I had finished filming. I wasn't quite the celebrity yet because my episode wouldn't be airing for a few more weeks and I also wouldn't be filming again for a few more weeks. I didn't know how things would change. I wasn't sure what to expect since the school really didn't have any celebrities there. The closest thing was Hadley who was celebrity-adjacent. Okay there was a celebrity, but it was one of the teachers and people had gotten used to her being around. I wondered if things would be the same for me, even though the two of us were not the same in our circumstances.
It was also the day before Valentine's Day. From what I gathered, Mom was thrilled and Dad was not. I was glad that I would be able to spend it with Kaitlin. I didn't know what we were doing yet, but I was still glad. I walked into the kitchen wearing a red leather jacket with a striped tee and jeans. Everyone seemed to be fighting over whether or not Valentine's Day was a real holiday.
"Rhiannon, back me up." Mom said. I knew that I should not get in the middle of it.
"I'm gonna stay out of this." I declared as I got some cereal.
"So how are you feeling after completing your first episode?" Dad asked me.
"I feel okay. This was more of an introduction. I felt like I really didn't need to do much acting." I explained. I mean I was a getting a subplot in the next episode. Technically it was for Crimson's character, but I was very involved in it.
"Well Valentine's will make you feel even better." Mom declared. "There's going to be this big party to benefit the hospital and you can dress up and everyone will have a good time."
Well we didn't exactly have the best track record with these parties. I supposed the yacht party went okay, but everything else not so much.
"I should ask Summer if she wants to go with me." Rose remarked.
I met up with Kaitlin at school. It was one of the rare days that we didn't go together. She looked a little bit uneasy.
"So you kind of need to be really nice to Marissa." She said.
"Why?" I asked her.
"Because we kind of found out that Olivia hung herself in rehab," Kaitlin replied. Oh. Damn. It was at that point, the older Cooper came over.
"So do you need anything?" I inquired. I had a feeling that she would be hanging out with us.
"What are we doing tomorrow night?" She asked her sister.
"Tomorrow night is Valentine's Day." Kaitlin pointed out.
"I just wonder if I would have been able to save her." Marissa declared.
"Some people are just beyond saving," I replied. I knew that I shouldn't tell her that being around was not good for her and it was good that we wouldn't have to deal with her again.
"Well I just want things to get back to normal." She commented. I was pretty sure that they were back to normal. "So what are you doing tomorrow night? Some kind of premiere?"
I was pretty sure that I wasn't at the stage where I was doing premieres yet.
"No, but my mom is hosting this party for the hospital tomorrow night." I explained. I wondered if they had heard of it. It seemed like something Julie would be involved in it. "We're going to that."
"Then I'll go too." Marissa replied. I basically expected her to since it was the biggest thing in Newport. "It sounds like it could be fun."
At that point, the bell rang.
"I should get to class." I announced. I was still kind of uncomfortable around her. I met up with Holly when I got to class.
"So what are you doing for Valentine's Day?" I asked her.
"Probably not having sex with anyone." She answered. "You know I've never really liked this holiday. It seems like it was invented just to sell cards and chocolate."
"And you're not feeling that way because you don't have anyone to share it with?" I replied. She glared at me. "Well my mom is hosting this dance and you should come. Maybe you'll meet someone there."
"I think anyone ever finds true love on Valentine's Day." She argued. "Why are you going? Isn't it supposed to be for single people?"
"I'm going because my mom is hosting it." I explained. "And she and my dad are fighting over whether or not it's a real holiday."
"How about this? I go to the dance and you have to get me something from the set next time you shoot. I want to start a collection of authentic showbiz memorabilia." She suggested.
"I guess I can that but only if they say it's okay for me to take something." I stated.
Later after school, Kaitlin and I were in Jimmy's apartment. He still did get to see them every now and then. We were watching a romantic comedy that I hadn't heard of.
