Chapter 22
Rowan used the bench in front of her to lace up her high tops after getting through airport security. “You ok?”
“Yeah, why?” Juniper answered quietly from her spot slumped on the same bench.
“You’re… staring at the wall.”
Juniper sighed out a laugh. “Just tired.”
Rowan furrowed her brows. Even though Sam had stepped up to run the food truck at an event that week so that Juniper could travel to the conference, Juniper had still stayed up late into the night helping him prep the food for service.
Even though Rowan had offered to help, it was still 50/50 on whether Juniper would accept help from others.
Rowan dropped her foot to the ground, prompting Juniper to stand. Rowan smoothed her thumb over Juniper’s cheekbone.
“You can’t keep pulling double duty, you know?”
Juniper nodded and caught Rowan’s hand in her own, weaving their fingers together.
“Sam and I are figuring out a plan.”
“Hmm, okay. It’s a short flight, but try to sleep on the plane?”
“That’s my goal.” Juniper smiled. “I’m going to have more energy by the time we get there, I promise.”
“I don’t want to overwhelm you with things to do.” Rowan glanced at her as they leisurely made their way to their flight’s gate.
“No,” Juniper whined. “I want to see the city the way you saw it.”
“I was thinking we could get checked into the hotel, then make our way to Brooklyn. My best friend Manny is very excited to meet you. He’s been begging me to join their pick-up game this afternoon.”
“Pick-up game?”
“We played basketball together. Geeks in Sneaks was our team. We played at the gym in our neighborhood.” Rowan’s face turned contemplative. “I told him that would probably be boring for you, and we have limited time, so–”
“No, I’d love to do that.”
“Are you sure? I told him maybe we should get dinner together instead.”
“Why not both? Game then food.”
Rowan pulled her in closer and kissed her temple. “I love you. And you’re gonna love Manny.”
“I love you too. What else?”
“Then…” Rowan stopped abruptly at their gate and turned toward Juniper. “I’m going to show you the city the way I loved to see it.”
Juniper compressed what Rowan knew was a giddy smile into a regular one. “Yeah, I want to do that too.”
They settled into their seats at their gate.
Rowan wrapped her arm around Juniper’s shoulders, and Juniper nuzzled into Rowan’s body to rest. Rowan rested her cheek on Juniper’s head and alternated between keeping an eye on their flight status and mentally reviewing their presentation until her cell phone buzzed in her lap.
She turned it over to see an unknown New York City area code and answered.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Rowan! It’s Kevin.”
Kevin?
Juniper stirred next to her and sat up.
“Hey… Kevin. How can I help you?”
Kevin chuckled. “I saw you’re presenting at the International Indigenous Peoples’ Forum.”
Though not a question, his tone was expectant, so she supplied a confused answer. “Yes, with my partner, Juniper Banks.”
“That’s great. Everyone at the organization is excited to hear you both speak. Hey, do you have a minute?”
Still confused, she mumbled, “Sure.”
She removed the arm she’d hand around Juniper’s shoulders, balanced her phone against her ear, and held up a finger to indicate she’d step away for a moment.
She weaved through passengers already lining up to board, leaned against a column across the walkway, and tucked one hand in her pocket. She grabbed hold of her phone again.
“I know it’s been so long since we talked, but I wanted to let you know we finally got all the moving pieces figured out and would love for you to come work for us.”
Rowan’s mouth fell open. She’d completely forgotten about that job interview.
“I thought maybe we could talk about the details more in person.”
“Uh, sure.”
Rowan tried to shake the fog from her brain. Maybe there’d be an opportunity to do something remotely. She could try to negotiate a smaller consultant role; keep herself more on the pulse of international work to better fulfill her obligations as a board member for Climate Justice Collective.
“Now boarding group 3. Group 3, you may now board Flight 2898 to JFK - New York City.”
As the gate agent announced their group, she watched Juniper stand up, shove Rowan’s book and water back into her bag, and attempt to grab both of their bags for them. Juniper smiled and waved her over. She mouthed ‘it’s our time.’
“Sorry, Kevin, my flight is boarding. Let’s connect after the conference. I’m going to be really busy.”
“Hey, no problem. We totally understand. If we don’t see you there, we’ll talk soon.”
Rowan hung up and stared down at her phone for a few seconds before pocketing it and joining Juniper. She slid her backpack from Juniper’s arm and stood behind her in line to scan their tickets.
“Who was that?” Juniper asked as she angled her head to look at Rowan.
“Someone from an environmental organization.”
“Yours?”
“No, a different one.”
Rowan wasn’t meaning to be coy, it just wasn’t the moment to have this full-on conversation about how she’d interviewed for another job only a month after moving home.
Especially since the main reason she’d done it was because she’d realized she had already started falling for Juniper.
Then, she’d risked falling into her old pattern of running away when things were too difficult.
