#crazy4kameron

It was like any other day for Asia, sitting behind the reception desk at the St.Charles Complex. She was flipping through the pages of the catalogue of upcoming classes when she noticed it. She couldn’t believe her eyes at first, but knew that if this was true that she had to tell Kameron. Immediately. Asia knew she wasn’t supposed to leave the desk unattended but it had been dead almost all day and this was an emergency - at least in her mind it was. Asia put up a small Sorry be back shortly sign and took off running towards the gym. She knew at this time of day Kameron would be in the middle of a training session, but she needed her, she was freaking out and there was no one else she wanted to tell more than her girlfriend.

Asia whipped open the door to the gym and saw Kameron thankfully standing near the front desk chatting with a few of her colleagues.

“Kameron. Bianca. Sewing. Here.” Was all Asia could manage while trying to catch her breath. Kameron and everyone else just stared at her with a mixture of confusion and concern. Kameron’s face was dripping in terror that something terrible had happened.

Kameron’s mind reeled. Oh my god! Something must be seriously wrong for Asia to leave the desk, she never leaves the desk. What if something happened to one of her little sisters? Or maybe something happened to Blair? Oh GOD I really hope Blair is okay. Please let Blair be okay. Wait did she just say Bianca? WHO IS BIANCA? She doesn’t know anyone named Bianca that I know of.  

“Bitch, did you just run here?” Vanjie asked.

“I didn’t even know she knew how to run.” Scarlet chimed in.

Kameron whipped her head around to give them a pointed look. Scarlet raised her hands in mock surrender.

“Oh my god babe, what’s wrong?” Kameron put her hand on Asia’s back, trying to calm not only Asia but herself. “Just breathe baby.” Kameron gently rubbed her hand in circles on Asia’s back the same way Asia had done for her so many times before. This was mostly to calm herself and help her from letting her thoughts carry her away on a terrible spiral. Kameron reached over the desk and grabbed her water bottle, offering it to Asia, who waved her hand to say no thanks.  

Asia took a few deep breaths then excitedly started waving around the catalogue in her hand.

“Bianca Del Rio is going to be teaching a sewing class HERE!!” she screeched out the last syllable, unable to hold back her excitement anymore.

Kameron had to take a step back as Asia began to bounce excitedly on the spot. “You’re telling me you ran all the way here, just to tell me that?” There was a distinctly unimpressed look on Kameron’s face. “I thought there was an actual emergency Asia! You scared the shit out of me running in here like that.”

Asia’s excitement quickly died when she saw how upset her girlfriend was, and she realized that Kameron’s anxiety must be going through the roof right now. “I’m sorry sweetheart. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Asia reached up to push a piece of hair behind Kameron’s ear, running her thumb along Kam’s jaw. This always seemed to instantly calm Kam down and earn Asia a few points back after saying or doing the wrong thing. Asia knew it had worked when Kameron’s eyes shut and she instinctively melted into her touch.    

“Gross, get a room you two. No one wants to see your lovey-dovey honeymoon phase.” Plastique gagged, pretending to throw up.

“You just pressed cause no one wants you,“ Vanjie pointed out.

“And you only find it cute cause you’re lucky enough to have Brooke,” Plastique quipped.

“What’s that supposed to mean? You don’t think I’m good enough for Brooke? Vanjie’s tone had begun to rise. Her infamously short fuse had been lit and it was only a matter of time before she went off.

“I don’t think anyone is trying to say that you’re not good enough for me, babe.” Brooke tried to discreetly hold Vanjie back.

“NO, she better apologize now!!” Vanjie’s voice grew more high pitched by the second.

Plastique, not about to be wrongly accused of something, fired back, “For what?! I literally didn’t even say anything mean or rude about you or your girlfriend!”

“Why can’t we all just bottle our feelings like normal people?” Brooke pleaded, trying to bring the argument to an end.

Asia gave Kameron a look of are you going to stop this?, shifting her eyes between Kameron and the fight that was about to break out. Kameron knew that she needed to put an end to this before it got out of hand, she just needed to find the confidence to do it.

“Hey, guys.” Kameron tried, but she was barely heard over all the yelling.

“Hey, guys.” She tried again this time a little louder but to no avail. So she took a deep breath to center herself and gave it everything that she had. “WOULD YOU TWO IDIOTS SHUT UP!!!”

Everyone fell silent and just stared at Kameron, surprised that she had been the one to yell.

“Thank you. Now that I have your attention, can you all please take your little argument out of the gym, so I can talk to my girlfriend before she gets fired for abandoning the reception desk. And so our clients don’t think that a bunch of children work here.” Kameron put her hands on her hips to show that she wasn’t playing around. The girls, knowing not to get on Kameron’s bad side, cleared out of the gym or else went about work they were supposed to have been doing anyway.

“Wow, that was seriously impressive and kinda hot, I’m not gonna lie.” Asia gave Kameron a sly smile and a wink that turned Kameron three shades of pink, before wrapping her arms around Kameron’s waist.  

She play-smacked Asia’s arm. “Would you be serious please, and tell me what got you so excited you had to run here in the middle of your shift?”

“Oh, I almost forgot! I was flipping through next month’s catalogue and The Bianca Del Rio is teaching a sewing class here!” Asia squealed with excitement, picking up the aforementioned catalogue from the desk. She held it out in both hands towards Kameron, with the biggest smile on her face.

Kameron took the book and quickly flipped through to see when this class was, "Okay, I don’t know who that is, but clearly you are very excited about it.” Kameron looked at the date the class was scheduled and did a quick mental check of her and Asia’s schedule to see if they were available.

“I’m pretty sure that we’re both free on this day. Do you want to go to the class?” Kameron asked, already knowing the answer.

“Are you serious? Of course I want to go!!” Asia was elated. Kameron had never seen Asia so happy before. She knew that she made Asia happy, but not like this. She had never seen Asia glow with such pure joy and excitement before, and it was at that moment, Kameron knew that she would do anything to make Asia that happy.

“Okay well you should really get back to desk babe, before there is a real emergency and you get fired.” Kameron leaned over to give Asia a kiss, which she quickly followed with a second.

“I’ll see you tonight then?” Asia asked heading towards the door.

“Of course, I’ll be counting the minutes.” Kameron winked, making Asia blush.

                                                    ——————————

As the day grew nearer, Asia’s excitement seemed to be dying down. Over the past week or so, whenever Kameron would mention the class, Asia would smile and say she was excited, but her eyes didn’t shine quite as bright and she always seemed to try and change the topic. She seemed to be in her head a lot more, and it appeared like there was always something that she wanted to tell Kameron, but never did.

They were out for lunch on their shared day off, at a local pizza place when Kameron finally brought it up.

“So I’ve been meaning to ask you something lately, just never got the chance.” Kameron tried to sound casual, but she was scared shitless on the inside.

“What’s that babe?” Asia asked over a bite of her pizza.

“Is everything alright? You just seem a little out of it and distant lately, and it’s starting to scare me a little. I’m starting to think that maybe I did something or said something to upset you.” Kameron couldn’t hide her nerves any longer and began to bite her lip and stare down at the table.

Asia’s heart almost broke. She knew that she had been a little more in her head and stressed about things lately, but she never realized that Kameron would have thought that it was her fault. Asia did her best to hide all of her stress and self-doubt from Kameron. “Oh no baby, it has nothing to do with you.” Asia reached across the table to take Kameron’s hand. ”I promise you I’m just stressed about school and midterms is all, there’s nothing to worry about.” Asia smiled at the beautiful woman across from her. “You know I have that design project due next week.”

“Are you sure?” Kameron asked, wiping at the tears on her cheeks with the back of her free hand.

“Of course babe, I promise that you haven’t done anything to upset me.” Still smiling at her girlfriend, Asia gently put her hand under Kameorn’s chin so she could look her in the eye. “Whatever is going on with me has nothing to do with you. Understand?”

Kameron only nodded and gave a gentle smile.

                                                           —————–

Kameron felt a little better after the talk she had had with Asia, but something was still bugging her about the situation. So on her break a few days later, she decided to talk to someone who knew Asia even better than she did.

Kameron was apprehensive at first, but still she knocked on the doorframe. “Hey Monét, do you have a minute?”

“Yeah sure girl, what’s up?” Monét had just finished her rounds and was now sitting behind her desk watching the security cameras.

“Well, it’s just that, lately, I don’t know, Asia’s been acting kinda weird and like I’m  not entirely sure why. I asked her about it the other night and she said it was cause of school stuff stressing her out, but it just seems like there is something else going on and I thought you might know.” Kameron managed to get the words out, with some difficulty, eyes shifting and heart pounding so loud she was sure that Monét could hear it from where she was sitting.

“First of all, you need to calm down baby, everything will be alright. You’re not the only one that’s noticed. And I can’t believe that she told you it was just school stuff,” Monét said in disbelief, she was stunned that Asia would lie to Kameron like that.

“Wait, so it isn’t midterms stressing her out? Asia lied to me?” Kameron couldn’t believe her ears. She could actually feel her heart breaking. The burning tears started to prickle at the corners of her eyes, and her voice cracked when she spoke. “Why would she lie to me? I thought she trusted me?”

Monét could see the panic that suddenly washed over Kameron’s face and knew she needed to right the situation quickly. “Kam baby, Asia really cares about you, and I’m sure she just didn’t want you to freak out and worry about all her personal stuff. That’s all.” She also knew that Kameron deserved to know the truth. “Look, if you really want to know what’s going on with Asia, I’ll tell you.”

Kameron figured the answer was already written on her face, barely able to hold the tears back. “Yes please.”

“One of Asia’s classmates gave her a flyer about a competition that they think she should enter. Something about the winner having their design used by Bianca in her next show. I guess they’ve been hounding her about it for a while now, and Asia is just really on the fence about the whole thing.” Monét finished waving her hands about.

“Well I mean that totally makes sense now, why she’s been so stressed, but I still don’t understand why she never told me about this.”

Monét held out her palms in a shrug. “That’s something you’d have to ask her, baby girl.”

“Oh, I intend to.” Kameron’s hands were curling into fists. She wanted answers.

“The only reason I found out is that I saw her going through some of her design sketches and muttering about how none of them are good enough,” Monét remarked. “Like seriously, all of her designs are amazing and everyone can see that but her.”

Kameron took a steady breath in. “Well my break is just about over, but thanks for telling me all that. I have a lot to think about now, before I talk to Asia later.”

“Good luck girl” Monét yelled as Kameron waved goodbye and went back to the gym. It was a slow day which would have normally bothered her, but today it gave her the time she needed to figure out what she was going to say to Asia.

 ————–

At the end of the work day, Kameron was finally on her way to talk to Asia about the information she had found out earlier.

"Hey babe! Did you have a good day?” Asia couldn’t help but beam as she saw Kameron. As Kameron got closer though, Asia could see that she wasn’t smiling. She was biting her lip, and appeared to be in deep thought about something, which fired off a spark of worry in Asia.

“Hey,” was all Kameron could muster as she approached the desk, putting her bag on the counter.

Asia couldn’t hide the concern in her voice. “What’s wrong? Did something happen at work?”

“You could say that.” Kameron tried to hold back her anger. “I went to talk to Monét today on my break.” Kameron watched confusion cross Asia’s face. She continued, ”I was curious to see if ‘school stuff’ was really the only thing bothering you lately— not that I don’t trust you,” Kameron almost sneered. “But it turns out that I do have a reason not to trust you. I found out that you lied to me!” By this point Kameron couldn’t hold back the anger and betrayal that she felt. “You lied to me Asia! WHY!?” Kameron knew that she already had tears spilling from her eyes and could see the mixture of hurt and anger that was plastered all over Asia’s face.

“Okay hold on a minute. If you thought that I was still hiding something, then why didn’t you just come to me?” Not that it isn’t obvious why she hadn’t come to me. Why did I ever think that I could hide this from her?

