Unbetitelt

She snapped.

“I have a girlfriend.”

Dead silence encased the studio. Chat gaped at her, Alya gaped at her, Nadja gaped at her, everyone gaped at her. It was only until a hand reached out of the audience that noise came back in. “Excuse me?”

“Yes, I have to agree,” Nadja said, a flustered blush making her cheeks red. “Excuse me?”

Welp, she had already said it, so might as well. “I have a girlfriend,” she repeated. Chat and Alya continued to gape at her. She took a deep breath in and plastered on a stern look. “Nadja, did you ever think the reason why I don’t confess my feelings for Chat is because I don’t have any?”

Silence encased the studio, but it was the silence where people were muttering to each other. Ladybug waited. Chat continued to gape, but Alya shut her mouth and made an odd squeaky noise.

Nadja finally took a deep breath in. When she opened her eyes, she seemed to be staring at her in a different way. Not as an icon or an idol or a celebrity, but as if Ladybug was a real person. She hadn’t even realized that she hadn’t been looking at her that way. “No,” she said. “I’m…so sorry, Ladybug. I hadn’t considered that.” Ladybug nodded but didn’t say a word. “May I ask who it is?”

Well, crap. She hadn’t expected that. She was tempted to say, “No comment,” but then it would be possible that people would catch on to the fact that she was lying. She needed someone. Ladybug thought for a moment and then prayed Tikki wouldn’t be too mad.

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

Once again, the room descended into muttering silence. Chat was pulling out his staff with the angriest look she had ever seen on his face. Ladybug couldn’t help but raise a brow at that. But then Alya spoke with a “NO WAY!”

Ladybug raised a brow. “Are you calling me a liar?”

“Yes!” Alya said, seeming to not care about the fact that she was being televised live. “She’s in love with Adrien Agreste! He’s her soulmate, I’m sure of it!” Geez, Alya, thanks. Chat’s muttering stopped. “She’s been struggling to confess to him since the attacks first began! He’s-”

“A boy, Miss Cesaire,” Ladybug cut her off, keeping her voice bored. Yes, she did have a crush on Adrien once. But her feelings had faded over time, especially when she thought of how he reacted to Chloe and Lila hurting her. “A boy that is well-known and popular with the female population of Paris. A boy that would be expected if a person asked about a celebrity crush.”

Alya stared at her. She could practically see her put the pieces together. “What about Luka Couffaine? She dated him for…a few months!”

“Her and Luka Couffaine, I have discussed with her,” Ladybug said, keeping her voice calm. Her mind raced- she would definitely need to talk to Luka after this. “I will not pretend to be a good girlfriend, Miss Cesaire. Marinette does not know who I am under the mask- if anyone says that they do, they are lying-” Hopefully, that dealt with Lila. “Our relationship had to be kept secret. I cannot take her out on dates or meet her parents. So, we agreed to an open relationship.”

Nadja cleared her throat. “She does not know who you are?”

Ladybug shook her head. “No. We agreed that, after Hawkmoth is defeated and I can retire, I will reveal myself to her and discuss our relationship from there. I’m only being open with my relationship now since she knows I am uncomfortable with people trying to ship me with Chat Noir-”

“Because they know we’re meant to be!” Chat burst out. Honestly, she was surprised that he hadn’t spoken up sooner. He grabbed her hand and tried to pull her close. “My Lady, think about it! We have so much more in common than some random civilian!” His eyes were dark, sending shivers up her spine. “You’re lying about Marinette, right? There’s no way you could fall for some random person-”

“Hey!” Alya spoke up, her voice bordering on fury. “Marinette’s not just some random nobody!” The camera shook as something slammed, most likely Alya’s fist slamming into the desk. “Marinette is the smartest, most creative person I have ever met! She’s probably the greatest actress of all time, and I would say that she has done so much more for Paris than you ever have on your own!” She took a deep breath. “Ladybug, you have great taste.” And with that, Alya’s camera cut short.

