To the Laundromat

Later that day, Nora dragged two bags of laundry with her to the laundromat (as her family still didn't own a washing machine large enough to take care of everyone's dirty laundry). Thankfully, no one was there, so she didn't have to wait.

More importantly, she wouldn't have to show anyone her stained bedsheets.

Nora didn't pull out her bedsheets until the end. She didn't want to see them. When the rest of their clothes were in, she finally took a breath and opened the bag with her bedsheets.

“Hey-oh, Nora!”

Suddenly, an arm wrapped itself over Nora's shoulder and pulled her close. Nora blinked as she saw Amber staring at her with a bright smile.

“Wh... what... what are you doing here?” Nora stammered.

“Laundry duty,” Amber said. “Thought I was gonna be bored until I saw you.” Amber paused and sniffed. “What smells like fish?”

Nora flushed and closed her bag. Unfortunately, Amber noticed. She pulled the bag open and looked inside.

“Oh,” Amber said. “Someone had happy dreams.”

Nora's face was red now.

“Please don't tell anyone,” she whispered.

“Oh, sure.”

Quietly and quickly, Nora poured her bedsheets into the washer. Amber watched her silently. Only when Nora was finished did she speak.

“Seems like you've been going through a lot this past year,” Amber said. Nora turned to her and Amber started counting. “Your birthday, the beach, that incident with the booze.”

“Please don't remind me,” Nora squeaked.

“I know that your eighteenth birthday's supposed to be a big deal and all, but I didn't expect all this. I mean, just a year ago you never talked about sex. Now people are catching you, er, in the act, all the time.”

“Please, stop!”

Amber blinked.

“Oh, sorry,” she said, smiling nervously and rubbing the back of her neck. “It's just... I care about you, Nora. Just know I've got a shoulder for you.”

“Um, thanks.”

“A clothed shoulder, mind you.”

Nora glared at her.

“Not another naked joke,” she said.

“Sorry, sorry.”

Amber turned around and started pouring her laundry into a machine. As she did, Nora took notice of her butt. It was so round and tight. It was alluring.

Nora blinked. No, no, no. She slapped herself. Why now? Why to her friends?

Nora thought about what Amber had just said. Maybe she should.

“Uh, A-Amber,” she stuttered out.

“Yeah?” Amber asked without looking away. She shifted on her feet, making her butt sway from one side to the next. No!

“W-well, do you think, y-you can help me? With this?”

“Your laundry?”

“No,” Nora said.

“Change?”

“No.”

Amber was silent.

“I mean,” Nora said. She paused and took a breath. “With... sex... and stuff.”

Amber closed the lid on the laundry and turned around, leaning against the washing machine. She studied Nora with non-judgmental eyes.

“These feelings are normal, Nora,” she said. “Well, masturbating in the open isn't exactly normal.”

“Amber!”

Amber laughed nervously again.

“Okay, okay,” she said. “What is it?”

Nora sat down on a bench and looked down at her shoes, unwilling to look Amber in the eye.

“I've been having... dreams,” she said. “About Molly. Seeing her naked. Having... sex... with her.” Nora whispered “sex”, hoping it wouldn't be heard. “The sheets... are like that cause one of those dreams. And ever since the beach, I just can't get these weird thoughts out of my head. I'm not a lesbian, am I?”

Hesitantly, Nora looked up at Amber. Amber was staring at her, jaw opened slightly. Nora buried her hands in her face.

“I'm a freak,” she muttered.

Amber sat down beside her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

“No, no,” she said. “You're just bi, it looks like.”

Nora didn't look up.

“Maybe we should talk to Molly about this,” Amber said, an edge to her voice. Nora recognized that tone; it was the tone she always took on whenever she was ready to cause trouble. Do some sort of prank. “Let's go walk up to her and you can try asking her out on a dat-”

“No!”

It came out louder than Nora had wanted. Her voice echoed around the laundromat. Nora flinched and looked around. Still, no one was there except for them. Amber looked away from her.

“Sorry,” Nora said. “It's just that... I'm so confused. I don't wanna ask a girl out. Not yet.”

“Alright,” Amber said quietly.

“Please don't tell Molly about this,” Nora pleaded. “If she finds out I've been dreaming about her – her naked – she'll think I'm some sort of freak. More so than already.”

“She doesn't think you're a freak,” Amber said. Then she swallowed and nodded. “Alright. I can keep a secret. You can trust me.”

Nora hugged Amber. Amber grunted in surprise, then patted her on the shoulders.

The rest of their hours at the laundromat was uneventful.