AN: everyone - re: "eggs in microwave"... I'm sure that's not the last we'll see of their interactions with that 'little cooking machine' ;-) trace619 - re: "And now we see the Alex Cabot we know & love letting loose on Trevor :)"... She's a lot more like herself when she's around Liv, Trevor, Rafael, Liz and Lena. But she 'shuts down' a lot when she's around Miriam, hence her stuttering and having self doubt. Then again I think I'd shut down around Miriam too. LBM - re: "So, Eugene? Really? Tiberius?"... Terrible names, I know. I cringed and laughed when I wrote it. Alex had to have something over Trevor and a name like that seemed perfect ;-) Y - re: "I wish that everyone could have the same guardian as Lena and Elizabeth would. Thus the world would shine brighter"... I couldn't agree with you more :-)

AN2: There is a quote from the movie 'Witness' in this chapter which I've used because it just seemed so appropriate. See if you can spot it ;-). Suggestions for what Alex, Liv, Trevor and Rafael could do during Rumspringa for upcoming chapters is NOW OPEN! Please leave them in the comments or PM them to me. You will get a shoutout :-D. Remember: they've lived fairly sheltered lives, so even simple things could end up being quite funny or cringeworthy ;-). Side note: I've added another 2000+ words of plot points/outlines to what happens to our Maedels and Jungs after Rumspringa (that's pretty much complete now, so it'll be faster to get those chapters posted when I get to that part of the story). I also have about half of ch45 of 'Negotiating' written too seeing I'll be going on my annual week long holiday in just under a week. Like always I'll be taking my PC slate, but I don't know how much I'll get written while I'm away. Thankyou to those that comment, read etc :-)

"OUCH!" Trevor yelped in pain before glaring icily from the chair he was currently standing on.

"Sorry," Alexandra muttered while she continued to pin the new hem of what would be his swim shorts from the trousers he'd chosen.

"Alexandra, you did that on purpose!"

"I did nothing of the sort!" the blonde feigned.

Trevor folded his arms and rolled his eyes, "You did! Don't deny it."

"You'd know if I did it on purpose! Now hold still... or I'll stick you again."

"I don't know how many times I have to apologise even though it wasn't my fault. I've forgiven you for yelling at me and accusing me of barging side your room, and Olivia's forgiven me, have't you?"

"Don't drag me into your squabble," Olivia said as she pressed the freshly refilled ice pouch to her face, hoping to reduce any further possible swelling while sitting at the table.

Rafael reentered the kitchen with his newly pinned shorts in hand, having changed out of them and back into his English clothes, "Can we please move on? Yes, Trevor entered your room even though it was an accident. Yes, Olivia got hurt. Yes Alexandra, you're still upset. We've all apologised to each other. It's happened, we know it won't happen again, and we'll have a barbecue tonight to make up for it."

Alexandra said, "You still owe us-"

"And Trevor and I will cook another breakfast tomorrow to make up for the mess we made earlier. Now could you please finish hemming the trousers so we can go to Main Town?" Rafael asked as she passed the shorts to Olivia.

"Alright, alright!" Alexandra replied as she grabbed the last pin from the pincushion.

"OWWW!" Trevor cried out again as the blonde grinned devilishly and stifled a laugh.

"Rafael, Trevor... you be careful out among them English," Olivia said as she and Alexandra paused on the front steps. "They're not like us... they think we're stupid for how we live and our Village customs. They think that they're so much smarter and superior than us. We've all experienced some jeering and cat calls when we've gone to Main Town with our families at one time or another. Remember, they just don't understand us."

Trevor spoke as Rafael, both sans hats, folded the 4 calico bags and stuffed 2 of them in each of the back pockets of his trousers, "We'll stay safe. We're going to get haircuts at the barbers first, then go to the thrift shop for more English clothes... then the butchers and then come straight back. We might go to Munch's Café for lunch if it takes a while, we know we're welcome there."

Alexandra passed Rafael and Trevor each a small piece of paper, "This is the telephone number for Rumspringa House just in case you need to contact us. Aunt Elizabeth says it now costs a quarter to make a call from a payphone."

Olivia added, "Also remember discretion like Maemm and Elizabeth said when you're in Main Town."

"We will," Rafael confirmed. "We'll walk to Main Town today to see how long it takes."

"And it would have nothing to do with having more alone time?"

"I don't know what you're implying. However, you and Alexandra will have just as much time... so no getting bruised again!" Rafael pointed to the brunette's face with a smirk.

Olivia batted away Rafael's encroaching hand, "Ok, that's enough. Get going!"

Both young women watched as the young men departed, observing Rafael discreetly slipping his hand in Trevor's back pocket as they walked. A few moments later, Trevor stopped and hoisted Rafael up onto his back and began carrying his love piggyback style down the driveway, both laughing.

