Chapter Text
Chapter 28: I Love Play Rehearsal (Multiple)
“For a minister’s daughter, you know a lot about life,” Michael Isaacs told Lexi, walking towards her as she sat on the arm of the living room’s couch. “Where’d you learn it?”
“In the choir loft,” Lexi replied suggestively, batting her eyes at Michael.
“I’ll explain to you some time, darling,” Michael said, coming to stand less than a foot from Lexi, “the close connection between neuroticism and religion.”
“Cut!” Rue yelled from the audience. Lexi turned to where Rue and Eve sat in the audience, watching them. Mrs. Wier had to input some grades, and so she was letting Eve and Rue run rehearsal. “It’s ‘eroticism’, not ‘neuroticism’. You want to fuck her, not diagnose her. Got it?”
“Sorry, yeah. ‘Eroticism’, got it,” Michael replied shyly. He turned to Lexi and whispered, “Sorry.”
“It’s fine,” Lexi smiled, stifling a laugh. She was endlessly entertained by how authoritative Rue got as a stage manager.
“Alright, go back to that last line and keep going,” Rue told them. In some ways, Lexi was surprised at how well Rue was taking to being a stage manager. Rue was usually a deeply shy person. On the other hand, Rue had the actual authority to boss around and yell at people she didn’t really know for maybe the first time in her life, and she was taking to it like a fish to water.
“Got it boss,” Michael told her. In most people, Lexi would have taken the ‘boss’ to be sarcastic, but not Michael. When he wasn’t acting, he was painfully honest.
“Please don’t call us that,” Eve called out.
“I just call her that,” Michael said, nodding at Rue. “No offense,” he added to Eve as she rolled her eyes. Rue turned to Eve and grinned. Michael turned back to Lexi and slipped back into character. Lexi always found it fascinating how you could see that happen without necessarily needing to hear any words.
“I’ll explain to you some time, darling,” Michael told Lexi, “The close connection between eroticism and religion.” Lexi had the brief thought that Michael was actually pretty hot when he was acting confident, especially now that he’d shaved his beard. Although from this angle, Lexi could see Eve out of the corner of her eye and compared to her, Michael couldn’t hold a candle. Along with her new hair, Eve had a newfound sense of self-confidence that made her even more attractive. Lexi had an idea of how Rue felt when she first met Jules.
“Religion never gets as high as the choir loft,” Lexi grinned, giving Michael a quick peck on the lips. She briefly let herself imagine it was Eve.
~~~
“You don’t know this town, Doctor,” Henry told Divya meekly, “Practically everyone in Brooklyn needs a new face.”
“Cut!” Rue called, making Jules grin. “Henry- Actually, do you want to take this one?” Rue asked Eve.
“Yeah,” Eve said, standing up. “Henry, you’re the antagonist. You’re supposed to be intimidating, but you look like you’re afraid of Divya.” Jules had to agree. Despite the fact that Henry was six two and solidly built, he gave off the impression of a large dog scared of a mouse. Considering Divya was only five three, the effect was comical.
“He’s like that off stage too,” Rue whispered, sitting back down next to Jules. “It’s like if Nate was afraid of everything.”
“Henry seems sweet,” Jules said. “Although it is kind of hot when you yell at everyone.”
“Thought you’d like that,” Rue grinned lightly.
“You guys aren’t very quiet about your dom and sub play,” Eve commented as she sat back down next to Rue and the actors took the scene from the top.
“We’re not- We don’t-“ Jules stammered, her face starting to turn red.
“I don’t kink shame,” Eve shrugged, grinning. “Although try not to get caught.”
“Jules dad already heard us, so…” Rue trailed off. Eve and Jules’ eyes snapped to Rue.
“Please tell me you’re joking,” Jules said seriously.
“No…” Rue replied.
“When?” Jules whispered.
“Night of BB’s birthday,” Rue said.
Eve turned her gaze back to the stage with such exaggerated focus she may as well have still been staring at Rue.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Jules asked.
“Your dad didn’t,” Rue shrugged. “Sorry, I didn’t want to ruin the night, and I forgot after.” More seriously, she added, “Sorry.”
“It’s fine,” Jules said, squeezing Rue’s hand, although she felt her face burning up with embarrassment. She had to force herself to pay more attention to what was happening on stage so she could stop picturing her dad hearing her and Rue moaning.
“You don’t know this town, Doctor,” Henry repeated, with seemingly no improvement. Jules turned to see Eve and Rue exasperatedly looking at each other.
“What do we do?” Rue asked as the scene continued on stage. “We’ve told him to be more intimidating, like, half a dozen time.”
“Why don’t you hop on stage and show him what he should be doing?” Eve suggested.
“I don’t act,” Rue replied quickly.
“Just say the lines to Divya and imagine you’re talking to someone who you’ve had to give the same note to ten times. You’ll be perfect,” Eve grinned.
“I… Fine.” Rue sighed. “Cut!” Rue yelled as she got up and hopped on stage. “Henry, I’m going to show you what we’re looking for. I’ll do the scene, and then you’ll follow my lead. Got it?”
“She’s really good at this,” Jules told Eve.
“I know!” Eve replied, smiling. “I thought this would be up her alley.”
“Thank you for asking her to do this. This has been really good for her,” Jules said. “I think this is the first extra circular she’s done since she started high school. And she’ll never admit it, but she loves it.”
“I’m really glad,” Eve said. “She’s helped me so much, I’m glad I can pay it back.”
“You don’t know this town, Doctor,” Rue told Divya on the stage, looming over him, “Practically everyone in Brooklyn needs a new face.” Jules was legitimately surprised at how good Rue was at this. Jules watched as Rue ran through the rest of the scene. Rue was a bit stiff at the start, but Jules watched that melt away as the scene went on.
