Max slept soundly until the sun began to rise and in her dreams she was screaming out Kate's name, afraid for her, but not knowing why. She sat up in bed, woken by this sudden nightmare. Looking over, Kate was there, her slumber slightly disturbed by the brunette's movements. For a moment, Max was very distracted by how beautiful Kate looked curled up beside her, but then she thought back to what woke her up.
She could not remember the dream. It did not feel like a vision, and it was not Jefferson or the tobanga, but being concerned about Kate being in danger felt just as bad as any nightmare and worse. She was safe though. Still, Max began to worry until an idea came. Carefully slipping out from their untwined legs, Max crept out of bed and reached her bag. She pulled out her camera and then went to the other side of the room where she pulled out an empty photo album.
I don't even know if this would work if I needed it to, but it can't hurt to try to be prepared...
Coming up close to Kate, Max framed her in the camera's view and took a picture. The sound and flash startled the blonde for a moment, enough to let Max slip the photo into the album which she then put under the bed.
Kate had an annoyed face and looked down as Max stood up by the bed.
"Wha...what are you doing?"
"Nothing, sorry...I didn't mean to wake you."
Kate made a morning moan and stretched before saying, "Wait...did you just take a picture of me?"
Max looked down sheepishly and said, "Umm...yeah. Sorry for being a creeper."
"No, no, that's great...I'm glad you're doing it again some more since...the bus." Kate yawned and rubbed her eyes.
"Oh, uh...yeah. I guess so."
"Can I see it?"
"Let's save it for later," the brunette said playfully.
Max got back into bed and they were instantly back in each other's arms staring at each other lovingly. Kate swept the brunette's hair back and said, "Em...I...I can tell you want to kiss me."
Max's mouth popped open just a little, caught in her painfully obvious thoughts. She couldn't speak.
"It's okay, I want to kiss you too, um...you have no idea...but someday we will be kissing so much that we'll lose count of them by the first day...but...the next one...I just want to be special. I already messed up the first one...and the second that never happened...but I'm not just here with you because you're so beautiful and...make me want to do...unspeakable things to you, I want to do this right. I don't want to scare you away, but...I want this to last...forever." Her last word was almost a whisper and she looked away afraid to see the other's reaction.
Max quickly reassured her, saying, "I want that too, Katie." She knew that Kate asking her before to never leave was more about not suddenly disappearing than a long term comittment. The relief was apparent in the blonde's sudden deep inhale and slow exhale.
Kate turned back to her, her eyes a little glassy with emotion, and they just shared a look of love for a few precious seconds. Kate spoke next, saying, "So...I want the next kiss to really remind me of how and why I feel...loved by you. Is that okay?"
"Of course, Katie...I told you we can take it slow, but when the moment comes...we will kiss and I will make sure you know exactly how much I love you."
"Thank you, Em..."
"Anything for my angel. You really are the purest thing."
"Kate first smiled shyly, but said, "You wouldn't say that if you knew even half my thoughts about you."
Max grinned, blushing, but excited at what she imagined what Kate might think. After a moment, she said, "Katie...since I guess nothing can scare you away either...remember when my parents were here and you talked about...wanting a bunny family someday...?"
"Yeah..."
"Did you mean..."
Kate smiled. "Yes, Em. That's exactly what I meant."
"Oh..." Max was thoughtful. "I think you'll be a great mom."
Kate relished in the compliment. "Yeah?"
"The best. Me though...well...not sure about that."
"What? You'd be great!"
"I don't even know if I could handle pregnancy. Besides freaking out about it, I definitely don't have, um...birthing hips."
"You worry too much."
"This I know." Max scrunched her mouth to the side.
"I know you would be fine and be the best mom."
"How would you even do that, I mean where would you get the...stuff..."
"We'd figure it out," Kate said calmly with confidence.
Max knew they were talking about their shared future, but hearing her say we now made her feel giddy, despite her fears.
Kate ended the conversation though, saying, "But we'll take it one day at a time for now. I'll want a ring before a baby anyways."
Max's eyes widened at the idea of Kate expecting a proposal from her. She said it so matter of fact, and the thought was intense and exhilarating, making her heart skip a beat. It was more thrilling at the moment than even the talk of babies because it felt so much closer.
Kate noticed, but assumed it was panic and said, "Again, Em, I want to do this right, so I don't expect to see you on one knee tomorrow or even for a long time. I'm making sure we don't burn out, and I don't think we can, but I'm taking no chances, so don't worry. I'm not pressuring you into anything."
Max quickly said, "It's okay, I'm not worried. I um, just got a little excited thinking about it..."
Kate smiled, happy that Max was as ready for their future as she was and said, "Good," then leaned in and kissed the freckled girl on her cheek, causing her to close her eyes a moment and sigh with pleasure. Kate then added, "This doesn't count by the way," referring to not kissing Max on the lips.
"I don't think I complained?" Max smiled, now looking at her again.
"Good, because I just decided it's my goal to kiss every freckle of yours. I am going to have to be very thorough to make sure I don't miss a single one. Very thorough."
Max could only put a hand over her face and bashfully say, "Katie..."
"I told you my thoughts were dangerous..." Kate smiled at how much she flustered Max. Talking about it would do...for now.
Kate quickly kissed Max's other cheek and sat up, saying, "Let's get ready, love!"
