Marigold, Part 14

by Vulgar Argot

(FF, rom)

It seemed like the car had barely rolled to a stop in the driveway when Thule bounded out of it. He ran across the yard and disappeared into the house.

Dawn and Marigold sat in the car, waiting. Finally, Dawn said, "Do you think we're supposed to follow him inside?"

"I don't know," said Marigold, "Your guess is as good as mine."

After they had sat there for another minute or so, Dawn said, "He seems to do that a lot, doesn't he?"

Marigold nodded, "The bounding thing? Yes. He's always bounding off somewhere."

Dawn nodded, taking the idea in. After a few seconds of thought, she said, "Maybe we should follow him inside."

"All right," said Marigold, "let's go then."

As Marigold got out of the car, she noticed that Dawn wasn't moving. Looking down into the window, she asked, "Dawn, is everything okay?"

"No," Dawn said quietly. Thinking quickly, Marigold pulled open the door and guided Dawn out, "Come on," she said coaxingly, "let's get you inside."

Dawn said distantly, " Thule won't mind?"

Marigold shook her head, " Thule won't mind. He's waiting for us." Once she opened the front door, she shouted, " Thule !"

Thule came bounding out of the bedroom, concern writ heavy on his face, "What?"

"Get a blanket," said Marigold, "Dawn's going into neurogenic shock."

Dawn turned to Marigold, a look of intense puzzlement on her face, "I'm not..." Then, her knees buckled. Marigold, having expected the faint, caught her friend on the way down, although she almost collapsed herself in doing so.

Thule , having disappeared into the bedroom, re-emerged with a silver emergency blanket with the word "ORACLE" etched across it in red. Wrapping Dawn in the blanket, he lifted her up into his arms, scooping her as if she weighed nothing at all.

"She's fainted," said Marigold, "We need to get her somewhere that her head will be lower than her heart."

In a surprisingly dexterous move, Thule kicked the headrest on the EZ-Boy near the TV. He said, "Put a pillow on the footrest."

Marigold did and Thule placed Dawn in the prescribed position on the chair, wrapping the blanket more firmly around her.

"Now what?" he asked. But, Marigold was already crouching down next to the chair, holding Dawn's wrist, reading her watch, and counting.

After she had an accurate pulse rate, Marigold said, "Just give her a couple of minutes. She should come out of it on her own. She wasn't injured at all today, was she?"

"No," said Thule .

"Okay," said Marigold, "whatever you rushed in here to do, it's probably more important than standing around, waiting for her to wake up. Why don't you go finish?"

Thule said, "I was just checking the police bands. They're reporting the shooter as a false report and calling the cars back in."

"Well," said Marigold, "why don't you go see if anything new has developed. I've got this taken care of."

Thule looked bemused, but went back into his room.

A few minutes later, Dawn said, "Why am I upside down?"

"You fainted," said Marigold, "I'd like to keep you in this position for a few more minutes, make sure you're getting enough blood to your brain."

"Oo," said Dawn shakily, "Have I ever told you about my bossy nurse fetish?"

"See?" said Marigold, deadpan, "clearly, more blood is needed."

"I feel stupid," said Dawn.

"For fainting?" asked Marigold, "Don't. It happens."

"No," said Dawn, "for believing June Kane, for running off to have a secret rendez-vous with her, for almost getting myself gang raped again."

"For that," said Marigold, grasping Dawn's wrist to take her pulse again, "you should feel stupid."

"Doctor Tarr," said Dawn, "your bedside manner sucks."

"My bedside manner is fine," said Marigold briskly, "My armchair-side manner could maybe use some improvement."

"I'm sorry," said Dawn, "I shouldn't have run off like that."

"It's okay," said Marigold, her face softening, "but it was a very foolish risk."

"Well, I know that now," said Dawn, sounding a little annoyed. Then, more penitent, "Are you mad at me?"

"No," said Marigold, sighing, "I'm mad at me. I was supposed to be watching out for you. I let you slip away. We should have stuck together."

"I didn't think June had a threeway in mind," Dawn pointed out.

"Dawn, I'm serious," said Marigold.

"So am I," said Dawn, "My danger sense was completely off on this. I just thought I was getting laid."

