"Compass or Map" -- Robin Thicke
Oh, now you done it
You woke up some stuff
We gon' have to talk about it
Round here things might get rough
You poked a sleeping giant
That ain't ate in months...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Eat all of it or you're totally grounded after the ride," the young woman half joked, earning a deep growl from the person seated on the other side of the bench. "Though you sound like a grizzly bear, you don't frighten me. Now eat up."
"I'm full," Sharon muttered around the bit of toasted bread in her mouth. She had only eaten a fourth of the slice of toast smeared with strawberry jam, but she didn't want any more. How was she supposed to eat when her stomach was tied in several double fisherman's knots? Her thoughts focused on the S.S. Ride, the nurse might have slept a total of an hour during the night. She craved real coffee yet hadn't touched any.
"How do you expect to have any energy if you refuse to eat a decent breakfast?" So far, Nina had only managed to make her sister eat a banana and drink a glass of orange juice. That wasn't acceptable.
Sharon shrugged, suddenly looking like a petulant ten-year-old child rather than a thirty-year-old adult. "I'll survive."
"Until one of the pick-up vans has to drag your fragile body inside and drive you to camp, because you're too exhausted to pedal any further." She pointed toward the toast Sharon was holding. "Eat that. It's an order not a request, Ronnie."
"I'm only doing this because I love you." While Nina grinned, she frowned as she obeyed her little sister's order. Within two minutes, the entire slice of toast was traveling toward her tummy.
"If I hadn't just witnessed it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it was possible!"
Sharon repeated her grizzly bear interpretation as she glowered up at her unfortunate tent mate. How she found her with well over a thousand people around, the nurse would never know. "What? What are you jabbering about?"
"Good morning to you as well, sunshine." Sierra rolled her eyes. She glanced in Nina's direction with a friendly smile, before briefly returning her attention to the nurse. Although the two didn't favor each other, Sierra picked up a strong family vibe from them. Perhaps they were sisters? "Hello. Since she's inclined not to introduce me, I'm Sierra Torres, Sharon's tent mate. Nice to meet you..."
"Nina." She pressed her hand to Sierra's for a warm handshake. "Nina McDaniel and it's nice to meet you too, Sierra," her voice was soft with a tinge of shyness leaking through. However, there was nothing shy about the backhanded slap deposited on her sister's arm because of her insolence. A faint groan was the other woman's only comment. "Have you known Ronnie long?"
"Not long. Two weeks ago we almost ran into each--or should I say she almost ran into me? That's when we met. Didn't we, Grumpy?" Surveying Sharon's frown, she winked.
"Yep." The nurse sluggishly nodded. "Dislike at first sight."
"Ronnie!" Based on her expression, Nina was prepared to lecture her.
Sharon's eyes remained fixed on her tent mate. "I won't lie." She was thrown off balance by the woman's smile. Damn her for being so freaking levelheaded. "What is it that you want, Torres? I didn't expect to see you --have to deal with you-- until tonight. Why are you here?"
"Could I borrow you for a second?"
The initial reply on her lips was a 'no' yet at the last moment Sharon edited it with a question. "What for?"
"I need to ask you something."
"You two go ahead and talk, Ronnie," Nina stated while rising from the bench and collecting their small bit of trash to discard. "I need to go find a couple of my teammates." Wearing a smile, she shook hands with her sister's tent mate again. "In case I don't see you before we leave, good luck today, Sierra. Happy pedaling."
Sierra chuckled. "Thank you, honey." She glanced toward the badge swinging in front of the younger woman's chest. "Happy volunteering." Once Nina was out of sight, Sierra occupied her side of the bench. Folding her arms on the table, she flashed her un-friend a smile filled with enough sweetness to give someone a cavity. Of course, it did nothing to sway the nurse's suspicions. Quite the opposite in fact.
"What do you want with me, Torres? What did you want to ask me? I need to meet up with my friends soon."
It was on the tip of her tongue to toss Sharon the quip "you have some of those?" but since she was in need of her assistance, now wasn't the time to piss her off. "It won't take up much of your time."
"Okay..."
