‘Uh huh,’ Dylan said, humouring her. ‘Or, it could go really well and you’ll both want a second date?’
‘Yeah, that bit scares me too.’
‘I know. But you’ve got this.’
‘I know. Look, I’ve got to go; you know how bad I am at multi-tasking, and I want to get there alive.’
‘Roger that. Good luck!’
‘Thanks,’ she said before Dylan hung up.
Taylor pulled into the restaurant car park with a few minutes to spare. She looked around and couldn’t see Paige’s car anywhere, so she thought it would be safe to go in and order herself a drink, give herself a chance to acclimatise.
Inside the restaurant was a lot more formal than she had expected. It had been Paige’s suggestion on account of the variety of vegetarian and vegan food they had, but she hadn’t mentioned that it was rather upscale. Taylor turned slightly red as she made her way to the bar. Before she could get there, she was stopped by Paige calling out to her. She was already seated at the table, drink in hand. Taylor gave a shy wave and awkwardly changed direction.
‘Hi,’ Paige said, getting to her feet, and pulling Taylor’s chair out for her. Paige had worn smart suit trousers that fitted her legs perfectly. The light blue shirt nicely framed her shoulders and flowed down her torso. She had worn her hair down, the first time Taylor had seen her do that. It almost glowed in the candlelight of the restaurant. She tried to respond to Paige’s greeting but all she could manage was some kind of squeak. Taylor had hoped that she’d have a bit of time to settle herself before Paige got there; but here she was, staring at her with those beautiful brown eyes. Taylor shuddered slightly as she sat down.
‘Did you find it OK?’ Paige asked, taking a sip of her drink.
‘Yes, thank you. I had a few wardrobe issues before leaving which is why I’m late, I’m sorry.’
‘You’re not late, and you look beautiful,’ Paige said earnestly, her eyes twinkling and reflecting the candle’s flame. Taylor swallowed hard. Paige must have noticed because she stopped a waiter and asked Taylor what she would have to drink.
‘Just a lemonade, thank you,’ she asked. The waiter nodded his head and floated away. Taylor shook her head slightly, trying to make her brain start working again.
‘How’re you? How was the airport?’ Taylor asked. Paige had told her about seeing Maya off and how difficult it was over text, but Taylor wanted to check in person.
‘It was... difficult.’ Paige said, taking another sip of her drink. ‘The thought of not seeing Maya for so long is...’ Her voice hitched slightly. Taylor instinctively reached out and took her hand. The instant sparks she felt electrified the butterflies in her stomach, and she blushed heavily; but she didn’t let go. Paige smiled at her, though her eyes looked more like she wanted to run.
The waiter re-appeared, making them both jump and retract their hands simultaneously.
‘Here is your drink, madam,’ he said, lifting Taylor’s lemonade off the tray he was holding and carefully placing it down in front of her. ‘Are you ladies ready to order?’ he asked, taking his tiny notepad and pencil out expectantly.
‘Oh... right... yes’ Paige said, picking up the menu. Taylor hadn’t had a chance to even look at the different options, let alone decide what she wanted. She looked helplessly up at Paige, who was still focused on the menu in front of her. Taylor looked back down at her own menu, hoping something would jump out at her.
‘Do you need more time?’ the waiter asked, speaking directly to Taylor. She nodded, and the waiter floated away again.
‘Sorry, I forgot,’ Paige said, before explaining, ‘I suck at decision making, so I always end up ordering the same thing. Most times I don’t even look at the menu.’
‘What do you normally have?’ Taylor asked.
‘I usually start with the melon or the soup, then have the roast or the halloumi.’
Taylor quickly scanned the text in front of her, locating those items. She couldn’t think straight, and every time she glanced up, she saw Paige watching her, one hand on the table while the other played with the stem of her wine glass. While still staring at the text in front of her, Taylor spoke.
‘You make a habit of that, you know.’
‘Of what?’ Paige asked.
‘Staring at people.’
‘Do I? I’m sorry,’ Paige said, looking down at the table. Taylor immediately wished she hadn’t said anything, she hadn’t wanted to make Paige feel uncomfortable.
