XX
"When did you start this job?" Dylan asked Ashley as the colour of his black tea was spreading in the cup.
"after the graduation. I always knew I wanted to write and I prepared for that, for writing, for knowledge" Ashley touched her hair putting it behind an ear, had a relaxed air, light makeup, a genuine smile,.
"And why do you write for others and not for you?" Dylan asked him, raising his eyebrow.
"For lack of courage, I think"
"Lack of courage?"
"You don't know how many things I've written over the years and they're all files that fill my computer, I lack courage, they seem trivial to me, some are not completed, it's better for me to lay my eyes and my soul on the words of others, borrow them, play with them."
Dylan leaned his back and looked at Ashley with a sweet smile.
"I'd like to read something"
"Oh no ..no" she shook her head "this will never happen," Ashley replied.
'Why?'
"Because you're too talented to dare to make you read anything"
Dylan hinted at a flattered smile "anyway you are very good at what you do, you helped me a lot, I was in a moment of impasse that you managed to unlock, and for that I thank you"
Ashley smiled "it's my job, I'm brave at this"
"Tell ll me about you" Dylan asked her then cleared the rumour "I mean if you want, i'm Just curious"
"There's little to say, I grew up with my grandmother in Arizona, in a RV, the only thing I always did was study and write, I did a hundred thousand jobs until I had the big chance here in Los Angeles. I work to adapt books to movies, books to those who write them, those who write them to the world" Ashley laughed.
"Have you had a good childhood?" Dylan asked her.
"Yes very beautiful, despite everything my grandmother and I had fun"
Ashely was moved.
"Sorry, I didn't want you to shed tears" Dylan was embarrassed.
Ashely tried to wipe away the tears that had inexplicably become entangled in her eyes.
"I'm sorry, sometimes I'm a little emotional"
The waitress brought the bill at that moment and observed Ashley who was crying. He also took a quick look at Dylan who maintained a serious, foreign expression.
"Leave, it's in me ," he said "a compensation for making you cry."
The waitress took the money and cast one last look at Ashley who gave her a gentle smile.
"So, will you consider the new ideas I proposed to you?"
Dylan smiled "I really think so."
XX
Emma and Blanca were having lunch on the West Bev lawn, Sean approached shortly after and along with him there was Samuel more smiling than usual.
"Have you seen Nate?" Asked the boy looking around.
"To tell you the truth, I haven't seen him all morning," Sean said, biting into his sandwich.
"weird, he told me he would come" Samuel shrugged "maybe I'll see him later."
Blanca continued to eat her apple with her eyes down, she feared that if she looked at Samuel he could read in her eyes exactly what was going on inside her.
He loved Samuel, the two of them had clicked from the first moment they saw each other in Ecuador, he just didn't love Samuel that way, the way he wanted and the way she was falling in love with Nate.
Blanca cursed herself for letting Samuel inside her like that because he was supposed to be the confidant, the one to tell everything to. Her mother had told her to be honest but every time Samuel was close to her she wanted to hold him tight and tell him everything, to beg him not to hate her as she was sure he would, and as she was certain he will do as soon as the truth about her and Nate came out.
'Blanca?' Emma was looking at her but Blanca hadn't heard the question.
"MMMhhh?"
"Have you received invitations for spring dance?" Emma repeated patiently.
Samuel watched her intently and he would have liked to take Blanca to the dance, like a real couple, if only she loved him. He would go get her, buy the orchids and wait for her to come down with her dress to the bottom of the stairs at Mckay house to tell her how wonderful she was and how much he could have loved her if only Blanca had allowed him.
Blanca shook her head "nothing, you?"
Samuel's eyes shifted to Emma.
'Yes'
'And who?' Asked Sean with a mischievous smile.
"Chris Harper"
"Chris is hot, it's not bad," Blanca pointed out.
"Yes.." Emma's eyes crossed Samuel's "I said I'd think about it, I don't even know if I'm coming"
"What? What? What?" Blanca asked "we will go to the spring ball alone too, you and me too..." Blanca laughed.
Janet and Nate arrived at that moment and sat down together with the group. She kissed him with more passion than usual, she always did, she wanted others to see, to feel how much power she had over him. Blanca looked away.
"Hey bro what happened to you?"
"Janet insisted that I choose the colour of the dress for the spring dance"
Sean and Samuel began to laugh loudly "mmhh and what colour did you choose, lilac? Pink Shocking?"
"You're good, make fun of you," Janet smiled, stroking Nate's hair. "It took me a lifetime to get him to listen to me for ten seconds."
"I find it sweet," Emma said and everyone turned to her "doing things together, I mean, it's sweet, doing things you don't feel like doing just to be with her" the group looked at her in silence "as not said, I have to go to class."
"Wait for me" Samuel told her "I'm coming with you we have the same class"
Samuel stood up and Blanca noticed Nate's eyes on her as Janet and Sean made fun of each other.
XX
Brenda walked inside the Pit and took off her jacket. The girls were already at the table. Andrea, Kelly, Donna and Clare.
