Kathlyn woke up in Leena's arms, giggled, and kissed her until she opened her eyes. Hitomi and Abby laughed as they realized they had slept together again. Jean-Jacques Andrews woke up to an empty bed. Usha stiffly rose from her cushions, flanked by Mira and Blake. May Tramble rose and smiled as she saw Victoria cuddling with her sister June. Corona felt happy for the first time in ages. Alexandra wished she had had the guts to kiss Corona on their first date, but at least she woke up in a good mood. Rai Zanders showered without Ana. Avelina begged for Ethan to come make sure she was squeaky clean. Farrah spent the night crying and the morning moping. Vai just moped. Amina Washim looked at herself in the mirror. Thankfully, no big Scarlet "L" was on her forehead. Nomi stirred a few rooms down. And Jocelyn McKeough woke up with Erica Fox. All on November 3rd, 2004. It was Election Day. Do you wanna be a poet and write Do you wanna be an actor up in lights Do you wanna be a soldier and fight for love Do you wanna travel the world Do you wanna be a diver for pearls Or climb a mountain and touch the clouds above Be anyone you want to be Bring to life your fantasies But I want something in return I want you to burn burn for me baby Like a candle in my night Oh burn Burn for me Burn for me Are you gonna be a gambler and deal Are you gonna be a doctor and heal Or go to heaven and touch God's face Are you gonna be a dreamer who sleeps Are you gonna be a sinner who weeps Or an angel Under grace I'll lay down on your bed of coals Offer up my heart and soul But in return I want you to burn Burn for me baby Like a candle in my night Oh burn burn for me burn for me Yeah Ooh I want you to burn baby ooh Laugh for me Cry for me Pray for me Lie for me Live for me Die for me I want you to burn Burn for me baby Like a candle in my night Oh burn burn for me burn for me Yeah Ah yeah I want you to burn I want you to burn for me baby Ohh yeah "113" Usha Krishnan wasted no time in setting up her booth. Being a Wednesday, school was in session and no other perfect time could've popped up than now. Mira and Blake were reduced to poster girls and sidekicks as the firebrand would-be diplomat decried President Bush, urged people to vote Kerry, and spoke to teachers and older students alike, begging them to vote, or at least register. Mira handed out fliers, Blake bumper stickers and pins, each one choosing to silently support their quixotic girlfriend. Along with Usha were the rest of the members of the Unofficial Death Cult of Bush, an organization sworn to fight the president and his policies as long as he was in office (or any office, really). Krishnan was the brains of the operation, but over the course of a few months, Jocelyn McKeough had gone from being merely a member to its very heart. She blamed Bush's warmongering and vague "promises" for taking her lover away—first to war, then to death—and leaving her without a husband or her unborn child a father. She was right there with Usha, waving signs and shouting words, fighting for a cause she hoped would bear fruit. Erica Fox, sans sister, joined Blake and Mira. "So your friend's involved in all this too, huh?" "Our girlfriend, actually." "Both of you?" They nodded and she stared at them in amazement. "Uh, okay. Listen, uh, this is a good cause and all, but we can't stay outside. Joss is thinking of taking this to the cafeteria, and she was hoping we could split up since there are two lunches and well, two of ‘us'." "Good idea," said Mira. "Yusha wants a rally. Do you think Joss might come?" "Oh, she will, which means I'll be there. And you?" Blake smiled. "Even if we had a choice, we'd never back out on Usha. We love her too much." "That's sweet. I guess we feel the same way, then." She looked back up to Jocelyn, four months pregnant and just now starting to show, and smiled warmly. Despite not being related to her foster mother, Jocelyn looked as bit as lovely and even sophisticated: she was tall and curvy, a little pale from staying indoors too much, and had dark brown hair that curled at the very end, much like her idol Selphie Tilmitt from Final Fantasy Eight (though she dressed as Terra from #6 for Halloween). The five blue wrist bangles she wore waved magically as she gestured; her opal necklace bobbed as she did. "So are you two...?" "Huh?" Erica didn't realize she had been staring. She looked at Blake and Mira and blushed. "Oh, gosh. People have been asking that question for a long time. It's because we're so close. Blake, uh, you've got four best friends, right? And does anyone say you're involved with them?" "They