Ink Stains

Chapter 10

“Why is it I don’t care that we almost got caught by the police?” Asher let out a relieved sigh, glancing back at Sansa and me as he drove a quiet route to Sansa’s house.

Sansa groaned in the back seat, clutching her head with disdain. “I feel awful and on top of that, my car is still at Tom’s house.”

“Oh god, I didn’t realize she’s drunk,” I muttered to Asher as I slipped into the back. “She’s not the type to drink.”

Guiding Sansa’s wobbling head to my lap, I smoothed out her hair. “What’s Val’s problem anyway?” she slurred, trying to escape my grasp on her without success.

Through the rear view mirror, I saw Asher grimace before turning back to the road. “Valerie is just hanging out with Derrick,” he responded simply. He sent me a pointed look.

“She’s practically ignoring me,” Sansa snorted. “Seriously, I’ve given her so much over these years and she doesn’t even caaare.”

I gazed out of the window, watching the houses blur with the street lights. Sansa had never acted upon drunken impulses in her life; this was her first time ever binge drinking to overcome the pain. “They say that alcohol is supposed to wash all troubles away, but they seem to be piling on for you.”

“It’s not the alcohol’s fault, silly,” Sansa giggled while drawing shapes with her fingers in midair. “It’s Valerie’s fault for never seeing my real feelings for her.”

“What do you mean?”

Sansa coughed, spitting out chunks of some unknown food onto the mess of Asher’s car floor. “I looove Valerie more than Tom could ever love her. We accidentally kissed once,” she paused for a second to laugh without control. “I wasn’t supposed to tell you that, said Valerie.”

“And you doubted my ability to correctly identify a longing gaze,” Asher told me cockily.

I frowned, ignoring Asher’s smug attitude. “Did you tell her?”

“No, sillllly. She’s my best friend. Girls aren’t supposed to fall in love with their best frands.”

Asher turned the corner, parking in front of Sansa’s empty home. Her single mother was always out of the house working on business trips. Since her older sister had left for college, Sansa had been left by herself and a little husky puppy named Ninny. “Do you want to make sure she gets in there safely, or should I?”

“We’ll both go,” I offered, guiding Sansa out of the car.

Asher joined me and took her other side as I punched in her garage code. “Your parents aren’t coming home tonight, are they?” Asher inquired with slight anxiety. “It would be awful for them to see you like this.”

“Her mom won’t be home,” I told him while Sansa drooled, falling asleep on my shoulder. “There’s usually nobody here for her.”

“No wonder she’s in love with Valerie. She must have been her only refuge,” Asher said sorrowfully.

We worked her carefully up the stairs, working one step at a time. “I thought you were against gays, I mean with the whole Catholic thing and all.”

Asher grimaced again as we reached the second floor. I pointed to the farthest door down, being Sansa’s carefully kept bedroom. “Well, before I used to think that it was the worst possible thing for humans to do. I later came to the conclusion that it had to be a sin, no worse than being jealous. That changed when I found out that my cousin in Portugal is gay. Most of my family turned away from him, but he’s been my closest friend for years. I could just let him go that easily. Now…I honestly don’t care who loves who. I’m more indifferent than anything else.”