Nadja nodded. “Okay, next question,” she said, her voice still a touch strained from the bombshell that was just dropped on her.

Hopefully, this didn’t blow up.

-_-

It blew up.

Tikki, thankfully, didn’t seem mad. “It was clever,” she said before encouraging Marinette to go to bed.

When Marinette woke up surprisingly early, it was to a ton of messages on her social media and email. By the time she left for school, it was a flood that she was too afraid to look at. Her parents were surprisingly happy for her, with her dad apologizing for blowing up in such a way on Chat Noir. “It’s okay,” she said, hugging him. “It was awkward, but it kept Chat from following Ladybug.”

“Which I can’t believe he did!” her mother groused. “You think he would know better!”

“Yeah,” Marinette sighed, old annoyance flaring up. “Me too.”

Thankfully, there wasn’t a crowd of reporters- yet. So Marinette wasted no time in rushing over to school before one did form.

Once she was there, she found herself pausing. A large portion of the people she saw were wearing Ladybug’s spots or LGBTQIA+ merch, from full outfits to just hair clips. Several stopped to smile and give her friendly waves, while others looked starstruck. This was a bigger reaction than she was expecting.

She waved back and headed to her classroom. She sent another prayer to the surprisingly quiet Tikki that nothing happened and opened the door.

The classroom was surprisingly quiet, with Lila sitting in the back looking like she had all the life drained from her, until Marinette stepped inside. “Marinette!” Alya said, jumping to her feet. She had switched her orange flannel for one bearing the pan colors. She wasted no time in rushing up and practically scooping her up in a hug. The shock meant that it took a second before Marinette realized that Alya was apologizing into her hair. “-so sorry, I should’ve thought more about Ladybug’s feelings, I never meant to hurt her, swear-”

“It’s okay,” Marinette said, pulling away to smile at her bestie. “I know how people can get with superheroes, I think Ladybug forgives you.” She poked Alya’s nose. “Although I’m annoyed that you tried to air out my crush on Adrien to all of Paris.”

Alya sighed, nodding. “I know. Now that I think about it, it was super not cool.” She tried for a smile. “I’m sorry, girl.”

Despite herself, Marinette couldn’t stay mad. “I forgive you. But, don’t do it again.” Alya nodded and with that out of the way, she could move on. She looked around and couldn’t help but raise a brow. “But what’s going on? Why is everyone either wearing Ladybug stuff or pride stuff? If I had known, I would’ve dug my pride stuff out.”

“Oh, haven’t you checked online?” Nino called, his headphones decorated with bi stickers.

Marinette shook her head. “I’ve been too afraid to,” she admitted. “My social media has been flooded with messages and emails.”

“Oh, I can sort those for you, dudette.”

“Thank you,” she sighed, handing over her phone. “The code’s still the same.” Nino nodded as he began to fiddle with her phone.

“Anyway,” Kim said, wearing a transmac hoodie instead of his regular red hoodie. “The entire queer community adopted Ladybug as a queer icon after her interview last night. People have been debating for hours whether she’s a lesbian or bi.”

“Uh huh,” Well, at least the community was supportive. “I’m glad people are supportive.”

“Of course they are,” Alya said, leading her to their seats. “It’s Ladybug and you, the biggest sweethearts in Paris. If anyone isn’t, they look-”

“RIDICULOUS!” Chloe stormed in, wearing her normal clothing. Her gaze could’ve set Marinette on fire as she marched up and slammed her hands on her desk. On closer inspection, her eyes were rimmed red. “Break up with Ladybug.”

“Excuse me?”

“Are you deaf?!” Chloe shrieked, slamming her hand down. “Break up with Ladybug! There is only one girl that is perfect enough for her to date, and it’s certainly not you!”

“And I’m guessing that’s you?” Alya scoffed before Marinette could figure out a proper response that wasn’t not in your life. “Please, everyone knows Ladybug hates your guts.”

