Köstlich

She didn’t want to fall in love, but as the days went on, she found her smiling more and more.  After the first coffee shop meeting, they began to schedule more.  They had planned one every week, spending a few hours just enjoying each other’s company.  Soon enough, they were meeting each other for dinner.  At first, it was just so that they could have a different venue to spend their meetings at.  Soon though, they were going to more popular restaurants.  Laura worried about what people would say when they saw them together, worrying about Carmilla’s reputation with the press, but Carmilla would always brush it off with a smile, insisting that she could deal with it.

It had been three months since they started meeting up with each other every week when Carmilla brought her a ticket to her next game.  Laura had been surprised by where the seat was, close to the field right behind the players.  She had questioned Carmilla on why so close, only to receive a smile.

“Best view of the game is there, or so I’m told,” was the soccer player’s response.

So here she was, sitting in her seat as the clock ticked down to zero, ending the game.  She cheered with the rest of the crowd as they celebrated another Bats’ win.  She smiled as the team ran towards Carmilla, tackling her as they celebrated her lone goal that pushed them to the win.  She clasped her hands in front of her mouth, trying her hardest to hide her smile from those around her.

Finally released from her teammates, she watched as Carmilla looked around before her eyes landed on her, a smile growing on her face.  Laura felt her own smile grow as she made her way down towards the wall.  Carmilla ran to join her, ignoring the confused faces of her teammates.

“You were great!” Laura said as Carmilla met her at the wall.

Carmilla smiled up at her. “I’m glad you enjoyed it.  Meet me out in the parking lot in thirty minutes?”

Laura nodded. “Sure.”

If Carmilla’s smile could grow any bigger, Laura was sure it would. “Awesome.  I’ll see you soon.”

Laura watched as Carmilla jogged off towards the locker room, and she could’ve sworn her heart was beating faster than before.  It was something that she was starting to notice more and more when she was with Carmilla.  Her heart would race, the butterflies in her stomach would stir inside her.  She smiled as she started to head towards the exit; she just couldn’t stop thinking about how being with Carmilla had brought out these new feelings.  This is…is this what love is?

Laura was still lost in her thoughts when she walked into someone.  “Oh, sorry!  I wasn’t-“ she began to say before she looked up to see who she had walked in to.  She was surprised to find Danny standing in front of her, her notepad in her hand. “Danny?  What are you doing here?”

Danny smiled a little at her, holding up her notepad. “Writing about the win.  I was just on my way down to see if I could talk with some of the players,” she said, tilting her head to the side a little. “The better question is what are you doing here?  I thought you had the night off?”

Laura nodded. “I do, but I was here because I managed to get a ticket.”

Danny raised an eyebrow. “I never pegged you to be a sports fan.”

“It’s just become a new discovery.”

Danny crossed her arms over her chest. “Uh huh.  It has nothing to do with the fact that you’ve been spending a lot of time recently with the star player, one Carmilla Karnstein, right?”

“Um…”

Danny nodded, biting the inside of her cheek. “Uh huh.  I see.  Well, don’t get your heart broken, Hollis,” she said before starting to walk away.

Laura turned and reached out to Danny, gently wrapping her hand around Danny’s arm. “Wait, Danny-“

Danny yanked her arm out of Laura’s grip and picked up her speed as she walked away from Laura.  Laura watched her as she left, confused as to what had just transcribed.  I…what just happened?  She sighed, shaking her head as she left the stadium.  She sat down on a nearby bench, thinking about her brief meeting with Danny while she waited for Carmilla.

Carmilla quickly shoved her clothes and equipment into their spots in her locker, making sure to grab her bag before closing the locker door.  A smile was plastered on her face, but she couldn’t help it.  Laura was on her mind, and she had been ever since that day she came to do the interview.  No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get Laura off of her thoughts. 

Throwing her bag onto her back, she turned to leave when Mattie stepped in her way. “Where are you going?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest

“Home.  Where else?” Carmilla asked.

Mattie looked at her with a smirk. “Uh huh.  Not meeting up with a certain cute journalist, right?”

Carmilla bit her lip.  Of course Mattie would know. “And what if I were?”

Mattie smiled. “Aw, Darling!  I knew it!”

Carmilla looked at her surprised. “Wait what?”

“You and little journalist are a thing, aren’t you?”

Carmilla could feel her cheeks start to burn. “We…uh well…it’s not…”

Mattie pulled her tightly into a hug. “I’m so proud of you, Carm.  Now go on and go get her,” she said, winking before heading towards her locker.

