10. Reformed Trinity

Had she really been standing here for a full minute? No, it was probably more. Still, Anne couldn't bring herself to knock. It had been two days since her talks with Marcy and her mother. Two days in which she had spent every single free minute thinking. She had talked to her mother once more, and once more had been reassured that her parents would support her, she had analyzed the kisses from Sasha and Marcy in detail, she had remembered all the times they had spent together after her birthday and many more in their teens … and in the end she had come to a decision. Which she was questioning right now, standing right in front of Sasha and Marcy's apartment.

This was ridiculous! She had finally found the necessary courage to talk with them about … sharing their lives, and now she wasn't even able to knock on their door. Maybe all of this had been a mistake. Maybe she just needed more time. But she should probably go. She …

The door opened. Sasha froze in her movement when she spotted her. For a moment the two women simply stared at each other, surprised and uncertain what to do.

"S-Sasha ..."

"Anne? What …?"

They both stopped.

"You first!" they both said simultaneously.

Anne groaned in her mind. Yes, this was going GREAT. "I … I just wanted … Marcy ..."

"Oh!" Sasha made. She didn't look very surprised, but about as uncomfortable as Anne felt. "She isn't here at the moment. She went out, looking for an inspiration for the web comic."

"Oh!" Anne repeated. Her already low courage dwindled. "I … think I should go ..."

"Anne, wait!" Sasha grabbed her wrist. "Please, just … did you come here to tell us that we should stay away from each other?" Anne could clearly see the fear in her friend's eyes. She looked away.

"No … no, I didn't."

"Then please come in," Sasha pleaded. "Marcy should be back in about half an hour … and if we can't even be next to each other for that long than whatever you wanted to discuss with us has got no future anyway."

"I don't now ..." She looked up. "We hurt Marcy already, Sash. It's not a big deal, I'll just wait."

Sasha sighed. "How about this: We sit on the opposite ends of the table?" A crooked grin appeared on her lips. "That way the other one has a head start when one of us becomes a sex-crazed animal."

Anne hesitated for a moment longer. Then she just snorted and entered the apartment. "I must warn you that I know Muay Thai, so don't try anything funny, stranger," she teased Sasha, trying to lighten the mood a bit.

"And I must warn you that I have multiple sword lying around in my den of debauchery," Sasha countered, smiling hesitantly. "Please sit down. I'll get you a coffee."

"Thanks."

Anne sat down, glad for the moments of silence. Sasha was right. If they couldn't control their fears and desires even now, then everything after this would be a house of cards. Still … she wished Marcy was here. A minute later Sasha put a cup of coffee in front of her and walked to the other side of the table to sit down. Anne took a sip.

"Sooo … Marcy's proposition," Sasha started the conversation. The blonde was casually dressed this time, dark trousers and a t-shirt saying "I toad you so". It just wasn't fair that she looked so hot in everything she wore. But maybe that was just Anne's hormones talking. "Wild stuff, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Anne agreed, staring at her cup. "I can't believe she came up with this."

"Well, she IS on the internet quite often," Sasha offered an explanation. "She has probably read a few fanfics about this subject."

Anne looked up, a faint smile on her lips. "PWP fics?"

"Heh! Likely, yes."

They both took a sip.

"Sash … do you really think this can work?" Anne finally asked one of the big questions. "All three of us … together?"

Sasha stared at the table. "I don't know, Anne," she admitted. "I really have no idea." She let out a short laugh. "You know, if we weren't in such an epic mess already, I'd be scared absolutely shitless … but I'm still scared, yes." She looked at Anne, being serious suddenly. "I never thought I'd need to worry about losing you again."

"Well … we aren't at that point now," Anne answered, aware that her answer was a bit elusive. "But there must be more than fear, right Sash?"

"Of course." Sasha's voice told her loud and clear that the woman thought this was a strange question. "Anne, our kiss … it was wrong, it was a kneejerk reaction, it should have never happened under these circumstances … but it was mind-blowing. Don't you think so?"

Oh, how well Anne remembered this kiss. "Yeah," she agreed, suddenly feeling shy. "It was amazing … do you think that we would have … you know ..."

"Continued if you hadn't thought of Marcy?" Sasha helped her. She sat up straight. "Getting into dangerous territory there, but … yes, at least I would have." When Sasha fixed her gaze on her, Anne could practically feel the blonde's desire for her through it. It made her shudder. "I wanted you back then, Anne. So very much. I want you now too. I want you to be MINE … I know that Marcy's plans are a little more complicated than that, but I know that I have never felt so strongly for anyone but you two in my whole life."

