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Since she had last properly talked to Clarke, a significant amount had happened in Natalie's life. Given that she considered the woman her best friend, it was strange when she realized she hadn't reached out to her at all. Perhaps the time spent thinking was needed before she could properly voice it to someone she knew so well, topped with a few form of distracting keeping her mind busy. So she finally texted her, asking if the red head would want to have dinner at her place, as usual, though she purposefully left out the idea of a movie to follow.
Her apartment was again flooded with a mixture of aromas as she started to plate the meal, knowing that her friend would be there within a matter of minutes. Her animals were curled up on the couch, with the exception of Beau, who watched with bright green eyes as she managed the food.
"It'll be fine." She reassured him, or perhaps just voicing her own doubts. "I know it will be."
It seemed like forever since she last saw Natalie and when she got the text from her best friend, she perked up and immediately said yes, not really seeing anything wrong with the lack of a movie mention.
After second and third thoughts, Clarke decided to bring an overnight bag. Just in case. Everything she needed for her morning and night routines could fit in one toiletries bag because like most of her life, Clarke compartmentalises all the essentials.
Once she arrived, she could already smell the goodness coming from within and even before she knocked on the door, she could hear a bark from inside. Clarke grinned and knocked lightly.
A bark from Oz let Natalie know that her guest was there before there was a sound at the door. The trainer smiled when she heard the light knocking regardless. "Come in," she called, wondering if the red head knew that she never really needed to knock or wait to be let in at all. When the door opened, her two dogs immediately went to greet the familiar face, and Beau quickly jumped down from his perch to run into the living room instead.
"Perfect timing." Natalie pointed out, holding up the plates as a gesture that dinner was ready.
She opened the door and was immediately attacked by the two dogs. Laughing, she petted them both as she pulled them in to close the door. "Hey guys!" She greeted them and squatted down on the floor to let them lick her face. It was just too good and warm being here, she couldn't help being happy stepping into the apartment.
"I feel so loved coming here." She giggled and stood back up to walk over to where Natalie was. She took one plate and moved over to the couch after squeezing her arm lightly. Sober, touches were a little scarce coming from Clarke.
"So! What are we watching today?" Clarked asked as she settled on to the couch with the animals by her feet, sniffing at her food.
Natalie smiled at her friend; it was always a relief that she felt comfortable there. "You should, because you are." Clarke's company was more than something just she adored; every soul in her home felt a warm connection with the red head. Following Clarke to the couch, Nat settling next to her as she tucked her legs to the side and set her plate on her lap.
Really, the trainer had thought she could just be out with it, but the idea of familiarity watching something with Clarke was tempting. Better, it gave her an idea. "I'm not sure. What are you in the mood for?"
When asked what she wanted to watch, Clarke chewed the inside of her cheeks and chuckled. "Why don't we watch something super powered? And then we can poke fun at the inaccuracies of most of them?" She said, only half joking.
She had avoided superhero shows and movies after she found out she had them. She didn't know why she had but somehow, watching something that might resemble her actual life seemed a bit dodgy when she first discovered her own powers.
Now, she was a lot more comfortable with it so maybe they should just rip the band aid off.
Natalie had almost always a few options already chosen by the time Clarke had gotten there, but giving the option to her friend, she wondered what the woman had in mind. Eyebrows rose at the idea of a superhero theme, though she didn't protest. It wasn't a genre Natalie was entirely familiar with, but she wouldn't be afraid to give it a shot. "Alright then." She reached for the remote, typing into Netflix the suggestion.
"How about this?" She asked, selection hovering over the title of Thor. "I'd be interested to see how they portray a Norse god."
Raising both her eyebrows at the suggestion, Clarke laughed as she agreed. "Yeah, sure." She grinned as she pulled her legs up and tucked them under her, setting the plate on her lap and taking a bite out of it.
"Ooh, what is this spice I'm tasting?" She asked as she took another bite. "You've got to teach me how to cook, Nat. I don't think I can stress that enough."
As the opening scene began on TV, Clarke leaned back on the couch and settled in.
With the agreement made, Natalie hit play, picking up her fork to take a bite as well. The new recipe she attempted came out better than she could have expected. "It's cardamom," Natalie explained quickly, having been recently interested in cooking with it. She smiled at the idea of showing Clarke how to cook. "Any time you want." Because really, she'd been offering to teach her for years.
As the movie continued to play, she watched with curiosity as the plot unfolded. It was an interesting enough twist on the mythology, and held her attention for the most part, but as a quieter scene came forth she kept her eyes fixated on the main female lead. "She's pretty," Nat pointed out, never one to really talk much during a film. "Don't you think?"
"Ooh," Clarked marveled as she continued to eat. She turned when Natalie agreed to teach her how to cook. She smile brightly and nodded. "Okay. I'll let you know when I have free time. That is...not your bed time." She chuckled lightly.
As the movie wore on, Clarke was drawn to the female lead's assistant, finding her humour much needed in the plot. Natalie's remark had her turning to the female lead and giggled lightly. "She kinda looks like you. So yeah, she is very pretty." Clarke commented.
The similarities between herself and the actress immediately puzzled the trainer. Her eyebrows furrowed, continuing to watch a little more and not seeing it at all. "Are you just saying that because we're both Jewish?" Natalie joked lightly, a hand gently hitting her counterpart before she let silence settle a little longer, but it wasn't long before she picked up again. "But I mean, she's pretty. Like I'm attracted to her." Was it too on the nose? Natalie took another bite, chewing to buy her another second of time.
It was too much effort to put something gently - she could even grow frustrated with her own inability to be straightforward at times, so she pushed past it. "I'm attracted to women."
Clarke snorted and pulled her plate away from her as she laughed at Natalie's joke. "Nat, seriously." She elbowed her best friend playfully as she continued eating.
When Natalie insisted on how pretty the female lead was, Clarke was about to agree again when Natalie continued with her line of thought. Clarke turned and gave her a curious smile. "Oh?" She said before it dawned on her. "Wait...Nat, are you coming out to me?"
Clarke moved the plate to the table and grabbed the remote to pause the movie. "Are you just realising this? Or have you known for a long time?"
The movie offered an easy distraction, and Natalie kept her eyes forward and on the screen as she spoke. It wasn't until the movie was paused that she dared to look back at her friend. It wasn't for a fear of judgement, but it was easier to talk when she didn't have to look. As if to encourage her, she felt Jodie's wet nose press against her calf briefly.
"I've always known, to an extent," Natalie began to explain, shrugging her shoulders. "And now - it's just so obvious that I do." She even dared to let a small laugh out. "I can't imagine how many bad dates I could have saved myself from had I just actually thought about it."
Though it was only part of where she was trying to get to. She knew Clarke wasn't one to open up, but she had to try for herself to an extent. "Do you remember Lena?"
Clarke looked at Natalie and a warm smile spread across her face as she grabbed her best friend's hand, all bets off. She'll have to deal with the consequences later, her friend needed the comfort, she presumed, so she was going to give it to her as much as she could.
It couldn't be easy for Natalie to be telling her all this so all Clarked wanted to do was be a listening ear.
"Lena as in...the dancer Lena? She's the one you said invited us to that club, right?"
When her hand was taken, Natalie's eyes widened. It wasn't like Clarke to be so touchy without the aid of alcohol, and she briefly considered asking her if she'd been drinking anything before she had gotten there, but the subject pressed on and as easily as Nat could have changed it, she continued. "Yes, that's her." She had to wonder how the night would have turned out had Clarke taken the invitation extended to her. Would they have parted ways and would have Lena found herself at Natalie's home again? Or would the dancer have just found someone else she invited there that night?
