butterflydreaming | The hell with it.

The smut fic is on mm.org. Bliss, of Another Kind. NC-17, Hentai, m-m sex I'm not making you read it, so don't give me grief. And I'm not fixing the to/too typo.

And I know it's before noon on a Monday, but I'm feeling a little bit invisible... just a small case of the crazies. I think I need to go outside and have some people look at me.

Original Short Story: "B.F.F."
This may be my choice for the Anthology, hence, no lock.
Vampire fiction, but sweet. No blood. Rating: PG
Comments will be helpful in my decision.

B.F.F.

Corr was down to her last thirteen dollars, she was hungry, and because of the incident earlier in the evening, she now had no place to sleep. But there was always Jane, sturdy and reliable Jane, when Corr found herself in a difficult patch like this. When Corr had trouble dealing with her complicated life, there was Jane. So just around midnight, after having only bad luck trying to score a bite and a bed, Corr took an almost-empty bus out to the suburbs where her sensible friend lived.

She dawdled in the shadows for a while before making the final commitment to walk up the three short porch steps and ring the doorbell. There was still a light on in an upstairs room; looking at the light shining out through the curtains, she hoped that it was Jane, and not Allen, who was still awake. Once upon a time, there would not have been a question, but Jane had a husband, a step-son, and a new baby now; her all-nighters were, these days, were linked to grading essays or to comforting sick children.

Scrabbling dog feet sounded against tile moments after Corr touched the button and sounded the bell, but the girl heard the human lives inside respond more slowly. She shifted her balance from one side to the other, nervously kicking her doc martens against each other. On the other side of the door, a hushed male voice issued impatient commands to the barking dogs.

Corr swore under her breath and reconsidered her plan, but it was already too late. The door was open, spilling out low lamplight, and she was being scrutinized by a man in his early forties. Jane’s husband smiled in a friendly manner, but it was apparent to Corr that Allen was perplexed by the appearance of a teenaged girl, dressed all in black, standing on his doormat in the middle of a weekday night.

“Hi,” she said, doing her best to be non-threatening and not to show too much teeth between her brilliantly red painted lips. “Um, is Jane home?” She met Allen’s wary eyes and gave him her best impression of innocent trustworthiness.

“She’s gone to bed…” he started, and then caught himself. “I’m sorry – who are you?”

“A friend. Of Ja — of your wife,” Corr corrected, using a little more force, smiling though she was berating herself silently. She should have thought about the way she looked. At the very least, she should have scrubbed the make-up off of her face and put on one of her “innocent schoolgirl” dresses, to help reinforce the thrall. “Let me in, Allen,” she said, steeping her tone in charisma. “I just want to see Jane. Nothing to worry about.” She locked her eyes into his and put slightly more force yet into her persuasion. “Invite me inside, and then get your wife.”

Footsteps brushed on carpeted stairs. “Come on in, Corr,” said a light voice from within the dimly lit house. Allen turned to his spouse, and Corr lost his attention.

“Sorry, Jane,” voiced the girl sheepishly as she stepped over the threshold and into the house.

Jane reached the bottom of the stairs and stepped over to her husband, touching him reassuringly. “It’s fine, Dear,” she said.

“Is this a student of yours?” he asked with confusion, befuddled by the broken persuasion that Corr had been putting on him.

“Actually,” answered Jane, blinking behind her glasses, “Corr is an old friend of mine.”

Taking her cue, the girl shot out a hand toward the man. “Corazon Lucero,” she introduced herself as she shook his hand definitively. “Nice to finally meet you, Allen.”

Jane’s husband volleyed his hazel eyes between his wife, who was only a year his junior, to the dramatically dressed teenaged girl.

“Why don’t you go back to your study,” suggested Jane, cutting off the question that she could see forming. “The sooner you get that chapter proofed, the sooner you’ll come to bed.”

“You can leave us alone, Allen,” said Corr, catching his eye.

Jane’s hands came up smoothly to rest on her hips. “Do you mind not doing that?” she asked the girl pointedly. She retrieved her husband’s attention and gave him a small kiss on the side of his nose. “Go on; we’re fine,” she assured.

