Mentor Ch 11 Rookie

Mentor

Chapter 11 - Rookie

I was still feeling disgusted with myself on Monday. Objectively, I knew that what had happened wasn't my fault. It wasn't my responsibility to check with potential bedmates whether they were single. Not in Danielle's case, and not in Michelle's. Still, I felt that I had not been sufficiently skeptical. It was ironic that Michelle had been wary on my behalf over Danielle, but Danielle had been the one who'd respected my integrity.

Of course, the question of relationship status didn't apply to the college kids who made up the Monday evening group. And to be fair, seen in that light, it also didn't apply to Danielle. The events were geared towards hookups, and anyone who showed up there looking for temporary companionship was implicitly announcing that they were single and available.

So Michelle's challenge that I hadn't done due diligence on Danielle really didn't hold water. Danielle could certainly have deliberately misled me, but the clear implication was that she was free to find herself a sweet young thing for the night.

Being a bartender rather than an event attendee, Michelle avoided making that statement. Which perhaps was a place where I could have applied some creative suspicion.

Whatever. I still didn't think it had been my fault, but the truth still was that I'd betrayed a woman I didn't know by sleeping with her wife, and had compounded the betrayal by manipulating Michelle's feelings to make her

want me

rather than just want sex with a random groupie. I couldn't let that go.

In my emotional turmoil, I didn't feel up to going to Gabby's the next day, not even just to spend time with friends. And I hid my feelings from Anita when I replied to my erstwhile mentor's occasional texts.

~~~~~

My hair wasn't quite the disaster I'd imagined it would be when I'd involuntarily soaked it and left it to dry, but as I picked out the ribbon and braids on Sunday night I decided I would take Elaine, the stylist, up on her suggestion of cutting and perming. I felt the need to be different. I didn't want to make a permanent change, like Michelle's tattoos, or even Dylan's art, but one of Elaine's creations might be ideal.

So on Monday I called Elaine. She couldn't find a weekend appointment for me for a couple of weeks, but she had one opening on Thursday afternoon. I decided to take a half day personal time and booked the slot.

Elaine cut and permed my hair as she'd suggested, shoulder length with loose curls. It felt light and free. Curls danced when I turned my head. Studying the results in a mirror, I was more than pleased with the effect.

We made an appointment for coloring in a couple of weeks, when it would be safe to work with the perm. I didn't yet know what color I wanted. Many of the options in Elaine's book were far too outrageous, though they looked great on the women whose photos she'd taken. For myself, I was thinking red. Or maybe blonde with red tips. That would be interesting.

On Saturday I received a text from Anita that wasn't about work, college gossip or checking in with me. She asked me if I was going to be at Gabby's on the following Monday. I replied honestly that I didn't know. She asked if she could call.

"See, there's a friend of mine who wants to visit," she said. It had been a while since we'd talked, and her soft voice immediately recalled lunches in the company break room, or sitting outside by the lake. It calmed the anxiety I'd felt when seeing her text about the club. "I can't be there," she continued. "I could ask Emma and Tiff to look after her, like they did you, but since your experience is newer and more like Kennedy's, I'd prefer to ask you first."

"Of course I'll help," I said, "and I can definitely go. It wouldn't be a question of whether I can be there, just whether I want to, and if there's a reason I certainly will."

"Is there a problem at the club?" she asked.

"No," I said, which was mostly true. My issues with Michelle had nothing to do with Gabby's, other than buying drinks. But I heard the lack of conviction in my tone, so I pushed ahead to avoid revealing more. "Tell me where to meet her and what you're concerned about."

"I'll text you a photo," she said, "and if it's okay with you I'll give her your number, so she can contact you to set up where and when. She's a newbie to the club, and inexperienced in general, and since you became a regular recently, I thought you could offer her advice."

My phone beeped with an incoming message. It was a picture of a girl who looked very young, compared to most of Gabby's patrons. She was wearing a gray jacket over a pale green tee, with a short gray skirt.

"Are you sure she's eighteen?" I asked. "She looks like she's wearing a middle school uniform."

Anita laughed. "I'm sure. She probably looks young because you're an old lady now, a full year out of college!"

"I feel it," I agreed. "I won't ask for her number. If she wants to text me she'll give me it."

