A Night Gone Awryby TheOriginalDashChaptersThe Morning AfterThe Blank PageEpilogue-The After Years"I don't know..."The Morning AfterWe fell asleep like that, wrapped in each other's arms, each left to their own thoughts. I spent most of the rest of the night awake, just enjoying the last moments I may be able to be close to Tavi like this. If we moved on from this, odds are our friendship wouldn't be the same. It might be too awkward for her to let me hold her like this, and I may not ever get to do it again. That's a sad thing for me, because I enjoy cuddling with my friends. Eventually, though my eyes drooped shut, and stayed like that. It was probably sometime around four a.m., because when we woke up at seven, I felt like I had gotten almost no sleep. I opened my eyes to the sight of Tavi's head still resting on my shoulder, and both of us were still sitting upright, the way we had fallen asleep. She had curled closer into me during the night, most likely cold from the lack of a blanket. After what happened, we were both too frazzled to remember to drag one over to us. So, I reached over now, and grabbed a fuzzy neon green and electric blue striped one, draping it over her legs as best I could, and sat quietly, trying not to wake her up. My still sleepy mind decided that the color made a nice contrast with the white duvet and black sheets on her bed. Those were new, but the rest of her room was much as I remembered it from summer; a chic glasstop desk in the far corner, gray carpet with purple accent rugs, lemon yellow gauzy drapes on the large bay window, and a lovely mahogany bookcase overflowing with Tavi's large book collection. There were many horse racing trophies and ribbons displayed proudly around the room; equestrian sports had always been a passion of hers. And over in the other corner on the opposite side of the room, were all of her musical instruments and the various accessories for them, circled around a rather comfortable looking straightbacked chair and a music stand weighted down with a veritable library of well worn sheet music. Her personal favorites were always on the very top of the large stack, scribbled and annotated on as she added her own personal flourishes to the composer's original vision, claiming it as her own. About thirty minutes later, Tavi began to stir. I watched as she slowly opened her eyes, and swiveled them up to look at me. She scrunched them tight, and stretched as far as she could, like a cat. After that was done, she laid her head back on my shoulder, and snuggled back into me. I was becoming slightly concerned. Was she just ignoring last night? Was she forgetting about Note? Does this count as cheating? Oh Luna, I'm in for it now. I leaned my head over on hers, nudging her. She looked balefully up at me; apparently she had intended on going back to sleep. I couldn't let that happen. I had this semi-burning, crawly feeling in my stomach, the kind I get when I think about somebody I like, and my hands started sweating. I needed distance, and now, before things got worse. "Look, this is nice and all, but I need to pee. So, bathroom time for Scratchy, okay? It's still first door on the left, right?" She blinked a few times, and nodded. I took care in sliding out from under her, helping her to lay her still sleepy body carefully on the bed. Then, I crept from the room, and snuck into the bathroom. I wasn't lying about needing to pee. I turned on the light, and shut the door, locking it in case her little sister got any ideas about surprising me, like last time. While washing my hands, I contemplated my current situation. I could always pretend like nothing happened, like Tavi seemed to be doing. I could press her to talk about it. We might even end up together. Ordinarily, I would dismiss that suggestion immediately, but she was the one that initiated the kiss last night. So, this is where I was stuck. After I dried my hands, I slowly walked back to her room. Hesitating outside the oak door, I briefly considered not going back in. I'm sure she would understand. But I didn't want to run away. Also, I can't exactly drive, and I didn't want to wake my parents up. So, resigning myself to what may come, I turned the burnished metal knob, and let myself back into Tavi's room. She was currently laying on her side, curled into a ball, a lock of her naturally curly dark hair falling across her face. I smiled at the sweet scene, and crossed the room to perch lightly on the corner of the bed next to her. She stirred, and stretched her hand out to meet mine. I twitched at the sudden contact, unsure if this was unconscious, or if she was awake. After a few seconds, her hand relaxed, so I assumed that meant she was sleeping. I took the opportunity to remove my hand from hers, and curl up on the bed with her, sharing her blanket. She moved again, and pushed herself backwards a little, forcing me to cuddle with her. I was almost certain that she was awake by now, so I tried something to test her reaction. I lifted my arm up, and laid it over her waist, effectively spooning her. She grabbed my hand, and held it. Well, that was enough proof for me. "Tavi, darling. As much as I love cuddling, we need to talk. Come on, wake up, and talk to me. It's time to finish this." She shook her head, and curled tighter in on herself, taking my hand with her. I tugged it out from her grip, and sat up, pulling the blanket off of her. She shivered, and pulled her knees up to her chest. Ordinarily, I would've make a joke about how she gave me a perfect view of her bottom, but I felt too awkward to even look at her. Reaching over, I lightly tickled her sides, the one surefire way to wake her up. She was incredibly ticklish. Sure enough, she flipped over, and I came face to face with a very peeved Octavia Legata. Oh dear. I've done it again. "Okay, fine. I'll talk. But there's really not much to talk about. I kissed you, and that's it. There's nothing more to discuss, is there?" She glared at me, still mad that I tickled her. I sighed, and ran a hand over my face. "Look, there's a lot that we need to discuss because of that. What are we going to do about it? Do we just forget it? Or do we do something about it?" She stared at me for a long minute. And then another minute more. Finally, she broke the silence. "What do you think we should do about it? What do you want?" I looked morosely at her, and when I spoke, my voice was quiet and solemn, full of pain that was not even seen in my eyes. "I don't think you want me to answer that truthfully. We both know exactly what I would hope for, Tavi." My voice broke in the middle of the first sentence, and my inner turmoil was evident in my slow, carefully chosen words. Tavi looked as if she wanted to hold me and try to soothe me, but she thought better of it. She realized that she was the source of my pain right now. Drawing herself up, she sighed slowly, and sagged against the wrought-iron headboard behind her. "I know, Vincenza, I know. There's just no easy way to solve this. Any way you look at it, somebody gets hurt. It might be you, or Noteworthy, or me. Maybe the both of us." She had captured my attention by using my first name. She never uses it. She's much more upset about this than I realized. "Well, what do you think? I know you love Note, and he loves you probably just as much, but you obviously have some subconscious feelings for me, unless that was a onetime thing. Was it?" She shrugged, unsure of what her body, and her heart were telling her. I'm sure her body said my name, but her heart most likely said Noteworthy's. So what did her head say? "Look, I'm not asking you to abandon him. You've been together over fourteen months now. That's a lot of time to just throw away for me. Sure, we've known each other for over five years, but we haven't been dating that whole time. Who's to say it would even work out between us? How do we even know that you're actually attracted to me? Heat of the moment thing, you know?" I think I was trying harder to convince myself that it wouldn't work more than I was convincing Tavi. Maybe I would get rid of the vaguely sinking feeling in my gut that told me I was starting to fall for her. Why did she have to go and kiss me? I might've been just fine, and not been attracted to her like I'm starting to be now. "Look, Scratch, I know it's a lot of time. And you're right. For all we know, it was just a onetime thing. Right now, I don't feel any different about you than I have before." My heart began to sink at these words, despite my better sense telling it not to. "But," Tavi interrupted this line of thought, " I don't really know what I'm going to feel, because I've only been up less than a half hour." This was true, the clock read 7:27, and it had been 7:10 when I finally got Ms. Cuddlebutt out of bed. Suddenly, a large, gurgling rumble split the room. Tavi leaned down and put her ear to my abdomen. In doing so she gave me a good view of her bottom again, one which I took full advantage of this time. Hey, can't blame a girl for doing what comes naturally, right? Tavi noticed my roaming eyes, and decided