59 #Happy

 

July 20, 2017
Thursday

[1:07 PM]DAVID: JBJ says you drink gin.  Gin??  What happened to Muff Dives?

[1:07 PM]TEDDI: I don't drink ONLY gin.

[1:09 PM]DAVID: Okay, good.  Because I'm crafting a new drink recipe in your honor.  It's called a Dancing Gypsy.

[1:09 PM]TEDDI: That sounds... fun.

[1:11 PM]DAVID: Trust me, you’re gonna love it! 

[1:12 PM]TEDDI: As long as it's served in a large enough pitcher, I'll be delighted.

[1:14 PM]DAVID: Bottomless Gypsies, coming up!  Not sure how your old man is gonna feel about that, though. 

 

 

[1:30 PM]TEDDI: How do I get David to stop talking about Saturday? 

[1:32 PM]JON: I find "shut the fuck up" works pretty well.

[1:33 PM]TEDDI:  Jon, I'm being serious!  It's sweet that he seems excited about it, but the hype isn't helping.

[1:35 PM]JON: I was being serious too, but okay.  I'll tell him to back off.

[1:36 PM]TEDDI:  Thank you.  Do it nicely!

 

 

[1:40 PM]JON: Back the fuck off, Lema.

[1:41 PM]DAVE: Pardon moi?

[1:43 PM]JON: Back off of Teddi.  You're already making her nervous about Saturday, so calm the fuck down.

[1:45 PM]DAVE:  Shit.  Okay.  I'll try.

 

 

looking43bears: Tell me about Teddi. 

mistressmoon: What about her?

looking43bears: Why doesn't she like being around people?

mistressmoon:  She's an empath.

looking43bears:  A what?

mistressmoon:  Empath.  She senses the feelings of those around her and internalizes them.  My grandmother was the same way.

looking43bears:  You mean she knows what I'm thinking?

mistressmoon:  No, she just picks up your energy.  When there are a lot of people around, it becomes overwhelming. 

looking43bears: And she drinks to numb it

mistressmoon: Some.  She’s never told me as much, but I also think it’s the glass as much as the alcohol.  She uses it as a focal point to distract her from the clamor. 

looking43bears: So less people and she's okay?

mistressmoon: Usually.  My sister Cat makes her nuts being so high strung.  Even one-on-one is hard for her with Cat

looking43bears:  Sounds like I need to smoke a joint to hang out with her.

mistressmoon:  Wouldn't hurt.  😉

 

 

July 21, 2017
Friday 

[4:37 PM]TEDDI: What time are we going to David's tomorrow?

[4:40 PM]JON: I'll pick you up about two.  We're going to hang by the pool.  You like to swim?

[4:41 PM]TEDDI: I love it.  Looking like a drowned rat in front of others isn't my favorite, however.

[4:43 PM]JON: I've seen you wet.  Rat isn't what comes to mind.  Siren or mermaid maybe.

[4:45 PM]TEDDI: *blushes*  Are you being a pill again?

[4:47 PM]JON: Little pill.  Like baby aspirin. 

[4:49 PM]TEDDI:  Well, stop it.

[4:50 PM]JON: Okay. #nopillzone… You're beautiful wet or dry, and nobody's going to judge you for relaxing and having fun.  Hand to God.

[4:52 PM]TEDDI:  Thank you.

[4:57 PM]JON: Ever have sex in a pool? 

[4:58 PM]TEDDI:  JON!

[4:58 PM]JON:  What??  I was just asking.

 

 

July 22, 2017
Saturday

[9:45 AM]TORI: Hey.  I'm coming into Red Bank for a hair appointment and to shop.  Want me to pick up lunch at Patrizia's and bring it by about 1:00?

[9:47 AM]TEDDI:  That sounds nice, but today's not a good day. 

[9:47 AM]TORI: Everything okay?

[9:49 AM]TEDDI: Yes, of course.  I just have a date.

[9:51 AM]TORI:  I’m sorry, we must have a bad connection.  My screen says you have a DATE.

[9:51 AM]TEDDI: Seems like fake news, doesn’t it?  Lol.

[9:53 AM]TORI:  YES!  With who?  If it's that asshat Pierce, I'm going to bring a baseball bat and break his kneecaps.

[9:54 AM]TEDDI: Put away your inner Mafia princess.  Even if it was Pierce, you wouldn’t do that. 

[9:54 AM]TORI: I might!  If not Pierce then who?  Oh God.  Is it JBJ?  Tell me it’s him.  Please!

[9:56 AM]TEDDI: I may end up regretting this, but… Jon's taking me to David’s for the afternoon.

[9:59 AM]TEDDI: No reaction?  I’m a bit disappointed.

[10:04 AM]TEDDI: Tori? 

[10:10 AM]TEDDI: Hello???

[10:15 AM]TORI: Open the damn gate!

 

 

“Not only do you have a date, you’re leaving the house for it?” Tori demanded, barging in without a formal greeting.  “How did this happen?”

 

“Hello, Victoria.  It’s lovely to see you, too, although this is a bit unexpected.”

 

“Oh, don’t give me that unexpected bullshit,” her cousin snorted, critically scanning Teddi’s khaki capris and vanilla blouse.  “And you better not be wearing that.”

 

She closed the door with a laugh. “He won’t be here for hours, so I have plenty of time to change.  What are you doing here?  What time is your hair appointment?”

 

“Forty-five minutes, which gives me plenty of time to assess your closet.  You cannot hang with rock stars dressed like a kindergarten teacher for the color blind.”

