Kim Pritekel: Crossing Lines

"Ah, I see. That was pretty horrible, about that kid. I remember that." Nina studied Kansas for a long moment, almost making the blonde uncomfortable. Finally she spoke. "What do you want for yourself, Kansas? Where do you see yourself in five years?"

The blonde blew out a breath. "Boy, I don't know. That's a big question. I want to be doing art, I know that much. But what, I don't know. As for five years, I want to be out of here. I want to have my own place somewhere, overlooking a lake or something. I love nature. I want to be able to wake up to the sounds of birds and frogs." She looked down, suddenly feeling very stupid. It wasn't cool for someone her age to be thinking about nature. She'd heard that enough. "You know," she shrugged, indifferent. "Whatever." Kansas was surprised when she felt a warm touch on her hand. She looked up, meeting an amused smile.

"Kansas, honey," Nina said softly, "you don't need to posture. I'm not a 16 year old kid who's going to make fun of you for your dreams. Share them with me. I think they're fascinating."

Kansas felt herself melt. All she could do was nod, her hand burning where Nina's touch remained for a moment more, then it was gone.

***

Kansas was flying on a cloud that night as she sat in her room. She's spent the entire afternoon with Nina, learning so much about the brunette: she was in fact, 26, was originally from Maryland, met Dan while in law school in Cincinnati, and they got married two years later. Nina was one of the warmest people the teen had ever met, and she just couldn't get enough of her. She loved to hear what Nina had to say, the way her mind worked. She was logical and intelligent, yet had a wonderfully whimsical side to her. Kansas figured that was probably the side that had a problem with the way the legal system worked.

She hadn't wanted to leave the Bruckner place, but knew that her welcome would only stay for so long. Nina was probably just being nice, or maybe just wanted some company for a little while. After all, what would a gorgeous 26 year old want to do with a 17 year old kid, who didn't have any life experience, couldn't really relate to any of Nina's worries or concerns in her profession. In some ways Kansas felt very small, though she had to admit, Nina never made her feel that way. In fact, quite the opposite- Nina seemed to hang on every word and insight the blonde had.

Kansas sighed in contentment as she walked over to the window to close her blinds for the night, wondering if she'd see Nina in her office or not. And what did she do there, anyway? Work? Was she a writer, too? Bills?

The blonde stopped short when she got to the window. Nina was in her office, alright, but so was Dan. It looked like they were in a huge argument, Dan's face red, a vein standing out in the middle of his forehead. Nina was gesticulating wildly, though her back was to Kansas, so she couldn't see her face. Dan began to speak, though it looked more like he were yelling. Finally he stormed out of the room. A moment later, Kansas heard a door slam, then the engine of a car rev to life. She watched Nina, who still had her back to her. It was obvious the brunette was crying, her head handing, buried in her hands, and shoulders shaking.

Marina was watching the nightly news when her daughter zoomed down the stairs, calling out she'd be back, then she was out the door. The older blonde didn't even get a word in edge-wise.

***

Nina blew her nose for the third time, the tears beginning to dry, making her face feel tight and uncomfortable. This had been a bad one- one of the worst they'd had in awhile. She had no idea that when Kari called to see how she was, it would cause World War III. Yes, she knew Dan didn't like Kari, never had. But by god, it had been nearly a year since Nina had spoken to her!

But then the brunette thought about her friendship with Kari. It had been nearly obsessive on both sides. It hadn't seemed like that at the time. It hadn't occurred to Nina then that Kari calling her on every break at work, or them getting together every single day, was strange. Not until it became a battle between Kari and Dan. They would both try and be the first to call Nina, making the brunette choose. What had been the breaker for Nina, however, was the one night when she realized she had lied to her husband, telling him her mother had called, and was on the other line, when in fact, it was Kari. Dan had caught her in the lie when he'd gotten home the following morning from a long-haul, and Nina's mother's name didn't appear on the caller I.D.

That had been a moment of truth in their marriage, and for Nina. She'd slowly backed off from the friendship until it dwindled to nothing. She and Dan had moved away, and Nina hadn't allowed herself to think about her friend since then. Until she called tonight.

The attorney plopped down on the closed toilet seat, sighing heavily. "Shit." She was brought out of her stupor by the sound of someone knocking.

***

Kansas waited impatiently for her knocks to be answered. Finally a very puffy-eyed Nina opened the door.

"Kansas," the brunette said, surprise in her voice.

"Are you okay?" the blonde asked. Now that she was faced with the woman, she felt unsure, like maybe she should just mind her own business. But one look into Nina's tortured eyes, and she couldn't walk away. "I'm sorry to barge in, but I saw it."

"Oh," Nina blew out, looking slightly flustered. "It's nothing, really. We just had a little argument."

Kansas studied the other woman, knowing it had been a fight, but also knowing what it felt like. "Nina," she said, voice soft. "I just watched my parents go through a divorce. I know it's not easy- relationships, I mean. If you wanna talk. . . " To Kansas' surprise, she suddenly found herself engulfed in an embrace, a crying Nina in her arms. "Come on," she whispered, slowly moving them into the house so the entire neighborhood didn't see how upset the brunette was.

Nina moved back into the house, allowing the blonde to close the front door, but held on. She stroked Nina's back and hair, letting the brunette get it all out. Finally Nina's tears slowed then faltered. She pulled away from the embrace, embarrassed.

"I'm sorry," she sniffled. "God, I feel like such an ass."

"Don't." Kansas grabbed a Kleenex from a nearby end table and handed it to the brunette. "Are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?"

Nina said nothing, instead leading them to the couch. They sat in silence as she got herself together, Kansas sitting expectantly beside her. "I'm sorry, Kansas. You shouldn't have seen that."

"But I did."

Nina nodded. "Yes, you did." She blew out a cleansing breath, blew her nose then looked at her fingers as they held onto the soiled Kleenex. She couldn't look at her friend. "You know, I really thought that moving here, into this house, would make things better. It was stupid, really. Last ditch effort, I guess."

Kansas said nothing, just gently removed the Kleenex from Nina's fingers and handing her a clean one. The brunette smiled in gratitude before continuing.

"Dan works long hours, and he's gone a lot. I work long hours, and I'm gone a lot, too. This, young Kansas, does not a good marriage make." She smiled weakly at the blonde. "These things have to be nurtured. And somewhere along the way," she paused, taking a deep breath. "I guess I just stopped. And so did he." Nina began to cry again.

Kansas let her instincts take over, placing an arm around the older woman's shoulders, and gently tugging until a brunette head rested against her shoulder. "Shhh," Kansas cooed. "I know."

After awhile Nina calmed, but remained where she was. "I'm really sorry, Kansas. I really shouldn't be putting this all on you. Going through this with your parents. . . I'm sorry."

The teen gave in to a guilty pleasure and ran her fingers through the thick, dark hair. "It's okay. You just looked so upset. I had to make sure you were okay."