I am a terrible friend.

When I came out to Mae a few years ago, I couldn’t have asked for a better reaction. She smiled at me, told me nothing would change between us, and listened politely for the next several hours as I gushed about all the girl crushes I’d been keeping to myself over the years.

But when Mae came out to me a moment ago? I had but one singular thought.

Looks like goth’s back on the menu, boys!

I came back to my senses quickly, but it was hard to ignore the sudden possibility that something more could exist between us someday. 

“Mae… I’m so happy you came to me about this.  I’ll do everything I can to help you figure things out. To start with… What made you think your preferences might have changed?”

Mae tapped her fingers against the knuckles of her other hand nervously.

You, you beautiful idiot! she thought.

“I’ve just been… noticing girls more often. Not many! But enough to make me second-guess myself, I guess.” Her husky voice was hardly a whisper.

“I see… Big tits or small?”

“What!?”

“Sorry, I know it’s insensitive but I never get to talk about this stuff with anyone. Which do you prefer?”

“Umm… medium…”

I looked down at my own chest, as did Mae. We both blushed.

“Okay, okay, I’ll stop joking around. If you want to tell me about your crushes, I’m all ears.”

Mae shook her head.

“Sorry, this has been a lot for me already. I just wanted to make sure you knew...”

Weird phrasing, but fair enough.

“Alright. I’m here for you anytime though, okay?”

Mae nodded, and I drew her into my embrace. She was breathing much more heavily than normal… the poor girl must have been so nervous. While still holding each other, Mae spoke.

“Actually, if you’re not busy tonight… maybe you could come over again? N-not that I really care either way. But I did promise I’d spend more time with you, so…”

I don’t remember her promising anything like that. Must be part of this ‘self-improvement’ idea of hers. Either way, I want to be there to support Mae while she’s figuring herself out.

“Yeah, that sounds good to me! Oh crap, this is my last clean uniform though, any chance you’re doing laundry tonight?”

“Sure, I can throw it in with my stuff.”

“Cool. Then it’s a date.”

The lunch bell went off, and after one last hug, Mae and I went to our respective classes. On the way, my mind raced with wild fantasies of what having my best friend become my ‘big tiddy goth girlfriend’ might be like.

---

After school...

Luna lay on the ground in her room, still as the dead. Given the cold concrete and spartan furniture, it might be more accurate to call it a cell, but it was all she’d ever known.

Lying there, dejected and lost, she remembered a sensation she had long forgotten about.

Pain.

Her leg throbbed terribly, a ghost of her punishment from yesterday. Usually, she’d have had the strength of mind to ignore it.

But on this day, the first play of her game had been a complete misstep. When she showed Mae that they were reading Object of Obsession together, she was supposed to recoil from the abnormal, to cast judgment on the deviant, or to resent her ‘best friend’ for keeping secrets behind her back. Then, Luna would swoop in, assuring Norma that she alone could understand and accept her no matter what.

The ‘best friends’ were close though, so much closer than Luna realized. Petty disputes were beneath them, that much had become crystal clear, and Luna had come out the other side of this looking like a fool, accomplishing nothing more than bringing them even closer together.

Oh, she had other plans... backups upon backups. But to so fundamentally misjudge the other player on the first move was beyond pathetic.

Like a phoenix, though, she would rise from the ashes. This was far from the first time she’d stood up from the dirt, and back then she’d barely had anything to live for.

I now know where I went wrong. I’m so sorry, Norma. How could I have thought to waste my focus on anyone else but you?

---

Later, in a dimly lit room...

Once again, Mae and I were huddled together in her bed, this time both of us in our underwear as the dryer rumbled in the next room.

"I knew you were basic, Normie, but a plain white bra and panties, really? You definitely earned your nickname..."

"S-shut up!" I shouted, face burning with embarrassment. Mae was wearing a lacy black and purple bra with a matching bottom that I was fairly certain was a thong. She was hot as fuck. Beside her majesty, I felt like a peasant.

Unsure what to talk about after our emotional exchange at school, she had just decided to put on a movie, inviting me to settle in beside her.

"One sec," I said, eyebrow raised in confusion. "Can I borrow your charger? Looks like my phone is dead already..."

"Yeah sure, mine should be almost full. Hurry up and get comfy before it starts!"

It was some foreign horror movie. Mae had always liked the hardcore stuff, but this was on another level. Watching what the protagonists had to endure caused my body to brace, tingling with phantom pain as if I were the one being tortured. For her part, Mae seemed entirely unaffected. Maybe she'd seen this one before?