Marigold crouched down and stroked Dawn's hair, "It's okay. I'm sorry if my nerves are a little jangly. I screwed up. Thule was trying to call me the whole time he was driving to the school and I had my phone on vibrate in my purse, which was in the events office."

Dawn grinned sheepishly, "I left my phone home by mistake. I'm not used to having one."

Marigold sat down on the floor, next to Dawn's head, "We haven't been taking this whole thing very seriously, have we?"

"It is a lot more life and death than I thought," admitted Dawn.

"Sorry you volunteered to be the plucky sidekick?" asked Marigold.

"No," said Dawn, shaking her now-flushed head, "He needs all the help he can get, doesn't he? I'm just sorry I unintentionally volunteered for the damsel in distress role."

"Actually," said Marigold, "it's not so bad, so long as you're rescued."

"Yeah," admitted Dawn, "getting to ride off on the back of the white charger is nice."

Thule stepped out of the bedroom. He had stripped off the green shirt and now wore only a towel, draped over the back of his neck, and the khakis. As he emerged, he said, "If you haven't taken it seriously up until now, it's probably because everything you've known has been in the abstract until now. Mea culpa." He sat down on the couch.

"How much of our conversation did you hear?" Marigold asked.

"All of it," admitted Thule, his tone faintly mocking, "You didn't really think that I was going to run along to my room and go back to what I was doing while Dawn was passed out in the living room, did you?"

"I passed out?" asked Dawn.

"You fainted," said Marigold, "You were going into shock. How do you feel?"

"Like all of the blood is rushing to my head," said Dawn, "but, other than that, fine."

Marigold took Dawn's wrist again, timing her pulse. After a half-minute, she said, "You should be able to sit up now. If you get light-headed, get your heart above your head."

"I already made that mistake once today," quipped Dawn, "Hey, if I fainted, how did I get inside and upside down?"

"You walked to the front door," said Marigold, "then fainted on me. I kept you propped up until Thule came out with the blanket and carried you to the chair."

Dawn spun herself into an upright position, never taking her eyes off of Thule . Marigold suppressed a twinge of jealousy. She'd seen Dawn gaze at Thule with that look of adoration before, but never so openly.

Even when she knew neither of them would act on it, the obvious affection between Thule and Dawn had made Marigold jealous. That relationship had started out honest. Dawn hadn't spent more than four years treating Thule like dirt or treated Maya so badly as to drive Thule to these extremes. Marigold felt a chill that had nothing to do with the room's ambient temperature. Rising, she went to sit beside Thule , who wrapped an arm around her and kissed the top of her head.

Marigold snuggled in, drawing her feet up on the couch and laying her head on Thule 's chest. With the exception of Brianne, there probably wasn't a woman in the world who deserved Thule less than she did. She lived in fear of the day that Thule would figure that out and she would lose him. At first, she'd hoped to be married to him before that day came. But, she knew she would never keep him that way.

She also saw how other people looked at Thule . The people they ate lunch and hung out with in school, some teachers, her mother, even Jonas. Despite the fact that he had chosen a very lonely path, he had the easy, earnest air of a natural leader. One of these days, he was going to have to divide his attention among a lot of people. Marigold just hoped that, when that day came, she would be one of them, still first in his heart. After all, he had promised.

"I've got about an hour before I need to start getting ready for the party," said Thule , "I think it's about time I told you what's going on."

"Both of us?" asked Dawn.

Thule nodded, "You already know enough to betray me if you were going to. I trusted you enough to tell you that, I might as well tell you the rest."

So, he did. And, while he covered a lot of details that Marigold already knew for Dawn's sake, he skillfully expurgated any mention of Marigold's complicity.

When he finished, Dawn was wide-eyed. She asked, "But, it's over, right? There's no way they can get away with what they did today, is there?"

"They have before," said Thule , "at least three times. But, maybe. I don't know how thoroughly the Vandevoorts control the police and I doubt the cops have ever walked in right in the middle of it before. But, I'm not relying on that. I still have to go to this thing today." He stood up and started to pace, running both hands over his hair, "I still have to play nice with Randy and Brianne, at least for a little while longer. He groaned and blew out, a gesture of fatigue and frustration.

