Chapter 7

Kathryn walked through the hall to the lunchroom and walked straight up to Lana. She sat across from her friend and waited till she looked up at her.

"Lana I have something important to tell you." She said seriously.

What is it Kath?" Lana asked and pushed her breakfast away from her, giving Kathryn her full attention.

Kath took a deep breath. "I'm leaving."
Lana opened her mouth to speak, but closed it. She repeated this a few times before she could finally speak. "When?"

"Fifteen minutes.''

"Today!" Kathryn nodded her head slowly. "How long have you've known you were leaving?"
Kathryn looked down at the table. "Three days." She mumbled.

"Three days since you and Miss…"
Kathryn's head snapped up. "Don't."
"Oh Kath." She sighed. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
"I don't like goodbyes."

"This doesn't have to be goodbye Kath. We can still call each other, email each other."
Kathryn gave a hiccup-laugh. "That's true." She said and smiled faintly.

Lana leaned over the table and covered Kathryn's hands with her own. "Promise me you'll call me when you get to wherever you're going."
"I promise." She said with a small smile. Lana smiled back and released her hands as Ashley walked up to them.
"Are you ready now sweetheart?" She asked with her hand on her shoulders.

Kathryn nodded and stood up from her seat. Lana stood as well and hugged her tightly. "I'm going to miss you Kath." She mumbled into her shoulder.

"I'm going to miss you as well Lana. You have been a great friend to me. Thank you." She said and pulled back.

"Love you Kath." Lana whispered.

Kathryn smiled slightly. "I love you too Lana." She said and turned around and walked out the door with Ashley beside her. Lana sat down and thought for a minute 'Does Miss know?' She looked down at her watch and saw that the ferry left in eleven minutes. She stood up and sprinted towards the classroom. When she got there she saw that Tina was staring out the window.

"Miss!" Tina turned and looked at her. "Miss." She said more calmly as she walked up to her.

"Yes Lana?"
Lana tried to breathe at a normal pace. "Kath…she's leaving…today." She wheezed.

Tina stared at the girl as she bent at the waist and tried to even out her breathing. "Lana, what Kathryn does is her own choice; we have no right to force her to stay." She said coldly and looked out the window again, hoping that the girl couldn't see how much this hurt her.

Lana stood up straight and glared at her. "What are you saying?! She's in love with god damm it!" She yelled and slammed her hand down on the desk next to her.

"That is enough, Miss Stark!" She said forcefully and turned to look at her. "Now, you will leave and…"

"No! She loves you and you love her!" Tina's body went stiff. "I know you do. I've seen it in you eyes when you look at her. Why aren't you going after her?"
"She doesn't want me, anymore." She said quietly.

"How do you know that? Have you told the way you feel?"
Tina's eyes started to mist over. "I tried once, but Ashley…" She trailed off.

Lana frowned. "The lady she's leaving with?" She asked.

Tina turned to look at Lana with cold and empty eyes. "Kathy's leaving with Ashley?"
Lana nodded her head slowly, unsurely. "I think so. She was walking with her towards the ferry."
Tina sighed. "Then, there's no point for me to go."
"Are you kidding Me?! No point?! If you don't go, you'll regret it. The one you love will be leaving in eight minutes! Do something!"
"Like what?!" Tina snapped.

"Tell her you love her!" They stared at each other for a few seconds before Lana spoke again in a calmer tone. "Tell her you're in love with her."
Tina blinked once before bolting past Lana and down the halls to the ferry. As she came to the docking area for the ferry, she slowed. 'What if she says no?'

"Then you suck it up and come back." She whispered to herself and climbed up the three stairs to the first deck of the ferry. She walked around the first two decks before she saw them sitting at a table bench together. Kathryn was looking through her bag for something and Ashley had her hand on her thigh. She felt anger and jealousy rising with in her, but this time she didn't push it down. She walked over to them and stood beside Ashley.

"How dare you?! A student! MY student?!" She hissed at her.

"Why do you care? You've treated her like any other student for the past couple of days."
"I care for her damm it!"
Kathryn leaned closer to Ashley. "I forgot my pills." She said quietly.

Tina reached into her pocket and pulled out two tablets. "Take mine." She said and held them out for Kathryn to take.

Kathryn looked at them for a second before looking up at Tina with a blank expression. "You'll get sick." She stated.

Tina had the urge to roll her eyes, but didn't. "I'll be fine."
Kathryn reached out for the pills, but all the color drained from her face. "I think I'm going to be sick." She said and ran outside onto the deck.

"Kathy!" Tina exclaimed. She dropped the pills on the table and ran after her. Kathryn was leaning against the railing breathing heavily, obviously she had thrown up. Tina stood beside her and rubbed gentle circles on her back until she spoke.

"Why did you come?"
Tina leaned on the railing next to her. "I came because, I…I'm in love with you and to tell you that I am extremely sorry for all the pain I caused you when I said it was a mistake, when in fact, it was the best night of my life." She said and looked at her with watery eyes.

