14. Chapter 14

Maya tells her parents that she has a project that she needs to work on with Vic and that they would’ve worked on it if they had track tonight, but they don’t. That it’s due the next day and they need to perfect it. She asks her dad if he can give her a ride to Vic’s house. He does. She does up to the door and Vic answers.

“Thanks for doing this.” Maya shrugs. Her hands jammed into her jean’s pockets.

It was last minute. Maya came up to her after school and asked for the favor. “No problem.” She swings her keys around her finger. “I will be your wingman.”

Maya scrunches up her face. “We aren’t going out to pick up people.”

Vic laughs. “You’re so weird, Bishop.” She claps Maya on the shoulder. “Let’s go.”

Vic drives them down to the YMCA. Maya fiddles nervously with her hands in the passenger’s seat. “She doesn’t know I’m coming.”

“Ah, a surprise. I love surprises. Can I stick around and watch?”

Maya looks over at Vic. “I would prefer if you didn’t.”

“Oh, boo.” Vic frowns. “But I’m still coming in to drop you off.”

“You’re not my mom.”

“That I am not.” Vic smirks.

They arrive and park and go inside. All Maya knows is that Carina plays soccer at the Y on Thursday evenings. She doesn’t know where or what it is like or anything else.

“Can I help you ladies?” The receptionist asks.

“Yes, where is the soccer league located. We are spectators.” Vic explains.

“Okay, you go down the hallway to the right here. There are basketball courts on one side, on the other side of the hall is the soccer pitch.”

“Thank you.” Vic nods at him.

“You’re welcome. Enjoy your time here.”

Vic and Maya nod and walk off down the hallway. They step into a big room. Fake grass on the floor with lines marking the pitch and goals on each end of the room. A set of skinny bleachers are set up on the near side of the room behind a little three foot tall wall.

“Let’s sit.” Vic nudges Maya as maya looks around.

There are a handful of people sitting in the bleachers. There are also two groups sitting directly behind the wall, Maya thinks those must be teammates of the two teams that are currently playing. She doesn’t see Carina anywhere. Vic sits with her and Maya sighs.

“Maybe she doesn’t play tonight.” She says sadly and wonders if all of this was for nothing but then remembers that Carina had said something specifically about the game tonight.

“Maybe they are the game after this one.” Vic gets up and goes over to the ‘bench’ players. “Excuse me. Is this the only game tonight?”

“No.” A big burly man tells her. “There are two more matches after this one.”

“Great. Thank you.” Vic smiles in thanks before heading back towards Maya, a grin on her face telling Maya that she has good news. “You’re in luck. There are two other games tonight.”

Maya nods. So, she didn’t just almost panic because she thought she got it wrong.

Vic takes in Maya’s demeanor as she sits next to her. “I’ve never seen you so nervous.”

“Thanks.” Maya mumbles dryly.

They are sitting there for about ten minutes when Vic starts to notice more and more people walking in. She figures they must be teams for the next match, so she keeps an eye out for Carina.

Maya, on the other hand, tries to remain calm and is trying to focus on the game that is taking place in front of them. That is, until Vic punches her in the arm. “Ow.” She rubs at her arm. “What was that for?”

“Look.” Vic points and whispers.

Maya looks over to her right where Vic is pointing and sees Carina. She’s bent over, rummaging around in a small bag. She’s got on a red tank top and tight little blue shorts, long white socks that come up above her knees. Her hair is pulled back in a high ponytail, the likes of which Maya has only seen in gym class.

They watch as Carina pulls a pair of cleats from her bag and then sits down on the bleacher, removes her shoes, and puts on the cleats. She then pulls a pair of shin guards from her bag and slips them into her socks. The brunette takes a water bottle, tips her head back a little, and squirts some water into her mouth.

“God, she’s hot.” Vic mumbles.

Maya glares over at Vic but Vic’s attention is on Carina.

Vic stands up. “Carina!” She shouts out.

“What are you doing?” Maya grabs at Vic’s arm and tries to pull her back to her seat.

“Getting her attention.” She waves at Carina, when Carina looks around to see who called her name. “And it worked.” Vic glances over at Maya when she sees that Carina has spotted them.

