Chapter Text
It’s been a few hours since their return to the Emerald city. Galinda barely remembers as she was stuck in a whirlwind of excited emotions from the brief stop at Elphaba’s place (very modest, and Galinda’s assumptions aren’t entirely wrong!) They weren’t long getting snacks either, their haul consisting of three kinds of hummus, several types of dipping foods and of course, popcorn.
They lounge on Galinda’s sofa, comfortable clothes on, food scattered in various bowls on the coffee table and a film playing low on the television. It’s about two thirds of the way through and Galinda’s no longer upright, instead opting to lay with her legs hanging over the armrest of the couch and her head next to Elphaba’s blanket covered thigh (and it’s the softest shade of pink, too. Elphie looks so cute under it.)Their current movie is sort of a sequel to the previous one, but both of them lose focus on it and are instead locked in an intense conversation about it.
“Obviously the first one is more compelling, Elphie, it’s a great film! But this one isn’t so bad. The mystery is impossible not to speculate on, and well, it isn’t hard to have an idea of who has done what, but this one really gets you with that twin reveal doesn’t it?” Galinda waves to the screen.
“I suppose. I find it a bit boring that we can tell quite obviously he murdered her though. The character isn’t even an interesting antagonist, he’s just a pain. It’s obvious he murdered the big guy with his allergy-” Elphaba is cut off by Galinda swiftly sitting up. The younger woman whips her head to look right at Elphaba, her mouth gaping.
“How did you guess that so fast?”
“Galinda, he hands him his glass, the guy takes a sip and chokes to death. He reminded them all about his allergy at the beginning. One plus one equals two.” Elphaba looks amused as she explains it to her.
“You’re too good at predicting movie plots, Elphie. No wonder you don’t watch them often.” She jokes as she falls back into her comfortable lying position. The top of her head and Elphaba’s thigh are separated only by soft cloth, but the warmth Galinda feels from it is enough contact to make Galinda happy.
“Only when they’re easy to guess.” Elphaba snarks, which causes Galinda to laugh.
The giggles subside not long after and Galinda can’t help the way she melts into her couch. This is the nicest post-work cool down time she’s had in a while. Elphaba seems to be really enjoying it as well, wrapped up in a thin long sleeved shirt with a simple black and blue plaid pattern and a lukewarm cup of tea in one hand. She looks relaxed and completely at peace, a nicer and much lovelier look than the stress that lingered in her features the past two days. Her brows are less tense, her shoulders are loose and she looks as if she’s able to breathe easy. What Galinda would do to be able to be someone Elphaba can find this type of solace in all the time.
Oz, she hates admitting it, but Fiyero’s right. She’s fallen hard and fast for Elphaba. Incredibly so.
Elphaba speaks and it pulls Galinda from her spiraling thoughts quite quickly.
“So,” She hesitates for a second, “What did you think of the wedding? I know you mentioned it being a snore fest but…”
Her eyes are still on the screen and she looks like she’s trying to be aloof about it, but Galinda can see that little crease between her eyebrows. She’s worried about it now that it’s over. The blonde turns from the screen to look up at Elphaba, watching her for a moment before speaking.
“Oh Elphie, please don’t fret, I may have been exaggerating a smidge or two.” Galinda reassures, “The ceremony met every expectation I had. A bit duller than some I’ve been to, but it was sweet. I may have shed a couple tears when Nessa was slipping the ring on Biq’s finger.”
“Boq.” Elphaba quietly corrects her and Galinda waves her hand as she continues.
“The reception was quite nice. You hired great musicians to play and I think you know as well as I do that the food was delicious. I had a wonderful time, truly Elphie, I’d say it might be my favourite wedding of the season so far.”
She hears and feels Elphaba’s sigh of relief.
“Thank goodness. If it’s you saying it, I believe it.”
Galinda shifts, rolling herself so she’s on her front. She props her chin up in her hand, looking up towards Elphaba without being upside down now. Elphaba watches until she’s settled.
“Were you worried about it being awful?” Galinda asks. Elphaba winces slightly and glances away.\
“Yes. I was afraid Father would cause a scene and ruin the day for her. You had the unfortunate experience of hearing what he can be like. Knowing him he’d find a way to say it was me ruining it too.” She places her cup onto its coaster on the coffee table and fidgets a bit with the edge of Galinda’s blanket.
Galinda wishes she could dig her nails into the ugly shoulder pads of Elphaba’s fathers hideous jacket and toss him into the lake on Mount Runcible. What an awful human being, making his daughter feel this way during such a lovely event. She hopes the man trips on his own feet at some point today. She hopes he stubs a toe or seven.
She pushes herself up so she’s resting on her knees on the couch cushion now. She reaches out to grab Elphaba’s hand, squeezing it reassuringly. Elphaba’s gaze comes back to Galinda and the blonde meets her gaze.
“You could never. You helped make that day such a magical experience for them, Elphie. You were a fantastic maid of honour, you didn’t fumble anything throughout the ceremony, and I may have been working for a good chunk of that reception but I seem to recall it was you making sure I was fed and taking my breaks. Oh! And you looked sensational in that beautiful dress and shawl. Purple is such a wonderful colour on you.” She smiles a bit to herself before continuing, “Really Elphie, you were a fantastic maid of honour. Honestly, I think you were my favourite part of the wedding.”
Elphaba rolls her eyes and gives Galinda a disbelieving look.
“It’s true!” Galinda objects and leans forward, forcing herself into Elphaba’s personal space, “And yes, perhaps I am biased and feel my favourite parts of the wedding were every moment I got to spend with you, but weddings are the most fun when you’re in good company! I find you to be the best of the best.”
She’s smiling widely and doesn’t break her gaze. Her hand still holds Elphaba’s but the girl is speechless. Her lips part and her brow is furrowed while she processes Galinda’s words. Then Galinda watches as Elphaba’s expression softens. It’s very slight in the form of her lips shifting and her expression going from an observation of scrutinized curiosity to something more akin to consideration. A tension fills the air between them, nothing uncomfortable, but Galinda notices it.
“You really think that?” Elphaba asks, voice quiet with a hint of disbelief.
“I do.” Galinda answers, “I really like spending time with you, Elphie.”
She’s still so incredibly close to Elphaba. She can see the gap between her teeth through the small parting of her lips and the way Elphaba regards her carefully, like she’s heard what she’s said and believes it but can’t seem to wrap her head around it. She watches Elphaba swallow nervously and Galinda isn’t subtle when her attention lingers on Elphaba’s neck, then lips once more.
Brown eyes meet green once more and just when Elphaba shifts to face Galinda properly, the moment is interrupted by a loud ring from a phone on the table. A tone that is unmistakable Galinda’s with its upbeat popish sound. Internally, she’s screeching in a pitch the only canines and Canines can perceive. Of course she gets a phone call the moment the mood changes into a perfect set up for a flirt or two. She wants to pick it up and chuck it out the nearest window. She wants to groan and decline the call and maybe silence it for the rest of time. She wants to completely ignore it and instead pretend that she and the woman of her affections are the only thing in the room right now.
She does none of those things and instead she leans away from Elphaha, letting go of her hand to pick it up. Almost immediately the screen lights up with a photo of her Momsie and her contact name requesting a video chat. She groans, immediately remembering her promise to call her parents. She stands up off the couch, picking it up without turning her camera on.
“Galinda Arduenna Upland! Have you been ignoring your Momsie on purpose?! Goodness, I sent you four messages! Four!” Her Momsie’s voice is stern and slightly shrill as it comes out of her phone speaker.
“Hi Momsie! No, Momsie!” She replies, her voice a tad pitchy. She mouths a quick ‘sorry’ and holds up one finger to Elphaba before continuing “I’m so, so sorry, I completely lost track of the time, can I call you back in just a clock tick? I’m quite indecent at the moment, really, I got home and spent hours lounging on my couch recouping. I haven’t even removed my travel makeup, oh Momsie, I’m far from camera ready.”
“Recouping?! Indecent?!” Her Momsie’s voice responds, “Galinda, you know you can be honest with your little ol’ Momsie. If you’re entertaining a woman, you can just say s-”
“MOMSIE!!!” Galinda whisper-shrieks, her face turning a bright red as she knows Elphaba’s hearing every single moment of this interaction. She wishes she could evaporate. Disappear like the pop of a bubble. “Just–”
She can see movement in the corner of her eye and watches Elphaba peel the blanket off her lap and fold it up precisely. Galinda swears she can see a darker tint to her cheeks as Elphaba drapes it over the back of the couch, then stands up. Momsie’s rambling on further and Galinda interrupts her very quickly.
“Momsie, I promise, I will call you back in at most five minutes! Give me that, okay? Love you! I’ll call you back soon!” Galinda’s thumb is pressing the end call button before she’s even finished her sentence. She looks at Elphaba with an apologetic smile.”Sorry about that. They always give me a call after a job, Momsie is insatiably curious and has always loved that I went into the wedding industry.”
“That’s okay. It’s gotten quite late anyway, I shouldn’t impose on you any longer.” Elphaba gives her a small, reassuring smile, “I should also give Dulcibear a call, let her know we returned to the city in one piece.”
Galinda hates that their evening has been abruptly cut short, but she concedes. Her parents are going to pester her for the rest of the evening and it’s best Elphaba isn’t anywhere near that. She watches as Elphaba moves to gather a few dishes and she stops her with a gentle hand on her wrist.
“Don’t worry about those. It’ll be an excuse to keep my hands busy when my mothers call me back.” She half jokes and withdraws her hand when Elphaba pulls back.
She walks with her to her front door, watching as Elphaba slips on her shoes and makes sure she has everything she arrived with. With her phone in hand it doesn’t take Elphaba long to arrange for a ride back to her place. She looks at Galinda once she’s finished and gives her a half smile.
“I had a good time watching movies and doing nothing with you today. We’ll have to finish this one properly some time soon.” Elphaba nods to the television, still playing the movie they’d abandoned for conversation. “Thank you for inviting me over.”
“Oh anytime Elphie! There’s a third movie in this series in the works right now and you’ll need to be up to date on both if you want to come with me to see it.” Galinda comments matter of factly and Elphaba raises her eyebrow.
“The movie isn’t even done and you’re inviting me to go see it with you?” Elphaba jokes, “How far in my calendar do I need to plan this for? Next year? The year after?”
“Certainly no longer than that!” Galinda quips back, “I’ll keep you updated on that when I find out.”
Elphaba chuckles lightly and slides a hand into her pocket to pull out her phone. She sees a notification that her ride will be approaching soon. She pockets the device and moves for the door and, before she can open it, Galinda speaks.
“Text me once you’re home safe?”
She almost winces from the sound of disappointment she hears in her tone. Elphaba on the other hand flashes her an even softer smile, appreciative and a little shy. Oh, Elphaba’s softer smiles truly are a wonder. Galinda can feel the way her heart does somersaults within her chest.
“Of course.” She reassures, hand resting on the door knob now, “Good night, Galinda.”
Galinda waves her off, stepping closer to the door and waving down the hall until the elevator arrives, taking Elphaba and the rest of her wonderful plans for the evening away with it. She lingers there in the doorway, staring down the empty corridor and resting her hand above the spot where her heart continues to thrum loud and proud. She leans against her doorframe and sighs wistfully to herself.
Oz, she really, really likes this woman.
