to the moon & to saturn | cate blanchett

chapter 20

Elle stood in front of the mirror, checking out her outfit and appearance until she hardly recognized herself. She was wearing one of Cate's own creations, tailored perfectly to her: a primarily white and red colorblock pant with a matching long sleeve button up that included green and blue in addition to the colors in the pants. Her makeup was light and she let her hair fall over her shoulders in casual waves.

Tonight was the grand opening of Blanchett Boutique and as the owner's girlfriend, she needed to look presentable. She was both excited and nervous; she felt incredibly proud of Cate, but anxious to meet Sarah and Cate's business affiliates.

She hoped to make a good impression.

Another source of anxiety bubbled within Elle: a secret that she hadn't told Cate about. A secret she hoped the woman would enjoy, but she wasn't entirely positive.

"You look ravishing," said Cate, slipping into her own outfit across the room.

Elle tucked her shirt into the pants and admired herself, striking various poses to view the full effect of the outfit from all angles. Cate was right; she did look good. Better than good, actually. Cate tailored the outfit to her size exactly. It hugged her in all the right places, accented her curves, and thinned the less flattering parts of her figure.

"You made me look amazing, Cate, but I don't look nearly as good as you," said Elle, sneaking a glance at the woman as Cate zipped herself into her dress.

Cate truly was a vision. The pink faded entirely from her hair, so her natural blonde was back. Her hair fell straight, gracefully brushing her shoulders, providing a nice contrast from her all black dress, another of her own creation. The dress consisted of a sheer bodice, ruffled layered skirt, and a high lace neckline. Cate's immaculate skin was visible slightly through the mesh.

"I don't know how I'm going to keep my eyes off of you all night," said Elle. "Or my hands, for that matter."

"Then don't."

Elle's cheeks flared. She returned to overanalyzing herself in the mirror.

"I'm excited for you to meet Sarah," said Cate while adjusting her dress to her liking. "She'll try her best to embarrass me, but don't believe everything you hear."

"I intend to believe everything she tells me and to never let you live any of it down," teased Elle.

Dylan knocked and poked her head into the bedroom. She wore the yellow sundress that she bought earlier in the summer, claiming this was the perfect occasion for it.

"Y'all ready to go? Limo is here," she said. She shook her head at the absurdity of that amount of wealth. "I hate how easily that rolled off my tongue."

"You were born to live this lavish lifestyle," said Elle.

"We'll be out in a minute," said Cate as she put on a pair of earrings.

Dylan gave two thumbs up and disappeared behind the closed door.

"I'm ready," said Elle, sucking in her stomach. She turned towards Cate to find the woman ogling her.

"All good?"

Cate stepped towards the young girl and caressed her cheek. "Not quite. I want to spend one last private moment together before we spend the night surrounded by others."

She bent down to kiss Elle — carefully at first, in an attempt to not smudge any makeup. However, both women got carried away, lost in each other's taste. Cate moaned as her lips caressed Elle's, increasing the urgency of the kiss. Elle ran her fingertips along Cate's back, playing with the mesh of the dress. She briefly toyed with the zipper, but Dylan broke them out of their trance with another knock on the door.