~* The Prodigal (Ex)Girlfriend *~ “Mrs. Townsend, there’s a lot that Andrea’s kept to herself over the last few months, but she’s ready to ask for help now. That’s what all this was about.” She stared at me with a frown. “Young lady, if my daughter needs help, she should have come to me, not just jumped on a bus and run away from-” “Mom, stop!” Andrea snapped back. “This is exactly why I didn’t come to you in the first place!” Cynthia clammed right up, staring down at Andrea. “Robin listens to me. She’s a GOOD person, and I respect her a lot more than I do you right now, and what you said is EXACTLY why! I’m not going back with you!” Without warning, she shoved her mother away and ran away from her, right out the back door. I suddenly had visions of the time I got lost in the woods because I was emotionally distraught and confused. That was back in June, not November.

---

“I can’t believe all this snow,” Andrea mumbled abruptly as we drew closer to home. The rest of the drive had been spent in mostly silence. Mom and Ash didn’t dare try and discuss the situation in front of Andrea, and our one rest stop, the three of us went to the ladies’ room together leaving the poor guy to watch his car.

“It’s really pretty in the morning light,” I offered. She shifted in her seat, turning back to stare at me. That sad smile hadn’t left her features. It almost felt as though any moment now she expected me to throw her aside, or in this case, shove her out of our moving vehicle. I reached out to rest my hand over hers, offering a reassuring smile. We had a lot of bad blood, but she, more than anyone, needed a friend right now, and I was the closest thing she had.

She turned her hand over, and for a brief moment, the sleeve of her denim jacket fell at an angle that, under the light of a street lamp, illuminated something odd about her wrist. I stared up at her, concerned, but she looked away, pulling her hand back and burying it, along with the other, under her arms as though trying to keep warm.

“A lot’s happened,” she murmured.

Not knowing what else to say, I just nodded quietly, and left it at that, at least until we pulled into the driveway back home. A squad car sat on the street in front of our snow-covered lawn. Andrea frantically looked between the car, and back at me, then back at the car. Ash smiled back at us.

“Don’t worry, girls. Let us do the talking and everything will be okay.”

He stepped out of the car, waiting for the police officer to approach. Our cul-de-sac’s street lights weren’t enough for me to see the officer’s face from a distance, and whatever figure or build they might have had was handily obscured by the heavy winter coat, but once she had approached the car, I recognized her immediately. Andrea squeaked when I opened my door. I glanced back at her with a smile. “It’s okay; I’ve met her before.”

That didn’t seem to settle her nerves any. She backed up against her door and refused to budge an inch. Mom stayed in the car with her, trying to calm her down while I approached the two. Officer Garrett turned to me and smiled. “Young lady, what did I tell you about us needing to stop meeting like this?” she spoke in a semi-authoritative tone, but her smile belied her words.

“Please tell me you’re not here to take Andrea into custody? She’s really, really not in a good mental state right now.”

Officer Garrett frowned at that. “No, I’m not here to take her in unless I feel she needs to be in protective custody, but I am here about her. San Francisco PD contacted us asking if we would follow up on the report. Her mother refused to wait until they confirmed that she was actually here, so it’s out of their hands now.” She paused, smiling down at me. “Of course, when I heard the address over the radio I called in that I’d handle this personally. You’re a good kid, but you’re a magnet for trouble. You want to tell me what’s going on here?”

As Mom coaxed Andrea out of the car, I explained the whole situation to her, how Andrea had been having problems at school, and how we knew each other from San Francisco, of course leaving out the part about us dating. When I finished, Officer Garrett shifted her gaze to Andrea, who now stood, shivering in the snow, pulling her light denim jacket more tightly around herself. I had to wonder if it was the cold that made her shiver, though.

“Andrea, it’s important for you to know that you’re not in any trouble, alright?”

She nodded quietly, chewing her lower lip.

“Let’s get you inside, and we can talk,” she offered gently. Officer Garrett was one scary lady when she had to be, but at the same time, she almost sounded motherly toward my frightened friend. Andrea sniffed, nodding again. She spoke softly.

“W-what’s going to happen to me?”

“That all depends on you, sweetheart. I’m going to ask you some questions, and we’ll go from there.”

“Please don’t make me go home!” she begged, her eyes tearing up.

“That’s not for me to decide, Andrea. I’m just here to make sure you’re okay. Come on, let’s go inside and get you warmed up. You must be freezing out here.”

Admittedly I had begun to feel the chill myself. Standing around outside in a foot of snow in nothing but a wind suit didn’t exactly endear me to the early frost. Without really thinking, I wrapped an arm around Andrea, squeezing her close as I led her inside. She clung desperately to me in return, even putting her head on my shoulder.

I couldn’t help smiling a little. I felt so bad for her, and I hated how our relationship had ended, but it still felt nice knowing she actually trusted me this much. I just hoped that trust wasn’t misplaced, or that what I thought I had seen, I hadn’t seen. I kept telling myself it was just a trick of light.

Inside, I listened while Officer Garrett questioned Andrea on everything from what seemed blatantly relevant to her running away, to things that seemed vastly less so. She asked about Andrea’s home life, if she had any problems with family, if she had been abused at any point. Mom had gotten up a few minutes in to make some hot drinks — spiced sweetened tea for Andrea and me, hot coffee for the adults. She returned with a simple serving tray carrying our drinks. Andrea smiled meekly as she accepted her cup, watching Mom sit as the interrogation continued.