“She does not!” Chloe shrieked, tears beading up in the corner of her eyes. “She thinks I’m great! She chose me to be a hero! She knows I’m great! She-”

“Lost the Miraculous by accident, and you refused to give it back.” Marinette interrupted. Chloe’s jaw dropped, and she gaped at her. “Yeah, she told me about that. She thought you would do better, be better if you understood how your actions affect Paris. But you didn’t.” She leaned forward and that angry spark in her, the one that had been burning in her since Adrien pouted and moaned, burned. “Your actions are why people were celebrating that you were leaving Paris when you decided to go to New York.”

“Marinette!” Adrien called, also dressed in his normal clothes, but she held her hand out.

“You are nothing to Ladybug. Just a hazard and a safety risk.” Marinette leaned back in her chair. “The only reason I made that party for you is because Adrien asked. Nobody else.”

Chloe shut her mouth. She looked around the room. Sabrina looked away. Nobody else did, staring her down, bonded in silent agreement. Marinette expected her to rage, to scream, to throw a fit. Instead, she straightened up and walked to her seat. The moment she sat down, she hid her face.

“Marinette!” Adrien barked. “That was horrible! You-”

“Told her what Ladybug thought of her and what she needed to hear,” Marinette said, interrupting him. She leaned forward, allowing the anger brewing in her at him to burn in her eyes. “And if you don’t stop and think about your actions, so will I.”

Adrien stared with wide eyes. Without another word, but a nasty glance back, he turned and sat down. Nino scooted away from him before turning and holding up her phone. “Here, Nette,” he said. “There was some hate mail from people like Chloe,” Chloe flinched. “But a lot more of people supporting you.”

“Oh, that’s sweet,” Marinette said, taking her phone back.

The rest of the school day passed in silence. Twice, Adrien tried to get her alone, apparently undeterred by her threat, but Alya and the rest of the girl squad made sure there was a bodyguard nearby until Adrien had to leave for a photoshoot. (Rose was tiny but fierce in her desire to protect Marinette.) The rest of the school left her alone, excluding a few people who asked for her autograph and pictures and a whole bunch of gifts and letters in her locker. Marinette tried to ignore the heat in her face with all the love and care. 

Finally, the school day was over. Marinette walked out and breathed a sigh of early relief. She could see a few news vans waiting outside the bakery, so she had that to stress about, but she had gotten through the school day relatively unscathed.

The sound of a guitar met her ears and she paused, coming to a stop on the stairs.

Right. Luka.

She meant to talk to him after the interview, but Chat Noir had been following her, insisting to talk more about them, that she hadn’t been able to. So, here she was, standing on the steps, trying her best to not be seen by the musician as he strummed his guitar, probably waiting for Juleka.

It was tempting to run. But Marinette had to be braver than that. 

She took a deep breath and marched down the stairs, coming to a stop right next to him. Luka paused in his playing, staring at her. Marinette couldn’t look him in the eyes. Instead, she found herself staring at her feet. “Hi, Luka,” she said and immediately wanted to facepalm. Hi, Luka? Just that? Not, hey Luka, did you see the interview where Ladybug revealed I was two-timing you with her even though we’re the same person-

“You should’ve given me a heads up that we were poly,” Luka’s voice broke through her haze. She glanced up. Luka smiled at her, although it was edged with something. “I have a cute boy in my class, his name’s Felix, and I think you two would love each other.”

Marinette’s mind blanked, at first wondering what he was talking about, and then realization. “You…you aren’t mad?”

“I…I don’t know how to feel,” Luka admitted, and it was strange to see him admit that. Luka was the only boy she knew who was best in touch with his emotions. “On one hand, it makes a lot more sense than you pining over Adrien like everyone thought. On the other-”

“I lied,” Marinette admitted. “I lied, a lot, to you and everyone.” She gripped the edge of her shirt. “I kept ditching dates for something dumb, not related to her,” Luka raised a brow, but she continued on. “Sometimes I wished she didn’t exist because I trust you, Luka, I trust you so much but I keep having to lie because I care about her too and hurt you and and and-” Warm arms engulfed her but she couldn’t allow it, she needed to say it. “I’m so sorry, Luka.”