"In all the years we've known them, have you ever seen Rafael and Trevor so happy?" Olivia turned to face Alexandra.

"No, never. Then again... I completely understand that happiness," Alexandra replied before carefully pressing her lips softly to the corner of Olivia's mouth. "Truly alone at last."

"For a few hours. What could we do?"

"We could do many things... after I alter those trousers."

Olivia groaned her displeasure as Alexandra began to walk inside the house.

"If I do them now then they're out of the way... then we have all day!" Alexandra called back over her shoulder.

"You're very quiet," Alexandra commented while they both sat out on the balcony upstairs overlooking the small lake. She could feel Olivia watching her every move as she sewed the new hem of Rafael's shorts.

"I'm just thinking," said Olivia while unabashedly watching Alexandra.

"About?"

"After our Rumspringa."

Alexandra paused mid stitch, "Liv, we've been on Rumspringa barely 24 hours and will be here for basically a year, and you're already thinking about after?"

"Yeah... just little, but very important things about our future."

"Like?"

The brunette stood up and rested against the railing, "I know we've only been here at Rumspringa House for a day, but I really like here."

"I like it here too. It's so peaceful and private, well as private as it can be."

"And I know we've agreed to live in the English world, but... what if it's not exactly like what we think it's going to be like?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, what if we don't want to live in Main Town? What do you think about something like this?"

"This?"

Olivia's hand swept the rural vista in front of them, "This. A little farm on the outskirts of Main Town."

"Like the Petrovsky farm?"

"Uh-huh. We both know when we leave the Village, that's where Maemm and Elizabeth plan to live, so why can't we do similar? We can work in Main Town during the day, but live like we're used to in the Village... be self sufficient with some chickens and a vegetable garden like at home... have a couple of horses and some cows, but also electricity... live how we want. No Village lores to adhere to, or Village clothing or bonnets... no judgments... no Miriam."

"Like the best of both worlds?"

Olivia nodded as she sat back down and faced the blonde, "Yep, I think like the sound of that. What do you think?"

"What about Trevor and Rafael?" Alexandra looked up briefly, not committing to an answer just yet.

"They have to make their own decisions. They might want to live on a farm too, or maybe they'd like a little apartment in Capital City? We could do that if you want a complete change."

"I don't think I want to live in Capital City. Mother, Father and I had to go there once when I was really young, I can't even remember why we had to... I just remember it was so busy and noisy and I was glad to get back to the Village when we did."

"Maybe you missed me?" Olivia suggested.

"I'm sure I did. I know I hate being apart from you now... and I like the idea of being on a little farm with you. Maybe we could buy one not far from Aunt Elizabeth and Lena?" Alexandra snipped the thread with her sewing scissors, "Finished. Now at least Trevor and Rafael can go swimming."

The hint of bitterness in Alexandra's voice wasn't lost on the brunette. "Alex, what do you mean at least Trevor and Rafael? Why can't we?"

"We haven't got swimwears yet!"

"So? We have brassières and panties, or our button up camisoles and pantalette bloomers."

"We can't swim in those! They're underwears."

"I know that, but noone else is around right now except you and me!" Olivia whispered conspiratorially.

Rafael saw Trevor's Adam's apple bob up and down as he vacated the barber's chair with his new 'businessman' style cut. He now looked older than his 17 years of age, and much more English than with his old Village pudding bowl style.

"What do you think?" Rafael asked as the barber prepared to trim Trevor's hair next.

"I lov-... Olivia's going to love it," Trevor hastily recovered from his error. "I'm sure she'll think that you're even more... handsome... when she sees you."

"I'm sure Alexandra will think similar with yours," Rafael struggled to keeps his features neutral, but ended up giving a tiny coy smile.

Draping the large cloth bib over his body and securing it round his neck, the barber inquired what style Trevor wanted when he was comfortable. He looked at the various options on the wall and opted for a long tapered cut, which resulted in a minute nod of Rafael's head in approval. The barber failed to notice the little glances the males gave each other via the mirror as Trevor began to transform from Villager to English before their very eyes.

Alexandra was standing on the end of the little pier wrapped in a towel, covering her pantalette bloomers and button up camisole, as she pinned her hair up in a bun. Olivia, who's hair was already pinned up and also dressed in just her pantalette bloomers and button up camisole, dropped her towel then slipped off the pier and into the water.

Olivia leisurely paddled away from the wooden structure, not wanting to get her hair wet. "Come on, Alex! The water's fine!"

"What if there's... turtles? Or fish!" the blonde hesitated as she placed the last hair pin in place.

"They'll only nibble on your toes!" Olivia said with much seriousness while treading water, then laughed as she saw the look horror on her best friend's face. "Relax! I won't let anything happen to you."

Alexandra cautiously sat on the pier as Olivia breaststroked back to her. The blonde unwrapped the towel and slowly dipped her feet in the pleasant water.

