*Cate's POV*
Vera was asleep, before I could unpack the whole luggage. She truly had been knocked out by her allergy pill.
Yet, I rather had her sleeping, than her agonizing over a constantly clogged nose and teary and itchy eyes. A week ago, we had that exact situation. Just like she mentioned in the car earlier, I was just as helpless as her mom. I had never before seen her like that. And I had seen her pretty much at her lowest. This was... well it was terrifying, as well.
The pills didn't work and Vera was seriously crying for an hour straight. I felt inhumanly sorry. That makes no sense, although it's the best way to describe it.
As if my kids are suffering, when sick or hurt. It physically ached my heart. Vera... it was just like that with her.
Peacefully, the woman was sleeping in front of me, for half an hour. I was holding her. This vulnerable bundle. I loved her. No matter what.
After I tucked Vera in and ensured her feet were covered, I went back downstairs. Ros was seated in the living room, leaving me wondering where Paulson was at. The woman turned her head and flashed her kind smile.
"Sarah is taking a nap in her room." She answered my question, before I was able to even ask it.
"Vera does the same. So, how have you been?" I seated myself next to her, allowing my ears to take in every detail Ros would give me on her life.
The woman chuckled and cleared her voice. "We moved. -Actually quite far away." The dark blonde added. "Robie was immensely thrilled about it. The boys... let's say, they are getting used to it. -gosh, but I love it. The Czech Republic is such a gorgeous place to be. We mostly have been shooting there as well..." Ros gave me a questioning look.
"For your series. I've been updated. Vera saw advertisement for it actually and now she's been begging me to start watching it with her, but she still didn't recognize you outside." I chuckled.
"Oh, I see. Well, Sarah and I thought-"
Sloppy steps approached from behind and a sneeze followed, causing my lips to form into a slim smile. "Bless you, sweetheart."
"Thanks." Vera sniffed and shifted in her position, before I pulled her body in front of me onto the couch. "Why did you leave?" She questioned sleepily, whilst I freed her face form her own tangled chestnut curls. Her skin felt hot underneath my fingertips, as they brushed along her temple.
"I didn't want to wake you. How did you sleep?"
"Good, but I'm still tired." The brunette groaned, meanwhile stretching out her arms.
"Have you been outside yet?" Ros asked and Vera gave a firm shaking of her head from left to right. "Well, Cate here is a great guide."
"Oh shush." I laughed, along with the woman.
"A walk sounds good. I might wake up." Vera grinned at me.
"Listen to her." The dark blonde snickered. "Catching up. Sarah and I thought about a kayak trip."
"When?"
"We thought about-" Ros glimpsed at her wrist watch. "In an hour?"
Although Vee seemed rather unbothered and kinda indecisive, we agreed to the trip, before making our way outside. A comfortable, warm breeze surrounded me, as it sizzled along my skin. This place.. I would never get bored of it. Every year it looked the same. The only difference: growing trees and generally plants, yet it wasn't overflowing at all. Apart from teh parking lots. Now that was a whole different thing.
"Where are we going?" Vera asked, with bigger growing eyes. Eyes full of curiosity. Wasn't it immensely intriguing, how her orbs sparkled with eagerness and curiosity, for the thing she was passionate about? It surely wasn't the walk the brunette was looking forward to, but it was the nature. The flowers and plants.
For some reason this mattered to Vera a lot and I loved this about her. Those little things, she would simply smile at.
"A flower field." And there her smile allowed the dimples to show right next to her mouth.
A hint of lavender mixed itself into the scent of warm and fresh nature, whilst we walked through the colorful field. The sound of a few bees swirling around us, lingered in the air. Vee's hand was captured by mine and for the first time in weeks, it appeared to me as if everything was completely fine.
Nevertheless I knew better. It's that silence, that betrayed her every time. Surely, her disposition has always been this calm, rather quiet one, but this silence was different. It was full of secrecy and guilt. How I could read the woman by now...