Sierra nervously pulled at her earlobe as she sighed. "Here's the thing. When I told my parents that I was gay, they flipped. They weren't about to disown me or anything like that, but it was obvious that they weren't thrilled that I'd rather be with a woman romantically. When I didn't bring home or speak of any men within the year following my confession, I guess that convinced them that I was serious, so they did a one-eighty on me.
"They would set me up with seemingly every lesbian that they could find. A friend, a co-worker, a neighbor's daughter, niece, sister, cousin--whomever would be single and of course gay. Until they started playing matchmaker for me, I had no clue that they were so gay connected. I've lost count of how many times my parents --especially my mother-- has set me up or tried to."
Lapsing into juvenile antics, Sharon purposefully looked more bored than she actually was. "Are you getting to the point soon? I can practically feel my skin wrinkling as I age."
Sierra smirked. "All right, Grumpy. Here it is." After a deep inhale and slow exhale, she spoke as clearly, yet quickly, as possible. "Six weeks ago, I unthinkingly informed Mama and Papa that I was seeing someone so they wouldn't continue hooking me up with these women. They've wanted to meet her and so I mentioned that she would be participating in this event. Now I'm supposed to be searching for my 'girlfriend', so will you do me this one little favor?"
Staring incredulously, Sharon didn't offer an immediate response. "You want me to pretend to be your girlfriend? Why would I do this when I don't even like you?"
"You could have killed or at least injured me. Now you can't do this one thing to make up for it? After the ride is over I can tell them that we broke up. I'll even put all the blame on myself."
"Are you trying to blackmail me, Torres? You don't want to go there."
"In order to blackmail you, I would have to threaten you with something if you chose not to help me. Unless my memory is poor, I haven't done that. I just thought you could be decent. If you gave it a try you might like it, McDaniel."
Two eyebrows jumped upward. "I see. You equate lying with being decent? Are your morals screwed up or what?" Sharon didn't wait for an answer. "You're a grown woman. Just tell your parents in a respectful manner that you do not want them setting you up. You're capable of finding your own dates."
"I've done that. It didn't work. According to Mama if I don't have a partner by the time I'm thirty --not too far away-- it'll be next to impossible for me to find someone to share my life with. She'll 'help' regardless of how I feel about it." Her eyes drawn to the small group of people headed in their direction, she whispered, "Dios mios. We've been spotted. Please, Sharon. Please help me."
She looked so distressed and sounded so desperate that Sharon actually felt genuine compassion for her. However, that didn't mean that she intended to go through with this façade. Lying was something that she attempted to avoid as much as possible. It only led to trouble and Sharon's plate was already filled with enough of that.
Pasting on a smile, Sierra animatedly waved the group of four over. Standing, she introduced them to the quietly seated nurse. The oldest gentleman in the group handsome in spite of the additional pounds having collected in his stomach area in recent years was her father Enrique Torres. The woman pressed so closely to his side that air wouldn't stand a chance of penetrating between them was Marta his wife of forty-one years.
Next to Enrique and Marta was another much younger and unwed couple. The youngest of eight children, twenty-one year old Gabriel held hands with Carmen, his girlfriend since their freshman year in college. Standing, Sharon greeted each of them with a smile and handshake.
"It's so nice to finally meet you, Sharon," Marta said, surprising the nurse with a kiss on her cheek. "My daughter has been hush hush about you. We didn't learn your last name until today."
"Yeah, I was starting to think you weren't real," Gabriel interjected with a grin splitting his lips. He had no idea how close he was to the truth.
Sierra tried to laugh it off. Linking an arm through Sharon's tense one, she smiled at her. "Well, she's almost too good to be true. Lucky for me, she entered my life. Like that old Temptations song goes, I was blessed the day I found her." Sierra was the only person to notice Sharon's slightly arched eyebrow. Her family and Carmen were beaming too much to pay attention.
"Sharon," releasing her husband, Marta walked up to the nurse and sandwiched one of her hands, holding it gently between her palms, "after the ride, I want Sierra to bring you to dinner one night. As soon as you return from Las Vegas maybe. All right?"
Sharon replied with an 'all right' before she could remind herself that she had resolved not to assist her tent mate in deceiving her family. Shit, now what am I gonna do?