“Because I knew that you wouldn’t tell me the truth even if I asked you about it. And I had to be sure, so I went to Monét, I figured if anyone would know it would be her.” Kameron let out a frustrated sigh. “I was worried about you, Asia. I can’t believe you’d lie to me over something so stupid. Why didn’t you just tell me about the competition?” Kameron’s shoulders shook as tears continued to stream down her cheeks, her whole body stiff with tension.

Asia looked down at the desk, guilt washing over her. “I’m sorry,” she could only whisper. “It was stupid of me but.. .it felt so trivial. I didn’t want you worrying about my personal shit.”

“I’m your girlfriend, Asia! I’m here to worry about your personal shit. I know your life isn’t rainbows and unicorns all the fucking time, life gets messy, but I want to help you with stuff. Even if it’s just something as small as a design competition. I want to be there for you.” Kameron reached over to grab Asia’s hands and squeeze them tight. “So please… don’t push me away like that again.”

Asia had also started to cry, but didn’t know when. ”Okay, I promise I won’t push you away anymore.” She was so touched by how much Kameron cared about her, and had also thought that she just needed to be there to protect her from the world. In the process, she’d forgotten that sometimes it’s okay to lean on someone else.

Kam reached up to wipe away the tears falling down Asia’s soft cheeks. “You’re always there for me whenever I’m having a bad day and have always been so good about accommodating my anxiety. Sometimes I just feel so useless, you don’t always have to be the one helping me. I want to be able to help you, too. I’m not some fragile little girl that’s going to break if you need to vent to me about things.”

“I know you’re not fragile and that I can talk to you, I just worry about your anxiety and overwhelming you. But I promise that I will start telling you about things that are weighing on my mind more often.” Asia leaned over the desk to give Kameron a quick kiss, before promising her that she would try harder to open up. She had to stop thinking that she needed to take on the world alone.

“Now can I see some of those sketches you’re so worried about?” Kameron suggested. “I’m sure that one of them is more than good enough to enter.”

“Well, I don’t know. I mean I guess you can look through my sketchbook, but it’s back at my place.” Asia was always unsure about letting people see her work, but she did just promise to let Kameron in more.

“So am I driving or are you? You know I could always stay the night… if you want.” Kameron gave Asia a wink, wiggling her eyebrows.

Asia came around the desk and wrapped Kameron in a tight hug. When they pulled away Asia kept her hand on the redhead’s waist, pulling her close. “You know that sounds good right about now. And maybe I can show you how sorry I am for keeping this from you.” To accentuate her meaning Asia slowly slid her hands down Kameron’s toned ass and gave a quick squeeze. Kam’s eyes went wide as she sucked in a sudden shocked breath, a playful smile forming on her full lips.

“Well I was really hurt when I found out you lied to me, so you might need to work really hard to make it up to me.” Kameron gently breathed out, before kissing Asia’s pouty lips.

“Well let’s get out of here then. It sounds like this is going to take a while."

                                                       ————–

That night they were curled up in Asia’s bed, Kameron tucked up under Asia’s arm, looking at the designs that Asia had considered entering into the competition. Asia just wasn’t happy with anything that she had drawn and in her mind nothing she did would ever stand up to Bianca’s quality of work. Kameron knew that this was wrong and that anyone of those designs would win the competition for sure. Knew that all of Asia’s perfectionist and professional ways, made all of her designs beyond magnificent, and that no matter what Asia said she needed to enter that competition. Kam had a plan and she hoped that Asia would forgive her for it, in the end.

     ——————–

Kameron suspected that Asia wouldn’t be in any condition to drive that night, she had been sending her nervous texts all day, and was afraid that if Asia drove she might chicken out at the last minute. So Kameron told her that she would drive. Kameron picked her up at around 5 pm and spent most of the car ride listening to Asia’s excited chatter. Asia had no idea her sketches were in Kameron’s bag, neatly tucked away in a plastic folder (she seriously needed to thank Monét for that one).

When they finally got to the class, Kameron’s nerves were only eased by the pure excitement Asia had as she gushed over the sewing machines and picking the perfect table. Now, all Kameron had to do was find a moment alone with Bianca. When Bianca finally appeared Kameron thought that Asia was going to have a stroke. Just breathe baby, everything’s going to be alright. Bianca will love you and you are going to do amazing in this class, Kameron whispered into Asia’s ear, squeezing her hand tight. She could feel her skin prickling with nerves and anticipation; would Asia be mad? Or would she be grateful? What would Bianca think? Kameron had already anxiously run through all the ways this could possibly go wrong in her head, but despite all that, she still had chosen to go through with it.

They were about half way through the class when Kameron saw her perfect opportunity. Knowing she may not get another chance, after making sure Asia was fully immersed in her project, Kameron walked to the front where Bianca was sitting at a table, watching everyone work.

“Uuummm, excuse me?” Kameron was so nervous she could barely get out more than a whisper.

“Did you just say something?” Bianca looked up at her, a twinge of annoyance in her voice.

Kameron cleared her throat and took a deep breath before trying again. “Ah, yeah sorry. I don’t mean to bother you, but my girlfriend is a huge fan of yours, and I was wondering if you could look at some of her designs. One of her classmates told her that she should enter the contest you’re holding, but she doesn’t think any of her designs are good enough, so I was hoping that maybe if you look at them and see how good they are you could tell her yourself. I know that would mean so much to her.”

“Okay first take a breath before you pass out on me, because I really don’t feel like having to explain why a fully muscled and tattooed lesbian, was taking my sewing class instead of building a shed."  

Kam did take a breath, not quite knowing if she should be offended.

"Second, does your girlfriend know that you have these sketches of hers? Because you know I don’t mind looking at them but I really don’t feel like getting in the middle of a lovers quarrel.”

“Uumm, well no she doesn’t exactly know that I took them, but like I said before–"

"Look, you seem like a nice girl and you clearly have good intentions, so why don’t we go tell your girlfriend about your little plan, and then I’ll look at those sketches.” Bianca made a gesture, like she was waiting for Kameron to walk back to her table.

Kameron had planned for this, had done her best to mentally prepare for this moment. Either Asia was going to be super pissed and pull her out into the hallway to scream at her, or she was just going to kill her and leave her for dead on the side of the road.

Asia was still completely immersed in her project when Kameron sat back down next to her, Bianca following close behind.

“Hey babe, that looks so amazing,” Kameron stammered. Asia still didn’t stop what she was doing, or look up. Kameron’s palms were sweating, and her breathing was beginning to get faster. She was really praying that this didn’t completely blow up in her face. ”So I have a surprise for you.”

Stopping what she was doing to finally look, Asia realized that Bianca was standing only a few steps behind Kameron’s chair. A surprised look crossed Asia’s face, before she realized that Kameron looked like she was about to pass out.

“OH MY GOD BABE!! Are you okay? Do you feel sick? Is your anxiety getting to you? Oh shit and here I am so caught up in my work that I didn’t even notice.”

Before Kameron could answer, the woman who had been patiently waiting behind her spoke up. “I do believe your girlfriend is just shitting her pants, because she came up with, in my personal opinion, a horrible plan to try and convince you to enter my contest.”

“What is she talking about Kameron?” Asia was now looking confusedly between her girlfriend and her idol.

“Well, you know how much I care about you, and that I would do anything to see you happy. And I just really wanted to do something that would show you how much I care. So I may have convinced Monét to steal some of your sketches, so I could give them to Bianca in person and have her tell you herself how amazing your work is.”

Asia’s eyebrows shot up and Kameron’s heart thudded faster. Oh no. Oh no she’s pissed, I need to explain myself more. FUCK. FUCK. FUCK! But people are starting to stare. God why do people have to stare?

“Because it really is amazing and you always seem to think that it’s not, and I just really wanted you to have as much confidence in yourself as I have in you. Kinda like the way that you’re always pushing me to have confidence in myself.”  

Tears were streaming down Kameron’s cheeks at this point, she didn’t know when they had started, only that she wanted to crawl under the table and die. She couldn’t stand the way that Asia was looking at her and she thought that maybe if she kept trying to explain herself that eventually Asia would understand. Before Kameron could open her mouth to continue though, she felt a hand come from behind her to grab her shoulder, and watched as Asia got up from the table and stormed out the door, most of the class trying not to look up from their projects.

“Okay sweetheart, remember what I already told you about breathing. Just keep breathing. She needs a few minutes to process what you just told her. The rest of you please just go back to your own work. The poor girl doesn’t need your snoopy asses watching her.” Bianca’s voice cut through the clouds of Kameron’s anxiety, but still sounded like it was far away.

       ——————–

Asia was fuming, she didn’t know what to think. She was both hurt and touched at the same time by Kameron’s actions. She felt like she was being ripped apart inside.

How dare Kameron do something like this behind my back! What did she think she was playing at? I told her numerous times that I didn’t want to enter that contest, and she got my roommate involved? When would Monét have even given Kameron the sketches? But then again she put so much thought into trying to make me happy. And it took a lot of nerve to do what she did, and God I love that girl. Asia leaned against the wall and slowly slid down as the anger that she was feeling started to dissipate. Remembering the look in Kameron’s eyes as she tried to explain everything, the way she could see her anxiety taking over. Part of her wanted to run back in there and wrap her arms around Kameron, tell her that it was okay and that she didn’t need to worry. Another part of her knew that she needed to put herself first sometimes, and that she had a right to be angry with Kameron right now. She had violated her trust and gone behind her back.

Asia didn’t know how long she had been sitting on the floor in the hallway, but suddenly there was the shadow of someone standing over her. As she looked up, she quickly realized that Kameron was standing there silently wiping tears from her eyes. Asia said nothing, unsure if she was ready to talk to Kameron yet.

“I–I’m sorry.” Kameron’s voice was barely more than a whisper. Kameron took a deep breath, like the ones Blair had taught her to take. Kameron’s anxiety must have been high, but she clearly needed to speak her feelings, so Asia silently patted the floor next to her. As Kameron sat down Asia reached out to grab her hand, hoping this would help ease some of the anxiety the other girl felt.  

They sat in silence for a few more minutes, almost waiting to see who would speak first. Kameron decided that she should seize the chance to say something. “I know that you’re mad at me, and I can understand why. I just thought that no matter how much I begged you and told you how good your work was, you’d still never enter that contest.”  

“You’re damn right I’m mad at you! I told you that I didn’t want to enter that contest!” Asia snapped. “But you went behind my back and did it anyway.”

“I know.” Kameron turned to face Asia. ”And I should have just listened to you. I wish I would have listened to you. I–I just thought–that maybe you didn’t want to enter—because you didn’t have enough confidence in your work.”

“Whether I had confidence in my work or not isn’t the point right now Kameron. You betrayed my trust– you AND Monét. You dragged my roommate into this, when you both knew my wishes and still you went against me. I thought of all people, I could trust you, but I guess I was wrong.” The fire in Asia was going out, now she only felt disappointed and heartbroken.

“You can trust me! I’m sorry. I promise I’ll never do anything like this again, I’ll never go against your wishes.” The desperation in her voice was so thick, she could feel it in her tears as they rolled down her cheeks.

“I don’t want to hear it right now Kam. I’m calling a Lyft and going home.”  Asia got up off the cold hard floor.

“No– you paid for your seat in that class, at least stay to the end. You were so excited, remember? I’ll leave and call you a ride for when the class gets out.” Kameron gave a sad smile, getting up from her place on the floor. “The Asia I know is no quitter.” Kameron said over her shoulder, walking back towards the classroom to gather her things, leaving Asia to cry alone on the floor.

As Kameron walked back into the classroom, Bianca looked up from where she was helping someone out, to see Kameron grabbing her things, a defeated expression painted on her face. She excused herself, so that she could have a word with the girl, before she left.

“I know I said that I don’t want to get in the middle of a lovers’ quarrel, but if those sketches meant enough to you to completely ruin your relationship, they must be good. Mind if I see them?”

