The next morning when Galinda awoke, Elphaba was already gone. There wasn't much time to wonder where she had run off to. It was already two in the afternoon. The train Galinda was supposed to be catching left the station at 3:30. She dressed quickly and grabbed her bags. On her way out she looked back. She didn't understand why she was feeling disappointed. She wanted to see Elphie once more before leaving, but didn't know why.
The whole ride home Galinda was thinking about the last evenings events. She thought about the hat she gave to Elphaba. She was a little upset. Yes, it had been a gift to her. So technically she was recycling gifts. Is it still considered bad though if she planned on just letting it sit there until she genuinely thought that Elphie might like it? Elphaba did look so good in that hat though. It suit her so much better than it had ever suited Galinda, or would ever suit anyone for that fact. Then there was Fiyero. Why had he just shown up like that? She would have expected something like that from Boq, but not him. Fiyero was just so annoying the whole evening anyway. He was following her like a puppy. He didn't let her have a moment to herself. It was a little sad. She was more than happy when he walked her back to her room. And then here it was again, Elphaba's dream. What was it that made her act that way? Galinda was thinking on this for a while when it suddenly hit her. It wasn't a nightmare. It was a "dream." Galinda blushed at this thought and let a smile creep across her face. Galinda soon gave up thinking. It was too much, she needed sleep. She had to look her best for her parents.
Elphaba had woken at sunrise. She saw that Galinda was still sleeping, but looked as if she had just fallen asleep. There were still circles under her eyes. She wondered why Galinda would have stayed up all night. She thought maybe she had been thinking about last night. She looked like she was having so much fun with Fiyero. Fiyero... Elphaba didn't want to think about it any more. She got dressed and went out. She would read some at the cafe.
Elphaba spent a lot of time reading the next few days, and little time sleeping. She couldn't stop thinking about Galinda. She would smell her perfume in the air. Every shadow that danced along the wall reminded her of Galinda. She spent sleepless nights staring at the ceiling. She was lonely. She had become accustomed to having Galinda there with her. She would look over to her empty bed and catch herself staring. She didn't know what to think. She had heard of this feeling before. She read about love, but how could she love someone? To love someone, you must have a soul, and Elphaba didn't know if she did in fact have one. Maybe it was something else. It had to be.
Lurlinemas day, one week after Galinda had left, Elphaba was sitting in her room. It was beginning to snow outside. She watched it fall and wondered what other families were doing. She wondered what her own family was doing. She even wondered what Galinda's family was doing. She decided it probably wasn't the most appropriate thing to be thinking, so went lie down. She fell into a sound sleep.
Elphaba awoke to the smell of the most beautiful flower. She thought she was still dreaming. She opened her eyes and found the small blonde sitting at the vanity. "Galinda? What are you doing here?"
"Oh, Elphie. You're awake. I just had to come back." Galinda searched for something to tell her. "My parents, they are going out of town tomorrow morning, so it was best that I come back and spend the remainder of the holiday here."
"Oh. Well, I hope things are alright. I just didn't expect you back so soon. Had I known, I would have tidied up a bit." Elphaba started moving some books around and straightened out her sheets. There were some pieces of paper on the floor. It wasn't until she picked them up that she realized they were notes over-analyzing her feelings. She balled them up quickly and threw them away. She hoped Galinda hadn't seen them.
"Oh, don't worry about it. It's nothing. I think I left my room in a sadder shape than this, and you know how cleanly I am. This is nothing but a few things out of place." She began powdering her nose.
"Are you going somewhere this evening?" Elphaba asked.
"Oh. No, I just feel the need to freshen up. I've been on the train the last couple of hours. I was a little washed out. It was no fun. I haven't been sleeping well besides." Galinda felt herself rambling.
"You don't need all that make up you know. You always look perfect, from the time you wake up to the time you lie down for bed." Elphaba seemed nervous. Why had she said that? "I mean, you aren't like me, tragically beautiful and all. I could probably stand a few good layers of make up on my face. I'm so plain. Sarah Plain and Tall is what I am, except I get a bit more attention."
"No, Elphie. You ARE beautiful, and not so tragically as you think. The green really does work in you're favor. It always seems as if you are glowing." Galinda had too much time to think about that the last few days. She went back to powdering herself.
"Galinda...:cough: I think if you powder any more, you will smoke out the room." They both laughed at that. "But seriously, if you aren't going anywhere this evening, what are you going to do? I'm terribly boring company, and I planned on staying in tonight. I wouldn't want to intrude on any plans of yours."
"Oh, I suppose I have applied a bit much. As far as what I'm doing tonight, I haven't really thought about it. I suppose I will just stay in. We can play a game or something. Sounds like fun doesn't it?" Galinda really had no idea what she would do.
"Yea, I suppose we could do that. What were you thinking? There aren't many that can be played with only two people. At least, I don't know of any because most people wouldn't want to play alone with me." Elphaba sunk her head low. "But it's okay. I was just going to read some more."
"Well miss Elphaba, you do seem terribly boring at the moment. I suggest we play..." and at that moment Galinda threw a pillow in Elphaba's direction, smacking her square in the face. "PILLOW FIGHT!"
They both started giggling and it became a complete uproar. They were running all over the room. The beds had become launch pads where they would jump off and slam the other. Chairs had become guards to incoming blows. The closet had become a safe haven, but only for a few moments. They were having a blast.This was the most fun Elphaba had had since she was young. "Wait! Wait, wait..." Elphaba was out of breath. She hunched down breathing hard. Galinda put her pillow down and walked over to her.
