Chapter 1:
Drifting in and out of thought as she slowly sketched the bowl of fruit in front of her, Rachel glanced over at Cher, who was only sitting a few desks away. Though Rachel had never actually talked to Cher, she found her fascinating. As she fantasized about this beautiful black haired goddess that sat within the same classroom walls as her own mediocre body, Andy, the guy that sat behind her, poked her in the rib with a pencil.

“Hey, Rachel, how did you draw the orange? I can’t seem to figure it out,” his dark black liberty spikes shaking as he tossed his head from side to side in a kind of confused and ‘help me’ way. It was obvious he just wanted to speak to her, because he had already finished drawing the entire bowl with flawless perfection. He had, had a bit of an obsession with her almost all year long and she couldn’t seem to get him to leave her alone.

She flipped her hair back with a smooth flick of her wrist and then turned back around to her work. Andy jabbed her in the side again, but this time she didn’t turn around. “What do you want?” she groaned, wishing he would just get back to his own work and stop bothering her. He didn’t respond, probably from the amount of hostility he had heard in her voice, and so Rachel just continued to sketch. Every now and then she’d look up at Cher and pray for her to turn around and look back at her.

The teacher, Michael, who had insisted on being called Mike, was rambling on about form and shading, but Rachel wasn’t pay much attention; she never did. She stared at Cher, at her silky black hair that crept down half the length of her back, and her luscious lips that seemed to hypnotize everyone around her. Rachel was so preoccupied, looking at Cher, that she didn’t notice that Michael had asked her a question. He slowly walked over to her desk and slammed down with the palms of his hands, snapping her back to reality. “Uh.. what,” she mumbled, still entranced.

“What is the first rule of a line?”

Rachel could feel the eyes of everyone in the classroom on her, and her heart beat at a rapid pace that she could not control. “It’s..uhm..,” she scrambled to remember what she had read the day before in her textbook, but came up with nothing, “I don’t know.”

“Andy?”

Andy, who had been raising his hand the entire time, gave a beautifully rehearsed, and some what long answer that seemed to make Michael happy, because he smiled and moved back to his black board to get on with the lesson. Phew, Rachel thought, sitting back up in her seat and grabbing her pencil to sketch the rest of the fruit bowl.

Cher’s smile caught Rachel’s eye, and she looked up to see Cher gazing at her with a curious grin. Rachel fumbled with her supplies and then froze and just stared back. Andy grabbed her hair and jolted her into an extremely aware state, and she turned around and snapped at him. Cher laughed and turned back to her work. Rachel watched in amazement as Cher’s pale white fingers smudged the lead across her paper.

“Damn it all to hell,” Cher’s voice rang above the sound of the mellow Indian music the teacher had put on, “shit!” The teacher silently reminded her to be quiet with a look of disapproval and slight anger and she held her hands up in defense and apology, and settled back into her work. Rachel giggled. Cher glared at her, but her expression lightened as Rachel continued to laugh, and then Cher gave her a slight smile and shrugged. Rachel looked down and bit her lip.

Then the bell rang and she gathered up her things and stood up to walk to the door, but then turned around to ask Cher something, but as she did, she realized Cher had already been swarmed by a crowd of friends and was laughing and joking selflessly. Rachel sighed at her beauty, and then walked swiftly out the door.

Chapter 2:
What’s her name? Who is she? Why does she keep staring at me? Cher contemplated all this as she watched the small blond girl a few rows back get out her art supplies and turn and smile at her. Cher politely smiled back and then flipped open her sketchbook and began to draw the odd man type sculpture in front of her. Its limbs hung at odd angles, and its wooden parts were held together with tiny nails that Cher thought looked like mini wicked cat eyes. She had no idea how she was suppose to draw this strange figurine. This was her second year in this art class and she still had no clue on how to draw any of the shapes or do any of the shading. Every time she tried her hardest at something in this class it ended up looking like some lopsided monster from the sewers or beyond the grave. Most all things she drew had a dark tint to them, but that wasn’t the problem. They never were proportional and she could never find herself satisfied after making any piece of art, this just wasn’t her. The counseling lady, Beth, had insisted she must pass an Art class if she was going to get into a good college. Who was she kidding; she’d never pass this class. Her second time taking it and she was still as clueless as before. She barely even wanted to go to college anymore. If school at this level was already too hard, what would make her think she could work at a college proficiency?

Rachel stared at her with sparkling golden-brown eyes, and lightly bit her lip in a seductive and somewhat inviting way that made Cher slightly uncomfortable. Cher watched as the boy behind her kept trying many ways to get Rachel’s attention: he would poke her, pull at her clothes or ask her questions, and sometimes even chuck things at the back of her head. How annoying; what a cute couple they make, Cher thought to herself sarcastically. She rolled her eyes and looked back at the tiny wooden man that stood on her desk.

Just then Cher saw a delicate hand set itself down upon the side of her desk, and looked up to see Rachel looking at her with admiration. Cher almost flinched backwards, but then sneered and rottenly hissed, “What are you doing?”

Her blond hair bouncing up and down as she hopped excitedly, Rachel whispered, “I wanted to see your art. It looked amazing from over there. I wanted to get a closer look.” She smiled happily at Cher’s angry glare.

“Oh yeah, THAT’S what you’ve been staring at this whole time,” Cher growled.

“Don’t bark at me,” Rachel snapped.

Cher looked at her slightly amused, “Why did you really come over here?”

Rachel’s feet danced around a bit as she fiddled with her fingers and looked around the room for an answer that already sat on the tip of her tongue. She gave Cher a wide smile and bounced over to the empty seat next to her.

“Why don’t you go hang out with your boyfriend?” Cher pressed with precise pronunciation.

Little by little Rachel inched her way forward, “Well, like I’ve been telling this guy, I’M INTO GIRLS!” She yelled at Andy as she saw him staring at her, and then held out her hand to Cher. “Hi, my names Rachel.”

Cher took Rachel’s hand in hers and shook it, smirking. “I’m Cher,” she laughed, “that was quite some introduction.” Rachel giggled and held her hand over her face to hide herself from humiliation. Everyone that had stopped to listen to their conversation went back to work, and Rachel sat back down on the chair next to Cher’s desk. Cher pursed her lips together and looked Rachel up and down. “Not bad, not bad.” Rachel giggled again. “What? I’m just saying, your hot,” she noticed Rachel’s uncertainty, “I’m into girls too honey, so trust me, your fucking fine!”

Rachel giggled again and Cher smiled brightly, then they just stared at each other. Cher watched as Rachel slowly slid her hand towards her. Cher took the initiative and took Rachel’s hand in hers. Rachel giggled again and smiled shyly at her. Cher smiled back. Then the bell rang and they gathered their stuff together; Rachel frequently glancing at Cher. Cher then stood and waited by the door. Rachel bounced happily towards her and reached for Cher’s hand as they walked out together.

