"Madz, what's wrong? You've been awfully quiet the entire dinner?" Bea asked as they were walking back towards the hotel.
They were walking thru the the tree lined path from the restaurant back to the hotel, just a short distance to their room. Bea tried to hold Maddie's hand, but Maddie instead hugged herself, shaking off the sudden biting cold from the wind.
"Are you cold? Come here.." Bea grabbed her and pulled her into a hug. They stood there in silence, basked with the sky full of stars above them.
"Madz, why do I feel that there's something bothering you?" Pulling away a little, she held Maddie's face in her hands "babe, please open your eyes, talk to me.." She said, kissing Maddie's eyes, before pulling her back into an embrace.
Maddie kept silent, and the wind kept blowing around them, causing them both to shiver. Bea held her tighter.
"I'm sorry.." Bea whispered into Maddie's ear
"For what?"
"I don't know, for whatever I've done that's making you sad now?"
"Why do you say I'm sad?"
"Well, kinda obvious..." Bea gave a lopsided smile "I'm sorry I made that call, I shouldn't have kept you waiting"
"It's not that.."
"Then what is it Babe? Please tell me.."
Maddie separated from the hug and lead Bea to sit on a nearby bench. She still had her hands around her, feeling cold as she was wearing a sleeveless dress. As for Bea, she was perfectly warm ih her long sleeved blouse and jeans, so she took off her jacket and placed it around Maddie's shoulders.
"Thanks"
Bea reached for Maddie's head and gently leaned it on her shoulders. Kissing the top of Maddie's hair, she intertwined their hands as she placed it on her lap.
Looking up, she pointed to the stars with their interlocked hands. "Look at the cresent moon babe, and all the stars, they illuminate the sky!" She said excitedly.
"Bei, have you ever head the sayin that, When looking at stars, you're actually looking into the past. Many of the stars we see at night have already died. Like your dreams."
"That's sad.." Bea replied.
"We think that just because we see the stars, that they're still there. When we are actually just holding on to a memory, grasping unto it, holding on to it for a bit longer, even if the stars have actually long died. Just because in our mind, we refused to let it go."
Maddie's lips quivered, and tears started to form in her eyes. Bea held out to touch her face to wipe away the tears, but Maddie gave a wry smile and shook her head. Closing her eyes, Maddie took a deep breath and sighed, before opening them and looking up at the sky again.
They were sat next to each other, a few inches separating them, as they both looked straight out ahead of them. Their hands laid in between them, just next to each other, not touching, fingertips accidentally grazing the others but retracting immediately.
"Bei... That night before the championship, at the gym? I wasn't spying on you or anything. I went back to the gym because I realized I forgot my earphones in my locker. And then... I saw you Jia and kissing." Maddie still had her head up towards the sky as her tears freely flowed from her face.
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry.."
"No don't... I should actually be happy because you told her that you choose to be with me. That it was a goodbye kiss.."
