Chapter 18 - In Love with You
We arrive in my neighborhood about thirty minutes later. This area of Theed is completely populated by rich families, mine included. It should be the safest part of town, but we do have a problem with thugs who come late at night, looking for the odd house who forgot to set their alarm.
Anakin looks out the windows of the train, his mouth hanging slightly open, wonder in his eyes. I suppose he hasn't seen a neighborhood as well-kept as this. It's easy to understand his wonder. Thick drapes of ivy twine and crawl down the walls of buildings, over the reddish cobblestones. Fountains of water spill over stone displays, and thick lawns of lush, green grass spread along every lawn. The streets are lined with black durasteel light posts, with off-white orbs of bright light hovering over their posts.
"This place is amazing," Anakin breathes.
I shake my head. "I forgot you grew up in the opposite part of town."
"If by opposite part of town, you mean the slums, then yeah."
I shrug, and stand up. He follows me, and I lead him off the train and through the station. R2 whirrs happily as we dismount the train. I suppose he didn't like that very much. Anakin, on the other hand, is quite the opposite. He looks up, his mouth agape with awe as we pass under the skylights draped with ivy vines, and through the rose garden which surrounds the paths.
"You coming," I call.
"Yeah," he mumbles, absentmindedly.
R2 bumps into Anakin's legs, making him stumble, and beeps angrily.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming," Anakin grouches, and runs to catch up with me. I roll my eyes.
We make our way through the winding streets, avoiding the odd speeder, and jaywalking across the road more than anyone should. My house is near the lake, which is a ways away from the station. Anakin doesn't complain, but he doesn't really pay attention to walking either. It's more like he's following me mindlessly, like a monster. Finally, the house comes into view, and I smile.
"There's my house," I exclaim, and Anakin whips his head around to look at it.
My house is the oldest one on the street, and the most beautiful. The ivy on our house almost covers the entire wall, and there are several pools of water on the front lawn, with tiny fish teeming inside. Anakin is silent as he follows me up to the front door, trying not to stare and seem impolite. I ring the doorbell, and musical tone rings throughout the house. I hear the familiar thumping of my father's feet running across the halls, trying to get to the door as fast as he can.
The door swings open with a gentle squeak, and behind it waits my father, a wide smile on his face.
"Padmé! Welcome home!"
"Hi, dad," I smile, and wrap my arms around him.
"Who is this, he asks, one eyebrow lifted."
I turn around to see Anakin, with a stupid grin on his face. R2 stands behind him, whirring angrily.
"This is Anakin," I explain. "He's my Jedi protector."
"Ah," my father smiles. "Always nice to meet a Jedi!" He extends a hand, and Anakin takes it.
"It's nice to meet you, too," Anakin says with a grin.
"Padmé, why don't you go up to your room and change? That's not proper dinner attire, love."
I nod, and glance over at Anakin. He isn't even looking at me, to busy taking in the house.
"Watch over him, won't you," I ask my father, barely over a whisper.
oOo
I descend from my room again a few minutes later, in a green wrap and long green skirt, with gold weaving all around my belt and several gold necklaces dangling from my neck. My mother waits for me down in the hall, preparing dinner.
"Glad you made it home safely," she smiles, and glances at someone sitting in the dining room.
"Auntie Padmé, auntie Padmé," two small voices cheer, and my nieces come bounding around the corner, skipping and cheering. Pooja and Ryoo smile wide when they see me, wrapping their tiny arms around me. I crouch down so that I can hug them better, and shoot my mother a look. This was supposed to be a small gathering.
"Look at you," my sister says from the archway. "It's been so long!"
"It's nice to see you again, Sola," I say, and hug her as well.
"And it's good to see you, alive," Sola whispers in my ear. "It would have been very hard for me and everyone in this family if you had been killed." I feel her arms tighten ever so slightly, almost like she doesn't want to let go.
I pull away, and gently stroke her cheek with my thumb. "I'm doing fine, Sola. But how are you?"
I can tell she's about to cry, but she takes a deep breath, and tries to smile. "It's been hard without their father, but we're surviving."
"Padmé, Sola, I need some help with these dishes," my mother calls.
I take a dish towel from the drawer, and start drying the dishes, while my sister puts them away. Outside the window of our kitchen is our garden, which circles a large, well kept tree that offers shade in the summertime and protection from the cold wind in the wintertime. Anakin's dark figure moves beneath it, using the force to pick up fallen leaves, or stopping to meditate.
"So, Padmé," Sola prods, "who is that attractive young man walking around our garden?"