The painting of Nessarose and Boq is finished and shipped by train back to Colwen Grounds within a fortnight. Her May weddings have been a breeze and even her video editing is right on schedule, leaving her more than enough time to focus on her final piece for her upcoming show.
Which has been going great! Well. Mostly. The painting looks exactly like she designed it, but as she’s been working on these flat colours, she’s found herself becoming more unsatisfied with every stroke. The art is gorgeous (all her pieces are!) and Elphaba looks stunning from this side perspective, but this doesn't look like the Elphaba she’s grown to lo-know a lot about! The woman who doesn’t hesitate to do what’s right and be a good person through and through. She’s not performative, not afraid to use her sharp edges, but it doesn’t mean she has no soft side. She protects it, keeps it safe and sound until she trusts you.
Galinda signs wistfully and drops her paintbrush when she places yet another unhappy dollop of a chestnut colour into the floor details.
It doesn’t help that her feelings for Elphaba seem to be all consuming the moment her mind wanders. So much so that the woman has nearly blurted them out about seven times since their movie night. She almost sent a ‘good night, love you’ message the night after an exhausting day of editing and caught herself right before she sent it with eight heart emojis of different kinds.
It's not a burden to have these feelings at all, Galinda couldn’t have developed a crush on a more wonderific person if she tried, but it’s certainly impacting her vision and her thoughts on if this art actually captures it. It just doesn’t scream ‘The Wonderful World of Oz’ like she's been wanting it to. It’s certainly a problem! This is supposed to be the centerpiece Emerald city painting, the most important part of its segment of the collection and if Galinda isn't feeling the piece reflects that, how will the critics? The gallery?! Oz, how will Elphie see it? This was an idea they came up with together, and how will Elphie feel if Galinda can’t get it perfect?
She unties the apron from around her waist and heads to her desk. It’s not ideal, but Galinda does still have some time left. If she were to figure out something new— something better that can reflect both the idea she and Elphaba decided on yet convey the true essence of the woman Elphaba is, then she’ll still have more than enough time to paint it without rushing.
Galinda decides to start by scanning all of the pictures from their photo shoot, quickly finding nothing different from what she’s already begun painting. She moves from that to her camera roll, sifting through every snapshot she’s been able to get with Elphaba since (much fewer than Galinda likes, she thinks, but the candids she has gotten have been quite good. Galinda could probably make a great career in photography if she tried.) While the photos look fantastic, it’s still not what she wants for this painting. They show a lot more of her Elphie, but these are moments Galinda snuck a picture or two of. They’re hers, and she’d like to keep them that way.
She moves from her photos to her videos and starts going through the folder with footage from Nessarose’s wedding. She’s been able to break it all up into clips of various moments, specifically separating footage that will be used in the final product versus the in between moments.
On any other video, Galinda would delete and scrap all the unneeded clips immediately, but she can’t with this. In most of this other footage it has a lot of Galinda’s favourite parts of the wedding. Specifically; the rare camera moments with Elphaba. Even though it’s minimal, it’s their first video footage together and Galinda finds she can’t just delete it and call it a day without at least watching it herself. Most of her focus has been on the clips she can use and what she’s edited so far, so she takes her time scrubbing through these to see if there’s anything that screams at her: anything that could bring this painting back to her vision.
She curses herself for abiding by her contractual duties and pausing the recording for most of the occasions Elphaba stopped by.
It’s then she stumbles upon the video clips from the clean up, when she left her camera running on its tripod. She’s absentmindedly skimming through it up until Elphaba enters in the clip. Galinda then watches the conversation she can’t hear, but she remembers very well. Her face isn’t visible but Elphie’s is, and judging by her expression and the way she glances around them, this is right before Galinda leads her into a dance.
In the video, Galinda moves Elphaba’s hand to her shoulder, then another to her waist. Elphaba looks a little nervously around them but Galinda leads her into the beginnings of a slow waltz, bringing Elphaba’s full attention back to them and them alone. She laughs when Elphaba steps on her foot, then again when she nearly stumbles at the small step backward, but they find their footing soon enough. The clumsy steps turn into confident ones as the nerves loosen between them.
Galinda’s entranced by it. Their skirts flow along with each movement, blending the darker purple and light pastel of the fabric in a wave of colour as they step perfectly in time with one another. They move together like petals floating through a slowly moving river, or reeds swaying through a gentle breeze. Seamlessly, that is to say. She watches as they instinctively shift, Elphaba’s arms over her shoulders and her hands on Elphie’s hips.Their waltz slows into soft sways as the music slows towards the song's final notes.
When their dance ends, there’s a moment where Galinda is giggling to herself with her eyes closed and her head tilted down. They’re positioned directly at the center of the screen, a perfect side view of the two of them as they face each other. Galinda can’t actually recall what made her giggle, they barely talked throughout the dance, but she remembers how elated she felt having Elphaba there in her arms and swaying to themselves.
That’s when she notices Elphaba’s expression. It happens so quickly, a blink and you’ll miss it detail but Galinda quickly scrambles to pause and rewind so she can see it again. She fumbles a bit, rewinding thrice before she finds it. She lets out a quiet gasp as she pauses on the exact frame that caught her attention. Galinda notes the time stamp and hits play, allowing the video to start once again.
There on her screen, Elphaba’s looking directly at her as she bows to laugh. She’s smirking at first, perhaps something funny has been said, but then the smirk melts into something new, something softer. Her brow relaxes and so does her gaze, resembling an expression Galinda is all too familiar with in her line of work. It’s a look that says “There’s nowhere else I want to be than right here with you.”
She gently places her phone down and sits very delicately on the chair next to her. That’s it. It’s Elphaba’s expression. She looks over to her current work in progress, honing in on the stoic and serious look she started the painting with. It’s gorgeous— it is! Elphaba looks stunning, all serious and terrifying and in her element, and Elphaba approves of this for Galinda’s painting. But a gorgeous painting of Elphaba that can’t connect with the theme of her show isn’t going to wow anyone but herself.
Still, she considers it again. Being at this stage, it’s always good to be certain. She can still use what she has, with Elphaba appearing so smart and serious as she reads from the historical texts within the Oz archives. Or, she could give her this beautiful, soft expression that gives Galinda butterflies. A look that is, very clearly, not meant for boring old texts. That’s a look that Galinda hopes is something Elphie saves for people she cares for.
Hit with inspiration, Galinda grabs her sketch book and pencil and flips it open to a blank page. She props her phone up, turning the brightness up a smidge so she can see her reference clearly then begins to sketch. Her lines are rushed and scribbled, but it’s not about getting it perfect the first time: it’s about capturing that emotion.
She pays attention to every detail, taking some artistic liberties and tweaking a few things as she sketches, but almost everything about Elphaba stays the same. The light twinkle of her eyes, the soft upward curve of her lip, her shawl and how it’s wrapped loosely around her shoulders, every single bit of Elphaba is the same.
The difference between the scene in the video and Galinda’s sketch is herself. She’s changed the angle of the image, allowing it to show more of her own face. Instead of it tilting downward, lost in her giggling, Galinda’s drawn herself looking forward instead, directly at Elphaba with a matching gaze. She gets lost in the finer details of it, taking extra care to sketch in the light details of Elphaba’s braids and scribbles to emphasize the lighting.
Her sketch ends where her hands rest on Elphaba’s waist and Elphaba’s draped around her shoulders. Galinda draws a few hatched lines to define texture on Elphaba’s dress and places her pencil down once she’s content. She pulls her hand back to take a better look at it, lingering on Elphaba’s facial features a bit longer before taking in the entirety of the picture.
A bright red blush creeps from her cheeks all the way down to her chest as she realizes she’s drawn what essentially looks like the two of them dancing on their wedding day. She lets out a shriek and slams her sketch book shut with a force that shakes the desk just a bit. She pushes herself out of her chair and immediately goes back to her canvas, trying to see if there’s a possibility for her to touch up Elphaba’s facial features in a way where it might resemble her sketch.
After fifteen minutes of struggling, Galinda finds herself facedown at her desk and calling Fiyero. He picks up on the second ring and Galinda politely waits for him to ask what’s up before she goes into a long winded ramble about this final painting and how it’s not coming together as she hopes, how she wants to change it but is afraid about painting something different than the idea Elphaba is most comfortable with. He listens intently and waits for a lull in her ramble to interrupt.
“I think you’re getting in your head about it too much. If this isn’t working out, and you still have some time, then why not change it?” He inquires with a hint of amusement, “It wouldn’t be the first time you’ve done it before a tight deadline, and it definitely won’t be your last.”
“I can’t just change it, Fiyero, Elphie and I came up with this together.” Galinda sighs rather dramatically and continues, “I would hate to upset her by changing everything we decided on because I couldn’t make this idea work. I feel like there’s still something here but it isn’t fitting with the rest of the collection.”
Fiyero hums in response and they sit in silence for a few seconds before he breaks it with another question.
“Well, if you could change it, what would you want to do?”
Galinda closes her eyes and thinks about her sketch and beautiful, upturned green lips, soft eyes and a relaxed brow.
“I have ideas.” she mutters, “I’d share them with you, but-”
“Yes yes, I know, you’re keeping it top secret until the day of the show.” He interrupts her with a light chuckle, already knowing what she’s going to say. “If you’re that worried and you’re getting pressed for time, then you should talk with Elphaba about it.”
Galinda blinks, considering it. Fiyero continues.
“I saw how close the two of you were at the wedding. If it were anyone else other than you clinging to her, she might’ve shoved them into the hedge. She was practically holding you up half the time honestly, and she didn’t once let you fall. I think if Elphaba’s close enough to you to do that, then she’d be receptive to a change in your idea. If your muse isn’t musing, then try a new reference. Talk with Elphaba about it, Galinda.”
It’s surprisingly wise advice from someone who claims to dance through life. When they hang up, Galinda reaches out to Elphaba to see if she plans to head to Oatsie’s that night, following it up with an inquiry on if she’d like company if she does. It’s a couple of hours before she receives a response from Elphaba agreeing to meet her there later on.
Galinda takes the opportunity to head home to pick a lovelier dinner outfit, and maybe consider how she’ll ask Elphaba about changing up the painting as well.
“Just to clarify: you want to change it because this one isn’t working out? ” Elphaba looks a bit surprised as she asks, sitting directly across from Galinda in the booth that’s now become their regular table within the restaurant.
“Yes and no,” Galinda replies, getting ready to explain again but Elphaba holds her hand up.
“Right, because you said it’s not fitting the vision of your show.” She looks a bit uncertain as she repeats it, but Galinda nods.
“Yes! It’s a gorgeous painting though, really, it’s only flats right now but you look positively fierce within the artwork. Stunning and strong but also sharp, stoic. It really captures the person you are in your field. The perfect picture of a woman who is passionate about Oz and justice. And I do like it, I think it will be lovely when it's done, but it’s not reflecting what I need it to for the show. It doesn’t say ‘The Wonderful World of Oz’ the way I want it to. I think we can do better.”
She looks at Elphaba with a serious gaze. Elphaba takes in her response and doesn't say anything at first. She tilts her head a bit in thought and Galinda watches some strands of her braid slowly fall to her front as she does. She’s wearing a lovely grey blouse today. It looks good under the low light.
“Okay. So you need to find something that fits your theme better. And you still intend to include me in it?”
“Elphie without you, it won’t be complete. I have a few ideas I want to try, but I won’t consider it without getting the okay from you. We did make a deal and we came up with a great idea, but I think it can be better. No, actually, I’m certain it can be.”
