“I forgot Carmen.”

Bette looked up, wondering at Tina’s first words as she entered the living room. “Forgot who?” Bette held out the chair for Tina and helped her get situated at the table. “Ready for dinner now?”

“Please.” Tina unfolded the napkin and placed it over her stomach, figuring food would fall there long before it ever hit her lap. “Carmen, she was this girl who kept meeting up with Shane.”

“I heated things up, I didn’t want to wake you.” Bette placed a plate before her wife.

“Thanks.” Tina’s smile was met with one in reply from Bette, as Bette seated herself in front of her own plate. “And thanks for waiting.”

“Well, I figured I could withhold food until you told me the rest of your story,” Bette teased.

Tina stuck out her tongue in response, to which Bette gave a rather interested look; not quite the response Tina was hoping for. “Ok, I get the idea. Carmen was this girl who I guess hooked up with Jenny.”

“Jenny? I thought you said Shane.”

“Well, Shane, then Jenny.” Bette paused for a moment. “And Shane and Jenny were roommates at the time.”

“Right.”

“Wow, that had to be,” Bette searched for a word, “interesting.”

Tina shrugged. “Maybe. But if you really want interesting”

Bette leaned forward. “Yes?”

“Dana.”

“Dana? So she and Lara got back together?”

“No.” Tina put down her cutlery. “This is weird, but I went on a road trip with Dana and the girls to Palm Springs.”

“I didn’t go?” Bette pouted.

“You had to work.”

To this Bette gave a shrug. In this respect, her part of the dream sounded a little too much like her life. “So, road trip, do tell.”

“Some big party weekend.” Tina picked up her fork and started poking at the contents of her plate. “Anyway, Dana hooked up with this really weird woman.”

“Weird?”

“Yeah. Like, some bad-vibes hospitality chick.”

Bette rested her chin on her hands, her elbows on the table. “Ms. Fairbanks got serious.”

“Yeah, she did, but this chick was like, seriously demented. A total starfucker.”

“Starfucker?” Bette raised an eyebrow. “I hope you’re going to teach these words to our child.”

Tina patted her stomach. “Sorry, baby.” She put her gaze back on her wife. “But Bette, this woman would have driven you crazy. And she totally led Dana around by the nose. They were even set to get married.”

“And?”

“Well,” Tina coughed, and then took a sip from her water glass. “Sorry.”

“You ok?”

“Yeah. Anyway, this woman fell for some Z-list celebrity and totally dumped Dana, just as Dana was trying to dump her.”

“So Dana didn’t like her?” Bette’s confusion showed.

“Dana did, I guess, like her. But she realized that there was someone else who loved her.”

“Really.”

Tina nodded. “And you’ll never guess who.”

Bette stroked at her chin. “Well, with everyone else accounted for, I know it couldn’t have been me, or you. So, that leaves Alice?”

“Very good, Sherlock. It seems Alice had this long-simmering crush on Dana.”

Bette gave a small grin. “I could see that happening. So, how did things go for the two of them?”

“Well, I think Alice was actually really into Dana, believe it or not.”

“Dana’s a better choice that that weird guy, ‘Lisa’.” Bette made air quotes for the name.

“I’m not sure you’re really in a position to comment on Alice’s taste, honey.”

Bette made a face at Tina for that comment.

“Anyway,” Tina made a face back, “they were still together, and having lots of *****.”

Bette gave a wistful smile. “I remember those early days. That was like us, right?”

“Hmm?”

“Us, in your dream?”

“Well, about that, babe, umm” Tina’s voice got soft.

“Tina?”

“Yeah?”

“What aren’t you telling me?”

(We already know, so I don’t need to write the rest, right?)