Page 12 of Love Legacy

Naomi

I wake up with a dull pounding in my head. Ugh, I’m never drinking again. When Alex and Maeve told me how crazy Kappa Theta Alpha parties got, I didn’t quite believe them. I went to the Homecoming party the sorority threw, but I had maybe one drink and left early without any issue.

Last night, however? Last night was a blur of shots and costumes.

I blame the hangover, but the details of last night were a little hazy.

I pull the pillow tight over my head, trying to drown out all my senses.

The warm, rich smell of coffee wafts through the air, luring me out of bed.

I throw on my bathrobe over my pajama set before heading down the hall to the kitchen.

Maeve is standing at the stove, already dressed for her morning run.

She’s making breakfast—eggs and bacon—from what I could see, and there was a steaming cup of hot coffee sitting on the breakfast bar.

I grab the cup, taking a cautious sip and letting out a small moan as the acidic beverage hits my tongue.

“Oh, that was for Alex. I’ve got a kettle of tea warming on the stove for you.”

“This morning, I need coffee.”

“Aye, aye, captain,” Maeve says, plating up some food for me and sliding it across the bar. Alex comes shuffling into the kitchen, and Maeve makes another cup of coffee, adding vanilla creamer before sliding it across the counter to Alex.

“You guys look awful,” she says, handing Alex a plate of food before grabbing a protein shake for herself out of the fridge.

I narrow my eyes at Maeve, glaring over the coffee mug. “Didn’t you go out last night too? How are you still upright? Let alone getting ready to go on a run.”

“My night was…a bit of a mess, to say the least. I didn’t end up drinking much or staying out very late.”

“Liar,” Alex interjects, “that’s a hickey on your neck. And a fresh one at that.” She points to the darkening red smudge along the column of Maeve’s neck, partially obscured by one of her French braids.

“I didn’t even notice that,” I mumble, noticing that there was at least a second one poking out from under the strap of her sports bra. Maeve blushes a deep red.

“Things got…interesting last night. But apparently, I’m not the only one,” she says, turning her attention toward me. “Ready to cross make out sesh off your college experience list?” She holds out a pen to me.

I bury my head in my arms, groaning. “Ugh, don’t remind me. Did Alex tell you?”

“Guilty.”

Maeve comes over to sit next to me. “Hey, what’s wrong?” she asks, sensing my internal conflict over the kiss.

“Everything! It’s all wrong. Sage is my friend, and I’m not a lesbian.”

“Well, you were the one that kissed her, not the other way around,” Alex points out.

“I know that. I don’t know why I did that.

I mean, I do. I hate pickles. But it wouldn’t have been that bad just to take the shot and get it over with.

I don’t know what got into me and compelled me to kiss her.

I blame the alcohol. I did drink a lot,” I ramble on, my thoughts spiraling out of control.

Maeve puts a hand on my arm to settle me. “Naomi, do you think that maybe, subconsciously, that you wanted to kiss Sage? I mean, you have been exploring things outside of your faith and reevaluating what it means to you. Maybe this is just one of those things?”

I shake my head, my stomach lurching. I bury my head in my arms again. For a moment, I had forgotten about my hangover, but it just came back with a vengeance. “Ugh, I’m never drinking this much again.”

Alex passes me a bottle of cold water, and I take a few large gulps. “I’m not gay. I think I would know if I was. I like men. Josiah and I dated for like five years,” I say, returning my focus to Maeve’s questioning.

“And notice how quickly you were willing to drop him after everything that went down at High Valley. I mean, you said it yourself, you guys only kissed a couple times in your entire relationship,” Alex points out, drinking her coffee.

“No, we only kissed a couple times because it was against our faith. We really weren’t even supposed to do that until we got married.”

“Sure, it could be that. Or maybe deep down, you didn’t really want to be with him.

Or any man,” Maeve suggests. “Look, I understand your disbelief, Naomi, but we’ve all seen you with Sage.

There’s more than just a friendship there.

At least on Sage’s side, for sure. She’s practically in love with you. ”

“Maeve’s right. I watched you two kiss last night. You can’t fake that kind of chemistry. I know it might be hard to accept, but I think deep down, you might have feelings for Sage. What that means for your sexuality, well, that’ll come in due time.”