Chapter 3:
Rachel’s bright red nose stuck out while she closed her eyes and pursed her lips in a bulldog manner as Cher walked up. Cher took a seat next to Rachel on the bench near the window of the cafeteria, and with perfect grace leaned forward and lightly wiggled her nose against Rachel’s.

“Morning beautiful,” Cher smiled.

Giggling slightly, Rachel gave Cher a peck. She really wasn’t convinced that she looked at all attractive, even after three months of being told so by her angel faced lover; so every time Cher said something like that she tried her best to take it to heart, but in the end couldn’t believe it. “Morning,” Rachel beamed, “Are you coming with me to my grandpa’s lake after school to go fishing?”

Cher looked down inside herself to find a reality where she might even slightly be talented enough to go fishing, or at least be fearless enough to get on the boat. She gulped, and stared at Rachel with anxiety. Rachel understood her uncertainty and just shrugged it off and skipped over to a new topic, “Well, would you at least like to join me for dinner at my dad’s house tomorrow night for Christmas Eve? He said it would be fine if you spent the night, and he won’t interrogate you like he did last time. He was just watching out for me, I know, but I could tell you were getting uncomfortable with it. Anyways, my point is, a ton of my relatives are coming down from Chicago to see me and I thought it might be a good time to introduce them to you. I mean, that is, only if you’d like.” Cher nodded so Rachel continued. “It is also my sister’s last night in town before she leaves for New York City. You know, I told you about how she got an acting job there? Well, yeah, she just found out they need her sooner than she thought, so she has to speed rush to move in to her new apartment. It is truly crazy. She even has to pack up all she’s got tonight, because she won’t have time tomorrow night with the family and all. That’s why me, and my two demons of brothers are being sent to my Grandpa’s cabin.”

“What do some city people from Chicago want to visit a crappy town like this for?” Cher scowled.

Rachel took Cher’s hand and squeezed it to lighten her mood, “Fishing mostly. Not much else to do around here. You know, and they want to see us ol’ rug rats,” Rachel rolled her eyes, “God, I hate when my dad refers to us like that. He only does it when they’re around. But still, it gets so old.”

Cher chuckled, “Just like you, you damned carpet vermin,” she said, rustling up Rachel’s hair a bit. Rachel smiled and kissed Cher lightly on the lips, and then sat back with a faint cute girlish smile and bit her lip as she tried to smooth out the ratted mess up top her head. “Come here,” Cher grabbed the back of Rachel’s head and pulled her in and took one hand and cupped Rachel’s left cheek and gave her a big kiss, then slowly smoothed out her hair with her other hand and gave her another kiss. “You look stunning, do you know that?” Rachel looked down, uncertain. “You’re beautiful,” Cher stared deep into her eyes and kissed her again; this time with more passion and tenderness than she ever had before. “I’d love to spend time with you tonight. You’ve never been to my house before; how bout you come over tonight instead of going to your grandpa’s cabin. You can see him anytime. I just want this one night to be ours, okay? What do you say?” Rachel nodded as her heart started to pound rapidly. “Meet me after school then. I’ll be by my car, out in the front parking lot. I love you. See you later,” and with that the bell rang and Cher gave Rachel another very passionate kiss before hopping up, bag in hand, and sprinting to her next class.

Rachel sat there contemplating how the night might go, and if she needed to be worried about what to expect. She gradually picked up her things and walked out into the hall. Like a blur she floated through the crowd of students to her next class, in a daze, thinking of nothing else but Cher.

Chapter 4:
Cher stood, leaning against the hood of her 4wheel drive, navy blue jeep. About twenty minutes had passed since school had ended and there was still no sign of Rachel anywhere. Cher couldn’t believe Rachel would stand her up, so she just kept on waiting; impatiently tapping her foot against the left front wheel of her car and tugging on her hair as she looped her fingers around creating ringlets at the bottom of her du. A ten dollar bill loosely hung out of her flower imprinted, jean pants pocket; and she twiddled it between two fingers. The Mocha frappuccino, cold Starbucks drink, she had been sipping on since the end of her last class, was now thrown down behind her two front seats, and lay at a somewhat awkward stance as the last few drops slipped through the cracks and onto her carpet. Time ticked by and Cher just stood there staring at the campus gates, waiting for Rachel to appear suddenly from around some corner.

Finally Cher picked up her neatly crocheted, black yarn jacket from where it lay at her feet, and hopped into the car. With a sigh of regret, she put her jeep into reverse, backed it out of the parking lot, and stepped on the gas pedal. She quickly sped through the second set of school gates and onto the road.

As she drove, she felt like she was going to be sick, and suddenly lunged forward as the pit of her stomach clenched in protest to the empty passenger seat. Then she noticed something at the corner of her eye and stomped on the brake. “Rachel?” Cher yelled at a very shrill pitch; hurt sounded in her voice, and the last syllable caught in her throat. Rachel’s head flipped up from her book and she stared at Cher with her eyes wide and her mouth dropped open in shock. Rachel scrambled for her things, and jumped off the bench, slowly making her way to Cher’s side door; a glimpse of shame in her eye.

“Uhm, hi?” Rachel let out with an unsuccessful try for a half smile.

Cher fumed, her face red hot and about to explode, “WHERE WERE YOU? I WAS WAITING IN THAT STUPID PARKING LOT FOR HALF AN HOUR! YOU TOLD ME YOU’D MEET ME THERE RACHEL! IF YOU DIDN’T WANT TO SPEND TIME WITH ME TODAY YOU SHOULD HAVE SAID SOMETHING! WHY WOULD YOU JUST STAND ME UP LIKE THAT? HOW COULD YOU?”

Rachel’s cheeks turned bright pink in embarrassment, “I’m so, so very sorry. Cher please. I just, I, well, you see, I just,” she tried to wrap her brain around the right words, but was unable to catch them and pull them down onto her tongue. After a moment of silence she continued, “I was just scared,” her voice was as small as a mouse as she tried to hide how frightened she truly was.

With a look of surprise, Cher opened the passenger door, “You were scared? Of me?” Rachel tried to explain but Cher waved it off and pressed, “Get in the car Rach,” she saw a look of doubt in Rachel’s eyes so she said it again softer, “Please, can you get in the car Rach? I can drive you home if you’d like, or you can come with me to my house. I want to talk to you though; so, can you please just get in the car?” Rachel hesitated, but then set her bag down on the car floor and hoisted herself up onto the seat. “I love you, you know that, don’t you? There is nothing to be afraid of darling,” Cher leaned over and gave Rachel a tender kiss on the lips and a tight squeeze, then turned back to the steering wheel and motioned for Rachel to close the door.

Her fingers prickling with the cold, Cher grabbed Rachel’s mitten covered palm and ran her boney fingers through the creases of the gloves. As their hands intertwined, Cher pushed her foot down on the gas, and they leaped into the rushing wind.

