"Oh." The word sounded strangled to Bonnie's ears, and she cleared her throat. "When ... when was this?"

"Yesterday mornin', just before we checked outta the hotel." If anything, Joss's expression became more pensive.

"So ... what did you say?"

Joss sighed. "Promise me you'll still talk ta me after I tell ya?"

Bonnie blinked. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Reba didn't."

"Oh." Bonnie sat back, nibbling on her bottom lip. Obviously Joss had said 'no'. Equally obviously, that hadn't gone down so well. She paused, unsure what to do or say. No .. not unsure. Unwilling. Suck it up, Rockwaller. If you can't be her lover, at least be her friend. "Want to talk about it?"

"It might help." Joss hunched forward, looking tired. "I obviously screwed up, I just don't know how. Maybe you can figure it out."

Bonnie nodded. "I'll help if I can." She said gently, leaning forward as well, so they could speak without raising their voices in the noisy canteen. "Obviously you said no, or we wouldn't be having this conversation. Why didn't you want to move in with her?"

"I just thought it was too soon." Joss sighed and ran a hand through her hair, then rested her cheek on her hand. "Two months is too soon, right?"

Ask me when I've had a real relationship last that long. "It does seem quick. So you told her that?"

"... not exactly."

"That was a mistake, honey." The endearment slipped out unintentionally, and Bonnie bit her lip in surprise at her error, but Joss didn't seem to notice. Why should she? Straight women use endearments all the time. "Reba could probably tell you weren't being honest with her." The brunette paused. "What did you say, exactly?"

"I said that I still had a few months on my lease and we should talk about it when that was nearer to finishin' -" Joss broke off as she caught sight of Bonnie's expression. "... see, you're doin' exactly what Reba did."

"Oh man." Bonnie shook her head. "Did you really say that?"

Joss spread her hands. "Well, yeah. I didn't wanna hurt her feelin's by sayin' that I wasn't ready, and I figured that was a logical reason t' wait."

"Okay." Bonnie shook her head. "I get that you thought it was a better option at the time. But it wasn't." She could see that Joss didn't get it, and sighed. "Look ... you saw the conversation like this: Reba asked 'How about we move in together?' and you replied 'I think we should think about it for a while longer, and do it at a time that's more fiscally responsible'."

"Exactly!" Joss looked satisfied.

"But that's not how Reba saw it."

"Oh." Joss frowned. "So how did she see it?"

"More along the lines that she said 'Joss, I really care about you and want to share my life with you', and you replied 'Nah, I don't want to waste my rent money'."

"That's not –"

"Wait." Bonnie held up a hand and gave Joss her best 'teacher look'. It could stop a seventeen year-old wannabe starlet cold. The Montanan had no chance. "I know you didn't mean it that way. And I'm exaggerating. But Reba asked you to move into her home, and you ... well, first of all you said 'no', but more importantly, you weren't being honest when you did it. I've seen you try to tell a lie ... so Reba probably knew you weren't. Think about that from her side of things for a minute."

Joss did. Then she said something that the faculty handbook frowned upon.

"Oh man." The auburn-haired woman buried her face in her hands. "I am so screwed. What do I do t'make it up to her?"

"You have to go see her and apologize." Bonnie said firmly. Then she paused, before adding. "It probably wouldn't hurt to take a gift when you do."

The younger woman looked skeptical. "I don't think it'll work if I try ta buy her back."

"That's not what it's about." Bonnie shook her head, ignoring the churning in her gut. Telling Joss how to win back her girlfriend was not how she'd expected or wanted this conversation to go. "Well, maybe a tiny bit. Most people like getting gifts, even when they say they don't. But the important thing about the gift is not the money you spend on it ... it's the time and care you spend on choosing it. You know Reba's hobbies and interests, right? You need to get something that shows you know them ... that you know her."

"So you're sayin' that if I give her a gift and an' apology, things'll be better between us again?" Joss didn't look convinced.