“Andrea, have you ever been sexually active?”

“What? No!” she adamantly denied it. After only a moment, she laughed weakly. “Actually that’s what started this whole mess… My boyfriend dumped me because I wouldn’t put out. I’m only fifteen for Chrissakes,” she mumbled. “Things just, y’know, got worse from there.”

“How did things get worse, Andrea?” I realized, as she asked that, that nowhere in the earlier questioning did she really touch on any of what happened in the last two months specifically. Andrea shrank back into the sofa and shut her eyes tightly. “Andrea, this is important. I need to know what happened so I can make an accurate judgment of how we can proceed. I’m here to help you, but I can only do that if you tell me absolutely everything.”

She slowly opened her eyes, looking from me to Jane, then back again. She leaned over, whispering, “I’m so sorry,” then turned back to Jane again. Sorry for what? … Oh crap. Before I could say anything though, she started to explain.

“Robin and I … weren’t just friends. We dated for a couple of months last Spring.” I exhaled the breath I’d been holding. I just knew the OTHER thing was going to come out, about me pretending to be a boy during that time. “I was just using her to get back at my boyfriend, to, y’know, make him jealous. We were never really all that serious though.”

Officer Garrett gave me a skeptical stare. “So you were romantically involved earlier this year, before you moved to Alpine Springs?”

I nodded. “Yes ma’am. As she said, it wasn’t serious. And it ended when the ex gave me a black eye.”

Both Andrea and Officer Garrett flinched. Andrea continued. “Robin could have pressed charges easily, but she didn’t. Anyway, I saw her again in June, when she came back to California to visit her mom in the hospital. She had every right and every reason to hate me and to want nothing to do with me, but she and her friends invited me to have lunch with them at the food court.

“She gave me her cell number so we could stay in touch. I had no intention of it at the time. I mean, I thought about it, but… Well, Robin had gotten a serious makeover since I last saw her,” she offered, pausing to sip her tea.

“Wow… This is really good. Anyway, nobody recognized her. I think it made it even harder on me when these two cute boys came up to me after I left, asking if I could get them her digits. They didn’t even want to know who she was. Later, when she didn’t come back to school in the Fall, I let on that I was the reason she left. Prevailing belief was that she was an outcast at the time, that the school wouldn’t miss her, I thought…” she trailed off, biting her lip.

Officer Garrett frowned, shaking her head. Andrea cringed, but Jane interrupted her before she could say anything. “It takes a lot of guts to admit that. So what happened next?”

“Well, it blew up in my face. More than once I started getting threatened over it. Apparently someone took it personally,” she spoke softly, turning to look at me. I quickly shook my head.

“I don’t know who it could’ve been. You were the only person I was even remotely close to. I had a few school friends, but no one I’d actually invite home.”

“I couldn’t take it anymore. I called Robin and finally got through… I tried calling before, but her old phone kept dying, so I could never talk to her.”

I managed a small smile, adding, “It’s true. That old piece of junk’s antenna was corroded or something. I had to be close to a tower to get any calls there at the end.”

“S-she told me I needed to surround myself with people who would accept me. I started hanging out with the lower class kids, the geeks, the goths, anyone I thought might accept me. There was this one really sweet girl. We kind of hit it off, a-and we sort of started dating. Like my relationship with Robin though, she wanted to keep it quiet. When word got out, she denied the whole thing. I was devastated. I thought I had nothing left to live for, so I…”

Fresh tears began to flow. I wondered just how much this girl had left in her, but that thought shattered at my feet when she rolled back the sleeve of her jacket, revealing a small scar along her wrist. She buried her face in her hands. I set my tea aside and leaned closer to hug her. She turned and threw her around me, burying her face in my shoulder now.

“I didn’t have the courage to go through with it, but the fact that I wanted to, God I wanted so bad to end it all. I couldn’t take it anymore! My brother convinced me that suicide wasn’t the answer. We had a long talk, and I realized how much I would have hurt my parents and him in even trying, but I just … I had to get away from there, so instead I withdrew everything I had and bought a bus ticket.

“Robin is like, the one person in the world I knew, I KNEW wouldn’t hate me, wouldn’t kick me when I was down or throw me aside,” she sobbed.

A long moment of awkward silence passed between the four of us, broken only by the sounds of Andrea crying into my shoulder. I sat helplessly, holding her. It was all I could do. I didn’t know what to say to any of this. What could I have said? I watched Ash motion toward the kitchen, and Mom and Jane stood to follow him. I couldn’t quite make out what they were talking about, and I didn’t have a chance to try, as the front door immediately opened, Margie stepping inside, bundled in her heavy winter coat.

“Wow, it’s cold out there!” she called cheerfully. My heart sank. I just knew I’d have to explain all this again. She called a moment later. “Robin? Is that you? Sweetheart, what’s-” she paused at the doorway, seeing me with Andrea, and frowned. “Oh.”

“Mom and Ash are in the kitchen with Officer Garrett. They’ll explain everything,” I offered. Andrea never even looked up. She seemed dead to the world, and all I could do for her was to let her let it all out. Margie nodded, quickly stepping through to the kitchen.

“I’m sorry,” Andrea finally whispered. “I’m so, so sorry. I should never have come here.”

“What? Why do you say that?” I asked as I gently lifted her chin to get her to look me in the eye.

“I’m trouble, Robin. I’ve been nothing but trouble for you since we met. You don’t … you don’t deserve this.”

