Page 131 of Pride High 2: Orange

“I share a room with my brother,” Silvia said dryly. “The smell can’t be any worse than that.”

They reconvened on the couch and chatted about what they’d been doing recently. As pleasant as that was, Silvia seemed preoccupied. Keisha could guess why, so she asked, “Are you ready to talk about it yet?”

“Yes!” Silvia seemed relieved. “I didn’t want to be rude. I know there’s more to you than…”

“Being a lesbian?” Keisha finished for her.

“Is that how you think of yourself?”

Keisha nodded. “It’s who I am. I’ve never had any doubt. Even when I was little. I thought boys were fun to play with, but girls… They caught my eye, even back then. Mindy was one of them.”

“No!” Silvia covered her mouth before dropping her hand. “Have you told her? Because I wouldloveto tease her about that.”

“So would I,” Keisha said with a grin. “And no. I haven’t told her that I’m gay. Or anyone else at school. Not that I don’t trust her, but these things get around. People are already talking about Cameron and Anthony.”

“Really?”

“For better or worse. I’m keenly interested in seeing how that goes, because I don’t like being in the closet.”

Silvia’s brown eyes were locked on to hers. She was interested. In her story if not more. “Do your parents know?”

Keisha nodded. “They think it’s a phase. Not in the horrible ‘we don’t accept you or your truth’ sort of way. They said all the right things and were very supportive, but I can tell they’re not sure how seriously to take it. Adults always act like we can’t possibly know who we really are. Probably because it makes them feel better about not understanding us. Or themselves. Anyway, that will all change when I finally bring a girl home.”

“Oh.” Silvia pressed her lips together momentarily. “Have you ever…”

“Eaten a koala while standing on my head? No. But I have been on a few dates. Nobody from our school. I don’t know of any other lesbians who go there.” She hoped that had changed, but the jury was still out. “So I got desperate and turned to classified ads.”

“That’s brave.” Silvia leaned forward. “What happened?”

“I met some nice women. And almost ended up in a relationship, but it didn’t feel right, because she was twenty-six and thought I had graduated high school already.” How exciting it had been to kiss another woman, and to take things as far as she had dared. But… “I’d rather find someone my own age. Especially if they don’t live too far away. Oh, did I mention that I have a thing for Latinas? But only if they’re lesbian. I already have a straight girl I can lust over. Or two, depending on who you’re attracted to.”

Silvia sounded frustrated. “I wish there was a test I could take.”

Keisha cocked her head. “What’s there to figure out? I know that sounds flippant, but for me, there was never any mystery. The only revelation was finding the right word for what I felt. When you hit puberty, you must have started noticingsomeone.”

“I’ve never understood why Mindy is so obsessed with boys,” Silvia said.

“Which is a big hint, but it’s only the absence of interest.”

“I had other things on my mind, I guess.”

“Like what?”

Silvia shook her head instead of answering the question. “Anthony says it depends on who you fall in love with, because you can be attracted to anyone under the right circumstances.”

“Physical attraction is important,” Keisha countered. “That’s entry-level homosexuality. If you heard that your next-door neighbor loved his wife but liked blowing guys at the truck stop, what would you assume?”

“That he’s a closet case,” Silvia answered.

“And thus gay. Or at least bi. What if Mindy and I decided to live together for the rest of our lives? We do love each other. But if we never had sex, would that make us lesbians? Not necessarily.”

Silvia chewed her bottom lip before groaning. “So which is it? The physical or the emotional?"

“Maybe it’s both,” Keisha replied. “One or the other isn’t enough to earn you the title.”

“Which is annoying, because I can’t exactly try it on for size.”

“Sure you can. You have a boyfriend, don’t you?”