JUST FRIENDS

o9

Gemstones.

Brazil looked in the bathroom mirror backstage at the Red Room preparing for her performance, admiring the cherry lingerie set Blu suggested she wear. He said her eyes looked like gemstones when she wore the color red, especially that specific shade and Maze, like the intimidated little girl she was, sucked her teeth.

He was right, though.

Brazil admired her reflection, relishing the silence as everyone was almost always in the changing room, the bathroom was her little slice of peace. Her perfect escape. It was clean, smelled like strawberries, big enough and quiet enough to leave echoes that resounded three times over.

The best part was that the mirrors were floor to ceiling, giving her the advance she needed to obsess over herself unabashedly. She smiled and kissed the glass where her mouth was, leaving a lipstick stain as a parting gift.

Her hips swayed as she sauntered over to the back room again, this time paying close attention to the engagements between Blu and Maze. Something was off. And from all of her snooping this morning, her bet was that Maze had found out about the pretty girl from earlier- the interviewer who was so clearly attracted to Blu.

To the blind eye, the two best friends were operating cordially- a muted conversation here, a courtesy laugh there, corny jokes and a sprinkle of awkward tension between them, but to Brasilia, they were tiptoeing around each other, testing the waters. If the lines didn't blur a little bit between those two, it was up for questioning.

She watched observantly when he oiled Maze down effectively but hastily, his fingers gliding over her curves instead of sinking into them like they normally did- that was all the confirmation she needed. He was touching her like she was just another girl.

Babs walked up, knowing she shouldn't be sneaking backstage but always breaking that rule anyway. Her locs were twisted in a low ponytail. "Is it me or are they acting weird?"

"No, it's them. They're finally acting the way friends should: platonically."

She twisted her head to the side with her hand under her chin in question, "Is that what that looks like?"

Brazil laughed, "Surprisingly, yes."

"Hmm." She shrugged her shoulders. "You know, as close as those two are, you would think it'd be easy for them to communicate something so obvious."

"What? That they're clearly head over heels for one another?"

"Yeah, like...?"

"Right? But I know Maze. I know the type of girl she is. She keeps her pretty glass heels on hearts, she's fickle. She's noncommittal, incredibly competitive, manipulative-"

"Damn, go off."

"All of that but it's like she's... I don't know, irresistible. And silly, extremely fun and wild. It's like when you first meet her, she weaves you into this web where you can't leave. But the thing is, you don't want to."

Babs nodded but Brazil knew that she couldn't understand. She wasn't apart of that web, she had her own life and responsibilities, her own obligations. Babs was the friend of a friend, who could come and go into the equation as she saw fit.

Brazil continued. "Maze wouldn't be able to take a love like that serious without fucking it up. She'd break his heart, Blu out of all people. She can't help herself."

"You think so?"

"I do."

Babs opened her arms wide in surrender."You gotta give my girl more credit than that."