A/N: I apologize in advance the following two chapters have more Sharuby history lessons, and while I would gloss over such at this point -especially considering other previous installments include such history lessons- it was important to include them this time, because instead of said history lessons being exposited in third-person narratives, they come straight from the sources, which offer deeper insight into Shannon and Ruby's own perspectives about their overall relationship, and what they have been through to get to the point where they are with each other now. It will be imperative for their parents to hear such perspectives as their eyes are opened to just how much their daughters mean to each other.
Once Shannon shut herself into her room, she became petrified with fear over what possibly awaited her when her father returned home from work. The room seemed to spin around her - and that was before the walls seemed to close in on her, as though the entire world was trying to disorient her before swallowing her into the abyss. If ever there was a moment in her life she needed somebody, it was that moment, and it was not just anybody she needed… she needed her girlfriend. She fished her cell phone from her shorts pocket and frantically dialed Ruby for a video chat, hoping she was available to accept the call.
"Hey, girl, hey!" Ruby greeted through the screen, but was immediately bombarded by her girlfriend's panic-stricken blathering.
"Rubes! Oh, I did it, I really did it! I can't believe I did it! I am so dead!" Shannon fretted.
"Whoa, Shans, chillax, girl!" Ruby insisted as she witnessed Shannon's panic attack. "What'd you do?"
"I told my mom about us… she knows we're dating, she knows we were going to the prom together…" explained Shannon much to Ruby's dismay.
"What?! You told her?!" Ruby snapped. "What about our plan?! We were keeping all of this a secret, and you told her?!"
"It was an accident!" Shannon explained in a manner that sounded as though she was high on a combination of caffeine and speed. "She was talking about the prom, and I said I wasn't going, and she wanted to know why, and I said I had no one to go with, and she said I should go with you, and I thought she meant she found out about us going together, and I said we've been keeping everything a secret, and then she said she meant we could go as friends just to hang out, and why didn't we think of that before?!"
Ruby was momentarily stunned into silence after Shannon unloaded all of that information onto her in the manner of which she had, and by the time she processed that last remark, she, too, felt dumbfounded that neither of them thought of such when they made their plans.
"I guess… we've been on the D.L. for, like, so long, we're used to making sneaky plans... but, yeah, we totally should've just said that, and our parents would still, like, never be the wiser…" lamented Ruby before she asked, "So, what'd your mom say? About us, I mean?"
"She said we'd talk about it when my dad gets home…" said Shannon. "Oh, Ruby, they're gonna kick me out… I just know they're gonna kick me out..."
"Shannon, breathe," instructed Ruby as she witnessed her girlfriend's hyperventilating breakdown. "You don't know they're gonna kick you out…"
"No, I know it... you should've seen my mom when I told her… I haven't seen her look and sound so serious since the time I accidentally broke the family Menorah Grandma Julia gave her as a wedding present when I was ten…" Shannon continued to fret as she felt her life come to an end. "I'll be out on the streets, Rubes... I'll be homeless…"
"Shannon, calm, let's try to think…" insisted Ruby, but it was to no avail; Shannon suddenly and impulsively ended the call in her panic. "Shannon? Shannon? Shannon!"
By that moment, all rational thinking escaped Ruby; to see how panicked her girlfriend was, and to hear about the plight she appeared to be in, there was only one thing she could even think to do: come to Shannon's rescue.
Shannon, meanwhile, collapsed onto her bed with feelings of nausea as her panic attack continued to make the room spin. As her eyes swirled around her room, it became clear to the Jewish teen what she had to do, and that was to make the inevitable as less painful as possible.
Daniel Tannenbaum arrived home that evening and looked quite beat – something he was about to let be known when his wife came to greet him at the door.
"Welcome home, dear," said Candice with a kiss for her husband… a kiss that felt quick and rushed; not the usual loving kiss she typically greeted him with upon his return from work. There was also a serious tone in her voice that was highly unusual, as she followed with, "now that you're back, you're going to want to hear this…"
"Oh, please, dear, not tonight; it's been one of those days…" grumbled Dr. Tannenbaum, who dealt with more than a few difficult patients, and difficult patients have a way of making for difficult days at work; he really was in no mood for whatever sort of scandalous gossip his wife wanted to unload on him. As he sat his briefcase aside and hung his white coat onto a hook on the hall tree, he added, "Whatever it is, I don't really want to hear it…"
"I think you will when you realize it concerns our daughter," Candice begged to differ.
"Did something happen to Shannon?" Daniel asked; hearing such made him do a complete one-eighty in his mood, and if something happened to his daughter, he wanted to be brought up to speed.