Thanking her for what seemed the tenth time, Sierra had to walk twice as fast to keep up with the taller woman's strides. Moving so quickly through the crowds, Sharon was a hairsbreadth away from breaking into a run. Finally, Sierra was able to tug on her arm, effectively causing her to halt. "Whew." Sierra fanned at her face. "Let's save that energy for the ride, Grumpy." She smiled. "I think my parents like you." The nurse just scowled. "What? What's that look for?"
"If you don't know, you're more dense than I originally suspected."
"What?" Sierra appeared a touch indignant as hands settled on her hips. "What did I do now?"
"You got a piece of paper and a pen? I could make a damn list," Sharon ground out. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Vanessa and Georgie coming toward them. Thank goodness. Perhaps with them there as witnesses, the urge to strangle her tent mate wouldn't be so strong. I might have to brave the chilly nights and sleep underneath the stars. That tent won't be big enough for the both of us. A mansion wouldn't be big enough for the both of us.
Sharon's relief over seeing the two women diminished somewhat when they not only greeted her but Sierra as well. Beyond polite, they hugged her too as though she were more of a friend than someone they were meeting for the first time. There was only one explanation--they knew Sierra. Was this supposed to be another coincidence? Coincidence my ass.
Georgie caught her narrow-eyed look. "What's wrong, Ronnie?"
Sharon shook her muddled head. "Nothing, Georgie. How do you and Vanessa know Sierra?"
"We met her about..." Georgie looked to her friend and the waitress and they all agreed that it was about a year ago. "She's an employee--a fabulous employee at this female bar, which specializes in aromatherapy. Hey Sierra, speaking of it, were you able to talk to your boss about lending S.S. a kiosk or two?"
She proudly held up her index and middle finger. "Two kiosks, each with five Infusers. A couple of my co-workers and a couple of our regular avid customers offered to oversee the aromatherapy stations. There will be a charge, but it's a major discount from prices at the bar."
Georgie couldn't have looked more pleased. "Excellent." Turning to Sharon, she asked her if she had ever tried aromatherapy. While staring at Sierra, she negatively shook her head. "Ronnie?" The blonde had to repeat her name twice before she gained the nurse's attention. "I know something is wrong. Tell me. Please."
Vanessa nodded, appearing concerned. "Yeah, dude. You look like you're close to blowing a gasket." She pointed toward Georgie and then herself. "Did we interrupt something?"
"Actually, Sierra and I were discussing something. Could you give us just a minute to finish?"
Both women nodded. "No problem. Sierra, if you'd like to join us, we'd love to have you. We're meeting in," Georgie glanced at her watch, "about fifteen minutes at the merry-go-round for a prayer that Ronnie's little sister Nina will lead us in. She and Jaden are rounding everyone up. Would you be interested?"
Sierra smiled. "That sounds beautiful. I wouldn't miss it. I'll tag along with Grumpy in a minute." Once Georgie and Vanessa were gone, she released a drawn-out sigh. "All right, what's on that stubborn mind of yours now?"
Sharon opened, closed and then repeated the pair of movements twice. She had so much to say that she wasn't sure where to begin. Her breath ragged, she paced within the space of a few feet back and forth, crushing the innocent grass beneath her shoes. Forcing herself to a halt, the glare on her face was directed at the smaller woman standing in front of her. "You're a manipulative, lying, stalking, psychotic bitch!"
Amazingly, Sierra chuckled. "I think you may be holding back. Tell me what you really feel. Explain to me why I'm a manipulative, lying, stalking, psychotic bitch. I thought we had that whole stalking thing cleared up."
"We had until I discovered that you knew my friends."
"Okay...we're not allowed to know the same people? Along with making a list of all the things I've done wrong, make a list of rules for me too. Among them, make sure that you write down who I'm supposed to know and not know."
"You're not funny, Torres."
"You have no sense of humor. And now that we have that squared away, explain the whole manipulative, lying, etc. thing."
When Sharon began to walk away, Sierra followed beside her, assuming that they were headed toward the Griffith Park merry-go-round. Unzipping a compartment of the fanny pack clasped around her waist, Sharon pulled out a piece of cinnamon flavored Trident gum. She chewed a few seconds, the sounds of thoughtful smacking filling the air before she spoke.
"You're manipulative because although I thought I had made it obvious that I wasn't going to help you by pretending that we were a couple in front of your family, you forced me into it. You're a liar because you said that you didn't know me when you obviously do and you lied to your parents about us. I'm accusing you of being a stalker again because there are too many damn coincidences for me to ignore. You could have been stalking me for months for all I know!"
