Liquid Dima

Chapter Four: Bittersweet

"I loved her against reason, against promise, against peace, against hope, against happiness, against all discouragement that could be." - Charles Dickens, Great Expectations

"So then after we sat through that tragically long film, he asked me the strangest question. Just guess what he asked me."

Linda and Darla head up middle street, arms linked, eating freshly warmed croissants from the baked goods stall. It's the annual winter market and every year the streets become congested with different sellers promoting and selling homemade goods. Mortals and immortals swarm the streets, looking for the best stalls to splash out their weekly savings. There are tables filled with luxuries and stunning golden jewellery, with home crafted signs displaying catchy slogans to promote their products cram packing the street borders. Right and left are men and women selling cakes, sweets, spicy hot dogs and soups. Barrels of warm winter cider are being loaded down from trucks to sell to pub owners and men with envious eyes. Children are running about the place with balloons held in their hands, and family dogs are being dragged along on leashes whilst parents attempt to keep their children under control.

Usually Darla doesn't like coming to such events as she finds them way too overcrowded, but she agreed this once to spend some time with Benji outside of their small abode. That is until Linda appeared and resulted in encouraging him to 'go shop for himself for an hour' whilst she went around with Darla.

"What did he ask you?", she takes a huge bite from her jam croissant.

Looking disbelievingly at her friend, Linda wonders whether Darla has been paying attention at all. She tries again:

"Nooo, Darla, I said you've got to guess what he asked me".

"Oh yeah, sorry, erm."

Her eyes catch a young girl struggling to blow bubbles out of a cheap bubble kit her parents must have bought her from one of the mini stalls. Turning red at the temple and cheeks, the girl blows with all her might, forcing the blow out of her scrunched up face. Yet her efforts are futile, and she turns back to her mother with a disgruntled look.

"Did he ask you to stay at his?". Glancing back at her friend, Darla notices Linda's impatience with her.

Linda throws her arms up in frustration. "I wish. No. He asked me what we should do next.... like, what am I supposed to say to that?! He's the one who asked me to go on a date. He should have it all planned out. Not put me on the spot and demand that I should decide what we do, because what if we don't have fun? Then it will be my fault that he had a bad night!"

"I think you are overthinking it Linda," Darla says gently, all the while trying her best to keep the humour out of her voice. "Shaun obviously wants to give you a chance to do something you like on the date. It gives him a chance to see what you like to do and takes some of the pressure of him to plan out the whole evening. He won't hate you if you choose to do something he doesn't find interesting. The main thing he wants is to just be doing something with you. What you guys do isn't the big deal here." She licks a blob of jam off one of her fingers.

"Ha. Darla, it doesnt work like that. What one does on a date has a significant impact on the future relationship. I mean, look at you and Benji. Apart from falling for him just because he's hot, I doubt you'd have been over the moon for him if he had'nt taken you to every beautiful spot in the immortal world during the talking stage."

Deep breaths, Darla thinks. Its just Linda being Linda.

"I'd love Benji if he hadn't taken me to all those places and especially if he was'nt good looking. Want to know why Linda? Because he values me for me. He listens to me, and I listen to him. In each others company we feel like one being together. A being that can't function correctly without the other. I only wish I did more, was better at listening and caring for him as he does for me. I've been lacking in my effort towards him recently..."