to put an end to it. Sitting up properly again, she said, "Hey there, missy, no looking yet. That butt is still Noteworthy's alone to stare at. We haven't even discussed this properly yet. Course, we might want to get breakfast first. You've got an angry monster in your tummy, and I think he wants to be fed." My face flushed at her accusation, even though it was completely true. I nodded meekly, and followed her as she skipped to the door. She turned the knob and swung the door wide open. She began walking quickly down the hallway, humming Peer Gynt's "Morning" to herself as she sped to the kitchen. The melody quickly transformed into Simplest Mistake by Seether, cycled through a few Neon Trees and 30 Seconds To Mars songs, and settled on A Thousand Years by Christina Perri; several odd, and yet, totally predictable choices for the eclectic music junkie. I think there may have even been a Panic! At The Disco or Three Days Grace song in there somewhere. I joined her in the kitchen a few seconds later, and joined her in singing a few seconds after that. We were both mezzos, so I suppose you could say we're... bisectional. I took the higher set of notes at first, and we traded off periodically, as we've always done. Christina Perri has nothing on us, especially considering Tavi is one of our school's chamber choir's leading soloists. That girl has almost too much talent. I mean, solos in choir, and band? Impressive, to say the least. I could probably do the same probably, but I'm not much for singing performances. I helped Tavi make toast and scrambled eggs. It's a miracle that we didn't burn down the house, considering we're both huge culinary disasters even alone. I set the food on plates, and poured two glasses of orange juice for us. We'd probably go out later and get coffee. As soon as Tavi finished making bacon, she brought it over to the table and deposited the marginally burnt food onto her plate. She offered me some, but remembered at the last minute that I was a vegetarian. Eggs are about as far as I'll go with eating animals. Tavi walked back to the sink and deposited the used pans and cooking utensils very quietly in the sink. We didn't want to wake her parents. As she began to cross the kitchen to the breakfast nook, I jumped up and held her chair out for her, and helping her to push it in. I caught her blushing as I took my chair, the same way she always does when I do something gentlemanly. Or is it gentlewomanly? We ate in silence, hurrying to finish so we could continue our discussion upstairs, and also trying to let the rest of the household sleep. Tavi's cat Norris walked up to me, purring and rubbing against my legs as he always does. I scratched his back to say hello, as I always do. That old cat was always something of a conundrum to us; he always seemed to hate other visitors, even Noteworthy. But Norris has always loved me; even when he would try to hurt everyone else, he would calm down for me. I would always pet him softly and sing him Welcome To The Black Parade by My Chemical Romance, his favorite song for some reason, until he stopped being mean. Tavi always took it as a sign that we were meant to be best friends. I finished eating what seemed like mere milliseconds after I sat down. I waited patiently for Tavi to finish. When she did, I snatched up both of our plates and dumped them in the sink. Then it was my turn to drag her along somewhere. I took her hand and tugged down the hallway and into her room. Pushing her inside, I closed the door softly, and then locked it. I really don't like being interrupted during serious conversations. When I turned back around, Tavi was already seated on the bed, absently picking at the drawstring on her blue Cookie Monster pajama pants. I shuffled quietly over, and sat down next to her. She looked over at me, kind of sheepishly, and said nothing. So, we sat in silence for awhile. I would wait as long as it took for her to start. The Blank PageI didn't wait too long. "Scratch, I don't know why I did what I did last night. I'm not going to try to excuse it, because it was my actions that caused this mess. I can say, though, that you've been there by my side for ages, and that means a lot to me." She reached across and took my hand in both of hers, rubbing circles on it with her small thumbs. We both found comfort in the simple gesture. "All of that just makes this harder for me, because even though I haven't had Noteworthy around for that long, I don't want to break his heart. But I don't want to hurt you, either. I love you both, just in different ways. Or so I thought anyway. Last night kinda disproves that theory, doesn't it?" I smiled a little at her weak attempt at ironic humor. My heart was breaking, seeing my best friend like this. She seemed to enjoy the small comfort hidden in my familiar crooked grin, a slight upturn briefly gracing the corners of her mouth. "Look, Octy, I'm not asking you for anything more than our friendship. I could never force you to choose. Do what your heart tells you." She smiled sadly, dropping her head and shaking it slightly as a humorless chuckle escaped her mouth. She placed my hand back into my own lap before patting it lightly, and standing up to pace the no longer so welcoming room. I had practically grown up in this room from sixth grade onward, but right now it felt as unfriendly as a doctor's office. Octy paused when she reached the pictures hanging on the wall. I watched nervously as she plucked one from the wall. It was the one from our spring band trip last year to Canterlot. We were standing in front of the tulips planted in the royal gardens; she agreed to it because I really love those flowers, even though her allergies practically murdered her later. She's always been so kind to me, the only one of our friends to ever truly return all of the kindness I've shown her. She's taken care of me like a little sister since the day we met, always standing up for me against the cruelty of other kids. It was kinda funny sometimes, watching her defend someone who was nearly a half foot taller than her. She only did it because she knew I wouldn't do it for myself; I preferred to avoid conflict whenever possible, which usually led to my submission to bullies and low self esteem the few times she wasn't there to protect me. Replacing the picture on the wall, Octy glanced at the photos containing Note for a second, before sighing as if she had reached a decision. She slotted her hands into place on her hips, the very image of frustration. "I can't believe I'm even considering this. Ordinarily I wouldn't, but it's you. You at least deserve a shot. So, I'm going to draw up a list of pros and cons for both of you, and I'll decide from there. It's too hard otherwise." I stared at her, mouth hanging slightly open. She smiled a little at the expression on my face, and then grabbed a couple sheets of notebook paper and set to work. I couldn't believe this was happening. I still gaped at her as she put on her purple framed reading glasses and picked up a pencil. The situation didn't really hit home until her pencil hit the paper. This was unfolding like a scene from a movie, as if there were someone dictating our actions and controlling the outcome. But this was even better, because it was real. I don't know the exact amount of time Octy took to finish the lists, but it was long enough for the sun to move just enough to shine directly into my eyes where I was sprawled on the floor. It bothered me only slightly as I dozed. What really woke me up was Octy throwing a pillow onto my face and ruffling my hair in that affectionate way she has. I stretched out for a few seconds, making weird little baby cat-dinosaur noises that made Octy giggle. Sufficiently stretched, I hopped up to lay on the bed next to Octy, folding my hands together on my stomach and staring up at the ceiling. Suddenly, scribble-covered paper blocked my view of the lovely white plaster. I held it a few inches above my face in an aura of blue magic, and waited for my still sleepy eyes to focus. It was Note's list. The left side of the paper was covered in pros, and the various notations that pertained to each. Octy was just as thorough and methodical as ever, despite her confusion and stress. As I glanced at the right column, there were few downsides. The most prominent was underlined and circled several times. It read, 'Not dating Scratch. Potential awkwardness in friendship,' in Octy's neat handwriting. What was that supposed to tell me? Before I could answer that question, a second sheet was placed in my hands. This was my list. I squinched my eyes shut, not quite ready for what she had written about me. I felt a reassuring hand rest on my shoulder, and Octy rubbed her thumb back and forth across the joint. Gathering bravery from her touch, I forced my eyes open. She had written almost nothing on it. There were the start of several sentences on the left side that were scribbled out. There were no cons save homophobia. I was almost disappointed until I saw the top of the paper. My full name was written at the top, and underlined just