02: Spiritual Revelations

No one can know his own beauty or perceive
a sense of his own worth until it has been reflected back
to him in the mirror of another loving, caring human being.

John Joseph Powell

Returning home, Leslie was eager to grill Aiesha about their date, but Ai decided she preferred studying together with a bit of flirting.

“Logan,” their mother Helen called. “Would you be a dear, run out and get me some asparagus. I bought some the other day, but it’s gone bad.”

He sighed, before putting his book down and standing. “Sure, Mom.” He turned to the girls. “I’ll be back shortly, see if you can find something to keep you occupied while I’m gone.”

They glanced at each other, grinning. “I can think of something,” Leslie suggested, as Logan headed out.

“I believe it’s Logan’s turn.”

“Really?” she pressed. “He just had his date, the fact he asked me to tag along doesn’t count, as it was his choice. Seems like now’s mine.”

Aiesha frowned. “I’m not sure he’d think of it that way, but he did suggest finding something we’ll both enjoy to occupy us while he’s gone.”

“What’s more, it’s the perfect opportunity to discuss Logan.”

“All right, you’ve convinced me,” Ai responded as she stood. “But let’s hurry before he gets back.”

When he returned, he noticed his sister’s door was ajar once more. Thinking it not only odd, but dangerous—given Leslie’s fears—he approached.

Without glancing in, he gently knocked on the doorframe, and heard frantic shuffling from inside.

“Relax,” he urged, leaning forward so he wouldn’t need to raise his voice. “It’s Logan, but your door is standing open.”

“Well close it then,” she snapped.

“Uh, don’t you think this odd? After our discussions yesterday, didn’t you think to lock it?”

He heard movement again, and a moment later the door opened, revealing his sister wearing an open shirt, unbuttoned but covering the essential bits but clearly nothing more as she peered out.

“Logan, I absolutely locked it. Do you think I’m crazy?”

“Well, it’s not now. How about yesterday?”

“Of course, I’m not stupid.”

“And yet ... Look, when you finish up in there, get me and I’ll examine the lock. There’s got to be something wrong with it.”

“Well, the mood has been wrecked, so you may as well go ahead. We’ll get dressed.”

“Mom and Dad are downstairs. Rather than quitting, head to my room and you can continue while I check out your door.”

“You don’t mind? While you were gone, we kinda cheated. We’d mentioned alternating, but you were both so sexy during your date, I couldn’t resist.”

“Seriously, it’s not a problem. What’s mine is yours and what’s either of ours is Ai’s. It’s fine. But, if you plan on mooching my time, don’t be surprised if I peek just to see the action and whet my appetite.”

“Sure,” she said, leaning forward to kiss him on the nose—a significant step up from their usual peck on the forehead or cheek. “After this, we’ll save our private time for our soon-to-be scheduled times.”

Leslie partially closed the door and motioned to Ai. A moment later two nearly naked girls and dashed across the hall, glancing down the stairs in passing. Logan couldn’t help looking, enjoying watching their twitching retreating buns. Just after his sister entered his room, Aiesha stopped, turned and winking, pulled her loose shirt open and flashed him. She then followed her girlfriend, giggling at her ploy. He noted the lock engaging, specifically listening for it.

He headed downstairs to get the proper tools, and returning, he disassembled the mechanism, examined and cleaned the various components, reassembled and reinstalled them. He tested it, and the bolt was definitely functioning, even when he rattled and shook the door. Satisfied, but still suspicious, he exited, noticing that now his door was open. He realized then that something curious was occurring. He started forward when he heard his parents’ voices coming up, so he waited—hoping to distract them when they come up.

He knelt, partially turned to the stairway as they headed up. When they appeared, he stood. “Heading for an afternoon nap?”

They both stopped, looking at him. “Uh ... yeah, that’s what we planned.” His father cocked his head, eyeing him quizzically. “What are you doing with my tools?”

“There was something wrong with Leslie’s door, so I was examining it.”