Luka didn’t say a word, just held her. Finally, he sighed. “I’m sorry too, Marinette,” he admitted. “I should’ve been better, maybe then-”

“No!” Marinette shoved him away. Luka stumbled back, looking hurt, but Marinette wasted no time in gripping his shoulders, staring him down. “You were wonderful,” she said, making sure he understood. “You were wonderful. I was the one who should’ve been better. I should’ve communicated better, I should’ve explained better about why I was leaving you in the lurch.”

“I was the one who got akumatized,” Luka said, staring back with wide eyes. “I went after you.”

“It was my fault you got akumatized in the first place!”

“No, it was not-” And now Luka was holding her shoulders, making sure she was looking at him. They probably looked strange, gripping each other’s shoulders like this, but Marinette didn’t care. “It was not your fault. It was Hawkmoth’s fault.” Right, right, Marinette needed to remember that. He was the one who took advantage of people. “We’re both crappy at communicating. We can work on that.”

Wait…

“You…want to try again?”

Luka paused and then nodded. “Now that I know more, enough to possibly understand some things,” He took in a deep breath. “Only if you want to?”

Marinette nodded back. “We can try,” And isn’t that what they all could do? “Maybe you can introduce me to Felix, and I can introduce you to…” She held up her hand at the sight of a familiar red car. “Hang on real quick.”

Luka blinked but nodded. Marinette smiled as they released each other before she turned and marched up to Kagami, who paused with a raised brow. Much to her delight, she wore gloves marked with the queer pride flag. “Wanna go on a date?” she asked promptly.

Kagami blinked. She opened her mouth, closed it, and then hummed. Marinette waited patiently. If Kagami had to think about it, than she was willing to wait. “Yes,” she finally said. “If your girlfriend is alright with it?”

Marinette nodded, feeling her face heat up. “Luka and I are trying again,” she admitted. “So he’s introducing a friend of his on our date. I wanted to introduce you to him, because I think you guys would be good friends, if not datemates.” She wanted to be honest where she could.

Kagami’s eyes brightened at the mention of friendship. “Then I certainly will come,” she said. “You have my number, so let me know the details.”

“I will.” She held out her hand and Kagami didn’t hesitate in giving it a squeeze. “Maybe after practice today, we can have our first date? At our usual spot?”

Kagami smiled. It was awkward, but it was sincere. “I would love that.” With one last squeeze of her hand, Kagami marched into the school.

Luka was chuckling when Marinette returned. “I guess we’ll have a full table,” he said, pulling out his phone. “I’ll talk to Felix and figure out a good time for us.”

Marinette nodded. “Let me know the details.” She paused. “And, thank you, Luka.” Before he could respond she took off running.

All the girls had their own celebration for a victory, actually. The twins, VantaBlacke and Blacke & Blue, would so Fortnite victory dances and hype each other up. Wrath would grab whoever was closest to her, usually Sailor, and spin around in a circle while screaming happily. Goldie would drop to her knees and do the air guitar, Dasher would do a wolf howl, Shortie would start happily punching whatever was in her vicinity, and Barbie would just...scream. Everyone joked that Salty (Laurie) needed her thing, her own victory celebration scream thing. Whatever she wanted to call it.

Laurie hummed softly, weaving her way around the cones Hex had set up for her on one skate and occasionally watching the scrimmage that the rest of the team was doing.

"Pepper."

K.C. had to do a Star Pass, handing the cap off to Barbie, who was the Pivot for the red team.

"Pepper!"

Laurie watched the brunette race off around the track and take the lead-

"PEPPER! Less gawkin', more skatin'!"

"Yes, Coach!" She slammed her other skate down and continued to weave through the cones. She kept watching them, and cheered once Barbie had won the Jam. "Bar-bie! Bar-bie! Bar-bie!"

