Adria's Choice

Chapter 7

She smiled at me and just told me to continue.

I decided to put my bowl and spoon down, before I made another mess. I settled back on the couch with my legs folded beneath me. "My dad was very strict, with a capital S. Mom was the more laidback one. She's actually the one who persuaded dad to let me go to art camp back then. She believed that I could be a great artist. Dad was..." I trailed off. It had been years but talking about and to my dad was still difficult. "Well, he was too busy putting food on the table to pay attention to my talent.

"And they're strict Catholics, too. One time, they actually attempted to stop me and Karyl from seeing each other because they thought we were secretly dating. They're old school and they're still against homosexuality. It wasn't until I started dating Tom that they truly believed me." I rolled my eyes. "Karyl, a lesbian? Geez, Tito Alden and Tita Kria would hit the roof! And she shares their belief anyway. I think all the Buenavistas are against it."

"How about you?" Lexie asked, in all seriousness.

"How about me what?"

She stood up, got my bowl and spoon, and headed to her kitchen to clean up. She would do this every single time, immediately cleaning up as soon as we were done eating.

"Are you against homosexuality?" she asked over her shoulder.

I thought hard before answering. "Well, I'm not pro homosexual relationships and marriages. But I believe in free will and that it's a choice, so I wouldn't stop or talk you out of it if you are. I'm not homophobic, I've got a lot of gay friends, both guys and girls, but I don't think it's for me."

"You've never been curious? You know, just try it for the sake of trying it?" she asked as she sat back down beside me. But not before wiping her kitchen counter clean, washing her hands, and wiping them dry.

I shook my head. "Filipino society is still pretty much conservative, and as I said my parents are so, so strict. They're pretty active in my school's PTA and are known for being squeaky clean. And since I'm their daughter, there's a lot of pressure not to get into those relationships. I think it takes a lot of guts and love to be in a relationship like that, to defend them when you know everyone around you won't like it.

"I've come close to rebelling so many times against my parents, and it did cross my mind in high school. I was in an all-girls school after all, but I just couldn't use someone that way. I'd hate to be in a relationship with an out lesbian without being able to tell the world about her."

"I bet you were courted by a lot of girls in high school," Lexie teased, poking my waist. She knew my ticklish spots pretty well by then.

"Well...just a few!" I admitted. "How about you? Have you ever been in a relationship with a girl?"

She started tickling me, not letting up. "How many girls asked you out?"

"Six!" I finally shouted just so she'd quit.

Well, that certainly stopped her. "I knew it. You're too pretty to not have been courted," she said, tugging on my curls.

I tried not to feel guilty that I didn't mention that my first kiss was with a girl, one of my closest friends back then, in fourth year high school. Ashley and I became very close and we would kiss every once in a while, as close friends in our school used to do (it drove the nuns who ran our school nuts!). I never really put much thought to it until she finally admitted to me that she had fallen in love with me. Until now, she was still angry that I shut her out after her confession. I never went to our batch reunion, afraid she'd blow up at me and the truth will be revealed.

In the middle of our tickle war, my mom called, reminding me to go home early. Lexie wasn't able to drive me, so I took a cab instead. It was only when I got home that I remembered she didn't answer my question.