Simple Complexity

Part 4

They swayed together softly, just the two of them surrounded by the night. Erin loved the feeling of her skin against her, the way the blonde held her, the way she put gentle pressure on her back with her arms, the way her breath touched her skin, the way she could smell her scent, the way she felt Holtz move her face against her, the way, the way, the way...

Erin pulled back from the blonde, shaking her head with a gentle smile, 'C'mon,' she said, pulling the woman towards the blanket, 'what did you pack for our midnight picnic?'

They sat down on the rug, Erin pulling a blanket around her shoulders, sitting on one of the cushions, and Holtzmann laughed sheepishly, leaning over to the basket, tilting it towards Erin and opening the lid. It was empty.

'I, um..I wasn't sure if you'd even come back here after your date, so my plan was to just order us a pizza if you did turn up.'

Erin snorted with laughter, 'There's nothing in that picnic basket for our picnic?'

Holtzmann spluttered with laughter, shaking her head, and sitting down on a cushion, Erin handing her the other blanket, 'No, there's nothing to eat. But I can order that pizza?'

Erin shook her head, watching as the woman wrapped the blanket around herself.

'No, it's okay, I'm not that hungry. I'm cold, but not hungry.'

'We can go in?'

Erin shook her head again.

'No,' she said softly, hesitating, her eyes meeting Holtz's, 'I...don't..want to.'

Holtzmann nodded, moving her cushion so she was closer to Erin, and they sat together, looking up to the sky, and Holtzmann pulled Erin softly by the shoulder, and they lay back together on the blanket, cushions now beneath their heads, blankets wrapped around them.

They stared up into the sky, patches of stars littered the vast blackness, the moon shining brightly on parts of the roof, their faces bathed in a bluish hue.

Holtz was desperate to reach for Erin's hand, hold it, hold her, cradle her. Instead, she continued to look up into the night, happy that Erin was hers for the moment, and a moment was better than nothing. It was better than not having her. Better than not having her at all. Knowing she would slowly lose her to someone else. To him.

Holtz knew these moments were limited, they had a timer, an expiry, there was a countdown. The blonde didn't want to know how much time she had left, how many more of these moments she could share with Erin, give to Erin before it wasn't appropriate, before Erin didn't want them anymore. She knew this moment was inappropriate, the dancing the picnic, but Erin had sought her out, Erin had come back to the Firehouse. Erin wanted to dance.

'We're so small in this world.'

Holtz turned to the physicist, nodding, 'We are.'

'I think the simplest things are the most beautiful.'

Holtz smiled to herself.

'Look at all those stars, they're complex, but so simple when we look at them from down here. Just a glitter in the night.'

'Why do you think people like stars so much?'

Erin shrugged, looking over at Holtz.

'I guess because it means there's more out there. It's magic really.'

Erin looked back to the sky, pulling the blanket up to her chin.

Holtz returned her gaze to the sky too.