An Unlikely Connection: Part 3

Chapter 3: Confusion

On my day off, Kaga surprised me with a phone call. She wanted to hang out in a place of my choosing. I intended to spend the day by myself, but if Yosefin wanted me or needed anything, I'd answer the call.

Kaga and I spent a few hours of the afternoon at her house, catching up on the last time we saw each other.

"How did things go with you and Yosefin?" Kaga said. "I hope you two are still friends."

"Don't judge me," I said. "But..."

"She's your girlfriend. Good."

"Good?" I said after nearly choking on my spit I gulped.

"You heard me. It's good you're together." I didn't understand what she meant until she broke it down layer by layer of what she saw in Yosefin and me. "You guys were way too close to not be. What made you resist her?"

"I didn't feel like I was a worthy pick," I said.

"How did you become worth it in the end?"

"She," I said, elongating the word to prepare myself for the truth. "She reminded me of how much I adored her."

"That's all it took?"

"Yes, but it took a while."

"I hope you are happy." Happy was a weak word to describe. I felt at ease, content, glad, and filled with intense emotion for love. Never in my life would I think boring me could have a chance at getting a girlfriend.

"I am."

Later that day, I had urges to talk to Yosefin. I tried keeping my mind occupied by going through my gallery with tons of pictures of us. Unfortunately, it fueled the urges. I hid my phone under blankets to get away. The decision lasted a minute. I called.

"Hey, I couldn't stop thinking about you. How was work?" I said. The first noise that came out of her mouth was a sigh followed by two sniffs. "I'm coming over."

"No," she said. "I was just about to come see you."

Yosefin came earlier than I expected. Either she was on the move or drove fast. She was wearing her uniform apron and cap. Her eyes, nose, and parts of her face were red. She wasn't wearing any piercings or makeup. I immediately took her by the hand to my room. Her grip was tight. She didn't let me go until we sat on the bed.

"I'm listening," I said.

One hour after Yosefin finished working, she had a half-hour argument with Teagan over Yosefin's mutations. Teagan couldn't understand why Yosefin chose not to take medical steps to prevent her body from changing. Yosefin told her she wasn't sure how far the mutations would go. Her doctors didn't know what to say or do at the time during the years. She accepted her new appearance once she figured it wasn't bad. Teagan thought acceptance was a stupid decision. According to her absurd way of thinking, Yosefin should take all the offers from her personal and surgical doctors to remove all traces of the mutations. During those phases, she quoted how Yosefin was scared of what was happening to her. Then, she asked her if she had thoughts of living a life without them.

"What did you say?" I said.

"I did," Yosefin said. "Quite a lot." Last year before I asked her, she wondered what would happen if she reverted to her original appearance. She shortened her hair in part because of it. It didn't disrupt her beautiful appearance to me, but it gave her a glimpse of what could be. "Josh, I feel so conflicted."

"Don't be. Your cousin is tripping."

"Is she?"

"Yes," I said and took off her uniform. "You made something beautiful out of your mutations. Look at your arms." She gazed up and down, checking each tattoo on each arm. I pulled back on her pants where her ass crack was and said, "Don't forget this one."