"I can't believe you've never seen But I'm a Cheerleader before." Kaitlin said as Jimmy walked in.
"Hey you two, the restaurant is starting to come along." He said. I forgot to mention that her dad was opening a restaurant. I wasn't sure why he was doing it, but probably needed a way to make money.
"So you got a gift." Kaitlin said after giving him a hug.
"Well it's not ticking so I guess it's not from your mom." He joked. "It's from a secret admirer."
I couldn't help but wonder who it was. I thought he was a pariah in Newport. People probably considered him the least dateable man aside from Holly's dad.
"You didn't have to do that, Kaitlin." He declared. That I didn't consider but she seemed confused by the accusation.
"I didn't and that is also not Marissa's handwriting." She added. "I think someone actually likes you."
So one thing that I learned was Summer basically rejected Rose's invitation to the dance. I supposed that was to be expected considering that Rose had chosen Vicki over her. Also Vicki was in England so there was no chance of the two of them running into each other.
Later, I was at home studying when Kaitlin walked into the pool house. She had a rose in her hand (the flower not my sister).
"Hi." I greeted her. She didn't responded. She just started to kiss me.
"So I wanted to start this a little early." Kaitlin remarked. "I managed to find something special for us."
So we had an interesting experience.
"That was a little different." I commented.
"I just thought that you would want to do it more like a girl." She remarked. "I know that it's still kind of one-sided but it was the best that I could do. We have to wait until you have your operation to do it right."
"Yeah about that, Vicki told me that we won't be able have sex right away after I get it, whenever that is." I explained. "It's recommended that I wait a good deal of time."
"How long are we talking about?" She inquired.
"3 months." I replied. I wasn't sure if that included touching myself. I would probably have to find out about that, but I did not even know if I was anywhere close to getting it. My parents and Dr. Carter said maybe at the end of year but that was still a big maybe.
"Well we waited before, so I guess I won't mind waiting again." She said. She sounded a little disappointed. "I guess I didn't think that it would take that long. I should probably go."
"I didn't mean to upset you, but it could be dangerous if we do it any sooner than that." I told her.
"I don't want you to get hurt. It was stupid of me to think that things would be the same." She said as she started to get dressed. She then walked out the door with a blush on her face.
I had to admit that I was kind of embarrassed for the rest of the night. I had dreams about sex. Specifically having sex after I had surgery. They were more nightmares. I really hoped that blood would never squirt out of there. That also made me think of something else that I wouldn't have to deal with. That was the only real advantage to being a trans girl as opposed to a regular girl.
The following day, I was preparing to go to the party when Rose walked into the pool house. I was going to come back and change after setting it up because it would easier to do not wearing a dress.
"So I have big news." She announced.
"So I was about to head over and start setting for the party." I told her.
"Yeah that's too much lifting and you haven't let me say my big news." She pointed out.
"I guess I need to ask what it is." I said as I stood up.
"I'm officially a woman." She replied. What? "I may not be a girl yet, but I am a woman. I had sex with a girl and that girl was Summer."
"How was it?" I asked with a grin.
"I had sex." She repeated.
"Well it's kind of weird the first time." I stated. She actually didn't even have her boobs yet. They grow at different paces for different people.
"Yeah it was kind of weird." She agreed. "Mostly awkward. Well it was my first time and I made some faces that I wish I could take back. I just sucked. I sucked so much. How are so experienced?"
"You learn from doing." I told her. "You'll get another chance."
"I think things are worse now than they were before. She's used to having better experiences than she did with me." She replied. "That's why I want some tips."
"I don't really want to talk about sex right now because Kaitlin and I had our own awkward experience." I explained. "I should get going."
"Do you have any tips at all?" She asked.
"Just try again." I suggested. It probably couldn't get any worse.
I headed to the restaurant where the party was being held. I wasn't sure why they were doing it in a restaurant until I realized that since it was for singles, typically adult singles, there needed to be alcohol. Why was it that single people seemed to drink so much? Maybe it wouldn't be such a good idea for Marissa to come or maybe Kaitlin and I would just have to keep her away from it.
