Love Climb Ch. 02

In bright morning warmth and light, Kimberly walked about the apartment with a little spring to her step, humming to herself.

"What's got you so happy this morning?" Her friend and roommate, Casey, asked with a puzzled smile. "It can't be just because it's a Saturday morning, can it?" she added.

"A woman," Kim replied absently as she moved through the kitchen, preparing breakfast for herself (a simple bowl of cereal).

"A woman. So you met someone?" Casey set her hands on the table, leaning toward her - attentive, interested.

"Yeah. I was at the gym yesterday, practicing, and I met this woman. Well, I sort of already knew her - so do you; you might have seen her around campus, and in a few classes - but...anyway, I thought she was cute right off the bat. And she was talented, too! She was interested in the sport. So I sort of...asked her to meet up again there late last night and we...we did some talking, some looking, and then we just...did things. Sex things. Things that happened."

"Who is she?"

Kimberly sat down across from Casey at the table, spooned a few bites of her cereal before answering. "You know that woman with the dark hair, from those classes- the one who- she's a little bit...different? Her name is Jaesa..."

"Jaesa?!" Casey exclaimed, staring. "You were with Jaesa? The...foreign woman, right?"

"Very foreign woman," Kimberly nodded, flushed. "Have you ever...you know...seen her...fully?"

"Just once, and I don't think it was fully," Casey replied. "I walked in on her in the bathrooms once, and she was...how they say her - kind are..."

"Only partially, then?" Kimberly asked.

"I'd assume so," Casey answered, shrugging. "Aren't natural form scranaet way too big to even fit through a door? How would she have been in the bathroom like that?"

"Right. We're getting way off track though!" Kimberly laughed.

"Yeah, let's get back to how you had sex with her," Casey grinned. "Did you two actually, seriously...do it, while she was all...?" She spread her arms wide, and pulled them back in multiple times.

"How am I supposed to know what that even means?" Kimberly said, giggling. "Try spelling it out for me!"

"You know what I mean, if you did!" Casey retorted, flushed. "All those...spindly, spidery black legs?"

"Oh yeah - and she really knew how to use them!" Kimberly sighed fondly to herself at the memories.

"I know your taste in women is a bit...out there, but seriously? You totally did?!"

"We did! And we're going to do it again soon, probably - hopefully. We also got a little nuts with her whole silk processes..." Kimberly added, in a murmur.

"You went that far with her?"

"Yep." Kimberly grinned. "I love heights, I love sex, and she was able to let me enjoy both at once. She's incredible, really."

"Well...damn, more power to you!" Casey said earnestly. "As long as you did enjoy yourself."

"I definitely did. So did she!"

"So you just met yesterday, had sex last night, and...that's it? Are you just going to be fuck buddies, or are you thinking about actually trying to ask her to date? You know, getting to know her?"

"I...I thought I'd try," Kimberly confessed. "But she might say no. Her...kind...you know, in their home dimension...they're not really into life-long partnerships. It's like: fuck, lay a sack of eggs, and move on. No intense emotions really involved there. Not, like, love love. I mean...they can like someone, sure, get close, but...it's just different. It's not as intense as our emotions, as primates. It makes sense, she isn't a primate - she's arachnid, you know. Or at least, something as close to it as we can understand over here..."

Casey frowned. "I thought you liked that she was different."

Kimberly sighed. "This might be a difference we can't really get past. Physical is fine, but emotional? Mental, even? I don't know. She might just say no."

"But she might say yes. Not every single person is the same - don't be speciesist."

"I'm the one who had sex with her!" Kimberly erupted, exasperated.

Casey cringed. "Good point - sorry. But, well, just go for it!"

"Okay, okay. I'll go for it..." Kimberly ducked her head, digging into her meal to distract herself.

Casey came over to her - gave her a squeeze of an arm, a pat on the shoulder. A big smile. "Good luck with that. Really!"

"Thanks!" Kimberly beamed. She was really going to try to be positive about it, she decided - hadn't Jaesa told her last night that she'd "loved it"? Loved being with her? That had to mean something more than, "I really, really, really liked fucking you", right? If it didn't, would Jaesa have even done it with Kimberly in the first place? Responded to her looks, her glances, her blushing faces, their little conversations that night...? Would Jaesa have even agreed to spend time with her at all, so late at night, in a private/public place like that?

