Fire and Brimstone

I was so peaceful, resting off a long day with Elise, so calm, so tranquil. I could have stayed with her all day. I could have just kept to myself, shut out the world, and held the girl I love until tomorrow came. But I just had to check my phone, didn't I? I had to instinctively reach out for the buzzing sound, and now I'm stuck.

"I need to talk to you. Can we meet at yours?"

A text from Trish. I recall a day when I couldn't even believe she'd talk to me, now I'm the only one she can talk to? The world's a crazy place. Now I can't get back to sleep, suppose it was hopeful to think I could nap for a full day, guess it's time to be the supportive BFF. I reply with confirmation and look back to Elise, still spark out, no need to wake her for this, let her sleep. She looks so pretty when she sleeps.

I quietly exit the room and recon the house, seems like everyone's abandoned the place, no barking from Ruby, no Mum in the living room, no music from Rouge's. The last one is pretty critical, I don't know what this is about but I'm betting it's not something she wants to share with her former fling. Soon enough I hear the knock at the door.

I welcome Trish in and gesture to keep quiet, don't want to wake sleeping beauty. We enter the living room and I shut the door behind me. "So, what's going on?" I ask, finally able to speak at normal volume. "Your message sounded serious." I add, taking a seat on the sofa, Trish paces instead.

"I need to ask you something." She clarifies. Shit, given what I know and how bad I am at lying about things this could end very badly. "What... What would you do if you found out Elise slept with someone else?"

Okay, so I know what she's alluding to, but I can't say I know about Skye and Rouge, in case she doesn't know, and then I cause her to know, you know? "Erm... She did... You... I slept with you as well, ring any bells?" I answer, I'm a bad liar so deflection is all I really have.

"You know what I mean, like, on her own, not permitted or whatever..." She specifies. The details are way too accurate, there's no way Rouge spilled the beans, did Skye tell her? I thought she was sworn to secrecy...

In terms of her question I think back, way back, to the moment I saw her relationship status with Pierre, to the dream I had of them fucking. I know that situation was different, I didn't know how Elise felt at that stage, but still... That pain was like being run through with a sword, and that was back when it was just a schoolgirl crush.

"I'd... Probably fall apart, Elise is part of me... I don't think I'd be able to function anymore, even back when we first met, if I knew she'd been with someone else after we'd been intimate... It'd tear me apart inside, like she didn't have faith in us... Like she didn't have faith in me." I admit. "That being said, if she was just lying about being a virgin and she had sex years ago, that's a different matter, history's history." I continue, which is also true, jealousy's a cruel mistress, but it's not like I'm jealous that she ever had a crush on anyone else. God knows I have.

"It was the day she asked me out." Trish shuts down my optimism. She's definitely talking about Rouge then, unlikely Skye had sex with two people that night. "I figured it was something like that, anger, wrath, all that hell hath no fury shit... So why don't I feel any of that? Why do I just feel... Relief?"

Holy shit, she's not here on a murder rampage, she's here for actual relationship advice. This isn't an interrogation, it's my time to shine!

"Maybe because you were literally banging me and Elise that night? It'd be hypocritical?" I offer, trying not to lead her to the Rouge question. "I mean, do you know the person?"

Trish looks at me and finally sits down in Jasper's chair. "No. She didn't tell me, just said it was a random girl, didn't get her name... But that's bullshit, she really cared about her first time being special, she told me that much... Maybe I don't care because she lied to me from the beginning." She speculates.

Oh no.

No, please, no.

Don't put me in this position, I've changed my mind.

Trish is at a crossroads right now, if I goad her into it, she'll blame it all on Skye and Rouge can admit her feelings without worry... But it'd destroy Skye... And any friendship I have her her would vanish... I'd give my sister everything she wants, I just need to sacrifice being the person I thought I was. I said I'd sort this without anyone getting hurt... But maybe this is the way to make it as painless as possible?