I shift in my seat uncomfortably, switching back to drinking my coffee. “Enough about me. How was your night, Maeve? You haven’t told us how you ended up with that hickey.”

Maeve blushes, now her turn to hide her discomfort in her protein shake. “So you weren’t there, Naomi, but Alex, do you remember I told you about those guys I was…involved with on the last Kappa Costa Rica trip?”

“The football player and his best friend, right? Yeah, I remember them, what about it?”

“So that guy, Emory, that I’ve been seeing casually? He’s the best friend. Turns out they are also Pinebrook students.”

“Oh, so you and Emory were together last night?” I ask, finishing off my bottle of water.

“Not exactly…” Maeve says, turning a deep scarlet shade.

“Shut up! Oh my god, you hooked up with the football player last night!” Alex says excitedly.

“His name is Noah and he’s so fine! Tall, dark, handsome, and super-tatted.”

“How many?” I ask, thinking about Sage’s tattoos and how they cover a significant portion of her body.

“More than Sage. Like he’s almost completely covered from the neck down. And you guys, this man is huge. Like a hulk of a man. He can, and does, easily toss me around.”

Alex squeals. “So what does this mean? Are you going to keep seeing Noah? What about Emory?”

Maeve shrugs. “I honestly don’t know where this is going. I really like them both, but obviously, I can’t date two men at the same time. Right? I mean, that only happens in romance novels. That’s not something that people do in real life.”

“Well, some people are polyamorous. You can be with multiple people if you want to. Assuming they all consent to the dynamic, of course. I wouldn’t judge you if you wanted to be with both Noah and Emory, I mean, you can’t control who you fall for,” Alex says, looking at both of us.

Maeve sighs. “Originally, we were going to talk about it last night. Or maybe fool around and then talk. But then something happened…” she says, trailing off. “You guys can’t tell Sage what I’m about to tell you. Hell, I don’t even know if I’m right about what I saw.”

“Promise.”

“Maeve, you’re making me nervous. What happened? What does it have to do with Sage?”

She takes a deep breath. “I think Aaron tried to rape Theia last night. I can’t be certain of it, but they disappeared upstairs together at the Lambda party we were at, and then next thing I know, I see her come running down the stairs, her clothes stretched and torn, and Aaron’s trying to follow her with a bloody nose.

He could barely stand upright, otherwise he probably would’ve caught up to her. ”

Alex gasps. “Oh my god, Theia, is she okay?”

“I’m not sure. I was with Noah when we saw them, and when I finally could follow after Theia, she was gone.

Aaron never left the house though, so I know he didn’t catch up with her.

I texted her this morning, but she’s probably still asleep.

I was going to drop by her apartment today and check in on her. ”

I chew my bottom lip, thinking back to the fight I overheard between Theia and Aaron shortly after I joined Kappa Theta Alpha.

Maybe if I had spoken up earlier, this wouldn’t have happened.

“I overheard a fight between Theia and Aaron about a month ago at the house. It was really loud and got really heated. I think he hit her,” I say softly, feeling guilty.

“And you didn’t say anything?” Alex asks.

“Theia asked me not to! I had just joined the sorority and wasn’t really close with anyone yet. I didn’t know what else to do. But in hindsight, though, I wish I had told someone.”

Maeve sighs. “So Aaron might have been abusing Theia for a while. Do you remember what they were fighting about?”

“Vaguely? From what I remember, I think they were fighting about Theia being in the PhD program. She wanted to further her career, and he wanted her to drop it and move back home so they could settle down. He said there was no point in her participating in the program since she was going to be a stay-at-home mom anyway.”

Maeve drums her fingers on the counter, thinking for a moment. “We have to tell Sage what’s been going on with Theia. I mean, this is a pattern of abusive behavior, and Aaron’s been escalating, if I’m right about what happened last night.”

Alex bites her lip. “Maybe talk to Theia first. Confirm your suspicions, then talk to Sage. Or maybe convince Theia to do it herself. Someone should tell her though.”