If it hadn't meant anything to Jaesa, nothing more, would she have ever been the one to initiate with Kimberly like she had, up on that wall? Because Jaesa had been the one to start it all off, truly - into the realm of the physical! Beyond touches, glances, beyond blushing looks...

Jaesa had made the first move!

And that meant something!

* * *

Just how much it meant, though, Kimberly was determined to find out.

She had to wait through two torturous days before she finally saw Jaesa again.

They had scientific classes together.

Kimberly went right over to her upon entering the lecture hall, and sat down beside her.

"H-hey," she greeted, willing her cheeks not to heat up. Trying for a grin.

Would anyone else around them look at them and think it was way too obvious that, yeah, those two women had totally fucked recently?

Jaesa turned to her, smiling at her. She had her hands clasped neatly together in her lap - sitting all straight-backed and good. "Hello, Kimberly." There was warmth there, in that voice of hers. It was...promising, Kimberly decided.

A promising start.

"Hey," Kimberly repeated (wincing at herself for being so stupid). "Um, so - yeah - do you...How are you?" she finally settled on, even more stupidly, in her opinion. Damnit, brain, please: work with me here!

"I'm well, thank you." Jaesa paused. "How are you?"

"G-great! Really great - thanks!"

"Good - I enjoyed our night together."

"Good! I- I mean, I did too!" Kimberly imitated. Why am I an idiot? "S-so...hey, I think you're really cute, and pretty, and awesome, and I was wondering if you might maybe want to go on a date sometime?"

There! She had finally said it; she had gotten it all out there! That hadn't been so hard, had it?

Jaesa looked at her, that smile of hers back again. A glimmer to her eyes. "You want to date me?"

"I- I mean...one date? Then you could decide if you even wanted more," Kimberly babbled. "No pressure, you know?"

"No pressure," Jaesa repeated, nodding. "I think I'd like to try that; I haven't once ever gone on a date with anyone in my life here - but I do understand the concept," she added in reassurance.

"Great! So, where would you want to go? What would you want to do?" Kimberly said quickly, beaming. "Would tonight be too soon for you, or what?"

"Dates are usually done at restaurants, aren't they?" Jaesa considered. She ran a hand through her hair, brushing it behind an ear. "Could we do that tonight?"

"Sure. That sounds nice."

"Then it's a date." Another glistening smile of hers.

Kimberly shifted her thighs together in her seat - barely got out a nod as elation flooded her (and something else!). "It's a date, then! Oh, here!" She dug into her bag and pulled out her cellphone. "How about we exchange numbers? Then, you know, if you wanted to, we could maybe talk sometime? Text each other?"

"Of course; that would be fine with me." Jaesa took out hers, and they entered each other's contact information. When she was finished, she slid her phone into her pants pocket, gave another smile of hers that made Kimberly squirm. "I'm excited for our date."

"So am I!" Kimberly said, whole hearted.

Of course, what she didn't tell Jaesa was that she was also extremely freaking nervous! She wasn't a dresses kind of woman - hell, she wasn't even a fancy suit kind of woman! No dresses or tuxedos for her! She hardly ever even put on makeup!

What was Jaesa going to think about her when she showed up looking like she...well, wasn't showing up for a dinner date?!

Questions for later!

Except those questions would plague Kimberly throughout her entire day (and, most prominently, throughout her entire class with Jaesa - every glance brought it up in her mind again).

Because, the truth was...Kimberly had never been on a date with anyone before in her life either.

* * *

"Okay, relax: you're just going on a first date, not to meet some big government official!"

"Casey, that doesn't help!" Kimberly exclaimed in front of the mirror.

Casey shook her head, wandering over to the dresser to pull out some outfits. "is this really the best you have? I don't mean to judge you, Kim, but...wow am I judging you hard."

"Shut up," Kimberly whined. "Help me! Please. Makeup, do the thing - glamor me like you always do for yourself somehow!"

"I doubt Jaesa is going to mind," Casey replied firmly. "Does she even get what it means to get all dressed up like that? Will she even appreciate makeup?"

"Okay, one, she's from another dimension, not mentally disabled or something, and two, she's probably lived here on Earth as long as we have! I think she understands the concept of makeup and dressing fancy!"

Casey shook her head, amused. "Alright, calm your tits - you really are head over heels for this woman, aren't you? Never heard you defend anybody so hard since those girls used to bully me back in high school."