“God, maybe she should have just played Jonathan,” Eve said. “She’s great.”
“You couldn’t pay Rue enough to do this in front of people she doesn’t know,” Jules replied. “I’m honestly a little surprised she’s doing it now.”
“Okay Henry, just do what I did,” Rue said, hopping off the stage as Henry took her place. Jules bumped Rue’s shoulder with her own.
“You did great!” Jules whispered as the scene started. Rue blushed, and looked down, trying and failing to hide a smile.
“I was just frustrated, it wasn’t really acting,” Rue demurred.
“That’s called method acting,” Eve said. “Totally valid.”
“I mean, I just said the dialogue…,” Rue said quietly, stumbling over her own words.
“You did better than Henry ever has,” Eve replied. “Although he’s doing better this time.”
“Yeah, he is,” Rue said quickly, seizing the opportunity to shift the subject away from herself.
“He’s gone from a large dog scared of a mouse to, like, a large dog scared of a house cat,” Jules observed. Henry was doing better, although not as good as Rue had done on her first time.
“Maybe tomorrow we can get to a large dog scared of a large poodle,” Eve replied, making the three girls break into laughter.
“Am I doing something wrong?” Henry said, breaking character and turning to the three.
“No, sorry,” Eve said, getting control of herself. “You’re doing better, Henry. Keep going!” Henry smiled and turned back to the scene.
~~~
Cassie and Maddy walked into the theater after cheerleading practice. Practice had been relatively short, and Cassie was giving Lexi a ride home while Maddy was doing the same for Eve. However, rehearsal wasn’t done. Cassie saw Eve and Rue sitting in the audience. Rue was watching intently while Eve was taking notes. Occasionally, Rue would whisper something, and Eve would write it down.
“Rue looks really good,” Cassie said. It was amazing how much better Rue looked now that she was sober.
“Being a junkie is bad for your skin,” Maddy replied, earning an elbow in ribs from Cassie.
“Maddy, stop calling her a junkie,” Cassie whispered.
“I didn’t!” Maddy hissed back. “I implied she used to be a junkie.”
“I’m sorry, do you two want us to pause the scene so you can talk?” Rue said loudly to Cassie and Maddy.
“That would be great,” Maddy smiled back, oozing sass. Cassie took Maddy’s arm and steered them into seats next to Rue and Eve.
“Sorry,” Cassie whispered.
“It’s fine,” Eve replied. She glanced at Rue, who was getting the scene going again, and then leaned in and whispered, “Sorry about Rue, she’s getting really into the whole stage manager thing.”
“It’s fine,” Cassie replied. “We should have been quieter.”
“God, you’re such a push-over,” Maddy whispered, although her tone made it clear she meant it lovingly.
“We can’t all be bad bitches like you,” Cassie replied.
“Thank God for that,” Maddy said, “I think I would hate another version of me.”
“How was cheerleading practice?” Eve asked.
“Fine,” Maddy shrugged. “We’re ready for the game this weekend, so we called practice early. Hopefully it’s our last game.”
“Why?” Eve asked. “Don’t you want our team to win?”
“Not when Nate fucking Jacobs is the captain,” Maddy replied. “The ideal way this game goes, for me, is that someone shatters Nate’s leg beyond repair and East Highland loses a thousand to zero.”
“Huh, fair point,” Eve agreed. Eve leaned in and quickly kissed Maddy, smiling before turning back to the stage. Cassie saw Maddy try and fail to hide a grin.
“You’re really falling for her, aren’t you?” Cassie whispered quietly so Eve couldn’t hear.
“I… Maybe,” Maddy demurred. “I do really like her.” Cassie felt… weird, hearing that. She’d always assumed Maddy and Eve would be temporary, a few months at the most, but now she was seeing the possibility that it could blossom into something else. And she didn’t like that realization. She didn’t know why. She liked Eve, and she loved Maddy. They made a good couple. And yet Cassie didn’t want them to be together for ever.
Cassie forced herself to focus on the stage to get her mind off of Maddy Perez. Thankfully, Lexi walked on stage and made it easier.
“Miss Abby, Miss Martha!” Lexi called out. She was doing… something, with her voice that made it sound kind of old-timey. Cassie suppressed a grin. “Miss Abby, Miss Martha!” Lexi called again. A boy, a really tall one, closed the door behind her. Lexi jumped. Cassie could tell she was acting, but only because she’d grown up with Lexi.
“Uhh, who is it? Is that you, Teddy?” Lexi asked tentatively. The tall boy began walking towards Lexi as she began backpedaling. “Who are you?”
“Who are you?” the boy replied. He was doing… less well than Lexi, although he wasn’t doing terribly. Cassie thought his name was Henry.
“This is the result of three weeks of work,” Rue whispered to Cassie and Maddy.
“God, how bad was he at the beginning?” Maddy asked.
“It might have worked in a comedy,” Rue deadpanned, making Cassie, Maddy, and Eve suppress laughs.
“He’ll be… fine, by show time,” Eve insisted.
“Fine, my favorite thing to shoot for,” Rue replied. Cassie couldn’t tell if that was a truth, a joke, or both. Knowing Rue, it was probably both.
“What are you doing this weekend?” Maddy whispered to Cassie.
“Probably watching some rom coms with Lex and trying not to think about how single I am,” Cassie replied. She felt a brief pang of jealousy that Maddy had Eve, but she shoved it aside. Cassie knew she needed some time without being in a relationship, but God did she hate being single.
“Eve needs some more femme clothes. Want to come shopping with us?” Maddy offered. Cassie felt a pang of resentment at being asked to be a third wheel but shoved it down.
