34. Lark

Chapter thirty-four

Lark

Tuesday, April 1, 2025

Jade

On my way, need me to pick anything up?

“You guys need anything? Jade’s on her way over.”

“Nope, I think we have a sufficient spread,” Kira says, taking in my kitchen counter covered in trays of food.

“Yeah, just tell her to drive safe, please.”

I nod, doing just that.

Twenty minutes later, Jade’s at the door. “Hey, sorry I was late. I can’t ever seem to get out of that place on time.” She groans.

“It’s totally fine,” I tell her, grabbing her duffle bag and setting it in the guest room where she and Mads will be staying tonight.

“Hey, Jade!” Madison shouts, patting the seat beside her. “Come sit with me.”

Once we’re all seated on the couch, the venting begins .

“Alright, Jade, you start first since you got here last.”

She lets out a huff. “Well, you know how I keep saying that there’s a strange number of transphobic people working at my hospital? You know, considering we’re literally a hospital for queer healthcare? Like, I literally work in gender-affirming surgery.”

We all nod, worried about where this is going. Over the years, we’ve heard a lot about the downright fucked-up things some of Jade’s coworkers say about patients.

“Well, today, the anesthesiologist on one of my cases said, ‘Why the fuck would you want to cut off your dick? I’d rather kill myself!’”

I suck in a breath. “Jesus Christ, Jade. Is he usually part of your care team there, or have you not worked with him before?”

“Well, the surgeries aren’t done at our facility. They’re done at the hospital. The surgeon basically just rents the OR for these surgeries, and the anesthesiologist comes with. But it doesn’t matter what the surgery is for. Respect the fact that these patients are putting their literal lives in your hands and trusting you to respect them while they’re out!”

“I’m so sorry, Jade. That’s horrendous. Really, truly fucking despicable,” Madison says, shaking her head.

“I can’t even imagine how difficult that must be for you, Jade, just in general because you care about your patients but also as someone who’s endured this transphobic behavior firsthand,” Kira tells her.

“It’s terrifying, honestly. Aside from the lengthy recovery time and the cost, it’s comments like those that make me so damn worried about my own bottom surgery. ”

My heart clenches at the way her voice breaks. I worry about this all the time. I want her to be happy in her own body and recognize herself when she looks in the mirror. But the more I hear about how casually people seem to throw around transphobic commentary, even in a place that’s supposed to be accepting and safe, the more it terrifies me to think of her as one of those patients. “Your surgery is with Dr. Delgado, right?”

“Yes, she normally wouldn’t agree to perform surgery on a member of her own staff, but she understands my concerns. I’m just too scared to go in there without knowing anyone, so I’m incredibly thankful that she’s willing to do this for me.”

“Does that mean you guys have set an official surgery date?” Kira asks excitedly, trying to brighten the mood a tad.

“Yep, six more months! Dr. Delgado has a vacation lined up then, so we agreed to do it a couple of weeks before so that some of my downtime could overlap with her vacation.”

“That’s amazing, Jade! Let me know the official timeline, and I’ll take a week off to stay with you and nurse you back to health,” I tell her.

“I’ll take the week after her,” Madison jumps in.

“And I’ll take the week after that.” Kira chuckles. “By then, you hopefully won’t need as much actual ‘nursing’ help because, as we all know, I am essentially useless in that department.”

“Don’t we know it?” I roll my eyes, thinking of the time I tripped and scraped my knee. Kira ran over to help me up but passed out when she saw the blood. Not much has changed in the last decade.

“Alright, Madison next,” I say, laughing.

“I don’t have a whole lot to share or bitch about, honestly. The kids are all back in school, and it’s warming up outside, so we don’t have as many people coming into the library to stay warm or keep their kids occupied. Overall, things are pretty quiet,” she explains.

“Quiet is good! It might sound boring, but it’s good, I think,” Kira tells her.

“Agreed. I wish I had more quiet time.” I groan.

“You’re kind of to blame for that, though, Lark. Your dad would gladly hire several other veterinarians and staff, but you choose to work wild hours. I know you love it, but have you ever considered taking a step back now that things are running smoothly?” Madison asks me.

“I have, but the clinic is my baby. I don’t think I’m ready to part with it.”

Kira rolls her big brown eyes. “No one’s asking you to part with anything. We’re just suggesting you maybe work a normal fucking schedule.”

“That’s fair,” Jade chimes in.

“I’ll consider it, but I like to stay busy.”

“Speaking of staying busy. How are things with Gianni going?” Kira asks, her ashen brows dancing across her forehead.

“Well, we’ve um…” I nervously pick at my nails, not looking forward to the attention I’m about to get.

