The almost-brawl began and ended because Charleigh, deep down, had always been a liar. A good enough liar to fool even herself half of the time. Even this time, she was almost convinced she was right.
Charleigh and Mona were late for the tip off because of the almost brawl that ensued over a purple jersey with Lexa Jenson’s name on it. Thirty minutes of arguing about whether wearing the jersey was a crime against womanhood.
“Lexa Jenson is a womanizer and a cheater,” Mona yelled. Her fist tightened around the purple mesh material.
Her evidence was TikTok videos where Jenson was shown holding on to a woman that wasn’t her wife. A blonde, half Jenson’s size, had tried her best to keep her face covered as she pulled and pushed her way free from Jenson’s glassy gaze.
Mona had a very strong argument, and if Charliegh was grading it like one of her student’s essays, then she would have to give Mona an A. However, Mona wasn’t Charleigh’s student. The tattooed taller woman was basically her sister and had once been her girlfriend. A once upon a time type of story that hadn’t ended happily ever after. So far from it, the almost brawl ended with the blonde’s decision that being told what she could not wear by her ex-girlfriend was a battle worth winning.
Charleigh snatched the jersey from Mona’s hand. She’d worn it to every game since Mona gifted it to her three years earlier. The other woman had to know that. Three years of supporting the Devils and Lexa Jenson in that jersey. And they hadn’t lost a home game she’d worn it to all season. A win streak that brought them to the playoffs.
The real question was: how could she not wear it?
She didn’t ask that though. It would mean the topic was up for debate.
She pulled it over the top of her. Got her head briefly stuck in the arm hole before she fixed herself. She always fixed herself.
“You stopped being allowed to lecture me when you decided to dump me,” Charleigh hissed. “It’s supposed to be my birthday present, so I’m going to wear what I want.”
They left Charleigh’s house without talking to each other. The music played while Mona huffed out noisy breaths. They hit every red light on the trip across town. The gravel lot across from the arena was filled, but Mona made her own parking space. She navigated the truck with ease, while Charleigh’s mind ran through their argument once more.
With arms folded over Jenson’s number on her chest, Charleigh convinced herself she was right to wear the jersey. Reminded herself, Mona didn’t even know what happened at the bar the night Lexa Jenson was arrested. Mona didn’t even watch basketball to care that this was the Devil’s shot at the first championship in seven years. Or to care about what Lexa was going through.
Charleigh understood what it was like to have someone come between her and the girl she loved. Mona had just never loved Charleigh enough to understand, which is why Charleigh could forgive Jenson. She had to forgive, after all she’d done worse things in her life.
The cracked soles of her orange Converse Chucks slapped against the wet concrete. Charleigh dragged Mona through the mostly vacant courtyard outside of the basketball arena to the playoff game being held within. At least there wasn’t a line to move through the metal detectors.
The court was visible from the lobby, but the teams looked like ants fighting over a Cheeto crumb. Luckily, the big screen was focused on Lexa Jenson in possession of the ball. Charleigh stopped and stood on her toes. She watched the woman drive toward the center, fake left, then slip around the opponent on the right for an easy lay-up.
The ball sunk but the behemoth in blue hit Jenson’s face midair. Jenson’s body twisted in the air before hitting the wooden floor with a slight bounce. She curled into a ball, holding her nose. Her dark hair came loose from her standard bun.
The footage replayed the thick elbow smashing Jenson in the cheek and nose in slow motion. Then from a different angle.
“About time someone decked her,” Mona grumbled. “If I had known you’re still obsessed with that bitch, I never would have brought you here for your birthday.”
Charleigh swatted Mona for thinking it was a good thing the Devil’s MVP and highest scorer lay on the floor.
“We need her,” Charleigh explained. “If she’s out, then we’re fucked. Tanzon is only averaging sixteen points a game and her field goal average has dropped over the last four weeks. She is really only good if she gets a clear shot and Jenson is who clears the lane for her to shoot. So, you know what that means?”
“They lose,” Mona stated.
“We lose,” Charleigh corrected. Her hands moved in the air but contributed nothing as she explained. “We would have to come from behind in the series, and the blue team has never lost a series where they started out on top. Winning tonight means that we will take the first round.”
Mona laughed at Charleigh bouncing on her toes, trying to see the court where ant-like Lexa Jenson lay, surrounded by a few other black ants with miniature red bags. She tugged on Charleigh’s arm, but the blonde shook away the grip. Her eyes had returned to the now live action of the medic’s prodding Lexa’s face. It didn’t look like it was bleeding.
Mona called to her, but Charleigh waved her off. “Not now. I need to know if she is okay.”
Lips pressed a kiss to Charleigh’s cheek. A hand was shoved into Charleigh’s front pocket, then the rear one. The right side produced nothing but an old gum wrapper, so Mona tried the other side.