“Sure!” Cassie replied immediately, because when had she ever said no to Maddy? “Can I bring Lexi?” she asked without thinking. She remembered the conflict between her sister and Maddy as soon as she saw the look on Maddy’s face.
“Fine,” Maddy sighed. “It’s about Eve anyway, not me.”
“You’re a really good girlfriend, you know,” Cassie said, leaning her head on Maddy’s shoulder.
“I know,” Maddy replied, leaning her head back against Cassie.
~~~
“Do we really need a ‘silver candelabra’?” Ethan asked, reading the list of props Rue had given him.
“No, we need two silver candelabras,” Rue said patiently. Ethan gave her a skeptical look. “Obviously they don’t actually have to be silver, they just need to look silver.”
“Rue, there are over a hundred items on this list,” Ethan told her. “And this is just the stuff we don’t already have.”
“Mrs. Wier asked me to come up with a list of what we need. And this is what we need,” Rue said.
“Did you come up with this list by yourself?” Ethan asked in a way that made Rue want to shake him.
“Yes,” Rue replied, clenching and unclenching her fists. God, why was Ethan being so harsh on her list? She’d worked on it all weekend.
“Rue, even if I buy the cheapest possible version of all these props, we’ll probably double our prop budget,” Ethan said bluntly. “This is a high school play, not Broadway.”
“I’m sure you can find a lot of this stuff for free off Craigslist,” Rue replied.
“Rue, I’m not spending the next month going to the homes of strangers from Craigslist so we can have… a verdant green ottoman. No, I’m sorry, three verdant green ottomans. Rue, who has three ottomans?”
“They’re supposed to be rich!” Rue replied defensively.
“Rue, not only do we not have the money for these props, but there isn’t enough room on the stage for all of this,” Ethan said. “Can you run this past Eve?”
“Fine,” Rue replied, snatching her list back. God, why was she so upset about this? Rue turned and walked towards the theater doors.
“Rue,” Ethan called, making her turn around. “You’re the fourth person I’ve known whose first prop list was too much. It’s a normal mistake to make. For what it’s worth, everyone says you’re doing a really good job,” Ethan told her. Rue started smiling, but then looked away so Ethan didn’t see. “I mean, half of them are scared of you, but you’re doing a good job.”
“…Thanks,” Rue said, walking into the theater. She closed the door and finally let herself smile. Just for a second. Couldn’t let the cast think she was soft. On the stage, they were running the final scene. Eve was, as ever, taking notes in the audience. Eve was much less likely to interrupt a scene than Rue. She usually wrote a novella length set of notes and then read them once or twice a rehearsal.
Rue slipped back into her seat next to Eve. “Hey, can you do me a favor?” Rue asked, nervously.
“Yeah, anything,” Eve replied without looking, writing another note.
“Can you look at my prop list? Ethan said there’s too much on it,” Rue said, handing Eve the list.
“Yeah, definitely,” Eve said, setting her notes aside. “Can you watch the rest of the scene?”
“It’s my job,” Rue replied, leaning back and watching the play go on as Eve made notes on the list.
“Three ottomans?” Eve asked skeptically as she read the list.
“Shut up,” Rue groaned. “I guess we only need two ottomans.” Eve turned and gave Rue a look. “Fine, just one ottoman.”
“How about no ottomans?” Eve said as she drew a line through the item. Rue had to force herself not to reach out and stop Eve.
“What are you doing?” Rue asked. She’d worked so hard on that list.
“Rue, I appreciate you making this list. The vast majority of what we need is on it. But characters have to get up from the couch and chair and cross in front of them constantly. An ottoman is just going to get in the way,” Eve explained. Then, more lightly, she added, “Also, who has three ottomans?”
“They’re rich!” Rue replied, too loudly as everyone in the scene turned to look at her. “I’m not talking to you! Keep going,” Rue snapped at them.
“Yeah, but the set is just their living room,” Eve said. “We have one couch and one chair. We’re not furnishing an actual mansion.”
“Well excuse me for trying to add some character to this play,” Rue said, crossing her arms.
“Seriously Rue, it is a good list,” Eve said. “Just a little overzealous. I did the same thing the first time I made a prop list.”
“Then why didn’t you- Sorry, I shouldn’t take this so personally,” Rue sighed. “Thank you for looking over it.”
“Of course,” Eve said, smiling at Rue. “Also, just one candelabra.”
“Now that’s where I draw the line,” Rue replied sarcastically, grinning back at Eve.
~~~
“I’ve never been able to rationalize it,” Eve said, look out into the audience. Michael had had to miss rehearsal for a doctor’s appointment, so Eve was reading his lines. Mortimer’s lines. Lexi’s love interest’s lines.
“What?” Lexi asked flirtatiously. Which was way too easy, but at least she could pretend she was just acting.
“My falling in love with a girl who lives in Brooklyn,” Eve answered, turning to Lexi and grinning.
“Falling in love? You’re not stooping to the articulate, are you?” Lexi asked, leaning against the edge of the couch they used in every play.
Eve seemingly ignored her. “The only way I can regain my self-respect is to keep you in New York.”
Lexi took a few steps towards Eve. She could feel warmth radiating off the other girl. It was like stepping closer to the sun. “Did you say keep?”
“No, no, I’ve come to the conclusion that you’re just holding out for the legalities,” Eve said, giving Lexi some genuinely impressive bedroom eyes. Lexi stepped even closer to Eve, and she could feel Eve’s heat washing over her.
“I can afford to be a good girl for quite a few years yet,” Lexi said as Elaine, even though Lexi herself was so, so tired of being a good girl.
“And I can’t wait that long,” Eve said, stepping up to Lexi and wrapping an arm around her waist. “Where could we be married in a hurry – say tonight?”