"Sit down," said Marigold, patting the couch next to her, "We can't have you going off to battle without your A game." Thule sat down and she began to massage his shoulders, kneading the flesh of his back. Thule sighed in pleasure and relief.

"Not too much," said Thule , "My A game doesn't come out if I'm too relaxed."

Marigold chuckled, "I don't think I have the strength to get you too relaxed. You're safe in my semicompetent hands."

Thule sighed contentedly and leaned back against Marigold, laying his head on her shoulder, and closing his eyes.

"Hey," said Dawn, chuckling uncomfortably, "get a room, you two."

Thule gestured vaguely towards his room, "No time," he muttered, "and I would be too relaxed afterwards." The last word was elongated by a yawn.

                                     -=-

After Thule had gone back into his room to dress, Dawn said, "Marigold, I know it's completely out of line for me to ask a favor at this point, but..."

Marigold interrupted her, "Dawn, are we friends?"

"I..." Dawn paused, "I like to think so."

"So do I," said Marigold, "Am I going to have to be perfect to stay your friend?"

"N-no," said Dawn, "Why would you even ask that?"

"Because you seem to be presuming that you have to be perfect to stay mine," said Marigold, smiling, "What did you want to ask me?"

Dawn smiled shyly, lowering her head, her bangs obscuring her face, "I just...would rather not be alone today. At some point, the enormity of what just happened is going to hit me and I'm going to go to pieces, but I'd like to put it off for a little while. I could use a friend."

Marigold nodded, "Of course, Dawn. Why don't you come over? I just had an afternoon of vigorous tanning to look forward to with some light studying thrown in."

"Oo," said Dawn, "I'm not sure about the tanning bit. Any time I get sun, I freckle."

"I know," said Marigold, "it's part of that sexy girl-next-door thing you've got going."

"What?" asked Thule as he came out of his room, "the freckles?" He smiled, "Definitely. Oh, and the blushing, too."

                                     -=-

Once Thule had dropped them off, Marigold said to Dawn, "I'll have to introduce you to my parents. They're a little bit scary, but don't let them put you off. They mean well."

"Marigold," Jonas called from inside, "is that you?"

"Yes, sir," she called back, "and I brought a friend over."

Jonas came to the front door. He was wearing blue jeans and a gray cardigan, "Hello," he said peremptorily to Dawn, "Hon, can you come in my office? I think I deleted something I shouldn't have."

"Let me see," said Marigold, following him inside.

Jonas brought her into his office, around behind the desk, "Look," he said, sounding flustered, "I had a spreadsheet open. Then, I hit something and now it's blank."

Marigold looked it over, "Do you have any idea what you hit?"

Jonas looked helpless, "Something near the bottom, I think."

From the other side of the desk, Dawn said, "Did you maybe change spreadsheets?"

"How do I do that?" Jonas asked.

Dawn came around the back where Marigold and Jonas were standing. Taking the mouse, she clicked once and columns of numbers appeared on screen, "Is that what you're looking for?"

"That's it," said Jonas, clapping his hands once in relief, "How did you know to do that?"

"Office automation class," said Dawn, "I accidentally did what you did in the middle of the midterm. I almost started crying before Oxana showed me what I did wrong."

"Office automation," said Jonas, his voice somewhat distant, "Marigold, did you ever take that?"

"No," said Marigold, "I would have liked to, but it would have conflicted with either honors French or AP chemistry, both of which had higher differentials."

"Right," said Jonas, "differentials. Marigold's going to be Valedictorian."

"I know," said Dawn.

"Well," he said, "I won't keep you two. You've obviously got better things to do than listen to an old man complain about these damned machines. It was nice to meet you, ummm..."

"Dawn," said Marigold, "and you haven't met her yet."

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Jonas, "where are my manners? It's nice to meet you, Dawn."

"Dawn," said Marigold, "this is my stepfather, Jonas."

Dawn shook Jonas's hand, "It's nice to meet you, sir."

Jonas got a pained look on his face, "Don't call me sir, please. Marigold only calls me that because I didn't want her calling me 'Dad' or anything else that suggested I was trying to take her father's place and she didn't want to call me Jonas."

