Page 13

THIRTEEN

Lena

They stood side by side, elbow to elbow, washing dishes in a way they had done hundreds of times before. Aditi washed, Lena dried and put things away because she could reach the upper cupboards. That was how they always did it, that was how it was always done.

Even in Lena's flat, the one Aditi never had been in before, she was still in command.

Funny how some dynamics just never changed.

Lena flapped out the damp towel and hung it over the handle of the oven. "Thank you for helping out with the dishes."

"I know what you're like, especially on your period." Aditi turned around and for the first time since she got here, looked a bit lost. "Well... I've probably imposed enough, I should---"

"Do you want some tea?" Lena interrupted what she feared was the beginning of Aditi's goodbye statement.

Maybe it was her period, maybe it was the food, but it was the first time since she moved here that the place felt warm and homey.

She wasn't ready for Aditi to leave and everything to turn back grey.

Aditi hesitated. "I suppose some tea wouldn't hurt."

"Great. You sit down, I'll make you some."

"No, I can do it. I came here to help you out. You sit down and take some more painkillers."

Lena would never admit it to anyone else, but she liked being fussed over like this. Not by just anyone, definitely not by her mother, but she loved it when it came from Aditi.

She missed it. She missed all this. It hadn't hit her just how much until this moment, where Aditi was bringing her a cup of tea with that cute little smile of hers and everything inside Lena's body ached like she'd been running non-stop for months.

"Thank you," she said because she couldn't say what she really felt. Don't go. Stay. I missed you. Can we wind back time?

I love you.

She blinked away the tears and sipped her tea, hissing when it burned her lips.

"Careful, it's hot," Aditi said in a tone that hid her amusement.

"Now you tell me."

"You're a clever woman, I didn't think I needed to tell you boiling water is hot."

"It's technically no longer boiling," Lena replied pedantically, causing both of them to chuckle. Aditi even nudged her knee against hers, conspiringly, like the good old days were still upon them.

They drank their tea in comfortable silence and Lena felt so very warm and not because of the technically-not-boiling liquid filling her stomach.

This was what she pictured for the rest of her life, the two of them together at the end of a long day, winding down in a little bubble that belonged to just them.

Why couldn't this have lasted? Was it always going to be like this? Almost like the real thing but not quite?

She glanced at Aditi, her heart leaping up in her throat when she found the other woman already looking at her. Embarrassed to be caught, Aditi quickly averted her eyes up to the wall.

Lena's calendar was up there, the one that she bought with good intentions. There wasn't much filled in on it except for an event that had been creeping closer.

"The murder talk is coming up," Aditi said, clearly noticing it too. "Two more weeks."

Lena hummed while she held onto her mug like a life buoy. "I know. I've got the tickets somewhere."

"Right, because you always print out these things."

"If you saw how often programs and computers glitch, you would be printing everything out too," Lena defended herself.

She knew the dangers of technology well and kept her home as smart-free as possible.

Nobody needed a voice-activated device in their homes or a fridge that could be remote controlled.

What kind of controlling did a fridge even need?

Aditi smiled in the same way she always did when Lena talked about unreliable technology. "It's a shame I'll have to miss the talk. It's promising to be a really good one too. Murders committed in broad daylight. Such a niche topic."

"I know. I want to know what goes through a person's mind that they don't even care about killing in the middle of the day. Is it necessity? Desperation? Or simply not caring about being caught?" Lena was getting excited just thinking about it. "And it's our favourite speaker too."

"Retired Detective Sloan, isn't it?"

"Yes. It's so fascinating how he brings up his own old cases. Much better than those enthusiasts who just speculate and theorise about what happened without actually having all the facts."

"Well, you can still go," Aditi said with a chuckle. "You're clearly looking forward to it."

"Yeah, but it's not the same on my own. The theorising afterwards is part of the fun.

" Lena scratched the back of her head, fondly remembering all of the cute dates they had after going to a murder talk.

"And if I go on my own, that's kind of suspect, isn't it?

Like, what kind of person goes to a murder show on their own? A murderer, maybe."

"Maybe you should take a friend with you then," Aditi said in a strange voice.

Lena hummed while she thought it over. "Okay."

The surprise on Aditi's face came with hurt flitting through her eyes, as if she couldn't believe Lena said yes to her suggestion.

"Want to go to a murder show with me?" Lena asked, smiling as she ignored the slight sting. "Since we're friends now."

"Oh." A smile of relief bloomed on Aditi's face. "Yeah, sure. I do love a good murder talk."

"You don't say," Lena quipped. They both knew it was Aditi who dragged them to the very first murder talk. It was her fault that they hadn't missed a single macabre talkshow in their city.

And now they were going to another one. As friends .