"I'm right here," Olivia reassured before pressing a kiss to each of Alexandra's knees, still seeing her best friend was a little unsure. After a time, Alexandra steeled herself and began to lower her body into the water but squealed in terror when she felt something nip one of her pinky toes. Olivia almost had tears in her eyes from laughter as she mimed a pinching action out of the water.

"THAT'S NOT FUNNY, OLIVIA!" Alexandra fumed, sitting back on the end of the pier and pulling her feet out of the water.

"It was for me!" Olivia continued to laugh, "If there were any turtles or fish in here, they'd have gotten me already. Do you hear me yelling?"

Alexandra huffed, "Not over all that cackling!"

"Come on in," the brunette's laughter eventually died down. "Please?"

"No!"

"I told you that I won't let anything happen."

"Says you who just pinched me to scare me like that!"

"Alex, please!"

"NO!"

Olivia offered, "Do you want me to hold you so that if there's anything in here, it'll get me first?"

Chewing on her bottom lip as she considered the offer, the blonde's answer was a meek nod of her head. As Olivia reached her arms up, Alexandra asked "Do you promise not to dunk me? I don't want to get my hair wet."

"I promise I won't dunk you in the water," Olivia replied with sincerity.

Cautiously slipping off the end of the pier and into Olivia's outstretched arms, Alexandra wrapped her legs around Olivia's waist before wrapping her arms around the brunette's neck and shoulders. Pressing their bodies together, Olivia held Alexandra securely and waded away a little further from the pier, feeling her best friend beginning to relax. Olivia smiled when she felt Alexandra's lips press against the curve of her neck but quirked an eyebrow when Alexandra began lazily tugging the button up camisole strap to the side and off the brunette's shoulder.

"You're not really scared, are you." It was more statement than a question from Olivia.

"Nope!" Alexandra grinned against Olivia's neck, "But I can play games just like you can."

"I should dunk you in the water right now!" Olivia threatened while playfully jostling the blonde in her arms.

Alexandra instantly pulled back, "Don't you dare! You promised!"

Olivia shrugged, "Why not? You got me to hold you under false pretenses."

"Liv, I just wanted you to hold me like this all along! Now please, don't dunk me!"

"All you had to do was ask nicely. I wouldn't have objected in the slightest, you know that."

"I know, but this way was much more fun for the both of us!" said Alexandra as she toyed with the other shoulder strap of Olivia's button up camisole.

"Yeah, you're right. It was," Olivia replied as she skated her hand up Alexandra's spine to the back of the blonde's neck before kissing her deeply.

Trevor asked as the pair exited the barber shop, discreetly indicating the sign painted in the window across the road. "What do you suppose an 'Adult Store' is?"

Rafael shrugged, "I have no idea, but it's obviously for adults. The sign says it's opening in a couple of weeks time, so I really think we need to get those fake ID's Lena and Elizabeth mentioned... then we can see what they're selling."

"They wouldn't sell... people... would they?"

"I hope not. That would indicate slavery and that's just wrong."

Just as they approached the thrift shop on the next block over, a voice jeered from across the street. "Oh look, it's the Village People! Are you gonna stay at the YMCA?"

Trevor and Rafael instinctively looked around and saw some Village Elders a little further down the street.

"Looks like Lois and Harold Preston getting harassed... and Arthur Branch," Trevor said as he opened the thrift shop door, almost spitting the latter name in disgust.

"I take it you don't like him?"

"You're right. I don't like Arthur, but Mother and Father almost worship him."

"I don't think my family's ever had anything to do with him since we moved to the Village," Rafael replied as they searched for the men's clothing area.

"There's a simple explanation for that: Arthur likes old families and old traditions. He was the one Mother, Father and Miriam lobbied, so to speak, so that Alexandra and I would be 'betrothed' to each other. Raf, if Donald Cragen wasn't around, he'd be the leader of the Village and that's a scary thought."

"I see why you don't like him then, Trev."

"And you know what? When we return after Rumspringa to tell the Elders of our choices, I'll have great joy telling him that Alexandra and I aren't going to be betrothed, and that I'm going to live in the English world... with you."

"I really like the sound of that," Rafael beamed. "Living in the English world... with you."

"Rafael said something interesting this morning," Alexandra commented as she interlocked her pinkie finger with Olivia's while they approached the house, each wrapped in their towels after swimming for an hour.

"Oh?"

"The boys have a book."

Olivia stopped walking, "A book? What book?"

"A book they haven't read yet, and Trevor didn't want me knowing about it either because he changed the subject."

"Why would Trevor not want you knowing about this book?"

"I'm not sure, but Rafael wanted to read it."

"Come on," Olivia took Alexandra's hand and started walking again.

"Where are we going?"

"To find this secret and mysterious book! They can read any of our books, what makes their book so special to be all secretive about it?"