Eve’s face was inches away from Lexi’s. They hadn’t been this close since they’d slept in the same bed after BB’s birthday party. Lexi felt herself start to lean in towards the other girl.
“We don’t have to do the kisses,” Eve whispered, smiling at her. Lexi froze as she realized what she’d been about to do.
“Oh, yeah, of course,” Lexi stammered, pulling back.
“Also, I don’t think the kiss is on this line,” Eve muttered, withdrawing her arm from around Lexi and looking at the script. Lexi missed the arm immediately. She looked into the audience and saw Rue on her phone. A second later, Lexi got a text. She quickly checked it as Eve looked for the right line for the kiss.
Rue: Please wait until the scene is over before making out with Eve
Lexi glared at Rue, who grinned and shrugged at her. “Ah, found it!” Eve said, making Lexi turn back to her. “It’s this line,” she said, showing the script to Lexi. “Just make a ‘mwah’ sound when we get to it to mark when the kiss is supposed to happen.”
“Sounds good,” Lexi said overly casually, although thankfully it seemed Eve didn’t notice.
Well, at least she could pretend to kiss Eve. Although she supposed that wasn’t much of an improvement over her usual situation.
~~~
“Oh my god, why do you have to be such an attention whore?” Rue groaned lovingly as Jules had Rue and Eve stand outside of the girls’ dressing room.
“Well, at least you’re not still calling me a regular whore,” Jules grinned.
“Well, you-“ Rue started.
“Nope!” Eve interjected. “Nope, nope, nope! You two are not doing this while I’m here.” She loved Rue and Jules, and she loved that the two felt so comfortable around her. She still didn’t need to hear them flirt so aggressively right in front of her constantly. She was glad their relationship was going so well and would never hold their flirting against them, but she would get them to be more discrete if it killed her.
“Sorry,” Jules blushed.
“Oh, you’re going to be-“ Rue started to stay flirtatiously before Eve stepped in front of her and gently grabbed Rue by her arms.
“Stop,” Eve said, looking Rue in the eye. Rue looked over Eve’s head, because of course she did because the universe had cursed Eve with the world’s tallest friends, and then winked at Jules.
“Okay,” Rue shrugged. Eve rolled her eyes but turned back to Jules.
“Alright, thank you all for being here,” Jules started.
“There are two of us,” Rue interjected.
“Thank you two for being here,” Jules corrected while glaring at Rue. “I am proud to present the first cost-“
Suddenly, the dressing room door opened, and Lexi poked her head out. “Can I come out now Jules?”
“I told you to wait for the signal,” Jules hissed at Lexi.
“I’ve been ready, for, like, fifteen minutes,” Lexi complained.
“Oh my God, fine, come out,” Jules sighed, sitting on a prop stool someone had left back here. “None of you have any appreciation for showmanship.”
“We are literally putting on a play,” Eve replied as Lexi opened the door and walked out. Lexi was wearing a tight, light blue dress with floral print. She had a darker blue jacket to go over it. Jules had even done Lexi’s hair and make-up. Her normally straight hair was covered in curls, and her make-up combined with everything else to really sell the 1940’s aesthetic. It also made Lexi look really beautiful.
“Wow,” Rue said, clearly impressed.
“You look beautiful, Lexi,” Eve smiled. Lexi met Eve’s eyes for an awkwardly long moment before blushing and looking away.
“Thanks,” Lexi said, trying and failing to hide a smile. Huh, Lexi wasn’t usually this shy. Why was she acting so weird?
“Great job,” Rue told Jules, giving her girlfriend a quick kiss. “No one in East Highland could have done a better job.”
“Thanks,” Jules grinned back.
“Where did you get the dress?” Eve asked. It wasn’t something they’d already had in the theater wardrobe.
“I made it,” Jules stated proudly, correctly predicting that the other three would be impressed.
“Seriously?” Lexi asked. “Jules, that’s amazing! How long did it take?”
“A long time,” Jules admitted. “But I have a plan to make sure we have costumes for everyone by opening night.” Jules grabbed a rolled-up piece of paper on a table behind her and unrolled it. It contained a sketch of a costume for every character.
“This is incredible,” Eve breathed, looking it over. The costumes looked so good
“Most of the pieces you have in the theatre wardrobe,” Jules said. “All of those, I’ve starred. There are about six full outfits worth of work I need to do. Elaine’s is done,” she continued, nodding at Lexi, “and I’ve already started on Mortimer’s. I should have the last one done a week before opening night.”
“Jesus, are you going to spend all your free time on this?” Lexi asked.
“I love fashion,” Jules shrugged. “I don’t really consider this work.”
“I can’t thank you enough for doing this,” Eve said. “But thank you, Jules. I, we, really appreciate it.”
“Yeah, seriously,” Lexi added. Rue just pulled Jules close and kissed her forehead. Jules took a moment to bask in the praise.
“Hey, since I have you all here, do you guys want to come over this weekend?” Eve asked. “I finally have a place to live without Nate in it, and I’d love to have you all over!”
“It’s just you and your dad, right?” Lexi asked.
“Yeah, thank God,” Eve said. And Cal didn’t spend a ton of time at the new apartment outside of sleeping anyway, so Eve had the run of the place. Which she loved. Her dad had gotten her a new car to go along with the new apartment, so Eve had what had been previously unimaginable freedom.
“Well, I’m in,” Lexi smiled. Eve smiled back and looked at Rue and Jules, who were looking at each other awkwardly.
“Uh…” Rue started lamely.
“Yes,” Jules interjected, causing Rue to quickly turn to her. “We’ll be there,” she added more forcefully in response to Rue’s look.
“If you guys have plans, it’s fine. We can do it some other time,” Eve offered.
“No, this weekend, we’ll be there,” Jules affirmed.
