Somehow, Adi carried Iris all the way to the top of the hill.

Upon arriving at the top, Adi carefully dropped Iris, so she was standing upright before collapsing onto the grass, panting heavily.

"I'm not that heavy," Iris said, watching Adi. "You don't have to be all dramatic about it."

"Iris, I literally just carried you up a hill," Adi replied in between pants. "That's not an easy thing to do, regardless of how much you weigh."

"You're the one that did that. I was perfectly content with just staying down there," Iris replied, slowly sitting down on the grass next to Adi.

"Well, I wasn't content with leaving you down there and you possibly getting kidnapped," Adi replied, closing her eyes and placing her hands on her forehead.

"Aw, you care about me. How sweet," Iris teased.

"Maybe. Or maybe I just know that I would be the first suspect, seeing as I was the one that brought you here. I'm just protecting myself, really."

Iris rolled her eyes, even though Adi couldn't see her do it.

"Why did you even bring me here?"

Adi opened her eyes again, turning to look at Iris directly.

"The view."

"The view?" Iris cocked her head to the side.

Adi shrugged. "I wanted you to see the view."

Iris had to admit, it was a pretty fucking good view. The hill was high enough that far-away glimpses of the city could be seen. Iris took it all in, as a feeling of adrenaline rushed through her.

Oddly, she felt like she was at the top of the world. Everything seemed so tiny from there, so far away and unimportant. Iris felt powerful, felt larger than life itself.

"It is a really amazing view," Iris breathed out, taking it all in.

Adi took hold of Iris' arm, pulling her down so that they were lying next to each other.

The grass was soft beneath Iris. She usually hated lying on the grass, as it was scratchy and she feared insects crawling into her neck and other private parts, but that wasn't a problem for Iris. Not right then. Not with Adi lying beside her, her arm gently brushing hers.

The view from here was even more illuminating. Iris was now looking up at the sky. It was a pastel blue color, so calming, and the clouds seemed to accentuate the sky, methodologically placed.

"It looks so fake, doesn't it?" Adi said from beside her, voicing Iris' thoughts.

"Yeah," Iris agreed, "it looks too perfect to be real. I think the sky alone is proof that we live in a simulation."

"Mmmm," Adi hummed, "now I wouldn't go that far."

"It's true, birds aren't real either. It's just the government watching us."

Iris felt Adi turn to look at her, but she continued staring up at the sky, trying to keep her face as neutral as possible.

"I can't tell if you're serious or not."

A small smile crept onto Iris' face. She enjoyed screwing with Adi's head. Adi noticed this and hit her playfully.

"Stop fucking with me. You're gonna send me into a spiral."

The girls lay in silence once again, looking up at the sky. Iris found it mesmerizing. It was as if she were in a trance as she took it in. The clouds were moving slowly across the sky, and nothing else seemed to matter right then than that.

"Thank you for today," Iris said softly, not turning to look at Adi, "and also for the other day."

Iris kept staring at the clouds, moving slowly across the sky, a peaceful feeling overcoming her.

"You're welcome, Iris. And I really mean that. It hurt me that you were ignoring my texts."

A sharp flutter passed through Iris at Adi's openness. She swallowed hard, not taking her eyes off the sky above her. She felt that if she did, she might lose the few ounces of courage that she had right then.

"I'm really sorry for that. I was just really embarrassed."

Iris could see Adi nodding out of the corner of her eyes.

"I figured, so I gave you some space."

There was some silence between them for a while. Iris wasn't sure if she was meant to say something, but she wasn't sure what to say right then. There were so many thoughts going through her mind at that moment, yet none of them seemed capable of coming out in a coherent manner.

"Someone that really cares for you wouldn't leave you on your own like that," Adi suddenly said. Her voice was strained and sounded far away.

Iris knew exactly what she was talking about. She knew exactly who Adi was talking about. Iris wondered how much Adi knew, it was clear that the red-haired girl knew a lot more than she let on.

Iris remained quiet, and so did Adi.

Iris wasn't sure how long they had been there staring up at the sky, but before her very eyes the sun began to set, the sky growing darker as the minutes passed by.

"How did you find out about this place?" Iris asked.

