wanderess

she just wanted to get up and go somewhere else, anywhere really. she looked at gemma and it was very hard not to picture her with some random girl. even though gala literally had no idea who it was, nor did she care. knowing that it was very one sided didn't even make her feel better at all, not worse, but it simply didn't really help. and gala couldn't blame the other person, it was so easy to fall in love with gemma. at least that's how it was for her. gala's expression was pretty much blank, not showing much emotion which meant she was trying really hard not to seem upset. for a moment gala simply sat there, looking down at the shorter girl's lap while biting her bottom lip out of habit. she let a few seconds pass after gem finished talking. maybe a few minutes, she wasn't too sure. there were so many things she wanted to know, and wanted to let her know that she wasn't even sure how to start. as a way to avoid any eye contact, she started playing with some random loose string of gemma's jeans. casual. "well that's a good observation." she said finally, so out of nowhere, expecting the other to catch on. "how long did it take you to realize it? was it the hair?" yet another one of those awkward little laughs came out of her. she didn't mean it to sound sassy or awkward, she didn't really mean anything by that actually. "was she the only one?"

even after gemma pulled away and moved on, gala was literally still stuck in those few seconds. the feeling of gemma's lips against her cheek still lingering. it was so extra of her, but that really made her mood a lot better. soon after, she could feel the other starting to shift again, making her to drop her hand that was just casually resting on top of her knee. it was true that gala always found anything gemma did cute, but the way she sat like this was always extra cute. there had to be something about her height that made it so easily for her to just cross her legs like that, because whenever gala tried it it always took such energy and time to get it done. she could do it, just not as effortlessly as genma made it look. besides, she'd take up even more room with her legs like that. gala was just such a loser that her mind was still thinking about that little kiss to her cheek, and now she was just thinking about how cute gemma looked like that. she was so lost in her thoughts now that she wasn't even paying much attention to whatever the older girl was  talking about. did it even matter though? she did get a kiss already so there wasn't really anything that could ruin it for her. except she was so wrong about that. as soon as gala heard her talk about some other girl, her heart stopped again. and not like it did a few minutes ago when gem was about to kiss her. this time it made her feel like crap. it was as if there was literally no other context and gala only heard that gemma was with a different girl. that was the only thing her brain decided to understand. she started wondering all these things, especially the vain irrelevant ones. like, was she prettier than gala? that was really one of her biggest concerns. even after knowing that it didn't work out for them, it still made her upset to even think about gemma with someone else. sure, this whole time she was aware of the possibility of her with other people and she thought she was okay with that. but now hearing her confirm it was worse than she thought, she couldn't help it. "oh. like, girlfriend?" she asked with a rather awkward chuckle.

gala bit down her lower lip momentarily. her gaze falling to her lap instead of looking at gemma. maybe if she didn't look at her it'd be easier to answer her question, right? maybe she'd feel less guilty. even if she wasn't so sure why she even felt that way in the first place, they literally had no contact for so long, was she supposed to just wait for her to come back or something? surely gemma went out with other people too. the worst part was gala truly didn't know how to answer the question. sure, she felt something towards the guy, which was inevitable. especially for someone like gala. but it was nowhere near how she felt for gemma. besides, it wasn't like she really took it seriously. whatever they were. "no." she replied at last, short and straight forward. kind of. "i haven't. really. like, i've been with some. there's this guy- but we're not together, and we haven't spoken in months. that's quite the only major thing, which isn't even major like i said. it's not, i don't know what it was but it doesn't count." she stopped herself before rambling more, then finally looked back at gemma. "it's not like you, like what we had. obviously. if that's what you meant."

in all honesty, he was quite possibly the last person gala wanted to think about right now. there were just so many reason it was so frustrating. she was enjoying this time with gemma so much, everything was going nicely and she didn't want it to end. while she was aware it had to end at some point, she was hopeful it'd be in a different way. in a good way. then there was the fact it'd literally been months since she spoke to him, which she was sure would sound like a lie if she tried telling that to gemma. "i met him in london so i don't know time zones are weird, i'm sure he can wait." she shrugged, trying to make it sound like it wasn't a big deal, which it wasn't. gala kept moving a bit, realizing people would probably find them annoying if they were the only ones who weren't moving and just being a bother. "why?" gala was trying not to ask that, but it just came out. really curious as to why it mattered.

maybe it wasn't like gemma purposely bumped into some stranger like that just to get closer to gala, but it did seem all too convenient. not that she was complaining though, that was exactly what gala had been wanting to do for the past few hours but she just didn't know how or if she should even do it. but now that gemma got closer on her own, gala decided to take advantage of the situation by moving one of her hands to rest against the shorter girl's hip. while the other still held one of her hands. it was accordingly to the beat of the music, so it didn't feel like awkward holding the other or anything in the like. and even then, she still wished they could be closer. but for now this was satisfaying enough. it probably looked like if they were a little more than friends (which in a way, it was true) but she didn't care about any of that. she just hoped gemma was okay with everything. it was going well until she felt something vibrating in her pocket, realizing it was her phone she took it out but still holding gemma's hand. the phone's screen was lit up with an oncoming call, a picture of a long haired guy taking place over her usual lockscreen. as soon as she saw him she shoved it back into her pocket, ignoring the call and hoping the other girl would ignore it as well.