know who I'm involved with," she stated. "Of course, that's probably because between the three of us, we're the most famous couple in school: President Usha, Anime Club President Mira, and former MVP Blake. Yeah, we're something all right." "I would not call us a couple," said Mira lightly. "More like threesome." "Uh, yeah." ...... Ah, Election Day. Just like any other day, really, except the good people of America were now led to believe that, as opposed to every other day, they actually had a choice of how the country was run. Some people didn't think so. To them, Bush and Kerry were as similar as brothers, just as Bush had been similar to Gore, and Clinton to Dole, and Clinton to Bush. There was no personality in these presidential candidates anymore, so why bother voting? Others saw Bush as a champion of war, somebody who got things done, took action, fought back, sought vengeance. Others said the same thing about Kerry. They suggested that were it not for September 11, Bush wouldn't have had much of a term, and 9/11 was really more about Them fighting back against Us after years of oppression. Iraq and Afghanistan were just tired of America; they hated it. Well, so they hated it, so let's kill those who hate us. Yes, and for those spared, we'll force our ways on them, or else kill them. And let's fight something as vague and indefinable as terrorism. Let's all turn into little brothers afraid of the eye of Big Brother, shall we? Hero Love ignored it. She just wanted to get a good grade on her math test for once. Besides, why get involved? She wouldn't be able to vote until she was in college, and same for Ayanna. Usha and Jocelyn were just wasting their time. Of course, apathy could spread, and those who could have made a difference might turn into those that refuse to. After all, there's nothing I could do, I'm just one person, and so is every 300 million person in this country. She got a B. Sweet. Ayanna gave her a big kiss in Health and P.E. class. Very sweet. "So who do you think will win the election?" she asked as they performed sit-ups. "I don't know, but personally, I kinda hope Kerry comes out. I think a lot of people want Bush out of office, whether they admit it or not. I'd vote for him if I could vote." "I admit," replied Hero through sweat and gasps, "after nine-eleven, I would've voted for Bush if I could, but now I feel different. The popular opinion is swaying me. Now I'm not a Kerry girl either, so I guess if I had to swing either way, I'd go for Nader." "Nader?" "I gotta decide on someone," she grunted. Leena blew a whistle and the girls finished their sit-ups, then went into a single lap around the gym: up two sets of bleachers, down again, jogging the whole way. "I figure if I gotta vote, I may as well choose who I do want in office. I don't care for Bush or Kerry." Ayanna gasped as she ran and tried to talk at the same time. "When you're old enough to... who do you think... you'll care for?" "By that time, there'll... be two different people. So anything... goes." They stopped talking and descended down the stairs, Leena barking at Katt encouragingly. "C'mon, you can do it! One step at a time! Don't worry about them, keep up the pace! Lift and lift, lift and lift, slow and steady!" "She's really... hounding her," noticed Ayanna. "Well, the poor girl... is asthmatic, but she's gotten in... better shape since the first day." "I hear... Miss Jo... is making her take instrument... classes. Don't know... why." "Hey, I got an idea." Leena whistled for them to stop, and they returned to their positions, only a few of them winded. Kathlyn, as per request, was only required to jog half the distance, so she was there before any of them. Leena announced that the sport of the day was indoor hockey, which few of the girls had played (skates or no), and split everyone into two teams. Hero and Ayanna got lucky and were placed in the same team. "So what's your idea?" asked Montgomery as she brandished a beaten-up hockey stick. "Well, when I vote, two things will determine my vote. First, the possibility of a draft, provided the war's still going on, which I think it will. Whoever's against the draft has my vote. Second, homosexual, uh... rights, I guess you could say." "Oh yeah." Ayanna smiled wryly and gave her girlfriend a nudge. "Whoever's for that sort of thing will have about ninety percent of Stanton behind him. Or her. God I hope it's a her. It'd be too much to ask if she were gay or even bisexual." "I wonder if Usha would like that position. Do you think she's a natural citizen?" "Mm, she doesn't look like it, but then again, who really