Meanwhile, the inside of Shannon's bedroom looked emptier as she finished packing up whatever belongings she could into whatever luggage she had. She stuffed a large duffle bag with changes of clothing; she filled a small traveling case with toiletries such as her toothbrush, hairbrush, any oral, topical, or nasal medications, and cell phone charger; she loaded her backpack with not only her school books, but whatever personal favorite reading books she could fit into it; she slipped her laptop into its carrying case. When it seemed she was unable to fit any more into her luggage, she happened to glance at the alarm clock on her night table, and saw it was past time for when her father usually returned from work. With a growing sense of dread, she crept over to her door, and cracked it open to listen for her parents' voices, which she could hear from the living room. She could not make out any of what they said amongst themselves, but the one thing that was for sure was there was an obvious absence of any playfulness in their voices, as was the usual case for them – the Tannenbaums could certainly bicker with the best of them, but their bickering typically consisted of snappy banter and rapier wit (probably where Shannon herself picked it up), and was exchanged with affection and respect. They were clearly in a very deep, serious discussion, and Shannon knew exactly what it was about. With a heavy sigh, she eased her door shut again and proceeded to secure her luggage… and as if the timing could not be crueler, it was at that moment she heard her father call out to her.
"Shannon? Would you come here, please?"
Much like her mother earlier, her father's voice sounded so serious, it struck fear into her heart all over again. Now, the time had come for her to face the music. With another sigh, she strapped her pack onto her back, tucked her toiletry case under her arm, and slung her duffle bag and laptop case over her shoulders. After one last look into her bedroom, she took a deep inhalation through her nostrils and fought through her tears as she opened her door, and marched down the hall into the living room where her parents awaited… and where her appearance was met with perplexity.
"You going somewhere, Shannon?" Daniel inquired.
"Looks like it," croaked Shannon.
"Where are you going?" Candice was the next to inquire.
"I don't know…" strained Shannon. "I guess the only place I can go is a homeless shelter…"
Her parents were all the more perplexed and quite confused; neither of them could make any sense of their daughter's plan.
"Why are you going to a homeless shelter when you have a home right here?" Daniel probed.
"Because you're kicking me out…" muttered Shannon as she continued to fight the tears.
"We are?" Daniel asked as he and Candice exchanged puzzled looks. "Why are we kicking you out?"
"Well… I'm sure Mom told you about everything…" noted Shannon somewhat resentfully, as her mother was a prime example of their people's inability to take in juicy gossip and keep it to themselves, but even so, she knew this was a subject her mother was going to broach as soon as her father returned home.
"I did, and that's why we want to talk with you…" said Candice as she and Daniel scooted further away to opposite ends of the couch to open a space between them.
"Have a seat, honey," instructed Daniel as he patted the empty space between them.
What followed was awkward stares between the teenager and her parents, as though they all waited for the other to say or do something, which Shannon finally did; she removed her bags from her person, and cautiously made her way over to the couch to sit between her parents. What followed was more awkward silence; the parties involved knew there was a lot that needed to be discussed, but none of them were exactly sure who should speak first, or what about… that is until Daniel finally took it upon himself the break the ice.
"So, Shannon… Mom did tell me what you said… about you and Ruby…" he began, while all Shannon could do was slowly nod in confirmation. "How long has this been going on?"
Shannon darted her eyes between both of her parents as they looked at her expectedly to hear more about the stunning revelation they knew nothing about. She certainly felt the pressure, but she could not beat around the bush any longer.
"Since… Valentine's Day…" she trailed off in the hope that leaving out certain specifics would be enough of a satisfactory answer, but could see both her mother and father continued to listen intently, knowing there was more to it than just a certain day. "Of… our freshman year…"
Daniel and Candice exchanged another surprised look with one another – it was not difficult to figure out the math, but to come to that figure made the revelation all the more shocking.
"You mean you and Ruby have been dating for over three years?" Candice pressed.
Shannon nodded.
"And you've been keeping it a secret from us all this time?" Candice pressed again.
Shannon nodded again.
"WHYYYYY?!" Candice strained.
Such a tone in her mother's voice rocked Shannon to her core, and she finally broke under the cross.
"Because I didn't want you to know I'm bisexual and dating my bestie!" She burst into tears.
Now it was Candice who burst into tears in a way that would have put one Lynn Loud, Sr. to shame; to think that her own daughter had made such a tremendously huge step in her life and had not been sharing it with her, or her husband for that matter, was such a heartbreaking concept.
"Ohhh, Shanny… how could you do this to us?!" She wailed through her own tears.
Despite having been caught up in the heat of the moment, that, unfortunately, was not the best sentence to utter, because given the circumstances, and the thoughts that raced through Shannon's overwhelmed mind, she assumed that her mother implicated shame and dishonor had been brought unto their family because of her sexuality and choice of a romantic partner.
"I'm sorry, Mom! I'm sorry!" Shannon cried. "I never chose to be bisexual, it's just the way I am! And I never meant to fall for Ruby, it just happened!"
Even so, the tears continued to flow out of Candice's eyes; she could not find any words to convey what ran through both her mind and her heart about her daughter… all of which did little to alleviate any of Shannon's present turmoil. With seemingly no other recourse, the Jewish teen threw her arms around her mother, and pleaded for mercy.
"I'll do anything, I swear! I'll stop seeing Ruby, I'll pray the gay away, I'll even go to conversion therapy, just please don't disown me and kick me out! Please!"
