Rifiuto: Non Miriena

A/N: Okay, I learned the hard way, that this is the type of story that you don't drop in the middle...

Thanks to KarmelKisses2, lizziemagic, Drama Queen Sunniebunn and jnjluvsbooks32 for reviewing 18.

August, Day Eight

"Ready?"

Elphaba looked up, nodding. She yawned.

"Yeah."

"You okay? You look tired." Elphaba rolled her eyes.

"My roommate went off the deep end last night. Tried to kill me."

"Yikes." Elphaba nodded at the look on Fiyero's face. She sighed. After several moments of silence, she said,

"She's staying in the infirmary for a few weeks. Hopefully they lock her up for good, but who knows when or if that'll happen."

"What... exactly happened?" He asked, as they boarded the plane. The two moved to their seats and settled down before Elphaba finally told him the whole story.

"She... I got back to the dorm after the performance, and once I'd climbed into bed, she starts asking all these really... weird questions."

"Like... what?" He asked, meeting her eyes.

"Like... 'How do you be you' and 'How do you become you'... she said that since she was failing at reinventing herself, she was going to become someone else. She... she said that she was going to become me. And then she attacked me. The only thing I remember is her trying to strangle me before I rushed to Morrible's office. I told her everything, and when we got back to my dorm, we asked a couple other girls to help take her to the infirmary. The nurse strapped her to the bed. She was muttering about needing to get to the City for our dance competition."

Fiyero raised his eyebrows.

"I'd say she's gone off the deep end, Fae."

Elphaba nodded, before resting her head on his shoulder.

"I know... and I'm glad we're going to the City. It'll be nice... to be away from Shiz for a while."

He nodded, reaching out and taking her hand.

"It certainly will be."

The flight went off without a hitch, and an hour in, Elphaba found herself dozing softly on Fiyero's shoulder. Sudden movement however, woke her from her slumber, and she sat up, looking around quickly, before her sleepy violet eyes turned to her companion.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you." He said, glancing out the window. She shrugged.

"It's okay. I'm surprised I slept at all... I didn't get much sleep last night, because I kept..."

"Dreaming about Galinda?" She nodded, yawning.

"Yeah, and she was... trying to strangle me." He chuckled softly, and reached up to cup her cheek.

"Well you don't have to worry, because she's not here." She rolled her eyes, before leaning over and kissing him.

"My night in shining-"

"Armour?"

"No. Diamonds." She laughed then, rubbing her nose against his before kissing him again. They stayed like that for several moments, locked at the lips, tasting each other, before he pulled away softly and asked,

"So what happens once we reach the City?" She thought a moment, before saying,

"Well, we settle into our hotel, and then... we can go exploring or... stay in the room..." She whispered, capturing his lips again. They continued to kiss, until the stewardess appeared with the coffee Fiyero had ordered for them. The rest of the flight, they spent it talking and whispering softly to each other so as not to disturb the other passengers, although the girls in the dance troupe with Elphaba couldn't help whispering and giggling about Elphaba's new crush.

"So, who are you rooming with at the hotel?"

She smiled at him. "You."

"Really? What about the dance troupe?"

"They know I'm staying with you. As long as I show up for performance, it's perfectly okay." She said, sipping her coffee.

He chuckled softly.

"Well, then how about we... spend the day in the room... getting to know the room?" She smiled at him.

"Sounds good." Then, she kissed him, as soft giggling from her teammates reached her ears. She rolled her eyes, ignoring the other girls, and allowing herself to get lost in the taste of her boyfriend.

Boyfriend.

The word rang loud and clear in her head, and she opened her eyes briefly before closing them again.

She'd never had a boyfriend before; she'd never wanted one. She'd been a flirt, but had never been on a date, until she'd met Fiyero. And after she'd met Fiyero, she'd gone from no interest in boys, to coffee dates and kisses in a matter of a few short days. They hadn't even decided that they were dating- they just were. No warning, no discussion, no questions.

Just. Dating.

And maybe that's what she liked about it.

Maybe she liked just dating.

There was no fumbling with awkward silences concerning when they should go out or where. No strange talks about celebrating anniversaries. There was none of that.

There was just... them. Together.

Spending time together and enjoying each others' company.

Like friends. Like friends who were dating.

Like couples.

He pulled away, and looked into her eyes. After several moments of silence, he said,

"You're beautiful, you know that?"

She smiled at him, before reaching up to tangle her fingers in his hair. Sighing contentedly, she locked eyes with him and said,

"So are you."