IMPOSSIBLE

44 - My Heroine

Jennifer's POV

Having Leah sleep next to me resulted in me sleeping peacefully again. No nightmares, no waking up screaming.

I felt at ease until Leah told me she had an appointment which she wanted to take to my office.

Immediately my throat felt like there's a lump in it. I don't want her to be there. If she is, my mind will be back in those rooms again, just by thinking of her while she's working. Also, what if I needed something from her. Then I would need to walk the hall, passing the bathroom et cetera et cetera. My palms got sweaty just thinking about it. I told her about my concerns.

„Come with me then and we'll walk together.", Leah suggested.
„Are you crazy?" What a suggestion.
„Look, if you don't wanna move, then you'll have to learn to use that part of the house again eventually."
I furrowed my brows and scoffed while rolling my eyes.
„I'm with you the whole time. Come on."

I was sitting on a barstool by the kitchen island and Leah came up behind me, hugged me around my stomach and put her head on my shoulders.
She turned the stool and pushed me down gently without breaking the embrace she held me in.

„Come on. Walk. I'm with you."
I started walking. It was easy at first. Then I came to a hold in front of the hall.
„Keep on going. You're doing good.", Leah kept encouraging me.
Step by step I walked down the hall and it was.. okay I guess. A few steps before the bathroom door, I stopped again.

„I can't.", I whispered, feeling the lump in my throat grew bigger and my palms getting sweatier. My breathing became irregular.
„You can.", Leah spoke softly, her head still on my shoulder.
„No.", I whimpered with kind of a squeaky voice.
„Close your eyes.", Leah said, and hugged me a little tighter.

I did as she said and closed my eyes.
Then I felt Leah walking, pushing me forward gently. I followed her lead and we walked past the bathroom door. A shaky breath escaped my mouth and I decided to keep my eyes closed for the rest of the way.

„We're here.", I heard Leah saying. She broke the hug but not her touch, to make sure I still feel safe, and walked around me to face me.
She gently kissed my lips and whispered: „Open your eyes."

I blinked slowly, adjusting to the bright light irrupting into my eyes.
„You did it.", she smiled at me.
It didn't feel like it. Yes I'm here, but I couldn't even look where I was walking, so the feeling of an achieved victory didn't quite set.
Still, it was at least something.

„Thank you.", I whispered.

Leah went to work and I decided to catch up on emails and stuff as well, distracting my mind off the fact that the last time I've been in here, I got raped minutes after I left this room. Will this ever not be on my mind? Will it ever get easier?

Leah hugged me from behind and I flinched, being dragged out of these thoughts.

„Where's your mind?", she asked me.
Her arms were around my neck and I put both hands on her arm, squeezing it gently.

„In the bathroom.", I confessed and sighed.
Leah spun me around on my chair, crouched down in front of me, put her arms on my thighs and her chin on her arms.
I put both of my hands on her head and let them slide down to her cheeks slowly. We looked into each others eyes for a while and her presence gave me peace.

„Let's get out, shall we?", Leah said. I nodded and Leah turned around, still crouching down.

„Hop on my back."
„What?"
„Hop. on. my. back."

I chuckled but did, she got up and piggy backed me out into the hall, past the bathroom and into the living room, where she threw me on the couch where I just had to laugh. I feel like she's saving me over and over again.

„How was your meeting?", I asked her.
„Alright. I'll give it another try just because it's hard to look for another partner, and until recently, this one did everything right.. We'll see, I guess. I think he was impressed with me having an assistant.", Leah laughed.
„Lucas is an amazing friend."
„I know. He's like a brother."
„Hm.", I hummed while smiling.

„Speaking of family...", I said sitting up right while Leah's sitting down next to me.
„I thought maybe... you want to... meet some of my family? My mom's celebrating her birthday in 3 weeks and I'd love you to come." I was nervous asking her that, as it meant becoming even more serious. Also, I never introduced a girlfriend to my family. They all know about it by now of course, but they haven't met her or saw us interacting with each other so this is kind of a big deal for me.

Leah simply answered: „I'd love to."

Leah's POV

She really asked me to meet her family. Like, all of her family at an important event such as her mom's birthday. I never had an intact family, thus no experience on how normal families work. Also, this is big. This is serious and I'm overjoyed she wants me to meet all of them.

The following weeks I flew back and fourth a few times for work, which was exhausting and of course Jennifer and I missed each other.

We were currently in New York, since it's her mom's birthday and she's celebrating here.
I've custom made her a bracelet to gift to her and I hope she'd like it.

That day I was nervous and Jennifer noticed.
We we're in her dressing room getting dressed. We both went for simple black dresses and kinda matched.
„Help me with my zipper, please?", I asked her and she came standing behind me, closing it.
„Baby, you nervous?", she asked me and put her hands on my hips to turn me around to face her.

I bit my bottom lip. „I'm going to meet your whole family! Like, all of them. Of course I'm nervous!"

„They'll love you!", she tried to comfort me.

„Families usually don't... necessarily love me..", I looked down mumbling.

Jennifer lifted my chin up with her fingers.

„Mine will. I'm sure."
„What makes you so sure?", I asked looking into her beautiful hazel eyes.

„Have you met yourself? What's not to love about you?", she softly kissed me, earning a smile from me.
„And they're okay with me being a girl?"

Jennifer kissed me again.
„They'll get used to it."
„So they're not?", I asked a little bit shocked.
„No no no, that's not what I meant!", Jennifer shook her head no. „I was trying to say that I've only been with men and me being with a woman is probably something they have to get used to. Like in terms of seeing me kissing a woman."
„Oh. So we'll keep it on the low tonight?"

Jennifer frowned at me. „What? No! You know I'm clingy, baby, I don't wanna keep anything on the low." She kissed me again, then patted my ass. „Come on let's go."