While the two women were wrapped in each other's arms and cried their eyes out, all Daniel could do was sit there and let them ride out their emotional roller coaster, while he also reminded himself of some of the text he had read in years past that suggested females were the more emotionally complex of the two sexes… and that very moment seemed to support such a suggestion. It soon became clear his daughter's sinuses were causing her problems, and even if she may have needed to let it all out in her mother's arms in that moment, he knew her sinuses needed to be tended to. He reached over and gently pulled his daughter away from her mother with one hand, then reached over to the end table next to his side of the couch with the other to fetch a box of tissues. He pulled one of the quilted sheets from the box, covered her button nose and prompted her to blow into it to clear the flow of mucus from within her sinus cavity. He also knew that when his daughter became anxious or tense, her muscles had a tendency to seize up and stiffen, which could also trigger headaches. He began to firmly yet gently massage the back of her neck, not only as a preventative measure, but also to further help calm her. It was not as though he ignored his wife, but he was well aware of how high strung she could be, and that she would be able to pull herself together.
Finally, when it seemed as though Shannon had calmed enough to speak clearly again, her father attempted to resume the conversation.
"Okay… so, you're bisexual…" he continued. "Is this something you've always known, or did you figure it out later, or…?"
Shannon went on to explain to her parents that by the time she was into her final year of middle school, she began to find herself looking at other girls much in the same way she looked at boys in the past. It seemed like random, isolated occurrences at first, but it was something that gradually became more commonplace – there was something about girls that would attract her attention: the way a girl fixed up her hair, the color of a girl's eyes, the way a girl looked in a certain outfit, or just that girls were cute. Most of the time, she would come to her senses and try to shake it off, but it made her wonder why she was looking at girls like she would boys… was she possibly bisexual?
Through it all, Candice eventually regained her composure, while she and Daniel listened to their daughter's testimony. Had Shannon paid attention, she would have noted that she received not one iota of any of what she expected to receive from them: disgust, shame, or judgment; they rendered none of such; they listened with patience and empathy. Neither of them could imagine how much pressure or duress this must have caused their daughter for all these years – something Daniel then addressed…
"It sounds like you had quite a challenge coming to terms with this…" he said as he continued to massage her neck to try to keep her calm. "Didn't you talk to anybody about this? Your guidance counsellors? Anybody?"
"Just Luan and Benny…" said Shannon; they were among her only friends in those days. "Luan because I knew she was okay with one of her sisters being bi, and I figured she'd be okay with me if I was… Actually, that weekend, she invited me to her house to chat with her sister, Luna, about our experiences… and after talking with Luna, everything made so much sense to me… I no longer had questions about my sexuality… but, I still struggled with it… until… Ruby…"
Now, they had gotten to the part they were particularly interested in learning more about; when it came to Ruby's dating life, there was but only one detail they had any knowledge of…
"I seem to recall you said Ruby had been through a bad breakup…" noted Daniel.
"Yeah, she did…" Shannon went over the entire sordid affair of how during much of their freshman year, Ruby and their fellow drama club thespian, Spencer, hooked up with each other, and how it actually went rather well for a time, until issues with the sports club doomed their brief romance, all of which culminated into a quite a nasty public breakup between them. In spite of everything, Ruby was eventually able to forgive Spencer (with some help from Shannon, of course), and even so, neither of them could speak ill of him; in fact, Shannon even spoke in his defense: "… and Spencer's really not a bad guy… he just caved into peer pressure to project a certain macho image that Ruby got caught in, he lost sight of her being a girlfriend in favor of her being a trophy… but they've totally moved past it; they've learned from their mistakes, and are actually good friends again."
"At least everything worked out for them," remarked Daniel.
"So, where did it all go from there?" Candice asked; she was more anxious than ever to hear about all of this leading to her daughter and her best friend becoming romantically involved with each other.
"Well… now that Ruby wasn't being controlled and isolated by Spencer anymore, we were so happy to hang together again, we missed each other so much…"
That much Daniel and Candice knew. Even though Shannon had reached an age where she had very little to say when asked the requisite questions about how her days at school went, that was one thing she shared with them; after all, Ruby was her best friend, and she was so excited they were in each other's lives again.
"Then… everything started changing…" she trailed off; after bluffing for so long, it felt awkward to have to lay her cards on the table before the same parents who only saw her poker face.
"Tell us about it…" said Candice as she rubbed her daughter's back.
When Shannon stole a glance at both of her parents, she saw the inquisitive looks on their faces as they waited to hear more of her testimony – it gave her the encouragement to press forward after a couple of deep breaths.
"Okay… so, like I said, Ruby and I were so happy to get to hang together again, especially when we all got Mrs. B. to take her back in the drama club, and she partnered us up for theater exercises… then, I started to realize how happy hanging with her made me feel… then, I started seeing her differently…"
"Differently?" Daniel asked.
"I started noticing… how… attractive she is…" added Shannon.
"She is very pretty…" agreed Candice to further put her daughter at ease.
