Yearning, Learning - [Catradora Drabbles] [Returns 09/29/23]

11 - The Movies

As if today couldn't be more breathtaking for the both of them, Adora one-ups Catra's surprise by setting up a mini movie theater out in the balcony. It features a calm and sweet-toothed movie about two aliens falling in love; a cliche, forbidden love trope about them being from opposing planets. In contrast to most conflicts though, this one lasts about twenty minutes into the movie, and the other seventy minutes are pure, feel-good moments between the two women. It's about, if not as corny as it sounds. The serious moments it attempts to perform fall short, ending in silliness every time.

With only five minutes left of the movie, the pair begin to doze off, first Adora, and later Catra, the latter who's still too occupied eating snacks to let sleep win her over yet. She munches as quietly as the crunchiness of the chips allows her to and proceeds to pick a less loud food option when she's done with it: a muffin with an alluringly sweet scent to it. She compares that aroma with one she'd whiffed off Adora whenever she went to the kitchen. That makes her steal a quick look at her, mind wondering if, perhaps, the reason why she took so long when it was her turn to cook was due to her trying to bake sweets in secret. The muffin in her hold smells far too similar to Adora's last attempt, and it urges her to take a bite and identify the ingredients in it. Even if it was silly, she could try figuring out if any of those items were found in the pantry of their home.

Vanilla and almonds. Those are the first two tastes she manages to pick off the first bite. She thinks back to the not-so distant past and stumbles upon the memory of Adora working in the garden for hours on end, planting seeds and saplings that were unknown to Catra. Again, she wonders if this is another one of Adora's attempts at surprising her, or if she simply didn't want to let her new hobby be known. Catra takes another bite and catches the hint of another flavor, fruity yet subtle. Then, she faces to her girlfriend's side and smiles wide, warmed by the thought of her practicing so much for something so trifling, not in the sense of what it was, but for how much Adora seemed to want to keep that a secret by masking these off with the rest of the store-bought snacks she'd brought along. She hadn't once mentioned her baking hobby just as she hadn't mentioned the muffin was made by her, yet Catra has a solid guess as to why that could be.

She kisses her cheek, murmuring "You're such a dork," right as she pulls back. "I wonder how many times you tried that 'til you got it right." Her hand strokes her cheek while her smile grows, fondness overcoming the look in her eyes. "Tell me next time, alright? I'd like to try new things with you, too." She takes her hand back and widens her eyes when she sees Adora toss and turn in her seat, the blanket over her beginning to slip off her body.

Catra acts fast, pulling the sheets back up as she adds, "Were you listening to me?"

She waits for an answer, smile reappearing when she sees Adora turn, breathe deep, and nod, tucking herself into a corner of her seat as she dozes off back to sleep.

"You're the biggest dork here, though," Adora counters. The trace of a smile shows through, most of it overcome by sleep. "Wanting to book a stay here for my sake..." Her last words are murmured as she falls back to sleep. "...Thank you," is the last thing Catra can hear her say when she dozes off completely. She lets her head rest against her shoulder and enjoys the soft, placid warmth of her presence so close to hers.

Catra doesn't bother getting up to turn off the movie and lets it be replayed as she moves closer to Adora's side. She hugs her close and tight, allowing herself to fall asleep in the comfort of her arms.

"...And thank you, too," she whispers, drifting off to sleep.