“Maybe. You know, I’m not usually this outgoing… to just say what I think and feel.”

Brooke was surprised at the honest admission. “So tell me…what did you feel, Sam?”

“Well, to say the least…intrigued. You know, by your ability to slay dragons,” the blonde thought of how C.C. and Terri had portrayed the woman she was talking to on her first day at the dorm.

Brooke pulled the phone away from her ear and stared at it as if it had grown two heads. She placed it back against her head, thoroughly confused and replied with, “Huh?”

Sam’s only response was to laugh and mumble out, “Nothing.”

After the laughter subsided a bit, she continued. “You made my heart go out to you at dinner the other Sunday, for being so steadfast in your life and not letting your mother force the issue on you. Well…not too much,” she chided.

“If she could see me now,” Brooke whispered to herself as she got out of her bed and walked out onto her balcony. Taking a seat on the wide rail, she positioned one knee pulled up near her chest with her back against the side of the house. The tall woman wrapped her left arm around her knee and stared off into the night sky.

“You mean something’s changed?”

Brooke was shocked to hear Sam’s question. She didn’t think she had spoken those words loud enough for Sam to hear her, but she was wrong.

“Uh…no. Ah…never mind,” she brushed the question off. “So, does this mean you’re my reward for being so insistent?”

It was now Sam’s turn to be confused, “Hmmm, reward? That means…” blonde brows furrowed as Sam looked out the only window in her room, searching for an answer. “What does that mean?”

“Nothing, never mind.”

“Brooke, you do know what they say about one that protests too much…don’t you?”

“What’s that?” Brooke asked as Sam giggled.

“Never mind. I got my answer. I can actually hear you better now. Where are you?”

“Sitting on the railing of my balcony, outside my bedroom. There’s a small breeze and it’s nice outside.”

“Wow, you have a balcony?” Sam asked. She had found herself wondering a couple of times during the week what kind of house Brooke would occupy.

“Yeah, I have a couple.”

Letting her mind wander through the house that Brooke was describing, Sam closed her eyes and tried to imagine it.

Opening her eyes, the young woman wondered where the evening had vanished and the night arrived. The last remnants of the sun were gone and the dorm room was growing dark. Crossing over to the other side of the room, the young blonde gazed longingly out her window, letting her eyes fix on the slight twinkle of the night’s first star.

There she made a silent wish, praying that it would come true. Please, God. Don’t let this just be my imagination. I’d really like to get to know her better.

Realizing that she had tiptoed around her thoughts long enough, Sam needed to have some clue as to how Brooke felt, and soon.

Gulping back her fear, she decided the time was now. “So, tell me, Brooke…honestly…is this going to be a cat and mouse game or what?”

Brooke considered just letting the question slide as if she hadn’t heard it, but she was tired of pretending. Pretending she didn’t need anybody, pretending she was happy, and pretending that she didn’t care about Sam. Within the span of a few weeks’ time, the young blonde had wormed her way behind all of Brooke’s defenses.

“I don’t think I want to play cat and mouse,” Brooke admitted softly.

Her honesty surprised Sam, “Oh? So, does that mean you’re going to ask me out or not?”

“Well, unless my memory is really whacked, I thought we went out last Friday night a week ago.”

“Oh, that was a date? A real date? Three minutes notice and you call that a date?” Sam couldn’t resist teasing Brooke.

Pausing to think for a moment, the older woman had to agree. “No, actually it wasn’t. Sam, would you go out with me?”

The blonde stood up, staring at the phone, stunned. She had meant for her previous words to be a joke but Brooke had taken them to heart.

“Me?” her voice was soft and somewhat shaky sounding. “You’re asking me out?”

Brooke smiled at the shocked tone in Sam’s voice, “Unless there’s someone else talking to me on my phone named Sam.” The older woman paused adding a little drama to the situation, then added, “Yes, I would like it very much if you’d go out with me.” Brooke chuckled to herself, “You know, you had the same reaction when I asked you about the movie last Friday night.” Please say ‘yes’, Sam. Please say ‘yes’.

“Nope, just me. No matter how you spell it, Sam is my name. And yes, I’d love to go out with you. Just let me know when and where.”