Maya forgets about Vic when Carina gets to her feet and starts coming towards them. Carina bites her lip as she walks over and then climbs the three steps to get to them at the top of the bleacher set.

“Hi, bella.” She whispers before looking to Vic. “Hello, Victoria.” She smiles before turning her attention back to Maya. “I didn’t think I’d see you here.” It’s a wonderful surprise.

Maya shrugs for lack of words.

“Maya had to employ a wingman for tonight. But it looks like my job here is done. I will see you both at school tomorrow.” Vic bids them farewell with a salute and a wave.

“Bye, Victoria.” Carina says, her eyes focused on Maya though.

Maya is in a trance now that Carina is up close and personal. “You look-“ She doesn’t even know what to say.

Carina giggles. “You like?” She throws an arm and leg out to the side, showing off her outfit. “I’m glad that you’re here.”

“Me too.” Maya licks her lips. “So, what’s this all about?” She points out at the field.

Carina holds her hand out towards Maya. “You’re sitting in the wrong spot for tonight.” She nods over to where her bag is and her teammates are gathering. “Come sit behind us.”

“Okay.” Maya lays her hand in Carina’s and stands. Carina holds her hand as they walk down the row, dropping it to walk down the steps, before offering for Maya to walk ahead of her.

“Ah, and who is this, Carina?” One of her teammates, Kenny, asks as they approach him.

The pair come to a stop in front of Kenny. Carina puts her hand on the small of Maya’s back. Maya looks over to the side, catching Carina’s eye. Carina smiles. “Kenny, team, this is my friend Maya. She’s come to watch us play tonight. So, you all better not fuck it up.”

There is a roar of laughter. And then everyone from Carina’s team exchanges hellos and pleasantries. Carina shows Maya where to sit and sits down next to her to wait for the first soccer match to finish.

“What do you think so far?” Carina says, nudging her shoulder into Maya’s.

“How is it that you get along with so many different people?”

“Thank you, bella.” Carina chuckles. “It’s the charm.” She winks at Maya. “No, but- I don’t know. I’ve always just sort of gone with things. Go with the flow, as you Americans say. It doesn’t matter to me what someone’s background is, where they are from, what their social status is. If we get along, then I can be friendly with lots of people. No matter their age or gender.”

“You’re very-“ Maya doesn’t know what the right word is. “Easy.”

Carina laughs. “Some might take that as an insult. Especially sexually.” Carina pinches at Maya’s leg playfully.

“Sorry.” Maya whispers.

Carina gives her a pointed look. They talked about the always apologizing thing.

“Sorry.” Maya apologizes for apologizing.

Carina shakes her head with a little grin. “I like you, Maya Bishop.” She says openly.

“Me too.”

Carina raises an eyebrow. “You like you too?” She teases.

“No.” Maya holds her hands out. “Carina, you know what I mean.”

People start moving about around them as the first game finishes. “I gotta go.” Carina stands up and takes a step towards the field. She turns and points at Maya. “I’m gonna score a goal for you.” She is feeling extra jazzed up at the fact that Maya is here, watching. The excitement, the adrenaline that pumps through her for a typically game seems amped up today.

Maya sits there staring, mouth slightly agape, as Carina winks at her and runs out onto the field.

And Carina makes good on her promise. She scores a goal about five minutes into the match. She jumps up and down and hugs her teammates in celebration and then as they are running back to reset, she runs by the bench and points in Maya’s direction.

Maya grins like an idiot, clapping like crazy. She’s never seen so much excitement and happiness come out of her Italian friend. It reminds her of Andrew the first time that Maya saw him score. She watches as the game plays on. The opposing team scores a goal to even the match and then one of Carina’s teammates scores a goal. At the halftime break it’s two to one in favor of Carina’s team.

“Hey.” Carina runs over, a little out of breath. “What do you think? Are you having a good time?” She asks Maya as she reaches for her water bottle.

Maya grins. “Yeah.” It’s not exactly something she saw herself sitting through and enjoying, but Maya finds that she is. If she can sit through twelve year old’s playing soccer, she can sit through this. This is much faster and more exciting and fast paced then the kid’s game. “You scored.”

Carina wiggles her eyebrows. “I told you I would.”

Maya bites her lip.