"And sometimes… when she'd hug me, it felt… so good…" added Shannon. "It finally reached a point where I found myself wondering if we could be more than just friends, because I realized I had a crush on her… and after Luan and the others set us up on our first date on Valentine's Day our freshman year, there was no question about it anymore… I wasn't just crushing on Ruby… I had fallen for her…"
To finally hear this confirmation from her daughter, Candice burst into tears all over again, much to Shannon's dismay.
"Ohh, I knew there was a reason why I liked Ruby… now I know why… she's… my baby girl's first love!"
Daniel handed the box of tissues to his wife this time, and Candice went through nearly half of the box to soak up the streams of tears that flowed out of her eyes; this time, she would have put one Frida Puga-Casagrande to shame. While Candice continued to cry her eyes out over being excluded from such a major passage in her daughter's life, Daniel attempted to keep the channels of communication open while Shannon was still willing.
"It sounds like Ruby reciprocated your feelings…" continued Daniel.
Shannon bashfully nodded, "We were both taken by surprise… she never imagined she'd fall for a woman… and I never imagined I'd fall for my own bestie…"
Shannon and Daniel were both startled when Candice blew her nose so loudly that it put her own daughter to shame, but after another descent from the emotional roller coaster, she was able to pull herself together again so she could dive back into the life-altering conversation.
"So… all those weekends you'd meet up with Ruby to, 'Hang out'…" she continued while using air quotes. "Those were really dates?"
"Not all of them…" said Shannon, although Candice gave her a smirk as though to suggest she was not being entirely truthful, but in fact, she was. "Some of them were, but a lot of them were just hang seshes… we didn't always have to have a reason or occasion, we just like spending time together…"
Daniel and Candice exchanged looks with one another as they considered their daughter's words.
"That sounds like love to me, does it you?" Daniel asked Candice.
"It sure does; enjoying being with somebody without needing a rhyme or reason… if that's not love, I don't know what is…" agreed Candice before she also brought up another interesting subject: "And your studies of Indian culture?"
"Okay, that was partly because I heard about what a disaster Luan's first Passover with the Steins was, and when Ruby started including me in her family's customs, I didn't want to be ignorant of their culture. But mostly because I felt if my girlf—best—um…" Shannon stumbled on that word, but as she took notice of the seemingly encouraging smiles on her parents' faces, she decided to stick with the actual word she hid from them for so long. "… Girlfriend is Indian, I should be knowledgeable of her culture… and she's been learning about Judaism for me, too."
Candice and Daniel looked all the more touched. They were already aware of Shannon and Ruby familiarizing themselves with each other's heritage since that first holiday season when Shannon was invited to celebrate Tulsi Pujan Diwas with the Patels, and Shannon insisted Ruby be invited to Hanukkah with the Tannenbaums and Steins… they just had no idea how deep this cultural exchange, as Ruby's mother, Diya, called it, between the two of them really went. It, too, painted a clearer picture of how truly in love their daughter and her friend were that they integrated each other into their lives on such a spiritual level.
"And keeping all of this a secret from us for over three years? That must have been really hard on you…" Daniel remarked, while all Shannon could respond with was a defeated nod. "Well, if nothing else, this certainly is a testament to what a consummate actress you are. To have pulled the wool over our eyes so convincingly for over three years? You deserve an Oscar for that one, darling…"
Shannon could not help but blush over her father's remark, which also served as a bit of an ego stroke – she never thought of keeping her relationship with Ruby a secret as an act, but to hear her father put it into that perspective gave her a good feeling about just how immersed she really was into her passion for acting.
"Shanny, you had no reason to keep this a secret from us…" assured Candice. "Dad and I have always made our home a safe environment for you to be able to talk to either of us about anything you're going through."
"I'm sorry…" mumbled Shannon. "I was so afraid you'd disown me and kick me out…"
"How could you think we would do such a thing, Shannon?" Daniel asked.
"It happens all the time," explained Shannon. "Kids and teens coming out to their parents, then getting disowned and kicked out because of it… I didn't want that to happen to me, and I didn't want to be responsible for tearing our family apart because of who I am…"
"Then parents like that have absolutely no business being parents," Candice voiced her opinion. "Any parent who would cast their own children out of their family for being who they are are an absolute blight on the fabric of our society."
"Cases like that make you wish birth control was retroactive," remarked Daniel; it was his way of saying that people like the parents of which his daughter described should never have been born themselves.
"Shanny, haven't we always told you that everybody deserves to love and be loved?" Candice quizzed her daughter.
"Well, yeah…" nodded Shannon. "But, it's easy to look the other way when it's not one of your own… I… didn't think you could handle me being…"
"To reiterate… you're our daughter, Shannon," said Daniel somewhat firmly. "Our flesh and blood; our pride and joy; the biggest blessing we've ever had. It wouldn't matter if you were bisexual, or homosexual or pansexual… you'd still be our daughter, and we'd still love and accept you for who you are."
As Daniel resumed massaging the back of his daughter's neck, Shannon's eyes glistened while the smallest smile quivered from her lips – a smile that was brought on by the love of her parents diminishing her greatest fear for so many years. Although, it unfortunately did not eradicate that fear entirely, because there was still another concern in her mind that caused that small smile to disappear in the same way it appeared.
