Howdy gamers, I am back at it again with another hecking chapter! Good news, next chapter is the last one before the Thanksgiving arc begins so that's fun. Hope you lovelies enjoy! ~Shaymie

Molly

Molly came to a sudden realization the other day: Chase had really nice hands.

It wasn't something she'd usually notice or care about. After all, it wasn't really something you'd typically pay attention to in the first place. But when she went over to offer him some leftover cake from dessert the night before (a rarity with how much Luke and Angela ate), his hand brushed over hers and she realized just how much bigger his hands were than hers. And when he invited her in so they could share the cake over tea, she couldn't stop watching the way his hands moved as he worked in the kitchen. She wanted to hold those hands. More than that, she wanted those hands to hold her.

She wanted those long fingers in—

"Oh my god Molls, I told you it's nothing to worry about."

Molly's first instinct was to of course go to her sister for advice. She'd go to Kasey if he wasn't so... Kasey. She knew she couldn't keep him in the dark forever. But he could be a lot like Dad sometimes, all overprotective and stuff. Certainly wasn't worth all the trouble when she lived with Angela, who was more than happy to give her advice. At least that's what she thought, but Angela wasn't in a good mood right now. Maybe Molly's been too needy lately. Too annoying. She certainly wouldn't blame Angela for getting tired of it.

She's getting tired of it.

Sometimes she thought about how easier her life could have been if she'd loosened up more. If she'd accepted those party invitations instead of spending her weekends alone in the studio, stressing over dances that she knew she'd already perfected weeks ago. If she had let herself have more fun then none of this would be an issue now. Maybe she would have even had more friends.

"B-But..."

"Molly. I need you to listen to me. Are you listening?" Molly nodded, slightly taken aback by the frustration in her sister's voice. She's heard her sound like that before, but it's never been directed at her. Jack's gotten it, Kasey's gotten it, even Muffy and Reina have been at the receiving end of Angela's irritation. Never Molly, though. Angela stared her dead in the eyes as she spoke. "You're not a freak. You're not a creep or a pervert. It is perfectly normal to have sexual thoughts about someone you like. Got it?"

Molly gave a hesitant nod. Part of her wanted to explain that it was different, but she bit her tongue. Her appetite was suddenly gone. She shouldn't have brought this up in the first place. It was stupid. She excused herself from the table and scraped the remainder of her lunch into the trash before placing the plate in the sink. She'd wash it later. Her eyes looked anywhere but in Angela's direction and landed on her trusty basket.

Right. She was going to go pick some more berries today because she wanted to have a lot of jam stocked up before they left. That's as good an excuse as any to get out of here. She heard Angela sigh.

"Sorry, Molls. I know this is new to you. I shouldn't be such a bitch about it."

"I-It's fine..." She didn't think her sister was being particularly mean or anything. Angela heaved another sigh, lighter this time, and took a sip of her drink. She'd finished eating her lunch ages ago but stayed to keep Molly company. Luke was busy today so she wasn't going to see him until tonight. Molly started making her way to the basket and opened her mouth to excuse herself when Angela spoke again.

"So you said you're having dreams about his hands? Is there anything else special about these dreams?"

Oh. Turns out she was paying attention. Molly felt her cheeks grow hot. Maybe she shouldn't have brought this up after all. She didn't think about how embarrassing it'd be to explain her freaky hand sex dreams to her sister. She should have just kept her mouth shut and let this be something she took to the grave. Her hand moved to one of the buttons on her cardigan, twirling the little flower around like that would give her courage. Or maybe rescue her from this embarrassing situation.

"No... They're like... my normal dreams except he just... uses his hands more. And it feels nicer when he touches me. Like... like I get little tingles all over my body."

She was too embarrassed to give the full details. There's no way she could tell Angela about how she'd practically worship his hands. How lovingly she'd touch them, how she'd literally swoon whenever he ran his hands over her bare skin, how she'd... kiss them after they were done with her. She'd kiss them and take his fingers into her mouth and—

I want to choke on his fingers.

The thought made her lightheaded, a soft squeak escaping her as she shook her head. No. No no no no no no no. She can't think that. She shouldn't think that. It'd ruin her. Ruin their friendship. She's already struggling to be around Chase enough as it is. She's taken to sitting at a different seat at the bar than usual, one that didn't have such a clear view into the kitchen, just so she wouldn't stare at him so much.

"At least it's not his feet," Angela muttered. She sat up straighter and sighed again. This time it came from somewhere deep in her chest. Honestly it sounded more like a groan.

"Okay Molls, I think it's time we have a serious discussion about sex before you end up having a heart attack in your sleep or something."

"W-What? I know about sex! Selena taught me!"

Angela raised an eyebrow. It's clear she was doubtful of that.

"Lying there while you let her touch you isn't going to teach you a goddamn thing. Did you even touch her back?"