Elphaba’s lip twitches a bit and she hums.
“It might be easier to help you if I can know a bit about your other paintings.”
Galinda contemplates it. It’d be awfully hypocritical of her to tell Fiyero earlier that he can’t know any details about the art, then immediately explain every other painting to Elphaba. It’d probably be quite rude and he may be mildly offended. But Elphaba is, technically, her colleague on this. She’s the model. Allowing her to know a bit about her finished paintings might not be the worst decision.
“It’s community and culture as told throughout the different corners of Oz.” Galinda begins, “As you know, five pieces for each section. Every painting from each country reflects their culture and different places you can find the beauty of Oz within it. The Emerald city is by far the most important section of the collection, though. It’s where each corner of Oz meets and converges and a place where everyone comes together. A lot of the history of Oz culminates here, and I want all of my paintings to reflect that! I want people to look at those paintings and see a bit of all these wonderful parts of Oz in the segments of the city I’ve highlighted, the old, the new, and things that maybe they too can see from their own life experiences. I painted the little Liontown nightmarket, twin pieces of the first Unionist and Lurlinest churches within the city— Oh, don’t give me that look, Elphie, you know as well as I do. Those buildings are culturally important to millions of Ozians.”
Elphaba is giving her a bit of an unimpressed look but she snickers at Galinda’s observation while she continues.
“Anyways, the fourth is of the nature within the Emerald city. You know that lovely little pond with all the beautiful water lilies and the gigantic lillipads that can hold up a full family of Frogs? It's a lovely little space that lights up in the brightest of colours when the sun is setting in late summer, so I’ve painted that as well. All of them tie back to the important theme of ‘The Wonderful World of Oz’ while still showcasing our beautiful city. I just need to get that connected with the artwork you’ll be in.”
Galinda sighs and leans back against the wall of the booth she’s in.
“Oh Elphie, the more I think about it the more what I have really might not work. I might have to start from zero once again.”
Elphaba is quiet for a moment, taking a small sip of her water as she thinks.
“Can I see them? It might help me understand your vision better.” She eyes Galinda curiously, not giving away too much of the curiosity she has about the art, but Galinda can see that twinkle in her eye: the one that Galinda can tell will be the death of her one day.
Galinda almost bites her lip. She really wants to keep as much of this show as a surprise as possible, but she’d like Elphaba to agree to an idea change even more. And, well. It’s Elphaba. Galinda really can’t say no to her.
“You are very lucky, Elphie. I don’t do sneak peaks for anyone. Not even Momsie or Momsicle. But only the Emerald City paintings!”
“And finally, the nature painting.” Galinda gestures with a light flourish of her list to a large canvas that has an almost way too realistic recreation of the lovely lily pad pond she’d been describing to Elphaba at dinner.
Galinda finds she’s not regretting this choice to let Elphaba in at all, because her reactions of awe to each new painting reveal has her heart flipping and her chest filling with pride at her reactions. She has something wonderful to say about each piece, from technique to choices of colour to her stylization of it all, Elphaba is entranced by her work. It’s exactly what she’s been hoping for, and if this is how Elphaba Thropp, number one defense attorney extraordinaire (in Gainda’s eyes, at least) is reacting without even seeing the rest of her paintings, then it’ll be incredible to see what other Ozians have to say.
Finally, she sees the in progress painting of herself. Galinda is anxious at first, a little stressed as she anticipates Elphaba’s reaction, but Elphaba is quiet for a long while. She’s taking the art seriously, seeking to find in it what Galinda’s been describing to her. She can see her stealing glances towards the other paintings a few times and after five minutes pass, Elphaba straightens her posture and looks to Galinda.
“I hate to admit this, but you’re right. It doesn’t seem to connect to your theme like the others have.” She sighs a bit and frowns, “Are you sure the problem isn’t–”
Galinda cuts the thought off before Elphaba can finish.
“Absolutely not. Elphie, you’re the most important part of this painting, and you will be for the next one. I know I can do something great. I have an idea of something already, it isn’t perfect just yet but I can feel it’s potential.”
Elphaba’s watching her again. Galinda sees it through those tasteful round spectacles of hers. She brushes a lock of hair behind her ear to keep her hands busy, and then Elphaba speaks again.
“Do you like the new idea you have?” She asks, no hint of judgement or discontent in her tone, only genuine curiosity and intrigue.
“I-” Galinda pauses and thinks about her sketch, “Yes. I like what it is so far.”
The gentle silence returns. They’re both looking at the unfinished Elphaba painting now.
“I think if this idea is something you like more than what you have now, then maybe it’s something I’ll like too.” Elphaba finally speaks again, “I trust you, Galinda. I think whatever this idea is, you’ll bring it to life better than I can ever imagine.”
Galinda hears a chorus of angels sing. Those are some of her favourite words to hear in a work related situation. She hears herself thanking Elphaba, promising she’ll do this painting justice before her brain takes her on a journey of new, different things she can do now. Elphaba’s given her consent! She trusts Galinda! She has full creative freedom!
She misses the way Elphaba glances over to her desk, seeing the closed sketchbook laying on it. She moves closer over to it, peering curiously at its cover while Galinda lingers near her canvas. Galinda puts her thumb below her chin and her fingers are curled just in front of her lips while she thinks and Elphaba gently grazes her nails along the surface of Galinda’s sketchbook. The blonde is oblivious to it, even as Elphaba speaks.
“Is this your sketchbook? Is it okay if I…?” She trails off and plays with the corner of it, tempted to flip it open, but waits for a response.
“Hm? Oh, yes, sure Elphie.” Galinda gives her a small wave with her unoccupied hand and Elphaba almost rolls her eyes before her focus ends up on the sketchbook.
She flips it open past the first few pages to warm up sketches of figures, shapes of buildings and structures with hatched shadings as well as different gowns and textured fabrics. She flips to another page and sees lovely doodles of fields and florals, followed by even more figures and some clothing. There’s a couple pages where Galinda’s been practicing some expressions of a Raccoon who looks very similar to their albino friend at Oatsie’s and then she flips it to the next page. Elphaba’s hand stops the instant she sees it.
Elphaba comes face to face with detailed sketches of herself. Her brow is furrowed in most, clearly some of Galinda’s first attempts at drawing her, but the further she goes the more her expressions change. She sees a profile of herself looking intrigued, then another faced forward with a snarky little smirk. It’s incredible; almost like looking in a tiny, sketchy mirror. She flips at least seven pages, mostly scribbles and practice doodles of her, until finally she gets to Galinda’s latest sketch.
Galinda is none the wiser to the way Elphaba’s body immediately stiffens and her hand lets go of the last page she flipped, now face to face with an intimate sketch of their dance. A soft blush covers her cheeks as she takes in every little line, how the sketch ends right where their skirts begin at their hips and the precise, swift pencil strokes that create a memory Elphaba hadn’t thought would be this impactful to anyone other than herself. She lingers on the looks of adoration sketched on paper, matching gazes from a picture of Elphaba and Galinda that leaves her chest fluttering with a feeling she’s unfamiliar with.
She abruptly closes the book, its pages shutting with a light ‘thud’, jarring Galinda from her thoughts and bringing her back to the present.
“I-I have to go.” Elphaba says suddenly, her voice stuttering and flustering her all the more. Galinda looks confused but Elphaba doesn’t give her a chance to intervene, “I’ve lost track of time and-oh well, you know, early days and all of that. A lot of work to do tomorrow so I— Erm. I’ll be heading out.”
Galinda watches as Elphaba hurriedly stalks over to the door, grabbing her work bag and slinging it over her shoulder in a rushed motion. Galinda barely has time to compose herself and meet her at the door, let alone another second to try and understand what made the mood change so drastically. Elphaba’s face is flushed up to her ears and she’s having a hard time looking directly at Galinda’s face, but she does her best to meet her gaze.
“Uhm. Thank you.” She says, her voice a lot quieter than before, “For sharing this with me. I’m honored to experience something you don’t share with anyone else.”
She hesitates, opening her mouth as if to say more, but no sooner than she does her lips close and she shakes her head, lifting her hand in a silent wave before swiftly exiting out of the door. Galinda pouts slightly as she watches Elphaba disappear out of the parking lot and down the city side walk.
“Well that was certainly weird.” She mumbles to herself.
She doesn’t think anything of it again until later on, after she’s finished her bedtime skin routine and is settling under her plush, pink duvet. As her eyes are about to close, she remembers Elphaba’s attention on her desk, a question to peek at her sketchbook and then the light sound of her flipping pages. She thinks about which sketch book it was and all the things Elphie may have—
Galinda immediately shoots upward and her face drains of all colour. The realization hits her that Elphaba has probably seen the beautiful and extremely self indulgent sketch she completed only hours beforehand. Their incredibly romantic and deeply intimate first dance, with Galinda’s addition. No wonder she was so flushed and their goodbye was so awkward.
Galinda grabs her pillow with unnecessary force, throws her face into it and screams.
Avoiding Elphaba isn’t Galinda’s intention after such an embarrassing moment, it sort of happens on its own. The following day Elphaba’s workload increases with her next prolific case, sending her all over the city and spending late nights in her office. Galinda finds herself in a similar situation, caught in the throes of the busy wedding season and having too many back and forth conversations with the art gallery about event schematics. Add all of that onto her regularly scheduled video creation and she has barely a moment of free time to spare.
They still talk, with conversation happening between a lot of work, but when it passes three weeks since they’ve spent time together in person Galinda finds herself missing it more than anything. She’d gotten used to their weekly outings and they quickly became the best social interaction of Galinda’s week. Suddenly going half a month without being able to sit in Elphaba’s company is starting to wear on her dear little gay heart.
In place of being able to spend time with her physically, Galinda sends Elphaba a lot of candids. Pictures of her before weddings looking fancy, the nicer looking meals from her day, little previews of videos to come, perhaps a selfie or two fresh out of the shower with a facemask on and her bare shoulders showing. The little things, really.
Elphaba responds as she always does, she’ll comment on her photos with sincere compliments or little jokes in her dry humour when the opportunity arises. Occasionally she’ll reply with her own picture (usually a scenic photo, very rarely a selfie.) Galinda feels like their relationship hasn’t changed at all after the sketchbook incident, which should be great news! Incidents like that rarely leave a relationship without an awkward tension!
But she wants it to. Desperately. She has to believe that Elphie and her bright mind must have some idea of Galinda’s feelings for her.
They’ve both been a little too busy to actually talk about it, but even if Galinda were to get the chance now, she isn’t sure what she’d say. She doesn’t have the words to convey the depths of her feelings just yet. She’s never felt this way about anyone before. Yes, it started from Galinda’s need to create something as beautiful as she sees Elphaba, but in the time she’s spent getting to know her that this attraction has bloomed into something more.
She isn’t sure how she should go about it. This will be a first for her; telling someone she loves them and wants to be with them. Normally it's the other way around, with people professing their love to her. It's thrillifying, in a way, since this will be a completely new experience. It's also terrifying. She knows she can come on a little strong and Elphaba deserves nothing less than a perfect confession. How could Galinda make that possible? What might a perfect confession for Elphaba Thropp look like?
The answer is easy when Galinda thinks about it. Elphaba is new to all of this, and distrusting. She needs to believe Galinda’s feelings are real, maybe even see that. Her words may not be enough. Maybe, if Elphaba sees her devotion through more than her sketches, that would be. Maybe it wouldn't. All Galinda knows is she can pour her heart and soul out to Elphaba in the only way she knows how: art and a little theatrics.
