capsize me and douse me in your bay

chapter nine

Toni unlocked the apartment door, unsure if she was relieved to be home or not. She was relieved to be back in the comfort and privacy of her own space, where she didn't have to worry about people giving her strange looks because of Cheryl. But on the other hand, after the kiss the redhead had planted on her earlier in the evening, she wasn't sure she was ready to talk to her about it just yet. And she knew that it was a conversation that couldn't just be swept under the rug and forgotten about. Especially not with someone like Cheryl. But thankfully Betty was staying the night while Veronica went back to Reggie's, so she wasn't going to be left completely alone with her.

"Thanks again for inviting me out with you guys," Betty smiled as she stepped into the apartment behind the other two girls, watching as Cheryl made a beeline straight for the kitchen.

"Of course. I'm sorry Veronica can be kind of overbearing. It just means she likes you, I guess," Toni chuckled. Veronica had taken Betty's phone to put her phone number in, telling the blonde that she was an "absolute doll" and told her that she was welcome to visit any time, even if Toni wasn't around. Toni had no idea how Veronica could possibly be in the market for more friends. It seemed like she was friends with half the city already.

"She's pretty cool," she smiled, watching as Cheryl came back out into the living space, already snacking on a jar of cherries as she went to sit cross-legged on the couch and turn the TV on.

While the redhead was distracted, Toni pulled Betty towards her bedroom down the hall, closing and locking the door behind her before she started to pace across the hardwood floors.

Meanwhile, Betty just looked on, confusedly, her eyebrows knit together. "What's wrong?"

"Cheryl kissed me," the shorter girl answered abruptly, panic written all over her face.

"So? You like her. What's the bi-"

"I do not like her, Betts. I hardly know her. I can't like her," Toni rolled her eyes.

"I didn't see you acting like this after your hookups back in high school. And you did a lot more than kissing with them," the blonde crossed her arms over her chest with a quirked eyebrow, watching as Toni slumped down on the edge of the bed.

"That's different. First of all, I knew them...most of them. Second of all, those were just hookups. No strings attached."

"But there are strings attached with Cheryl?"

Toni just stared at her with her jaw slacked as she thought about how to respond, "No. No, there aren't, but-"

"How was the kiss?"

"What? Betty-"

"You said she kissed you. Did you like it?"

"It was...okay I guess." It was one the most goosebump-inducing, mind-scrambling kisses she'd ever had, but Betty didn't need to know that.

"Toni..." Betty came to sit beside her, "It's okay if you liked it. And it's okay if you like her. That's the point of dating a person, getting to know them. You don't need to know their entire life story."

"Yeah, but usually the person you pursue knows their birthday and last name," she snorted a light laugh and shook her head, "What if she's just some crazy homeless person? Or if she's in some kind of trouble with the law or someone's looking for her? What if it's someone dangerous?"

"Would any of that change how you feel about her? I mean, come on, Toni, you've been letting her live with you all week."

She was silent again, unsure of how to answer. Would it? She tried to think what would happen if someone were to show up at her door right now and take Cheryl away. Would she fight for her to stay or let them take her without batting an eye? Her mind drifted back to earlier today, how Cheryl's reaction to leaving broke her heart in half. But was that really because she liked her?