As they arrived at Cher’s house, Cher gave Rachel a light squeeze with her hand and smiled playfully. Rachel bit her lip, and Cher grinned. Once they came to a complete stop in front of Cher’s dad’s old, beat up truck, Rachel opened her door cautiously, and slid outside. The wind blew viciously around her neck as she stepped towards the house. Cher beckoned to her with a seductive curling of the finger, and Rachel obeyed, following Cher to the front door.

“Your folks home?” Rachel asked shyly; not completely ready to meet new people.

Cher blushed and flittered her eyelashes, “Nope. Just you and me tonight Shelly.” Rachel almost threw up from anxiety as Cher planted another huge kiss on her.

Chapter 5:
She knew they had been dating for about three months now, but Rachel couldn’t help feeling like this was going too fast. She wasn’t used to all this sex stuff, and she wasn’t as open with herself as Cher seemed to be. Before she had met Cher she mostly stayed in her little bubble; consisting of only herself and her family. She had never done anything rash, had never gotten into trouble, and every year, she was the one to take responsibility and do all the daily chores as well as get everyone where they needed to be. She took care of her entire family. Not that spending time with Cher hadn’t been a nice break from all of that, but she was still just a poor sheltered little kid with puppy dog eyes that could convince her dad that she owned the world. In his eyes, he still saw her as that little girl that played with stuffed animals and Barbie dolls, and ran around outside in the mud; and in most ways she still was that same little girl; frightened of the unknown, and always so very trusting of everything her daddy told her, because that was the only way in which she new the outside world.

Rachel began to panic; cute nicknames and romantic kisses, along side lit scented candles and rose petals. She may not have known much about this kind of stuff, but she had seen movies and read books and she knew enough, and she knew what this was leading up to. But, the most she had even done with Cher was kiss, and she knew more than that was going down tonight. All she kept thinking was how unready she was for all of this, but she told herself to just be calm and push through it. She wasn’t about to ruin the night for Cher.

“Oh Shelly Fish, do you mind bringing me that towel that’s over there in the chair by the fireplace?” Cher called from the bathroom.

Rachel got up and passed the towel to Cher through the crack in the door, “You’re nicknaming me after Shellfish?”

Cher came into the room with the towel neatly wrapped around her body, “Oh Shelly, don’t be mad.” Rachel bobbed her head up and down slowly, biting her lip, and rolled her eyes. “Hun, would you like to change too?”

Blankly gawking at the wall, Rachel tried to find a way to politely excuse herself, so she could get out of this. “Cher, I,” Rachel paused.

“I know, I’m sorry. Would you like to just watch t.v. first and work your way up to it?”

It was a sweet offer, but Rachel didn’t want to have any part in this at all; it didn’t matter if they worked up to it, because she just wasn’t ready, period. But Rachel nodded, for lack of anything better to suggest. So they sat down on the couch and Cher flicked on the television set.

A few moments went by in silence and Rachel finally noticed Cher staring at her. Rachel looked down, nervous, and smiled slightly as she glanced back up at Cher. Cher’s eyes were glowing bright with passion and Rachel could feel the intensity radiating and being sucked into her soul. She couldn’t resist temptation, even though it felt like it was too early. The way Cher looked at her made something inside her warm up and she suddenly found herself breathing heavily as she tried with all her energy to focus on the movie.

Cher bent over, grabbing Rachel’s face and back as she did so, and kissed her lightly on the lips. Just once is all it took to send Rachel’s hormones out of whack. A feeling of insanity sprung up inside her and she reached for Cher’s body, because for some reason it looked more magnificent to her now than it ever had before, and she had to touch it, she was determined to trace ever inch of Cher’s flesh. She wrapped her arms around Cher and kissed her back with as much force as she could manage. Cher took her finger and ran it down Rachel’s nose and lips and all the way to the bottom of her neck, where she then kissed her roughly with a slight amount of teeth.

Rachel’s mind was whizzing past reality so quickly that her brain couldn’t keep up with what was going on, but everything felt so good she didn’t care to make it stop. Cher kissed down Rachel’s body to her breast that was overflowing over the top of her shirt. With angel’s hands and a goddess’s touch, Cher proceeded to lift up Rachel’s shirt, dragging her nails up her body as she did so. Rachel let out a deep moan, and Cher kissed her lips, then slowly removed her top and headed for her pants.

Lightly, as to not move too fast, Cher ran her hand down between Rachel’s legs and up into her crotch. She slowly rubbed up and down, using her fingers to press in deeply at certain points. Rachel gasped, and Cher looked at her seductively, then kissed her again passionately as she continued to rub Rachel’s senses wild.

Cher ran her fingers down Rachel’s side, squeezing her hips tightly and pressing her thumbs deeply into Rachel’s bones. Cher’s tongue hypnotized Rachel’s like a snake, and they spun them around each other continuously as if their tongues’ were horses on a carousel. As they kissed they slowly undressed each other. Cher’s hands flew to undo Rachel’s pants, as Rachel undid Cher’s. Rachel lifted Cher’s shirt off her body to reveal an extremely sexy, black lace bra with pale yellow tiger stripes. Rachel bit her lip and kissed Cher with great intensity as she reached for Cher’s breasts. Cupping them firmly in her hands she gave them a light squeeze, and then crawled her fingers slowly around Cher’s body to her back and started to undo her bra. They both took off their pants, and wrapped their legs around each other as Cher lay down on top of Rachel; smashing her boobs into Rachel’s chest and clutching Rachel’s hair in her fist as she kissed her lips with passion. Somehow Rachel’s bra was taken off and flung across the room, and she giggled as Cher pressed her burning skin against Rachel’s. The fire burned deep behind their eyes as they stared at one another, panting.

With a sly maneuver, Cher slid her hand down under Rachel’s panties, rubbing her slightly, and then kissed her hard right as she stuck her index finger up inside Rachel. Rachel caught her breath in her throat for a moment before releasing it all with a loud moan. Cher bit Rachel’s lip and pulled it slightly, then let it go and swiveled her tongue around Rachel’s as quick as she could, over and over again, to amplify the feeling of pleasure. Picking up quickly on how everything worked, Rachel grabbed and squeezed Cher’s right breast in one hand and grabbed her ass in the other. After a second, Rachel moved her hand up onto Cher’s lower back, and kind of tickled it around, drawing swirling circles very lightly on Cher’s silky smooth skin. Without thinking, Rachel took hold of Cher’s lip in between her teeth, and dragged her hand, nails down, up her back. She clawed all the way up to the top of Cher’s spine, and Cher let out a quiet moan in Rachel’s ear, which Rachel took to mean that the move had been satisfactory.