Molly's face somehow managed to burn hotter. She didn't intend for it to turn out that way. The first time they got together, Selena promised to take the lead and just let her relax because she didn't want to overwhelm her. She said the same thing the second time. And the third. Then eventually she just came to expect that Selena would be the one in charge. Was that wrong of her? Now that she thought about it, it did seem pretty selfish.

She did try, though. She didn't want to be useless, and it was meant to be a learning experience. But her fingers were clumsy and her anxiety started acting up so Selena told her to stop. Said that it was okay and that she could get herself off. She even smiled when Molly shyly asked if she could watch because she was curious. She'd hoped she could learn something then but all she learned was that she... really liked watching. It gave her even more tingles than when Selena kissed her.

"And you've never done anything past holding hands with Ash, right?"

"Um, we almost—"

"So that's a no, then?"

Why was Angela being so snappy? Whatever was bothering her didn't have anything to do with Molly but it felt like she was taking her anger out on her. Unless it was somehow Molly's fault and she just didn't notice. She tried to think of something she could have possibly done to make her sister angry but nothing came up. In fact, they've barely spoken at all since before Halloween. And there's no way that's the problem. They've gone longer without talking before.

"I... Um..." Molly stammered for a response. Angela pushed her bangs back from her face and muttered something under her breath. Molly's expression hardened, her hands clenched into fists at her side. She didn't understand why, but she felt the need to prove herself. "I jerked Mark off plenty of times!"

"You did?" Molly nodded. Did she really not know? They weren't being that secretive about it. There were a few times when she or Dad walked in on them watching a movie and they had to scramble to throw a blanket over him. Angela scowled, clearly upset that they were talking about Mark. "He didn't force you, did he?"

Molly shook her head. He did have to convince her at first since she was worried about doing a bad job, but it wasn't like when he'd tried to force himself onto her. Then, at least, she had the option to say no. If she was being honest with herself, she actually liked messing around with him when he actually asked. The way he'd treat her afterwards was nice, too. She liked being praised for a job well done.

"When you say convince, do you mean..." Angela paused, nibbling on her bottom lip as she tried to properly organize her thoughts. The emotion in her eyes was something Molly couldn't quite read. Was it anger? Frustration? Regret? She closed her eyes and took a shaky breath. "Molly, did you actually want to do it?"

"W-What?"

"Did you actually want to touch him or did he guilt you into it? Did he keep asking and wear you down until you felt like you had to say yes?"

She never really thought about it before. Mark was stubborn. Always asking things of her. He was her first boyfriend but she was... well, she wasn't sure how many girls he'd seen before her. It felt like he was with someone new every time they passed each other in the halls. But because of that, she assumed he knew more than her. He knew how relationships were supposed to progress. He knew when to start asking for things.

He had her convinced that she was the problem. If she wasn't ready to act like a girlfriend, then she shouldn't have started dating him. She didn't want him to break up with her just because she didn't understand how things worked.

If he broke up with her then Chelsea would have laughed at her for weeks-

She was brought out of her memories by a sudden slam. Angela's hand was curled into a fist on the table, her eyes dark and burning with barely-contained fury. Molly whimpered. The only time she's ever seen her sister like this was after the accident, when they'd all gone to Chelsea's house to question her about her involvement. Angela was scary. Terrifying, even. Molly felt sick.

"Answer. The. Question."

"Angie, you're scaring me."

Angela's eyes hardened. Her lips twitched in that way that was becoming far too familiar. There was something else she clearly wanted to say but was holding back. She only ever did that with Molly. Pausing before she spoke, taking the time to filter out her thoughts before she continued. With everyone else, she let them know the first thing that was on her mind. Her hand trembled against the table.

"You don't even have to answer. I can tell just by your reaction." She looked away with a shake of her head. "You can't keep doing that, Molls. Being a doormat, letting people walk all over you and take what they want from you... It's not right. It's not fucking fair to you."

"...Sorry." Molly felt tears well up in her eyes. This was the last thing Angela needed right now. She should have kept her mouth shut. All she's done is add to her sister's bad mood.

"Huh? What are you apologizing for, Molls?"

The tears made Molly's vision blurry. It was impossible to see anything now, but maybe that was a good thing. She didn't have to see her sister's disappointed face. She apologized again, softer this time. There was a scrape of something moving against the floor, and then a blurry figure coming closer. She flinched at the sudden weight of Angela's brace-covered hand on her shoulder.

"If I said no before, then maybe he might not have..."

Might not have kissed her so forcefully it hurt. Might not have grabbed her so hard it bruised. Might not have ripped her favorite pair of tights trying to get to her-

"It's not your fucking fault, Molly." Despite the hardness in Angela's voice, she was gentle as she wiped Molly's tears away. "Sometimes guys are just assholes who think they're entitled to our bodies because we're dating them."

"...Guys are dumb." Molly sniffled. Angela laughed and patted her head. All the anger seemed to have melted from her face, which was a relief. She was scary when she was angry.

"Yeah, most of them are. But sometimes if you're lucky, you'll find a good one."