Cristina

Chapter 15

The following day, a bit after noon, I get a memo about the upcoming training. Five people are attending this workshop. I am shocked to see my name on this list. Three people from operations, including Nathan. Cristina and I are the other two. I am the one who is making the reservations for us. It is a two-day workshop. It starts on Thursday. It is being held two cities over.

By the end of the day, I have everything arranged. Our pickups, dropoffs, our flights, everything is booked.

Wednesday passes by so quickly. I get some time with Cristina. We had lunch, and we exercised together in the evening. It was so hard for me to keep my hands to myself.

Before long, it is Thursday. I am packed from the previous evening and am now waiting to be picked up.

I am picked up, and to keep Nathan silent, I am sitting next to him. We make small talk to the airport. Every so often, my eyes look to Cristina. At one point, I wink at her while no one was watching. Her cheeks redden. I smile. I love the way I can get under her skin.

We get to the airport, and we board our flight. I am seated in the middle. Cristina on my right, to the window, and Nathan to the left, to the aisle.

After about ten minutes of chatting, Nathan is dozing off on me.

When I am certain he is sleeping, I lean over and whisper to Cristina, "what's got you so quiet, sexy?"

She is blushing. I think she is the first female I see to blush so much.

She mouths back at me, "stop it".

I just grin back at her and slowly slide my hand to hers, lacing our fingers with each other. I can feel her trying to tear our hands apart, but I only tighten my grip. It seems she gets the idea that I will not release her hand until I am good and ready, so she relaxes a bit. Just holding her hand like this is a great joy to me. I caress the back of her palm with my thumb. I hold on to her like this for as long as I can. When it is time to land, and our hands have to be torn apart, I get this immediate longing to have it back.

We go through the normal procedures at the airport, and we are on our way to the hotel. When we get there, I do the talking, getting our rooms, since I am the one to book them. I see the guy looks at the screen, and then he looks at me. Is something wrong?

"By any chance, do you have any proof of confirmation on you...the confirmation e-mail?"

I reply, "yes, I do. Is there a problem?"

I hand him my phone with the confirmation.

He looks it over and stutters, "well, uhm, there..there seems to be a problem. Uhh, we only have four rooms left for you. Under normal circumstances, I would be able to get you another room since you paid for five, and I saw the confirmation, but we are booked."

My mouth is hanging open. I can't believe it. I look at the faces of my co-workers, and they seem to be just as baffled.

"Well, is there a nearby hotel? I can just get a room somewhere else," I say.

"Don't be silly, Ms. Hunter. We can share my room," says Cristina.

The receptionist speaks then, "that might be the best idea. The nearest hotel isn't for at least another twenty minutes from here."

I turn to Cristina, "are you sure that will be ok, Mrs. Canton? I wouldn't want to be of any inconvenience to you."

Her quick reply is, "I'm sure."

I guess it is settled then. I won't even lie, I love the idea, but I can't seem too excited in front of everyone.

We collect our door card, and we leave. We don't have much time to spare. It is already 10:34 a.m., and we need to be at the first workshop by 12. That leaves us with just about enough time to get settled and try to find something for lunch. We all dine as a group, and it is off to the training.

The workshop goes well, I feel like I kind of already knew what they were teaching us. It is the maritime process. How they should be carried out. All the necessary checks, things that we should have in place, safety net factors. They are also discussing the implementation of new procedures, but these will be discussed in detail the following day.

By 4 p.m., the workshop is over, and I feel so tired. As soon as we get back to the hotel, I go to my side of the bed, and I am out. I can't believe the rooms only have a single king-sized bed in them. Well, I guess it is big enough to share.

Mrs. Canton has stayed behind, doing a brief meet and greet kinda thing with the other people in attendance.

I am startled out of my sleep for no particular reason. As I get up, I notice the alarm clock on the bedside table 5:44 p.m. I have been sleeping for about an hour and a half. I also notice a folded piece of paper on the bed. It is a note from Cristina.

I'm down by the lake.

I get up and try to straighten my clothes. She didn't invite me, but I want to join her. As soon as I hit the path along the lake, I recognize Cristina on the far end.
They are approximately fifteen people along the path. It is wide and beautiful, even more so that the sun is setting.
I walk up to her, and she seems to be so lost in her thoughts that she doesn't even hear me sit beside her.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

She jumps.

"Oh my gosh! Emma, you scared me."

"What were you thinking of?" I ask.

She shakes her head. I know she is lying.

"Well, can I ask something?"

She looks at me like not right now, but I feel like I have given her enough time.

"Can you tell me about the girl, and why you two stopped dating?"

She barely calls my name, "Emma..." As if she wants me to just drop it.

"Please, Cristina? I want to know," I say calmly.

She looks out over the lake and starts speaking so quietly.

"Her name was Alice. We met in high school. I was a freshman. She was a sophomore. She was a lesbian... She was really out. It wasn't a secret to anyone. I, on the other hand, was struggling with my sexuality. I knew it would never be ok. My dad was a pastor, and my mom was super religious. I tried bottling up my desire to be with a woman for as long as I could, but by my second year, I had fallen hopelessly in love with Alice. I had to hide the fact from my parents that I was in a relationship with a woman. One day, I can remember it so clearly, She had come over. She was known to them as my friend. My parents weren't home at the time, and we started messing around. I have never done that in my house before. I just wanted to always be careful. That day, I guess I kicked caution to the wind and we ended up making love in my bed. We fell asleep afterward. When I woke up, it was because my dad was shouting all kinds of weaponized biblical things at me. It was nasty. Saying I will burn in hell, and he will not have me degrading his family. He called me worthless. My mom was just in a state of shock, but she never once tried to comfort me either. I couldn't lie. We were wrapped up naked in my bed. Two days later, my dad gave me a plane ticket. He was sending me away. He sent me to my aunt in another country. I was there for the remainder of high school. When he called, I told him I was missing home, and I wanted to come back. I reassured him that it would never happen again. Fast forward a few years after university, I got married to his best friend's son. I vowed never to look at another female....
Now, I've met you..."

Her voice trails off, and she looks at me with tears in her eyes. Instantly, I pull her into a hug. I kiss her forehead and let her cry in my arms. There is nothing that I can say. How can her dad be so ruthless? Subjecting his own flesh and blood to a lifetime of unhappiness. I now understand why her husband spoke to her in that manner. I understand why the house is so cold. There is no love.
After a few minutes of us being in this position, she insists that we should go back to the hotel. It is already turning dark.

On the way back, we meet Nathan. He asks me to have dinner with him, and I accept. Maybe she needs a few minutes alone, too. She goes to our room, and I go to dinner with Nathan.