Page 67 of Pages of My Heart

Alexis

Alexis stands with her mom among the huge crowd outside the Supreme Court with a pride flag draped around her shoulders.

Her mom wears a T-shirt that reads “Proud Mom” and that is adorned with an over-the-top glitter rainbow.

There is excitement bubbling around them, a sort of nervous energy that seems to connect each and every soul via some invisible thread.

It’s undoubtedly the most exhilarating moment of Alexis’s life.

She’s about to become a part of history, as cliché as that sounds.

Of course, there are a bunch of right-wing religious homophobes here too, chanting their usual bullshit, but she refuses to let their hate spoil her mood.

The verdict for Obergefell v. Hodges will be handed down at any moment.

“You all right, honey?”

Alexis blinks back the tears, turning to look at her mom’s concerned face. “Yeah. I was just thinking about the letters again. About Charlie and Tommy and how much they had to go through. I wish they could be here to see this. I wish I’d had the chance to know them.”

“They would be so proud of you, Lex.”

Alexis huffs. “But what have I done? It’s me that’s proud. It’s because of people like them that I got to come out at fifteen.”

Katie places an arm around Alexis’s shoulders.

“True. But that took courage. There’s still plenty of homophobia and discrimination out there,” she says, with a pointed look toward the crowd of angry protestors.

“And you’ve made changes at your school, and you always stand up for yourself and your community.

And you’re only sixteen years old. They would be proud of you, and I’m proud too. ”

The crowd starts to hush, everyone around them halting their conversations. They wait, unsure of what’s happening, and then the crowd begins to erupt into cheers.

“Oh my god, oh my god!” Alexis starts jumping up and down, then hugs her mom, tears wetting her cheeks. She can get married one day.

“I’m so happy for you, Lex. For everyone.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

Alexis scans the surrounding crowd, eyes coming to rest on another young girl about her age who’s standing nearby with a group of friends. They’ve been exchanging shy glances for the last hour or so. Now, Alexis smiles brightly and coyly flicks back her hair as she strides toward her.

“It’s amazing, isn’t it?” she says, a little breathless. “I almost can’t believe it.”

The girl steps closer too. “I know, it’s incredible. I’m Tiana, by the way. But you can call me Tia.”