Sierra slowly nodded. "All right. And I'm a psychotic bitch because..."
"Because you are stalking me," Sharon spoke in a deliberate tone as though her so-called stalker were a kindergartner. "You're crazy just for stalking me. Why me? There are many more interesting people in Los Angeles. What about me could possibly fascinate you so?"
Sierra ignored the question. "How long have you been friends with Vanessa and Georgie?"
"I've worked with Vanessa around four years at a rehabilitation and nursing facility, however, we didn't really grow close until the last couple of years. Georgie and I weren't officially friends until this past June. Why?"
"You heard them. We met a year ago--over actually, because it was toward the end of the summer. If I were stalking you, why would I wait this long to reveal myself? It can't be possible that we both happen to know those two particular people despite the population of Los Angeles being in the millions as you quoted?"
Raising her hand, Sharon ticked off each point that she made starting with her thumb. "Out of the blue you showed up behind my vehicle two weeks ago. You knew about my sisters' pregnancy. You happen to be a rider in this event. You told your parents weeks ago that you were dating a woman named Sharon. And now I discover that you're friendly with my friends. This all adds up to you possibly being a stalker, Torres."
"I showed up behind your vehicle? I was merely walking through the parking lot when you almost ran me over--"
Snorting, Sharon interrupted, "You sound like a broken record."
"Takes one to know one. I've never been branded a stalker, yet you've managed to call me one ten-thousand times. Please let me finish giving my rebuttal."
Sharon waved her hand through the air with a flourish. "Go ahead. Lie some more. You're on a roll."
"Don't mind if I do, McAsshole." She could feel the other woman's withering stare although she was looking straight ahead. "The reason I was in that parking lot on that day was to meet my brother Dr. Enrique Torres Jr. because we had a lunch date." Based on the way Sierra spoke her brother's name, it was obvious that she was proud of his achievement. So proud in fact that Sharon figured she had to be telling the truth. Plus there was solid proof.
"I remember seeing that name on the directory," the nurse mentioned. "However, it doesn't mean you're not a stalker."
"Ten-thousand and one." Rummaging through her own fanny pack for her wallet, Sierra selected a photograph from it, which she handed to her accuser. In the picture was a teenaged Sierra seated on the bow tied hood of a cherry red pickup truck, her arm jovially wrapped around the young man seated next to her who didn't appear to be much older. "That's me and my cousin Eduardo on his 21st birthday. His parents gave him that truck we're posing on." After a thoughtful pause, she quietly added, "Not long after this picture was taken, he tried to donate blood and found out that he had HIV. Within a few short years that progressed to AIDS."
Hurrying in front of Sharon to block her path, she pressed her hand against the other woman's chest and waited for gray eyes to connect with hers before she continued. "I know you don't know me from Eve, but there is no way freaking way that I would use my cousin's death or make that kind of twisted shit up as my reason for participating in this ride. This is the last time that I will remind you--I am not here because of you. I didn't know that you were here until I saw you." Tears rushed to her eyes as Sierra blew out an uneven breath. "I'm here for Eduardo Torres and only him because I loved him. You understand that?"
Sharon nodded mutely. Within minutes she'd gone from incensed to ashamed. If Dr. Townsend could see me now, she would not be pleased. Glancing at the picture once more, she gave it back to its owner with the softest apology escaping her lips. The photo tucked back into her wallet, Sierra was about to walk away when her youngest brother found them. The first thing he noticed was the tear sliding down her cheek.
"Sis, what's wrong?" Gabriel asked, looking in Sharon's direction as though he expected her to answer.
"We had a disagreement," Sharon answered, her eyes riveted to the woman standing in front of her, obviously trying to hold further tears inside. The nurse inwardly sighed. True, Sierra could be greatly annoying, but she didn't wish to see her cry. I'm a shit. That's what I am. A colossal stupid shit.
"What about?" Gabriel unsurprisingly inquired. Removing a travel-sized pack of Kleenex from his backpack, he handed his sister a couple of the soft tissues.
