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“We should go on a date.”
Nico looked up from her grimoire, finding her girlfriend propped up on her elbows and twirling a plastic tiara between her hands.
“What do you mean?” Nico asked. “Like… to a restaurant or something?”
“Yeah. Well, it doesn’t have to be a restaurant.” Karolina flipped onto her back, her hands glowing as she held the tiara above her. Fractals of light flickered across each nearby surface in glittery hues of pink, yellow, and blue. “I mean, we’ve been together for a year, not including the six months we lost in Morgan’s dark dimension. And yet we’ve never been on an actual date.”
“To be fair, we’ve been kind of busy,” Nico protested, but couldn’t stop an amused smile from tugging at her lips. “You know, trying not to die.”
“Saving the world,” Karolina added with her own smile.
“Dealing with our parents.”
Karolina’s smile flickered at that last one, but quickly returned in full force. She dropped the tiara onto the bed and stood up.
“Well, now we don’t have to worry about all that,” she declared, taking Nico’s hands. “It’s over.”
“Don’t say that,” said Nico with a wry laugh, “or your father’s war-torn alien enemies are going to attack us while we sleep.”
“Don’t be such a cynic.”
“It’s what I do best.”
Karolina leaned down and kissed her, short and sweet and perfect . Nico chased her lips and captured another, her hands finding Karolina’s waist.
“So,” Karolina murmured after she pulled away, just far enough to rest her forehead against Nico’s. “About that date?”
Nico sighed, but didn’t even try to disguise her grin this time. “No time like the present.”
***
Nico had wanted to leave right then, but Karolina insisted on getting dressed up.
“It’s L.A. at noon on a Tuesday!” she protested.
“Who cares?” Karolina shot back as she rummaged through her drawers. Nico shrugged, not putting up much of a fight after that.
In truth, Nico loved fashion. She loved the experimentation and layering involved in making an outfit that looked just right, and how an added touch could tie everything together. Fashion was like art, in a way. It could be abstract or structured. It could pass through time and bring back memories of decades or even centuries past.
Nico dug through the clothes she’d taken from her mom’s house on her last visit (see: breaking and entering), trying to find something that said “first date.” Something that embodied her and everything Karolina liked about her. Though she had to admit, her self esteem wasn’t yet high enough to know what exactly that was.
Eventually, she decided on a light, mid-length black skirt and a tight black shirt with a buttoned black vest over it. The outfit was a simple blend of formal and casual, but the accessories, as they often did, completed the look. She’d found a pair of fingerless black lace gloves that worked perfectly with the lacy choker she’d clasped around her neck, and the amethyst and pentacle pendants hanging over her heart made her feel protected.
“Can you help me with this?”
After straightening her vest, Nico turned around to find Karolina standing with her back to her, her pale blue dress unzipped. Nico moved to pull the zipper up, remembering a moment so similar yet so different from this, when they’d only just caught a glimpse into the chaos they would yet endure. Before they were runaways.
It was also the day she’d first realized that Karolina felt something for her, and that the feeling might be mutual. But she’d pushed it down at first, not wanting to hurt the boy who’d liked her for so long.
Karolina turned around, and by her soft smile, Nico could tell she had called to mind the same memory.
“Things were different back then,” Karolina said, confirming that notion.
“They really were,” Nico agreed. “But despite everything we’ve gone through, it’s better now. We know the truth. About everything.”
She walked over to the bedside table and grabbed her makeup bag, looking over her shoulder a bit sheepishly. “Could I… do your makeup? You know, only if you want me to.”
Karolina’s face lit up. “Of course! I’ve wanted to ask you, actually. You’re amazing, Nico. I don’t know how you do it.”
Nico felt her cheeks warm as she brushed off the compliment with murmured thanks. She motioned for Karolina to sit down on the bed, then stood in front of her. She gazed at her girlfriend as if she was a work of art, debating which brushstrokes could enhance her perpetually present beauty.
Eventually, she began to create a look with silver and pale blue eyeshadow to match Karolina’s dress, applied a layer of sparkling pink lip gloss, then completed it with mascara and a small wing of white eyeliner. Then, she quickly dug through her jewelry, and while Karolina’s eyes were still closed, Nico clasped one of her own necklaces around her neck: a silver chain with a deep blue lapis lazuli pendant.
“You can open your eyes now,” Nico said quietly. She found herself looking into ocean blue as Karolina’s eyelids fluttered open. She gazed at Nico for a few moments as if she was the work of art and Karolina the proud painter, a fond expression on her face that was beautifully familiar.
“I really want to kiss you right now,” Karolina whispered.