Carina smiles at the bashful expression on Maya’s face. “We-“ Carina waves a hand at her teammates. “-usually go out after the game. It’s up to you, but did you want to?”

“To like a bar?” Maya is shocked at this.

Carina chuckles. “Not always. Sometimes to a restaurant with a bar. But I can skip it today.”

Maya thinks about it. Would she want to go to a bar with Carina? She’s not eighteen yet, she doesn’t really know if she’s allowed in a bar. She knows if her parents were with her, it wouldn’t be a problem, but they’re not. She smirks at that thought.

“What?” Carina asks of the smirk.

Maya shakes her head. “Nothing.” She doesn’t know want she wants to do. Before she met Carina choices weren’t up to her. They were up to her dad or her parents. She was never asked what she wanted or what she wanted to do. Now, she finds Carina asking her that question regularly and it’s still a bit of a shock to be asked her thoughts in the first place, let alone make any decisions based off of those thoughts. “Can I think about it?”

Carina nods, taking another drink from her water. She bends over, putting a hand on Maya’s knee, getting right up in her face. “But you better have an answer by the time the match is over.” She whispers, searching those brilliant blue eyes, telling Maya that she is alright with whatever she decides.

“I don’t know anybody.” She worries as she takes in the group around them.

Carina wraps her arm around Maya’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, bella, I’ve got you.”

Maya shifts in the embrace. Not quite uncomfortable but not used to being held by someone.

“We won’t stay long though. Just enough so I can get something to eat.” Carina rubs her hand over her stomach. She leans in and whispers in Maya’s ear. “I have other plans for you tonight.”

A shiver runs through Maya’s entire body. She doesn’t know what those words mean, but they start Maya humming at the possibilities. “I ha-have to be home at a reasonable hour.”

Carina laughs. “Don’t worry about that.” She presses a kiss to the side of Maya’s head.

It’s mostly uneventful as Maya sits at Carina’s side in the booth that they share with some of Carina’s teammates. Most of the teammate partake in a beer or two. Carina gets Maya a fancy root beer from a local supplier that the restaurant has.

The group talks about the match and then diverge into side conversations as they wait for their food to come out.

A tall muscly woman sits on Maya’s right. “So, babe, what made you want to come watch us old farts play soccer?” She addresses Maya.

Maya looks to Carina for help. Carina shakes her head. She’s not going to say anything. Maya turns back to the woman who was standing in the goal for the entire match. “Uh- Carina.”

The woman laughs in a deep timber. “Clearly.”

Maya doesn’t know what the woman is laughing at. “We go to the same school.” Maya tries to defend. “And we’re friends.” She doesn’t even know why she keeps talking. “And-“

Carina puts a hand on Maya’s thigh, giving it a squeeze. “And I’m very glad that you came.” She winks.

The woman to Maya’s right just smirks. She likes Carina’s cute innocent little friend.

The fully loaded nachos that Carina ordered finally arrive and she digs in. She eats and feels Maya watching her. “Stop staring.” She glances over, a chip with some cheese and meat halfway to her lips. She diverts and moves it towards Maya’s lips. “Want some?” She wiggles her eyebrows.

Maya’s eyes shift from Carina’s to the chips and then back. She opens her mouth and waits for Carina to bring the chip to her lips, opening a little further as Carina slowly slips half the chip into Maya’s mouth. Maya bites down, crunching the chip in two, half in her mouth and the other half still between Carina’s fingers. Carina brings the rest to her lips and shoves it into her mouth without any preamble, grinning at Maya as she chews.

They do this for a number of chips. One of which is a little overloaded and messy. Some sour cream gets on the corner of Maya’s mouth, and before she can poke her tongue out to lick it off, Carina’s thumb comes up and wipes the sour cream away softly.

Carina stares at Maya’s lips for a moment after that. She wants so bad to kiss Maya. So bad to have just been able to kiss her and then lick the sour cream from the corner of her mouth. But she knows she can’t. At least, not right now. Not in front of her team. Not out in public. She focuses back on her nachos. The sooner she finishes them, the sooner she gets to kiss Maya.

They leave after Carina is finished eating, going to Carina’s car. They get inside and just sit there for a minute before Carina says something. “Thank you for coming tonight. You don’t know how much it means to me.” She really is happy and grateful that Maya came to her game. She just hopes that Maya had a good time.

