Brooke was pacing calmly on the boardwalk of the Seven Seas cruise to Alaska. There were dozens of people on the deck waving goodbye to their families; she didn't have one, or at least not one that was close enough to have come and wave at her. After a couple of years working for a lawn mowing company her boss had granted her a two weeks vacation. She had spent a whole night awake looking for an incredible cruise; one to Alaska seemed to have met her needs and requirements. It was leaving the next day and she began to pack.
Her cabin was located on the second floor of the ship. The buffet was down the hall and on the other end the gym welcomed its guests.
At 24 she didn't have many regrets; she had left home as soon as she turned 18 and had managed to survive on her own ever since. School had always been her number one priority and shortly after receiving her accounting degree she began to work with a small company that did everything that needs to be done to a lawn. Brooke couldn't complain, she had a nice apartment on the tenth floor of a building with an ocean view, a cozy kitchen that had been decorated by her best friend and a huge master bedroom that was her pride and joy. Her plasma TV hanged from the wall across her bed and her movie collection now including several blue ray discs never stopped growing.
The king bed had a set of black and white stripy sheets with a matching comforter; she always thought it made her room look modern. The walls were a soft light pink and she had a dresser that reminded her of Egypt.
Money wasn't a problem, she had it and she tried to take care of it, the memories of hungry nights and days without light in her years prior to graduation always haunted her and she had become sort of a stability freak.
She was tall for a girl, and a bit heavy, all her friends always said that she was voluptuous but she was never persuaded; she just couldn't resist Burger King's Hershey Pies. Her hair was long and black, naturally curly and her eyes as blue as the deep ocean. Her skin was pale but all the tanning in the beach made it look golden, beautiful.
Today she was wearing a white Burberry trouser that was wide legged, she had bought it on a clearance the previous winter and just loved the way it hugged her curves, and a light blue scoop-neck tee. Her sandals were from DSW shoe warehouse one of the few places that carried her big 11 shoe size.
The boat blew the horn announcing its departure from the seaport and she got a bit startled, it had been loud and somewhat annoying interrupting her train of thought.
People all around her seemed to be in a rush to get somewhere, she speculated that maybe they were hungry or that they wanted to take advantage of all the attractions and entertaining things to do while on the cruise. Brooke had been impressed by the size and splendor of the vessel, it was bigger than she had ever imagined and was positive that a couple of cities could fit in it.
She didn't have a destination in mind, just walking was already easing the stress that she had accumulated, being the only accountant on the company gave her a lot of difficult decisions to make and sometimes it was a challenge to meet all their financial obligations. Her luggage wasn't going to be delivered to her room until 4 pm and it was only noon, so she headed for the library, she would find some entertainment there. On the way Brooke walked by a few fancy restaurants where tourists were already choosing their tables and ordering their three course meals. It smelled good, seafood she guessed.
The sun was bright and warm; she figured that for the next few days the temperature would fall as they approached their destination. The thought of seeing penguins and killer whales was appealing, Sea World in Orlando, FL did an excellent job trying to mimic their environment but something told her that by watching them live in their natural habitat was going to prove to be priceless.
Brooke's D&G sunglasses were keeping her long curls from getting in her eyes and face, the wind had started to pick up making her wide legged trousers flutter around her legs. Maybe it was that the ship was gaining speed as it left the port.
She saw a few couples walking past her in the opposite direction, they were holding hands and some of them even had toddlers cooing and smiling as they pointed at the seagulls flying above. Her love life sucked and she often found herself wondering whether she was ever going to have a family of her own, a little girl or boy, a husband to cook and care for, but as time progressed and one relationship failed after the other one she felt more convinced that maybe that wasn't her destiny after all. Many boyfriends had occupied a special place in her heart but times proved to be a silent killer, eventually she would fall out of love and break it up.
The library was quite big; it had computers in which for a fee you could access the internet. Book shelves divided the space into categories and there were tables to sit on. Towards the middle and to the right there was a counter and a librarian wearing glasses waved at her and smiled.
Brooke smiled also and walked towards her, maybe she knew where she could find some horror novels instead of losing time looking around.
"Good afternoon." The librarian said and offered her hand.
"Hello. Brooke." She shook the librarian's hand and smiled politely.
"Nice to meet you, my name is Morgan." She replied.
"Like wise."
"Looking for anything in particular?" Morgan asked admiring Brooke's beautiful long curls.
"I was wondering if you could point me out in the general direction of horror novels."