“I need your ID, Princess,” Mona said.
Charleigh disregarded the stupid name and pressed her face into Mona’s lips to get another kiss. Seven years as sisters instead of lovers still broke Charleigh’s heart, but she knew Mona was seeing someone that wasn’t her. She’d never be anything more than what she was, and she was learning to accept that.
She reached down the neck of her shirt. Her ID was a little sweaty when she put it in the other woman’s hand. Whether Mona cared or not went unnoticed when screen switched to a view of Devils in a huddle. Their coach danced his fingers over the palm of his other hand. His lips curled over his teeth as he snarled at the players. Spittle flew from his lips towards the women not looking at him from the bench.
Charleigh felt something slip over her head and glanced down to see the purple lanyard with a plastic holder in it. The ticket was huge with foiled lettering. Lexa Jenson in 2D went up for a layup across the cardstock.
She held it for a moment, and just looked at the woman. Even after everything that happened, she wished it would have been different. She wished for the woman who’d fumbled through a Shakespeare sonnet in the overcrowded lecture hall they’d shared once upon a time. Or the one who’d stood smiling while she held up the Devil’s jersey. Number 1 draft pick for the NWBA before she’d even finished four years of college.
Mona hooked an arm through Charleigh’s and pulled her toward the glass doors to a little old man in the oversized orange jersey just as the Devils went back out onto the floor. Without the screen to distract her, Charleigh smiled at him, and held out her ticket.
“Hiya, Charleigh.” His voice was tired, but Charleigh could hear the happiness in it.
“Hey, Hank,” she said. She held up her ticket so he could scan it. The scanner let out the three little beeps of approval.
“VIP tonight, must be a special occasion,” he said with a wink.
Charleigh nodded her head and felt her hair flop side-to-side. “Next week’s my birthday.”
The old man’s bushy gray eyebrows rose. “Your birthday! Well, happy birthday early, Charleigh. How old you gonna be?”
Charleigh ducked her head and smiled, “23 on Thursday.”
“Good for you,” Hank offered. He scanned Mona’s ticket. “I still remember you coming every summer with your pop. Good man. He’d be proud to see how big you got.”
She forced the smile on her face not to waiver. Her father, the one to always make friends with the people he passed by, had brought them to games since Charleigh was a child. Their seats were always too high. But they’d share a popcorn and a soda as he reminded her to always root for the home team.
“You have a good time. And be safe!” Hank called after her as Mona dragged her from her thoughts and the doorway.
When Charleigh turned back to smile at him once more, Hank waved. He’d been working the door for as long as she could remember. She worried each time that he wouldn’t be there the next time she came.
Mona abandoned Charleigh in front of another television screen for food fifteen feet later without a word. As play stopped for a commercial break, Charleigh’s impatience began to set in. She tapped her foot, watching her sister move like a snail through the line. She’d already missed the first four minutes of the first quarter.
With the screen alongside the concession stand on a commercial, Charleigh glanced down at the ticket around her neck. She checked Mona’s position in line, then decided seeing the game was her birthday present and she was done waiting.
She followed the instructions to entry point 101. With step one done, she studied the next set of information. She’d never had a ticket like this before, because the row was a letter, and the letter was A. The first letter in the alphabet, which meant the first row. Her eyes scanned the first row, landing on the only two open seats.
Two padded folding chairs sat unoccupied, directly next to the Devils bench.
Her heart beat the air out of her lungs. Mona hadn’t just gotten her tickets to a playoff game; she’d gotten her courtside seats. She was going to be right next to the bench. Next to Lexa Jenson and the rest of the Devils.
Watching from the stands was her plan. She would blend in with the crowd. Be far from Jenson’s gaze, like in the lecture hall. Squished between older lesbians and soccer moms. Screaming with others where she couldn’t be heard. And she wouldn’t be seen.
Mona sidled up alongside Charleigh, standing at the top of the stairs with her hands overflowing with snacks and a drink in the crook of her arm. She hip-checked Charleigh before leading the way down. Her dark hair swayed, the scarlet red tips peeking out from under the sharp cut.
Charleigh found Jenson on the court. The woman led by a stride, running the ball down the court with two guards in blue closing in around her. She sucked in her lower lip, then chewed on the peeling skin. The ball pounded into the wood with each step she took, but before she was up, she tossed the ball to the left where number 27, Danaya Tanzon had come up. The defenders couldn’t redirect the motion to block Lexa, leaving 27 completely open for the corner three.
With hands above her head, Charleigh jumped up and down while yelling, “Yeahhhh!” Her cheers joined the roar of the rest of the crowd, and she felt at ease with her people. Remembering that Jenson had no reason to care she was sitting in the front row of the game. There were hundreds of people there to see the MVP. Plus, she didn’t even know Charleigh’s name.
