River walked through the underwear aisle, perusing the bra section, sparing an admiring glance for the fit models on the packages. With a sigh, she looked for the smallest sizes that the store had. Well, at least she had some boobs, unlike her friend Kacey.

She did find one design that she thought was rather cute. One glance at the price tag made her eyes goggle. “Bras are that expensive?” She’d never really paid attention before.

“Uh-huh. Welcome to life as a woman, sweetie,” her mom said, following behind.

River grimaced. Well, at least she wasn’t the one paying—for now. As her mom grabbed a few boxes to put in their basket, River gazed across the aisle and noticed the lingerie section, where the underwear was a lot skimpier. She had to wonder what it would be like to wear something so sexy. She smiled as she imagined the faces her friends would make if she took off her clothes to reveal that black lace bra-and-panties set.

“Those are even more expensive, don’t you even think about it,” her mom pointed out. “And anyway, you’re fourteen. That stuff is off limits until you’re forty, at least,” she added, sounding like she thought she was being clever.

River just rolled her eyes.

“Don’t give me that, missy. What would you even do with lingerie, huh? Unless...” Mom narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Is there some boy you’re trying to impress?”

“Moooooom! No!” River hissed, glancing around to make sure no one was within earshot. “Like I’d flash my panties at some boy!”

God, parents could be so embarrassing. No, it definitely wasn’t boys she’d want to show off to. Not that her mom would know about that. It wasn’t that River thought her mom would have a problem with her liking girls, but ... She’d most likely put an end to the regular sleepovers River had with her friends—or at least scrutinize what they were up to a lot more often—and that certainly couldn’t happen.

“All right, all right.” Mom flashed a little smile. Satisfied to have gotten a rise out of her daughter, or happy that she didn’t have to worry about boys just yet? Who could tell? “Anyway, while we’re here, why don’t you go find a new pair of jeans?”

“What’s wrong with my jeans?” River asked, looking down at herself.

“Most of your pairs have holes in them, honey.”

River frowned. “So? Who doesn’t have holes in their jeans?” The store was even selling new pairs that were already ripped.

“River. Just get a new pair.”

“Fine, fine.” She wasn’t really going to complain about new clothes.

River wandered over to the pants section while her mom was looking at blouses. Finding some black jeans that she thought looked pretty good, she took them to the changing room to try on. A little tight for her taste, she thought as she squeezed into the snug denim.

As she turned a critical eye to the mirror, a perfectly ordinary girl looked back at her. Long brown hair, brown eyes, average height, no remarkable features to speak of—she didn’t hate her looks, but she certainly didn’t love them either. She shrugged at her reflection. The jeans looked all right, she supposed. Spinning around for good measure, she let out an appreciative “Oooh.” The tight pants did make her ass look pretty great, she had to admit. Maybe she’d let Mom buy them after all.

When she emerged from the stall after changing back into her own clothes, she heard a voice behind her. “Hey, um ... River, right?”

Turning around, River saw a cute black girl waving at her. She seemed quite familiar, with that eye-catching mass of thick, curly hair. Wait, wasn’t she the new girl at school? Sure, that was it. She was in a couple of River’s classes, having just started this week.

River was surprised but happy that the girl even remembered her name. Usually, people didn’t notice her at all. Then she realized she’d forgotten the girl’s name, which seemed totally rude. She racked her brain as she began, “Oh, hi! It’s ... uh...” Thankfully, the answer came to her just in time. “Alyssa! Isn’t it?”

The girl nodded. “Yeah. We have English together, right?”

“Yep. And math, I think? But I wouldn’t blame you if you couldn’t keep your eyes open in that class long enough to see me there.”

Alyssa laughed. “Oh right. That math teacher is ... um ... Do we know for sure he’s not a robot?”

“I know, right? I don’t even hate math, but God, does he make it boring.”

“I’ve been thinking of recording his class and listening to it when I can’t fall asleep at night.”

River snorted. “That’d probably work!”

They made their way out of the changing room. “So ... you’re shopping for clothes, too?” River asked, before realizing a second later what a stupid question that was, since Alyssa had been in the changing area, clothes in hand. “Well. I mean, yeah, obviously.” She gave a nervous laugh. Why was it so hard for her to make small talk?

Alyssa chuckled. “Yeah. I begged some money from my parents for a new outfit. What do you think of this?” she asked, holding up a light blue T-shirt with stylized angel wings on it, and a darker blue skirt that looked just a tad shorter than River’s mom would approve of.