"A fan of horror?"
"Since I was seven." Brooke smiled and followed Morgan to the back of the library.
"How do you like the cruise so far?" Morgan tried to make casual conversation but it was a bit difficult since she couldn't stop staring at Brooke, she was beautiful.
"It's great, I never thought it was so big and full of fun things to do."
"I'm glad to hear that at least someone thinks that the library is fun."
"Not a lot of people visit right?"
"Only to check their email." Morgan stopped and showed Brooke the section to the left, it was pretty decent.
"Awesome, thank you very much. I'll probably be here for a while so I'll keep you company." Brooke started browsing through the titles as Morgan walked away slowly back to the counter.
"See you in a few." Morgan said as she left.
Brooke finally found something interesting and headed for the tables to sit and read for a while.
Morgan was doing something on the computer, maybe cataloging some work, Brooke thought.
She couldn't help to notice the looks that Morgan was giving her, she kept staring at her probably thinking that Brooke hadn't noticed, it was kind of refreshing to have a girl interested in her, not that it was the first time but there was something about Morgan that didn't freak her out.
Maybe because she was a librarian and librarians are known to be harmless.
In the past she was a girl magnet and no matter how many times she repeated that she wasn't interested they would always give her their phone number just in case she changed her mind. Her friends always bothered her with that and urged her to come out of the closet but the truth of the matter was that she didn't feel attracted to girls.
"Brooke would you like some coffee?" Morgan approached her holding a cup of the dark liquid.
"I would love some, thank you." Brooke smiled and took the mug from her hand.
"You're welcome." Morgan replied and sat next to Brooke. She had never been so up front with any girl before but there was something about Brooke that attracted her badly.
"Did you come with your family?" Morgan asked.
"No, alone. How is it like to work in a cruise?"
"The time here in the library is pretty tedious but once I'm done I could do anything that I want so its kind of cool, I don't pay rent or food." Morgan replied and sipped some of her coffee.
"Sounds like the dream job." Brooke replied thinking that Morgan was probably the same age that she was.
"I can't complain." Morgan smiled once again.
"At what time do you finish?"
"Well we're open 24 hours but there's another lady that comes in at 5 pm until 5 am, we do twelve hour shifts."
"That sucks." Brooke closed her book and looked at Morgan.
"I like it actually; I practically have the whole night to myself."
"Maybe we could do something once you're out." Brooke said not quite sure what she was getting into.
Morgan smiled and took the empty mug from her hands. On the way to the counter she replied.
"I would love to."
Brooke left the library and headed for her room, her luggage should be there and she wanted to take a shower before meeting with Morgan. They had agreed to meet in front of the library at 7 pm that way Morgan could also take a shower and get ready for the evening. Thankfully Brooke's belongings were already in her cabin; she chose her evening attire and stepped into the shower.
She wore pink matching set of lingerie, a gift from a friend that worked in Victoria's Secret, a high waist tweed pants and a turtle neck tunic. She opted this time for closed toe sandals and a black medium sized purse.
She picked up her hair and applied some makeup, she checked the time and she was running late, the walk alone would probably take her a good ten minutes and it was already five past seven. She hurried down the walkway and reached her destination a little out of breath.
"You're late." Morgan joked looking at Brooke wide eyed, she looked even prettier now than earlier.
"I'm sorry." She apologized realizing that she had overdressed.
Morgan was wearing jeans, a long sleeve shirt and sneakers. Her hair was loose and her eyeglasses were gone.
"Where are we going?" Morgan felt like a million dollars, she was walking with the prettiest girl on the ship and she was about to make that night memorable.
"Surprise me." Brooke replied and started to walk next to her.
"I'm hungry, how about we eat something and then we walk on the deck for a while." Morgan volunteered.
"Sounds great." Brooke liked the plan.
"Any preferences? Italian, Chinese, fish? "
"I love pasta." Brooke loved Italian food, she could eat it everyday.
"My favorite too." Morgan smiled.
Morgan had been working for the company for almost a year already and she enjoyed the environment, the only disadvantage was that they were always traveling so she didn't have a lot of friends or lovers. The crew members were great but they rotated from ship to ship all the time therefore their relationships were temporary. She had lost her family in a tragic car accident and now her only relative, her big sister had moved to New York with her husband so there was absolutely nothing to tie her down, she felt free and acted as she pleased.
At 25 she felt much older, she felt mature and responsible, her job was amazing, everything that she had ever dreamed and right now no big worries occupied her mind.