Maya shrugs like it’s not a big deal but they both know that it is. It’s a small miracle that Maya is even out of the house on a school night.

“What did you tell your dad?”

Maya shakes her head. “I don’t want to talk about him.” She reaches over and grabs Carina by the back of the head and pulls in for a kiss. A type of kiss they haven’t shared before. Sloppy, hard.

“Woah, woah, woah.” Carina pulls out of the kiss after a few seconds. As much as she’d love to continue this, she needs to check something first.

Maya groans. “What?” She’s feeling a little frustrated. “I thought you wanted this. I thought- you said you had other plans for me tonight.”

Carina bites her lip. “I did. But that doesn’t mean I want people seeing us making out in a parking lot.”

“I thought you were-“ Maya cuts herself off.

“What?” Carina raising an eyebrow.

Maya leans back, pressing herself against the door, as far away from Carina as possible. She’s more than a bit confused. “You were flirting with me inside.”

“Si.”

“And I thought you wanted to-“

Carina smiles, softly. “You’re not just a notch in my bedpost, Maya.”

Maya doesn’t say anything. What does one say to that? Does that mean that Carina is serious about this little fling that they have going on?

“Look, I very much like flirting with you. I like the shy look on your face. Or the way you bite your lip. Or how your eyes seem even bluer when I look into them. But-“ She licks her lips. “That doesn’t mean I want to expose us in public.”

Maya nods.

“And I don’t know how you feel about being open in public or how open in public. It’s very much a delicate thing. That I know not everyone is comfortable with. No matter who you are. Or who you like. Or who you’re with. I’m just being cautious. But Maya, I very much want to kiss you. I very much want to flirt with you. I very much want to hold your hand. And even more. But there are just some things I feel like we need to be careful about.”

Maya hasn’t really thought about any of this. Too caught up in the way Carina makes her feel to really think things through or think of any consequences.

“And not everyone in the public is understanding or excepting. Do you understand what I’m saying?” She brings Maya’s hand to her lips and presses a quick kiss to her knuckles.

“Y-yeah.” Maya sighs. She wonders how Carina knows how to do everything. How to do the right thing, say the right thing. Make sure that they are safe. She’s heard of gay men getting beaten up and having foul language thrown at them. She hadn’t realized, until now, how that might apply to herself and Carina. “It’s tricky, isn’t it?” She looks up and over at Carina, locking eyes.

“It is.” Carina nods. “I see it as a risk assessment sort of thing. There are certain things that are acceptable in certain situations but not in others. It depends on the crowd, who you are with. Or if it’s reasonable to sneak a kiss. Or sometimes hold hands under a table or-“ Carina shrugs. “Little touches here and there.”

Maya nods. She knows Carina is more experienced with all of this. She’s more than willing to let her take the lead. And she can’t believe she was so willing to just throw herself at Carina tonight without thought of the possible consequences. Carina just jumbles up the rational thought process in her brain.

“Can I take you somewhere?” Carina asks.

Maya hums. “As long as you aren’t going to kill me.”

Carina laughs and shakes her head. She turns to face forward in her seat and starts the car. She shifts the car into gear and starts them on their way. “And will you hold my hand while we drive?”

Maya reaches over and takes Carina’s right hand, holding it between hers over the center console.

Carina drives them down to Pier 57. She finds a place to park, and they get out.

“Where are we going?” Maya knows about the Pier. She’s been there once but not recently.

“Do you like Ferris wheels?” Carina slides up next to Maya as they start walking.

Maya thinks about the question. It’s a strange one. Not one that Maya would think about. She’s not opposed to them. She isn’t afraid of them or of heights. She doesn’t get motion sickness, but she hasn’t been on one since she was a kid. “I guess.”

Carina chuckles. “Okay, come on.” She leads the way.

Luckily there aren’t lots of people around. It’s getting late in the day, on a Thursday, it’s not summer yet, so there aren’t kids running around or tourist milling about. Carina thinks this is perfect.

They get in line for The Great Wheel, Seattle’s Ferris wheel. There are a few people in front of them and a couple gets in line behind them. Carina watches the Ferris wheel as it goes around, smiling up at it, at the idea of sitting with Maya.

