A/N: I'm so excited! This is the first time ever I can post two chapters of my projects on the same day! How cool is that? I literally have 7 minutes left before I leave for work though and I'm still in my pjs... So yeah, not gonna go on forever! But I hope you like that one! Cheers and thanks for your never ending support which carries me through every chapter!
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Chapter 9: The Ninth year
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Emily closed the door of her flat, a big smile on her face and a particular lightness in her step. The air outside was cold, just enough to make her cheeks flush, but not enough to make her want to scurry back inside and crawl under a blanket. Emily had to admit that, with the light layer of snow covering the ground, this was her favourite Christmas temperature. She started walking, hands in her pockets, still smiling happily.
As she walked and looked at the brightly coloured flats on her street, Emily couldn't help remembering how miserable she had been at that same time the year before. It was true that, a year ago, life had been looking pretty grim for her. Her girlfriend had just dumped her and she'd felt a bit lost in all of it. It had been tough for a few months, Emily couldn't deny it. She'd felt somehow like she'd lost her footing, like the life she thought she had figured out was suddenly not so simple. It had taken her a bit of time before she'd found the strength to get back on her feet and make some changes. She had now though, rebuilding her life piece by piece and she had to admit that the hard times had been totally worth it in the end.
Emily rounded a corner and her mobile started vibrating in her pocket. She retrieved it, frowning slightly. She smirked when she saw her sister's name and swiftly replied.
"You cannot seriously be missing me already," she said in lieu of greetings.
"As if!" her sister scoffed then chuckled. "What's up bitch?"
"Katie... I literally saw you like... an hour ago. There really is nothing new with me," Emily replied, rolling her eyes even though her twin couldn't see her.
"I know, still can't believe you left!" Katie whined.
"That's actually the best part about moving back to Bristol Kay. I get to be there for Christmas and I don't have to sleep at mum and dad's!"
"You'll be there in the morning though, right? I mean, it's like the tradition..." Katie asked sounding a bit worried.
"Aww, are you worried I'll skip our traditional breakfast?" Emily teased. "Is that why you're calling?"
"No!" Katie lied.
"I promise I'll be there Katie," she said anyway.
"Good," her sister replied, sounding relieved.
Emily chuckled and shook her head.
"I don't know why you'd want me to sleep home anyway" she mused out loud. "I thought you'd be well glad to have our room to yourself... I mean, I thought you'd want to celebrate with Jer."
Katie hadn't even replied yet, but Emily could already feel her happiness radiating on the other end of the line.
"True... We do need to celebrate." Katie replied, her voice so filled of joy, Emily felt herself grinning like a fool.
"I'm really happy for you Kay. Oh but before I forget, I need to tell you that if you decide on having pink bridesmaid dresses, God help me I will skip your wedding."
"Oi!"
Emily laughed in response along with her twin.
"I mean it," she said, once her laughter subsided.
"No you don't," Katie scoffed. "Anyway, not to worry, like I'd have pink bridesmaid dresses."
"I wouldn't put it past you, if only to make sure you were the fittest..."
"Oh, hun, come one. I'm always the fittest," Katie said confidently.
Emily rolled her eyes again.
"Anyway, where are you? I can hear wind in the background. I thought you went home." her sister said, changing the subject.
"Oh, well I was and now I'm heading to the pub."
She heard Katie scoff on the other end of the line.
"I don't even know why I asked," her sister said. "Of course you're heading to the pub."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Emily defended automatically.
"Oh please," Katie shot back and Emily could hear the eye roll. "You wouldn't miss you yearly meeting with Naomi now, would you?"
"Katie..." she said, her voice stern.
"I mean, totally friendly, obviously," her twin continued sarcastically.
"Kay..." she tried again.
"Like, why would anyone ever think it was more than friendship right? You've just hung out with her without fail for what? 9 years? That's totally normal. And like, it's not because your last relationship ended because you couldn't break that little totally normal tradition that it means it's weird, yeah? And it's not because you've not really dated since that it means this isn't just a really great friendship."