She’s considering this as she prepares her equipment for a journey to the library, of all places. Not a place she normally ventures to, but a place that is dear to Elphaba. The perfect space to get new reference photos. Once everything is secure, she double checks her appearance before flitting over to the door and heading out to complete the most important task of her day.
The trip to the library is short and uneventful. She enters and is instantly enveloped by the smell of old books and new. It brings Galinda back to her school days for a brief second, and soon she steps in like a woman on a mission. She moves right past the children's area and past a section for young adults, her eyes scanning the different signage for a specific section.
She finds it not a minute later, after climbing the stairs to the second floor and discovering the non-fiction section. She scans the first four rows of shelves before finally coming across a section labeled “History.” She rummages through her bag and grabs her phone, getting her notes app ready to jot down any idea she gets.
She scans the shelves of history books, reading titles and scanning spines of books with a gentle press of her finger. Some of these books feel like they haven’t been picked up in a year or four, others look like they've been very well loved by many students and book readers. Perhaps history lovers like Elphaba herself.
Her finger stops on a soft yellow cover, the words on its spine reading “The Wonderful World of Oz: A history of our nation.” A loud laugh bubbles from her throat, which she immediately stops by covering her mouth with her hand sheepishly. Despite no one being around, it’s still embarrassing. She clears her throat and murmurs an apology to no one before she picks the book off the shelf.
It’s a perfect prop for the painting. The light shade of yellow will be a lovely contrast to Elphie's lovely green. The cover has an old map of Oz embossed in its simple cover. Its pages are old and worn on the edges, the book likely published decades ago. Still, it can’t get more fitting than this. This book feels like something she could find within Elphaba’s own little library (Elphaba tried to argue an office with two full book shelves isn’t a library, but Galinda disagrees.) She keeps it in her arms and continues scanning the shelves, but after a couple minutes she decides this will do.
She walks to the other end of the bookshelves and sees a beautiful little reading nook. There are a few tables for the folks who decide to linger and read or study and just in front of the wall next to a single round table is a tall backed chair, upholstered with a cushy looking fabric in a gorgeous deep red colour that matches the dark cherry wood frame perfectly. Behind it off to the left side is a tall arched window and on the wall next to it are a few posters of different corners of Oz. She recognizes Mount Runcible almost immediately then quickly realizes the remaining three posters highlight different spots from the other corners of Oz.
When she takes the entirety of the space in, Galinda can almost see the idea spring to life in front of her: Elphaba, sitting within the large chair dressed in her usual dark attire with the book open in her hands. Her attention on the pages and that soft and wonderful smile that makes Galinda’s stomach flip and butterflies swarm. The window casting more natural light over her while the posters on the back wall are repositioned; Gillikin in the north, the Vinkus in the west, Quadling country south and Munchkinland east with Elphaba centered of it all. Just like the Emerald city.
It’s perfect. It’s the idea. This is the one. Not only has she found a way to tie it back to their city, to her ‘Wonderful World of Oz’ theme, but she’s found the perfect way to capture her muse in a way that reflects who she is and how Galinda sees her. How she wants all of Oz to see her. A woman who cares deeply about the world around her, looking to history to learn from it and create a better tomorrow for everyone in it.
She scrambles to pull out her tripod, swiftly setting up her phone and getting her camera ready to take some photos. By herself it’s quite the task and a couple librarians pause to interrupt her and inquire about exactly what it is she’s doing. After an explanation with as little detail as Galinda can manage, one of them offers a helping hand to take some pictures and Galinda thinks it really must be her lucky day. What could have taken her anywhere from a half hour to an hour takes no more than fifteen minutes. She thanks the librarian generously for their help before she’s back out the door and speeding to her studio as fast as her feet can take her.
That’s the last day Galinda’s done anything other than go back and forth from her studio to her apartment. With a drive to create larger than ever she becomes obsessed with getting her vision on the canvas. She replies to her text messages very little and there’s been quite a few days where she’s been so into her work that she’s forgotten to eat up until the late hours of the night, right before she goes to bed. Fiyero has had to step in a couple of times, dropping food off for her or popping by her studio to force her to have a break for longer than five minutes. It’s a vicious cycle, but Galinda isn’t regretting it yet.
The painting is coming out well. She’s managed to get to the same place she’d been with the previous Elphaba painting and has paused to take in her work before she begins the on background poster details. She smiles slightly as she stares at Elphaba’s facial features, patting herself on the back for perfecting Elphaba’s lips. She looks incredible, almost identical to the real Elphie herself.
She hears her phone vibrating against the table and decides to finally check the time, groaning when she sees it’s already past seven in the evening. She has five new messages from a variety of people, the first name she sees being Fiyero’s. She’s about to open them up to see what the messages entail when the sound of a knocking against the front door of her studio pulls her away from it. She frowns, clutching her phone in her hand and making her way over to the entrance.
When she sees the familiar figure of Elphaba standing behind the glass pane, Galinda’s frown melts and her heart rate picks up. Elphaba lifts up a paper bag with the familiar logo of their favourite restaurant on it, which causes Galinda’s smile to grow even wider. She quickly fumbles with the door's lock and opens it up.
“Elphie! It’s good to see you!” She greets enthusiastically, “Did you bring me dinner?”
“Not entirely,” Elphaba answers with an amused expression, “It’s the first night in a while I left the office on time and could make it to Oatsie’s. Gracie was telling me it’s been quite a while since they’ve seen you, and I thought it might be nice to surprise you. If you’re not busy, of course.”
Galinda’s quite thankful that the canvas faces the opposite way of the door and remains out of view of Elphaba’s eyes. She holds up a finger and turns away from Elphaba, running back over to her work to cover it up before she can see. She calls back to her.
“Just a clock tick Elphie! Stay there, no peeking!”
Elphaba does as instructed and part of Galinda wonders if it’s because she’s thinking about the last time she saw art that she wasn’t meant to see—
Nope! Galinda will not let herself think about that right now! She scrambles over to one of her largest sheets, careful to drape it over her easel and covering up the canvas with precision.She’s careful not to let it touch the canvas directly and when she’s satisfied, she waves Elphaba into the studio.
She moves over to her desk to clear a space for them. Similarly to Nessa’s wedding, they find themselves standing next to it rather than sitting as they dig into their meals. They’re quiet for a few minutes as they enjoy the first few bites of food but it isn’t long before Elphaba breaks it.
“You’ve been quite busy.” She states factually, watching as Galinda nods while swallowing a mouthful of noodles. “Think you’re ready for your show?”
“Oh not at all. The show will be here before I know it, I need to make sure everything is finished with time to spare.” She takes a napkin and dabs the corner of her lips.
“Of course. How much longer do you think you’ll need before everything is done?”
Galinda watches Elphaba’s attention shift a little curiously towards a different part of the studio, the space where Elphaba first saw the small section of paintings Galinda showed her previously. They’ve been moved since, Galinda already preparing them for the journey to the gallery later in the month but she doesn’t fail to notice the hint of disappointment in Elphaba’s gaze when she realizes the same thing.
“At the pace I’m going, not much longer. Despite the setbacks I’m still on track for most of this project, and there isn’t much more to be done. Oh, I really can’t wait for you to see it. This one is much more fitting than the previous version. It’s unlike any portrait you’ve ever seen.”
Her cursed brain reminds her that’s not quite true. Elphaba will definitely recognize some elements of it if she were to see it now. Her facial expression specifically, considering she ripped it straight out of that dance sketch Elphaba’s definitely seen. Galinda’s still quite certain of that. Elphaba seems to sense she won’t get more than that out of Galinda and after swallowing a bite of her meal, she continues.
“With the show coming, have you been able to do any new pencil drawings?”
She’s clearly interested in learning what’s new within her sketchbook and Galinda freezes for a clock tick. She hasn’t had time to do personal sketches, but she’s done a lot of new drawings. There are several thumbnails and pose practices of the final painting doodled and finalized within the sketchbook, and a lot of expression drawings. Galinda drew Elphaba’s soft affectionate gaze enough to the point where she practically has it memorized.
She’s completely normal about this crush.
“I have, but it’s all work related. Nothing I can let you see yet, but the sketchbook is getting plenty of use. I’ll probably need to prepare my next one soon at this rate.” She jokes, hoping to stray a little bit further from the topic and onto something different, “What about you? This case you’re working on, it must be serious if you’re doing a lot of overtime for it.”
“Hm. Yes, there’s a lot. I would discuss more about it, but it’s very confidential. We still don’t know if they want to broadcast the trial, but I’m hopeful it won’t go that far.” Elphaba looks at her with an expression that challenges her, almost as if to say ‘but I’m sure you know this already.’ “It’ll be nice when you can create for yourself again instead of for work.”
If only Elphaba knew drawing her could never really be work for Galinda.
“That’s the thing about me, Elphie. If I’m not making art, I’m always contemplating new ideas. Even if I can’t draw it, sometimes it’s nice to imagine it.”
Elphaba responds with a thoughtful hum as she files this information about Galinda away. She takes a sip of her drink and makes no more comment. Galinda, feeling hopeful and insatiably curious, decides to dance around asking if Elphaba saw the picture of them.
“Why? Did something among my figures and buildings catch your eye and make you want to see more?” She smiles, giving her most convincing playful grin and hoping Elphaba can’t tell she’s a little nervous about her answer.
Elphaba stays quiet and it’s enough of a confirmation. Elphaba’s immediate departure the last time she was here should’ve been more than enough but the reaction she has to Galinda’s question makes all those days wondering If Elphie saw it feel like a ridiculous waste of time. Of course she did.
Galinda wants to crawl into a hole. Isn't there a beautiful old ruby mine in Quadling Country? Perhaps a tour would be nice right about now. Maybe an extended vacation for the next three years. Elphaba clears her throat and brings her back to reality.
“Of course I want to see more of your work. Your art is incredible, I ended up going through your online portfolio when Nessa expressed wanting to hire you. I looked at every piece in it.”
Her comment catches Galinda off guard a bit.
“Oh! The whole thing?” Galinda can feel the light blush make its way on her cheeks when Elphaba nods.”Thank you, Elphie. It’s a pleasure to know I captured your attention for so long.”
She feels a little shy despite her joke. Even though she hears this often, the words coming from Elphaba hit differently and she can’t resist asking her follow-up question, “I don’t normally ask this but... do you have a favourite?”
Elphaba ponders Galinda’s question and dips her hand into her pocket to pull out her phone. Galinda watches as she taps open the ClokTik app to go to Galinda’s profile and starts scrolling. Almost like she's done this quite a few times and knows exactly what she’s looking for. It takes her a bit of scrolling, but eventually she pulls up a video from rural Frottica, one of Galinda’s posts that she uploaded around the time her work started going viral.
Galinda almost immediately knows the painting but her breath hitches when Elphaba hits play. Galinda’s voice over starts, beginning like all the others with her waving at the camera and showing off her outfit for the wedding. She starts to narrate the story of the couple, a beautiful brown Cow with long beautiful locks and a black Goat with two white stripes on her face and dainty little white ears. She’s standing in the most beautiful little farm ceremony, a venue much more homely and well lived in comparison to Galinda’s other videos. Galinda hears her voice bleed from her social media persona into something genuine and tender the more she talks. It’s impossible not to when the couple that stars in the video are neighbours you grew up with. Born and raised in the same town as her and owning the best plant based creamery in all of Gillikin (all of Oz, Galinda will argue, but she’s been told by the couple themselves she has a heavy bias.)