Corr wandered into the living room, disinterestedly surveying the conservative surroundings until she got to the row of framed photographs artfully arranged on the fireplace mantle. The fireplace itself contained assorted sizes of pillar candles; the wicks showed that the candles were actually lit on occasion. “Are these your kids?” the girl queried in a pleased voice.

Jane answered her proudly. “Those are mine!” she crowed. “Officially, too. I adopted Zachary when I married his daddy.”

“I’m sorry I missed the wedding,” said Corr, turning away from the pictures and slumping into the denim-covered loveseat.

“I couldn’t have a night wedding,” said Jane apologetically. “Allen’s family would have been scandalized if we hadn’t married in a church. And you know my dad,” she added.

“Yeah, you moved to Lancaster so that he’d never drop in unexpectedly,” agreed the girl.

Jane settled comfortably into the sofa opposite. “I like Pasadena better, though. Less of a commute. I was thrilled when we found this house.” She studied her longtime friend thoughtfully. “So what’s up with you?”

Fidgeting, Corr crossed and uncrossed her legs. “I kinda need a favor,” she mumbled. She waited for her friend to inquire, but Jane only sighed. “I need a place to crash,” Corr explained.

“Is that all?” the blonde woman questioned.

Corr looked past the veil of her long hair and at Jane’s waiting expression. “Well… .” She bite at her lower lip. “I’m kind of broke. And I haven’t had anything to eat.”

“How long?”

“A couple days,” the girl revealed. “I had kind of a monogamy thing going on, but we split.” She waved innocence at Jane’s stern expression and crossed arms. “No, really. We literally just broke up. The only life-threatening holes he’s getting now are from a needle.” Elbows on knees and head in hands, she continued, “That was the problem. He couldn’t stay clean.”

“So what about by the train station? Or Melrose?” Jane listed the locations as casually as naming fast-food outlets.

“It’s all junkies or homeless.” The girl shrugged. “I’m having a hard time finding the Bad Guys.”

“Too bad government offices keep daylight hours,” quipped Jane.

“Too bad,” agreed the girl, not at all joking.

“Corr,” Jane started with complete seriousness. “You have to get your life – or whatever – straightened out.” She stood up and moved to her friend’s side, putting her arm around the girl as she sat down.

“I like my life,” Corr pouted.

Jane shook her head without further comment. “I can fix you up a place to sleep in the basement. It’s our home-theater room, so the door seals out the light really well. If you don’t mind sleeping on a futon,” she added.

“That would be great!” said Corr, brightening.

“The sun comes up late in the winter. I want you to meet Zach and Evan before you go to bed.”

Corr’s smile faded. “Y’know, babies…” she started.

“What,” asked Jane suspiciously.

“Babies smell,” said the girl.

“They do not smell!” Jane exclaimed. “Corr!”

Corr rolled her eyes. “They don’t smell good. C’mon, Jane. I’ve never like them. And now,” she fanned a hand in the direction of her nose. “The whole hightened senses thing.”

The other woman snorted. “I guess I should be thankful. No snacking on any of my men, by the way,” she added.

Corr made a shocked face. “I wouldn’t!” After a comfortable silence, she added a question. “What are you going to say to Allen? I’m going to guess that you don’t want me to make him forget.”

“Definitely not,” Jane retorted. “He knows that I had magenta hair in high school. He can know about you, too. We don’t keep secrets.”

Corr smiled broadly, and found an answering smile in her friend’s blue eyes. She showed a little more teeth, and put a small amount of come hither into her expression. Jane raised her eyebrows.

“You can’t depend on me for everything,” she warned. “You’re just going to have to go to bed without your supper.”

“With you, it’d be dessert,” Corr purred. She walked fingertips lightly down Jane’s arm.

Jane didn’t budge. “Get control of yourself,” she stated dryly.

Sturdy, reliable Jane, thought Corr. “I love you, you know,” she said simply, meaning it just as much now as she had on the other occasions that she had made it plain.

Jane returned a hug and rested her blonde head against Corr’s dark hair. “I love you back,” she answered.

Best Friends Forever, thought Corr. Even if my forever is a little longer than Jane’s.

. . .