Nina watched as the sky cleared from light blue to dusty rose. Willy sat beside her gently humming. They were actually sitting atop the railing of a large business building, nearly seventy feet off the ground.
Willy had explained it was the best place in the world to see the sunset, and he had seen many other places but this was the best. Nina leaned close to Willy and asked him, "How far have you gone in that Elevator?"
Willy smiled and told her, "To the ends of the earth and back. I'm working on adjusting it for space travel." Nina laughed. "You can't be serious." She told him. He looked at her and smiled, "I can have dreams. Don't you want to see the universe too?"
Nina nodded yes and watched as the sky turned a light yellow.
Willy asked quietly, "What kind of dreams do you have?" Nina told him, "Many. Silly stuff, like having a house and a career."
Willy giggled, "Everyone wants that. I mean like real dreams. Exploring the ocean type of things."
Nina thought for a second and replied, "I've always wanted to visit Antarctica, or Alaska. I want to take pictures of the snow and barren landscape." Willy looked out over the horizon and said, "I've never been to an extremely cold place, I usually visit warmer climates like France and India."
Nina told him, "France is not all that warm." Willy giggled and replied, "In the summer you can fry eggs on the ground."
They watched the sun dip into the ground and Willy suddenly said, "Goodnight Sun, Hello Moon, I hope you both have lots of Fun Soon."
Nina laughed and Willy looked at her. Nina asked quietly, "Would you like to come over tomorrow, see my photos?"
Willy nodded and told her, "You could come see my factory someday." Nina smiled as Willy carefully stepped off the railing.
He waited for Nina to join him and they walked across the floor to the Elevator. Nina went in and Willy pressed the buttons for home. "I can't take you directly to your apartment, not yet anyway. Is it all right if I drop you off at the center of the square?"
Nina nodded as they soared through the air. Willy watched as she smiled at him. "Heh." He blurted out. Nina came slowly towards him and gently pressed closer. She reached out with her hand as Willy looked at her. Timidly he held out his own hand.
They held each others hands as they flew towards the town. Nina edged closer to Willy as he began to nervously shake. When she was barely inches away she looked up into Willy's eyes. They watched each other until the Elevator bumped onto the ground. Willy didn't immediately open the door, but watched Nina as they held each other's hands.
He smiled as he leaned in to her shoulder.
Gently Nina moved her other hand around Willy's waist as they hugged. Willy held Nina tight as he hugged her, and Nina rested her head against his shoulder.
After a few moments they parted, and Willy waved as Nina stepped out of the elevator.
"I'll see you tomorrow." She whispered. Willy nodded eagerly, and he flew off to his home.
When he reached home Willy realized Nina had left her picnic basket in the Elevator. "Darn." He muttered. He gave the remaining leftovers to Charlie's grandparents and carefully packed Nina's blanket in her basket.
He soon found Charlie in the "Hard Candy" room talking with several Oompa Loompas. "Well! How was it? You left at nearly Eight this morning and it's nine pm now!" Charlie came rushing over to Willy as Willy began to giggle.
He waved to the Oopma Loompas as he told Charlie. "She hugged me. It felt really nice too. And we talked all day long and we took walks and we played on the swings and I'm going to see her tomorrow!" He said all of that in one single breath, and then sucked in more air.
Charlie laughed as Willy told him, "She left her basket here. I have to take it to her tomorrow." Willy picked up a small green candy and asked, "Whats this?"
The Oompa Loompa's explained Charlie's idea for long-lasting candy fruit, such as apples, peaches, and plums. Willy looked at Charlie and grinned "Well, I'm glad to see your coming along. I was afraid at first, leaving you here to run the factory all day. But of course I didn't know I would stay out so long. Good to know I can trust you."
Charlie nodded, "You can always trust me Sir." He told him. Willy stood up and told them, "I'm going to bed now, If you need me come and get me." He whistled as he walked along to his bedroom.
Charlie continued to work with the candy until his mother forced him to go to bed.
The next morning Willy barely touched his breakfast, flying from one end of the factory to the next in order to see if things were going smoothly. He thanked Charlie and headed out the front door.
It was three days in a row that Willy had been outside, and he was actually beginning to enjoy it. The bright sunshine of yesterday had tinged his pale skin to a soft glow, and he was actually feeling rather happy.
