AN: Hello, you all! I went dolphin spotting today - it was amazing! We saw common dolphins and bottlenose dolphins. It was the first time I ever saw wild dolphins and it was super exciting!

Musicgal3: *raises eyebrow* Are you trying to tell me that it surprises you that you are right about something happening in my fics?

LetWickedNeverDie: Well, it sounds a little perky... :P

Day Three

Elphaba was lying in her bed, staring at the ceiling as she thought about their vacation so far.

It seemed too good to be true. Even though she had been reluctant to come along on this trip at first, she was glad now that she had listened to her friends and let them persuade her to come; she was feeling more relaxed than ever. The beach was beautiful, the lake nice and refreshing, and her friends all seemed so much happier than they had been at Shiz – though in their case, that was probably also because they didn't have to study.

Elphaba kind of missed studying, but she still had her books and of course the company of her friends. She wasn't bored. She liked to rise early and sit on the rocking bench on the porch for a while, watching the sunrise if she was early enough, or reading a book; or just drinking a cup of tea and watching the world around her. She had cooked an elaborate breakfast this morning and the others had been so enthusiastic, they had declared that she simply had to make breakfast every single morning now.

And so she had cooked lunch and dinner, too.

Fiyero had come to find her in the kitchen and told her she didn't have to do it – they could go out for dinner, if they wanted to, and Fiyero himself and Boq, too, knew a thing or two about cooking as well, but she had told him she didn't mind. She didn't. She liked to cook almost as much as she liked to read.

All in all, this vacation was turning out to be a lot nicer than she had first anticipated, and she was glad about that.

She was jolted from her thoughts by a knock on the door and a voice calling out. "Elphie?"

Elphaba made a non-committal sound in her throat.

Galinda pushed the bedroom door open a little further. "Are you awake?"

The green girl good-naturedly grumbled something under her breath. "No."

Galinda giggled and entered the room, perching on the edge of Elphaba's bed. "I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking about you and Fiyero!"

That caught Elphaba's attention. She shot up, eyes wide as she stared at the blonde. "What?!"

"You heard me." Galinda pulled her foot underneath her and gave her roommate a solemn look. "He likes you a lot, Elphie, and I know you like him, too. Don't bother denying it. It's clear as day, really."

Elphaba was speechless.

"Every day since we got here, you've been together," Galinda continued. "You chase after one another, you play games in the water – even when you're reading on your towel, or on the porch, he's there, watching you. It's so adorable, but frankly, it's getting a little frustrating. Just get together already."

"But…" Elphaba spluttered. "I don't… what do you…" She didn't know what to say. She had no idea what Galinda was even talking about.

The blonde rolled her eyes. "Elphie, please don't tell me you 'don't like him that way' or something like that," she grunted.

Elphaba opened her and closed her mouth a few times. Then she looked down.

"No," she admitted softly. "I do."

"You do?" Galinda was startled. "And you actually admit it, too? Oh, Elphie!" she cried out, throwing her arms around her friend and hugging her tightly. "I am so proud of you! Now," she said, letting go of the green girl again, "we need a plan. A good plan. To get you and Fiyero together. How about you just go up to him, say, "I know you like me and I like you, too, let's make out", and then you kiss and get together?"

Elphaba just stared at her, slowly raising one eyebrow.

Galinda made a face. "Oh, don't do the eyebrow thing," she shuddered. "I hate it. It looks so creepy."

Elphaba chuckled weakly. "Galinda…"

The pink powder puff let herself fall back onto Elphaba's bed, staring up at the ceiling. "Do you remember the last time we had some girl time like this in our dorm room, Elphie?" she asked with a smile. "When we told each other our greatest secrets?"

"Fiyero and I are going to be married!" Elphaba imitated the blonde in a high-pitched, nasal voice, flapping her arms and making wide eyes for good measure.

Galinda narrowed her eyes at the young witch. "Careful, Miss Thropp, or I'll tell Fiyero your current biggest secret."

"Not my biggest," said Elphaba. "My biggest is still the one I already told you."

Galinda suddenly seemed more serious. "Is it true, Elphaba?" she asked. "That your father hates you?"

Elphaba pulled her legs up and hugged her knees to her chest. "Honestly? I don't really know," she said softly. "I know he doesn't love me as much as he does Nessa, but… I don't really think he hates me. I think… I think it's mostly me hating myself," she confessed, looking away.