does these days?" "Yeah, I know." Hero stared at Ayanna, at her pretty light-caramel skin, seeing not a black woman nor an ethnic blend but just a woman, and one she loved as well. What a time to be in love, she thought, now that most racial tensions had been suppressed or quieted. Now if only people accepted her for being bisexual, especially the church. Her parents and friends did, so why not the clergy? Because two or three sentences in the Old Testament denounced it? But the Old Testament denounced many things, and had been forgone by the New Testament, the new covenant between God and His people. This is the way things were, but now, things are different. Did God see homosexuality, or even bisexuality, as something different, set apart from the old set of rules, some of which no longer applied to the modern world? If so, why didn't anyone else? Because humans are stupid sheep, Hero knew. And I'm one of them. Thank God our Shepherd has such a capacity for leadership and love. Look to the Shepherd, she knew. Look to Him for guidance, not other sheep. They're just as stupid and ignorant as you. But He knows the way perfectly. Well. What does He have to say about it? "Hey, Love, watch it!" Hero jerked out of her thoughts, slashed at the puck, and missed. It sunk into their goal. Ayanna walked by and gave her a puzzled look. "You all right there? You look more distracted than Blake the Flake." "I heard that!" she screamed. Ayanna made a face. "Oops, now we're both in trouble." "Yeah, uh, I was just thinkin'," answered Hero softly. Ayanna came closer, seeing the look on her face, and put her arm around her shoulder. "About what?" "What God would make of my sexual preference. What He'd make of us." "Oh, that." She said it unhappily. Ayanna wasn't exactly a church-going woman, though she feigned interest after meeting with Hero. "Well, we can talk about it later. We've got ass to kick." She winked stoically and ran off, pursuing the puck. Hero made a face and hung around the goal. She couldn't talk about it "later", because she had Wednesday night service that evening. And Ayanna was coming, come Hell or high water. Hopefully neither. Hero was a terrible swimmer. Mira and Blake took two adjacent showers and conversed about Usha, the Election, and each other. From time to time, Mira stood on her toes and peeked over the wall that separated them, squealing or whistling at Blake's nudity. Blake threw a slip of soap at her and would've fought her, shampoo bottle vs. body wash bottle, had Leena's voice not settled them down. Ayanna gave Hero a wink as they both hid inside the stall. "This is a just a question of curiosity, but when do you think you'll be ready for sex?" Hero's face twisted and the darkness of her hair (her natural color, for once) seemed to stand on end. "Uh, that's a difficult question, Yanna; I was kinda hoping I'd save sex for marriage." Ayanna put her hands up defensively." "That's cool. No problem. Just curious." "You sure you didn't want to..." She scrubbed her neck, ducked down to conceal her bosom, turned, and raised a pierced eyebrow. "...Do it with me?" "Eventually, maybe. I think it'd be nice." "Ayanna, I'm far from ready. And even if I were, I'd only wanna make love to someone I know inside and out, someone I trust, someone I wanna spend the rest of my life with. I mean, I don't mean to say that you're not great—" "No, I understand." "I just don't—" "I understand." "Feel that way yet." "Hero." She leaned her naked arms on the wall, looked over, and stared very seriously. "I... understand. I respect that. Don't worry, I'm not gonna sleep with you unless you want me to just sleep." "I don't think we're even that far along," admitted Love, washing her arms. Ayanna made a half-smile. "Yeah. Maybe next week. Oh, by the way, nice boobies." "GAAH!!" "What's their deal?" wondered Jocelyn. Blake shrugged. "No idea. So like, clue us in: are you and Erica Fox a couple?" Joss continued scrubbing nonchalantly. "Couple of friends, yeah." "No, I mean like, uh... ‘Hero and Ayanna' couple, or ‘Ivory and Ancelin' couple." "Did Ivory and Ancelin finally get together?" asked Ana. "I heard they did." "They didn't," said Kathlyn casually. "Not yet, they haven't. I spoke to Farrah; they're still working things out." "Anyway," said Blake, who couldn't be blamed for the distraction, "I'm just curious. We're gonna be working with you anyway, it seems. We're Usha's girlfriends, and we were just wondering if you were Erica's..." "Well, we've been best friends since grade school," answered McKeough, scrubbing her gently-protruding belly with extra care. "When