"So why isn't Kaity here we with?" Holly asked when I got there.
"Things got kind of weird for us in the bedroom." I explained before I whispered ."She got me a strap-on."
"So? Those are fun." Holly said. I didn't need to know that she had done that with Marissa.
"Well from there it went into a discussion about sex post-surgery and I'm pretty sure that she didn't get the answer that she wanted." I explained. "Basically if things go according to plan, then the two of us would not be able to sex for the whole summer."
"Is that really how that works?" She asked.
"According to Vicki, it is." I answered.
"Well I gotta pee." She said before she walked to the bathroom.
I then started to walk before nearly running into one of the waiters…one who was about my height.
"I'm sorry." I declared before she moved the cups that her been blocking her head.
"Rhiannon. That's it, isn't it?" Theresa asked.
"Yeah." I replied in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"I figured I would serve a bunch of rich people food for Valentine's Day." She told me. "And I suppose you're one of those rich people. Sorry."
"It's good to see you." I told her. "Do you wanna talk?"
The two of us then went aside and I gave a bit of a rundown about what happened. I would probably have to leave soon to get changed.
"No way. You're really an actress?" She asked. I nodded. "That is so cool, but are you sure that you want to tell your secret to the whole world?"
"Yeah." I replied. I missed talking to her.
"I just wish that you had told me." She declared. "I mean we used to be best friends. I thought I meant more to you than that."
"Theresa, please don't." I told her. "It was hard for me to talk about. I would not have been able to stay there."
"So where's your girlfriend?" She asked. She probably figured it was a good idea to change the subject.
"She's going to be here later. I should probably go pick her up and I need to put on my dress." I explained.
I then headed home and put on a red lace dress. I figured that I should dress the part. I couldn't believe that Theresa was in Newport. I couldn't help but wonder how she got to Newport. I went next door and found Kaitlin wearing a blue suede dress.
"So I'm sorry about last night." She replied. "I really should be thinking about what's best for you and I went and got selfish. I don't care if we have to wait. I just want you to know that I will do anything and everything for you."
"Anyway, there's kind of going to be a surprise guest at the dance, specifically one of the workers and I'm pretty sure that you're not going to like who it is." I stated.
"How bad could it be?" She asked once we arrived at the restaurant. That was when she looked eyes with Theresa. "Oh."
"Hello Kaitlin. I don't know if you remember me, but I'm Theresa." She replied. Yeah now things were really awkward. "You look really good, Rhiannon."
"Thanks, so do you." I replied. I wanted to slap myself for saying that. I was not supposed to say that.
"I need to get back to work." Theresa remarked.
"So we need to talk." Rose declared. She was wearing a black pin-striped dress. "So Summer and I did it…and it kind of hurts."
"Why does it hurt?" I asked. "And what specifically hurts?"
"I'd rather not talk about that." She declared. "And I don't think you want to hear it either. I think it might be over."
She noticed that she was limping as she walked. I really did not need to know what happened had happened.
"I think I want to avoid hard plastic things for a while." She told me as she walked into the restaurant.
"That was weird." Kaitlin commented. "Do you think they might have…?"
"I don't want to know and I don't want to think about it." I replied.
The two of us then went inside and I went to find Rose and Kaitlin went to find Marissa. Dad came over to us.
"If you listen to anything I tell you, don't ever get married." He declared.
"You've said that before." I pointed out.
"And I'm going to say it again." He stated. "I'll be at the bar."
"Hello you two." Theresa greeted us. "Do you want some of this…I don't know what it is?"
"Rose, this is Theresa my ex." I introduced.
"This is your ex that I didn't know anything about." Rose declared. I thought I told her.
"I told you about her." I said as I grabbed a chocolate-covered strawberry. I then went to find Kaitlin. I found her with Summer and Marissa.
