Slip of the Tongue
Part One
…two months later
(Dina & Tommy have been going out steady since the previous chapter)
Megan couldn't sleep. Her life truly stunk. Everyone in the universe has let her down in some way or
the other. Her mother wanted to make an issue out of her finally being a part of Drake's "F Club".
All she wanted to do was hang with her friends and be left alone. She was on her way back to the
safety and solitude of her own room with a bottle of water and a pack of Fig Newtons when she
noticed the door slightly open to Drake and Dina's room.
Who were they kidding sharing a room with each other? Even if they respected each other's
personal property by getting dressed in the bathroom it was still a sham as far as the young Miss
Parker was concerned. They were hardly buddy-buddy anymore. She noticed Drake pulling slightly
back from Dina while proclaiming that he cared about her. What bullshit. Something was bugging
him.
She peeked inside to see Dina sitting on Drake's sofa reading something.
"What'cha doing, Boob?"
Good. Make her jump. The people in this family needed to woken up.
They were all such liars.
You couldn't count on any of them.
"Megan! You scared the Hell out of me."
"That means you are doing something you aren't supposed to."
Dina was waiting for her younger sister to continue with the intrusion, but Megan just rolled her eyes
and left. That was Dina's signal to get up to close the door and lock it.
Drake wrote one entry since she last eyed this journal a few months ago when she first found it. He
wrote it with a thin purple Sharpie marker.
I don't hate Dina… She has T-Rod and I have no one.He even got creative and drew a teardrop on the tail of the lower case 'a'
in her name.
…but do I resent her?
"Drake resents me?" Dina closed the book and placed it back under the sofa. Why couldn't he just
TALK to her about their father? Why was he repressing it so he could use that as an excuse to
blame her for it?
This happened quite a bit, one of the girls at the Reach Out program had a sister who tried—but
couldn't get passed the situation and eventually left the family fold.
A lot of the ladies on the Yahoogroup had similar family stories.
'Maybe, we are selfish…' Dina once tried to write in an email, but quickly erased it, because she
knew deep down that it wasn't true.
She heard Drake coming up the stairs and quickly unlocked the door and jumped into her bed as
she put the covers over her head to pretend she was asleep.
Damn. I left the light on.
Drake and Tommy finally found some drummer candidates and were going to be auditioning them in
the next few days.
She heard Drake's Big Sigh and wanted to remove the blankets from her face and make it all better.
But she couldn't. This wasn't her fault.
He took his watch off and threw it on the dresser. His boots made a thud on the floor.
Next he unzipped his jeans and she knew he threw them on the floor. Drake turned off the light and
Dina knew even though he was lying down he wasn't sleeping.
She thought of his words from a few months ago:
"Just know that I never mean it when I act like a jackass and I apologize."
That was an all-purpose quote of convenience. He also said things were difficult to talk about.
Bullshit. They've known each other for far too long for him to be playing that 'game'. And a jackass
is still a jackass even if he apologizes in advance for being one.
Since the lights were turned off Dina uncovered her head.
"Goodnight, Drake."
He didn't say a word back and Dina wanted to throw her alarm clock at him because she knew
damn well he was only pretending to be asleep like she was before.
She didn't want to lose him. But she had Tommy now. They didn't make love yet, and he respected
(a rarity!) her decision to wait until she was ready. They were going out for breakfast so Dina was
trying to rest her head. Not that things were easy there: She still debated telling him about being born
Josh. But, was it required to tell the other person? The whole point of transitioning was to transition
into society and blend in with the biologically born gender that you changed into.
But how could she keep that a secret from the man she was starting to love?
Then again, Tommy Rodriguez didn't reveal much about himself either ever since the night of their
second date when she made him a homemade spaghetti dinner. He told her his sister died when he
was eleven. Ever since then she didn't press the issue on Tommy's past. It was obvious there was
some kind of family dissolution. Was it her business to know what it was just because they were
going out?
Unlike Drake she couldn't just think 'whatever' and eventually fall asleep. Dina was up for a good
hour and a half before her body would even let her think of fulfilling her need to sleep.
