Tuesday spent two days in a row going to Jordan's after school. On the second, the other girl suggested they go to Tuesday's place, but she wasn't eager to be labeled a freak so soon. Tuesday doubted that would happen, but was still slightly worried her aunt would come off as too eccentric. After all, she'd already chased off one of Tuesday's friends.

Even if she had been right about him...

These hangouts were becoming a much-anticipated part of Tuesday's day. They didn't always smoke or stuff like that. Jordan, true to her word, had turned on Netflix, given Tuesday the remote and told her to go wild. They stayed up late enough watching cheesy scary movies--things so unrealistic Tuesday could only really laugh at in reaction--that she earned herself a scolding from Aunt Mary.

She didn't regret it, even when the next day it was even more difficult than usual to get out of bed. With Jordan, she didn't have to face who she truly was.

But even that began to eat at her.

Lies had a way of coming to the light, and Tuesday wasn't eager to have her own double-life revealed. On a second round of b-rate horror flicks, Jordan fell asleep beside her and Tuesday didn't bother waking her. She watched the other girl, seeming even more serene in sleep, bathed in the yellowish pale glow of the television--and silently confessed her sins. She hadn't been to confession in months, and it was not easy to fall back into the routine, especially considering she hadn't even spoken aloud yet.

She obsessed over just what she could say and how so long that she, too, fell victim to exhaustion. When she awoke, the movie had switched to the "Are you still watching?" screen and the room had fallen into otherwise total darkness beyond the television's subtle light. Glancing beside herself, Tuesday jumped, seeing Jordan was already awake and sitting upright--so still she hadn't even realized. The other girl was slowly scanning the room with wide eyes.

"You okay? You look like you've seen a ghost," Tuesday joked, jabbing her with her elbow.

Jordan laughed, the sound coming out forced, and glanced down at her lap where her hands were twisting anxiously. "Yeah, man, I just--thought I saw something, or someone." Seeing the look on Tuesday's face, she quickly added, "It totally had to have been a nightmare, a really vivid one. You know what they say about eating too much sugar before bed." Jordan sheepishly gestured towards the empty candy wrappers littering the coffee table.

Though a shiver wracked her spine, Tuesday nodded along in agreement. For several minutes they chatted about something insignificant she couldn't really focus on, simply reacting where it seemed necessary but not contributing anything valuable to the conversation. In their sleep, the two girls had jammed together closer on the sofa--facing each other, legs overlapping--and the comfortable closeness only served to remind Tuesday how unfair she was being. She couldn't keep enjoying someone else's presence until she was sure they were completely consenting--obviously, Tuesday couldn't disclose all of her sins, but the first one was surely a start.

"Are you okay?" Jordan suddenly said, interrupting her own monologue.

No, she wasn't. She didn't even know why these things bothered her so fiercely now. For as long as she'd been helping Cyrus, she basically did so without batting an eye. Maybe that was the problem, though, maybe he was what made it so easy to tamp these feelings down. She'd gone a whole month without that influence, and it had been debatably the most hellish month of her life. Even if her reactions had changed, though, nothing else had.

"I don't know," Tuesday said quietly. "I don't know how to explain it."

"Maybe you just need to see things from a new perspective." With a crooked grin, Jordan twisted around and repositioned herself so her legs were raised over the back of the couch and her head dangled off the cushions.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Unable to hold back a laugh, Tuesday followed suit. It was hard to support her body in that position, and even harder to breathe, but she didn't complain even as all the blood rushed to her head and it began to ache.

At first it was hard to take either of them seriously like that, and Tuesday almost ditched the whole confession thing in favor of laughing hysterically along with Jordan. Then the laughter inevitably died and Tuesday was left with--nothing. She felt blank again.

She looked downward to avoid the eyes she felt on her, studying the blonde pile her hair was resting in upon the carpet beneath their heads. "I've done some...bad things."

"Like what, cheat on the SAT?"

"...killed my father."

Tuesday had always been too scared to act out but the first time was always the hardest, and after him? She'd so willingly brought death to, well, she couldn't even remember how many other men. That had to be terrible--right? Shouldn't the exact number be permanently branded upon her psyche?

She couldn't distract herself with those thoughts forever; eventually, she had to acknowledge Jordan's stunned silence. Tuesday risked a peek beside her only to be unable to analyze her friend's expression.

Jordan swung her legs around, returning to a normal sitting position, and Tuesday did the same with a thousand regrets burning a hole in her chest.

"What did he do?"

Tuesday looked over at her again, not expecting that to be her first response. Immediately assuming he'd done something to deserve being murdered by his own daughter--well, when Tuesday imagined herself in Jordan's position, that wouldn't be the first concern on her mind. "Ah...he, well, he tried to--"

Jordan quickly held up a hand, face reddening. "Oh, shit, stop. I had no right to ask that, I'm sorry."

The tension slowly leaving her body, Tuesday replied, "I mean, I brought it up. It's okay." She let out a shaky sigh that alleviated the rest of the pressure off her chest. "I've just been, y'know...it's been rough."

Jordan just stared at her, and Tuesday couldn't help but look away; she didn't need sadness. She didn't need pity. She just wanted to be accepted, dammit--accepted by someone normal.

"What?" she whispered, feeling her own face get hot. It felt like a repeat of every awful, awkward presentation she'd stumbled and stammered through as the entire class picked it apart and slowly ate her alive just by watching her.

Jordan shook her head, looking down at her hands. "You're just--jesus, you're just so strong." She looked up again, eyes shining. "I really admire that. Anyone else in your position, they might not have made it this far with so much shit hanging over their head."

It wasn't often Tuesday was caught so much by surprise that all intelligible thought surpassed her. She blinked, and opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. She didn't end up needing to come up with a response, though, when her phone began to ring.

Remembering the last time that had happened, a part of her was tempted to not repeat the experience--she wanted to live in this moment, just a little longer. But when Tuesday glanced down, she saw AUNT MARY written across the lockscreen image of a sandy beach after dusk.

When she answered the call, she got no greeting; Mary jumped straight in. "You need to come home, now."

The anger in her voice shocked Tuesday enough she nearly dropped the phone. "What's going on?"

There was a small pause, then: "Your--friends--are here." Her voice twisted over the word in disgust.

Oh, fuck.

Tuesday shot up from the couch. Jordan rose with her, and, regarding her with unease, she said, "Was that your friend again?"

She put a similar twist on the word as Mary had. Not having time to contemplate that, Tuesday shook her head, snatching up her belongings and throwing on her coat. She quickly gave up on buttoning it, putting the first few in the wrong holes with violently shaking hands. "No, my aunt just needs me back."

"Well, let me give you a ride."

Tuesday looked up, biting her lip. It would be faster than walking, that was for sure. Sighing, she nodded in agreement and followed Jordan out to her car, all the while hoping she wouldn't see anything--weird. God, what a shitshow her life was turning out to be.

They arrived to Mary's house in a matter of minutes, but it was enough to have acclimated Tuesday to the warmth of Jordan's car, the scent of the silly pine air freshener dangling from the mirror, and how Jordan had resigned herself to driving one-handed--clutching Tuesday's with her free hand when she noticed it shaking. It had helped, remembering she wasn't alone, and now she didn't want to leave.

Then she saw a shadow pass behind the closed kitchen window curtain, and reality hit her again. "Thank you," she said quickly, pulling her hand free. Jordan barely had time to respond before she was bounding out of the car, but the other girl didn't pull out of the driveway until Tuesday had unlocked and opened the front door.

Taking one deep breath to steady herself, Tuesday reminded herself what Jordan had said--she was strong--and entered the house.