Nico leaned closer, then smirked and ducked away. “Don’t want to mess up your lip gloss. Here, look.” She led Karolina over to the cloudy mirror where she could see her handiwork.
Karolina’s smile brightened as she looked at the soft touches of color on her eyelids.
“You know me so well,” she said, meeting Nico’s eyes in the mirror. “It’s perfect.”
Nico took her hand, intertwining their fingers. “So, where are we going?”
Karolina took her other hand. “I saw this adorable cafe not too far from here. I think we could even walk there if you don’t mind trekking down the hill.”
“I don’t mind if it means I get to spend more time with you.”
Under any other circumstances, Nico wouldn’t have said something so cheesy and saccharine, and even now, a part of her deep inside cringed at it. But their shared room in the Hostel was their safe space, and after everything, she couldn’t bring herself to care about how it sounded, especially if it made Karolina blush a pretty pink.
“Come on,” she urged playfully when Karolina didn’t move, tugging her out of the room.
As she walked down the stairs, Nico could hear Alex tinkering with something in his room, while Gert and Chase were nowhere to be found. Molly, on the other hand, was in the foyer, playing fetch with Old Lace.
“Try not to break anything,” Nico called as they headed toward the door.
“I won’t,” Molly promised, throwing her battered frisbee a bit too close to an antique statue. She glanced over at them after Old Lace ran to fetch it, then did a double take.
“You guys look nice,” she observed. “Where are you going?”
“Just this new cafe down at the edge of the city,” Karolina told her with a kind smile. She’d always been particularly fond of Molly.
“Ooh, can I come with you?”
Karolina hesitated for a few moments, but before she said anything, Molly seemed to figure it out for herself as she glanced down at their clasped hands. Her face split into a wide grin.
“Oh, I see,” she teased. “You’re going out for a romantic date.”
“We’ll bring something back for you,” Karolina promised apologetically.
Molly’s grin only widened, and she shooed them away. “Don’t let me keep you, lovebirds!”
Nico rolled her eyes and pulled Karolina out the door.
The sun was shining brightly, and Nico had to blink a few times for her vision to adjust, especially after spending several days straight in a dimly lit underground mansion. She wondered if she’d regret wearing long sleeves after trekking down a steep hill in the blazing sun.
“Good old L.A.,” she said sarcastically as they began their hike.
“Have you ever thought of leaving?” asked Karolina thoughtfully.
“Of course,” Nico replied at once. “I mean, who wouldn’t want to leave their psychotic mother?”
Karolina scrutinized her for a moment. She seemed to want to say something, but shook her head and decided against it. “I meant leaving L.A.,” she clarified.
“Oh.” Nico considered for a moment. “Yeah, I guess so. Until, you know, everything , college was always a given. Thought I’d end up out east maybe.”
“I never thought about leaving at all until everything went down,” Karolina admitted. “I figured I’d stay with the church, with my mom, and maybe take some administrative classes at the local junior college so I could take over from her when she retired. Now, that’s the last thing I want.” She let out a laugh, but it sounded sad.
Nico squeezed her hand, waiting until Karolina looked at her before she spoke. “Whatever happens next, we’ll figure it out together.”
Karolina squeezed her hand in return, and then they were walking down the hill in comfortable silence, the birds whistling in the trees behind them.
The cafe was, as Karolina had said, incredibly close once they’d entered the city. There were other patrons inside when they opened the door, but it wasn’t crowded by any means. Karolina ordered a matcha latte with oat milk while Nico ordered an iced coffee, and they both got something small to eat. They decided to get one of the cafe’s specialty lattes for Molly when they left and hope it wouldn’t melt on their trek back up to the Hostel.
Nico groaned at that thought as they picked up their drinks. Karolina glanced at her questioningly.
“You do realize we’re going to have to hike back up the hill,” she pointed out. Karolina grimaced, but shrugged.
“It’ll be worth it, though.”
They took a seat at one of the tables outside. Neither of them spoke at first.
“You know, this is my first ‘first date,’” Nico blurted finally.
Karolina’s eyebrows raised, and she looked genuinely surprised. “Really?”
“Yeah.” She shrugged like it was no big deal, but she really did feel nervous. “Me and Alex… we never really went on ‘dates.’ I mean, we were together when we were trying to figure out why our parents were murdering people. We went to Timely together a couple of times to research, but it wasn’t really in a…” She gestured while she tried to figure out how to convey what she meant. “… Romantic context,” she finally decided on.
Karolina nodded in understanding. “I always assumed those were dates,” she admitted with a small laugh. “I was so jealous of him. It took me a while to figure out why.”