Maya looks around nervously. After the discussion they just had in the car, Maya can’t help but feel like everyone is watching her every move. The thing is, all she’s doing is standing there. She’s not holding Carina’s hand. They aren’t touching each other in any way, but she feels like everyone knows what they were talking about or how they are standing in line of the Ferris wheel as something other than friends.

It's dark and the wheel and its gondola style cabins are lit and have a glow about them. The attendant is loading and unloading passengers and eventually they get to the front of the line.

“Can we have our own cabin?” Carina asks with a radiant smile.

Maya’s eyes nearly bulge out of her own head at the request.

The attendant nods and they get in and he closes the door.

“I can’t believe this.” Maya whispers.

“Believe it, bella.”

“After everything you said in the car. I didn’t think-“ Maya shakes her head.

“This is something a little more private. I thought, I hoped, there wouldn’t be a big line and that we could have our own gondola. Just lucked out, I guess.” She winks at Maya, wrapping an arm around her as the start to go up.

The attendant is loading every other gondola to distribute the passengers in line evenly. They stop every minute or so until everyone is loaded.

Maya looks around as they get higher and higher in the sky. It’s dark but lights light up Seattle to there left and right. The dark water of Elliot Bay out in front of them. “This is so cool.” She turns to look at Carina and realizes that Carina has just been watching her the entire time.

The ride gets going in full, without stopping.

Carina uses her hand that she has wrapped around Maya to press her fingers into her cheek, tilting Maya’s face towards her. “Baciami.” She whispers.

“What’s that?”

Carina leans in, rubbing her nose against Maya’s, searching her eyes. “Kiss me.” She says against Maya’s lips.

Maya’s entire body tingles as Carina presses their lips together. She curls her toes in her shoes, her hand finding Carina’s shoulder, steadying herself there. Every time they kiss, Maya feels this sort of electricity coursing through her. It’s something she’s never ever felt before. Maya has had crushes before, but she knows now that this goes far beyond any sort of crush.

She presses herself as close as possible into Carina’s side. The angle is a little awkward for proper kisses to last a long time without moving or adjusting.

It’s almost as if Carina feels the same thing. She reaches up with her free hand, wrapping it around Maya’s wrist, near her shoulder. She hums, finishing the series of kisses with a few little pecks, before pulling away a little. She smiles softly at the look on Maya’s face. Her eyes closed gently; her lips turned up ever so slightly at the corners.

“What are you thinking?” Carina whispers out.

Maya sighs and opens her eyes to see those rich brown soulful eyes looking back at her with so much adoration. So much so that it scares Maya. But she stands tall in that feeling. “That this is perfect.”

Carina strokes her thumb over Maya’s cheek. “It is pretty great.” She admits. When she had the idea, Carina didn’t imagine it would turn out this well. She nods to the cabin door. “Wave.” They glide past the attendant. He isn’t paying any attention.

Maya blushes a little and tucks her head against Carina’s chest, under her chin. She moves her hand from Carina’s shoulder and plays with the bottom hem of Carina’s tank top. She wonders what it would be like to take Carina’s shirt off and a little thrill runs through her at the thought. She strokes her fingers over the shirt over and over.

“That tickles.” Carina whispers.

“Oh.” Maya stops moving her fingers.

“But I like it.” Carina lets her know. “It’s a gentle tickle. Not like an attack that I need to get away from.”

They sit silence after that, looking out as the wheel makes three rotations. Carina with her arm around Maya the entire time; sharing a quick kiss at the top the second and third time they go around.

Maya giggles a little after the third. It’s somehow, silly, and cute, and if she’s being completely honest, a little romantic. As scary as that thought is. Romance. Maya feels like she’s not old enough to know what romance is. She’s does feel old enough to even be experiencing it.

They make their exit and Carina checks her watch. It’s nearing ten o’clock. She knows they need to put a cap on this day.

“I’ll drive you home.”

Maya chuckles. “Good, cuz I didn’t feel like running.”

Carina shoves her playfully. “Stop it. You didn’t really think I wouldn’t bring you home?”

Maya shakes her head, grinning. “No.” She bumps into Carina on purpose, causing her to veer off a straight path. “But you have to park around the corner from my house. Or just down the street a little maybe.”