Brooke was so excited that the idea of jumping up and down on her balcony in the moonlight seemed perfectly reasonable. However, priding herself on her adulthood, she refrained from doing so.

“How about next Sunday? I mean, it’s been a while since I’ve actually been on a date but we can go wherever you’d like. Whatever you’d like to do.”

If it were actually possible to hear someone smile, this would be the case. Sam could hear the happiness in Brooke’s voice, ecstatic that she was responsible for putting it there, bringing a grin to her own.

“Next Sunday sounds great,” the blonde fought to contain her own joyous emotions. “So…you haven’t been out with anyone in a while?” Sam asked, not trying to be nosey. The blonde wanted to absorb everything there was to know about the woman she had been speaking to for over the last two hours.

“No, nothing that would be considered a date.”

“Don’t feel bad. You don’t get asked on many dates where I come from. I mean…you would, I’m sure but…”

Brooke cut her off, “Sam, I find it hard to believe that you didn’t have them lining up at your door.” Her voice grew softer than normal as she admitted, “I know I’d have been the first in line had I known of you.”

“That’s very sweet of you, Brooke, and I would have liked that very much. But remember I told you that I wasn’t the most popular. And, well…it would have been kind of hard explaining this line of women outside my door when my parents didn’t know at the time that I was gay. I mean…I’m not saying that I’ve never been out,” the irony of that line at that particular time made Sam laugh. “No pun intended.”

Brooke laughed as well before growing serious again. “Can I ask you something, Sam?”

“Sure, anything,” Sam answered without missing a beat.

“Why did you find it so hard to believe that I wanted to go out with you?” Brooke listened for an answer. Even as good as her hearing was, she had to strain to hear Sam’s quiet voice.

“You just seem so…I don’t know…more adventurous than to settle for someone like me. I mean, let’s face it, Brooke, you’ve got way more experience here than I do.”

“Settle? Sam, I would never settle for you. If I want to be with you then, I’ll be with you. I don’t consider that settling at all.” The last thing Brooke wanted was for Sam to believe that they would only be spending time together until someone better came along.

Sam’s soft snort of laughter came across the line, “Funny, isn’t that the word your mother kept using…trying to settle you down? I really don’t think that you’ll ever settle down. You’re like an unbroken horse…wild and tame, all at the same time. Maybe that’s what is attracting me to you.”

Brooke remained silent, letting everything Sam had said sink in. As long as ‘something’ is attracting you to me.

“You’re awfully quiet, Brooke. I hope I haven’t offended you.”

“No, not at all. Just making me think,” Brooke said quickly.

“Think about what? Something good, I hope?”

“Oh, yeah. It’s good. I just keep thinking about how I’ve tried to blow my mother off of her one true obsession and turned around and ran right smack into you,” Brooke smiled into the phone, more than a little disappointed that Sam was not there to see it.

“Fate, huh?” Sam asked, curious as to what Brooke’s response would be.

“I guess so, Sam. I believe it might just be. So…anything in particular you’d like to do?” Brooke steered the conversation to their upcoming date. She stood up from the rail and walked back into her bedroom, closing the balcony doors after she was inside.

“How about something with music? It seems to be our common ground,” Sam suggested.

“Okay…” she thought for a moment. “Like what?”

Brooke made her way downstairs to get something to drink. She realized that all of their talking and soul bearing had made her thirsty. Grabbing a bottle of water out of the fridge, she ran back up the stairs.

“Hey, I only know stuff around the campus. I defer to you.”

Brooke thought about what they could do as she re-entered her bedroom. She sat down on the bed, taking a drink from her water bottle.

“Well, other than the studio, I really couldn’t tell you where we could go. C.C. would probably have a better idea. The only time I really go to any bars now is when I’m out of town, scouting.”

“Well, actually, bars are kind of out of the question anyway. I won’t be 21 for another month or so. But, you mentioned your studio. You have any good music to listen to?” Sam rolled her eyes at the absurdity of the question that just left her lips. Of course she’ll have good music, idiot. She smacked her palm on her forehead and sank down onto the bed.

“I’m sure I do. As a matter of fact, I have some new stuff I just mixed down last week.”

“Well, there you go. That sounds cool. Hey, what do you say to me packing us a dinner and we’ll eat in?” Sam suggested.