Project Equality

Family's First Christmas

Jenna

"Well, happy birthday, babe." Lynn had been Skyping Viktor that December first, since it was his birthday, and I was sitting there awkwardly, waiting to have her full attention. I needed her in order to plan our month appropriately, since she was the treasurer and all, but I couldn't do that with the so deemed "tag-along hottie" on the phone. So, I waited.

"Thanks. Tell Jen I said hey, but I've got to go. I'm about to Skype my parents, and then May wants to talk as well."

"Alright, Mr. Popularity, I'll let you go then. Bye."

"Bye."

"Finally," I sighed. "Lisa is going to be here in two minutes to discuss this, and you're not even mentally present. You're the mind we need, Lynn!"

"Baby," she groaned, "you know I love you more than Viktor, and I always will. Why do you get so jealous of our relationship?"

"I'm not jealous," I lied. "I just wish his birthday wasn't on the first of a month, because that takes away from Club planning time. You're our treasurer, we need your full attention."

"It's okay to be jealous," she sang.

"You don't get jealous of my other relationships," I grumbled.

"Not true," she countered. "You and Hazel drive me up a wall with your stupid 'Mom Squad' thing, but I don't say anything, because I know that having someone else be as overprotective and motherly as you in the group makes you happy."

The truth was I was a little jealous of all my friends at the moment. They all had boyfriends or girlfriends, and I was left out of a lot of their lives. I didn't know any single people anymore, and that was terrible. It doesn't take being aro to feel super left out when everyone else is with the love of their lives, you know?

A knock came to the door, so I went and got it. There stood Lisa with her planning sketchbook in hand, ready to work. "Come on in, Bug." Our code names didn't mean anything anymore - I'm not sure they ever did - but with some of us, they just had to stick around.

"Hey, Jen! So, tell me, what is our budget? I'm so excited for the holidays!"

"I wouldn't know, our money handler has spent the last hour with Mr. I Went To College In California," I replied bitterly.

"I'm excited for him to come back home, though," Lisa said. "He was always so fun to be around."

"You're not getting a crush, now, are you?" I double checked.

"I'm loyal to Mayella. You know that," she replied.

"You were loyal to Jacob, too, but you still liked Chris. And May, though you just didn't know that yet."

"I'm not like that anymore. I don't need to have that falling sensation of love, Jenna, because now I'm in it, wrapped in it, deeper in it every day, and that's a million times better than the initial infatuation. I love May, and I don't ever want to break up with her," she insisted.

Yeah, unfortunately the worst of their relationship trials had yet to come. "Okay, Lisa. If you truly believe. I just don't want May to get hurt."

"Neither do I," she agreed. "Hey, Lynn, got some numbers for us?"

"Sure thing, sugar, this is what we have to work with for the rest of 2016," Lynn replied, handing us her finance binder.

It wasn't as much as years past, but we couldn't expect it to be. We weren't being financed by the Canes anymore.

"We can make this work," I said. "We'll just have to make a lot of the things ourselves instead of buying. Any ideas, girls?"

"Well, if we all get each other gifts, we're going to go broke," Lisa started. "I mean, my birthday and Christmas presents combined was my camera, so I'd say the budget's a little tight. It is for, well, most of us."