Checking the scoreboard, Charleigh noted they were up by six. However, in basketball that was only two three pointers, or three lay-ups, or two shots with fouls for a chance of an extra shot. Really the combinations of scenarios that could lead to her team losing were immeasurable. It didn't stop her from worrying about each one of them.
Mona was already getting comfortable when Charleigh made it down the narrow steps. As she sat, Mona handed over a soda in the red and white cup. It was the perfect combination of syrup and bubbles, and the caramel liquid brought a smile to Charleigh’s face with the first sip.
Her sister’s arm slung around the back of Charleigh’s chair with her legs stretched out. She lounged in comfort of the luxury game seating, while Charleigh sat up on the edge of the cushion as the teams ran toward them. All of the women on the court were so much bigger than Charleigh was used to thinking about them, and so real. With voices that said words rather than the silent play she was used to watching from 20 rows up.
Lexa was at the far end of the court flashing two and then five fingers, she called out “Orange slide!”
The chair wobbled with Charleigh’s bouncing legs. Her eyes memorized the details knowing this was the closest she’d ever be to a professional court. A sweat droplet ran down the center, Emma Delango’s face. She watched the guard, Danaya Tanzon get blocked by the screen, but Lexa Jenson moved past the Stars’ forward and stripped the ball away. She passed the ball to Delango. Delango took it back down the court only to fake a shot, and bounced it back to Jenson, who ran into the key. The ball slapped the board and fell in the net.
When Lexa’s feet landed, Charleigh felt her heart rattle against her ribs. The familiar eyes looked directly at Charleigh in her jersey. The corners of her dark lips curled into a smile, and she winked at Charleigh.
Jenson pointed at Charleigh and said, “Don’t worry. I got more. Just for you.”
Charleigh was breathing too fast because she’d been so wrong. The cavity of her chest refused to fill to capacity when the memories began to creep back to the forefront of her mind. Mona’s tattooed arm wrapped around Charleigh, pulling her back into her chair. She glared at Lexa, whose brows scrunched for a moment before she turned, running back down court.
“Hey, Princess,” Mona said. “You, okay?”
Charleigh stared at the floor, then up at the game where Emma Delango had recovered a rebound. She knew every stat for number 42, Emma Delango. But none of it mattered as Charleigh tried to will away the last time she’d been this close to the woman. The same memory where number 27, Danaya Tanzon had stood by.
They were there when….
Charleigh stopped the thought. She was supposed to be home. If she had just gone home instead of the bar, Lexa Jenson wouldn’t have gotten in a fight and been arrested. It was her fault for even going there.
“Did you cream your chonies?” Mona asked as Charleigh stared blankly at the court.
A part of her wanted to leave, it would be easier that way. However, there was nothing at her little house but her dog. Going home meant being alone because Mona would leave again, and Charleigh had exhausted being alone with Mona off living her new life.
She wanted to be here. Needed to be here so she could feed off the energy of the crowd and leave with the drumming of victory in her ears. It would give her something to think about. A win to cherish between the memories of all the loss.
Charleigh shook her head. “No, just in awe,” she said. “Thank you for getting the tickets for my birthday. I know they probably cost you a paycheck.”
“You’re worth it,” Mona said. She went back to eating her snacks, basketball being of no interest to her.
Charleigh’s heart was still beating too fast, but it raced in step with the fast break that brought 27 back down the court. Charleigh locked away the memory of 27’s eyes on her and created a new memory of the woman in this moment. The smile that spread across the dark face as she smacked a hand to her chest in pride.
“Welcome to the DEVIL’s DEN!” Danaya Tanzon yelled. She held her hand up to her ear, calling for the crowd’s cheers. “You know who gets it done!”
As the crowd shouted out the ‘Get it Devils’ chant, Charleigh created a new memory of 42 to replace the way her eyes had run down Charleigh’s pinned body. She replaced it with an open-mouthed laugh at 27 when she helped the woman to her feet after the blue behemoth struck again. Her close-cropped hair shook and sweat showered the younger teammate as they celebrated their lead.
Charleigh couldn’t create a new memory of Lexa Jenson, though. She couldn’t because every time the Devils came back to defend, the woman’s eyes fell on her. Stared at Charleigh as though she could see straight through the jersey hanging off her.
So, Charleigh stopped looking at her. Instead, she spent her one night as a VIP learning the details of the rest of the team and eating the pretzel Mona bought her. She dipped torn chunks of dough into the fake yellow cheese and shoved it into her mouth each time her team played defense on the other end of the court.
Time had moved so quickly with each team seeming to only have a fastbreak offense in their playbook. Charleigh became so engrossed in the game; she didn’t even notice halftime was approaching until the fans began to count down the last ten seconds.
