Chapter 8

Shane got home and she shrugged off her jacket and collapsed into the couch. She placed her hand over her eyes and just laid there. She felt another weight settling into the couch and then she removed her hand and peered sideways. Jenny was there, with her arms hugging her knees and her chin on her knees. “Shane you don’t look so good,” Jenny said in an even voice. Shane smiled, a self-deprecating smile and put her arm over Jenny’s shoulder. She pulled her close, simply glad to have the warmth of another human body beside her. There was no sexual tension, only mutual trust and comfort between the both of them. Jenny brushed her fingers against Shane’s hair.

“Is this about Carmen?” “How did you know?” “Alice was there when it happened, she….” Shane hissed an expletive underneath her breath. She should have known. “Shane? If you have nothing to say, I’m not gonna force you…”

“No…I..I don’t know where to start. I suck at this Jenny. Carmen and I had one great night. I thought of her sometimes and miss her smile but I had no idea how much I miss her until I saw her with Valeska. It scared me. I didn’t want her with Valeska..”

Jenny sat there in silence and when she looked at Shane with those bottomless eyes, Shane braced herself for Jenny’s honesty. “Shane…I tried running away when I had those feelings for Marina. I tried so hard but eventually they still caught up with me. Shane, quit trying to escape anymore. If you like Carmen, spend time with her, but you have to let her know that it’s your intention to be friends and that maybe that’s all you both can ever be,” Shane looked at Jenny with a tiny smile tugging at her lips. “Maybe Al should start calling you Yoda instead of me,” Jenny wrinkled her nose at Shane. “You can keep that name Shane….and I’m not always lost in my own world. In fact I can see the outside world perfectly fine,” She pushed her specs up her nose and left Shane to ponder over her words.

The next day, Shane was at the TBS television studio to do some starlet’s hair. Shane had been reluctant to take this job but Joe had insisted, claiming that that was the way to increase the profile of the salon and build a reputation. Shane had been bored to death by the starlet prattling about the recent movie she was on and how she saw Jude Law. She just put on a smile and kept working on the hair. The starlet was interrupted by a knocking on the door and Shane saw Carmen balancing a tray of coffee precariously. “Miss Simpson, this is your double latte and espresso,” Shane smiled at Carmen and Carmen smiled hesitantly back. “I don’t want espresso. I told you two double latte. Two,” “Well you didn’t say that. You kept changing your mind and the last time you told me, it was one double latte and one espresso,” The starlet rose up from her seat and Shane placed her hands, gently but firmly on her shoulders. “Hey, it’s no harm done. One of them is for me right? I’ll take the espresso and you can have the double latte. There’s no point getting angry over a cup of coffee …..”

Shane gestured to Carmen and Carmen nodded in understanding. She retreated quietly out of the make-up room. She could hear the starlet’s high-pitched laughter and Shane’s low cajoling voice through the door. Shane was indeed a master at manipulation. Maybe it wasn’t a bad thing because she certainly wasn’t forcing anyone, those people were only too willing to do her bidding. Yeah including people like you Carmen, she chastised herself as she went to deliver the rest of the coffee.

In mid-morning, Carmen was deployed to the editing room and she stayed there in the dark confines of the room, rearranging the tapes. When she went out of the editing room to take a break, the glaring light caused her to blink her eyes. “Hey,” she heard Shane’s low husky voice. “Oh…hey…” “You look dead beat,” “You don’t look so good yourself,” Shane laughed and raked her fingers through her hair. “Miss Simpson is well, engaging,” she said in dry humor.

“I thought you can go back already. Why are you still here?” “

“I was waiting for you….I wanted to talk to you,” Carmen knew this was Shane’s peace offering. “So now that you’ve seen me, what do you wanna say?” Shane took a deep breath and said, “ Carmen I’m not good at talking, but one thing I’m not is a liar and I wanna be friends. That’s all I can offer you and Carmen, I don’t know if I’m ever gonna be able to offer you more,” Carmen looked into the warmth of Shane’s eyes and she traced the outline of her lips with her fingertips, lightly feathering her fingertips against her lips. And when Carmen leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Shane’s lips, it was everything Shane hoped the answer would be.