Beth sat on the couch, watching Lisa as she moved around the kitchen. It had been what? Ten years she thought. A long time, but Lisa still looked great. She swirled her wine, enjoying the aroma as the drink cascaded around the edge of the glass.
"You know you're not supposed to spin wine hard like that right?" Lisa asked laughing, startling Beth.
Caught off guard Beth jumped just enough to twirl the glass too much and the wine splashed over the side, onto her skirt and across the couch. "Oh crap!" She stammered. "Damn Lisa, I'm so sorry," she replied, standing...
Lisa laughed and threw a dishtowel at her. "Here, and relax, it's no big deal. It's just a sofa. Now the wine..." her voice trailed off, looking at Beth, giving her an evil look...
Beth misread Lisa's mood and in fear looked up and when their eyes met, they both burst out laughing.
Wiping away the wine from the sofa Beth once again, began to apologize...
"Will you stop!" Lisa said. "It's just a sofa. Hell, it might be an opportunity to get Steven to buy me a new one." She laughed, leaning in to help clean up the mess...
As they wiped their hands met, and suddenly they were silent, staring at each other, faces very close, eyes locked as a million memories danced through their minds...
... Once upon a time, many years ago in college they had been roommates. Different majors and different backgrounds, with dramatically different tastes in boys. But as college goes, still roommates. Beth, who went by Connie back then, a distorted version of her middle name, liked the bad boys. Lisa the brainy ones. She had grown up in a house full of brothers who were athletes and had become wary of all their buddies who seemed only interested in sports and women. Not that she didn't like the attention, but in those early days of adulthood, they seemed a little bit too one-dimensional to her...
So Lisa had gravitated toward the quieter boys, ones that did well in school, and although they
were
boys, sex wasn't the only thing on their minds. While Beth seemed to have a new boyfriend every other month or so, Lisa had now been with her current all summer long and now well into the new school year.
It was a night in October that changed the relationship for the two of them. They were both twenty-two, Beth a senior and Lisa, having finished her poli-sci degree, a first year law student. It began, as things do, innocently enough. Having won the homecoming game they were with their current boyfriends at a local bar when, after a beer or two, they accepted a dare to make out.
Lisa never knew if Beth had a background with other women, but for her it was the first time. A night of kissing in a bar, with boyfriends', strangers, and alcohol, led them into a torrid affair that lasted six months...
Breaking the silence, Beth picked up her glass and the wet towel and walked into the kitchen. "Oh wow," she laughed, "I didn't realize you were over here cutting strawberries."
"What? What am I missing?" Lisa asked. When Beth didn't answer, she turned to look. Beth was holding one of the biggest berries from the box in her hand, resting it on her cleavage. Lisa's eyes widened before busting out laughing. "Oh Damn!" She laughed. "You are awful."
"That's how it began wasn't it?" Beth asked rhetorically. "Remind me... Wasn't it that night in the kitchen, at the Dorm?"
Lisa looked at her, feeling her heart speeding up ever so slightly at the memory. "Silly me, I thought it began that night after homecoming," she replied.
"So you do remember!" Beth almost shouted.
Lisa tossed the towel in the sink and leaned back against the counter. "Yes I remember. How could I ever forget? It lasted what, five, six months?"
Beth popped the strawberry into her mouth before answering. "Yes, something like that. You were the only lover I had during that time you know..." She said, her voice trailing off.
Lisa turned back to the counter to cut more berries, and to hide her blush and discomfort. "No, I didn't know that," she replied, matter-of-factly.
The silence hung in the air for a moment too long around the women. "I need a drink," Lisa finally said.
"Me too," Beth laughed as she picked up the wine and took a pull directly from the bottle.
Lisa looked at Beth again before taking the bottle from her hands. "Was I really the only one during that time?"
Beth looked into her eyes. "Yes." She whispered.
Lisa smiled a slight smile and looked at the ceiling. "You know it was the same for me, right?"
"Yes. And I also know it only ended because Steven came into the picture."
"It had to end anyway. Sooner or later," Lisa spoke again, looking at the bottle in her hands.
"I know." Beth replied. "Lisa, it's all good. You know that. For goodness sakes, we're both married now. Have been forever."
Lisa laughed, "I know right, and you, married to Joe. I would never have guessed that for you, one guy. You loved the boys too much!"
"Yep, right up until you came along." Beth replied, taking the bottle back and putting it to her lips, pulling a long drink.
Lisa stared at her, shocked at her words. "Beth..." she began.