Jonathan Sykes frowned. “I’ll look at it later.”

“No need.” Logan opened her door, working the handle. “I dismantled, cleaned and reinstalled it.” He grinned. “We look out for each other.”

“All right,” their father said, not entirely convinced. They went into their bedroom for their supposed nap, never glancing towards his room or asking about the girls. Logan sighed, relieved to have circumvented at least one crisis, when he noted his door was now firmly shut. Which was strange, as he was facing it the entire time and hadn’t noticed them shutting the door—trying to divert their parents.

He approached and tested his door. It was definitely locked.

“Just checking,” he announced, not wanting to disturb their time together. Recalling what Leslie had said, he couldn’t help remembering the two beautiful teenage girls sixty-nining each other. Realizing openly fantasizing about his sister would likely get him in trouble—especially after monkeying with her lock—he decided to give them their space. But the three of them definitely needed to discuss it.

“We have a date tonight,” Leslie informed him after breakfast the next day.

“We do? With Ai, or have you already set me up with someone else?”

“You wish. Aiesha wants us to meet her parents. It’s for dinner and it’s casual.”

He considered it for a moment. “Okay, though I’m guessing it may be a little strained.”

“Hey, if you date someone, expect to deal with their folks. How awkward it is, is entirely up to you. You can go with the flow and be charming or tense up and make mistakes. It’s your choice.”

“Fine. I’ll own my blunders. What are their names?”

“Yolonda and Hannah. And Ai’s last name is Peters-Katz. They’re both very nice and easy to get along with.”

“You aren’t dating their daughter.”

“No,” she chuckled. “We’re definitely not dating. Rather than going out, we spend all our time indoors.”

Logan grinned. “Yeah. Sometimes it makes a difference, but I’ll try not to hold it against them.” He paused. “Let me guess which one is Katz.”

“Yep. It’s the French translator. The one who couldn’t afford medical school is Yolonda.”

“Couldn’t get a degree?”

“Okay, she’s a Registered Nurse, but like Ai, she wanted to become a doctor, but couldn’t finance it.”

“So, they know about us?”

“No, they know about Leslie and me. When we got involved, she insisted I meet them. Now, it’s your turn. Don’t worry, as I said, they’re easy going.”

“Okay. Anything else?”

“Dress nice, be polite, and be your usual charming self.”

“In other words, don’t blather, answer questions and don’t be overly obnoxious.”

“See, that’s what we love about you, you occasionally see the obvious, once it’s pointed out to you.”

“What time?”

“They invited us for dinner. I’ve checked with Mom and Dad, and after calling to confirm, they agreed.”

“They didn’t ask what it was about?”

“It’s not a concern, Ai and I have a long history together. Our folks have no reason for worry, especially since I’m so protective of you. After all, there are things a girl can’t ask her parents, and even more they have no desire to know.”

“French or Soul Food?”

“A mix, seafood Creole, but they’re both excellent cooks.”

“Terrific, as Ai hasn’t cooked anything for me yet.”

“Hopefully, you’ll impress her with your own cooking. This is the twenty-first century, merely washing the dishes won’t cover your ass anyone.”

“Good to know,” Logan said, grinning. Despite his nerves, it sounded interesting.

At school, the three teens entered the building. Granting them their space, Leslie walked on the outside, not quite as close with Logan in the middle, grasping Ai’s hand. Glancing up, she grinned, squeezing his back as they drew closer. Though often needing to walk behind each other, they kept holding hands.

As usual, the hallways, rooms, and restrooms were incredibly crowded. Due to a massive mid-September storm, two nearby schools closed—one caused by flooding and the other to tornado damage—so it was sometimes difficult getting to classes on time. Given the larger class sizes and the outdoor trailers’ limitations, you really didn’t learn any more in class than on your own—something Logan preferred to in-person sessions.

The other students began to notice, as several stared.

“It appears the jig is up,” Leslie advised. “You’re now an official couple.”

