This was something I felt compelled to write after my own daughter told me she was bisexual. So, it's deeply personal. My daughter is the same sweet, compassionate young girl she's always been. Who she ends up loving does not change that.
The title comes from a Culture Club song, because I have loved them for literally as long as I can remember and it felt right. :)
Love is Love
Rose was folding laundry at the dining table since that was a prime spot. Plenty of surface area to lay her folded clothes on, her 13 year old daughter was doing homework in one of the chairs and she only had to turn slightly to the sliding glass doors to check on her 10 year old twin boys playing in the backyard.
Julia had seemed a bit distracted throughout the afternoon, but Rose had chalked it up to teenager stuff and hadn't pressed for any answers. If she knew her daughter, she'd open up soon enough, anyway. As if on cue, Julia let out a quiet, "Mom?" and Rose gave her daughter her full attention.
"Yes, sweetheart?"
"We were all talking in class today, well the students, not the teacher of course, about how no one is completely straight or gay."
Rose thought for a second about her reply as she folded a towel. "I don't know that I agree with that. I mean, I can admit that another woman is attractive, but I've never felt attracted to another woman. Does that make sense?"
Julia nodded and Rose continued. "But I also know there are people who have varying degrees of attraction to either gender. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. You know that. Love comes in all sorts of forms. Your father and I have told you plenty of stories about our friend Jack and then there's your Uncle Jake, who we love just as he is."
Julia nodded again and played with her pencil nervously for a few seconds. "I'm bisexual."
"Oh." Rose blinked at her daughter a couple times as she let that information sink in to her brain. "Okay." She smiled reassuringly at her daughter before she pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Any crushes?"
Julia breathed a sigh of relief. "You're not mad?"
Rose shook her head with a little smile. "Why would I be mad, sweetheart? You're still the same girl you were before you told me. I loved you then and I love you now. Your father and I have always just wanted you and your brothers to be happy. Whether the person who makes you happy is a boy or girl, makes no difference to us as long as you're happy, kind-hearted people."
Completely at ease, Julia launched into a tale about the boy she had a crush on and also the girl in her science class who she thought was brilliant. At the end of her story, she looked at Rose with a little worry, again. "Will Daddy be mad?"
Rose giggled slightly. "No, sweetheart."
"Disappointed?"
"Maybe. But not because you're bisexual. Your father would be perfectly happy with you not having any romantic interests for the rest of your life. Typical dad stuff."
Julia rolled her eyes. That sounded about right. She remembered mentioning a boy who she thought was cute in kindergarten and her dad looking horrified. She could only imagine the funk he would fall into when he found out she had started to develop any interest in anybody.
The Doctor came home and set his keys and phone on the little table by the door. "I'm home!"
Rose met him in the entryway with a deep kiss, the same as any other day. Their affectionate displays grossed their kids out, so they always had a few minutes to themselves.
The Doctor pulled back with a sigh. "My favorite greeting in the world."
Rose smiled and swatted his shoulder lightly. "I better be the only one greeting you that way."
The Doctor pulled her closer with his arms around her waist. "I better be the only one you greet that way," he countered.
Rose gave him one more kiss and then grabbed his hand to lead him to the dining room. "Come on. Dinner will be ready in about five minutes."
Dinner was flowing as it normally would. Jack and James were regaling them with stories about their day in school, getting louder as they talked over each other to tell them about the chicks hatching in their classrooms. Julia was pushing her food around, nervous about what she needed to do. She loved her parents and knew they would love her always, just as her mom had promised. But she had always been a daddy's girl, and disappointing him in any way would break her heart. She felt a little nudge on her ankle and looked up to find her mom looking at her.
Rose cut her eyes to the Doctor, telling Julia to tell him.
As soon as Jack and James finished talking to eat, Julia took a deep breath and looked at her father. "Daddy?"
The Doctor looked down at his daughter, feeling the overwhelming love and protectiveness he felt whenever he looked at any of his kids. "Yes?"
Julia took in her dad's understanding eyes and kind smile and forged ahead. "Um, I'm bisexual." It was just two words and she had already said them once. It wasn't any easier the second time.
"Oh." She looked up at her dad to see him blinking, almost identical to her mom's response. It seemed his talented gob failed him as the only response he came out with was, "Okay."
Julia cocked her head slightly as he smiled at her. "You're not mad? Disappointed?"
The Doctor pressed a kiss to her hair. "Nope. But you're still not dating until you're 40."
Julia giggled and breathed out a sigh of relief. With the weight lifted from her chest, she finally dug into her dinner with gusto.
After Rose finally got the kids to bed, she found the Doctor propped in their bed with Julia's baby book on his lap. "Hey."
He looked up and smiled at her. "Hey." He patted the spot next to him and then kissed Rose's forehead and pulled her closer as she cuddled into his side. He was silent for a few minutes and knew Rose would wait until he gathered his thoughts. "I'm not upset with Julia. Never that. But I am worried. Will her friends still accept her? Will they treat her differently? Will she be bullied? Will she run into homophobic people on the street?"
Rose placed her hand against the Doctor's mouth before he could get a good ramble going. "First of all, people on the street are highly unlikely to know her sexual orientation. As for the rest, that's something she'll have to deal with, just like everyone else does. All we can do is be there for her."
The Doctor sighed. "I know. Still, I was hoping she'd be much older before she took an interest in anybody. I'm not ready for this. She was just born!"
Rose giggled. "She's the normal age for kids to start noticing each other a little differently than they did before." She smiled up at the Doctor. "And you're having the normal dad response to their daughters noticing people differently."
The Doctor sniffed haughtily. "Quite right, too." He sobered as he looked intently at Rose. "And the same rules apply to girls. If they come through that door with tattoos, piercings and a motorcycle, it's a no go."
Rose just collapsed into giggles. "Admit it. No one will ever be good enough."
The Doctor smiled down at her. "That goes without saying." He waited a beat and then his smile turned a bit wicked. "Just wait until the boys start dating."
Rose's giggles died and a worried look came over her face before she schooled it back into neutrality. "When they're 40."