~~~~~

The text from Anita's friend arrived the following day, in the middle of a text exchange I was having with Alexis, Ann's roomie. In spite of Ann turning our short-but-intense fling into Evil Seductress Kayla Seduces Innocent Straight Girl, nothing had been awkward between Alex and myself. We'd become friends via text. She referred to herself as my "token straight friend."

We generally traded good-natured insults, and Alex doubled down on including verbal hesitations in texts. She generally started our conversations with, "So, uh..."

This conversation had been about ideas for a Halloween costume. I had my own outfit mostly put together, so I didn't need help, but I was happy to let her bounce ideas off me.

After a long pause in our conversation, my phone pinged again, and I expected to see a "So, uh...". But the number came up as unknown.

???: "Hi! This is Kennedy. Anita gave me ur number?"

Me: "Yes! I'm Kayla. She said you haven't been to Gabby's before."

Kennedy: "Right. Maybe we could meet outside? I can text u when I arrive. Can u send photo?"

I'd spent too much time trading barbs with Alex. I almost made a quip about it being too early to ask for nudes, but then I realized that it was equally too early to make a smartass remark like that to someone I hadn't even met. Sometimes I

can

make good decisions. So instead, I checked the room behind me in case of unfortunate clutter, and snapped a selfie.

Kennedy: "Oh wow, I ❤️ ur hair!"

Me: 😊 "Thanks! It's only been like this for 3 days. I plan to be there around 7:45."

Kennedy: "I won't be there til like 8:30 or so, is that okay?"

Me: "Of course. I'm sure I can find something to do until then 😉"

Alright, so I'm not perfect.

The something I found to do was dance with Tiff, who looked bored, since Emma was discussing a class project with a guy. Emma glanced up at me when I was leading her girlfriend away, and smirked. I winked at her.

Today's outfit was the peach button-front top I'd worn to the club before, plunge bra so that I could leave the top unfastened far enough to show a little cleavage, burgundy pleated midi skirt that I hadn't worn at the club before, and medium heels.

There was no band, and our regular DJ was absent. Instead, the stage held DJ equipment manned by a blonde in a pale blue sports bra, camo Bermuda shorts and a lightweight wrap, with a sign billing the performance as a "trance revival." While I wasn't sure the genre needed to be revived, the music was very danceable, and less harsh than the techno / industrial sounds that were more familiar to me.

Dancing with Tiff was fun, as always. She was bouncy and sexy and had the cutest little nose with a tiny smattering of freckles over the bridge. But she could flirt while making it absolutely crystal clear that she was

with

Emma, and always would be. I respected that. There's no way Tiff would ever act like Michelle had.

Tiff managed to make me feel that my friends were trustworthy and honest, and to treat me as being the same. Maybe I shouldn't have skipped last Monday. A night's dancing with no expectations might have helped me not feel as negative throughout the week.

Though there was one thing...

I lightly rested my fingers on Tiff's waist and drew her to me, leaning close enough that she could hear me without raising my voice. "No matchmaking today," I said.

"Aww! You always say that!"

"I'm looking after a friend of Anita's. When she gets here," I said.

Tiff leaned back and beamed at me as I released her waist. "Ooh! You have a

date

," she cried.

I facepalmed before her. "You just love twisting my words, don't you?"

Tiff gave me a look of wide-eyed surprise. "No, Kaykay, I love twisting

everyone's

words."

Kaykay?

I let it ride, shaking my head. "It's almost time for her to show. Let me take you back to your spouse before someone gets murdered," I said. "Though whether it's me throttling you for twisting my words, or Emma throttling me for keeping you from her, I don't know."

"Both," Tiff said, taking my hand. "Emma will murder you because you murdered me. Or maybe

I'll

murder you for calling her my spouse."