Morgan wasn't as tall as Brooke but they were almost the same height. She was athletic, and liked going to the gym everyday. Her hair was dirty blonde and her eyes were a light shade of grey, very unique attribute that she had inherited from her grandma. She was attractive and her personality completed the package.
She had realized that she was gay ever since she was in high school and she had led her lifestyle out of the closet and proud to be what she was. She never pretended and she never faked it.
Close to the bridge there was the Italian restaurant, some of the tables were occupied by very excited and talkative tourist, the waiters and waitresses were all attending their needs always with a smile on their faces, it was a company's policy.
As soon as they walked in the hostess showed them to their table and winked at Morgan, a gesture that didn't go unnoticed by Brooke. She wasn't sure what it meant though.
"Do you like the atmosphere?" Morgan asked trying to make small talk.
"It's lovely." Brooke replied reading the menu.
"I already know what I'm ordering." Morgan said looking at Brooke's fine features.
"What would that be?" Brooke joked around putting her menu down.
"Penne pasta with chicken and Alfredo sauce."
"Very good taste, I'll have the Carmella Casserole." Brooke replied sipping some of her cold water.
The waiter brought a freshly oven baked Italian bread and made a mixture of olive oil and ground pepper on a small plate to dip the bread in.
"Thanks for accepting to spend some time with me, I'm usually awfully bored." Morgan said honestly, watching bemused how Brooke ate the bread, so graciously.
"I should probably be the one thanking you, if it hadn't been for your invitation I would be in the room sleeping or watching TV." Brooke was kind of a loner.
The waiter came and took their orders in; he said food would be ready in about twenty minutes.
"So what do you do for a living?" Morgan seemed interested.
"I'm an accountant for a lawn mowing business." Brooke answered.
"I would have never guessed." Morgan was quite surprised.
"Why is that?"
"You don't look boring at all and accountants are known to be boring." Morgan laughed making Brooke suddenly happy.
"I could say the same thing about you." Brooke was fast with this kind of things.
"I guess we have our similarities after all."
"I guess we do."
The food arrived and it was delicious, there was no space for dessert so the girls decided to take on that walk on the deck that they had mentioned earlier.
The night air was chilly and the soft noises coming from the waves hitting the skull of the ship were almost hypnotizing, Brooke never thought that being there would actually feel so good, so liberating.
"Are you enjoying yourself?" Morgan asked while she watched Brooke close her eyes and enjoy the feeling of the wind on her face and hair.
"I love it. Thanks."
"What for?"
"For such a wonderful night." Brooke smiled and continued walking.
Morgan found a secluded area on the deck towards the end where the noise from the engines was a bit louder. They stood by the rails and looked down to the ocean; it was really dark, scary almost.
"Did you leave anyone special back home?" Morgan asked looking at Brooke.
"No, what about you?" Brooke kind of sensed where it was all leading but she didn't want to stop it, she felt safe and good around Morgan and anyways what were the chances of them ever meeting again after this week.
"This is home, and no there's nobody special in my life right now except you." Morgan got closer and caressed Brooke's long hair.
"What do you mean?" Brooke enjoyed the touch but was a bit confused by what it had made her feel inside, a shiver ran through her body making her feel unsteady.
"Ever since I saw you this afternoon in the library I felt attracted to you, like a magnet, there's something that just pulls me to you, and all evening the only thing on my mind has been the need and desire to kiss you." Morgan paused and looked at her intently searching for a reaction, for a sign.
"I don't know what to say." Brooke replied.
"You better stop me now because I'm about to listen to my heart and ignore my head."
Brooke did not do or said anything, she just looked back into Morgan's eyes and got lost in their depth.
Morgan got closer and wrapped her arms around Brooke's waist; she pulled her closer gently and pressed their lips together. She could feel how Brooke's body automatically relaxed and adjusted to her touch, she heard her soft moan and felt how her arms came up and embraced her as intimately as she was holding her. Their lips parted slightly and the kiss deepened, Brooke's eyes were closed and her body was resting against Morgan for support. Their tongues met shyly, sending all kinds of responses through each other's bodies.
After a few seconds Brooke backed away slowly removing her arms from Morgan's back.
"I um. . ." Brooke took a deep breath and tried again.
"I think I should go." She turned around and began to walk in the direction of her room.
"Would you like me to accompany you?" Morgan followed her, a bit worried.
"I'm ok, thanks." Brooke didn't look back, she just kept walking, she felt confused, scared and most alarmingly she felt alive.