Cher then dug her fingernails into Rachel’s hips and bit her neck. Taking her left arm, she cradled Rachel’s head, and with her right arm, pried up her body from the couch, rolling it over onto her own, making them both fall down onto the ground. Rachel now lay atop Cher, and Cher grabbed both of Rachel’s legs and moved them up so that both of Rachel’s knees were at Cher’s sides. Rachel kissed Cher and wrapped her feet around Cher’s thighs. Cher flips Rachel over onto the ground, with her legs now wrapped around Cher’s waist, and started to take off Rachel’s panties. Cher then slowly slid off her own, and kissed down Rachel’s lips. She then kissed every inch of Rachel’s body, down to her hips, and lay her body down so her head was right at Rachel’s crotch. Cher smiled at Rachel, and Rachel took a deep breath as Cher’s tongue lightly licked the outside of her pussy. Rachel started to breath heavily as Cher’s tongue dipped inside Rachel, and as she wiggled her tongue back and forth with quick repetition and slid it down farther inside Rachel, Rachel’s body tensed up and she gasped.

As Cher’s tongue licked at Rachel’s wet crevices, her hands felt up Rachel’s thick, hard nipples, and rubbed around her breasts. Rachel moaned loudly and Cher moved up to Rachel’s face, replacing her tongue with her middle finger, and then letting Rachel lick the juice off her tongue and lips. Groaning as Cher’s finger slid in and out of her, Rachel bit her lip and tried to hold back the overpowering, satisfying feelings. Cher dug her finger in as deep as she could and Rachel clawed at Cher’s back. Then Cher bit Rachel’s lip, and Rachel giggled; her whole body moving with her laughter, adding to the pleasure of Cher’s finger. Rachel stared into Cher’s eyes, breathing heavily as she did so, and quickly mouthed the words “I love you”, sending electric shocks through Cher’s heart. Cher repeated it back to her and pushed her finger up farther inside Rachel, making her gasp. Rachel’s eyes became more excited every minute and soon Rachel’s body was basically shaking with the feeling of wanting. She needed Cher’s body, she needed that feeling, she wanted nothing more than this, and could think of nothing else but this moment.

Rachel pushed her body closer to Cher’s, thinking she couldn’t possibly get close enough to the feeling of pleasure. Cher rubbed up against Rachel harder and pushed Rachel tightly against the ground. Rachel licked Cher’s lips and Cher quickly tangled her hand in Rachel’s hair, pulling it and making Rachel moan louder. **********Cher feels Rachel getting wetter by the second and moves her hand from Rachel’s hair to her breast; cupping it and squeezing it in a desperate move for satisfaction. Cher massages Rachel’s breast, pushing down around it and twirling circles all over it with her fingers. Rachel then starts to scream in Cher’s ear, and Cher lightly kisses Rachel’s neck.

Pushing as hard as she could against Cher’s finger, Rachel gasps again; and with that Cher could feel Rachel orgasming out onto her hand. Cher took another finger and stuck it up inside Rachel with her middle finger, pushing them up as far as they could go for one last shock. Rachel’s eyes rolled back and she moaned louder than she had all night long.

Cher stopped, sliding her fingers out of Rachel, giving her another jolt of pleasure. Rachel gasped again and then smiled at Cher, trying to slow her breathing. Cher kissed Rachel lightly on the forehead and smiled back at her, then wrapped her arms around Rachel and whispered, “I love you” in her ear. Rachel couldn’t keep her mouth closed long enough to smile again, but her pounding heart and rapid breathing was enough communication for Cher.

Rachel lightly rolled Cher off of her and then snuggled up into her for warmth. Cher smiled, and grabbed a blanket off the couch to throw over them both. After they got situated; Cher’s arm under Rachel’s head and Rachel’s head leaning against Cher’s chest, their legs intertwined and their hands hooked together; they just laid there and cuddled up in with the blanket. Every few seconds Cher would kiss Rachel’s neck again, and Rachel would let out a sudden breath, almost like a gasp, but quieter.

As they lied there, snuggled into one another, Rachel sighed and fell asleep. Cher just lay there, staring at Rachel’s face, tracing the lines on her palms, and every so often kissing her neck because she just couldn’t seem to stop. But after a half-hour or so, Cher found herself drifting off into a dream as well, and eventually fell fast asleep.

Chapter 6:
Rachel woke up with a very satisfying feeling, and a light crick in her neck from lying on Cher’s arm all night long. At some point she had flipped over and Cher had wrapped her arms around Rachel so that they were cuddled up in a spooning kind of manner. Rachel smiled and stretched out her aching limbs. It hadn’t been the best idea to sleep on the ground, but Rachel had enjoyed the night, and she hadn’t had enough energy to suggest moving by the time they lay down to sleep. Rachel flexed her leg muscles and tensed her back, shaking her whole body as her nerves and muscles got ready for the day.

Cher felt Rachel move and opened her eyes as Rachel sat up. She gazed at her as Rachel tried to find her clothes. When Rachel turned back around she smiled at Cher, who then grabbed her back down, wrapped her arms around her once more and kissed her good morning. “Morning love,” Cher grinned. Rachel exhaled unsteadily and giggled quietly.

After a few moments, they both stood up and went on a hunt to find their clothes. Finally, Cher said not to worry and dragged Rachel into her bedroom where she clothed her in one of her favorite black, band t-shirts and a pair of blue, skinny jeans. Then she got ready herself and both girls went into the bathroom to fix their hair.

When they came out of the bathroom, Cher pushed Rachel down onto her bed and climbed on top of her, kissing her passionately. Rachel kissed her back, but then pushed her off and stood up saying something about how she really needed to get home. Cher smiled, took Rachel’s hand, and lead her to the front door where she gave her a huge kiss. Rachel blushed and looked down at her feet.

“You look pretty great in my clothes,” Cher winked, and then pushed Rachel up against a wall, kissing her again. Rachel caught her breath and then lightly pushed against Cher’s chest. “I know, I’m sorry. You are just so gorgeous, I can’t help myself.”

Rachel took a deep breath, “Well, I really ought to go. My dad is probably wondering where I am, and I’m needed to help decorate the house for the relatives. They are getting here later today, you know. Uhm, so,” she bit her lip and swallowed, “are you coming tonight to meet my family?” Cher stared at her with blue flames burning in the back of her eyes, and then kissed her again. Rachel blinked, trying to regain her train of thought, “Uh, then, is that a yes? I’d love for you to-” But Cher cut her off with another kiss.

“Yes, I’ll be there tonight. I promise. I love you,” Cher took a deep breath and tried to calm herself, “Do you need a ride home?”

“That’s okay, I’ll just call Max and ask him for a ride. He works down the street anyway, and he’s the one finishing everything up at the store today for Christmas,” Rachel looked down, “But, I’ll see you later?”

“Of course,” Cher breathed out, “Now, Rach, you better get out of here before I mal you,” she gulped and tried to stand back and let Rachel go.

Rachel gave her a huge hug and one last goodbye kiss, then bolted out the door and ran around the corner towards her step-brother’s work. Cher just stood there in the doorway, staring in the direction that Rachel ran, breathing heavily and clutching the doorframe tightly with her fingers, digging her nails into it so that she wouldn’t run out of the house after Rachel. Finally she sighed, stepped back inside, and closed the door.