Marigold said, "When was I ever allowed to call you Jonas?"

"What?" asked Jonas, "Oh, right until the wedding day. Then, you asked me what you should call me now and I told you not to dishonor your father's memory, but to find something appropriate. You came up with 'sir.'"

"I did?" asked Marigold, "Wait. I did, didn't I?"

Jonas nodded, "Yes. Now, if you two will excuse me, I lost an hour on this stupid spreadsheet already." As he was shooing them out of his office, he said, "Again, it's nice to meet you, Dawn. Thank you for figuring out the spreadsheet thing." Once they were out of the office, he closed the door behind them.

Dawn giggled, "I thought you said he was scary."

"I know," said Marigold, "He was mellow and vaguely befuddled. I wonder if he's got low blood sugar or something." Then, as if thinking of something else, she said, "We're about the same size, other than those legs of yours. If you want to swim or sunbathe, I'm sure that I've got something that will fit you."

"That would be great," said Dawn and up the stairs they went.

Upstairs, Marigold opened her walk-in closet, "I've got some stuff I bought for New York and never got around to wearing, other than to try it on in the store."

"Oh," asked Dawn, looking around Marigold's room, "What were you doing in New York ?"

Marigold emerged hurriedly, closing her bedroom door, locking it, and turning on her stereo. When Dawn raised a quizzical eyebrow at her, Marigold said, "Sorry about that. My parents don't know I went to New York . They think I was at my aunt's."

"So," asked Dawn, dropping on the bed and sliding into Indian-style, her elbows resting on her knees, "what were you doing in New York ?"

Marigold sat down next to her, mimicking her pose in perpendicular, " Thule was trying to sell this software he wrote and I went with him."

Dawn's eyes widened, "You did? For how long?"

"A weekend," said Marigold, "from Friday afternoon to Sunday evening."

Dawn giggled, "He is so romantic."

Marigold laughed. Then, once she started laughing, she found it hard to stop. Soon, she was gasping for air.

"Obviously," said Dawn, puzzled, "I said something funny."

"Let's just say it wasn't like that," said Marigold, holding her ribs from laughing, "Now, let's see what I have that you can wear."

"No," said Dawn, "you can't just say something like that and then leave me to wonder. What happened in New York ? Did you fight? Did he ignore you and spend all of his time focusing on work?"

Marigold started giggling again. Dawn waited patiently. Finally, when the giggles had subsided, Marigold began to explain, in some detail, what the weekend had been like. That led to an explanation of how the relationship had started. Marigold had been dying to talk to someone, anyone about her relationship with Thule . And, even though Dawn's eyes kept getting wider and her cheeks redder, she made a good audience, asking the right questions, but mostly just letting Marigold tell her story.

"Oh...my....God," said Dawn slowly, awe clear in her voice, "He is so romantic."

Impulsively, Marigold wrapped her arms around Dawn, hugging her, "I thought I was the only one who would think so," she exclaimed.

"Lord, no," said Dawn, fanning herself with her hand, "How come nothing like that never happened to me?"

"You probably didn't do anything awful enough to deserve it," said Marigold. Immediately, internally, she flinched. She'd been hoping to avoid the question that she'd just made more or less a certainty.

"Well," said Dawn, "I did once shoplift from the drug store on Columbia Avenue . But, it's just as well that I didn't get caught because the store owner was fat and bald and had hair in his ears and halitosis. But, what did you do that was so bad?"

Marigold could hear the disbelief in Dawn's voice, thought she might be able to sidestep the question with a glib comment. But, she steeled herself and started talking. She found that she couldn't look at Dawn as she spoke, so she stared at the pattern on her bedspread. Her faith didn't believe in confession, but she imagined that this was what it felt like, to unburden herself. She was just afraid that, when she stopped talking, she would lose one of the two real friends she had.

When she finally fell silent, Dawn asked, "Marigold, are you okay?"

Marigold, who hadn't even realized she was crying, shook her head miserably, "Oh, Dawn," she whispered, "I don't deserve him."