The final painting is of the Cow and Goat having a moment where their foreheads are touching, their crowns of pink and white peonies grazing one another. You can hear the tears in Galinda’s voice within the ending of the voice over congratulating them and wishing them all the best. The video ends with a tender embrace to them both and a clearer image of the finished painting. Galinda has to lift her hand to dab a little tears threatening to fall and Elphaba speaks in a softer cadence after she locks her phone.
“That one is my favourite.” she murmurs affectionately, “Your other pieces are nothing less than incredible; your skill and years are present in all of your work. You know how to capture the feeling in the moment well and you can feel the emotions from them in ways I’m always getting surprised by. But it's this one I feel expresses that the most. I think I may have watched this video four times before I decided I needed to at least try reaching out to you.”
Elphaba chuckles lightly and there's a quiet pause before she speaks again.
“Enough to make me consider the possibility of soulmates existing. You’re a marvel, Galinda.”
Galinda doesn’t realize she’s been holding her breath until the comment knocks the wind out of her. This might be the loveliest, kindest, most beautiful and sincere compliment she’s ever received. Especially coming from Elphaba.
And she says all of this on one of her personal favourite wedding pieces. Galinda could float. She really could. She isn’t sure how she’s keeping it together, and she quickly realizes she isn’t when she sees Elphaba’s softer, warm expression has become a look of concern. Her face heats up even further as she clears her throat.
“I hope you know this praise will be fueling me for years, Elphie. Thank you. Really.”
She’s blushing uncontrollably, but she can’t help it. She feels so light, pure happiness and perhaps a bit of embarrassment from how giddy it makes her. She loves that Elphaba took the time to see her through her art. She loves that Elphaba didn’t even need to hesitate when picking her favourite. She loves that Elphaba’s comments come from more than just an appreciation of her style, but from every little detail she can perceive. She looks for more than just the pretty lines and colours. She looks for the little meanings that Galinda tries to weave into those portraits, too.
She might genuinely be in love with Elphaba Thropp.
The thought alone leaves her wishing she could dunk her head in a bucket of cold water. Galinda really needs to reign it in. She can’t keep checking down the list of common lesbian stereotypes like this. Elphaba asks her something and Galinda has to bring herself back to reality once again.
“Hm? Sorry, what was that Elphie?” She looks at her with a sheepish smile, and Elphaba returns it with an exasperated one of her own.
“Stay with me here, Upland.” She teases Galinda, “I asked if you feel ready for your show.”
“Sorry!” Galinda replies, her tone a little shrill. She clears her throat and speaks again in a regular cadence, “I’m. Well. I’ll feel more confident about it once I have all this done, but I’ve been dreaming about a show like this for a very long time. I’m almost impatient with how ready I am to see everything in the gallery. Especially this painting.”
She gestures to the covered canvas then flashes a tiny playful grin Elphaba’s way.
“Believe it or not, I think it might be my best yet.”
She’s confident she can say this because it is her best piece. She believes it entirely. She watches Elphaba’s cheeks darken with a miniscule blush at her comment. The woman opposite her fidgets a bit, not looking directly at Galinda but instead her almost finished meal on the desk top.
“That reminds me, I’ve been meaning to ask this for a while now.” Galinda watches Elphaba gather a bit of courage to look at her directly again. “Why did you want to paint me so badly for this show?”
“Haven’t you asked me this before Elphie?” Galinda teases, recalling their first dinner at Oatsie’s together.
“I have. But that was when we had more of a working relationship. This is now, with me asking you as your good friend.”
Galinda has a plethora of reasons she could say: ‘Because you’re beautiful.’ ‘I’m enchanted by you.’ ‘I saw you and thought I have to paint you before I die.’ Instead, Galinda lets her smile grow. She leans forward only a bit, enough to enter Elphaba’s personal space.
“Since you’re my best friend, Elphie, I guess I can explain it a little more,” She watches Elphaba’s eyes light up at the distinction, “You inspire me,.”
She feels her cheeks heat up yet again and watches Elphaba’s match with their own growing blush. Elphaba stays quiet and Galinda leans back, suddenly unable to keep herself that close to Elphaba while they discuss this. She leans against her desk as she elaborates.
“Remember that first time we met at Oatsie’s, and how I told you I was seriously struggling for my final piece? I really was. It was horrendible. I’ve never suffered a creative block so bad. Then you opened your office door and suddenly I had too many ideas. Just you, in the doorway a little frazzled and slightly surprised, illuminated by the low office lighting and the natural light coming from behind you. I think at that moment I finally understood how poets and artists feel whenever they met someone who stokes their creative flames.
“The ideas I had initially weren’t perfect, but I knew that if I got to paint you, I could make something incredible to fit the theme of this show and complete the collection. When you asked what it would take to work your sister's wedding on short notice, I took the chance and asked because if I didn’t I— Hm.”
Galinda sighs wistfully and waves her hand dismissively.
“Well I don’t even want to think about what that would mean for me now. That doesn’t matter. But you! You matter, Elphie. Not just because I think you’re perfect for the piece, but getting to know you and learning more about you began to impact my vision, too. I suppose it’s natural when you learn more about someone, you want your art to reflect that in every way possible. That's why I’m very confident about this new idea. I think it showcases the theme and you much better than the first version ever could.”
Galinda stares at her covered canvas for a moment, pausing her rambling. She has a soft dimpled smile as she pictures the artwork beneath the sheet, not nearly finished but already something Galinda is quite proud of. She was serious before: she’s certain that this will be her very best work yet.
Lost in her thoughts, she misses the way Elphaba looks at her with a widened stare and her lips parted as if she’s trying to determine why she feels like her heartbeat is in her ears. For some reason Galinda’s smile looks similar to that sketch she’d seen last time she was here. She swallows slowly as she studies Galinda, having thoughts about things she hasn’t felt since her university days. It's a rush of feelings Elphaba’s felt so little of in her life, she knows how to name it instantly.
The silence between them is thick and Galinda suddenly feels that, perhaps, she might have overstepped. Maybe she’s made Elphaba a bit uncomfortable with the comment about understanding poets and artists. She was trying hard to be subtle with that comment too! She could’ve said so much more!
“You sound very confident about it,” Elphaba begins, taking the step to break the silence, “I’d love to see if that’s the case.”
It’s not a direct ask to see it, but Galinda knows someone wanting to sneak a peak before her art is ready. She blushes further and shakes her head.
“Ah-ah! Nope! You cannot. I refuse to let you see even a hint of the art before it’s ready. You may be the subject, but you’re going to have to see it unveiled at the art show just like everyone else. You’ve already been spoiled with previews of some other pieces anyway!”
Elphaba laughs loud and unrestrained and whatever worries Galinda had previously disappear as her stern expression becomes something softer. Her smile widens and she watches her like she’s the only thing that matters. When the laughter dies, Elphaba’s smile is radiant.
“It was worth a shot.”
With their meals finished (mostly finished in Galinda’s case) Elphaba checks the time and frowns.
“I’m sorry to cut the evening short, but I have to get going. I’ve got a long day ahead of me tomorrow.” Elphaba looks slightly disappointed, Galinda moreso, even if it’s best for her too. She has a couple hours of day left before she needs to head back home too.
Before she does, Galinda stops her with a hand on her wrist.
“I’ve been meaning to ask you this but you do plan to come to the show, right? This piece with you is special, Elphie. It’s one of the five that will be unveiled as one of the core pieces of the collection. I would love it if you could attend but I know how you feel about unwanted attention. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable at my show so I wanted to give you the option to say no to my invitation. Which, I-Oh shoot. Okay well, it’s at my place so I can’t give you the ticket now, but I can get it to you very soon. If you want! It's all up to you whether you want to come or–”
“Of course I’ll come.” Elphaba interrupts her ramble with a calm voice, “I would never miss something this important to you.”
Oz, if Galinda’s smile could grow bigger it would. If she plays her cards right, maybe her confession will work. Maybe she’ll get the chance to tell Elphaba her feelings properly afterward. She hopes whatever reaction Elphaba has to the covered painting gives her the courage to take that final step.
“Wonderful! I can’t wait!” She claps her hands together excitedly and hums, “Though you must wear something a bit more formal than your usual work attire. Something with more colour?”
“Hmm. No promises. My wardrobe is quite fancy when it comes to court appearances.” Elphaba smirks and Galinda playfully scoffs.
“Elphie, if you come to my art show looking like you do for court you’ll spook the pigment from my paints.”
They laugh together and not long after she sees Elphaba out. She waits at the door until she’s turned the corner and is out of view completely. Galinda’s hand rests on her chest and she closes her eyes, smiling to herself as she basks in the afterglow of time with the woman she can’t stop thinking about. She takes this feeling and holds it close then turns back into her studio to get back to work.
The final weeks up until the show go by in a blur. Galinda finishes the last painting, works two weddings and uploads three videos and before she knows it, Galinda’s doing a final once over of the showroom to make sure every detail to the display is perfect. There's five paintings covered on the most center space, then on each outer wall is each region surrounding the Emerald city, while the remaining four Emerald city paintings uncovered are displayed on large pillars throughout the room purposefully placed closest to the region these spaces in the city would be geographically. She’s put a lot of thought into this display.
She’s starstruck, the show is finally here and the anxiety of it all is starting to set in. The showroom opens in less than fifteen minutes and that means the crowd will pile in, which means the unveiling will be closer and closer. She spent hours planning everything she wants to say for each painting. She’s practiced her speech in the mirror countless times and changed the order just as many. Now she has to do it all in front of the people coming to see and potentially buy her art. It isn’t even the big crowd that makes her anxious, it's more like one single individual.
She may or may not be internally panicking about how Elphaba will feel about the painting with her.
Now minutes before the showroom doors open, she’s taking one final glance at herself in the bathroom mirrors. Her golden curls are tied back in a chignon style bun, with two wisps of hair framing either side of her face. Her make up is perfect, going for more of a nude look than anything else, but she’s added the lightest hint of glitter to each cheek to complete the look. Her gown is sleeveless silk with thick straps that dip into a low cut down her back and a generous amount of skin on her chest. It’s cinched at the waist and her skirt drapes down to the floor and a beautiful, bold green colour. Around her neck Galinda wears a simple silver chain adorned by a tiny ‘G’ as its pendant.
She looks jaw dropping. Phenomenal. A vision in emerald silk. If her speech doesn’t sweep Elphaba away she at least hopes this will.
She exits the bathroom and can hear the sound of the crowd starting to grow louder, a sign the doors have opened and admission has begun. She takes one final deep breath, exhales slowly and navigates her way back into the showroom. There’s a few gallery staff members moving about and Galinda watches as the guests start trailing into the room, excited murmuring and chatter beginning to fill the space.
Galinda’s swept up into it all. Work persona on, she starts the evening by greeting a few specific guests, art curators she knows, favoured gallery patrons, people in her field that she recognizes and peers she studied beside, people she’s met in many different parts of the wedding industry come to greet and congratulate her. She keeps up with it as best as possible and even gets a brief moment with her mothers the moment they make eye contact.
Nothing can prepare Galinda for when Elphaba finally arrives. She’s finished conversing with someone she already forgets the name of, no one of importance really. She bids them farewell and her gaze falls to the entrance of the showroom where three figures linger just past the threshold.