The two women sat in silence until the waiter came back a few minutes later. Taylor still hadn’t been able to make a decision so she just asked for the same as Paige, figuring it must be good if she ordered it nearly every time she came there. Taylor was trying to think of a way to reignite the conversation, but her brain felt like mush. Paige seemed to be actively avoiding making eye contact with her. But then, Taylor couldn’t remember her making much eye contact any other time, either.
‘How is work going?’ Taylor asked, finally able to command her brain to form a coherent sentence.
‘It’s alright. My teaching schedule is pretty busy which doesn’t leave me much time for any research projects.’
‘What are you working on right now?’ Taylor asked before taking a drink.
Paige launched into a long explanation of the novel she was writing, its relevance to the French Resistance, and how the women involved had been neglected in the annals of history. Taylor tried nodding and smiling in the right places, but she kept getting distracted by how Paige’s face lit up when she was talking about her work. Her usually docile gestures became animated and excited, and Taylor could hear the passion in her voice as she spoke.
When their food arrived, Paige was forced to stop her monologue, allowing Taylor to ask some more questions. Taylor wanted to know everything she could about her, her hobbies, her family, her life before teaching, everything. Paige, however, had her own questions.
‘How did you come to be working at the university?’ she asked innocently. Taylor didn’t know how to respond. This was their first real date, and it was way too soon to tell her about Daniella. But she didn’t want to lie.
‘An old professor contacted me about a research opportunity, and it was too good to pass up!’ she said jovially, overcompensating for the dark clouds of memories attached to that point in her life. Taylor smiled and focused back on the meal in front of her. ‘This is really good!’ she said, loading another forkful of melon and attempting to gracefully put it in her mouth.
‘It’s one of my favourites,’ Paige said, smiling.
‘I can see why!’ Taylor said from behind a polite hand covering her mouth.
‘Why did you give up climbing for so many years?’ Paige asked. No pre-amble; direct and to the point. Taylor knew the question was innocent enough, but it felt like Paige was homing in on all her weaknesses. Taylor normally controlled conversations by asking questions; people normally loved to talk about themselves, so it didn’t take much to keep the conversation away from her personal life. But Paige wouldn’t allow herself to be misdirected.
‘Dylan had a few issues that meant he couldn’t climb for a while,’ Taylor said, trying to keep her voice steady as more unhappy memories threatened to fill her mind. ‘It just didn’t feel right without him, so I stopped.’
‘I can understand that,’ Paige said, giving her a comforting smile.
‘You can?’ Taylor said, amazed. Most people didn’t understand why she gave up something she was good at, just because her brother stopped.
‘Of course. It’s just not the same, is it? Like you only had half the pieces to the jigsaw,’ Paige said, shrugging her shoulders slightly.
‘Exactly,’ Taylor said, beaming at her.
The waiter stealthily reappeared and cleared away their plates. Taylor didn’t even realise she had left her hand on the table until Paige took it in her own. Taylor immediately blushed again as the butterflies in her stomach became so erratic, she thought they might burst out
.
‘You make a habit of that, you know,’ Paige said, jokingly echoing Taylor’s earlier words. Taylor appreciated her attempt to put her at ease, but it only made her blush harder. She was so painfully aware of the burning in her cheeks that she did not need to ask what Paige meant.
They were broken apart by the waiter popping up next to them with their main course, and it wasn’t long before they were talking again, the conversation slowly starting to flow more easily as they got past their nerves and actually began to enjoy themselves. Neither woman had room for dessert, and when the bill came Paige insisted on paying despite Taylor’s protestations. Once outside the restaurant, neither woman was quite ready for the night to end, so Taylor suggested they walk to a nearby park.
PAIGE
Paige was grateful when Taylor suggested they go for a walk. She had been nervous for the entire day, so much so that she had arranged for the taxi to pick her up half an hour earlier than necessary. She’d smiled more that evening than she had the entire week since Maya left.