“Andrea… You’re right, I don’t, but neither do you. You’re a bright girl. You’re one of the smartest people I know. You deserve better than what you’ve done to yourself OR what others have done to you.”

She slowly stood, walking to the window. She silently stared out at the snow, crestfallen. The poor girl had truly hit rock bottom. I stood and approached, squeezing her hand. “Hey… You’re not alone. Look, forget about what’s going to happen tomorrow, or what happened to make you come here. You’re here now, and I’m here for you, okay?”

She turned to stare at me, throwing her arms around me. At first, I thought she was about to kiss me, which would have seriously complicated things more than I think either of us wanted to think about. Instead she leaned closer, planting a light peck on my cheek. “I was right about one thing,” she whispered.

“What’s that?” I asked, more than a little curious.

She stifled a giggle. “Remember, back in June, when I called you ‘ND’?”

“You were right about me being not-dateable?” I teased her gently, trying to lighten the mood a little. She shook her head quickly.

“No, the next part! I told your friends you probably would’ve been a great friend if I’d given you half a chance. I’m sorry I didn’t. I’m sorry I called you ND too… You’re very dateable.”

I couldn’t believe she remembered that conversation so well.

“I’m still seeing Nikki,” I offered. She nodded quietly.

“It’s okay. I’m not really … y’know. I just wanted some attention for a change, so I pretended to be. Oh, by the way? You … don’t have to worry about anyone remembering you as anything but Robin now.” Her cheeks started to shift a few shades redder. Now I was REALLY curious.

“Andrea, what did you do?”

She bit her lip, turning back to look out the front window. She pressed her back into me and closed her eyes, exhaling. “I didn’t tell your police friend in the other room about everyone thinking you were a guy, but after word got out that I ‘might be’ lesbian, the rumor mill took off. Now the whole school thinks you were a girl all along.” She giggled to herself. “I mean, they were right, but still…”

I had to laugh. “Wow. At least some good came of this whole mess.”

She smiled a little. “I know, right? I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay. I’m glad you came, honestly.”

Her eyes lit right up at that, but she frowned. “Wait, what?”

“I mean, I’m glad you trust me. I’m glad that you came if the alternative was …” I trailed off, exhaling slowly. “Andrea, at my girl scout camp there was this girl, Crystal. She was, by all rights, a happy, outgoing girl, but her boyfriend got her pregnant then dumped her. She started ‘showing’ while at camp, and somehow smuggled in a pregnancy test. It turned up positive, and she didn’t know how she was going to tell her parents. So she hanged herself.”

Andrea’s eyes widened and she frowned, then shut them tightly. “The way you looked at me earlier tonight… You were thinking about that girl weren’t you?”

“Yeah, I was. I didn’t know her. This all happened last summer, before I came here, but I met her best friend. Hopefully I can take you to meet her. I think it’d be good for you.”

“Maybe… Mom’s supposed to be flying out though,” she sighed. “I really don’t want to go back there, but what choice do I have?”

“There’s always a choice. It might not be the choice you like, but sometimes that’s part of life. I’m facing that kind of choice myself right now,” I mused, biting my tongue after I realized what I’d said. She turned to stare at me again. Whatever the adults were discussing, they were certainly taking their time about it, but it gave us a chance to talk, at least.

“You have a great house, awesome friends; you’re a freaking basketball star for God’s sakes. What could you possibly have to worry about?” I’ll admit, she probably didn’t mean to sound so harsh, and I certainly never meant to imply that we were having the same or similar problems, so I answered as gently as I could.

“One of my ‘awesome friends’ is having an identity crisis. He’s… into dressing like a girl, and there’s a possibility that it’s more than just ‘for fun’. I helped facilitate it, encouraging him to be himself — or herself, if that’s the case. But he doesn’t know about me. There are only a very small handful of people that do, even smaller now that everyone back in California thinks I was always a girl,” I offered teasingly, causing her to crack a small smile.

“I get it now. If he becomes a she, like, right in the middle of the school year…”

“Right. It’d be like when your relationship with that other girl was exposed. The school board knows about my transgendered status, but they’ve kept it quiet for now because, for all intents and purposes, I AM a girl. I’m developing normally through puberty like any other girl our age. The one major difference is I don’t have a period, and I can’t physically have children.”

She rolled her eyes. “Lucky you.” She paused, staring at my breasts. “… You really are a girl aren’t you?”

“You’re just noticing that?” I teased.

“Alright, girls,” Officer Garrett interrupted us, stepping back into the living room. We turned in unison to look at her, and she paused, quirking one femininely shaped eyebrow. “You seem to be feeling better,” she offered, a little surprised.

Andrea nodded. “I guess I just needed a good, hard cry, and a good friend to cry with.”

“Anyway, I’ve talked it over with your parents Robin, and under normal circumstances, I’d recommend protective custody due to the suicide risk.” Andrea cringed, her gaze shifting straight down, but Jane continued, “However… These are far from normal circumstances. I’ve worked with you before, and I know for a fact that you’re a smart, caring young lady. Add to that the fact that both your Mom and your next door neighbor are registered nurses, and I’m willing to allow you, Andrea, to stay here until your Mom gets here, with some stipulations.”

“Of course, anything!” Andrea responded excitedly, almost happily.

“One, you are to call in to the local police station every four hours from the moment I leave. That means that someone’s going to have to stay up to make the call while you get some sleep, then you can call, yourself when you wake up. Two, when your Mom gets in to town I want you both down at the police station for some follow-up questions, alright?”