Anne blushed at the naked truth in these words, but she put up a grin. "Whoa, Sash, didn't we talk about sex-crazed animals a few minutes ago?" Fortunately that made Sasha grin too and raising her cup, dispersing the growing tension between them.

"You're right," Sasha admitted. "I mean it though, Anne – you know that I've fantasized about you." Her grin grew. "Well, in the last days I must confess that I have fantasized about bringing some of these fantasies to life."

"Oh, stop it," Anne chided the other woman, chuckling. "You're impossible!" she accused her. "Why do you always make me laugh?"

Suddenly Sasha was serious. "Because I like seeing you laugh, Anne," she told her. "You are a beautiful woman at any time, but when you laugh … you're positively radiant."

Anne blushed. "Whoa," she uttered. "Heavy schmaltz alarm, dude." Sasha snickered. "You know … my mom said the same thing, that she likes to see me laugh … oh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" She looked at Sasha apologetically. "I … talked to my mom about … you know, this. I felt so lost ..."

"I see." Sasha leaned back. "That's cool. It's a really big life decision we're making here. And an unconventional one to boot. And your mom is awesome. I guess she was very understanding?"

A warm feeling spread inside of Anne, pushing the nervousness away a bit farther. "Yes … she comforted me. Told me that she and dad would always love me no matter what. She … basically gave us her blessing."

"Yeah, I'm not surprised. Me and my parents are okay right now, but when we were younger … I wouldn't have minded them giving me more attention." Anne stayed silent. Sasha didn't often speak about her parents. As far as she knew Mr. and Mrs. Waybright had never been abusive towards her, just … often gone, doing their jobs or whatever. And well, Sasha had TOLD her on the rooftop that their treatment had been one reason why she had been so controlling towards her and Marcy. Not that this excused anything she did, but … it made her feel for the blonde woman nonetheless, even more while knowing how loving and supportive her own parents really were.

Sasha was smiling fondly, probably remembering Anne's mom, then she looked up with a glint in her eyes. "You wanna hear something funny? When we were younger and mom or dad left me to my own devices … I sometimes imagined how it would be if I was adopted by your parents." She snorted. "Can you imagine? Us two becoming sisters? Sometimes I even added Marcy to the mix for a big, happy family."

"Dude, really?" Anne was surprised. She had suspected Sasha being lonely before meeting her and Marcy, but this … she didn't know if it was heartwarming or disturbing. Then a thought hit her. She started grinning. "That would have been … interesting. But think about it … wouldn't that make our current situation at least a tiny bit … incesty?" She winked at Sasha. "Kinky, Waybright."

Sasha was blushing. It looked adorable on her pale skin. "S-shut up, Boonchuy," she mumbled, causing Anne to laugh out loud. "Why is it always ME who gets called kinky when YOU are the one coming up with these scenarios in your head?" She caughed, the red slowly vanishing from her face. "Besides, it would have only been adopted incest. Still hot, not as bad."

"Sure, whatever you say," Anne replied, still giggling. "I guess we already have our first roleplay scenario laid out for us."

As soon as she said it both of them blushed again. Heavily!

"I-I-I'm sorry, Sash ..."

"Daaaaamn, Boonchuy," Sasha muttered. "You've got a dirty, dirty head on your shoulders."

"I didn't ..."

"You know what?" Sasha interrupted her. "How about we leave this topic alone for now?"

"Yes, please!" Why the hell had she said that? They were here waiting for Marcy and discussing important, life-altering matters, not … not … why was it so frogdamn EASY to flirt with Sasha?

Sasha coughed again. "Yeah, uhm … you know it's actually a relief that your parents are okay with this," she noted, focusing on Anne's face again. "I don't really care what my parents think about my love life, and I'd care even less if they'd say anything against us. And Marcy's parents … well, there's already a problem with Marcy and me not telling them for such a long time. So I'm not sure if adding you to the mix will make it THAT much worse. But your parents not being okay with it ..." Sasha paused shortly. "I respect them, Anne. I really respect them. That WOULD have been a roadblock. And I guess it would have messed up you especially, right?"