"Oh, I'm hopelessly head over heels for this woman..." Kimberly agreed, quite hopelessly. She sagged before the mirror, staring at herself. She had always liked herself more when she was covered in dirt, mud and grass, and even dust, than when she was all sparkly and shiny (and her mother had always encouraged her nature-loving physical activities as well). But now, tonight...suddenly she wanted to be sparkly and shiny for once.

Just once - just for Jaesa.

Jaesa would surely expect her to be!

Kimberly couldn't make an embarrassment out of herself! Not with her!

"Just relax, remember to have fun - and don't worry about stupid little things," Casey told her, as she brushed away at Kimberly's hair. "You've already fucked the woman; how can you possibly think you could go down from there?"

"B-because it was dark, and we were just focusing on sex things..." Kimberly voiced, anxious. "We didn't actually sit down and have a staring contest over a fancy meal, with fancy outfits on! We just kind of...tore into each other and that was that."

Casey made a face. "'Tore into each other.' Yeah, that's the kind of phrase you want to use when you talk about sex with a woman of her kind."

"Shush!" Kimberly blushed.

"Hey, if you love wild sex, good for you!" Casey said quickly. "Really! I won't judge, it's just not for me. I love the slow, gentle, taking your time with things route. Have you ever tried that?"

"A f-few times; I didn't really care for it," Kimberly admitted, stammering. "You're right; it's just not my thing."

Casey finished off Kimberly's hair, stepping back. "There we go, all done. Now..." She pushed a pair of jeans and a long-sleeved top into her hands. "This is as good as I could get with what you gave me to work with. But it's good! You look good! You look wonderful! I'm sure it'll be fine, don't worry about it. Jaesa will love it!"

"Uh-huh," Kimberly nodded, nervous. She pushed her friend out of the bathroom and quickly changed clothes. She patted at her hair, blonde, frizzy and in a high bun now. She usually just left it laying bare, simple - a mess, after the wind was done with it, most days. She liked it being a mess. She liked the windswept look!

But tonight...

She had to actually take care of it, just like this.

Kimberly strode out of the bathroom, found her jacket, her ID, car keys, and then she gave her friend a quick hug before darting out the door.

It was almost 7 PM - and she'd agreed to pick up Jaesa, over a text chat an hour ago now.

* * *

"I could have walked," Jaesa spoke casually during the car ride to their destination, after Kimberly picked her up.

Kimberly blinked - glanced at her at a stoplight. All she wanted to do was drink her in endlessly, really; Jaesa was wearing this long, sheer gown of green, with no shoulders and a leg slit, and it was completely backless to boot! And that wasn't even mentioning Jaesa's heeled boots. A matching, dark green color! Jaesa's long, jet black hair hung in shimmering tresses down her shoulders - utterly gorgeous!

"You can't walk across all of Wallgate!" Kimberly protested, aghast. "It's a huge city, and you- I wouldn't have made you!"

"I could have," Jaesa refuted simply, smiling at her. "I've walked longer distances back home."

"O-oh, right...well..." Kimberly gazed ahead, grateful when the light changed. "Well, I still wouldn't have made you do that. That would have been insanely rude and inappropriate - and- and humans can't just do that."

"Oh. Then thank you," Jaesa responded earnestly.

Kimberly blew a breath, and grinned at Jaesa. "You're welcome. You look gorgeous by the way!" she blurted on at the end, blushing.

Jaesa gave a big smile, her face lighting up. "Thank you - you look pretty, too."

"Thank you!" Kimberly squeaked, overjoyed.

* * *

After entering the restaurant and getting sat down in a booth, Kimberly made herself busy by looking at the menu and drinking away at her water glass.

Jaesa scanned her menu very intently - seriously - in one hand. With the other, she took idle sips from her own glass, setting it down very delicately and picking it back up again, from time to time.

"You're extremely well coordinated - great at multi-tasking," Kimberly blurted across the table at her. Jaesa's eyes lifted to her, and Kimberly blushed and sank back in her seat. "I- I mean- o-of course you are, right? All those extra limbs..."

Jaesa surprised her by laughing. Singular, but high, and musical. Lovely! "That's true."

Yes, yes - I made her laugh! Now just keep the ball rolling on your success!

"So, how long have you...been here?"

"In Wallgate?"

"In this dimension," Kimberly clarified, flushed.

"Oh. Of course; anyone would be curious about that." Jaesa smiled. "It was your scientist's curiosity that allowed me to come here at all, after all..."

"Yeah," Kimberly nodded, thinking. "The big particle accelerator incident of 1999? August...twenty-seventh?"

