to the moon & to saturn | cate blanchett

chapter 26

"Are we going out to dinner?" Elle guessed from her position sprawled out on her bed.

"No," said Cate.

She'd been fighting off Elle's questions for the majority of the morning and figured that next time she planned a surprise for her girlfriend, she wouldn't tell her beforehand. Standing in front of the mirror in a suede purple suit, she struggled to clasp the back attachment of her statement necklace. It was hard for her to focus on the clasp when Elle hadn't bothered to get dressed yet.

"Help me," she whined as she held the back of her necklace together with her hand.

Elle propped her chin up with her hands and stared sweetly at Cate. "Not until you tell me what plans you have up your sleeve."

Cate tossed her necklace aside and jumped onto the bed next to Elle. The mattress sank down and Elle lightly bobbed up and down at the impact of Cate's energy. The older woman looked at her with authoritative eyes.

"How many times do I have to tell you to be patient?"

"An infinite amount."

"Well, this is the last time," said Cate as she leaned in for a kiss. "Patience is a virtue."

"Of which I have none," said Elle in response.

Her fingers found their way to Cate's blazer to explore the suede material. It felt expensive and she enjoyed how the smooth texture of the fabric felt on her fingertips.

"It's time for you to get dressed," said Cate as she stood to grab her necklace. "I'm going to get Dylan to help with this."

"Fine," groaned Elle. She followed Cate's motions by standing up, exposing her natural self completely.

Glancing up at Cate to ask what type of event she was to dress for, she found the older woman's eyes roaming her body and her tongue tucked in her cheek, the home it often found for itself when Elle went without clothes.

"Maybe I'll go like this?" Elle suggested, shaking her chest playfully in the direction of her girlfriend.

"Uh — well — I — suitcase —" Cate stuttered. With one more wandering glance at Elle, she promptly left the room.

Elle loved that she could make Cate flustered in the same way that Cate made her. Through Cate's stammers, she understood vaguely that perhaps Cate packed an outfit for her in her suitcase.

Upon opening Cate's suitcase, Elle shuffled through various undergarments and jewelry boxes. At the bottom, she was met with a beautifully packaged top and blazer in a box with sheer tissue. A note on top of the tissue paper read for my moon in Cate's elegant handwriting. The note was written on a black notecard with a white writing utensil, and Cate had drawn little stars and planets around the edge.

Delicately, she pulled the shirt and blazer out of the box and held them up in front of her. The shirt was a chiffon black button up, lined with barely visible vertical silver stripes that were highlighted by the intricately detailed bedazzled blazer. The individual pieces were exquisite on their own, but together, they illuminated to form a breathtaking combination.

"I designed those for you," said Cate from behind her, which shocked Elle a bit since she didn't hear her come back in. "I hope you like them."

Elle was overwhelmed with gratitude and appreciation.

"Cate.....wow."

"I'll take that as a yes," said Cate cheerfully. "Try them on! I want to make sure I don't need to make any last minute adjustments."