Hold me closer

The other side of me

Quinn was startled, thinking that there must be a hidden motive. "With me?" Nia rolled her eyes. "Yes, you, smartass. Don't let it get to you though." Quinn grinned at Nia, thinking of all the opportunities that just arose. Would they have a good time or just drive each other crazy? She was aiming for both. "Fine. But we are getting straight out of this damn district." "Why? What's wrong with the good stuff?" Nia protested. "Did you seriously just..."

Quinn was growing increasingly tired from all of the rich people bullshit. "Okay, so here's the thing. The 'good stuff' in life is the things you can't buy for money. At least, not a lot of it." Nia made a disgusted face. "Are you suggesting we go thrifting?!" Quinn took the last sip of her coffee. "You're exhausting, you know that?" She stood up and started walking towards the city fair. "Come on!" "Come where?" Nia yelled after her. Quinn turned her head whilst walking. "To the peasant's quarters. I want to show you the simple pleasures."

Ten minutes later

Nia wouldn't shut up about the perks of being rich and how she already knew how to have fun. Quinn was listening with one ear and words were going out the other. Until they reached the sea of people at the city fair, and paused to take it all in. "This is your idea of fun?" Quinn kept going, feeling like getting good thrill. "Just shut up already and come on!"

Standing in the queue to the most extreme rollercoaster Quinn could find, Nia was scrolling through instagram with her head down. "You deserve better, you know that?" Nia just shrugged it off. "Whatever." Quinn couldn't help but feel bad for her. Money had a tendency to turn people fake, and Nia had been around that all her life. "Hey, it's our turn!" Nia put her phone away and hesitantly got in the back of the train. Quinn jumped in next to her and suddenly they were sitting very close together.

Nia starred into space, keeping her eyes still on a single spot. Quinn had seen it before, it was common when not wanting to let on that you were nervous. The ride started slowly climbing upwards, and when it reached its peak, Nia took Quinn's hand in a panic. Quinn smiled slightly, held onto it and squeezed as they fell straight down in a surreal speed. Nia kept her eyes tightly closed as the train went around turns, up and down, upside down. Quinn found it hard to enjoy the experience as usual when the girl next to her wasn't.

"Hey! Look at me!" Quinn screamed to catch Nia's attention with the wind hitting their faces hard. "Just look at me!" Nia turned her head and kept her eyes set on Quinn's. Quinn felt the power of eye contact as she smiled and Nia loosened the grip of her hand slightly. There was no need to say anything. It was just the two of them, face to face, speeding through the sky. And Quinn felt happy.

After a while, they got off the roller coaster and started walking towards nowhere in particular. Nia was quiet, and Quinn could understand her scilence. She was still like a kid because she had had little to no experiences in the real world. Her parents wealth had always cushioned her falls and she used her zero-fucks-given attitude as a shield for everything she was insecure about. No kid wanted to feel more easily moved than someone older than them.

But fact is, Nia was a woman. And behind all of her built up shields, Quinn knew she would one day find the vurnorable side of her. Quinn stopped at a bench facing the view of the sea. She sat down, and Nia sat next to her. Quinn looked into her eyes, and they were calm to a point she had never seen them at before. "You know, you don't have to keep appearences up around me." Nia turned to look her in the eyes.

"I don't even know you." Her voice was vurnorable for once, and Quinn felt happy to be the one she trusted. "And that's perfect. I have no idea who you are, I have no expectations." Nia faced towards the water, looking out over the sea longingly. "So show me." Quinn watced the breeze playing with Nia's hair. The space around them was calm and the only thing not still was the wind. Quinn couldn't keep her eyes off Nia, and that feeling was giving her unwanted throwbacks. She tried her very best to stay in the moment, because that moment was more than worth it.

Nia faced the ground and hid her face in her hair for a while and then looked back up at Quinn. It was like her mask went on again within a moment, but this time Quinn had a feeling it was less ridgid. "So, where's next?"

Quinn took a moment to think about it, and then she dragged Nia along back to the buzz of the fair. She showed Nia what she used to enjoy as a kid. The city wasn't young, and Quinn was a good bit older than Nia. "This is impossible!" Nia was getting frustrated with the moving basketball hoops at one of those stands made to waste your money. "You're just aiming it wrong. You need to stand closer..." Quinn stood behind her and used her hands to guide her hips into the right position. "A little to the left..."

Quinn couldn't help but feel a bit nervous being so close to Nia. But it was also probably the best feeling she'd ever had. She backed away and Nia took another shot, the ball fitting perfectly down the net. "I did it!" She turned around with a big smile on her face, bubbling with excitement. Quinn just stood back grinning and watched her claim her prize from the shelf. "What do we name him?"

Nia held out a giant unicorn plushie, the kind that was soft all around and had a silly face. "He looks like a Hank to me." Nia laughed, and it was like the most amazing thing Quinn had ever heard. "You suck at naming things!" Nia started walking to the next stand and Quinn yelled after her. "What's wrong with Hank?"