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Marjan had grown up believing life was what she’d always seen around her, as well as in movies and TV shows. Man and woman fell in love, worked through their differences, got married, had kids and lived in harmony for the rest of their lives. But as she turned into a teenager and her friends started dating boys, she realised that those feelings they talked about, she felt them for a girl. And as much as she tried, she couldn’t find a boy to feel those things for.
Years went by and she never really talked about that to anyone. But whenever she saw Judd with Grace, she wished for the same thing he had, a love this beautiful and pure, with a woman as wonderful as Grace. When she saw TK with Carlos, she started thinking maybe she shouldn’t be so afraid of what she felt. If they could do this, why couldn’t she? And when she started becoming closer to Nancy, carpooling to the 126 hangs and teaming up in board games, she started wondering if she could go on with her life without her.
Marjan loved all of the moments she spent in the firehouse with Tommy and Nancy, escaping the boys for a little while. She missed them once it closed and she ended up alone. But she and Nancy still found time to spend together, helped when they decided to share a place together so they would be less alone, have someone to come home to after everything they went through and to save money.
Choosing to become roommates with the person you might have a crush on was risky. It could end up being a magical journey to happiness or it could all go down in flames. Either way, Marjan had never been one to run away from a potential fire, quite the opposite actually.
It was cold, colder than anything Marjan had experienced before. When she left Miami, she thought she was moving to another warm place, not somewhere she’d end up struggling to drive in snow and ice, something she’d never done before. And she could feel the cold air stinging against her face when she was outside.
“Ugh, this was not the weather I signed up for when I moved here,” Marjan complained as she stumbled inside her apartment, dragging a bit of snow with her, and started removing a ridiculous amount of layers.
“Yeah, because the hurricanes in Florida are so much better than this.”
Marjan glared at Nancy who was lying on the couch under not just one but two blankets, a mug of hot chocolate on the coffee table next to her and something paused on the TV.
“Easy for you to say, comfortably cuddled on the couch in our warm apartment.”
“Alright, come on, come over here,” Nancy lifted up the blankets and opened up her arms for Marjan to take place against her, “you can have some hot chocolate and I’ll hold you until you warm up. Better?”
“Yes,” Marjan cuddled in close to Nancy, taking comfort in her warmth.
“Oh wow, you’re cold. Feels like I’m holding a big bag of frozen vegetables.”
“I told you it was freezing out there.”
Nancy leaned her chin down on Marjan’s head, pulling her closer as she hit play on the movie she’d been watching. Marjan suddenly felt self-conscious. She was just a little too aware of their proximity, of the fact the girl she’d been developing feelings for was right there, holding her close, her arms wrapped around her waist giving her butterflies.
“Hey, Nancy?” Marjan sat up and scooted away a bit so she could turn to face her.
“What’s up?” A puzzled look had appeared on Nancy’s face at the sudden emptiness in her lap.
“I…You probably don’t feel the same, and I hope this won’t ruin our friendship or make things awkward, but… I like you, like romantically.”
Nancy’s eyes widened and she seemed to freeze, clearly surprised by this revelation.
“I thought you were straight. I thought you might be into Paul or Mateo, one of those guys.”
“I don’t feel like boys, I want you,” Marjan said as she reached for Nancy’s face, cupping it and joining their lips.
She felt Nancy smile against her before she returned her kiss, relaxing into her arms, happy to finally get to just be without wondering if she needed to hide some part of herself.
“The boys are gonna be so jealous I’m the one who got you.”
“Well, they’re nowhere near up to your level.”
“I am taller than them,” Nancy joked.
“Funny,” Marjan laughed. “I meant you’re an incredibly smart and good-looking badass with such a great big heart.”
“You’re not bad yourself, but you already know that. In fact, maybe you could use more wondering whether you can do something before you do it.”
“Are you calling me cocky?”
In lieu of an answer, Nancy pulled Marjan back into her lap and kissed her. They spent the rest of the day cuddled together on the couch, watching movies and looking at the snow outside, happy to be warm and comfortable inside, with plenty of hot beverages, soup and other comfort foods.