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Ellie did know one way to get Sierra to hang out with her, which she knew Sierra wouldn’t be able to resist. She pulled up her and Sierra’s text conversation (which had ended after Ellie canceled their dinner plans) and sent her a quick text.

I know it’s going to be hard to actually do anything, but do you want to try to get some sort of workout in with me this morning?

It was no surprise when Sierra’s text came back almost immediately.That’s a good idea. What did you have in mind?

Ellie couldn’t stop the smile from parting her lips.I have some free weights and a treadmill down in thebasement. I’m sure we could come up with a circuit or something.

Cool. Want to meet downstairs in 15 minutes?

Works for me!

When a text came through a few minutes later, Ellie figured it was Sierra texting again. She was surprised when she saw Juniper’s name pop up on the screen. She hadn’t thought about her best friend or what she would think about Sierra staying at Ellie’s house.

Hey! How’s it going? Pretty big snowstorm, huh? I hear you are getting it even worse in Jersey. Most of our teammates were smart enough to drive home after the meet. I didn’t, so now I’m stranded at school.

You’re not the only one who is stranded,Ellie thought to herself. She considered not telling Juniper, but she felt bad lying to her. She also felt guilty keeping Sierra a secret. If she was trying to prove to Sierra that she had gotten the wrong impression of her, hiding the fact that she was at her house wasn’t the way to do it.

Instead of trying to explain the situation over a text message, Ellie decided to call Juniper instead.

“Oh god, are you dying? Were you kidnapped?” Juniper asked after picking up after a few rings. “Why the fuck are you calling me?”

“I’m fine. Calm down. I just thought this was something I should tell you over the phone.”

“Oh my god, you really are dying.”

Ellie laughed at her best friend, but the sick feeling in her gut remained. “I’m not dying, but you might want to kill me after you hear what I’m about to say.”

“Juicy. What’s up?” Juniper sounded much more excited than she should for what Ellie was about to reveal.

Instead of wasting any more time, Ellie blurted out the whole story about her mom getting called into work and how it ended up being Sierra’s sister who was hurt. She purposely let out the part about how she begged her moms to let them stay and told Juniper that her family decided to host them so they didn’t have to get a hotel.

“Your moms arewaytoo nice,” Juniper said. “I can’t believe they are actually letting someone who hates gay people stay at your house. I’m surprised Sierra’s family even agreed. Is she the only one who’s homophobic?”

“That’s the thing. Sierra also has two moms.” Ellie didn’t think that was a big secret Sierra was keeping, so she figured it was okay to share that information with Juniper.

“Does she hate them?” Juniper asked, as if that was the only logical explanation.

Ellie shook her head even though Juniper couldn’t see her. “I don’t think she’s actually homophobic.”There’s a chance she might even be gay.

“That doesn’t make any sense. Why would she have been so weird about you crushing on her friend if she didn’t have a problem with it?”

“I…” The answer hit Ellie like a ton of bricks. If Sierrawasgay, maybe she had a crush on her straight friend, and that’s why she was so defensive over her. That’s why it hurt her so badly when Ellie joked about getting with her.Shit.“I’m not sure.” It wasn’t a lie since the conclusion Ellie had come to was purely speculation. “But I think we should give her a chance.”

Juniper sighed. “Just like your moms. Always looking for the best in people.” She sighed again. “Fine. I’ll make you a deal. If you still think she’s okay after being stuck in a house with her, I’ll give her a chance. And by that, I mean I won’t be a bitch unless it’s warranted. I’m not going to be her best friend.”

Relief swept through Ellie’s body. “I wouldn’t ask you to. You already have one of those.”

“Exactly. Be careful. Text 9-1-1 if you need me to come save you.”

“All right. Talk to you later, June.”

“Textme later. No more of this calling bullshit.”

“You got it. Text you later.” Ellie chuckled as she hung up the phone. She was pleasantly surprised about how well that conversation had gone, and now had a new pep to her step.

She ran down the two sets of stairs into the basement and found Sierra sitting on a stool by the bar. “Sorry it took me so long. I was talking to Juniper.”

“No problem.” The way Sierra said the words through gritted teeth with a deep scowl on her face told Ellie that she didn’t actually mean it.