He whistled as he walked to Nina's apartment, and then stopped. He couldn't remember which apartment she was in! He didn't even think she had ever told him. Willy walked along the rows of identical boxes, looking for some sign of Nina.
He bit his lip as he stopped and looked at the numbers on each door. Suddenly he heard a small voice beside him, "Hey you, are you lost?"
He turned to a little kid on a bicycle and told the kid, "I'm looking for a young woman. Her name is Nina, she has curly brownish hair and red nails. Do you know her?" The kid shrugged his shoulders nonchalently and Willy grimaced.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a candy bar. "Here, you want this?" Suddenly there was a loud screech and a woman came flying out of one of the doors.
"Jason! You get back here right now! Get away from him you Creep!" She suddenly hit Willy with a large purse and he shouted, "Hey! I'm just giving him some candy! I give it to everybody!"
The woman continued to hit him. Willy screamed, "Ouch! I'm Willy Wonka you mad bat!"
The woman was screaming, "You don't walk around handing...OH!... I'm so sorry Mr. Wonka!" The woman held her purse to her chest and looked at him.
Willy told her, "I'm just here to see a girl. Nina. Gosh darn it, I wasn't doing anything wrong."
The woman looked over at her son, who was sitting on the front porch eating his candy bar. "I'm terribly sorry. I just don't trust strangers, and you were acting like you were looking for something. I don't know, I got the wrong impression."
Willy brushed himself off and looked at the woman. "I'm looking for a young woman named Nina. She has reddish-brownish hair and red nails?" He asked her. The woman nodded, "Yeah, the photographer. She lives in C32. Over that way."
The woman pointed towards a group of similar apartments and Willy hurried off. He was eager to get away from the over-zealous mother and her purse. When he got to C32 he knocked on the door.
Nina opened the door and smiled, "You found me. I was afraid I had forgotten to tell you where I lived. You went to the main office, eh?" Willy giggled but did not say anything. He looked around Nina's apartment, with a small white couch and blue recliner.
She had blue and white curtains on the window and a corner bookcase with books piled on it. In the center of the farthest wall she had a television with two lamps beside it.
There was a small corridor that led into something, and on the walls of the corridor Nina had several framed pictures. "Heh, cute little home." Willy told her.
Nina smiled and patted the couch as she sat down. "It's not much, but I like it here." Willy sat timidly on the edge of the couch. Nina giggled, "Don't be silly, be comfortable. You want a drink?" Willy scooted over and nodded, "Yes please."
Nina left down the corridor for a moment and Willy watched the curtains flutter in the wind from the window. When Nina returned she had two glasses full of chocolate milk. "My favorite." Willy said.
Nina smiled as she asked him. "How has your morning been?" Willy sipped his drink and said, "Just the usual. Taking care of my factory, although I dare say Charlie has things under control." He did not mention the little kid or the woman with the purse.
Nina smiled, "How old is Charlie anyway?" Willy told her, "Thirteen this year. But he acts much more older." She nodded. Nina asked, "How many people does Charlie have in his family?" Willy replied, "Oh, lots and lots. He has four grandparents, from both his mother's and father's side, and he has a mother and father, of course."
Nina giggled. Willy asked quietly, "You said you wanted to show me your pictures. What kinds of things do you photograph?" Nina told him, "I get paid to do portraits and such. Weddings, Proms. You know. I like photographing people, just out in their everyday lives."
Willy smiled. "I like watching people in their everyday lives. You never know what goes through their heads." Nina told Willy, "I'll go get my portfolio and stuff. Feel free to look around."
Willy looked but was afraid to touch. He didn't want Nina to get mad if he misplaced something. She seemed to have lots of books and magazines, and one magazine caught his attention. Nina came back to find Willy on the couch reading The Daily Globe.
She giggled and he looked up. "This isn't for real is it?" He asked, pointing to the headline Bat-Boy found in tryst with Tooth Fairy. Nina nodded no. "It's entertainment, funny stuff. I like the story about the midget professor who teaches astronomy to elves."
Willy laughed and put the magazine down. Nina had a small black album and a larger, red book. "This is my professional work. It's a portfolio, people look at it when they decide to hire me."