As the team headed her way, Charleigh looked up to find
the tired brown eyes standing out against the sweat sheened skin. They were locked on her once more, and she remembered when she thought it was because she mattered.
Those important eyes had looked at her…
had chosen her to dance with…
had wanted her over the rest in the room…
had looked her over and decided she existed…
Just like they were doing at this moment. Hundreds of people were watching as Lexa walked directly to her.
She turned her body to face Mona. The familiar warmth of Mona’s arm wrapped securely around her. She gazed at a different shade of brown. An earthy brown that flitted down to her lips, however, didn’t move forward. Their kissing days had passed with their youth. Now in their twenties, Mona had someone she didn’t want to know Charleigh.
And Charleigh had her first house. Her dog, Rexa Pawson. And her job.
Charleigh’s eyes closed. She thought of the time kisses were stolen between them in their shared bedroom or between classes. But the past was the past, and the present was not a love story between two foster sisters.
“Well, she can’t keep her eyes off you,” Mona said. “But that’s not unusual. You always are the brightest star in the room. Mainly because you’re like fluorescent.”
Charleigh placed her fingers to the red lips. She closed her eyes and locked the door to the past, then pressed a kiss to the flushed cheek. “Thanks for bringing me, even though you hate basketball.”
They cheered for the tiny hip-hop team during halftime, then for the Devils as they made their way back to the court. Charleigh pointed out each of the players, taking warm up shots on their side of the court.
“…and 15 is Denise Forte. She is only 5’6”. One of the shortest players in the league so she never really gets to play much.”
A ball rolled into Charleigh’s feet, and she stooped down to pick it up. She turned to pass the ball back on the court but froze. Lexa Jenson stood in the same spot where she’d missed every attempted shot all season with her hands held out.
With a deep breath, Charleigh thrust the ball back to the woman. A strong chest pass caused Jenson to take a step back. Jenson caught the ball and looked at her. Her eyebrows cinched again. Instead of going back to shooting though, she walked over to Charleigh and Mona. That cocky smile from quarter one was plastered back on her face.
“You want to go out tonight?” Jenson asked with her feet still on the court.
Charleigh swallowed. “Uh, we…”
“Aren’t interested in hangin’ out with misogynistic assholes like you,” Mona snapped. Her arm fell over Charleigh’s shoulder. “Anyone ever tell you that you give lesbians a bad rap?”
“Feisty. I like a little fight.” Jenson cast her eyes back on Charleigh. Then she asked, “What about you? You busy tonight or is the girlfriend just threatened?”
“I…” Words wouldn’t work.
“You know, you could use your hall pass.” Jenson’s eyebrows rose and fell. “I promise it’ll be worth it.”
Charleigh studied the way the woman’s lips curled at the corners in a self-approved smirk when she spoke this time. And a familiar feeling settled in her chest.
“I… I can’t tonight.”
Jenson grabbed the Sharpie a fan waved in her face from the row behind them. She scribbled on the ball before handing the marker back to the owner and the ball to Charleigh.
“I’m here all year,” Jenson said with another wink.
Charleigh turned to show Mona the birthday prize realizing it was Lexa Jenson’s phone number instead of an autograph. There was a point in her life that she would have fought someone over ownership of that ball. However, when the ball came loose from her grasp, Charleigh didn’t rush after it.
She steadied herself on Mona, then looked back to see what had hit her and caused her to lose control of the now lost ball.
“Don’t touch her,” Mona barked. Her fingers dug into the ball player’s wrist. Jenson’s bicep flexed as the gears tattooed over Mona’s wrist seemed to give her cyborg-like strength. “She’s too good to end up like the last girl that thought you were something special.”
Lexa Jenson’s lips formed a straight line, but her eyes widened in surprise. She pulled her wrist back, but Mona didn’t release her.
“Let go of me,” Lexa rumbled. The surprise was gone, and the frame of her body rose from the slumped position. Her height loomed over Charliegh’s back.
“What?” Mona scoffed. “You don’t like it when people put their hands on you?”
Charleigh placed her hand on Mona’s, and she released Jenson’s hand. She glanced up at Lexa and tried to remember the girl she’d seen in college. With a soft shrug, she explained, “She’s just worried you're going to hurt me. You and I have a bad history of touching.”
Lexa’s glare softened when she looked down at Charleigh. Her brows furrowed, and Charleigh awaited a bitchy comment. Waited for Lexa Jenson to snap, like she had done both times she’d been that close to Charleigh.
The music in the arena was getting louder. A buzzer rang when the clock hit zero. The sound seemed to flip a switch in Lexa Jenson. The woman’s eyes widened; this time not dilated with lust.
