hair behind Ellie's ear, caressing her cheek. "You okay? This isn't like – too sudden, or anything…?"

I mean…

"No, it's-" Ellie stuttered slightly, struggling to find the right words to say. She closed her eyes, lowering her head slightly, before forcing them back open, and towards Dina's own eyes. "I didn't really… expect this, you know?" Dina squeezed her hand tighter, and Ellie could feel herself blush. There was a brief pause as Ellie let out a breath, squeezing the girl's hand back. Dina smiled warmly, a small expression that might've gotten lost if they'd stopped in the darkness. "I – Is that why you wanted me to go?" She found herself asking, a genuine question that had been at the back of her mind since they kissed. Was it supposed to be like… God, what was it called…? A date? And Ellie took her time to get there just because she thought she'd just end up being there to watch her from the sidelines?

There were so many things about her friend she didn't understand, and the fact that she actually liked her was the most baffling of them all. What did she have that Jesse didn't? Or any of the other boys in town? Was she that blind to Dina's advances that the girl practically had to kiss her to get it through her head?

Dina's smile grew, her hand slowly letting go of Ellie's. "I mean… partially." As the words left her mouth, her arms wrapped around Ellie's neck, that same feeling of butterflies in the pit of her stomach returning almost instantaneously. "It's really hard to get you to go out, so I figured a little peer pressure couldn't hurt."

Ellie rolled her eyes, though she couldn't contain her own elation, her heart thump-thump thumping as if it was rigged to explode. "Well, it worked," she said, deciding to take the risk to wrap her arms around the girl's waist, only causing the girl's smile to widen further.

"Like I said..." Once again, Ellie found Dina closing the gap between them, the girl's mouth next to her ear as she whispered the words. "You love it."

A quiet snort escaped her. She hadn't expected those words, and with Dina being so agonizingly fucking close, nervousness was bound to rear its ugly head at some point. Despite that, a giggle managed to reach her ears, and that was enough to have her relax.

How long had she dreamed of this moment? Far too long for her to remember. Just a small voice in the back of her head, getting louder and louder with each passing year, and every break-up Dina went through. With Jesse, they'd been off and on for what felt like an eternity, and now...

"I give you guys two weeks until you're back together."

That thought was more than enough to relax her smile into a frown, nearly as sobering as a cold shower. He had briefly crossed her mind, after the kiss, but she'd been so swept up in the moment, it didn't seem to matter. Now she couldn't help but wonder if he had been there to witness it.

Her body tensed up slightly, and she could feel Dina pulling her head away from her ear. Ellie averted her gaze, biting her lip. The wave of guilt washing over her felt more like a tsunami, drowning her as it pulled her deeper into the ocean of shit surrounding her. Dina was in front of her now, still smiling, though that slowly began to fade as she took in Ellie's features.

"Are you okay?"

Concern was evident in her voice. Ellie tried to smile, though it fell just as quickly. She had to say it, even if it was just to get it off her chest. She wanted this, more than anything in the world, but could she really give Jesse the metaphorical middle finger? Like Dina, he was one of her best friends. One of the few people her age that actually gave a damn about her, that tried talking to her when Ellie refused to lift her gaze.

They've both helped her through so much fucking shit, she practically owed them everything. Even today, remembering David's face and his voice and the things he'd done, and tried to do… those scars weren't gonna heal. They just… got easier to deal with, and they helped her through it.

She opened her mouth to reply, her voice failing her momentarily. Finally, she sighed, looking towards the ground between them. Her voice was almost muted, and the question escaped her lips as if she already knew the answer. "What about Jesse?"

The look on Dina's face was one of consternation, as if she hadn't been expecting Ellie to bring him up. Her eyes flicked towards the church down the street, several blocks away by the time they'd stopped walking. Eyes closed, then opened, her smile dropping into a slight frown, before a sigh parted her lips. Her brows were drawn together in a look of worry, or perhaps indignation, like Ellie had brought up a sore subject. Either way, she knew it needed to be addressed, sooner rather than later.

"It's over, between him and me. He's just going to have to accept that."

Silence filled the air for a moment, and Dina slowly let her arms fall away from Ellie's neck. Ellie observed her for a moment longer, the girl's brows unfurrowing, and her arms slowly crossing over her chest. Her eyes bounced between the ground and Ellie's own eyes, as if waiting for a response. Ellie closed her eyes, clenching them shut, before finally opening them.

Maybe they could make this work. Maybe. It was worth a shot.

She slowly nodded her head, looking into Dina's eyes with a soft expression. "Okay."

Though her expression remained unchanged, Dina took a step closer to her, wrapping her arms around Ellie's neck once more. She returned it, wrapping her own arms around the shorter girl's waist. They remained there for what felt like an eternity, yet Ellie didn't want to move, and Dina made no move to do so either.

Only when the girl pulled away from her neck did Ellie open her eyes again, just in time for the girl's lips to meet her own once more. There was no holding back, a sense of longing washing over her, far too strong to resist. When they finally parted, it was only by a few inches, Dina's nose pressed up against hers as the girl let out a hushed chuckle. The noise sent a shiver down Ellie's spine, and a smile to stretch her lips.

"C'mon," was the only thing the girl said, in a whisper that was sweeter than honey. She grabbed onto Ellie's hand, willing her down the street once more.

Ellie didn't resist.


Another fairly short chapter this time around, but we'll be getting into the meat of the story in the next one!

And the return of Joel :)