Double Grades

by Kristine Robinson

  * * *

  Chelsea wasn't the kind of girl who minded being the center of attention. Not that she sought it out, mostly because she didn't have to. There was always something her father was doing that made people flock to her, want to be around her. Tonight he was announcing his run for a second term as Governor.

  A scandal involving her father and someone else had just rocked his last term, so Chelsea wasn't excited about the prospect that there would be a never ending parade of media attention, or, at least, four more years of it. Because now it seemed like every outlet smelled blood in the water. It didn't matter if the media outlet was left or right, everyone seemed primed to take a chunk out of her and her family.

  What had happened was something that she tried not to think about, because in all reality, it didn't really affect her. And the pain it was causing the people she loved was mostly due to their own hubris, something she had no control over. What had had happened was that her father had been caught with a mistress. It wasn't supposed to be such a big deal, but then the opposing faction in the state senate pushed for a probe of what had happened.

  Her father, against all better judgment, had decided to take a woman into his official room of government business, called the Rectangular Office, and have the young woman him preform oral sex on him under the desk. Of course, her father had outright admitted to what he'd done when confronted. Not only had he been upfront about it, he'd been very open that he wasn't going to be shy. Her father had gone on and on, during interviews on public television, about how it hadn't been about some kind of sex addiction esque need to get it off, it had been validating himself sexually as an older man, and also feeling the pleasure that he knew an eager woman would give him.

  Her father hadn't gone so far as to say that he wasn't getting any at home, but that was the impression most people got from listening to him speak. Soon, jokes about her father and mother's relationship were circulating social media. There wasn't much that Chelsea could do to make it stop. She was only one person, and didn't even have a social media account to speak of. That was one lesson she'd learned on in college, that she didn't want to be constantly watched on the internet.

  Because she knew she wouldn't be able to keep other people from watching her every move, she just removed herself from the situation. As she looked around the room, she saw Shane, one of the football teams running backs who was making a name for herself playing on an all male team as the only female. Shane had a reputation as the kind of lesbian who loved straight girls, or girls who were bi.

  Chelsea didn't have any idea if Shane thought she was cute or not, but figured now was the perfect time to find out. It would be a good way to entertain herself while time passed at a snails pace, her father moving about the room and shaking peoples' hands, as confident here as Bill Clinton in Harlem. Chelsea wondered when people were going to wake up, and people would figure out what a charlatan her father really was. It was hard for her to understand, sometimes, why people put such a great amount of faith in her father when he was such an obvious politician.

  That was something her father was always pretty clear about with everyone, the way that he was just a scumbag in a suit. And, although most people put off accepting the reality and instead deluded themselves into thinking he was joking, her father would talk about how he didn't have loyalty to anyone, how he was only ever out to help himself and any other course of action was one he considered to be one born of weakness. Her father was the kind of sociopath who hid it in plain sight, and the people he surrounded himself were the kind who validated him. There weren't any people his father let hang around who were going to call him out on any of his bullshit. They were only going to help perpetuate it. The moment where someone brought critical thought into play would never come, no matter how much Chelsea wanted to will lit into existence. When Chelsea got to Shane, she knew she would have a good talk with the young, semi famous woman, about it.

  “Hey,” Chelsea said. “Did you hear about my mom and dad's sex life, recently? I mean, it's all over the tabloids, I don't know how you couldn't know.”

  Shane threw her head back and laughed, her eyes sparkling with a mischievous light that Chelsea could spark in other people when she was particular disrespectful to her elders.

  “You know,” Shane said. “I couldn't help but see that. I know it's probably very hard on you, and I don't mean at all to make fun of your suffering. I just know that once this kind of mean spirited stuff really gets worked to a fervor when it comes to politics. People forget that other people have feelings to, you know?”

  “Boy do I ever,” Chelsea said. “You know how bad it gets, though, for sure.”

  When Shane had gone out for the football team, it had caused huge waves in the community. People weren't comfortable with the idea that someone could buck all of the trends and join an all male football team instead of going out for cheer leading. The couches had accepted it, though, and not only that, a few of them had really pushed Shane not to back out once she had started.

  “I was lucky to have so much support, though,” Shane said. “Something that I'm not sure you have, to be honest. I know you have friends, but where are they now? And I know that you're a strong person who doesn't need her hand held, but at the same time, when I went through my shit I never forgot how much it had meant to me that the rest of the football community had rallied around me and my struggle. But you don't have anything like that.”

  Chelsea didn't know what to say. Shane had a good point. It would be very nice to have some kind of support center. But all the support that Chelsea had at the given moment was the kind she mustered up out of her gut. People didn't seem to empathize with her plight, was all. Not that Chelsea expected them. She was, after all, wildly rich in most peoples' estimations. She didn't need reminded how some people would allow that fact to keep them from ever seeing her as another human being. It wasn't fare, and she knew it, how the world treated her sometimes.

  “How are you these days, Shane? You seem to be doing well,” Chelsea said. “I know you went through some shit before, but have things stabilized recently?”

