iNeed A Friend

Monday morning's study hall was awkward. Melanie fidgeted in her seat. She couldn't concentrate. Ashley lectured her from the next seat, comfortably at the back of the room. She spoke in a controlled whisper.

"What the hell is the matter with you?"

"I just… nothing… what's wrong with you!... Shut up!"

Ashley teased her sister. Very few people were actually studying, anyway. Her tone was actually rather sweet and conciliatory.

"Relax, it'll be okay, just chill out a bit… you're bound to get… you know, all panicky…"

"Well, if I could actually get into my own bedroom…"

"Shut up, people don't need to know!"

LATER…

The bell rang, and the hallways filled with students again. Melanie Puckett entered the hallway and immediately felt herself pulled by the wrist. Ashley yanked her down the hall and into the ladies' room.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, Ow!"

The Puckett twins were alone inside the ladies' room. Once her sister stopped complaining about her potentially sprained wrist, Ashley began talking.

"Okay, Princess, now what gives? You've been squirrelly all morning…"

Melanie Puckett was all whipped up. She could do nothing more than hug her sister.

MEANWHILE, ACROSS TOWN…

Brunch was interrupted by a phone call.

"This is Carly…"

Carly was brunching with Sam at the restaurant. It was just what they did maybe twice a week.

"Uh huh… Okay… slow down…"

Sam looked jumpy and concerned. Carly did her best to allay her fears.

"Okay… but your sister's alright?"

Sam went pale.

Carly ended the call quickly, telling her daughter that she loved her.

"What? Cupcake, come on… What happened?"

Carly waved Sam off, dismissively.

"Sam, everything's okay… Mel just… you know… lady issues…"

Carly brushed the entire matter off. Sam was, of course, the lady of Carly's life, but the brunette used the euphemism as a signal that the matter should drop. Sam was, of course, every bit the concerned parent Carly was, but things were different somehow. There was a look in Carly's eyes that told her everything was okay. Sam Puckett, never one to back down, however, continued to push the issue.

"She's my baby too, Cupcake…"

Carly's hand went directly into Sam's lap, touching her leg gently. The restaurant was dead quiet this early in the morning. Nobody would see. Those who would see wouldn't care.

"Sam…"

"Carls, she's mine too…"

Carly knew Sam was worried. She massaged Sam's leg gently.

"Sam, it's just a little panicky, girly thing… She's alright…"

Sam looked skeptical.

"You sure?"

Carly's soft smile was reassuring.

"She's got her sister… She's fine, Samantha…"

"Cuz if she isn't, I can call the Nub to pick her up from school…"

"Sam… let it go… She'll be fine, it's probably just test anxiety… You know how she is…"

Sam conceded the point. Melanie took after Sam's sister in more than name. She was fastidious about her education. School had always been her thing. She wanted to be perfect at everything she did. The blonde took her partner's hand and have it a light squeeze.

"You're right, Cupcake, it's probably nothing…"

The couple spent the next twenty five minutes alternately eating their breakfast and falling in love. This was the high point of their week. It allowed them to be a couple again.

"I love you, Carls… Just… you know… so ya know…"

Carly laughed and reached across the table to Sam's plate.

"You gonna eat that bacon?"

"Watch it, Shay…"

RIDGEWAY HIGH, LUNCHTIME…

Melanie sat at her usual table, along with Bridget and the chess crowd. She sat quietly, making small talk with Bridget and picking at her macaroni and cheese. It was palatable, but had nothing on Mama's. Mama's was a meal in itself. She pulled out her phone and sent a text message to her sister, across the room with That Redhead.

Ashley's phone beeped. She glanced at it. It was a text message from her sister. She smiled. This was private and would stay between them.

You're the best. I love you. ~ Mel.

She smiled broadly. Megan Marx noticed. She wrapped her muscular arm around the blonde's shoulders.

"What is it, Sweety?"

There was no real reason for Megan to hide her feelings at this point. After you got caught making out in the janitor's closet, were a teenaged MMA fighter, and had her parents, most people just assumed things anyway. It was a bullshit stereotype and she knew it. The fact of the matter still remained that Megan knew this particular bullshit stereotype to be true. She was undoubtedly, unequivocally, in love with her very best friend – Ashley Grace Puckett.

Ashley smirked, loving the way she felt as Megan held her hand, thinking nothing at all of it.

"…Just sister stuff. She had, uh, kind of an issue this morning…"

"You two are so different. Glad you two can get along…"

Ashley blushed, seemingly for no reason whatsoever.

"She's just my sister. She knows me better than anyone… well, almost anyone…"

Megan smiled. She loved the way that Ashley made her feel. She had felt this way for a very long time, but never had words for it. It took her until this past summer, at the most inopportune moment, until the switch flipped inside her brain.

Sic Luceat Lux.

And Thus, let the Light Shine…

"Hey Ash?"

"Yeah?"

"What are we doing after school?"

"I dunno… My place?"

Megan didn't have to be told twice. Her parents knew that if she wasn't at home after school, they only needed to track down Carly and Sam's little girl to find their own.

"You sure your parents won't mind?"

"When have they ever?"

Megan gently rubbed Ashley's shoulder, not giving a damn who noticed. Anyone who had an issue with her would have their jaw broken for their troubles.

Ashley Puckett was a very happy girl. She didn't need much for everything to be right in the world. She had her sister and she had Megan Marx. That was good enough for now.

AT IL TERRAZZO CARMINE…

Sam tidied up her desk before punching out a bit early. It was technically her day off, such as it was. She was the boss and never truly had that luxury. She simply had days where she did less work and was afforded the privilege of brunch with her wife. She wrote herself a note and stuck it to her desk calendar. That could all wait until tomorrow. There were more pressing concerns at the moment, like her wife, home alone, in need of some private time with Mama before school let out for the day and her home was once again overrun with teenagers.