"Yeah ..." Anne lowered her head. She HAD been relieved at her mother's acceptance. Had Oum reacted differently … she doubted that she would be here now. Maybe she would have been way later, but it would have been a much, much harder decision. "I'm really glad too … but what about other people, Sash? Friends? Our co-workers? Neighbors? A lesbian couple isn't strange anymore, especially here in L.A., but … all three of us? Don't you think some will be … less understanding?"

Sasha's expression became hard. She intertwined her fingers, giving her a professional look. "Very likely," she agreed. "The real question here is … how much do we care, Anne? I'll just not tell my co-workers, it's just none of their business. Heck, if they asked I'll probably tell them that I have ONE girlfriend – not out of disrespect for you or Marcy, as long as you guys are okay with it, just because it won't produce drama. The neighbors … well, we'll have to talk about living situations anyway as soon as Marcy is here. My hut here is nice, but for three people it's a little small. If we decide on really living together ..." Her stare intensified and a flirty grin appeared on her lips. "... and I would like that VERY much eventually, then cool neighbors would be one more deciding point for a new apartment. And friends ..." She pondered for a moment. "I'll be blunt: I'm willing to commit, Anne. I want to be with you two and I will do everything I can to make it work. If some of my friends can't deal with that … then you are more important to me than they are."

Anne was actually a bit intimidated by the force of will in Sasha's words. It was clear that the blonde meant everything she had said. "Yeah … same here … it's just … this is so overwhelming, Sash. Do you understand?"

Sasha's expression became soft and understanding. "Of course I do, Anne. Me and Marcy at least have been together for some time before all this … we had time to get used to each other and properly make up after our drunken kiss … for you all of this is fresh and new. Of course I understand." She smiled encouragingly. "I swear, Anne: Nothing will happen in whatever agreement we three come to that you are not 100% comfortable with. At least, until you want me to be a bit controlling." She winked. "You know, for roleplay purposes."

Anne giggled, feeling a bit calmer now. "Thanks, Sash," she said warmly. "And … I DO want to get rid of these doubts as soon as possible. But this is much more scary than fighting a robot army, don't you think so?"

Sasha laughed. "That's true," she agreed. "Heck when I lay in bed alone, after having confessed to Marcy … I would have GLADLY fought a dozen wars to avoid feeling the emptiness and hurt inside, I tell you."

"Same. Sayyyyy ..." Anne raised an eyebrow, feigning suspicion. It was true, it WAS easy to flirt with Sasha. She had truly missed them bantering. "Was it maybe YOU who sent her after me? To seduce me with honeyed words and an otherworldly kiss?" She put her hands on her heart, pretending to be shocked. "Was all of this another manipulation tactic, Sash? Did you manipulate Marcy's parents too? Was all of this planned from the very start?"

"Sheesh, hamming it up, aren't we Boonchuy?" Sasha commented, clearly being amused. "And no – long-time planning is Marcy's style, not mine. If you want to blame someone for being corrupted, it would need to be her."

"Hah! True, maybe this was her master plan all along … provoking a fight with her parents, worming her way into your heart, using our feelings of guilt to become a matchmaker for all of us and using our powers to finally take over the world! It's genius!"

"We don't HAVE any powers anymore."

"Details!"

The two shared a laugh.

"I like this, Anne," Sasha admitted, rubbing the lip of her cup with her finger. "Us being like this, joking, laughing, talking to each other freely … I like this. I want to believe that even if this doesn't work out for some reason … that we still could remain friends in SOME way. But I know that it feels … natural to be with Marcy. I know, I was as surprised as anyone, something as awesome as me and a nerdy bookworm? Preposterous!" She shook her head, smiling fondly. "She brings out the best in me … never letting me slip into routine, always surprising me, being amusingly excited about something, making me want to be her anchor so she doesn't float away while building cloud-castles." She lifted her head again. "And us … I thought I had buried my feelings for you successfully. But I think we both realized that I was wrong. My feelings for you are different than for Marcy, Anne … but I do believe they are equally strong."

Anne shifted in her seat, blushing again. This was getting very, very intimate … but that was why she was here for. "I … feel similar," she confirmed. "Marcy was right, I DID feel left out … and the more I felt that way the more I wanted to BE with you. Both of you. I still have doubts … but if the only two options are staying away from you two or actually trying his …" She looked into Sasha's eyes. She felt a gravity in this stare, something that pulled her deeper, and she instinctively knew that Sasha was equally mesmerized. The sexual tension was suddenly back. "I don't want to stay away anymore," she said, in a rather raspy voice. "Never again."