"But… what about the rest of the family?" She asked; she was still terrified of the prospect of being responsible for tearing the rest of their family apart. "Grandpa Jacob and Grandma Rhea? They'd never approve…"
Daniel exhaled through his nose. His parents, Shannon's Grandpa Jacob and Grandma Rhea, were not only very Orthodox in their Judaism, but also raised he and his brother, David, in a very conservative household. Conservatism seemed to stick with Shannon's Uncle David, but upon going into medicine, Daniel gradually drifted away from such, especially upon becoming an attending physician. That line of thinking he witnessed in many of his colleagues, who seemed to disregard what the Hippocratic Oath stood for as far as physicians pledging to prescribe beneficial treatments according to his/her abilities or judgment, to refrain from causing harm or hurt, to live an exemplary personal and professional life, and instead, refused treatment to patients for different reasons, including some colleagues who refused to treat LGBT patients on the grounds of religious liberty. Such disregard for the Hippocratic Oath and violation of ethics should be grounds for dismissal and revocation of medical licenses. Daniel took his oath seriously; he got into this profession to help people, not harm them, and he would have reported such colleagues to their ethics boards, but the unfortunate thing about the American medical profession is that it is driven by politics and profits, and the powers that be would not only most likely rule in their favor for exercising their religious rights, but Daniel would probably find himself in hot water for making waves. In addition to the appalling behavior of some of his colleagues, having Candice come into his life had an influence on him as well; Candice was mostly apolitical, and saw flaws from both sides of the aisle, but she, too, found a lot of what those on the right side of the aisle stood for to be deplorable. All of this and more prompted Daniel to disassociate himself from conservatism.
Still, he knew his daughter's concerns were not without merit, because his parents were still very much rooted in their ways, and were very staunch and rigid about such. Although they were quite fond of their granddaughter, they had expressed their concerns about how he and Candice raised her, sometimes even calling her a marad (a rebel, if you will) for a number of reasons, from her aspirations of show business, to what they perceived to be the rather immodest way she dressed by revealing too much leg in her shorts and skirts. Of course, they had no authority to police how their son raised their granddaughter, but even so, he could understand Shannon's concerns about the waves her sexuality and relationship with a non-Jewish woman would make as such revelations rippled their way through the chain of communication.
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it…" he finally said; he knew it was not exactly a dose of reassurance, but he knew how he could administer such. "But Mom and I have no objections. If you're bisexual, then you're bisexual, there's no shame in that… as long as you're happy, that's all we care about… and if Ruby makes you happy, then we most certainly approve."
Shannon then turned again to her mother who nodded her agreement with a smile. Her misty eyes nearly rolled back into her head as she collapsed into the back rest of the couch and released the biggest, loudest sigh she had ever uttered.
"Thank God…" she strained to her parents' amusement.
"This must be a relief to you," theorized Daniel.
"Understatement of the century," said Shannon, which only added to her parents' amusement.
The touching moment was interrupted by a frantic knock at the front door that sounded as though some unknown assailant attempted to invade the Tannenbaum home; the fact that it was early evening made the timing of such a knock all the more suspicious. Daniel motioned for his ladies to remain on the couch while he stepped across the living room and over to the door to investigate. He flipped on the porch light and peered through the peephole to make the surprising discovery that the knocker on the other side of the door was somebody he knew – they all knew. No sooner had he turned the knob when the visitor burst into the house and immediately delivered a rambling spiel.
"Shannon's completely innocent, it's all my fault!"
"Ruby! What in the world…?" Daniel mumbled as he shut the door behind her.
"This is all because of me; I'm the one to blame for all this, because I tried to lead Shannon astray! I was looking for a fall guy to be my patsy, and I knew Shannon was the perfect target because she wouldn't say no, so I could manipulate and take advantage of her and get away with it! I did all this cause I'm bad! And I'm bad cause I was dropped on my head as a child, my parents didn't love me, I watched too many cartoons on TV, I played lots of violent video games, and there weren't enough doors in our house… or maybe there were too many doors, whatev!"
The Tannenbaums were stupefied by Ruby's sudden arrival, the word salad she rambled so incoherently, and the fact that she seemed so worked up brought much concern to Daniel. While she continued to ramble, he took hold of her wrist and took a look at his watch to check her pulse.
"Good lord, she's about to stroke out," he gasped before he turned to his wife to give her some instructions. "Candi, get a glass of water, a cold compress, and a beta-blocker. Stat."
While Candice hopped up from the couch and dashed out of the living room to act on the instructions given to her, Daniel maneuvered Ruby over to the coffee table where he had her take a seat… and the whole time, she continued to ramble.
"… And I threatened Shannon not to be a snitch and rat me out! I told her if she did, I'd ruin her life and tell the whole world she's a fag, so she kept her mouth shut because she didn't want you guys to think she was hoeing herself out, but she wouldn't do that, she's a saint! She's a saint! I'm the bad one! I tried to corrupt Shannon because I was looking for cheap thrills, it's how I get my kicks, cause it seems like kicks just keep getting harder to find!"