Kathryn stood up straight and squared her shoulders. "Saying sorry doesn't always fix everything, Tina." She said and walked back inside to Ashley.

Tina leaned against the railing for a while, allowing the tears to roll down her cheeks, unhidden. After staring at the sea for what seemed like hours, but mere minutes in reality, she wiped the tears away with the back of her hand and looked back at Kathryn before walking down the stairs and into the bar area.

Sitting down at the bar with a sigh, she ordered a whiskey. The man behind the bar handed her her glass and waited for her to hand over the money.

"Add it to my account. Tina Redbird."
The guy nodded and walked away mumbling to himself. Tina picked up her glass and took a mouthful. She stared down into her glass as she twirled it around in her hands, making the liquid splash against the side of the glass. Deciding that she was going to go and wash her face, she downed her drink, rose from her seat and walked into the bathroom as the captain announced that it was time for the passengers to disembark.

Luckily for her, the ladies room was empty. She walked over to the sink and turned the cold tap on. After washing her face, she looked at her reflection. She still had red eyes and her hair was a mess. 'Most likely from running all the way here.' She thought. Sighing, she left the bathroom and walked back over to her seat at the bar.

"Same as before?" The man asked.

Tina nodded her head. "Yes please."
The man behind the bar placed the glass in front of her. "What's got a pretty lady like you down?" He asked with a slight smile.

Tina scoffed. "Pretty. Been a while since a man's called me that." She mumbled into her glass before swallowing half of it. She placed the glass down in front of her and looked down into it. "The one I love just left me."

The guys shoulders sagged at this, he was hoping to ask her out. Sighing, he nodded over to the corner booth behind her. "Looks like she's on the same boat."
Tina turned around and gasped. Kathryn was sitting, curled up, leaning against the wall looking out the window with misty eyes. Tina got up and from her seat and walked over to Kathryn and sat down across from her.

"I thought you were going with Ashley."
Kathryn looked at her with sad eyes and shook her head. She turned back to look out the window again and started combing her finger through her hair that was draped over her shoulder. They sat in silence for a while until Kathryn spoke in a whisper.
"I couldn't leave. I couldn't leave my friends, I couldn't let my parents down and I couldn't leave you." She looked at Tina. "After everything you put me through, all the pain and suffering, I couldn't leave you."
"Why?" Tina asked in a hoarse whisper.

"Because I love you. Even after you crushed my heart, I still love you." She said and looked back out the window.

Tina sat still for a second in shock. Had she just said that she still loved her? She leaned over the table and grasped her hands and spoke.

"Surely you know that I love you."

Kathryn looked at her. "If you truly love me, would you let me go again?"
"Yes, if that's what you wanted."
"What I want…is for you to…leave." Tina let out a strangled sob. "I need to be alone."
"Kathy…" Her voice came out as a hoarse whisper.

Kathryn looked back at her with teary eyes. "Please, go."
Tina nodded after a second and brought her hand up to her mouth and kissed the knuckles lightly before getting up and walking away. Kathryn watched her go until she was out of sight. Rolling her head to look out the window once more, she let the tear slowly roll down her cheeks for the rest of the trip back to the SS Billings. When the ferry docked with the SS Billings, Kathryn grabbed her bag and walked straight to her room. Opening the door, she walked around the shelves and stopped at the sight of her bed. Hadn't it been made when she left those few days ago? Shaking her head, she placed her bag on the bed and unpacked every item and put them in their rightful place. After unpacking, she left to go look for Lana.

Finding her friend in the lunchroom, she walked up behind her and wrapped her arms around her shoulders. "Hey Lana." She whispered.

Lana jumped up and spun around. "KATH!"
Everyone in the room spun around at the high pitched scream. No had known that Kathryn was leaving so they didn't understand why Lana was screaming out her friends' name. Slowly they all returned to their meals.
"You're back."
Kathryn laughed softly. "Yes, I am."
Lana hugged her and made her sit down. "Tell me what happened."
Kathryn shook her head. "Not at the moment Lana. It still hurts." She said and laid her head on the table.

Lana noticed looked at her for a minute before realizing what happened. She didn't accept Tina.

~ 4 days later ~

Lana sat down with a bowl of soup for dinner. She watched as Kathryn pushed her food around on her plate instead of eating it, again. This was the third time today that she had hardly eaten anything on her plate. Lana pushed her bowl away from her and looked closely at her best friend. She had lost a bit of weight in the past four days, she hardly ate anything, she had dark circles under her eyes and she was starting to look paler then usual.

"Kath, what's the matter? You've hardly eaten anything since you decided to stay."
Kathryn looked up at her. "I just don't feel hungry." She said and pushed her food away from her.

"Kath, please tell me what's happening to you. I want to help."