Kameron nodded and pulled the folder from her bag, handing it to Bianca with a sad attempt at a smile. It took Bianca less than a minute to realize the sketches were amazing, and thought that if Asia would have entered them, they would have been a shoe-in to place high, possibly even to win.

Not wanting to give Kameron any false hopes, she only nodded and asked if she could borrow them, saying that she would give them back to their rightful owner, when she returned to class. Kameron agreed and left, looking broken-hearted.

———-

Asia had made sure that Kameron was gone before returning to class and sitting down in front of her almost finished project. Still overwhelmed by all that had just happened, all she could do was sit there staring at the machine, almost like she couldn’t remember how it worked.

Her thoughts were interrupted by someone clearing their throat, next to her work station.

“I know that it’s none of my business, but why exactly did you decide not to enter the competition?” Bianca asked.

Asia realized she was holding the folder with her sketches. The sight of it made her grit her teeth.

”Because I have to tell you,” Bianca continued. “That these are really very good. And before you say anything, I asked your girlfriend for them before she left. I was curious to see if your talents were really as good as she seemed to think.” The woman eyed her up very seriously. “I don’t compliment people often. So you know that I’m not bullshitting you.”

Asia relaxed a little, knowing all too well that getting a compliment from The Bianca del Rio was something to celebrate. “Thank you.” Asia blushed, and filed this moment away in her memory to tell Kameron, once things were hopefully resolved. ”The reason I didn’t want to enter the contest is because, well, because the first time that people see my work…” Asia looked down at the sewing project she had been working on, and unconsciously began playing with the edges. ”I want it to be in my own show.”

Bianca nodded. “I can understand that. I was the same way when I was young, but everyone has to start somewhere. Not even I, the great Bianca del Rio, saw my own clothing in a showcase all my own right out of the gate.” This made Asia giggle a little and a small smile spread across her lips. “I know that it might be hard to believe, but I was an apprentice at one point in my career and my mentor is the one who finally gave me my big break. So just work hard and before you know it, you’ll be showing off your very own clothing line soon enough.” Bianca playfully bumped Asia’s shoulder. “Also, this may just be my unasked for opinion, but you should forgive your girlfriend.” Bianca placed the folder on the table next to Asia. “I put my card in there, you know just in case you change your mind about entering the contest. Or if you ever need anything.”

“Thank you so much!“ Asia perked up, eyes lighting up with admiration for the woman standing in front of her. She knew that she had a lot to think about tonight.

The first thing Kameron did when she finally made it back to her car, after calling Asia her Lyft, was call Blair to tell her what happened. She was weeping as soon as her sister asked what was wrong.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do Blair.” Kameron sniffled. “I fucked everything up, and now she hates me.” Kameron completely broke at this point, tears and snot streaming down her face.

“Kameron baby, I don’t know exactly what happened, but I’m pretty sure that Asia doesn’t hate you. Just try to calm down and breathe, we can talk about it more when you get home. Why don’t you put on your calming playlist and I’ll stay on the line with you till you feel better.“  Blair did her best to use the most soothing tone she could. She knew that was what Kameron needed most when she got like this. Blair knew that Kameron had heard her, when she heard the familiar sounds of Reba MacIntyre playing over the speakers of Kameron’s car. They sat in silence for a while, Blair quietly singing along with the song and when she heard that her sister had stopped sobbing and sniffling as much she spoke.

"How are you doing? You think you’re okay to drive home now?” It would have been almost condescending her tone if it hadn’t been for the fact that Blair had years of practice calming her sister. Knowing that sometimes she needed to talk to her like she was a child.

“Yeah, I’ll be home in, uh, eleven minutes,” Kam stated, checking the clock in her car. Her voice was still a little wobbly, but stronger than before.

Blair knew that Kam would be alright to drive home when she heard her softly singing along to  Shaina Twain playing in the background so she said her goodbyes and hung up, but went to the front door to wait and watch for her sister’s car.

—-

Kameron was laying facedown on Blair’s bed crying into a pillow, Blair gently rubbing her back. “How could I have been so stupid, to think that was a good idea?” Kameron hiccupped.

“Babe, you were just following your heart and doing what you thought was best.” Blair gently tucked a piece of hair behind one of Kam’s ears. “ Even if I did try and warn you,” Blair said under her breath.

“The last time I followed my heart, it turned me into the school laughing stock. Asia was the first and only girl to ever really like me back and I ruined it!” Kameron jammed her face back into the pillow as she began to bawl her eyes out again.

Blair just kept rubbing soothing circles into her sister’s back, the only thing she could really do at this point. She had learned over the years that when Kameron was like this the best thing to do was just let her cry it out for a bit. Then she could maybe talk some sense into her. Blair had tried to warn Kameron (ahead of time) that perhaps, stealing your girlfriend’s personal belongings and going behind her back, no matter how justified your motives may seem, was probably a bad idea. But she knew that Kameron needed to learn, and do things for herself.

“Okay, get up. You’ve cried about this and felt bad for long enough. You messed things up, now you’re going to figure out a way to fix them.” Blair stood at the end of her bed, hands on her hips with a look of determination.

Kameron whimpered “But, but, but–”

“NO BUTS!” Blair threw a teddy bear at Kameron’s head. ”Now get up.”

“HEY! God, okay, I’m getting up.” she moaned, rubbing her head where the teddy bear had connected. “No need to get violent. I thought Princess Fairy Star was a good Magical girl?” Kameron smirked as she chucked the stuffed animal back at Blair.

Blair quickly put her arms up to deflect the flying object. “I told you to never call me that again! And just cause I’m good doesn’t mean I can’t use force,” she sneered.

“Okay there… Princess Fairy Star.” Kameron mocked, as she threw a stuffed duck at Blair, hitting her square in the face. Kameron’s hands flew to her face to try and suppress giggles.

Blair only glared at the redhead, who was now full-on laughing.

“I’m glad you’re at least smiling now,” Blair admitted haughtily. “But can we please try and come up with a plan to show your girlfriend how sorry your dumbass is?”  

The sisters spent the rest of the night talking about why Kameron’s plan had failed and brainstorming exactly how she could possibly make it up to Asia.

The next day Kameron awoke and checked her phone, and was again reminded of the mistake she had made the night before. There was no good morning text from Asia like there normally would be, only a few late-night texts from a tipsy Vanjie telling her that she was going to be later for work than normal and ‘culd u bring coffe in da mornin, I’ll owe u.’

Kameron laid in bed a little longer than normal, not really wanting to get up today. She hadn’t felt like this in a long time. She was contemplating calling in sick for work, when she heard a knocking at her door. “Come in.”  rolling her eyes to herself, Kameron let out a sigh, knowing that her plan of calling in sick was not going to happen.

Blair slowly opened the door only enough to stick her head in, “Hey Kam, how ya feeling this morning?”

Kameron put on the most reassuring smile she could muster at that moment before answering, “There was no good morning text, I don’t really know what I expected, but it still hurt to see.” Kameron was looking at her phone like it held answers to questions she didn’t know she needed answered.” I guess it’s what I deserve though, after what I did.”

Blair opened the door all the way and went to sit on the end of the bed, ”Just give her some time, we talked about this last night remember?” Kameron nodded her head.

“I could let you sit in bed all day and sulk, but like the good sister that I am I’m kicking your ass out of bed and forcing you to go to work.” Blair then ripped the covers off of Kameron. ”Up, shower, get dressed, I’ll make breakfast.”

Kameron groaned in response as she rolled out of bed. How anyone could seem that chipper and happy so early in the morning was still a mystery to her.

——

Asia arrived at work the same time she always did. As she went about her normal daily routine of opening the complex, something felt wrong, or maybe not wrong, but unquestionably strange. She knew that day might be a little different, due to her fight with Kameron, but she didn’t think that it would affect her this much.

When she got home last night, she was met by Monét and Nina curled up on the living room couch, eating popcorn and watching Jeopardy.

“You’re home early. How was the class?” Monét asked, hearing the front door open, Asia grumbling under her breath while fighting to get her keys out of the door, that she slammed shut once she had succeeded. That was followed by the loud thudding of Asia kicking her shoes off, which led Monét to the conclusion that things were about to get ugly.

“You’re lucky your girlfriend is here, or I’d ream your ass out for what you did!” Asia snarled as she went to her room, and slammed the door.

“I’m guessing things didn’t go well tonight,” Nina said, removing herself from her girlfriend. “You should maybe go and talk to her.”

“Do I have to talk to her right now?” Monét asked, trying her best to give puppy eyes, hoping that it would help her cause.

“Yes. Now Monét.” Nina pointed towards the hallway, “And when you get back from talking to her, I may have a treat for you.” Nina winked, kissing Monét on the cheek before sending her off.  

“Knock knock,” Monét said knocking on the door, before opening it a little. “Can I come in?”

“What do you want?” Asia sneered. Laying on her bed, she refused to look up from the book she was pretending to read.

“So I’m guessing you didn’t like the surprise that Kameron had for you?” Monét sheepishly asked from the doorway.

“No Monét I did not!” Asia’s voice was low with contempt. ”It actually almost ruined our entire relationship if you must know. Now I’m tired, can you please just leave me alone.” Asia huffed out, completely defeated by the day.

Monét rolled her eyes, thinking that Asia was being a little over dramatic about the whole situation.“You know how much Kameron cares about you, and that she would never do anything to ruin your relationship. At least not on purpose.” Monét began to cross the room, to join Asia on her bed. “Anyone can see the way that she looks at you, like you actually put the stars in the sky, just for her.”

“You think I don’t know how much my girlfriend cares about me? You think I don’t know that she feels bad about what happened. You didn’t have to watch the tears streaming down her face, while she apologized for what she did. I know that she’s sorry, but she went behind my back and betrayed my trust, I can’t just forgive her for that.“ Asia could feel all the emotions that she had been trying to keep at bay, bubbling to the top, ready to explode. She took a deep breath before continuing, “Look girl, I am just done with today okay? I’m pissed that YOU gave Kameron those sketches in the first place, what you were thinking is beyond me. I’m torn between being mad at Kameron for going behind my back, and touched that she went through all the effort for me. And most of all I’m hurting cause the one person that I want to share my feelings with so I can figure this out, is the person that is causing all these feelings in the first place.” Asia finally lost her will to keep her emotions at bay and buried her face into her hands, as tears began to roll down her cheeks. Suddenly there was a weight on the bed, and arms wrapped around Asia’s shoulders.

“It’ll all work out, sweetheart. You just need to give yourself some time.” As she looked up Asia realized that Nina was the one sitting next to her. Nina must have realized Asia’s confusion, and quickly added, “ Sorry, I heard the yelling and came to make sure that you two weren’t trying to kill each other. When I saw you crying I just couldn’t leave you without giving you a hug.”

“Thank you, Nina.” Asia sniffled. How the hell Monét ended up with someone as sweet and compassionate as Nina was still beyond Asia.  

“Are you going to be alright?” Nina questioned.

“Ya I’ll be fine, go enjoy the rest of the night with your girl.” Asia leaned back against her pillows wiping the tears from her face with the back of her hand, before picking her book back up.  

———

“Twenty minutes late, not bad Vanj.” Kameron held out the iced coffee in her hand to the shorter Latina girl sluggishly making her way in Kameron’s direction.

“I told your ass last night I was going to be late this morning.” Vanjie grabbed the coffee, lifting her sunglasses slightly and wincing at the brightness of the sun.

“Well, I figured since you were partying, with Silky and Akeria I’d be finding someone to cover your morning class or cancelling it.” Kameron could only giggle at the look that Vanjie was now giving her. “Wouldn’t be the first time.“  

“Yeah well when your girl, text you for a booty call cause she knows your ass has work in the morning, you don’t party that hard.”

“Oh, so I have your girlfriend to thank for you only being 20 minutes late today.” Kameron snickered.

“Well I’d have been earlier, but I had to repay her for last night, this morning.” Vanjie winked.

