Page 9 of Unsupervised
A grin grows on my face as I hurriedly pull on my leggings and a t-shirt. I’m in college, I have a new job and new friends. More importantly, I’m not being controlled by a man or my parents. A few months ago, all that would’ve seemed impossible to attain. Things are good.
Serena scoots over, giving me room to join her and Zara on the couch while Remee occupies the recliner. They have the first episode of our show loaded and ready to go, and Remee hands me the joint.
It’s been a while since I smoked. The Supercenter drug tested all employees, and once I was fired, I knew the next place was likely to as well. Luckily, the music store doesn’t. Something tells me the owners would be the first to fail it.
After we get high, we all relax and watch the show. At the end of the first episode, Zara glances at us. “Ice cream.”
“Oh hell, how did I forget?” Serena exclaims, and they head into the kitchen.
The show stays paused as we all sit around the living room, devouring our pints of ice cream. After hesitating too many times to count, I finally ask, “So, the party tomorrow night. What kind of guys are coming?”
“Just some guys from the college. You’ve probably seen them around. Marty, Owen, and Graham just came back after summer break.”
“They have an apartment this year, instead of living in the dorms,” Remee points out.
Zara rolls her eyes. “That will be the party spot this year, then.”
Remee stretches out her legs, leaning back on the arm of the couch. “The guys are cool. They’re fun to hang out with even though—”
“They’re idiots?” Zara snorts.
Serena laughs, licking the ice cream from her spoon. “All guys are idiots. The young ones, anyway. The older guys have their shit together.”
“You’ll like them,” Remee assures me. “And they’re bringing some friends.”
Serena studies me quietly for a moment, until I look away from her scrutiny. “Are you trying to meet someone, Kelly?”
“I’m not…I don’t know much about dating, but I’d like to try. You know, to find a guy I like.”
A smile bursts across Serena’s face. “I know lots of guys I could set you up with! The only reason I didn’t offer before was because I know you just broke off an engagement and I figured you weren’t ready.” She waves her hand. “These two never let me set them up. I’m so excited. Please say yes.”
“Serena! Don’t push her,” Zara scolds before turning to me. “Are you sure you’re ready to date again? I’m not judging. It’s just not always a great idea to rush into it after a heartbreak. It can lead to some bad decisions.”
“Getting laid is never a bad decision,” Serena says. “Don’t get in her head.”
I’m quiet as they go back and forth, arguing over whether an appropriate amount of time has passed for me to date, until Remee interrupts them.
“Maybe if you two shut up, we can find out what Kelly wants.”
All eyes are on me.
“Um…I don’t know exactly. I don’t have a lot of…experience with dating.” Zara listens as I regard her. “But I’m not heartbroken. I never was. The engagement was more of an arranged thing. Something my parents wanted. I never loved him. It was just expected of me.”
“Wow,” Zara says. “That’s awful. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. It’s over and I’m relieved.”
“And now you want to meet some guys,” Serena adds with a nod.
Remee grins at me. “We can definitely help with that. It depends on what you’re looking for, though.”
“Looking for?”
“Are you dating to find love or a husband or just mess around?” she clarifies.
“Oh.” I stare into the pint of ice cream, running my spoon around the bottom as I answer. “Well, I’d like to get my vagina licked.”
When I look up, they’re wearing identical smiles like I said something funny. Or was it ridiculous?