Max felt the double whammy of the second kiss and Kate's apparent new pet name for her. She took in a large breath and exhaled loudly, letting out all the butterflies filling her stomach. She wondered how she could handle what Kate would someday do to her if she could barely handle her words.
The two got ready, each changing in their separate rooms and accidentally timing it perfectly to meet in the hallway. They smiled when they saw each other and Kate said, "Let's go grab something from the cafeteria and then go."
Max hid her aprehension at having to eat now and nodded. When Kate chose a yogurt parfait, she saw Max hesitate and so grabbed another one for the brunette who knew better to complain now at this point. They ate at a table and when Max thought they were done, Kate brought out a protein bar from her bag. Max did hesistate this time, but a stern look from Kate made her quickly take it and begin eating. It was only when Kate made sure Max ate that the brunette really took her toughness seriously. This idea made the freckled girl start having thoughts about who was the dominant person in their relationship and the answer felt too complicated to comprehend. She decided there didn't have to be a simple answer. They were whatever they needed to be for the other.
When they got were done they made a quick trip to the bathroom. Max came out first and she felt her phone vibrate. Taking it out, she saw it was Vi.
Kate came out just as Max finished reading the text. She said to Kate, "Hey, Vi just messaged me. She wanted to know if we want to hang out. What do you think? Want to keep it just us, or bring her along to the costume shop?"
Kate considered the idea. "Hmm...well, I do love having you all to myself, but I bet she would be the kind of person to make it even more fun...and I do want to get to know her more since it seems like we will be hanging out more..."
"So...I tell her yes?"
"Yeah, let's invite her."
Max nodded and texted Vi. After less than a minute a reply came.
"She says...awesomesauce and...oh, she says she'll pick us up."
"On her motorcycle? Both of us?"
"Ha, no...I guess she also has a car."
"That's great. Ask if she can pick us up in front of the school."
Max texted and, again, quickly received a reply.
"She says she'll be here in a few minutes."
"Great, let's go out and wait for her." Kate took Max's arm at first and snuggled into her side, but quickly let go. The brunette knew this was because there were some people around. She hoped for the day when Kate would not be afraid to show her affection. Max was nervous about it too, how people might react, but she knew she was more ready than the other. She believed that Kate went back and forth though when she really thought back. She didn't know that sometimes, the need to comfort Max is what gave her courage.
They waited outside for a few minutes and, true to her word, Vi pulled up in a paint faded Black Ford Escort.
She called out the open passenger window, "How much?"
Max seemed more amused than Kate who actually took Max's arm as if to partially hide behind her, temporarily forgetting to keeping a platonic appearance.
"Aww, just kidding, angel." Then added, "Money is no object, hop in!"
Kate looked at Max to show her annoyance, but there was an obvious hint of humor in her expression and she walked to the door. Max quickly jumped in front and opened it for Kate who smiled. The brunette paused a moment, uncertain if she should sit up front or not, but decided not to leave Kate alone in the back and joined her from the other side.
Vi looked back with a smirk and said, "Guess I'll be driving two Miss Dasies today." Max started to try and explain why she sat in the back, but Vi cut her off and said, "Don't worry about it, I get it. You can't leave this one alone for a moment. I know I wouldn't. Don't take her for granted for a second."
Max could see that when Vi turned back around, her expression turned serious. She thought it best not to bring it up.
Vi said, "So we're getting Halloween costumes?"
"We'll try," Max said.
"Let's hit it then," Vi said, before driving off.
A few seconds later, the other two girls were surprised to hear Kate start up the conversation again, asking Vi, "So Vi, how long have you been playing piano?"
"Oh, well...technically several years. My parents did one thing right and made me take lessons, but I thought I'd show them later and just dropped it at some point. A couple years back I picked it up again. You sound like you've played your whole life."
Kate smiled at the compliment and said, "It feels like it. Pretty much. I'm sure you surprise a lot of people with your skills though."
"Cause of how I look?"
"No, I mean-"
"It's okay. It wouldn't be the first time. I always have to prove I'm eclectic as shit at some point. I'm not letting anyone put me in a box unless it's-" Vi chuckled and did not finish her sentence. "Never mind."
Max added, "Yeah, I had no idea she played piano until I brought up my song ideas. That was when she offered to help and said she had a place to practice."
"Yeah, we banged those two songs out pretty quick and practiced them a million times before coming back," Vi said, looking forward while she drove.
"You both did great. Thank you Vi for helping Em, um, Max. It really was so beautiful."
"Of course! Wait...Em? Is that your name for little Maxie over here?"
Kate looked away as Vi turned her head back a moment to them. The girl saw her bashfulness and sincerely said, "Aww that is so cute," but added, "Don't make me sick though while I'm driving. Hard to see through chunks on the windows."
Max took Kate's hand and squeezed it and looked at her lovingly, ignoring Vi's last comments. The blonde smiled and leaned in to Max and wrapped her other arm around the freckled girl, enjoying the freedom to love on her without worry.
Vi looked through the rearview mirror and said, "Hey! What did I say! Chunks!" She then muttered jokingly, "Goddamn adorable baby gays."
Kate smiled and felt the tingles go through her as Max caressed her arm up and down while they sped down the road, wishing they would never reach their destination.