Fucking damn it, I wish I could be that person. Life would be so easy.

"You don't believe that." I respond. "Elise told me she was straight, to my face, and I'm still in love with her. Skye's first time was a big deal to her, but maybe she got caught up in the moment, Hell, you lost your V card because Rouge decided to bang you on a whim one day. People get horny and they have sex, you know that better than anyone. I think... I think you're not angry because you don't blame her. I think... I think you sympathise with her." I conclude.

I can't let her sabotage herself just to make things easy for me. It's not fair. We'll struggle together. All of us.

"Did she say that?" Trish asks, her gaze locked to the floor.

"I don't know, I'm just saying what I think, I haven't spoken to Skye today." I answer, I thought I'd made myself clear, maybe I'm not as good at these pep talks as I thought.

"Not Skye." Trish retorts, looking up at me. "Rouge... Did She say it was just a whim?"

Shit, I didn't realise I mentioned the R word, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap.

I try to regain my focus, if I give too much away Trish will start asking more questions. "Why don't you ask her that yourself?" I counter, turning it back on her. I'm shit at tennis, but I can't afford to lose this verbal back and forth.

"I... It's not fair to, I mean... She trusted me to follow the rules and I didn't, after I told her to trust me. I don't have the right to speak to her..." Trish rambles. "I need to leave her alone, I just... I wanted to know if-"

"Oh shut up!" A voice rings out from the door. I didn't hear Rouge come back... Wait, that didn't sound like her, that was the voice of...

Elise swings the door open and strides into the room, still in her pyjamas, but with the aura of a warrior goddess. "You two are talking such utter shit! You both know exactly what's happening!" She declares angrily. "Trish, the reason you're not upset is because you never liked Skye in the first place, not really, she was just conveniently persistent, so then you could break the rules, get together with her, and end things with Rouge. Which you had to do, because you wanted to be with her and she refused to consider it. You're relieved because now you don't have to come up with a reason to break it off, and you're free to be the perfect princess your family can sell off like a prized goat. Did I get anything wrong?"

Trish's face mirror's mine, shock, disbelief, fear, this ambush left us both with these feelings. In my case arousal, but that may be because of how we spent last night.

"Look, I know you don't want to admit it, and Scarlet doesn't want to force you to realise, but you're not the only one in this situation. Don't Skye and Rouge deserve some honesty too?" Elise finishes, placing her hand on Trish's shoulder.

"I don't know." She mutters. "I don't know if I'm really lying to myself, or if any of this is worth it when it's gonna end with me getting shipped off... Besides, let's say you're right, Rouge doesn't want to be with me and I don't want to be with Skye... Doesn't that mean it's all over?"

Elise turns to me with renewed rage. "I'm gonna slap her." She states bluntly. "Look, it doesn't matter, because you're saying this to us, not them, so all you're doing is throwing yourself a pity party. You're better than that."

I'm not sure if I should ban Elise from the girl talk or make her the only one allowed to offer it. She's making her point and it's hard to say she's wrong, but she's really laying into Trish. Plus, if she's right then that would mean Rouge and Trish both want to be with the other but are convinced they can't tell the other. What kind of elaborate con is this? This soap opera is out of control.

"Thank you." Trish finally breaks the silence. "I need to think about some stuff, but thanks, you've helped straighten things out or me." Okay, well that settles it, Elise is taking all BFF chats from now on.

Trish leaves the house and I'm left with an angry girlfriend... I'm really hoping she remembers how much she loves me.

"Well, sounds like this Hallowe'en party is going to get more interesting!" She smirks at me. Okay, guess she wasn't so mad. Wait, what? Elise seems to see how taken aback I am, and decides to explain. "Rouge has a plan, Trish is thinking... And I have a plan to solve all of it." She continues, wrapping her arms around me. "A trap for their traps. I think we owe them a little assistance, no?"

I'd almost forgotten for half a second there... How much I love this girl.