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Hana smothered a laugh in her hand at the determination of her girlfriend, pulling Hana by the hand through the endless hallways of their home station. It was very cute. It was also very cute how she was trying so hard to be secretive.
“Not even a hint?” Hana tried again, although she was smiling. Not that her girlfriend could see that, Hitoka was very focused on pulling her along and making sure they went the right way.
“Nope!” Hitoka sang, probably grinning. “But you’re going to like it!”
Hana would just have to take her word for it for now.
She trusted her though. She trusted her girlfriend to think of a date she’d enjoy. They’d been dating long enough for that.
Didn’t mean she wouldn’t try and figure it out though! Lets see, what had Hitoka mentioned recently that might be connected to this?
“Is it connected to your new job at the gardens?” Hana guessed. That was the most recent thing Hitoka had mentioned. Or at least the most recent big thing.
Hitoka’s conspicuous silence said it all. It was! That explained why they were headed to the outskirts of the station.
“So we’re going to the gardens, huh? Aren’t they closed this late though?”
“They are, but I offered to lock up, so I have the key to get in.”
Ooh? “So we’re sneaking around?” She was down for that.
Hitoka’s ears were visibly red even in the moderately low lighting of the evening lights. “I didn’t really ask for permission, but most of my coworkers have done it too! No one’s ever stopped them, so it’s fine! I think.”
“Better to ask forgiveness then permission anyway,” Hana replied, giggling. It was a little exhilarating to be able to get into somewhere when you technically shouldn’t be there.
“Hopefully we won’t need to do either, since my coworkers have almost all done it anyway,” Hitoka turned her head just enough for Hana to see her somewhat sheepish smile. “Besides, my boss just shook her head exasperatedly and reminded me to clean up when I asked to lock up, so I think she knows anyway.”
“Aw, then it’s not as fun,” Hana said, unable to even fake a pout with how broadly she was grinning. She hadn’t been out to the gardens since she was a young child with her mother, she’d just never had the time or ability. To go now with her girlfriend, it was exhilarating.
“You’ll live,” Hitoka said, the faintest touch of exasperation on her face before she nearly tripped and had to turn back to the front to make sure she wasn’t going to fall on her face. Not that Hana wouldn’t catch her if she did happen to fall. She probably also wanted to make sure they were going the right way. Wouldn’t do for them to get lost on their way to their date.
“Here we are!” Hitoka announced after a bit longer of hurried walking, and fumbled for her keys. Hana waited patiently, or, well, as patiently as she could manage when she was kind of bouncing on her toes in excitement. They lived so deep in the station that normally there was no way to see the space they were floating through, plus plants weren’t super common. To have the chance to see them both with her girlfriend? Amazing.
Finally, Hitoka managed to get the door open, and grabbed Hana’s hand again, towing her inside.
The lights were dim, mindful of the plant’s need to have a day/night cycle, but it was plenty bright to be able to navigate, even if Hana had to watch her feet to make sure she wasn’t going to step on something.
Hitoka pulled her to the center of the garden, where there was a little patch of grass, perfect for picnics. It had benches around it, and kind of looked like a tree used to be there, but had fallen at some point and never replanted. That was alright, this way they could lay on soft grass and see the stars.
“Oh no!” Hitoka cried once they stopped in the middle. “I didn’t even check!”
Hana looked up, and her breath was taken away by the beauty above them. It wasn’t the stars, probably what Hitoka was fretting about, but it was the Earth, the planet their species had come from slowly turning below them, the dark surface decorated with beads and strings of light. Cities, all full of people just like them. Massive networks of lit up cities and towns outlining the continents and bodies of water, and the bright outline of the planet on the edges, where the sunlight was still lighting up the atmosphere.
It was beautiful.
“That’s okay,” Hana said, interrupting Hitoka’s fretting. “This is beautiful too. I’ve never seen the dark side of the planet.”
She couldn’t tear her eyes away from it for long enough to look at Hitoka, but when her girlfriend spoke it was with a somewhat shaky voice. “Oh, if you’re sure. I wanted it to be star gazing.”
“This is pretty too. You’re pretty good at Earth geography, right? Can you point out what cities some of those are?” That’d be just as good. Hana had never been to Earth, but she was pretty sure this was better, seeing it like this.
“I can try,” Hitoka offered. “Sit down, it’ll be more comfortable if we lay down and aren’t craning our necks looking up.”
Hana nodded somewhat vaguely, but did follow when Hitoka tugged on her arm, sinking to the ground and then laying back, keeping her eyes on the sight above them as she did. Amazing. They may not be seeing the stars, but this might be better. It was gorgeous. Well worth the whole walk out here.