Morgan hurried her pace and gently pulled her by the arm.
"Can we please talk? I don't want you to leave like this." Morgan's eyes were pleading, she needed Brooke to talk to her, to let her know how she was feeling.
"I need to be alone right now please, Morgan."
"Did I do something wrong? Did I offend you in any way?" Morgan was insisting.
"No you didn't, I should have stopped you, I'm . . . I'm not gay." Brooke's voice was small, sad.
"Oh . . . I get it. Then what was that a test? An experiment?" Morgan let go of her arm and walked away.
"Morgan wait!" Brooke went after her but she didn't even know what to say or how to explain her actions. Brooke decided to go to her room and wait until the next day; she knew where to find her.
After several hours tossing and turning Brooke gave up on the idea of getting some sleep, she took a shower, put on some old comfy jeans a long sleeve baby blue sweater and a pair of sneakers, she fixed her hair and left her room, the deck was empty and the dew was all over the floor and rails. She stared into the horizon for long minutes reliving the previous night's actions. She had had a lot of fun, she had a wonderful time with Morgan and then they kissed, that gesture had profoundly confused Brooke an the fact that Morgan now thought that she had been used as an experiment wasn't helping the situation. She had thought about many ways of approaching her and talking to her, explaining herself but none seemed to satisfy her.
Brooke stayed a bit longer and watched the sunrise next to a few strangers that admired it in awe. She had seen many, none as beautiful as this one, none as sad.
Breakfast was the last thing on her mind when she walked in the library at six in the morning, she looked around looking for Morgan but there was no sign of her, there was another lady behind the counter, by the way she looked she had spent the whole night there. That meant that either Morgan had decided to quit which was unlikely or she was running late.
Brooke turned around planning to come back later when Morgan came in almost running and bumped into her spilling a cup of hot freshly brewed coffee on Brooke's sweater.
"Oh my god, I'm so sorry." Morgan grabbed some paper towels and began to dry Brooke's clothes careful enough not to touch anything.
"It's hot." Brooke managed to say after she got over the shock.
"Are you ok?" Morgan looked really concerned.
Brooke only nodded.
"I have some extra clothes in the back, come on let's change you." Morgan led the way, they opened a door that led to the employee's office and Morgan invited Brooke to sit on the sofa.
Morgan stepped outside and apologized to Christine, the other librarian, for coming in late and dismissed her.
Brooke had taken her shirt off and was trying to clean up as much of the coffee as she could.
Morgan walked in and froze at the site, Brooke was almost naked, in her office. Brooke looked at her and dropped the paper; there was something about Morgan that she couldn't explain.
"It was hot, sorry." Brooke explained her nakedness.
Morgan didn't speak, she opened a locker and took out a gym bag, after unzipping it she handed Brooke a t-shirt and a sports bra.
"It might be a little tight, but it's the least I could do after ruining your sweater."
"Thank you." Brooke turned around and changed her undergarments and then the T-shirt, it fitted fine, a bit tight because her breasts were a bit bigger than Morgan's.
"Is there anything else I could do for you?" Morgan asked coldly.
"Can we please talk about last night?" Brooke almost pleaded.
"We already said enough."
"You are not an experiment to me. I'm confused; I've never felt this way before towards anyone." Brooke walked towards Morgan but she was already walking out of the office towards the counter.
Morgan cleaned the floor with a spray and some paper towels. She didn't reply.
"I'll bring your clothes by later." Brooke walked out feeling a little better, no matter what Morgan thought from now on at least Brooke said what she had to say.
A few hours went by and Brooke found some ways to distract herself, she bowled for a few hours, she ate lunch and walked some more. The clothes that she was wearing reminded her of Morgan, they smelled like she had smelled the night before, some unrecognized perfume that had all her senses active. Since talking was proving to be a mission she decided to write her a short letter explaining the way she felt and delivering it to the library before her shift ended, or better yet, she went there and sat on the same table with a note pad and a pen. After a few minutes of writing doing her best not to stare at Morgan she stood up and walked to the counter.
"I would like you to read this please." Brooke handed her the neatly folded page and walked out of the library once again.
Morgan opened the letter and began to read.