Despite wearing her thickest coat Paige was still shivering slightly as they walked. She hoped that Taylor would not hear her teeth chattering. The streets were fairly empty, most people having the sense to stay inside on a night where the temperatures threatened to dip below freezing. Lights shone out from behind different coloured curtains and blinds, like a multi-coloured mosaic lining the street. Paige could just make out the outline of large clouds, where the moonlight had forced its way through. There was a light breeze which made the scant trees whisper, gossiping about the two women walking down the street who were trying not to look at each other but edging ever closer.
They rounded the corner, and the park came into view. It was one of the smaller parks in the city; a small playground adjoining a larger patch of grass with criss-crossing paths. In the centre was an exuberant, intricately decorated fountain, with laughing cherubs holding up a large stone bowl. The fountain was silent now, hibernating, waiting for the spring and the warmer weather. Paige and Taylor started walking down one of the paths that ran around the outside of the park. Despite her best attempts, Paige couldn’t mask the shiver that overcame her body, and she brought her hands up to her mouth to blow hot air into them, a minuscule respite from the cold.
‘Are you OK?’ Taylor asked, concerned.
‘Yes, I’m fine, just a bit chilly,’ Paige responded, ignoring the fact she could no longer feel her toes.
‘Here,’ Taylor said, taking off her scarf, gloves, and hat and handing them to Paige. ‘Put these on.’
‘What?! No, then you’ll be cold!’
‘I’ll be fine. Please? You’re practically turning blue in front of my eyes.’ Taylor stopped walking and held the woollen items out towards Paige, staring at her, playfully daring her to try and decline again.
‘Thank you,’ Paige said demurely. The truth was as soon as she slipped her hands into the gloves, she understood why Taylor was so attached to them; her hands immediately began to warm and the headache she was starting to get abated.
They carried on walking, occasionally discussing the cold or climbing, but mainly in a comfortable silence. Taylor was walking so close next to her that she could see the individual eyelashes framing her eyes, and she had to resist the temptation to reach out and tuck some stray strands of hair, now free from their hat bonds, behind Taylor’s ear. As if the weather had taken pity on her, large flakes of snow started falling from the sky, providing a welcome distraction. Taylor turned her face to the sky and laughed, sticking her tongue out to try and catch the snowflakes in her mouth. Paige just watched, in awe of her child-like joy.
‘It’s snowing! I wonder if it will stick?’ Taylor said, grinning.
‘The ground is probably cold enough for it to.’
‘Isn’t this great?’ Taylor asked rhetorically, stepping out onto the grass and slowly spinning around with her arms out, her hair fluttering in the wind. She stopped suddenly and just looked at Paige thoughtfully. Paige didn’t understand what was happening. Taylor held out her hand to Paige, inviting her to the side of childish fun. Paige hesitated briefly before extending her own, gloved hand and clasping the colder one that was offered. Immediately she was pulled forwards and Taylor began spinning her around like the nearby merry-go-round would, laughing the entire time. Paige couldn’t help herself and she began laughing too, breaking away from Taylor’s grip and spinning into a pirouette, finishing with a flourish. The two women couldn’t stop grinning and stealing glances at each other, playing in the snow like they had when they were children. Eventually they were forced to stop due to dizziness, and they crunched their way back to the path, the frozen grass now littered with little white flecks of joy.
‘We should probably head back soon, it’s getting late,’ Taylor said ruefully. She interlinked her arm with Paige’s as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Paige, to her surprise, found she didn’t mind.
‘Where did you park?’ Taylor asked
‘I didn’t, I got a taxi.’
‘Ah, OK. If you call one now, it should be there by the time we get back to the restaurant?’ Taylor suggested.
‘Good idea.’ Paige used an app on her phone to summon a taxi, having to remove the borrowed gloves to do so. ‘I should probably give you these back now, before I forget,’ she said, reluctantly removing the hat, scarf, and remaining glove. ‘Thank you for letting me borrow them.’
‘Not a problem,’ Taylor said, secretly grateful she was able to warm her hands up again.