Emily was blushing furiously by the time her sister had finished talking.
"Shut up Kay!" she mumbled when it was over. "You don't know anything about my relationship with Naomi..."
"Yeah yeah," her sister brushed off. "Just remember when you guys are like planning your wedding that if I can't make my bridesmaids wear pink, neither can you."
"Fuck off!"
"See you in the morning sweetheart!" Katie finished in a singsong voice before hanging up.
"Bitch..." Emily muttered anyway, pocketing her phone.
She could feel that her cheeks were still burning with embarrassment. She hated when Katie was like that, like she knew things Emily herself didn't. Naomi had not been the reason why she and Clara had broken up. And Naomi had not been the reason why she had been so adamant about being in Bristol for Christmas. She just hadn't been. Emily was sure, or at least pretty sure, of that.
Emily was still a bit grumpy when she arrived in front of the pub a few minutes later. When she walked in though, the familiar aroma of hops hit her and instantly she felt herself calm down. She took in the usual decorations, the branches of mistletoe, the tinsels, and a smile graced her lips. It really was beautiful here.
After a quick glance of the place, Emily walked to the bar to order herself a drink. As per usual, she hadn't seen Naomi. She didn't mind though. The blonde would find her, she always did. Besides, Emily had sort of given up the idea of surprising her. She guessed the fact that the blonde was always surprising her had become part of their little tradition. Anyway, she never had to wait too long for the blonde to show up.
She wasn't left disappointed when, a few minutes later, Naomi's unmistakable voice echoed behind her.
"Emily?" it said uncertainly.
Emily turned around with a huge grin, her eyes locking naturally with the blonde's blue orbs. Her eyes travelled automatically along Naomi's body, widening when she caught sight of the other woman's left hand, which just so happened to be wrapped in a cast. Before she had time to speak though, Naomi's own eyes widened and her mouth fell open.
"Oh my God Ems!" she exclaimed. "You dyed your hair!"
It took a full two seconds for Emily's brain to comprehend what Naomi had just said. Her hand automatically went to her now brown locks. She'd dyed it back to her natural colour months ago. It had been a while now and she'd forgotten that Naomi had never actually seen it any other colour than red.
"Oh yeah, do you like-" she started, but cut herself off when her eyes refocused on the blonde's cast. "Okay, never mind my hair. What happened to your hand?!"
"Eh?" Naomi said looking confused for about a second, before she looked down at her arm. "Oh! That! It's nothing!"
"But my hair is?" Emily teased, a smirk forming on her lips.
"Well my arm isn't news to me. Your hair is," Naomi replied smartly. "And, yes, I like it. I love it actually. I mean, I always thought the red suited you wonderfully, but this... I... I'm a bit speechless. You look... You look beautiful," she said seriously.
Emily blushed and bit her bottom lip.
"Thanks," she replied sincerely.
They grinned at each other stupidly for a few seconds before Emily rolled her eyes and moved in.
"Come here," she urged the blonde and snaked her arms around the girl's waist .
She buried her nose into Naomi's coat a little and squeezed tight before letting go slowly. As she did, she noticed that her heart was beating a bit faster. She brushed off the information though.
"It's good to see you..." Naomi said softly, her cheeks a light shade of pink.
"Yeah... likewise," Emily replied.
They stared at each other stupidly again, not really knowing what to say. Emily's entire chest felt warm and just before she had time to ask herself why exactly she felt so happy, the bartender arrived with her cider. A few minutes later, both she and Naomi had glasses of cider and walked to a table. They sat, took off their coats and the minute they did, Naomi set her blue eyes on Emily.
"So... What's new?" she asked with a smile.
"Nu-huh," Emily shook her head. "You have to tell me how you got this first" she finished, pointing at the cast.