Barbie just smiled and giggled, giving a bow to her one person audience. "Thank you, thank you! It's hard carrying my team!"

"Carrying? Puh-lease!" Cutie said. "I can out Jam you any day of the week!"

"Oh, you wanna go?!"

"Yeah! Let's go!"

"Ladies, ladies! Save the rage for the bout!" Femme said as she stepped between them.

"The bout?" Laurie skated over as Hex cleaned up the cones.

"Yeah! First bout of the season!" Barbie smiled and held up her hand for a high five.

"When is it?" Laurie seemed hopeful. Maybe she was ready to play?

"Tomorrow, right here! Playin' on our home turf." Jamilton high fived Barbie so she wouldn't be left hanging.

"Oh..."

"It's ok, Salty-Babe!" Belle skated over and gave her a side hug. "You'll be ready in no time! You're already doing great!"

"She's right, kiddo," Queen said. "We just gotta work on your backwards skating then we can put you in the scrimmages. A few more practices and you'll be on the rink in no time."

Laurie gave a weak smile. "Thanks, Coach."

"I mean it. You're good at this. I have a feeling you're gonna take us to the championship."

Laurie felt a sharp sting to her heart. "Championship?" She asked, her eyes wide with fear.

"Yeah! We never get past the qualifiers, but every year JRDA have a national junior championship tournament!" Barbie said excitedly. "If we make it to finals, we'll be skating in New York City! And we can meet the New York Nukes!"

"I hope we can go! I'd love to see Circle Jerk in person!" Brawli squealed. "She's, like, my biggest derby inspiration."

Laurie gave a nervous smile. "Awesome..." she said weakly, giving them a thumbs up. She was gonna blow it. Again. And she thought junior roller derby was better than softball.

"Awesome?! It's better than awesome!" Barbie screamed. "It's amazing! It's fantastic! Wonderful! Awe inspiring! Kick ass unbelievable spectacular phenomenal stupendous miraculous Grade A fucking amazeballs!"

"BARBIE! I TOLD YOU TO STOP SWEARING! YOU CAN SWEAR WHEN YOU'RE 16!"

Barbie winced and smiled. "Sorry, Mama... But still! WE COULD TO NEW YORK AND MEET THE NUKES!"

Laurie just gave another weak smile, muttering about how it was awesome and amazeballs before skating off the rink and taking off her gear with the rest of the girls.

"Alright! Already making a plan!" Sweaty said to her. "If we start doing some extra training now, then we'll definitely kinda sorta be not terrible enough to play and we might not fail the team again!"

"You need to stop talking," Laurie said, swatting at her shoulder.

"I...didn't say anything..." Big Red said, looking confused.

"Oh!" Laurie looked up and giggled softly. "Sorry, just talk to myself sometimes. I know, I'm crazy! Ha ha!" Laurie blushed heavily and became incredibly focused on untying her skates.

Big Red just nodded. "Anxiety?"

"Yeah..."

"Want me to beat it outta ya?" Big Red held up her skates.

"Umm...." Laurie backed away slightly and looked around. "No, thank you..."

Big Red just shrugged and put her skates away. "Got it."

"So... The tournament?"

"Yeah. I doubt we'll go to finals, but it's at least fun to play. Our qualifier bout is against the Minions of Mayhem. They have a low win rate, so we'll be able to crush them to dust." She stood up and grabbed her derby bag. "See ya tomorrow!"

"Huh?" Laurie just cocked her head.

"The bout," Big Red clarified. "Just because you can't play, it doesn't mean you have to miss the game."

"Yeah! We need a cheerleader in the stands!" Rythm said, nudging her in the side with her elbow.

Laurie smiled and nodded. "Yeah, totally."

"Awesome! See ya!"

Laurie finished getting her gear off and went outside where Paula was waiting and warming up the car.

"Hey, Salty! Wait!" Sailor raced over, Barbie and CC at her heels.

"Huh? What's up?" Laurie turned back to them, waiting for them to continue.

"You're coming to my sleepover, right?"

