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Nancy wept all of her mascara off as she sat on top of the fuzzy toilet lid cover, clenching drenched tissues in both her hands. She felt like she could throw up every organ in her body onto the tiled floor and still cry over the sight of Steve kissing another girl instead of that.
She would swear she was over him, if anyone asked. God, him?, she'd laugh, I don't think about him like that. We're just friends. And they'd believe her of course. Nancy believed it too. As a matter of fact, she was sure of the fact she didn't love Steve anymore. But she knew that the glimpse of him locking lips with a girl taller and prettier and blonder than her made her stomach churn. Not because she wanted him, but because she wanted someone to kiss her like that too. Just not him. Not any man she could make up in her mind could be what she wanted.
She felt snot run down her lips, sputtering at the taste of salt seeping through onto her tongue, wiping her face until it burned. Her stomach muscles ached from doubling over and crying, the heaving as she tried to catch her breath like she'd been held underwater. She may as well have been, sweat and tears leaving her a sopping mess. Her new blouse she bought with some babysitting money was drenched too, the light blue turning dark as her tears soaked into it.
"God, how could I be so stupid?", Nancy muttered to herself between sniffs, "Crying over a boy like a middle schooler."
A voice from behind the shower curtain echoed, "Hey, I don't think you're stupid."
Nancy jumped, pulling her feet up on top of the toilet and yelping. "What the fuck?"
"Ooh, shit. Sorry.", the voice said again, pulling back the shower curtain to reveal a girl laying in the bathtub, a cigarette hanging from her mouth. "I thought you knew I was here."
"I... didn't."
"Must be one hell of a cry if you couldn't smell this shit.", she chuckled, Nancy realizing it wasn't a cigarette. "I wasn't sure if you cared or not if I stayed."
"I do now.", she scowled, hugging her knees and sniffling.
The girl pulled herself up to begin getting out of the tub. "Sorry, I'll get out of your hair."
Nancy grabbed her hand as she gripped the side of the bath, "Stay."
She stared at her, confused, her blue eyes looking at her fragile state sadly.
"Please don't leave."
"Okay.", she said, laying back down, staring at Nancy's hand on hers.
"Thank you.", she said, pulling her hand away to the girl's dismay. "Can you pass me that?"
"Um, do you really want to smoke something a stranger in the bathroom of a high school party is smoking? That's like... mega unsafe."
"Is that a no or a yes?", she frowned.
The girl threw her hands up and scoffed. "Alright, whatever you want.", she said, passing her the joint. Nancy took a long drag off it, feeling the sting of the smoke in her throat. She breathed out slowly, watching the smoke drift through the air and coughing heavily. She'd smoked weed once or twice at parties before, and she was relieved that her nose was so congested she couldn't smell it.
There were a few minutes of silence after Nancy passed it back to the girl in the tub before she spoke, "So, what brings you here?"
"To the bathroom or the party?", Nancy laughed, shaking her head. "I dunno, I had nothing better to do."
"Well, I'm sure you've got something better to do than cry over boys, hmm?", she teased.
"Well, mysterious bathroom stranger, fuck you too."
"Robin.", she held out her hand. "Name's Robin."
"Nancy Wheeler.", she replied, shaking her hand.
Robin laughed, "I know who you are. You put gum in my gym shoes in 8th grade."
She winced.
"No, no, don't make that face! I don't care, got me out of gym for a week until I got new ones.", she puffed out a cloud of smoke. Nancy watched as she licked her lips after each hit, her freckled nose wrinkling at the sting of it. Robin noticed her staring and waved her hand to make the smoke clear, “Oh, shit, sorry- I can put it out—“
“No, no, it’s okay. Actually, can I have that again?”, she asked coyly, crossing her legs. Robin nodded, handing it over. Nancy inhaled a lot more deeply than she did the first time, feeling like the joint shrunk like an over-sharpened pencil.
She watched with admiration, “That’s deeper than I can ever inhale. Damn.”
Nancy breathed out as she passed it back, not even bothering to cough when her throat burned. Something about the girl’s adoring stare made her feel... good. Euphoric, if she was being honest. It might’ve just been the weed, but she felt like the entire world was that bathroom, the two of them the only people in the world.
“Wheeler, your face is red as hell.”, Robin laughed.
“Oh, shit!”, she yelped, covering her face with her hands and giggling. “Sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry. I get it, I’m super hot, right?”, she snickered.
Nancy shook her head and laughed, “The hottest.”
“Y’know, there’s a whole party out there you’re missing.”
“I know.”
Robin cocked an eyebrow. “You don’t wanna be out there? Might be fun...”
“I think I’d rather be here.”, she smiled. “With you. I think we can make our own fun, hm?”
“Why don’t you join me?”, she said, scooting over slightly. “In the tub? Not like, um, for a bath or anything. Just to hang out. Unless you want to take a bath, that’s cool too I can, um, I can leave-“
“Robin.”, Nancy chuckled, “I’d like that. No water needed.”
She wiped her face with a piece of toilet paper before she climbed in next to her, it was a bit cramped between the two of them, pressed up against each others’ sides. Nancy didn’t mind it, and from the redness of Robin’s freckled face she figured she didn’t either.
They turned to look at each other, the both of them grinned like school children sneaking kisses on the playground. And for a while, Nancy was able to forget all about Steve, the other girl, everything bizarre and otherworldly she’d seen. Because she had Robin’s slightly crooked, yet adorable smile on her mind, and that was all she felt like she needed to care about for the rest of her life. She could spend the rest of her days in the cramped tub with the girl.