CHAPTER 8

When Kendra was playing volleyball in high school, she had a friend on the team with her. That best friend was two years younger, but she ended up on the varsity team as a sophomore in Kendra’s senior year. Now, at thirty-three, she was on the pro beach tour. Monica hadn’t ever made it big, so to speak. She and whatever partner she had usually found themselves out in the quarterfinals or semis, with a few occasional finals, and Monica only had two tournament wins to her name for her entire career. Still, she loved the sport so much that she worked a second job remotely and online from home in order to keep competing until she couldn’t anymore.

When Kendra had first found out about her condition and that she could no longer play, she’d cried on Monica’s shoulder. Then, with Kendra being a senior in college and Monica a sophomore at a different university in Southern California, they’d started on a new part of their relationship. Monica came out to Kendra, who had already told her that she was gay. Monica had also confessed to having feelings for Kendra, who had the same feelings for her, and they’d dated for over a year before realizing they’d be better as friends. It hurt because she really did love Monica, but after that, despite saying they’d still be friends, it took well over two years before they had re-entered each other’s lives and started talking again.

That was years ago now, though, and Monica and her partner were still playing, so whenever they were in the same place, they tried to have dinner or drinks together. Kendra was currently watching her friend and her partner win their first match of the tournament. Monica passed to Selena, who set her up for a kill, and Monica swung. The ball landed in the sand – thankfully, inbounds – but when Monica came back down on the sand, it appeared that she’d rolled her ankle.

“Shit,” Kendra muttered.

Monica called a timeout and hobbled over to their bench, where she sat down and waved over the trainer to take a look. Kendra watched on, hoping her friend would be all right, and she thought back through the entirety of their relationship, from friendship to romance and then the subsequent reconnection, like Kendra always seemed to do whenever they were together. She’d had a crush on Monica when they were in high school, but she’d been seventeen when they’d first started hanging out, and Monica had only been fifteen. Kendra hadn’t known that Monica was also struggling with her sexuality, but she probably should have guessed when she’d come out to Monica two years later.

Kendra could remember that day like it was yesterday. They were on the beach, as they so often were, but instead of playing volleyball, they were lying out in the sun, talking about Kendra’s college life and how Monica would soon be out of high school. For whatever reason, Kendra had decided that that was the moment to tell Monica that she was gay. Monica had started acting differently after that, and Kendra had worried that it had been due to her declaration making Monica feel uncomfortable, but then there had been these touches a few months later and calls that went on for hours. Still, nothing had happened because Kendra hadn’t been sure, and she wasn’t about to pressure her friend for something and risk ruining what they had.

It took nearly two years for Monica to tell her, and while Kendra had wished back then that they’d had those years together, she was also glad that it worked out how it had. Kendra had waited for her, and after a few dates, they got to be each other’s firsts. That was something she’d be eternally grateful for, because how many people got to lose their virginity to their best friends, first loves, and someone they trusted so completely?

As Kendra continued to daydream about those days when they’d been in love and the days when they’d started to fall out of it, she watched the woman stand and attempt to walk on her ankle. Monica did a few tentative jumps and jogged a bit, giving the trainer and everyone else standing around the thumbs-up before back on the court they went.

Monica and Selena wouldn’t make it on center court where there were actual stands until they made it to the quarterfinals because they were on Aspen and DJ’s side of the bracket, and those two were always on center court, so if someone wanted to watch them, they had to stand outside and watch them on one of the eight other courts that were set up next to each other, allowing people to see multiple matches at a time and walk between them however they wanted.

The match started back up, and Kendra checked the score, noting that Monica and Selena only needed two more points to win the set and the match. She watched her friend struggle but manage to pass up to her partner, who smartly hit it over in two in order to avoid Monica having to jump and land on her ankle again. The other team should’ve been ready for that, but they weren’t, and the ball hit the sand. It was Selena’s turn to serve, and she must have decided to end the match if she could. She swung hard on her jump serve and earned an ace. They’d won.

Kendra knew where Monica would be headed next, so she held up the pass in her lanyard, showing it to the security guard at the tent section, which held the player tent, the food tent, and the medical tent. He let her inside, and she headed over to the medical tent in search of her friend, wanting to make sure that she was okay. She found Monica already on a table, having her ankle looked at.

“Hey. How is it?” Kendra asked.

“Oh, hey. You saw?” Monica asked.

“Yeah. Rolled it?”