Breakfast
Dina tried to stop herself from yawning while her and Tommy waited for their breakfast at IHOP.
"I know someone who is still sleepy…" Tommy said while drinking his orange juice.
"Yeah you do. Drake came home late and I couldn't sleep."
It wasn't the whole truth, but it wasn't a lie either.
The waitress came by with his steak and eggs and Dina's omelet and toast. She was trying to watch
her carbs, but you couldn't have eggs without the toast. Dina would be good and skip the cute little
packet of strawberry jam.
"I'd like another cup of coffee, please."
And not from the pot with the orange handle.
"When I take you home…I want you to go straight to bed."
"I have an afternoon shift at the Pacific."
"You can still sleep for a few hours. I'm not saying it wouldn't be tempting to join you in that
bed…."
"Did I say you could join me in my bed?" Dina stirred her coffee, while raising a flirting eyebrow.
"What about mine?"
Dina laughed. He was just too cute. This was what was missing in her life. Being able to share with
someone that you cared about. Although, she wasn't sure how much she was supposed to share.
Being transgender had nothing to do with it. Everyone wants to tell their significant other everything.
It is what made a relationship advance to the next deeper level.
"Did you know you are cute?"
She deserved this relaxing breakfast with her boyfriend.
"Did you know that I love you, Dina Nichols?"
What?
Rewind.
He tried to sneak that sentence in under the radar over their morning meal at the San Diego IHOP.
Dina blinked to stop the happy tears from forming.
"What did you say, Tommy?"
It was the first time that he said it.
"I think you heard me," He picked up her hand, "I love you, Dina."
He kissed her hand and she felt like she could fly across the room as if she had wings.
"I love you too, Tommy."
It never felt this way with Mindy Crenshaw. Josh was needy and so was Mindy. It reminded her in
some ways of the relationship with Karen Gold. To have a need that wasn't based out of neediness
was a wonderful feeling. She never felt so alive.
"Does this mean---" it was his turn to raise his eyebrow
"Nope. It means you better finish your breakfast before you get into any trouble."
Maybe, in a few days, she'd be ready to share a bed. But she still wanted to wait just a little while
longer. Dina was glad that in spite of the boyish jokes that Tommy was a gentleman who understood
her decision to wait until she was ready.
Guys like that weren't exactly coming out of the woodwork. Even Drake was a love 'em and leave
'em type. And yet he could write in his journal that he had no one?
Well he wouldn't if he was relying on a satisfying a sexual desire versus building a real relationship
with a solid foundation.
"Yes, Ma'am."
Dina had no idea that it was all about to crumble within the space of thirty days.
An accident
30 days later
There was a small mini room in the basement that Drake thought would make a cool semi bedroom.
A neighbor had loaned Drake these orange moving bands that were able to let people strap these
bands to the item you wanted to move and put your hands through the loops of the bands and not
feel the weight of what you were moving. He didn't want to hurt Dina's feelings and that's why he
enlisted T-Rod's help while she was working at the movie theater. He wouldn't mention her
volunteer work. It was too taboo.
He and Dina needed their individual space. Drake really hoped that Dina wouldn't cry over it. He
couldn't handle it when a woman cried. Besides, it was only a matter of time before he would open
up the door to their room and catch her and his band mate in bed together. Drake Parker didn't
need to see any of that.
They got the sofa in the room. It fit with a few inches to spare on either side of the wall. And he
could leave it permanently folded out in bed mode. Drake took some of the boxes that Audrey had
left over from their move here with some odds and ends in them. Drake naturally filled up the boxes
too high and the one T-Rod was carrying had some of its contents fall onto his sofa bed.
He picked up the picture. The one teenager was obviously Drake with his freckled face, spikey hair,
and seemingly preppy blue striped t-shirt. Who was the other guy in the photo? With his dark curly
hair, blue shirt, and a red vest with a big "P" on the chest. Who was he?
Drake felt the panic rise up in his throat.