“Yeah,” Rue added nervously.
“Uh, okay,” Eve said. She had no idea why Rue and Jules were acting so weird. God, had she done something to make them mad? She tried to think back on everything she’d said to Rue and Jules in the past few days. Maybe Jules was mad about… No, that didn’t make sense. Maybe Rue-
“Earth to Eve,” Lexi repeated, cutting Eve out of her anxious spiral. “You okay?” Lexi asked, gently putting her hand on Eve’s arm.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Eve lied. “Sorry, kind of spaced out for a moment.” She avoided the skeptical look Rue gave her.
“Alright, well, Lexi, you should take that off so I can bring it home. I’ll keep all the outfits safe there until dress rehearsal,” Jules said.
“Yeah, I should probably head home. See you guys tomorrow!” Eve said quickly, giving her friends a forced wave as she turned and felt herself fall back into a spiral of anx-
“Eve, wait,” Rue called, running over to her while Lexi went back into the dressing room and Jules rolled up her plans. “Jules and I aren’t mad at you or anything like that. You haven’t done anything wrong, I promise. Don’t worry.”
Eve didn’t know how to reply to that. She’d never had someone stop one of her doom spirals before. Or even notice it, for that matter. Eve couldn’t help but tear up as she pulled Rue into a tight hug.
“Thank you,” Eve said, burying her face in Rue’s shoulder.
“Anytime,” Rue said, hugging Eve back. Thankfully, Jules and Lexi had gone into the dressing room, so Eve’s crippling anxiety wasn’t on display for all her friends. “See you tomorrow?”
“See you tomorrow,” Eve smiled, turning around and leaving the theater. Her mind felt clear, and her body felt light as she walked out to her car.
~~~
“I found it! I found it!” Kevin said, walking down a set of wooden stairs on the stage that had yet to be painted.
“What did you find, Teddy?” Henry asked. Maddy thought he was trying to act annoyed, but as someone who spent the majority of her life annoyed, she didn’t think he was doing a great job. It was… passable. If she was being kind.
“How long until opening night?” she whispered to Eve, who was sitting next to Rue directly in front of her.
“Four weeks after this week,” Eve replied.
“And how long did it take him to get to this stage?” Maddy asked skeptically.
“Six weeks,” Eve grimaced.
“Well, at least everyone else is good,” Maddy said, draping her arms over Eve from behind. She pulled back slightly when Eve hissed at the contact. “Did I-“
“No, it’s… uh…” Eve stammered.
“Her nipples hurt from HRT,” Rue said bluntly from next to them, making Eve’s face turn red. “She’s been complaining about it all week.”
“Are you finally growing boobs?” Maddy asked excitedly. Eve already looked good, but she’d look even better with curves.
“I mean, yeah,” Eve replied shyly.
“Do they hurt when someone touches them?” Maddy asked, leaning over the chair so her face was next to Eve’s head.
“They don’t hurt. They’re just really sensitive,” Eve replied.
“Like, in a good way?” Maddy asked, sliding her hand over Eve’s chest and squeezing one of her breasts. Eve stifled a moan.
“Yes,” Eve replied weakly. “But please, not here Maddy.” Maddy looked up at the stage, but the actors were focused on the scene and not them.
“Nobodies’ watching,” Maddy whispered seductively.
“I’m watching, so please stop,” Rue said.
“Oh, you’re one to talk,” Maddy replied. “You were practically fucking Jules in the desert in front of all of us.”
“We were just kissing,” Rue replied defensively.
“We’re also just kissing,” Maddy replied, turning and kissing Eve’s neck. She felt Eve shiver at the touch.
“After rehearsal, okay?” Eve said, seemingly warring with the part of herself that also wanted to be all over Maddy. “I really want to, just as soon as this is over.”
“Okay,” Maddy replied, kissing Eve’s neck one more time before sitting down. “You know, I think I’m ruining this show by watching it so many times.”
“How do you think we feel?” Eve replied.
“I’ve heard enough high school students putting on bad old timey accents to last a lifetime,” Rue added.
“Lexi’s is pretty good, though,” Eve commented. Maddy felt a flair of jealousy, which annoyed her to no end. She knew that while Lexi was clearly in love with Eve, Eve only considered them friends. And Eve had been nothing but loyal to Maddy. And why the fuck was she the one feeling jealous? She had been the one doing Eve a favor when she started-
Maddy forced herself to breathe in and out. You don’t need to belittle Eve to make yourself feel better, she told herself. But she hated feeling jealous, especially when she couldn’t retaliate against the person making her jealous. She couldn’t fuck with Eve like she fucked with Nate because Eve hadn’t done anything. But the impotence was incredibly frustrating.
“Hey Maddy, are you okay?” Rue asked. “You look like you want to murder someone.”
“What?” Maddy said, getting out of her own head. “Oh, I just remembered that Nate exists.”
“Ah, okay,” Rue replied, taking Maddy completely at her word. Eve turned around and quickly kissed Maddy, smiling at her before turning back around to keep watching the scene. It’s fine, she loves me, Maddy thought. And then froze again, because she knew she was right. Eve hadn’t said it yet, but it was clear that Eve loved Maddy. But did Maddy love Eve?
She didn’t know.
~~~
Eve was walking through the halls of East Highland High, on her way to lunch. She felt amazing. Her transition was going well, she was living only with family that accepted her, she had an amazing girlfriend, all her friends accepted her, the play was going really well (maybe just okay, but that wasn’t going to get Eve down), and she was hosting her friends for a girls’ night tonight. Well, girls’ night plus Ethan. She had just gotten the confirmation from Ethan and Kat.