"Oh, right! I keep forgetting... It's just, I've had it for a while now. I barely even notice it." Naomi said with a slight shake of her head.
"You're stalling," Emily said with a pointed look.
"What?! Of course not..."
"So why haven't you told me yet?"
"Okay, maybe I am stalling..." Naomi conceded.
"Glad we cleared that up. Now fess up Campbell. How did that happen?" Emily asked again.
"Well it's a bit embarrassing,"
"Yeah? Christ, did it happen during sex or something?" the brunette asked uncertainly.
"Oh my god, no!" the blonde exclaimed. "What kind of sex life do you think I have?!"
"Well you said it was embarrassing..." Emily replied with a shrug.
"Not that embarrassing." Naomi smirked.
"Well then?"
"It was a snowboarding accident if you must know."
"I didn't know you could snowboard!" the brunette said, clearly impressed.
"Not really as my broken wrist can attest," the blonde corrected, waving her cast in front of Emily's eyes.
The brunette chuckled.
"Oh... So... what happened?" she inquired curiously.
"Well, my friend Charlie had been pestering me to try it for like... months. Ever since the summer really. Bloody annoying, she was. I gave in eventually. I rented a board and everything. Charlie was well pleased. Anyway, she was trying to teach me how to snowboard and I fell like a twat and tried to like... I don't know, break my fall I guess. I'm not even sure how it happened, but I must have caught myself badly and I snapped my wrist."
Emily winced in sympathy.
"So I guess snowboarding is not your sport, then?" she asked.
"Definitely not!" Naomi said seriously.
"But... that's not embarrassing..." Emily mused. "It's actually kind of cool, no? I mean, a sport injury is well tough..."
"Yeah well... That's because I failed to mention I was on the huh... bunny hill when that happened... See? Now you're laughing!"
"I'm not!" Emily tried to argue, although she was having a hard time controlling her smile.
"Alright enough about me! Let's talk about you. How was your year? I mean, I'm sure you've got loads to say! You're a brunette and you actually look a bit tanned... What's the story there?"
Emily smiled broadly.
"Actually, I just got back from Cuba," she explained.
"Cuba?! Wow! Exotic! Why?"
"Well, a bit for pleasure and a bit for work. I was in dire need of a vacation and I knew Cuba had all these old cars from the 50's along with lot of very interesting local art and such. So I figured I could take some good pictures. I ended up taking a lovely series in a small village. Well, I say lovely, but really it's kind of harsh. It was a poor village... What?" Emily asked when Naomi didn't answer, but instead just stared at her in wonder.
"Nothing..." the blonde said with a slight head shake.
"Obviously not," the brunette argued with an eye roll.
"No, no please. Carry on. Tell me about the pictures you're proud of. Please?"
Emily eyed her uncertainly for a few seconds, but Naomi looked so genuinely interested and eager that she couldn't help herself. She relented.
"Okay well, I took this series in a small village. I was staying in this hotel in Santa Lucia and well, one day I just grabbed a bike from the hotel and decided to explore a bit and-"
"Explore?! Just you and your camera? Ems, are you insane? Jesus!" Naomi cut her off.
The brunette grinned and raised an eyebrow.
"Obviously nothing happened," she said.
"Something definitely could have! You were alone and you have a big expansive camera! Besides, you're like... pocket size! Anyone could have attacked you!"
Emily chuckled.
"Your concern is touching. But I'm fine," she pointed out.
"Yeah well don't try that in Mexico, alright?" Naomi grumbled.
"Promise," Emily replied with a small smirk. "Shall I continue?"
"Yes please."
"Right. So I did some highly dangerous exploring because I'm fearless..."
"Smartass..."