“Yeah, that looks pretty cute,” River said. And it did, but truth be told, she was a lot more interested in what Alyssa was wearing right then. That tight crop top showcased her large breasts to impressive effect—making River feel both turned on and envious—while showing off her nice flat belly, and those snug shorts molded her hips and ass perfectly. It was a way sexier ensemble than anything she’d be allowed to wear at school, and River had to make an effort not to stare.

At that moment, River’s mom walked up from another section of the store. “River, did you find ... Oh, hello,” she said when she noticed Alyssa.

“Mom, this is Alyssa. She’s new at school. Alyssa, this is, well, my mom, as you probably guessed already, ‘cause I just called her ‘Mom’.” River wasn’t very good at introductions, either.

“It’s nice to meet you, Alyssa. Are you new in town, or did you just change schools?”

“Yeah, we just moved here from Chicago.”

“Oh my. Our town must look very small by comparison. How are you adapting?”

Alyssa chuckled. “Well, kinda but ... it’s not bad. I dig the small town vibe. I just don’t really know anyone yet.”

“Well, what a coincidence, River and her friends are having a sleepover tonight. You should come and get to know them! I’m sure that’d be fine, wouldn’t it, River?”

River gritted her teeth. Had her mom really blurted out an invitation, just like that? That really put her in an awkward spot. “Oh, err...” River hesitated, trying to find a polite way to decline. Alyssa seemed nice and all, but River and her friends had other plans. Private plans. And inviting Alyssa would certainly throw a spanner into the works.

“It’s okay, I don’t want to intrude,” Alyssa said, though she looked a little sad.

River’s mom gave her a patented look of motherly disapproval. River could practically hear the words in her head. River! Don’t be rude!

“No, no, it’s cool. You should join us, it’ll be fun,” River was basically forced to say, though she tried to make it sound genuine.

“Yeah? Well ... okay then! It’d be nice to get to know some people around here, gotta admit.”

“Cool. Just drop by after dinner, around like, 7 or 7:30.”

River gave out her address, then they made their goodbyes, as River’s mom needed some other stuff from a different section of the store. As she watched Alyssa walk away, River frowned. She’d done her good deed of the day, but the others were not going to be happy about it.

That evening, River was finishing setting up her room for the sleepover. The floor was now almost entirely covered with inflatable mattresses and sleeping bags for her friends. She’d had to push her own bed into one corner to make enough space for three other people.

Normally, she might not even use her bed, preferring to sleep entangled with her friends after they were done with their fun—at least until morning, when she slipped into bed to pretend that was where she’d spent the night. Unfortunately, it looked as if that might not be in the cards tonight. It was really too bad, Kacey and Livi had planned a little “challenge” that would have been a lot of fun to watch...

The doorbell rang, pulling River from her thoughts. That had to be Alyssa, because Kacey or Livi would have just walked in. Making her way to the front door, River opened it to reveal her new friend. “Hey there, welcome. You’re the first one here.”

“Hi. Am I early?”

“Nah, you’re fine. This way.” River led Alyssa to her room, pleased to note that the girl was still wearing the hot top from that afternoon. “Here, I just finished setting this up,” she said, indicating the mattresses.

“Ah, nice. You’re pretty well equipped for this, huh?”

“Yeah, my mom has a big family, so sometimes when they visit during the holidays or whatever, we need a lot of space for all my uncles and aunts and cousins to sleep, y’know?”

“Oh, that’s cool. I don’t have much extended family.” Alyssa sat on the bed when River motioned that she should do so, then took a look around the room. Her gaze landed on the poster of pop star Shana Belle on the wall, and she broke into a huge grin. “Hey, you like Shana, too?”

“Yeah! She’s awesome!” That, and totally gorgeous. River had harbored a big crush on the singer for over a year now.

“Ya, I don’t usually like that kind of pop much, but she’s ... I dunno, special.”

The conversation was cut short when they heard voices coming towards the room, one much louder than the other, instantly recognizable as Kacey.

“No way! River, tell Livi that—” Kacey was saying as she barged in, then stopped short when she saw that River wasn’t alone. “Uh ... hi?”

For her part, Livi simply arched an eyebrow.

River’s friends didn’t look much alike—Kacey, a short, skinny white girl with reddish-brown hair; Livi, a tall Asian, growing curvier by the day; both cute in their own way—but at the moment they wore identically puzzled expressions.