Dawn muttered a sympathetic sound and drew Marigold into her arms. As Marigold cried herself out, Dawn rocked her like a child and pet her hair. Marigold clung to her, holding on to Dawn's shoulder and burying her face in Dawn's neck. The response was startlingly Thule-like. When Dawn kissed her on top of the head, Marigold gave a little shudder of pleasure. She wanted so badly to tilt her head back and be kissed properly. That sort of kiss meant forgiveness, absolution.

Dawn leaned down and kissed her on the forehead, then on the cheek. Marigold trembled in anticipation, but seemingly at the last second, Dawn pulled back.

"So," asked Marigold, "do you hate me?"

"No," said Dawn, quickly reassuring her, "not at all. And, you need to stop beating yourself up about Thule . I've never seen anybody in love as the two of you. You two are going to be together forever."

"I hope you're right," said Marigold quietly.

"Of course I'm right," said Dawn emphatically, "Now, why don't you go wash your face so that we can get some swimming done before he gets dark."

Marigold nodded and slid off of Dawn's lap, "Second dresser on the right, third draw, is this season's bathing suits. If you see anything that looks good on you, grab it." Then, she went into the bathroom to wash her face. When she emerged, Dawn was rummaging around in the closet. Marigold stepped in behind her to see if she needed help.

Dawn rose from a crouch, bare from the waist up, "Tell me what you think."

Marigold glanced down and asked, puzzled, "About your...."

"No," said Dawn, slapping her playfully on the arm, "I'm going to try on a top." Seeing Marigold blush, she added, "You really thought I was asking about my chest, didn't you?"

"Well," admitted Marigold, the flush rising in her cheeks, "I haven't really had much experience with girl talk. I don't know."

Dawn slid on a red bikini top, relatively demure as the type went. She held her shoulders back so that Marigold could get the full effect, "What do you think?"

"Oh," said Marigold, surprised, "it looks really good on you, like you picked it out yourself."

"It doesn't look too...chesty?" Dawn asked.

"I'm the wrong person to ask," admitted Marigold.

"Oh," said Dawn, getting flustered, "I didn't mean that you..."

"No," said Marigold, blushing again herself, "I wasn't saying....I just mean that Elliot hated my chest, so I always thought that it was hideous."

"Oh, no," said Dawn, horrified, "you have beautiful breasts." Realizing what she had said, Dawn blushed a deep crimson that went all the way down into her cleavage.

They both stood there, blushing for a minute before Marigold said, "Why don't you hand me the black one?"

Dawn did and Marigold backed out of the closet. Once she was around the corner from where Dawn could see her, she leaned against the wall and laughed silently to herself, getting it out of her system as quickly as possible.

She was in the middle of changing when she felt Dawn's eyes on her back. As she turned, Dawn asked, "So, how do I look?"

Marigold said, "Oh, that is so unfair."

"What?" asked Dawn, looking confused.

"I bought that one because it elongated my legs. Now, you wear it and it looks like it's made for you, particularly in the legs. I hate you. I want long legs like yours."

Dawn laughed, "What are you talking about? You have very pretty legs."

"Maybe," said Marigold, "but I'm so short."

"I think you're just right," said Dawn.

Marigold snapped on her top, "Well, I thank you for saying so. Are we ready to go?"

                               -=-

Marigold's top didn't stay on long. As soon as she got out to the poolside, she unsnapped it and took it off. Dawn looked around, "Is it okay to...?"

"Sure," said Marigold, "Jonas accidentally saw me topless out here when I was sixteen. He was too embarrassed to look me in the eye for like two weeks. If he needs to get a message to us, he'll send my mother out and she's not here yet. We'll be able to see her coming up the street a long ways. There's a fence around the pool and a fence around the yard. We might as well be indoors."

"All right," said Dawn, still sounding uncertain, but stripping off her top.

"Oh, wow," said Marigold, "you're starting to freckle already." She patted the towel in front of her, "Come over here, so I can get some sunscreen on you."

Dawn came and sat down facing Marigold. Marigold squeezed some lotion on her hand and, starting with the tops of Dawn's feet, rubbing in broad circles on her lower legs. Dawn smiled shyly as she did it. Then, Marigold started working behind the knee. Dawn flinched, but Marigold made a shushing sound, stroking Dawn's leg, and continued working her way up. As she got farther and farther up Dawn's inner thighs, Dawn stared at her, clearly enjoying the sensation of being touched, clearly aware that Marigold's hands were getting into sensitive territory, torn between avoiding embarrassment and enjoying what was being done.