"And it was just... so poor, Naoms... It was awful. Houses built with the most ridiculous things, roofs held on by bricks, dirt roads and shabby fences. It was something else. Very different than the fancy hotel I was staying in. So yeah, I was biking around the little village, taking pictures here and there and then I saw him. He was old, I'm not sure how old exactly, but he had short white hair and the beginning of a white beard. He was sat in front of a house, his legs crossed, his trousers and top covered in dirt, his skin dark from the sun. I don't know why he fascinated me, but he did. So I walked up to him. He was quiet, tapping on his lap absentmindedly. I sat next to him and he looked at me. He had these sparkling dark eyes, almost black. He didn't say anything to me and I was too mesmerized at first to speak. I sat by him for a bit and he just kept tapping. Eventually, I regained some of my wits and I told him in the only Spanish I actually know that my name was Emily. I'm not sure if it was my horrible accent or if it was my name, but then he just started laughing. Like actually, face splitting grin and laughter erupting out of him. His front teeth were missing, but in that moment he just looked so happy. So I took his picture. That set was the best I took over there."
Naomi looked fascinated when she was done with her story.
"Did you learn his name?" she asked.
"No. After he stopped laughing he just said 'abuelo' which I know means grandfather and then continued to tap on his lap, but this time there was more of a rhythm to it. So I copied him and we spent most of the afternoon making tunes together on our laps. People stopped to talk to us, but it was all in Spanish and bloody fast so I didn't understand a thing. The only thing I caught was that everyone else seemed to call him abuelo. Eventually I had to leave. I went back again after that. I'd sit with him and we'd tap. We didn't really say anything else... Okay, you're doing it again!" Emily pointed out once she was finished with her story.
"Doing what?" Naomi replied.
"You're looking at me funny!"
"No I'm not," the blonde defended.
"You are!"
"I'm not looking at you funny," Naomi said with an eye roll.
"What is it then?"
"It's just... You're absolutely radiant, do you know that?" The blonde admitted, biting her bottom lip. "Every time you talk about something you're passionate about your whole face lights up and your eyes twinkle and your lips curve just a tiny bit, like just talking is making you so happy... the result is a bit... enthralling. I can't help staring a bit, I mean, you get bloody gorgeous..."
Emily's heart thumped loudly in her chest at the admission. She wanted to reply, but she couldn't find the words. There was something about Naomi calling her gorgeous that was entirely too big for her to process.
"Anyway... When is this shoot going to end up in the magazine? By the way, the twats need to wake up! I've not seen your pictures in there for ages," Naomi eventually said, breaking the silence.
"Oh my God! You're still subscribing to the magazine?" Emily said.
"Well, yeah."
"Naomi, I quit that job months ago!"
"Oh..." the blonde acknowledged, nodding slowly. "Well that explains the lack of your pictures..."
"I'm so sorry!"
"Don't be!" Naomi brushed off. "It's not like you had a way of telling me..."
"Yeah... I'm still sorry."
The blonde chuckled and rolled her eyes.
"You would be, but really, don't worry about it. Just tell me though, what do you do now?"
"I freelance actually. I left the magazine on good terms so they still buy my pictures sometimes, which is why you've probably seen the one offs."
Naomi nodded.
"Why did you decide to freelance?" she asked, curiously. "I thought you liked the magazine."
"I did," Emily admitted. "They were giving me nicer projects and it was a steady job, but it's not like freelancing. I couldn't work on my own projects as much as I can now."
"Huh, well that's fantastic. Are you getting enough work?"
"Yeah, actually. I've been lucky! A friend of mine heard I wanted to start freelancing back in February and he invited me to participate to a joint exhibition."
"What?!" Naomi exclaimed, her eyes widening. "Your pictures were in an exhibition?"
"Just a few," Emily confirmed with a nod. "And it was a joint exhibition, so there were several other artists as well."
If Naomi had looked incredibly excited when the brunette had told her about Cuba, she was looking a lot grimmer now.
"What's wrong?" Emily asked, her hand finding Naomi's valid one on the table.
"It's just... you were in an exhibition," she said softly. "I don't... I don't suppose the expo is still ongoing, is it?"