“Hey, guys!” River said. “Uh, this is Alyssa. You might have seen her at school? She’s new in town, and we bumped into each other at the mall and ... I thought it’d be cool for her to hang out with us.”

“Oh. Um, hey. Sure...” Kacey said slowly. “Is she into ... you know, is she down for—” she began, but thankfully Livi elbowed her before she could blurt out anything else. Kacey wasn’t the most tactful person.

“Down for what?” Alyssa asked, looking confused.

“Um...” Kacey and Livi looked at each other.

“Nothing, it’s nothing,” River interrupted. “Let’s just—”

“It doesn’t sound like nothing ... Look, if you guys had something else planned, I don’t want to be in the way or anything.”

“No, no. It’s just ... we kinda had, uh, something private to discuss ... Hey, just give us a couple minutes, okay? Be right back.” River got up and hurriedly ushered her two friends out of the room.

“Yo, what’s up?” Kacey said once they were in the hallway. “I thought we were gonna—”

“Shhh!” River hissed, nodding in the direction of the living room where her mom was. “Look, I know, but I ran into her at the mall and my mom basically invited her here, and I couldn’t really say no without looking like a major asshole,” she explained in a whisper. “And anyway, she seems cool, and she doesn’t know anyone here, so ... I think we should try to be friends.”

“Well, she could be the coolest person ever, but I’m fucking horny,” Kacey said, blunt as always. At least she was keeping her voice down. “And I was supposed to do the challenge with Livi.”

“We all know you were gonna lose, anyway,” Livi said with a shrug, then quickly continued when Kacey opened her mouth to protest, “But anyway, fine with me, I guess. We’ll see what happens, huh? Who knows, maybe she’d want to join in.” She smirked.

Kacey perked up at that. “You think she’d be up for it? She’s pretty hot. That top she’s wearing? Oof!”

“Uh, I don’t know,” River said. She couldn’t claim the thought hadn’t crossed her mind once or twice, but... “I feel like we’re rushing things here. Don’t be weird or creepy to her, okay?”

“I’m never weird or creepy,” Kacey said. When River and Livi exchanged a dubious look, she added, “What?”

“Anyway, let’s go back in. And be nice.” River opened the door to her room and they all filed in.

Alyssa was still sitting on River’s bed, looking very uncomfortable. “Um, maybe I should go if—” she began.

“No, no! It’s all cool now. Everything’s sorted out. Sorry about all that.” River felt like a pretty crappy host, but hopefully they could move on now.

“You sure?”

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry about it. Okay, this is Kacey,” River said, ruffling the other girl’s short hair as an introduction.

“Dammit!” Kacey swatted her away, then extended a hand to Alyssa. “Hey. S’up, New Girl.”

“And this is Olivia.”

“Hi, nice to meet you,” Livi said. “We’re in P.E. together, right?”

“I think so, yeah.” Alyssa shook both their hands. She seemed to have relaxed now that things were more friendly.

Kacey let herself drop on River’s bed to lie next to Alyssa. “Ugh. Hope you’re good at P.E. Teacher’s a real hard-ass this year.”

“Is she a hard-ass because she won’t let you sit in a corner and do nothing all period?” Livi chimed in.

Kacey lifted her head to respond. “Yeah! What’s up with that?”

Alyssa laughed. “I don’t know, she seems alright. But I like P.E. anyway.”

“Ugh. I hate P.E. Except for the showers.”

“The showers?” Alyssa asked.

River gritted her teeth. So much for not being weird.

“Yeah. Y’know, just taking a shower in the middle of the day, it’s relaxing,” Kacey explained, actually managing to sound like she meant it, though River knew that wasn’t the reason at all. They had P.E. together, and she’d seen her friend ogling the other girls under the water spray often enough—not that she could entirely blame her.

Alyssa chuckled. “Um, I guess so.”

“You were really good at basketball this week,” Livi told Alyssa. “I couldn’t do anything to stop you.”

“Oh, thanks. You didn’t seem too bad yourself. Maybe next time we’ll be on the same team.”

“That’d be cool. Hey, do you play tennis? I could use an opponent other than my mom.”

“Oh, man, I haven’t played in a while ... but I’d be down to give it a shot.”

“Look at these two jocks,” Kacey interjected. “I guess it’s just you and me on Team Sports Suck, Riv.” She extended a fist for River to bump.

