by H. P. Munro
Anna nodded and shifted uncomfortably in her seat, “Sadly those rumors are true. I haven’t spoken to Freya directly yet, but I spoke to her father this morning and he said that she was no longer on the show.” She gave a taut smile, her feelings on the subject plain for everyone to see, “It is a travesty that Freya is being punished because of who she loves.”
Biting her bottom lip Freya chuckled. While in private her grandmother often lamented Freya’s sexuality, in public she was like a she-wolf protecting her family when there was any sign of attack.
“I’m not sure that is the case. The rumors are that she was let go as the network felt that the viewers didn’t connect with the on-screen relationship between her and Jordan Ellis.”
Freya raised an eyebrow at this nugget of information and was about to shout at the TV when she recognized the look on her grandmother’s face. “Oh God no,” she muttered, gripping a cushion against her chest in the hope it could protect her from what was about to happen.
Anna drew herself up, straightening her back and thrusting her shoulders back, “That is a complete crock.”
The audience let out a loud laugh.
“Let me tell you this,” she pointed her finger in the face of one of the presenters. “This is my granddaughter we’re taking about. She has acting in her DNA as well as training from RADA. If she was asked to have chemistry with a block of wood, she would have it.” Anna turned to the audience, “I watched her on that show and as far as I could tell, there was not only chemistry, there was physics and a whole lot of biology going on as well.”
Freya hooted with laughter along with the studio audience as Anna continued her rant, “That two-bit network wouldn’t know a good thing if it bit it on the ass. What we are seeing here is plain and simple. People do not like that the women who were kissing on the show are kissing off screen as well. Well America, get over it.”
Freya leapt up onto the sofa, bouncing on the cushions as she shouted at the screen, “I love you Anna.”
The buzzing of her phone distracted her from catching the last of her grandmother’s rant. She typed ‘through my fingers’ in reply to Dan’s text asking if she was watching.
“And I wouldn’t put it past that show to kill her character off with an IUD,” Anna finished emphatically, her face twisted in disgust.
Snorting with laughter Freya muted the TV and answered her now ringing phone.
“This is priceless,” Dan gasped between bouts of laugher. “She just blew you up with a contraceptive device.”
“I know! Just when I don’t think she can surprise me ever again, she does something like this. Her publicity people will be hauling ass to gloss over this.”
Her doorbell rang and Freya was in two minds whether to leave it. The persistent ringing made her mind up for her.
“Dan, gotta go, keep watching and text me if she gets more outrageous,” she said as she leapt across the sofa, jumping down and walking towards the door still keeping an eye on the TV. Looking through the spy hole, she thumped her head softly against the door before opening it, “Dominick, good morning.”
***
Walking into Freya’s home holding a brown square box, Jordan flipped a light on in the darkened room. As she tossed her keys on the table she noticed the empty box of cupcakes sitting on beside a large pile of papers.
“Freya?” she called walking through to the kitchen, unable to see her girlfriend anywhere.
“In here.”
Jordan turned out of the kitchen towards where Freya’s voice had come from. She opened the door of the bathroom and burst out laughing at the sight of Freya sitting in the bath, her hair soaped up into a long point above her head. Jordan put down the cardboard box she had been carrying and leaned down to kiss Freya’s waiting lips.
“What, you don’t like it?” Freya asked sincerely, turning her head to allow Jordan to see the full effect of her hairstyle. “I thought I’d try something new, now that I don’t have to ask for permission on what I do with my hair.”
“It’s not your best look,” Jordan laughed taking a hand and flattening down the spike.
“Pff,” Freya sniffed haughtily then smiled. “What’s in the box?”
Jordan looked down at the box frowning, “Not sure, Liz in wardrobe asked me to give it to you.”
Freya leaned her arms on the edge of the tub and rested her chin on her hands. “Open it,” she said excitedly.