Carmilla watched her friend leave with a surprised expression before her smile began its return.  Leaving the locker room, she walked with speed down the hallway.  As she got closer to the parking lot, she caught glimpse of Coach and Mel speaking with a tall redhead.  Her paced slowed, curiosity getting the better of her.  She was now used to having the media around after games once the ban had been lifted, but this reporter was a new one.  When the reporter looked up at her and their eyes met, Carmilla could almost feel the anger and hatred that radiated off the young woman.  She didn’t know why, but she knew that this woman had some grudge against her.  And that’s why I limit myself around snotty reporters like her.

Shaking her head, she made her way out to the parking lot.  She looked around, finally spotting Laura sitting on a bench not too far from the viewer entrance.  She ran over, dropping her bag beside the bench as she slid into the spot beside Laura.  Laura smiled at her, laughing at Carmilla’s entrance.

“Ready to go?” Carmilla asked, to which Laura nodded.

Carmilla stood up and grabbed her bag, holding her hand out to Laura.  Laura smiled, taking it and standing up.  They began walking, hand in hand, towards the coffee shop, but Carmilla had other plans.  Once they had crossed the street, she tugged on Laura’s hand, pulling her away from the direction of the coffee shop.

Laura looked at her confused. “Carm, where are we going?”

Carmilla looked over her shoulder. “If I told you, then it wouldn’t be a surprise,” she answered, her smile ever present on her face.

Laura could only nod, mesmerized by Carmilla’s smile.  They walked a few more blocks away, arriving at a small restaurant.  Carmilla watched as Laura looked up at the restaurant in amazement.  She walked over to the door, holding it open for Laura.  Laura smiled, walking inside with a nod of her head.  Carmilla couldn’t help but watch Laura walk in, a smile playing on her lips as she watched her walk over to one of the open tables.  Carmilla followed, taking the opposite seat across from Laura.

Laura looked around the restaurant, admiring its simplicity. “Where did you find this place?”

Carmilla smiled. “I used to come here often,” she said softly, trying her hardest to push away the negative thoughts. “With Ell.”

Laura looked at her with concern. “I’m sorry, Carm.  I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.”

Carmilla smiled, taking Laura’s hand in hers. “It’s alright.  In fact, that’s why I brought you here, Cupcake.  I think…I think I’m finally ready to move on.”

Laura tilted her head to the side, the confusion on her face making her even more adorable than before. “What do you mean, Carm?  I know we talked about how hard it’s been since you and Ell broke up, but I don’t want you to think that I’m pushing you-“

“Laura, stop.  You’re not pushing me to do anything.  I’m choosing to move on because I want to.  Because I’ve found someone that actually makes me feel like I’m on top of the world.  Because I’ve found someone who I can be myself around without the worry that even if I screw up something, they’ll always be there for me, even if I’ve only known them for a few months.”

It was then that Laura’s brow furrowed, and she looked down at her hands.  Shit!  What did I say?  Why is she upset?  Carmilla’s mind began to run a million miles a second as she tried to figure out how to fix her mistake when Laura spoke up.

“I’m sure that whoever it is, they’ll be happy to know how much you care about them,” she said softly, sounding defeated.

It was then that Carmilla understood, and she couldn’t help but chuckle.  Now she got it; Laura didn’t understand that the person she was speaking of was in fact Laura herself.  When she knew Laura wouldn’t be looking up, she waved over to the waitress, giving him the signal to bring over her surprise.  He was quick to bring over the plate and card, setting it in front of Laura.  She looked up at him with surprise and confusion, but the waitress only smiled and left.

Laura turned her attention to the plate and card before looking to Carmilla for an explanation.  Carmilla could only smile and shrug.  Laura narrowed her eyes, trying to figure out what Carmilla was up to when she looked down at the plate, eyes widening at the realization that it was a plate of creampuffs.  Carmilla’s smile only widened at the young woman’s surprise.  She had remembered that Laura’s favorite sweet was creampuffs, so she had ordered in advanced the restaurant’s specialty creampuffs just for the occasion.

“Read the card first before you dig in,” she suggested as Laura continued to stare at the creampuffs.

Laura nodded, picking up the card.  She looked at Carmilla in confusion. “Multiple choice?”

Carmilla chuckled, nudging Laura’s knee with her own. “Go on and actually read it, Cupcake.”

Laura nodded, looking back down at the card.  She read over the card, her eyes widening the more she read.  It was when she started to laugh that Carmilla began to get worried.  Wait…why is it so funny?  Laura looked back up at her, her smile huge on her face.