"Good to know we're all on the same page," I said.

~~~~~

The text I'd been expecting arrived less than five minutes later, and I excused myself to find Kennedy waiting just outside the door. The photo Anita had sent me didn't do her justice. She still seemed very young, but with a little delicate makeup, her dark hair in natural waves, wearing a heavy jacket over a green dress, heels and short silver earrings, she seemed both teen-pretty yet mature. Her ID got her into the club, so yes, she was at least eighteen.

She was about average height, so with her low heels she was a couple of inches inches shorter than me. Taller than Tiff, however.

Once inside, I took her hand - gently, sliding my fingers over the side of her hand, then into her palm, so she could choose to draw hers back - and led her to Emma's and Tiff's table. I slid a chair out for her, then held out my hand for a more formal introduction. "Hey, Kennedy, I'm Kayla." Then I introduced my friends. "This is Tiff, and this is Emma. They were my chaperones when Anita introduced me to Gabby's."

"Some chaperone I am," said Emma, "when she spent the last half hour making out with my girlfriend on the dance floor."

"True, that," Tiff agreed, brightly. "Except the making out part."

My guest slipped off her jacket. Beneath it, her dress was dark green and sleeveless. She straddled the boundary between adorable and sexy.

"What would you like to drink?" I asked her.

"What do you recommend?"

"My favorite drink has a tendency to burn off your taste buds," I said. "It might sound boring, but a Shirley Temple is pretty good. We have a great bartender" - I tried to suppress my wince as I said that - "and she can probably make anything you can think of."

"I'll have a Shirley Temple," Kennedy said.

"I think I'll join you in that," I said. "What about you two?"

Tiff and Emma glanced at each other. I didn't sense any communication taking place, but Emma said, "We're down."

"Alright," I said. "Tiff, no setting Kennedy up with a girlfriend while I'm at the bar, okay?"

"I make no promises," the small girl said, with a mischievous grin.

At the bar, I gave Michelle an uncomfortable nod. She returned it, and I saw no sign of the hostility of the previous week in her eyes, though she was unsurprisingly distant, and I didn't expect to be on friendly terms with her again. I placed my order, and she loaned me a small tray to take the drinks back, telling me to keep it until one of us returned to the bar.

After distributing the Shirley Temples, I took the chair beside Kennedy. She glanced up at me and smiled, her cheeks actually dimpling. I wasn't sure which side of the cute / sexy line the dimples placed her. Both, I thought.

"So, my first visit was - hmm, less than two months ago, I guess," I said, after a little thought. "Seems longer. I knew Anita from work. Tiff and Emma were the first people I met here, and Anita trusted them to keep me safe from predators, so you can trust them. Not that there are any predators here, apparently."

"Except Kayla, maybe," said Emma.

"Nah." Tiff shook her head. "She's more of a playgirl."

"Oh, you two," I whined. "You're not going to help her feel comfortable."

"Just doing our job," said Emma.

I shook my head, chuckling. Kennedy's eyes were flitting around the table uneasily, not sure what to make of the banter. I reached out to give her forearm a quick squeeze, drawing my hand back immediately. "It's fine," I said. "I really don't know of anyone here who'd cause you problems, but we'll all be glad to take you under our wing."

"It's not her wing she wants her under," Emma said to Tiff in a clearly-audible stage whisper. Kennedy flushed and I glared at Emma. "Alright, sorry," she said, negating her apology a moment later by glancing between us and adding, "But it's true."

At that we all started laughing, even Kennedy, though there was still a touch of nervousness in her expression.

The conversation turned to the club, and its history, and safe spaces in general in the city. A lot of the stories were new to me, and I was as fascinated with the conversation as Kennedy clearly was.

"I've never met Gabby," I said. "Have you two?" I glanced at Emma.

She and Tiff looked at me blankly. "The owner?" I offered. "I assume?"

"Oh!" interjected Emma. "No. There's no Gabby."

"Yes, there is," corrected Tiff, "but not here. It's

Gabby

! You know, big stick? Those little round dagger things?"

"Sais," interrupted Emma.

"Right. Sais. Gabrielle. Xena's girlfriend."

"Oh! Xena, right," I said. "I didn't make the connection. That show's before my time."

"You're

older

than us, silly," said Tiff. "Everyone here knows Xena and Gabby. It was part of the written exam I took to become a lesbian."

"That's just for late bloomers," Emma objected. "Some of us are born shipping Xena and Gabrielle."

"I'm sure it was pillow talk for you," Tiff said, then added, darkly, "or bean-bag talk."

"And I doubt you ever took the written exam," Emma said, eyeing her girlfriend. "I think it was oral."

"Well, you'd know, wouldn't you?" Tiff retorted, her eyes bright.

