"I can't believe they actually bothered you while at work, that's so not cool," said Charlie as she and Teddy sat together on her bed, Charlie while clutching a pillow to her chest and a few streaks of tears running down her cheeks.
"They know that I'm the only one who can talk to you in times like this," said Teddy. As she spoke, she was also wiping the tears away.
"But enough about me, what happened at school today?" she asked.
"The guy I punched is Ben, who was one of my closest friends," said Charlie, her grip on the pillow tightening as she spoke.
"What did he do?" asked Teddy while giving her sister a calm expression but inside she was burning with anger and wondering how to get payback for her sister if it came down to it.
"Ben…," said Charlie as her words got stuck in her throat.
"Ben threatened to tell the whole school that I'm gay," she said after taking a minute to breath and prepare herself.
"Wait, are you really or was he just threatening you with this?" asked a surprised Teddy.
"I figured it out last year, but I just haven't told anyone," said Charlie.
"But there's now this new girl at my school and I thought about coming out, so I went to Ben to ask for some advice since he was my best friend," she said, the tears starting up again and heavier than before.
"And it's after you told him about this that he threatened to out you?" asked Teddy.
"Turns out he's had a crush on me for a long time, and me telling him I basically can't return his feelings set him off," said Charlie.
"Honestly I wish that I could tell you that creeps like him are just one out of a dozen but truthfully there are more than what I want to admit," said Teddy.
"And you're also going to have to deal with people like that from now on, but it doesn't mean you have to do so alone, you will always have your family backing you after all," she said while taking hold of her sister's hand and smiling at her.
"Thanks Teddy, I really needed to hear that," said Charlie as she started to cry, to which Teddy pulled her in for a hug.