once. It caught my attention, because Note's didn't look like that. I looked to Octy for explanation. She smiled lightly, giving nothing away. "Octy, why is the paper mostly blank? Could you just not think of anything positive?" I was a little hurt by her apparent lack of good thoughts about me. I'm not that mean to her, am I? "Scratchy, do you see the scribbled out bits?" I nodded my head, still confused and mildly upset. " I kept trying to write good things, but none of it came out right. It never seemed good enough to describe what you are, and what you mean to me. I couldn't put you into words, because no amount of words could even aspire to capture what you've done and continue to do for me. That's why I just wrote your name. You are the good things about dating you. Just you, because you're perfect, and loyal, and beautiful, and smart, and funny, and..." I covered her mouth with a hand to prevent her from finishing the thought, because I was on the verge of tears. No one has ever said anything like that to me and actually meant every word. Nobody, not once, not even my own parents, had ever been that kind to me. I slung my arms around her shoulders and hugged her as tightly as I could without hurting her. She started to speak again, but I shook my head and shushed her. No matter what her decision would be, she had just proven she deserved to be my best friend. "Scratchy, I love you. But I can't date you. Sorry." Silence fell like an atom bomb over the room. I take it back, her decision does matter. I've fallen in love with her now. I stiffened a little, and Octy noticed. She pulled back to look me in the eyes, and she smiled. It was a brighter smile than she had ever shown me before. If anything, this shattered my already hurting heart. She took my hands and held them, trying to comfort me, I suppose. Before I could pull away, Octy began to speak. "I can't date you because that might mean we would break up, silly. And I couldn't handle that. But, I will promise to stay with you until the end of time. Until death do we part and all that good stuff." My eyes widened as I realized what she was getting at. Was she... Nah, couldn't be. But my curiousity got the better of me. "Octy, what are you trying to say? Were you hinting at a wedding, perhaps?" She smiled mischievously. "Depends on what your response is. Would you, Vincenza Maria Sachetti, agree to be saddled with me for the rest of your life?" I was giddy with excitement. "Well, we did always say our kids were going to grow up together... Octavia Legata Philharmonica, you have yourself a deal." I grinned at her, and instead of hugging her, I shook her hand firmly. She giggled at my actions. "So, since we're already in bed, and nobody else is awake, why don't we get started on making some kids to play together?" I winced as Octy slapped my shoulder particularly painfully. "Hey, I didn't know you liked it rough. When'd you get into that?" This was met by another slap, this one across the side of my head. "Scratch, even if it were biologically possible, I'm not having kids with you right now. That can wait for a long time from now. No sex before marriage. And I am not into that sort of kinky stuff. Wherever would you get such an idea?" I just smiled and laughed. She sighed and leaned into me. I curled my arm around her waist. "So no sex, huh? Not even a little? Come on, please? It's not like we can get each other pregnant. No harm, no foul?" She punched me lightly in the chest. "No, Scratch, none. That hasn't changed, even if we are dating now. I'm wearing a white dress at our wedding." I laughed at the thought of that. It all seemed so far away. " So, I can wear any color I want, just not white? Maybe I'll wear red, like the color of the blood from the first time..." Octy sat up and looked at me, horrified. "Why would you say something like that? That's disgusting!" Once again, she punched me, this time in the arm. I winced a little. "Calm down. I was kidding. I know, it was an awful joke. It was meant to be. I'll be wearing white, too. It's not like I can convince you to give in." She still looked perturbed by my macabre sense of humor. Finally though, she laid back down in my arms. I stroked her silky hair softly, and we talked about little things for a long time. Just as she began relaxing, an urgent question presented itself to me. "Hey, how're we gonna tell Note?" She shook her head slowly, realizing the problem we still had. " I don't know, but we'll figure it out somehow. I don't think he would go so far as to hate us and cause trouble, but he'll be a bit hurt. Honestly, though, I think he was losing interest anyway. We haven't gone on a date in awhile, and he hardly spends more time with me than he has to." I had noticed that, too. There was one time I purposely flirted with Octy right in front of him, and instead of getting mad, he just shrugged and walked away, leaving Mollie and I confused. Well, and Octy punched me for doing that. We decided to lay there for another hour and talk, as it was still before nine, and her parents wouldn't expect us to be up until at least ten. Eventually, though, we got up and got dressed for the day ahead, and when the clock struck ten, we left the room to go on a morning walk down through the neighborhood. Epilogue-The After YearsThis was the first of many days that we would spend together, because we kept our promise and stayed with each other until the end. I could not have chosen anything more perfect. I finally got my happily ever after with my best friend and the woman of my dreams, complete with a white picket fence, two cats, a hamster, and a snake, and four kids; a set of twin boys, and two beautiful daughters that look just like their mother. They all call me da, even though I'm technically their mum, too. But I didn't carry them for nine months, so I can't complain. I suppose it helped them make sense of the whole thing when they were little, and it just stuck. And I'm sure saying they had a da cut down on bullying until the others met me. Octy loves it though, and thinks it's just the cutest thing that they differentiate between us like that. And if she thinks it's cute, I'm not gonna change it. What Octy wants, Octy gets. It's always been that way. Our family was, needless to say, a very musical household; we had a cellist, a pianist and trumpet player, a percussionist, and the youngest played more instruments than I have time to name, including the double horn and bassoon. Octy and I were proud marching band parents for a total of fourteen years, helping out even in the years between having a kid in it. Note actually didn't mind that she left him for me. Turns out, he's gay, and was only dating her to try to 'fix' himself. It didn't work, and he was actually looking for a way to let her know he couldn't lie to her anymore. He eventually ended up with our friend Lyonheart, and they had a couple of kids through a surrogate mother. Everything worked out for everyone, and our kids spent many years together as they grew up. My da was very happy for me, but my mother tried to disown me. Octavia's stepmum tried the same. So, when we sent out wedding invitations, we included them anyway, but our da's were the only ones to show up. It really bothered me, but I let it go because Octavia wanted me to. At least her da was there to walk her down the aisle to me. Octy's da is their favorite grandparent, and they call him Papaw Morceau. My da was referred to as Gampy until they were old enough to call him Grandda Surefoot. My mum has sort of come around, if only for the sake of a relationship with her only grandchildren. They absolutely love their Nonna Liliana, and Octavia is too good to hold a grudge. I'm not, though, and I told the kids what she did when they were old enough. I did tell them that I had forgiven her, though. We're all doing well now. Octavia and I just celebrated our twenty-third anniversary. The twins, Crescendo and Finale, are in college. Crescendo wants to be a doctor like me, and Finale is studying to be a music professor. Allegrezza is in her freshman year at Octy and I's old school, Blueridge Senior High. She plans on being a psychologist. The youngest, Quillan, is in third grade at Lakeview Elementary. She already thinks she's gonna be president. We promised to vote for her in the 2032 election. If that doesn't work, she wants to be a particle physicist and work at CERN. I still marvel at how she knows what that is at eight years old. Author's Note So, it's finally the end. As a side note, this will probably explain the questions you may have about the terms used in this last chapter. Vinyl's family is Irish and Italian, and Octy has an Italian mother and a German father. That should just about do it. Anyway, I'd like to thank you all for your input. You've been instrumental in shaping the story, no matter how short the story actually is. I love each and every person who has read this, simply for the fact that they read it. So, goodbye, and good luck, with much love from TheOriginalDash. "I don't know..."Remember that feeling when you were afraid to fall? You were walking