At First Glance

Therese welcomed her day with a loud yawn. She stretched her upper body like a child reaching for chocolate bars. Even with her eyes closed, she embraced the morning with a smile. Nobody could ruin her special day.

Tonight, her photos would finally be shown publicly. She was shocked to know that there were people who perceived her art as something provocative or to say the least, something that was appealing to the eyes. As much as she was proud of her work, she was still nervous about how the audience might think of it. Therese pondered if people would like what she offered and if any of her photos would be bought.

Trying to calm her thoughts, the brunette slowly opened her eyes and savored the stillness of the early morning. She was excited to know what the day would bring her. 

Therese stood by the window and languidly drew the drapes to look out at the vast city. She still had time before seeing her ever-energetic brother. Like the introvert she was, she preferred the peaceful and private ambiance her room had.

“Good morning, T! You finally came out of your room. Big day today, isn’t it?” Dannie welcomed the young woman with breakfast ready.

The brunette couldn’t help but smile at her brother’s effort to make her morning lighter and better.

“Good morning, Dan. Thank you for preparing breakfast, I’m famished”

“Do you want me to come with you to the gallery tonight or I’ll just meet you there?”

“I’m fine, Dan. I’ll meet you tonight, but can you help me pick clothes to wear, though?”

“Anything for my care bear!”

Therese smiled at the endearment and made a note to herself to thank Dannie for all his help before the night ended.

The people started pouring in at the Catherine Hall in Momenatre d’Art just before the clock struck seven-thirty in the evening. Carol, Abby, and Julie were part of the attendance as well. The first time they entered the vast space, the three couldn’t help but be intrigued by the series of photographs posted across the hall. They were all in black and white, and although the photos were all nude, nothing felt sexual about them. It was pure art.

“Wow, Abby. I’m so glad you forced me to go with you and Julie,” Carol said with wide eyes.

“Even if you don’t end up getting laid tonight, at least you still got to see the beauty of a raw and visceral body,” her best friend joked at her good-naturedly.

The blonde just rolled her eyes at the two women laughing at her.

“Where’s Genevieve, anyway? We should probably thank her for inviting us,” said Julie, abruptly disrupting their banter.

“She’s probably somewhere, talking to important guests already. You know how it is being successful,” her wife answered.

“Who’s Genevieve?” Carol inquired, feeling a bit out of place for not knowing who the woman was.

“Oh, she’s the owner of this gallery. I’ve known her since I was a teenager, she’s like a younger sister to me. We basically lived next to each other,” Abby simply answered.

The blonde didn’t know what to say so she just nodded her head and smiled.

“We’ll see her anytime now. How about we drink some champagne and look at the pictures more? You might even find yourself buying a copy, Carol” Julie offered them.

Therese didn’t want to overdress, so she decided to wear something she wore every day-- only because she was anxious for the exhibit and was certain she would be bombarded by a lot of people and almost all the attention would be directed at her. She was not used to being in the public eye. She did her best to avoid it. She even had a short argument with her brother as he insisted that she wear a fitting long gown. Donned instead in a navy-blue suit, paired with black heeled boots, Therese was ready to conquer anything. She paired her suit with a layered necklace and let her hair fall in its natural waves. Therese insisted on wearing something comfortable, so she had nothing on underneath the suit, making her have a plunging neckline that accentuated her collarbones and breasts. 

“You look positively suave in this suit. I’m glad you didn’t follow my style choice,” Dannie complimented her clothes.

“And for once, I’m right for picking fights with you”

“You better behave tonight and not cause any scandals, carebear”

“When did I ever do that, Dan? I’m the most disciplined and well-behaved person in here”

The two laughed comically but their moment was interrupted as a man gave Dannie a flute of champagne.

“And who might you be?” Therese teasingly asked

.

“This is Troy. We’ve been going out for a while now,” the auburn man proudly said.

Troy was a masculine man and much taller than Dannie and Therese. He had a dazzling smile that captivated everyone. His voice was very deep and intimidating. Wearing a suit himself, the two made quite a pair.

“I’m sorry we haven’t met before. Dannie said you’re solely focused on your exhibit. And I must say, this is one of the best exhibits I’ve gone to. Just amazing. Congratulations on your work, it’ll be a busy and successful night, for sure.”

“Well, he just made me look like a workaholic!” the brunette exclaimed, laughing at her choice of words.

“Thank you for coming, Troy. It really means a lot to me. Enjoy the night and treat my brother right,” she winked at him.