While they were bickering, I noticed Suse making her way to us. Quickly, I turned to Kennedy and muttered, "One of our friends is heading in this direction. I'm certain she's coming to ask you to dance."

The girl looked panicked. "I meant what I said," I added, softly. "She's no predator. She'll take no for an answer without any hard feelings. But it's your call. If you want to dance, you'll be fine with her. If she wants anything more, that's your call, too. She won't be upset if you don't say yes. And if you want, I'll intercept her before she even asks."

Kennedy gave her head a quick shake. "I'll handle it," she murmured, as Suse arrived.

Our visitor introduced herself, then announced that since clearly no one had thought to ask the newcomer to dance, Suse had shown up to fulfill the duty.

Kennedy clearly debated the invitation internally, before giving a single, sharp nod, then standing, held a hand out to Suse, who gave me a curious look as they left. I smiled at her.

Tiff and Emma went off to dance, too, which left me sitting alone, and fair game for being picked up. I felt it was my responsibility to wait for Kennedy, though. She might stay with Suse, but she might not, and I wouldn't want her to feel either alone or dependent on Suse. I offered a couple of rain checks, but then Kennedy returned and I was glad I'd stayed put.

"She did suggest I could leave with her later," Kennedy said, leaning toward me. "I mean, I would have said no, but if you hadn't said anything I wouldn't have known it was

okay

with her to say no. Thank you."

"Of course," I said, "that's why Anita wanted to be sure you were in good hands." I grinned, looking down at my hands. "Well, I hope they're good enough. After a moment, I added, "So, Anita said this is your first visit? Have you only just learned about the club?"

"A couple of weeks," Kennedy replied. "I asked around about LGBT-friendly places for students, and this is the one everyone recommended. I had to steel myself to visit. I've never been... out, publicly, before, so it's a... a challenge. A friend put me in touch with Anita. We've been talking for a few days, and she agreed to make sure I was comfortable, or I wouldn't have come."

Kennedy held my eyes as she spoke. Hers were dark brown and expressive.

"A couple of weeks? You're new to the University?"

She nodded. "I'm in first year math."

"So you're eighteen?"

Kennedy nodded.

"I graduated last year," I said. "I'm twenty-three. Most here are undergrads."

"That's alright," Kennedy said. "I'd prefer to get advice from someone with experience. Though Anita said you're fairly new, too. Have you known you were a lesbian for long?"

"I'm not," I said, then clarified, seeing her surprise. "I mean, I'm not straight, either. I had a boyfriend until I left college, but I've known I was bi for a long time. Anita recommended the club for me to explore the other side of my nature."

"So you've done some exploring, then?" Kennedy asked.

"Uh, yeah," I said, with a grin. "I may never go back."

"I see," Kennedy said. She looked away, and I took the opportunity to study her.

Her dimples vanished when she wasn't smiling, though that didn't make her less attractive, just more studious. She had an oval face with a button nose and heart-shaped lips, emphasized with dark rose gloss. Her eyebrows were narrow, a touch of eyeliner giving her an erudite appearance. The dark green sleeveless dress was casual, but still more classy than most of the patrons. It had a high neck, and the contours of the dress's bodice implied small breasts. The high hem of the dress showed plenty of lean thigh. I'd thought she was pretty when I met her outside, but under close scrutiny she was lovely.

I'd just torn my eyes away from her when a girl I didn't know approached and asked her to dance. She shook her head and said "Another time, perhaps?" and the girl nodded. She looked young, too.

"I'll be here next week," she said, hopefully. "I'm Grace." She held out a hand. She had short, lavender gray hair, green eyes, and a teen-slender body. Other than a quick nod, she seemed to have no interest in me whatsoever. She was entirely focused on the dark-haired girl beside me, with soft eyes and a smile that spoke volumes. Kennedy had found an admirer, and I thought it was cute.

"Kennedy," my companion said, taking her hand. Her eyes flicked to mine for a moment. I mouthed, "Go on!"

"You know what?" Kennedy said, before she released Grace's hand. "Yes. Just one, though. I still have more I need to talk to Kayla about."

Grace nodded, and the two scurried away. Through the drapes I saw them dancing, close and energetic.

Kennedy didn't return for at least fifteen minutes. "I'm sorry," she said, on returning. "That was more than one song."

Grinning, I shrugged. The DJ had taken off her wrap and was moving energetically to her own music while tweaking controls. "Who can tell? Each song blends into the next. You were enjoying yourself."

"I was," she said, "and I'll see her again next week." Then she focused on me, giving me a lopsided grin. "Today, I'd like to spend more time with you. Will you dance with me?"

"Of course I will," I said, "if that's what you want."

Kennedy nodded eagerly, and I followed her to the dance floor.