along, just barely balancing, about to tumble off the monkey bars on your kindergarten playground. You were riding your bike for the first time in the third grade, and your dad was helping you balance because you didn't have your training wheels this time. You were looking into their eyes for the first time, the summer before ninth grade. You had given up on them, but you then noticed somebody trying to help you back up from where you had fallen. And this time, when you got back up, you weren't afraid to fall. This was just before tenth grade, and you had your whole life ahead of you, thanks to one beautiful, odd, totally insane girl. She had been your friend since you were in sixth grade, and you were so disappointed when she graduated and left for high school, because that meant a whole year without her. And now that you're back together and causing mischief again, she's the one helping you balance. Too bad she seems to keep trying to pull you off the edge with her. "Tavi, where the hell are you?" I was so frustrated that I couldn't find her. She was always there. I looked up and down the hallways outside of her class, desperate for a sign of my walking buddy. Did she really not wait for me after class? "Scratch, language! What have I told you about that," Tavi asked tiredly, walking up behind me. She always used that nickname when she felt just the tiniest bit exasperated by me. So, in other words, she called me that all the time. See, Vincenza was my real name, but that's a bit old fashioned for me, so I change it to Vinyl. Usually everybody calls me Sachetti, which is my last name. Tavi's the only person allowed to call me Scratch, my stage name. I can't deny her anything. She's just too adorable. I've known her practically forever, since the sixth grade, when we met at a concert through a mutual friend. She really gets the real me. I'd rather be shoveling hay than go watch Shinedown in concert. ( Don't get me wrong, they're amazing.) I'm a country girl at heart, just like her. I only put on this punk facade to escape ridicule. "I don't know, Tavi. What have you told me? That you find it attractive? Sorry, darling, but I have to let you down easy." Tavi grinned and punched me in the arm, a look of fake disapproval on her face. This was commonplace for us. It's just the way we are. I flirt with her, and she shoots me down every time. She took the news of my bisexuality rather well. Of course, the only reason she's okay with the flirting is because I've explained that I only hit on girls I don't like. "That's not what I said, and you know it. What am I going to do with you?" She shook her head, and began walking toward the stairs. I followed close behind. "I'm more interested in what you'd do to me. You, me, at six?" She snorted, and passed through the door at the bottom of the stairs. We walked through the corridor to the band room. "As fun as that sounds, I'll have to turn you down. I have Noteworthy, and I'm very happy with him. You're a pretty girl, go try someone else." I blushed a little bit at the compliment, and held the door open for her. She smiled when she saw my expression, knowing instinctively that she caused it. "Aren't you just the cutest thing, Scratchy? Aw, you're even redder now.." It was true, I was blushing fiercely. She giggled and linked her arm through mine, dragging me and my still flustered face into the band room. One look at my face, and my friends burst into fits of laughter. They knew what had happened, because it happens so often. They all knew about my orientation, and they knew what Tavi does to me. It's one thing to flirt with a straight girl, it's another to have her flirt back. It didn't help that she was pretty as all get out. "So, Tavi, we still on for tonight? I've got my stuff in my instrument cage if you just want to head over now." I was referring to her plan to have me stay the night. I suppose I should say plot, because everyone knew what she'd coerce me into. Probably another night of truth or dare, pillow fights, and forcing makeup and dresses on me. Yay. "Of course we are. Why wouldn't we be? I wouldn't miss it for the world." I giggled at her enthusiasm, and hearing the decidedly girly sound erupt from my throat, Tavi laughed, too. "Okay, then. Let me go get my bag and we can leave. I'll be right back, cutie. Please don't pine away in my absence." She snorted again, and I deftly stepped around a hand that wished to bring pain to my shoulder. Trotting away, I swung my hips and stuck my butt out a bit more than necessary, until a certain someone's foot collided rather painfully with it. Wincing, I dropped the act and limped oddly to my trumpet locker in the brass closet. I snatched my small drawstring bag, and walked back out to spot Tavi smirking by her clarinet locker, just outside the closet. I stuck my tongue out at her, and dragged her to her car in the student parking lot. Many hours and bowls of cheese corn and gummy worms later, we were resting on her bed. She had laid her head over on my shoulder, and I was beginning to consider how awkward it would be if her family saw us. I thought she was asleep, until she spoke. "This is pretty comfy Scratchy, but I was thinking maybe we should play a game or something, before it gets too late. What do you suggest?" She looked up at me, the lilac abyss glinting with the feeling of excitement. I had an evil thought. "What about strip poker?" I grinned widely at her, and she kicked my leg, which was snuggled alongside hers. "No, Scratchy. You're too good for me to win that, and I don't feel like letting you see this chubby old Octy body." I glared at her when she said that. "Take it back. You are not chubby. That's my job." She smiled at this, and shook her head slowly, used to my fiery temper about self-deprecation. It didn't extend to myself, though, and that's why she was shaking her head. I honestly was a tad chubby, but that just meant there's more to love. "Okay, fine. Now, how about Truth or Dare?" Oh, that is so cliche. "How about no. That's tacky. Um, I've got nothing." She cocked her head in the adorable way she has when she's thinking hard. "We could sit around and tell each other stuff. Secrets, stories, whatever." "Sounds good to me. You go first." I was curious to see what she'd come up with. So she told me about her first dog, the one who died last winter. I held her while she cried at the end. She'd had him since she was two. She's sixteen now. I, in turn, told her about the first boy that ever liked me, way back in second grade. She giggled profusely when I told her how I had climbed a tree to get away from him. She thought it was cute that I thought boys had cooties, because usually it was the other way around at that age. Eventually, she told me the story of her first kiss, with a boy named Quillan when she was in the eighth grade. When we finished laughing, we sat in silence for a bit, still leaning on each other. I checked the clock on her wall. It read 11:10. "Hey, get ready to make a wish. Look at the clock." I saw the number change, and I screwed my eyes shut. I hoped upon all hope and lucky things, and sent my wish to the heavens. When I opened my eyes, she was staring expectantly at me. "What did you wish for?" "Tavi, you know I can't tell you, or else it won't come true." She stared at me for a long minute, as if deciding something. Then, she looked at her hands, and did something I never expected. She kissed me. I pressed back into the wall, surprised by the sudden onslaught of her cherry chapstick coated lips. My brain screamed at me to run away, but my body took over. My lips pressed back into hers, and I snaked my arms around her waist, pulling her over until she was sitting on my legs, where I could reach her easier. Just as I began deepening the kiss, she pulled back, and reality crashed in on my still fuzzy mind. There was complete silence, save the sound of two girls gasping for breath. I felt my cheeks burn, and I couldn't meet her eyes. What did I do? What did we do? I felt cold fingers lift up my chin, and her lavender irises burned into my cerise ones. She stared intently at me, most likely searching my face for a reaction. I gave none, save the heat in my cheeks, and the wild spark in my eye. Desperately, I tried to think of a way to break the overhanging tension. I seized upon the first idea that fought its way through the soupy neurons in my pounding head. "So. I guess I don't need to tell you the story of my first kiss, huh? That was it. Good for you. Suppose that means I'm not a lip virgin anymore." Dead silence. Then, she cracked a grin, and we both burst into hysterics, loud enough to surely wake her parents. As we both quieted, there was another heavy, contemplative silence, as we considered the ramifications of what we had done. There were few outcomes, and all involved hurting someone. I'd leave it up to Tavi to choose. "What do we do now? Where do we go with this? Do we just forget about it, or..." I trailed off, not sure of what to say. She stared at me, looking for something again. Then, hesitantly, she leaned over and hugged me tightly, burying her head in my neck. "I don't know," was all she could whisper.
