Of course, her brain unhelpfully supplied, if shewasyour girlfriend, you wouldn’t be going home. No, she’d be curled up in Rory’s arms on the sofa. Or maybe they would have an early night and make love before going to sleep together. The thoughts remained with her as the tube train rattled its way back towards her flat with an empty bed, and further away from Rory.
18
RORY
Rory paused between sets to check her text messages
Gemma:
Did I leave my makeup bag at your place?
Rory:
Not sure – I’ll check for you. At the gym ATM.
She flicked back to her fitness app and checked her next superset before grabbing the weights she needed. Today was arm day and her favourite of all the workouts. In the two weeks since she had been using the gym, she had enjoyed all the workouts that Jak had in their programs, but there was something extra special about arm day that really made her happy.
She glimpsed herself in the mirrored wall of the free-weight area and smiled. It had been years since she had properly trained, and that had been for the hockey team at school. Getting back to regular exercise had been fantastic. The fact that she was now working out to achieve the physique that she wanted waseven better. For the first time in a long time, she felt like herself. She didn’t need to hide from anyone, and she didn’t need to hide from herself. Gemma was happy for her to wear men’s clothes whenever they went out. She was getting the physique she wanted, and today… Today she would finally get the haircut she had been dreaming of for years.
Just as she returned the weights to the rack, her phone beeped again.
Gemma:
Thanks – I’ve replaced most of it already but just want to know what I did with it. I guess it can stay at yours if you find it.
Rory grinned and tapped out a response. In the weeks since they had reconnected at the opera, Gemma had stayed over at her house every weekend and each time managed to leave something behind. If they had been dating, Rory would have suspected her of moving in by stealth. Not that she would mind Gemma moving in, she realised. Her house had felt sterile and cavernous before, and she hadn’t realised it until bits of Gemma’s clutter started to appear around the place. Now she had toiletries in her shower, clothes in Rory’s wardrobe that Rory had washed along with her own laundry, and even her favourite cereal in the cupboard for breakfast. Rory chided herself with a look in the mirror. That last one had been on her. She had been shopping and saw Gemma’s favourite cereal and couldn’t resist getting it for her. She was about to give herself a good talking to about letting Gemma too much into her life when she saw Isaac approach her with a grin on his face.
“Hey you.” He greeted. He waited for her to finish her set before fist-bumping her. “You’re really making progress!”
She flexed her arm in the mirror and grinned at the ghost of a bicep that was showing.
“Getting there.” She replaced the weights and took a long drink from her water bottle.
He waited a beat before pointing to her hair. “Today’s the day, huh?”
She ducked her head and wiped some sweat away before replying.
“Yep.”
Isaac grinned at her and patted her shoulder. “Craig is the best barber in the area. He’ll look after you.”
She smiled but noticed that it didn’t quite reach her eyes. This was a big step. With everything else she was doing, she could go back. She could pull out her feminine-cut suit for work. She could go back to being the perfect daughter that everyone wanted. Everyone but her. She scoffed in her head.
She swallowed and then remembered her father nodding at her suit and adjusting the shirt collar so that it sat within the jacket, like a man’s did, rather than outside the jacket like her mother tried to do. Her father would be supportive, she hoped. Her mother might have a bit of time adjusting to it, but her dad would be in her corner. She then pictured a boxing ring with herself in the centre, with everyone staring at her. She looked across to where she imagined her parents to be and instead saw Gemma. Of course, Gemma would be there. Gemma supported her.
She turned her attention back to Isaac and tried to silence the doubting voices in her head.
“He’d better be.” She knotted her brows together. “You have told him I’m…” She wafted a hand over herself.
“Gorgeous? Hot? Working with the best personal trainerin the business?” He winked. “He’s a barber. As long as you have hair to cut, he’s happy to do it.”
She gulped and nodded, unsure of how to convey the anxiety of stepping into a male-oriented space.
“Is Gemma going with you?” His question pulled her out of her spiralling thoughts.
“Yes, she’s spent all week researching haircuts for me.” Rory felt a wave of affection wash over her as she remembered the text messages and pictures that Gemma had sent her, ranging from undercuts to mullets and one Gemma described as ‘the lesbian Hugh Grant’.
Isaac moved out of the way as someone else wanted the bench they had been standing near and pushed Rory towards the water cooler.