“How, or, when did you figure it out?” Nico asked, curious as much for herself as she was to hear Karolina’s answer. Things had happened so fast since the fateful day they’d caught their parents in their red robes, too fast for her to think clearly about anything related to identity. She’d liked Alex, she loved Karolina, and that was that.
Karolina hesitated before she answered, fidgeting with the edge of her napkin. “Before the gala, right after Alex was kidnapped,” she said finally. “At least, that’s when I knew I liked you. I knew I was… different for a long time before that, even if I couldn’t put a name to it. You know, I think I might’ve liked you for longer than I thought.”
Nico couldn’t help but feel her cheeks redden at that. She looked down at her plate with a small smile. “Same here,” she said quietly.
From there, the conversation lapsed into lighter topics. They talked about everything and nothing. They talked about music and the TV shows they’d missed since leaving home. They talked about memories, spanning from just yesterday back to childhood. Nico couldn’t help but feel a pang in her heart when they brought up who and what they’d lost, but she was getting closer to acceptance, even though she knew the holes in her heart would never disappear. They could be mended, though, patched up by the love of her friends and the girl sitting across from her.
Eventually, after two hours that felt like two endless moments, they noticed how low the sun was hanging in the sky.
“We should probably head back,” Karolina said. Nico nodded, volunteering to take the trash while Karolina ordered a drink for Molly. She came out a few minutes later with a latte that had so much whipped cream and caramel sauce that Nico wondered if Molly would be able to sleep tonight.
As they hiked back up the hill, Karolina was uncharacteristically quiet. It wasn’t a comfortable kind of quiet, either, but the restless, thoughtful sort. Nico glanced over to find her brow furrowed, her hands fiddling in front of her like she didn’t know what to do with them. Nico gently bumped their shoulders together.
“What’s up?” she asked, and Karolina tried to smile. Nico raised her eyebrows and didn’t break eye contact, knowing a fake smile when she saw one.
Karolina sighed, giving up the act. “Would you ever… move back in with your mom?” she asked.
Nico’s eyes widened in surprise. That was absolutely not the question she thought Karolina would ask. She turned and sat on the grass, anticipating that this would be a conversation requiring stillness and care. After a moment’s hesitation, Karolina sat down beside her.
“No,” Nico answered, carefully considering how she should elaborate. “I mean, she wants me to come home. She made it pretty clear when she randomly dropped by last week, not to mention the passive aggressive phone calls. But even though I appreciate that she’s trying to atone for what she did, it doesn’t change the fact that she’s a killer, no matter what her motives might’ve been. It doesn’t change the fact that she lied for so long and never apologized for it.”
Karolina looked away. “I guess I just miss being close to my mom,” she confessed. “I thought when we rescued her that someday things between us could be close to how they were before. But sometimes…”
She trailed off, and for a moment her lip trembled slightly. Nico put a hand on her knee, a silent comfort.
“Sometimes I lay awake at night and I remember all the awful things she’s done. She was the leader of Pride, Jonah’s right hand. Those kids that died… she’s the one who hand picked them. They trusted her, and she repaid that trust by feeding them to my delusional alien father.” She met Nico’s eyes. “By the way, I’m sor—”
Nico pressed a finger to her lips. “No more apologies.” She leaned her head on Karolina’s shoulder, looking out at the city. “For the record, sometimes I wish things could be different with my mom too. And maybe one day I can forgive her, but I don’t think we can ever be family in the same way that the six of us are now.”
Karolina let her head fall to rest against Nico’s. “I’m glad we have each other. I love our new family. I love you.”
Nico took her hand once more, and she knew it was cliche, but she felt that their hands fit together perfectly. “I love you, too.”
They looked out at the horizon as the sun began to set, wrapped in the comfort of each other’s presence.
“We should probably bring Molly her drink,” Karolina said quietly after a long while. Nico glanced at the deflated whipped cream and melted ice and grimaced.
“Yeah, probably.” Slowly, her grimace turned into a smirk. “Race you!”
Nico took off up the hill, laughing as she heard Karolina’s indignant shouts behind her.
“I’m carrying a drink! What if I spill it?!”
“Then you owe Molly two drinks!” Nico called over her shoulder. Sure enough, when she glanced back, Karolina was running after her, her blue dress blowing in the breeze.
As she made her way back to the place she called home, Nico smiled. She couldn’t remember a day in years that she’d smiled this much, nor this openly. And as the two girls ran up the hill, out of the past to an uncertain future, they knew that no matter what happened next, they’d be by each other’s side.