Suddenly feeling embarrassed at the words exchanged between his loved ones, Dannie suggested leaving Therese be and look at the photos they hadn’t seen on the other side of the hall.

“It’s best to leave Therese for the meantime, Troy. She still has a lot of things to do,” the auburn man said, with a noticeable blush on his cheeks.

Seeming to sense her brother’s need to leave, Therese said she still had to go talk to investors and other guests.

On the other side of the hall, the three surprise guests found themselves captivated by a photo.

“This is absolutely stunning,” Carol found herself whispering those words.

It was a shot of a woman curled in a bathtub filled with water. Her face couldn’t be seen, and the photograph focused on the valleys of her stomach and legs. Her spine was prominent, and her short hair helped cover her face. It was as if she was afraid to be discovered by anyone.

As the blonde was about to signal someone in charge and request for a print, Genevieve spotted them and immediately went their way.

“Oh, God. You really came! I’m so glad you’re here,” the redhead made her presence known and hugged Abby and Julie.

“Gen, hi. We’ve been looking for you,” Julie greeted her.

The young woman didn’t wait to be introduced to Carol and just talked to her like they’ve known each other for a long time.

“Hi, I’m Genevieve. Are you interested in buying this photo?”

The blonde took her time in answering, her eyes were focused on the woman’s facial features. 

“Do I know you from somewhere?” she said instead.

“How rude of me to not introduce my best friend. Gen, this is Carol Aird. We met in college,” Abby told the redhead.

The introduction made Carol offer her hand. “I feel like I’ve met you before, I’m just not sure where.”

Genevieve willingly shook the blonde’s hand and smiled at her, “Well, I have a generic face and I surely wouldn’t forget a face as gorgeous as yours”

Is she flirting with me? Not sure how to take the compliment, Carol removed her hand from the woman’s grasp and shifted her attention to the photo. “I would like to have this one. Can you make it possible?”

“Of course! Just give me your contact details, address, and credit card details and you’re all set.”

While the blonde was writing the information needed, Abby, Julie, and Genevieve caught up with one another.

“You have to meet the photographer and star of the night!” the redhead excitedly told them

“And to tell you a secret, the photo you just purchased, the model was none other than her,” she quickly added.

The older woman turned towards the photograph once more and felt her stomach churn. She didn’t understand why she was feeling this way and was scared to know why.

“Sure, we’d love to meet her. Her pieces are absolutely stunning and I’m sure, so is she,” Abby answered for them and smiled.

Therese was finally done doing her rounds. The night wore on and Therese felt lethargic from being too social. As much as she was proud of her work, she never wanted to talk about it. She wanted her art to speak for itself, but she needed to do her work, and part of it was talking to possible buyers and media personnel. 

She might need to get used to all of this if she were to have more exhibitions. Tonight, she had to pull herself together and answer every question she was faced with. After some seemingly endless interviews, the brunette had finally time to rest and take in everything that was happening.

A few years ago, she was in the same metropolis tottering in from one of the toughest challenges in her life. Things had changed now. Undoubtedly, what she had right now was more than what she had longed for. At that point, she felt extremely grateful and delighted. Everything was finally coming full circle.

She couldn’t help but smile to herself, I finally did it. Her emerald eyes scanned the hall, seeing how the people looked at her black and white photos. Her moment of gratitude was interrupted by the manager and owner of the gallery.

“Therese, come with me, I want you to meet a family friend.”

The brunette was skeptical about it, she didn’t want to meet anyone from Genevieve’s family. Even if it was just a family friend, she was still uncertain since people might think they were back together again. 

“Gen, I’m tired and I don’t know if that’s a good idea, really.”

“Come on, T. It’s for work, anyway. And besides, one of them bought your most expensive work, it might be great to pay them a visit and thank the buyer”

Of course, Therese wanted to meet the person who bought her the most expensive photo. She made the price staggeringly high so no one would actually buy it. The shot was just too personal to her and it was part of the exhibit simply because Genevieve encouraged her to add it to the collection. Reluctantly, the young woman agreed to go along with the redhead.

With the woman’s hand secured on her waist, they made their way to Gen’s friends. Even though she felt uncomfortable with the woman’s hand placement, the brunette didn’t do anything to remove it. She didn’t want to cause any commotion tonight, so she just let the woman be.

As they reached their destination, Therese’s breath caught in her throat when she saw the familiar flash of blonde. It couldn’t be… could it? The brunette’s heart began thumping loudly in her chest.

“Abby, this is Therese Belivet. The woman I was telling you about!”