"What sleepover?" Laurie cocked her head in confusion.

Sailor groaned and slapped Barbie upside the head. "This is the last time I tell you anything..."

"I got busy!" Barbie defended.

"Busy with what? Searching for Italians?" CC said, rolling her eyes with a smirk.

"Both of you hush!" Sailor yelled. "Anyway, we usually have sleepovers before our bouts or whenever we need to kinda calm down. Also like a last night of fun before the Big Game kinda stuff, ya know? It's usually just the three of us, like a tradition thing, but we wanted to invite you."

"Like a show of good faith, welcome to the team thing."

"Yeah! Party with the OG 3!" Barbie shouted enthusiastically.

"Oh..." Laurie looked nervous. "Umm-"

"You can totally say no! If it's not your thing, we get it!" Sailor said.

CC backed her up. "Yeah, we totally appreciate boundaries. If you just need some me time and self care, that's totally ok. You do what's best for you. It's gonna be an all weekend thing, and the whole team is gonna be there after the qualifier anyway. It might be too much."

"No, no, I'd love to! But... It's my Dad's weekend and..."

"Ohhhhhh, you're a Double Christmas kid," Barbie said softly. "Got-"

Sailor slapped her up side the head, cutting her off. "Barbie! You can't say that!"

"WHAT?! IT'S TRUE!"

"I'll ask my dad and see what he says," Laurie said simply, trying to keep the peace.

"Yeah! Text the group chat and let us know."

"What group chat?" Laurie cocked her head in confusion again.

Sailor and CC slowly turned their heads to Barbie. ".....you didn't invite her to the group chat?"

"I FORGOT!"

"You're a terrible derby godsister," CC said simply.

"I'm going to kill you." Sailor started to follow Barbie as the girl ran away.

"Do you have Discord? I can send you an invite." CC pulled out her phone, ignoring the screams of mercy in the background as she found Laurie's profile and added her into the Discord server they made for the team.

"You should get going so you can pack and stuff. Hopefully I'll see you at Sailor's." CC smiled and waved goodbye as Laurie got into the car and drove away with her sister. She stared at her phone intensely, smiling and giggling at the group chat antics.

Yay, you made it, Laur!

Goldie Today at 4:43 pm CHANGE YOUR NAME!

VantaBlacke Today at 4:43 pm WE CANNOT KNOW YOUR REAL NAME IT SHALL RUIN THE MYSTERY!!!!

🧂Salty🧂 Today at 4:46 pm This good?

VantaBlacke Today at 4:46 pm Yee yee. All good.

🎀Barbie🎀 Today at 4:47 pm Nooooo make it pink so we're matchy matchy!

🧂Salty🧂Today at 4:47 pm Lol Better?

🎀Barbie🎀 Today at 4:47 pm Yaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

CC Today at 4:47 pm Text us here when you get the yes or no from your dad

🧂Salty🧂Today at 4:47 pm Got it

"Who are you texting?" Paula teased. "Is it a boy?"

"No!"

"A girl?" Paula seemed excited by that.

"No! I'm talking to my team! They finally added me to their group chat..." Laurie curled up and watched them all texting each other, smiling in her silent observance.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Practice was running later than usual. Laurie tried to keep her mind and hands busy by playing some Mario Kart, but she kept getting distracted by car doors opening and closing outside. Every couple minutes or so, she paused the game and looked out the window, getting disappointed when it wasn't Dan.

"Dad'll be home soon." Paula tried to keep her calm. "You can hang out with your friends soon."

"Yeah, yeah..." Laurie just got back to playing her game and trying to beat the hard CPUs.

Laurie paused the game when she heard her phone buzzing repeatedly, playing the loud Jam buzzer. She thought it was from her team, getting into another argument about if pineapples and kiwis could go on pizza, but it was just the Pickles. She forgot she was part of the group chat.

