Pink Tulips

Her Lover - 18

Rose and Lilly had ended their date after 4 or 5 hours, and just an hour after Rose had gotten home, she missed Lilly already. Her Lilly. Her girlfriend.

Insanity, pure insanity...but it wasn't. It was real.

Rose was living in a dream, she was falling for Lilly.

Rose had talked to her mom briefly about her date when she got home initially, but for the past 45 minutes or so, she had just been sitting in the kitchen, sitting at the table, and colouring in a book mindlessly as she dreamed of her trip with Lilly.

The purple ink filled the flower petals, and Lilly's purple dress flowed in the wind. The blue ink filled the sky, and they looked down at the roaring river. The pink ink filled the house, and the sunset covered the sky.

Rose imagined her and Lilly in old libraries, reading, learning, expanding their minds, together. She imagined them entering their hotel rooms for the first times, and jumping onto the bed just to hold and kiss each other. She imagined Lilly comforting her whenever they flew by plane, easing her anxiety completely.

"Eeeee!" Rose closed her eyes, dropped her pens and drew her arms to her chest, and just squealed. She was overwhelmed with such joy and excitement she didn't know how to contain, or express, it all.

"Lils, wanna come over and make packing lists and travel itineraries? I know we just had a date and I know this trip isn't for months, and I know it isn't definite that you can come, but I just want to be with you and to pretend it's soon...and just be happy and excited regardless of what truly unfolds." Rose sent the message. Even if they didn't travel together, she wanted to experience the joy of preparing with Lilly, to pretend it was for sure. It may hurt later if their dream was crushed, but that would pass...the joy they experienced from being together would always stay with them.

"Omg for sure, let me just tell my mom and I'll be there in a sec!" Rose smiled. Lilly was really the fastest texter ever. She could win an award for it.

"Hey mom?" Rose got up, went to the back deck, and called out to her mom; who surprisingly wasn't gardening for once.

"Yes sweetie?"

"Is it okay if Lilly comes over? I know we just hungout but we wanted to talk more."

"Aw of course Rosiepie." Her mom said thoughtfully.

"I have a question for you though."

"Yes mom?"

"Would you like to take Lilly with you? To Europe I mean."

Rose came down the steps to sit across from her mom at the patio table.

"Yeah. I've already asked her, and she said yes. If her moms agree, then we can really go together!"

A smile spread across Anne's face.

"Oh that's great. I just wanted to know because your grandma wants to know who you end up choosing, and I wanted to give you time to think about if you want to tell her you're seeing Lilly."

"Oh..." Rose felt a sick feeling come in on her. How could she have forgotten her grandma didn't know she was a lesbian? That she didn't know who she was dating?

"Is she homophobic?"

"I don't think she is, at least not much. Moreso someone who thinks queer love is fine, but prefers to see it from a distance. You'd be safe to tell her, and she would still love you and give you the trip, no doubt about it...it just depends on if you want to go through making her see that it isn't something that has to be viewed from afar."

Rose's mom spoke like a poet. All her words felt so truthful and honest, and Rose believed them all. She felt some sort of comfort knowing she would still be accepted, but she felt scared of having to come out again. It was just so draining.

"Okay, I'll think about. Thanks mom." Rose smiled lightly, stood up, and went inside. This was just in time as she heard a light knock on the door.

Lilly.

Rose felt her worries melt away and rushed to the door, and when she opened it, she saw her girlfriend.

Her lover.

Such a tender, beautiful word, lover. That was what Lilly was to her