She sees Nessarose and Boq first, the two of them enter and take in the spacious show room with delight. Nessa and Boq are dressed elegantly, Nessa with a light pink coloured evening gown while Boq wears a semi formal vest and slacks with a tie matching the same shade of pink Nessa’s dress is. It’s lovely, seeing them so coordinated.
Then Elphaba steps into view and Galinda almost has to lean against the nearest wall for support. She’s dressed like elegance in a royal blue three piece suit. Her blazer is open, revealing a vest with a deep v cut and three large buttons keeping it closed, the bottom of it untucked and draped over her high-waisted pants. Shockingly, she wears no dress shirt beneath the vest, revealing a generous amount of skin that gives Galinda the perfect view of a gold chain not too different from hers, though it seems Elphaba’s lacks any sort of pendant. She hasn’t done anything too fancy with her hair, most of her braids falling loosely down her back while the strands that would normally frame her face are tied back.
She looks absolutely devastating. Breathtakingly gorgeous. A vision in blue. Galinda might have to step out and get some air.
Instead of leaving to do that, the familiar sensation of inspiration crawls its way into Galinda’s thoughts as she imagines the art of Elphaba in this exact outfit, sitting at an elegant little outdoor table on the rooftop restaurant with those beautiful spectacles of hers as she takes in the view around her. Soft and curious, the way she looks when she’s listening intently to try and pick up as much detail as she can from whatever is being said to her.
She realizes Elphaba’s noticed her staring when the older woman tilts her head at her, soft smile growing on her lips. Galinda stiffens and lifts her hand in a nervous little wave. She hopes her cheeks aren’t too flushed and that her gawking isn’t super obvious. Her senses are conflicting, her heart soaring because it’s Elphaba and she’s here and smiling at her, but her stomach clenching because she’s here and going to see a painting of her that is so personal and important to Galinda that she may have already bid an abhorrent amount anonymously for the painting to remain in her possession.
It’s just— it’s going to look so good on display in her studio and she has the perfect spot for it and really, she gets so overwhelmingly happy looking at it she can’t bear to part with it. Yes, the world does deserve to see it at this show and in this gallery for the time it will be here, but its home will always be with Galinda. That she’s quite adamant about.
Galinda makes her way over to the group and arrives at the same time Fiyero stumbles in, pulling her from her thoughts like a bucket of water dumped over her. He looks mildly annoyed towards the other three and pouts.
“I thought we were all going to come in together! Now I look bad in front of Galinda.”
Galinda laughs, light and airy.
“You say that like you didn’t do that yourself in high school. Multiple times! Sheshen and Pfannee would be happy to corroborate.”
Everyone but Fiyero laughs and Galinda quickly flits to each of them, giving a quick hug and thanking them for being here. When she gets to Elphaba she lingers just a bit longer, her senses enveloped with the smell of something a bit sweeter than she expects, with hints of woodsy undertones. It’s divine, and calms her nerves a bit. She pulls back and for a brief second their gazes meet. Galinda’s stomach flips.
“I’m quite glad you could make it.” Galinda speaks to Elphaba first, then looks to the rest of the group, “All of you! Really, thank you again for coming.”
“You’d never forgive us if we didn’t!” Fiyero responds, earning a playful swat on the arm from Galinda.
The groups laugh once again and the sound of Elphaba’s laughter right next to Galinda brings the anxiety back and Oz, she might be sick. This might be the most dramatic thing she’s ever done. A hidden confession in the painting of a woman isn’t something she expected herself to be doing at all, if ever in her lifetime, but here she is. Worst case scenario, Elphaba misses it entirely. Even worse, Elphaba catches it and rejects her on the spot. But best case scenario…
She might need to dash for the nearest trash can.
Someone calls her name from where she’d been standing previously and she frowns.
“While I’d love to linger, I am technically working so I really must get back to it. But enjoy! I look forward to hearing all of your thoughts afterward!”
Galinda makes her exit with an apologetic smile and is soon swept up into a conversation with a city council member. It’s a short one, but she delights and entertains, thanks them for attending and this continues for the next few guests she’s introduced to.
The evening progresses and she at some point gets lost in conversation with her mothers, the gentleman who helped her get this opportunity and the gallery owner. She’s tuned out most of the conversation, paying attention enough to nod when acknowledged and tilting her head towards whomever is talking. Most of her attention is across the room, watching her friends take their time admiring Galinda’s art. What she’d give to be out of this conversation and listening to them instead.
She’s saved by her own schedule when an employee comes over letting her know it’s time for the auction. She excuses herself from her company and heads to the center of the gallery space. Guests watch as she positions herself directly to the left of the first covered canvas and the crowd begins to form as they become more interested in the hidden paintings. The loud chatter has quieted down into a curious murmur and Galinda takes her time scanning through the audience. She sees the many faces of people and Animals alike, she sees her parents off to the right and her friends have found themselves not too far away from the front. Even Elphaba surprises her, standing off to the side more but still very close to the front of the crowd with her group.
She sees a light smile on her lips the moment Elphaba’s gaze finds hers and she doesn’t stop herself from returning it with one of her own before clearing her throat.
“Good evening, fellow Ozians!” Galinda greets the crowd, their murmuring dying down as she begins her presentation, “Thank you very much for your company and welcome to my very first art exhibit: The Wonderful World of Oz !”
A burst of chuckles and some applause comes from the crowd. Galinda’s always been a natural at public speaking and presenting her artwork is no exception. She beams as she continues, going into a brief explanation about the set up of the gallery and the sections people have been browsing already. Some nod as if they understood her vision with her set up being similar to how the countries are situated in a map of Oz, others seem completely blown away by the information. It’s fun, witnessing the reactions of the crowd, but what seems to be grabbing her attention most is the amused little smile Elphaba wears as she watches Galinda speak.
“What an honor to be able to work on this project. It's been an incredible experience creating this collection for this showcase. It’s no secret that I love contributing to a good cause however I can, and this show is no exception. Almost each and every piece you see painted by me in this gallery is a part of an auction. We’ve already seen some notice the purposefully placed sheets and place their bids.”
She pauses and winks playfully, earning another round of laughs from the crowd.
“Those pieces are all available through the silent auction, but we still have a few more to reveal that we’ll be properly auctioning off! We’ll show each painting one by one, I'll explain a bit about them and then begin the bidding process from first to last. All funds collected tonight will be donated to the Emerald City community care as well as the Emerald City youth center!”
A loud applause comes from the crowd and Galinda waits for it to quiet down before continuing.
“Now, I’m not too savvy with the auctioning part so I’ll be handing that portion off to this lovely gentleman over here.” She directs everyone to a tanned man wearing a formal vest and green bowtie, “When that time comes, but until then, let’s take a look at each of these paintings!”
Another applause comes from the crowd,this time with some excited cheers. Galinda’s surprised she can even hear all of it over the sound of her heartbeat. This is it. No turning back from here on out.
There’s a lifted hand from somewhere in the crowd. Galinda inclines her head towards them and puts on a polite smile.
“Yes?”
A young lady with red hair clears her throat.
“Miss Upland, you said almost all the paintings? Are there any we’re unable to bid on?”
Galinda purposefully avoids looking Fiyero’s way as she sees his eyebrows raise.
“Just one! We had a wonderful anonymous Ozian earlier today donate quite a hefty sum for it before we opened. A truly generous individual, it would have been irresponsible of me to deny them after so much insistance. Our final Emerald city artwork will not be able to bid on, but I hope you all enjoy it all the same!”
She can feel the knowing stare coming from Fiyero’s direction and she loathes that she can sense Elphaba is suspecting something as well. Outside of her parents, they're the only two individuals here who know Galinda would never show even a hint of these five paintings to anybody before this moment. To have someone anonymously bid on it before it's been revealed is an obvious lie to them. She knows she’ll need to dodge at least one curious person after this is over. Probably three by the stares from Momsie and Momsicle boring into her from the opposite side of the crowd.
“I’m sure you’ve all been wondering: What exactly is the art under all five of these sheets?” She gestures to the canvases beside her, her slight pivot away from the question pulling everyone's attention back to the main event. “Before we show them off, I wanted to talk a little bit about the collection's theme: The Wonderful World of Oz.”
Galinda goes on to talk about the things she thought about when designing the art for this show. Obviously the different countries and geographical locations are very important, but when Galinda thinks about Oz, her immediate thought always goes to the Ozians. People and Animals alike all with different backgrounds and skills that make the communities they’re a part of unique. There’s nothing more wonderful than that, in Galinda’s eyes. It's her favourite part about Oz, especially the Emerald city.
She goes on to the covered paintings, moving closer to the canvas on the far left. She makes a joke about how she’s going to take them on a personal journey to all her favourite parts of Oz, the things that she finds are the most wonderful in every corner of their beautiful little world. With a careful grasp of the sheet and the flick of her wrist, Galinda reveals the first hidden portrait to the crowd. Excited gasps fill the room as Galinda carefully bundles up and hands off the sheet to a staff member then continues.
Her first painting is of her hometown of Frottica, a more rural town within Gillikin surrounded by acres and acres of farmland. This painting is no different with the focus of it being a beautiful roadside farmers stand selling sweet corn, root vegetables and more straight from the farmhouse behind it. Galinda mentions how she grew up around many stands like this one, even remembers spending a season in her teens helping out with her neighbours on weekends. It’s charming, especially when you can see the details she’s put into the aged sign advertising the corn and how one corner on the stand is slightly more sunworn than the other side.
She steps over to the next canvas, maneuvering so she gently removes its cover off as she steps by it. She stands proudly next to a large painting of Munchkinland in the middle of a festival. There’s a large crowd of munchkinlanders dressed in traditional solstice garbs within a city center, a few little vendors set up and handing out colourful flowers for flower crown weaving with Animals and people alike celebrating the beginning of the summer season. Galinda explains how traveling to Munchkinland as a kid was some of her favourite memories of the place, especially when she got to take part in festivals like this one. With the amount of florals and bright colours along and the yellow brick road beneath them, it’s probably the most vibrant of the entire Munchkinland pieces Galinda’s done.
The Quadling Country and Vinkus covered pieces are the only two that seem to focus more on the geographical parts of Oz. Galinda steps past a painting in the center of the five, moving to the right and standing between the other two covered paintings. She uses both of her hands to carefully tug the covers off each artwork at the same time (something she only needed to practice twice before she perfected it.) A white palace with rounded, ruby red domed roof tops and tall rounded top windows from the Quadling Country and a dark, pointed and gothic style castle with old black bricks from the Vinkus. The buildings contrast each other in a unique way that makes them stand out beautifully when positioned next to each other like Galinda has done. Galinda does take a second to go on about the design and care put into each building, explaining she’s had the opportunity to see both up close and personal and the years of Ozian history both buildings hold is a marvel for all those who visit.
The biggest difference between the two paintings seems to be the time of day. The Ruby Palace of Quadling Country glimmers in the early morning light of dawn, while the old castle of Kiamo Ko stands bold against a deep orange sunset of dusk. They’re sister pieces, in a way.
She takes just a clock tick longer to gush about what a joy painting these two pieces was for her, especially Kiamo Ko. It’s rich with Vinkus history, you can tell from its architecture alone and it’s why she tried to get specific parts of the castle in her painting. She playfully sighs and quips about that being one of the most charming parts about the Vinkus: always making bold decisions in architecture and always coming out with something splendiferous.