"Oh, Elphie…" Galinda pulled her into a hug again. "You shouldn't hate yourself – you're amazing!"

"How can I be amazing?" Elphaba asked, a slight catch in her voice. "I killed my own mother, Galinda. I crippled my sister…"

"Elphaba!" Galinda, honestly, was a little shocked – she knew about this, of course, but it scared her a little how deeply Elphaba seemed to believe this. "That's not true and you know it! I told you last time – it was the milkflowers' fault, not yours!" She shook her head. "Don't think like that!"

Elphaba sniffled and the blonde girl leapt to her feet. "I'll go and get you some tissues and a glass of water," she said, moving over to the door and opening it.

Fiyero was standing on the other side.

"Fiyero?!" Galinda cried. Elphaba's head snapped up and her eyes widened when she saw the Vinkun prince. She panicked a little. How long had he been standing out there? Had he heard their conversation? How much of it? Did he know her secret?

Galinda slipped out of the room and closed the door, then narrowed her eyes at the prince. "How long have you been standing there?" she demanded.

He rubbed the back of his neck and avoided her gaze, which told her that he had been standing here far too long already.

"You cannot eavesdrop on people like that!" Galinda snapped, swatting his arm.

"I wasn't eavesdropping!" he protested, trying to avoid the blonde's slaps. "I just wanted to ask Fae something, and then I happened to overhear… well… things."

"Fiyero, that was a private conversation!"

"It's okay, Glin," a soft voice suddenly said behind Galinda, making her jump. When she turned, she saw Elphaba standing in the doorway.

"It can't be helped now, anyway," the green girl continued and Galinda nodded reluctantly.

"That much is true."

Elphaba opened the door wider and gestured for Fiyero to come in. "Get inside. I guess you want to talk now." She said it like she was dreading the prospect of talking more than anything, which, Fiyero thought, was probably true.

"We don't have to if you don't want to," he began, not wanting to make her feel uncomfortable; but Elphaba shook her head and gestured for him to come in again. He hesitated for another moment, but then he made a decision and walked past her and into the room.

Elphaba smiled at Galinda. "Thank you, Glin," she said. "For, you know, everything. Being my friend."

Galinda beamed at her and hugged her again. "You're welcome, Elphie!"

"So what was all that about, exactly?" Fiyero asked when Elphaba re-entered the room and closed the door behind her. "Is this what Galinda almost blurted out the other day?"

Elphaba froze. "What?"

"She said something about you and your family and that you think something is your fault," he said, "but then she caught herself and told me it was a secret and she couldn't tell me. Is this what that was about?"

Elphaba slowly lowered herself onto the bed. "Yes."

Fiyero sat down next to her – close enough to offer some comfort, but far enough away so that he wasn't being intrusive. "Will you tell me about it?"

She sighed. "Not really, but I suspect you're going to keep pushing until I do, right?"

He shook his head. "I won't push you if you don't want to talk about it," he said.

She gave him a half-smile. "I appreciate that." She pushed both hands through her thick, black hair. Then she told him about her parents' shock upon seeing her skin when she was born, and about them trying to prevent Nessarose from being born the same way… and about what had happened afterwards.

They kept silent for a long while after that, both of them lost in thought. Elphaba carefully looked to the side, but she didn't see horror on Fiyero's face, or pity. He just looked thoughtful.

"And you believe that's your fault," he stated after a while, meeting her gaze.

She shrugged helplessly. "Isn't it?"

"No. Of course not." He scooted a little closer and took her hand. "Fae… your parents chose to use the milkflowers. They must have known the risks. And you… you didn't choose how you were born. None of us did. You were three years old when Nessa was born – how could it have been your fault?"

"I told you," she said, lowering her eyes. "If I hadn't been born…"

"Elphaba," he took her other hand in his as well, "stop thinking like that. It's not your fault, okay? It's not. I'm sure Galinda told you this already, too…"

She smiled a little sadly. "She did. But –"

"No. No 'but'." Before she knew it, he was leaning forward to kiss her forehead. "She was right when she told you that you are amazing, you know."

Elphaba blushed and he let go of her. "I'll leave you alone now so that you can sleep," he said, rising to his feet. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay," she said, watching him as he left the room and closed the door quietly behind him.

She thought about what Galinda had said, about her and Fiyero, and she felt more confused than ever.