Sipping a glass of Moscato, Grace opens her laptop and navigates to Facebook then begins aimlessly scrolling through her feed. She stops to read one of Brianna's posts then immediately rolls her eyes and moves on. She sees a picture of Mal with the kids and gives it one of those heart emoji things that she still didn't quite fully understand. The house was quiet tonight, Frankie had already gone to bed, saying she needed to sleep early because there was some natural oceanic event happening sometime in the early morning she needed to see. Something about the tide, Grace hadn't really listened if she was being completely honest.
It was getting pretty late, and Grace contemplated going to bed, then decided against it, she hated nights the most. She hated falling asleep alone and waking up alone. Even though what she and Robert had was never the great American love story, she still missed the presence in her bed. A thought crosses her mind to go and wake Frankie, but she quickly shuts it out. She would never admit it, but those few nights Frankie had slept in her bed after the burglary made Grace feel better too. Grace didn't really know what that meant, and she was never one to delve too deeply into her emotions, so instead she lets out a big sigh and downs the rest of her glass of wine.
She gets tired of Facebook quickly and wasn't really sure of what else to do so she opens up Vybrant's website and starts looking at logistics, thinking maybe some numbers would bore her into a sleep like state.
She was just starting to peer over the hits on the website when she hears a small rustling behind where she is sitting on the couch. She grabs the top of her laptop with one hand and turns around to investigate, tilting her head down so as to see over the top of her glasses. She doesn't see anything and just dismisses it as the trees outside brushing up against the window. She goes back to looking over the page when she sees movement out of the corner of her eyes on the tv. She freezes in place, wishing she hadn't gotten rid of the gun for a half a second. She turns around quickly and yells
"WHO'S THERE"
She hears the clang of something falling to the floor then reaches for the phone, and of course it wasn't there because of course Frankie didn't put it back in the cradle.
"SHIT!" Frankie yells from the kitchen.
"Frankie?" Grace sighs, frustrated but relieved, "Fucking hell, you could've given me a heart attack"
Grace begins to walk to the kitchen,
"Are you okay Frankie?" Grace says on her way.
"Just fine dear, thanks!" Frankie responds, "No need to come in the kitchen! Nothing to see here!"
Grace rolls her eyes, Frankie was never very subtle.
"What did you break this time, I promise not to be mad, I'm sure we can fix-"
Grace rounds the corner and is stopped in her tracks when she is met with the presence of a woman she had never seen before standing in their kitchen.
"Oh, hello" Grace says, immediately putting on a fake smile, "Frankie, who is this?" she says, concern bubbling through her fake pleasant voice.
"NOBODY!" Frankie yells, "well, not nobody, she's Irene, she's a friend, well she's not a friend, she's-I met her in my throat singing class"
"Ah, I should've guessed- you're both in throat singing clothes" Grace jokes, mocking Frankie's long flowy dress.
"Hi, you must be Grace, so nice to meet you, Frankie talks about you all the time so it's so good to finally put a face to the name" Irene says, extending a hand.
Grace shakes her hand then takes a small step back, not really sure what to do or say next. She looks over Irene, trying to remember if Frankie had ever mentioned her before. She was a short, average looking woman, with straight blonde hair, a button nose, and a huge smile that reminded her of Frankie's. She couldn't have been more than 50 years old.
"Anyways, we better get going," Frankie says, disrupting the awkward silence and grabbing Irene's arm, avoiding eye contact with Grace.
"Where are you two off to?" Grace asks inquisitively, peering over to the clock on the stove, noticing that it's almost midnight.
"Actually Grace, we just got back, so we're going to go up to my Studio for the night" Frankie responds, still guiding Irene, trying to get out of the kitchen and to the safety of her art.
Grace cocks her head in response, crossing her arms, a bit confused.
"What are you two having a sleepover?" Grace jokes, trying to better understand the situation.
"Something like that" Irene says, winking, "it was so nice to meet you Grace" she chuckles and practically skips up the stairs, holding Frankie's hand who was trailing slowly behind her.
Grace is sort of taken aback by the whole situation, then she notices the fruit bowl on the floor, that must've been what the clang was. She rolls her eyes and picks it up, placing it back in the center of the island exactly where it belonged. She huffs slightly, confused, then turns out the kitchen lights and heads upstairs.
The Next Morning
After tossing and turning all night, Grace finally decides to just get up. It was 6 am and she was exhausted, but she didn't really have any plans for the day since it was Saturday, so she figured if she got excessively tired she could just take a nap. She rolls out of bed and brushes her teeth and hair, throwing on her blue silk robe over her pajama set. She heads downstairs, doubting that Frankie would be up, what with her needing 11 hours of sleep and all. She figured she would put on a pot of coffee, and was surprised to smell some already brewing when she came down the stairs.
"Frankie" she calls out, walking into the kitchen.
"Sorry to disappoint," Irene chuckles, rummaging through their fridge, "just me"
"Oh" Grace says, noticing that Irene was now in one of Frankie's robes and not the clothes she came in last night.
Irene closes the door to the refrigerator and turns around, facing Grace.
