Under The Nautical Star (Lesbian, GxG)

Four

Maud Gonne's the focus of the next club meeting. She's been listed as a local beauty at some point, and I can see why. And I never knew before today that she did a lot more than just be the inspiration of some Irish poet in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

"She was a suffragette, revolutionist, AND a damn good actress," Claire reads from her phone. Her eyes were dark. "Yeats could have mentioned any of her achievements in any of those poems he wrote about her, but no. He had to focus on the fact she was good-looking."

Cassie shrugs. "Well, at least she's recognized on history as someone who got shit done," she mentions. "It wasn't as if Yeats was the only reason we know about her."

"True." Claire puts her phone away and relaxes as if she wasn't just rigid in anger minutes before. 

Looking over the list, Cassie asks if everyone put their name on it. When the last member puts her info down, the club leader makes an attempt to get everyone's attention. It takes another girl to shout for us to look at Cassie.

She holds up the paper. "Okay, I'm gonna pass it around again, but this time you're writing your initials on the line of who you want to give," she says. "I shouldn't have to say this, but if someone's taken, you can't choose that person."

"In other words, like a relationship," I hear someone mutter.

Cassie hears her, too, judging by the face she makes when she's holding back a laugh. She doesn't comment, though. I wouldn't know how to respond to that, if I were in her position.

The paper goes around, with each member putting her initials by someone's. Now and then that someone would high-five her Santa and say a light "don't disappoint me". I don't even hesitate to put my initials next to Teegan's line when the paper comes my way. As vague as her request is, I'm sure I can work with it. Maybe.

Once everyone's partnered up, Cassie puts it aside and brings up Maud Gonne for the rest of the meeting. I'm one of the few members who doesn't participate in the conversation. Mostly because I have homework.

An assignment I have to do is for math. Knowing where my strengths are, I pull out my phone for the calculator app. Oh, I apparently got a text from Mick last night. How did I miss it?

I open the text. She sent the link to the Google doc where she wrote the Party Pledge. Call her ridiculous as you please; I've witnessed the scenes that served as reasons for the pledge to be written in the first place. 

The good thing is I know how to efficiently get two hours old beer stains out of the carpet in less than twenty minutes.

I glance up to where Teegan is. "Hey," I call.

"You talking to me?" She hasn't looked up from her typing. 

"Yeah. Got any plans on the 21st?"

Her fingers stop moving. She raises an eyebrow. "Depends."

Folding my hands together, I explain, "There's gonna be a party at, um, Mick's house. I thought maybe you'd like to go?"

Teegan doesn't say anything. She crosses her arms. "Can you remind me who Mick is?" she inquires.

I do. "About your height, wears her basketball jersey on game days, Japanese..."

It already clicks in her head at the mention of the jersey. "Yeah, I should have figured. Aren't you guys close to the hip?"

Even the most unobservant teacher at the school can tell how close Mick and I are. Still, it makes me happy that Teegan noticed. 

"Honestly, there's this thing I'm supposed to go to," she admits. "You have no idea how many excuses I've thought of using to get out of it."

Does this mean...? 

Kaydee, calm the fuck down for once. 

"I can come. I don't care if the party ends up being a ritual with chanting and donating some virgin blood to the center of a circle."

"Funny you should say that." When Teegan does a double-take, I amend, "I meant the chanting! Swear to God, nothing else."

She puts a hand over her heart. "Way to scare me, damn. Could have said it another way."

Pulling up the Google Doc, I hand her my phone. "Mick's cautious with who her guests are for now, so if you don't mind reading the whole thing and then saying the last thing out loud."

The screen glares at her as she puts it closer to her face so she can read what's on there. I should text Mick to change the font size. "Do all of her guests have to do this?"

I nod. "Even I had to, and I was the one who helped with the writing."

"Of course you did." There's no sarcasm detected. 

She skims the page, and then reads it again, this time more thoroughly. I scan my math book for any problems I can solve without the calculator, because I honestly forgot until now I needed the phone for a reason. 

There's one. Out of thirty-five. Okay then.

"So... I just read the last line out loud?" Teegan asks, seconds before I finish the problem.

I nod, not looking up.

She shakes her head in disbelief. "Alright," she mutters. In a louder voice she reads, "I, Teegan Zuniga, promise to know where my tolerance is by how good of an idea naked beer pong is, accept the host's gracious offer to pour my drinks in sippy cups if I prove to her I'm not fit to drink like an adult, and to leave the house as if I was never there."

McKenzie pulls away from her Game Boy long enough for a "wtf did I just hear?" facial expression.

"Are Mick's parties this wild?" Teegan asks me, ignoring McKenzie.

"Not anymore, as you can see." I make an attempt to smile, but her position - usually laid back - has tightened. I then add, "If you all of the sudden don't want to go, I understand."

She scoffs. "I'd rather take the chances of being known as the girl who drank beer out of baby cups," she tells me. "Trust me, you'll see me there."

In my near future, I'm predicting my time at the party being spent staring at her from afar. And maybe strike up a conversation that leads to making out.

The phone back in my hand now, I pull up the calculator and get to business on my homework.