'What happened?' Brenda asked in alarm.
"Nothing.. sit down we have to have an extraordinary meeting."
Brenda noticed Valerie's gaze behind the counter. She knew that Donna's presence hindered in every way a coexistence with all of them, which is why Brenda, Clare and Andrea often organised alternative meetings only with Valerie and Brenda really had to admit it were the meetings that amused her the most. She winked at her and Valerie reciprocated with a smile.
"So? What's new?"
"We have several apparently," Andrea replied, "the first one is this one," she said, showing a large engagement ring that Philip had given her. The girls widened their eyes for joy.
"When did he ask you?"
"Last night"
"Wow Andrea," Kelly said, hugging her tightly.
"Finally, we've been dating for years now, I was afraid he would never ask me again!"
"Have you set a date?"
Andrea chuckled "I really still have to tell Hannah. She now works permanently in his father's law firm in New York, she has her own life, who knows how she will take it."
Brenda smiled at her "I'm sure she'll be happy for you."
Andrea smiled "Donna?"
"Yes?"
"Do you want to do me the honour of designing my dress? A simple thing, I am now an age. But I would like it. In my first marriage it was all so rushed, badly organised, this time I would like to organise things well and I would like you all to help me."
"Wow" Valerie had approached to them' 'I love weddings'
"Why," Donna asked her, "do you want to get her husband too?"
Donna's eyes were flaming.
"Donna," sighed Valerie, "it's been eight years, don't you think it's time to lay down the axe and find a way to have a civilised relationship?"
"A civil relationship" Donna repeated "like when you thought about fucking my husband? Or Clare's boyfriend?"
'When did it happen?' Clare was already in a state of turmoil.
"No..no" Kelly shook his head "before you came back "Donna is enough"
But Donna was furious "Do we want to talk when you fucked Dylan? Now when did you want to bang Brandon?"
"Oh My God" Kelly closed her eyes.
"You talk like you're saints," Valerie replied without batting an eyelid, "and you're not, neither are you Donna."
"It was my husband," Donna replied, "we're not in high school or college anymore. It was my life. He was the father of my son and my husband, and you had no qualms about slipping into his bed. Just as she had no scruples about slipping into each of your beds," Donna ended up looking at the other girls.
"Nice shot Donna," Valerie replied, "why wasn't Clare with David? Kelly and Dylan? Kelly and Steve? Andrea and... ok Andrea no."
"Thank you so much" smiled Andrea.
Brenda rolled her eyes.
"I believe no one is a saint here" Brenda said looking at Kelly who sent her a strange look back. The kind of look, let's not bring out this story again.
"Exactly," replied Val, "anyway I'm happy for you Andrea. I'm really happy, Philip is a wonderful man and he's lucky"
"Thanks Val," Andrea replied, "well, I'll see you next Tuesday," Val said, addressing Brenda, Clare, and Andrea, "so we can talk about how much we don't like candy pink and hateful blondes."
Brenda and Clare grinned drinking their cup of tea. Valerie walked away from the table on her heels that exalted her super sexy body.
'More news?' Clare asked.
"Yes," Donna replied trying to calm down, "I stopped by to see Joe."
'Joe?' Kelly looked up mischievously at Donna.
"Yes" Donna looked down shyly "in short, I was pleased to see him again at the barbeque, it's been so many years and you know I've been alone for so many years."
The others nodded.
"Ahh let's go I wanted to have a nice evening"
"And it was a nice evening?" Asked Brenda smiling.
"Beautiful yes, we talked about a lot of things, our lives and how it went"
"Will you see each other again?"
"Yes, that's the point, we'll meet again tomorrow night and there's one thing I should really talk to you about"
'What?' Andrea asked
"He's still a virgin," Donna said in a breath
"He is what?" Kelly asked in disbelief.
"He is still a virgin"
The others looked at each other in an almost amused silence.
"He didn't find the right person and he didn't give himself, which I shouldn't have done either, he didn't believe in sex before marriage and never did" Donna hurried to explain.
"And now he wants to do it?"
"Well honestly I didn't ask him" Donna replied "because they're not things that are asked but I haven't had sex in a while" she rolled her eyes and specified "a lot and the idea that I might want it and that he is so rigid"
"Finally you know what David has been feeling for years..." said Valerie who had approached the table again.
"Val.." Brenda politely scolded her.
"Yes, maybe he's right, in short and if he didn't want me I think I would never leave the house again" finished Donna.
"Honestly," Brenda replied, "I think you're getting too much trouble, go out with him and have fun you can't design these things, they improvise, they come naturally."
Kelly nodded.
"Yes, I believe it too" said Valerie but Donna stared at her seriously "I don't need your help Valerie"
Val raised her hands "as if I hadn't said anything, try to have fun."
XX
Nate and Blanca had met in the literature classroom of the old wing of the school. The one always closed and always empty.
He caressed her face and kissed her frantically.
"Today at lunch I was dying to kiss you" he murmured to her without detaching her lips from her and his hands from her body.
"Yes me too" Blanca loved to hear his mouth slowly pass over his neckbone.