Roshie Today at 5:57 pm Omg pls tell me you all saw what Sammy did

Kai Today at 5:57 pm I still can't believe it tbh

The Mighty Yuwen Today at 5:57 pm I could've done it blindfolded with my hands tied behind my back

Taylor Today at 5:58 pm Shut up, Yuwen! At least I'm not getting a scalded in the face with hot beans! 🙄🙄

Sammy Today at 5:58 pm 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 oh my god

Laurie Today at 5:58 pm Huh?

Roshie Today at 5:58 pm Oh, it's an inside joke

Hannah Today at 5:58 pm You had to be there for it to make sense

The Mighty Yuwen Today at 5:58 pm I honestly forgot you were still here

Kai Today at 5:59 pm Hi, Laur!

Laurie Today at 6:00 pm Hi, Kai!

Kai Today at 6:00 pm How's derby so far?

Laurie Today at 6:00 pm Pretty good! Everyone's super nice.

Kai Today at 6:00 pm Awesome!!!!! Can't wait to see your first game!

The Mighty Yuwen Today at 6:01 pm Wasn't one of us supposed to remove Laurie since she's not on the team anymore?

Kai Today at 6:01 pm YUWEN!!!!

Taylor Today at 6:01 pm YUWEN!!!!

Roshie Today at 6:01 pm YUWEN!!!!

Sammy Today at 6:01 pm YUWEN!!!!

The Mighty Yuwen Today at 6:01 pm WHAT?! I HAVE A POINT!

Tom Today at 6:02 pm What are we talking about?

Roshie Today at 6:02 pm Oh my god 🤦🏽‍♀️🤦🏽‍♀️

Laurie bit her lip, feeling another sting to her heart.

"We should probably leave just make it easier on them," Sweaty said. "They're gonna forget again anyway."

Laurie Today at 6:03 pm Don't worry, Yuwen. I got it 😊

Laurie left the group chat server and tossed her phone aside, trying not to cry as she focused back on her game. She seemed to perk up when she heard the door open.

"I'm home!" Dan called out, setting his stuff on the kitchen table.

"Dad!" Laurie got up and rushed over, hugging him tight.

"Hey, Lare-bear," Dan said as he pulled her into a side hug. "How was derby practice?"

"Yeah, practice was fine. Is it all right if I go to a sleepover at my friend's house for the weekend?"

"Oh, did Taylor invite you? I overheard her talking about it after practice." Dan turned away, pulling some stuff out of the cabinets to start on dinner.

"O-Oh..." Maybe Taylor just forgot. They aren't on the same team anymore, so they don't see each other much. "No, it's one of my teammates, Sailor... He invited-"

Dan turned around, looking furious. "A boy?! Absolutely not!"

"No, no! Dad, Sailor is AFAB."

"A-what?"

"AFAB. It means Assigned Female At Birth," Laurie explained. "He's like Kai, but in the opposite direction."

"Oh..." Dan turned back around, continuing to gather ingrediants. "I still don't want you going over at a boy's house. Especially a boy I haven't met. When does this expire....?"

"No, Dad, Sailor is still figuring that stuff out!" Laurie tried to reason. "Plus, CC and Barbie are going to be there tonight, and the rest of the team will be there tomorrow! Sailor wont hurt me!"

Dan turned to face her, seeing the desperation in her puppy dog eyes. "You're absolutely sure?"

"Absolutely! Please... They invited me so I could feel like a real part of the team and be a part of their traditions..."

He sighed heavily. "Alright. Text me when you get there and if they try anything, and I mean anything, you call me immediately, got it?"

"Of course!" She rushed forward and hugged him. "Thank you thank you thank you!"

Dan gave a gentle smile and patted her back. "Anytime. Go pack your bags." He watched her run off to her room before calling out, "And don't forget your toothbrush again!"

"I won't!" Laurie started shoving clothes in her duffel bag before grabbing her phone and texting her derby team.

🧂Salty🧂Today at 6:07 pm HE SAID YES

🎀Barbie🎀 Today at 6:07 pm

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO My mama said you're riding with me. Send the address and we'll be there soon