Winter Solace

Chapter 5

Mountains covered with snow stood tall in the horizon. Andi stood on the patio staring off into the distance. "Dum doo be doo dum da dam" Connie sang from the background. She danced over to the patio, stopping when she noticed how shut off Andi was.

"Hey space cadet, what's going on up there?" She jokes snapping Andi out of her daze. "H-hey Con. Sorry. I was just thinking." Andi said, turning to face her. Connie placed her hands on Andi's shoulders. "Of course you are! You got lost and woke up in Lana Del Rey's cabin. I would have went crazy!" Connie said.

Andi could feel a beacon of hope. Connie seemed very understanding of the situation. "You mean...you understand why I feel this way about her?" Andi asked smiling. "Of course! She's a star! You were starstruck!" Connie said. Andi's smile faded in disappointment.

"And you're sad because we won't be staying here for too long and you're going to miss her. Who wouldn't want to be her best friend? She's a celebrity!" Connie said. "Y-yeah. Star struck...that's it." Andi lied sighing in frustration. "You'll be okay Andi. I know it. Maybe we can see her in concert soon huh?" Connie whispered before giving her a wink and walking away.

Andi plopped down into one of the chairs. Connie didn't get it. Andi knew that this was more than a silly starstruck crush. She had real feelings for the woman. But what was she supposed to do? It was 1961. Sure she had heard whisperings about women who had similar feelings, but it was barely discussed. She didn't want to live in secret, but she also didn't want to live a lie. She wasn't sure how long she could keep up with this.

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"1....2.....3...GO!" Ricky shouted as all four of them raced down the hill on their skis. Andi had gone skiing quite a number of times as a teen, so it became a hobby of hers. The four of them has decided to race down the hill until they reached the resort shop which was quite a distance away.

Andi could feel the cold breeze on her face as she made her way down the hill. She was in third place at the moment with Steven behind her so she had to up her game. "I'm catching up!" He shouted as Andi tried to make herself go faster.

Connie was in first, while Ricky was in front of her. When Connie and Ricky reached the finishing point Andi could see them jumping and cheering. "See you later alligator!" Steven said skiing pass Andi. "Hey!" Andi shouted trying to catch up. She knew it was useless! Andi looked away for a second and fell to the ground. She heard a feminine gasp and felt someone fall on top of her.

A short feeling of pain shot through her. "Ouuuch!" Andi cried wincing in pain. "Oh my goodness honey! Are you okay? Did you break anything?" An all too familiar voice sang. Andi's heart felt as though it were going to come out of her chest.

The person got off of Andi, helping her up. When Andi turned around she realized it was Lana. "Elizabeth..." Andi said feeling as though she were seeing her for the first time. "Andi..." Lana smiled, stepping closer to her. She raised her hand to touch her cheek, but they were both interrupted by Ricky, Steven, and Connie running up to them.

"Andi are you alright?" They all shouted in unison. "Peachy!" Andi said stepping back from Lana. They all seemed shocked when their eyes landed on Lana. "Oh...my goodness, it's you!" Connie cried looking as though she wanted to explode with joy. Lana laughed as the girl ran up to her. "I don't mean to bug you, but I'm such a fan. I have all of your vinyls at home. You're such a doll!" Connie said.

This caused Lana to blush. "Thank you. I'm glad to hear that dear." She said smiling sweetly. "She's telling the truth. Your voice is the only one I hear coming from the record player!" Steven laughed.  "What a coincidence that we'd find you out here. Why don't you come over for supper tonight?" Ricky asked, coming up and placing an arm around Andi.