"I have something to confess, Gabe. Sharon and I are not--"
"Just seeing each other casually," Sharon interrupted and at the same time realized that she was digging she and Sierra into an even deeper hole. A colossal stupid shit who has lost her damn marbles.
Gabriel looked as quizzical as his sibling. "What does that mean?"
"We're sort of...engaged."
"Already?" the young man blurted out. He then shook his head. "I mean, isn't it a little soon in your relationship?" He hoped that when she heard about their engagement, this wouldn't put ideas into Carmen's head. Although Gabriel loved her, he wasn't ready to make that serious of a commitment.
Sharon nodded, catching Sierra's bemused expression from the corner of her eye. "Yes, but we're in love. And it's not like we're going to plan a commitment ceremony to take place within the next couple of weeks. We're willing to wait a few months. Marriage, even if ours wouldn't be seen as legitimate by the state of California at this time, isn't something to enter into lightly. Isn't that right...honey?"
Sierra barely moved her head back and forth. "Uh huh. Right...sweetheart."
"So why did I see tears on your face?" Gabriel asked his sister. "I confess that I don't know jack about women, but those weren't joyful. This disagreement...what was it about?"
"We disagreed," Sharon spoke before the other woman could come up with a plausible lie, "on whether we should tell our families or not. I wanted to scream it from the rooftops while Sierra wants to wait. We just became engaged during the last week and she wants it to stay private and now I agree, so, Gabriel, could you do us a favor?"
"You don't have to say any more, Sharon," he answered, a smile on his boyish face. "No one will find out that you're engaged from me. I can keep a secret." He smirked as a result of his sibling's snort. "Hey, I can! When motivated and I'm motivated now." Gabriel's smile doubled in size. "What a cute couple you make. And Sharon, I can't wait to get to know you better during the ride."
The nurse agreed as she indicated his volunteer badge. "You're on one of the road stop teams with my ex--my friend's brother. Have you met a guy named Jack?"
"Met him? I got his autograph! Cool dude." Gabriel gave Sierra a quick explanation of how he was on the same team (the Eagles) with Jack Savage, member of an up and coming band called Harmony. "We're tent mates too." The young man checked the time, hugging Sierra and even Sharon goodbye. "I'm gonna meet up with my team. See you ladies at camp, okay?"
Removing a hand from her jacket pocket, Sharon waved. "Later, Gabriel."
"Be careful, Gabe." Smiling, Sierra pinched his cheek. "Stay outta trouble, ya hear lil' bro?"
Gabriel grinned mischievously. "You kidding, sis? I'm always a good boy."
They had already resumed their walk toward the merry-go-round when Sierra addressed the disconcerting woman next to her. "Why did you do that? I was about to tell him the truth. You pointed the finger at me for lacking morals two seconds ago but now you lie to my brother about us being engaged. What's up with that?"
"I felt bad."
"Bad?"
"Yes."
She waited yet Sharon said nothing further. "Care to expound on what you mean?"
The nurse glanced down at her with a minuscule frown. "Isn't it obvious, Torres?"
Sierra smirked upward. "Obviously not, McDaniel."
She blew out an irritated breath, but Sierra wasn't going to give in. She would be damned if she allowed this stubborn woman to pull the big, strong and silent routine on her. "I felt bad that you were almost in tears over your cousin and I felt guilty about that, so when you started to confess, I couldn't let you go through with it." She shrugged. "Your parents seemed so happy and I don't want them to learn that it was all a tall tale. So...we'll figure out how to "break up" later."
The Latina's head shook in wonder. "I don't get you, Sharon. But thanks."
"I'm an enigma." A genuine smile actually followed her words. It didn't last long, but Sierra focused on the positive fact that it had existed at all.
"Can't argue with that." They walked in silence until she added, "You do know that Gabriel will be keeping a close eye on us? I think my parents probably set him up as a mole to keep tabs on my interaction with my new girlfriend. Not that he doesn't care, but he didn't bother to volunteer last year when I was alone." She hadn't learned until today that Gabriel had signed up a few weeks ago. He referred to it as a surprise. Yeah, sure.
"So I'll be nice to you when he's around."
"Okay...that's good. Um, how will you treat me when he's not around?"
"You're the psycho--I mean psychic. You tell me, Torres."
Sierra rolled her eyes. "Dios mios. What kind of week is this gonna be?"