Changes - Part 9
Title: Changes - Part 9
Author: xjekkix
Word Count: 897 words
Summary: A journey through self-discovery.
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: This is not real.
A/N: Beta’d by csifreak90
Samantha begged Kati that night to stay. The woman protested.
“I seriously need to get home. I don’t even have a change of clothes.”
Samantha stood between her and the door, determined. “You can borrow something of mine. We’re the same size. Please.”
Kati smiled at her persistence. “Okay. Let me just run out to my car,” she said.
Samantha waited inside. She could hear Kati talking and looked out a window to investigate. She spied the girl talking on her cell phone, an unimpressed look on her face. She had no idea who Kati could be talking to but whoever it was, their conversation wasn’t going well.
She stepped back from the door when she saw Kati returning to the house. She didn’t want the girl to know she had been watching to her.
“Get what you needed?” Samantha asked when she came back in the house. Kati did not look happy. Samantha held her arms out; Kati melted into them, kissing Samantha’s neck softly.
“Yeah.” She held up a travel toothbrush in her hand. Yawning, she went into the bathroom and shut the door behind her.
Samantha was worried. She hoped everything with Kati was okay. While she waited, she changed into a pair of comfortable pajamas and straightened the blankets up on the bed. She felt nervous. She hadn’t shared a bed with anyone since Happy.
Kati dragged her feet all the way into the bedroom and collapsed onto the end of the bed. “Yuck. I have to work again tomorrow.”
Samantha slid over closer to her on the bed and stroked her hair. “Sure you can’t take the day off and hang out?” Kati shook her head.
She forced herself up and under the blankets, curling up against a soft pillow, and took a deep breath in. Samantha lay facing her. She reached out to touch her face but stopped short and pulled her hand back.
“Is everything okay?” Samantha asked, rubbing Kati’s shoulder. Kati nodded, turned over and snuggled her back in closely to Samantha’s stomach. She grabbed the woman’s hand and wrapped it around herself. In no time, both of them were sound asleep.
Samantha woke up in the same position she’d fallen asleep in only now she was alone. She got up and walked into the hallway. No Kati. She checked the counter for a note saying the girl had gone to work. Nothing. She turned on her cell phone, hoping for a missed call explaining the absence. Nothing.
She convinced herself Kati was just being considerate, not wanting to wake her up when she left. But she became less sure of that when evening rolled around and there was still no word - not an appearance, call or even text message - from Kati.
Two more days had passed and Samantha was beginning to worry. Had she royally screwed up her chance with Kati? Would she lose her as a friend also?
Not knowing what else to do, she called her sister who had been in sporadic contact with Kati in recent months. She asked Charlotte if she had heard from the girl.
“Someone told me she changed her number and she’s moving. I figured you knew.”
Samantha felt her heart had just dropped to the floor and was being stomped on repeatedly. How could Kati do this to her? Materialize back into her life like that and leave without a word?
She thought about it and felt even more hurt. She was no better; she had done the exact same thing to the girl when she cut ties with her after high school.
Embarrassed and confused, she decided it was for the best to just let Kati go her own way.
She bounced back quicker this time and reconnected with her old friends. She hadn’t spoken to many of them since before things got serious with Happy; they were glad to have her back.
Samantha didn’t tell anyone about her encounter with Kati. As far as Charlotte knew, a kiss was as far as it had gone.
After hearing through the grapevine that Happy had gotten engaged to a woman he had been seeing for a few months, Samantha considered calling him. She wanted to congratulate him and let him know that she understood the reason he had ended things. But each time she picked up the phone, she lost her nerve.
She began casually dating; sometimes men and sometimes women. It wasn’t about labels anymore. Kati had made her realize that. As long she was happy, what did it matter?
In actuality, many of the relationships she had been in were more like passionate friendships; men or women she became friends with and eventually fell for. It was easier that way. When things got too serious, or she got scared, she would say “let’s go back to being friends” and things went back to normal - mostly.
She would pretend it didn’t hurt - and that it was better to break hearts before they got too attached - but each time it got a little harder. She did to all of them what Happy had done to her - left to protect number one, herself.
There was one particular friendship she found, with a troubled young woman who she swore she wouldn’t fall for. But each time she saw her, it made her realize she was facing the biggest challenge of her life.