Kathryn looked at her with hollow eyes. "I know you do, I just don't want to talk about it." She said and got up.

Lana stood up as well and walked her friend to her room. "Kath, please get some sleep. You really are starting to look like you're going to drop any minute."
Kathryn nodded and closed the door behind her. Lana looked at the door for a mere second and decided she had to talk to Miss. She turned and walked up to the door next along the corridor. Knocking loudly, she waited till it opened. There stood Tina in a pair of winter blue pajama's, looking like hell. She had faint circles under her eyes just like Kath and was looking slightly paler.

"Yes Lana?" Tina asked quietly.

The sound of Tina's tired voice made Lana pause before speaking. "Miss, I can't get Kath to eat. She's losing weight and she's starting to look like the living dead. Can't you do something, please? I'm worried about her."
Tina sighed and leaned against the door to her room. "I can't get her to eat. She won't even talk to me. She hasn't since the day she was meant to leave."
"So that's what bothering her." She mumbled to herself. She looked up at Tina again. "Can you try to talk to her, maybe she'll listen to you." She said hopefully.

"I doubt it, but I'll try. In the morning though." She sighed.

Lana smiled up at her teacher and hugged her quickly around the waist. Blushing lightly she wished her good night.

"Good night Lana." Tina said and closed the door.

Lana walked to her room and fell on to her bed and fell asleep with out changing; she was too tired to move anymore for the day.

Tina sat up straight in bed when a piercing g scream echoed through her room. Knowing that it wasn't her who had screamed, she tried to think of where it could have come from. Looking at the alarm clock on her night stand she moaned. 3:02 am.

Just as she was about to fall back in to her bed, she heard the scream again. After a second she realized that it was coming from Kathryn's room. Without thinking, she got out of bed and ran to her room. Opened the door, she walked in and around the shelves to see Kathryn thrashing in her bed. Walking over to the bed, she sat down on the edge and tried to wake her.

"Kathryn, wake up. It's only a dream." She said as she shook her.

Kathryn calmed down slightly as Tina touched her arm, but she didn't stop tossing her head from side to side. Tina touched her cheek with her other hand.
"Kathryn." She called but again she didn't wake.

Tina frowned and pulled back both of her hands. Kathryn started to thrash around in the bed again at the loss of contact. Tina thought for a second and decided to lie down next to her. She got up and walked around the end of the bed and up to the other side. Climbing under the covers, she pulled Kathryn against her and held onto her. Soon, Tina fell asleep, a dreamless sleep.

Kathryn slowly woke up feeling more rested then she had in the past four days. She stretched her arms above her head and froze as she felt two arms wrap loosely around her waist and pulled her against the owner. Kathryn rolled her head to the right and saw Tina asleep next to her. She started to wriggle out of her arms, only to stop when Tina pulled her against her tightly and mumbled into her shoulder.

"Go back to sleep Kathy."
Kathryn stared at Tina as she repositioned herself on her shoulder. After letting Kathryn stare at her for a while, Tina slowly opened her eyes and looked up at her.

"What?"
"What are you doing?" Kathryn asked seriously.

Tina closed her eyes and laid her head back on her shoulder again. "I was sleeping." She answered.

"No, what are you doing here?"
Tina sighed. "I'm here because I woke up to your screaming last night. When I tried to wake you, you wouldn't. I noticed that my…touching you, seemed to make you calm down and relax, so I laid down next to you." She said with a faint blush coloring her cheeks.

"Why?"
Tina looked up at her. "Because, I love you."
Kathryn stared at her for a second before looking away, hiding the smile that was trying to show. Tina interpreted this as a bad sign and instantly removed her arms and sat up in the bed.

"Kathy I'm sorry I made you feel uncomforta…" She started but stuttered to a stop when Kathryn turned to look at her with a bright smile.

"I know you read my diary." She stated, laughing softly.

Tina opened her mouth slightly to speak, but never got the chance as Kathryn kissed her. She gasped as she felt Kathryn's thin lips against her own, but moaned in pleasure as Kathryn licked at her bottom lip. She moved her hands to wrap them around her neck and pulled her closer as Kathryn grabbed onto her waist and pulled her closer to her.

Slowly Kathryn pulled back and rested her forehead against Tina's. "I don't mind Tina." She said smiling.

"Really?"
"Really." She said and kissed her quickly. Tina smiled and leaned in and kissed her, for longer this time. When she pulled back, tears had pooled in her eyes.

"I am sorry you know." She whispered. "For calling you a mistake and for causing you pain. I didn't mean…" She was cut off as Kathryn kissed her again. "…to." She finished when Kathryn pulled back.
"It's okay. Don't worry about it, it's not important anymore." She whispered. Tina smiled at this and kissed her passionately, moaning loudly as Kathryn returned the kiss just as passionately. If anyone walked past Kathryn's room at that moment, they would have heard what true love sounded like, even through the thick metal walls.

The End