Candice rushed back into the living room with what Daniel asked for, and he immediately began to administer these items to the rambling and hyperventilating Ruby; he firmly planted the cold compress on the back of her neck before he interrupted her string of unconsciousness.
"Ruby, Ruby, RUBY!" He barked as he handed her the glass of water and a pill. "Here, take this…"
In between gasps for air, Ruby did as prescribed; she popped the pill into her mouth, and downed the glass of water in one gulp. The beta-blocker, glass of water, and cold compress were to try to slow her heartrate, lower her blood pressure, and ease her adrenaline as quickly and safely as possible before she may have suffered an untimely stroke. Daniel handed the now-emptied glass to Candice and wanted her to refill it, and while he took his seat back on the couch, Ruby still struggled to catch her breath while the veins in her neck throbbed so greatly, Daniel and Shannon could actually see them.
"Breathe, Ruby, breathe," he instructed. "In through your nose, out through your mouth …"
Ruby continued to do as instructed; she took in inhalations of oxygen through her nostrils, and let out exhalations of carbon dioxide through her mouth. She did this a few times while Candice brought her another glass of water, which she also downed rather quickly. Through it all, Daniel began to put two and two together…
"Ruby… did you run all the way over here?" He asked.
Ruby nodded through her heavy breathing; from the time Shannon hung up on her, she ran all the way from her house to the Tannenbaum house. At that time, all rational thinking had completely escaped her, her only thoughts were on coming to her panicked girlfriend's aid.
"That's crazy!" Daniel scoffed in disbelief. "What were you thinking?"
"I knew… Shannon… was in trouble…" she said between gasps for air. "I came… to help…"
Daniel and Candice looked at Shannon in confusion, while their daughter blushed; it seemed embarrassing in hindsight.
"Sorry…" she croaked. "I panicked… I called Ruby, and I just lost it…"
"Look, Mr. and Mrs. Tannenbaum…" Ruby spoke up again, which took the two by surprise – they had granted her permission to address them by their first names, but given the circumstances, she felt she had no right to such a privilege any longer. "Shannon's a good girl, and she loves you guys… please don't kick her out because of me…"
"Rubes?" Shannon interrupted her girlfriend. "Thanks… but, it's okay… I told them everything… and they approve…"
Ruby's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as she returned her attention to her girlfriend's parents.
"For realsies?!" She asked as they both smiled and nodded. Much like Shannon before, Ruby's eyes nearly rolled back into her head as she nearly fell back on the coffee table; planting her hands behind her was all that broke her fall. "Thank Shiva... Krishna… whoever…"
"That was quite an admirable, if not unusual act of devotion on your part, Ruby," commented Daniel of the Indian teen's coming over to their house to try to spare Shannon any rebuke by pinning everything on herself; he also grabbed the compress that slid off the back of her neck.
"I made her a promise…" she said as her breathing finally started to calm. "I'd always protect her, and wouldn't let anything happen to her…"
Shannon continued to blush; she was still embarrassed her panic-fueled impulse resulted in all of this drama, but also deeply touched that Ruby loved her enough to come to her rescue in such a manner.
"Well, we can't exactly say your promise was made or kept in vain," continued Daniel. "But like we just told Shannon, we would never disown her for her sexuality, or her choice in a romantic partner."
"Not at all, we're actually very happy for the way things have worked out between you two," agreed Candice before she addressed both girls. "Do you know why your bestie is actually the best one you could've fallen in love with?"
"I think I've figured it out…" said Shannon as all eyes turned to her. "Ruby and I have been through a lot together these last few years… and not all of it has been smooth sailing… we've even weathered some ugly storms along the way… but through it all, in the end, there was always one person who stayed by my side and had my back… my best friend…"
"Samesies…" mumbled Ruby; now she was the one who smiled and blushed.
Like Shannon, it felt rather awkward for Ruby to suddenly bring all of this out in the open after they had been on the down-low for so long, but the fact that her parents were being so accepting of everything offered the dose of encouragement both young ladies needed.
"Candice? Daniel?"
Mr. and Mrs. Tannenbaum returned their attention to the Indian teen who sat before them on their coffee table.
"I know you've probably heard it all by now… but, I want you to hear it from me, too…"
They gave her their undivided attention as she looked her girlfriend straight into her eyes.
"I love Shannon… she's the best thing that ever happened to me… our connection is something I treasure, just like I treasure her… and I'm so glad you approve of us, because I never want to lose the love of my life…"
Shannon's smile widened, her blush reddened even more, and a few tears of joy trickled down her freckled cheeks. Ruby wasn't usually one to express herself in such an eloquent and heartfelt manner, but Shannon felt every word in her heart; it touched her deeply.
And then Candice lost it all over again. As two more rivers of tears churned out of her eyes, she grabbed both Shannon and Ruby and hugged them so tightly it nearly choked them.
"Ohhhh, my girls… my girls!" She wailed.
"Mom…" strained Shannon.
"Candi…" strained Daniel in kind.