The Morning AfterWe fell asleep like that, wrapped in each other's arms, each left to their own thoughts. I spent most of the rest of the night awake, just enjoying the last moments I may be able to be close to Tavi like this. If we moved on from this, odds are our friendship wouldn't be the same. It might be too awkward for her to let me hold her like this, and I may not ever get to do it again. That's a sad thing for me, because I enjoy cuddling with my friends. Eventually, though my eyes drooped shut, and stayed like that. It was probably sometime around four a.m., because when we woke up at seven, I felt like I had gotten almost no sleep. I opened my eyes to the sight of Tavi's head still resting on my shoulder, and both of us were still sitting upright, the way we had fallen asleep. She had curled closer into me during the night, most likely cold from the lack of a blanket. After what happened, we were both too frazzled to remember to drag one over to us. So, I reached over now, and grabbed a fuzzy neon green and electric blue striped one, draping it over her legs as best I could, and sat quietly, trying not to wake her up. My still sleepy mind decided that the color made a nice contrast with the white duvet and black sheets on her bed. Those were new, but the rest of her room was much as I remembered it from summer; a chic glasstop desk in the far corner, gray carpet with purple accent rugs, lemon yellow gauzy drapes on the large bay window, and a lovely mahogany bookcase overflowing with Tavi's large book collection. There were many horse racing trophies and ribbons displayed proudly around the room; equestrian sports had always been a passion of hers. And over in the other corner on the opposite side of the room, were all of her musical instruments and the various accessories for them, circled around a rather comfortable looking straightbacked chair and a music stand weighted down with a veritable library of well worn sheet music. Her personal favorites were always on the very top of the large stack, scribbled and annotated on as she added her own personal flourishes to the composer's original vision, claiming it as her own. About thirty minutes later, Tavi began to stir. I watched as she slowly opened her eyes, and swiveled them up to look at me. She scrunched them tight, and stretched as far as she could, like a cat. After that was done, she laid her head back on my shoulder, and snuggled back into me. I was becoming slightly concerned. Was she just ignoring last night? Was she forgetting about Note? Does this count as cheating? Oh Luna, I'm in for it now. I leaned my head over on hers, nudging her. She looked balefully up at me; apparently she had intended on going back to sleep. I couldn't let that happen. I had this semi-burning, crawly feeling in my stomach, the kind I get when I think about somebody I like, and my hands started sweating. I needed distance, and now, before things got worse. "Look, this is nice and all, but I need to pee. So, bathroom time for Scratchy, okay? It's still first door on the left, right?" She blinked a few times, and nodded. I took care in sliding out from under her, helping her to lay her still sleepy body carefully on the bed. Then, I crept from the room, and snuck into the bathroom. I wasn't lying about needing to pee. I turned on the light, and shut the door, locking it in case her little sister got any ideas about surprising me, like last time. While washing my hands, I contemplated my current situation. I could always pretend like nothing happened, like Tavi seemed to be doing. I could press her to talk about it. We might even end up together. Ordinarily, I would dismiss that suggestion immediately, but she was the one that initiated the kiss last night. So, this is where I was stuck. After I dried my hands, I slowly walked back to her room. Hesitating outside the oak door, I briefly considered not going back in. I'm sure she would understand. But I didn't want to run away. Also, I can't exactly drive, and I didn't want to wake my parents up. So, resigning myself to what may come, I turned the burnished metal knob, and let myself back into Tavi's room. She was currently laying on her side, curled into a ball, a lock of her naturally curly dark hair falling across her face. I smiled at the sweet scene, and crossed the room to perch lightly on the corner of the bed next to her. She stirred, and stretched her hand out to meet mine. I twitched at the sudden contact, unsure if this was unconscious, or if she was awake. After a few seconds, her hand relaxed, so I assumed that meant she was sleeping. I took the opportunity to remove my hand from hers, and curl up on the bed with her, sharing her blanket. She moved again, and pushed herself backwards a little, forcing me to cuddle with her. I was almost certain that she was awake by now, so I tried something to test her reaction. I lifted my arm up, and laid it over her waist, effectively spooning her. She grabbed my hand, and held it. Well, that was enough proof for me. "Tavi, darling. As much as I love cuddling, we need to talk. Come on, wake up, and talk to me. It's time to finish this." She shook her head, and curled tighter in on herself, taking my hand with her. I tugged it out from her grip, and sat up, pulling the blanket off of her. She shivered, and pulled her knees up to her chest. Ordinarily, I would've make a joke about how she gave me a perfect view of her bottom, but I felt too awkward to even look at her. Reaching over, I lightly tickled her sides, the one surefire way to wake her up. She was incredibly ticklish. Sure enough, she flipped over, and I came face to face with a very peeved Octavia Legata. Oh dear. I've done it again. "Okay, fine. I'll talk. But there's really not much to talk about. I kissed you, and that's it. There's nothing more to discuss, is there?" She glared at me, still mad that I tickled her. I sighed, and ran a hand over my face. "Look, there's a lot that we need to discuss because of that. What are we going to do about it? Do we just forget it? Or do we do something about it?" She stared at me for a long minute. And then another minute more. Finally, she broke the silence. "What do you think we should do about it? What do you want?" I looked morosely at her, and when I spoke, my voice was quiet and solemn, full of pain that was not even seen in my eyes. "I don't think you want me to answer that truthfully. We both know exactly what I would hope for, Tavi." My voice broke in the middle of the first sentence, and my inner turmoil was evident in my slow, carefully chosen words. Tavi looked as if she wanted to hold me and try to soothe me, but she thought better of it. She realized that she was the source of my pain right now. Drawing herself up, she sighed slowly, and sagged against the wrought-iron headboard behind her. "I know, Vincenza, I know. There's just no easy way to solve this. Any way you look at it, somebody gets hurt. It might be you, or Noteworthy, or me. Maybe the both of us." She had captured my attention by using my first name. She never uses it. She's much more upset about this than I realized. "Well, what do you think? I know you love Note, and he loves you probably just as much, but you obviously have some subconscious feelings for me, unless that was a onetime thing. Was it?" She shrugged, unsure of what her body, and her heart were telling her. I'm sure her body said my name, but her heart most likely said Noteworthy's. So what did her head say? "Look, I'm not asking you to abandon him. You've been together over fourteen months now. That's a lot of time to just throw away for me. Sure, we've known each other for over five years, but we haven't been dating that whole time. Who's to say it would even work out between us? How do we even know that you're actually attracted to me? Heat of the moment thing, you know?" I think I was trying harder to convince myself that it wouldn't work more than I was convincing Tavi. Maybe I would get rid of the vaguely sinking feeling in my gut that told me I was starting to fall for her. Why did she have to go and kiss me? I might've been just fine, and not been attracted to her like I'm starting to be now. "Look, Scratch, I know it's a lot of time. And you're right. For all we know, it was just a onetime thing. Right now, I don't feel any different about you than I have before." My heart began to sink at these words, despite my better sense telling it not to. "But," Tavi interrupted this line of thought, " I don't really know what I'm going to feel, because I've only been up less than a half hour." This was true, the clock read 7:27, and it had been 7:10 when I finally got Ms. Cuddlebutt out of bed. Suddenly, a large, gurgling rumble split the room. Tavi leaned down and put her ear to my abdomen. In doing so she gave me a good view of her bottom again, one which I took full advantage of this time. Hey, can't blame a girl for doing what comes naturally, right? Tavi noticed my roaming eyes, and decided to put an end to it. Sitting up properly again, she said, "Hey