to the moon & to saturn | cate blanchett

chapter 16

An open box of hair dye and all of the accessories from the kit were sprawled across the counter in Cate's bathroom.

After she left Elle's apartment, feeling low, she made an impulsive decision to do something she had always wanted to do in her youth. Now, staring at her reflection in the mirror, she thought it looked silly.

What have you done, Cate? Why have you done it?

She had always wanted to try out pink hair, but the closest the drugstore had in stock was rose gold. It blended nicely with the blonde, but she was almost 50 years old. Did she look stupid? Like a middle aged woman going through a midlife crisis?

Is that what was happening? She didn't know. Her head felt foggy without the calming aura of her girlfriend.

Sighing, she played with a few strands of the rose gold, twirling it between her fingers.

She needed a second opinion.

Fumbling with her phone, she pulled up the facetime app and pressed Sarah's contact. As it rang, Cate made her way to her bedroom and flopped down on her bed.

Sarah's makeup-less yet effortlessly glowy face appeared on Cate's screen after about 10 seconds.

Her mood immediately lightened as her best friend smiled at her. Sarah's presence was enough to reassure her that everything would work out.

"Hiiii," said Cate.

"Holy shit, Catherine! Your hair! HOLLAND! COME LOOK AT HER HAIR!" 

"Do you like it?" asked Cate anxiously, scrunching it up a bit.

Holland appeared in the frame, kissing the top of Sarah's head.

"There's no need to shout, dear. Ah, hello Cate. Oh my, you look fabulous," said Holland with a small smile.

"Thank you," said Cate, feeling better about her impulsivity.

"I'm heading to bed, sweetheart. Don't party too hard, you two. Nice to see you, Cate," said Holland, a twinkle in her eye. She waved at the screen, then made her exit.

Holland was such an angel; her and Sarah meshed beautifully together as a couple.

"Goodnight, darling. I'll be up soon," said Sarah to her partner, giving her heart eyes.

She turned her attention back to Cate.

"You are seriously the most beautiful human I've ever met. Besides Holland, of course! I remember in college you always wanted to do it, and I'm glad you did. It looks amazing, honey. You're gorgeous. Absolutely gorgeous! Mwah!" exclaimed Sarah, blowing a kiss.

Relief flooded over Cate. It didn't look stupid, thank god. She opened her mouth to respond, but Sarah blurted something randomly.

"DON'T LOOK AT MY EYEBROWS!" screamed Sarah, slapping a hand to her forehead.

"What eyebrows?" asked Cate, laughing to the point where her laughter turned into hiccups. She shifted so that she was laying on her stomach, with her phone resting against her pillow.

"Catherine Elise, I will hang up on you!"

Sarah put her phone down on the kitchen counter so that Cate had a nice view of her ceiling.

"Where did you go?" wondered Cate, pouting.

"TEQUILA!" yelled Sarah.

Her hand came into the frame holding a shot glass. She downed her drink before propping up her phone to center herself in the picture.