Rachel walked swiftly down the street to get to her stepbrother’s work. As she was walking she passed by a group of cheerleaders from her school. They were all lurking in front of an auto shop. Emily, the cheer captain, sat atop the hood of an old, faded out, red mustang; laughing and smiling, while talking to a few of her other team mates. Rachel’s mouth hung wide out while she passed them. She tried not to stare, but she couldn’t help it. Emily’s long strawberry blond hair hung around her like a shield, and her bright green eyes glowed like the moon on a dark night. Another cheerleader, Sophia; a tall, skinny, black girl with devils eyes and dark black hair that was spun into a tight bun in the back of her head; noticed Rachel staring at them, and whispered something to the blond girl next to her, who crawled up the hood of the car, her pony tail wagging like a dogs tail, and whispered to Emily. Rachel looked down, ashamed and slightly nervous, realizing just then that she had stopped walking and had been standing there staring at them for the last couple of minutes.

Motioning for Rachel to come join them, Emily yelled out, “Hey, you there, why don’t you come over here?” Rachel looked stunned, and she felt a bit giddy and excited because these girls had never even acknowledged her before, but she didn’t move. “Tina, come here please?” One of the other cheerleaders, with pale blue eyes, light brown hair, and cream-colored skin, walked through all the girls to Emily. Emily then whispered something to both Tina and the blond, pony tailed girl; Rachel thought was named Sarah.

Just as Rachel started to walk away, Tina and Sarah walked up to her, grabbed her arms and pulled her through the crowd of girls to the hood of the mustang where Emily sat. “You weren’t just going to leave without saying anything were you?” Emily’s gaze made Rachel uncertain and she wasn’t sure how to respond. “Well, that’s okay. We were just wanting to know if you’d like to join us this weekend? See, me and some of the other girls are having a sleepover at my house for an after Christmas party. What do you think?”

Rachel hesitated, and then raised her eyebrow and looked at Emily confused, “You want me to go to your sleepover?”

“Duh silly,” Emily giggled, “Are you interested in coming, or what?” Rachel nodded. “Great, so, I’ll e-mail you the info,” Emily looked at the corner of her eye and reconsidered, “No. I’d rather text you. What’s your phone number?” She asked, taking out her cell from her jacket pocket.

“Uhm,” Rachel was unsure of this situation, but she told Emily her number anyway and said goodbye, waving and walking away. She headed, again, towards her stepbrother’s work, and didn’t stop for anything else till she got there.

Chapter 7:
The doorbell rang, and Rachel ran down the stairs to open the door. There, leaning against the stone wall with about a dozen different colored roses and other small flowers, was Cher. Her silky black hair was done up like a princess, and she had on an absolutely stunning jade necklace that was outlined with spiraling golden wires. The gem made an eye-line down to her gorgeous, slim cut, strapless, deep purple dress. Rachel stood in awe, “Wow,” her breath all let out at once and she had to stand herself back up straight and breath in to refocus on the present. Cher smiled down at the ground and bit her lip. “Uh, come in, come in,” Rachel moved out of the way and lead her into her house.

“I wasn’t sure whether or not this was a dressy kind of event, but, I thought, what the hell, I’ll just go for it,” Cher looked around the room, “Nice, I like all the decorations. That reindeer over there especially,” she said, pointing to a little ceramic reindeer with a bright red nose, a Santa hat, and a green scarf. The small animal had on ice skates and was sliding itself back and forth across the little flooring they had put up next to the window. Its cute ears, hanging down a bit, and bulging eyes made Cher think that he was probably wearing the skates by mistake and had no idea how to skate at all, but was slipping across the ice, unable to stop. It made her laugh.

Rachel nodded, “Yes, that has always been my moms favorite too. I believe that that one is suppose to be Rudolf. You know? The one that lead Santa’s slay through the fog with the light from his nose.”

“Haha,” Cher smiled, “Yes, I know all about those Christmas stories. I was a kid once too, you know.” Rachel blushed, and Cher bent into her and gave her a light tender kiss. A few footsteps interrupted their intimate moment, and they turned to see Rachel’s father walking in from the living room. “Oh, hey Mr. P, haven’t seen you in a while.”

Mr. Pinskii smiled at the girls selflessly, and walked to the kitchen to poor himself a drink. “Hello Cher. Haven’t seen you around here for a few weeks. What have you been up to lately young lady?”

“Nothing much Mr. P, just chilling at home and hanging with your daughter,” Cher loved talking to Rachel’s father. He was always so funny and awkward when he talked to the girls because he still wasn’t really used to the whole situation and didn’t know what he thought of his daughter dating another girl, but he tried to stay open minded and held his tongue whenever they did anything intimate like kiss.

“How you been treating my little girl?” Mr. Pinskii asked, just being friendly and adding to the conversation, but also genuinely interested to hear how their relationship was going.

“Dad!” Rachel sneered through her teeth. Mr. Pinskii just held up his hands and walked out of the room.

Cher laughed and turned towards Rachel, “I really don’t mind the questions. When he first started doing it, it made me feel a little awkward. But honestly, now, it just makes me feel like he really cares, and that maybe he’s warming up to me.” Rachel pulled at Cher’s side, and Cher leaned in for another kiss. “Oh, guess what,” Cher said, stepping back from the moment, “I took your advice, and I’m going to be working after class with Mike to get help with my sketching and painting. He said he can start this Wednesday, and then I’ll just stay after class for the next couple of weeks till I actually don’t suck at art.” Cher laughed and grinned.

“You are? Really?” Rachel looked happy for her. Cher had been nagging Rachel about how good Rachel was at drawing, and demanded that she wasn’t capable of doing anything that intricate or detailed. She was always saying how much she sucked at art, and how horrible it was that they made her take the class again, and now that she was taking action to improve her skills, Rachel was very proud. Rachel had been bugging her about doing that for some time now, and Cher had finally caved. “I’m so happy for you,” Rachel squeaked as she gave Cher a big hug, “Wow, that’s tomorrow, huh?”

“Uhuh,” Cher smiled proudly, “amazing isn’t it? I can’t believe I’m actually doing it. I’m kind of nervous. I’ll probably end up chickening out and running out of the class before he can hold me in there. I’m bad at the whole one on one with teacher, especially when they are trying to help me with something.”

Rachel punched her in the arm lightly, “Oh, come on, you’ll do great,” she said with a big toothy smile.

“I hope so,” Cher said, staring down into Rachel’s eyes. Rachel put her arms around Cher’s waist, and then Cher grabbed Rachel and gave her a huge romantic hug. “I love you Rachel. You are truly amazing. I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done for me.”

Rachel gasped, “Me, do for you? Are you kidding me? I’m the one that has gone through all the changes in the past few months. You’ve totally gotten me out of my shell. I thought I was destined to walk this earth alone for the rest of my life. And the worst part about it was that I didn’t even care, or seem to notice.”

Cher gripped Rachel’s chin, “Hm-hm, Shelly. My Shelly.” And with that she kissed Rachel on the lips, and kept her forehead rested against Rachel’s as she exhaled out her nose. Then she gave her another light kiss and backed up, grabbing her hand and walking her over to the sofa where she flopped herself down and dragged Rachel down on top of her. Then she kissed her again.