there, missy, no looking yet. That butt is still Noteworthy's alone to stare at. We haven't even discussed this properly yet. Course, we might want to get breakfast first. You've got an angry monster in your tummy, and I think he wants to be fed." My face flushed at her accusation, even though it was completely true. I nodded meekly, and followed her as she skipped to the door. She turned the knob and swung the door wide open. She began walking quickly down the hallway, humming Peer Gynt's "Morning" to herself as she sped to the kitchen. The melody quickly transformed into Simplest Mistake by Seether, cycled through a few Neon Trees and 30 Seconds To Mars songs, and settled on A Thousand Years by Christina Perri; several odd, and yet, totally predictable choices for the eclectic music junkie. I think there may have even been a Panic! At The Disco or Three Days Grace song in there somewhere. I joined her in the kitchen a few seconds later, and joined her in singing a few seconds after that. We were both mezzos, so I suppose you could say we're... bisectional. I took the higher set of notes at first, and we traded off periodically, as we've always done. Christina Perri has nothing on us, especially considering Tavi is one of our school's chamber choir's leading soloists. That girl has almost too much talent. I mean, solos in choir, and band? Impressive, to say the least. I could probably do the same probably, but I'm not much for singing performances. I helped Tavi make toast and scrambled eggs. It's a miracle that we didn't burn down the house, considering we're both huge culinary disasters even alone. I set the food on plates, and poured two glasses of orange juice for us. We'd probably go out later and get coffee. As soon as Tavi finished making bacon, she brought it over to the table and deposited the marginally burnt food onto her plate. She offered me some, but remembered at the last minute that I was a vegetarian. Eggs are about as far as I'll go with eating animals. Tavi walked back to the sink and deposited the used pans and cooking utensils very quietly in the sink. We didn't want to wake her parents. As she began to cross the kitchen to the breakfast nook, I jumped up and held her chair out for her, and helping her to push it in. I caught her blushing as I took my chair, the same way she always does when I do something gentlemanly. Or is it gentlewomanly? We ate in silence, hurrying to finish so we could continue our discussion upstairs, and also trying to let the rest of the household sleep. Tavi's cat Norris walked up to me, purring and rubbing against my legs as he always does. I scratched his back to say hello, as I always do. That old cat was always something of a conundrum to us; he always seemed to hate other visitors, even Noteworthy. But Norris has always loved me; even when he would try to hurt everyone else, he would calm down for me. I would always pet him softly and sing him Welcome To The Black Parade by My Chemical Romance, his favorite song for some reason, until he stopped being mean. Tavi always took it as a sign that we were meant to be best friends. I finished eating what seemed like mere milliseconds after I sat down. I waited patiently for Tavi to finish. When she did, I snatched up both of our plates and dumped them in the sink. Then it was my turn to drag her along somewhere. I took her hand and tugged down the hallway and into her room. Pushing her inside, I closed the door softly, and then locked it. I really don't like being interrupted during serious conversations. When I turned back around, Tavi was already seated on the bed, absently picking at the drawstring on her blue Cookie Monster pajama pants. I shuffled quietly over, and sat down next to her. She looked over at me, kind of sheepishly, and said nothing. So, we sat in silence for awhile. I would wait as long as it took for her to start.
The Blank PageI didn't wait too long. "Scratch, I don't know why I did what I did last night. I'm not going to try to excuse it, because it was my actions that caused this mess. I can say, though, that you've been there by my side for ages, and that means a lot to me." She reached across and took my hand in both of hers, rubbing circles on it with her small thumbs. We both found comfort in the simple gesture. "All of that just makes this harder for me, because even though I haven't had Noteworthy around for that long, I don't want to break his heart. But I don't want to hurt you, either. I love you both, just in different ways. Or so I thought anyway. Last night kinda disproves that theory, doesn't it?" I smiled a little at her weak attempt at ironic humor. My heart was breaking, seeing my best friend like this. She seemed to enjoy the small comfort hidden in my familiar crooked grin, a slight upturn briefly gracing the corners of her mouth. "Look, Octy, I'm not asking you for anything more than our friendship. I could never force you to choose. Do what your heart tells you." She smiled sadly, dropping her head and shaking it slightly as a humorless chuckle escaped her mouth. She placed my hand back into my own lap before patting it lightly, and standing up to pace the no longer so welcoming room. I had practically grown up in this room from sixth grade onward, but right now it felt as unfriendly as a doctor's office. Octy paused when she reached the pictures hanging on the wall. I watched nervously as she plucked one from the wall. It was the one from our spring band trip last year to Canterlot. We were standing in front of the tulips planted in the royal gardens; she agreed to it because I really love those flowers, even though her allergies practically murdered her later. She's always been so kind to me, the only one of our friends to ever truly return all of the kindness I've shown her. She's taken care of me like a little sister since the day we met, always standing up for me against the cruelty of other kids. It was kinda funny sometimes, watching her defend someone who was nearly a half foot taller than her. She only did it because she knew I wouldn't do it for myself; I preferred to avoid conflict whenever possible, which usually led to my submission to bullies and low self esteem the few times she wasn't there to protect me. Replacing the picture on the wall, Octy glanced at the photos containing Note for a second, before sighing as if she had reached a decision. She slotted her hands into place on her hips, the very image of frustration. "I can't believe I'm even considering this. Ordinarily I wouldn't, but it's you. You at least deserve a shot. So, I'm going to draw up a list of pros and cons for both of you, and I'll decide from there. It's too hard otherwise." I stared at her, mouth hanging slightly open. She smiled a little at the expression on my face, and then grabbed a couple sheets of notebook paper and set to work. I couldn't believe this was happening. I still gaped at her as she put on her purple framed reading glasses and picked up a pencil. The situation didn't really hit home until her pencil hit the paper. This was unfolding like a scene from a movie, as if there were someone dictating our actions and controlling the outcome. But this was even better, because it was real. I don't know the exact amount of time Octy took to finish the lists, but it was long enough for the sun to move just enough to shine directly into my eyes where I was sprawled on the floor. It bothered me only slightly as I dozed. What really woke me up was Octy throwing a pillow onto my face and ruffling my hair in that affectionate way she has. I stretched out for a few seconds, making weird little baby cat-dinosaur noises that made Octy giggle. Sufficiently stretched, I hopped up to lay on the bed next to Octy, folding my hands together on my stomach and staring up at the ceiling. Suddenly, scribble-covered paper blocked my view of the lovely white plaster. I held it a few inches above my face in an aura of blue magic, and waited for my still sleepy eyes to focus. It was Note's list. The left side of the paper was covered in pros, and the various notations that pertained to each. Octy was just as thorough and methodical as ever, despite her confusion and stress. As I glanced at the right column, there were few downsides. The most prominent was underlined and circled several times. It read, 'Not dating Scratch. Potential awkwardness in friendship,' in Octy's neat handwriting. What was that supposed to tell me? Before I could answer that question, a second sheet was placed in my hands. This was my list. I squinched my eyes shut, not quite ready for what she had written about me. I felt a reassuring hand rest on my shoulder, and Octy rubbed her thumb back and forth across the joint. Gathering bravery from her touch, I forced my eyes open. She had written almost nothing on it. There were the start of several sentences on the left side that were scribbled out. There were no cons save homophobia. I was almost disappointed until I saw the top of the paper. My full name was written at the top, and underlined just once. It caught my attention, because Note's didn't look like