“Okay gross, I really don’t want to hear about your weird, kinky sex life.” Kameron fake shuddered and made a face in disgust.

“Whatever hoe, I know you got a secret freaky side, I’m sure you only bring out for Asia.” Vanjie laughed, wiggling her eyebrows and shoving Kameron’s shoulder.

“My sex life is none of your business. Can we please just go to work?” Kameron asked, opening the door and motioning for Vanjie to enter.

By this point Kameron had almost forgotten about the fight she had had with Asia the night before, that was until Vanjie began steering them towards the front of the complex. They were walking arms locked like they normally did, Vanjie’s tiny legs pulling Kameron along, when suddenly Kameron saw Asia and instead of lighting up with a smile the way she normally would, she froze in place with a sense of dread running over her.

Everything that had happened the night before flooded her mind and instantly a look of fear and worry painted themselves on her face. The sudden stop, made Vanessa do a 180-degree spin on one foot.

"Why the hell, you…” Vanjie suddenly noticed that Kameron looked spooked, and stopped herself from giving Kameron shit for almost ripping her arm out of the socket. “ Wow Kam, what’s wrong? You look like you just saw a ghost or something."

"I can’t go upfront today Vanj. Can we just go to the gym?” Kam asked in a soft and shaky voice.

“Uuhh, yeah. But do you mind maybe explaining to me, why you don’t want to go and see your girl, like every other day. And lookin like death is waitin for you up there?”

Kameron could only stand there and stare at Asia from the shadows and pray that Asia couldn’t see them. When Vanjie realized who Kameron was staring at things began to make a little more sense.

"So like, did you guys fight or something?” The shorter girl asked, when Kameron hadn’t spoken. Nodding her head was the only answer that Kameron could give, words utterly failing her. “Did she hurt you? Cause I will kick her ass if she broke your heart.”

Kameron scoffed, and shook her head no in response. “No, I broke my own heart.”

“Why don’t we go to the gym babe and you can tell me what happened.” Vanjie wrapped her arm around Kameron and slowly began to direct them towards the safety of the gym. Somewhere that Asia would never go if it wasn’t to see Kameron, somewhere that she knew the weeping redheaded girl would feel safe.

It took Vanjie and the other girls who worked at the gym a while to calm Kameron down enough, for her to be able to fully explain the situation. Thankfully, the gym didn’t open for a while, so they had time to spare.

“I was so stupid.” Kameron sniffled as Plastique handed her a kleenex from the desk.

“Babe, you ain’t stupid for wanting to show your girl some love.” Vanjie wrapped her arm around Kameron’s shoulders reassuringly. “ Look I do stupid shit all the time that pisses Brooke off.”

“That’s cause you’re an idiot, who never learns.” Yvie chimed in.

“I can’t help it, I’m a hopeless romantic, but no one asked you anyways, Yvie. You don’t even work here, so why are you here?” Vanjie sassed.

“I happened to be dropping off Scar, when I saw you bring in Kameron and thought that I’d stay to see what the tears were about.”

“She’s so caring about other people.” Scarlet beamed.

“I’d say it’s more like being nosy, than caring.” Vanjie rolled her eyes in Yvie’s direction.

“Guys, can we please focus.” Plastique urged, motioning towards a sobbing Kameron.

“Yeah, Yvie don’t you have better places to be? Can’t you see we trying to help our girl, who’s in emotional distress.” Vanjie questioned, her patience wearing thin her attitude making itself known.  

“Nope. Think I’ll stay right here and help you find a way for Kameron to get Asia back.” Yvie sneered, making Vanjie’s back straighten like she was getting primed for a fight.  

Plastique could feel the tension and knew that she needed to step in and change the subject. Something that Kameron would have normally done, but was currently in no state to have to deal with. “So I was thinking that it would be so romantic if maybe you just filled the info desk with flowers.”

“Oh my God! Yeah, and heart balloons!” Scarlet added, a bright beaming smile lighting up her face.

“What’cha ya think, pretty romantic right, mami?” Vanjie asked, making sure that her friend was still present in their current conversation and not just wallowing in self-pity. Kameron nodded her head and seemed to perk up a little bit.

“You could even get a banner made that says Sorry I’m an idiot,” Yvie threw in, for good measure knowing that Vanjie was already about to snap.

Vanjie did her best to ignore all of Yvie’s comments, and focus her attention on her friend who needed her the most right now. “Don’t listen to her Kam, she wouldn’t know romance if it hit her in the face.”  Vanjie squeezed Kameron reassuringly, whispering in her ear, “plus she’s dating Scarlet, which is basically like dating your dog.”

Kameron went from sobbing to laughing, but the noises that she was making hadn’t really changed, but the smile on her face let Vanjie know different.

“Nah, too many people with allergies around here. Plus how the hell you going to get into the complex when Asia the one that opens the doors every morning? I say ya rent an orchestra to stand outside her apartment building and play Love me Anyways by Pink,” Vanjie announced. “Or maybe ‘Please Forgive Me’ by Bryan Adams would be better.”

“Yeah I’m so sure that working here, Kameron makes enough money to rent an orchestra, or fill the front lobby with flowers and balloons.” snided Yvie, rolling her eyes at the outlandish suggestions. “Not that they weren’t thoughtful ideas.” Yvie quickly added, seeing that Scarlet had started to pout, which quickly put a smile on the girl’s face.

“Okay, I have seriously had enough of you and your mouth!” Vanjie was promptly standing next to Kameron, making her way towards Yvie.

Kameron instantaneously was on her feet, putting a hand on Vanjie’s chest to hold her back, ”Sit down, NOW!” Kameron had heard enough of their ridiculous suggestions, and bickering. Vanjie slowly sat back down in her chair. “I DO NOT want to sit here and listen to you bicker like children. So if you don’t have something constructive to say, KEEP YOUR DAMN MOUTH SHUT!” Kameron yelled, anger burning in her eyes, hand balled into a fist at her side.

Without thinking the words, just escaped Vanjie’s mouth ‘Damn Asia was right when she said it’s hot when Kam gets angry.”  Instantly her hand flew up to cover her mouth, as Kameron whipped around, eyes wide before glaring death beams at the loud-mouthed girl.

“Good job, Vanjie. Way to piss off Kameron when she needs us the most. Couldn’t just keep your mouth shut and your legs closed for once.” Plastique playfully remarked. “You still got a boner for Kam or something?”

“Shut your whore mouth, Plastique!” the small Latina girl erupted. “The only feelings I have for Kameron are friend related! How dare you try to insin-u-ate that I ain’t faithful.”

Kameron was already at her limit and didn’t want to sit here and listen to anymore of this stupidity. She needed some air and maybe a cigarette. God, why did I have to quit smoking? She thought, taking one last look around at her friends, arguing like children, “God, you’re all useless.” she breathed under her breath, then stormed out of the gym, leaving everyone confused.

“Geez, what’s her problem?” Scarlet wondered. “We were trying to help her and she just stormed off for like no reason. Seems pretty rude if you ask me.”  

Everyone just stared at the appropriately named scarlet haired girl, who seemed completely clueless as to what just happened. “I’ll explain it to you later babe,” Yvie said, kissing the top of Scarlet’s head.

—————–

Kameron took the last inhale of a cigarette she had bummed off someone walking by, relishing in the familiar sting. She let out a dry cough before putting the butt out on the brick wall she was leaning against. She was trying to calm her nerves after having to sit and listen to those idiots, when she heard a familiar voice.

"I thought you quit smoking cigarettes?” The voice came from a lean blonde walking up holding a gym bag on one shoulder and pulling her sunglasses down with the other. She stepped off the pavement and into the shade of the building.

Kameron quickly recognized her old friend. “And I thought that getting up before noon was against everything you stand for?” She couldn’t stop the half-smile that pulled at her mouth. She straightened up to greet Nicky with some more enthusiasm.

The blonde pouted in vague disgust. “Yeah well when two of your co-workers start fucking like rabbits and decide to go on vacation, you get scheduled to do the early shifts.” She rolled her eyes.

“Welcome to the adult world of having to get up early and be responsible.” Sarcasm dripped from Kameron’s every word.

“WOW!“ Nicky’s eyes widened in faux-shock, her free hand going to her chest. "Since when have you been such a bitch?” She demanded with a smirk

Kameron let out a deep sigh and rubbed her forehead, hoping to smooth out some of the stress-creases. “Look, the past twenty-four hours have been shit, and my…” She stated pointing towards the building behind her “loving, yet useless coworkers-slash-friends haven’t made things any easier.” She barely paused before grunting and declaring “God I need another cigarette.”

As Kameron stood leaning with her head back in what seemed utter defeat, Nicky saw for the first time how tired and stressed Kam really looked. She could only imagine what had happened to make the normally perky and happy girl look so worn down.

This was not her friend.

Nicky took on a more serious tone. “Okay first of all, does Asia know you’re smoking again?”

Kameron scoffed and rolled her eyes. “It wouldn’t matter anyway!” Her tone was worryingly dry, prompting another cough.. “Since I fucked everything up, and those idiots can only think of the most useless rom-com ways to try and fix it.”

Nicky slung her bag off her shoulder and approached the wall Kameron had gone back to leaning on. “Woah woah woah hold up. Start from the beginning and explain to me, how you of all people, could fuck anything up with Asia.” Nicky gave a slight shake of her head. “The girl worships you – all you have to do is make puppy dog eyes at her and you get literally anything that you want.”

“Yeah well when you go behind your girlfriends back and have her roommate steal her sketches so that you can show them to her idol, thinking that it might change her mind to magically enter some contest that she had told you like a hundred times that she didn’t want to enter. All because I thought that I was being sweet and supportive and pushing her outside her boundaries, the way she does for me…” Kameron dragged her fingers through her hair, getting snagged on tangles. “It kinda fucks things up."

Nicky let a beat pass to make sure Kameron was done talking. “That is quite the story.” She nodded before taking a deep breath, ”But do you want to know what I got from all that?”

Kameron only shrugged, unsure of what else she could do at this point.

“You care enough about Asia to want to do something above and beyond for her,” Nicky said. “And if you’re willing to do that for her, then you’re not just going to sit on your ass and mope around, waiting for her to forgive you. Plus what are you going to do if Asia decides to come and talk to you?”

“Asia won’t come and talk to me right now, especially if she’s still mad. We also know when to give each other space to cool off, though we’ve never had a fight this big before, so I’m not sure how much space we’ll be needing. But you’re right, I’m not just going to sit on my perfectly toned ass and wait for Asia to forgive me..” perking up, Kameron stood a little taller. “I’m going to make sure she knows just how important she is to me.”

“Of course I’m right, but good for you girl."  Nicky was suddenly shoved by her shoulder.  “Now the question is, what are you going to do to get her back?”

“That’s a good question.” Kameron suddenly deflated a little, remembering that she still had no idea what she was going to do to prove to Asia how sorry she really was.

Nicky grabbed Kameron’s hand and squeezed, “Don’t worry babe. I’ve got you. So this is what you’re going to do if you want to prove that you’ll never make the same mistake again….”

———–

It was finally time for Asia to take her lunch break. Something she normally would have looked forward to, as Kameron normally took her break at the same time so they could eat together. It was strange sitting in the back office alone. The silence almost too much for Asia to handle. The constant ticking of the clock on the wall, reminding her of every minute that had gone by that day without seeing Kameron. It made her wonder how much longer she would have to go before she got to see her again, speak to her. Apologize for the things she had said. She didn’t mean to take things so far, she was just taken off guard and was already stressed about making her piece look perfect for Binaca. Asia knew that Kameron and her needed space to figure things out, she just hoped that Kameron wasn’t so upset that she never wanted to see or speak to her again.

Asia had been sitting at the table staring at her untouched food, having lost her appetite sometime ago. Her stomach doing somersaults at the thought of losing Kameron. Thoughts that were all so new and scary. Feelings Asia had never experienced over anyone before. She decided that since she wasn’t going to eat and needed to break the silence she would call one of her friends. Without thinking she picked up her phone, went through her contacts and hit the call button. It rang 3 times before there was an answer.

