Rising Sun

Chapter Eight

If a girl liked another girl, did that make her gay? Did it make her a lesbian? What if that girl also had feelings for a guy? Or possibly had feelings for a guy? What if she didn't like either one, and she was just trying to live out some movie plot?

Skylar's mind had been racing the entire time she'd been at Justin's, and she couldn't answer any of her own questions. She didn't know what she was feeling, and she didn't know why. She was angry at herself for being confused, and she was also angry at herself for having the same feelings for a girl that she was supposed to have for a boy.

The more she ran her mind in circles, the more she worried about Tom. What would he say? What would she say? Surely she couldn't tell him she had feelings for someone else - let alone a girl. But she also didn't know what she would say if he asked her to homecoming. Would she say yes? Or would she say no, that she was gay?

Was she even gay? Her whole life had been a lie up to this point if so. She thought about boys she'd thought were cute growing up - actors, boys from school. And she definitely felt something for Tom. Something good. But was she maybe pretending to like them so know one would know she actually wanted to kiss actresses and girls from school?

Hayley. What would she think? Skylar couldn't tell her, there was no way she would even want to be friends with her if she knew. The rumors would be about Skylar instead of Hayley, and her dad would talk about her at dinner instead of the neighbors.

Skylar was absolutely panicked. She couldn't focus on anything that was going on around her. She knew Tom had arrived a little while ago, his teammates had all made their way to the alcohol. She hadn't said hello to him yet, as she really didn't know what to say.

Skylar hung out in the kitchen, pretending to be interested in a story one of Tom's teammates was telling about the game earlier. She jumped when two hands grasped her midsection.

"There you are," Tom said. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He smiled at her, and kissed her temple. It felt normal. This was normal. She gave him a quick smile, feeling guilty. She didn't deserve him, he was too good for her.

"You didn't scare me," she said.

Tom grabbed a can of beer from the cooler at Skylar's feet, and held out his hand for her to grab. "Let's go talk to people." He said, gesturing to a group of his friends in the entryway.

Skylar felt a wave of relief wash over her. He didn't ask her to homecoming yet, meaning she still had time to figure things out. Even if it was just five minutes. She grabbed his hand, and followed him into the hall.

"Tommy, my man! That was some toss." One of the guys shouted as Tom made his way into the group. Skylar followed behind, squeezing through the guys.

"Yeah, I didn't think I was going to make it." Tom said. They'd won the game by one touchdown, and everyone had been buzzing about it for the last hour.

"Hey, guys!"

Skylar saw Lindsay round the corner from the living room, surprisingly not drunk yet.

"We're playing Truth or Dare in the other room." Lindsay said, and everyone perked up. The game was a fan favorite among the party crowd, and Skylar never understood why. She liked Never Have I Ever, but Truth or Dare was never her favorite. Nevertheless, she always ended up playing.

"We should play," Tom said to her. "It'll be fun."

Skylar reluctantly agreed, and half of the group made their way to the living room. When they got in there, Skylar noticed Hayley was already in there. She was sitting next to Justin, and she looked like she was having fun. Skylar clenched her jaw, afraid to open her mouth and say anything. She didn't have a right to be jealous, she reminded herself.