Jennifer's Triad

by Laura Anne Turner

  I think of Emilia, and I sigh. I still miss her so much, that’s also true, but I want her to be happy, too, and if she’s happier without me, with someone else…then I have to learn to be happy for her.

  +++

  ‘Two or three or four, I keep on knocking at your door.’

  It’s the latest Tweet of my very own personal Crazy Bitch Romagna, who still thinks she’s my future wife. She’s very persistent, posting at least one cheerfully crazy message to me every day, on some days even more than one. I’ve stopped being annoyed with her, but I haven’t stopped wondering who she is. So, feeling more amused than annoyed I start replying to her.

  ‘Whoa Romagna! You seem to be an obsessed fan! If you weren’t so silly and cute, I’d be scared of you! Lol!

  She responds by acting even sillier, which amuses me even more. Of course right now isn’t the best time to fool around with Romagna on Twitter, given the fact that my classes are about to start. I’m hurrying down the long hallway of the building that houses the history and foreign language departments. I’m running a little late, because even though I spent time with Emilia and Nellie a few weeks ago trying to familiarize myself with the different buildings and lecture halls, I’m still having trouble to find my way to the location of my introductory course in history.

  I just manage to make it to class on time before my professor starts his lecture. There’s a free seat in the front row, and I take it. There’s a pretty blonde with a chic updo sitting next to me. She shoots me a disgusted look as I take out my notepad and pen, and slide my backpack under my seat. From out of the corner of my eye I see The Blonde stare at the tattoos on my left forearm, and scrunching up her nose she whispers something to the cute redhead next to her. The Redhead leans forward so she can get a good look at me, and frowns disapprovingly, before leaning back. The two exchange whispers, before they both start to giggle.

  Their unpleasant laughter infuriates me, but before I even can lose my temper, Professor Breitenbach starts his lecture. The heads of The Blonde and Miss Redhead snap forward immediately, and I try to focus on what the man is saying, too, but it’s hard. His presentation is so boring, and so I start checking out The Blonde to my left. She’s certainly pretty, no doubt, but she doesn’t appeal to me. She’s made up to look like she’s not wearing any makeup. I don’t get it. Why would a girl do that? And how much time did she spend in front of the mirror this morning? Judging from how perfectly polished her fingernails are, she’s obviously spent quite a while getting ready for class. She’s wearing a white blouse and beige slacks. Beige! What kind of girl wears beige for fucks sake? A prissy little bitch obviously. I bet she’s rich Daddy’s little baby girl. Her redheaded friend isn’t any better, I’m sure. I know that type of girl.

  The contrast between the two of us couldn’t be greater, I decide. I’m dressed as a rock chick, wearing black, ripped jeans, and a black ‘Halestorm’ t-shirt that says ‘Hello, it’s Mz Hyde’. As I start to think about it, I begin to feel better and better about the difference.

  When Breitenbach’s lecture finally ends, The Blonde and her Miss Redhead friend hurry up to our professor’s desk, apparently wanting to impress him by making a show of interest in his presentation. However, a nerdy-looking guy beats them to it, and The Prissy Bitches have to wait till he’s done. I smirk, while gathering up my things and getting ready to leave. As I saunter past my new ‘friends’, they pause to look me over, and then they turn their noses at me. I hear The Blonde say something I can’t quite make out, but I don’t like the sound of it.

  I stop dead in my tracks and glare at her, but before I can demand that The Blonde tell me what it was she just said about me, another blonde appears in front of me, grinning. Besides being a lot friendlier than The Blonde Bitch, she’s not quite as well dressed either. She’s wearing faded blue jeans and a plain grey sweatshirt that’s pulled up to her elbows, showing her skinny arms. This blonde looks like a typical nerdy college student. She’s wearing black-rimmed glasses, and her long blonde hair is piled up on top of her head in a messy bun. She’s cute. I forget about the prissy bitches and smile back at her.

  Her grin becomes broader, and she says cheerfully, “Hey Jenny!”

  Her tone startles me somehow. Should I know this girl? She seems to think I ought to! Oh God, this isn’t Romagna, is it? I mean, she’s not a redhead, but who knows? I try not to become too nervous.

  She starts to giggle. “You don’t know who I am, do you, Jenny?”

