Elizabeth felt her tears streaming down her cheeks again but didn’t even bother to wipe them, knowing that she was alone in the chapel. Suddenly, she sensed somebody’s soft and warm fingers caressing her cheeks and gently wiping away her tears. Elizabeth recognized the touch and slowly opened her eyes, knowing that more tears were on their way down.

And there she was, her Christina, leaning in the dark above her, touching her face and looking at Elizabeth with compassion, understanding, and tenderness. Christina smiled kindly at Elizabeth, taking her hand and leading her outside of the chapel to the sequoia grove.

Walking behind Christina and holding her hand very tightly, Elizabeth thought how soothing and calming she found Christina’s touch and how she missed that little closeness with Christina that they stopped sharing for so long. She missed that feeling of subtle intimacy and contact between them. She missed her friend terribly.

Christina suddenly stopped near one of the largest trees in the grove and looked straight into Elizabeth’s eyes with the same tenderness and understanding she showed before. But Elizabeth also noticed something else in her hazel stare. It was confidence and some sort of determination in Christina’s eyes, as if she had come to a long-awaited decision and couldn’t wait to share that decision with Elizabeth.

“Bette, I just wanted you to know that I regret the last week, and the way I behaved when I came back,” Christina began, maintaining eye contact.

Elizabeth suddenly felt an overwhelming feeling of fear and she said with a soft sigh, “Oh, I understand, you don’t have to explain…”

Christina didn’t let her finish but put her forefinger to Elizabeth’s lips and continued, “No, you don’t understand. I regret last week because I missed my best friend and the happy times we had together…laughing and stealing glances and touching hands. I really missed that, and I want you to know that I would love to take one step at a time and follow my heart and see where it will lead me.”

Elizabeth felt her cheeks getting wet again and thought, ‘I’m such a cry baby,’ when she saw a tiny rainbow reflecting in Christina’s eyes and slowly disappearing as she heard the familiar clinging of the raindrops falling down and hitting the leaves and the ground.