Andrea hesitantly looked at me. I smiled at her. “It’s okay. Jane is one of the best. She’s helped me on two separate occasions now, including during Homecoming when someone threatened me if I didn’t drop out.”

“Homecoming…?” she gave me a puzzled stare, but nodded, turning back to Jane. “Okay, as long as Robin’s family doesn’t mind all this, I’m okay with it.”

Mom cleared her throat and smiled. “It was Ash’s and my idea, sweetheart. We want you to be somewhere you’ll feel safe, and the idea of you spending a night in a police station or worse just didn’t feel like the best option for you.”

Andrea blinked several times, racing across the room to hug Mom. I hadn’t seen her hug this many people in this short span of time since I’d known her. She really had fallen far, and hard.

“Thank you so much. I promise I won’t cause any trouble!” she gushed.

While Mom and Margie gave Andrea the grand tour of the house, I walked with Officer Garrett back out to her waiting squad car. I knew I hadn’t heard the last of this, and figured it best to conclude anything more outside earshot of Andrea. She had enough on her mind already. She paused, turning back to me.

“I’m sorry, Robin. I eavesdropped on your conversation with Andrea.”

Uh-oh. I looked up at her, concerned, but she smiled. “It’s okay. It doesn’t change anything. You’re still a bright, warm-hearted girl with a knack for getting in over your head, but I do have to ask, are you absolutely certain you want her here, given your past problems?”

“Without a doubt. This isn’t the same girl I knew back then. She’s changed. I’ve never seen her hug someone, for one, let alone several times in one night. She’s obviously in a lot of pain, and she needs to be somewhere she can feel safe. I don’t know what else I can do, Jane. I’m really scared for her.”

“You’re doing the right thing by just being here for her. It’s obvious that she trusts you, and for what it’s worth, you’ve probably saved her life tonight.” She hesitated, leaning against the side of her car. “I transferred to Alpine Springs a year ago, after I was called out to Camp Kutomanu.” She exhaled slowly, shaking her head as she pulled open the door to her squad car, sat down, and looked back at me. “You already know the rest of that story. Take care of her Robin. I don’t ever want to answer another call like that again.”

Before she could close the door, I reached out to hold it open then stepped closer, and bent down to hug her. “I’m sorry, Officer Garrett. I didn’t mean to bring back bad memories for you. Thank you so much for telling me though, and for coming to help sort this out. For what it’s worth you’re… kind of my hero.” I smiled meekly even as she chuckled to herself.

“Thanks, Robin. You have a safe evening alright? Just relax and look after your friend.”

“Yes ma’am,” I replied, stepping back to let her pull the door closed. I waved, briefly, and turned to walk back in the house. I saw Andrea in the window as I drew closer, my basketball sneakers crunching the loose, fresh snow with the day-old stuff from the weekend.

She stepped into the foyer from the living room when I came inside, patiently watching as I removed my shoes, jacket, and wind suit pants. I still had my basketball uniform on underneath, and I hadn’t had a shower yet. I must have smelled awful.

“Is everything okay? I mean… She didn’t say anything else about me did she?”

“No, that was about me. She overheard us talking.”

“Oh shit. Robin, I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay,” I offered. “I’d hug you but I haven’t had a shower yet.” That brought a small smile to her face. I motioned for her to follow, and turned to head upstairs, leaving my sneakers in the foyer to air dry for now.

“It turns out Jane was the first one to respond when Crystal died. She got a transfer after that because it … I guess it just shook her up. I can’t blame her. She’s strong, but I saw what it did to Crystal’s friends. Our camp didn’t have ANY CITs until my friends convinced me to sign up with them.”

“CITs?” she asked as we reached the top step. I smiled as I glanced back at her.

“Counselors in training: it’s a leadership program in Girl Scout camps. You help our senior counselors, organize events, and stuff, but otherwise you’re just a regular camper.”

“Wow. I can’t picture you riding a horse,” she laughed quietly. I giggled as I took her hand, pulling her into my bedroom. Of course, I left the door open.

“The horse agreed. I got thrown into the bushes my first time out. Fortunately they were soft bushes,” I joked. “It was a lot of fun, and a great chance to really unwind after the incident.” I paused, frowning. “Oh crap. I didn’t tell you about that did I?” She frowned, shaking her head. “I’ll fill you in some other time. You’ve got enough on your mind.”

I grabbed a fresh pair of pajamas from my dresser and set them aside with a clean pair of underwear, then turned back to her. “I’m going to grab a shower, and I need to call Coach Wilson and let her know we made it home safely. Will you be okay?”

She nodded quickly. “Yeah. Your Mom said I could sleep in her room tonight, but I’m not really tired right now. I’m going to go downstairs and talk to your sister a little while. She seems really nice.”

“She is. She took me in after Mom’s accident, and she practically helped raise me. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask, okay?”

“Thanks,” she offered softly.

“No problem,” I answered, gathering my things for my shower.

“No, I mean thanks, for everything. You don’t have to be so nice to me. I’m not made of glass.”

“Maybe not,” I replied as I turned to step closer. “But you are in a lot of pain, and I don’t want to hurt you any more than you’ve already been. I meant what I said when I told you you didn’t deserve what happened.”

She smiled at that, and after a chaste peck on my cheek, she turned to quickly step out. As I left my room I caught a glimpse of her just at the top of the stairs, before turning and heading into the bathroom myself, for a much needed shower.

