“Bette? What do you think; you didn’t raise your hand?” Tom asked while at the same time signing his question for Jodie.

Bette gazed at her group of friends as they sat around the campfire after a long day of bike riding for the Pink Ride. They were roasting marshmallows and playing another in a line of drinking games invented solely to get you drunk enough to let go of your inhibitions and divulge the intricacies of your private life. She hated these games. More often than not her friends would torture her into revealing more than she felt comfortable sharing, and if she tried to keep any semblance of discretion someone always shined the spotlight on her…just as Tom was doing now by asking her if she thought kissing someone who wasn’t your partner was cheating.

Why do these people think it’s ‘fun’ to give up so many intimate details of their lives? A frustrated sigh escaped as she embarked on an answer she hoped would satisfy the ravenous gossipmongers.

“I think it’s a trap to judge. I mean, there are different situations and you can’t really categorically…”

“Oh my God that is such a non-answer.” Alice laughed as she interrupted Bette. “It’s…Bette…it’s because she was a big ole cheater,” she explained to the newer members of their group of friends.

Other than the occasional crackle and pop from the fire there was complete silence as they all turned en masse towards Bette to watch her reaction to Alice’s words.

Cheater The word flew so casually from Alice’s mouth, but Bette felt the sting as sharp as if Alice had reached over and slapped her. She inhaled sharply, but other than that managed to keep her face neutral, not wanting to share both the pain the label caused, but the shock that her close friend would say something so harsh not only in front of Tina, but in front of Jodie.

 “Alice…” she reprimanded as she glanced over and watched Tina unsuccessfully struggle to hide the pain that emerged every time she was reminded of Bette’s betrayal. From the other side of the fire Shane could see the effect of Alice’s words on her two friends and tried to casually divert her. “Oh, give her a break…come on.”