Chapter Text
“You sure about this, Dave?”
“About what?”
“Me… Your family. Me, meeting them. I mean, we’re pretty new… We just met six months ago…” Tina looks over at David who is driving all-chirpy, the bright morning sun casting a shadow against his face. Tina smiles at her boyfriend’s features, thinking how charming he is. David places his right hand on Tina’s left knee as he drives through the I-287 from Yale to Philadelphia.
“Hon, don’t worry about it. I just want to show them who’s been making me really happy and inspired these days. Plus, you’ll love my sister. She’s also a Yalie. I think she’s also bringing someone for the family to meet.”
“Well. I hope she likes me back, and your family too.”
“Honestly, who wouldn’t?” Tina takes David’s hand and clasps it tight, happy with the warmth and sense of safety his boyfriend gives her, and smiles at him while he’s looking at the freeway.
“Dave… Can I nap for a bit? Nav says we’ll be there in around 3 hours? Will you be fine? You know I had to pull an all-nighter for that final paper in ethics.”
“I was just gonna suggest. I’ll be fine, I’ll put on my Philly playlist.”
“And that consists of?”
“Some Dolly Parton, Aretha Franklin, Etta James…”
“God. It seems I’ve found my man.” Tina kisses the back of David’s hand as she reclines her seat and gets ready to take a nap. Her boyfriend retracts his hand and combs through Tina’s hair, full of adoration.
“And I’ve found my woman. Sleep tight, honey.”
Tina has the same dream from a mere six months ago. Same scenery, same blissful feeling, and suddenly being awoken just before she turns around to try and see the person running after her.
“Hey… Sleeping beauty…” The warm voice of a man breaks her nap. “We’re here.” David raises his hand and makes a shade for Tina’s eyes before she wakes up.
“Oh...” Tina, fresh from her confusing nap, smiles at the sight of her boyfriend’s sweet gesture. “Thank you.”
She lays on the passenger seat just staring at David, thinking how lucky she is to have met a guy like him. They are still in the honeymoon stage of their relationship, sure, but she knows he’s the kind of boyfriend her family would fawn over. Whereas her other friends have been put in pain by the people they’re dating, she has found peace and stillness in David. A far cry from the dream that she just had - chaotic and thought-provoking, placing her mind in a tumultuous state.
“Ready? We’re like a few meters away from the house actually but I didn’t want to ambush you.”
“Awww that’s sweet babe. Let me touch up very quickly and then we’re all good.”
Tina dabs a bit of her compact and retouches her pale pink lipstick. “All right. Settled.”
“Oh Tina, you’re so beautiful.” David praises and he doesn’t think he’ll ever stop saying it.
“Thank you, babe, and you are handsome. And I think I’m ready to meet your family.” Emphasis on think.
David starts parking his car along a medium-size driveway, the whole property serving as home to a formidable amount of nature - deep green grass, a lot of flower-bearing shrubs, and even climbing vines surrounding the area of the property. The carport is at the right side of the mid-century modern house - glass walls, streamlined interior, open floor plan, a singular, unmistakable aesthetic. The main entrance of the house is at the back, while the main entertaining space is facing the street. The Porters have always been affluent, and that’s something very evident in the way David presents himself. This home has been with the Porters since they first started out in Philadelphia, and David’s parents had it remodeled just quite a bit, not changing the foundation and its bones, just so it’ll look more modern and of-age at the same time.
Tina steps out of the car as the engine of David’s car comes to a halt and she is immediately drawn to the vines with flowers climbing through the trellis.
“Wow. You’ve got a nice place!”
“Oh, thank you.” David says as he steps out of his car and grabs his laptop bag. “Shall we?” David smiles sweetly towards Tina as he offers her his strong arm, and they walk towards the back of the house. “The main entrance is at the back.” Tina mutters a small “Oh” and follows David. They pass by the trellis and Tina looks at the flowers again.
“What are those flowers?”
“Oh, honeysuckle. My sister grows those. She had this whole gardener phase and then just stuck with it. Then my mom helped when she moved out.”