I woke early the next morning, though truthfully I had trouble sleeping that night anyway. Every time I’d close my eyes, those haunting images of Andrea’s wrist and what might have been kept returning, and more than once I got up to check on her even despite having Mom or Margie sitting up with her. I slid out of bed and, pulling my fleece robe from the back of my makeup table’s chair, slid my arms through the sleeves as I stepped out into the hallway.

Mom’s bedroom door was open, but when I peeked inside there was no one there. I could faintly hear Andrea and Margie, then Margie’s distinctive giggle. I padded barefoot down the stairs, poking my head in the kitchen. Margie and Andrea sat at the table with their chairs close together, and both seemed to be looking at something.

My curiosity piqued, I slipped closer, peeking over their shoulders to find a full-page scrapbook spread on Homecoming, featuring me posing with the other Maids, our Queen at the center, in a large five-by-seven photo.

“That is such a gorgeous dress,” Andrea sighed. “She is so lucky.” Apparently neither realized I was standing right behind them.

“Yeah, it’s not all been easy. We had to bring in my lawyer with threats of the ACLU getting involved to ensure she’d be able to play basketball.”

“Really?” she looked up, then back at me and squealed in surprise.

I giggled a little as I patted her shoulder lightly. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to sneak up on you.”

She exhaled, blowing her loose, uncombed bangs out of her face. “It’s fine. Margie was just showing me this scrapbook of your life as Robin.”

Margie grinned at me. “We haven’t even gotten to the part where you posed as Aria Blade at the hospital yet. I was going to surprise you with this scrapbook for Christmas, but I couldn’t resist showing it to Andrea.”

Andrea stood, wrapping her arms around my neck briefly. “You’ve really come a long way Robin. I’d be lying to say I’m not completely jealous, but you deserve it. You’re a great person. I wish I could be half the girl you are.”

“You can be, Andrea. It’s like I’ve said all along, you’re a smart girl, you’re beautiful, and you’re talented.”

“You think I’m beautiful?” she stared at me with disbelief.

“Yes! I’ve always thought you are. But you have no self-confidence. You don’t believe in yourself. I should know; I’ve been there too. It’s not just the words. You have to … Margie, help me out here?”

Margie stood, turning to face us. “You have to be brave. The only thing we have to fear is fear itself. Do you know who said that?”

“Franklin D. Roosevelt, I think?”

I rolled my eyes. “You would get that right the first time. I didn’t have a clue when she asked me the same question.”

Andrea giggled under her breath. “Hey, you were the one who didn’t want to take Poli Sci. But I never understood what it meant. How can you fear fear?”

“When I first started seeing a therapist for my gender issues, I was terrified. I just KNEW I’d be locked up in some insane asylum and never see the light of day again. The reality wasn’t much better. My first therapist was a closed-minded ass who thought I was acting out from lacking a proper male role model,” I rolled my eyes at the memories of Doctor Rosen. After scaring off half his clients when he literally chased me into the lobby though, I doubted he stayed in the business for very long.

“But the point is it wasn’t as bad as my mind was making it out to be. I was afraid of what might happen because I didn’t know what would happen.”

Before I could continue, someone knocked at the front door. Mom called from the living room a moment later. “I’ve got it. Andrea, dear, stay in the kitchen a moment.”

Andrea frowned, glancing at me. I shrugged. “I’d do what she says. We don’t know what she talked to Jane about last night.”

“It’s okay,” Mom said, stepping into the room again.

Speak of the devil, Officer Garrett stepped into the room. This was the first time I’d ever seen her out of uniform, and with her hair down no less! She had on a cute informal blue top and dark jeans, and a white heavy jacket, with her hair in loose curls, framing her face. She removed her sunglasses and smiled.

“I just wanted to stop in and check on you girls this morning. Officially I’m off-duty today, but if there’s anything I can do to help this go more smoothly then I’m happy to do what I can.”

Andrea smiled a little. “Thank you. I don’t know how she’s going to take all this.” She sighed. “She was pretty pissed.”

“She sounded more scared than anything,” I offered. Andrea looked at me in surprise. “Seriously. She asked me a bunch of questions about how we met, and how I ended up here in Alpine Springs. Your mom loves you. She just wants to see you happy.”

As if on cue, a second, more frantic knock followed. Mom glanced at Jane, then at me. Jane followed her through to the foyer, while I squeezed Andrea’s hand, and we patiently waited. We didn’t have long to wait, however. Mom and Jane reappeared a moment later. Right behind them, Cynthia Townsend followed. She seemed as I vaguely remembered her, though she’d cut her raven locks into a short bob since April.

She stopped at the doorway when she saw us though, and started crying. “Oh, Andrea…” she whispered. Her canvas shoes barely touched the floor as she sprinted past the two women over to us, throwing her arms around Andrea and holding her tightly. “I’m so glad you’re okay,” she offered. She didn’t even give me a second glance, much to my temporary relief.

“I’m sorry Mom,” Andrea offered meekly as she buried herself in her mother’s embrace.

“What on earth were you thinking honey? We’ve been worried sick. We had the police out everywhere searching for you. Your brother thought you had killed yourself!”

She flinched at that, pulling back enough to let Cynthia see the scar she’d shown us. It was small, barely a flesh wound, but had she gone any deeper at all, they wouldn’t have been having this conversation. She started bawling into her mother’s shoulder, and I couldn’t stand by any longer. I stepped over and wrapped her in a hug from the side.