Author: xjekkix
Word Count: 897 words
Summary: A journey through self-discovery.
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: This is not real.
A/N: Beta’d by csifreak90
Samantha begged Kati that night to stay. The woman protested.
“I seriously need to get home. I don’t even have a change of clothes.”
Samantha stood between her and the door, determined. “You can borrow something of mine. We’re the same size. Please.”
Kati smiled at her persistence. “Okay. Let me just run out to my car,” she said.
Samantha waited inside. She could hear Kati talking and looked out a window to investigate. She spied the girl talking on her cell phone, an unimpressed look on her face. She had no idea who Kati could be talking to but whoever it was, their conversation wasn’t going well.
She stepped back from the door when she saw Kati returning to the house. She didn’t want the girl to know she had been watching to her.
“Get what you needed?” Samantha asked when she came back in the house. Kati did not look happy. Samantha held her arms out; Kati melted into them, kissing Samantha’s neck softly.
“Yeah.” She held up a travel toothbrush in her hand. Yawning, she went into the bathroom and shut the door behind her.
Samantha was worried. She hoped everything with Kati was okay. While she waited, she changed into a pair of comfortable pajamas and straightened the blankets up on the bed. She felt nervous. She hadn’t shared a bed with anyone since Happy.
Kati dragged her feet all the way into the bedroom and collapsed onto the end of the bed. “Yuck. I have to work again tomorrow.”
Samantha slid over closer to her on the bed and stroked her hair. “Sure you can’t take the day off and hang out?” Kati shook her head.
She forced herself up and under the blankets, curling up against a soft pillow, and took a deep breath in. Samantha lay facing her. She reached out to touch her face but stopped short and pulled her hand back.
“Is everything okay?” Samantha asked, rubbing Kati’s shoulder. Kati nodded, turned over and snuggled her back in closely to Samantha’s stomach. She grabbed the woman’s hand and wrapped it around herself. In no time, both of them were sound asleep.
Samantha woke up in the same position she’d fallen asleep in only now she was alone. She got up and walked into the hallway. No Kati. She checked the counter for a note saying the girl had gone to work. Nothing. She turned on her cell phone, hoping for a missed call explaining the absence. Nothing.
She convinced herself Kati was just being considerate, not wanting to wake her up when she left. But she became less sure of that when evening rolled around and there was still no word - not an appearance, call or even text message - from Kati.
Two more days had passed and Samantha was beginning to worry. Had she royally screwed up her chance with Kati? Would she lose her as a friend also?
Not knowing what else to do, she called her sister who had been in sporadic contact with Kati in recent months. She asked Charlotte if she had heard from the girl.
“Someone told me she changed her number and she’s moving. I figured you knew.”
Samantha felt her heart had just dropped to the floor and was being stomped on repeatedly. How could Kati do this to her? Materialize back into her life like that and leave without a word?
She thought about it and felt even more hurt. She was no better; she had done the exact same thing to the girl when she cut ties with her after high school.
Embarrassed and confused, she decided it was for the best to just let Kati go her own way.
She bounced back quicker this time and reconnected with her old friends. She hadn’t spoken to many of them since before things got serious with Happy; they were glad to have her back.
Samantha didn’t tell anyone about her encounter with Kati. As far as Charlotte knew, a kiss was as far as it had gone.
After hearing through the grapevine that Happy had gotten engaged to a woman he had been seeing for a few months, Samantha considered calling him. She wanted to congratulate him and let him know that she understood the reason he had ended things. But each time she picked up the phone, she lost her nerve.
She began casually dating; sometimes men and sometimes women. It wasn’t about labels anymore. Kati had made her realize that. As long she was happy, what did it matter?
In actuality, many of the relationships she had been in were more like passionate friendships; men or women she became friends with and eventually fell for. It was easier that way. When things got too serious, or she got scared, she would say “let’s go back to being friends” and things went back to normal - mostly.
She would pretend it didn’t hurt - and that it was better to break hearts before they got too attached - but each time it got a little harder. She did to all of them what Happy had done to her - left to protect number one, herself.
There was one particular friendship she found, with a troubled young woman who she swore she wouldn’t fall for. But each time she saw her, it made her realize she was facing the biggest challenge of her life.