I scoff. "He's my Jedi protector. Nothing more."
"That's strange," my mother mumbles.
"What do you mean?"
"Well," my mother explains, "he just... Looks at you in ways I've never seen anyone look at anyone else. Well, other than your father."
"Oh Padmé," Sola teases, "what have you gotten yourself into?"
"Nothing," I protest. "He's a friend."
"Oh Padmé. I think, judging by the way he looks at you-"
"Stop-"
"I think that boy is in love with you!"
There is a moment of silence. I know Anakin likes me. He's had a hard time hiding it. And maybe I like him. But I'm a senator, he's a Jedi, and this kind of thing just doesn't happen.
"Anakin is a Jedi. He isn't allowed to fall in love."
Sola shakes her head. "Not being allowed never stopped anybody."
"It'll stop him," I sigh. "I guarantee it."
oOo
Dinner is unnervingly awkward. Anakin sits across from me, and my nieces sit on each side of me, because they couldn't decide which one of them got to sit next to me. Sola sits to Anakin's left, and my mother to his right, with my father at the end of the table. I try to eat quietly without making a fuss about my presence, but that's impossible when your nieces are my nieces. They're constantly asking Anakin and I questions that the adults are too polite to ask.
"Have you killed anyone," Ryoo asks, making Anakin shift in his seat.
"I guess," he answers, "but they were all bad guys."
"Did you make your own glowy sword," Pooja asks, not understanding the first question.
"Yeah, I did. Every Jedi gets to make their own lightsaber."
"Do you like my auntie," Ryoo asks now, not wanting to be outdone by her younger sister.
Anakin stutters, but then collects himself, and answers. "Yes, I do like your auntie, she is a good friend."
"No, no, no," Ryoo protests. "I mean do you like like her!"
Anakin turns to look at me, and I have to think on my feet.
"Girls, aren't you done your dinner? Why don't you wash up and play?"
Ryoo looks at me with suspicious eyes, but Pooja is more than happy to go play.
Once they're gone, the dinner returns to normal, or at least, sort of normal. The adults don't ask any questions, too afraid to embarrass themselves. I thank social constructs for that.
We finish around 06:00, and Anakin and I have to head to our hiding place. As we make our way back to the train station, I let a final breath out, and begin to laugh.
"What's so funny," Anakin asks, confused.
"Nothing," I say, "I'm just glad to be out of that house. Those girls were not going to leave us alone."
He nods his head, a distressed look in his eyes. It's strange. He used to be so happy, constantly smiling, but ever since he came back into my life, it's like someone has been torturing him into submission. But I can't do anything about that, so I decide to let him be.
oOo
We arrive at the lake house about an hour later, and in the summer sun it looks a bit more like midday, so we decide to take a stroll by the water. I've redone my hair, so that it mimicks a seashell, and I wear a loose-fitting gown which travels to the floor, changing colors from yellow to pink to purple. He takes his ugly poncho off, and we go out around the house.
"It's been a long time since I've been here," I say. "I've missed this place."
"You mean you came here before?"
"Yeah. We used to come here for school retreat. We'd to swim to that island every day. I loved the water." Memories flood back to me now, images of a dark haired boy with blue eyes. My first kiss. "We used to lay out on the sand, and let the sun dry us, and try to guess the names of the birds singing."
"I don't... Like sand," Anakin stumbles. I look over at him, confused. He grew up on a planet covered in sand. He should be just fine with it. "It's coarse, and rough, and irritating," he explains, "and it gets everywhere. But... Not like here..." He turns to look at me, and something is so inviting in his eyes. I can help but look into his face. Watching his lips move as he speaks, and wondering what it would be like if they were moving against mine.
"Here everything is soft..." His hand moves from the balcony railing, and gently grazes my skin, making my shiver with delight. "And smooth."
I don't even realize it's happening until it's already happening. His face moves closer to mine, and for some reason, I can't stop my face from moving closer to his. My head is swimming in his eyes, in him. His lips touch mine, first gently, then more forcefully as he deepens the kiss. My head instinctually rolls back, so he can kiss me more. I want more, my body wants it.
"No," I stop myself, realizing what I had just done. Anakin is a Jedi. I am a senator. We can't be together, so I shouldn't tease him. "I shouldn't have done that."
"I'm sorry, m'lady, Anakin says, embarrassed at his actions.
I turn to go inside, leaving him alone on the balcony, and decide to turn in early. I can almost hear him, crying to himself, in anger and frustration, when he goes to bed.
My heart sinks only farther and farther into my stomach, thinking about the day to come.