“Mrs. Townsend, there’s a lot that Andrea’s kept to herself over the last few months, but she’s ready to ask for help now. That’s what all this was about.”

She stared at me with a frown. “Young lady, if my daughter needs help, she should have come to me, not just jumped on a bus and run away from-”

“Mom, stop!” Andrea snapped back. “This is exactly why I didn’t come to you in the first place!” Cynthia clammed right up, staring down at Andrea. “Robin listens to me. She’s a GOOD person, and I respect her a lot more than I do you right now, and what you said is EXACTLY why! I’m not going back with you!”

Without warning, she shoved her mother away and ran away from her, right out the back door. I suddenly had visions of the time I got lost in the woods because I was emotionally distraught and confused. That was back in June, not November.

“Oh no,” I spoke softly. Officer Garrett had apparently had the same idea. She glared at Cynthia.

“You stay here. I’ll go get your daughter, and we’re going to CALMLY discuss this, but until this is resolved, no one is going anywhere.”

As Jane ran after Andrea, Cynthia walked to the kitchen table where Margie’s scrapbook lay out, and sat down, staring blankly at my Homecoming photo. I walked to the door, poking my head out to see what became of Andrea.

Luckily she hadn’t gone far. I found her sitting with Jane on the old porch swing that hung from the tree in our back yard. I’d actually forgotten it was even there. She sat in the snow, with Jane’s heavy coat draped around her, shaking her head vehemently at the officer.

“Jane’s talking her down,” I offered quietly, glancing back. Cynthia slowly looked up at me.

“Where did I go wrong? What did I do wrong to make her hate me so much?”

I quickly shook my head. “She doesn’t hate you. Listen,” I stepped closer, pulling back the chair where Andrea herself had sat earlier, and turned it to face her mother as I sat. “Andrea’s been through a lot. Someone was even threatening her at school. If I tell you the whole story, will you promise not to just jump to conclusions? Your daughter is in a bad, bad place right now, and all I want — ALL I want is to see her get better.”

Slowly, she nodded. She listened as I recounted, again, what had happened. I began with how we became involved, and predictably, she immediately stopped me. “Wait a minute. There was a boy she was dating for a couple of months last year…” She stared at me. “Was that-”

I nodded. “That wasn’t a boy she was dating, though,” I offered softly. “But it didn’t last. She was just using me to get back at someone, and I got the crap kicked out of me for it.”

She practically glowered at that, but I held up a hand to remind her of her promise. From there I continued to explain what Andrea had told us the night before. Andrea and Jane came back inside, but I continued to talk. I was on a roll, I’d gotten her to sit down and listen, and I wasn’t going to stop now.

“When she came up to me at the McDonalds where her bus stopped, there was just no way I’d let her leave again. My basketball coach agreed, and we took her with us to the game, and since my parents were there,” again with that word ‘parents’. It was becoming more natural all the time. “We just came home together, since I was injured during the game anyway.”

She slowly turned to stare at Andrea. “… Is all this true?”

Andrea nodded softly. “I can’t go back there because everyone hates me. I tried to change. I tried to be nice to people, and it just went from bad to worse.”

She started to respond, but paused, staring at me. She shifted her gaze down to the scrapbook photo again, then back at Andrea, and stood, stepping closer. She wrapped her in a tight hug, holding her close. “Then I won’t make you. I don’t know what other option we have, but we’ll figure this out, sweetheart. We’ll work it out together, I promise you.”

“Thank you, Mom,” she sniffed. “That’s all I want.”

Jane cleared her throat. “I’m going to need you both to come down to the police station with me. Don’t worry, neither of you are in any trouble. I just need to ask you both some follow-up questions, and I’d like Andrea to meet with a counselor.”

Cynthia nodded softly. “Yes, of course. Andrea, go wait in the living room for me. I need to speak to your friend.”

Andrea nervously looked between us then hurried into the living room. I wondered, as Cynthia approached me, if she’d be eavesdropping. Her mother stepped in front of me, leaned close, and wrapped me in a hug. “Thank you Robin. I’m not sure how I feel about my daughter dating another girl, but … it’s obvious she has good taste at least.” She smiled weakly.

“She’s not … normally, y’know?” I chuckled. “For what it’s worth. The thing with the other girl was exactly the same thing I went through with her, sort of a reversal of fortunes. The difference is, I moved here to be with the new friends I made after my mom’s car accident. I found myself here, long before I decided to stay, where Andrea was coming here to find some sense of sanity.”

I smiled at her. “We’ll help you figure this out. You’re not alone, and neither is she.”

“You… really do care for her don’t you?” she asked softly.

I nodded. “Yeah, I do. I want her to be happy. She doesn’t deserve what she’s been through. Nobody does.”

As she and Jane stepped through to the living room, Mom wrapped me in a hug. I wearily put my head on her shoulder. “God, I hope she’s going to be okay.”

“Andrea, or her mother?” she asked, quite serious. I chuckled a little.

“Both. I need to go get dressed, call Ally, and figure out an excuse for why I didn’t do my homework.”

Mom smiled. “If you need to skip a day, just this once, I’ll vouch for you.”

I smiled at that, but shook my head. “No, I need to be in school so I can quash any rumors before they even start. Nikki doesn’t know about any of this, and I’d rather she hear it from me.”

