'Til Someone Gets Hurt

A Cautionary Tale

"You know, of all the places I thought I'd see you again, I really didn't think it'd be here."

Leaning awkwardly against a misshapen lamppost, in the center of a secluded sidewalk, Tilly stood admiring the stars until she was forced to withdraw her blank gaze into the somber night. The familiarity of the disembodied voice compelled her to whip her head 'round. And there she was, with that crooked smirk, eyes flashing with her hands tucked in her pockets and rocking gently on her heels.

"Margot!"

Tilly darted towards the darker-blonde's side and, with the support of her right arm, hurdled the picket fence separating them so she could hold her close. Their embrace lingered a second too long; the smaller girl having no intention of releasing her dear friend without an unambiguous prompt. Tilly wrestled with herself, determined to choke back the cascade of tears threatening to spill from her eyes. She thought that if she could hold onto Margot for an eternity, every knot in her life would untie itself. Margot had that effect on her. She never failed to make her feel safe. Sensing that it might be the proper moment, they grudgingly released themselves and paused to take a look at one another.

"Well, someone seems happy to see me!" exclaimed Margot.

"I am," Tilly said, smiling and playfully thumping Margot's arm. "I really am! You know, just haven't seen you 'round here in a while. So anyway, what trouble you been getting into lately?" Tilly asked, her voice tight upon registering she'd been unconsciously mirroring the other girl; her hands were tucked firmly in the pockets of her own moss-colored jacket.

"I'm great! More than fine, actually. It got kinda lonely at times, traveling the big, wide world. It sure was an experience." She paused to not-so-subtly examine the curly-haired girl's reaction to her reply. "Yeah and how about you? I mean you're standing outside, alone, in the middle of the night, but I mean um.... dollar for your thoughts? ...That's what they say in England right?"

"Somethin' like that," confirmed the smaller girl, trying not to lose herself in the sea-blue green eyes of the hopeful woman standing before her. "Oh, it's my turn now. I've been feeling the right side up most days," Tilly replied swiftly, masking obvious distress behind a toothy grin.

"You sure? 'Cause it kinda looks like you're hiding something. I'm pretty good at knowing when you're hiding something."

"I'm just feeling a bit...."

Tilly averted her gaze and managed to let out a brief, strangled sound before she halted. Looking back up at Margot, she saw the taller girl leaning in for what was unmistakably intended to be a kiss. At this, Tilly's eyes broadened and she promptly stumbled back.

"Margot! What the hell are you doing?!"

Margot frowned. She was taken aback slightly by the abrupt change in atmosphere. The forget-me-not blue of her love's eyes was gone now, altered by the light of the luminous crescent in the sky no doubt. They were suddenly of icy-grey; the same icy-grey as Eloise's. And with that, they all came flooding back; the memories of what had transpired before she left to travel and the very reason she felt she had no choice other than to practically abandon the cult leader's daughter to begin with.

"Well, we never officially broke up, so I thought maybe I owed you a kiss. "

Margot's face dropped when she caught her love's bewildered gaze.

"Come on Tilly. I know what happened with that woman and all. And that was beyond terrible and no one deserves to get put through that- least of all you. But I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say, I think you still have feelings for me. I saw it, twinkling in your eye a while ago," jested Margot.