What if the seven dwarfs never really existed and were just branches of Snow White's personality? Happy for the good days, Grumpy for the bad, Sneezy when under the weather and Bashful around that special someone. What if every time you looked into...
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"Happy birthday, Ava!"I said, as I saw her walking into class. She turned towards me with a warm smile on her face. "Thanks Elody! It was yesterday, actually, but thank you so much!"
I furrowed my brows in confusion. "Yesterday? I swear, Will told me it was on July 6th...."I trailed off. Ava nodded. "Yeah, today's the 7th."
I shook my head indignantly. "No, yesterday was the fifth. I'm sure of it. I couldn't have just slept through a day or something, right?" I laughed nervously.
Ava looked like she wanted to argue, but held herself back. "Oh wait, you're right. Nevermind, haha. Happy birthday to me!"
She looked so awkward when she said it that I was starting to feel guilty for putting her in a bad mood. Especially on her birthday. I was starting to grow concerned for her.
"Hey, wait, I got you a little something,"I called after her. She turned around, a puzzled smile on her face. "What? You didn't have to!"
I smiled. I knew I didn't have to, but like that would stop me! Although Ava and I weren't exactly close, she was now part of the group and that meant I had to make her feel welcome. This could be the start of something new.
"It's not much, but here,"I said, handing her the envelope full of cards. She took them out and eyed them one by one carefully.
"What are these?"she asked, an amused glint in her eye. I sincerely hoped she liked them and didn't think it was a childish idea. I just thought this could help strengthen our friendship somehow.
"One of those typical last-minute gifts you make for your mom,"Will said, joining us. I laughed. "Precisely."
"You have five coupons in all,"I said, taking the cards from her hand and explaining them to the both of them. "Use this when you want my food," I said, and Ava looked impressed. "This one's going to come in handy,"she mused.
"Use this when you want me to do your homework,"I said, and her mouth opened in surprise. "No way, this is the best gift ever. I'm going to be a great mom to you, I promise,"she said, and Will and I laughed.
"Use this when you want me to lie to cover for you,"I said, reading the next one. Ava put her hand under her chin in thought. "Use this when you need me to tell you something,"I said, and Ava turned towards Will. "Man, she's a keeper."
"And finally, use this when you need me to do something for you. Remember, all these coupons are valid only once, so use them wisely,"I winked.
Ava gave me a big hug, which was rare coming from her. She usually avoided physical contact. "Thank you so, so much! You're so thoughtful, Elody."
I always felt like I had a strong emotional connection with Ava. Although we rarely interacted, I felt like I'd known her my whole life. She was one of those people I felt close to without reason and who I could trust with anything. I never told her this, but I really wanted to be close friends with her.
Before I could respond to her, however, Ace called a group meeting. A group meeting was something we had once in a while when one of us had some big news to share with the rest. Nothing was more important than group meetings and if anyone prioritized something else over them, they'd be shunned for the whole day. Yes, it's happened before.
"Guys, this is really important to me and I'd appreciate it if you could support me and love me the same after what I'm about to tell you,"Ace started, and this was a rather deep start from someone who was hardly ever serious.
"I've been meaning to tell you since the moment I knew for sure, but something always held me back. For one, it was because of what I'd done to Stacy-"here, he looked at Stacy and she gave him a reassuring smile, as if to tell him that he was doing a good job. "For another, it was because I was afraid of your reactions. That's probably really silly of me to say because I trust you all completely and know for sure that I couldn't hope for better friends. I really do love all of you."
Normally, this would be Ace's cue to burst out laughing and shout, "Wow that was the sappiest thing I have ever said! Give me a better dare next time, will ya?" But he did no such thing. He remained calm and composed for a few seconds, eyeing us each individually, then said:
"I'm gay."
There were no gasps, no large intakes of air, nothing. Silently, we all pulled in closer and had a nice, long group hug. I could tell from Ace's face that our reaction was exactly what he had wanted.
"I'm so proud of you for coming out,"Stacy said, kissing his cheek. I marveled at her strength. Despite having feelings for him once, despite all the memories they made together, she was happy for him. I loved her for that.
"I told you they'd be supportive,"Will said, giving him a side hug. The two of them had become really close within the span of a week and it was rather unbelievable. Geeky, quiet Will and loud and obnoxious Ace, now inseparable.
"Actually, guys... I have something to say as well,"Emma said, instantly snapping all heads in her direction. I was a bit annoyed with her for stealing Ace's thunder like that, but she probably had something huge to get off her chest if she was interrupting his moment. The expressions on my friends' faces told me they thought the same.
Ace looked at Emma, concerned, as if he were asking her silently whether this was a good idea or not. She nodded her head once, subtly, and smiled a little. "I think this is a better time than any. If my best friend had the courage to come out to you all today, then I think it's time for me to do that too. Here, standing before you, is a happy and immensely proud lesbian."
This time, we did gasp. Loudly. Emma noticed how surprised we were and laughed nervously. "What? How else do you think Ace and I remained best friends for so long without either of us developing feelings for each other?"
Ralph was the first to break the stunned silence. "Wow. Em, you have no idea how proud we are of you."
I nodded my head in agreement. "I'm so happy for both of you! No wonder you haven't had a boyfriend. I knew there had to be a reason you rejected so many guys."
Throughout this whole exchange, only one person was silent: Ava. She looked at Emma and said, "That's why."
Just those two words, but Emma seemed to understand. She reached in to hug Ava and quietly said that she'd explain everything later. I was the only one who heard their conversation, since everyone else was busy talking to Ace or amongst themselves. I looked at Emma. "Tell her what?" I whispered, slightly betrayed that she was keeping this from me. Riley, Elody, Stacy, Ashley, Emma, Thea and I rarely kept any secrets from each other. We were a close knit girl gang, and we liked to tell each other everything because it was easier that way.
No secrets meant no drama. That was all we needed, but we hardly ever got that.
"I'll tell you too, Elle,"she said, using the nickname she only ever used when she was being serious with me. I nodded back and smiled.
That day couldn't have been any better. Two of my best friends had come out into the open about their feelings. No more did they have to hide behind a mask and pretend to be who society defined them to be.
Love was love.
A/N Here's a chapter dedicated to Pride Month and the LGBTQ+ Community all over the world. Show your support by voting and commenting <3