I wanted to feel like a great, heavy weight had been lifted off my shoulders, as I plodded up the stairs to get ready for school, but truthfully, it only felt a little lighter. We were far from out of the woods yet. At least Cynthia seemed willing to hear Andrea out though, and Andrea would herself receive some counseling. I felt some relief having Jane involved too. I just hoped this wasn’t the last time I’d see Andrea.

I hadn’t heard a word from Andrea or Cynthia all day, and they weren’t at my house when I arrived home after school. Mom and Margie were both out and about, so I left a note on the fridge, heading right for Allison’s. Now I remembered why I didn’t want to permanently move out of Margie’s just yet. The convenience of my other set of parents next door was just too great to give up so easily.

“Is that you Robin?” Carol called from the kitchen. I poked my head around the door, offering her a weary smile. “My goodness. Are you alright? You look terrible.”

“Stressed right out, but I’m okay,” I replied neutrally, stepping closer. “Did Ally tell you what happened?”

“With your friend from California? Yes. If there’s anything Joe and I can do to help, just let us know.”

“Thanks,” I answered, smiling a little. “It’s just so draining. I barely got any sleep last night worrying about her. Now I haven’t heard anything from them, and they’re not home. It’s just so frustrating not knowing anything.”

“I know, sweetheart. Allison and Nicole are downstairs if you want to go talk to them.” Nicole! She had not taken the news well, unsurprisingly. Allison called that night to fill her in since she knew I wouldn’t be able to. In Nicole’s defense, she was more worried about how this would affect me than about me getting involved with Andrea. That ship had sailed long ago.

“Hey cutie,” Nicole chirped as I appeared on the steps. “How’s the ankle?”

“Better. Don’t know why Coach wouldn’t let me participate in P.E. today,” I offered, losing myself in her warm embrace. She kissed my forehead, leading me over to the sofa where Allison sat sprawled out, working on her algebra. Both girls giggled as I found myself pulled right into Nicole’s lap.

“Gee, couldn’t be because you almost dozed off twice just sitting on the bleachers,” she teased, squeezing my sides. I giggled a little as her fingers found a particularly ticklish area.

“Yeah, yeah. Hey, do you think I could get a really, really big favor out of you?”

“Of course!” she replied without hesitation. I smiled a little at her enthusiasm, leaning down for a quick kiss.

“You’re the best. If Andrea stays in town like her Mom agreed to, would you be willing to visit Natalie again?”

“Um, sure, but I’m guessing you want to take Andrea with us?” she asked more neutrally. I nodded.

“I want her to meet Natalie. She needs to see firsthand what Crystal’s death did to her.”

Nicole blinked, staring at me. “Okay.”

“Nikki… Just before she came here, she tried to kill herself.”

“Ohmygawd,” Nicole and Allison gasped in unison. Allison dropped her pencil, staring straight at me.

“Yeah,” I offered softly. “Officer Garrett said I probably saved her life by taking her in like this, giving her, y’know, a little bit of hope.”

Allison pushed her book closed, sliding closer. She stood and leaned down to wrap me in a hug. “In that case, count me in too.”

“Thanks, Ally,” I offered, squeezing her back. Unable to resist the temptation, I goosed her sides just enough to throw her off balance, then pulled her down onto my lap. Nicole and Allison both squealed at the sudden body pile.

Allison laughed as she rolled off onto the sofa. “What was that for?”

I giggled a little. “Sorry. I just needed a reason to smile, and spiking Kelly’s shampoo with honey seemed like a bad idea.”

“Oh, ONE time!” Nicole laughed. I started to slide off her lap, but she grabbed me and started to tickle me again.

“Okay, okay, I give!” I giggled. She gave one last squeeze for good measure, smiling proudly. Allison just rolled her eyes.

“God, you two.”

Someone knocked faintly at the basement door. “I’ll get it,” I started to stand. Nicole grabbed me, pulling me back down again, right into a kiss.

“No you won’t,” she grinned. Allison giggled as she stood, poking her head over the stairwell to call up, “Mom, is that you?”

“I-it’s me,” Andrea answered.

“It’s not locked. Come on down.”

Footsteps followed. Again, I started to get up, but Nicole’s threat of a severe tickling kept me in place. Allison grinned, speaking to our new arrival in her friendliest tone. “Make yourself at home. And don’t mind the lovebirds. Can I get you something to drink?”

“Lovebirds?” she glanced over at us. “Oh,” she giggled under her breath. “Nah, I’m good. Thanks. No one was home at Robin’s, but I saw the note on the refrigerator. I hope I’m not intruding,” she continued.

Nicole glanced back and smiled. “Nah. We’re always like this,” she grinned back at me, stealing a quick kiss. “Okay, not ALWAYS, but we haven’t had a chance to hang out since Saturday.”

“Oh… I’m sorry,” she murmured as she approached.

“Eh, not your fault. Robin got in from her game so late last night that it wouldn’t have mattered, plus she babysat for her cheer coach Sunday night too. That’s always fun.”

“You cheer too?”

I quickly shook my head. “Not yet, but I’m thinking of taking gymnastics next semester, then going to cheer camp this summer after Girl Scout camp.”

“Hey, um… Can I ask you guys something? You’re… all girl scouts right?”

“Yeah. Robin and Nikki are first-timers and first-year CITs,” Allison answered. “Jen and I are the only ones that’ve been doing this since we were kids.”

“Do you … um … Do you think maybe I could …”

I had to smile. “You want to join the Scouts? It’s seriously never too late.”