I might had a chance to find out what it was soon. Being nosy wasn't anything I'd use to describe myself with and it also wasn't the right word in this case. I was incredibly worried about her. It made me sick to my stomach, to just think about what might be the reason.
I had to be nosy. I had to bring her to talk to me.
It might had to be in an unpleasant way, but at least I would know what was wrong, so I was able to help Vera. After her troubling past, she deserved a peaceful present and future.
"Look at these tulips." The brunette pointed at the pretty, purple and pink flowers, as we were getting closer to the lake again. "And they smell deliciously sweet." The woman explained after kneeling down and sticking her nose right into a bunch of them.
"Be carful to not inhale a bee." I chuckled and watched her chestnut curls bouncing, as she backed off slightly. "Your hair has gotten so long.."
Vera turned her head at me, a sunshiny simper on her plum lips. "Will you tell me to go see a hairdresser soon, as well?" She laughed.
"Gosh no," I rolled my eyes and helped her back up. "I love your hair. It suits your lovely face and soul." My fingers captured a strand of her cotton soft hair. Wasn't she beautiful?
"My soul?" I nodded. "You're so cheesy today." Vera grinned and a few faint wrinkles showed on her forehead.
"I'm very kind today, indeed. We should get going, though, I bet they are getting the kayaks ready right now." Slowly sliding her hands up and down my back, she bit her lip. Oh I would lie, if I denied I enjoyed where Vera wanted this to go. My face inched closer, til the tip of my nose brushed hers. "Are we in the mood, huh?" I breathed out, catching a rosy blush to spread across her cheeks.
The brunette rarely blushed, since she had gotten more comfortable around me.
Shaking her head gently, she pulled back. The contact of her hands fading on my skin. "I'm on my period anyway and-" Put of the blue she completely puzzled.
My fingertips stroke along her jawline. "That's no reason to not have fun." It's been a few, since the last time we had sex... Vera's face was suddenly overrun by horror, which she pathetically tried to cover, without success. "Hey, my love, we are not doing anything you're not willing to do. Okay? Hey, hey, hey it's alright." I pulled her body into my arms, as the tears fell down her eyes. "Shh.. my angel, it's alright. Everything's alright... shh.."
What was going on? I let Vee know, she could always talk to me, whilst the cries slowly faded. And without a further comment, we continue to walk. Silence ruled mostly, until I managed to hold up a simple conversation. Then the brunette flashed a toothy grin even. What is it about these mood swings..
We had almost reached the house again, but Vera kneeled down in an instant. Unfortunately, I was not able to get a look on what she was doing and what was happening. Though I heard the woman suddenly clapping her hands together, or so I thought.
"Cate! Look!" She smiled and turned around. Her hands capturing something within them.
My brows knitted. "This isn't an earthworm, is it? It's pretty moist-"
"No, look." Vera stepped closer and removed the hand on top. Forest green eyes sparkled up, in a thrilled manner. The sun left her skin shimmering, as if a faint glitter was used to paint on her.
When I allowed my eyes to finally look at the sensation, I was forced to blink several times to ensure she was showing me this. "A frog?!" My voice hitched in my throat.
Unsure about what I was expressing, the woman in front of me seemed to have a huge fight inside her head all over again.
"Yeah..? You said you like them." She breathed out almost in a whisper. Jesus, Vee was so sensitive at the moment.
"Yes! Yes, I-" I chuckled. "I simply didn't expect you to catch one. It's gorgeous. Wow." I caught her smiling, so I allowed my fingers to trace along hers, before they barely brushed along the green surface, causing the frog to jump back into the wild green ground. "Damn, I didn't have a chance to kiss it." A simper fell onto our lips and I pecked hers. "Much better."
