MARBLE & SALT (Lesbian)

Chapter 23 (Part 2) WHEN THE CLOSET IS TOO DARK, AND IT'S SO HARD TO COME OUT

"This is Hebe," I didn't come up with a simpler name.

We already had time to hug and kiss with my parents in the hall. Hebe and I set on a soft sofa, patterned in simple tiny flowers, in my parents' small living room.

"What a cool name. Your parents must be mythology fans!" Dad chuckled in a friendly way.

"Vitya, you'd better make some tea and bring my cupcakes for the girls," said mama.

"Yes, mein General!" He saluted in a military way.

"Oh, please! Not again when we have guests," she looked irritated, but I knew she was hardly hiding her smirk.

"I absolutely agree with you, Viktor Pavlovitch, my parents are definitely unique," Hebe gave him her radiant, genuine smile.

"Just like mine..." I grunted, remembering how much I suffered with my name in school and kindergarten.

"Stop grumbling, Velia!" mama sniffed. "You have a beautiful rare name here! Was it better to be another Masha-Dasha?"

"You're right," Hebe said. "Evelina is an amazing name. My favorite. Desired..."

"Excuse me?" mama asked in surprise.

"Desired. Some sources say it possibly means 'desired' in Ancient Germanic," answered Hebe naively.

"You are both definitely two future linguists!" mama said with pride in her voice. I knew Velia would prosper and have great future."

"Yeah, I love etymology, and Evelina definitely deserves only prosperity. She's very skillful..." she murmured, touching my knee.

I blushed like Hebe's red lipstick. She looked stunning that day. When I woke up in the morning, she was already dressed with glowing makeup on her face. Olive cigarette trousers, oversized blazer... She displayed her muscled abs in an expensive material croptop, decent enough to wear for parents' meeting. A little timeless handbag, double flap in caviar leather, on her knees screamed: Look at me, plebs: I'm Lady Coco!

Dad entered the living room with tea and sweets. He noticed what Hebe did. For a second it seemed to me that he understood everything. I held my breath as if preparing for the worst, but my father smiled again.

"We do it family style here, so Hebochka, just dig in," he said with a kind chuckle, but his countenance seemed to be a bit perplexed.

***

"Dad, I've brought the cups," I said to him, stretching out my hand with two cups hanging on my index finger.

Dad was washing the dishes as usual.

"Have you had a fight with Dasha?" he asked unexpectedly.

"Not really." I'm a bad liar.

"She called your ma when we were at your aunt's. She said that you had disappeared and didn't reply the messages. Your ma, of course, shared the happy scholarship news with her in a very spiteful and triumphant manner. I know, your ma is not her big fan, but you could have told (not only ma and I) your best friend everything before you had decided to move. Didn't you tell Dashka anything about the scholarship?"

I dropped my eyes.

"Whatever happened between you two, I'm sure everything could be fixed. You are such good friends."

"Maybe not as good as I thought, pa," I sighed. "I and Hebe are seeing her later today."

"Hebe... She seems like such a nice girl."

"Yes. She's very special." I looked up at him. It seemed to me that he understood everything about my feelings for her; I wanted to say more, but the fear of disappointing him and my mother made my tongue go numb.

He suddenly hugged me, his yellow rubber gloves made my back wet. It wasn't a joking kind of embrace as usual, but he did it as if he saw me for the last time.

"Come on, paaa... I'm not going to Pluto," I was embarrassed, and touched, and a little scared.

"Please, take care of yourself, and don't tell your ma about this; she is already sure that I'm too soft."

"She already knows that you are henpecked," I laughed, snuggling closer to him.

In another life, everything would be different, but not where I was born. In another life, I wouldn't have to lie.

I'll call you very soon. Don't worry, ma and pa, I love you so much. I'll be careful, I promise...

***

We were walking slowly along the hot street. I refused to use the mirror to enter my apartment. My eyes were red as if I was about to cry, and my back was hunched. Hebe asked me to take my violet luggage suitcase; I refused, but she still took its long telescopic handle when I stumbled again on a smooth asphalt road.

"Are you sure you want to come with me? I don't think Dasha is at home right now. I'll just take a few things."

"I would like to help you with these things. I will do my best to help you. I will do absolutely everything." Hebe almost let go of the handle too.

"I can go back here later, can't I?" I asked thoughtfully, looking at the old iron swing that was roasting in the summer sun all alone. Two girls of about ten were sitting in front of it; they were playing with the phone. It was very quiet in the yard, even the noise of the cars behind the building seemed to be something that did not belong to this world. Everything was as usual: people, houses, trees; only I was different, and I will never be the same.

Hebe hastened to assure me that I was not a hostage in the residence, and I would be able to call or visit my parents as much as I want, and very-very soon I would visit them without her supervision, when I got a little magical knowledge. In response, I kept on nodding, watching the sparrow jumping at the girls' feet, but they did not notice him. Here he is, very close to them, but invisible at the same time.

The old elevator had plastic interior panels faking wood; some of the panels exhibited classic street art inscription "Lena is a stupid loser" that immortalized poor Lena for many years. The elevator climbed creaking and gasping like an old man would climb uphill.

We stopped just before the door. I glanced nervously at myself. I wasn't sure why, but I really wanted to impress Dasha if she was at home. I understood that I had changed, and it was not the sudden appearance of my weaves, but the fact that the expression on my face was different, a little stricter than it used to be.

"You look great," Hebe said quietly.

"Are you sure no one saw our weaves? I don't know how to become invisible like you."

"Don't worry, the stone rune that I put in your summer dress pocket is sure to make the weaves insignificant. They are seen, but not important for humans."

I straightened my long floral dress in which I looked like Flora herself in Botticelli painting.

"Let's go into," I said resolutely.