that. I looked to Octy for explanation. She smiled lightly, giving nothing away. "Octy, why is the paper mostly blank? Could you just not think of anything positive?" I was a little hurt by her apparent lack of good thoughts about me. I'm not that mean to her, am I? "Scratchy, do you see the scribbled out bits?" I nodded my head, still confused and mildly upset. " I kept trying to write good things, but none of it came out right. It never seemed good enough to describe what you are, and what you mean to me. I couldn't put you into words, because no amount of words could even aspire to capture what you've done and continue to do for me. That's why I just wrote your name. You are the good things about dating you. Just you, because you're perfect, and loyal, and beautiful, and smart, and funny, and..." I covered her mouth with a hand to prevent her from finishing the thought, because I was on the verge of tears. No one has ever said anything like that to me and actually meant every word. Nobody, not once, not even my own parents, had ever been that kind to me. I slung my arms around her shoulders and hugged her as tightly as I could without hurting her. She started to speak again, but I shook my head and shushed her. No matter what her decision would be, she had just proven she deserved to be my best friend. "Scratchy, I love you. But I can't date you. Sorry." Silence fell like an atom bomb over the room. I take it back, her decision does matter. I've fallen in love with her now. I stiffened a little, and Octy noticed. She pulled back to look me in the eyes, and she smiled. It was a brighter smile than she had ever shown me before. If anything, this shattered my already hurting heart. She took my hands and held them, trying to comfort me, I suppose. Before I could pull away, Octy began to speak. "I can't date you because that might mean we would break up, silly. And I couldn't handle that. But, I will promise to stay with you until the end of time. Until death do we part and all that good stuff." My eyes widened as I realized what she was getting at. Was she... Nah, couldn't be. But my curiousity got the better of me. "Octy, what are you trying to say? Were you hinting at a wedding, perhaps?" She smiled mischievously. "Depends on what your response is. Would you, Vincenza Maria Sachetti, agree to be saddled with me for the rest of your life?" I was giddy with excitement. "Well, we did always say our kids were going to grow up together... Octavia Legata Philharmonica, you have yourself a deal." I grinned at her, and instead of hugging her, I shook her hand firmly. She giggled at my actions. "So, since we're already in bed, and nobody else is awake, why don't we get started on making some kids to play together?" I winced as Octy slapped my shoulder particularly painfully. "Hey, I didn't know you liked it rough. When'd you get into that?" This was met by another slap, this one across the side of my head. "Scratch, even if it were biologically possible, I'm not having kids with you right now. That can wait for a long time from now. No sex before marriage. And I am not into that sort of kinky stuff. Wherever would you get such an idea?" I just smiled and laughed. She sighed and leaned into me. I curled my arm around her waist. "So no sex, huh? Not even a little? Come on, please? It's not like we can get each other pregnant. No harm, no foul?" She punched me lightly in the chest. "No, Scratch, none. That hasn't changed, even if we are dating now. I'm wearing a white dress at our wedding." I laughed at the thought of that. It all seemed so far away. " So, I can wear any color I want, just not white? Maybe I'll wear red, like the color of the blood from the first time..." Octy sat up and looked at me, horrified. "Why would you say something like that? That's disgusting!" Once again, she punched me, this time in the arm. I winced a little. "Calm down. I was kidding. I know, it was an awful joke. It was meant to be. I'll be wearing white, too. It's not like I can convince you to give in." She still looked perturbed by my macabre sense of humor. Finally though, she laid back down in my arms. I stroked her silky hair softly, and we talked about little things for a long time. Just as she began relaxing, an urgent question presented itself to me. "Hey, how're we gonna tell Note?" She shook her head slowly, realizing the problem we still had. " I don't know, but we'll figure it out somehow. I don't think he would go so far as to hate us and cause trouble, but he'll be a bit hurt. Honestly, though, I think he was losing interest anyway. We haven't gone on a date in awhile, and he hardly spends more time with me than he has to." I had noticed that, too. There was one time I purposely flirted with Octy right in front of him, and instead of getting mad, he just shrugged and walked away, leaving Mollie and I confused. Well, and Octy punched me for doing that. We decided to lay there for another hour and talk, as it was still before nine, and her parents wouldn't expect us to be up until at least ten. Eventually, though, we got up and got dressed for the day ahead, and when the clock struck ten, we left the room to go on a morning walk down through the neighborhood.
Epilogue-The After YearsThis was the first of many days that we would spend together, because we kept our promise and stayed with each other until the end. I could not have chosen anything more perfect. I finally got my happily ever after with my best friend and the woman of my dreams, complete with a white picket fence, two cats, a hamster, and a snake, and four kids; a set of twin boys, and two beautiful daughters that look just like their mother. They all call me da, even though I'm technically their mum, too. But I didn't carry them for nine months, so I can't complain. I suppose it helped them make sense of the whole thing when they were little, and it just stuck. And I'm sure saying they had a da cut down on bullying until the others met me. Octy loves it though, and thinks it's just the cutest thing that they differentiate between us like that. And if she thinks it's cute, I'm not gonna change it. What Octy wants, Octy gets. It's always been that way. Our family was, needless to say, a very musical household; we had a cellist, a pianist and trumpet player, a percussionist, and the youngest played more instruments than I have time to name, including the double horn and bassoon. Octy and I were proud marching band parents for a total of fourteen years, helping out even in the years between having a kid in it. Note actually didn't mind that she left him for me. Turns out, he's gay, and was only dating her to try to 'fix' himself. It didn't work, and he was actually looking for a way to let her know he couldn't lie to her anymore. He eventually ended up with our friend Lyonheart, and they had a couple of kids through a surrogate mother. Everything worked out for everyone, and our kids spent many years together as they grew up. My da was very happy for me, but my mother tried to disown me. Octavia's stepmum tried the same. So, when we sent out wedding invitations, we included them anyway, but our da's were the only ones to show up. It really bothered me, but I let it go because Octavia wanted me to. At least her da was there to walk her down the aisle to me. Octy's da is their favorite grandparent, and they call him Papaw Morceau. My da was referred to as Gampy until they were old enough to call him Grandda Surefoot. My mum has sort of come around, if only for the sake of a relationship with her only grandchildren. They absolutely love their Nonna Liliana, and Octavia is too good to hold a grudge. I'm not, though, and I told the kids what she did when they were old enough. I did tell them that I had forgiven her, though. We're all doing well now. Octavia and I just celebrated our twenty-third anniversary. The twins, Crescendo and Finale, are in college. Crescendo wants to be a doctor like me, and Finale is studying to be a music professor. Allegrezza is in her freshman year at Octy and I's old school, Blueridge Senior High. She plans on being a psychologist. The youngest, Quillan, is in third grade at Lakeview Elementary. She already thinks she's gonna be president. We promised to vote for her in the 2032 election. If that doesn't work, she wants to be a particle physicist and work at CERN. I still marvel at how she knows what that is at eight years old. Author's Note So, it's finally the end. As a side note, this will probably explain the questions you may have about the terms used in this last chapter. Vinyl's family is Irish and Italian, and Octy has an Italian mother and a German father. That should just about do it. Anyway, I'd like to thank you all for your input. You've been instrumental in shaping the story, no matter how short the story actually is. I love each and every person who has read this, simply for the fact that they read it. So, goodbye, and good luck, with much love from TheOriginalDash.