"Then … what's there to fear, Anne?" Sasha asked her. It sounded like a challenge.

"Nothing," Anne whispered. And she meant it. She wanted this. Sasha. Marcy. And yes, there were counterarguments, but not anything that could truly stop this, she realized. She watched Sasha slowly standing up and walking over to her, never breaking eye-contact. She felt like she was in a trance, and it seemed to be similar for Sasha. The blonde woman lifted Anne's chin softly and, after another moment of just staring at each other, leaned in for the kiss. Anne closed her eyes.

It was different from their first one. Would every kiss from now on be different from the ones before? This one was not passion incarnate, although there WAS passion in it – she AND Sasha were highly emotional beings after all. There were lips moving against each other, there were small moans, but there was no tongue or wildly active hands roaming bodies … it felt more like a promise. I mean it. I want this. Don't be afraid. It was what Anne needed in this moment. Until …

"I can't believe it!"

To their credit, they didn't immediately separate like teenagers caught in the act. They ended the kiss, but slowly, still looking at each other dreamily.

"Hello Marcy," Anne greeted her friend, who had just entered the apartment, crossed arms and adorable pout and all, and tore her eyes away from Sasha to look at the young Asian. "We were just waiting for you."

"Oh, I can see THAT!" Marcy commented sarcastically, clearly pretending to be angry. "You absolutely look like you were bored out of your mind." She made an almost cartoonish looking sad face. "Did you forget about me already? After I've forgiven both of you? How can you be so cruel?"

"Enough now, you," Sasha decided, took three big steps over to her, grabbing Marcy's face and planting a silencing kiss on her girlfriend's face. Marcy yelped in surprise, but nearly immediately she melted into the kiss, hugging Sasha and moaning approvingly. It was fascinating for Anne to watch them without feeling the need to look away. Their kiss was playful, but there was obvious practice and fondness behind it. Anne licked her lips. She had been scared before she came here … but right now all she could feel was growing excitement. She needed to control herself. She was however surprised that Sasha looked so … content when kissing Marcy. When she and Anne had kissed, it had kinda felt like a contest between equals. Here it looked as if Marcy was eagerly drawing energy out of the kiss and Sasha was simply giving and enjoying it. How interesting … they knew each other so well, but Anne realized in that moment that there was still so much new to learn about her frie... no, girlfriends. She couldn't wait!

"Better?" Sasha asked when they ended the kiss, still holding Marcy in her arms.

"Way better," Marcy confirmed, smiling softly. Then she wiggled out of the embrace and turned to Anne. "Anne," she greeted her again, for real this time. "So you have made a decision?"

Anne nodded, smiling back. "I have," she said. "I want to be a part of this."

"That's great!" Marcy came closer, grabbed her hand and jumped up and down excitedly. It was a very Marcy thing to do. Then she stopped and looked at Anne again. "Do you … want a kiss from me too?" she asked a bit shyly. "You know, to … seal the deal, kinda sorta?"

"When did you become such a minx, Marcy?" Anne asked her jokingly. "But yes … I'd like that."

Marcy sat in Anne's lap and put her arms around her new girlfriend. After a moment of admiring each other's face, they wasted no more time and kissed. Interesting. This kiss was much closer to Sasha's kiss just a minute ago. It was still soft and filled more with gentleness than passion, but their lips were more active than in their first kiss, asking tentatively if it was okay for next time to be a little bolder and answering with a big yes simultaneously. I love you. I enjoy this. I will stand by you against a judgmental world.

"Wow," they heard Sasha's voice next to them as they slowly let go of each other, panting slightly after two make out sessions. "That was really a sight to behold." The blonde was grinning at them. "You know, I feel better and better about this."

"Pervert," Anne accused her. Then she addressed Marcy again. "You know, Marce … I really like these kisses. But we don't really have the … passionate part of it down yet. I'm very sure right now that I love you … but what if we only love each other platonically?" She tried to ask this question in a coy tone, but this actually was one of her greatest worries. What if they still … weren't equal?

"Oh, I'm not sure if I just love you platonically, Anna-banana," Marcy retorted, grinning. "But seriously: Me and Sasha have been together for a while now. And you and her have pining after each other for even longer. I think it's okay if we take our time, figure out slowly how we're feeling for each other. Don't you think?"

