Closetedsubby

She showed her ID, and got a green wristband, before being marshalled to the next area, where she got another wristband, one that showed off her pertaining pride flags.

Seeing the trans colours on her wrist made her heart skip a beat. She was finally living her life authentically, and as she sat down at the bar, she told the bartender: "I don't care what drink it is, but make it pink!"

After living her teenage years being told that she couldn't have pink things because they were girly, she would always take the opportunity to have something just because its colours were girly or frilly.

The bartender's nod was understanding in a way that spoke volumes without a word.

As Rumi waited, she looked around at the bar, wondering if there were any groups that looked friendly enough to hang with, and who wouldn't just pester her with questions on her vitiligo.

And then, she locked eyes with someone standing by the dartboards. They looked familiar in a way Rumi couldn't quite put her finger on it.

They had black hair that went past their shoulders, and their sleeveless shirt was showing off some subtle muscles. Rumi spotted the turtle print, and she had a nagging suspicion she knew this person. But from where?

The familiar person nudged someone who had been throwing some darts, a significantly taller person with bright pink hair. As the latter turned towards her, Rumi's breath hitched.

She'd recognize those eyes anywhere. Mira.

Then...was that Zoey?

Oh.

And they were walking towards her.

Oh no.

Belatedly, Rumi realized she was gaping a bit. Her two exes were somehow still together? Were they going to question Rumi? Ask her why she left like that?

"Hey cutie," Zoey greeted with a wink. "I'm gonna be a bit cliche, but we saw you from across the bar..."

Mira groaned good-naturedly. "Zoey, please don't finish that sentence."

That familiarity...it made Rumi's heart ache.

But wait. Did they not recognize her?

And then she remembered: she didn't look anything like the person they had dated.

----------

Back in high-school, Rumi had tried to date girls, but she always balked when it came to more intimate stuff. At first, she thought it was because of her self-esteem issues due to her vitiligo, but even after one of her partners reassured her a gajillion times that she loved Rumi as she was, so far as to kiss every inch of skin she could reach, Rumi still panicked when her shirt had ridden up.

So she tried to secretly date a guy, but that had also not gone anywhere.

Then she met Mira and Zoey. And for the first time, she felt loved. Truly loved. But that didn't stop her aversion to getting more intimate.

"Maybe you're ace, like me," Mira had theorized.

Zoey had added, "Or maybe it's gender dysphoria?"

But Rumi had quickly shut that conversation down. What would her aunt say?

After Rumi's parents had died when she was a child, Celine - a friend of her mom's - was all set to adopt Rumi as her own. But then, her mom's sister had swooped in. She had no interest in kids, and had no parenting skills whatsoever, but she swayed the courts that it'd be horrible to break the family up.

Of course, her only interest was to prevent Celine and "her queer lifestyle" from getting through to Rumi.

So she went to live with her aunt, and Rumi maintained the perfect image of a good kid, who would never step out of the box her aunt had drawn for her.

As it was, her two girlfriends were just "two very good friends who might have a crush on me," and it was accepted because that meant that Rumi was attractive and desired.

But one night, Rumi had had an epiphany after falling into a rabbit hole of too many wikipedia articles and online quizzes. It made her realize what she was missing from her life.

Much to her chagrin, for her to find what she was missing, she had to run away and leave her girlfriends behind. She was about to turn 18, and her aunt was ready to kick her out when the time came, so Rumi took the opportunity to find Celine, who welcomed her with open arms and an eagerness to help.

----------

Now, Rumi was thriving as herself, she'd dyed her hair purple and let it grow, so it was easy to see why Zoey and Mira wouldn't realize who she was.

With a smile, she brought her attention back to her exes.

"Mira, you're wearing a shirt with a pair of scissors, you don't get to question my pick-up lines."

Rumi snorted. It was so easy to think back to all those sleepovers so many years ago, as the trio broke down in a fit of giggles together. "Zoey's got you there, Mir."

And with that simple nickname, Zoey tilted her head slightly as Mira narrowed her eyes.