she told me she was gay—I was the first to know, I think—I was a little concerned, but she knew I was with my boyfriend. So up until recent times, we've just kept on being friends." "And after that?" "Hold on," she said impatiently. She turned the water flow off, stepped out, and smothered herself in a towel. Turning around she continued, "She helped me a lot when my boyfriend was killed. I would've been a nervous wreck without her. To that extent, you could call us a couple, but I won't say there's any romance between us. We share a lot of love, though, more than some so-called couples do, no offense." She gave them a sweet smile, and added as an afterthought, "If she really were interested, I don't think I'd be opposed to it at all. But that's not a Yes." ............ Ayanna liked Hero's family, because they looked at her and her relationship with their eldest daughter without judgment or ill will, or even disguised distaste. Mr. and Mrs. Love genuinely liked the young girl, and thought she was a good match for their wild daughter. They not only lived and let live, they got involved and participated deeply in their children's lives. They shared everything, most notably and fittingly love, and Ayanna had the feeling that if she and Hero had been caught in some sexual activity or another, they would've apologized, smiled politely, closed the door, and said Good Morning Lovebirds the following day. She wished her own home life was that nice. Or church. Ayanna would've gone more if it weren't so intolerant to her choice of romantic pursuit. So what if she liked other girls, so what? Did that make her evil, or a sinner? Why was being gay so bad? Because God said so? And did all those little Christians and Jews or whatever follow everything God said blindly, like a bunch of stupid sheep? Or did they wonder why He said all that? Did they ever wonder why homosexuality was so bad? Ever? "Because God says it's wrong!" But why? "Because He says so!" But why? "He says so, you hedonist!" Oh yeah, real Christian of you for calling me names. God, all you can do is swing the gavel and slap a label on me while you pray for people you don't even care about. "Don't be like that, Ayanna," Hero said gently. She kissed her cheek, squeezed her hand, and pulled her close. "They're not all like that." "But they're not all like you either," she argued. Hero sighed and rested her head on the girl's shoulder. Unfortunately, she was right. ...... The polls could not say anything for sure until November 4th, but Usha, Mira, and Blake stayed glued to the van Dijk television set regardless. Early polls were wobbly at best; the prize looked up for grabs even as the hour became late. A few states became crucial. Kerry started gaining strength. Bush pushed. Usha's grip became tighter. Blake and Mira were there for her. "Whoever wins, we'll still be there for you," they promised. She had thanked them, many times over. Mira left to get more snacks and drinks. The Election wasn't going to go anywhere for five minutes. That left Blake alone; she kissed one of her two girlfriends on the cheek. "Usha, I have something to say to you while Mira's away." "You can't say it in front of her?" "I will, I just wanna ask you first." She smiled gently. "Wait for her first. I wouldn't want Mira to start without you, and I wouldn't want either of you to start without me. We're a team." "All right, all right." Blake smiled broadly, kissed her again, and kept her hand warm and kneaded until Mira returned. She squealed happily, "I got popcorn!", and was guided in by her girlfriends. She gave Usha a sweet kiss on the lips and rubbed her nose against Blake's. "Mira," sang Usha, "Blake has something so say." Mira aimed her happy, pretty face towards her other girlfriend, and popped some popcorn in her mouth (trying very hard to resist the temptation to put some in Blake's mouth). "Right. Well, um, I know we've only been together for about three months, but... uh, I've been giving this some thought. A lot, actually. I'm... ready for sex." She wrung her hands shyly and darted her eyes around, as if she had forgotten her meds again. Mira and Usha were reasonably taken back by the surprise. "Oh... my, well, that's a bit of a bombshell," managed Krishnan. Mira smirked dryly. "Is this happening because I flirted with you in the shower after gym?" "Uh, partially, partially," she admitted. "And... I've been giving it a lot of thought. I know we haven't been together long—and you're right, Usha, I should ask this sort of thing when we're all together—I'm sorry for that!" She bowed her head humbly, squinting. Krishnan