ELIZA

3

When Alina got to the door, the music was playing so loudly that the walls were shaking. The smell of booze hit her face as Cooper let her in.

"Al! Good to see you! Enjoy. Drinks are over there in the kitchen." Cooper said as they disappeared in their transmasc glory. Cooper was popular ever since first year. Tall, blonde, blue eyes, with a boyish charm. They knew everyone, and in their transition, became ever more the babe of the school.

Alina, shy without Justine, tried her best hitting on girls, awkwardly. She got their stories muddled as she drank more, and they could see that all she was interested in was sex. I'm a failure at this, Alina thought.

"Alina!" Stephanie Peterson yelled out piercing through the music. Alina and Stephanie knew each other from their first year at Wilson. Stephanie was beautiful, white socialite, and Alina was a Filipino middle class girl, both from the city. The beauty of college was bringing them together.

"Stephanie! Finally! I don't feel so alone!" Alina exclaimed.

"What's going on? Not liking the party?" Stephanie asked

"I just want to find someone to hook up with, honestly." Alina admitted.

"Get on the dancefloor! There are some cute girls over there." Stephanie ordered and pushed Alina into the middle of the living room.

Alina started dancing, trying to find someone to grind with. Alina was around 5'1'', with a boy cut parted at the side, soft tanned skin, and a muscular frame. Alina liked tall girls. Justine was about 5'6'', and Alina stood up to her shoulder, but the girl she was eyeing had to have been at least six feet tall, very skinny, with strong legs. She had hair up to her shoulders, but Alina could not really see her face from behind.

Alina shyly tapped the girl and asked, "Can I dance with you?"

Alina was too drunk to hear what she said, but she pulled the statuesque woman to her hips and started grinding on her. Since she was so tall, Alina still could not make out her face until she looked up. The dancing was rough, friction between their jeans pushing them towards the wall. Alina turned her around and grinded on her backside.

"What kind of night are you trying to have?" Alina said confidently.

"The night that I decide I want," the girl said, shooting Alina down.

Alina looked up at her face, still hidden in the darkness, and pulled her in for a kiss. Dancing and furiously making out, they continued for a while.

"Wanna go for a smoke?" Alina asked after using up her energy and led the girl to the back, where Alina bummed a cigarette off of Cooper.

"What's your name? I haven't seen you before." Alina said to the girl.

"Elizabeth, but you can call me Eliza. I'm a junior." she said as she puffed smoke.

"Alina, aka Al", Aline replied.

Alina took in everything about Eliza. She was from Boston but recently moved to Colorado, where her dad got a job at a fancy company. She wanted to become a doctor and was doing pre-med courses. She loved to dance and do art. What was most striking was Eliza's eyes. They were honey brown and exuded kindness. They fit perfectly with her pointed nose and fine brown hair. She had thin lips, but was generous in kissing Alina. She wasn't shy about her interest in Alina. She wasn't shy at all.

It was getting late, past two in the morning, when Eliza said, "I'll walk you back to your house." This took Alina off guard since most girls she had met had not shown such chivalry.

"All right." Alina said, taking Eliza's hand. There was snow on the ground, and it felt nice to feel her openness and affection. They decided to walk through Eliza's house, King, then head down the steps to Wilson.

As they made their way through the King foyer, Eliza stopped. "Let's take a break," she casually said, and lay on the couch, motioning for Alina to join her. Puzzled, but touched, Alina let Eliza hold her as they dozed off.

When Alina woke up, she insisted that Eliza stay there since she was already home, but Eliza wanted to make sure that Alina got home. Alina had half fallen in love with Eliza at that point and was satisfied that if their encounter should only be that night, then the night was worth it. Eliza had healed her ten times already.

"Goodnight." Eliza said at the Wilson steps, parting Alina with a kiss.