"I don't know..."Remember that feeling when you were afraid to fall? You were walking along, just barely balancing, about to tumble off the monkey bars on your kindergarten playground. You were riding your bike for the first time in the third grade, and your dad was helping you balance because you didn't have your training wheels this time. You were looking into their eyes for the first time, the summer before ninth grade. You had given up on them, but you then noticed somebody trying to help you back up from where you had fallen. And this time, when you got back up, you weren't afraid to fall. This was just before tenth grade, and you had your whole life ahead of you, thanks to one beautiful, odd, totally insane girl. She had been your friend since you were in sixth grade, and you were so disappointed when she graduated and left for high school, because that meant a whole year without her. And now that you're back together and causing mischief again, she's the one helping you balance. Too bad she seems to keep trying to pull you off the edge with her. "Tavi, where the hell are you?" I was so frustrated that I couldn't find her. She was always there. I looked up and down the hallways outside of her class, desperate for a sign of my walking buddy. Did she really not wait for me after class? "Scratch, language! What have I told you about that," Tavi asked tiredly, walking up behind me. She always used that nickname when she felt just the tiniest bit exasperated by me. So, in other words, she called me that all the time. See, Vincenza was my real name, but that's a bit old fashioned for me, so I change it to Vinyl. Usually everybody calls me Sachetti, which is my last name. Tavi's the only person allowed to call me Scratch, my stage name. I can't deny her anything. She's just too adorable. I've known her practically forever, since the sixth grade, when we met at a concert through a mutual friend. She really gets the real me. I'd rather be shoveling hay than go watch Shinedown in concert. ( Don't get me wrong, they're amazing.) I'm a country girl at heart, just like her. I only put on this punk facade to escape ridicule. "I don't know, Tavi. What have you told me? That you find it attractive? Sorry, darling, but I have to let you down easy." Tavi grinned and punched me in the arm, a look of fake disapproval on her face. This was commonplace for us. It's just the way we are. I flirt with her, and she shoots me down every time. She took the news of my bisexuality rather well. Of course, the only reason she's okay with the flirting is because I've explained that I only hit on girls I don't like. "That's not what I said, and you know it. What am I going to do with you?" She shook her head, and began walking toward the stairs. I followed close behind. "I'm more interested in what you'd do to me. You, me, at six?" She snorted, and passed through the door at the bottom of the stairs. We walked through the corridor to the band room. "As fun as that sounds, I'll have to turn you down. I have Noteworthy, and I'm very happy with him. You're a pretty girl, go try someone else." I blushed a little bit at the compliment, and held the door open for her. She smiled when she saw my expression, knowing instinctively that she caused it. "Aren't you just the cutest thing, Scratchy? Aw, you're even redder now.." It was true, I was blushing fiercely. She giggled and linked her arm through mine, dragging me and my still flustered face into the band room. One look at my face, and my friends burst into fits of laughter. They knew what had happened, because it happens so often. They all knew about my orientation, and they knew what Tavi does to me. It's one thing to flirt with a straight girl, it's another to have her flirt back. It didn't help that she was pretty as all get out. "So, Tavi, we still on for tonight? I've got my stuff in my instrument cage if you just want to head over now." I was referring to her plan to have me stay the night. I suppose I should say plot, because everyone knew what she'd coerce me into. Probably another night of truth or dare, pillow fights, and forcing makeup and dresses on me. Yay. "Of course we are. Why wouldn't we be? I wouldn't miss it for the world." I giggled at her enthusiasm, and hearing the decidedly girly sound erupt from my throat, Tavi laughed, too. "Okay, then. Let me go get my bag and we can leave. I'll be right back, cutie. Please don't pine away in my absence." She snorted again, and I deftly stepped around a hand that wished to bring pain to my shoulder. Trotting away, I swung my hips and stuck my butt out a bit more than necessary, until a certain someone's foot collided rather painfully with it. Wincing, I dropped the act and limped oddly to my trumpet locker in the brass closet. I snatched my small drawstring bag, and walked back out to spot Tavi smirking by her clarinet locker, just outside the closet. I stuck my tongue out at her, and dragged her to her car in the student parking lot. Many hours and bowls of cheese corn and gummy worms later, we were resting on her bed. She had laid her head over on my shoulder, and I was beginning to consider how awkward it would be if her family saw us. I thought she was asleep, until she spoke. "This is pretty comfy Scratchy, but I was thinking maybe we should play a game or something, before it gets too late. What do you suggest?" She looked up at me, the lilac abyss glinting with the feeling of excitement. I had an evil thought. "What about strip poker?" I grinned widely at her, and she kicked my leg, which was snuggled alongside hers. "No, Scratchy. You're too good for me to win that, and I don't feel like letting you see this chubby old Octy body." I glared at her when she said that. "Take it back. You are not chubby. That's my job." She smiled at this, and shook her head slowly, used to my fiery temper about self-deprecation. It didn't extend to myself, though, and that's why she was shaking her head. I honestly was a tad chubby, but that just meant there's more to love. "Okay, fine. Now, how about Truth or Dare?" Oh, that is so cliche. "How about no. That's tacky. Um, I've got nothing." She cocked her head in the adorable way she has when she's thinking hard. "We could sit around and tell each other stuff. Secrets, stories, whatever." "Sounds good to me. You go first." I was curious to see what she'd come up with. So she told me about her first dog, the one who died last winter. I held her while she cried at the end. She'd had him since she was two. She's sixteen now. I, in turn, told her about the first boy that ever liked me, way back in second grade. She giggled profusely when I told her how I had climbed a tree to get away from him. She thought it was cute that I thought boys had cooties, because usually it was the other way around at that age. Eventually, she told me the story of her first kiss, with a boy named Quillan when she was in the eighth grade. When we finished laughing, we sat in silence for a bit, still leaning on each other. I checked the clock on her wall. It read 11:10. "Hey, get ready to make a wish. Look at the clock." I saw the number change, and I screwed my eyes shut. I hoped upon all hope and lucky things, and sent my wish to the heavens. When I opened my eyes, she was staring expectantly at me. "What did you wish for?" "Tavi, you know I can't tell you, or else it won't come true." She stared at me for a long minute, as if deciding something. Then, she looked at her hands, and did something I never expected. She kissed me. I pressed back into the wall, surprised by the sudden onslaught of her cherry chapstick coated lips. My brain screamed at me to run away, but my body took over. My lips pressed back into hers, and I snaked my arms around her waist, pulling her over until she was sitting on my legs, where I could reach her easier. Just as I began deepening the kiss, she pulled back, and reality crashed in on my still fuzzy mind. There was complete silence, save the sound of two girls gasping for breath. I felt my cheeks burn, and I couldn't meet her eyes. What did I do? What did we do? I felt cold fingers lift up my chin, and her lavender irises burned into my cerise ones. She stared intently at me, most likely searching my face for a reaction. I gave none, save the heat in my cheeks, and the wild spark in my eye. Desperately, I tried to think of a way to break the overhanging tension. I seized upon the first idea that fought its way through the soupy neurons in my pounding head. "So. I guess I don't need to tell you the story of my first kiss, huh? That was it. Good for you. Suppose that means I'm not a lip virgin anymore." Dead silence. Then, she cracked a grin, and we both burst into hysterics, loud enough to surely wake her parents. As we both quieted, there was another heavy, contemplative silence, as we considered the ramifications of what we had done. There were few outcomes, and all involved hurting someone. I'd leave it up to Tavi to choose. "What do we do now? Where do we go with this? Do we just forget about it, or..." I trailed off, not sure of what to say. She stared at me, looking for something again. Then, hesitantly, she leaned over and hugged me tightly, burying her head in my neck. "I don't know," was all she could whisper.
