Chapter 2

We opened the door at the same time and got out of the car. My brain was screaming for me to ask her out, but anxiousness got in the way. In the end, I just held out my hand once more to shake hers. This time, she was the one who grasped my palm.

"I guess this is it huh?" I said while looking straight into her eyes.

"Maybe..." she replied coyly, holding my gaze. For a split-second, I felt something like electricity flowing between us, but it vanished as soon as it arrived. It must be my imagination. I was such a dork.

I cleared my throat to fill the silence that passed. "So just text me Glace. You know, for the shirt," I said almost out of breath.

"Totally for the shirt," Glace said before removing her hand from mine. She gave me another radiant smile, one that nearly brought me to my knees. "See you around stranger."

She walked and disappeared in the distance, while I got back inside the car and let out a long breath. What was wrong with me? I should have asked for her number too. If she doesn't call me, I might never see her again. I face-palmed myself. You don't just let a beautiful girl like that go Dulce.

I groaned inwardly. Well she didn't look like a lesbian, so even if I did ask her number, nothing would happen. I'd just break my heart like the last time. My thoughts strayed to Denise, the girl I used to go gaga with at school. She kept on giving me mixed signals and when I finally asked her out, she bluntly denied me. Not only was it rude, it was downright embarrassing.

It nearly blew my cover. People in school all knew that I was straight. I didn't want to tell anyone about my sexuality or I'd be bullied and victimized like the others. Besides, it was enough that my two best friends in the world knew, plus my mom. Other than that, my gayness was no one's business but my own.

I inserted the key to its rightful place and started the ignition. My three year old car came to life and I drove straight to my best friends place. Forget sleep, I'd do that this evening. For now, I needed to tell them that I met someone beautiful.

I reached my destination and rang the doorbell. My best friend's brother greeted me after opening the door. "Someone's early," he teased. He pointed to the stairs. "Go. . . Tim is also there." I gave him a quick smile before darting to Patty's room.

As soon as I opened the door to the bedroom, someone screamed and hugged me like there's no tomorrow. "Whoa!" I exclaimed.

"We missed you girl, where have you been hiding that cute butt of yours?" asked Tim, my best friend. Like me, he was a closet gay and didn't want anyone to know about his sexuality. We prefer to live our life peacefully, so no we're not telling anyone other than our family, at least until we graduate.

"Hey Tim, hey Patty," I greeted. I plopped down on the bed. "Sorry, I've been busy running errands for my mom and reading books, so I haven't had much time to go out."

"You and your books Dulce. Aside from that, I bet you've been cooking nonstop," said Patty.

"You know me well," I replied sheepishly. I haven't mentioned it before, but I really liked cooking. It puts me at ease when I'm in the kitchen. I feel like I'm in my element whenever I'm in front of the stove or baking something sweet. Maybe that's why my parents named me Dulce.

Tim adjusted his eye glasses. "Guys, school is a week from now. Is anybody as excited as I am?

"Yes!" Patty said with gusto, while I just groaned loudly beside them.

They both turned to me. "I don't get why you hate our school Dulce. Sure nobody knows that you're lez, but you're popular. Guys and girls love you. They always swarm around you like flies. You should be thankful for that," Tim said.

"Yeah, but I can't be myself there Tim. I can't even ask a girl out. I'm a teenager; I should be dating someone by now or at least making out passionately at the back of my car."

"Technically, you did ask that bitch Denise out. I don't get why she turned you down. She's crazy for you. Maybe she wants you to pursue her."

I rolled my eyes at Tim. "I'm not good enough for her. That's why she didn't want me. Speaking of women, I met someone today," I segued.

"Who's the lucky woman who caught our gorgeous Dulce's eyes?" asked Patty.

I told them all about Glace and how we met this morning. The two oohed and aahed, especially when they heard about how beautiful she was. "So did you ask her out," they asked together.

The smile vanished from my face. "I didn't," I said shamefully.

"Ahh, miss shyness struck again," Tim said and patted my back. "Don't worry dude, just wait for her to call you, and problem solved."

"Yeah, but she's probably not lesbian, so I shouldn't get my hopes up." My shoulder slumped in dejection.

"You can always make her switch. Look at you, you're beautiful! Your gorgeous body and that to-die for smile can even rival Frio." Patty said.

That name again. I was so tired of my friends mentioning that Frio girl. Forgive me for my ignorance, but I didn't like to watch too much TV. I'd rather sleep, read my book, or cook all day long for my friends and my mom, than to follow a Hollywood celebrity like my friends do. Why were they so caught up with this Frio person? I bet she was a snob like most celebrities were and wouldn't even give us a single glance.

"Oh Frio," Tim sighed. "If I weren't a gay and totally boy-crazy, I'd marry you in an instant."

"What's so great about this Frio chick?" I found myself asking.

Tim rolled his eyes at me. "I swear Dulce; you're so out of it. Don't you know that Frio is one of the top stars in our generation? She's been modeling and acting since the age of 7 and she's very popular. She's our age too and there are hearsays that she might be lesbian!" he gushed.

I raised an eyebrow. "And why is that?"

He giggled and continued. "She's never had a boyfriend before and she's the ice princess. No one as in NO ONE can penetrate that wall that she put around her. But you know she's beautiful and great at acting, so the whole iciness adds to the charm."

I shrugged. "She's probably a total snob. Anyway, let's talk about something else."

The three of us switched the topic and tried catching up about the things we did this summer. In the end, I just went home and slept like I promised my mom. Before I closed my eyes, Glace's face flashed in my mind.