Shannon and Ruby managed to extricate themselves from Candice's grip before they lost all oxygen, and while the high strung mother had to try to calm herself down once again, the relief that was brought on by her girlfriend's parents approving of their romance resurrected another thought within Ruby's mind…
"Guess we don't have to, like, tip-toe to the prom now, huh, Shans?" She asked.
Shannon chuckled nervously while both Candice and Daniel eyeballed her with knowing smiles; now that it was all out in the open, their prom date didn't have to be kept secret any longer… however, that cat wasn't out of the bag completely, as Shannon came to realize Ruby was now put into an awkward position because of the slip of her tongue.
"Sorry about putting you on the spot like this, Rubes…" she apologized rather meekly.
"Well, we knew this was bound to come out sooner than later…" remarked Ruby.
"What you talking about?" Candice inquired of the two.
"Well, you see, years ago, Ruby and I made a pact that when we felt ready, we'd both come out to our parents at the same time, so we wouldn't have to face such a daunting task alone…" explained Shannon.
"Because we're in this together," added Ruby while Shannon smiled. "But yeah, now I have to tell my parents about us… and that is not gonna be easy…"
"Because of Ruby's unique problem…" noted Shannon.
"What's the problem?" Daniel inquired.
"I still don't know what I am…" confessed Ruby.
This brought about more confusion as Daniel then asked, "Clarification?"
"Well, Shannon knows she's bi cause she knows she likes boys and girls…" continued Ruby. "I don't… I mean, I've never been into girls, or interested in girls, or hot for girls… and I'm still not… it's only Shannon… and her being a girl has nothing to with anything, I just love her for her… what does that even make me?"
Indeed, that was an interesting question, and one that nobody seemed to have an answer for.
"Is it really even that important?" Daniel finally asked. "At the end of the day, as long as you love each other, isn't that all that matters?"
"But, how can I explain this to my parents in a way they'll understand?" Ruby asked. "I barely understand it myself."
"Maybe you don't have to think of how you can explain it to them…" said Daniel.
"What do you mean?" Ruby asked.
"He means the only way to really explain something in a way that's understandable is to just say it the way your heart understands," explained Candice. "What does your heart understand?"
Ruby knew what her heart understood, as she slowly began to smile again and said exactly what her heart understood: "That I love Shannon..."
And that brought a smile to everyone's face.
With that, Ruby arose from the coffee table, and with a soft sigh, said, "Guess I better go…"
"How about a ride?" Daniel offered.
"That's okay," Ruby declined. "I need the fresh air, and time to, like, clear my head and prepare myself to drop the bombshell on my parents…"
"Good luck with that, Ruby," said Daniel sincerely.
"And, Ruby?" Candice spoke up. "God forbid the worst should happen… but just know you have a home with us… we love you like family…"
The Tannenbaums had already become well-acquainted with the Patels – they really hit it off, and neither Candice nor Daniel wanted to believe Ruby's parents would be the types of which Shannon previously spoke. Even so, the Tannenbaums very much felt like Ruby had already become one of the family, and were willing to leave their door open for her if she needed it.
"Thanks…" she humbly squeaked as her cheeks began to live up to her namesake.
As she made her way towards the door, Shannon arose from the couch and followed after, while she told her parents, "I'll see Ruby out…"
After the two teenagers made their way through the front door and shut it behind them, Candice immediately sprung from the couch and scurried over to the door, much to her husband's confusion.
"What are you doing?" He asked.
"I want to see this for myself," said Candice quietly as she cracked open the door to spy on her daughter and her best friend… her girlfriend.
"Candi…" Daniel muttered again while he rolled his eyes.
Shannon followed Ruby out into the front yard where they could see the sun had nearly set over the horizon, and the skies grew even darker. They were again reminded of how awkward it actually felt that after they had been on the down-low for so many years, everything was now being revealed for all the world to know… even though it did feel like a burden had been lifted from their shoulders, it was still a lot more overwhelming than they could have imagined.
"Well, that had to have been, like, the greatest accident in the history of accidents ever," remarked Ruby over how all of this was the result of Shannon accidently spilling the beans about the plans they made to attend their senior prom together.
"I'm sorry for dragging you into this, Rubes…" apologized Shannon; she still felt guilty for worrying her girlfriend and making her run all the way over when there was nothing to worry about, but Ruby wouldn't have it.
"You have nothing to be sorry for, Shans," insisted Ruby. "I'd totally run to the end of the world for you."
Shannon giggled as she and Ruby came to a stop and turned to face each other; she said, "Well, thanks for coming… that really meant a lot to me…"
"You mean a lot to me…" said Ruby.
The two took hold of each other's hands – a sight that threatened to get Candice's waterworks flowing all over again as she silently spied on the two. Shannon still could not get over Ruby's gesture, it had to have been the biggest act of love and care she ever committed for her. In some small way, she felt indebted to Ruby now, and with what her girlfriend was now faced with, she felt that this would be the way in which she could repay her debt.
"Ruby? Would you like me to come with you to talk to your parents about us?" She offered. "One good turn deserves another, and it's the least I could do…"
"That's totally sweet of you, Shans, but I should probably do this myself… they're kinda used to me butting heads with them, anyway. Besides, they really like you… I don't want you to take a chance on doing anything that might make you lose face with them."
