I'm not the only one in my reflection.

Part nine

— It's not good to flirt with others when you're already busy, Sam. — Murphy replied with a nervous grin and swallowed when Sam, shaking her head, abruptly brought their faces closer, pulling her friend to herself, cupping her cheek with her palm, which she lifted from her forearm.

— I broke up with Richie. I said something about needing space and time for myself. — Carpenter replied in an overly affectionate voice. — Why do you think he's not here now? Or, better put, who do you think I did it for?

The redhead cleared her throat, not knowing where to put herself. Amber, her girlfriend!, will be here any minute. She should faithfully wait for Freeman and leave together to her own motorhome or to her girlfriend's house, but instead Stu Macher's niece is too close right now for it to be considered decent, with Billy Loomis' daughter.

And Katherine is not thinking about Amber's lips at all, as she should. And about Sam's forbidden but sinfully tempting plump lips.

She's disgusting.

And Murphy, as if confirming her inner derogatory thoughts, immediately responded to Samantha's kiss, putting one hand on her neck, pulling her closer to herself as soon as she felt such secretly desired lips on her own.

The redhead felt a real flame with her fingertips, which touched Samantha's skin.

The fact that not only Amber, but also Tara, or Gale, or Dewey could approach them with any question and see Katherine kissing not her girlfriend Freeman, but her ex-lover Carpenter, no longer even scared the girl. None of them.

Is this how people feel when they get drunk on something? But is it normal to "get drunk" because of a person? Murphy doesn't know.

With Amber, she felt like she was floating in the sky, felt weightless, completely calm. Happiness. But with Samantha, it's... different.

Katherine's relationship with Amber pops up in her mind, highlighting the many moments where she was embarrassed and lamented because of her age difference with Freeman. She felt that it was wrong, that she was wrong.

With the elder Carpenter, with whom Murphy had about the same age difference, only now the partner was older than her, she did not feel this strange feeling of rejection and wrongness. Maybe she just likes older people.

Feeling lips dancing on her own lips, Katherine closes her eyes and gives herself up to the sensation, allowing Sam to dig into her mouth as if she were trying to suck water out of it. She opens her mouth slightly, letting her tongue inside to explore the territory that Carpenter has conquered for a long time, but has not explored.

Now everything takes on a new meaning - the denial of the feelings that arose, the empty promises a few years ago to herself that she would be able to forget Samantha, she would be able to move on.

The promise that Murphy would be able to live without the presence of Tara's older sister in her life.

The redhead's promise to herself that even if Sam returned to her life, love would never blossom between them again. That she would no longer suffer for love, spending sleepless nights looking at photos of them together on her phone with watery eyes.

Katherine opens her eyes and pulls away with a wet sound, immediately staggering back, almost to the very end of the couch, when Samantha, with her eyes still closed, rushed forward, trying to catch the ghost of their kiss with her lips.

Katherine Murphy can't fall in love with Samantha Carpenter again. But seconds and minutes pass, and this familiar feeling does not disappear.

— "Disgusting. A cheater". — It was beating in her head in time with the pulse in her temples. A slight trace of saliva on her lips did not help at all, as did the pleasure still running through her veins with the blood, to bring the girl to herself.

— I'm with Amber. — Murphy muttered and raised her arms to chest level, as if trying to keep Sam away, but in fact mentally restrained herself from lashing out at Tara's older sister. — We can't-not now. We can't.

Samantha slowly ran her tongue over her lower lip, wiping away a small drop of blood that appeared after the redhead bit her lip slightly, lost in her pleasure, euphoria.

Katherine jumped up from the couch and began to look around frantically, deliberately not even looking in the direction of Carpenter, who also rose with a flushed face, noticing Tara, who was not far from them with dumbfounded eyes and eyebrows raised to the growth line of dark hair.

But Murphy ignored the sisters. Completely focused on the two women who just entered the hospital with a cool, murderous look.

— Auntie Sid, — The redhead muttered and squinted when she noticed the blonde next to the woman who had replaced her mother. — Auntie Sid's wife.

Sidney, quickly running her eyes over the heads of the people in the hospital lobby, noticed the bright red hair, so clearly distinguished by its bright fiery color among the rest of the blonde and brunette masses.

Murphy and Prescott rushed to each other and hugged tightly. Tatum, allowing his wife to hug her goddaughter alone, interrupted them.

— I want hugs too. — Riley grumbled and clasped both Katherine and Sidney in her arms, resting her chin on her wife's shoulder.

— I want hugs too. — Stu teased and even spread his arms out to the sides, but the redhead ignored him, pressing her face harder into her godmother's collarbone.

— And this, I take it, is your girlfriend, Amber, right? — Tatum asked, pulling away, but she wasn't pointing at Freeman, who was still standing somewhere in traffic, but at Samantha, who was talking to Tara right now. - Sid and I saw you kissing with abandon.

Katherine pulled away from Sidney and awkwardly lowered her head down, feeling two pairs of interested, waiting eyes on her. God, could this situation have been made even more awkward? As if not.