Glad you guys have liked these. I struggled with this one, trying to find the right tone and concept for things with Carly's sister. I rewrote it four times but I like how it came out in the end. Hopefully everyone enjoys it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
*****
The week passed by with some difficulty. Carly and I traded flirty text messages and talked when we were able. Both of us were very busy with work and neither of us wanted to pressure the other to give up on that. My consultancy was going through a big merger and my status as junior partner put me in a weird place politically within the combined company. Carly, on the other hand, had a massive game release that required her to work crazy hours managing all the bugs you'd expect with any major release. So our schedules were all over the place that first week back. I try not to spend too much time on Facebook but I was curious what each of the girls would do so I started the ball rolling by simply switching my relationship status from Single to "It's Complicated". What resulted was a hilarious and intricate dance of modern day social etiquette that anyone familiar with alternative lifestyles knows all too well.
Carly was the first one to follow suit, changing hers simply to "In a relationship" but not flagging who it was with. That didn't surprise me, I knew she needed time to deal with her parents and lay the groundwork. Nevertheless, she got a TON of responses from people (including her sister, I noted) asking about the guy. She played coy and didn't respond with much, other than the general positives like, "He's amazing," and, "I couldn't be happier," coupled with the more reassuring, "He's got a steady job and he's not a deadbeat, Mom!"
At that point, a couple of our friends posted on my page with things like, "Is it Carly?" I didn't want to respond too hastily and reveal too much so I checked to make sure we didn't have any important overlapping friends (like her sister or my little brothers) but thankfully we didn't. For the most part, there was no cross-referencing but I was really getting worried and wondered if one of my friends would post something stupid on one of Carly's posts that her family would see.
It was late Tuesday night when things went crazy as Kyrsten came to Carly's rescue. Kyrsten changed hers and specifically listed me... then she flagged us as, "In an open relationship". A setting which, frankly, I didn't even realize was a thing. And at that point, our circle of friends exploded. I got four texts in about 120 seconds.
Jenn: What??? I'm confused... Are you still with Carly too? Is that the "open" part?? Please be good, Jay.
Roland: 👍👍
Kyrsten: I was trying to help, Master... I hope I didn't make a mistake.
Carly: Well... I guess I'm out of the woods. Enjoy your night explaining things. Lol.
Messenger on facebook blew up even worse. The instant I showed online, I had seven or eight messages from people. Apparently my Mom got a call. Remember kids, your parents made a lot of casual acquaintances with other parents while you were in high school. ESPECIALLY if you played sports. You're not keeping secrets from them.
Mom: Open relationship?!!?!???
Me: Uhhh... look... it's complicated, Mom. It's uhhhmmm...
Mom: You and I are NOT having this discussion on Facebook. Call me when you get your head screwed on straight!
Well... that went well. I decided to do broader damage control.
Me to Kyrsten: It's fine. Just trying to do some expectations management now. My Mom will be the big fire to put out.
Kyrsten: What about your dad?
Me: Are you kidding, I'm an adult now. He's going to high five me then pull me aside and tell me to handle things on my own with my Mom. He'll be Switzerland for awhile.
Kyrsten: Lucky you. My parents are divorced and I barely speak to them. They're not even friends on Facebook. I doubt I'll even get a phone call.
Me: I'm not sure which situation is better.
Kyrsten: Yours :(
Me: 🤗😘
Me: Gotta go put out fires.
Kyrsten: Nite, stud
Me to Carly: Yeah... this is fun. My Mom is pissed, Jenn sounds like she might be getting on a plane to knife me and Kyrsten WAS flipping out but I think she's okay now.
Carly: Good. You're good for her... You're good for everyone.
Me: :)
Me: I'll text you later. Gonna make sure Jenn doesn't murder me in my sleep.
Carly: I'll be teasing my clit all night thinking about you, Master.
Me: Teasing Bitch... 🍆
Me to Jenn: Carly and I are still together. Absolutely. I would say Carly is my girlfriend.
Jenn: And Kyrsten?
Me: Kyrsten is really special and we're trying to figure out what that is. It might be girlfriend too...
Jenn: Everyone always said nice things about you in school. In fact, even on your page people are saying nice (confused... but nice) things now. I hope you're not just using her as cheap fun.
Me: She's not that cheap (nono... delete, delete... rethink)
Me: I told her that I want to explore the relationship more and would leave it up to her but she also knows how I feel about Carly and she's okay with that.
Jenn: I hope so buddy. Kyrsten's got some issues if you haven't noticed.
Me: I have. Any advice?
Jenn: Treat her right. Show her that a relationship can be stable and worthwhile.
Me: Thanks. I'm really trying.
Jenn: I believe you.
Me: While we're at it... I hope things are going well with Roland. He's a keeper Jenn.
Jenn: 😳 I know
Me to Roland: Thanks for the moral support buddy!
Roland: You good?
Me: Oh yeah... my Mom is thrilled and YOUR new girlfriend sounds like she wants to scratch my eyes out.
Roland: Nahh... she's fine... Jenn I mean... can't help you with your Mom. Be grateful it ain't mine!
Me: Hah... yeah. Enjoy your night!
Roland: I will... Jenn just walked in... oh... yeah... she's not upset... gotta go man... good nite for me too!
Me: Lol... dick
After all that, I did some exercises to calm myself before calling my mom. Nothing helps clear the mind quite like some pushups and pullups that push you nearly to exhaustion.
"What the hell, Jay? An OPEN relationship? What the hell does that mean? Does it mean what I think it means?"
"Mom... let me explain, then ask all the questions you want."
"Okay... but you better talk quick."
"Before I start, I want you to know that I'm happy and so are the girls,"
"GIRLS?!?" my Mom exploded.
"Mom... let me finish. Would you rather they were guys?" I asked jokingly. Anyone with parents born in the 60s will understand that question's impact.
"Go on..."
"Do you remember Carly? She was the tall Asian girl that was almost Valedictorian. She and I... well.. We hooked up when I was down there this weekend."
"You were in town this weekend and didn't come to see us?"
"Mom... Big picture..." I said unbelievably having to refocus my mother onto her "open relationship" hysterics. "I was visiting friends on a whirlwind trip. There wasn't any time. Anyway, Carly and I hooked up but then so did Kyrsten and I?"
"Honey, you've got to choose one. Don't be a cheating bastard like your uncle!"
"I'm not, Mom. I chose both. And both girls know and both girls are okay with that."
"That's ridiculous. One of them is lying. Or they both are. No girl would be okay with that!"
My Mom was classic second wave feminist. I knew that there was ZERO chance she'd understand the real dynamic in these relationships. But maybe she'd understand it from a more modern approach. "Mom, they're both grown women. They both know what they're doing. Neither wants to be tied down to a man right now."
"Tied down perhaps", I thought to myself before continuing, "They want what they want and I'm really enjoying spending time with both of them. I don't know what will happen but they're the ones in control." That last was simultaneously the most truthful and least truthful statement I'd made in a long time.