“It’s fine. Just sore. I’ll ice it after the massage and wrap it up later. I don’t play again until tomorrow, so if I can keep it from swelling, I’ll be good.”

“I’m glad to hear it. I was worried.” Kendra placed her hand on Monica’s shoulder. “Where’s Selena?”

“Getting food. She always has to eat after a match, but she’s bringing me something, too.”

“I’m glad she takes care of you.” Kendra smiled down at her friend.

“About that…”

Kendra tilted her head and said, “No!”

“Yeah…”

“Really? Finally!”

“Finally?” Monica laughed.

“You’ve liked her forever.”

“Not forever.”

“Two years, Monica. You’ve been partners for two, roommates for one, and you’ve liked her that whole time.”

“She had a girlfriend when we first met, and after they broke up, I wanted to give her some time.”

“But now?”

“I told her how I felt a few weeks ago. It turns out, she feels the same way. We’re together now, which is interesting because we still live together, so we’re adjusting to that new normal.”

“I’m happy for you,” she replied and tried to push her mild jealousy out of her mind.

Kendra wasn’t jealous that Selena was with Monica. She was envious that they had each other, and she still didn’t have anyone.

“Hey.”

She turned at the sound of Aspen’s voice.

“Great match. I saw you hanging in there,” Aspen said to Monica as she moved to stand next to Kendra. “Hey,” she added in Kendra’s direction.

“Hey,” Kendra replied.

“Hi, Aspen. And thanks.”

“We play you next, so should I make sure to tell DJ to aim for that ankle?” Aspen teased.

“Asshole,” Monica said with a laugh.

Kendra looked over at Aspen and saw that she was wearing a pair of navy-blue flip-flops, a pair of black shorts that exposed her long legs to Kendra’s traitorous eyes, and a white tank top with her red suit bikini top underneath. She looked like she didn’t have a care in the world, and it was sexy to Kendra. The thought of not having a care in the world and just grabbing a pair of blue sandals that didn’t go with anything else she was wearing, leaving the house like that without wondering if people were staring and asking themselves why this stranger couldn’t color-coordinate, had Kendra sighing internally.

She’d struggled picking out a paint color for that guest bedroom for months. Well, she hadn’t specifically known about that guest room for months, but she’d been planning what colors she’d want in her house for years. She’d gone back and forth over what colors to use in certain rooms, and when she’d finally bought this house, she had gone to the hardware store and grabbed one of those paint swatch things to take back to her apartment. She must have flipped through that massive book of paint colors ten times before landing on the blue section, then another fifteen when she hit the lighter blues she liked, and all she’d managed to do was narrow it down to seven different versions of a pale-blue. She had to hold the swatches to the wall after she’d closed on the house before landing on the one she’d actually chosen. And that was just for one room. She still had to figure out what to do in all the others.

“Seriously, you’re all good?” Aspen asked Monica.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Just landed weirdly. How is DJ’s foot? I heard she stepped on a shell.”

“No matter how much they rake the sand, something always finds its way in there.” Aspen sighed. “She’s good, though. They checked her out. It broke skin, but it didn’t bleed or anything, so I just have her sitting still and looking pretty right now.”

Kendra looked over at her then because, yes, that was an expression that people used, and DJ was pretty, but did Aspen think DJ was pretty? She couldn’t tell, so she turned away quickly and looked at Monica, who was looking back at her, lifting an inquisitive eyebrow in Kendra’s direction.

“Hey, I got you a sandwich and–” Selena began. “Oh. Hey, Aspen.”

“Hey, Selena.”

“What kind of sandwich?” Monica asked Selena, who walked over to her side.

“Obviously, one you’d hate,” she joked.

“You’re lucky I like you.”

“Yes, I am,” Selena replied.

Kendra felt something and looked over at Aspen, who had just elbowed her gently. When Aspen nodded toward the two women in front of them, Kendra nodded back in confirmation. Aspen gave her an impressed look, which Kendra smiled at. Then, she looked back at Monica, who gave her an exasperated look. Monica knew her too well.

“Hey, Kendra,” Selena finally greeted.

“Hey. Nice match.”

“Thanks,” Selena replied and looked back down at Monica. “How are you?”

“Ice cold,” Aspen whispered to Kendra.

“What?”

“She glared at you.”

“She did not,” Kendra spoke softly before taking a few steps away from the table to give Monica and her new girlfriend a moment alone.

