CHAPTER 6 #2
A sharp barking laugh boomed from the speakerphone, leaving Jette wincing from the abrupt change in volume.
“Right, I probably should’ve led with that part.
It’s an all-girl band. Really up and coming.
Actually, you might’ve heard of them before.
They’re called Fincher.” Jette couldn’t help the way her jaw dropped.
Of course she’d heard of Fincher. Every queer woman under the age of thirty had.
Jette’s professionalism slid back across her features like a mask. “Oh, cool. Yeah, I’ve heard some of their stuff,” Jette couldn’t let herself falter for even a second. “Well, I’m definitely interested. Do you need my email?”
Again, Natalie sounded like she was in the middle of another conversation with someone else entirely. “No worries, I got it from Jade earlier. I’ll send you some stuff by the end of the day if you want to follow up next week?”
“Will do. Thanks Natalie,” she answered casually.
She had just barely finished thanking her before the call abruptly ended.
Jette smiled to herself and immediately went to her inbox to refresh the page.
She knew that there was no way Natalie had sent anything yet, but something about this felt different.
It was insane to think that she could get any kind of feeling from a call that lasted less than two minutes, but Jette could feel this in her bones.
And as an added plus, she knew Jade would never lead her astray.
The fact that Jade had been the one to recommend her made Jette’s chest feel lighter.
Plus, this was Fincher. She must’ve scrolled past countless videos from their live performances and music videos in the past year.
Not only were they an all-female band, but they were also one of the only all-queer bands touring the country.
As Jette strolled back to the couch, her phone vibrated, nearly falling to the floor in her hurry to unlock the screen.
She would never openly admit it, but a sliver of disappointment lingered in the back of her mind when it wasn’t a notification from Natalie, but rather from Emery.
The disappointment quickly faded as she grinned at the text flashing across her screen.
EMERY
let me in bitch
. . . .
The rest of the day was filled with whatever junk reality tv they could stream. After three—or was it four?—episodes, Jette finally hit her limit and stood to move around the room. Emery remained lying down, dramatically draped across the couch in a way that couldn’t have been comfortable.
“Where are you going?” he asked, never taking his eyes off the screen.
Jette stretched her arms in front of her and picked up the abandoned coffee mugs on the table. “I’m hungry…you want dinner?” She started towards the kitchen.
Emery shot off the couch and joined her, plopping down on the only stool. “I could be talked into it…” he teased. “I haven’t had a real meal since…what? Yesterday morning?”
“Jesus, Em, you need to eat,” Jette chided as she ripped open a box of cheese crackers and pushed it towards him.
“Well, I had to keep it light because of last night,” Emery replied cheekily.
Jette distractedly answered, “Oh please, you always look great for your shows,” as she browsed through the pantry.
Emery huffed, “Uh I know that. I meant, you know, for afterwards…” his voice trailed off as he waited for Jette to catch on.
Jette suddenly remembered the lumberjack who had been shamelessly checking out Emery the night before. “Oh my god, yes, obviously. How was it?” She felt bad she hadn’t asked sooner.
Emery prattled on and spared her none of the graphic details of his wild night with Lumberjack. She dutifully listened and added the obligatory ‘Really?’ or ‘No way’ as needed. Emery needed an active audience when telling a story.
Things hadn’t always been so easy between her and Emery.
In fact, when they first met back in college, they couldn’t stand each other.
Though that was mostly due to the fact that they met upon realizing that they had been dating the same girl before Emery came out as a gay transman.
But once the initial shock had worn off for both of them, Jette and Emery were inseparable.
And their bond only strengthened as the semesters passed.
He had been there for her through it all.
He’d attended all of her art shows, nodding and pretending to understand the pretentious pieces submitted by other fellow students.
He’d helped to carry her drum set home from corner bars all over campus after late night shows in front of dismally small crowds.
They really had grown up together, giving each other a safe space to navigate their own journeys of self-discovery.
