Between Two Girls

Chapter 33

Paige can't believe what she's hearing. "What do you mean?" she asks. "You said she was!"

"I know," Lucy replies. She fidgets in her seat, looking uncomfortable. Her dog whimpers outside her room, and she stands up to let Kip inside. Unaware of the tension, Kip happily goes on Lucy's bed. The corgi runs around in a tight circle and after 30 seconds collapses in exhaustion.

Juli gasps suddenly. "Lucy had a drug dealer!" she shouts. "Everything makes so much sense now!"

"Why are you so sure Lucy does drugs?" the sage asks. "Or did, rather."

"She has a tattoo and I'm pretty sure she drinks with Eli," Juli says. "And you're asking me why I jumped the gun about weed?"

"Oh. Well, that doesn't necessarily mean she's doing all bad things."

"Still!"

"So, who was she?" the bookworm asks. "She's obviously someone important to you."

"Rayanna, the girl, was my secret girlfriend," Lucy explains slowly. She suddenly stops and looks at Paige, who looks shocked.

"Whoa," the party animal says. "I didn't see that coming."

"None of us did," Emery replies.

"So, Rayanna was your girlfriend the whole time?" Paige asks.

Lucy nods solemnly.

"Was she an, um--" Paige doesn't finish the question, but Lucy knows what she's asking about.

"No, she wasn't an experiment." Lucy shakes her head. "She just, knew me so well, more than any boyfriends I've had. She inspired me to do things I never thought I would want to do. And she was . . . " Lucy hesitates. "She was my first real love."

"Doesn't Paige know that feeling," Juli points out. When Emery makes a shhh sound, the party animal adds, "What? It's true."

"And when she said she was moving . . . " Paige prompts.

"Rayanna was running away," Lucy says. "She was tired of being a closeted lesbian to keep her parents from finding out. And she wanted to live closer to me."

"Why didn't she want her parents to find out?" the bookworm interrupts.

"They were against the LGBT community," Lucy answers. "Like our school is."

This is new to Paige. "Our school's homophobic?" Lucy nods. "Wow. That sucks."

"Yeah. It does."

"Wait. You've had quite a few boyfriends," Paige remarks. "Are you . . . ?"

"No, I'm not bisexual. Or pan, for that matter."

"Then why are you going out with a lot of guys?"

Lucy shrugs. "It's an unwritten rule at the school that a popular girl like me should be in relationships no matter what. I was simply pleasing everybody by doing so," she says.

"Oh." Silence. "Are you ever going to date another girl?" When Lucy confessed about who Rayanna was, Paige has wanted to ask her that.

"Definitely. The real question is when." Kip yawns, and Lucy automatically reaches her hand behind the dog's ears and scratches there.

"How about now?" Juli asks. "Now's a good time. And we can finally have Pa/cy!"

"A what?" Emery asks.

"Lucy and Paige. Pa/cy," Juli explains. "It's a shipped name."

"I figured."

"Do you like anyone in particular?" Paige asks Lucy.

Shaking her head, she answers, "I'm not going to worry about that right now. What I do need to worry about is whether I should break up with Eli and be free or stay with him and keep up with my reputation."

Paige raises an eyebrow. "Why would you care about how good your reputation is? Many people has started questioning your motives after you dropped your valley girl dialect, showed more interest in books, and started talking to me." For each one, Paige has raised a finger up until she has 3.

Lucy thinks about the reasons. "I think I'll be fine," she says. She looks up at the clock on her nightstand. "It's getting late. Are you staying the night or going home?"

Also looking at the time, Paige replies, "I should go. I have a pesty sister and a stubborn mom to feed."

Lucy laughs a little. "Let me know how that works out."

"I already know it's going to be bad."