Jordan picked the box up, taking her nail to the tape securing it. As she opened it and looked inside, she gave a small chuckle. “It would appear to be contraband,” she smiled picking out Freya’s stethoscope from the show and placing it on the floor beside her feet. She reached back into the box and pulled out Freya’s ACU jacket. Her character’s name embroidered on the chest. “What a pity Liz hasn’t put the Daisy Dukes in.” Jordan pouted as she examined the remainder of the box.
“Thank God!” Freya frowned, “I hated them.”
Jordan flicked water at Freya’s face. “I was thinking about them more for my benefit. You seem brighter than when I left you this morning,” she remarked.
“Anna cheered me up,” Freya smiled, lying back in the tub. “She was on Opinionated Women today and she was awesome.”
Jordan grinned, “I heard! There was a bit of noise about it at work this afternoon. Did she really say they were going to kill you with an IUD?”
Laughing Freya nodded, before chewing on her lip as she decided to broach a new subject, “Dominick stopped by this afternoon.”
Jordan raised her eyebrows expectantly.
“He’s lined up an audition, which he says is more of a meeting and even then merely a formality.”
“Excellent, that’s great,” Jordan leaned over taking Freya’s face in her hands to give her a congratulatory kiss. “I’m so happy for you,” she smiled.
“Watch, you’ll get wet,” Freya murmured against her lips.
Jordan pulled back and gave her a smirk. “Way too late for that,” she replied huskily.
Freya grinned flicking a handful of bubbles onto Jordan’s nose, “Saucy!”
Laughing as she pulled back, Jordan picked up a towel to dry her face, “So what’s the role?”
The easy smile that had been playing on Freya’s face faded as she took a breath, “Roxie Hart.”
“As in Chicago?” Jordan asked, frowning as she put the towel down, trying to think whether she had heard on the grapevine of any productions happening in Los Angeles.
“As in Chicago and all that jazz.”
Jordan sat down onto the closed toilet. “Where about?” she asked feeling her stomach tense with trepidation at what the response was going to be.
Freya watched as fear flashed across Jordan’s features.
“Broadway,” Freya practically whispered the reply.
Biting her bottom lip that had started to tremble, Jordan nodded slowly, “For how long?”
“Six months, with an option after three to extend.”
Jordan tipped her head back to stop the tears that were threatening to spoil what should be a happy occasion for Freya.
“When?”
“Starting in Feb, but with the all rehearsals etcetera they want me there next week.”
Jordan swallowed hard before looking back down at Freya who was now sitting in the tub with her knees pulled tight against her chest and a look of sadness on her face.
“Hey it’s great, you will be great,” Jordan smiled forcing herself to ignore her feelings for the moment. Realizing that she only had a small amount of resolve before her emotions would boil to the surface she stood up and blew out a deep breath. “How about you finish up and I cook us a celebration dinner?” she smiled, leaving Freya sitting in the tub fighting her own tears.
Twenty minutes later Freya padded into the kitchen expecting to see Jordan in full chef mode. Her forehead wrinkled at the empty kitchen before she spotted the door out to the pool slightly ajar. Pushing it open, she looked out into the dimly lit
back yard. The glow from the pool uplighters provided the only illumination. Squinting into the gloom Freya spotted a figure laying on one of the loungers, arms folded loosely across her face. Freya rested her head against the doorframe and silently watched as Jordan dealt with the news of her imminent departure. Freya gave a small shake of her head before turning and moving back into the house.
Lying on the pool lounger Jordan was trying to talk herself down from her current state of devastation. Life was unfair. That she was decided on. Finally, she had met someone amazing and fallen in love and now that person was going to move to the other side of the country. She was happy for Freya as she knew from their conversations over the weekend that she was worried about not finding work. She also knew that her recent experiences had soured her towards TV, so theatre made more sense. However, none of that lessened the sense of loss that was starting to grow in her. She loved Freya, loved spending time with her, loved the way her brain worked and the way her body felt when against her own. Life just wasn’t fair.
“So Miss Ellis, my name is Major Easter and I’m your doctor. Tell me, what are your symptoms?”