Dear Morgan:
Last night was the best night of my life, I met you and I had a wonderful time at the restaurant and also while we walked on the deck. When you said that you were attracted to me and that if I didn't stop you right then and there you would kiss me, I froze, I didn't know what to do, I really wanted to be kissed by you and clear out my emotional roller coaster, I responded to your kiss because I've never felt that way before, I never felt so protected and comfortable with absolutely anyone. I was scared of letting myself feel that way, of liking the kiss and speculating anything else that could complicate matters further, after I tried to leave without a reasonable explanation and making you feel like you were an experiment I realized what a fool I had been, I understand that I might not see you again ever in my life but at least for this week I would like to enjoy the privilege of your company at least as a friend. I understand if you don't ever want to talk to me again or if I hurt you and the damage is irreparable. If you do change your mind I'll be by the decks tonight, where we were last night, where we kissed, where you opened a new door for me, a different and exhilarating way to see and feel things. I'll be waiting for you.
"You're late." Brooke said when Morgan arrived and stood in front of her with a red rose in her hands.
"I know, I thought that maybe I should let you miss me for a little while." Morgan handed her the flower and smiled.
"Thanks for coming, and thank you for the flower." Brooke wanted to hug her, or kiss her or something that had to do with touching her, but she didn't dare.
"You look good, not so preppy." Morgan looked her up and down making her blush a bit.
"I felt like I overdressed last night." Brooke replied looking at herself. She was wearing black slack pants and a white turtle neck.
Morgan as usual was wearing jeans and a long sleeved shirt.
"You look good too." Brooke fought another urge to touch her.
"I wanted to apologize for treating you like I did last night, I was out of line and I let my anger and frustrations take over, I should have listened to you." Morgan apologized and rested her back against the rail.
"I understand, I was wrong too." Brooke looked at Morgan's hands and wondered what it might be like to hold them, she wondered if they were warm.
"Are you hungry?" Morgan asked.
"Not really but if you are we can go." Brooke replied.
"Maybe later." Morgan smiled and realized that Brooke was staring at her.
"Sorry, I can't help it."
"I feel honored." Morgan caressed Brooke's hair once again and entwined her fingers with some of her curls.
"I like it when you touch my hair; it's such a tender gesture." Brooke looked into her eyes and thought she had seen a glimpse of sadness.
"I love your hair. It's soft and it smells so good." Morgan removed her hand, she felt like she was playing with fire.
"Do you mind if we walk, I'm getting chilly?"
"Lets go, maybe we should look for a place to hang out indoors."
"I agree."
"Do you like playing billiards?" Morgan was a big fan.
"I've never played."
"Would you like me to teach you?"
"Sure, that should be fine." Brooke smiled and picked up her pace.
The bar was located on the third floor of the ship, it was warm and it smelled faintly of cigarettes.
Tonight it was packed, there were guys and gals of all ages, drinking, dancing and playing. They bought some tokens and deposited them on the slot to activate the game.
Morgan explained the general rules and how it was basic geometry stuff.
Morgan taught Brooke how to chalk the cue tip to avoid any slipping on contact with the ball.
Brooke got the hang of it pretty fast after Morgan repeatedly helped her how to position herself in order to hit the ball.
After the game was over and they paid for a couple of drinks that they had, the girls walked out of the bar laughing and joking around.
It was almost midnight and Morgan had to wake up early so they decided to call it a night.
"Can I walk you to your room?" Morgan insisted for like the third time.
"But you have to wake up early, I'll be fine." Brooke didn't want her to extend her night any more, she needed her sleep.
"Then I'll follow you until you're safely inside."
"You never give up." Brooke thought it was the cutest thing, to be worried about her.
"I don't, especially if I really want something badly." Morgan said making Brooke blush.
"I had a blast tonight." Brooke looked down and intertwined her fingers with Morgan's.
They looked at each other and kept walking. Morgan's hands were warm just like Brooke had imagined.
They arrived at the cabin and Brooke opened the door, she turned on the light and invited Morgan in.
"Maybe I shouldn't, I mean it's late." Morgan said regretting her words a second after they left her lips.
"You're right. Will I see you tomorrow?" Brooke asked.
"Of course, I'll pick you up after work." Morgan replied.
"Good night."
"Good night Brooke." She smiled and turned around to start heading to her own room.
"Morgan I forgot something."
"Yes?"
Brooke extended her hand and touched Morgan's fingers, she pulled her gently towards her and kissed her on the cheek tenderly.
"Thanks for giving me a second chance."
"Sweet dreams beautiful." Morgan smiled and walked away feeling in the clouds.
Hello everyone comments are welcomed good or bad, they help me get better all the time. isispa@netzero.com