It Didn't Work Out Ch. 10

Don looked very sheepish, especially when his stomach did it a second time. "I must not have eaten very much today," he said as he sat up.

"How about I put some water on for pasta and then we can both take a quick shower?" Bridget said. Beyond the sweat and cum, there was a tiny sense of being dirty that she hoped the shower would wash away. Don nodded and got up. He kissed Bridget once more before going and getting things started in the bathroom.

Bridget stayed sitting for another minute. She smiled a little as she heard Don singing. He didn't sing well but he enjoyed it. It was one sign of him being happy. "At least someone is," she thought as she forced herself to her feet.

A couple of weeks later, Bridget was at her office when she heard the ringtone for a text from Sian. Opening up her purse, she pulled out her phone and took a look at it.

"Finally found a time to have dinner with Kate but it means we can't get together tomorrow. Do you mind? I really need to talk with her."

She looked at it for a minute. Bridget knew what Sian wanted to talk about with Kate. She was finally going to let her know about their situation. After they saw each other at the bar, Kate had to take an unexpected sales trip and had been gone for almost two weeks. Since getting back, she had been busy with Liesl and other things. Bridget felt butterflies fluttering in her stomach. Kate was going to be unhappy. Bridget wondered just how unhappy she would be. She didn't want to add Kate to the list of things that were stacked against her relationship with Sian. At the same time, Bridget knew that Sian needed someone with whom to share what was going on. It was hard on her and not having the understanding of a friend like Kate was making it worse.

She unlocked her phone and typed her response back. "Of course, see her! Give her a hug from me and ask her not to hate me, okay?" Bridget looked at her response for a moment before hitting send.

Her phone went off again about twenty seconds later. "She's not going to hate you. She loves you."

"Not if she thinks I am hurting you, my darling Sian. You know that."

"I will make sure she knows you aren't hurting me, Baby."

"Thank you. I love you, Sian. xoxo"

For a couple of minutes her phone was quiet and Bridget was about to put it away when she heard it go off one more time. She picked it up again and read Sian's text. "I love you too. Remember that." Bridget got a little smile on her face as she slid her phone back into her purse. It felt weird knowing that she wouldn't see Sian for a few days. During the last couple of months, going more than two days without seeing her was unusual. Despite her efforts to divide her time fairly between Don and Sian, Bridget typically spent a little more every week with her. Not seeing Don for a few days hadn't been unusual, nor did it bother her as much as not seeing Sian did. Looking down at her keyboard, Bridget thought about it. At least it was for something important to Sian. Bridget realized that she wanted Sian to be happy and seeing Kate was part of that; even if that meant Kate telling Sian she should end her affair.

"If Sian isn't happy, then what we have isn't good for her," Bridget thought to herself. She would rather lose Sian than make her unhappy. She squirmed a little in her seat. It was a very uncomfortable to think about not having Sian in her life. Bridget closed her eyes and tried to get her mind back on her work. After a minute, she opened her eyes and started getting back to what she was doing.

Sian found herself more nervous than she expected when the evening that she was going to get together with Kate arrived. She paused in front of the restaurant. All the way back to when their friendship started, Kate had never been someone who just let things go. She told Sian what she thought; even when she knew it wasn't what Sian wanted to hear. Despite it being tough to take at times, it was the thing that had really cemented their friendship into one that had endured for almost twenty years. She hadn't always taken Kate's advice, but Sian knew that it came from Kate loving her like a sister.

Taking a deep breath, Sian went into the restaurant. As she stood just inside the entrance, she saw Kate's hand waving and she made her way to the table. Kate got up and they gave each other big hugs. It had actually been far longer than normal for them to not see each other. After asking first about Kate's trip, Sian wanted to know how Liesl was doing.

"She's doing great. Very glad that I am home, of course," Kate paused and wiggled her eyebrows. "Very glad!"

Sian laughed. She knew that the longer Kate was away, the hornier Liesl got. A couple of times she had stayed with Kate and Liesl while in the process of moving. She had heard just how much Liesl enjoyed having Kate back one time. Kate laughed as she saw Sian blush slightly from the memory.

"Yeah, like that only more so. I thought the neighbors might complain!" Kate said in a proud tone.

"You two are so cute," Sian said with a smile.

Kate was just about to ask how Bridget was when the waiter came over to take their order. They quickly looked at the menu and figured out what they wanted. It helped that it was one of their favorite places to eat and they were pretty familiar with the menu.

