Ready? Not Really.. (Fem USUK) •IN EDITING•

Maddie

"Ahh... you suck."
"I know, Birdie, but you just can't beat me." I rolled my eyes and pushed forward a few of the jelly beans that I had in a pile beside me. Gil brightened and happily took them from me, popping a red one in her mouth as she waved her winning hand of cards in the air. "Suck it!"
Playing blackjack with her was probably not my best idea, but I guess it was safer when money wasn't involved. "It's just a game."
"That I'm winning!"
"Whatever. I'm still learning." Gil snorted but said nothing, taking the cards from my hand and shuffling them back into the deck.
It was a nice day outside, but Gil and I couldn't really enjoy it since the sun was beating down especially hard that afternoon despite the cool temperatures. Her skin was pretty fragile since it lacked so much melanin, so we couldn't exactly have a date outside without Gil sunburning. I didn't really mind. I was used to that little issue in our relationship, and I liked being in the air conditioning, anyways. I was pretty sure I saw Amelia's car leave the parking lot that was visible from my window, but I didn't say anything about it. Gil would've told me I was being paranoid, and besides, it wasn't fair to her to waste our time together worrying about my sister.
"Two cards for me," she said, interrupting my thoughts. "And two for the prettiest and most amazing girl in the entire world." I smiled and shook my head. Gil leaned forward and pecked me on the lips as she slid my cards in front of me. I'm pretty sure she took another jelly bean in the process.
"You're a little thief, you know that?" I flipped over both of my cards, and immediately Gil reached over and fixed them while muttering some rule that she wasn't supposed to see both of my cards.
She tilted her head when she sat back up. "A thief because I stole your heart?" I raised my eyebrows. I could literally see her chewing on my candy.
"Sure."
"Cool."
My phone buzzed a few times. My girlfriend looked up at me expectantly. "You gonna answer that?" She asked, unimpressed that I had forgotten to silence it.
"Sorry!" I said, picking up my phone and checking my messages.
Ames: duuuude
Ames: ally is in dance practice
Ames: she's super hot btw
Ames: it should be illegal for her to wear tights and a leotard
Ames: help
Ames: call 911 im dying
I sighed in annoyance and responded.
You: my god, Amelia. relax for once
You: unless you actually, like, make a move in the next fifteen minutes, don't text me about Alice for a while. I need a break
I turned my phone on mute and threw it on my bed. I looked back at Gil, who was looking at me expectantly. "It was just Amy being Amy."
She smiled cheekily. "How dare Amy act Amy-like? Who does she think she is?" I giggled and pushed her shoulder. "You gonna draw a card or..?"
"Oh, shoot, right." I picked up a card and immediately regretted it. "Yeah, I got over twenty-one or whatever."
"Ha! I had eighteen!" Gil grinned and took more of my jelly beans. "More for me!"
I grumbled to myself.
The door swung open as Gil sat back up, scaring the hell out of her. She fell onto her side and screeched. "Fuck me!"
"Ah, no thank you."
I stiffened at the sound of my cousin's voice. "Fran?"
She stood in the doorway, her shoulder leaning against the wall. "Madeline. Gillian."
Gil perked up at the sight of her friend. "Aw, Fran! What's up?" She jumped up and bounced around Fran. "Where have you been? I haven't seen you anywhere!"
Fran smiled at Gil and put her arm around my girlfriend's shoulders. "I've been taking a short vacation from the drama in this school, if you know what I mean. It gets overwhelming."
I frowned. "You caused, like, eighty percent of that drama."
My cousin stared at me blankly. "I didn't do anything that I wouldn't normally do."
I got up, organizing the deck of cards in my hands nervously so that I would have something to fidget with. "You did sort of crush my sister and everything." I shrugged. "You know, that's an issue."
Fran rubbed the bridge of her nose. "It's always about Amelia, isn't it?"
I raised my eyebrows. "Excuse me?" I was slightly offended at the way she just indirectly insulted my sister.
"I just mean..." Fran shook her head and waved her hand for emphasis. "No one even bothered to ask how I felt about anything. It's always Amelia and occasionally Alice, but never me or anyone else, you know? I understand that your sister is upset and that my friend is unsure of everything, but I feel those things, too." She brushed her hair away from her face. "How do you know I'm not going insane over the whole Alice-Amelia thing? It sickens me to even think of them as one joint person..." Fran frowned, and her wall that she had built for herself started to crumble. "After all that Alice and I have been through, and she still prefers the company of a girl that taught everyone to hate her."
Gil and I exchanged a look. I wasn't sure what to say. Of course I supported my sister, but then I had to support my best friend. And then my cousin. It was pretty hard to be neutral with three separate opinions on one event. They each perceived it a different way, and I didn't know who to side with anymore. "Alice has had a crush on Amelia for as long as I can remember," I reminded Fran. "You should've known that when you walked into this."
"I did, and yet..." she paused and looked up at the ceiling. "I think it would be best for me to go."
I blinked. "Oh, uh, okay. I mean, you could go think this over and everything-"
"That's not what I meant," Fran said. She smoothed her hair back in visible frustration.
"Then what do you-?"
"I meant me going back to France."
My eyes widened. Gil's mouth dropped open, and she stared up at her friend in horror. "Franny, my compadre, you can't just leave me. We were going to search for a new member of our group and start a trio, remember? We had all this shit planned and-"
Fran smiled sadly. "Ah, but you can do that yourself, non?"
"'Non,' I really can't," Gil said mournfully. "I need you. We've been friends since forever..."
My cousin hugged her and kissed my girlfriend on both of her cheeks. "And we still will be." She grabbed her by the shoulders. "I can always visit."
"Who are you going to stay with?" I asked.
Fran looked thoughtful. "My parents have been considering the move for a while. They didn't want to leave me to attend school in America if they weren't here to make sure I was safe. If I tell them I am willing to move then..." she shrugged. "I have been thinking about it, as well. I just thought maybe it was for the best. A fresh start. Turning a new leaf, as they say" She smiled at me. "I was just going to tell Alice before I do anything. I'll pick her up from practice and discuss it then." Fran turned away from us. "It won't be right away," she called over her shoulder. "Probably not until the end of the school year, anyways. It's for the best." And with that, she walked away.
I stared at Gil. She still stood in the doorway, unsure of how to react to the news. I walked over and laid my head on her shoulder. "You okay?" I asked softly. She nodded slowly.
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm cool." Gil rested her head on mine. "I'm okay."
I kissed her on the neck. "Okay."
I led her over to my bed and pulled her down beside me. Gil sat down with a plop. "I think I'm gonna just take a nap, Birdie," she said. "Just.. yeah, fuck it." She turned onto her side so I couldn't see her face. I frowned, but didn't disturb her. Gil had her own way of handling things. It was best I didn't push her too much.
As she fell asleep, I picked up my phone and checked my texts.
Ames: you suck
Ames: worst twin ever
Ames: this dude parks like a blind grandma
Ames: he has a pretty ugly car too
Ames: well... not a dude jk
Ames: wait is that
Ames: what is francine doing here
Ames: maddie
Ames: is she
Ames: is she looking for ally
Ames: what the fuck
Ames: holy shit
Oh.
Oh, right.
I forgot the whole issue with Fran going to pick up Alice.
Amelia was already there.