"No, sorry."
Naomi nodded, looking grave.
"Naoms?" Emily pushed a bit when it didn't look like she was going to say anything.
She brushed her thumb on the blonde's hand and Naomi took a deep breath.
"I missed it..." she explained looking torn.
Emily noticed how nervous she'd been when she felt herself relax notably. She smiled.
"That's okay. You weren't even in the country," she reassured.
"No, but I... Well, I guess... I just wish I'd been able to see it. You first exhibition... It's a big deal."
Emily's smile widened. She couldn't believe how adorable Naomi looked despite the fact that she was visibly upset over this. Her bottom lip was jutting out in a pout and it really was indescribably cute.
"Naomi, it's okay. I promise. There will be other exhibitions," she reassured calmly.
"You promise?" the blonde asked childishly and when Emily started laughing she joined in.
"Promise," the brunette said with a wink, taking her hand away from Naomi's, instantly missing the contact.
Emily didn't want to focus on that though so she quickly changed the subject. They chatted like that for a while, laughing often, exchanging touches here and there. Every time they did, Emily's heart would jolt or her stomach would clench. Her lips would turn into a big goofy grin and, sometimes, if Naomi's touches lingered, she'd even blush a little. She wasn't sure what it all meant, but she certainly didn't feel like she was ready to find out.
"You moved to Bristol?!" Naomi exclaimed at one point when the subject came up. "Why are you just telling me now?!"
"It came up now!" Emily laughed.
"Still, you could have just given up the information freely," the blonde shook her head.
"I fail to see what difference it makes," she said with an eye roll. "Speaking of living arrangements and giving up information freely though," she continued as an afterthought. "Wasn't your Montreal deal a 2 year thing? Where are you headed off now?"
A flame erupted deep inside Emily's chest as she waited for the blonde's answer.
"Oh, right," Naomi replied, looking a bit sheepish. "I've actually signed for an extra year just before hopping back to England."
The flame inside Emily's chest subsided, leaving a bitter slap of disappointment in its stead.
"Three years in the same city?" Emily questioned, trying hard to keep her features neutral. "Careful Naomi. Before you know it you'll be settled."
The blonde laughed and shook her head.
"Actually, I'm going to be spending half of my time in Toronto."
"I knew it was too uncanny to be true," Emily teased and Naomi chuckled.
Somehow, joking about it was making it better.
They continued to talk after that, only stopping for the occasional refills and visits to the loo. It was so easy to talk to Naomi, Emily thought. One day a year and she felt like she'd known the other girl her entire life. There was something about their personalities that just seemed to fit. Like they were two pieces of a puzzle; completely different for the most part, but totally complementary.
Emily had spent most of the past year rearranging her life. She'd figured out her career. She'd moved. She'd sorted herself out after a break-up. Her life was, for all intents and purposes, set. Sure, she hadn't figured everything out, she was only 25 after all, she was allowed, but most of it was figured. In that new plan, in that new life, Emily wasn't sure where Naomi fit. Objectively, she didn't seem to fit anywhere, but the brunette knew that she did. Their friendship was too natural, too easy for the blonde to not have any place in Emily's life.
The night carried on and it was almost closing time when Naomi absentmindedly lifted the sleeves of her shirt, revealing the full extent of her cast. Emily gasped when she saw it, her fingers quickly latching onto Naomi's, dragging her forearm closer.
"Naomi!" she exclaimed, her eyes riveted to the plaster. "Who did this? This is beautiful."
The blonde smiled as her own eyes travelled down to her cast.
Emily didn't speak for a few seconds as she took it all in. On the plaster, instead of the typical signatures and silly messages, there was an intricate drawing. Green grass, pink, lavender and blue rocks, two marguerites tangled in the middle, a sky with deep purple and orange clouds, the landscape on Naomi's cast was not typical at all, but it was breathtaking.