Carina nods, the mood souring at the thought of Maya’s dad. They are nearly back to the car. She has a question in her mind that she’s wanted to ask for days and days now but is too scared to. But Carina feels like it’s only going to drive her crazier with each passing day.

“Maya, I have a question.” She asks as they get into the car.

“Yeah.”

“And it’s not- please don’t get mad at me-“

Maya frowns. “What?”

“Has he ever-“ Carina swallows the lump that has formed in her throat. She reaches over and takes Maya’s hands in her own. “Has he ever hit you?”

Maya lets out a long exaggerated breath. “No.” She looks down at their hands.

“Really?” Carina almost doesn’t believe it. Like, she thought the answer was going to be yes.

Maya shakes her head and finally looks over at Carina. “He hasn’t. He throws stuff and punches walls- and the table. Whatever’s within reach. And he yells and screams and stomps around, but he’s never hit me.”

Carina nods, staring off into the distance behind Maya.

“Do you believe me?” Maya is surprised that she’s even talking about this.

“Huh?” Carina looks back over at Maya. “Yeah. Uh- what about your mom and brother?”

Maya wrinkles up her face. “I don’t know. But I don’t think so. Most of his anger is aimed at me. I’m his star child. If I make even the slightest mistake or misstep, I hear about it. Why are you asking?” She’s starting to worry where this might lead.

Carina closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. “I just want to make sure you are as safe as you can be. I know there’s not much you, or I can do, but I want you to be able to tell me things. And I had that question stuck in my head for the last- since I left your house that day- just eating away at me.”

“Oh.” If that’s all this is then, Maya is fine with that. Carina’s concern for the situation is unparalleled. Maya squeezes Carina’s hands, bringing them both up to her lips, kissing over her knuckles. She flips her hands over and presses a kiss to each of the palms. “Thank you.” Maya whispers. “Thank you so much. You are-“ She sighs. “Simply amazing. Just- I don’t even know what to say. You put so much thought into everything that happened. And you shouldn’t have to, Carina.”

“I want to. I need to know what’s happening with you. I need to know that you are alright.” Carina frowns.

“Carina.” Maya closes her eyes now. “I- I-“ She opens her eyes and shakes her head. It all seems so impossible again. Here they are at the end the night, Maya having completely forgotten about her dad or her training or running or school or college looming. It was just her and Carina and it was so good. Great. But now she feels like she’s been pulled back down to earth. “Let’s go.” She sighs, dropping Carina’s hands.

“No. No. No.” Carina reaches up, tucking Maya’s hair behind her ear. “I didn’t mean to make you sad. I’m sorry, bambina.”

Maya wrinkles up her face at that. It’s not bella. And she thinks she might actually know what it means.

“We were having such a good time.” Carina places her hand on Maya’s shoulder. “Please.”

“It’s okay.” Maya shakes her head lightly. “I don’t think I’ll ever forget tonight. It was perfect.”

“Really?” Carina has to ask. She wouldn’t have thought that a rec league soccer game, nachos at a bar, and a Ferris wheel would constitute a perfect night.

“Yeah. You are soooo good to me.” Part of Maya feels like she doesn’t deserve it. The other part feels like she isn’t even close to doing or being anything good for Carina. She doesn’t feel like she’s pulling her weight. She knows there are restrictions, but she feels like she should be doing more somehow.

“Cuz you deserve good thing.” Carina shrugs like it’s that simple.

Maya half smiles and Carina half smiles back at her. She reaches over rubbing her thumb across Maya’s lips. “You are bellisima, bambina. Even with all your stuff.” She feels like Maya needs to hear it. “No matter what. I don’t want you to forget that.” She taps her finger against Maya’s nose. “Now we go home.” She turns in her seat and starts the car.

“Stop a few houses down from mine?” Maya whispers.

Carina hums, knowing the reason without having to ask. She parks four houses down from the Bishop’s. “I’ll see you in the morning.” Carina says quietly. She turns towards Maya.

Maya chews on her lip, glances down the street at her house, and turns back to Carina. She leans across the center console, pressing a quick kiss to Carina’s lip. It feels so much more dangerous to do now, sitting outside her house knowing her parents are inside. “Bye.” She hopes out before Carina can say anything and jogs lightly to the house.