Marigold could see exactly the effect she was having on her younger friend. She repressed the urge to chuckle. She had to admit that she was enjoying the feeling of power it gave her to put Dawn in such a state. "Stand up," she ordered, imitating Thule 's delivery when he was ordering her around sexually, "turn around." Dawn did. Marigold rubbed lotion on the tops of Dawn's legs.

"Now, sit down," she ordered, "facing away from me." Dawn obeyed. Marigold felt a twinge of pity for Dawn. The younger girl couldn't be sure that Marigold was seducing her. Only Marigold knew for sure. As she rubbed lotion in Dawn's shoulders and down her back, she slowly inched forward. By the time she'd finished Dawn's back, she was easily close enough to reach around and rub lotion on Dawn's stomach. Dawn actually gasped when Marigold's hand snaked around. Marigold did chuckle then, using one hand to pull Dawn backwards so that the backs of her shoulders rested on the front of Marigold's. Dawn relaxed into her, her back pressed against Marigold's belly and breasts. Her eyes were closed now, her breathing shallow.

As Marigold's hands rose from Dawn's ribs, sliding into her cleavage, Marigold murmured, practically right in the taller girl's ear, "You'll have to do your own face. I don't want to get any in your eyes." Dawn nodded, stiffening so as not to react to Marigold's hands cupping her breasts now. Marigold worked efficiently, but did not hurry.

When she pulled her hands away, Dawn was trembling. Marigold handed her the bottle of lotion, "Okay," she said, "Do your face. Then, do me." Dawn, who was squeezing out some lotion, squeezed the bottle too hard and it slipped from her hand, flying into the pool. Marigold started giggling and couldn't stop, even to help Dawn stretch out over the surface of the water and retrieve it.

When Dawn came back, she did her face quickly. Then, having Marigold stand up, she followed more or less the same plan that Marigold had. The difference was that she was skittish where Marigold had been bold. As Dawn skirted the edge of her bikini bottom, Marigold said, "Make sure you don't miss any spots." Then, again, when Dawn was covering her breasts, Marigold said, "Make sure you rub it in good. I don't want it washing off in the pool." Even so, Dawn's touch never moved beyond warmly clinical. Marigold frowned to herself. Having never been on this end of a seduction, she hadn't realized how tricky it might be.

As Marigold was putting lotion on her face, she said, "The pool might be kind of cold." By the way Dawn dove in, Marigold thought that she must have decided that a shock of cold water was just what the doctor ordered.

                               -=-

The next few hours passed in relative idyll. They alternately swam and sunbathed, read, talked and laughed. Most of what Marigold would remember of that afternoon was how much they laughed. It was the sort of friendship she hadn't had in years, if ever, the sort of friendship she should have had with Maya if she hadn't poisoned it from the very start.

At the same time, she kept up her flirtation with Dawn, touching stroking, hugging, staying closer than mere friendship granted permission for. Marigold thought she was incredibly bold, but Dawn still seemed afraid, unsure of whether she was being seduced or just reading too much into Marigold's affection. Marigold knew she was being a horrible tease, but even Thule would not be able to object if he knew her full attentions.

As darkness became an undeniable fact, they went inside. Holly looked up from her cooking, "Oh, Marigold, I didn't know you had company. Will she be staying for dinner?"

"If I can..." said Dawn, "I didn't realize how late it was."

"Of course," said Marigold's mother, "I always make plenty. I hope you like lasagna and meatballs."

"Yes," said Dawn demurely, "thank you."

Marigold grinned, "Mom, would it be okay if Dawn stayed over tonight?"

Dawn looked at her, startled. Holly just said, "It's fine with me, but check with Jonas."

Marigold stepped into Jonas's study, "Jonas," she said quietly, "Dawn's had kind of a rough day today. Would it be all right if she stayed over tonight?"

"Sure," said Jonas, "if it's okay with her parents. Is it something I can help with?"

"No," said Dawn, "it's just boy troubles. Nothing serious."

"Boys are nothing but trouble," grumbled Jonas good-naturedly, "I used to be one myself. You stay away from them."