The pale seashell brown irises pulled Charleigh’s gaze. Even in a state of shock Charleigh couldn’t help but swoon over how beautiful Lexa Jenson was. How her eyes seemed to be just a shade paler than her skin. Her hair in a natural curl set, the bun having come undone in the first quarter.
The woman shut her mouth only to open it again. She did this a few times, but no words came out. Emma Delango came up behind Lexa. She shoved the basketball with the phone number back into Charleigh’s hands before pulling at Lexa.
“Jenson, let’s go,” Delango said, but then she looked at Charleigh. Her eyes grew as wide at Lexa’s. They were darker and sadder when they stared down at her.
“You’re the girl from the bar,” she breathed. “I went after you, but you were gone.”
Lexa’s posture shrunk once more. Her hands gripped the air like bars separating herself from Charleigh. Words began to fall and fail with each breath she took.
“The next day…"
Fans were screaming around them. Called for their team like sirens.
“I tried to find you…”
Inflatable tubes struck together. Their cracks loud like thunder in the cavernous space.
“…to tell you I was….”
Lexa was panicking. She was panicking, but halftime was over.
“I’m so sorry. I wasn’t going to…” Lexa’s head shook back and forth. Her hand extended to touch Charleigh but hovered just out of reach. “I didn’t mean to….”
Charleigh grabbed the dark hand. She squeezed it like a hug instead of a handshake. She told herself not to stutter, but it was hard. It was hard because she was holding the hand that pushed her into the railing. The hand that tried to push its way into her pants because the woman hadn’t cared.
“I forgive you,” Charleigh yelled over the people screaming around her.
It wasn’t the truth, but Lexa wouldn’t know that Charleigh looked at people’s noses when she lied. The woman would feel better about what happened, and the game would go on. Life would go one, like it always had without the blonde.
Lexa’s eyes blinked. In a single breath, she said, “I’ll make it up to you. I’m not the monster they say I am. You’ll see. I’ll show you. I’ll see you after the game.”
She turned before Charleigh could agree. Ran down the court as Stars inbounded the ball with only four Devil’s defenders in place.
Once Lexa was on the other side, Charleigh felt the weight lift from her chest. She leaned back into Mona with the ball over her middle, cradling it like a proud mom to be. Mona’s arms wrapped around her center, pulling the smaller woman flush to her as they waited with the rest of the fans for the Devils to score their first points before taking their seats.
Mona’s breath warmed the back of Charleigh’s neck. Her chin rested on Charleigh’s shoulder as she asked, “Were you the girl in the video at Echo’s Escape?”
Charleigh nodded. She nodded because there was no reason left to lie to Mona. There was no reason to try to hide something from Mona she already knew. Because if she tried to deny it was her, then Mona would question the other things she’d said over the years. She’d ask questions Charleigh hoped never to have to answer again.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Mona asked. “Call me to get you? I saw the video. You were scared.”
Charleigh lowered her head. Her eyes traced the inconsistent pattern of the floorboards. Taking a deep breath, she confessed, “I shouldn’t have been there. I wasn’t drinking, but I have said that before… so I figured it was better if no one knew. I just went home and hoped no one would recognize me.”
Mona’s arms tightened. She pressed another kiss to the honey hair. Her chin made its way to Charleigh’s shoulder where she rested the brilliant brain on the smaller woman. The woman had given up so much to stay with Charleigh. The least the blonde could do was not make Mona regret it.
Charleigh could hear the smile in Mona’s voice when she said, “Well you have a new ball out of it, and apparently an annoying douche canoe trying to make it up to you. I mean, she could be worse. She could be like Kyle, who used to try and watch you take a shower.”
“She could be worse,” Charleigh echoed. She tried not to hold her breath when she thought of their oily foster brother. “She could smell like unseasoned, boiling chicken.”
“You really do have the worst taste in women. Even Jenson’s sweat smelled better than the culinary chick.” Mona leaned into Charleigh. “But before you go calling that phone number, she gave you. I need you to ask yourself. Do you honestly think she is more than her latest catch phrase?”
Charleigh looked over just enough to scan Mona’s face. The woman watched the players on the court closer than she’d ever paid attention to a game before. The rich cognac eyes ran over the team, then fell on Charleigh’s face.
“What do you mean?”
Mona’s arms released her, and she held up her hands as she pretended to yell, “I’m Lexa Fucking Jenson.”
Charleigh snorted loudly, because even though Mona hadn’t screamed, she could hear the exclamation points in the words. Her hands shoved Mona back slightly.
As if on cue, number 1 held up an arm. Her bicep caught the Stars’ guard just over the chest. The blue uniformed player hit the ground hard as Jenson stood over the woman.
