Author's note: Aw, this chapter's so sweet I made myself sick. Too many warm fuzzies lately. This is supposed to be an Action story, isn't it? I need to get some superheroing all up in this. Next chapter, fighting. I promise. But for this chapter, some feels. All feedback is appreciated.

February 16, 2013

Rika met Petra at 5:00 at a park not far from the restaurant. Rika wore a simple but sexy black dress, and had her hair up. She had her diamond earrings and silver bracelet, but she also added a necklace with a small S-shaped pendant with a pair of rubies. Petra wore a light brown skirt and a red blouse, and had her hair down. A heart locket hung from her neck.

"Hey," Rika greeted her.

"Hi," Petra replied. "Thanks for coming."

"I invited you, remember?" Rika reminded her.

"I know. Just . . . I'm glad to see you. And I've been stood up before."

"By who?"

"Let's not get into that," Petra said with a smile. "Let's just walk for a bit, and talk."

"Yeah. You're right." The two started strolling through the park, making small talk about music, TV, movies, school, and similar topics.

"So," Petra finally said. "How did you figure out you were gay?"

"By looking at pictures," Rika said with a chuckle. "I was looking at a girl's Facebook profile, and she had some pics of her kissing another girl at a bar. I realized I was jealous. How about you? How did you figure it out?"

"I always knew. As soon as I learned what a lesbian was – small-'L' lesbian, I mean; I'm from Lesbos, so I was actually already a big-'L' Lesbian; I'm a lesbian in both senses of the word! – as soon as I learned what a lesbian was, I knew I was one. I always used to practice kissing with my friends, just as an excuse to kiss them. Ha. Did you ever practice kissing?"

"No," Rika shook her head. "My best friend, Maria, was grossed out by that sort of thing. We both come from really religious families. We took it really seriously. When another friend suggested we practice kissing, Maria yelled at her for being sinful."

"She sounds like a bitch."

"I guess. And that's why I stopped hanging out with her when I got back from America. But she was still my friend."

"I almost feel sorry for you, not getting to practice kissing as a kid. It was a lot of fun."

"I had my first kiss at 12," Rika recalled. "A boy named Nicholaus. It was at a birthday, and we were playing Truth or Dare. I also kissed another boy that day, named Giorgios. And there were a few other boys over the past few years."

"And when did you first kiss a girl?" Petra asked. "Over the summer?"

"Um, never, actually," Rika admitted with a faint blush.

"Really?" Petra asked, clearly excited. She quickly tried to hide it. "Uh, that's interesting."

Rika suppressed a laugh. "Interesting? I guess that's one word for it. So now what? Are you going to try to seduce the inexperienced girl?"

"No!" Petra denied. "Of course not."

"That's a shame," Rika winked. Petra blushed. "You're adorable, you know that?" Petra blushed even harder. "You're acting even more nervous than I feel, and I'm the one who's never been on a date with a girl before."

"Sorry. I know I'm acting a bit pathetic."

"Not pathetic. Eager. And it's cute."

"It's just that it's been a couple months. I just got out of a pretty serious relationship, and it wasn't a good break-up. So I want this to go well."

"So do I. And I'm enjoying myself, so relax."

"Well, hey," Petra grinned, "I'm under a lot of pressure here. If I screw up, you may go back to guys. I've got the hopes of lesbians everywhere riding on this date."

"Oh, of course. How callous of me to make light of such a serious situation. How shall I make it up to you?"

"I'm sure we'll come up with something later," Petra flirted, blushing furiously.

Rika snapped her fingers. "I've got it. By way of apology, I'll give you my first girl-kiss."

"You don't have to do that," Petra said. Her face was completely red.

"I know. But I want to."

"OK," Petra whispered.

The girls stopped walking and turned to face each other. They stood in an awkward silence for a long moment. "So, um," Rika said, fidgeting. "I'm a little nervous."

"Me too," Petra nodded, shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

Rika took a deep breath. "OK," she sighed. "I really do want to do this. So, let's do it."

She put her hands on Petra's waist, enjoying the feel of her hips, and stepped into her. Petra put her hands on Rika's shoulders. Rika felt very warm, and was sure she was almost as red as Petra. She could feel her heart pounding. Her lips were dry, and her hands were sweaty. She licked her lips. She closed her eyes, and slowly leaned in, until her lips met Petra's.

Any doubts she may have had about liking girls disappeared immediately. Her head was swimming. Petra's lips were soft and wonderful, and her lip gloss tasted of strawberries. The kiss was amazing. Rika had never been kissed like that, and had never felt so content when she kissed guys.

It felt right.

The kiss seemed to last forever, but still ended too soon. Rika wasn't sure how long it went for, but figured it was probably just a few seconds. She opened her eyes, and saw Petra open hers. They smiled at each other shyly.

"Well," Petra said. "Um. How did you like it?"

Rika thought about her answer. "You can let the other lesbians know that their hopes were well-placed," she joked.

"So you liked it?"

"Mm-hmm. I wouldn't mind trying again, though. Just to be certain."

"Of course," Petra nodded, trying and failing to put on a serious face. "We need to test this thoroughly. We don't want to make a mistake."

"Exactly. We've still got plenty of time before dinner, so let's try again."

They leaned into each other again. There was less hesitation this time. The kiss was a little firmer, but still gentle. Rika let out a small, satisfied sigh. They continued to kiss for a long time, until finally they heard a couple guys cheering. They looked at the guys, who encouraged them to keep going.

"I suppose this wasn't the best location to do this," Rika laughed.

"Ah, let them watch," Petra waved her hand dismissively towards them.

"No way! I'm not giving them a free show! If they want to watch, they'll have to pay up."

Petra laughed. "Fair enough. I guess let's just keep walking. But you did like it? The kissing, I mean?"

"Oh yes. Definitely. Now that I know how it's supposed to feel, I think I might be addicted. I'm going to wear you out."

"I'll do my best to keep up," Petra said.

The rest of the evening passed pleasantly, with them exchanging occasional kisses in the midst of conversation. Dinner was excellent, and Petra was a lot of fun to be with. All too soon, it came to an end, and they called a cab for Petra. "I had a great time tonight," Rika said.

"Me, too," Petra said. "So we can do this again?"

"Yeah. How about next Saturday? We can meet at a mall, do some shopping, get some lunch, maybe catch a movie, and then dinner?"

"That sounds great." The cab pulled up. "Do you want to share the cab?"

"No, that's OK. I biked here."

"OK. Message me when you get home."

"I will," Rika nodded. They leaned in for one last, lingering kiss before Petra got into the cab. They waved as the cab pulled away.

Rika walked back to where she'd locked her bike. She felt like she was walking on air, and she was sure she had a big, stupid smile on her face. She took out her phone and went to Facebook. Best night ever! she posted. I had my first kiss with a girl, and it was everything I ever hoped it would be!