Chapter 53

“Talk,” Natalie said. “About what?”

“Sammy.”

Natalie tilted her head. Her thoughts had visibly cleared up, focusing on Jordan’s face, now, instead of her boobs, but still, she wasn’t wholly zoned in, with her hands groping away at Jordan’s butt. For that matter, Jordan was the slightest bit distracted herself. It was hard to be groped by her best-friend, her recently-realized crush, and take it wholly in stride. She liked to think she was good at controlling herself, both outwardly and inwardly, but she wasn’t made of stone.

“What about her?” Natalie asked.

“How your date went.”

“Good, I guess?”

She seemed uncomfortable talking about it. She hadn’t ever had problems detailing her exploits to Jordan, so it was another indicator that recent changes had shifted how Natalie viewed their relationship. Did she think Jordan would be jealous? She wasn’t. That wasn’t how she viewed romance. The idea of Natalie hooking up with other girls didn’t bother her in the slightest.

Even if she and Natalie became official, which was a highly, highly prospective hope, then Jordan still wouldn’t mind. Natalie, on the other hand, would, she suspected. She was a bit possessive. Jordan didn’t count that as a good trait, but it also wasn’t something that was a deal breaker. She wouldn’t mind if Natalie acted possessive of her, even. Show just how much Jordan was hers, and no one else’s.

It was better if she didn’t let her thoughts stray too far down that path. It was a long ways off, and dangerous to flirt with, as if it might someday be reality.

“And how good is ‘good’?” Jordan asked.

“We had fun.” She cleared her throat. “What do you mean?”

“What did you two do?” she asked patiently. Natalie wasn’t making this easy.

“We ... uh...?”

“Did you fuck?”

Natalie actually blushed, which bordered on hilarious. They’d talked about this sort of thing before, so it wasn’t new ground they were treading. Though, perhaps, Jordan had never quite taken an interrogatory tone like she had now. But she had to. While she wasn’t jealous, navigating this whole mess was hard for her, seeing how her heart was on the line. She had to put up a mask for her own sake as much as Natalie’s. So, an interrogation.

“I—I feel like that was implied,” Natalie said, face red. Her hands groped away steadily, though with an idle cadence, now. Her attention was on Jordan.

Maybe that was bad for energy-gathering purposes, but Jordan needed this moment for her own goals.

“But what, specifically?” Jordan asked. “Did you two...?” She made a crude gesture, sticking her pointer finger into a hole made from her other hand. Then, explaining herself, “I’m sorting out something for your class.” It wasn’t wholly a lie.

“Sorting out what?”

“Strategy. Answer the question.” She rolled her eyes. “Seriously. We’ve talked about stuff like this before. Why is it a big deal, now?”

Natalie paused.