Sawyer and Vivian arrived at the party and made their rounds as they chatted with the usual crowd. They caught up with Riley and Amanda who had decided to leave early.

"Where are you guys going?" Vivian asked.

"We're gonna call it a night." Amanda said. "It's kinda boring after a while."

"Especially compared to that party last weekend!" Riley added. "We'll see you guys later though. Brunch tomorrow?"

"Sure, see you then." Vivian smiled, though she suddenly wasn't sure what she would do without having Amanda and Riley there with her. Sure, she had gone to parties without them. But Vivian was just starting to get back into the swing of the party circuit and she was still a little rusty. She decided now was a good time for a drink.

As Vivian and Sawyer walked to the bar, Parker Jones tapped Sawyer's arm.

"Hey, Sawyer, I was hoping I could talk to you." Parker asked, more timidly than he usually was. He and Sawyer were really good friends and lacrosse teammates.

"Yeah, man." Sawyer shrugged with a grin. "What's up?"

"Oh, um, would you mind if we went somewhere else?"Parker looked around nervously. "It's about what happened after practice the other day."

"Oh, yeah." Sawyer's eyes got wide with realization before composing himself again and turning to Vivian. "I'll just be a minute."

"Sure." Vivian nodded, unhappy that she was now completely alone.

She mixed her drink and upon turning around saw Taylor walking up to her.

"Vivian, it's so good to see you. At first I thought you were dressed as a ghost because I couldn't tell where your pasty legs ended and that teddy began."

"It's nice to see you, too, Taylor. Looks like your anorexia is still working. Just when I thought your chest couldn't get flatter, it looks like your boobs have managed to concave."

"Well, why would I eat when you're eating enough for the both of us?" Taylor quipped. Before Vivian could respond with her turn in the banter, Taylor decided to pack a double punch. "Where's that boy toy of yours? Did he get tired of dating a lesbian?"

Vivian had an insult at the ready before realizing what Taylor had said.

"What are you talking about?" Vivian turned to look Taylor in the eyes.

"Like how Janie Turner saw you at the Columbia party last weekend and you had heart eyes for some brunette Ellen Degeneres look alike. She saw you two go into a back bedroom."

"No one is going to believe you or Janie Turner who, by the way, everyone knows she plays around with LSD so everyone will just think she was hallucinating."

Vivian knew there was no point in trying to convince Taylor that it never happened. It was just a matter of making sure that peopled believed her word over Taylor's.

"Look, I don't care if you're gay." Taylor said with a strange sincerity to her tone. "And you don't have to worry about me outing you; my dads raised me better than that. But if I know anything it's that staying in the closet is going to be hard for you to do. And the only reason you're staying in the closet is because you and I both know that these kids are more accepting of a cute little stereotypical gay guy than they would be of a lesbian who doesn't even fit their idea of a lesbian. Eventually, you won't be able to keep it up. You'll start slipping up and they'll figure it out. Then they'll also know that you and Sawyer were a sham and your chances at prom queen will be gone."

Vivian was surprised at how much thought Taylor had put into her argument. But she quickly composed herself and regained her emotionless demeanor.

"Well," She said. "Good thing I'm not a lesbian."

At that moment Sawyer came back and before anything could be said Vivian kissed him. It was a long and deep kiss that Vivian was sure made it obvious to Taylor that she was overcompensating. But convincing Taylor that she was straight was a lost cause. The only thing that mattered now was that the rest of the student body believed that Vivian and Sawyer were head over heels for each other.

When Vivian heard Taylor walk away, she broke the kiss.

"What was that about?" Sawyer asked.

"Oh, nothing." Vivian shrugged. "I just thought it would be fun to make Taylor jealous."

"Okay..." Sawyer nodded, though still confused.

"So what happened after practice the other day?" Vivian asked before taking a sip of her drink that had been sitting.

"What?"