Looking back, Jette couldn’t possibly imagine her life without him.
After years of friendship, their lives were intricately linked.
He had been her best friend for so long that they genuinely enjoyed each other’s company even if it just meant sitting side by side in silence.
She never had to pretend to act a certain way around him, he could see through her tough exterior.
His family hadn’t really kept in touch with him after he came out, so she was basically his closest family at this point.
They spent the holidays together, Emery always tagging along with her to family parties or weddings.
Her parents were so excited when she first brought him home to meet everyone.
They hoped that finally Jette had met a nice boy to marry and leave behind her ‘lesbian phase’.
It only took a matter of hours before her family realized there was no way in hell Emery would ever marry a woman.
It took her parents over ten years before they accepted that there was no way in hell Jette would ever marry a man.
“So anyway, Lumberjack did this thing with his hips, and holy shit J…” He paused and fanned himself for dramatic effect.
Jette was leaning on the counter, jaw resting in hand as she pressed, “So you’re obviously going to see him again, right?”
Emery shrugged ambivalently. “Up to him, I guess. I um…made it known that I had a great time and gave him my number. If he wants to see me, then he’ll be the one to text first.” He pretended to flip hair over his shoulder which sent Jette into a fit of giggles.
“That’s right, make ‘em work for it,” Jette quipped.
“Speaking of,” Emery interjected. “Are we gonna talk about Reese at all?” He glanced up from his phone, cautiously looking at Jette.
Jette shrugged her shoulders unconvincingly.
“Not much to talk about,” she answered. Emery pursed his lips and nodded doubtfully but didn’t push any further even though she could see that he clearly wanted to.
She sighed, “I don’t know, Em. I mean, she’s—she has a boyfriend.
” The words came out before she could help herself.
“I remember,” Emery added thoughtfully. “But you obviously have a thing for her,” he continued.
“It’s not like—” Jette began.
“C’mon, J, I know you,” Emery interrupted. His blue eyes caught hers and she knew it was pointless to lie to him.
“Yeah okay, I might have a thing for her,” she confessed quietly.
“I saw the way you two acted together,” Emery offered, “From what I saw, it looks like she has a thing for you too.”
Jette felt a tiny spark in her chest. Her lips turned up at the corners and she looked up from her lap to see Emery lazily glancing between her and the phone in his hand.
Jette might be able to hide how she truly felt around others, but never Emery.
There was a tiny swell of relief knowing that she didn’t need to pretend like his words made her want to smile at the memory of last night.
“She might not realize it yet, but she definitely has a thing for you,” he continued.
“Maybe,” Jette admitted.
Emery nodded. “Just keep it casual for now…ask her to hang out again.” Jette met his eyes for a moment before he added, “You know, just to get to know her better.”
“I have a better idea,” Jette chimed in. “How about I don’t text her since she has a boyfriend.” Emery’s eyebrows raised in confusion at her sudden change in tone. She softened the edge in her voice as she admitted, “I’m not about to fall for someone who’s unavailable.”
“Fair enough,” Emery agreed. “But that doesn’t mean you can’t ask her to hang out as friends.” The gleam in his piercing blue eyes was unmistakable and she couldn’t be sure that there wasn’t a similar look in her eyes as well.
“Well,” she began, “She has my number. If she wants to see me, then she’ll be the one to text first.” Emery cackled as she parroted his own words back at him.
“Atta girl,” he purred before leaning over her shoulder and plucking the phone out of her hands. Jette cried out in disbelief and tried to snatch it back. He waved his arms in surrender as the screen turned black. “Calm down, J, I was just going to order us dinner!”
Jette regarded him through narrowed eyes until he turned to show her the delivery app.
“Thank you,” she said apprehensively as he loaded the cart.
Emery nuzzled into her and sounded like he wanted to say more, but stopped short.
When he finally submitted the order, she pressed a quick peck on his cheek and moved to open a bottle of wine.