“Hey Eve,” a voice that Eve recognized all too well said as Eve walked past. For not the first time, Eve thought about how much she hated Nate. He was the only person that could make her feel gross by using the name she had chosen. She didn’t want Nate to use her birth name either. Really, she just didn’t want Nate to talk to her at all. She decided to ignore Nate and keep walking.
“Mom misses you,” Nate called out, making Eve hiss and stop walking. She tightened her grip on the book she was holding and turned around.
“Is she ready to accept that I’m a girl?” Eve asked, making no move to get any closer to Nate.
“She has a therapist lined up for you to help you deal with your gender dysphoria,” Nate said.
“I already have doctors helping me with my gender dysphoria,” Eve replied.
“I’m sure you do,” Nate said dismissively. “And you probably wouldn’t like the kind of help this therapist would provide.”
“What do you want, Nate?” Eve asked.
“How’s Maddy doing?” Nate asked.
“Great, thanks for asking,” Eve replied, starting to turn to leave.
“You been spending a lot of time at her house?” Nate continued.
“Yes, why?” Eve forced herself to ask calmly.
“You watched any movies at her house?”
“Oh my God, what do you want Nate?” Eve repeated. “Just ask whatever you want to ask so we can go back to not interacting.”
“Have you seen a CD in a green case at her house?” Nate asked. Nate had mastered stoicism to the point where it screamed smugness.
“Yeah,” Eve said. There was probably something on it that would embarrass Maddy, which is why Nate wanted Eve to think about it.
“Jules is on it,” Nate said instead, surprising Eve. “Although she doesn’t know it exists.” He then started to walk down the hall.
“What are you talking about?” Eve called out.
“If you ask Maddy about it, she’ll deny there’s anything interesting on it,” Nate replied. “But you’ll think it’s interesting. I promise.” He then turned and walked away.
Eve turned the opposite way and continued to the cafeteria. She tried to put what Nate had said out of her mind, but when she saw Jules and Maddy together at lunch, all she could think about was that green CD.
~~~
“Do you think this is enough to bring?” Lexi asked as Cassie drove them to Eve’s new apartment. Lexi held a bag of tortilla chips and a bowl of homemade guacamole in her lap.
“Yes Lexi,” Cassie replied for the third time this drive. “And before you ask, yes, it was a better idea to bring chips and guac than a rotisserie chicken and sides.”
“But what if Maddy brings something amazing?” Lexi asked, tapping her fingers against the bowl.
“First of all, Maddy’s definitely just bringing alcohol. Second, why are you comparing what we bring to Maddy?” Cassie asked.
“Uh,” Lexi stammered. “I mean, or what if Rue and Jules or Kat and Ethan bring better things?” she added weakly.
“You are not going to win Eve’s heart through a potluck, Lex,” Cassie sighed. “I’m sorry that Eve is with Maddy, I know that it sucks, but we just have to deal with it.”
“I know, I know, it’s just hard to treat Eve like- Wait, what do you mean we have to deal with it?” Lexi asked. Cassie froze. She had said we, hadn’t she? Why had she said that? It couldn’t… No, there was-
“Cassie. Cassie. Cassie!” Lexi screamed. Cassie looked forward and realized that she was about to run a red light with cars in the intersection. She slammed on the brakes and the tires squealed as she managed to stop at the edge of the intersection.
“Are you okay?” Cassie asked, turning to Lexi. Lexi’s fingers were white where she had been gripping on to the food.
“What the fuck, Cassie?” Lexi asked, shaking slightly.
“I… I don’t know,” Cassie admitted. “Sorry, I spaced out.” Lexi gave Cassie a weird look that made her feel uncomfortable.
“Oh my God,” Lexi finally said as the light turned green and they started moving forward. “Do you like Maddy?”
“Of course I like Maddy,” Cassie replied. “She’s my best friend.”
“No, I mean you like Maddy!” Lexi exclaimed. “Oh my God, you’re jealous of Eve.”
“I am not!” Cassie snapped, gripping the steering wheel tightly. “Maddy and I are just friends. I… I don’t even like girls that way!”
“Is that why you said we had to deal with Maddy and Eve dating?” Lexi asked smugly.
“It was a mistake,” Cassie sputtered. “God Lexi, stop psychoanalyzing me.”
“It’s okay Cassie,” Lexi said gently. “It’s okay if you-“
“Don’t act like you know anything about relationships!” Cassie snapped. “Which of us has relationship experience, and which of us is still a virgin?” Cassie felt guilty almost immediately, but Lexi thankfully stopped needling her. The two were silent the rest of the way to Eve’s house.
~~~
Eve moaned as Maddy gently squeezed one of her breasts. Maddy’s other hand was down Eve’s skirt and underwear. Eve’s breasts were small, but she reacted like crazy when Maddy played with them. Maddy had never realized how much fun playing with someone else’s boobs could be.
“Oh fuck,” Eve moaned. “Maddy, that feels fucking amazing.” The two were lying on the couch in the living room. Maddy was on top, of course. Cal had told Eve he’d be gone until at least 10, and they still had a little bit before the others were supposed to get here.
“Then let’s see how this feels,” Maddy grinned. “Pull up your shirt.”
“Maddy, everyone else will get here-“
“Then we’ll be fast,” Maddy said, working her hand between Eve’s legs faster. Eve looked up and just nodded as she pulled up her shirt. Maddy took Eve’s other breast in her mouth and sucked on it.
“Oh my God,” Eve moaned loudly. “Fuck, Maddy, I’m going to-“ Eve started to say before it devolved into wordless moans as Maddy felt her orgasm. Maddy looked up at Eve, who was staring up at the ceiling.
“That was the best feeling I’ve ever had,” Eve panted. “It was better than when we took molly.”