“Hey, girl.” Jaida’s voice was slightly more upbeat than Asia was used too.

“Hey, how are you? Anything new happening?” Asia tried to play off the call, like it wasn’t completely strange for her to call her friend in the middle of the day.

“What’s wrong?” was Jaida’s only response.  

“How do you know that anything is wrong?” Asia asked

“Look, you know as well as I do that you did not call me on, I’m guessing your lunch break, to ask me about my life. Now tell me what’s wrong?”

“So Kameron and me got into a fight last night. Like a really big fight.” Asia let out a sigh.

“Uh Huh.” was all Jaida said waiting for Asia to continue.

“And like, I said some things that I really didn’t mean cause I was mad and hurt and lashing out. I really wanted to tell her how sorry I am today, but I haven’t seen her yet and I’m scared that she hates me now. I want to give her space but I also want to apologize to her and text message just seems like it’s not good enough for this kind of situation.” Asia’s words spilled out like an emotional dam breaking open.

“Uh Huh. So you were an idiot with your head up your ass, when all your girlfriend was trying to do was help and support you and now you could be losing the best thing that ever happened to you? Is that correct?” Jaida asked.

Asia blinked. “How did you get that from what I said?”

“First of all, answer the question.” Asia muttered a yes before Jaida continued. “Second, Monét called me earlier to give me a heads up about the situation at hand. I guess she figured you might call me to try and figure out how to fix this little mess.”

“I’m so glad that my roommate has a habit of going behind my back.” Asia snarled.

“Don’t be getting mad at Monét for trying to be a good friend. I know you hate it when people get involved in your personal life, but sometimes it’s for the best. So pull your head out your ass and take the support and help that people are trying to give you. Stop trying to do everything on your own.” Jaida snapped.

“Yeah I know that maybe I can be a little bit overly independent, but–”  

“No buts!” Jaida interjected. “You gotta learn to take help, even if you’re not asking for it. Which reminds me. Monét also said that Bianca gave you her business card.” Jaida’s voice morphed from stern concerned mom to excited teenager.

“Yeah, but I don’t know if I’m going to call her.” Asia sounded defeated. “I already told her that I wanted to put out a line of my own without havin’ to work under anyone.”

Jaida rolled her eyes, even though she knew Asia couldn’t see her, “Child, what did I just get done telling you about gettin’ your head out your ass and taking help when it’s offered. When do you think you will ever get another opportunity like this again? You think THE Bianca del Rio is just going to wait for YOU to decide that YOU’RE ready to work with her? NO!!!”

Asia had to take the phone away from her ear for fear of going deaf, “Okay okay, I get it alright. I’ll call her when I’m done with work. I promise..”

“Child you better. Or I’ll have to drive two hours to come whoop your ass.” Jaida’s normal attitude had returned. Asia could almost see every action that went along with Jaida’s voice. She snickered under her breath  

“Calling Bianca isn’t going to fix things with Kameron though,” Asia’s voice wavered. Jaida could almost see Asia nervously fiddling with the rings on her fingers.

“Look I understand wanting to give Kam some space at this point, but the only way to fix this is to talk to her. You’re going to have to talk to her at some point.”

“I hate to say this, but I know you’re right..” Asia sighed deeply, the admission almost painful.  ”It’s just I’ve never felt like this about anyone before and that shit scares the hell out of me. Saying I’m sorry just doesn’t feel like enough,.” Asia let out heaving breath, her feelings truly getting the best of her. She never knew how draining all of these emotions could be, until she was forced to confront them head-on. Asia was finally getting a taste of what it must be like everytime Kameron had even the smallest of anxiety attacks. The older girl made a mental note to tell Kameron that she really understands what she goes through now.

“I know that this is some scary shit, but telling her that you’re sorry really is a good place to start.” Jaida was silent for a moment before adding, ”Maybe get her talking to you again before you just throw all of these extra feelings at her. Chiiiild, Lord knows how easily Kameron gets overwhelmed.”

“So I guess I should just text her and see if she’s even willing to talk to me first?” Asia asked, already knowing the answer. She said it more to hear Jaida’s reassuring “mmhmm” that she was making the right decision.

“Okay well, I’ll call you later and let you know how things go. Thanks for everything Jade, sometimes I just need a good kick in the ass, you know..”

“Sis, I’m only too happy to be of service.” Jaida snickered before saying her final goodbyes and hanging up.

Asia was left staring at her phone. She opened up her text messages and tapped on Kameron’s name. The last messages they had sent to each other were from before the sewing class the night before.. They seemed so insignificant now. Kam asked if Asia had wanted to stop for fries on their way to the class and that she would be there shortly to pick her up. They were things that Asia had never known she would want someone to text her now so badly.  

As she stared at the blank message box, the text cursor flashing at her, almost mocking her and her inability to think of what to type. Finally, she wrote the only words that would come to her mind and hit send before second-guessing herself.

12:34pm Hey

Why she had let Brooke talk her into this was beyond her. Nina loved her best friend and was willing to do almost anything for her, but sitting and watching ice skating in a freezing cold arena for the next few hours was not top of the list. She would much rather have stayed home with a nice cup of tea and watched reruns of Murder, She Wrote with her dogs.

Out of boredom, Nina offered to go to the concession stand for them, and it was then that she first noticed the new security guard. Her gorgeous dark skin and brilliant, sparkling white smile popped against the blue of her uniform.  I wonder when she started working here, cause I don’t remember seeing her before, and I would definitely have remembered her. Maybe Brooke knows who she is, I’ll have to ask her when I get back. Nina thought, unable to move her gaze from the gorgeous woman.

“Hey, was the line bad?” Brooke asked, moving her legs to the side so that Nina could squeeze past.

“It wasn’t that bad, but on my way out I noticed this new security guard. Do you know who she is?” Nina asked.

Brooke gave her a blank look. “There are a lot of security guards here, Nina, so you might want to be more specific…”

Oh. Of course. Nina flushed pink. ”Well she’s about this tall,” Nina said, putting her hand up to her chest to show Brooke. “She has the most beautiful shade of chocolate brown hair, and her eyes are this gorgeous sparkling hazel colour. Her smile is the most perfect thing that I have ever seen.”

Brooke laughed. “Sounds like someone’s got a bit of a crush…."

“What? What are you talking about? I was just giving you a description of her like you asked.” Nina stated while trying to hide the colour now running up her face.

“Well it sounds like you’re describing Monet, Asia’s roommate. Vanjie told me she started here like two weeks ago. You should totally go and talk to her.” The blonde encouraged.

“Oh, I don’t know. You know I can’t talk to girls I like, plus I’m sure she has a boyfriend or whatever. I mean, how could she not?”

Brooke pulled out her phone and quickly began to text someone. Within a few seconds her phone dinged with a response. “She’s single and gay, You’re welcome. Now go talk to her.”

A mixture of joy and fear ran through Nina’s body.

"But I– what would I even say? I can’t just walk up there like, ‘Hey, you’re hot, let’s date’,                           that would just be weird.”

’'Oh my god. You are hopeless, Nina West.” Brooke rolled her eyes affectionately.

“Hey! You were the same when you were hardcore crushing on Vanjie,” Nina laughed, elbowing her.

“Was not!” Brooke exclaimed, but her cheeks had flared crimson. “Anyways, I really need the bathroom. Come on.” She grabbed Nina’s arm, tugging her through the crowds.

“Where are we going? I thought you said you needed to use the bathroom and they are in the opposite direction?” Nina asked, confused.

“I know, but I just need to do something first.” Brooke stated, pushing through the crowd and stopping directly in front of Monet.

“Hey! Sorry to bother you, my names Brooke, I’m Vanjie’s girlfriend and I teach juniors ice skating.” Brooke points behind her. “And this is my friend Nina. She works at the daycare attached to the complex. We’re friends of Asia’s and just wanted to introduce ourselves, since you’re new here.“

Monet reached out her hand and Brooke quickly pushed Nina in front of her, making Nina shake Monet’s hand. “Oh well it’s nice to meet you.” Monet was a little baffled by what was going on, and was still trying to be polite.

“It’s–uh–nice to meet you too.” Nina replies, still shaking Monet’s hand, eyes locked on each other, but only for a moment. Nina quickly realizes she’s still holding Monet’s hand and pulls it away, eyes quickly darting behind her to look for Brooke and mouth “I hate you” to her before she disappears into the crowd.

“So do you like working at the complex so far?” Nina asked, trying to figure out anything to say.

“Yeah I mean, it’s a job, but it uh, definitely has its perks.” Monet replied, looking Nina up and down, a smile forming over her lips. Nina could feel the heat begin to rise up the back of her neck and into her face.  “So you’re a daycare teacher? How do you like that?”

“OH I love it! I just adore watching all their little faces as they discover and learn new things. I mean obviously it has its downsides, you know, tiny children with sticky fingers can get a little messy at times, but I wouldn’t change it for the world.” Nina glowed from the inside out whenever she spoke about her job and the kids that she taught each day. It really was one of her greatest passions in life. Monet could only chuckle and watch Nina as she suddenly became very animated and talkative.

“Wow, I have never met anyone who loves anything as much as you seem to love those kids.” Monet said. “And that’s saying a lot considering I live with Asia and have to live through her and Kameron being disgustingly in love.”

“Oh, tell me about it. Brooke is my best friend, and I have to deal with her and Vanessa on the regular.” Nina giggled.

“You have a really cute laugh.” Monet said. “I really like your sweater too. It brings out the blue in your eyes.”

The only thing that Nina could think to say was ‘thank you’, then there was a sudden silence that seemed to be deafening. Nina finally cleared her throat and spoke. “I should -uh umm- go find Brooke. She’s my- uh- ride and it’s getting late.”

“Yeah of course. Well it was really nice to meet you, and I hope that maybe we’ll get to see each other around, you know, since we work at the same place and all.” Monet hoped that she hadn’t overstepped any lines or offended Nina in any way.

“I’m sure we’ll see each other again, but it was nice to meet you in the meantime. I hope you have a good night.“ Nina was mentally kicking herself as she turned to walk away. How could she not have complimented Monet back when she was saying all those nice things about her. There were so many things that she could have said and she just blanked and probably ruined her chances. She needed to think of something that she could do to try and win this funny, gorgeous woman over.    

***

Asia had just begun her morning tasks to get things ready for her day at the complex when she heard the distinctive swoosh of the doors being opened and wondered who could be here this early in the morning. Turning, she saw a woman who had been visiting her quite a lot recently, a tall blonde with a kind smile, walking towards her.

"Good morning and how can I help you?” Asia chimed in her best customer service voice.

“You know you don’t need to use that voice on me, right?”

“Yeah force of habit, sorry.” Asia shrugged her shoulders sighing,and with her next intake of breath put a smile on her face. “So what are you doing here so early, doll?” Asia asked, curiosity laced through her voice.

“I just thought that I would come to say hello, and see how you’re doing this morning. See if you need anything?” The blonde smiled, but Asia had a hunch that the other girls’ intentions weren’t as innocent as she made them out to be.

“Is that really why you came to work this early in the morning? Are you sure, Nina?” Asia smiled and sat on her chair, turning her computer on for the day. “Are you sure it has nothing to do with a certain bright-eyed, dark-haired security guard, who also happens to be my roommate?” Asia pressed, smiling up at Nina, whose cheeks she could see flared crimson, and she found herself wishing that Nina wasn’t such a wuss about her crush. Asia knew that despite Monet’s outward confidence, she was secretly insecure and that the two of them would get nowhere without her help…and Asia had never asked to be the one caught in the middle of their school girl crush.

Nina let out all the air in her lungs that she hadn’t realized she was holding in till that moment. It was like her body had turned to jelly, all the tension leaving it at once as she flopped forward on the counter, ”Did she like the chocolates?“

"Yes, but I still don’t understand why you didn’t put your name on the card. It would’ve been less weird."

