(Continued from here)
----
A disagreement? Maria can't help but find herself misjudging the harshness of Megan's previous snapping; it seemed like quite a change in character for it to be caused by a mere 'disagreement'. Maria knows, or believes she knows, that Megan is downplaying it, likely in an attempt to push Maria's attention off of it, to keep her friend from worrying.
While it certainly does not quell her anxieties, Maria pretends that the meiosis is successful, even going so far as to pull her lips into an innocent, clueless smile. If Megan wishes to downplay whatever it was that troubled her, Maria wasn't going to intrude. She knew her boundaries - and, frankly, didn't particularly want to get snapped at again.
The brunette's eyes flick over to the dripping pictures clipped on a line, and she nods her head, forcefully reassuring herself, aiming to rub off that reassurance on her guest.
"Well; it's going well," she answers, tracing the corner of one photo with her thumb, watching the way that the reflected light glides along the slick surface. The photo of interest contains a field of yellow and red wildflowers, the back of the photo still clean, though once it dries, it's likely to be victim to the needless scrawlings of details that have a tendency to show up on the backs of most of Maria's collection.
Photos are a way to preserve memories, moments in time that may be lost in the turmoil of everyday stress. Photos tell a story, a second-long story contained in the flash of a camera, and photos are a portal on their own. But reminders help; a quick note on the type of flower, what time of day the squirrel was spotted, what trail the photo was taken on. Photos are memories, shared. Shown to more than those who were there in the moment; joined with an onlooker's memory, a communicable past.
Tapping the still-damp film with her finger, her smile grows more genuine, tracing the shape of the field, the splashes of color where the red and the yellow fight for territory. "Took it last week. About a mile or so off campus. A boy in my photography class mentioned it, even offered to take me there," she chuckles, oblivious to any implications of the offer, "but I had some time off work, so I decided to go. Maybe I could take you there sometime. Take more pictures."
