"My friend Yeti did that." Naomi answered. "I mean, Steph, my friend Steph. She's a really amazing artist. She can do about anything and on every surface. So when I learned I'd get a cast I asked her to use it as a canvas. Obviously she had fun with it."
"What did she draw that with?"
"Just sharpies." Naomi shrugged.
"Sharpies?! Come on! You're having a laugh!" Emily exclaimed.
"No I swear! She's just that amazing," Naomi smirked.
The brunette felt something in her chest pinch.
"Yeah? Are you two...?" she asked unsurely.
"Oh no! Not at all!" the blonde replied quickly. "Just friends! I mean, she's a wonderful human being, one of the kindest person I know and really attractive, but not my type at all. We're just mates."
Emily nodded, biting her bottom lip so she wouldn't smile happily at the information.
"How attractive?" she asked teasingly.
"Oi!" Naomi snapped, tugging her arm free from Emily's grip, laughing.
They laughed together for a few seconds, until Emily sighed softly.
"It's gorgeous," she said sincerely. "It's definitely worth not having any signature apart from the artist's on there."
"Actually..." Naomi cut her off, bending down to grab something from her bag on the floor. "I'd quite like it if you could sign my cast," she said, a black sharpie clasped in her hand.
Emily's cheeks flared.
"What? But I couldn't!" she said automatically. "I couldn't ruin the drawing!"
"There's room here on the back," Naomi said, turning her arm to show Emily a small spot. "Just a small signature."
The brunette bit her bottom lip, the corners of her lips tugging up.
"Why d'you want my signature when no one else has signed?" she asked seriously, lifting her eyes to meet the blonde's.
Naomi shrugged and chuckled nervously.
"I dunno..." she replied. "I guess... Your signature is the only I'd care for really so... Besides... It would be nice to have, like, a reminder of you after today. Even if it's a bit silly."
The blonde's cheeks were bright red after she'd explained herself. Since Emily couldn't find words to reply to her, she just grabbed the sharpie from Naomi's hand and took off the cap. She grabbed the cast with her left hand and stared to write with the other. A few seconds later, she was done.
Emily signed here :-)
Naomi snorted and rolled her eyes, but her lips were firmly curled into a smirk and Emily could tell she was amused. They stared at each other, not knowing where to go from here. Emily's stomach was making all sorts of twists and turns and she wasn't sure what to do with any of that.
She was saved from answering though when the lights flashed and it was time to go. Neither one of them said anything as they put their coats on and Naomi grabbed her bag from the floor. They still didn't say anything as they walked into the outside air.
Once they were outside though, they faced each other, awkward smiles on both their faces. This was always the weirdest part, Emily thought, the goodbyes. She was still trying to figure out a way to approach this when Naomi beat her to it.
"Huh... before you go... I sort of, well... I have something for you," she said a bit shyly.
"What?" Emily said, her eyes widening in surprise.
Naomi chuckled and opened her bag, taking out a small rectangular box wrapped in shiny red paper from it.
"Well it just occurred to me that we always meet for Christmas yet we've never actually exchanged gifts. I just thought we could make this year more Christmassy. So... here," she finished, extending the box to the brunette.
"Naomi... You didn't have to do this..." Emily whispered, her eyes set on the box.
She heard the blonde scoff.
"Just open it, will you?" she said.
"But I don't have anything for you..." The brunette admitted, feeling guilty.
"You can get me something next year. Now open it! I'm freezing my tits out there," Naomi laughed and that was all the permission Emily needed.
She always said she loved giving presents at Christmas, but secretly, she loved receiving them as well.
Emily noticed that her hands were shaking slightly as she ripped the red paper away from the box as fast as she could. Once the paper was off, she was left with a white box. She opened it, excitement bubbling inside of her. When her eyes settled on the object inside, her mouth fell open.
Inside the neat little box was a silver oval locket about the size of a small egg. The ornament was simply gorgeous. It looked old, darkened silver in some nooks. The design was delicate and elegant, with leaves twisting around each other perfectly.
