Notes: Thanks to jadelennox and eternalshift for the beta!
It's a constant refrain in their house these days: "Who's that boy?" "Are you talking to that boy again?" "Will there be boys there?"
Tanya is half tempted to tell her mum that she's being ridiculously heteronormative, but that would only be guaranteed to take away her last precious sliver of freedom. Anyway, it's not like she wants to have sex with girls. She doesn't want to have sex with anybody, not yet. Maybe someday down the road. Way, way down it.
She can't deny that she gets jealous sometimes, on those occasions when the others get all coupley and she goes from one of the group to third wheel in a matter of seconds. What's she supposed to do, chat up Miss Quill? Just stand around looking lost? Which, let's face it, is what tends to happen.
Maybe skipping three years was a mistake. Intellectually, it's no match, but she's struggling to keep up socially, and she misses her friends. Granted, they were never very good friends, her new ones are better any day of the week, but there's not a lot of time to just hang about between saving the world, doing her homework, and the others slinking off in private.
She should ask April if they could do something together. Her mum's bound to let her spend time with April, who's a mother's perfect dream of a friend on any day when she's not possessed by a demonic alien. Maybe they could have a sleepover. It's been years since she's been to one.
Tanya practices what to say, how to approach the issue in the best way, almost as if it were a date. Even so, she's a rambling mess when she and April are washing off the latest alien goo in the school bathroom and she musters up the courage to ask, "Could we have a sleepover sometime?"
"What?" April asks, scrubbing at her jumper in an attempt to get the purple out.
"If you like sleepovers," Tanya says. "It doesn't have to be a sleepover, we could do something else. Shopping, or go to the cinema... Of course I understand if you'd rather spend time with Ram..."
"Tanya," April says, hand halted at the stain. "What's going on?"
"I'd just like to do something that's not saving the world," Tanya says. "Something that I don't have to sneak out to do."
She falls silent, not sure what she fears more, being turned down, or told yes out of pity.
April thinks about it, and there's a hint of mischief in her face that wipes away any fears. "Sure. It'll be fun!"
They set the sleepover for Friday night, and April's mum calls Tanya's mum to reassure her that she'll be in the house the whole time and that there won't be any boys present.
"I think my mum's just as grateful for that as yours, truth be told," April tells Tanya during lunch break. "She never did warm up to Ram, after that first impression."
Charlie is bewildered as to why he and Matteusz aren't allowed to attend. "I have no sexual interest in you, Tanya," he says. "Surely you can explain that to your mother?"
"It wouldn't matter," she says. "A boy is a boy."
"But I am still a boy here," he points out, "and we talk."
"It's a girls' night," April says, relieving Tanya from having to explain the admittedly arbitrary difference between school grounds at daytime and a private home at night. "Girls only."
"Will you be watching Dirty Dancing?" Ram asks.
"Dunno," Tanya says, frowning."Hadn't planned on it. Why?"
"I thought it was traditional. Rachel..." He halts, then continues, smiling sadly. "Rachel always did. She made me learn the dance and everything."
April puts her sandwich down and stares at him. "You know the dance from Dirty Dancing?"
"Did. Don't know if I could pull it off, now."
"Okay, well, don't ever tell any other girl that, or I might not be allowed to keep you."
They smile at each other, and things are about to get all coupley again, so Tanya cuts in:
"I'm sure we can think of something else to watch. Something better."
"Yeah," April says. "And we could make cupcakes. And pizza."
"Oh, God," Ram moans. "Save me some cupcakes?"
"No. Girls' night cupcakes are for girls' night." April hitches her arm into Tanya's in solidarity. "Make your own cupcakes."
"At boys' night?" Charlie asks. "Could we do that?"
"That's not really what..." Ram starts, and then pauses. "Actually, yes. Can you make cupcakes? Because I can't."
"No. Matteusz, can you?"
"Sorry, no," says Matteusz, who seems amused with this turn of the conversation.
"Perhaps Miss Quill could," Charlie suggests.
"She'd just as soon poison us, mate," Ram says.
"She can't do that."
"Can't do that to you."
"Is not bad idea, though," Matteusz says. "We could work something out."
The conversation turns to how they might set up a potential boys' night, with or without cupcakes, Miss Quill a bonus extra.
April winks at Tanya, who feels a rush of excitement. They're doing this. They're actually doing it, and she'll get to spend the night at a friend's house for the first time since she started Coal Hill.
By the time they're done with the cupcakes and the home-made pizza and get the computer rigged to the big screen, it's nearly nine o'clock. April's mum has been bribed with some cupcakes to stay in the other room, and the girls discuss some potential viewing material before settling for Firefly, mainly because April has never seen it.
"How can you not have seen Firefly?" Tanya asks. "You're a Buffy fan and everything!"
April shrugs and bites into a cupcake, cracking through the blue icing with obvious delight. "I don't know, it never seemed like my thing. Cowboys in space and all that. A bit far-fetched."
"Compared to what we've seen coming from space?" Tanya asks, and April laughs.
"Fair enough. Better late than never, right?"
They start the pilot episode, and April is riveted from the start, enough that she forgets to eat during the more intense parts. Tanya, who has seen it all before, soon finds herself so full it would be uncomfortable if the mix of pizza and cupcakes wasn't so delicious.
On screen, Simon is putting River to bed, and April's eyes well up as she watches.
"Will she be okay?" she asks softly.
"Yeah," Tanya says. "She'll be a total badass."
April nods and hesitates a little. "Can we do something fluffier? Just for tonight?"
"All right," Tanya says, because as much as she wants to feed April all of this show in one go, she can also understand the sentiment.
As feel-good fare goes, it's hard to beat Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella. They watch the whole thing, and then random YouTube videos of cats and music and reactions to stuff.
Both of them have put on pyjamas now, and are leaning up against each other, getting sleepy. April's fingers are playing with Tanya's hair. Normally Tanya hates it when white girls grope her hair, but this is different. There's no curiosity, just a way of maintaining physical contact.
"I'm glad we did this," April says.
"Me too," Tanya says.
"It's been so long. And never like this. It's like having a sister. I always wanted one."
"Yeah," Tanya says, heart swelling with tenderness. "I mean, brothers are all very well, but..."
"Don't have a brother either," April says. "Don't have anybody."
"You've got us."
April smiles, and then she sighs, a tiny little content sound. "Let's do it again. Lots."
"Got to get my mum to agree, first," Tanya points out. "With all the stuff going on, I haven't had much time to study, and if my marks go down, she'll notice in a heartbeat."
"You're already three years ahead. Not everything can be about studying! We might be eaten by an alien tomorrow."
"Yeah, well, my mum doesn't know that, does she? Anyway," Tanya admit, "if we're not eaten by aliens, I'd like to get into a good university."
April boops Tanya's nose gently. "Listen to big sister. Take some time off for nights like these. Want my mum to talk to her? She can be very persuasive."
"Yeah. Maybe."
She's sleepy enough by now that it's hard to think of anything to say.
"I want to know what happens to that girl," April says after a while. "River."
"Okay, we can do that." Tanya's pretty sure that she can't stay awake for another episode, but there are worse ways to fall asleep. She gets the video started and leans back against April and the sofa cushions, pulling the blanket up.
There are enough cupcakes left on the table that the boys might have some tomorrow, if they're still interested. But maybe they've made some of their own after all. Tanya doesn't know what they're doing right now, but she hopes they're having it nice. Just like she is, in April's sofa cuddled up against April, warm and safe and so very, very happy.