Dark Ocean

Part 5

"I care.." she hears herself breathing out. "I want to know who you are."

Valentina's heart jumps into her throat at the way Juliana's eyes sear into her and never once look away. She can practically see her words slowly sink in and watches the girl's cheeks turn a deep shade of pink.

For a moment, Juliana seems almost awestruck. Her eyes are bright, and her lips part almost reverently when her gaze dances over Valentina's face before her lips spread into a startlingly beautiful smile. Valentina's chest feels like it expands a mile.

She feels her own lips curl up in response and watches glowing, brown eyes shift down. Juliana's gaze lingers on her lips only briefly but it's enough to make Valentina's heart thunder in her chest and then in her ears.

For a split second she wonders if the girl will lean forward, and she braces herself for it, but Juliana doesn't move. She hardly even breathes, and they stay that way for what feels like an eternity, surrounded only by the lingering pink hues of the setting sun and a gentle breeze.

She moves her hand a little and very gently traces the line of Juliana's cheek and her jaw. Valentina sees her shiver. Holding her wide dark eyes, she brushes a stray lock of hair behind the girl's ear and allows her hand to linger against her cheek. She can feel Juliana lean subtly into the touch, and she pushes back with the most minute pressure.

"I care..." she whispers again, unable to stop herself. "..very much."

Her words jump through her lips like they are desperate to be free, and Valentina lets them overwhelm her. Overwhelm Juliana. Her hand is warm on the girl's cheek, almost feverish. If she was thinking her heart was beating before, she knows that it is now beating out of control.

She feels like the world has suddenly shrunken down around them, and she can feel the mounting energy like the build of electricity in the air before a storm. She actually finds herself holding her breath.

"Why?" Juliana whispers, snapping Valentina back to reality.

Her dark eyes are so bright and so achingly vulnerable that Valentina has the overwhelming urge to take the girl in her arms, but she holds herself back. Instead, she just watches Juliana closely, trying to catch every emotion crossing her beautiful face.

"Why do you care?" she whispers again, tilting her head slightly to the side.

Juliana's eyes roam over her face, and Valentina can do nothing but stand before her, vulnerable, open, laying her heart bare. She feels hot and cold at the same time, and when she glances down, she finds her left hand still clasping the girl's right one. She squeezes once, and her lips twitch into a smile when Juliana squeezes back.

She chews on her bottom lip for a few seconds before she looks up into the girl's eyes again.

"Juliana, I.."

She hesitates, unsure what exactly she wants to say. Unconsciously, she twirls her index finger around a strand of Juliana's hair.

"Honesty, I don't know.. I just know that I..." she cuts herself off, because she doesn't know how to put into words what she thinks and feels, what she wants and wishes.

She has no control over these feelings that come and go - okay, mostly come - whenever Juliana touches her, or, truth be told, whenever she so much as looks at her. These non-platonic, endlessly complicated feelings.