"Are you okay?" Galinda asked. She stood next to Elphaba. At that moment Elphaba jumped up throwing Galinda on the bed. It was now an all out wrestling match. "You Cheater!" Galinda exclaimed.
"Hey, I'm just getting you back for the pillow in the face. That was sneaky too you know." Elphaba was rolling around on top of Galinda. She pinned her down. Elphaba was on top of Galinda, strattleing her. She held her arms down. In this position Elphie was only a few inches away from Galinda. They locked in a stare.
"...I give..." Galinda finally said. Elphaba crawled off of her. She sat on the end of the bed. "That was fun. We should do it again some time." Galinda said.
"Yea," Elphaba said. She had to admit it was really fun to play with someone like a child would. She was a bit nervous though. What was that moment they had? How long had she stayed on top of the blonde girl? Was it too long? Her thoughts were interrupted when Galinda jumped onto her back.
"So. What are we going to do now?" Galinda said. She felt a bit awkward too, so she tried to find the easiest way to break the silence. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to attack Elphie like that. Now she didn't want to take her arms from around her. She retreated though and sat next to Elphaba.
"I don't know. What are you in the mood for? ...Look! The snow is really coming down now. It's a good thing you made it back safely. It would have been horrible to get stuck in the snow somewhere you are unfamiliar." Elphaba was right. Galinda knew it would have been absolutely terrible if she had gotten stuck at any station on the way between home and Shiz.
Galinda reached her hand out and patted Elphaba's, "Well, I'm here. So I don't have to worry about it. And I think it's for the better anyway. I would have been so bored at home. They were planning on singing carols until late. The relatives that came in were so boring. They wanted to spend all day tomorrow looking at old pictures and remeniscing. I couldn't take a moment more with them. It was terrible. I'm glad I came back."
Galinda hadn't realized it, but she just made a very large contradiction, and Elphaba caught it. "Galinda? I thought you said you're parents were going out of town tomorrow?" Elphaba was confused, but she was also trying to get to the bottom of this new affection. Why had Galinda lied?
"Oh...um..." Galinda may be a quick thinker, but all the she could think was to tell Elphaba the truth. She knew that wouldn't do. "Well, I am a little ashamed of it. I came back early because I need to study. I'm not doing so well in sorcery."
"Oh." Elphaba was hoping for something else, what, she wasn't sure. "I suppose if you really need some help, I can try to assist. I may not be in a sorcery class, but I do know a bit about it. What is it exactly you need help with?" Elphaba thought she might be able to make the most of the evening. Finally she would be back to the books, and she might pick up some new information along the way.
Galinda, now noticing the accumulating pile of trouble she was getting herself into, looked around. Did she even have her textbook anywhere in the room? "Oh. Well, it's the part about levitation. I just can't seem to get it."
"Well, let's give it a look see. Where is your book?" Elphaba asked.
"I think it might be under the bed." They both got up and started looking under the bed at once. They found the book too. It was in the center, and they just happened to grab at it at the same time. Their hands grazed one anothers. There was a nervous laugh between the two. "I got it," Galinda said.
Galinda flipped through the book and got to the page. "Okay. Here it is. It says something about the way the chant goes. Maybe I'm just not saying it right. Watch." Galinda spoke the words and a pencil on the end table shot across the room.
When Elphaba stopped laughing she said, "Well, it's not that bad. I mean, you did get it to move right? And it wasn't on the ground the whole time. I think if you said it a little more smoothly, it would work. You sound very harsh. One would think you were a first year and were nervous." Galinda laughed, but it was true. She was nervous. "Try it again, a little more calmly." Elphaba started playing with Galinda's hair.
Galinda said the spell again. It worked. The pencil picked itself up, but just floated. "Thank you Elphie. How did you know that playing with my hair would calm me?"
Elphaba blushed a bit. "Well, father used to do the same to Nessa when she was younger. He didn't want her to be too nervous about her handicap, so before he went for public speaking, he would stroke her hair." Elphaba never got such treatment. She started to feel a bit down, and her face showed it.
Galinda reached her hand up and brushed Elphaba's hair behind her ear. Elphaba leaned into it before she realized what she was doing. Galinda stroked her ear a bit longer than intended and planted a kiss on her cheek. "Thanks again, Elphie. I'm going to go take a shower." Galinda stood up and walked to the bathroom.
Elphaba slid down the bed and sat huddled up in a ball. "Why do I do this?" Elphaba thought. "Why do I get myself so worked up. She does something to me. I can't explain it. There is just something." Elphaba got up and walked to her bed. She lied there until she heard Galinda emerge from the bathroom.
"Elphie? You awake?... I guess not." Galinda sat on her bed. She continued to dry her hair. "I don't know what to do." She let out a long sigh before she walked across the room to her vanity. "I am beautiful, and smart, and I could have anyone I want. I could have Fiyero in a heart beat," Galinda said gazing at herself in her vanity mirror. She stopped, she thought she heard something. "Why?"
Elphaba turned on her side. She stared at the wall. "Why what?" Elphaba thought. She heard Galinda crawl into bed. She didn't want to turn over for fear that the blonde would she was awake. She just laid there until she fell asleep.