Still Water

Walkin' After Midnight (Part 3)

The two sat in comfortable silence before Elicia spoke again, "You seem to have this town figured out."

Astrid shook her head. "You could say that I'm a frequent flier," Astrid commented, "I was born and raised in Houston, but I've spent every summer up here since I was a little girl. I'm back now to take care of some family. I don't mean to pry, but where's the accent from?"

Elicia chuckled knowingly. She must get asked that a lot, Astrid reasoned. "My family is from Mexico. My parents moved to the United States before I was born, so I guess you could call me a first generation American. I spoke Spanish at home because my parents struggled with their English—I guess I got the accent from them," she explained.

"Do you still have family there?" The brunette inquired.

"All of my relatives, actually," Elicia admitted, "We visit for the holidays sometimes, but I don't get to see them often." The Latinas' face fell as she looked off into the night. Shit, you weren't supposed to make her sad, Astrid scolded herself.

"I know how hard that can be," Astrid sympathized. "My dad's family is from Scotland. He's a first-generation American, too; he didn't pick up his parents' thick accents, though, and I'll admit I'm a bit envious." The teenager explained, "I don't get to see that side of my family at all. It's a shame because I've got some rambunctious cousins that are barrels of fun. Dear ole dad misses them, too—in a way that I'll never understand."

Elicia seemed almost impressed by the other girl's revelation as if she hadn't expected to find a kindred spirit in someone like her. "So, do you come here often," Astrid questioned as she wiggled her eyebrows in an attempt to lighten the mood. The Latina let out an undignified snort, immediately covering her face in embarrassment. A wide grin consumed Astrid's face. Oh, this is going to be fun, she smirked as she planned her next one-liner.

"No, but you already know that considering that you're stalking me," Elicia retorted after recovering from the unexpected comment.

Astrid gasped, feigning shock. "How dare you accuse me, a respected gentleman with a notable name, of stalking a woman such as yourself?" The teen deflected. Astrid could see the girl using every ounce of her will to keep from laughing out loud and this spurred her to continue the game."I'm insulted by this preposterous accusation, and I demand you withdraw it immediately! Do you have any idea what such a scandal could do to my reputation? I'll be ruined!" She shrieked in mortification.

Elicia's stoic facade cracked and she doubled over laughing, clutching her side in pain. Her laugh was the most melodic sound that Astrid had ever recalled hearing; in fact, she had fallen completely in love with the sound and wouldn't mind hearing it for the rest of her life.

Tears escaped the Latina's eyes and her cheeks were cherry red as she finally managed to look at Astrid, who had not broken character, still pouting in indignation. Elicia fought to regain her breath before speaking again.

"If you aren't a stalker than explain to me why in a single day we have crossed paths twice, at what might be considered ungodly hours, I might mention. First, you harass me in the supermarket and now, you approach me late at night when I am alone and no one else is around." She demanded, her voice firm but playful. Astrid's character was flustered by the presentation of incriminating evidence.

"What will it take to buy your silence?" The short girl whispered in Elicia's ear.

The raven-haired girl thought for a moment before hesitantly replying, "How about we get lunch sometime?" Astrid was taken aback by the question. Her face must have reflected her shock because the Latina hurried to amend her statement, "I mean, you don't have to! It was a joke, and you—" Astrid cut the blabbering girl off mid-sentence, grabbing her hand in reassurance.

"Hey, it's okay," she soothed, "I'd love to." Astrid's eyes met Elicia's earnestly, conveying the sincerity of her words. That was freaking adorable, Astrid thought, fighting a smile. The other girl sighed in relief.

"I'm a huge mess," Elicia admitted looking away. "Thank you for stopping. You didn't have to, but you did. I-I'm really grateful. It hasn't been easy, being new here. You could say I've been keeping to myself; it's been lonely. I wasn't sure I'd make any friends before school started up again. Yeah, so, thank you for being so kind." the Latina remarked, giving the small hand still entwined in hers a light squeeze. Then, realizing they were still holding hands, Elicia yanked hers away as if she'd been burned and cleared her throat.

"Oh, I didn't realize it was so late," the girl remarked, uncomfortable. The tension in the air was suffocating as the former stranger stood up from the bench. "I should get home. I'll see you around," Elicia said. The Latina ran to a sleek, black Buick Encore, getting inside and speeding away before the teenager could call out for her to wait.

Astrid sighed, feeling exposed on the stone bench. She ran away faster than Cinderella ran away from the ball, the short girl frowned. I didn't even get her number either. What did I do wrong?

"Well, that went well," she remarked to no one in particular. The teen remained on the bench a few moments longer in an attempt to gain some clarity, but upon receiving no answers to her burning questions, she, too, returned to her car and drove home to the tune of Patsy Cline's "Walkin' After Midnight" playing from her car's speakers.

Hours later, as the teen lay upside down on her bed, she couldn't let her encounter with Elicia go. What the fuck is wrong with me? she wondered, unable to forget the awkward end to the night. Was it something I did? Or something I said? She seemed to enjoy the game we were playing. The teen lamented. Suddenly, it hit her like a sack of bricks and she bolted upright on the bed.

I grabbed her hand, Astrid remembered, conjuring the moment in her mind with vivid detail. Hers was dainty and felt so soft in mine...Maybe it was my stupid child paws. Curse genetics for these damn baby hands! The small girl held her hands in front of her, scowling at them. "It's not like you're practical anyways," she accused. "You can't hold a thing! You should be ashamed of yourselves!" Astrid sighed, flopping back onto her pillows. Maybe I'll get another chance, the teen tried to reassure herself.

Astrid didn't know why this girl was so important to her, but talking with Elicia felt right in a way that Astrid couldn't explain. I'm losing my shit, she thought. However, that was far from true. The teen had never possessed a good understanding of her emotions; perhaps that was due to her emotionally stunted childhood.

Astrid did not recognize the signs of her growing attraction to the woman. Her chest felt tight and she longed to see the Latina again. With her thoughts consumed by Elicia, Astrid drifted off to sleep.

A/N: The next chapter will be posted today. To my lovely readers out there, are y'all still interested in me continuing this story?