After the waiter left, Kate looked at Sian. "So how is Bridget? Treating you well, I trust." Kate's tone made it clear that she knew there was something going on and she wanted to know what.

"She is wonderful, as always. And she treats me very well," Sian said. "I love being with her, Kate. I've never felt this way about anyone." She looked away, surprised to feel her eyes get a little moist.

"But..." Kate said in a very sympathetic tone. She reached out and squeezed her friend's hand.

"Yeah, but," Sian said. She swallowed a couple of times. It was harder to tell Kate than she expected. She felt like she was going to disappoint Kate with her choices. "Bridget is everything I could want in a woman, except for one thing. She is married." Sian paused and put up her hand to stop Kate from saying anything. "Just listen, Kate. Then you can tell me how stupid I am." Kate shut her mouth and nodded.

"I knew it from the beginning. I knew her before anything started. I knew her husband for that matter. I went into the whole thing with my eyes wide open. There is just something about Bridget that made me not care," Sian said. Kate squeezed Sian's hand again at the forlorn tone. Sian began to tell Kate the whole story; how they had started hanging out together and how it had progressed to the point of their starting to date.

"By the time we went to that restaurant after the game, I was already pretty much lost to her," Sian said. "She is so wonderful in every other way, Kate. After all my other relationships, I finally found someone who treated me like you think I should be treated. Someone who accepted me completely as an individual. Who made me a priority. And despite what you are probably thinking, she has. Don is the one who hasn't been a priority for the last couple of months."

"Wow, I am not sure what I thought the problem was but I didn't expect that. I never thought you would fall for a straight girl," Kate told Sian.

"I'm not sure I have, Kate. Bridget experimented in high school and got caught. Her mother reacted about as bad as someone can, and Bridget never tried again. Even in college, she stayed on the straight side of things. But deep down inside her, I don't know. For someone who has lived straight, you've seen her. What did your gaydar tell you?" Sian looked at Kate.

"It went off," Kate acknowledged. "She was totally comfortable with us and with expressing herself openly with you. Okay, so maybe she just repressed that part of her. Still, she's married! Sian, how did you expect this to go?" At Sian's look, Kate said, "Oh, I see. You expected her to see the light, leave her husband and you two would live happily ever after."

Sighing, Sian lowered her head onto one hand. "Yeah, pretty much. I mean maybe not now, but eventually. I know I sound stupid, but things are so great when we are together." She broke off as the waiter approached with their food.

For a few minutes they dealt with being served and starting to eat. Sian welcomed the little reprieve. She could see what Kate thought. It was pretty much what she expected. She picked at her food. The emotional energy from confronting the situation had wiped most of her appetite away.

"Sian, you know I adore Bridget. Even hearing this doesn't change how I feel about her. You are right that she treats you like I have always thought you deserved. And even though things weren't what I thought, it doesn't sound like she has ever lied to you once. That would have changed how I feel about her, you know that," Kate told Sian. Her words brought a little smile to Sian's face.

"But the thing is, I don't see how this ends well for you. Bridget is too nice. She doesn't want to hurt you, but she also doesn't want to hurt Don. She has to be torn, and getting more so. She wants two different things that can't be reconciled," Kate said before going quiet.

"I know, Kate. But right now she is with me and so I have hope. I can accept the limitations for that chance. Hell, in some ways it is a little better now that Don doesn't want to watch us," Sian said. She didn't mean to but she couldn't keep a slightly bitter tone out of her voice.

"Maybe, but it also means Don is finally waking up. And it sounds like he isn't very happy with what he is seeing, no matter that he engineered it. That's going to make things harder on Bridget, isn't it?" Kate asked.

Despite not liking how clearly Kate saw things, Sian nodded.

"And nothing has changed with her family, right? If she was to leave Don and come out as a lesbian, how is her mother going to react?"

"Kate, she isn't 17 anymore. She is a grown woman and no longer living with her parents," Bridget started to say before Kate cut her off.

"Hey, I'm your friend but let's not be naïve. You know how hard it is for someone to come out in face of rejection by her parents. Luckily neither of us had that, but it was tough enough for us. We both know people who haven't spoken to their parents since they came out, so don't underestimate how hard that would be for her," Kate told Sian, sounding slightly exasperated.

"Okay, you're right. It won't be easy for her," Sian conceded.

Kate nodded. For a little while, they both went back to eating. Sian still wasn't eating much. The course of the conversation wasn't helping how she felt.