Jordan lifted her arms from her face and opened one eye, the other springing open as her brain processed what was in front of her. The light from the pool highlighted Freya from behind. She stood with her hands on her hips, her hair pulled back into a messy ponytail, her tanned bare legs appearing a shade darker in the gloom than Jordan knew them to be. Jordan trailed her eyes up the bare legs until she reached the hem of the ACU jacket, which barely reached the tops of her thighs. Draped around Freya’s neck was her stethoscope. Jordan raised an eyebrow and decided to be a more than willing participant in Freya’s ploy to distract them from the large elephant that had inserted itself into their lives.
“Major?”
Freya shrugged, “I thought I deserved a promotion, what with braving all those IUDs.”
Jordan chuckled softly. “I’m having chest pains,” she replied, laughing slightly at the truth in her words.
“Really? Well let me examine you and see if we can’t work this out,” smiling Freya reached over and placed her palm on Jordan’s forehead. “Hmmm, you’re hot,” she remarked sincerely before running her hands down Jordan’s neck to her glands. “I’d say there are bits of you definitely swollen.”
Jordan snorted at the comment.
“Your pulse is quite fast.”
Freya dipped her head placing her lips against Jordan’s pulse point on her neck. “Yup definitely fast,” she murmured against her girlfriend’s hot skin.
“I know I only play a doctor but I’m fairly sure that’s not how you check a pulse.”
“No?” Freya said in mock confusion. “The wonders of modern medicine Miss Ellis. Your show really must keep up with the times. Now if you could remove your top for me?” Freya instructed keeping her face straight as she placed the stethoscope buds into her ears and breathed onto the cold metal.
Jordan looked nervously up towards the main house, “What if we’re seen?”
“Anna’s still on her promo tour. There’s no one else here but us.”
Mollified Jordan pulled her top over her head flushing slightly as she noticed Freya unconsciously lick her lips at the sight of her in her burgundy bra. Freya placed the stethoscope against Jordan’s chest listening to the tattoo that was beating beneath her sternum.
“We have increased chest sounds,” Freya mused removing her stethoscope and draping it back around her neck. She placed her hand above Jordan’s breast, “Breathing becoming shallow and skin is hot here too.”
Shifting her position Freya lifted her leg to straddle Jordan. “Starting mouth to mouth,” she smirked capturing Jordan’s lips.
Jordan groaned into Freya’s mouth as she suddenly became aware of Freya’s nakedness beneath the uniform jacket pressed against her stomach. She pushed Freya’s shoulders gently breaking the kiss. “I think you should show me your bedside manner. Inside. Now!” Jordan said with urgency.
***
“We need to talk about this sometime,” Freya could feel Jordan’s arm tighten around her waist.
“Can’t we just keep making love and not talk about it?” Jordan asked hopefully, kissing Freya’s shoulder.
Freya closed her eyes. “We’ve been doing that for four days,” she turned to face Jordan who, with her eyes still shut, pouted at the movement. “We should talk about what it means.”
“What it means is that you’ll be in New York and I’ll be here,” Jordan opened her eyes slowly and moved her head back slightly to allow Freya to come into focus. “I know what it means Freya, and that’s it,” she said sadly.
“I love you and I don’t want to leave you,” Freya stated, stopping as Jordan placed her lips on hers. After a slow bittersweet kiss, Jordan released Freya’s lips.
“I had to stop you talking, you were about to say but,” Jordan’s jaw tightened. “I’m not about to ask you to choose me over your career. I love you too and you should do this. You have to do this.”
Jordan brushed Freya’s hair from her forehead. “We’ll figure it out. Us I mean. We’ll figure us out,” she added as she felt a tear slip from her eye and trickle down the side of her face to drop onto the pillow. “Let’s just enjoy the time we have now.”
Freya nodded her response as Jordan smiled.
“We have less than a week to store up a lot of sex to see us through until I get a break and come to New York.”
“We should probably get a start on that,” Freya said seriously, giving a small smile before she tightened her arm around Jordan drawing her closer.