“Ah, shit, what’s her name again? Your sister. I keep forgetting ‘cause I’m nervous.”
“Bette. And don’t get nervous, baby! Tell you what. Here’s the rundown. Who’s in there - our mom Kit, my granddad Melvin if he’s awake, my sister Bette, and probably her new girlfriend. I don’t really keep track because she doesn’t go too steady on one girl. But this latest one, I haven’t met her yet and I heard she’s nice. But is from Harvard.”
“Nooooooo,” Tina softly says, jesting. “So that girl will be around Yalies!”
“Yep. Hundred percent. All of us.”
“Literally! Well, looking forward to the fun.”
David opens the heavy mahogany door, shiny marble floor greeting them and a huge vase containing yellow honeysuckle, pink wild roses, and violets - perfectly contrasting and complementing each other.
“You guys sure do love flowers here, huh?” Tina comments but before David gets to respond, they both hear a shriek coming from across the room and her boyfriend shifts his attention to the woman carefully running towards him.
“Little big brother!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” A tall - some inches shorter than David - brunette woman approaches David with arms wide open, a glass half-filled with champagne being held on one of her hands. She hugs David as tight as she could, that he thinks his ribs would burst out. “Oh I feel like I haven’t seen you in so long!!!!!!!”
“Big little sis… It has just been six months. But yes. I’ve missed you so much! How have your travels been?” David asks as he hugs the woman back.
And there she is - David’s only sister that he always talks so highly about. Magnificent bronze skin, curly chestnut hair, and a pair of eyes that one could probably get lost into - just like David’s. She has a pair of muscular arms that can’t go unnoticed as she’s wearing a black halter backless dress, and a strong back that boasts of either a healthy lifestyle or just the Porter genetic makeup being close to perfect. As David’s sister keeps her arms around him while they exchange pleasantries, Tina can’t help but feel a pang of jealousy hanging over her head. She wishes she had a relationship like that with her brother but the 15-year age gap just isn’t cutting it out for them. The siblings finally pull away from each other, and Tina notices the wide alluring smile that David’s sister sports. In Tina’s head, she looks like a goddess - commanding a certain atmosphere of sophistication and regality. She is more beautiful than beautiful . And Tina can’t stop staring.
“Oh! And who’s this?” The brunette looks at the lithe blonde figure, a few paces away from her brother, suddenly feeling a bit bashful that the brunette regarded her. Was I staring too much? Did she see that?
“That… Is my lovely girlfriend - Tina Kennard.” David says proudly, like he’s singing for the sun and the stars.
“Well thank goodness you’ve got some game?” The brunette pats her brother’s chest playfully while making her way towards the blonde.
“Hi. Bette Porter. And welcome to our humble abode.” Bette offers her hand for a shake, keeping her eyes intently on the blonde’s hazel ones. Tina smiles at her boyfriend’s sister, whose firm shake and inviting smile somewhat feels familiar and comforting. Maybe it’s the Porter charm, maybe it’s their magnetism - a certain air of confidence breezing through both David and Bette. And if she’s being honest, Bette’s charisma is a whole different league than that of David’s. David is like one of those eye-candy bracelets that usually match nicely with jelly-beaded necklaces that are always cute and easy to look at, meanwhile Bette is the whole “Marie Antoinette” Necklace (and probably more).
“Hi. I’m Tina. Thanks for welcoming me here, Bette.” Tina flashes a subtle smile but Bette’s face lines start to form confused creases.
“I feel like I’ve seen you before…? You seem so familiar.” Bette starts until she remembers she also has someone to introduce to her brother. “Oh! Hold on, sorry. By the way, my girlfriend, Dana Fairbanks.” Bette stretches her arm to welcome Dana into the small group of young adults.
“Wow. Fairbanks? In any way related to the Fairbanks and Mahoney Law Firm?” David asks, the workaholic in his cogs running.
“Y-yeah. Hey, guys. Hi, David. Nice to meet you.”
As Dana and David get to briefly know each other, the two other women do the same.
