“It’s not the sex she’s balking at,” Maya said to Lily over her shoulder. “You sure are up for talking today.”
“Yeah, well I don’t know how to do any of this, like at all, but I don’t like how upset you both were earlier, so let’s talk.”
Maya threw Lily a smile before turning to Hanna and giving her a smile as well. She was proud of Lily; she was trying.
“Okay, yeah, let's talk,” Hanna said, getting up from the lounger. She sat down on the edge next to Maya and put her legs in the pool. Maya beamed. Hanna was trying, too.
“Hmm, wait, Papaya, can you help pull me over,” Lily said from behind her.
“You can just swim over,” Hanna said, bemused.
“Yes, but then I would get wet again,” Lily countered.
“You’reina pool,” Maya said, turning to face Lily.
“Yes well, I warmed up basking in the sun,” Lily retorted.
Maya rolled her eyes and leaned forward, pulling the floatie to park Lily in front of Hanna’s legs and next to her.
“Thank you,” Lily said sweetly, smiling at Maya.
“I am starting to agree with Hanna, I’m starting to think I am in a relationship with two brats,” Maya mused.
“No way Papaya, you have yet to put me in my place,” Lily responded with a cocked eyebrow.
“Don’t think I can’t,” Maya said, purposely resting her wet, cold hands on Lily’s legs.
“Hey!” Lily protested.
“Could have been worse,” Maya snorted. “You’re lucky I didn’t just flip you on your way over here, though the thought hasn’t completely left my mind.”
“Do so, and I won’t touch your pussy for—” Lily stumbled because, what could she say? “—for a long time,” she filled in.
“Yeah I mean wearelong distance… Not a lot of opportunities for touching in the near future,” Hanna said glumly.
“Maybe this is a good place to start?” Maya said, and then added, “I am really, really happy to talk about this. Imean, I’m not sure my parents ever—” but then she stopped herself, realizing she wasn’t quite sure what she wanted to say. She knew that relationships required communication, total communication, and this one was completely uncharted territory:threepeopleandlong distance.
“Okay this may be long distance,” Lily started, as if trying to help Maya, “but we’ve also kinda been doing it this whole time, no?”
Lily was right, theyhadbeen at least communicating and beingsomethingthe whole time.
“So where do we start, then?” Hanna said, seemingly coming back to the world around her. Maya was happy to see her be able to get herself out of her head in this moment that she knew was uncomfortable for her.
“Basics? Like exclusive, open, or?” Maya began.
“Exclusive,” Hanna and Lily said at the same time. Maya was not surprised by Hanna’s answer, but she didn’t expect the same answer so quickly from Lily.
“My sperm donor literally started over with a whole new other family. I don’t know that I can handle open, even if it is ethically,” Lily said when Hanna and Maya looked at her. “Besides, youbotharemine.”
Maya didn’t love possession typically, but because she understood how important it was for Lily to have something that washers,just hers, like her own space back at her home, Maya warmed to the idea.
“Okay so, exclusive, I agree; I don’t like to share. You’re ours too,” Maya added, squeezing one of Lily’s legs in reassurance.
“Totally, which, I will admit, is new to me and so I may not get it right every time,” Lily said, turning to look at Hanna, “but I meant it, I didn’t have any desire to take on that redhead at the bar. I simply was flirting for the sake of flirting. Is flirting okay?”
“I’m not sure you can help flirting,” Hanna said, chuckling, and Maya felt the release of tension in Lily’s body.
“But you have to tell us about it,” Maya added. “I don’t want to ever feel like something is happening outside of us.” Maya knew she wouldn’t be able to stand it, not after seeing whatever her parents kept to themselves eat their relationship from the inside out, having seemingly just one day fallen apart. Watching it had made Maya feel helpless, not that it was her job to save them, but she had wanted to at least be given the chance totry. She was a part of the family too,right?
