Knowing Her ( Norminah)

--CHAPTER 16--

"Get dressed." The command came out more gruffly than Dinah intended, and Normani's mouth fell open.

"That's nice, it's what every girl wants to hear when she confesses her love."

"Take off the nightclothes and put on something decent. You're coming with me."

"Dinah, I—"

"You said you'd explain everything. I'm holding you to it." Normani stared at her in disbelief.

"Thanks, Normani," she muttered, turning around and heading back inside the apartment, Dinah following closely at her heels. "It was nice of you to say that. Here I am, having some sort of reaction to your confession. I'm not just waving it off and telling you to get dressed."

"I can hear you," Dinah called, leaning against Normani's bedroom door, listening as Normani threw drawers open, mumbling about not finding a clean pair of socks.

"I know, Dinah, that's the point," Normani snapped, and Dinah swallowed hard at the flood of memories, all the early mornings, calmly eating her breakfast as Normani rushed around their apartment, searching for things she'd misplaced, snapping and shouting as she went. Without really knowing why, she walked towards the living room, her eyes on the ceiling, zeroing in on the red stain almost immediately. "I'm ready. Dinah?" She blinked, turned and faced Normani, and quickly tamped down on the feelings that swelled up in her as she took in her best friend. She tried to push it away, but the words came ringing back. The truth is that I'm in love with you. How long had she hoped to hear those words? How long had she imagined it? (Too long, too long.) And yet, though the words were out—though she wanted nothing more than to press Normani against the nearest wall, to tell her everything she'd never said with her hands and lips—she swallowed hard a second time and nodded gruffly.

"Let's go."

"Why can't we talk here?"

"Because this wasn't where it started."

//

Campus was practically empty, students off on their winter break, faculty and staff taking a much deserved break. They walked side by side, not speaking, not allowing their hands to brush as they often did, their eyes focused on the building they approached.

"It's cold, Dinah. And we're not students anymore, we won't be let in the library."

"Stop whining and come on." Normani huffed, but she obeyed, following Dinah to a bench across from the library, settling down next to her, letting out big puffs of air and smiling slightly at the sight of her breath. "All right then, Normani. This is where it started."

"Yeah," Normani muttered, shoving her hands into her coat pockets, careful not to brush Dinah at all. "This is it."

"So when did it fall apart?" At Dinah's words, Normani turned to her with a small frown, a furrow between her brows.

"Well, that's obvious."

"Is it?"

"It fell apart when I fell in love with you."

//

Later, she'd think one thing: it was entirely Dinah's fault.

She'd known—it was really rather impossible to not know—for a while that the things she felt for the blonde were far different than the things she felt for Tyler, Camila, or Ally. Oh, she loved them all. She even loved them equally. But with Dinah.

With Dinah she could never get enough.

It was like breathing, it was like her art, it was like a fucking drug. She had to be around Dinah, had to see her smile, had to hear her laugh. A single day without her by her side was a day wasted. It was all rather alarming considering she hadn't even known Dinah that long (so unlike Camila or Ally who she'd basically known her entire life).