by C. P. Watson
"Why? If it's to get in my pants, I am a les..."
He cut me off, "lesbian. I know and I am pretty cool about it."
"Does everyone's personal information run through the school?" He shook his head.
"You mean the entire town." I pressed my lips together.
"I need to go; my mother is probably waiting for me." He nodded stepping out of my way.
"I have class anyway." I gave him a small smile. "Kylie, right?"
"Yes," I said making him smile.
"I'm Archer, Archer Jennings."
CHAPTER NINE
As I entered the house, I heard laughter coming from the kitchen. My curiosity tempting me, I checked to see who it was. “Kylie, I have great news.” My mother spotted me nearing the kitchen. I then saw Mrs Reese and my grandfather as well.
"What is it?" I asked as I dropped my satchel to the floor and walked over to the pantry.
"Diane and her kids are coming to go around town, especially since you likely don't know much." I rolled my eyes as I grabbed an apple.
"There isn't much to know in this little town mother."
"What's got you so sassy today?" She said placing the palm of her hand on forehead.
"You're not sick, are you?"
I took a bite of my apple as she smoothed my hair. "I just got back from school, give me a chance to relax my mind," I grumbled.
"I'm guessing that you're on your period." She said running her fingers through my hair.
"What's this gotta do with my period?"
"For one, you are being very rude, and two you have no manners, did you greet your grandfather or Diane when you entered the kitchen?" I groaned and lowered my head.
"Hi, grandpa. Hi Mrs Reese." I said before crossing my arms over my chest. "Better?" I arched my brow and looked at her.
"Baby, you need to learn to show respect. No one will respect you if you do not respect them." I speechlessly uttered profanities before I looked at my grandfather who was sitting on a kitchen stool next to Mrs Reese.
"Jaclyn, leave the kid alone, she probably had a difficult day." Mrs Reese chuckled getting up from her seat. "My daughter is not easy to deal with, especially in class."
"Ava," I cleared my throat, "Miss Reese has nothing to do with my mood."
"I don't believe that." My mother interjected. "What's bothering you, sweetie, you can tell us." She added with a huge grin on her face.
"Nothing, people are just irritating me, okay," I grumbled as I threw the half-eaten apple into the garbage can.
"Who is bothering you? I will deal with them." My grandfather said as he got up and walked over to me.
"No, no, they are just some stupid people in school."
"Are you talking about Emily?" I heard Ava say as she entered the kitchen along with Natalie. ‘How did she know about that?’ "I saw the confrontation." She said looking at me.
"No, it's not her, I'm just tired," I mumbled as I averted my eyes away from her and the little girl.
"Hi Kylie, I love your t-shirt." She said referring to the rainbow on it. "Aren't you a little too old to be wearing that?" She giggled as she ran over to her mother.
"Not at all, you should see my unicorn one, I love anything with a rainbow."
"So it symbolizes something important to you," Ava said.
"Yes, I'm basically a rainbow." I pointed to the image on my shirt.
"You are colourful then," Natalie said.
"You can say that." I bit down on the inside of my cheek. "I am going to take a shower before we go," I said before exiting the kitchen.
◆◆◆
AFTER TAKING A SHOWER, I walked out of the bathroom and into my room to see Ava sitting on my bed. "Fuck, sorry, I didn't know you would be naked." Ava covered her eyes with the palms of her hands. "Umm, Natalie was hungry, so our moms took her to Kim's Diner, we'll meet them there." I nodded as I walked over to the dresser and grabbed a towel from the drawer.
I wrapped it around my body before I walked over to Ava, "hey, don't be such a prude." I chuckled as I pulled her hands away from her face.
"I'm sorry," She bit her lip as she looked at my neckline. "You're beautiful." She whispered before shifting her eyes up to meet mine.
"That's sweet." I ran my finger along her cheek. "You are very beautiful," I added before I stepped back and walked over to my closet.
We stayed in silence until I came back out with a pair of high waist shorts and a black crop top to go with it, along with a pair of black, high heeled boots, which I barely managed to find both pairs.
I untied my hair from being bunched up in a bun on my head and combed through it with my brush as I looked into the mirror to see Ava looking at me.
"You look amazing." She said as she got up and walked over to me.
"Thanks, you don't look too bad yourself," I said referring to her knee-length, grey pencil skirt, and crisp white, long-sleeved shirt, along with a five-inch pair of black heels.
"Can I ask you a question?"
"Go ahead," I said as I placed the brush down on the dresser top.
"Can I kiss you?" I bit the inside of my cheek as I turned to face her. A grin swept across her face as she walked closer to me, making me lean on the dresser.
As her lips pressed against mine, I felt an electrifying sensation run through my body. She placed her hand on my waist and pulled me closer to her.
I moaned against her lips as she began to kiss me more intensely and my body seemed to have no problem with it. My hands found their way lost in her thick jet-black hair as her kisses left my lips and trailed down my jawline before she began to suck on the skin above my collarbone.
"Ava," I whispered as my body began to heat up in ways I had never felt before. "That feels so good," I mumbled as her hand on my waist tightened.