“You’re going to have to do better than that!” Jenson taunted the girl, who was still trying to catch the air that was forced out of her. “I’m Lexa Fucking Jenson, not your little school friend!”
Charleigh leaned down and picked up her drink. The tension she’d felt twisting within her began to unravel and she smiled at the cup of happiness. Her team was going to win, and they would go on to win a championship.
Just as she took a sip, a body slammed into her. Her lower back hit the chair behind her. The stands of people flipped sideways in slow motion. She knew she was falling, but there was nothing she could do to stop it.
Charleigh and Mona were late for the tip off because of the almost brawl that ensued over a purple jersey with Lexa Jenson’s name on it. Thirty minutes of arguing about whether wearing the jersey was a crime against womanhood.
“Lexa Jenson is a womanizer and a cheater,” Mona yelled. Her fist tightened around the purple mesh material.
Her evidence was TikTok videos where Jenson was shown holding on to a woman that wasn’t her wife. A blonde, half Jenson’s size, had tried her best to keep her face covered as she pulled and pushed her way free from Jenson’s glassy gaze.
Mona had a very strong argument, and if Charliegh was grading it like one of her student’s essays, then she would have to give Mona an A. However, Mona wasn’t Charleigh’s student. The tattooed taller woman was basically her sister and had once been her girlfriend. A once upon a time type of story that hadn’t ended happily ever after. So far from it, the almost brawl ended with the blonde’s decision that being told what she could not wear by her ex-girlfriend was a battle worth winning.
Charleigh snatched the jersey from Mona’s hand. She’d worn it to every game since Mona gifted it to her three years earlier. The other woman had to know that. Three years of supporting the Devils and Lexa Jenson in that jersey. And they hadn’t lost a home game she’d worn it to all season. A win streak that brought them to the playoffs.
The real question was: how could she not wear it?
She didn’t ask that though. It would mean the topic was up for debate.
She pulled it over the top of her. Got her head briefly stuck in the arm hole before she fixed herself. She always fixed herself.
“You stopped being allowed to lecture me when you decided to dump me,” Charleigh hissed. “It’s supposed to be my birthday present, so I’m going to wear what I want.”
They left Charleigh’s house without talking to each other. The music played while Mona huffed out noisy breaths. They hit every red light on the trip across town. The gravel lot across from the arena was filled, but Mona made her own parking space. She navigated the truck with ease, while Charleigh’s mind ran through their argument once more.
With arms folded over Jenson’s number on her chest, Charleigh convinced herself she was right to wear the jersey. Reminded herself, Mona didn’t even know what happened at the bar the night Lexa Jenson was arrested. Mona didn’t even watch basketball to care that this was the Devil’s shot at the first championship in seven years. Or to care about what Lexa was going through.
Charleigh understood what it was like to have someone come between her and the girl she loved. Mona had just never loved Charleigh enough to understand, which is why Charleigh could forgive Jenson. She had to forgive, after all she’d done worse things in her life.
The cracked soles of her orange Converse Chucks slapped against the wet concrete. Charleigh dragged Mona through the mostly vacant courtyard outside of the basketball arena to the playoff game being held within. At least there wasn’t a line to move through the metal detectors.
The court was visible from the lobby, but the teams looked like ants fighting over a Cheeto crumb. Luckily, the big screen was focused on Lexa Jenson in possession of the ball. Charleigh stopped and stood on her toes. She watched the woman drive toward the center, fake left, then slip around the opponent on the right for an easy lay-up.
The ball sunk but the behemoth in blue hit Jenson’s face midair. Jenson’s body twisted in the air before hitting the wooden floor with a slight bounce. She curled into a ball, holding her nose. Her dark hair came loose from her standard bun.
The footage replayed the thick elbow smashing Jenson in the cheek and nose in slow motion. Then from a different angle.
“About time someone decked her,” Mona grumbled. “If I had known you’re still obsessed with that bitch, I never would have brought you here for your birthday.”
Charleigh swatted Mona for thinking it was a good thing the Devil’s MVP and highest scorer lay on the floor.
“We need her,” Charleigh explained. “If she’s out, then we’re fucked. Tanzon is only averaging sixteen points a game and her field goal average has dropped over the last four weeks. She is really only good if she gets a clear shot and Jenson is who clears the lane for her to shoot. So, you know what that means?”
“They lose,” Mona stated.
“We lose,” Charleigh corrected. Her hands moved in the air but contributed nothing as she explained. “We would have to come from behind in the series, and the blue team has never lost a series where they started out on top. Winning tonight means that we will take the first round.”
Mona laughed at Charleigh bouncing on her toes, trying to see the court where ant-like Lexa Jenson lay, surrounded by a few other black ants with miniature red bags. She tugged on Charleigh’s arm, but the blonde shook away the grip. Her eyes had returned to the now live action of the medic’s prodding Lexa’s face. It didn’t look like it was bleeding.