The audience laughs and there’s a few people within Galinda’s sight that nod their heads at her comment. She can see her friends smiling and Fiyero whispers something that causes Boq and Nessa to laugh again. When she looks to Elphaba she finds the woman isn’t even paying attention to Fiyero. Her gaze is towards Galinda, but she can tell it isn’t on her. Elphaba is looking closer towards the center painting, the only remaining artwork to be revealed.
Galinda pushes down the nerves threatening to consume her and turns to the final painting. She swallows and can feel the attention of everyone, Elphie especially, as she takes the last few steps to reach the artwork. For most of this presentation Galinda has stolen only a few glances Elphaba’s way. For this painting, Elphaba is the only one Galinda thinks she’ll be able to look at. She has to: she needs to know if her feelings will be realized.
Oz, she really is a bit dramatic for deciding to profess her love this way.
“Before I reveal this final painting, I wanted to talk a bit about our wonderful Emerald city and the other paintings I’ve done for this particular part of the collection.”
Like the day she met with Elphaba to discuss changing the painting, Galinda goes on to talk about how she feels the Emerald city is the merging point of all Oz, and it shows throughout their city. She highlights each painting previously, the busy church pieces, the night market and of course the pond with giant lily pads at sunset. The audience hangs onto her every word, eager to see what she’s yet to unveil. When she’s satisfied with the suspense, her eyes fall to Elphaba, finding her gaze and feeling that familiar flip of her stomach when Elphaba’s tiny smile grows.
She clears her throat, then reaches for the sheet covering the final painting.
“All of that being said, I find there’s something wonderfully beautiful in the quiet moments of our city too. The soft spoken ones that we normally take for granted.”
Galinda inhales a short breath, building up her courage before she pulls off the sheet with a gentle flourish of her wrists. It falls off the artwork with ease, fluttering down towards Galinda and revealing the incredible work of art beneath it. The audience ahead of her gasps and there’s the encouraging sound of patrons applauding and murmuring amongst one another as they’re face to face with Galinda’s final piece.
It looks almost like a photograph. Galinda’s painted Elphaba dead center, sitting in the exact tall cherry wood chair from the library. Off to the left is the window, letting natural light flood over Elphaba. In her hands is that same yellow Ozian history book, almost an exact painted replica of the real thing. She has the ghost of a loving smile as she reads with adoration in her gaze. She wears something simple yet elegant, a black blouse with puffed up shoulders, an elegant golden chain and her finely detailed braids tied back in a half up-do. Her glasses sit above every little detailed freckle and if they were to look closely into Elphaba’s eyes, they’d see the tiny flecks of gold Galinda’s added to her iris’. She wears a long, navy coloured skirt with lighter blue embroidered details of fancy flourishing lines along the bottom and her feet are adorned with the stylish boots she often wears.
On the wall above Elphaba’s head are the same posters within the library. They’re arranged like they would be on a map of Oz. Gillikin north, Munchkinland east, Vinkus to the west, and most of the poster for Quadling country is visible, only a portion of it being obstructed by Elphaba at the center of them all.
With the cover sheet taken from her, Galinda’s attention falls back on Elphaba. She can barely see Fiyero’s jaw drop or Nessa and Boq’s shocked and wide eyed expressions. They almost fade into the background when Galinda takes in Elphaba’s stunned expression. She’d been worried Elphaba might be uncomfortable, or that there would be dozens of eyes immediately looking at her. She couldn’t be any happier to see instead that Elphaba is gazing at the artwork in awe.
A hush comes over the audience and Galinda speaks again but it feels as if it’s only the two of them there.
“It’s not every day you meet someone who sets out into the world every day to help make it a better place. Someone who adores Oz, who sees what an incredible place it could be and works tirelessly every day to see that reality. I’ve had the immense pleasure of meeting hundreds of thousands of Ozians, and it’s a rare trait to come across. To love Oz and its inhabitants so much you fight to make it the place it could be, why, I couldn’t think of anyone better to create something with. I knew I had to paint her the moment we met and I was justified in that choice the more I got to know her.
“It’s people like her that I love the most about our wonderful world of Oz. People and Animals who love it as much as I do and who want to see the best for it the way we see it could be. They make our world a better place and I’m forever grateful to be able to say that this painting is by far the best thing I’ve created yet.”
Applause from the crowd starts but Galinda hasn’t taken her eyes off of Elphaba. She looks entirely speechless, starstruck almost. Her eyes are wide behind her spectacles and Galinda can see her cheeks are still quite a dark hue. It’s hard to make out her freckles at all. Galinda gives her a tiny smile and turns her attention to the crowd when she sees the auctioneer shifting a little off to the side.
“I won’t keep our auction waiting! With all the pieces presented, thank you all you lovely Ozians for attending! The silent auction ends a half hour before the gallery closes so don’t be afraid to do a final scan of any pieces you’d like before leaving! Thank you all, once again!”
She bows her head a couple times and the applause continues, then hands her microphone off to the auctioneer as he comes to take center stage and begin taking bids.
Now that Galinda’s finished presenting all the art, relief overwhelms her senses. She might need a drink. Or seven. Her braverism has evaporated. She takes a second to fan herself and considers making a quick exit to go home and scream in her pillows to overthink every little thing she did during this evening. She can hear the sounds of people calling out different bids but she muffles them out when she enters the bathroom to take a few minutes to calm down her racing heart.
After a quick wash of cold water over her hands and a light make up adjustment, Galinda makes her way back out to the showroom. She’s surprised to find the auction seems to be wrapping up, with three of the four paintings already claimed. The auctioneer shouts “SOLD” and Galinda gasps when the gentleman points to a random individual with a little white sign held upward. Galinda claps alongside the rest of the crowd as they close the auction. He instructs the successful bidders to come with him to arrange payment and shipping details.
The crowd disperses, some making their way to look at paintings they hadn’t, others mingling and sharing conversation with each other. Galinda sees her mothers making their way over to her first and she gives them both a tight hug, kissing their cheeks and glowing as they praise her for her wonderful work on this project. When Momsie starts to tear up, proud of her baby’s success, Galinda almost tears up alongside her. It takes soft reassurance and a reminder they won’t want to touch up their make up from Momsicle to bring them both down from nearly sobbing.
When they’ve left, a few critics and the gallery owner come to shake her hand and congratulate her on a fantastic event. One of them, a Tortoise, comments on how much she enjoyed finding the ways each painting connected to the theme. Another, an older dark skinned Munchkin man, complimented her on her attention to the details of each country of Oz. These comments were certainly going to fuel her for the unforeseeable future and the fact so many acclaimed critics are standing here giving her positive critiques is almost enough to make her forget about her not quite confession.
She’s quickly reminded when the critics disperse and she sees the familiar faces of her friends not too far away. Elphaba is noticeably not looking directly at Galinda but she doesn’t get to linger on that when Fiyero throws his arms around her into a tight embrace. She smiles and returns the hug, lingering in it for a solid ten seconds before she pulls away to address the rest of the group.
“Galinda, how long were you planning to paint Elphaba for your show?!” Nessa asks, leaning in to embrace Galinda when she kneels down to do so.
“The moment I saw her that day in her office. She looked so peeved and like she just finished cross examining a witness and all I could think about was how she would be perfect to paint for this show.”
Nessa tilts her head towards Elphaba with a disbelieving look on her features.
“You agreed just like that?!” She asks incredulously.
Galinda raises her eyebrows curiously at Elphaba, who clears her throat.
“Galinda’s condition to take on your wedding with such short notice was if I agreed to be the model for her painting.” She explains,
“Really?!” Nessa whips her head back to Galinda who smiles mischievously.
“Your wonderful big sister asked what she needed to do to get me to paint your special day. I shamelessly took the opportunity presented to me.”
Boq has to ask, his words escaping his lips before he has a chance to stop himself.
“You really only agreed to paint our wedding so that you could paint Elphaba?!”
Nessa levels him with a glare but Galinda nods.
“Precisely, Biq!”
Fiyero snorts loudly and drapes his arm around Galinda.
“Well I think it was a great choice! What better subject for the Emerald city than the emerald attorney herself?!”
Elphaba gives Fiyero a look not unlike Nessa’s while Galinda shakes her head and playfully pushes him away from her.
“See Fiyero, I keep telling you art goes right over your head. Elphie isn’t the center Emerald city piece because she happens to be green or prolific.” She feels Elphaba’s gaze finally land on her and she continues speaking before her confidence wanes once more, “If you listened to a word I said, you’d know she’s the center because Elphie sees the real wonder of a place where all of Oz can come together and reflect every single corner of the nation just like the Emerald city does. She’s the center because even in the quietest spaces amongst our history, it’s not hard to find the beauty in it.”
She notices the way Elphaba shifts on her feet and how flushed she appears beneath the lights. She looks away from Galinda again and for the shortest moment, she closes her eyes as if trying to concentrate or recall something (much later, Galinda would learn in that moment Elphaba was reprimanding herself for not catching the obvious signs of Galinda’s feelings much sooner.) After Elphaba composes herself she clears her throat and does her best to meet Galinda’s gaze.
“It’s really an incredible show, Galinda. You’ve done some amazing work.”
There seems to be a mood switch. Galinda now wears a softer smile, moving as if to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear despite the fact most of it is tied up in behind her head. She hopes she still looks as put together as she did at the start of the night.
“Thank you, Elphie. It means a lot coming from you.”
The crowd around them has begun to disperse, the silent auction closing and guests taking their time as they mosey out of the gallery. Nessa and Boq announce their departure, commenting on how they need to get back to their hotel since it’ll be an early day of traveling back to Nest Hardings. She gives them both a quick hug and thanks them again for coming to the show before they make their way towards the exit.
There’s a second where it’s just her, Elphaba and Fiyero standing adjacent to the live auctioned pieces. Fiyero looks between them and Galinda makes eye contact with him, looking between him and Elphaba then back to him expectantly. He stares at her, uncertain of what she’s trying to say before it clicks. He stands straight and though he doesn’t laugh, his ridiculous smirk as he bids the two of them goodnight is enough to make Galinda want to punch him in the upper arm.
Soon, it’s only Elphaba, Galinda and the rapidly dwindling crowd.
“So… what’d you think, Elphie?” Galinda inquires in a shy voice.
Elphaba takes a second before she responds.
“Walk with me?” She starts after a second, taking a step towards a different direction of the gallery, “I’d like to ask you some questions about the pieces I really enjoy.”
Galinda’s smile is blinding as she loops her arm within Elphaba’s.
“I’d be delighted to answer them.”
Elphaba leads her to specific pieces and though she does have a few questions about them, she mostly uses it as an opportunity to tell Galinda what she enjoys about them and the reasons they stick out to her. It isn’t long before they’re back in front of the portrait of Elphaba and now that she has the opportunity to see it closer than when the crowd was around, she’s taken the chance to pause and really take in all the details of herself. Galinda wishes her phone was on her so she could snap a quick picture of this moment: Elphaba staring at an image of herself with intrigue, like she’d never seen this side of herself before.
The two of them are quiet for a bit as Elphaba takes in the art and Galinda takes in Elphaba. She can feel her palms becoming sweaty as she watches Elphaba. Does she like it? Does she see what Galinda has been trying to tell her? She hopes she does.
“It's better than anything I could envision.” Elphaba breathes. Her cheeks are flushed once again. She has this odd look of admiration and slight wonder and— is that nervous fidgeting with her hands?
