Kristin shut the door to Idina's apartment quietly and made her way down the hall and over to the elevator. Extending her middle finger, she pushed the button and waited for the little, metal door to open. She tapped her fingers on the wall; what was taking it so long? At last, the shiny doors hissed open and she stepped inside.
She had the elevator all to herself. She pressed the button for the main lobby and sank down to the floor, sitting with her knees pulled to her chest. She loved being able to think in that enclosed space, to just sit there if she wanted, without anyone looking at her funny. It was just one of the little things in life that made her smile. Idina was one of these things, she realized. Idina made her smile. She smiled to herself just thinking about her. See? She smiled again, as if she had made a joke.
Oh, Idina, Kristin thought. She thought back to the time they had shared watching movies on the couch. Whenever Kristin did something special, she always like to replay the memories in her head, even if it was only five minutes ago that it happened. She remembered how Idina's head rested on her shoulder when the slow music would start to play. She remembered the feeling of having their legs entangled under the blanket they shared, how she felt like her skin was on fire and her head was dizzy and light. She remembered the musical chime of Idina's laugh mixed with hers.
The hiss of the opening door woke Kristin from her daydream. She jumped to her feet, glancing around, and moved in slow motion out the elevator and into the lobby. The doorman nodded at her as she drifted towards the exit. Once out in the cold and bustling atmosphere of New York at night, she hailed a cab. She jumped off the curb and pulled the yellow door open, sliding into the freezing leather seat. She spoke her address to the driver and they headed towards her house. She got comfortable, taking up almost the entire bench. No one was there to stop her. She loved riding in empty cabs, too, with not a soul there but her and the driver. It gave her time to ponder the world. She's done a lot of that since she'd met Idina, she noticed. Before Kristin met Idina, she only thought about herself; what she was going to do or wear, and if she did think about someone else, she only thought about what they could do for her. Not anymore.
The cab pulled up in front of her building and Kristin leisurely handed over the fee to the driver, thanking him. She exited the car and shivered, even though she had her coat. She proceeded in the direction of her building, scanned her card and pushed the glass door open, hearing that satisfied swoosh the plastic made as it was pulled from the frame.
She wondered if she and Idina would ever be pulled from each other. She hoped not. She felt an ache in her chest as she imagined it happening. She glided to the elevator and took it up to her floor, wondering why she felt that ache. She didn't want to feel it again.
Reaching into her purse, she pulled out her keys and shoved them into the lock. The lights flashed on and she entered her living room, carelessly flinging her purse on the coffee table. She shook off her coat and let it fall to the floor where she stood.
In her room, she changed into her pajamas, taking off her shirt slowly and feeling the cold skin that covered her chest and stomach. She slipped on her pink night shirt and fell into bed. Pulling up the covers, she turned off the light and closed her eyes. She thought about Idina's reaction today when she read the plaque. She remembered her expression when she looked up and how it felt to have her hug her. She bolted upright in bed.
"Oh my God…I think I love her."