“Thanks, Em,” she sighed, carefully pouring two glasses.
“Anytime babe,” he shot back while retreating to the living room.
On the counter, her phone vibrated noisily.
Not wanting to miss an email from Natalie, Jette lunged.
She swiped the screen to find a notification from her bank instead.
Pausing to read, Jette could feel her lips purse.
She shook her head incredulously and called out, “What am I doing thanking you? You ordered dinner on my card!”
Emery’s loud cackle echoed through the apartment and the sound made the space feel even more like home. She couldn’t help but let out a chuckle as she padded down the hallway after him.
Hours later, takeout containers were scattered on the coffee table as they resorted back to watching reality tv.
Jette would never get tired of relaxing into the well-loved couch with his head resting heavily on her shoulder.
The sky was streaked with dark red clouds as the sun slowly set behind the surrounding buildings.
Emery stood and stretched his arms overhead before announcing, “Alright, I gotta go.”
“So soon?” Jette teased, playfully looking at an imaginary watch on her wrist.
“You know you invited me, right? Don’t pretend like you don’t love having me around,” he chided with a laugh.
Jette nodded, “I know, I know, I’m kidding. I always love having you here.” Emery pulled his coat on and reached for the phone in his back pocket as Jette stood to hug him goodbye. But before she reached him, Emery paused with a wide grin plastered on his face. “What?” Jette asked.
Emery smirked while answering, “Looks like we’re not the only ones still thinking about last night,” his voice trailed off as he turned the screen to her.
A recent Instagram notification announced that Reese had started following Emery a couple minutes ago and had already sent him a message. Jette quickly scanned the screen and tried to not make a mental note of Reese’s username as she read the message.
REESE
Hey! Thanks again for inviting me last night, I had so much fun!
Emery turned the phone around again and teased, “Should I tell her we were just talking about her?”
“Oh my god, please don’t”, Jette pleaded as she reached for the phone.
He lifted it just out of reach and laughed before adding, “I won’t! I promise.” She gave him a playful glare as he brought the phone back to respond.
“What’re you saying?” she asked, too impatient to wait.
“I just said, ‘Omg me too. I’m so glad you guys had fun! Let’s all hang out again soon’…that’s innocent enough, right?” he asked.
“Yes, good, okay, that’s good,” she answered in relief.
He continued, “But I am going to post a story and tag you in it—”
“What, why? What are you posting?”
He tilted the phone and showed her the candid photo he had taken earlier this morning.
Her long dark hair was tucked into a messy bun and she was sipping coffee while lounging in her favorite chair in the living room.
In the corner, Emery’s hand was raised in a toast with his full coffee mug.
“It’s good right?” He waited for Jette to nod begrudgingly.
“She follows me, so you know that she’ll see it.
She’ll see you’re tagged, request to follow you and then BAM, you two are even more connected,” he stated matter-of-factly.
As much as she didn’t want to admit it, Emery was a genius when it came to this kind of stuff.
“I’m not trying to connect us,” Jette answered unconvincingly as Emery leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek.
“Mhm. Keep telling yourself that.” He chuckled and breezed out the front door. “Love you!” he called out as he began walking down the street.
Jette shook her head and smiled before repeating the words back at him and shutting the door.
It couldn’t have been more than a minute before her phone buzzed on the coffee table.
Reese’s name on the instagram notification sent sparks down Jette’s spine.
God, that was quick. She was half tempted to text Emery a more sincere thanks.
Jette quickly scrolled through Reese’s profile before returning the favor.
Instantly, she was rewarded with Reese’s name flashing across her screen again.
REESE
Hey! Any chance you know the name of the song Emery performed last night? It’s been stuck in my head all day and it’s slowly driving me crazy
Jette felt her lips curling into a small smile. Reese had no way of knowing that Jette had seen her messages with Emery. But knowing that Reese had made a point to reach out to her instead of going straight to the source left a flurry of butterflies in her stomach.