"Hun, I'm on your side," Kate said as she looked up at Sian. "You know that. I just want what is best for you."

"I know. But she makes me so very happy when we are together," Sian quietly said.

Kate looked at her for a long time and then finally spoke. "When you are together. What about when you aren't? When she is with Don?"

Looking back into Kate's eyes, Sian finally answered. "Not so good."

"You worry about him convincing her to give you up?" Kate paused until Sian nodded. "You feel jealous." Again Sian nodded before looking down. "And other than going to your games and work, you don't do anything." Kate saw Sian close her eyes. She didn't nod this time, but Kate knew it was true. "Sian, you are putting your life on hold waiting for Bridget. You only live when you are with her." Reaching out she grabbed Sian's hand and held it until she looked back up.

"It's not healthy, Sian," Kate said softly. "I really like Bridget but she isn't treating you fair." Kate's heart practically broke as she watched the tears slowly run down Sian's face.

Trying not to completely breakdown, Sian squeezed Kate's hand. Finally she looked into Kate's eyes. "I love her, Kate. I can't help myself," Sian said. "I love her so much."

Reaching up, Kate tried to wipe away the tears but they kept coming. "I know you do, hun. And I'm not saying you shouldn't. Just that you deserve to be happy." She sighed. "I wish I saw it really happening where you are happy all the time, Sian. I'm just not sure that I do." Kate took her hand away from Sian's face. She slowly rubbed her hand together, drying off the wet tears. "She still loves Don too, right?"

After a moment, Sian nodded.

"Has she done anything that makes you think she is considering leaving him, Sian?" Kate sounded very weary as she asked the question.

For a second, Kate saw a flare of anger in Sian's eyes. But almost as fast, it died out. Sian's head fell forward. When Sian spoke, Kate could barely hear her reply.

"No."

Kate didn't take a bit of satisfaction in hearing what she already had guessed. She could feel tears of her own filling her eyes. "Sian, all I am saying is that you can't wait forever. Especially when I can tell the hurt in you is growing."

"It's easy for you to say, Kate. I know you are saying it with love, but it is still easy to say it," Sian told her friend. "The hard thing is doing something about it when I am helpless about how I feel about her. I'm not trying to argue. It is just the reality."

"I know," was Kate's only reply. They both were silent for a long time. Finally Kate looked at her friend. "Sian, just know I am here for you."

"Kate, you have always been there for me. I know that," Sian said with a sad smile.

They both seemed exhausted by their conversation and as they began to talk again, they moved on to less taxing topics. Kate started to tell Sian about what Liesl had been up to while she had travelling. Both of them found the conversation reassuring. Bridget wasn't forgotten, but they were able to distract themselves from thinking too much about it.

At the end of the night, they stood outside in front of the restaurant for a couple more minutes. They had parked in opposite directions.

Kate looked at Sian with sympathy. "I love you, Sian. I know it's hard but in the end, I think I understand you well enough to know that you won't be satisfied with what you have now. Eventually you need commitment. You always have."

Even though Sian heard the truth in Kate's words, she chose to ignore them. "I love you too. Give Liesl my love and tell her I want to get together soon. Oh, I almost forgot. Bridget told me to ask you not to hate her." The pain was once again evident in Sian's eyes.

"Oh hun! Tell her I don't hate her. I love her and I am just sorry that the two of you are in this tangled mess," Kate said as she reached out to hug Sian.

Sian returned the hug which lasted for a long moment, and then she turned to walk to her car. Once she was in her seat, Sian put her head down against the steering wheel. All the tension that she had kept mostly bottled up all night suddenly started to release. She felt the tears come again but this time they were accompanied by racking sobs. The fears and doubts that she had been suppressing for weeks all welled up and she was overwhelmed by a feeling of sadness.

It was even worse when she realized that the only time when she felt worse than this was when Roberta had left her. Sian sobbed harder. At least there was a little bit of a cathartic feeling from letting it out, she thought; just like talking with Kate had been painful but important for getting some clarity. Eventually the sobs lessened and finally ended.

Sian pulled down out a couple of tissues and wiped at her eyes before blowing her nose. On top of all this, she was going to miss Bridget terribly when she left for Hawaii with Don in a few days. They were going to get one more night together before Bridget left.

"Maybe," Sian thought, "it's good timing though. A little break on my own might be what I need to really think about things." She cut of the thought as soon as it passed through her mind. Sian didn't want anything to get in the way of her having a last great night with Bridget before she went to Hawaii. There would be time after that for thinking.