"That's right." Jaesa returned the nod. "It was shortly before I was...born."

"It was before I was, too," Kimberly said. "By about three years."

"It was only a few weeks before I was born."

"So, you're like, twenty...two?" Kimberly asked, biting at her lip.

"Twenty-two," Jaesa confirmed. "Is that a problem for you?"

"No! No, no! Just - I was just wondering!"

Jaesa considered her. Then, she went on with the subject at hand. "Did you know that my mother was the first to cross over? She was the first one out of the rift, at the incident site, in Ohio's countryside - that human facility of yours."

"Really?" Kimberly stared, shocked.

"Yes. And that makes me the first of my kind to be born here, in your reality." Jaesa's smile held a hint of something else now (was it humor?).

"You must have been really lucky, then," Kimberly noted. "Don't your - kind, have hundreds of eggs at once?"

"No, not all at once," Jaesa shook her head. She sipped her water, so precise. "We hatch over the course of several weeks."

"And so, you were the very first."

"I was." A pause. "Out of two hundred eighty-six of us, myself and nine others were the only ones to survive the hatching."

"W-what happened?" Kimberly whispered, horrified.

Jaesa's smile left her. Her head dipped, just so. "Back then, it was confusion and panic and chaos on both sides of the dimensional rift. It took two weeks before we came to communicate - to even realize that the denizens of one realm and the other were sapient beings, like ourselves."

"R-right, it was..." Kimberly said quietly, nodding. If she remembered the history lessons well enough...

"Plenty of less than moral people from my home reality managed to slip through, making things much more complicated for us all - and plenty of dangerous animals, as well, of course. It was impossible, for a long time, for you humans to even identify and distinguish between what was sapient and what wasn't." Jaesa hesitated, then continued. "But, even then - after - people on both sides just wanted to kill the threats, sapient or not. The invaders."

"W-well, most people don't think like that anymore," Kimberly assured swiftly. "I don't! Most people my age don't - younger people."

"True," Jaesa agreed. "I'm glad for that. But...there are still some people..." She looked discomforted, toying with her glass and glancing down at it. "That's why I don't just walk around in my true form - or even partially reverted. When I'm a human, I'm invisible, for the most part."

"What's your home like?" Kimberly blurted, desperate for a more cheerful topic!

Jaesa seemed to be thinking along similar lines - her voice was quick, her smile was brighter, as she spoke again, meeting Kimberly's gaze. "It's a lot less stable than this dimension. Things, people, and places are always changing - shifting form and position in reality. You could go to sleep under a tree, and wake up to find yourself in a mud pit. Or, if you had to walk six miles to where you wanted to go, you might find half-way through that you need to walk another thirty."

"So...it's...better here, do you think?"

"It's...calmer," Jaesa settled on, flashing another smile. "I wouldn't say peaceful, or quiet, but...it's calmer. Predictable, at least. I do like that about it; I never have to worry if the college bathrooms will be gone the next time I need them, or if a door to a classroom will have turned itself into a blank wall."

Kimberly laughed. "Thank god that doesn't happen, yeah! That'd suck!"

"It does suck," Jaesa said, laughing too. That prettiness, that tone of rich amusement to her voice. "That's why I prefer to stay in this dimension - I've only visited home a handful of times. I hatched here, and it's what I'm comfortable with, regardless."

"Hmm..." Kimberly hummed her interest, leaning over the table, subconscious. Keep it going! "So what do you think you'll order?"

Jaesa set her menu down, folded it neat. "Something inexpensive." She hesitated, her features looking...distressed. "I wouldn't want to do something rude and inappropriate."

"Oh no, get whatever you want! Just - we'll split the bill, okay?" Kimberly said quickly, grinning. "And if you don't quite have enough, I'll give you a bit more on my end?"

"Okay." Jaesa nodded. "Thank you."

"It's no problem! Really!"

"Good, then."

"Yeah."

Jaesa hesitated, gazing at Kimberly in silence a moment. Then, she slid out of her seat, and came to sit down next to Kimberly on her side of the table. Shoulders brushed, bare thigh from that leg slit touched Kimberly's pants.

Kimberly flushed and squirmed. "Um- hi?"

"Hi. Is this fine?"

"Of course!" Kimberly squeaked. "This is g-great, really - awesome! Yeah, this is fine!"

Jaesa's face broke over with pure relief. She smiled, nodding. "Good."