once she admitted to getting worse during the past few years, she smiled a little. not because she was glad she got worse but because of what it could mean, did that mean she didn't dance too often with other people or something? unless she only danced with equally bad dancers. whatever it was made gala feel a little relieved. she loved knowing she was the best, that was just her personality over all and especially when it was something related to gemma. "well that wasn't so hard to admit now, was it?" she asked with a smirk of a little shit. just because. "good thing i'm here for now so you won't make a fool of yourself. what would you even do without me honestly."

why did she have to wink at her? just being herself was enough to get gala all weak and melting, regretting every bad decision she made that resulted in them breaking up. maybe if she were as mature as gemma back then and took it all in instead of going home like a lost puppy, they'd more than likely still be together. there was a whole war going inside her, between wanting to punch herself for being dumb and leaving her behind, and wanting to grab her and kiss her or something, anything besides just standing there like an idiot. it felt like years had passed before she spoke again, but really it was just a few seconds. "oh, you look so well conserved then i really thought you were forty. maybe thirty-eight." she continued to tease, because apparently that was the only thing she knew how to do. as soon as gemma mentioned classic moves, gala was already preparing herself to catch her doing somethint ridiculous. and she was right, it didn't take long before she noticed the shorter girl was starting to do some bad dance moves. it almost looked like she was doing it on purpose, then again gemma was kind of a bad dancer. gala wasn't so sure anymore of what was going on, but one thing was certain, it was embarrassing. before she went any further down that path, gala was quick to take the others hands. she only did that to prevent her from doing whatever she was doing--okay, and maybe it was a good excuse to grab her hands. "you're such a bad dancer, did you get worse without me?" she asked while pulling her just a little closer.

it made sense her mom and sister would visit after she moved all across the country. it wasn't like they spent a whole of time together or anything but she actually missed them too, she briefly remembered the first time she met them and how nervous she was feeling beforehand but soon realized there was no need to be. "oh yeah, just be careful with that don't wanna break anything while trying." gala looked down at her own drink, noticing it wasn't that empty yet so she just shook her head, "i'm fine thank you. one of us has to stay sober i guess." she teased, motioning over to gemma's empty glass. "that seems like such a fancy set though, it should be lit." she drank the last bit of her drink before looking back at the people already gathering by the dj. gala bit down her lip before turning back to the shorter girl. "we should go over there. i mean, i'm going either way just thought i'd ask you so you won't be here all on your own."

now that she thought about it, she wondered if it was somewhat weird to still call her cute or whatever. gala only hoped it wasn’t, or that gemma wouldn’t feel uncomfortable or something in the like. she kept looking at the shorter girl as she spoke, she’d barely changed since the last time they saw each other but it she still seemed a little different, in a good way. maybe she’d just been away from her for so long that she’d forgotten just how pretty she truly was. listening to her talk also made her realize gemma was the one doing better, she was so far away from her own home, whether in new york or corsica, while gala was still close to hers. “right, yeah. that sounds like a nice plan. i bet they miss you a lot.” if gala missed her like no one else then it’d just make sense if her own family did too. “you do talk about those mountains so much though maybe you need to go back.”

✝: any distinct markings on your character's body (moles, freckles, tattoos, piercings)?

“yeah i bet it was. and especially hard when you’re just starting but yes it totally teaches you something. it legit took me so long to stop asking someone else to help me with the bills—but i’ve managed now, i guess i’m what you’d call an actual adult.” she said rather proud of herself. “oh, how long are you staying here for then? are you going back to new york?”

at some point gemma finally stopped moving, and she didn’t mind her having twisting so much it was actually endearing in a way, but at least now she could actually look at her properly. it’d been so long since they were like this, it felt so familiar yet so strange to be back in this position. what felt weirder was having to catch up with each other, having to tell her how things were and what’d happened. making her realize even more her absence in the last few years. “they’re fine, really.  rene’s been working for some major theatrical productions which is fancy as hell, plus he’s engaged i think he’s winning at this whole being adult thing. and frida is such a grownup, just started college. i feel like a proud mom.” she chuckled softly, even if there were just a few years between them she always felt overly protective. “it’s great though, i missed it there and i’m glad to be back. reconnected with some old friends too. and they give me actual chips when i ask for those unlike in new york — have you stayed there this whole time? like, before coming here.”

gala could tell he was already starting to blush, and she wasn’t quite sure why she found that fairly entertaining. if there was anyone she liked to tease it had to be him. “i could not let you go like that. i’d feel guilty. what if you said something like that to someone else? they’d think of you as a joke. now at least you know. i did it for you.” she said half jokingly.  “oh please it’s not such a big deal, i feel like everyone wonders stuff like that now and then. have you not? oh true you can’t break those rumors they’re the only reason you get any views, they’re totally in love with me yeah that’s it.”

gala didn’t even realize the drinks were already placed in front of them, not until gemma took hers. now  she felt obligued to do the same after hearing her words. “yeah, and to yours too! it sounds like a blast living with your boss.” she teased her as their glasses touched, then proceeded to only take a small sip of it. she wanted to laugh at the other twisting in her chair, but she decided not to comment on it for now. it was undeniably cute. “good to know.” this time she took a bigger sip of her drink right after saying that. “that sounds hipster enough. so secret you don’t want other people finding out about it? it’s nice, i like the view and everything. it is too early to tell how it turns out though, since there’s not enough people yet you know.”