"Ah, yeah, sorry - didn't mean to make this awkward. I can see why you wouldn't remember me," Rumi admitted with a slight wince. "I go by Rumi now, but the three of us kinda dated in high school before I up and disappeared?"

Zoey gasped, eyes widening, while Mira looked dumfounded, shocked into silence.

"Oh my goodness! You look amazing!" Zoey immediately said with a grin. "I'm so happy you were able to figure yourself out Rumi."

Rumi smiled softly at Zoey's reaction, and when she looked at Mira, who still hadn't said a word, she saw tears in her eyes.

"Can-" Mira faltered a little as she tried to fight her voice breaking slightly. "Do you mind if I hug you?"

Rumi's heart melted and she opened her arms wide. "C'mere."

Mira's hugs were always the best, and as long arms surrounded Rumi, all she could think of was how much she had missed this.

Missed them.

"I'm so happy to see you Rumi," Mira murmured against where her face was burrowed in Rumi's neck. "I was so worried something had happened to you."

Rumi moved out of the hug a bit so that her hands could cup Mira's cheeks. "Hey, I'm okay. I'm really sorry I left like that, I just...I couldn't handle all that anymore. I needed to get away so I could become myself."

Zoey brought their hand to Rumi's cheek, getting her to look at them. "You're here, that's what matters."

Feeling her own tears threatening to fall, Rumi pulled them both in for a fierce hug, letting that familiar feeling settle deep in her soul.

Eventually, they parted, and Mira ordered drinks for herself and Zoey, sitting down on either side of Rumi. The stools had been scooched closer, as if they both wanted to feel closer to her. And truly, as they talked, Rumi felt the wonderful sensation of two hands caressing her back.

She caught them up on what she'd been up to lately, having found her place as a social worker for queer youth.

Meanwhile Mira and Zoey explained their latest, where Mira worked as a pediatrician, and Zoey was a professional skateboarder.

"Ah, so that's where the muscles came from?" Rumi pointed out, letting a finger caress the bicep teasingly.

No one missed Zoey's shiver.

"Yep! I also found out I'm genderfluid!" Zoey announced with a shy smile, clearly trying to distract herself from how tempting Rumi looked.

"That's great Zoey! What're you identifying with right now?" Rumi asked.

"She/they," Zoey announced, puffing her chest out proudly. "But that might change. Mira called me handsome the other day and I dug it."

"Well you are very handsome," Rumi said, eyes raking over Zoey's figure. That got Zoey to blush and look away.

Rumi turned to Mira, who just busied herself with her beer.

"What's wrong Mira? I don't recall you being this shy," Rumi teased.

Mira chugged some more of her beer, as if she was looking for some luck in the drink. Once she put her beer down, she met Zoey's eyes for a moment before she settled on Rumi's eyes and said, "Look, as you can probably tell, I haven't even spoken about this with Zoey, but I think she's on the same page as me: I want you. I- we missed you, and I think I'd like it if we could pick this back up? I'd really like to get to know Rumi better."

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes," Zoey prattled, head nodding vigorously. "I want this...if you want this too, Rumi?"

Rumi put her drink down and reached around to bring the hands Zoey and Mira had been caressing her with in front of her. In turn, she kissed the back of the knuckles. "I do. I want you both. It was my biggest regret and...I want to show you all of me."

Zoey was practically vibrating with excitement by this point. "Would it be okay to kiss you?"

"Please." Because Rumi wanted nothing more at that very moment.

And Zoey's kiss tasted exactly how she remembered them, tender but still meant to be grounding, as if reminding Rumi that she was there, and wasn't going anywhere.

Mira's kiss was slow, as if she wanted to commit this to memory, and like always, she would never end the kiss first, as if she were happy to stay like that as long as Rumi wanted.

But they did need air, so Rumi pulled back, noting how pretty Mira looked right then.

Zoey wrapped her arms around Rumi's waist, resting her head on Rumi's shoulder. "Want to get out of here? I remember you were never a fan of loud music at parties."

"Still not a fan," Rumi admitted with a laugh.

Mira held her hand out for Rumi to take. "Then come on princess, let's go somewhere quieter."