Maeve nods. “I wonder if Sage has her own suspicions. If I remember correctly, I think Aaron’s the reason Theia left the drag show early. Sage went after her that night.”

“But if she doesn’t know about the other instances, Theia might have passed it off as a one-off,” I say.

Maeve checks her watch. “It’s noon. I should probably head over to her place now,” she says, packing a Tupperware container full of leftover scrambled eggs and sausage and a travel mug of coffee into her purse. She grabs her keys on her way out the door. “I’ll keep you guys updated.”

Alex and I start cleaning up the kitchen, making another pot of coffee, when my phone starts ringing. I check the caller ID: Sage.

“Sage is calling me! What do I do?”

“What do you mean what do you do? Answer it, Naomi!”

“I can’t! I’m not ready to speak to her yet.”

“Nay, you can’t avoid her indefinitely. Sage is your sorority president. Don’t you have a chapter meeting this week? You’re going to have to see her at some point.”

“And I will wait until then to talk to her,” I say, putting my phone down and letting it go to voicemail. My phone pinged, indicating a text came through.

Sage

Naomi, pick up your phone.

We need to talk about last night.

I know you’re ignoring my call.

Maeve says you were home and wide awake when she left the apartment. Pick up the phone please.

My phone rings again, Woman by Doja Cat flooding the kitchen as I stand firm, ignoring Sage’s second call.

Alex gestures to my phone, and I shake my head, crossing my arms. Was I being stubborn?

Absolutely, but I just wasn’t ready to talk to her yet.

Not until I’ve sorted out my own feelings surrounding the whole situation.

The ringtone cuts off, and more pings come through my phone, likely from Sage. After a few minutes, I finally check the device.

Sage

Please pick up Naomi.

I’m not mad at you if that’s what you’re thinking.

I just want to talk to you.

Fine. If you won’t answer my calls, and you won’t respond to my texts, I’m coming over.

That last text was sent six minutes ago.

“Dang it, she’s on her way over!” I say, running to the bathroom.

Alex chuckles. “I told you, you should’ve just picked up the phone.”

I check myself in the mirror, trying to figure out how I could clean up the trainwreck that was staring back at me in under five minutes.

I throw my hair up in a messy bun, not even bothering to try and work through the knots in my hair.

I fell asleep without my bonnet, and even with my silk pillowcase, my rough sleeping turned my curls into a nest.

I quickly brush my teeth, swishing a little mouthwash. I also quickly wash my face, cleaning up any eye crusties or traces of drool.

Okay, I might not look great, but at least now I don’t look like I just woke up from a twelve-hour nap.

I head back into the kitchen to see Sage sitting at the breakfast bar.

How does she look this good all the time?

She was wearing olive green skinny cargo pants, a white V-neck T-shirt, a blue denim vest covered in patches, and black high-top Converse.

Her hair is in its naturally wavy state.

She was deep in conversation with Alex about something somewhat serious. Alex gestures in my direction, letting Sage know that I’d returned. She turns in her stool to look at me, giving me a sad smile. “Hey, Naomi. You’re a hard woman to get a hold of.”

I shrug, pulling my robe tighter around me. “Really? I think I might have left my phone at the house. I haven’t seen it all morning.”

She raises an eyebrow with that signature smirk, looking down toward my waist. I follow her gaze and see it—my phone sticking out of my robe pocket. I smack my forehead gently. Stupid. I don’t know why I thought that excuse was going to work. “What do you want, Sage?” I say, sounding annoyed.

Sage winces at my tone. “Naomi…” she pleads. “I just want to talk to you. One on one. Face to face. In private…” she says, glancing over at Alex.

Alex holds her hands up in surrender. “You don’t have to tell me twice. Good luck, Naomi. I’ll be in my room. With the TV on. And the volume turned up loud,” she says, heading out of the room.

I turn my attention back to Sage, shifting my weight from leg to leg, not wanting to say the first word.

Sage sighs, standing up and walking toward me. Standing toe-to-toe she reaches out to hug me, but I take a step back, wanting to keep distance between us. “You wanted to talk, so talk,” I insist, crossing my arms over my chest, growing impatient and uncomfortable.

Sage bites her lip. “So about last night…”