“’D. Break my heart and say no?’  Really, Carm?” she asked.

Carmilla smiled sheepishly at Laura. “Hey, it had to be a choice just in case.” Laura rolled her eyes, setting the card down on the table. “So, care to tell me what your answer is?”

Laura pretended to think for a minute before leaning forward, placing a kiss gently on Carmilla’s lips.  Damn, her lips are so soft.  When Laura leaned back, Carmilla was still feeling the high of the kiss. “I’m pretty sure you know what the answer is, Carm.”

“And that is?”

“A. Yes.”

Carmilla was happy.  It was the happiest she had been in a very long time.  She either met up with Laura every evening when she could; if she couldn’t, she’d be sure to text her, even if it was for a few minutes before their respective careers took over.  Yet she would always remember to leave a good night text on Laura’s phone before she herself fell asleep.  There wasn’t a single thing that could take her high away.  Or so she thought. 

It was near her two month anniversary with Laura.  It was also playoff time, which meant Carmilla was busier due to longer practices and more film time with her team.  It was the most stressful time of the year, but she battled through it knowing that she would have at least a month to herself afterwards, one she planned on spending with Laura somewhere far away from Silas.  Then it would be back to work.

Carmilla sighed, leaning back against her locker as she listened to a random song on her Pandora station.  Part of her game routine was to listen to some of the recent hits playing on the radio in the minutes before warmups, drowning out the outside noise and distractions.  Her teammates knew not to bother her unless it was an emergency.  It was her way of getting mentally prepared, and anyone who dared interrupt her focus would face her wrath.

When the song ended, Carmilla checked the time on her watch.  There was only six minutes left until she had to be out on the field for warmups, so she decided to put her headphones and phone back in her locker.  She checked her phone one more time, looking to see if Laura had sent her a good luck text as she had so started to.  When Carmilla didn’t see one, she assumed that Laura was still driving to the stadium.  She had managed to get both Laura and her father, Sherman, tickets to the game tonight, a semi-final against the Korvae Angelers.

When Laura had heard about the opponents, she had immediately texted Carmilla wondering if she was going to be ok going against Ell.  Carmilla had wondered the same thing, but she found herself, surprisingly, comfortable about the match.  She and Ell had ended their relationship on a sour note, but she knew Ell wouldn’t stay mad, especially seven months after their relationship ended.  That just wasn’t her nature to.

Grabbing her jersey, Carmilla threw it over her shoulder and led the team out onto the field for warmups.  She was in a surprisingly joyous mood, and it seemed to spread to her teammates.  Everyone was in a fun but serious mood, knowing that tonight’s game could decide the rest of their season, just as the previous two tournament games had. 

Seats were almost filled by the time the end of their warmups had approached.  Carmilla looked up towards where Laura and her father would be sitting and found their seats still empty.  Traffic must have caught them, and I must’ve just missed her text saying she was late.  Laura wasn’t one to not leave a message in case of something like this happening, but Carmilla didn’t think too much of it if her father was with her.

The Bats returned to their locker room to change into their game jerseys, and soon the game against the Angelers had begun.  Both Carmilla and Ell were forwards, their chemistry working well when they played together, resulting in only a few interactions between the two during the first half of the game.  When she was able to, Carmilla threw a glance towards Laura and Sherman’s seats, finding both of them empty.  Where are they?

TWEET!

The whistle was sounded, and the first half of the game ended with a score of 0-0.  Carmilla began to jog towards the locker room when she noticed her teammates in front of her slow towards the entrance.  Confused, she picked up her speed and found one of the Bats’ administration personnel standing near the entrance with Mattie.  Mattie was one of the defenders, so Carmilla wasn’t surprised to see Mattie being one of the first to reach the locker room entrances, but what was throwing her for a loop was the admin personnel.  It was then that Mattie turned to face Carmilla.

Her expression was one of surprise and guilt.  One that reminded Carmilla of an experience she had when she was only six years old.  Her favorite kitten had passed away while she was away, and her mother had been the one to volunteer and tell Carmilla.  The same expression was on Mattie’s face, causing Carmilla’s stomach to drop as the many possibilities ran through her mind.  She could feel the fear building up in her chest as Mattie made her way towards Carmilla.  She shook her head as Mattie closed the distance, her hands finding Carmilla’s shoulders.

“Mattie…Mattie no…” she pleaded, praying that Mattie wasn’t going to tell her what she was fearing the most.  Mattie looked at her with an apologetic expression.

“Carm…Laura was in an accident.”