Kira:
I didn't need to fake the look on my face. Rebecca leapt up, in only her panties and shirt, completely appalled.
"It's... we're..." she stammered. For once, she had no lies. Jennifer slowly stirred on the couch, seemingly in a daze. She was naked from the waist down, and looked soaked. I'd watched the last few minutes of Rebecca's expert oral performance, blazingly turned on but hurt as hell all at the same time.
"Why?" I asked her, my planned words fitting with what I felt. "I came over here to surprise you because of what we just..."
Rebecca looked absolutely mortified. She slid her pants back on while she hastily spoke.
"It's what we've wanted this whole time..." she said weakly.
"I literally just asked you to be exclusive like an hour ago," I said loudly, angry with a righteous fury. I'd completely lost the line between acting and real feelings.
We just screamed at each other for nearly five minutes. I didn't even know what I was saying, or what she was saying.
Finally, we had to pause for breath.
"I... have no explanation... I made a mistake..." she stammered, a hopeless look of fear on her face. "But I do love you. I love you so much, you don't even know!"
"Oh yeah?" I almost shouted. "Fine, then let's see your phone."
"My phone?"
"Just curious," I said aggressively. She handed it to me, looking defeated. I looked through it for a minute, already knowing the contents, then pushed my hair back as if I was thinking about things I couldn't comprehend.
"You sent pictures of Rachel to those guys?" I said after a minute, disgusted.
"I knew it was horrible," Rebecca pleaded. "I just wanted to impress you. I needed their help. You're so amazing, and sexual, and confident, and beautiful, I just..."
I tilted my head, trying to make sense of this completely new picture she was trying to paint.
"And a fucking boyfriend?" I said through gritted teeth.
"I was scared!"
"Scared?"
"Of how much I felt for you!" she shouted. "What am I, a lesbian? I've always had control of myself, knew who I was, then you came along and I... I was terrified, I just did it to have something to..."
I grew even angrier, but now it was directed at this situation, and myself. Our plan had completely imploded. Hot tears ran down my face unbidden. I laughed tearfully.
"Ah damnit, damnit!" I shouted. Had this actually been real to her?
I looked at Jennifer, who was watching wide-eyed from the sofa. She'd slipped her pants back on while Rebecca and I had shouted at each other.
"Come on, Jen," I said quietly.
I looked at Rebecca. She stared back at me with those pleading green eyes.
"God, screw this," I said in confusion. "The worst part is, it makes sense. Maybe you're telling the truth. Maybe you're so good at spinning lies I'll never know. That's the worst part. Maybe you really do love me."
"Stay," she pleaded.
I shook my head forcefully, and my tears scattered everywhere. "If this love makes you do these horrible things to people, then I don't want a part of it," I said flatly, angry and confused beyond expression. I motioned, and Jennifer left with me. I didn't look back as we walked to our cars.
***
Jennifer:
Kira fell backwards onto my bed, still half-crying. She pushed her hair back out of her face. I sat next to her, saying nothing. I knew that the acting and the plan had stopped halfway through that blowout. This was a genuine disaster.
"Holy shit, that was horrible," she said, forlorn. "What did we do?"
I just sighed in agreement. I had lost a best friend, even if she had been horrible and backstabbing. I watched as Kira stood back up and started folding my dirty towels for some reason. She kept shaking her head, too, lost in thought.
I wasn't surprised that she'd come back to my place... I was more surprised at realizing that her and I had a really strong bond now. Maybe the new me didn't even need someone like Rebecca anymore. Maybe the new me needed strong, respectable, great people like Kira.
"You know, it's not even about Rebecca," she suddenly said in a fervor. "Screw her. Screw the things she's done. Screw all her lies. It's whatever. I wasn't even really mad at her."
"Hmm? What was that all about then?" I asked, concerned. "Is everything alright?"
Kira kept folding the towels, and bit her lip.
"Yes. No," she said, flustered. "Remember my best friend? The one that I had a falling out with, that sparked all of this... exploration?"
"Yeah, I remember."
"She got married."