  I shake my head. “Ah…no?”

  She laughs loudly, drawing the startled attention of The Prissy Bitches. Undoing her bun, the nerdy blonde shakes her hair loose, and takes off her glasses. When she looks up at me, I finally recognize her, it’s Bette’s girl, Tanja!

  I stare at her in utter disbelief. “Oh God, Tanja, I can’t believe I didn’t recognize you! I’m so sorry!”

  My obvious embarrassment makes her laugh louder. “Well, you didn’t expect to see me here, Jenny, and you’ve never seen me with glasses before, or with my hair up before.” She grins at me wickedly. “And you haven’t really seen me fully dressed before, either?”

  I have to laugh. “Except for lingerie or in a t-shirt, no.”

  I see The Blonde out of the corner of my eye look at the two of us in shock. Apparently she’s heard what Tanja’s said to me. I turn to the Blonde Bitch, and give her an evil grin. Tanja follows my eyes, and gives The Prissy Bitches a crazy smile, before she pulls her sweatshirt over her head. It turns out she’s wearing a Pretty Reckless t-shirt underneath, the one that shows Taylor Momsen naked from the waist up, with one hand covering her nipple.

  Wow, it reminds me of the ‘Going to Hell’ t-shirt I have in my closet at home. Tanja’s not wearing a bra underneath it, either! I can see her nipples! It also turns out that she’s wearing low-rise jeans that show off the toned abs of her bare belly and her belly button piercing.

  Tanja keeps grinning at The Prissy Bitches, who are both staring at us in shock. She wraps one arm around my waist, gives them her cute little wave I’ve seen been before and that involves her wiggling her fingers, and then she sticks her tongue out at them. The Bitches seem to be at a loss for words now. I can’t believe what I’m seeing, but then I remember Bette’s words that Tanja is ‘the Craziest Bitch’, and I start giggling.

  Tanja smiles smugly, and turns her attention to me. “You want to go have coffee, Babes?” she says. She lowers her voice so our professor can’t hear. “After that lecture I need some caffeine to wake me up properly.”

  “Yeah, Tanja, I could use some coffee myself. Let’s go.”

  She gives me a lopsided grin and links arms with me, as we walk off. I glance back once, and I giggle when I see that The Blonde and Miss Redhead are still staring at us in shock.

  +++

  ‘You may take two, or you take three, but I’m the one to marry thee.’

  Romagna hasn’t replied to my last Tweet, but responded in her own peculiar way instead. I’m sitting at my desk in my room. It’s early evening, and I’ve decided to take a break from studying, so I’m checking the notifications on my Twitter account.

  Well, I decide I’ll try replying her way, then. I lean over my laptop and type out the words, ‘How can you know I’m going to marry thee, Mysterious Romagna?’

  Romagna responds immediately. ‘There are some things you just know, Jet-Black Jenny, and in the end I know you will marry me, my not-so-Coldhearted beloved.’

  I shake my head in disbelief at Romagna’s answer. This girl must be crazy, but she’s also adorable somehow. And she’s trying to drive me crazy, too. She certainly knows how to attract attention. Her Tweets have gotten lots of likes and comments, and so have the replies I’ve made to them.

  I hear a knock on my door, even though it’s open. Looking up I see Ina standing in the doorway, smiling at me. The fact she knocked on my open door is really endearing, somehow, and I can’t help but smile back at her.

  “I have some new clothes f
or you, Jenny,” Ina says, “If it won’t keep you from anything, I’d like you to take a look at them.”

  “Nothing’s as important as new clothes, Ina,” I say, jumping out of my desk chair.

  Ina laughs. “That’s my girl, Jenny.” Ina’s been supplying us with stylish new clothes whenever she can, and I’ve learned to appreciate the fact. I’ve also come to appreciate her taste in clothes, because she always knows what I like, and what makes me look good.

  “How was your day at the boutique, Ina?” I ask as we make the short way down the hallway to her bedroom.

  She grins, looking a bit giddy. “It was awesome, Babe. Kira came in and asked me to give her a makeover. A makeover as a rocker chick.”

  “Ooooh! So you saw Kira again? Interesting,” I say, raising my eyebrows.