"Having a secret admirer is sweet and exciting and romantic!” defended Nina.

Asia could only shake her head at Nina’s completely unrealistic view of the world. “I know you think life is a Disney movie, but in reality, things like that get taken the wrong way all the time.” Asia scowled. “Do you want Monet to think you like her or want to harvest her kidney?”

“Okay I get it, maybe it’s a little weird not to put my name on it, but what if she doesn’t like me? I’ve never liked anyone this much before.” Nina’s eyes fell to the floor, and she bit her lip as she contemplated whether she should finally be brave and let Monet know how she felt. “Well, I have another gift for her. Do you think Monet would be freaked out if I left her another one? Should I not leave her any more gifts? I don’t want to freak her out, do you think it will freak her out?” she rambled, anxiety getting the best of her over the situation.

“Not if you put your name on it,” Asia said. “And don’t forget to mention why you’re bombarding her with gifts,” she added on, almost as an afterthought, turning her chair to face her computer screen.

Nina flushed. “I wouldn’t call it bombarding.”

“Okay, but that doesn’t change the fact that you should at least sign this one,” Asia countered, looking up from the screen.

“Fine, I’ll write her a note, hand me a piece of paper, but I’m putting the note inside the box.”

“Won’t you have to unwrap that beautiful paper to do that?” Asia raised an eyebrow with skepticism in her eyes,reaching across her desk for a pad of paper.

“Yes but I am an expert gift wrapper and unwrapper. Just hand me the paper, a pen and some tape and leave the rest to me.”

                     ——————–

"Monet! Come here!” Asia yelled from behind the info desk, motioning her over a look of disdain on her face.

Monet bounded over at the sound of Asia’s voice. “Why the hell are you yelling at me so early in the day?” Monet asked happily, all hopped up on her morning coffee, lifting her hand to reveal a steaming paper cup in her hand..

“A. calm down and give me that sweet steaming nectar of the Gods now,” Asia stated, reaching for the cup in Monet’s hand, “B. there was another gift left for you on the desk this morning.” Asia pointed to a small box wrapped beautifully with red paper that had tiny little pink hearts all over it. This instantly shifted Monet’s focus, as she reached over the counter to inspect the box that looked like it had been carefully wrapped, but there was no tag to say who had left it.

"So are you going to open it or just stare at it till you get x-ray vision?” Asia asked sarcastically before sipping her coffee.  

“I’m admiring the beautiful paper, thank you,” Monet spat back, “now if you don’t mind, why don’t you go do some work or text your girlfriend, so I can open my gift in private.” Monet shooed Asia away with her hand, turning her back to her roommate.

Asia pouted but took a few steps back, still craning her neck to try and get a better view before going to help someone at the other end of the counter. Just then Vanjie and Kameron came walking in, arms linked, laughing about something. They dropped their gym bags on the floor, as they had not made it to the gym to start their day yet.

"Hello, my goddess,” Asia began walking back over after helping her customer. “And what, might I ask, is so funny?” Asia leaned over the counter to give Kameron a kiss. The redhead melted into her attention for a little longer than necessary.  

“Vanjie was just telling me a story about a weird client that she had last week.” Kameron blushed as Asia pushed a loose piece of hair behind her ear, stroking her thumb across her cheek and staring lovingly into her eyes.

Monet rolled her eyes, smiling to herself at their public display of affection, but really she was jealous. She wished that she could find some to love as much as Asia loved Kameron. Monet was truly delighted that her friend had found someone that made her so happy. She could only pray that one day she would find a girl like that. Perhaps this secret admirer was that girl… if it even was a girl. She hoped that maybe one day she could see that beautiful friend of Brooke’s again. The one she met the night of the skating show, but she knew better than to let her hopes get too high.

“What ya got there, Monet?” Vanjie asked, curiously eyeing up the little box in her hand.

“Oh, she got another present from her secret admirer,” Asia cooed.

“Another one? Wow, whoever it is must really like you, you lucky girl.” Kameron playfully shoved Monet’s shoulder.

Before Monet even had a chance to open the present, a tall blonde with short curly hair, rosy cheeks and what seemed to be a permanent smile came round the corner. Monet couldn’t believe her eyes; it was Nina, the girl from that night, the one that she couldn’t get out of her head. She was followed very closely by a group of small children in a not quite straight line. It was like Monet was seeing an angel - Nina was as beautiful as she remembered.

Did God hear my prayers? Monet thought, unable to tear her eyes away, as she watched them approach the front desk. Nina stopped the small parade of children and turned to face them.

“Class, it’s time to quiet down now please.” The blonde put her pointer finger to her lips. The children instantly quieted down, pressing fingers to their own shut lips, mimicking their teacher. “Hello, ladies. How are you on this wonderful day?” The blonde asked, turning to face the other girls, all the while keeping an eye on the kids.

“I’d be better if I was spending it with my girl instead of teaching a spin class full of sweaty old grandmas.” Vanjie chimed in before going back to looking at her phone.

“Ignore her, how’s your day going so far?”Asia smiled, putting her hand on the blonde’s arm.

“Oh, can’t complain, just wish I had someone special to go home too.” She blushed, looking at the others, eyes lingering just a little longer on Monet. To Nina’s chagrin, the security guard didn’t seem to notice. Asia clearly did, though.

She raised her voice the littlest bit, projecting so Monet would be sure to hear and take note. “Let me tell you, that if someone as antisocial as I am was able to find someone willing to put up with me,” Asia said, tickling Kameron’s side. Kameron jerked away before slapping her shoulder and wrapping her in a tight hug. “So can you, Nina. I know I’ve told you this before, but you just need to put yourself out there a little more.”  

“I know Asia, I just hate being single.” Nina frowned.

Thank you, Lord, she’s single. I don’t know how I got this lucky, but thank you Lord for letting this precious angel walk into my life. Nina is the perfect name for an angel like her. I love the way that her eyes sparkle when she laughs, how her hair falls in curls around her shoulders and look at the way they bounce when she turns her head. Look how good she is with the kids, they all love her, but how could they not. You can see the kindness in her eyes, as she talks to them, I don’t know how she does it. I could never be so patient with that many screaming kids, but she’s amazing.

“Well, I was just wondering if the kids could hang up some Valentine’s Day hearts that we made. I know that it would make them really happy.” Nina asked, looking back at the kids who were still all standing in something resembling a line, holding giant red and pink hearts decorated with glue and glitter.

“Yeah, I don’t see why not. I mean, you can just tape them up over there.” Asia pointed over to the empty space on the far wall, and Nina turned her head to look.

Monet couldn’t take her eyes off Nina.

“Thanks, Asia! Come on kids, we can put our hearts up on that wall. Now I want you to all walk over there without running anyone over, and wait for me to help you put them up. Please stay together.” There was a chorus of happy little voices as the children began to scream and run in all directions.

God, could Nina’s smile get any more perfect?

“Hey Monet, are you alright?” Kameron asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine why?” Monet asked, a little dazed.

“Cause you drooling girl,” Vanjie stated looking up from her phone to finally engage in the conversation, “You might want to stop staring so hard and wipe your mouth.” She whispered leaning closer to her friend.

“Ah, shit!” Monet quickly wiped at the sides of her mouth, drying the drool that had indeed begun to dribble out. “Thanks, girl, that could have been embarrassing.”

“So you likin’ Miss Nina over there?” Vanjie wiggled her eyebrows, a knowing smirk growing on her face.

“I mean, she’s pretty cute, but I have a secret admirer and all.” Monet tried to look unaffected by this statement like she didn’t want to just run over there and ask Nina out. Monet could tell by the looks of disbelief that her friends gave each other that they weren’t convinced.

“But, like, what if my secret admirer is smokin’ hot… You guys aren’t buying this are you?” Monet already knew the answer before Vanjie and Kameron could shake their heads no.

“Girl, just go talk to her,” Kameron said. “I’m pretty sure I saw her staring at you too earlier.”

Asia elbowed Kam in the ribs before giving her a quick warning glance.

“What do I even say to her?” Monet inquired, feeling like she was about to meet her favourite celebrity, not go and talk to a cute girl. Monet was normally good at talking to girls, always able to turn on the charm when needed. This was a new feeling, she had never liked anyone this much before, had never feared rejection like this, never felt at a loss for words.

“Ask her if she needs any help putting the kids’ decorations up?” Kameron suggested, ”Then just try and make small talk.”

“Here.” Asia handed Monet a roll of tape. ”Go ask her if she needs any more tape. It’s the perfect ice breaker.”

“Thank you so much, Asia. You are truly a lifesaver.” Monet grabbed the tape, took a deep breath and headed off towards Nina and the kids.

“Jose please don’t push, wait your turn, I’ll be there to help you in a minute.” Nina sighed as she pressed a tape loop to another child’s heart and directed them to the wall.

“Sorry, Miss Nina!” the little boy shouted, stepping back to wait his turn.

“You looked like you could use some help over here. I brought some more tape.” Holding up said tape as evidence, Monet approached Nina slowly and with a smile, so as not to scare her.

Nina looked up, smiling. “That would be great thanks."

The two smiled at each other, but only for a moment before a scream could be heard from the children. Quickly turning to see what had caused the commotion, they were met with the sight of three of the kids fighting over a spot on the wall where they wanted to put their hearts.

"You can’t tell us what to do Antwan!” demanded a girl with brown pigtails.

“Yeah! We can put our hearts wherever we want!"shouted another girl.

"Adelaide, Catherine, Antwan, please come here,” Nina asked with a stern yet soft voice before turning to Monet. “Do you mind keeping an eye on the others while I sort this out?"

Monet shook her head and Nina grabbed her arm, thanking her before taking the other three children off to figure out their disagreement.

"So who still needs some tape for their heart?” Monet was met with an eager audience of hands and jumping children.

“Me! Me! Me!” was all that could be heard in the front lobby. Monet looked back to her friends with a terrified look on her face before she mouthed the word ‘help’.

“So… do we go help her or just let her suffer for a bit?” Vanjie asked.

“I mean, it is kinda funny to watch, but we can’t just leave her to be eaten alive,” Kameron responded, pulling away from Asia to go help Monet out of her current predicament. The other two girls followed closely behind Kameron.

“Okay guys, you need to use your indoor voices now,” Asia said, copying Nina’s earlier actions she put her finger to her lips. The kids were less obliged to take orders from someone who wasn’t Nina, but they calmed themselves. Once everyone was (relatively) quiet, Asia looked at Monet and nodded as a signal that now it was her turn to give the orders.

“Alright everyone, we’re going to play a little game, okay? So I want you all to get in a line and I’m going to put tape on the back of all your hearts. Then Kameron and Vanjie are going to decide who’s standing the quietest and stillest and help them go put their heart on the wall.” Monet spoke as soft and gentle as she could.

The kids began forming a line. Monet leaned over to her friends to whisper, “Does anyone know how many there are supposed to be?” Her friends looked at each other, shrugging their shoulders and shaking their heads no.

Monet began to rip off tape and make loops to stick on the back of the preschoolers’ hearts when she noticed a little boy three from the front crying.Crouching next to the little boy, she asked him why he was crying and he showed her that he had ripped his heart. “We can fix that. You want to know how?”

The little boy nodded his head, wiping at his tears.

“Well, what’s your name sweetheart?” Monet asked gently, holding her hand out and waiting for the boy to take it.

“An-Andrew.” he sniffled out.

“Well Andrew, you see this tape here? It’s magic, and it can fix a broken heart just like yours. Do you want to see it?” the little boy nodded his head and took Monet’s hand that she was still holding out. She guided him to a small table near where they were standing and he put the heart down.

Nina had finished talking to the youngsters that had been arguing and had sent them off to go get back in line and wait for their turn. Nina was standing back, watching in awe at the young woman taking so much care and being so tender with her student. The sight made her heart skip a beat and a warm fuzzy feeling took over her body. She decided that she wanted to see how Monet handled her students and stood to the side for a few moments longer than needed.