“Uh… Yeah, she did. What’s up with that?” Aspen joined her away from the two women.

“Monica is my best friend. I’ve known her since high school.”

“Yeah? I didn’t know that.”

“We don’t advertise it widely because I sometimes have to interview her, but yeah. We also… Well, we dated in college.”

Aspen’s eyes went wide.

“And they just got together, so it’s entirely possible that Selena is slightly yet completely unnecessarily jealous. We were over a long time ago – like, thirteen-years-ago a long time ago. We’ve been friends ever since. And Monica has liked Selena since they became partners. So, Selena has nothing to worry about there.”

Aspen didn’t say anything.

“Hey, where did you two go?” Monica asked.

“Nowhere. Just letting you two talk about your game plan. Or, possibly, your next date,” Kendra teased and walked back over to the table.

“Hey, DJ is going to hang out in the room tonight to keep off her foot until tomorrow, but I was thinking about grabbing dinner out and maybe bringing something back for her, if she wants,” Aspen said to Kendra. “Do you maybe want to go with me, if you don’t have any plans? I don’t know if you’re covering the later matches or not.”

“Just the four o’clock one. That’s the last on center court today,” she replied.

“So, maybe around seven?” Aspen asked.

Kendra swallowed because she could not go to a restaurant and simply sit across a table from this woman without making it even more obvious that she thought Aspen was incredibly sexy, even in a pair of blue flip-flops.

“Uh… Monica, what are you and Selena doing tonight?”

“Nothing. Probably just hanging out in the room and grabbing food. Why?”

“Think your ankle could handle being at a restaurant? Aspen is looking for people to have dinner with tonight.”

“Not exactly what I said, but okay,” Aspen replied under her breath, but Kendra heard it.

“You want to have dinner with us? Planning on getting us drunk before the match tomorrow?” Selena joked.

“If that were my strategy, I’d lose most of my matches. But yeah, let’s… let’s all hang out. The four of us. DJ can’t go, but we all could. There’s a Thai place by the hotel, or I heard of this great steak house that also does this amazing roast chicken.”

“Not into Thai, but I’m down with the steak house,” Monica replied. “Babe?”

“We’re in the med tent, Monica.” She gave Monica wide eyes.

“Sorry. This is new. Selena, do you want to go to the steak house with Kendra and Aspen tonight?”

“Sure,” Selena said.

“And I’m calling you ‘babe’ there,” Monica stated. “I’ve waited two years to get to call you ‘babe,’ so you’ll have to deal with it tonight at dinner.”

Selena smiled down at her before she placed a gentle hand on Monica’s shoulder.

“I think I can get down with that.”

“I’m going to go check on DJ, but… Seven? Outside the hotel, maybe? Or, I could meet you there,” Aspen said.

“Outside the hotel is fine,” Kendra confirmed.

“Okay. I’ll see you then.” Aspen gave her what looked like a forced smile and walked off.

“What was that?” Monica asked her.

“What was what?” Kendra asked back.

“You and Aspen.”

“What about me and Aspen?”

“You like her.”

“I do not.”

“Yes, you do. I can tell. I know you’ve had a crush on her forever, but this was different. You actually like her.”

“You have a crush on Aspen Ashley?” Selena asked.

“Can we not talk about this here, please?” Kendra looked around at the only half-empty tent, with trainers and other players who could easily overhear them.

“She asked you out,” Monica noted.

“What? No, she didn’t.”

“Kendra, she asked you to have dinner with her. I heard it,” Monica argued.

“Because she’s bored, and her partner can’t go. She was looking for someone to hang out with.”

“Why did you invite us to tag along?” Monica asked.

“Because I thought it would be fun. I haven’t had time with my best friend in a while, and she hasn’t even called me to tell me that she’s finally with the woman she’s been fawning over for two years.”

“Fawning?” Selena asked with a smirk.

“I liked you. You know that now. You’re also gorgeous, and I’m in love with you, so not much of a surprise that I’d be fawning.”

“So cute,” Selena teased.

“Can you two just go to this dinner with Aspen and me and help me act like a normal human who shouldn’t have a crush on someone at thirty-five years old?”

“No,” Monica stated and shook her head. “I like her for you. So, I’m on Team Kaspen.”

“Oh, that’s good,” Selena added. “Or, Team Bashley.”

“I like them both. Which one should we choose?” Monica asked.

“Neither,” Kendra told them with a little laugh but had to admit that she kind of liked the sound of both.