"So in case you're wondering, they did do that," Kaitlin told me after we were away from them.
"I told you that I didn't." I replied. "So you're not mad that Theresa's here, are you?"
"Why would I be mad?" She asked.
"Because you seem to hate her." I replied. "You don't need to be jealous. You are the only person in this restaurant…and the whole world, that I love."
"So I need to sleep over tonight. My mom is pissed that Caleb isn't around and she's blasting Bob Seger." I explained.
"I think we should keep our clothes on." I suggested. At that point, Theresa came up to us.
"Hey, you want some wine?" She asked.
"No, I don't really drink anymore." I replied. I especially didn't want to do it here.
"Being a girl really has changed you. It's like you're not fun anymore." Theresa replied. Both Kaitlin and I glared at her. She seemed to get the hint. "Okay that was a rude thing to say. I'm sorry. So do you ever think about coming home?"
"I am home." I declared. "That place was hell for me. My family sucked. School sucked. Everything sucked. Here I can be who I want to be and I am just glad that I got out. I know you don't understand, but I love it here. I changed my name for a reason. Now I don't want to think of anyone else as my family, except for maybe Trey."
"You know we could have helped you two. My mom would have let you live with us and she could have got you some clothes." She suggested.
"She wouldn't have been able to pay for therapy and I wouldn't want her to. I'm sorry that I left without telling you but I'm not sorry for leaving." I remarked before I took Kaitlin to a table.
"So who was that girl that you were talking to?" Marissa asked. "The waitress."
"That is my friend Theresa from Chino," I explained.
"She's hot." The blonde declared. "I think I'm going to go talk to her."
"This is not going to end well." I said to Kaitlin. I needed to have some food because I didn't want to think about that. I looked across the room and saw Rose apparently breaking up with Summer. Could it be called a breakup if the two of them weren't actually together? "Maybe I should taken that wine. Why is it that we can't get through a party without something awkward happening?"
"It's this day. It's messing with everyone's heads." Kaitlin surmised.
"Maybe Holly was right. Valentine's Day does suck." I declared.
"No, let's not go that far." She argued. "Valentine's Day doesn't suck. It's just the commercialization and expectations that everyone sets for it that suck. It makes people want more out of their love lives than any other day."
At that point, Holly walked over. She was wearing a black gown with a slit up the leg and her hair looked kind of messy.
"Rhiannon, I had something to tell you and I only ask that you don't hit me for it." She declared. Why did she think that I would want to hit her?
"Okay?" I replied in confusion. "What did you do that you would make you think that?"
"I kind of made out with your sister." She told me. Oh. Summer might want to hit her for that. "I'm sorry. It just kind of happened. We were both talking about how we hated the holiday and all of a sudden we were kissing."
I wasn't going to say that I wasn't angry about hearing that, but Holly was my friend. I never thought I would say that at the beginning of the year.
"I'm not going to hit you." I stated. "I'm just going to give you some advice. I think entering any sort of relationship with her would be a mistake. She just had two breakups in less than a week. She needs some time to heal."
After a little bit of time at the party, Kaitlin and I started to walk out. I also noticed that Marissa was in Theresa's car. That had bad decision written all over it. I didn't know who it was worse for.
"Are we the smartest people in this town?" I asked.
"Possibly." Kaitlin stated.
We then went back to the pool house. We both put on some pajamas. I couldn't believe that place was so screwed up.
"So there is one good thing about Valentine's Day." She stated. I wanted to hear what she had to say. "I'd say today is the best day for me to love you."
"You're wrong." I declared. She looked at me. "It's not the best day to be in love, but Valentine's Day is no better than any other day. Every day is a good day for me to love you."
So this chapter is kind of all over the place and we're back to our regular plot. The only constant is our main couple. Though the idea of two of Ryan's girlfriends hooking up is a bit interesting. Anyway, please don't forget to review.