Monet had Andrew close his eyes as she placed the tape on the rip in his heart. Making sure the tear was invisible, she then had him repeat some magic words before letting him open them to see his art project fixed as good as new. His face lit up with joy and he squeaked with happiness.

“Thank you!!!” he said before running back over to get back in line and wait his turn again.  

Vanjie was helping the little rugrats find the best place to put their hearts so everyone would see them, and Asia was making sure that they stayed quiet and in line. The kids seemed fascinated by all of Kameron’s tattoos and muscles that they got an up-close look at as she knelt in front of them to help put tape on their hearts.

Nina was watching how good all of the girls were doing with the kids; she mentally checked the children off her list as she went, when she realized that one outspoken blonde girl was missing.

Nina began scanning the lobby to see where the little girl could have gotten to, and noticed her over by the front desk, going through what looked to be one of their purses. Nina immediately walked over to where the girl was, crouching down next to her, and was met with the sight of her applying lipstick to her face. The girl instantly stopped the second she realized that she had been caught, handing the lipstick over to Nina, who picked the pursed up off the floor.

“Hey Vanj, isn’t this yours?” Nina asked, holding the purse up in the air.

“What?” Vanjie looked over to where Nina saw standing and noticed the tiny culprit whose face was covered in her lipstick. “Oh FUCK NO!” Vanjie yelled as she took off to gather her things.

All the kids clapped their hands on their mouths in shock, “OOOOOH, YOU SAID F—”

“Vanjie! Language!” Monet yelled before the children could finish repeating the word. “Don’t repeat what she just said, it’s a bad word, kids.”  

“Is that my Fenty lipstick!?” Vanjie exclaimed, taking the lipstick back from Nina, then reaching into her gym bag for her makeup wipes to try and clean the girl’s lips and face. ”Didn’t your mama teach you not to touch what ain’t yours?” Vanjie asked, the girl shaking her head, partly to answer the question and partly to stop Vanjie from wiping at her face.

“ You never take someone else’s stuff without asking. Specially they Fenty lipstick. You stick with Tia Vanj, and I’ll teach you bout the good things in life.”

"Vanjie, we want these kids to grow up to be respectable members of society,” Asia said while trying to make sure that everything was still where it belonged in the lobby and that the kids hadn’t broken anything or run any of the other patrons in the lobby over. “Plus I’m sure Nina can handle punishments.”

“You tryin to say I’m not a respectable member of society, mami?” Vanjie questioned, hands on her hip, head cocked to the side in offense, slightly taken aback by the statement.

“What I’m saying is that you have a way of getting around the rules, which isn’t something that these kids need to learn,” Asia retorted. “I know that your mama taught you manners, that’s the truth. What she didn’t teach you was volume control.”

“I don’t have to take this. I have a class to teach and a hot girlfriend to go see!!” Vanjie yelled.

“Vanjie, before you go I think there’s something that Samantha needs to say to you, isn’t there?” Nina spoke with a firm yet gentle tone, letting the girl know that what she had done was wrong, but Nina wasn’t mad at her.

“Yes, Miss Nina.” The girl’s cheeks burned with shame, and also anger that she’d been caught and lectured. “I’m sorry I took your stuff without asking,” Samantha sniffled out, almost in tears. Vanjie walked over to the small girl and gave her a hug.

“It’s okay little mama, just don’t do it again."

The tiny blonde nodded her head and wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. Vanjie stood and gave her friends an angry glare before grabbing her things again and stomping away.

"Awww Vanjie! I’ll see you later?” Kameron yelled after her.

“Only if you have a peanut butter and chocolate shake!!” Vanjie shouted over her shoulder.

“Hey! I thought that was a morning thing! Plus I didn’t even do anything.” Kameron threw her arms up.

“No, but your girl did! So now I want a peanut butter chocolate shake.” Vanjie pouted.

Nina walked over to where Monet was standing, shaking her head in the direction Vanjie left in. She motioned in the direction of the other kids. “You’re really good with them.”  

“Well I mean they’re good kids, I just hope my friend didn’t traumatize them.”

Nina laughed at her joke, and Monet felt a tiny sensation of relaxation wash over her body.

”But for real though, how could they not be good kids with a teacher like you.” Monet felt brave and bumped Nina’s shoulder with hers.

Nina’s laughter quickly turned to a bashful giggle, and her heart skipped a beat.

The well-behaved kids seemed to be at their limits, as some of them were laying on the floor, others chasing each other in circles playing tag, nearly running into other patrons on their way to other activities in the Complex.

As Nina was trying to calm the kids down a little, she noticed Monet walking closer, and could feel her body begin to tense up. Oh my goodness, she’s coming over here. How can she be so beautiful and so good with the kids? She’s so funny, I’m not that funny and I have no idea what to say to her. It’s like whenever she gets close to me I forget how to speak. I hope she doesn’t think I’m a total weirdo or a rambling idiot. God I hope I look good right now. There aren’t any stains on this dress are there?

“I think it’s really sweet of you, to ask Asia if the kids can display their artwork in the lobby for everyone to see.” Monet stepped closer to Nina. “You seem to have some real little Picassos on your hands here. Especially that little purple-haired boy. He really seems to be on a level all his own.”

“Oh that’s Salem, they’re such a sweetheart and so good with the other kids. They’re always trying to help out the younger ones so that they feel included during playtime.” Nina began to almost glow while gushing over her kids and how amazing they were. Monet found this very endearing and wanted to know what other wonderful traits this woman had that made her so perfect.

“That’s very cool, their parents don’t force them into a box. And I love that they let them use hair chalk.” Monet smiled.

The children were starting to become louder and harder to control, and Nina knew that this wasn’t going to last much longer. As much as she wanted to stand here and talk to Monet all day, she knew that her kids needed to come first.

“Class! Class! Please quiet down. Jose, please pay attention, eyes front, thank you. Now I know you all really want to put your hearts up, but we need to be a little quicker because Miss Peppermint will be here today, for storytime.”

The children began to excitedly jump up and down and scream at this announcement.

“Children!” Nina waited for quiet again. “Okay so now I want you all to quickly go stand by the wall and find somewhere for your heart and wait for Monet or myself to come to help you tape it up. No pushing, and if you’ve already put yours up, please calmly go stand over by Asia and Kameron and wait.”

There was a sudden stampede of tiny legs in all directions as they all seemed to rush towards their desired destination, seeing who could get there the fastest or who could reach up the wall the highest.

Once all of the excitement had died down and all of the hearts were finally up on the wall, Monet finally got a chance to talk to Nina alone for a few moments.

“You know, you got yourself a really fun little class, Miss Nina. I may have to come and visit from time to time.” Monet reached out to touch Nina’s arm, and Nina visibly shivered.

“That would be nice,” Nina breathed out, trying to compose herself in front of the children.

“Yeah, it would be.“ Monet looked into Nina’s blue eyes and was suddenly stripped of all previous thoughts. All she could think about was the beautiful blonde in front of her. Neither of them was able to look away, lost in the moment, till suddenly there was a chorus of, “EWWW, GROSS!” Snapping back to reality, they noticed that they were now surrounded by tiny faces all staring at them.

There were a few moments of silence while Nina tried to think about what she should do, all of the children still looking at her for further instructions. That was when she noticed that two of the kids were playing near the stairs, spinning in circles and seeing who could still walk a straight line.

“Is something wrong?” Monet asked, concern in her voice, her brows scrunching together as she began to look around too.

“I just need to stop the kids from playing near the stairs.” Nina smiled at Monet to thank her for her concern, as she walked over to where the kids were playing.  

“Kevin and Ashleigh stop spinning like that near the stairs, before someone gets hurt!” Nina shouted. But it was too late. Ashleigh had spun around a little too quickly and slipped on her own feet, falling straight on her face. That’s when the deafening cry could be heard throughout the complex and Nina instantly went into mother bear mode.

It was nothing that she hadn’t had to deal with in the past, she was the teacher of a group of rambunctious preschoolers after all. She quickly walked over to where Ashleigh was now laying on the floor crying, and checked to see if there was any blood.

Monet instantly ran over behind the front desk and grabbed the first aid kit and brought it over to where Nina was sitting on the floor with the little girl, assessing the damage. Nina looked worried as she scanned the girl’s body, for any visible injuries and then began to ask her if anything hurt and if so, where?

Monet crouched down beside them and put her hand on the lower part of Nina’s back, to try and help keep her calm and because she just really wanted to be close in case there was anything that she could do. She hoped that the physical touch would help reassure Nina and let her know that she was there if she needed anything.  

“How is she?” Monet asked “I brought the first aid kit, just to be safe.”

“Thank you. I don’t see any blood, I think it’s just a bump on the head and a few scrapes.” Nina stated.” Do you mind finishing up with her, while I go check on the rest of the kids?”

“No, not at all. We’ll get you fixed up right as rain, won’t we sweetheart?” Monet tried to smile at the little girl, but she was still sobbing too hard to respond.

When Nina came back over after making sure that the rest of her class was okay and hadn’t killed Asia and Kameron yet, she saw Monet sitting on the stairs, Ashleigh beside her all smiles and giggles like nothing had happened.

Standing back up, Nina hugged Monet tightly, winding her arms around her neck. Monet wrapped her arms around Nina’s waist and when she tried to pull away realized that Nina had not yet let go. This seemed to be a little long for just a friendly thank-you hug, but Monet only chalked it up to Nina’s relief to Ashleigh being all right.

”Thank you so much! I don’t know what you said or did to make her smile like that after getting hurt but you are a miracle worker,” Nina said, breath warm against Monet’s ear.

“It was really nothing.” Monet swallowed, her mouth suddenly going dry from their close proximity. She could now tell how good the blonde’s curls smelled and it made her want to run her fingers through them. If she could ever take her hands off of Nina’s perfect waist.

Finally, the two pulled apart, smiling at each other, fixing their clothes just for something to do with their hands.

“Well, I should uumm, you know, get my class back to our room before Peppermint shows up and wonders where we are.” Nina knew she was stumbling over her words, but this gorgeous woman before her just had this effect on her.

“Yeah well, you wouldn’t want her to think the whole class went missing or anything.” Monet laughed nervously, scratching the back of her head.

Finally, the awkwardness between the two was broken when Asia called over. “If you two are done talking, I really think these kids need a snack or something. And to get out of my lobby, before anything gets broken or stolen.”  

“Of course. Everyone say ‘thank you’ to Asia for letting us put up our artwork, and get into line with your hands on your hips. I want to see a line of little butterflies.”

“Thank you Asia!” echoed through the lobby, making everyone giggle and wave at the line of tiny butterflies.

“So Monet.” Asia turned to look at her friend.  “Did you ever get a chance to open that gift you got this morning?”

“No not yet, but I’ll open it later.” Monet had better things to do at the moment than worry about a present from someone with no name.

“Oh, you’re really not going to open it now? Maybe the person left a note inside the box with their name on it and you can find out who it’s from.” Nina’s sombre tone was such a contrast to her earlier perky demeanour. The look in her eyes alone made Monet want to open the gift instantly just to make her happy.

“Why don’t you just open it now, before you forget,” Asia chimed in, trying to put Monet in the right direction, plus she was also curious to see what was in the box.

“Okay, why is everyone so concerned with my gift?” Monet marvelled.

Nina knew that she had to get the kids back and couldn’t wait any longer no matter how badly she wanted to see Monet open the gift.

“No reason.” She walked to the front of the line. ”Come on kids, it’s snack time and then Miss Peppermint will be here for storytime.”

Asia walked over to the counter, grabbing the small slender box before she handed it to Monet.

”Open the damn box,” she demanded.