"She's right, Anne," Sasha joined the conversation again, putting her hand on Anne's shoulder and squeezing it gently. "As said: There's no reason to rush this, no reason to do something you're not comfortable with. Just let's figure this out together, one step at a time. Okay?"

"Okay." Anne felt happiness rise up in her. Even if their relationship would turn out uneven in some aspects, she realized, there was so much love and understanding between them, they would probably find a way to feel comfortable again. As long as they kept talking to each other.

"And besides," Marcy interjected, "even if it turns out this way and we feel more comfortable around each other without sex … we would still share our lives and love. Maybe that will be enough too. Aaaaand then it's us two against Sasha." She shot her blonde girlfriend a coy glare. "Or would that be too much for you, Sashy?"

"What, two beautiful women in my bed instead of one?" Sasha put her hands on her cheeks and made a scared face. "Oh, the horror! I won't survive this!"

"Stop it, you two, please!" Anne begged, grinning madly. "This is worse than these romance shows I watched back then!"

"Oh?" Sasha's interest was peaked. "Did you actually watch some that had polyamory in it?"

"Uuuh, no?" Anne tried to look innocent. "Or rather … only ones not working properly for dramatic reasons. Love triangle stuff."

"Do you hear that, Mar-Mar?" Sasha asked her other girlfriend, grinning wolfishly. "New study material!"

Marcy closed her ears, shut her eyes and shouted: "LA-LA-LA, I don't hear you!", causing Anne and Sasha to lough heartily.

"Well, it's not like I have an advantage here," Anne assessed. "This is new territory for all of us … since I DEFINITELY don't want this to be a competitive love triangle."

"Talking about new territory," Sasha interjected. "We'll have to talk about stuff too … boundaries, rules for dating if it's only two of us, what we are comfortable telling people about us when we're being asked …" She made vague gesture with her hand. "We really need to be on one page if this is supposed to work. Better try to avoid as many pitfalls as possible."

"Sure," Marcy agreed. "I guess we'll also have to talk about what sex practices we're comfortable with and how much we wanna talk about it if it's only two of us in bed and the third is curious." She looked at the other two and noticed that both Sasha and Anne were blushing.

"Also kinks and sexual fantasies?" Sasha inquired sarcastically. "How about we discuss all of those right now, Marce?" This made Marcy blush too.

"Greeeeat," Anne groaned. "Here we are, trying to build a working relationship between three people – and all of us start blushing as soon as sex is mentioned." That made all of them giggle.

"We're a mess," Marcy concluded.

Anne put her hand on Marcy's, smiling at her new girlfriend. "A beautiful mess."

Sasha sat down next to them, putting her hand on their's and added: "A perfect mess." She grinned. "Nevertheless, I'm really excited about this. I hope you guys want this just as much as I do."

Marcy looked at both of them and said firmly: "I do."

Anne was well aware of the hidden meaning behind these two words. And although that made her a bit shy, she nonetheless smiled at both of her girlfriends and confirmed: "I do."

Sasha, who had realized too what they were doing looked at both of them seriously and added: "I do."

They stayed this way for a few seconds, feeling the gravitas of their unspoken vow … all of them having a hunch that they were now more than they had been at the beginning of the day. Until Marcy mentioned softly: "Sashannarcy against the world!"

That broke the ice and they were laughing again. Hugs and kisses followed.

They didn't have a threesome that night. Or the next one. They had a date. And another one. Marcy and Anne spent much of their time together, getting to know each other all over again, and their love deepened. Anne and Sasha continued flirting. With the blessing of Marcy, they spent their first night together and all the pent-up passion was finally released. Marcy was disappointed that they wouldn't tell her ALL the details. Marcy and Sasha continued living together, with Anne joining them a few months later in a new apartment, spending many days a week with them until then. The problem with Marcy's parents wasn't solved so soon, but they were patient. They had everything they needed. Eventually Anne and Marcy celebrated their first time, a shy, clumsy, yet ultimately fulfilling joining of two loving souls. They talked. They laughed. They visited each other at work. They dated and cuddled. They kissed. They grew closer and closer. Until one day, not that far in the future, they felt comfortable enough – they spent their first night together in one bed. It was a night they would remember and treasure for the rest of their lives, feeling a satisfaction that went way deeper than calming mere physical lust. It was a night that ended with all three of them thinking roughly the same sentence.

I can't believe how much I love them.

So, it is done. How did you like it? There may be a follow-up fanfic, but first I'd need to get a few more ideas for chapters. Comments would be appreciated.