As Rachel’s relatives shuffled inside her house, she mumbled quietly to herself about not being certain of how they’d react to her dating Cher. She really hoped that no one would freak out on her about being a lesbian, and that everyone would be chill and accept Cher there, and not make everything awkward for her the rest of the night. She wasn’t sure how to approach the topic, so she decided she’d just go through the night till someone asked about it.

She let more and more people in, then took a seat at the dinner table in the kitchen, and stared down at her feet through the glass. Cher walked up and placed a hand on Rachel’s shoulder to calm her and whispered in her ear, “It’ll be fine,” giving her a light squeeze. Rachel relaxed and looked up at Cher with anxiety held back within her eyes. Cher bent down and gave Rachel a kiss, and then hugged her around the back and kissed her neck softly. Then they just sat there, watching as more relatives arrived and came inside with their heavy bags of luggage, and slowly dragged them up stairs or dropped then around the corner next to the door.

“Hey, is that you buttercup?” A voice sounded from the front door. And Rachel turned to see her uncle Benjamin leaning up against a kitchen post. His light blue eyes friendly as he shook out his short, spiked, black hair atop his plump face.

Rachel ran over to him excitedly, “Uncle Benny!” She cheered. His large arms wrapped around her body in an embrace, almost making it around her body twice. He was almost twice her size, and he hugged her tight; her head smooshed lovingly against his stomach. “I can’t believe you’re here!”

“You happy to see me kiddo?” The question was obviously rhetorical, but Rachel nodded and jumped up and down.

“How did you, I thought, You were.. Aren’t you supposed to be in Chico?” Rachel looked at him puzzled.

“Ha, you caught me. But who could miss a chance to come and see their sweet little niece. I’ve heard from your dad that you’ve been going out a lot more lately, and I said ‘that doesn’t sound like my lil angel. Rach isn’t a very social person.’ Because you’ve always been very reserved and self-entertained, you see. But he told me it was true. He said you’re even dating now, which shocked me. Can’t wait to meet the lucky chap. How have you been kiddo? I’ve missed you so much. It’s quite lonely all by myself in Chico,” Benny paused when he saw Cher walk out from the kitchen.

Rachel turned around and smiled at her warmly. “Uhm, hi,” Cher said awkwardly, slightly lifting up her right hand to wave.

Benny looked at Cher and back at Rachel, “Who is this kiddo? One of your friends from school?” Rachel blushed, and looked down nervously.

“Hi,” Cher said, walking forward to shake Benny’s hand, “I’m Cher. I’m, uhm, I’m Rachel’s girlfriend.” Cher paused to see if there was going to be any big reaction. Benny looked her over for a moment, gawking his head to the side, then grabbed her and Rachel in for a big hug.

“Nice to meet you girly. You been keeping my lil buttercup happy?”

“Nice to meet you too,” Cher exhaled as she stepped back from the hug to look him in the face, “Yes, she’s quite happy. I’ve been doing all I can to make her life the best,” she kissed Rachel, and then stared deeply into her eyes, “I love her.”

Benny pursed his lips together, “Uh-hu,” he backed away slowly and then turned around and walked towards the living room, “See you two later then. Good to see you Kiddo.” Rachel halfly waved, but didn’t loose sight of Cher’s face. They just stared at each other for a few more moments. Cher held Rachel’s gaze with her seductive coffee mocha eyes. Rachel noticed a few specks of gold and silver throughout Cher’s eyes and smiled.

“You. You’re beautiful,” Rachel said, taking a deep breath. Cher raised her eyebrows and then softened her eyes and smiled with the left half of her mouth; she then kissed Rachel again on the mouth, crushing into her as she did so.

“You two look SO cute together,” Natalie, Rachel’s aunt, squealed, “So adorable.” Rachel rolled her eyes, and Cher smiled, feeling very accepted. Rachel’s whole family seemed to love the two of them together, not to mention their obsession with Cher’s looks. It was kind of starting to get embarrassing, but Cher didn’t want to say anything. “Oh my god, and darling, that purple dress is just simply stunning on you. It really truly is, I’m not even, in the slightest, putting you on. You look amazing Cher. Your hair is gorgeous by the way.” Natalie had always been jealous of people with black hair, especially now that her dark brown curls were fading into streaks of grey.

Cher felt like she was being passed around the room, from person to person, like some kind of long lost mystical gem, or something, that they had all found on a huge trip through the desert. She normally liked the attention, but it was getting to be a bit much. She wasn’t sure how much more she could handle, but she was trying to hold on as long as she could for Rachel’s sake; she was sitting in the corner of the room trying not to make it too obvious that she was hiding her eyes.

“Uhm, excuse me a moment, wont you? I’ve got to go to the bathroom,” Cher stepped back, smiling, as the crowd of appraising people watched her walk out of the room.

“She’s very nice Rachel, I’m happy for you,” her older cousin, Tyler said as he passed by her on his way to the kitchen.

Behind her she heard another body moving towards her and she prayed to god that her relatives would leave her alone. A few seconds later she felt a hand on her shoulder, and she looked up, afraid of whom it might be. It was only Max. Relieved, she smiled, “Thank god it’s you. I don’t think I can handle anyone else congratulating me on dating Cher. They all seem to be more impressed with her figure than to actually care about me and her being happy together,” Rachel sighed, “I suppose it is shocking I caught someone that hot, seeing as I am just..well..you know..I’m not the crème of the crop.”

Max laughed, shaking out his dirty blond, skater, and somewhat surfer boy hair. Rachel thought he was truly beautiful in a way. She was almost amazed by it, but looked down before he could notice her gazing at him. Max walked around to the front of her chair and took her hand in his, pulling her up off the chair and into a huge bear hug. “You ain’t all that bad,” he whispered in her ear, and then grinned. She smiled back and blushed.

A few moments later, Cher walked back into the room. “Ach-ehm!” Rachel jerked herself away from Max and stood there staring at Cher.

“Hey,” Rachel smiled.

Cher made a weird face, because she was so overwhelmed with the whole situation, then fanned herself with her hand as if she were about to faint. “God, your family is a lot to deal with.”

“Yeah, glad they all like you, I guess. Though I wish they paid even a speck as much attention to me as they do you,” Rachel sulked.

“Heck no you don’t. That was terrifying,” Cher wiped her forehead for dramatic effect, “I’m absolutely traumatized now,” she laughed. Rachel and Max laughed too.

“Yeah, well, you’re lucky. When Mel first married my mom no one was that accepting of me, or my mom for that matter, joining the family. They were all psyched to see their marriage fail,” Max grimaced, “They warmed up to me though. I really only stick around anymore because of this one right here though, anyway.” He gestured to Rachel. “I don’t much like being where I’m not wanted, but it makes her happy. She hasn’t had much in the way of friends really her whole life, and I was as close as she got to the real thing. You know, when her dad went all..well, let’s just say she had no one else, so I was here,” he smiled at Rachel, and lightly squeezed her hand.

