Way of living

We all sat in a serene quiet and ate our respective entrees. It was rare for all three of us to be together and not have a conversation going. I could hardly complain though. A comfortable silence — what felt like one to me, at least — was a good thing. I had high hopes that times like these were a sign that people got along well.

Ironically, Rina decided it was a good time to bring the conversation back to life.

Rina: Hey, so…And feel free to shoot me down if you don’t wanna talk about it, but… What was the deal with that whole act at Leyland’s? I figured you guys were just playing it off, but we just kinda left after that and didn’t talk about it. I dunno, gave me a weird vibe the more I thought about it.

There it was. I had been passively wondering if — or, more accurately, when — she was going to ask about that situation. Before I could respond though, Nia readily chimed in with her own contribution.

Nia: The “hot and cold pregnant lesbians” shtick is our ol’ reliable. It used to be just a “hot and cold lesbians" act, but some of those douchebags’d still think they could bag both of us.

Emery: Pretending one of us is pregnant has yielded much better results in the long run.

Rina: Yeah, Em was telling me you have a history with guys acting like that.

Nia stiffened, then jerked in my direction, silently asking what exactly I had said about her “history with guys". She was probably worried I’d spoken about her rough patch in high school; wanting to, if possible, avoid the topic around Rina after awkwardly brushing past it during our first meet-up. Rina quirked her brow, but withheld any comment.

Emery: We’ve had a lot of bad luck with guys being overly persistent. Not just on her end either, actually. Sometimes I’m the one they hit on, thinking I’m a girl too.

I clarified and diverted the topic a bit, both of which Nia was clearly thankful for.

Rina: …And they don’t care when you tell them you’re a guy?

Emery: …They usually think I’m lying, and I’m not exactly keen to debate them on that. That’s why we started the whole complicated act.

Rina scowled hard at that.

Rina: What a bunch of fucking…!

She unclenched her fist and took a deep breath, then looked at me with an icy gaze.

Rina: Phew…fucking assholes… Whatever though, izzat why you added the whole pregnancy deal?

Emery: More or less. Some guys like them are still fine with pestering lesbian couples, but even the ones gutsy enough for that leave a girl alone if she’s pregnant.

She clicked her tongue in frustration.

Rina: Gross. No wonder you were so good at the scatterbrain girl act, when you two’ve gotta deal with shit like that all the time.

This time it was my turn to stiffen. I wasn’t expecting her to touch on my dark past as well. Rina had a proclivity for touching on sensitive subjects by accident. Then again, we had given her the go ahead to ask about a topic we were plainly brushing past. It was hardly her fault.

Emery: Yep, you got it… It’s a real pain sometimes, but I do it for Nia.

Rina seemed to notice something, but, once again, she kept whatever observations she had to herself. She was much more conversationally reserved than I gave her credit for in the past. But I supposed I should have expected that given our reactions — it was just a stark contrast from her usual physical displays of affection.

We let the conversation die and buried it with huge piles of food and drink. Dusk eventually began to creep in as we finished. We sat satisfied around the table, enjoying light bits of chit-chat and polishing off our plates.

Rina: …So Em, why’d you say I’m not good with conflict?

Emery: Hmm?

Nia: When’d you say that?

Emery: Before we met up with you, hun. Though I think I said "you don’t like arguments”, if I recall correctly.

I tapped my chin and looked over Rina as I considered my answer. She was propped back casually, like she had little investment, but I sensed some pretense there. Why hide her intrigue though? A statement like that could have been reasonably interesting to someone who seemed to be so confident — granted, I had a blooming skepticism towards that attitude of hers…

Emery: I’m not sure why I said that. I’ve just never once seen you real fight with anyone, so it must have been an impression I got. You do get into some heated discussions sometimes — earlier today, for example — but in the almost three years we’ve known each other, you always smooth things over somehow before they get serious. Doesn’t matter if they’re a friend or a stranger. It happens a lot during your basketball games, especially.

A small smile came to her face as I explained my reasoning.

Rina: …I’m glad to hear that…

She stared off into space briefly, then continued speaking.

Rina: …Cause I’ve gotta show all the kids I coach how to act, obviously. If I don’t behave myself they'll pick up shitty habits, haha!

Rina: And speaking of shitty habits…

Rina stood up and pulled her wallet from her pocket.

Rina: About time I paid you back for lending me those notes!

Nia and I started to object, but Rina held a finger to her lips and leaned against the table.

Rina: Shush, I don’t wanna hear it. Just lemme do this. Besides, this is more a custom than obligation…

She leaned in closer and adopted a sultry whisper.

Rina: Cause I always wine and dine the people I’m gonna fuck~.

She promptly walked off without another word as Nia and I sat there. With all the fun we’d had today, we didn’t realize just how much time had passed. The outside world was dark now, but the night was still very, very young…