Willy opened it to find some pictures of small babies. "Oh, cute." He told her. She had pictures of older people as well, and a few wedding samples. He stopped at one picture of a group standing around a coffin.
"Some people hire me for professional funerals. That's usually when a mayor or soldier has passed." Nina explained.
Willy smiled and picked up the red album. "These are just photos I've done for fun." She told him. Willy looked through at pictures of women, men, children, and animals. There were landscapes as well, and photos of the sky and horizon.
"But there aren't any of you?" He said incredibly. Nina giggled, "I'm the one behind the camera of course." She said.
Willy smiled and asked, "Do you have any photos at all of you?" Nina nodded and got up, asking "Can I get you a refill?" Willy shook his head no and she disappeared. Nina came back with a small handful of photos. "These are loose, I don't have anwhere to put them yet."
Willy took them and smiled. "Your really pretty in photos." He told her. Nina blushed and he asked, "Do you not like having photos of yourself?" Nina replied, "I prefer to take the pictures."
Willy picked one picture up and asked, "Could I keep this, please?" He was holding a photo of Nina in a pink dress standing before a large weeping willow. "All right." She told him, and Willy placed the picture in his pocket. "Where is your camera?" He asked.
Nina smiled, "Come here and I'll show you." Willy walked with Nina as she led him through the corridor. There were two closed doors and a small entrance that led to a kitchen. Beside the kitchen was an open door that led to a small room.
The room had a desk on one wall and a large clear area before the other wall. A tripod sat in the center, facing a blank wall with four corners marked off. There were chairs in one corner, and a large box of electric equipment beside them.
Nina went over to her desk and picked up a small, silver camera. She held up another black one. "This one is digital. I use it when I'm outside, at weddings or other events." She indicated the silver camera. Then she held up the black one and said, "This one is for film. I can attach it to my tripod and take still photos. I use that area as a small studio for family portraits and other things."
She pointed to the blank wall. Willy giggled and Nina came to him. "Want to see?" She handed him the silver digital camera and Willy looked at it. "How does it work?" He asked, turning it over.
Nina held it up and pointed to a small latch. "This is digital so you don't need to load film. Instead you open this latch and pull out the memory stick. It holds up to two hundred photos before you need to empty it. You can also view the photos online and delete the ones you don't want."
Nina then showed Willy a small button and a red one. "You press this button for flash, and to take photos you press the red button. There's a lot more you can do, but that's the basics."
Willy smiled as he held the camera. He pointed the lens down to check the back, and pressed the red button. "Oh, sorry!" He told Nina. Nina only laughed and told him, "You'll have a nice picture of the crack in the floor. You can use it if you'd like."
Willy looked through the lens and saw Nina. "Smile!" He told her as he snapped a picture. Nina giggled and told him, "Let's take a picture of you." Willy handed the camera to her and smiled as Nina snapped a photo.
He asked her, "Do you want to go outside and take pictures?" Nina nodded and Willy clapped his hands. "Goody."
They walked together outside as Willy snapped pictures of everything from mailboxes to Nina's back. Nina laughed as they took pictures of neighbors who looked startled to see Willy Wonka taking a picture of them.
She pointed the camera at Willy and told him, "Lets take a picture together." He giggled as she came beside him and held the camera out. "Smile!" She said as the camera clicked.
Willy asked, "How do you get the pictures out if there is no film?" Nina replied, "I have a docking station and photo-paper that prints the images. I can choose what to print and what to get rid of."
He still looked confused. "What's a docking station?" He asked. Nina told him, "Come back to my place and I'll show you."
Willy walked along with Nina to her home and she showed him in her studio a small electronic device. "Just place the memory stick in here, and choose what you want to print. But be careful, I don't have much paper left." Willy marveled at the images in the small screen on the docking station.
"So if I want that picture, I just print?" He asked.
Nina smiled as Willy printed out the picture of them together. He laughed as he handed it to her. "That's a most marvelous invention!"
Nina smiled and told him, "You can have this, I have the image stored whenever I want it." Willy asked, "Do they ever get old?" Nina shook her head no.
Willy looked down at his watch and asked, "Nina, are you hungry? We can go to that burger place downtown." She smiled as Willy pocketed his second picture.
Nina grabbed her purse on the way out and locked the door. Together they walked down the street, giggling and telling jokes.