“Um, actually ... I’ve kinda been thinking about giving tennis a try, too,” River admitted. It was true that she wasn’t usually into sports at all, but she’d watched Livi play at a competition a few months back and it had looked ... kind of fun? “I’d probably suck at it, but it doesn’t look too bad, and y’know, might be good for getting some exercise and all.”

“Really?” Livi said, at the same time that Kacey exclaimed, “What? Traitor!”

River laughed. “Come on. You should try it with me. We could play, uh, doubles? That’s a thing, right?” She looked for confirmation at Livi, who nodded.

“Bah!” Kacey grabbed a pillow and put it over her head.

“What’s your favorite subject, Kacey?” Alyssa asked, laughing.

“Art,” Kacey said through the pillow.

“Oh yeah? You good at that? I’m pretty hopeless with that stuff.”

Kacey tossed the pillow aside and shrugged. “Eh ... I’m all right.”

“She’s really good,” River insisted. She wasn’t going to let Kacey dismiss her own artistic skills. “You should see her drawings, they’re amazing!”

“It’s true,” Livi agreed. That counted for a lot, because Livi and Kacey just loved to needle each other about everything.

“Really? I’d like to see your stuff some time,” Alyssa said.

“Um, yeah, maybe.” Was that just a little bit of color rising to Kacey’s cheeks? She sat up suddenly and said, “Anyway! Who’s up for some Mario Kart?”

The quick change of subject was not lost on River. It was odd how Kacey would brag about the silliest things, but then got all self-conscious when it came to a skill she had that was actually praiseworthy. River could tell from the little smile Kacey was trying to hide that she appreciated the compliments, though.

“Sure, I’m down,” she said, and the other two nodded as well.

“You have your own TV in your room?” Alyssa asked as River turned on said TV. “That’s so cool.”

“Rich girl here,” Kacey muttered. “Her mom’s a dentist.”

River scowled. “Hey, you wanna use my TV or not?”

“Fine, fine. Hope you’re ready to get destroyed, though,” Kacey said, cracking her knuckles.

“We’ll see,” Alyssa said. “I have to warn you, I got years of extensive Mario Kart training playing against my brother.”

“Oh yeah? Good. Could use some real competition around here. These two aren’t much of a challenge.”

“Excuse you?” Livi interrupted. “And who won last time, huh?”

“Meh. That was a fluke.”

Livi and River exchanged a look and rolled their eyes. Though truth be told, Kacey did win most of the time.

They loaded up the game and kicked off the first race. True to her word, Kacey took the lead early on, and kept it until the last lap.

“And that’s how you do it,” she said as she took the final turn ahead of everyone else.

Just as she was about to cross the finish line, though, a green shell came out of nowhere to hit her kart, stopping it dead in its tracks.

“Is it? I think you’re supposed to avoid those,” Alyssa asked as she passed by to take the win. She smirked at Kacey, clearly proud of her aim.

Kacey gritted her teeth and hit the gas as soon as she regained control, but she had barely moved an inch before Livi’s red shell hit her again, allowing both Livi and River to finish in front of her.

“You were saying?” Livi asked.

“That. Was. Bullshit,” Kacey exclaimed, prompting River and the others to laugh their asses off. “Okay, okay, you’ll see. Start the next race.”

They ended up playing for a couple of hours, and to be fair to Kacey, she did wind up with the most wins, though Alyssa was close behind. River finished dead last, but she was used to that. Strategy and puzzle games were more her thing. Still, it was always fun playing with her friends, regardless of who won, and she was glad to see Alyssa fitting in so well.

“That was close,” Kacey was saying. “Not bad, New Girl, not bad. If you work hard, one day you could get on my level.”

Alyssa snorted. “I admit defeat for today, but I’ll have my revenge.”

“Sounds like the beginnings of an epic rivalry,” River said as she got up to stretch her legs. “So what do you guys wanna do now?”

“Let’s see what’s on Netflix,” Kacey said.

“Like a million different things,” Livi replied, and Kacey made a face at her.

Chuckling, River threw the remote to Kacey. “You guys hungry? Want some popcorn? Chips? Sodas?”

“Hell yeah, all the above,” Kacey said.

A sly smile played on Livi’s lips. “Quick, Alyssa: Pepsi or Coke?”

“Uh, Pepsi?” River and Kacey looked at each other, then turned twin disapproving stares towards Alyssa. “Um, is that a big deal?”

“Well, well, well,” Livi said smugly, “looks like it’s two against two now. Balance has been restored.”