"Hope you don't mind, I just know Frankie won't be up for a while and I'm starving, so I just grabbed one of these little yogurts"
"No-help yourself" Grace says, "I don't eat those vegan yogurts anyways-I know they're better for you, but I can't get over the smell"
"It's definitely something you have to get used to" Irene says smiling.
"So how long have you known Frankie, exactly?" Grace says, curious, making her way to the coffee pot.
"Um, I joined the group about 2 months ago, so I'd say about then" Irene says, peeling back the lid of the yogurt and searching for a spoon.
"The silverware drawer is the one to the left of the sink" Grace says.
"Thanks"
"So, I'm curious, what did you guys do last night? Paint, collage, throw some clay around?" Grace half-jokes.
"Um…" Irene says, a little uncomfortable, "we definitely did something, but it didn't really have anything to do with art-though I would say that Frankie would argue it is an art form but reall-"
"I'm confused" Grace chuckles.
"I don't think you are," Irene says, a little more seriously, "did Frankie not tell you about any of this?"
"Um, no. No." Grace says back, gripping the counter until her wrinkled knuckles turned white, "No, she, she didn't"
"Oh, well, then I think you should talk with her" Irene says back, grabbing a spoon and heading back towards the studio.
"Yeah, I guess maybe I do..." Grace says quietly.
"Thanks again, for the yogurt, and the spoon" Irene says, turning around and smiling.
"Oh, sure, no problem" Grace smiles, standing up a bit straighter.
"Oh-by the way-that vibrator you guys made-truly amazing" Irene adds, winking and walking out of the room.
"What the hell just happened…" Grace mutters under her breath.
She grabs her phone and dials Sol's number,
"Hello?" Sol says, obviously groggy and confused.
"Oh, shoot. Sorry, I forgot it was so early, I didn't mean to wake you" Grace sighs.
"No, it's fine, you didn't wake me" Sol responds,
"Yes, you did!" Robert sings in the background,
"Robert, hush" Sol says back, "What is it Grace, is something wrong?"
"Um, yes, well no, it's not really 'wrong' per say, just…weird. I need you to meet me for breakfast"
"You, want to meet me…. for breakfast?" Sol says curiously.
"Yes." Grace says definitively.
"Um, well, okay, but can you give me a few hours?"
"I gave you twenty years with my husband I think I can manage a few hours" Grace says sarcastically.
Sol whimpers and responds, "and you're sure nothing's wrong"
"Just meet me at Capo's at 9, I could really use a Mimosa"
"Grace it's 6 am-"
Grace hangs up and rolls her eyes.
A few hours later Grace is sitting alone at a table, tapping her high heel and fiddling with her earing. She keeps checking the small golden wrist watch dangling off her pale skin and grows gradually more frustrated as more time passes by. Just as she's reaching for her phone to call Sol and berate him over being late, she sees him across the room. He sticks his arm straight up in the air and waves his hand upon seeing her and Grace buries her head in her hands, regretting a public outing with Sol almost immediately.
"Sorry I'm a bit late- there was traffic on the 405 and-"
"It's fine" Grace cuts him off.
The waiter comes and takes their orders, Sol orders a Belgian waffle with fresh fruit and Grace orders eggs benedict with a side of fruit as well. Just as the waiter is about to leave Grace reaches out and grabs his arm-
"And please, bring me a mimosa" she sighs.
Grace grabs the cloth napkin off of the table and lays it across her lap, then grabs the glass of water in front of her and takes a small sip.
"So," Sol begins, "What is it that was so important?"
"I'm just…confused. About Frankie's behavior" Grace begins.
Sol chuckles "I would've thought you would be used to all of Frankie's little nuances by now"
"It's not the little things she does that I'm talking about-which, by the way, I didn't know she likes to freeze her m&m's but I found that out yesterday when I was trying to get ice out of the dispenser and a shredded mess of wrapper and frozen m&m's came out instead of ice"
Sol laughed "she only does that because she wants all the toppings on her ice cream to have the same treatment as the ice cream itself. Solidarity."
"Insanity" Grace responded back.
Just then the waiter returned with Grace's mimosa and she took a drink of it.
"Well then, what is it?" Sol said, his eyebrows raising instinctively out of curiosity.
"Is Frankie gay?" Grace finally blurted out.
Sol didn't have any words, so he just burst out with laughter instead.
"It's not funny, Sol" Grace said, trying to be serious.
"No, no, you're right it's not" he said, trying to muffle his laughter "It's just, you're being so serious"
"It is serious!" Grace exclaimed "I feel like I should know if the woman I'm living with is into women"
"Grace, just because a woman is a lesbian does not mean she wants to sleep with every woman on the planet" Sol attempted to correct her.
"I know that" Grace said, frustrated, "So she is then, she is gay?"
"I'm not saying that Grace-but I'm not saying she's NOT either"
"Then what are you saying!?" Grace says back, frustrated.
"Look, I was married to that woman for forty years, I know all of her secrets, all of her ins and outs, but I am not going to tell you what her sexuality is. That's just not appropriate" Sol said.