“Just imagine what that would feel like on molly,” Maddy grinned. She leaned up and kissed Eve. “Now go get cleaned up before everyone else gets here.” Maddy got off of Eve and went to the kitchen to wash her hands as Eve went back to her room to get cleaned up. A moment later, Maddy heard the doorbell ring. She walked over and opened it to see Lexi and Cassie through the security door.
“Hey,” Maddy grinned, opening the door.
“Hi,” Cassie said quickly, pushing past Maddy and walking inside. Maddy frowned and looked at Lexi.
“What’s up with her?” Maddy asked.
“Uh… She’s on her period,” Lexi lied lamely. As if Maddy didn’t know that Cassie’s period had ended less than a week ago.
“You know you’re a terrible liar, right?” Maddy asked, annoyed. Lexi’s eyes widened slightly and she said nothing, just staring at Maddy awkwardly.
“Hi Cassie!” Maddy heard Eve say behind her. Maddy sighed and let Lexi past. Lexi rushed past Maddy and into the kitchen.
“Hi Eve,” Cassie said, immediately grabbing the Fireball Maddy had brought and pouring herself a drink.
“I thought you were going to be the designated driver tonight!” Lexi complained.
“We’re even now,” Cassie replied as she downed the drink. Eve looked at Maddy, clearly confused. Maddy shrugged. Who knew what when on between the Howard sisters? Maddy just poured herself and Eve a drink as Lexi grumpily sat on the couch.
~~~
“Are you sure you’re comfortable with this?” Rue asked for the third time.
“Yes,” Jules sighed as the two drove to Eve’s apartment. “Look, I’m not, like, traumatized by what happened or anything.”
“Jules, he’s, like, thirty years older than you,” Rue said. “It would be fine if you were.”
“But I’m not,” Jules insisted. “Seriously Rue, Cal was not the first old guy I hooked up with. I consented to everything that happened that night. I’ll be fine if we see him.”
“I… Okay,” Rue said finally. “Just let me know if you want to leave early or anything like that.”
“Okay,” Jules breathed. She braked at stop sign and turned to look at Rue. “Sorry if I’m being short. I appreciate it, really.” She grabbed Rue’s hand and squeezed it. “But I am fine. I promise.”
“Okay,” Rue repeated. “I trust you.” Jules smiled at her girlfriend. Rue didn’t understand that this kind of thing was normal to her. Well, it had been, anyway. Maybe it shouldn’t have been. No, it definitely shouldn’t have been. But it was, and Cal hadn’t done anything she’d consider wrong. Well, maybe cheating on his wife, but from what Eve had said his wife was a transphobic bitch, so she’d let that side. He’d thought Jules was twenty-two, not seventeen.
If she was being honest with herself, Jules was a little nervous. Realistically, there was no way that Cal didn’t know that she and Eve were friends. It was inevitable that they would see each other again. She didn’t expect Cal to say much, if anything, to her. He’d had an opportunity to threaten or hurt her at the carnival and he hadn’t taken it, so she was pretty sure that he wasn’t going to do anything to her. But it would be weird to see him, especially considering there was absolutely no way Eve knew that Jules and Cal had slept together. And if Jules had her way, Eve would never know.
“Alright, take a right and we’re there,” Rue said, playing the role of navigator. Jules did as she was instructed and parked on the side of the road. “Cassie and Lexi are here,” Rue said as they got out.
“Doesn’t look like Kat and Ethan are here, though,” Jules said as they pulled some cookies they’d baked out of the trunk.
“I can’t believe you got me to bake,” Rue commented as she picked up a container of cookies.
“You looked adorable in that apron,” Jules grinned, bumping her shoulder against her girlfriend’s. “I should have taken a picture.”
“Try that and I’ll cut you,” Rue replied sarcastically.
“Try it, bitch,” Jules shot back as they walked up to the door. Jules rang the doorbell, and a moment later Lexi opened the door.
“Oh thank God,” Lexi said when she saw them, quickly letting them in. Jules saw Rue and Lexi share a look, which Lexi belatedly remembered to include Jules in. “Cassie and I had a fight. I’ll tell you later,” Lexi whispered as Rue and Jules set down the cookies in the kitchen.
“Okay,” Rue replied, sounding as awkward as Jules felt. Jules could tell that Cassie was withdrawn. She looked almost uncomfortable that Maddy was sitting right next to her, even though that was how these things always went. Eve seemed thankfully oblivious as she showed Rue and Jules around the apartment.
Thankfully, Cal wasn’t there and, according to Eve, wouldn’t be for hours.
~~~
“God damnit!” Lexi swore as the card she drew sent her piece to jail. In all their infinite wisdom, the group had decided to play Monopoly after Kat and Ethan had arrived. And Lexi was having the worst luck on the fucking planet. This was already her second time being sent to jail.
“Sorry Lex,” Eve grimaced.
“Sucks to suck,” Maddy grinned as she moved Lexi’s piece to jail. Lexi was so mad at the game that she didn’t have the presence of mind to snap at Maddy for moving her piece for her.
“My turn,” Cassie said, grabbing the dice and rolling them. She groaned as she landed on Park Place, which of course Maddy owned. Maddy had managed to buy both blue properties in her first go around the board and was already upgrading them.
“I think I’m bankrupt,” Cassie groaned as she placed her piece on Park Place and started looking through her money.
“I can cut you a break,” Maddy grinned, wrapping her arm around Cassie’s shoulders and pulling her close. “Anything for my girl,” she added, kissing Cassie her forehead. Lexi saw the conflicting emotions on Cassie’s face, the warring joy at being kissed by her friend and the fear of her own feelings. Now that Lexi had had a chance to calm down, she felt bad for her sister, because she knew exactly how Cassie felt.
“Thanks Mads,” Cassie said weakly.