 

Teddi reached for her necklace, glad that she’d had the foresight to put it on when getting dressed.  She’d known it was going to be a challenging day even before a whirling dervish blew into the house on a mission.  Thumbing the filigree, she willed the mild anxiety away and trailed after the woman who was determinedly scaling the stairs.

 

Had she locked the boudoir when she put fresh sheets on this morning?  Yes.  She was certain of it. 

 

“There’s no need to be insulting, Victoria.”

 

“It’s not an insult if it’s true.  Please tell me you own something in a color other than beige,” Tori begged, sailing past the door whose knob Teddi surreptitiously checked before joining her in the master closet.

 

“I believe you recently informed me that black isn’t a color.  If you’re not counting that or white, then no.  I don’t own something in another color.”

 

“Not even one cute, flowery summer dress?”  There was no point in giving an answer.  Since Tori was already tearing through the hangers, she would discover for herself in about thirty seconds.  “You really don’t have a fucking color in here.  How is possible to avoid all color?”

 

Teddi leaned a shoulder against the doorway, crossing one arm over her waist while dragging the aromatherapy pendant absently back and forth on its chain.  “If he had an issue with my fashion sense, he probably wouldn’t have invited me out.  Did you ever think about that?”

 

“Since this closet is a woeful disappointment, give me a spark of life by telling me how this happened.  Did he call you up out of the blue and say, ‘If I can’t have Tori, I’ll take the next best thing’?”

 

“How did you guess?”  Teddi drawled.

 

“Ha!  If only.”  Utterly disgusted by the clothing options, she nudged Teddi out of the way and went to the chair whose last occupant was Jon on the night everyone was here.  Unaware of its celebrity distinction, Tori flopped down and crossed her legs to demand, “No, seriously.  Set the scene.  Tell me what happened to score a date with His Royal Hotness.”

 

We pretended he took my virginity a second time, and during the romantic dinner that followed, he invited me to his friend’s house.

 

The truth definitely wasn’t going to suffice.  What had she been thinking in typing the word ‘date’ in that text message? 

 

She hadn’t been thinking.  Nerves and excitement had rendered her brain dead and put her fingers on autopilot.  The truth had been revealed in a split second of insanity, and there was no take back when it came to text messaging.  That left her on the receiving end of her cousin’s shrewd gaze.

 

There were three choices here – the truth, a lie, or a creative blend of both.  Lying wasn’t her favorite thing, but she wasn’t particularly ready to share the whole truth yet either, so Teddi went with option number three.

 

“The invitation stemmed from David, who has been messaging me off and on since the night Pierce showed up.  He’s bothered by my social anxiety and is trying to help by giving me an outing in a ‘controlled environment’.  Jon was elected to coax me into it.” 

 

“Mm-hmm.”  From the arms that folded over her chest, Tori wasn’t buying the creative approach.  That was confirmed when she went on to sigh, “Look.  I get that you’re all about privacy and keeping your life as your own.  We all know why, but for God’s sake, Teddi.  I love you like a sister.  Unconditionally.  Is it too much to ask for a peek behind the iron curtain once in a while?  I just want to know you’re happy and maybe get the chance to be happy with you.” 

 

The wounded expression had Teddi biting her lip with guilt.  “Iron curtain” was a bit harsh, wasn’t it?  She shared things sometimes.  Come to think of it, so did Tori.

 

“You told him about my stutter.”

 

“So?  It made you a real person instead of a Stepford widow.  Grandmother was the only one who appreciated perfection.  Most of us prefer a little humanity, and I guarantee you that man is nowhere near perfect.  I just leveled the playing field for him.”

 

“Stepford widow?”

 

With puckered lips, Tori gestured to the perfectly made bed, the shiny floors, the precise arrangement of items on the dresser.  “Frankly, I was relieved to find out you had a gigolo, even if I don’t like him now.  At least sex is messy and unregimented.  Oh God.  Please tell me your sex is messy and unregimented.  If you’re a neat freak in bed, too…”

 

Teddi’s resolve splintered on a laugh.  Half of her wanted to see what would happen if someone besides her lovers knew the truth about her.  The other half was still hesitant, but what would it hurt to share a little of herself?

 

“Drop the ‘neat’,” she suggested.  “Then you’ll be closer.”

 

“You’re a freak in bed?” Tori sat up straight with keen interest.  “Oh, hell yes!  If I can’t sleep with him, at least I can be happy knowing he’s in good freakshow hands.  I just wish dude had a clue what he’s got to look forward to.”

 

Thinking of everything they’d done in the room next door, Teddi lifted her eyebrows with a pointed, “Oh, he knows.”    

 

“Whaat?  You’re telling me you already slept with him?!”

 

She was almost as surprised about the revelation as her cousin but didn’t back down from it.  In fact…. 

 

“It’s not just sex.  He’s used the word girlfriend a few times.” 

 

“Oh.  My.  God.”  Tori’s mouth pulled down at the corners, and there may have been a sheen in her eyes when she popped up for a fierce hug.  “I’m so fricking happy for you.  Jealous as hell, but happy.”

 

Rather than cringing at the close contact, Teddi coached herself to relax into it.  The nearness felt awkward but not horribly uncomfortable, and by focusing on the reason behind it, she was able to return the embrace.  Perhaps not enthusiastically, but at least with genuine affection. 

 

It felt right.  It felt normal and gave her a dollop of hope for the afternoon ahead.  Maybe hanging out with Jon and his friends would feel normal.  She wanted it to.  Teddi despised the thought of him looking at her and seeing nothing but awkward anxiety.  What she hoped to inspire in those observant blue eyes was the understanding that….

 

“I’m happy, too.”