Bachelors, Bigots, and Bisexuals

Chapter 9

The next day, we got ready for the group date and were escorted across town in a limo. We were told to dress casually, so I grabbed shorts and something Jessa picked out. If she gave up on marketing, my sister would make an excellent stylist. I rode in a limo with Michaela, Tracy, and Penny. Everyone else rode with Nicolette, and the joke was on them. I had one goal: stay classy. I was unsure what the day held but I knew that Penny, Tina, and Nicolette had a propensity for drama. I needed to avoid that if I wanted to stay true to myself.

We approached Flynn in a big parking lot, and he was wearing gym clothes. Brittney ran to him, jumping through the air and into his arms. He caught the tiny blonde easily enough but it struck me as odd. Why did these girls like him so much? I had spent hours on the plane with him. They had spent maybe a half-hour with him. It was bizarre and surreal. Everything was.

We all stood around, waiting for his directions.

"Well, we have a very exciting date," he said. "In life and in love, you have to learn how to deal with adversity. No one knows more about adversity than my good friend here, Lana Delucia."

We all clapped as a woman in neon clothes and roller blades approached us, appearing from the sidelines. I had been so focused on Flynn, I didn't even see her there.

"Well ladies," she said. "You may notice I am here on wheels today. We are going to learn the art of Roller Derby. Prepare yourselves, because it is a ruthless and dangerous sport. It is a competition: the winning team gets a private dinner with Flynn."

I felt my heart sink and I thought of the possibilities. Nicolette on rollerblades, slamming me into a wall. Penny going spiral and ripping out my hair. This was a disaster waiting to happen. My smile evaporated and I tried to breathe. I was not good at team sports, and this was going to be intense. As I glanced forward, I noticed Flynn had put his palm on his chest and tapped it three times, looking at me and grinning. I put my hand on my own chest and tapped gently, winking at him very slightly. The woman was giving directions but I was lost in the moment. I was about to get my ass kicked but at least I had this sweet little memory of Flynn finding me in the crowd.

The first step was to choose team captains. The instructor, Lana, chose Tracy and Nicolette as team captains. Her rationale was obvious: a battle of the redheads. Nicolette's first choice was Penny, who looked very athletic. She had mentioned being a soccer player in high school, so it was a smart move. Tracy called on Tina, which deflated me a little bit. What if I was last to be picked?

Next, Nicolette picked Sarah. Tracy called on me, much to my relief. Nicolette grabbed Britney and Micheala was on our team. It just so happened that all the black girls were on one side. Hopefully, this did not go sideways. We went inside and got to work. The only saving grace we had was that both Tracy and I were good at rollerblading. She was very into all things athletic: biking, rollerblading, and even skiing. My mind flitted back to a night we had in a ski resort, when the fire was roaring and we found ourselves in the same bed. We had been friends until that moment until we had too much whiskey in our cocoa. I did not remember who kissed who, but I remembered the night. It came back to me so clearly.

I shook my head and tried to focus. She had taught me how to rollerblade and we made a good team. I needed to have a goal: to win. I was not going to let Nicolette have the satisfaction of defeating us. We were given a debriefed on roller Derby but it was clear to me the objective: attack and stay up. After a little bit of practice, Sarah and Michaela were whispering about us. Flynn was in the distance, watching all of us. I guess his role was to watch us. It seemed so stupid.

"Y'all are in sync," Sarah said. "You were friends before."

"You could say that," Tracy replied with a mischievous grin. "These bitches won't know what hit them."