Shock registered in Abby and Carol’s face. They didn’t realize it was Therese’s exhibit. Despite what they felt, they tried to be as composed as possible. The two pretended as if it was the first time they saw the brunette.

“Therese, hi, I’ve heard so much about you,” Abby smiled and shook her hand.

The young woman couldn’t make a coherent response and just took Abby’s hand. Therese immediately removed herself from Genevieve and faced Carol.

“Hi, I’m Therese. I’m so glad you all came. Thank you for your support, I hope you find the pieces to your liking,” the brunette faked a smile and offered her hand to Carol.

“Carol here just bought your self-portrait, T” Genevieve enthusiastically said.

This time, the brunette wasn’t able to control her expressions and fumbled over her words.

“Y-you did? Oh, wow. T-that’s great, thank you” the young woman said in disbelief.

Not another word was stated, and the ambiance was beginning to shift. Julie tried to save the situation by making small talk, but Carol and Therese didn’t utter another word. After a few minutes of forced interaction, the brunette decided to extract herself from the group. 

“If you’ll excuse me, I just have to be somewhere. But please, do enjoy the rest of the night,” Therese hastily told them and left.

After that awkward meeting, Therese left the hall to think. She suddenly felt suffocated in the vast space. She needed to be alone with her thoughts. With a cigarette in her mouth, the young woman kept pacing back and forth. What is she doing here? She didn’t tell me she knows Genevieve. This is so fucked up. I don’t need any of this right now.

Her initial confusion turned into frustration, then anger. How dare she just show her face after making me wait? The brunette didn’t understand how Carol could just show up after she blatantly ignored her for weeks. She was finally able to light her cigarette and took a deep breath. Why is she here? Why now? 

Her thoughts were disrupted when she felt another being behind her. Ready to give a word to anyone who dared to come near her, Therese turned around with flared angry eyes. Her irritation instantly dialed down when she saw Carol gingerly looking at her.

Trying to mask the butterflies in her stomach, she instead asked Carol, “What are you doing here?”

The blonde took a few steps toward the brunette and looked anywhere but at her, “I wanted to make sure you didn’t leave. Not until I talk to you again, at least.” Her voice was trembling a bit, but she found the courage to say those words as if her life was depending on it.

When she didn’t hear any reply, the older woman finally looked at her and offered her hand, “I’m sorry.” Her pleading eyes waited for the brunette to respond.

“For what?” Therese answered nonchalantly, acting like she wasn’t aware of what the woman was apologizing for.

“For not giving you a call or message. It wasn’t my intention to keep you waiting, I promise. I lost your calling card and had no other way to reach out to you. Then you didn’t come back to the record store,” Carol explained, hoping to be understood and forgiven by the young woman. There was no point of going around the bush, she needed to be direct and concise.

“So, it’s my fault?” the brunette asked her and proceeded to stub her cigarette. She slowly blew out the smoke and waited for the woman to respond. Therese was glaring at Carol but her facade was slowly wearing down. Still, she didn’t accept the blonde’s offered hand and tried to be as stoic as she could. She didn’t expect the next words that came out of the blonde.

“Can I kiss you?” The question tumbled out of Carol’s lips. The older woman moved even closer, making their lips now mere inches apart and without waiting for an answer, Carol grabbed Therese by the neck and kissed her passionately. A strangled gasp escaped Therese’s lips and it took her a while to respond. 

Of course, she wanted Carol to kiss her, she just didn’t expect the older woman to be this bold after being speechless during their first meeting. She swiped her tongue along Therese's lower lip, seeking entrance and Therese opened her mouth. She moaned when Carol slid her tongue inside her mouth. Carol hummed, her body vibrating when she felt Therese finally respond to her kiss. The brunette tasted like champagne, nicotine, and lavender all mixed up together.

Carol’s lips were soft and enticing and even tasted absolutely divine. Her tongue danced against Therese’s, their wet lips and tongues connecting tentatively as they explored and familiarized themselves with each other, but Therese fought for dominance. She couldn’t let the blonde take the control completely. 

Although Therese wouldn’t lie to herself, the kiss was better than anything Therese had ever experienced. Therese’s hand tangled in Carol’s hair as she pulled their mouths together in a hungry and desperate kiss, letting her hand caress the blonde’s lower back. Their tongues moved back and forth, both unable to control the moans that were coming from deep within. Carol broke off the kiss so they could catch their breath, and with ragged breath, she asked the young woman, “Do you mind having a nightcap?” Then, Carol’s gaze fell on Therese’s mouth as she licked her lips and answered, “Come on, I know a place.”