and van Dijk gazed at each other. "A most unprecedented development," said one. "This comes as a surprise," said the other. They turned to Blake. Mira took her hand. "Honey... it's too early. I have to admit, it'd be nice, but... too early. For now, all I want to do is spend time with beautiful Blake and lovely Yusha. I'm not really ready for sex. Let us think about it some more." "You're right, of course," croaked poor Baum, etching a deficient smile on her face. "I don't know what I was thinking. Please excuse my hornball ways." Usha laughed politely and took her girlfriend's other hand. "It's all right. At least we both know how you feel. In time, we'll both be ready, and when that happens, I want us all to be together. I'm not making love to either of you unless you're both there." "Ya, same here!" exclaimed Mira, bringing the girls in for a bear hug. She nearly screamed, "Nothing more sexy than three women making love!" "Ack! Your... arm... is... crushing... my neck!" "Doe eens rustig!!" The sound of Mira's mother's angry voice broke up their scuffle. The young Dutch girl freed her prisoners and dusted herself off bashfully. "That was mother," she said, "and she told us to settle down in here." Usha blushed. "Oh my." "If that's what sex feels like," groaned Blake, rubbing her neck, "then maybe we should wait." ......... Jocelyn took Erica back into her arms as they resumed watching the television. She had agreed with Usha that if either girl got any information concerning the Election results, they would call each other up and either get together to celebrate or sit quietly in humble defeat, and return to school the next day with a stronger resolve. Jocelyn had been torn apart by the war, and had lost a potential husband to its idiocy. Her upcoming child would never know its heroic father, much like Jocelyn had never known her own dad. She even feared her own abilities as a mother, since her own maternal influence was poor at best. Now Mrs. Keys had volunteered to do the best she could with the child, and Jocelyn's other friends had told her they'd chip in whenever possible, but it was Erica who became her beam of support, her lamp in dark times, the wind underneath her broken wings. It had been Erica who came and comforted poor Jocelyn as she learned of her boyfriend's death, she who had stayed long into the night and early in the morning, when all her friend could do was sit quietly and eat her waffles, since she was dried up of tears. Erica loved Jocelyn more after bonding with her. She loved the brunette deeper than most lovers did; the girl needed love after being nearly sucked through her own black hole of emptiness. Erica had been her anchor, and all after having her own relationship disappointments! She was strong and loyal, full of pure love, and only asked to be held as they watched the Election unfold. Held, and maybe kissed once in awhile. Jocelyn didn't mind. She saw it as an expression of love between best friends. "Kerry," she murmured, curling her fingers around Erica's hand. "Kerry, please. Please, Kerry. No more war. No more men and women dying. Kerry, please God, Kerry." Erica kissed her cheek, curled her fingers around her hair, and squeezed her hand. Hope. It was so much like a knife. "If Bush wins, you still have me," she offered. "And your mother." She referred to Mrs. Keys of course, the only person Jocelyn would ever accept as her mother. The woman who had given birth to her was not... "If Bush wins..." She trailed off and stared deep into Erica's blue-gray eyes, thinking them like a sea at storm, placid and immensely thoughtful. She continued: "Will you hold me?" "Mm-hmm." Erica gave her friend a brief kiss on her lips. They both smiled. Janet Keys was in another room, leaving the girls to their privacy. She was apologizing to an old friend. "I'm sorry, El. We just can't." "Not even one more?" "No, I'm sorry. I like you, but I'm not gay, I never will be. Besides, I'm too old for you. You should find someone your own age." The silence was like a melting butter, and no blade could cut it. Click. And it had no end. Many hearts were broken on November 4th, 2004. But their resolve grew stronger still. Mira and Blake joined Usha in bed and held her until she fell asleep, smothered by their love and sweet hearts. Jocelyn and Erica fell asleep on the couch. They were too broken to move. Ayanna finally told her mother about Hero. She was not happy. Not a word was spoken. The church bells all were broken. Prodigal child, what more do you bring as you kneel miserably before God?
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