TESSA

"Why do you care so much?" Tessa asked, staring at me with half-lidded eyes as she leaned her head back against the recliner.

She looked so serious, almost too serious, but I could tell she was asking with genuine curiosity. I wanted to give her a straight-forward answer, yet all I could do was shrug.

"I don't know," I muttered. "Maybe because that's the only thing keeping me alive?"

The corners of her mouth turned up, and a long silence followed afterwards. Eventually, I gave up our staring contest with a sigh and stood from the nest of blankets I had made in the corner of the couch.

"You know, caring isn't such a bad thing," I said over my shoulder as I padded down the hall towards the kitchen. "You should try it sometime."

~ . ~ . ~

Teagan is a freshman at Bronson University of Art and Design. She lives comfortably in a dorm with her three roommates, visits her thirty-something boyfriend on the weekends, and, on occasion, kisses girls when no one's looking.

**This is a story of self-discovery, sexual exploration, and the stigmas placed on bisexuals and other members of the LGBTQA+ community.