"Parker said he wanted to talk to you about something that happened after practice the other day, that's why you left." Vivian prompted. "So what was it?"

"Oh, that yeah, um it was nothing. Just, you know guys stuff. Things just, uh, got a little heated in the locker room."

"Okay." Vivian nodded. "Do you wanna go home?"

"Yeah," He smirked.

The pair walked out to the limo and rode home. It was a quiet ride; Vivian looked out the window at the stars and Sawyer played on his phone. When they arrived at the manse Sawyer rode the elevator with Vivian and walked her to the door. She didn't invite him in and he didn't ask. They ended the night with a hug and nothing more. Vivian could tell that something was off, but for whatever reason she didn't question it. They parted and Vivian entered through the front door.

Vivian went up to her room and took off her shoes and changed into a cotton babydoll nightgown. She wasn't in the mood for the fuss of satin. She threw a robe over her shoulders and slippers on her feet and went back out to the hallway. As she strolled through the manse she took the pins out of her hair one by one and set them down on shelves and tables as she went along, leaving a trail behind her. Vivian heard noise in the living room and decided to see what it was.

When she padded in she saw her mother on the couch in front of the television playing "Valley of the Dolls".

"Oh, Vivian, I wasn't expecting you home until later." Karen turned around upon hearing Vivian walk in. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, it was just a boring party. " Vivian stretched out on the couch and put her legs over Karen's lap. "It's been a while since we watched this."

"Which is surprising since it's one of your father's favorites." Karen chuckled. "Maybe he'll be home in time for Neely's final break down in the alley."

"I wish he didn't work all the time." Vivian admitted. "I mean it's not like he really even has to."

"Well, he used to never work." Karen smiled. "He could barely hold a job at Starbucks for a month. But he also never had anything he was really passionate about."

"I mean I'm glad he gets to do something he likes. I'm sure he'll be a riot at Career Day."

"What Career Day?"

"The one at school next month. I thought I told you about it."

"How come you asked your dad and not me?" Karen asked, trying not to sound like she was upset. She began to wonder if Vivian really was embarrassed of her like Grace had said. It must have been bad if Vivian was more embarrassed of her than Jack.

"They already had three CEOs of multibillion dollar companies but they didn't have any owners of gay bars yet."

"So it wasn't because you were embarrassed to have me at your school?"

"What?" Vivian was both confused and amused by her mother's question. "That's ridiculous! I mean, maybe sometimes when you try too hard to be a cool mom around my friends. But it's really more funny than embarrassing."

"You're really not embarrassed of me? Not even the fact that I'm older than a lot of your friends parents?" Karen asked. Vivian was quiet for a moment and Karen began to wonder if that was it.

"Do you remember that time a couple of years ago when I came home with three acrylic nails missing and I told you I broke them when I dropped some books?"

"Yeah..." Karen responded, unsure of where this was going.

"And then a few days later I suggested we donate to the charity that Kayla Whitley's parents founded?"

"Uh huh..."

"Well what actually happened was when we were in English we were reading The Great Gatsby. And during our class discussion Kayla made a remark about how we should have you come speak to the class since you were so old you probably lived in the 1920s. Then Ms. Hunt said that was inappropriate and uncalled for and then the dismissal bell rang and I followed Kayla into the hallway and grabbed her pony tail and slammed her into a locker. I swiped at her face a few times and punched her so hard it broke her nose job. She still has a scar on the side of her face from where I scratched her. I mean, you can't really see it because now she wears a bunch of makeup to cover it. Then the principal made me apologize to Kayla and I had you donate that money so her parents wouldn't press charges."

"Didn't you also stay home from school for the rest of the week after that happened?"

"Yeah that was because I was suspended. And that's why I don't hang out with Kayla anymore." Vivian shrugged. "All that to say, I don't care what other people say about you. I love you and you're way cooler than a lot of parents anyway. "

"I love you, too." Karen smiled, her fears put to rest.