Dear Ex-Girlfriend (Lesbian, Girlxgirl, Gay)

Chapter 3. Best Friends

Chapter3. Best Friends

June 2005

It was hot as stew. The warm wind didn't offer relief as it licked on my face. My shirt was still stuck on my back because of sweat. My fingers were still greasy as I ran them through my hair.

In one of the open houses I passed, someone's ice cream was melting in the cup. In the next house, Mariah Carey's voice was belting from the radio. I glanced in front of me and screamed.

"Watch out!" a cycler cried, before swerving to the left. It was a narrow miss. I've almost been reunited with mom.

Spencer's laughter rang close behind me. "Eyes forward, slowpoke."

"What do you think I'm doing?" But despite glowering at his suggestion, I trained my eyes in front. "And don't call me slowpoke when you're the one behind."

Another laugh from him. "Not anymore."

In just a few seconds, the lead I've gained in the last couple of blocks disappeared. Spencer was elbow to elbow with me, a lazy smile on his face.

I risked a quick glance behind and saw that Ester wasn't with us anymore. "Where's your twin?"

Spencer shrugged. "Library?"

I rolled my eyes at him and continued running. My pace has considerably slowed compared to when we first started. My breath came in short burst too.

This was all Spencer's idea. We were all in their living room watching this new series called Supernatural, when he stood up from the couch, sneered like a pirate, and said, "Yarg! The Cap'n needs to stretch." After that, there was a short agreement about a race, and here we were.

I wiped the sweat from my brows and tried to lean forward more. Maybe that would increase my speed.

"That's no use," Spencer panted. His strides still matched mine. He was sweating buckets too. "Your legs are too short for a thirteen-year-old."

"Says someone who has the same height as me." I turned to him and stuck my tongue out.

He tried to hide his cringe by glancing to the right. But we were passing by the barber shop then. The glass window made me see his expression. All the customer's too. The men who were having their beards shaved waved to us.

I gave them a small salute before concentrating ahead. It was time to take this race to a conclusion.

Taking a big gulp of air, I braced myself, then pumped my legs harder. The effort made me gain advantage by a few inches.

"Not enough, Coolio," Spencer said. "You need more than that to win."

I knew that, of course, which was why I took this exact route.

The rounding of his eyes said that he realized the same thing. "That's cheating," he puffed. I had to give it to him though. Even if he knew where we were heading, he still ran alongside me. That took some guts.

"You said to run until the finish line. You didn't mention where the finish line is."

The last of the shops faded away behind us. In front, the dirt path that would take us to the woods was as glaring as the afternoon sun in the sky. Spencer's breathing became heavier. He didn't pause for a rest though, and continued going toe to toe. "I'm not letting you win, Des."

"You don't have a choice."

We hit the grubby trail at the same time. The smaller rocks became ash under my sneakers. The bigger ones were cast aside because of my speed. I couldn't help but smile. This was my domain. I would prevail.