  Ina laughs. “Yeah, she’s really cute, and really sweet. Her Dad’s a Russian millionaire, and he loves spoiling her. She had lots of money to spend!” Ina grins at me. “Her visit to the shop was really fun, and really profitable.”

  “Oh? How much fun was it?” I ask as we enter her bedroom.

  Ina laughs boisterously. “I’ll never tell, Babe.” She presses one finger to her lips and winks at me, making me giggle. The next moment she becomes serious as she starts pulling out the things she got for me from a couple of shopping bags. “Here, I have a few things you can wear onstage, and a few things you can wear to school, too.”

  Living with ‘The Coldhearts’ girls has made me a lot less modest than I used to be, and so I strip down to bra and panties in front of Ina without feeling any embarrassment at all. Well, I’ve seen all of them naked plenty of times, like they’ve seen me without clothes, too. I try on the clothes Ina has brought me, and always her taste is unerring. In the end I decide to buy everything she’s got, including a black corset and a pair of tight fitting black leather shorts with a studded belt and silver chains to wear onstage. I also get two pairs of new trendy jeans that have a higher waist than the rest of the ones I have, just to wear to school.

  When I’m finished trying on clothes, Ina nods and smiles, looking quite satisfied with herself. “You’re so much better dressed now than you were before I got a hold on you, Jen.”

  I giggle. “You’re right about that, Princess.”

  Inked Princess Ina looks thoroughly smug. “I know, Babe. I’ve got another surprise for you, too, a big one. Come follow me downstairs!”

  Knowing Ina well enough I suppose that it must have something to do with clothes. I follow her, wondering what exactly her surprise is, as I idly watch her swaying hips. She’s wearing high heels, and a pair of tight jeans that nicely show her tight butt. I’m not interested in getting involved with Ina, but I do enjoy looking at her.

  When we enter the living room, Nellie and Bette are already sitting on the couch, waiting for us. Apparently, Ina’s surprise is for them, too, and so they smile at her as she crosses the room to the table. I sit down on the couch between Nellie and Bette, while Ina takes something from the shopping bag that’s sitting on the tabletop. She holds it up with a dramatic flourish.

  “This, my Heavy Metal Bitches, is the new ‘Coldhearts’ official t-shirt’.”

  We all squeal and applaud. The front of the t-shirt shows a black and white picture of the four of us. I shake my head in amazement. I never imagined that one day my face would be on a t-shirt.

  Ina smiles as she turns the shirt around to show us the back of it. It shows ‘The Coldhearts’ logo in screaming pink letters.

  “It’s amazing,” I say, wide-eyed, before I glance at Bette. “Did you design the new logo?”

  She smirks. “Yeah, I did.” Her grin looks wickedly. “Are you asking, because you noticed the ‘O’ in ‘Coldhearts’ looks like it could be a stylized picture of a cunt, Baby Doll?”

  I laugh. It might not have been obvious to me before I got to know Bette, but it is now.

  “I’m going to wear mine at school,” Nellie says, touching my arm.

  “I will, too,” I reply excitedly.

  Bette nods firmly, looking business-like. “I’m hoping we’ll be able to sell a lot of them to offset the costs of making them. We’ve ordered quite a few of them, both in black and in red.”

  Ina holds up a shirt in red, on which the band logo is printed in black.

  “Oh, I’m sure we will! Our fans are going to love it,” I squeal.

  “And you know what’s going to make our fans love it, Jet-Black Jenny? Seeing you wearing it,” Bette says, her eyes gleaming.

  I blush and giggle. “You have your camera?”

  “Fuck yeah, Baby Doll! Wanna take some pictures for Twitter and Instagram?” She replies, grinning wolfishly.

  Laughing, I stand up, and pull the t-shirt I’m wearing over my head. Handing it to Nellie, I take the new band shirt in black that Ina is holding up for me.

  +++

  A few days after starting college, I realize that ‘The Coldhearts’ really and truly are local celebrities, and I’m very much surprised to learn that I’m a kind of celebrity myself. More and more students recognize me on campus. Maybe this is due to my accounts on social media? Whenever I sit down with Nellie or Tanja or both of them to have coffee or lunch, girls who are fans of ‘The Coldhearts’ want to sit down with us. Some of them are even wearing our new t-shirt.

