Dear Ex-Girlfriend (Lesbian, Girlxgirl, Gay)

Chapter 10. String

Chapter10. String

You need to possess several qualities if you want to be a good puppeteer. You need to know which string to pull at the right moment to deliver a certain move. You need to have the patience to practice— you should make time for it. You need to know each part of your marionette like the back of your hand.

Of all Boy and Girl's parts, I've always loved the strings. I considered them the command centers, like what the brain was to a human. Strings were flexible, strong, light, and elastic. I wanted to be a string.

It rained that night after I got home. It rained so hard that I could hear the water lapping on the roof and hitting the windows. It made everything outside dark and foggy.

I sat on the bed and leaned my head on the wall. I listened to the slosh of the rain on the gutter. I smelled the scent of the water hitting the earth. My senses were on top gear. With a snap of a finger, a word, a song, I would crash and burn. It was now, more than ever, that I needed to be a string. Nothing could break me. Even Genesis.

On Tuesday morning, Spencer and Ester were back on my doorstep, picking me up for school. The two of them, plus dad who opened the door, shushed down when I appeared. Great. Now I had the power to stop conversations. Next thing you know, I'd be walking on water. Mind blown. Shook.

I stopped and stood on tiptoes as I was passing dad. His eyes widened when I gave him a peck on the cheek. "Bye," I said, then stepped out.

Everything was clearer after the rain. The sky, for example, was bluer than it had ever been. There was a certain clean feeling on the air too, as if the dirt and everything that came with it had been washed away. The twins tagged behind me as I whistled and turned my face to the sunshine. It was a beautiful day.

"I think she's on Marie-Joanna." Spencer's voice carried to me. "That's my cooler, hotter codename for Mary Jane, by the way."

"Stop it," Ester murmured.

"Stop what? I'm just stating the facts. Hold up, let me ask her."

Ester's reprimands were drowned out by Spencer's jogging. His hands were behind his head when he caught up with me. "Hey, Des. Got a bong?"

Ester shuffled beside us and slapped his arm. "I told you to quit it." She gave me a quick smile. "Never mind him. We found him on a farm."

"Nice try, sis. I would have believed you if you didn't look exactly like the Spencester. Lucky you, though."

I followed two birds with my eyes. They flew from one of the roofs to an electric power line. Ester could probably tell me in complete nerdy detail the reason why those birds weren't burned, but another question was waiting at the end of my tongue. "Do you think she still likes cotton candy? She always liked cotton candy."

"Told you," Spencer whispered. "Marie-Joanna."

Ester shoved his face and the rest of him out of the way to step beside me. "What did you say?" she asked.

The birds were flying away as I lowered my gaze to her. "Do you think Gene still likes cotton candy?"

"I don't know," she mumbled.

"How about you, Spence? Do you think she still likes it?"

He shrugged. "I don't know too. Did you actually talk to her yesterday? Is that why you're in a good mood?"

"Nope." I smiled at him. "But I talked to her bodyguard."

Ester yanked my bag so suddenly that it made my stomach drop. Being pulled back while my body was trying to go forward was a weird feeling.