Needless to say, I was clinging to her as if she were life support. As a man's skin was being peeled off with unhurried clinical precision, I buried my face in her shoulder.

"Tell me when it's over..."

"Are you kidding me? This is the good shit, Norma. You don't get this kind of tension from just any horror flick, you know."

So as not to seem like a 'little bitch', I looked up at the screen again. It was even more disturbing then before, the actor's cries of agony more than worthy of multiple awards. Eyes widening in fear, I turned to look at Mae. Her expression was... eager. She was practically licking her lips.

"Umm, I don't know if I can watch any more..."

"Huh...? Oh shit, your nightmares. Sorry, I'll turn it off..."

Once the light of the screen died I could barely make out her silhouette, even after my eyes adjusted. Neither of us moved. Only the sound of Mae's ragged breaths proved that time hadn't stopped completely. A soft sensation brushed my lips. It took a moment for me to realize that she had kissed me.

"Mae...?"

"Sorry, Norma. I'm bi now, right? I just had to try it."

"I..."

"You don't have to say anything. Forget it happened, if you prefer. I know I've been a bad host, but... thanks for keeping me company tonight. It made me really happy."

With that she lay down, facing me, and I followed suit. It was pitch black, but I could feel Mae's eyes on me. My mind was going a mile a minute as I tried to understand the turbulent emotions I was feeling.

Our lips were only inches apart. I could return her kiss if I wanted. I could give her even more than that. I leaned in...

In my mind's eye, a flash of white. I stopped in my tracks.

That's right... Mae is vulnerable right now. Having just come out, it's natural she'd want to rush into something, but the last thing she needs is for someone to take advantage of her.

Was I interested? Hell yes I was. But for all I knew, Mae would be telling me tomorrow that she was straight after all. There was plenty of time to do this properly, once we were both certain of our feelings.

Nodding to myself, I leaned closer and kissed her on the cheek. It wasn't a proper response, but it was the best way I could think of to convey my decision. Mae answered with a small sigh, then pulled me in close for a long hug before turning her back to me for the night.

---

In darkness, Mae listened to Norma's breathing slow as her friend fell asleep.

Friends. That's what we are. That's all we are.

Tears stung her eyes as feelings of rejection solidified.

Why? Why couldn't you have been selfish for once in your life!? I came out for you, so why won't you touch me, why won't you make me yours!?

Mae shook her head, refusing to let her tears fall.

You're too pure. Angelic, even. But you're in bed with a demon...

She accepted Norma's decision, and she would never violate her. But being practically naked in bed together with her stolen kiss on her lips was simply too much for Mae.

As quietly as possible she slipped one hand under the band of her thong and began working her clit, roughly pinching and twisting her nipple with the other. She stifled her moans with the pillow as best she could, but it wasn't enough.

"Mmm...?" Norma was roused by the noise and movement. Mae stopped immediately, fearful of being caught, but Norma was awake long enough only to wrap her arms around Mae's torso.

She couldn't stop now, though, fueled by powerful need. She had to go slower - painfully slower - but the feeling of Norma's cool skin against her own heightened the sensation. After a grueling amount of work that left her muscles sore, Mae finally felt release.

"Unnh, fuuuuuuck!" 

There was no way she would have been able to silence such a powerful orgasm, and sure enough Norma jolted upright.

"Mae, are you okay?!"

"Yeah," she said breathlessly. "It was just a dream."

With that she took Norma in her arms, bathing in the afterglow.

---

Overuse of Norma's phone mic had drained the battery far faster than Quin had anticipated, and as a result she had missed everything that had happened to Norma after school. A design flaw she'd have to learn to work around, unfortunately. Quin went over all the media files she’d managed to secure over the course of the day. Then she went over them again. And again.

The question of who “Luna” was had yet to be answered. That voice from lunch, the ‘albino’, perhaps? There wasn’t enough data yet to tell. But one thing was for sure. 

Mae had gotten far too close to her love. The coy texts, the embraces, the sleepover, and according to their classmates… making out with each other!?

You have no right to be at her side… It should have been me! IT SHOULD BE ME, YOU BITCH!

Quin took a moment to calm down. It wasn’t Norma’s fault, of course. This whore was leading her astray.

Without me there, you must be so scared and confused… Clinging to pretenders… Oh, my poor, innocent Norma…

She needed to make a move before all was lost, but she couldn’t give herself away too early, either. There was still so much more to learn about her love that had been denied her.

This wretched “Luna”, however... I need to find out everything I can about her.

With only a first name and the search term ‘albino’, Quin began a long night of research…