"If you say so…" said Shannon.
It was then Shannon realized there was a tremble in Ruby's hands. Ruby was used to having to be brave for Shannon, but she tried to put on brave face for herself… though Shannon could see right through it. She could tell Ruby was nervous, but would not let on about it. Shannon still felt a need to do something –anything- for her girlfriend, and it seemed the very least she could do was to bestow onto her an offering of peace…
"Shalom…" she said softly while she tightened her grip on Ruby's hands; there was a quiver in Ruby's lips, but her smile widened at hearing this.
With that, Shannon took a page from L. Frank Baum's original Oz books, and kissed her girlfriend on the forehead, much like Glinda the Good Witch of the North did for Dorothy, because whoever had been kissed by the good witch shall have no harm befall them. The second she witnessed her daughter's lips meet her girlfriend's forehead, Candice choked; she swiftly eased the door shut and relayed what she witnessed to her husband.
"She kissed her… Shannon kissed Ruby… ohhhh, our baby girl's in love…"
Daniel decided his wife needed something more productive to do, so he stepped over to where Shannon had left her luggage to grab hold of it, some of which he passed along to Candice.
"Come on, dear, if you want to be helpful, let's take Shannon's stuff back to her room," he said. "Let's try to save our home insurance in the event of an actual flood…"
Candice took Shannon's laptop and toiletry cases from her husband and followed him into their daughter's room, all the while, Shannon and Ruby wrapped their arms around one another and held each other so tenderly. Ruby always had to have a goodbye hug from Shannon, but in that moment, she especially needed it before she departed for home. Shannon could feel the extra strength in Ruby's grip, and she, in turn, gently rubbed Ruby's back. Finally, they broke apart and looked each other in the eye one last time.
"I'll let you know how it all goes down A-S-A-P," promised Ruby.
"Safe journey, my love," Shannon wished with all of her best.
Ruby finally wandered off into the sunset for home, while Shannon watched her disappear from sight. She turned and stepped back into her own house, only to find the living room deserted; she could only assume her parents must have gone about their own business – maybe to finish dinner, although she wasn't exactly hungry anymore. As a matter of fact, she was emotionally exhausted after everything she just experienced, and barely made it to the couch before she collapsed. At that moment, Daniel walked back into the living room to see if any of Shannon's luggage had been overlooked, but there wasn't. When he saw his daughter sprawled across the couch, he did something he had not done since she was a little girl: scooped her up and cradled her in his arms while he carried her back into her bedroom. It wasn't as easy as when she was little, Shannon had grown into quite the young lady; Shannon, meanwhile, nestled up against her father as he carried her. Candice had just finished setting Shannon's luggage aside in her bedroom when her husband walked in with their daughter in his arms, whereupon he gently laid her to rest atop her bed.
"You might as well unpack and stay a while," he quipped while she giggled.
"Shanny," Candice spoke up. "Don't ever be afraid to talk to me or Dad about anything… especially if it's about Ruby; you can talk about Ruby all you want, and we'll listen…"
"Our home is a judgment-free zone," added Daniel. "And this is your home; you'll never have to worry about that."
"Thank you… so much…" croaked Shannon while her parents continued to smile at her.
"Dinner will be finished shortly, but if you're not feeling up to it, we'll keep a plate warm for whenever you get hungry," offered Candice.
"Duly noted," said Shannon while her parents left her in the solitude of her natural habitat.
Now alone, she removed her glasses to set them aside on her night table, while she rested her arm across her face, burying her closed eyes into the bend of her elbow. She thanked her lucky stars that her parents accepted her being bisexual, and approved of her relationship with a woman – it was a prayer come true for her… but now she had a new prayer: that the Patels would be just as understanding when Ruby talks to them, and that they will be accepting and approving of their relationship just the same.
We have now reached the most pivotal point, not just in our present story, but also in Shannon and Ruby's relationship, which, as mentioned in the foreword's spoilers, worked out better for Prom-grenade to be delayed until October, as October 11 is National Coming Out Day. In honor of the occasion, you will be treated to not one, but two new chapters today, as you witness the monumental moments in which Shannon and Ruby finally break their silence, and come out to their parents about the true nature of their relationship.
On that note, because FFN has something of a bug (unrelated to what we've dealt with recently) that won't update the story properties in the archive if you upload more than one chapter in less than twenty-four hours, make sure you get to see both this chapter with the Tannenbaums, and the following chapter with the Patels.
Lastly, believe it or not, Shannon's comment about conversion therapy was actually not meant to foreshadow Albertson's passage about how she was deceived into being sent to a conversion camp by her grandparents in Love Knows No Bounds; that was as much of a coincidence as was Ruby telling Shannon she's not as cool as she thinks at the end of This Will Be Our Year to Amity Blight telling Luz Noceda the same thing. Total coincidence. In this case, however, I do believe it could retroactively foreshadow the be careful what you wish for trope, if Shannon had any idea she may actually find herself in conversion therapy in her future - and not by choice.