"Yes, sir," said Dawn, glancing meaningfully at Marigold, "I'll see what I can do."

                               -=-

Marigold had to resist the urge to join Dawn in the shower, but the risk of discovery was still too great and dinner was waiting. Instead, she took her clothes down to the guest bathroom and took a quick shower. She touched herself only lightly, preferring the longing ache she felt right now to a quick fix.

Downstairs, over dinner, Holly asked, "Should I make up the guest room for Donna?"

"Actually, Mom," Marigold corrected gently, "her name is Dawn. And, I thought she could stay with me. That way we can stay up for a while, talking or whatever, before we go to sleep."

Her mother nodded. Dawn kept her face carefully neutral. Marigold smiled and dished herself more salad.

As Dawn and Marigold were sitting, chatting in the living room, the television droning in the background ignored, Jonas stuck his head in, "Dawn," he asked, "will you be joining us for church tomorrow?"

"Sure," Dawn said, "I haven't been to church in years."

"Great," said Jonas, "You two don't stay up too late, then. I'll see you in the morning."

"Good night, Jonas," said Marigold.

They sat there talking for another half hour or so, the conversational pauses becoming longer and more meaningful.

Finally, Marigold stood up, "We should get to bed, then." Dawn nodded and followed her upstairs. Once the door was closed and locked and the stereo on low, Marigold asked, "Do you want me to find something for you to sleep in or..."

"That would be great," said Dawn a trifle too quickly.

Marigold went into the closet and emerged with a long, white t-shirt that read, "Windows 2000 gold release."

"You have vendor t-shirts?" Dawn asked, holding it.

"Actually," said Marigold, "it's Thule 's. It got mixed in with my luggage in New York ."

Dawn looked at it uncertainly. Marigold added, "I did wash it. I just haven't given it back yet."

"I just don't know if I should wear Thule 's shirt," said Dawn, her voice vaguely reverent.

Marigold shrugged, "Suit yourself. I could find you..."

"No..." said Dawn, deciding quickly, "I'll wear it."

Marigold smiled and started to undress.

Later, after ablutions had been done, Marigold asked, "Do you have a side you prefer?"

"I don't know," admitted Dawn, "I've never shared a bed before."

"Never?" asked Marigold, cocking an eyebrow.

Dawn shook her head, "Never."

"Well," said Marigold sitting on one edge of the bed, "I like this side. Why don't you get in over there?" She slid under the sheets. Dawn got in awkwardly, staying as far away from Marigold as she physically could without falling out of the bed.

Marigold turned off the light. Lying on her side facing Dawn, she said, "Dawn, you can move a lot closer. I don't take up a lot of bed."

Dawn scootched closer to Marigold, lying on her side and facing away. Marigold curled up closer to her, moving in a little at a time until she was spooning Dawn. Her hand lay gently across Dawn's stomach, her fingertips gently teasing through the shirt.

For a few minutes, she just held Dawn there, listening to the other girl's shallow breathing, feeling her body quiver with anticipation. Then, Dawn said, "Marigold, you know I'm...you know I like girls, right?"

Marigold's hand slid down to the bare flesh just above Dawn's knee, "I've heard you say so," said Marigold, her hand sliding up under the shirt, tracing a line up Dawn's inner thigh, "but, I have yet to see you do anything about it."

Dawn rolled towards Marigold. Marigold wrapped her free hand behind Dawn's head, drew her in and kissed her, slowly and sweetly. Dawn's mouth opened and her tongue darted out. Marigold's hand slid up to rest on Dawn's bottom, fingertips stroking the silky material of her underpants. As the kiss went on, she slid Dawn's panties down and free, her hand coming back up to the already moist place between her younger friend's thighs. Dawn sighed in pleasure as Marigold's fingertip entered her teasingly.

"Wait," said Dawn when the first kiss broke, "I thought you were the one who told me less than a month ago that I was too pretty to be a lesbian."

A month, thought Marigold. It might as well be a million years ago. The person she'd been then was barely recognizable now. But, that was too much to explain. So, instead, she just said, "I was right." Sliding a finger deeper inside of Dawn and kissing her briefly again, she added, "Much too pretty."

