Author's note: This one is a tad darker than my usual. In a nutshell, Heather submits to some non-consensual sex to save her lesbian lover from a worse fate.
*
This story cements a connection between my "Hero's Life" series and my one-off "Strawberries & Bubblegum" story. I have a near-neurotic need to fit puzzle pieces together like this. Where do you think I got the idea for Heather's connect-the-dots character?
Here, Heather's do-gooder instincts reach their peak. We also see how and why Heather and Stacey break up in spite of the deep and meaningful connection they made in "Strawberries & Bubblegum."
Samantha, Heather's current lesbian lover - a girl who is a sweet, sexy, and dangerous combination of "tough as nails" and gentle big sister - tells Heather's story on her behalf.
Yes, everyone in the story is at least 18 years-old, etc.
~~~ Saving Berry ~~~
Let's get something straight from the beginning, Heather was definitely not gunning for martyr status. She just did the best she could. The trouble is, it was a little
too
good and Heather lost Stacey, her beautiful little "Berry", because of it.
Stacey ended up leaving her based on a crappy mix of shame, fear, stupidity, loneliness, lust, love, and an inability to cope with Heather's unbelievable sacrifice.
Heather claims that she is over it now and that everything happens for a reason. I am sure her little connect-the-dots brain has worked out the various causes and effects. And maybe she is right. Maybe this will be even better in the long run.
But, between you and me, I can't believe she doesn't wonder what could have been. I would. Then again, I would have broken a few of the fucker's limbs instead of doing what Heather did. But, hey, that's just me.
I'll jump right to the shitty part - the part where Stacey told Heather it was over between them through Stacey's bathroom door. We can work backwards from there.
"Stace, it's just me. Open the door?"
"I can't... just please... go away..."
"Stacey, it's okay. It's over. Your step-brother just left. I'm all right and you're all right. The important thing is nobody got hurt. Please let me in?"
"I can't... I can't let you see me like this... I can't believe what you saw Glenn and I doing... And I can't believe what you did... and that you did it for me... please just... just go away and leave me alone... I'm so ashamed I can't even look at myself... or you... Oh god, I just want to die..."
"It's not your fault honey, it's his fault. He's the asshole here."
"You don't understand. It really is my fault. I... I started it with him. I was so lonely before you. And he was so depressed. He was sweet and gentle the first few times we did things together. But he turned so mean. I told him it was over and that's when he moved out. I never wanted you to know. I never wanted anyone to know."
"I don't care about any of that, Berry. You know I don't judge people. This doesn't change how I feel about you."
"Heather, I hate myself. How can I love someone else with this much hate inside me? Just go... just go and be with somebody normal. Somebody who deserves you."
"But I still love you, Berry."
"...Heather... don't call me that... just go... please? Just go."
So Heather went. She pulled on her clothes. She picked up her book bag and she went home. And she cried. For months.
Here's what led up to that point.
Stacey spent a lot of time at Heather's house. It wasn't just because they were teammates, then best friends, then friends with small benefits, then full-on lesbian lovers. It was also because Stacey's house sucked. Or, rather, her family did.
Her dad was a great guy but he was never home. He had to travel a lot for work. And her stepmother was a drinker, which might have been cool if she was a happy drunk and had let the girls join in now and again. But she was an ugly drunk. She pretty much followed her stepdaughter around the house with a cocktail and pointed out her shortcomings. Her mom didn't work and she didn't have any real hobbies so she specialized in being mean to the people around her.
Stacey also had an older stepbrother and he pretty much scared the shit out of Heather. First off, he was huge; more than 6 feet and over 225 lbs of muscle. That wasn't the worst part - he looked at Heather in a way that made her swear he thought she was some kind of
food
.
His looks weren't the lusty leers Heather had been getting from men since she hit puberty that were some variation of "Wow, I'd love to see her naughty bits."
No, Glenn's looks were more sinister. They said, "I wonder if she'd be better with soy sauce or ketchup?"
Thank god he didn't live at home with Stacey anymore. He had moved into an apartment with some friends a few months ago. Heather had bumped into him just three times at Stacey's house and that was enough.
The day things blew up, Stacey's dad was away on a business trip. Not unusual. The difference was Stacey's mom was away too. She'd decided, on a whim, to fly to Florida to visit girlfriends. Stacey was home all alone.
Heather was going to surprise her by dropping by and staying the night. She threw some stuff in a backpack and drove over to keep Stacey company - hopefully,
sexy
company. With the house empty, they could spend the night exhausting themselves in the sweet, sweaty girl-girl sex they had both quickly become addicted to. So Heather was practically vibrating with anticipation as she drove to Stacey's house.
Heather is a smart girl. If only she hadn't been thinking "sexsexsexsexsex" as she slipped in the front door. She would have realized something was not right right from the start. For starters, speed metal was blaring. Stacey was more of a rhythm and blues girl. But Heather was so excited about the prospect of surprising Stacey that she thought more about how well the music covered the sound of her coming in the house and bounding up the stairs.
Carrying her little backpack, Heather headed up towards Stacey's room. She never got there. At the top of the stairs she heard noises that made her stop and turn towards Glenn's old bedroom instead.
The noises were... not good. Glenn's door was open and she could hear grunting and mewling sounds coming down the hallway. She walked quietly down the hall and slowly peeked around the doorjamb.