I felt as if my thoughts had drifted off to another land, and that all my mind could see was what she was doing to me. "I would stop but you seem to like it too much." She whispered against my skin.
I did not respond, instead, I pulled her face up so that I could capture her lips in another kiss.
"You are amazing." She whispered as our lips parted. I placed a kiss on the tip of her nose before dropping my hands from her body.
"That was nice," I said still feeling on the high from being kissed by her.
"Do you feel uncomfortable?" I bit the inside of my cheek as she stepped backwards, already sensing my thoughts before I voiced them. "I spoke too soon." She chuckled as I crossed my arms over my chest.
"It will take some time. At least it is better than just holding my hand."
"True, but that would be amazing too." She smiled. "You ready to go?" I licked my lips tasting the trace of her passion fruit lip gloss.
“You might want to give me a sec because I need to cool off.”
“Me too actually, that made my body heat rise in ways I won't describe.” I nodded as I walked over to my bed and took a seat.
"Same here, the feeling is strange."
"Never felt this way before?"
I shook my head, "you already know the answer to that."
"Farthest I have gotten is being uncomfortably fondled, so I don't have much experience either."
"It has nothing to do with experience, if that was the case, I have a lot of experience," I said sarcastically, the bitterness of my words being tasted on the tip of my tongue.
"Kylie, I didn't mean to..."
"I know, I am sorry." I sighed. "I need to try and forget about the past."
"It must be difficult."
"With all this time, sometimes it feels like it happened only yesterday."
"Like when you are near me?" I did not say anything as her body slipped off the bed and onto the floor and she kneeled in front of me.
"Yes." I lowered my head, not sure how she would have taken my response.
"I feel as though those thoughts are getting less and less or you wouldn't have allowed me to kiss you for so long."
"That was not only
a kiss but yes, I guess you are right." She placed her hands on my exposed thighs and rubbed her thumb on the smooth skin.
"How do you feel about cats?" She questioned out of nowhere.
"Hm, I always wanted a pet but mom does not like them because they are too messy." She patted my thighs and a huge grin spread across her face.
"I was wondering if you can babysit my cat." I arched my brow.
"Your cat?"
"Yes Midnight, he gets so lonely." She sighed.
"We both basically have the same schedule, Ava."
"Fuck, I mean, ummm, he doesn't love me anymore." She frowned and wiped away a fake tear.
"You think a cat is going to help me with my trust issues?" She bit down on her bottom lip.
"Maybe..."
"I do not think so," I said making her run her hand up my thigh. I shivered as I felt that feeling again. A sensation I was afraid to feel.
"At least try, if it doesn't work, I will give you a million kisses to make up for it."
"Tempting..."
"Just try it cutie." I contemplated the possibility of having a cat. I would have to feed it, clean the litter box, but we had a housekeeper, so she would have handled that, so I only had to play with it. That could not be too difficult to manage.
"Okay, but if it does not work out, you are taking him back right away." She nodded and got up from kneeling.
"You'll love Midnight."
◆◆◆
AS WE MADE OUR way to the diner, I felt the need to hold Ava's hand, but I knew I could not. It was quite impossible given the circumstance that we were in public and it was known throughout the town that she was my teacher.
"I wish I could hold your hand," I whispered, my eyes focused on the road ahead of us as we walked.
"That would make me the happiest woman alive." She said enthusiastically. "You are amazing." She added as I continued to follow her, I was not too sure which diner we were heading to. I only knew of the one I occasionally bought smoothies from and was not sure if they were others.
"So about Emily, I do not want to lie to you," I mumbled remembering that I had brushed off the topic earlier in front of everyone else.
"She thinks she can bully you and make herself look good, she's just envious of how much smarter and more beautiful you are than her. You've got brains and the beauty; which girl wouldn't envy you?"
"Thanks for boosting my ego." I chuckled and smiled. "I can handle myself, but she did bring up a valid point."
"Which is?"
"If I cause conflict it can ruin my chances for Harvard."
"Your mom said that you have scholarships." She said obviously wondering why I was so keen on attending Harvard.
"I wanted to attend Oxford University, but it is too far away from home. I did apply though, just to see if I would be admitted but I have not received a response yet. As for Harvard, I have always had my mind set on it."
"I don't see the difference between Harvard and Yale. They are basically the same." She said as we began to slow down our walking speed.
"My mother attended Harvard, my, umm, father attended Yale."
"I see, sorry for bringing that up." She apologised.
"It's a backup plan at least. But I am hoping to be accepted into Harvard, but if I do not get a scholarship I might go to Princeton."
"Shouldn't they have notified you already if they are giving you a scholarship?" I felt a little bit of my hope die.
"Not necessarily, there is still time."
"So you want to go somewhere with a scholarship?" I nodded and looked at her.
"I do not want to burden my mother with college tuition, she already does enough for me." I turned my attention back to looking ahead of me.
"I went to community college. I am obviously not as brilliant as you."
"I do not think I am brilliant, I just had enough time to concentrate on school." She lightly placed her hand on my shoulder making me stop in my tracks.