Monet looked at the perfectly wrapped box, someone had definitely taken time and care while wrapping it. After carefully pulling the paper off, Monet lifted the lid to find a perfectly folded note, sitting on top of two pins. The first pin was a limited edition Storm pin that Monet had been looking for, for what seemed like forever, to add to her collection.The second was the sweetest Mary Poppins pin Monet had ever seen.  

Gently lifting the note out of the box, Monet unfolded the perfectly folded piece of paper, to find that it was written on a piece of stationery that came from the complex.

Monet quickly read the note, then quickly read it again to make sure that she had read it right the first time.

Wait no way. This can’t be right. But the name is right there. I can’t believe this.

A smile spread across Monet’s face as she gently picked up the Mary Poppin pin and pinned it to her collar.

"Hey, Nina!” Monet yelled. “How does Saturday at 7 sound?"

St.Charles Recreation and Cultural Complex was built and sponsored by the Mathews and Daly Architecture Company. It was a huge blessing to not only the town but the community as well, providing tons of new jobs and a place for the kids of St. Charles to stay out of trouble. This thing had everything, including an indoor water park, ice rink, and state of the art gym, plus lots of office space to hold classes and meetings. There was even a kitchen for cooking classes.

Working at the reception desk at St.Charles Cultural and Recreation Complex was not exactly a dream job, but moving out for college with her roommate Monet who also happened to work at the complex and needing to help out financially at home meant that she needed the money. Asia’s real dream was to run her own costume design company, making outfits for theatres, dance groups, figure skaters. She was always designing new outfits for her little sisters’ dolls or fixing holes and tears in shirts and pants to make them last just a little while longer. Turning old scraps of cloth into something new and watching the way her sisters’ faces would light up when they saw the new dress-up costume Asia had made for them always seemed to make the time and effort worth it.  

 It was finally the end of the day, and Asia was looking forward to going home to make dinner, put on some music and study. It’s not that this job was hard by any means, but the days seemed to drag on and she could think of at least 20 things that she would much rather be doing. If she didn’t need the money to pay her rent, she never would have taken the job in the first place.

     Asia was just packing up and thinking about what she was going to make to eat when she heard someone tapping their nails on the desk. As she looked up she saw a tiny, perfectly put together girl. She looked more like a doll than a human, with her porcelain painted skin, long eyelashes and plump lips. Her platinum blonde curls lay perfectly down her back. Asia recognized her instantly, it was hard not to know exactly who this beauty was, she was impossible to miss. Blair St.Clair had gone to high school with Asia. The girl was a few years younger than her, but Asia recognized the stereotypical southern belle from the years of hearing tales about the pretty new girl from her fellow classmates. Everyone had been infatuated with Blair since her family moved to town in her ninth grade year. Asia didn’t blame them.

"Hey, Blair. Sorry, I didn’t see you there, sis." Asia said as she finished packing her bag.

“No big thing girl, I’m just waiting for someone. I love your hair, did you do something new?”

Asia reached up to play with loose waves that frame her face, “Thanks, but it’s the same as the last time I saw you. So, if you don’t mind me asking, who are you waiting for, cause I’ve never seen you here before. So he must be really special.” wiggling her eyebrows and giving Blair a playful wink.

“Oh no, it’s nothing like that! I’m just waiting for…” but before Blair could finish, the most beautiful girl that Asia had ever seen came walking around the corner. There was just something about the way her red ponytail swung from side to side in perfect time with her hips. Her muscular creamy arms were covered in tattoos, but Asia’s eyes immediately fell on a very large tattoo covering the girl’s ample chest As she got closer, Asia realized that she also had a tattoo on her neck too. It was hard for Asia not to stare.

Asia knew she must look like a pervert or something, the way she was ogling this fiery goddess from head to toe. Checking out the way her tights hugged every inch of her perfectly sculpted legs and hips, her shirt was just tight enough you could tell she had a toned stomach and cut low enough to get a perfect view of her full breasts. Something inside Asia just didn’t care, it was like her brain had short-circuited, and she no longer knew how to act human anymore. She prayed that the tattooed beauty wouldn't come over to the desk because there was no way that she was going to be able to speak anytime soon. How long has she worked at the center and why have I never seen her before? I would definitely remember seeing someone as radiantly beautiful as her. Just please, don’t come over here, please, please… Oh, fuck is she coming this way…?

It was just her luck, she was walking directly towards her. Asia knew she needed to reboot her brain into remembering words, she was an intelligent woman and words had never been something she was at a loss for, until now. Why was this redheaded goddess affecting her like this?

---

As Kameron walked out of the changing rooms, with her freshly washed hair in a ponytail and her bag on her shoulder, she was mentally trying to remember if she had everything that she needed when she noticed her sister talking to the girl at the reception desk. She had flawlessly smooth chocolate skin that made Kameron want to touch it, and the way her wavy brown hair framed her face was sinful. Kameron noticed the girl was staring at her and wondered if she had a stain on her clothes or if her shirt was showing too much cleavage and began to get a little self-conscious.

There is no way that she is checking me out. A girl like that would never go for a gym rat like me.  Definitely not checking me out.  Kameron was pulled from her thoughts when she reached the desk were Blair was waiting.

---

“Hello, Earth to Asia...are you okay?” Blair was waving her hand in front of Asia’s face.

Asia knew someone was talking to her but she was too lost in her thoughts to hear what they were saying fully only catching the end of the question. “What. Yeah. Sorry. I’m fine."

“You sure because you spaced out pretty hard there for a second?”

Asia looked over at the red-headed goddess again. “Positive,” she flashed her a bright smile.

“Okaaaay well…. I was saying I'd like to introduce you to my sister Kameron. Kameron, Asia, Asia, Kameron. Kameron is a trainer at the gym.”

"Hi, nice to meet you," was all that Asia was able to manage to get out as a smile she couldn't hold back crossed her lips.

“Hey,” was all Kameron could say as a shy smile crossed her lips and a blush began to heat up her cheeks. That perfect white smile was too much for her to handle.

There was an awkward silence as the two girls just stared at each other, Blair looking between them wondering if either was going to say anything else. Blair finally broke the silence. "Well we should get going, Kameron, we don't want to be late for dinner. You know how your mom hates it when we're late."

"What. Oh yeah, she does hate when we're late for dinner. " Kameron finally broke eye contact and looked down at the countertop, both of her hands held the shoulder strap of her duffle bag just so she had something to do with all the nervous energy she was feeling. "I'll wait out by the car for you." With a shy smile and a wave, Kameron made her way to the door before anyone else could say anything.

"Okay!" Shouted Blair.

Asia couldn’t help but take a quick look at Kameron’s perfect plump ass as her hips swung tantalizingly from side to side as she walked away, or at least she thought she had only taken a quick look.

“So, you enjoying the view? Blair chuckled.

Busted. Don’t let her know you were looking.

“I didn’t even know you had a sister till right now. Did she go to school with us?” Asia asked, tilting her head to the side and giving Blair a questioning look with a fading smile on her face. She knew she was avoiding answering the question, but she had to redirect the focus. She couldn’t let Blair know that she was indeed checking out Kameron, even if she had made it obvious.

“Technically she’s my step-sister, our parents married the summer before we moved here. And no, she was homeschooled… She’s around the same age as you.” Blair said as a sly smile began to form on her lips. ”But seriously though I really have to get going. It was so good seeing you again though. I hope you have a good night.” She said, grabbing her purse off the counter.

“Yeah, it was good seeing you again too. Have a good night, Blair.”

As Blair reached the doors she stopped and turned back towards the desk, “Hey Asia, just be careful with her. She might look tough, but she’s really shy and soft-spoken.”

“Wait what! I wasn’t even-” but Asia quickly realized that she was talking to herself, as the door closed behind Blair.

---

When Asia finally made it home and took her shoes off by the front door, she was not only met with the sound of loud music coming from the kitchen but also the unmistakable smell of burning; which could only mean one thing. That her roommate must be trying to cook, again. Making her way to the kitchen, Asia found Monet, waving a dish towel in front of the stove, as smoke was pouring out.

“What in Jesus’ name are you doing?” Asia asked as loudly as she could standing in the doorway, not only so she could be heard over the music, but out of fear that her roommate might actually burn the apartment down this time.  

Monet turned around suddenly realizing that Asia was home and turned the music off so that they wouldn’t have to yell to hear each other. “OH! Welcome home honey, how was your day? Good, good. Bitch I was trying to make dinner “  

“No, what it looks like you’re trying to do is burn our apartment down, and give me a nervous breakdown in the process.” Asia grabbed another dish towel to help clear the smoke.” You know full well you can’t cook, so why did you even try?”

“I thought I would be a good roommate and do something nice for you for once.”

“If you really wanted to be a good roommate you could have just cleaned up the apartment, instead of making a bigger mess for me to clean. I have enough things to take care of when I come home from work, cleaning up after your raggedy-ass, shouldn’t have to be one of them.”

Monet’s phone suddenly dinged on the counter, abruptly putting an end to their bickering. After a minute Monet put her phone back down with a smile on her face and continued to clean up the kitchen, with Asia’s help.

“Speaking of work, how was work? Anything interesting happen today?” Monet asked wiggling her eyebrows.

Asia’s thoughts instantly returned to Kameron. She hadn’t been able to stop thinking about what Blair had said. What did she mean don’t hurt her? Asia had only just met this girl and had no idea if she would ever see her again. But she knew if she told her friend about the beauty that she would never hear the end of it. “Nope, same old boring shit like every other day. Why are you asking?”

"No reason just looks like you had a hard day, so you go relax, I’ll clean up this mess and order food, I’ll let you know when it gets here." Monet was being suspiciously civil for some reason, but Asia couldn't quite put her finger on why.

After dinner, the girls decided to go watch TV. Asia had been thinking about Kameron all night. She couldn’t help but hope that she would see her again soon. She was actually somewhat excited to go to work now. Hopefully, the next time she saw her she would get to talk to her a little longer, maybe get to know her.  

 "So you still never told me how your day was?" Monet asked nonchalantly well flipping through the channels trying to find something to watch. “Normally you tell me about your day as soon as you walk in the door. You sure nothing happened at work today?”

“ I would have told you about my day if you hadn't been trying to burn our apartment down when I got home. I’m pretty sure I already told you though, my day was boring and long as usual,” Asia said trying to avoid the subject altogether.

“You just seem kinda out of today is all, you were really quiet at dinner. You sure you didn’t meet anyone exciting or interesting today?”

“I met new people every day, that’s kinda my job, Monet”

“Yes, but I’m more interested in whether or not you met a certain redhead.” Monet with a wicked grin spread across her lips.

Asia let out an exasperated sigh and rolled her eyes, “Oh Lord, who told you!”

“Brianna, you know Cracks can’t keep a secret”, Monet could see Asia’s eyebrows raise with an unimpressed look on her face, “ who heard it from Vixen, who may have heard it from Blair after she left the complex tonight.”

“Seriously, y'all some grown-ass adults, why you still need to gossip like you’re in high school.”

“Look it’s just been so long since you’ve even been interested in anyone, we’ve all been worried about you. All you ever seem to do is go to school, work on your outfits, study and go to work. I’m happy that you’re living your dreams and all but you still need to take some time for yourself every once in a while. You know go out and relax, meet people, have a social life outside of me, maybe get a little action If you know what I mean.” Monet winked at Asia with a sly smile.

“I really don’t want to talk about this anymore, plus who I may or may not like is none of you or your chatty little friends business.” Asia let out a sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose she took a breath to focus herself before she continued. “ But yes I do like Kameron. She’s beautiful, and I would like to get to know her better.” Asia pointed her finger at Monet to silence her as she continued, “But I DO NOT need any help from you or any of your friends. I don’t want you to interject in any way. I will do this in my own time and at whatever pace feels comfortable to me. And that’s even if Kameron likes me too.”

Holding her hands up in mock defence, giggling “ Okay fine, have it your way. I and my friends won’t get involved.”

“Thank you. Now if we’re finished, I need to go try and study before bed, so good night.”

---