“Yeah, and if they’ll accept me, they’ll take anyone,” Nicole added with a dry laugh. She motioned that she’d let me up, and as I slid off her lap, she explained. “See, when I was a little girl I was a Brownie back in Louisiana. My parents — that is, my REAL asshole parents, not my awesome adopted parents, got caught stealing cookie money, and that was the end of that, until this summer when Ally asked me and Robin to join.”

“How did all this come about anyway?” Andrea seemed to be relaxing and loosening up a little. For my friends’ parts they seemed to be willing to give her another chance, as well.

Allison glanced at me before answering. “Well, there’s two stories behind it. Did she tell you about Crystal?”

“Yeah. That was really sweet what you guys did for her.”

Allison smiled at that. “Right. Well, because of Crystal, nobody wanted to be a CIT this last year. My friend Jen, who you’ll meet later tonight if you’re still here by the way, was like, the ONLY girl to sign up. The camp was depending on one girl to do it all, and it stressed her out. This is a half-Hawaiian surf chick. You can imagine what this would do to a normal person.”

We all giggled at that side-comment, listening as Allison explained from the beginning how the camp needed more CITs, and led into the other, darker story about why we all needed a change of scenery. She spoke somberly of the day we met our army hero, Sergeant Harris, and the maniac who chased us into his house. When she finished, Andrea, who had sat down on the floor halfway through, stared up at us in silence.

“Wow… You weren’t kidding when you said you guys had your own problems. Suddenly getting some stupid threats doesn’t sound so bad.”

“You were threatened?” Nicole perked up.

“Yeah, but it’s no big deal…”

“Wrong, girlie. It’s a very big deal. Robin and I were threatened with some pretty nasty notes when she was nominated for Homecoming royalty. You can’t just take that kind of thing lightly. You’ve got to stand up like we did. Robin went straight to the principal, and the bastard that did it got thrown out of school.”

“Actually…” I corrected, sheepishly, “It was more like Mrs. Ellis, our AP English teacher, led me to the principal’s office after she saw the note. But the rest is true. It was Officer Garrett whom you met last night, who took our statements and made sure things got done.”

“She’s really nice,” Andrea added. “She stayed with me like, all day even though two different cops asked her why she wasn’t relaxing at home.” She started to blush, drawing her knees to her chest as she set her chin against them.

“God I wish I could stay here forever. I know it’s not possible. There’s just way too much that would have to change, but… I would give anything to have what you guys have.”

Nicole coyly tilted her head, staring down at Andrea. “You’ve really come a long way since June haven’t you?”

Andrea stared up at her with confusion. “What?”

“When I first met you, you were a catty bitch with only the most basic of human sympathy. The only reason you felt bad for what you did to Robin was obviously because it hurt you socially, which you proved when you called her up not long ago, but now, if she hadn’t told me who you were I’d never believe it. C’mere.”

Andrea cautiously stood. She watched as Nicole reached into her pocket, hoisting herself up enough to slide her hand deep into her black jeans. She stood, motioning for me to stand as well, and then turned back to Andrea. “Give me your wrist.”

“What?”

“Just do it,” she insisted. “I wasn’t sure if I’d be giving this to you or not. Ally called me last night and told me what had happened, and at first I was pretty upset by it, but the more we talked, the more I figured I’d just wait and see what happened, so…”

Andrea nervously held out her scarred wrist. Nicole frowned. “Better use the other one, unless you want to draw attention to that?” she advised. Andrea agreed, lowering her wrist and offering the other one. At first I wasn’t sure exactly what she was up to, until I saw the twists of colored yarn. I couldn’t help grinning.

“It’s been our tradition to make one of these for new friends. I WAS going to give this to another new friend, Kathy, but she goes to school with us so it’s not like I’ll never see her again,” she explained, as she tied the friendship bracelet into place. “We gave one to Robin the first day of Girl Scout camp. We wear them when we’re going out in public together, and … well, you can wear yours to remember you have friends here.”

Andrea stared at it for a moment. Tears fell as she wrapped Nicole in a hug. “Thank you… I-I don’t know what to say.”

Nicole smiled, patting her back lightly. “Look, I don’t like to talk about this, but my parents are rich, and I mean that day we met? Two days earlier, I got my dad to pull some strings and score us first class tickets just to get Robin to her Mom faster.

“I don’t believe in throwing money at a problem to solve it, and I would NOT be saying this if I thought for a moment that you were even remotely like you used to be, but if there’s anything I can do to help you, don’t be afraid to ask, alright?”

“We’re still trying to figure out what’s going to happen next,” Andrea offered softly as she sat down on the floor. I watched her thoughtfully smile at her new bracelet as the three of us sat as well. “Mom dropped me off at Robin’s while she goes back to the hotel to call Dad. … All I know is I can’t… I refuse to go back to my old school again. I just can’t do it.”

Allison smiled as she leaned forward, squeezing Andrea’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. We’ll help you figure something out. It’s what friends are for, and if Robin AND Nikki both say you’ve changed, then I’m behind you one-hundred percent.”

“So, Homecoming Royalty?” she abruptly asked, causing the three of us to giggle.

It still felt kind of weird in that old-girlfriend-new-girlfriend way, but Andrea seemed vastly more calm now than she had the night before. She didn’t seem as nervous or anxious, or for that matter, psychotic.

I had no idea what we were going to be able to do to help her, but Nicole’s offer really surprised me, and gave me some hope that whatever it took, we would work something out to everyone’s best interest.