"You're really going to try and take the moral high ground?" Grace asks, incredulously.
"Yes" Sol says definitively, "I think I am" and a smile flashes across his face.
Just then their food arrived, and they ate in silence, mostly because after 40 years, Sol knew that he needed to let Grace process and calm down a bit, he would wait for her to open up again. Grace is purposelessly twirling her spoon around in the oatmeal, not really hungry.
"I wouldn't care, you know" Grace says quietly, "I wouldn't care if she was gay"
Sol reaches his hand across the table and gives Grace's a little squeeze.
"I know you wouldn't, Grace"
They both take a few more bites and Sol takes the napkin off of his lap and dabs his mouth with it.
"What brought all this on anyways, that is, if you don't mind me asking" Sol asks.
"She had a girl over last night, well, not a girl, a woman, though she was young..." she trails off.
"How do you know they weren't just having an art sleepover party" Sol suggested.
"This was different" Grace said, staring off into the distance, "She was sneaking around, she wouldn't look at me….and the woman, she was very…suggestive"
"Hmmm" Sol said back, "Grace, I think you just need to talk to Frankie"
"I can't believe I'm actually saying this, but Sol, I think you're right" Grace responds.
That Evening
Grace had sent a couple texts to Frankie since she got home, but she wasn't responding, and she wasn't in her studio, so she figured she would just wait up for Frankie, knowing she would most likely be back before dark. She fiddles with the remote, turning it over in her hand, debating on whether or not she should binge watch "Ray Donovan" without Frankie. She decides against it.
With a small sigh she pulls her sweater closed, wrapping her long fingers around the edges of the sleeves. She props her feet up on the coffee table in front of her. With her glasses sitting on the brim of her nose, and her hair pulled into a low ponytail, she looked so effortlessly stunning. Her very presence was enough to take someone's breath away. But, she was discontent, and you could see it not on her face, but through those piercing blue eyes.
Suddenly the front door swung open and Frankie walked quickly in, again, avoiding eye contact with Grace.
"Hey Frankie" Grace says chirpily, sitting up in the couch, a slight smile flashing across her face.
"Hi Grace" Frankie says quietly, "Sorry, I'm just gonna grab some jars and be on my way"
"No, come on, hang out with me, I waited to watch Ray Donovan-"
"Grace, I'm really busy" Frankie says distractedly.
"Frankie" Grace starts, but she is still ignored, "Frankie!"
Frankie looks up into Grace's eyes for the first time in days, but still doesn't respond.
"Frankie WHAT is going on" Grace demands, placing her hands on her narrow hips.
"Nothing Grace, really it's nothi-"
"Don't you dare lie to me" Grace cuts her off, taking the lie as an insult to their relationship, "Who is that woman?"
"She's Irene, I already told you that" Frankie says, going back to looking for jars.
"No, Frankie, not her name, who IS she" Grace says, impatiently.
"She's, she's" Frankie tries to find the words, "Oh screw it-she's my girlfriend"
Frankie slams the cupboard doors and keeps rummaging through the pantry and the dishwasher,
"Where the hell are my mason jars!?"
"Frankie-" Grace sighs, crossing the room and pushing her arm in front of Frankie's face to the cabinet right in front of her and opening the door, "They're right here"
"Oh" Frankie chuckled, "I guess some people just refuse to see things right in front of their faces" she says almost facetiously.
"Was that a dig?" Grace asks incredulous.
"If the shoe fits" Frankie says, slamming the cabinet doors, "Thanks, for the jars"
Frankie begins to walk out of the kitchen when Grace grabs her arm.
"No, Frankie wait" she spins the other woman around, "Why won't you look at me?"
Frankie looks off into the distance, her bottom lip quivering, and her eyes slowly shifting into a lighter shade of blue. But she doesn't answer.
"Frankie" Grace says, softer, less demanding this time, "This isn't like you. You are a passivist. You believe in peace. We have a baby snow leopard for God's sake!"
"I can't-" Frankie starts, almost whimpering, "I can't-"
"What? What can't you do?" Grace asks.
"I can't look at you because when I look at her, all I picture is you. When I look at Irene, all I see is you, just younger. When I touch her, I think about touching you, when she kisses me, I start to wonder what it would be like to kiss you, and it's just, it's insane and I'm sorry I never wanted any of this-"
"Frankie, slow down, what are you saying?" Grace says, taking a step back.
"I'm saying…" Frankie says, letting a tear roll down her face, "What I'm saying is"
In that moment everything turned silent. The only thing either of the women could hear was the others breath. Frankie took a step towards Grace and placed her hand on her soft pink cheek. She reached her head up and placed her full lips on Grace's. Grace's think pink lips were warm, and she smelled like the most beautiful bouquet of flowers. Grace didn't push back, she allowed herself to be enveloped by Frankie, giving off a slight sigh, their noses brushing against each other. Then Frankie pulled away slightly, resting her forehead on Grace's, keeping her eyes shut.
"I'm saying, I think I love you" Frankie breathed.