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SUMMER BOARDED down the suburban backstreet that morning, heading for the quarry. Her faded purple tee, blaring the logo 'STARRY', was slightly too tight and left a sad strip of bare skin exposed between the hem and her shorts.
She was excited.
She was in the poorer part of the neighbourhood, but she wasn't that far from the quarry, and she was a little late to meet them all there. Hopefully they wouldn't be in the water yet.
"Summer! Hey!"
Summer skidded to a stop, her sneaker hitting the pavement with a sudden smack. She whirled around to see Beverly Marsh, now with very short hair, waving and smiling. She'd just come out of an apartment a few numbers down.
Beverly was on her bike, and she pedaled toward her. Summer saw Bev's bike was a lot like her own t-shirt. Too small.
However, Beverly was gorgeous. She'd cut her long, wavy hair off, but she was so stunning it made Summer feel kind of plain. She pulled a little at the bottom of her shirt.
"I like your hair," Summer offered, and Beverly looked surprised for a split second. "Hm?"
"Thanks," Beverly smiled softly, but it was sort of sad. "You're going to the quarry, right?"
"Yeah," Summer responded. "I'm guessing you are too?"
Beverly nodded. "Bill never told me a time, so I just hoped this was the right one."
"Well your timing is deadly." Summer reassured her.
"Hey, um," Beverly bit her lip. "Can I ask a personal question?"
Summer glanced up to meet her gaze, matching the other redhead's blue eyes with her own. "Sure."
"Um," Beverly gestured in a vague downwards direction. "Have you got, like, you know, yet?"
Summer's eyes widened in realization, but she nodded. "Yeah, a couple months ago."
"Well, how often do you change.. it?"
Summer's heart felt warm despite the topic of conversation. Someone was asking her for advice, actively engaging her.
"Um, twice, maybe three times a day?" Summer shrugged. "I kinda had to teach myself."
The look on Beverly's face conveyed she was in a similar situation.
"Beverly." Summer turned to look the other redhead directly in the eye. "If you ever need any, and I mean any help with girl stuff, you can come to me." She lay a hand on the girl's arm. "I won't judge."
Beverly rushed at her, wrapping her arms tightly around her. Stunned, Summer raised her arms to hug the girl (who she had just met yesterday) back.