  I discover I have a little group of girls who are particular fans of mine. They call themselves ‘The Jet-Blacks’, and some of them have dyed their hair jet-black to match mine. It’s so crazy. They all follow me on Twitter or Instagram, and some of them really want to know what’s going on with that mysterious Romagna girl and me.

  The Prissy Bitches, The Blonde and The Redhead, and a few more of their friends of course notice my increasing popularity. It seems to infuriate them. When they see me, they start glaring at me, and whenever I’m in earshot of them, they start whispering, giving me nasty looks to make sure I understand that they’re talking about me. It doesn’t really bother me anymore. I’m always with Nellie or Tanja or with one of our new friends, all of whom seem to adore me.

  One day a couple of weeks into the semester, Tanja and I are leaving the ladies room after our introductory history class. She has just changed out of her jeans, blouse, and tennis shoes, into something that shows off her body, as well as her new Taylor Momsen tattoo. She’s now wearing tight, skimpy pink denim shorts, our new black Coldhearts t-shirt, and studded black ankle boots. Suddenly I see something that shocks me badly enough to make me freeze where I’m standing, and just stare. I’m not sure if I can trust my eyes.

  A good way down the hallway I see Nellie’s familiar Alice Cullen hairdo. It’s Nellie, all right, but she isn’t what shocks me, it’s who she is with. It’s Emilia! The two of them are actually being friendly! I see Nellie turn to Emi and say something to her, and I see my ex-girlfriend throw back her head and laugh. I’m thoroughly shaken by the sight. I’ve missed Emilia so much. I’ve missed seeing her smile and laugh like that. And now she’s smiling at Nellie, and laughing at something my girlfriend Nellie said!

  “Jenny! Jenny?” I feel Tanja touching my arm. Looking up I see her staring at me, wide-eyed. “You’re so pale! Are you okay?” My friend sounds wildly alarmed.

  I take a deep breath, trying to smile at her reassuringly, but I know it’s not very convincing. “Yeah, I’m okay, Tanja. I just felt a little dizzy suddenly. Maybe I need something to eat and a coffee?”

  Tanja looks dubious for a moment, but she hooks her arm under mine, and pulls me in the direction of the cafeteria. I glance over my shoulder, in the direction that Nell and Emi were going, but they’ve disappeared. Tanja and I head for the cafeteria, and she doesn’t let go of my arm till I’m sitting down. She never stops looking worried, either. I can’t help wondering whether Tanja saw Nellie and Emilia, but I don’t ask her, because I don’t want to talk about them.

  “Now, Babes, you stay here and I’ll go and get you something to eat. A soda and some chicken soup sound okay?” My
friend says softly.

  I smile weakly. That sounds like something you’d fix for someone who’s sick. I probably look sick, though. Tanja looks at me as if she’s a little afraid to leave me alone, but then she leans over, gives me a hug, and goes off to fetch lunch.

  While she’s gone, my thoughts still race through my head. Why are Nellie and Emilia so friendly all of a sudden? If they’re friends now, why hasn’t Nell told me? Could it be that they’re dating? No, that’s crazy, and I’m sure Nellie would’ve told me if that were the case. But still, seeing my girlfriend with my ex-girlfriend is just too weird!

  Tanja comes back with coffee and a sandwich for herself, and a Coke and chicken soup for me. She watches me eat, as if she knew what I’m so upset about. She doesn’t ask me any awkward questions though, which is fine with me. I’d rather avoid talking or even thinking about Nellie and Emilia together. I intend to spend the rest of my day focusing on my homework for my history class. That, at least, is something I may be able to understand.

  CHAPTER 14 – BIRTHDAY PARTY

  ‘In a few more days, just wait and see, you will come and marry me.’

  Romagna keeps on posting her weird texts. There’s a picture with the text this time, a photograph of a girl wearing a gilt masquerade mask. The mask covers the upper part of her face, while a black silk scarf covers her hair. The red rose pressed to her lips covers most of her lower face, too. I can’t really see anything of her face at all except for her bright blue eyes, which are sparkling with mischief. Somehow I know she’s smiling impishly, but I still don’t know who she is. She responds to all the replies to her posts teasingly, making it clear to me that she’s madly in love with me without telling anything about herself. I still don’t know whether I’m flattered or annoyed, but she knows how to increase my curiosity day by day.