Rachel felt the conversation getting a little too heavy for a Christmas Eve talk, so she quickly changed the topic, “Cher, would you like some apple pie? Max helped me make it.” Cher smiled and walked over to Rachel who took her by the hand to the kitchen.

Right as they walked into the kitchen they overheard Rachel’s aunt Nora talking to her father, “Mel, you never told us your daughter was a lesbian. Cher seems like a very nice girl, but haven’t you ever thought about grandchildren? If she stays with,” she paused as she saw Cher and Rachel enter the kitchen and just stood there silent for a second. “Never mind, we’ll talk about this later, would you like to help me get the mashed potatoes and all the other dishes to the table please, be a doll.” Rachel rolled her eyes in anger, grabbed Cher’s hand and led her to the counter where the apple pie sat. Rachel’s dad, Mel, and her aunt, Nora, passed by them in silence and proceeded to pick up all the entrees from the counter and carry them to the table in the dining room.

“That wasn’t awkward at all,” Cher widened her eyes and cracked her knuckles.

Rachel sneered, “Well there you go. Not everyone likes you.”

Cher laughed, “Ha, that isn’t actually true. She likes me. She just doesn’t like that I’m with you. Didn’t you hear her? She wants you to have baybehz,” Cher put her arms out in front of her stomach to indicate that she pregnant.

“Yeah, I don’t really want kids anyway,” Rachel mocked, “Babies just cry and poop. I don’t want to devote my life to some screaming infant that can’t do anything for itself. They are so annoying, how they need help with everything all the time. I’d hate to have to give up my dreams just to spend all my time taking responsibility for some stupid kid.”

Cher kind of stood back in shock, “Are you serious? THAT is the one thing in life you dislike? You’re all into school and everything else, but you dislike CHILDREN?”

Rachel hesitated, “Well, I don’t hate them. They are fine. I love playing with all my baby cousins and stuff. And when Todd and Daniel were little I used to love playing with them too. You know, before they became brats.”

“Awh, to be a tween,” Cher joked as if she were fantasizing back to the days, “My mom hated that phase. All I did was want to be more like a grown up, but at the same time I thought everything I did was extremely mature, even though all I was really doing was bragging about how much everyone sucked at being adultly and I was so pro at it. Twas simply stupid. My mom always got so pissed at me. She’d say ‘if you are so grown up then why don’t you help out more around the house’ and then I’d shrink back into my little bubble and be all ‘grown ups do whatever they want, and I don’t want to do that.’ And she’d say stuff about how when I’m a grown up I’ll have to do things even if I don’t want to, and blah blah blah, oh the crap of it all. But my point is, that isn’t the best age to judge character by. Children aren’t that bad.” Cher looked down as if what she was about to say next was really embarrassing for her and then continued, “I mean, I kind of really want to have a baby.”

“You do?” Rachel stared at her with her eyes and mouth wide open.

Cher nodded, and then turned around and found a seat at the counter. “So, what about this pie?”

Rachel grinned and unwrapped it. Then she got out plates and served up two pieces of Apple pie. “Here you are my lady,” Rachel giggled, “Eat up and tell me what you think. Max said it could use a bit more sugar, but I said it tasted fine to me. What do you think?”

Cher took a bite and smiled, her eyes rolled back in ecstasy, “Oh my god, mmmm, this is delicious.” Rachel smiled, very proud of herself. “No, I think it’s perfect. Could use some whipped cream though. You got any?” Cher asked politely, licking some of the pie off her top lip.

Rachel got out the whipped cream and sprayed it over Cher’s apple pie, then, with only a moment of hesitation, she sprayed it all over Cher’s face, then stood back and laughed hysterically. Cher pounced on Rachel, grabbed the whipped cream can out of her hand, pushed her onto the ground, and sprayed it all over her face too. They both laughed, and then kissed. These were the kinds of moments that, in Rachel’s mind, lasted forever.

“Don’t touch that,” Rachel said, smacking Todd on the back of the hand as he reached for the cranberry sauce.

Todd looked around at all the other faces at the table, “What?”

Nora sneered, and then looked back at her plate. Frank, Rachel’s grandfather, looked at Todd with concern in his eyes, and tried to muster up a smile. Natalie put her hand on Nora’s shoulder and tried to calm her. Todd slunk into his chair. Daniel jumped up and down in his seat, hungry and ready to be served his food. Mel bowed his head in thanks and tried to get the rest of the family to do the same. Cher followed his example, and slowly, but surely, the rest of the company did as well.

After they praised god for the food, they all dug in. It was like a pack of dogs wrestling over a bone. Cher sat back and waited patiently, unwilling to join the hustle. Sam, Rachel’s sister, nudged Cher’s shoulder as she tried to get her to take the bowl of mashed potatoes she was holding above her plate. Cher grabbed it and glopped down a reasonable portion onto her plate, then passed it on to Rachel.

“Mr. Pinskii,” Cher asked as sweet as she could, “Could you please pass me the gravy?” Mel handed her the gravy from across the table and went back to shoveling food onto his place. “God, if Dylan was here he’d be going nuts,” Cher smiled happily, “He loves Christmas dinner. Well, and thanksgiving. Really any holiday with tons of food, but still. He’d be in heaven.” She laughed. Rachel just gawked her head at Cher, and then realized people could see she was confused and looked around the table for something to grab and add onto the food she had piling up on her plate.

The whole family munched away, very satisfied with the meal. Some talked, having small conversations that amounted to nothing. Others asked Cher and Rachel more questions about their relationship. Nora was very critical of the whole thing, Benny was just genuinely interested because he had never known any lesbians, and the rest of the family just loved to listen in to the drama and gossip. Cher kept squeezing Rachel’s hand to make her calm down since her face kept turning bright red. And every so often Rachel would turn to Cher and give her a little kiss, wishing they were alone so that she didn’t have to hold back. Todd and Daniel jumped up and down, bragging about random stuff they had gotten to do the night before at Frank’s cabin. And everyone listened to everyone’s story; seeming extremely intrigued by anything anyone said. Though it seemed as if they were more amazed that people were actually talking, not interested in what everyone actually had to say. Benny randomly added in comments about his life in Chico and how he missed the whole family dearly. Sam talked to Mika, Rachel’s younger cousin, about how she was moving to NYC, and how hectic it was, having to fly up the very next day. Cher made a few more comments about Dylan and his connections to that night; and Rachel just eyed her suspiciously.

Most everyone had finished up and they were either washing dishes, or going upstairs to unpack and get ready for bed. Cher smiled at Rachel as she spun around Benny in circles as fast as she could, laughing every time Rachel would start to fall and then be quickly grabbed by Benny who tried to stand her up straight. Rachel gave Benny a huge hug and then walked over to sit next to Cher on the love seat.