River frowned at the two heretics. “I’ll have you know this is a Coke household. But fine, we have both anyway.”

Livi stared in disbelief. “Hold the flipping phone. Did you have both all this time?”

“No,” River said. “Last time we were at the grocery store, I asked Mom to get some Pepsi. Just for you.”

“Aww. Now that’s true friendship.”

Livi wrapped her arms around River’s neck, and for a second River thought her friend had forgotten who was in the room and was actually going to kiss her. Her heart was racing with mixed fear and excitement. But Livi just pulled her into a big theatrical hug instead, making Alyssa laugh behind them. Just before letting go, though, Livi slid a hand down to River’s ass and gave it a squeeze, then winked before she slipped away.

River was left feeling flustered. She was pretty sure she’d have gotten that kiss if Alyssa wasn’t around, and maybe Livi’s hand would have gone to even more interesting places. Hell, at this point in the evening, they might already have made each other come, despite the risk of being caught by her mom. It wouldn’t have been the first time one of them took a turn as lookout while the other two fooled around.

Hanging out with Alyssa had been pretty fun, but damn, River really missed the other kind of fun right now. She took a deep calming breath, then said, “Okay, you guys pick something to watch while I get the snacks.”

Kacey gave her a thumbs up, and River left them to it, making her way to the kitchen. She grabbed two big bowls and filled them with popcorn and chips, then fetched four cans of soda from the fridge, sighing dramatically as she included two of the inferior brand. Laying out the feast on a tray, she brought it back to her room.

“Oh, this one is really good if you guys are into horror,” Alyssa was saying as River entered.

“Looks cool,” Kacey said, “but eh, River’s a real wimp about this stuff.”

“Hey, bite me,” River shot back as she laid the tray on the floor next to Livi and Alyssa, who were sitting on the mattresses.

“Well, aren’t you? You wanna watch it then?” Kacey asked.

River turned to the TV. The trailer that was playing did look rather scary, not her kind of thing at all. “Umm ... how creepy is it?” she asked Alyssa.

“Not gonna lie, I thought the ghost was creepy as hell ... but I love stuff like that.”

“Oh, ghosts. River’s favorite, right?” Livi teased.

River grimaced. She didn’t like scary movies in general, but ghosts were just the worst. There was just something about those invisible bastards that made her blood run ice cold. “Ehhh...”

“See? Told you,” Kacey said.

“Shut up, you.” River jumped on the bed and wrapped an arm around Kacey’s neck from behind, as if to choke her. The girl began flailing wildly even though River wasn’t actually putting any pressure.

Laughing, Alyssa grabbed the remote that Kacey had dropped on the bed. “Okay, okay. Um, how about this one, then?”

“Ugh, no,” Livi said. “Watched that last week. Super boring.”

“Oh, too bad. Hmm, let’s see...” Alyssa continued scrolling through the selection.

“Hey, hold up,” Kacey said after a moment. “That one looked good.” She’d stopped struggling and was now just lying back against River, which wasn’t unpleasant at all.

Alyssa scrolled back. “This?”

It was pretty obvious what had attracted Kacey’s attention: The promo image for the movie showed a woman with very large breasts in a bikini. Kacey crawled forward for a better look. “Daaaamn,” she said.

Alyssa raised an eyebrow at the reaction, but a small smile played on her lips. “She’s um, stacked, huh?”

“Jealous?” Livi baited Kacey.

“Hey, screw you,” came the expected comeback. “Not my fault I’m, uh, a late bloomer or somethin’. Maybe you’re the one who’s not normal. Aren’t Asians supposed to be tiny and flat? That’s unfair.”

“Wow. Racist much?”

“It’s not racist. Isn’t it true?”

“That’s a huge generalization—” Livi began, but Kacey cut her off.

“Y’know, I think the new girl got you beat, though,” she said, making a show of leering at Alyssa. “Is that a thing, black girls having big tits? I know black guys have big cocks, but—”

“Omigod. Stop talking,” Livi said, furiously rubbing her temples.

“What? I just—”

Livi reached out to clamp a hand over Kacey’s mouth, then turned to Alyssa. “I’m really sorry about her. She’s from out in the boonies. Probably raised by wolves.”

Kacey pulled back, and managed to say, “Been living here like half my life—” before Livi muffled her again.

“Shhh. I’m trying to give you an excuse for ... being like this.”

Alyssa looked more amused than offended, but River judged it best to move on. “Anyway, guys. So uh, boobs aside, this movie kinda looks like trash. Sorry, Kace,” she said, having kept an eye on the trailer.

