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Sitting on the fence
By Kristina K

 

The talk of the R word was absolutely forbidden. The one who'd bring it up faced some pretty heavy repercussions. Not to mention a cooling off period – a detoxification during which all thoughts of that particular word would have to be erased from one's vocabulary and avowed to be used only and exclusively when other people were involved. Even then, there were certain rules to abide by. For example, no meaningful looks after the word were spoken. No fleeting glances to see if the other one would react and what that reaction would be. No sighing, no eye rolling, no tsking and certainly no dreamy fantasies allowed.

That was the deal and they shook their hands on it.

The S word, on the other hand, was very much encouraged. Any time, day or night, if it crossed one of their minds, they could call, giggle a little and tease a lot, and the S word would happen. They both said it, they both thought about it and neither of them seemed to get enough of it. The derivation of the S word, the one beginning with the letter F, seemed to be Jill's favorite out of the two choices. And Lindsay loved the way Jill spoke it, with a hiss and a growl and something wild in her eyes.

And everything was fine. They had their understanding; the rules were set. For the longest time the R word never even crossed any of their minds. The F part of the S word was out of this world: brute, draining, loud – just downright fantastic. Their jobs were of such nature that any other kind of S just wouldn't do. Especially because of the fact that if the kind of S they've been having became any other kind of S, the whole thing would just end up pulling the question only the R word could explain and neither one of them wanted to be accused of bringing the R word into the play. It happened once and never again; Lindsay had learned her lesson. Bring up the R word and you can kiss the S word – and especially the F word – goodbye for a month. So no, keeping it clean and uncomplicated was the best way to go.

That all being said, it's quite obvious how Lindsay wasn't ready for a different kind of breach of contract, and Jill probably wasn't even aware how big of a mistake she had made until the word was well out of her mouth. Only after she saw how big Lindsay's eyes have gotten – they could have swallowed her whole – did Jill realize what she had said.

There were no rules for the L word. The mere thought of that word ever being said, and in a context Jill had said it, was simply preposterous. Therefore, no rule for the said word was ever set. And by the look on Lindsay's face, it clearly should have been.

"You love me?" Lindsay almost sunk into her side of the sofa.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't-" Jill fumbled with the hem of her shirt, wishing she had a backspace and delete function available in these kinds of situations.

"No. Nono." Lindsay interrupted. "It's just… I never expected it to be you who's gonna say it first."

"And then feel like an idiot."

"Would it help if I told you I loved you, too?"

Jill shrugged casually, dropping her eyes to the floor. "Not unless you actually mean it."

Using her index finger, Lindsay lifted Jill's chin and decided that a new rule needs to be applied: no more abbreviations allowed. With a smile, she admitted, "I love you, too."

The End

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