"That's Dina," Drake took the photo out of T-Rod's hand to place it back in the box. Oh fucking
shit. What have I done? He thought. "Oops. He's my c-cousin—Josh."
If Drake was ever thankful for the doorbell ringing and the UPS guy wanting him to sign for a box it
was at that very moment.
Tommy sat on the sofa and picked up the photograph out of the box to look at it more closely.
Drake was going to come downstairs and make sure the subject was changed and Tommy was
okay with it.
"No," He put the photo back in the back face down as if to hide its existence, "No…."
Later
Dina felt uneasy. It was the first time in bed with Tommy, but it was as if his mind was elsewhere.
She really wanted to cuddle with him. She needed the strong and safe arms of her boyfriend around
her. Drake moved downstairs to the basement. It didn't bother her as much as she thought, but it
still made her shed a few tears over his leaving the way he did. Not talking it over with her. Waiting
for her to be at work when it would be a done deed.
He seemed to be in that bathroom an awful long time. She tried to not to get up in a fit of worry and
start knocking on the door to ask if he was all right.
Tommy sat on the clothes hamper sans shirt but wearing his jeans revealing the anchor tattoo that
was on his chest.
He had his wallet open and sighed before standing up and putting his wallet in his back jeans pocket.
Looking at his face in the medicine cabinet mirror and holding on to the sides he let out a regret
filled,
"Damn it."
This was not going to be easy.
"Oh, baby, you're back…." Dina propped the pillows up.
"I don't think we should see each other anymore." He went to get his sneakers and shirt that were
on the other side of the bed.
"What?" She flew out of the bed, but couldn't move once she did.
"It's for the best…."
"What? Says who?"
"I saw your picture. Granted, Drake tried to cover it up and say you were was his cousin Josh but
he said the name Dina first. It was no accident."
I'm going to strangle him.
I'm going to fucking strangle him.
"Yes," she walked towards him, "You have a problem that I was born a male and remedied the
situation?"
"No. I just think you should date---I just don't think we should date anymore."
"We said we loved each other."
"I'm sorry. I thought I meant it. I guess I don't."
He knew that wasn't true. What were the fucking odds of this happening?
She sat on the bed and rubbed her forehead feeling the biggest headache form.
"What a terrible thing to say…."
"I should've told you how I felt—but I wanted to hold you one last time to see if holding you felt the
same way. Dina, you're wonderful…you'll find a man who can really love you the way you deserve
to be."
"Don't patronize me."
"It's better to know this now than later."
"Just leave. And thank you Tommy Rodriguez for wasting my time."
When he left the room he closed the door behind him.
"I do love you, Dina, but we can't be together…."
Jesus. What kind of cruel joke was this? Was this a threefold punishment? Was this bad karma his
due?
While Megan was at a friend's house finding ways to alienate her family, Audrey at work, and
Drake getting pleasured by some groupie hanger on who likes to make self-involved films, T-Rod,
Tommy Rodriguez was able to leave without having to answer to anyone except himself.
He wondered if he'd even have a place in Drake's band after this.
Two in the morning:
Dina flew down the stairs as soon as she heard Drake come home and with all of the strength she
had she pushed him into the kitchen wall.
"How dare you! Tommy broke up with me tonight. Because you allegedly accidentally said the
person in the photo was Dina."
Although technically it was Dina in that photograph, but that was hardly the point.
"I'm sorry I didn't mean---"
"Save it!" She pushed him twice because she felt like it, "You're just as bad as he is…Thank you,
Drake. Thank you, Drake for ruining my only chance at happiness. Thank you so much. Here's one
for you, this time I HATE YOU. Deal with that."
"What is going on down here?" Audrey came into the scene.
"Ask your careless son. I'm going to bed…."
Dina ran upstairs to take a shower so she could sob in peace and quiet. Because she was in no
mood to even try to go to sleep at the moment.
"Drake? I'm waiting…."
"It was an accident, Mom. I swear to God, it was an accident."
Author's Note: To be continued…