"The first week I came here, I drove around just exploring the city. I stumbled upon this place, almost by mistake, but it has been my favorite place ever since. I love to come here to think and stuff."

Iris nodded in understanding. The vibes here were extremely serene. It was the perfect place to think and to be alone and just forget that the world existed for a few moments.

"Why did you transfer from your previous college?" Iris suddenly blurted out, "I mean, why now? I feel that most people usually transfer after their first year of college. I mean, it's not unheard of to transfer in your junior year, but it's just less likely you know-"

Iris figured that she was ranting and quickly shut her mouth. She would be lying if she said that she didn't often wonder about why Adi had transferred here when she did. But then again, she knew she was being nosy.

"Forget it," Iris quickly said, "you don't have to answer that. It's really none of my business."

There were a few moments of silence from Adi, and Iris was convinced that she had blown it.

"I got into a fight with another student," Adi finally said. Her voice was quiet in a way that Iris had never heard before. "Transferring was the only way for me to avoid expulsion."

Iris was silent. Her mind was blank, and she did not know what to say.

"I'm not a violent person. I swear I'm not. This group of guys were making fun of a Chinese International student because of his accent. I told them to stop, and they didn't, so I punched one of them."

Adi looked over at Iris then. There was a look of desperation in her eyes.

"Does this change how you think about me?"

Iris quickly shook her head. There wasn't much that could change how she thought about Adi, not even Adi being a social-justice vigilante.

"Did the guys get in trouble too, at least?"

"Nope," Adi said, "they got their ego bruised and they're white, so of course, I only played into the 'angry black girl' stereotype, at least that['s exactly how my college saw it since they wanted to expel me with no repercussions the guys. I had to battle my way out of expulsion and agreed to transfer instead. Apparently, one of the guy's daddy donated lots of money to the university or something."

"Oh gosh," Iris said. She was looking at Adi now. "I'm so sorry. That is fucking unfair."

Adi shrugged.

"That's America for you."

Iris understood, but anger overcame her. Colleges cared more about donations than racism happening on campus, the same way they made a bigger deal about academic integrity but  swept sexual assault cases under the carpet. All the wrong priorities.

"It's really not all bad," Adi said, turning her head so she was facing Iris. "Transferring here allowed me to meet you. Even if it meant you trying to kill me."

Iris rolled her eyes. "Are you ever going to let that go?"

"Never ever."

A moment passed with both girls grinning widely at each other. Iris stared at Adi's soft eyes, enjoying them tremendously. She got in lost in them the same way she had gotten lost in the sky a few moments ago.

"So... is this another one of your seduction tactics? Bringing girls to the top of hills in the middle of nowhere?"

A dangerous smirk crossed Adi's lips at Iris' light flirting.

"They seem to work, seeing as you keep ending up in solitary environments with me."

"You just happen to catch me lacking in vulnerable positions." Iris' tone was light, teasing.

Adi suddenly rolled over, so she was leaning above Iris. Her hands were placed above Iris' head, and her face was only a few inches from hers.

"Tell me, do you feel vulnerable right now?" Adi asked. Her tone was lower and her soft brown eyes seemed to darken. Her warm breath brushed against Iris' lips, causing them to unconsciously part. 

Iris lay beneath her, her heart beating hard in her chest. Iris opened her mouth to respond, but couldn't right then. Her mind was flooded with thoughts of Adi. She wanted to tell her she wanted to be vulnerable right then. That she'd let the girl do anything that she wanted to her and thank her afterward. She wanted to be vulnerable in every way possible right then.

"You haven't answered me, pretty," Adi said softly, her voice only a whisper.

"It's kind of hard for me not to feel vulnerable right now," Iris said instead. Her voice was only a whisper too, and she already sounded breathless. Iris tried her hardest to push the thoughts that were rushing through her mind away, but her eyes were drawn to Adi's soft lips, and that was all she could think about.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't do anything you don't want me to," Adi said, smirking once again. She rolled off Iris, so she was lying next to her once again, staring up at the sky.

Iris hated the lack of Adi's touch. She hated that she suddenly felt cold, and she was angry and on edge.

"It's getting a bit late. I think we should start-"

But Adi didn't finish her sentence as Iris grabbed her roughly and instantly connected their lips.