"Are you okay?" Jodi signed and Bette nodded.

"I’m just thinking." Bette answered.

"Of what?" Jodi asked.

"Nothing. Nothing serious." Bette lied and she knew she was in trouble for lying to the woman she supposedly love.

"You and Tina have been talking a lot lately." Jodi said.

"Oh.. yes." Bette stammered. "We’re choosing which school Angelica will be applying."

"I have no reasons to get worried, right?" Jodi asked.

"No." Bette lied. "We’re just talking."
**********

"Bette are you free tonight?" Tina started. "I miss eating at our favorite restaurant and I’m hoping that you can accompany me tonight."

"I’m sorry, I can’t." Bette simply said.

"Oh.. that’s okay. I’m just wondering if you’re available.." Tina said not being able to hide her disappointment.

"No, I don’t–" Bette stopped as she took a deep breath. "I can’t do this to Jodi.. and.. to you." Bette said. "I’m still with Jodi and if we’re at least going to attempt to try again I don’t want to start like this, this is wrong."

Bette looked at Tina and Tina felt that Bette is having a hard time just as she is.

"I’ll talk to her." Tina said. "I’ll say to her that I want you back."

"Please, don’t." Bette requested.

"Then where do we start?" Tina inquired.

"Maybe we don’t have to start anywhere." Bette started. "Maybe we’re not suppose to have another chance again."

"Why are you saying this?" Tina said. "I thought you love me."

"I do.." Bette said. "But that doesn’t mean we have to be together again."

Tina just looked down and her heart was breaking all over again, she thought that she has a chance. But what chance does she have if Bette is doubting the possibility of them becoming an ‘us’ again?

"If you think about it, is it worth it? Is giving us another chance worth it? Maybe the thought of ‘us’ is just in our heads, maybe we just love the thought of ‘us’ because it’s what most people expect." Bette said.

"Maybe you’re expecting me to fuck up again, maybe you’re doubting if I can commit to you again, maybe you’re thinking that I’m just missing to have a connection with another woman and this is not what I really wanted. Maybe you don’t trust me.." Tina said softly. "I’ve experience how hard it is to fall in love with you, to be in a relationship with you." Tina said which got Bette’s attention. "You’re workaholic, possessive, control-freak–" Tina said and she saw Bette arching her eyebrow. "..but it’s much harder to NOT be in a relationship with you." Tina said as she approached Bette. "Your being a workaholic means that you want to provide for the one you love. Your being possessive means that you love me. Your being a control-freak means that you want things to be organized, to be perfect. I love that about you and I can cope up with that attitude." Tina said. "I know that we’ll fight again, there’s no chance in hell that we won’t but in my head I imagine those fights to be like, what’s Angie’s going to wear today? What are we going to eat? Where are we going to our vacation? That’s the fight I’m thinking, some petty fights that means nothing else but how much we love each other." Tina paused. "You’re saying that maybe I’m just in love with the thought of us being an ‘us’ again and I don’t really want to be with you, then how can you explain this feeling?" Tina said as she reached for Bette’s hand and placed it above her heart. "It’s breaking everytime you push me away, it’s breaking everytime I see you with her, it’s breaking when I’m looking at you because I know that you love me too but you’re just scared to trust me again." Tina said. "I want to tell Jodi that I want to be with you again but I’m also soo scared that if I do, she’ll do things that made you fall in love with her and that you’ll end up loving her more than me. But I want to try, I don’t want to waste another day not making a move to be with you again and if telling Jodi is the first step, then I’ll do it. I’ll do anything.." Tina concluded.

Bette walked towards her desk leaving Tina at the center of the room.

"She’s having a class until 4 pm and after that a meeting with Phyllis. So by 6pm she’s probably free." Bette said non-chalantly.

"I can tell her?" Tina asked Bette, unable to rationalize that Bette is indeed telling her a ‘go signal’.

Bette just bowed her head and tried to hide the smile from her face.

"Thank you." Tina simply said as she Bette faced her again.

Again, Bette just smiled but this time she didn’t tried to hide it.

"So.." Tina started. "I’ll pick you up at 8?"

Bette blushed, unaccustomed from being asked for a date.

"I’m free as early as 7." Bette shyly said.

"Okay.. so seven it is." Tina said and she smiled seeing Bette blush.
**********