———
"CATHERINE, I SWEAR TO FUCKING GOD, IF YOU DON'T STOP WIGGLING AROUND, I WILL DORWN YOU WITH ME IN THE FUCKING LAKE!" The brunette in the seat in front of me yelled from the top of her lungs, leaving herself breathing heavily. The dragonflies, that surrounded us only seconds ago, flew off in a haze. No wonder, I jumped a little myself.
Her voice echoed across the whole lake, people in a space of ten miles heard it.
I sucked in my lips and tried genuinely to not burst out laughing, cause it was just so much fun to tease her, but mostly I hoped for it to be effective. "I'm not doing anything." I defended myself, earning some looks from Ros and Sarah next to us. 'Don't' I mouthed to the brunette, who was about to make another joke that wasn't funny.
There was a deafening silence. No one really dared to speak, afraid Vera might snap again. Just then I thought, about how I actually had to make her open up and it usually worked by getting under her skin and especially by getting on her nerves. So, that's what I had to do.
I used my paddle to scoop some water onto Vee's back, causing her white shirt to become see through from behind, whilst the water dripped down into the kayak. A gasp reached me from the side, showing a hyped up Paulson, with an open mouth and big eyes, interested in the coming up reaction and a Ros, who's in utterly disbelief I just pulled this off.
"Oh, I didn't mean to-" I sarcastically apologized, yet the brunette didn't react at all. She did not splash the water back at me nor did she say anything.
"You fucked up." Paulson whispered.
"I hate to break it to you, but I agree with her." The dark blonde squinted her eyes and we kept going. "You might owe her an apology-"
"Or amazing sex-" Paulson was cut short, when Ros mirrored my actions from previously. "Oh that was a mistake!" She warned, meanwhile laughing her ass off.
"Don't make us all fall into the lake, Sarah." They both fell into laughter.
"This was by the way how it was supposed to happen." I explained to Vera, whose nerve I hit with that.
"Why don't you just have fun with them, then? Alone." The brunette spoke in a icy cold tone, before using her padded to bring us back to the meadow we used to get into the kayaks.
"Vee-"
"No." She cut me off and kept paddling, until we reached the spot again, where she couldn't wait to exit the boat.
The woman jumped outside, not caring about how deep the water at this point might be. It looked quite ugly, how Vera's ankle just gave in, as she twisted it, whilst hitting the ground in the water. She hid her face, but the way she just grabbed into the meadow in front of her, I saw the pain.
"Sweetheart, careful-"
"Cut it. Have fun. I'm done! I shouldn't have come." The brunette whined out and stamped, or so she tried, it was more of an anger driven limp, towards the house.
In the meantime the others reached me as well and we decided to call it off. It was a long day after all and I wasn't sure how to proceed. Vera was acting incredibly strange and I didn't know what was wrong. I was afraid- no, terrified to be accurate. I was terrified.
She worried me.. a lot. Vee usually wasn't easily to throw off the track. She truly was focused and now this? Her mind was somewhere else. Then the whole tense and moody behavior. Well, Vera was on her period, but she wasn't for three weeks on it and that's minimum for how long she seemed to be caught up in her own mind.
Even hours later, I couldn't put these thoughts away. It was the darkness which masked my view, onto the lake and slowly even my feet.
Footsteps on the wooden floor, approached from behind. "What's wrong? That's not the dream couple Sarah has repeatedly told me about, hm." Ros asked in a soft voice, whilst taking a seat on the stairs next to me. "Blanket?" She hold the blanket up and wrapped it around my shoulders, after I nodded.
"... something is not right. I know it. My gut feeling is telling me this. She is acting so off." I breathed out, whilst allowing my head to slide into my hands.
"And in your past you were able to trust this feeling, didn't you? So, what are you going to do about it? Keep stressing Vera out?" Ros chuckled and patted my back.
"No, I want her to open up and making her mad helped me the last time. She was screaming at me and finally let go of it. We were okay again. At least I thought so..."
"Oh gosh, you two are one of a kind. Well, whatever you're doing I hope it's gonna help."
"Me too, Ros." Me too...