"You are brilliant, don't think otherwise." I smiled as we began walking again. "So, you are waiting to hear back from Harvard and Oxford, any other colleges as well?"
"I sent out applications to other schools as well and was accepted but they are not offering scholarships."
"Too bad for them, they'll regret it when you top the world."
"Great ego boost... Again." She chuckled as she stopped walking again.
"It's my job to make sure you know that you are amazing." I felt the heat rise to my cheeks. "And I love spending time with you, but we are here, time to listen to our mothers talk about the good old days." I looked to see that we were in front of the same diner I knew about.
"Is this the only diner in town?" I questioned as we entered.
"This and another but it's on the other side of town." She said as we spotted Natalie and our mothers.
"By which you mean, it's fifteen minutes away."
"Twenty-two minutes actually." I rolled my eyes.
"Ava, Kylie's mom bought me a rainbow milkshake." Natalie squealed as she jumped up from her seat and ran over to her sister. "I love it." She giggled as Ava picked the little girl up into her arms.
"You're getting heavier," Ava said as she took a seat with Natalie on her lap. Our mothers were seated next to each other, so my only option was to sit next to the two sisters.
"Kylie, I have a rainbow just like you." She pointed to the milkshake with rainbow sprinkles covering the whipped cream.
"That's great, the next time I go pride shopping I'll get you a rainbow t-shirt." I gave her a smile.
"What is pride shopping?" She questioned.
"Oh, well, I meant to say when I go rainbow shopping."
"Oh, you bought the rainbow from the leprechaun." She grinned making me arch my brow.
“Yes, and I stole all of his coins,” I said as I wiggled my eyebrows.
"You're funny." She stretched towards me and wrapped her arms around my neck, resulting in her sitting on my lap instead of Ava's.
"My friend Jacey told me that you like girls and not boys, is that true?" I bit the inside of my cheek not too sure if it was appropriate to get into the topic of my sexuality with Natalie.
"So true, that for her tenth birthday she dressed up as a drag queen."
"No, I dressed as a woman trapped in a man’s body. So, I dressed as a woman which is normal." I defended my reasons.
"Oh well, whatever it was."
"No mom, you have to respect people, there is nothing awkward or amusing about someone expressing him or herself the only way they know how to."
"I'm sorry for offending you Kylie, you know I don't know much about those things." I rolled my eyes as Natalie shifted back over to sit on her sister's lap.
"Just do not say things like that, it really pisses me off," I mumbled as I rubbed my temple.
We sat in silence for a while, the only sound heard was Natalie sipping on her milkshake and her asking for ketchup to go with her fries.
"So does that mean you like me?" Natalie poked my arm, breaking the silence. My eyes widened and I immediately shook my head.
"No, no, not at all." She frowned.
"You don't like me?" She furrowed her brows, "but I am a girl."
"Ummm, how do I explain this..."
"What she is trying to say Natalie is that yes she likes girls but she only likes girls her own age." I coughed as my mother gave her an explanation, "including older than her as well." She added with a smirk plastered on her face.
"So she likes my mom and sister?"
"No!" I yelled unintentionally, "ummm, I am picky so I do not like everyone."
"You are weird." I shrugged.
"I am just not attracted to anyone at the moment." I felt Ava's eyes on me as I said that.
"Really? But you're so pretty, all the boys in school like you. Maybe you should try liking boys too because they really like you."
"It does not work like that."
"I'm just saying, you have options." She said before taking
a sip of her milkshake.
"Okay, thank you."
"So have you ever had a girlfriend?" Mrs Reese participated in the conversation.
"No actually, I mostly keep to myself."
"Hmm, seems best. School is important, girls can come later." I nodded and bit down on my bottom lip.
"Yes, take your time sweetie, and if you do like someone, make sure to give the relationship your best." I cleared my throat as my mother looked at Ava with worried eyes, "I hope that person will give the happiness you deserve." My mother swallowed before picking up a napkin from the holder on the centre of the table and wiping the sides of her eyes that were damp.
“Mom, don't cry,” I said as I stretched my hand over. “I will be okay, do not worry.” She nodded as she took a deep breath and looked at Ava again before shifting her attention back to me.
"Do you want anything to eat? I know you have not eaten anything today." I smiled as she changed the topic.
"Late breakfast? You know how much I love bacon any time of day."
"Diane, Ava, pancakes and bacon around the table?"
◆◆◆
AFTER EATING AND WALKING around town, stopping in almost every boutique and bakery, our legs finally gave out and the night was kicking in.
As we sat in the living room, our moms chatting about the upcoming wedding and Brian, including lots of things that happened in their lives over the years, I felt both mentally and physically exhausted.
Natalie had passed out and was asleep in one of the guest bedrooms and Ava sat next to me in silence.
"I am going take a shower," I said to the women, our mothers not even lifting their heads.
"I'll check on Natalie." Ava chimed in, still not gaining the two women's attention.
I shrugged my shoulders as she looked at me before I walked towards the steps and up the stairs, her right behind me.
"Natalie should be in the room down the hall to your left," I said as I entered my room.
"I actually just wanted to be alone with you," Ava said making me turn towards the door as she walked in and closed it.