“Our turn,” Rue said. She and Jules were playing on the same time.
“You roll while I get more drinks. Anyone want anything?” Jules asked, standing up.
“Another Fireball, please,” Maddy said, handing Jules her cup.
“There’s lemonade in the fridge. Can you grab me some?” Eve asked.
“On it,” Jules said, walking into the kitchen. A moment later, Lexi heard keys turning at the front door. It opened to reveal Cal Jacobs.
“Oh, hey dad,” Eve said, looking up from the game. Lexi noticed that Rue tensed up the second Cal opened the door. She made eye contact with Rue, who immediately looked back down at the game.
~~~
“Oh, hey dad,” Jules heard Eve say from the living room.
Fuck, Jules thought. A moment later, she realized she’d spilled Fireball all over the counter. She set the bottle down and tried to quickly wipe up the liquid, but before she could finish, she heard someone walk into the kitchen. She could tell by the footsteps that it wasn’t one of her friends.
“Oh, uh…” Cal stammered. “Eve didn’t tell me anyone was coming over. Sorry,” he added awkwardly.
“It’s fine,” Jules said quickly. Cal turned to start leaving down the hall towards the bedrooms, but he stopped after a few steps.
“I just want to say thank you, for being there for Eve,” he said without facing her.
“I could say the same thing,” Jules replied. No matter what things had happened between her and Cal, he had been there for his daughter when it counted.
“I hope that what happened-“ Cal started slowly. Jules closed her eyes. Fuck, she didn’t want to talk about this right now.
“It never has to come up. Ever. I don’t want it to,” Jules said. She heard Cal took a deep breath.
“Good. Me neither,” he said, then walked down the hall. Jules left out a shuddering breath, and a moment later Rue walked into the kitchen.
“Are you okay?” Rue asked, gently placing her hands on Jules’ arms.
“I’m fine,” Jules said, but she let Rue pull her into a hug. “We agreed to not bring it up ever again. For Eve.”
“You’re a good friend,” Rue said.
“I don’t think I’d say anything even if it wasn’t for Eve. I just want to move past all of that,” Jules said, pulling back to look at Rue’s face. “You’re the only one I want.” She pressed her forehead against Rue.
They stood like that for a moment until Jules heard someone walk into the kitchen. “Hey Jules, is everything…” Eve paused as she saw Rue and Jules pulling apart. “Sorry, did I interrupt a moment?”
“When has you being there ever stopped us?” Rue replied, immediately pulling Jules into a kiss. The kiss was ruined by Jules laughing, but the moment was still perfect.
“Okay,” Eve said, rolling her eyes. “Just don’t forget the drinks when you’re done making out.”
~~~
The rest of the night went pretty well. Maddy had won Monopoly handily. She was unexpectedly good at the business aspects of it, in a way Eve hadn’t expected. They wrapped up early when it was clear Maddy was just going to take everyone’s properties until she owned the entire board. After that, they watched a movie before calling it a night.
“Thank you guys for coming!” Eve said as everyone started gathering their things.
“Thanks for having us! It was a lot of fun,” Jules smiled.
“Yeah, thanks Eve,” Rue added.
“I had a lot of fun,” Lexi said. Lexi and Cassie had stopped acting weird towards each other early in the night, although Cassie had probably had too much to drink.
“Yeah, thanks Eve,” Cassie said, her words slurring. She walked over to Eve and put an arm around her. “You’re lucky to have Maddy,” Cassie added in a whisper, her breath smelling strongly of alcohol.
“Uh… Thanks?” Eve said hesitantly. She looked at Lexi and mouthed Is she okay? Lexi just sighed and shrugged.
“Come on Cass,” Lexi said, getting Cassie’s arm around her and walking her sister towards the door.
“Wait! I didn’t say good-bye to my best friend!” Cassie exclaimed, running over to Maddy and hugging her so suddenly Maddy almost fell over. “Bye Maddy.”
“Bye…” Maddy said, clearly confused. “See you Sunday, right?”
“Oh yeah! See you on Sunday!” Cassie said before Lexi dragged her away and out the front door.
“Is she okay?” Kat asked.
“When she drinks, it can get tragic,” Maddy said. “I think she’s feeling bad about being single.”
“Well, our friend group is three couples and then her and Lexi. Maybe she feels left out,” Rue pointed out.
“I don’t know how we solve that problem,” Eve said.
“We don’t,” Maddy said. “She told me she wants to be single for a while. It’s just hard for her.”
“Maybe we don’t bring alcohol next time,” Jules suggested.
“Agreed,” Ethan and Eve said simultaneously as Maddy groaned.
“Fine,” Maddy said.
“It’s not like I can drink it anyway,” Rue shrugged. Eve could tell the observation made people uncomfortable, as it usually did when they thought about Rue’s sobriety. Eve knew it shouldn’t make people feel uncomfortable, but part of her thought Rue enjoyed the reaction it got out of others.
“Okay, so that’s settled,” Kat said. “Anyway, Ethan and I need to get going. Thanks for having us, Eve.”
“See you guys on Monday!” Ethan added as he and Kat left.
“See you two on Monday,” Jules said as she and Rue left, Rue just adding a small wave.
“You’re a good host,” Maddy said, resting her chin on Eve’s shoulder.
“I know,” Eve grinned, doing her best Maddy impression.
“Look at you, getting confident,” Maddy said, turning Eve to face her.
“It’s the estrogen,” Eve said as Maddy tilted her chin up.
“You’re still coming over tomorrow night, right?” Maddy asked.
“Of course!” Eve smiled. The plan was for Maddy to show Eve some of her favorite movies, of which Eve had seen none. However, Eve had a secondary motivation.
Eve felt bad for not telling Maddy, but she had to see what was on that green disc.