"Well, I'm not saying it'll be that easy. But you need to go to her ... apologize for what you said, and explain why you really said 'no'. Honesty is the most important thing in any relationship, whether it's a romantic one or just a friendship." Bonnie did her best not to feel like a hypocrite as she gave that advice. Trying not to blush, she added. "... I mean, it helped on Wednesday night, right?"

"You're right ... it did. Yeah. That makes sense." Joss nodded. She sat back and considered Bonnie's advice, then smiled broadly. "Thanks so much! You've really helped." She glanced at her watch and cursed. "Shit. I gotta run to class. After that, I'm gonna go look for somethin' nice for Reba, and put on my best grovelin' clothes." Standing, the Montanan leaned over the table and gave Bonnie an impulsive hug. "Thanks again, Bonnie! You've really helped!"

"Yeah." The older woman sighed as she watched Joss leave the cafeteria. "I'm just awesome that way."

If there was one good thing about Mondays, it was that they were busy. Bonnie had four classes to take; only one of them for theory. Six hours in the theater, first instructing two classes of aspiring actors, then finally her sophomore dance class, didn't leave much time for wallowing in self-pity. It wasn't until nearly seven o'clock that the brunette trudged into her apartment and tossed the day's mail onto her couch.

Her cell phone rang ten minutes later, just as Bonnie was sitting down with some reheated chicken and broccoli left over from the night before. The calling number wasn't a surprise.

"Hey Joss."

"Hey." The other woman spoke more quietly than normal, in a not-quite-whisper, but her tone was cheerful. "Just wanted to give you a quick call to say thanks for the advice this morning."

"You spoke to Reba? It went okay?"

"More than okay. She's, uh, in the shower, right now." Joss sounded halfway between bashful and exultant. "I bought her a gift like ya suggested ... she always drinks tea insteada coffee, so I got her this really nice pot and serving tray. But really I think it was like ya said ... bein' honest was what was really important."

"It's good to hear you got things sorted out." The former cheerleader said the words automatically, then paused, surprised to realize that she meant them. It's hearing Joss sound like herself again. There was still a pang of jealousy, of course. But for all that Bonnie might wish she was the one putting the joy back in the other woman's voice, she was glad to hear it at all, and know her friend was happy.

"Thanks. I feel kinda stupid that I didn't see what I'd done wrong." Joss confessed. "I don't know why I just didn't tell her the truth t' start with."

"Like you said, you didn't want to hurt her."

"Yeah." Joss sighed. "But I did."

"So ... Reba was okay that you wanted to wait before moving in?"

"Well, not okay ... I mean, she was disappointed." Joss admitted. "But she said we could talk about it again later, when I'd had time to think about it some more."

Reba's answer sounded a little begrudging to Bonnie, but she held her tongue, not wanting to dampen Joss's mood. There'll be time for them to work that out later.

The younger woman sucked in a breath. "The shower just stopped. I'd better go. Thanks again."

"You're welcome."

Joss ended the call. Bonnie stared at the phone for a few seconds, then tossed it onto the couch beside the mail. She was a little surprised at her own reaction to the Montanan's news. She'd expected to be more upset. But she wasn't. What's changed? It certainly wasn't because she no longer found Joss physically attractive. Lithe and athletic was definitely her type, and while the auburn-haired woman didn't quite have her cousin's Olympian grace and suppleness, she was certainly no slouch in that department. Maybe it was because Bonnie had had all day to adjust to the idea. Maybe learning Joss's sexual proclivities had dampened her enthusiasm. Maybe ...

Maybe I should quit all the navel-gazing, and eat my dinner before it gets cold.

Author's Note: Sorry about the delay between updates. I've been too busy with a real life romance to spend much time writing about the fictional variety :-)

Updates will probably continue to be sporadic for a while, not only because of the above, but because I am going to be doing NaNoWriMo this year. That means most of my efforts will be on original material, rather than fanfiction.

In other news, I participated in a discussion of KiGo on Allaine's "Femslash for Fans" internet radio show. You can find a link to the page on my profile page. My answers were provided by e-mail prior to the show, so you won't hear my dulcet tones, but you will get to hear King in Yellow and Tempest Dash. Check it out.