Be still, dear heart of Galinda. Don't make assumptions. She loosens her hold on Elphaba’s arm so she can face her properly.
“Thank you, Elphie. I;m glad I could wow you with it.” Galinda replies in a playful tone, but the giddy smile that plants itself on her features betrays her. It feels really good hearing this from Elphaba.
Elphaba’s attention from the painting turns to Galinda, and she studies her for a second before Galinda lifts her gaze to Elphaba’s.
There’s a short pause and both then try to speak at the same time.
“Galinda-”
“Elphie-”
They both giggle, a nervous little sound shared between them.
“You first.” Galinda gestures to Elphaba.
She goes to speak but gets cut off by a staff member from the gallery hobbling over to them.
“I’m so sorry to interrupt, Miss Upland, we need to wrap up some of the silent auction details with you before we close up the gallery.”
Galinda looks at Elphie apologetically but she absolutely cannot let this moment slide away. She was so close to telling her with words.
“This won't take long.” Galinda says, and she tentatively grabs Elphaba’s hand. “I do have something I want to tell you, so stay a bit longer? Please?”
Elphaba almost freezes but she nods. She squeezes her hand as if to say ‘it’s okay.’ Galinda returns the gesture and quickly flitters over to where the staff are converging and waiting for direction.
When Galinda finishes not ten minutes later, Elphaba hasn't moved from the spot in front of the painting of herself. Galinda stands back a couple steps away from her, taking a minute to admire how stunning Elphaba looks in her suit, lost in the depths of her art. Wow. She really could stare for days. Galinda hoped she’d be the star of the show but nothing can compare to how Elphaba looks in this moment.
Ugh. Galinda can’t go on like this. She needs to know how Elphaba feels. She needs to know it would be okay to loop her arm into Elphie’s, to lay her head on her shoulder and ask her to come home with her.
“Thanks for waiting.” She finally announces herself, stepping up next to Elphaba with newfound determination.
Elphaba startles but gives a slight smile when Galinda greets her.
“The gallery is giving us fifteen minutes before they're locking up.” Galinda explains. “The art will be on display for the remainder of the summer, then the paintings will find their way to their new homes.”
“I guess I’ll have to come back to take them in a few more times before the summer ends.” Elphaba quips, which makes Galinda chuckle.
Oz, this is everything.
She hopes taking this leap doesn’t ruin it.
“What was it you were going to say earlier, Elphie?”
Elphaba is silent as she considers what she wants to say.
“Is this really how you see me?” She looks back to the painting. Her question is followed by a small pause as it’s Galinda’s turn to ponder before speaking.
“Not entirely, no.” Elphie is surprised and Galinda smiles, “This is only part of how I see you. One of my favourite parts, I might add, though, I do quite like everything about you so it's not too much above everything else. Anyway, you are much, much more than anything I could capture within one of my paintings. I think I'd need a building sized canvas in order to properly portray it. Maybe more.”
Elphie has some sort of reaction that's flustered and also embarrassed. She closes her eyes tightly and inhales, almost as if she’s preparing to say something serious. Like she can’t keep it to herself anymore.
“I need to be forthright with you, Galinda.” Elphaba confesses, looking even more flustered. Galinda tilts her head.
“When you asked to paint me, I was convinced it was to mock me or put some negative light on my work. Everywhere I go there's some sort of controversy, whether it's about my skin or about my political opinions or simply just because it’s me. Not a single human being has ever expressed interest in me the way you have. The closest thing to it was Fiyero and, well.” Elphaba frowns a bit, “I think part of the reason we had chemistry to begin with is because he looked past all this. But that doesn’t mean he ever saw me, not the way I hoped he would at least. Nobody has. Not until you.”
Galinda's eyes grow large as her lips part. She can sense this mood change. Elphaba can too, despite not being too familiar with the feeling. They can both tell where this is headed.
Elphaba goes to speak again and Galinda’s breath hitches in a loud, squeaky sounding gasp. She holds her hands up in a wait pose because it certainly feels like Elphaba is leading into something that Galinda had been trying to do first. She can’t have that!
“WAIT! Wait, wait, please wait! Elphie I promise I'll let you continue, I want to hear everything you have to say, but I must tell you something first. I really must.”
Elphaba’s lips close and she smiles slightly, then gives a shy nod for Galinda to continue.
Their hands find each other and Galinda isn't sure if she grabbed Elphie's first or if Elphaba’s grabbed hers, but Galinda pulls them dramatically to her chest and clutches them tightly. She looks into Elphaba’s startled gaze and speaks with her whole chest.
“Elphaba Thropp, I have been utterly and hopelessly infatuated with you from the very first day I saw you in your office. You are by far the most incredible, intelligent, kind-hearted, beautiful and most wondiferous person I've ever met. I think I was doomed from our second email correspondence.” She has teary eyes but she doesn't cry. She simply beams and continues, “You’re funny and stunning, Elphie, and you take the time to indulge me for every little thing I do to try to stay in your orbit. Not only did I see you, but you stuck around enough to see me. The real me, the good person I hope that I am. And you even stayed, despite seeing my awfully self indulgent sketch within my sketchbook. I really don't know what I was thinking letting you look through it, I thought I'd scared you away when that happened.”
“But you didn’t,” Elphaba briefly cuts in, and Glinda laughs,
“No, I didn’t. And thank goodness for that.”
She holds Elphaba’s hands tighter and determination replaces her soft confession, Elphaba’s eyes are twinkling in this low light.
“I really like you, Elphie. Romantically, of course, and quite a lot for that matter. I knew when you opened the door and your face was flushed from whatever you and Nessa had been discussing. And then at that first dinner we had together, when you began to practice your sign language with Gracie, and-Oh, if I keep listing all the moments I felt like I was falling for you, we’ll be locked in this gallery all night long. Either way, it’s enough times that I now check even more lesbian stereotypes than I care to admit.”
Elphaba’s eyes still shine and Galinda can hear the tiny exhale of relief and nerves. Galinda knows her cheeks are the rosiest they've ever been but she truly doesn't care because Elphaba’s eyes crinkle up and she smiles enough where Galinda gets a glimpse of her beautiful teeth.
“Okay, I'm sorry for that rude interruption.” Galinda laughs sheepishly, still blushing and still holding Elphie’s hands as she lowers them from her chest. “You can continue.”
“You may continue” Elphaba corrects her with a crooked grin.
“That's what I said, Elphie, don’t try to distract me.” Galinda scolds, giving Elphaba a mildly stern gaze before her dimpled smile returns full force and causes Elphaba to let out a flustered chuckle.
Elphaba brushes her thumbs along the backs of Galinda’s hands. She opens her mouth to speak, pauses, then laughs again.
“Falling for me?” She inquires and Galinda leans forward with a groan, though her smile says it’s not in disdain.
“Please Elphie, I can’t make it any more clearer than I have been. I’ve already presented my feelings to you in the only other way I know how!”
She nods over to the painting of Elphie hanging next to them. Elphaba’s gaze softens as she stares at the artwork.
“What I was going to say,” Elphaba begins, finally continuing the conversation from earlier, “Is that I’d never expected someone like you to see me. It’s not the experience I tend to have with the general population. I knew from our replies through our initial interactions that you were someone more than what you put out to the world with your videos. You’ve said many things to me now that were words I never expected to hear from anyone in my life, let alone a woman who I’ve come to see as someone more than beautiful.”
Galinda gasps softly and mumbles “M-more than beautiful!?”
“You are.” Elphaba affirms and squeezes her hands, “I like you too, Galinda. Romantically, as a friend, as the ridiculous artist who insisted the only way I could recruit her to paint my sister’s wedding would be if she could paint me. I like you all ways, it seems.”
If Galinda’s smile could get bigger, it would. Her whole energy seems to lift— She could really be floating right now. With the way Elphaba’s looking at her and the warmth between their palms, Galinda’s tempted to tug the older woman closer.
Before she even has a chance to, footsteps approach and a security guard clears his throat.
“Pardon me, Miss Upland. We really must close up now.” He looks apologetically between them, almost as if he’d been neglecting interrupting until he absolutely had to.
“Oh for crying out loud.” Galinda grumbles, slightly embarrassed about having a spectator. She puts on her best people pleasing smile. Elphaba stifles a laugh.
“Of course! We’re going, just a moment, good sir!”
He eyes them but goes to wait at the front entrance. Galinda turns back to Elphaba ready to apologize, but Elphaba pulls her towards the doorway and asks Galinda to follow her. They exit out the gallery, moving side by side with their hands still holding one another. They stop a couple steps outside the pathway leading from the gallery building to the street and Galinda faces Elphaba.
“You’re not busy now, are you?” She asks, voice playful and light
“Coincidentally, I just finished with my only obligation for the evening.” Elphaba replies, “I’m free until midnight.”
“Only midnight?!” Galinda narrows her eyes and Elphaba gestures to her finer clothing.
“That’s when the spell ends and my clothes revert back to my everyday attire you despise for its lack of colour and style.”
Galinda’s laughter is loud and contagious and soon her head lands on Elphaba’s shoulder as they fall into a fit of giggles. She can feel the way Elphaba’s other hand comes around to rest on her waist, keeping her steady and close. It’s warm and safe and the summer evening air feels absolutely splendid against her rosy cheeks.
When their giggles subside she lifts her head away from Elphaba’s shoulder. Elphaba tilts her face to meet her gaze and they hold it for a moment. Galinda gets lost in a sea of green, her free hand coming up to cup Elphaba’s cheek. She brushes it gently with her thumb, then lowers it to lightly graze against Elphaba’s bottom lip. She glances down for a moment, then looks back upward to Elphaba’s eyes. The question is unsaid but clear and Elphaba gives her answer with the tiniest of nods.
Galinda doesn’t hesitate as she tilts Elphaba’s face and closes the distance between them. Pink lips press to green in a soft and tender kiss that leaves Galinda breathless. It’s slow and sweet, and Elphaba’s lips are the softest she’s ever kissed. She can feel Elphaba pressing back against her and Galinda can taste the remnants of the champagne Elphaba had been sipping during the show. It might be her new favourite thing. Kissing Elphaba might be her new favourite thing.
When they part, Galinda barely pulls away. Her forehead rests against Elphaba’s and she lets go of her hand to lay it on the lapel of her jacket. Her heart is full, her body feels lighter than air itself and the only thing grounding her is Elphaba. Elphaba’s hands that hold her closely at her hips, Elphaba’s torso beneath her palm, chest rising and falling with her breath, her forehead that presses right back against Galinda’s and the shaky exhale she feels as Elphaba seems to finally have gathered her bearings.
“We still have a couple hours until midnight.” Galinda whispers. She can practically feel Elphaba smiling. “Would you be interested in spending it with me? It’s a lovely night and I don’t quite feel like being without you yet.”
Elphaba makes a sound as if contemplating what to decide, but her answer is almost immediate when she pulls back to look at Galinda properly.
“My place isn’t too far from here. You wouldn’t mind a quiet night in, would you?”
Galinda lights up from the invite. Elphaba looks a bit bashful after asking, her cheeks flushed from their kiss. Galinda leans forward to press a kiss to Elphaba’s cheek then loops her arm with the other woman’s. She steps forward, bringing Elphaba with her and encouraging them to start walking.
“A night with only my Elphie after the most successful art show of my career? Why, I’d love nothing more.”