Emily grabbed it, her eyes locked onto the thing. She turned it over and frowned curiously when she saw the words 'Since we were twelve' carved into the silver. Naomi took the box away from her and without even thanking her, Emily opened the locket. Her heart exploded in her chest when she saw two pictures inside it. On one side, a black and white picture of two women she didn't know, wearing big dresses and even bigger hats, but looking at each other with a knowing smile. On the other side, a picture of herself and Naomi, a bit blurry, the two of them huddled close, Naomi looking at the camera with a sloppy grin and she looking at the blonde, her eyes flashing with awe and something else.
Emily had to dig hard in her memory to know how the blonde had even managed to have a picture of them together, then she remembered. Naomi had snapped a quick picture of them when they'd dance a few years ago. A big lump caught in her throat as emotion rose inside her.
"It's an antique," Naomi explained in a whisper. "I left the original picture in there because I know how you love antiques and the locket didn't feel as authentic without it... The lady at the shop where I found it didn't know much about the locket. She said it was sold by one of the lady's nephew. She didn't know what the engraving at the back meant... She didn't know either if those two ladies were best friends or... well, more. All I know is that, as far as objects go, I thought this one had quite a big soul... So... well I thought you might like it."
Emily lifted her eyes from the locket to look at Naomi. The blonde tilted her head in amusement.
"Do you like it then?" she asked and it was all it took for Emily to jump into her arms.
Naomi caught her with a delicious giggle.
"I... I..." Emily said shakily, feeling tears form in her eyes.
She wasn't sure why she was so touched by the gesture, but she undeniably was. She doubted anyone had ever given her something so thoughtful before.
"I love it," She eventually managed to choke out. "I can't even tell you how much. Thank you."
The blonde squeezed her tighter and breathed in deeply.
"You're welcome," she muttered in the brunette's ear and Emily shivered.
She clung to Naomi like the other girl was a life-line. She let all her senses be filled, surrounded by everything Naomi, not trying to decipher why her heart was hammering inside her ribcage or why her body was vibrating violently.
Too soon, the blonde let go of her firm grip and Emily followed. Before they had untangled completely, Naomi bent low and pressed her lips against the brunette's cheek. Emily closed her eyes and felt goosebumps rise behind her neck at the contact.
"Merry Christmas," Naomi muttered when she moved away.
"Merry Christmas," Emily replied, feeling a bit in a daze.
Naomi looked at her for a beat or two. Emily was too shaken to move. The blonde nodded, smirked and started to retreat.
"Take care of yourself Emily," She said genuinely, a big grin on her face.
"You too," Emily said after her.
And as she looked at the blonde's retreating figure, something clicked inside her. Her chest burst open and the feelings invaded her. She clutched the locket inside her fist, bringing her hand close to her heart as her mouth opened.
At last, it made sense. At last, she knew which place she wanted Naomi to take in her life and it decidedly wasn't a once-a-year-friend. It was so much more than that.
Emily let out a shaky breath and bit her bottom lip as she realised that Katie had been right all along - Emily hated when that happened. There was a reason why her relationship with Clara had failed and why she couldn't seem to find anyone to her fancy and that reason was quite simple.
She wanted Naomi Campbell. And now there would have to be an entire year before she could do something about it.
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I always seem to make them a bit daft about their feelings, don't I? Well now Emily has it figured out so... yeah! I'll do my best to get you year 10 extra fast!
That being said; Yeti/Steph is the only character I've ever written who's not a character but a real person. She's a friend of mine and a tremendous artist! I've posted a picture of the artwork hat inspired Naomi's cast this chapter on my tumblr! For those who don't follow me, it's mmekeek dot tumblr dot com. It's worth the look!
Thanks again for reading :) I can't wait to read your thoughts/comments!
(Holy crap! 4 minutes left!)