“We weren’t planning on keeping it secret?” he inquired, making sure. “Because I want to scream it from the rooftop.”

“Hmm,” Aiesha cooed, nudging his shoulder with her own.

As they continued more students noticed, the girls smiling, proving they weren’t interested in him anyway, while the guys rolled their eyes or made snide comments.

Just outside her first classroom, which Ai directed him toward, Logan pulled her towards him and kissed her hand. She tittered and leaned in and kissed him briefly, giggling happily.

A couple of nearby girls went “Ahh,” observing them, to which Aiesha turned. “Yep, he’s my man, and I’m definitely keeping him.”

“I wish my boyfriend was that romantic.”

“Don’t worry,” Leslie assured them. “This is still new for them both. Check in later and they’ll be over it.”

Everyone laughed and waved goodbye. Leslie and Logan walked off as Ai entered her class and when the siblings parted, his sister gave him a thumbs up.

At lunch they sat with Ai and Leslie’s friends, Logan shrugging helplessly as his buddies called out, saying they’d saved him a space. “Sorry guys, I’m spoken for now!”

Leslie introduced him around, though he already knew several from visits to the house.

After they’d been sitting for a few minutes, Mimi leaned forward, speaking in a conspiratorial whisper. “How the hell do you do that?”

Leslie glanced at her. “Do what?”

“Whenever Logan reaches for something, you shift your hand, so you don’t bump each other. When he turns to wave to a friend, Aiesha moves aside so he doesn’t hit her. How did you ever learn that?”

She shrugged. “It’s no trick. We’ve never noticed, but Logan and I have always been close.”

“Not from what we’ve seen, and he’s never joined us for lunch. And he’s not only doing it with you, you all do it automatically.”

“It’s nothing. I guess we’re just comfortable with each other.”

“Well, it looks weird,” Mimi warned, dropping her voice. “Other people are noticing!”

Glancing around, Leslie shrugged again. “Not much I can do about it. If they want to stare, it’s fine, but we’re not doing anything.”

“Yeah,” Logan said, “we’re okay with it, however anyone else responds.”

Yet, their lunchtime companions kept staring, so they self-consciously tried to restrain their movements.

On the way home, Logan turned to his sister. “Leslie, Ai and I were talking. Since I’m still trying to get a handle on this relationship, we’d like to visit the school’s gay/lesbian alliance.”

“Otherwise known as the GLA,” Aiesha added. “Or GLBTQA, if you add bisexuals, Trans and Queers, which apparently is why they didn’t. It was already too difficult to say.”

“I’m glad, but if you don’t mind. I think I’ll skip it,” Leslie responded. “As I noted before, my friends are skittish about me. So, for now, I’m comfortable hiding in the closet with Ai—or at least on my days with her—it’s pretty durn comfy in there.”

“That’s what we assumed,” Aiesha assured her. “But if we go, people can make all the inferences they want. But no one will know whether either of us is gay or not. We’re just a friendly, gay-curious couple. What’s more, since you aren’t attending, there’s no reason to make any assumptions about you.”

She considered it. “Couldn’t you just ask Ai’s mothers about it?”

“If I’m too embarrassed to keep asking you and Ai embarrassing questions, why would I embarrass myself by quizzing her parents? Besides, it’s totally anonymous. No one there wants to cause any trouble as it would harm them as much as anyone else.”

“I’ll tell you what, you two go this time and I’ll consider it for next time. I already have a decent idea of who’s a lesbian, as my gaydar is still new and factory fresh.”

“Yeah, that’s something else I need to figure out.”

“Trust me, it won’t work with lesbians, though if you want to acknowledge cute guys checking you out...”

“No thanks, but I’m still curious how it works. We’ll tell you how it goes. Who knows, while you know who’s who, there might be others who aren’t quite as confident yet.”

“Again, I’ll contemplate it, but don’t push. No one likes being outed by their friends!”

“Your secret is safe with us,” Aiesha assured her, giggling. “Now, if Logan can just keep the handsome young homosexual students at bay...”