Taking On Water

[Leah Bennet]

With a shaky sigh and a bruised heart, Leah seated herself down on a bench by the park's local fountain. The marvellous jets of water curling delicately in line with her iridescent blue eyes did little to soothe her frantic mind. But she held her gaze to them, watching the droplet's quick descent to the pooling water at the bottom of the feature providing herself with a forced distraction. It had not been easy to lug her exhausted body all the way over to New Zealand but she had come with the strong intentions of letting Keith know that she was carrying his unborn child. But once again she had ducked out of doing just that, and like all the letters she had begun to write the idea was crumpled and tossed frustratedly away. Where was she ever going to rip the courage from?

The word 'lost' was indignantly scripted all over her pained expression, her straight set teeth caught her lower lip as if doing so might be the key to holding herself together. But as she smoothed her palms across the slight swell in her abdomen and looked down at the floral pattern of her most favourite summer dress, Leah could feel the tears welling on the rims of her azure eyes. It was silly to get so upset over the fact that this might be one of the last times she could wear this outfit until the baby was born but the doe-eyed woman had snapped frighteningly from independent and sassy to insecure and fragile with the news of her pregnancy. Determined though not to start sobbing in public, she lifted a hand and brushed the back of it over her eyelids, ridding them of tears before curling it securely in the ocean-blown waves of her lustrous blonde hair.

 

[Noelle Lurken]

Some women fell apart when they were pregnant but Noelle Elise Viera was suited for pregnancy. She loved it and it loved her, she was in the best shape when she was pregnant and always seemed to look her best even if she wore no make up on her face. And as she walked through Obsidian Harbour this all seemed clear enough to the men that saw her but her heart was taken by her ex-husband and always would be. It was a truth that went unspoken between the ex lovers.

As Noelle was three months pregnant and likely wouldn't be able to wear a dress that was so closely fitting without it being very, very clear that she was pregnant, she wore a colourful dress and her hands rested on her stomach as she walked through the streets. She hummed a nameless tune as she often did since her pregnancy, making her think that this was the personality of her baby coming through. Her child would be a singing child, she truly believed this and although she could be very wrong the thought of such a joyful little baby always brought a smile to her face.

She pitied those that did not feel the way she did today and as she saw a young woman looking very solemn, Noelle tutted softly and continued on her merry way but as she spotted tears the overwhelming urge to help those in a forlorn or melancholy mood washed over her and she approached the young woman with a soft smile. "Sorry, I couldn't help but notice how upset you seemed. Anything in particular I can do?" she asked softly as her hands absentmindedly curled around the small bump that was forming.

 

[Leah Bennet]

A voice, warm to the core, lifted Leah from her petty worries and sincere distress and the doe-eyed young woman could not help but appreciate the kindness of this stranger. Most would just pass her by without so much as a glance towards her downer mood and hurry on with their conceited, unimportant lives. So with a sniffle Leah cast her azure blue eyes up to the source of the glowing voice and was immediately graced with appreciation. The woman before had to be around her age, give or take a year, and was seemingly glowing with radiance. It wasn't until Leah's gaze swept down to where her hands were curled and took that she too was pregnant. Desperate wishes concocted in her mind, madly wanting to be contented with her situation. But things weren't looking up for her.

"It's nothing, really," Leah dismissed with a trying smile, knowing her words were only partially truthful. Yes in the end the dress meant nothing, she'd have her figure back soon enough but the impending weight of the pregnancy was could not be cast aside in the same manner. "We're women. Build a bridge, get over it, right? And then go on continuing to please others." Leah's smile was brighter now, still weak but better as she tried to smooth over her problems with a light heart. The cerulean blue over her eyes dove a little deeper into the woman's before her and wondered if her glorious mood might be but a little contagious.

 

[Noelle Lurken]

Noelle listened to the woman's words and flashed her a pretty smile, her joy still not being crushed by her sad sounding words and thoughts. "See I don't believe in that," she responded to the woman's words about pleasing others. "It is very difficult to please people when you yourself are upset, whether it is trivial or not. Besides, people should stop depending on others like children would for their mother," she said with a playful wink of her brown eyes.

While Noelle didn't wish to intrude, but she also wanted to make this woman even half as happy as she was right now so she asked, "Anything I can do to deary?" Noelle flicked back a strand of dirty blond hair as she waited for the woman's response before quickly blurting out "Noelle. I'm Noelle," once she realized that she had not yet introduced herself to her.