“You what ?” Kira’s shrill, eager tone fills the small space.

“We’ve had sex, actually. Twice. Well, twice, plus he ate me out the other day too.”

“And you’re just now telling us this?” Madison nearly screeches with excitement.

As usual, Jade is the peacekeeper. “She’s an adult and is not obligated to share the details of her relationships with us.” Then she turns to me. “I’m really happy for you, though, Lark. Even if this isn’t a long-term thing, you deserve someone who makes you feel good.”

“Thanks, Jade,” I whisper. Feeling good isn’t something I’ve felt for a very long time, especially not while I was with Tyler. With Gianni, though? It seems his only purpose in life is just that. To make me feel good.

“Okay, now that you’ve made her sad, let’s talk about me,” Kira pipes in, sounding narcissistic, but I know what she’s doing. Steering the attention off me.

“Ah, yes, queen bee. How’s the salon?” Madison asks her.

“Mon Cheri is doing really well! I’ve officially gotten all seats rented out to stylists, and my client list is growing,” she tells us excitedly.

She’s been working on opening her own salon for the last two years and finally opened hers last month.

“Proud of you, babe,” Madison tells her affectionately.

“I’ll have to come by soon to get a trim. I haven’t had my hair cut in over a year.”

“Any time you want, you know my chair is always open to you,” she tells me.

“Can I actually book a color appointment with you for the first week of April? My roots are long as hell. Someone really should’ve warned me about how frequently I’d need to get this shit done to keep up with bleach-blonde hair for someone with natural black hair,” Jade grumbles, twisting a lock of her hair. The roots have grown out about three inches.

Kira swats her shoulder playfully. “I did tell you that, dumbass.”

“Okay, no more attacking Jade. She’s delicate.” I chuckle, joking because she’s the least fragile person I’ve ever known. She’s been through hell and back and still maintains a candid humor and positive outlook that I could only hope to have an ounce of.

***

“Alright, I’ve got my alarms set, so none of us sleeps through them. I don’t want a repeat of the last time we decided to throw our grown selves a slumber party on a work night.” Madison groans.

“It won’t happen again. Now get some sleep. Love you guys.”

Kira follows me to bed, Madison and Jade taking the air mattress in the guest room.

After using the restroom and climbing in with the dogs, she turns on her side to face me. Her voice is soft as she asks, “How are you really feeling about things with Gianni? It seemed like there was more there than just sex.”

While Kira may come across as a harsh asshole with a dirty sense of humor and a complete lack of a filter, deep down, she’s the most caring person you’ll ever meet. And I feel blessed to have her as my best friend. Especially in moments like this.

“Honestly? I’ve become strangely attached to him over the last month. He opens up to me more than I think he does anyone else, but at the same time, it still feels surface-level. Does that make sense?”

“Almost as if he wants to tell you more but isn’t quite sure how?” she asks.

“I’m not sure if it’s that. I kind of think that maybe he’s taking baby steps with me in a way. Like maybe he thinks he’ll scare me away with his particular brand of unstable. ”

She snorts at that. “Well, if that’s how you feel, you obviously haven’t told him about your mom.”

“I have, just not in detail. I’m not ashamed of what happened to her. She was struggling with a mental illness that was out of her control. Do I wish she had taken her medication and gone to therapy? Of course I do, but that doesn’t make her crazy.”

“I never said it did,” she whispers. “I just meant that if he thinks you’re going to be scared off by whatever demons he’s supposedly got tucked away in that handsome head of his, he’s seriously misguided. Though I am curious how your mom came up at all.”

“I feel a little confused. I’m developing feelings for him that feel so much deeper than they should, and we aren’t even dating.”

“I’ve got a couple of questions to hopefully unpack that a bit,” she says, almost hesitantly.

“I’m ready when you are. Unpack away.” I chuckle.

“Alright, first question. If you aren’t dating, what exactly are you doing?”

“Not entirely sure, actually. We’ve never discussed it, really. We’ve been sleeping together, and he’s helping me try things on my kink list that Tyler made me feel guilty for even thinking about, but it feels like more than sex. For me, anyway. I can’t ever be too sure where his head is at.”

“So maybe start there? Try to clear that up so you’re both on the same page?”

“I’m not so sure about that just yet. It may be a little too soon to discuss dating, and I don’t want to scare him off. If I’m right, and he really is opening up to me, I want to be that safe space for him for as long as I can be. ”

“I think that maybe you can be a safe space for each other. I have a good feeling about him,” she tells me softly.

“I do too,” I say into the dark room. She squeezes my hand before rolling over and stealing most of the covers. 1

1. All The Small Things – blink-182