𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 - 𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐃𝐮𝐧𝐩𝐡𝐲

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍 - 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐊𝐈𝐒𝐒

"HALEY, HONEY, I need you to do something for me," Claire said, walking into the living room where Haley and Athena were sitting. Athena held a book in her hands while her legs were draped across Haley's lap and Haley held a magazine, her arms propped up on Athena's legs.

"Mom, my arm hurts," Haley groaned. Athena pouted and nodded, grabbing Haley's limp arm and waving it around.

"Why don't you find out what it is before you start making up excuses to get out of it."

"Okay," Haley sighed. "What is it?"

"I need you to talk to your sister," Claire told her while she folded a blanket. "I think there's something going on with her and a boy."

"So?"

"So? I am your mother, and it is my job to make sure that you girls don't get involved with a predator."

"You gotta stop watching Dateline, Claire," Athena told the woman, finally looking up from the book. "And why can't you just talk to her?"

"I have tried to talk to her," Claire defended herself. "She won't talk to me. You know that."

"That's cause you get so weird every time a boy comes near us," Haley told her.

"I just don't want you girls to --"

"To make the same mistakes you did?" Haley guessed.

"No!" Haley gave her a look. "No."

"Mom, I'm not an idiot. I pick up on things and I don't think you were the good girl you pretend you were."

"Wow. That is so untrue. I was a very good girl," Claire said. Athena gave her a look, knowing she was lying.

"Do we actually have to talk to her," Haley asked as her and Athena walked up the stairs.

"I think so," Athena responded, grabbing Haley's hand. Haley groaned but kept walking.

"So I hear you have a boyfriend," Haley said, poking her head through Alex's doorway.

"No, I don't," Alex told her.

"Girlfriend?" Athena tried.

"No."

"Do you have anybody?" Alex shook her head. "Then what am I doing here?"

"Who are they?" Haley asked. She decided against using 'him' just in case. I mean, she never saw herself having a girlfriend but look at her now.

"I'm not talking to you guys about this."

"Oh, come on You're finally interesting. Just tell me."

"He's not my boyfriend. It's Jeremy Reed," Alex told them. "He's just -- He's just this boy that I --"

"Love?" Athena asked, getting ahead of herself.

"No."

"Have you kissed him yet?"

"No!"

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Haley asked.

"I'm not waiting. I'm 13."

"And you've never kissed anybody?"

"How old were you guys?"

"Like, 11. And it was beautiful," Haley said, taking a seat next Alex while Athena sat across from them in Alex's desk chair. "I was in Jackson Kaner's carpeted garage."

"Eleven?" Alex asked. "What about you, Thea?"

"Probably your age," Athena responded. "It was really gross. He had a lot of saliva in his mouth." She grimaced, thinking back to that day.

"Hey, honey," Claire greeted Alex as she tried to sneakily come in the back door. "Where'd you go?"

"Nowhere. Just for a bike ride."

"Oh, my god. Please tell me this text is wrong," Haley said, walking into the kitchen and standing near the counter where Athena was cutting them up some apples. "Did you really go over to that kid's house and try and kiss him in front of a million people?"

"What?" Athena asked, her knife slipping and grazing her thumb but it was just enough that it left a tiny cut. "Ow! Shit."

"Are you okay?" Haley asked her, walking over and grabbing her hand to examine the ingury.

"I'm fine."

"I'm gonna go grab some Band-Aids, stay here," Haley told her before walking off to the bathroom while Claire questioned Alex.

"Alex, did you do that?"

"You got a text?" Alex asked Haley as she walked back into the room.

"Oh, yeah. Everybody knows," Haley told her, cleaning Athena's thumb and placing a Band-Aid on it. "Do you know how embarrassing this is for me?"

"This is all your fault," Alex shouted at her. "You're the one who said I had to kiss him or I was a lesbian." Athena glared at Haley, not remembering her saying that.

"Being a lesbian isn't a bad thing, Haley," Athena said.

"Haley, did you say that to her?" Claire asked.

"Oh, don't turn this on me. Look at her shoes."

"I'm never going back to school now."

"No, sweetheart. Yes, you are. You are going back to school. But listen to me. Just because a boy sends you flirty texts doesn't mean you --"

"What? You read my texts?"

"You read her texts? That's why you made me talk to her?" Haley shouted.

"You made her talk to me?"

"I kind of feel like we're spinning out here a little bit," Claire said. "Look, Alex, the important thing here is that you have to be very careful how you behave around boys, because it's so easy to get a reputation."

"Well, I'm sorry I'm not a perfect little girl like you were."

"Girl gets the bad reputation, boy gets the good reputation. Classic," Athena muttered, rolling her eyes. "I'm gonna head home. There's too much happening here for me."

Athena walked out of the kitchen to grab her bag from Haley's room. She could hear the thump of her girlfriends footsteps behind her but she ignored them.

"Thea!" Haley whined catching up to her when they reached her room. "I'm sorry."

"Haley, do you know how long it took me to accept that I was a lesbian? I don't want to hear it be used as an insult. I might be overreacting but I spent years hating myself, the least people could do is not use my sexuality as a bad thing."

"You're right. I'm sorry," Haley sighed. "I love you and I'm sorry I hurt you like that."

"I love you too," Athena said, walking over to her and wrapping her arms around Haley's waist while Haley's went around Athena's neck. "Just think a little more before you speak." Haley nodded and pressed her lips to Athena's.

"Are you still going home?"

"Yeah. You could always come with me, though. Get away from this crazy house."

"Definitely. Take me away, Prince Charming," Haley joked.

Athena laughed before squatting down and picking Haley up bridal styles, making the girl laugh as she was carried out to Athena's car.

I decided not to do the rest of the episode and just end on that cute moment. also something i've been thinking about is people using lesbian as an "insult". idk just something to add a bit of realism to Athena's character