“So, as I’ve said. You look familiar. Have we met before?” Bette inquires, her brows furrowed still trying to figure out where she might have seen or met Tina from before. Bette carefully looks at the blonde’s delicate features - her eyes striking against the sun revealing a pair that appear luminous, almost like they could peer through your soul; her cheeks light pink and sweet, and Bette feels her own blood rising through her cheeks as well.
“I’m not sure about that… I’m from Texas. I’ve never been anywhere else before I went to Yale.”
“Oh…” Bette’s brain starts churning, trying to figure out if Tina has ever done work with their foundation before. “Sorry… You just look so familiar. Have you ever been in contact with The Black Rainbow Movement?”
“No, sorry… I don’t believe I have.” What’s Tina actually thinking: If I’ve ever seen someone like you, I’m sure I would remember.
“Ah well… Sorry about that. So. What made you want to go to Yale?”
“Let’s see. I just wanted to get away from Dallas. And I sent out application forms and I got into Yale and Princeton. It was a no brainer for me, really. I think Yale would help me discover the world.” Tina almost sounds like she’s doing a university admission interview with the way she’s trying to impress Bette.
“And what part of the world have you discovered so far?”
“The brains and the inner-workings of people’s behaviors. What was your course back in uni? David tells me this is a strictly Yalie household.”
“That it is… And you can say, I’ve discovered the science of politics and governance in my pursuit of dipping my feet into something that I really am passionate about.” Bette says proudly, as she has always been with the career path that she has taken. If she’s trying to sound like she wants to impress David’s girlfriend, she’s doing her best to hide it.
“So how’s the pursuit of passion?”
“Going well, I’d like to think. I have some dreams that I’m working on right now in LA and hopefully it’ll see the light of day, somehow.” Bette gleams and Tina feels a strange beat on her chest.
“I hope it does, Bette. Meanwhile I’m still chasing wherever this thirst in knowledge brings me. Eventually the chase will stop, hopefully.” Bette gets disoriented as Tina tucks a handful of hair behind her ear, catching glints in the blonde’s eyes as the brunette carefully regards her. Bette feels like she’s having a déjà vu .
“Oh, no. Never wish for the chase for knowledge to stop, ever!” Bette sounds adamant, passionate even.
“No?” Tina answers playfully with a smile on her face, equally delighted and amused at the enthusiasm Bette is displaying.
The conversation feels like it could have gone on forever, the two women understanding each other and responding in a manner as if they already know what the other one will ask. One question leads to a thousand others, challenging each other on the what’s and how’s of the matters that they are discussing.
And then they get interrupted. The world that they are creating by themselves suddenly turns into dust as voices of their respective lovers call out to them. The matriarch of the house has finally appeared from the second floor, her father Melvin holding out a walker in his right hand and the other clinging onto Kit’s shoulder. David walks up the stairs to hug his mom and help his grandfather up. Meanwhile Bette and Tina are still stuck in the electric presence of each other, not a word exchanged, just willing looks and helpless smiles thrown across each other.
The sand and silt of the dissolved walls of the foundations that have been curated over their two to three-minute conversation almost get in their eyes. It feels wrong, like it’s a tempting sin to even look at each other without feeling guilty towards their partners. But as they hide guilt and try to shield their eyes from temptation, they look over to where their own partners are and approach them, the windows to their souls hiding the connection they’ve just created with each other. A specific type of connection being forged with just mere words and glances in the middle of a room. A specific type of connection that could probably last one lifetime, or maybe a hundred more.
“Hey… Mom. This is Tina Kennard. My girlfriend.” David starts, waking Tina up from her brief fantasy. Bette likewise is alerted, reaching for Dana’s hand and clasping it with hers.
“And you’ve met Dana, right? Over video calls. My partner.” Bette is jolted back to reality as well.
This is her reality.
This
is their reality. Tina is her little brother’s girlfriend, and her own is a younger PhD candidate from Harvard. Not that cute little blonde with a blinding smile and a mesmerizing pair of eyes that she had just made the egregious mistake of being entangled with.