Mona called to her, but Charleigh waved her off. “Not now. I need to know if she is okay.”
Lips pressed a kiss to Charleigh’s cheek. A hand was shoved into Charleigh’s front pocket, then the rear one. The right side produced nothing but an old gum wrapper, so Mona tried the other side.
“I need your ID, Princess,” Mona said.
Charleigh disregarded the stupid name and pressed her face into Mona’s lips to get another kiss. Seven years as sisters instead of lovers still broke Charleigh’s heart, but she knew Mona was seeing someone that wasn’t her. She’d never be anything more than what she was, and she was learning to accept that.
She reached down the neck of her shirt. Her ID was a little sweaty when she put it in the other woman’s hand. Whether Mona cared or not went unnoticed when screen switched to a view of Devils in a huddle. Their coach danced his fingers over the palm of his other hand. His lips curled over his teeth as he snarled at the players. Spittle flew from his lips towards the women not looking at him from the bench.
Charleigh felt something slip over her head and glanced down to see the purple lanyard with a plastic holder in it. The ticket was huge with foiled lettering. Lexa Jenson in 2D went up for a layup across the cardstock.
She held it for a moment, and just looked at the woman. Even after everything that happened, she wished it would have been different. She wished for the woman who’d fumbled through a Shakespeare sonnet in the overcrowded lecture hall they’d shared once upon a time. Or the one who’d stood smiling while she held up the Devil’s jersey. Number 1 draft pick for the NWBA before she’d even finished four years of college.
Mona hooked an arm through Charleigh’s and pulled her toward the glass doors to a little old man in the oversized orange jersey just as the Devils went back out onto the floor. Without the screen to distract her, Charleigh smiled at him, and held out her ticket.
“Hiya, Charleigh.” His voice was tired, but Charleigh could hear the happiness in it.
“Hey, Hank,” she said. She held up her ticket so he could scan it. The scanner let out the three little beeps of approval.
“VIP tonight, must be a special occasion,” he said with a wink.
Charleigh nodded her head and felt her hair flop side-to-side. “Next week’s my birthday.”
The old man’s bushy gray eyebrows rose. “Your birthday! Well, happy birthday early, Charleigh. How old you gonna be?”
Charleigh ducked her head and smiled, “23 on Thursday.”
“Good for you,” Hank offered. He scanned Mona’s ticket. “I still remember you coming every summer with your pop. Good man. He’d be proud to see how big you got.”
She forced the smile on her face not to waiver. Her father, the one to always make friends with the people he passed by, had brought them to games since Charleigh was a child. Their seats were always too high. But they’d share a popcorn and a soda as he reminded her to always root for the home team.
“You have a good time. And be safe!” Hank called after her as Mona dragged her from her thoughts and the doorway.
When Charleigh turned back to smile at him once more, Hank waved. He’d been working the door for as long as she could remember. She worried each time that he wouldn’t be there the next time she came.
Mona abandoned Charleigh in front of another television screen for food fifteen feet later without a word. As play stopped for a commercial break, Charleigh’s impatience began to set in. She tapped her foot, watching her sister move like a snail through the line. She’d already missed the first four minutes of the first quarter.
With the screen alongside the concession stand on a commercial, Charleigh glanced down at the ticket around her neck. She checked Mona’s position in line, then decided seeing the game was her birthday present and she was done waiting.
She followed the instructions to entry point 101. With step one done, she studied the next set of information. She’d never had a ticket like this before, because the row was a letter, and the letter was A. The first letter in the alphabet, which meant the first row. Her eyes scanned the first row, landing on the only two open seats.
Two padded folding chairs sat unoccupied, directly next to the Devils bench.
Her heart beat the air out of her lungs. Mona hadn’t just gotten her tickets to a playoff game; she’d gotten her courtside seats. She was going to be right next to the bench. Next to Lexa Jenson and the rest of the Devils.
Watching from the stands was her plan. She would blend in with the crowd. Be far from Jenson’s gaze, like in the lecture hall. Squished between older lesbians and soccer moms. Screaming with others where she couldn’t be heard. And she wouldn’t be seen.
Mona sidled up alongside Charleigh, standing at the top of the stairs with her hands overflowing with snacks and a drink in the crook of her arm. She hip-checked Charleigh before leading the way down. Her dark hair swayed, the scarlet red tips peeking out from under the sharp cut.
Charleigh found Jenson on the court. The woman led by a stride, running the ball down the court with two guards in blue closing in around her. She sucked in her lower lip, then chewed on the peeling skin. The ball pounded into the wood with each step she took, but before she was up, she tossed the ball to the left where number 27, Danaya Tanzon had come up. The defenders couldn’t redirect the motion to block Lexa, leaving 27 completely open for the corner three.