Just then there was a knock on the door, and Benny answered it. Natalie quickly ran out of the kitchen screaming, “Wait!” And paced herself to the door, where she greeted someone friendily, and lead them into the living room where Cher and Rachel sat. “Rachel, I’ve been saving up this gift for the last second, but, seeing as he got here already,” Natalie squeaked with excitement, “Remember when you were five and you came and stayed at my house for a few years?” Rachel nodded. “Well,” Natalie pushed the guest out from behind her so that Rachel could see him, “I brought Chris.”

“Oh my god!” Rachel was flooded with feelings of ecstasy as well as loneliness from a sudden rush of missing an old friend. “CHRIS! Oh my god! I can’t believe you’re, oh my god, I haven’t seen you in so long,” Rachel embraced him, squeezing him tightly, and not wanting to let him go. “Just, wow. Oh my god. How have you been? I’ve missed you.” Thousands of old memories filled her mind and she was overwhelmed with rekindling feelings for her childhood crush. “I, I, uhm, this is Cher,” she gulped, pushing Cher into Chris, “She’s my girlfriend. Do you have a girlfriend now? Remember when you asked me to be your girlfriend when we were like six? That was funny. Old memories. Ha. We were so little. Kids are cute, aren’t they, they’re great, really are. I’ve missed you. How have you been?” She bit her tongue and looked down at her feet, rolling her eyes at how stupid and talkative she was being.

Cher stepped up to Chris and shook his hand, “Ha, hi, I’m Cher. I’m, as Rachel said, her girlfriend. It’s nice to meet you,” she smiled genuinely, but was kind of nervous, because it seemed like Rachel was going to jump onto this guy and run away with him. “Old friends I take it?”

Laughing at how awkward Rachel thought this encounter was, Chris answered, “Yeah. We used to hang out when we were little. She came over to my house every day for two years. We used to stay up late and watch movies, or just play stupid games like hide and seek or cops and robbers. It was fun though. Good times. Good times. Haha, Rachel, are you alright?” He asked as she bent down to the ground, panting. He reached for her arm just as Cher hugged her and gave her a kiss on the back of the neck. He straightened back up and looked around the room with his eyes, unwilling to turn his head. Natalie and Benny had left the room, and he was now stuck there with the two of them, not really sure where to go from there. “Uhm, you okay Rach?”

Rachel tried to nod as Cher helped her onto the couch. “Yeah, I’m sorry. That was, awkward.” Chris smiled shyly. “So, what have you been up to lately?” Rachel tried to make herself seem as inconspicuous as possible, but for some reason she really wanted to hug him tight and never let go.

Chris sat down on the chair next to them and picked at a stitch on his jacket, nervously. “I haven’t been doing much. A little of this and that. Hanging with some friends, working on fixing up this old car that’s been in my garage for years now, and just kind of chilling around town.” Cher glared at him, unable to get the images of him and Rachel together out of her head. Rachel grabbed Cher’s hand and squeezed it comfortingly. Chris just looked down at his callused hands.

“So,” Cher prodded, “Been dating anyone lately?”

Chris looked at the decorations that covered the walls, awkwardly trying to ignore the question. Cher stared at him, trying to will him into telling her the truth, and desperately wanting it to be the answer she was hoping for. “I’ve been, you know,” Chris stumbled over his words, “I’ve dated a few girls lately,” he paused, then continued when he saw Rachel’s eyes darken, “Nothing serious though, and nothing very recently. I’m single as of this moment.” Cher tossed her hair back and widened her eyes as she pursed her lips and breathed in deeply, trying to calm her senses. She felt the urge to kick him in the stomach, but hesitated, as she thought it might upset her beloved.

Just when everyone thought they might be ready to jump off a cliff, Tyler, Rachel’s cousin, walked in. He jumped slightly as he realized the amount of tension that was in the room, breathing it in as if it were the only way to grasp hold of the air in front of him. “Hey guys,” he hyped enthusiastically. Everyone just kind of looked at him, unsure of how to respond.

“Hi,” Rachel smiled, “What have you been doing?”

Tyler took a deep breath, releasing the stressful situation from his mind, before he answered, “I’ve just been helping Nora with some dishes.”

“Cher,” Rachel clasped her arm, “Could we maybe get out of here for a little bit? It’s, uhm, stuffy.” Cher nodded, and stood up, pulling Rachel with her. They both waved and sighed, and slowly walked out the door.

Chapter 8:
Rachel and Cher held hands as they stepped each stair twice, walking in silence down to the beach. As their toes touched the sand, Rachel let out a faint sigh and Cher pulled her in for a kiss. “I love you,” Cher said as she gazed into Rachel’s eyes. The sun was starting to fall, and the light glaze of shine over the water was starting to fade. The moon was showing above the trees behind them, and it kissed the sky, filling it with a warm glow as the sun’s bright shimmer turned to shadows that danced along the top of the ocean’s waves.

Looking over at Rachel through her bangs, Cher thought about how much she loved Rachel and how she wished that their bond would never disintegrate and fall deep into the land as the sun did every night, and as the dust always seemed to collapse into the air. Rachel looked back at Cher with a warm smile, and then shut her eyes, imagining their future together. When she finally re-opened her eyes, she couldn’t help herself from staring at Cher.

Even though the setting was turning this moment into a situation of sexual and romantic mood tones; Cher’s midnight black bangs hung down in her face like an eagle’s claw, viciously trying to scrape out her left eye; and Rachel couldn’t help thinking that even in moments that seem to last forever, you can’t ever get every aspect and detail perfect. It made her wonder if maybe there wasn’t anyone made for her specifically, but that there were many options in which she had to choose the most compatible match. It reminded her of online dating, and it made her slightly sad. She had hoped to someday be with someone that was perfect in every way, for herself anyway. Someone who wouldn’t spoil the moment with some dumb comment, or make her feel awkward. And though Cher did neither of those things, the way her hair hung during such an intimate moment made Rachel feel like something was wrong. Her hair looked evil, like a dark cloud trying to prevent her from having a nice time. She knew this was dumb, but she couldn’t help but wondering if this was some sort of a sign, or if she were to just ignore it and try to find some sense of herself to accept it.

They walked along the beach, their hands intertwined, and Rachel’s mind skipped ahead of her heart, and thought of how the next day’s gymnastics tournament may go. She was so sure of herself. So positive that she’d get that spot in Nationals. She’d never been much into gymnastics before, but the last couple years she had taken it upon herself to train. And now she had an audition, to test her skills against one other girl, for the last spot on the National team. She knew it would be a lot of work, and that it would mean less time to spend with Cher, but she had to try. She needed something in her life to look forward to. Something she could do on her own. Something that could fulfill her happiness and adventure struck side when she was by herself.

Rachel’s eyes beamed; just thinking of the audition tomorrow made her smile, and Cher squeeze her hand, reminding her that she was loved. With that her mind calmed, and she realized how perfectly her life was going. And that at this very moment, this frozen period of time was just what she had always wanted. This was it. This was true happiness.