Page 109 of The Pinkie Pact

I still had no clue what was going on. "So she's married to herroommate, the guy she kept saying she didn't like?"

"He's the one."

"But... but..."

"Exactly." The twisting became almost violent, and I wondered if the comforter would survive this breakup.

"So you said she'd been wanting to tell you?"

Kara let out a huge sigh. "Yes. That's what she said anyway."

"I'm so confused."

"It... it all started.... well, she told me some long story about her parents and their expectations for her, and how they'd never accept her being gay, and how she ended up getting married to her high school boyfriend just because it was what was expected, and she thought she could do it for them. But then..."

Kara's voice broke, and she stopped, her face so forlorn, I knew the tears were threatening again. So I waited once more, half suspecting what she was going to say. She took another gulp of her wine while I did the same.

"But then..." she finally continued. "She met me."

"Oh, God."

And now, I felt my own rush of tears as the situation hit me fully and an unexpected wave of sympathy for Gen crashed through me that she had parents like that. My own parents had told me from a young age that I could marry or not marry whoever I wanted, and I knew I was so fortunate to grow up with them.

"And I don't know what to do," Kara cried, looking down at her still-twisting hands.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, she was trying to tell me..." She stopped to take a wobbly breath. "To tell me I think that she was leaving her husband, but I freaked out that she was married, and I think... I think..."

She burst into tears again, plunging her head down into the pillow in front of her. I sat there, having no clue what to think because I could kind of see where this was going, and it seemed like Gen was maybe trying to do the honorable thing here, although she should have been honest from the very beginning. But it was very easy sometimes to judge the actions of others from afar.

Kara looked up at me, her face splotchy. "I think I fucked it all up," she whispered.

"No. No, you didn't."

"Shit. I don't know. I totally freaked out and yelled at her, and the hurt on her face..."

And there she went again. Even more tears. That was it. I grabbed my wine and went over to her bed, sitting on the other end across from her. "It's totally understandable that you would have that reaction. I mean, you just found out she was married and had been lying to you this whole time."

She nodded like she wanted to believe me. "Right?"

"Right. Absolutely."

"But here's the fucked-up thing. I still love her."

That hit deep. "Of course you do," I said with a sigh.

"What do I do now?" she asked, chewing on her lower lip.

I knew exactly what she needed to do. They needed to talk. But I knew from experience it also helped to wait a day or two, wait till the emotions calmed down a little. "You need to talk to her. But not now. You're too emotional."

Nodding, she looked like some kind of hurt puppy dog. "But if I wait... if I wait..."

"She'll understand. You can text her now and apologize for running off. Right? Is that what you did? You ran away?"

She gave me that sad nod once again.

"Well, you can say you were shocked and that you're sorry for how you reacted and say you're too emotional to talk right now, but maybe tomorrow?"

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