How about in bed?"

Bette blushed.

Shane: " have you seen what’s happened to you?"

Bette: " what?"

Shane: " Bette your blushing…. You never blush, even when we used to have those all-night talks by the pool, about everything we had ever done to a woman. Jesus Bette you used to make my cheeks colour, but you never blushed!"

Bette: "do you think I’ve lost my mojo?"

Shane: "I think its gone, and hiding from you big time… you need to get control of yourself again, and let this woman see who you really are, then maybe you will feel less uneasy. Yes?"

Bette nodded: "I think you might be right, thanks Shane"

Shane: "your welcome sexy lady"

Bette just laughed….

They continued to chat for a while longer… Shane started to get sleepy so toddled off home to catch some zzz’s

Bette walked back to her car…. She saw Alice’s car parked nearby and walked over to it. Alice was sitting in the drivers seat, head against the steering wheel. Bette tapped on the window, Alice looked up, Bette could see that she had been crying.

Bette opened the door and crouched down next to Alice.

Bette: "follow me back to mine ok?"

Alice just nodded, the tears streaming freely down her face.

Bette jumped in her car, and made her way home, Alice following closely behind.

She pulled up in the drive way, Alice parked behind her. Bette got out and walked over to Alice who was just getting out of her car too. Bette put her arm round her and walked her to the house. Once inside, Bette made some coffee, and sat with Alice on the sofa.

Just sitting there reminded Bette of Tina, and the previous evening.

The silence stretched into minutes.

Bette: "so what’s going on then?"

Alice looked up at Bette, fresh tears in her eyes: "I think Dana has left me"

Bette’s jaw dropped: "What? When?"

Alice: "she came home yesterday after training, and said she had something she wanted to talk about…. I can’t remember everything she said, I was in a daze….

She said something about, this being her year, and that she needed to concentrate on her Tennis. That she wouldn’t have time for a relationship, and that it wasn’t fair on me for her to ask me to wait for her. She told me she was going to move out, and that she was being sent to an intensive training camp, by her coach….." At that point Alice started to sob harder. Bette curled her arms around her friend, and waited patiently until the tears subsided.