  “More or less,” Shane said. “It's not like everything just blew over, but now it feels like things are starting to move forward. I'm not trying to dwell in the past, or anything like that. There isn't much I can do but press onward. I know there are a lot of people who would like to see me fail, but that isn't going to happen because I'm determined.”

  Chelsea looked at Shane while she was talking. Shane was well built, with broad shoulders and a chin that looked chiseled from granite. Chelsea, in comparison, looked even more feminine than she usually did when she stood by Shane. Chelsea was the kind of girl who rocked her hourglass figure with no remorse, wearing things that made her seem even more buxom than she really was. She liked the attention she got from men, truth be told, and she also liked the way that people thought of her as a kind of sex object, even if it did get on her nerves sometimes. She was a complex, multifaceted human being who didn't mind if it made some people uncomfortable if she was comfortable with herself.

  “How about yourself? You're amidst the fire right now,” Shane said. “How are you fairing out there on the turbulent sea of public opinion? I know there were more than just a few times when I thought things were overwhelming, but I didn't have anyone to talk to. I just hope that you know that there are people that care about you, and I mean really do care about you, so you don't have to be alone through all of this. So please, if you ever need someone to talk to, or a listening ear, just call me. All right?”

  Chelsea nodded and reached out to squeeze Shane's hand. It felt good to see Shane feel the spark jolt between them when they made contact. They were both so attracted to each other it was crazy, that much was apparent to anyone close by. But were they going to do anything about it? Chelsea didn't know, but she didn't think so, and she wanted Shane to know that if she wanted to, Chelsea was down. Chelsea was surprised when Shane reached back across the gulf betw
een them to grasp her hand once again, and this time pull her after.

  As they left the gathering, hand in hand, Chelsea looked around to see if there was anyone around who would observe their departure who might put it in a tabloid or something of that nature. There were many things that Chelsea didn't mind, but having her face all of the front of some mudslinging gossip magazine wasn't one of them. She wanted to distance herself from them as much as possible. The tabloids had people she couldn't see, Chelsea was sure, but they didn't let that take the spring out of their step as they made their way to Shane's car. There was something about reaching out her stride on the way to be romantic with someone that really made Chelsea smile, and she could see her beaming glow reflected back at her from Shane.

  Chelsea always felt so accomplished when someone decided to take her home. There was just something about it, hard to put her finger on, that made her wonder how much she could fall for Shane. This would be the first time Chelsea had ever been with a woman, and while she was nervous, her excitement overshadowed all of that.

  As Shane switched on the ignition and the engine of her truck roared to life Chelsea felt a thrill of danger race through her. It really was something else that Shane was courting her so outright. Although all of this could be construed as just girls being friends to each other, they both knew what was really going on. Neither of them had any kind of illusion about different pretenses. And that was one of the things that made it outright racy.

  Chelsea didn't realize just how racy things could become, though. Instead of going to Shane's house, they drove down some country back roads to find some privacy.

  “You know how it is in a college town,” Shane said. “You end up spending so much time in the city that you forget completely that there might be a country for people to go out and explore.”

  Chelsea felt the truck's motor shift as Shane moved the shifter between them. She was so masculine in many of her mannerisms, but in others she retained her femininity. That's what Chelsea liked about Shane most, that there wasn't an easy way to classify what she was or wasn't, Chelsea didn't want the classifications, and she thought it was sexy how Shane didn't want them either. They didn't help her any, the little pigeonholes or the people who used them.

  “I'm glad were headed out into the woods,” Chelsea said. “I think it's nice out there. The way everything just hums along with life an doesn't make a fuss at all. That's not something that's easy to find. Most of the time life has to be loud and obnoxious, but not with the rural areas.”

  Shane nodded. Chelsea knew that Shane was one of those people who loved nature but, like nature itself, wasn't loud about it. There was plenty of time for people who got to know Shane to realize that she really did loves trees and grass in a way that many people considered to be a little bit hippie dippy. There was always going to be something that people found to criticize, though, Chelsea knew. If it wasn't one thing, it was another.

  Chelsea was sure that somehow the way that Shane was accelerating into the curves would get back to her father. And whatever they did when they stopped was going to get back to her father. The whole entire episode would. That was just the way it went, it felt like, but out here in the backwoods it didn't seem like that big of a deal.

  So Shane gunned the car forward, making sure to look especially brave and determined when it seemed like there was a chance that they'd both end up flipping with the car. But they never did. There were a few times when Shane flew over hills so fast that their wheels spun the gravel out from underneath their tires like a snow blower.

  For the longest time Chelsea wasn't sure where Shane was taking them, and then it became clear. The lighthouse on the horizon, where the state touched the coast, but just barely. That was the thing about where they lived, there was all kind of weather and terrain. There were even mountains, but they were in the opposite direction for a few hours. They were only about twenty minutes away from the lighthouse. It was a popular spot for people to go, and Chelsea had been wanting someone to take her there for some time.