December 2011
Jordan stood sipping a glass of champagne. Admiring the double life-sized image in front of her, she recalled the first time she’d seen it. Her cheek muscles twitched as she smirked at the memory of trailing her fingers over the photo. The smirk broadened into a smile as she thought of the times she had repeated those very same actions, only beneath her fingers was warm, soft, flesh. She jumped slightly, sloshing the champagne in her glass as two arms snaked around her waist from behind, switching her glass of champagne for another before pulling her into a backwards embrace.
“Don’t drink the stuff for the punters, it’s nasty! You’re family, you get the good stuff,” Dan whispered in her ear, he pulled away slightly to drain the content of the glass he’d taken from Jordan, placing the empty glass onto a passing waitress’s tray. “There I killed it for you, I’m your shite in brighning armour,” he said resting his chin onto Jordan’s shoulder. “You do know I have other photos. In fact I have a whole exhibition full.”
“I know, I like this one.”
“I know you do perv, which is why you’ve been gawping at it for twenty minutes,” Dan joked earning himself a slap on the arm as Jordan leaned back against him.
“I miss her.”
“Me too,” Dan sighed. “I have a gift for you. Ask the scary-looking woman with the headset later and she’ll give it to you.”
Turning her head Jordan placed a kiss on Dan’s cheek, “Thank you. Have you spoken to her recently?”
“The scary woman with the headset? I try not to, she instantly makes my balls retract,” Dan felt Jordan’s body shake with quiet laughter. “If you mean Freya, I sometimes manage to grab ten minutes with her inbetween rehearsal time, dance practice and singing lessons. She sounds wiped and full of crap,” he murmured. “I mean what’s with the ‘don’t bother travelling all this way for Christmas, it’s too far and I’ll probably have no time’ schtick that she’s trying to sell us?”
“Yeah, I got that message too,” Jordan sighed, taking a sip of the champagne Dan had given her. “Mmm, good stuff’s good!” she sang. “I never said thank you,” she added, her tone serious.
Dan frowned shifting slightly so he could look at Jordan, “For what?”
“Taking her to the airport,” Jordan pulled Dan’s arms tighter around her. “I wanted to, but probably would have made a scene standing yelli
ng at her not to go and holding onto her leg.”
Dan laughed. “Who said I didn’t!” only half joking as he recalled the tear-filled snot-fest that had been Freya’s departure.
“Freya said you wailed.”
Snorting Dan shook his head, “I did not wail, I maybe cried a little…like a manly man or at the very least a semi-butch lesbian.”
“Thank you anyway.”
Dan snuggled closer, “That’s what we do, I have her back and now I have yours, quite literally at the moment.” He pecked a kiss on Jordan’s cheek before releasing her, “Anyway, people to do, must schmooz my tush off.”
As he turned to walk away, Jordan shouted after him, “You know I reckon you’ll make someone a great husband some day.”
Dan scowled before hissing back, “Great, you’ve found something else to make my balls retract.” He grinned then swept off to be showered with adulation from the exhibition attendees.
Reluctantly, Jordan tore herself away from the large image of Freya and walked around the gallery space to look at the rest of Dan’s work. She was hugely impressed at the images. Capturing people going about their lives, they were natural and intimate. She was proud of Dan, whose friendship had come via Freya.
He had always been part of the package and initially Jordan had thought that she’d resent their closeness until she realized that they both had huge hearts and never excluded her from anything. Jokes were always explained and she grew to understand the shared language, created over years of friendship, that existed between them. Her friendship with Dan had grown particularly over the past weeks when both were dealing with Freya’s absence. They had found solace in each other and their mutual margarita making abilities. Jordan had wondered about Dan’s easy acceptance of her, but Freya had explained that she’d passed the test in his eyes; by initially having sex with her despite the cow-print onesie and then by refusing to let her wear it again, which she’d been resolute on until the firing happened.
As she moved around the gallery, Jordan spotted the woman that Dan had told her to speak to walking over to her. Jordan touched her lightly on the arm, “Hi, excuse me.”