They all turned back to the TV. “Uh, yeah, that looks ... pretty bad,” Alyssa said after a moment. Livi nodded in agreement.

“Bah, fine,” Kacey said.

And so it went for some time. Someone would suggest a movie, but someone else always had an objection. Then they’d go off on a tangent for a while. After about half an hour, they were no closer to a decision than at the beginning.

“Uh, guys, I think we ate all the snacks before deciding what to watch,” Alyssa pointed out.

“That’s um ... often how it goes, gotta admit,” River said. There were sheepish nods of agreement from Kacey and Livi.

“Fuck it, let’s just do something else,” Kacey said. She was now lying across the width of the bed, her head dropping off one side, looking at the rest of them upside down.

“Like what?”

Kacey thought about it for a bit. “How about ... Truth or Dare?” she asked with a sinister grin. “Good way to get to know the new girl better!”

“I always thought Truth or Dare was kinda stupid,” Livi said. “I mean, you get to choose truth or dare, but then if you pick truth and don’t want to answer, you just do a dare instead. What’s the point of even choosing? Why wouldn’t you always pick truth then decide if you want to answer the question or not?”

Kacey rolled her eyes. “Look at this nerd analyzing strategies for Truth or Dare.”

“Am I a nerd now? I thought I was a jock earlier.”

“You’re a ... jocknerd. A jerd. The worst of both worlds. I don’t know how you live with yourself.”

Somehow, Livi managed to ignore that grievous insult and carry on. “Anyway, if you really want to get to know someone, sounds like the game should be that you just ask questions and she has to tell the truth.”

“So ... Truth or Truth? That’s stupid.”

“Uh ... You just ask anything and I have to answer?” Alyssa said, looking nervous now. “That doesn’t sound fair.”

Kacey flipped over so that she could look at Alyssa right-side up. “Oooh, New Girl has secrets. I’m in.”

“Well, we could say that everyone has to answer the question,” Livi amended. “That way, no one’s gonna ask something she’s not willing to answer herself.”

“Hmm, I guess that would be okay,” Alyssa said.

Livi made a you first gesture. “You can start, then.”

“Okay, um, let’s see...” Alyssa tapped her lips with a finger. “How long have you known each other? I mean, my answer is just ‘since today,’ so that’s not too interesting, but...”

“It’s fine,” River said. “Me and Livi since kindergarten. Then Kacey moved here in ... what, second grade?”

Kacey nodded. “Yeah. Okay, my turn. Who’s your celebrity crush?”

River and Livi exchanged a look. River could guess that Livi had proposed this game to gauge Alyssa’s interest in girls with some subtle questions, but ... as usual, Kacey lacked any subtlety, and now it seemed like she was fine with outing them all. River wasn’t too sure if that was a good idea.

“Wow. That’s um ... pretty personal,” Alyssa said.

“Really? That’s the least personal thing I was gonna ask.” Kacey grinned. River could well believe it.

Alyssa hesitated for a moment. It seemed like a big dilemma for her. River wondered if that was a good sign or not.

“Want me to go first?” Kacey asked when the moment stretched on.

“S-sure.”

“Easy.” Kacey pointed up at the poster of Shana Belle on the wall.

River frowned. That was her poster for a reason.

“Oh! Really?” Alyssa sounded ... relieved, maybe? Very intriguing. “I ... yeah, I guess a lot of people think she’s pretty...” she said, remaining noncommittal.

“She’s the hottest. Back me up, River.”

River narrowed her eyes. She didn’t appreciate being suddenly dragged into this, but she supposed it had to come out sooner or later. If Alyssa turned out to be some kind of bigot, she couldn’t be their friend, anyway. That wasn’t the main source of her annoyance, though. “Me? You ... you stole my answer! I liked Shana first!”

“Bah, don’t be like that. I’m, like, acknowledging your good taste in women here.”

River chuckled. “Riiiight.” It wasn’t a big deal, but still, Kacey wouldn’t even really know who Shana was if River hadn’t started talking about her. She should get her own damn crush.

“So wait, you’re... both into girls?” Alyssa asked, looking from one of them to the other.

“Yeah. That a problem?” Kacey said.

“No! Not at all. I ... um ... I think I am, too.”

“Oh yeah? That’s great!” Kacey flashed a wicked grin at River and Livi. The evening was taking quite an interesting turn.