"Tell me you won't accept anyone's invitation to the spring dance, I don't want to see anyone next to you"
Blanca stopped and look him straight in the eye taking his face in his hands "you'll go with Janet"
Nate got lost in Blanca's gaze "today I'm going to break up with her and then I want us to tell everyone the truth, I want us to be together".
Blanca looked down.
'What?' Asked Nate.
"Samuel" sighed Blanca "he will hate you because of me, you know him."
Nate looked down "I'll talk to him, he'll know from me before anyone else."
Nate's hazel eyes could undress her with just one look.
"Nate, I'm not sure," Blanca replied, "it's not the time to do such a thing to him"
"Why do you keep protecting him," Nate asked with a serious look.
"Because I love him"
'Do you love him?' Nate clenched his fists but his eyes betrayed tears that wanted to come out.
Blanca jumped off the counter where she had kissed Nate for a long time.
" yes I love him but I don't love him that way, I don't want to hurt him"
"What about me, Blanca? Do you want to hurt me?"
Blanca closed her eyes then reopened them "no" she sighed.
Nate approached and their lips met again as well as their frantic hands under their shirts, Nate took off her top and her legs tightened around his waist.
Janet could see them distinctly from the glass of the door. She had hurt herself when she followed Nate into the corridors of the school, she had mortified herself by letting Blanca enter that classroom, she wanted to die when she saw them kissing, undressing semi-naked, touching, panting, laughing together in that isolated classroom. Janet was crying while filming everything with her cell phone. Blanca wouldn't take Nate away from her, no one would take Nate away from her. Janet was surprised when a tear of hers hit her hand and lost forever.
XX
"How did it go with your beautiful Ashely?" Brenda asked when she saw Dylan enter the house. He grinned, adored when Brenda was jealous, put his hands around her waist and kissed her neck.
"Better than expected, she gave me a couple of new ideas," Dylan said.
"Oh but really?" Brenda raised her eyebrow.
"You know," he said, "that you're even hotter when you're jealous?"
"I'm not jealous" Brenda laughed "it's just that I don't like to know you around with beautiful girls who aren't me"
"I feel you ," Dylan nodded, lifting Brenda and making her sit on the kitchen island, "which is exactly what I feel when I see you kissing men on TV"
"That's part of My job," Brenda said, leaving.
"Well that part of mine," he said, snapping his tongue.
"You have a point," Brenda smiled.
"If you want next time you can come too," Dylan asked her.
"Yes maybe I'll come," Brenda smiled, "you never know with these sexy blondes who are experts in literature."
Dylan laughed, took her face in his hands "I love you"
Brenda smiled "tell me everyday"
"I love you," Dylan repeated.
Then he hugged her tightly closing his eyes. He smelled Brenda's hair. He squeezed her as if Brenda could slip away at any moment. As if his whole world could suddenly disappear.
Blanca walked in at that moment, her head down, her eyes were teary.
"Hei Blanca" Dylan greeted her as he still held Brenda tight. Blanca didn't answer him and ran up the stairs closing in her room.
Brenda turned to look at her.
Dylan sighed "it's all yours Brenda I have to take care of Lee Ann tonight, let's go out with Brandon and Grace for the father daughter date."
"You could take Blanca with you too..."
"She doesn't want to come, I already asked her, she says no"
Brenda looked at Dylan "and does this hurt you?"
"A little bit, but I'm still Lee Ann's first love and I know Blanca will be back to me soon," he winked at Brenda.
Brenda sighed "no one can resist you Mckay."
XX
Kelly was in bed with her laptop when Brandon walked in.
"How was your date with the most important woman in your life?"
Brandon smiled taking off his jacket "very good to be honest, I love hanging out with Grace, but she's not the only important woman in my life" he kissed Quickly and slipped into their room bathroom.
"Andrea is getting married," Kelly announced to him.
"Really? Philip has finally made up his mind, he's been talking about it for months"
"Seriously? And didn't you tell me?"
"No" Brandon came out of the bathroom " and I didn't tell you because you're not really good at keeping secrets"
"That's not true" Kelly gave a sulky look.
Brandon slipped into the bed "he didn't want us to tell you girls, he's been undecided for months, Andrea already has a failed marriage behind her and he was afraid she would say no."
"Why she should have said him no she loves him"
"Dear my young lady, you said no to me"
"Nice shot Walsh, but it was never a matter of love, you know that right?"
"Mmmhh" Brandon replied by rubbing his eyes.
"I'm serious, Brandon, do you know that?"
Brandon opened his eyes and looked at her "now I know, but at the time Kelly you have to admit that the situation was complicated, right Kelly?"
"Yes, right," she sighed. Brandon kissed her Deeply on her lips.
"I'm devastated," he said when he broke the kiss " our daughter is a volcano, if you then add Lee Ann.. those two will bury me and Dylan next to each other."
Kelly laughed, kept looking at Brandon's profile.
Kelly closed the laptop.
'Bran?'
"Yes?" He murmured.
"I want to have another baby with you," she said.
