"I need a girlfriend," Angel spoke softly as she looked over at Kimber. 

Kimber sat on the edge of her bed with her feet kicked up blowing bubbles with her gum. The bubble blew up before popping and fusing itself to Kimber's face. 

Kimber moved her gaze to Angel, "The last few times you tried to get one you asked out straight girls. Maybe you should just wait to be hit on?"

Angel frowned, she couldn't help but feel like ever since she had come out Kimber, her BFF since preschool, had only acted like she approved. Kimber always seemed indifferent when she mentioned girls and would try to steer her attention back to boys. 

"It's a lot harder to guess who's gay than it seems."

"Aren't like– all gay people supposed to have built-in gaydar?" Kimber flipped the page of her magazine. 

"I guess I missed out." 

"Apparently..." Kimber mumbled under her breath. 

—

Every week Angel had set her eyes on a new girl. Girl one, Mandy Smith: blonde hair that looked like it belonged to an angel, dark brown eyes, an overall cheery girl who was good at sports. 

Mandy stood outside the girl's locker room stretching. Angel began her breathwork prepping to talk to Mandy. 'She likes sports...just talk about sports!' 

Angel held her textbooks close to her chest. Then pushed the air from her lungs up and out making her lightheaded. The gym was bright and full of sweaty boys who had just finished running laps causing the room to smell of body odor. 

Mandy was leaning over touching her toes but popped back up once she saw Angel. 

"Hi, Angel! Didn't school end thirty minutes ago?" 

Right! RIGHT. Angel wanted to slam her head into a wall. Angel wasn't in sports and so she had stayed here just to talk to Mandy. She must have looked like a creeper to everyone else.

"O- well- I kinda got lost..."

"The school isn't that big," Mandy said with a watchful eye as she continued stretching. 

"Ok, well, the truth is... I wanted to ask you out. You seem cool. I like cool. Like, really cool. Cool like a cucumber! Yah, who doesn't like cucumbers?" Before Angel could ramble on, Mandy spoke over her.

"I'm flattered but-" Mandy scratched the back of her head, "I like men." 

"Oh! Yeah- I actually like them too! Well– and women... women are neat. You're neat... but I understand... Sorry!"

Angel had gone home after that and cried. She had always viewed herself as a calm and collected individual, but it had always been so much easier having men come to her. They swarmed her like bees to a flower her freshman year, but now she was a senior, and she had rejected all of them. Hitting on people, particularly women, felt so weird to her. It almost felt as if she was invading a private space even though she knew she wasn't. 

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Girl two, Opal Gollard: dark curly hair, dark skin, and always drastic makeup. 

Angel had observed that even though Opal was a senior her mom still picked her up. She had overheard Opal's friends making fun of her about it and when she looked over, she saw Opal. Opal caught her eye as if there was a stage light pointed over her. Opal and her friends were, at least to Angel, the mysterious outcasts.  They had multi-colored hair, piercings, and tattoos, and they mostly wore black and neon-colored clothes. 

Angel's own mom was always particular about how Angel presented herself. She had to be the perfect girl. Angel's mother had only ever said, "Ok," when Angel had come out. She knew she should have been thankful that her mother had accepted her. At first, she wasn't even sure if her mother had heard her correctly. She was ready for her mom to try to convince her she was just confused, but instead it was just silence. Angel knew that her mother thought it was a phase but decided it was best to not say anything. Angel could read her mom like a book. 

Angel walked up to where Opal stood waiting for her mom. The day was rather cold, and the chilliness hung to her body. Most times she would have hated the cold but that day she loved it; the cold battled her overly warm, nervous mind. 

"Opal," Angel waved at her before walking closer. Every step made her feel nearer to her impending death. 

"Oh, hi Angel." Opal smiled. She had purple braces and an eyebrow piercing that completed her look. 

Angle rubbed her hands together blowing into them to let the heat warm herself. Her heart pounded in her chest. "I have something to ask..." Opal's smile turned into a confused look. 

With an anxious grin, she continued, "I was wondering if  you'd go on a date with me?" 

Opal winced, "I don't like girls... sorry." 

Angel threw up her hands, "No, no, you're fine!"

Girl three, Anna Smith: Brown hair, blue eyes, freckles. 

Anna Smith was known as a ditz. It wasn't Angel's proudest moment, but she was desperate– did she actually think Anna was cute? Well, she thought she was 'ok'. It wasn't her fault that she just wanted a girlfriend. Someone to hold hands with, hug, to feel a different kind of feeling than you do for a friend– to have a new kind of love. In her head, she was sure that after they got to know each other she could come to be attracted to her. 

Anna Smith was standing in the hall corridor with two of her friends. Her mouth was wide open, and Angel couldn't help but compare her face to a donkeys. On try three she at least felt calm. More emotionally controlled. She wouldn't be too hurt if Anna turned her down either. 

"Hey, Anna, can I ask you something real quick?" 

Anna did what some might consider a cute, but Angel just found over the top, spin to face her. 

"Whacha' need?" 

"Ok, well, you see. I–" Anna gave her a blank expression.

"Let me just restart– I wanted to ask you out. Soo, will you go on a date with me?" 

Anna gasped, "I didn't know you were gay!" 

Angel rolled her eyes, "Yup..." 

"You know, you don't seem gay. I love gays! I have so many gay friends but no lesbian ones–"

"I wonder why..." Angel frowned. 

"I love gay porn, too! But not the girl kind–" Angel stopped listening to her. She felt mortified as everyone in the halls stopped to eavesdrop. 'Can this girl not read the room?'

—

"So, who will you ask out this time? Maybe you'll be careful this time after the Anna accident? Or do you like playing with fire?"

"Oh, fuck off!" Angel shoved her foot down and kicked Kimber. Kimber kicked her back. 

"Seriously though, I like watching the shit shows that come out of this."

"10/10 will recommend Kimber to other friends. It's been a great experience. She's just so encouraging." 

"C'mon. Who's next?" 

Angel laid her head into her sheets and sighed. "I don't know yet. I haven't met 'HER' yet."

"You thought Anna was the 'HER'?" Kimber snickered.

"That was different. I'm going to wait this time. I think I'll know when I see her. Like an internal instinct." 

"Are you a dog now?" Kimber said, laying up to look Angel in the eyes. 

"I know you said that you're only into girls now... but what about Owen? He kinda looks like a girl at a certain angle." 

Angel got up from the bed and smacked Kimber. It was hard and satisfying, but she wasn't done yet. No, she shaped her hand into a fist and swung several times until red poured from every hole in Kimbers face. The blood painted her pink sheets. It ran and ran but Angel could only smile at her work.

At least she imagined she did that. Instead, she gritted her face into a smile and said, "No thanks."