  Shane kept looking at Chelsea out of the side of her vision, and Chelsea barely noticed. Chelsea knew that Shane had to be thinking what she was thinking: that the entire thing was too much fun and she couldn't wait to get to the lighthouse. But what would they do when they go there? It was always hard to tell what would happen when stuff like this went down. A big part of her wanted to chicken out, and another part of her wanted things to go as planned. It was hard to tell what part would win out, but Chelsea didn't think she'd be getting off the hook easy with Shane. Not that Shane would do anything weird, it's just that she would turn on the heat and then Chelsea would really have to withstand getting come on to by a woman she thought was sexy.

  Chelsea knew that she wouldn't be able to hold out for long. When they got to the lighthouse and made their way round and round the staircase that circled the structure, all the way to the top. That was where Chelsea would find out whether or not she was going to fool around with Shane beyond just a little kiss or two. Chelsea didn't think that anyone would be out at the lighthouse, especially on a night like tonight when there was so much happening elsewhere—it wasn't just her father who was having events, after all. There was a major league baseball game, and a horse race that had been hyped for months. There were a few movies that had come out as well. All in all, if Chelsea had to pick a night that she was going to go out to the lighthouse to fool around with someone, especially Shane, then this would be the night.

  The air whistled through the trucks grate softly, making Chelsea think of a childhood memory as they crested the last hill, the slope of which led down to the ocean and the lighthouse. Of course there was little time to change her mind now about going, but there was part of her that was afraid and wanted to ask Shane to just go back. She wanted to tell Shane that they could come back another night, any night, and then they'd come down to the lighthouse and see what there was to see.

  That wasn't going to work on the finally stretch, especially because Chelsea was so turned on. There was something about coming to a place that signaled boats that really made Chelsea think about how exciting what they were about to do was. And as Shane parked the truck, then helped her out of it, Chelsea smiled big. They made their way round and round the stairs that circled the tower. When they finally made it to the glass, greenhouse like top, Chelsea was excited.

  “Here we are!,” Shane said. “You know, I've never been here before. And I mean that, before you get all cynical and think that I must say that to everyone.”

  “No, no,” Chelsea said. “Not at all. I don't think that. This is my first time out here as well. It's sure a hell of a romantic spot.”

  “It really is,” Shane said. “I'm surprised that more people don't know about it.”

  Shane moved behind Chelsea and wrapped her arms around her. Chelsea couldn't believe how good it felt to be inside the lighthouse's giant glass chamber for a top while having Shane's arms wrapped around her. Shane started pecking at Chelsea's neck, kissing her lightly. Chelsea couldn't believe how gentle Shane was being, and how much she loved it. Every time Shane touched her body it was like something ran through them that was hard to describe. Something between lust and longing.

  There was a certain intensity in every move that Shane made. It was as if Shane had been out in the desert and Chelsea was the oasis. Every touch and caress Shane made was like something precious being laid on the alter of God. There wasn't a wasted movement, and everything Shane did she did with Chelsea, not too Chelsea. It was as if they vibrated together, and then as if they were slipping and sliding against each other like someone had poured oil on them.

  Neither of them saw the police officer come up the stairs and freeze, watching both of them with his jaw hanging open. He technically took too long getting about the business of arresting them, in fact, he might have watched for a good amount of time. Chelsea and Shane didn't notice, not one bit. Of course the officer had had the decency not to take any photos, but
, while he waited for the two women to notice that they were no longer alone, he did pull out his phone and shoot off a text to his boss letting him know that there would be some trouble looming on the horizon if this wasn't handled the right way.

  Chelsea finally saw the officer standing somewhat meekly at the top of the stairs, waiting for the women to come back down from the clouds to planet earth so he could speak with the.

  “So,” the cop said. “I know this is a bit awkward, but you're both fairly famous. Not only that, but we don't really want to have to deal with the bad press. In fact, I'm not even going to tell your father. My boss says that if one of you is sober enough to drive then there really isn't a problem and you can both go.”

  “We're both sober,” Shane said. “In fact--

  “Thank you, officer,” Chelsea said. “I know that you certainly don't have to think about what it would do to Shane's career, or my father's career, but I thank you for doing so. I know that you've got a tough job, and there are times that you probably get a lot of shit for being a 'bad guy,' yet here you are, cutting us a break.”

  The cop nodded, clasped his hands behind his back, and looked at the floor.

  “It would have been some jail time,” he said. “For both of you. And I know that sounds a little but ludicrous, maybe because it is, but you the amount of trespassing going on and all of that. I'm sure you can both appreciate what kind of predicament you'd be in if the DA was interested in some kind of entanglement.”

  Chelsea nodded, and both women quickly stood and pulled all of their clothes back into the proper fitting position. Without so much as saying anything else the officer was gone. Chelsea was so thankful that neither herself or Shane had been arrested. It would have pissed her father off so much, and as much as she loved to do just that, she hated the idea of having to sit in jail and wait for her father's heart to soften enough that he would get her out. Maybe Shane would have been able to get her out, who knew. In any event, they'd lucked out.