Now, she couldn’t bear the mere thought of losing Juniper.
“Another cryptic phone call?” Juniper’s tone was innocuous, but it still pulled at something deep within Rowan’s subconscious.
Juniper scanned her ticket and waited at the door of the jet bridge. Rowan scanned hers and they walked together to board the plane.
“No, not cryptic. I’ll explain when we have time to get into it.”
◆◆◆
Partner? My partner, Juniper Banks?
Had Rowan meant to say that? Did she mean partner partner? Or did she just mean presentation partner?
It seemed silly to Juniper now that they hadn’t already had that very simple discussion.
They’d confessed their love for each other, and more than that, Juniper had felt it.
What they’d had before might have just been deep platonic love then teenage infatuation compared to what it really felt like to be in love with and be loved by Rowan.
No, she wouldn’t minimize what she’d felt then to bolster what she felt now.
She didn’t need to. And both could be true.
Still, Juniper’s mind nagged her. Why hadn’t they discussed it? If it really was that simple.
Juniper shuffled her way down the aisle until she reached their seats. She buckled herself in and tried to push away those thoughts so that she could make mental space for excitement to bloom over her fatigue.
Rowan pulled her book out again, but it didn’t take long for her to put it back away, thread their fingers together, and rest her head on Juniper’s shoulder. Juniper smiled as she also dozed off.
Then her eyes shot open as she startled awake at the abrupt landing. The flight was too short to really chip away at the tiredness she felt down to her bones. She looked over at Rowan who had woken up before her at some point.
“Sleep okay?” Rowan asked quietly.
Juniper rubbed her eyes and yawned. “Finally, after you fell asleep on me.”
“Aww, I’m like your weighted blanket,” she teased.
But she was right. That’s exactly like what she was.
That’s what she’d always been to Juniper. Juniper was tired of longing for something she couldn’t definitively call her own, and she didn’t have to do that anymore. Juniper knew what she truly wanted, what she knew was meant to be hers. Why wait around?
As the rows of people on the airplane in front of them started to funnel out, a certain panic gripped her heart. Her heart pounded in her ears.
“Earlier, you called me your partner,” she blurted out, just as Rowan stood to get their overhead bags out of the bin.
What an inopportune time, Juniper.
She closed her eyes in self-admonishment. That damn impulsivity. Well, she’d done it, might as well see it through. She opened her eyes.
Rowan pulled Juniper’s bag out and set it in her empty seat as she shifted her eyes to Juniper’s. “I did?” She asked.
Maybe it wasn’t intentional? Maybe she’d meant it the other way?
The rows were getting progressively more cleared out. She resolved herself to find the answer either way.
“You did. When you answered that phone call earlier.”
Juniper tried to conceal the disappointed tone that crept in as she spit the words out. Rowan leaned across her seat to cup Juniper’s chin. Her face was unreadable, but then she placed a tender kiss on her lips.
“I think that was my subconscious telling on me.”
Juniper’s heart fluttered. “Yeah?”
“Excuse me–,” the man behind Rowan grunted and rudely gestured toward the empty aisle in front of her.
Rowan ignored him as she opened her mouth to speak again.
“Let’s go!” The man grunted louder.
Rowan stood abruptly. Like a lawyer conferring over the most consequential moment in their case, Rowan’s tone toward the man was dark and decisive. “Give us a minute.”
His mouth snapped shut.
That tone made Juniper want to take Rowan to the closest private location she could find to rip her clothes off of her. She wanted her to talk to her like that. She was more than a little turned on by the protectiveness – possessiveness – of the way her demand halted that man in his tracks.
Maybe she did want to join the mile high club on their next flight.
Juniper couldn’t help but shoot a shit-eating grin at the guy. Sure, she probably would have been pissed too. But fuck him. This was about to be her moment.
Rowan leaned back over her empty seat. As if her gaze alone could accomplish anything in the world, in this moment, it rewrote all of Juniper’s pained memories and replaced them with love and belonging, wholeness and finality.
“Juniper Banks, do you want to be my girlfriend?”
Juniper’s words were all breath and air. “Yes. I do.”
Rowan grabbed their bags and stepped back to let Juniper out of her seat. As Juniper took her first few steps down the aisle to disembark the plane, she heard Rowan behind her.
“Thanks so much for your patience, sir. My girlfriend and I appreciate it. Hope you have a nice rest of your day.”
She barely stifled the laugh that wanted to bubble up from the center of her soul, and her cheeks burned from how thoroughly she was smiling. She caught up to the few passengers still waiting to exit at the very front of the plane and felt Rowan slide a hand around her waist and bring her to her.
Juniper quietly groaned as their bodies made contact.
“You sure know how to pick the right time,” Rowan breathed into her neck.
Juniper reached a hand back to slide down Rowan’s cheek. “You like my chaotic energy.”
“Fuck, I really do.”