Dawn gasped and trembled. Marigold continued to stroke her friend's clitoris and plant small, gentle kisses on her mouth. Soon, Dawn's hips were rising and falling, the pleasure building up her body. But, she was fighting it.

"It's all right," whispered Marigold, "no one will hear us if we keep it reasonably quiet."

"It's not that," said Dawn, moaning, "It's... Thule ."

Marigold chuckled, "Is that why you've been fighting this all day? Oh, Dawn. I'm sorry. I should have told you sooner. Thule and I have a lot of living left to do. We love each other and want to be married one day, but neither one of us is ready yet."

Dawn writhed so that she impaled herself more deeply on Marigold's finger. Within a few seconds, her body was trembling, a harsh moan escaping her lips. Marigold slid down the length of the bed, sliding Dawn's t-shirt up so that she could lay her head at the apex of Dawn's thighs. Then, her tongue darted out, teasing, licking, probing, working around and past her finger. Dawn's moans were low and guttural.  Marigold tried to remember what Thule had done to make her so crazy and, while she doubted she approached his facility in the field, received no complaints from Dawn, who gripped her by the hair, holding her in place.

"Oh, God," she whispered loudly, "Oh, Marigold. Oh, please don't stop." And, for a long time, Marigold obliged, her hands sliding up to push away Dawn's t-shirt until Dawn got the hint, stripping herself and then Marigold.

Marigold slid up to put her head back on the pillow, kissing Dawn. Meanwhile, her finger continued to probe, now joined by a second one. As she kissed Dawn, Dawn's hand snaked down, slid inside of Marigold's panties, and between her legs. Marigold wiggled to give Dawn a better angle and soon, Dawn was stroking her clit while Marigold returned the favor. Both of them sussurated their pleasure, moaning occasionally, Dawn's entire body trembling with pleasure, Marigold's gaining ground quickly. Then, Dawn slid down, one hand and her lips stroking and teasing Marigold's breasts. Marigold felt herself lose control and came, moaning into the pillow. Dawn kept stroking and licking Marigold's nipples, using her tongue like a cat would until Marigold felt her neat, even progression of orgasms starting to fray, tumbling in on her now, one on top of another. As she lay there with her eyes rolled back in her head, she thought abstractly of how absurdly inefficient it was to pile so much pleasure on her all pell mell like that. Surely, it must be spilling out of her body, soaking the sheets and carpet. All she could reach of Dawn was her head. So, she held on for dear life, swearing to herself that she would get even with Dawn when she could.

She got the opportunity. When Dawn slid back up into her arms, now coated in a thin sheen of sweat, she slid two fingers back into Dawn, fucking her with them like they were a cock. Dawn's hips rose and fell, her eyes closed against the pleasure that washed over her. Then, Marigold slid one finger out of her and teased Dawn's anus with it. Dawn's eyes flew open in startled surprise. Whatever she saw in Marigold's eyes caused her to shudder and moan, but she didn't speak, only pushed Marigold's face into her chest. Marigold kissed and licked Dawn's nipples, knowing how good it must feel to be on the receiving end. Their two bodies writhed together like caducean snakes, seeking and giving pleasure.

Three times, Marigold lay back, thinking she was spent. And, three times, Dawn convinced her otherwise, licking, teasing, and penetrating. The fourth time, she caught Dawn before she could pounce again, "No more," she begged, "please....I can't. I can't take any more. You have to stop."

"You started it," said Dawn, pouting, but she acquiesced, coming back up to lie in Marigold's arms, her hand gently stroking Marigold's bottom.

"I've just wanted to fuck you for so long," said Dawn, "so very long."

"You have?" asked Marigold, surprised.

Dawn nodded, "Since we were cheerleaders together. You were the first girl I ever realized I wanted. You were so pretty and so sad. I just wanted to hold you and make love to you."

Marigold, who hadn't been a cheerleader since her sophomore year, just nodded and kissed Dawn gently, "You were the first girl I wanted, too," she said.

Dawn's eyes widened, "How long have you known?"

"About a week," said Marigold, smiling.

They fell asleep like that, Marigold taking one last glance to make sure that the door to the hallway was locked so that none would intrude.