They raced inside, up the stairs of Rumspringa House and opened the door to the boy's bedroom.

Olivia's eyes scanned the room, "Where do you think they'd put it?"

"We're invading their privacy!" Alexandra hissed.

"Like Trevor did to us this morning?" the brunette indicated her facial bruising. "Rafael and Trevor aren't here and they're not going to know because we're not going to tell them, are we?"

"I guess not."

After an initial sweep of the room, Olivia began rummaging through the bedside drawers while Alexandra looked through the chest of drawers in the closet.

"Found it!" Olivia said in triumph, holding the book aloft as she sat on the edge of the bed. "The Joy of Gay Sex. What do you suppose that's about?"

Alexandra sat down beside her, "Maybe it's a town... or a person? Gay Sex sounds like a name to me."

Olivia quickly flipped though the pages with her thumb before she landed on a pen sketch entitled 'Blow Job' of a reclining naked male with an erection being given oral sex by another man who had his own erection, "Oh my! That's... not what I expected."

Alexandra pulled the book, still firmly on Olivia's grasp, closer to see the image. "Well... I guess that explains why Trevor's boxers tented like they did this morning, and he said that it sometimes it has a mind of its own!"

"His boxers did what now?"

Alexandra slipped her hand underneath her towel and demonstrated which resulted in fits of laughter from both of them.

They flipped further inside the book and saw other pen sketches of males depicting 'Face to Face Sex', 'Frottage', 'Hand Job', 'Mutual Masturbation', 'Side by Side Sex' and '69'ing'.

"Did you ever really think how Rafael and Trevor would... lay together?" asked Alexandra as they paused on the 'Rear Entry' drawing.

Olivia replied after a small pause, "Honestly? Besides what Maemm and Elizabeth said about pleasuring ourselves and what we did this morning, not really. But now we've seen these pictures and know how they could lay together, it doesn't change anything. It makes even more sense to me now."

"I agree."

Olivia closed the book, "And it's still a beautiful way to express love, like man and woman laying together... or you and me."

"I know we're not males, but we could try some of those things ourselves... when we lay together again," Alexandra stood up as Olivia placed the book back where she found it.

"We can. Obviously some things we can't, but we can try similar. I'm not sure I'd want to try that... Rear Entry... one though."

"Same," Alexandra agreed as she Olivia exited the room and closed the door. "We don't have to try anything we don't want to, remember. We both have to agree, otherwise it's a heinous act."

While making their way back downstairs to the kitchen, Alexandra spoke. "Liv? Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Even if we're not always... laying together... each night, can we still sleep nude?"

Olivia widened her eyes at the suggestion.

"Until it starts getting cold, I mean!" Alexandra added.

"I would love nothing more than to feel your skin against mine every time we share our bed," Olivia pressed a soft kiss to Alexandra's cheek. "I don't know about you, but I think we could have a nap after lunch. What do you think?"

"I like the sound of that."

The boys took the stairs 2 at a time after putting the steaks in the refrigerator and placing their English clothes in the laundry. They had eaten lunch at Munch's Café and returned to Rumspringa House, calling out that they had returned, but heard no reply. Both stopped abruptly at the girls bedroom door seeing the pale back of Alexandra while lying on top of Olivia, the bed sheet covering up the lower half of their bodies to the small of Alexandra's back. Alexandra's head, turned to the side, was resting on Olivia's shoulder. Both tan arms resting protectively on the pale expanse of Alexandra's back and Olivia's thumb unconsciously brushing back and forth on the blonde's spine.

Luckily and thankfully, all modesty was being kept for the young women in their present dozing state.

Trevor quietly closed the door to the girl's bedroom, not wanting to intrude any further. He and Rafael retreated to their bedroom before laying on their respective sides of the bed and facing each other, "How can anyone call that disgusting, Raf? I might not like girls in the way I love you, but honestly... that was beautifully intimate."

"People fear what they don't understand, Trev. They label what they believe is wrong in the hope that others will agree with them and justify their own fears. We know Lena and Elizabeth's love is real... we know Alexandra and Olivia's love is real... we know our love for each other is real."

Trevor crawled over and hovered above Rafael before pinning the arms of the Cuban beside his head. "You love me?"

Rafael smiled, "Te quiero... I love you."

"And I love you."

"Actually..." Rafael corrected, "Yo también te amo, mi amor."

"What's that?"

"I love you too, my love."

As Trevor gently brushed his lips against Rafael's, he began grinding the growing bulge of his trousers against the defined bulge within Rafael's trousers. He murmured, "Seeing the girls are asleep, and we have some time before we have to cook the barbecue, and get to drink all that alcohol Elizabeth and Lena gave us... do you... want to have a look at that... book... now?"

"Cerrar la puerta."

"What's that mean?"

"Lock the door."