They saw even fewer people on their walk back to the restaurant. There were less mosaic tiles of light, too, with many people having already turned in for the night. Paige shoved both her hands into her pockets, not wanting to give up the warmth she had managed to accumulate. Taylor re-linked their arms without need for an invitation.
There were only a few cars left at the restaurant by the time they got there, and they could see through the windows the last of the patrons finishing up their meals. Taylor stamped her feet a little, still recovering from her time sans woollens.
‘I’ll be OK if you want to go?’ Paige offered gently. ‘You look frozen.’
‘I’m fine, and I’m not about to leave you on your own. What if that taxi doesn't show?’
‘Then I’ll call another one,’ Paige stated
‘Fine, Miss Practical, but I’m still not leaving you,’ Taylor said, her lip now trembling slightly.
A few minutes later the taxi pulled into the restaurant car park, headlights picking up the snow as it danced its way to the ground.
‘Thank you for tonight, I had a great time,’ Paige said, smiling at Taylor. Taylor didn’t respond, but instead went to her tiptoes and gave Paige a gentle kiss on the cheek. Paige was too stunned to respond straight away. She just stood there stiffly, and when Taylor withdrew, she was blushing heavily.
Paige tried speaking but was unsure what words if any she would be able to form. Her heart felt like it was doing a tap dance, while her brain felt like it had flat-lined, and her stomach was full of fireworks.
‘Goodnight, then,’ Taylor said grinning, as she opened the taxi door for Paige. It took a while for Paige to will her body to move; she felt like she had been cemented to the spot. Eventually she managed to force her uncooperative limbs into the taxi, and Taylor shut the door. The car window framed her date as she stood there, wanting to see the taxi off. She had the most beautiful smile spread across her face, whilst the snow spun around her like she was its choreographer. The taxi started pulling away and Taylor gave a slight wave, watching it the entire way out the car park.
‘Where to, love?’ the taxi driver asked, needing to know which way to turn. Paige gave him her street name and, finally, relaxed back into the seat. A small smile began to form on her face, and she wrapped her arms around herself. Her smile grew strong and wide, and she crossed her legs and began watching out the window. The street lamps they passed created their own stages, allowing the snow to be itself as it
fell, dancing all the way.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Lost
Taylor was wrapped up warm in bed, two duvets tight around her like a cocoon. She was sleeping with a slight smile on her face, dreaming of the date she had with Paige, when the shrill sound of her phone woke her.
‘Ungh,’ she moaned, chastising herself for forgetting to turn her alarm off. It was Saturday and there was nothing specific to get up for. She fumbled for her phone with her eyes still closed, wanting to hold on to the last remnants of the dream, but it was no good. Reluctantly opening her eyes, she could see the bright blue light of her phone illuminating up her bedside table. The light seared her eyes as she held the phone in front of her face, trying to get her bleary eyes to clear enough to turn the alarm off. It took her a few seconds to realise what had woken her wasn’t her alarm. Her parents were ringing her. At one in the morning.
She picked up, suddenly alert now, and pressed the phone to her ear.
‘H-hello?’ she stammered.
‘Taylor, it’s your brother,’ her father said from the other end of the phone. Taylor’s eyes shot open and she immediately sat up in bed like a jack-in-the-box.
‘Dylan?’ she asked rhetorically. ‘What’s happened?’ her voice trembled slightly as she braced herself for whatever was coming.
‘He just called us. It sounded like her was in a club of some sort, we could barely hear him,’ her father said quickly. ‘Taylor, I don’t think he was sober.’
‘Shit,’ Taylor said, already out of the warm confines of her bed and clumsily getting dressed one handed. ‘Hang on, Dad, I’ll put you on speaker,’ she said, putting her phone down on her bedside table. ‘OK.’
‘Do you know where he might be?’ her dad asked, pleadingly.
‘No. He didn’t mention going out. I have no idea.’
‘It sounded very loud, so I’m pretty sure it was a club, but there must be loads of them near you.’
‘Yeah...’ Taylor shuddered. ‘I’ll find him though, Dad. I always do.’
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