With hands above her head, Charleigh jumped up and down while yelling, “Yeahhhh!” Her cheers joined the roar of the rest of the crowd, and she felt at ease with her people. Remembering that Jenson had no reason to care she was sitting in the front row of the game. There were hundreds of people there to see the MVP. Plus, she didn’t even know Charleigh’s name.
Checking the scoreboard, Charleigh noted they were up by six. However, in basketball that was only two three pointers, or three lay-ups, or two shots with fouls for a chance of an extra shot. Really the combinations of scenarios that could lead to her team losing were immeasurable. It didn't stop her from worrying about each one of them.
Mona was already getting comfortable when Charleigh made it down the narrow steps. As she sat, Mona handed over a soda in the red and white cup. It was the perfect combination of syrup and bubbles, and the caramel liquid brought a smile to Charleigh’s face with the first sip.
Her sister’s arm slung around the back of Charleigh’s chair with her legs stretched out. She lounged in comfort of the luxury game seating, while Charleigh sat up on the edge of the cushion as the teams ran toward them. All of the women on the court were so much bigger than Charleigh was used to thinking about them, and so real. With voices that said words rather than the silent play she was used to watching from 20 rows up.
Lexa was at the far end of the court flashing two and then five fingers, she called out “Orange slide!”
The chair wobbled with Charleigh’s bouncing legs. Her eyes memorized the details knowing this was the closest she’d ever be to a professional court. A sweat droplet ran down the center, Emma Delango’s face. She watched the guard, Danaya Tanzon get blocked by the screen, but Lexa Jenson moved past the Stars’ forward and stripped the ball away. She passed the ball to Delango. Delango took it back down the court only to fake a shot, and bounced it back to Jenson, who ran into the key. The ball slapped the board and fell in the net.
When Lexa’s feet landed, Charleigh felt her heart rattle against her ribs. The familiar eyes looked directly at Charleigh in her jersey. The corners of her dark lips curled into a smile, and she winked at Charleigh.
Jenson pointed at Charleigh and said, “Don’t worry. I got more. Just for you.”
Charleigh was breathing too fast because she’d been so wrong. The cavity of her chest refused to fill to capacity when the memories began to creep back to the forefront of her mind. Mona’s tattooed arm wrapped around Charleigh, pulling her back into her chair. She glared at Lexa, whose brows scrunched for a moment before she turned, running back down court.
“Hey, Princess,” Mona said. “You, okay?”
Charleigh stared at the floor, then up at the game where Emma Delango had recovered a rebound. She knew every stat for number 42, Emma Delango. But none of it mattered as Charleigh tried to will away the last time she’d been this close to the woman. The same memory where number 27, Danaya Tanzon had stood by.
They were there when….
Charleigh stopped the thought. She was supposed to be home. If she had just gone home instead of the bar, Lexa Jenson wouldn’t have gotten in a fight and been arrested. It was her fault for even going there.
“Did you cream your chonies?” Mona asked as Charleigh stared blankly at the court.
A part of her wanted to leave, it would be easier that way. However, there was nothing at her little house but her dog. Going home meant being alone because Mona would leave again, and Charleigh had exhausted being alone with Mona off living her new life.
She wanted to be here. Needed to be here so she could feed off the energy of the crowd and leave with the drumming of victory in her ears. It would give her something to think about. A win to cherish between the memories of all the loss.
Charleigh shook her head. “No, just in awe,” she said. “Thank you for getting the tickets for my birthday. I know they probably cost you a paycheck.”
“You’re worth it,” Mona said. She went back to eating her snacks, basketball being of no interest to her.
Charleigh’s heart was still beating too fast, but it raced in step with the fast break that brought 27 back down the court. Charleigh locked away the memory of 27’s eyes on her and created a new memory of the woman in this moment. The smile that spread across the dark face as she smacked a hand to her chest in pride.
“Welcome to the DEVIL’s DEN!” Danaya Tanzon yelled. She held her hand up to her ear, calling for the crowd’s cheers. “You know who gets it done!”
As the crowd shouted out the ‘Get it Devils’ chant, Charleigh created a new memory of 42 to replace the way her eyes had run down Charleigh’s pinned body. She replaced it with an open-mouthed laugh at 27 when she helped the woman to her feet after the blue behemoth struck again. Her close-cropped hair shook and sweat showered the younger teammate as they celebrated their lead.
Charleigh couldn’t create a new memory of Lexa Jenson, though. She couldn’t because every time the Devils came back to defend, the woman’s eyes fell on her. Stared at Charleigh as though she could see straight through the jersey hanging off her.
So, Charleigh stopped looking at her. Instead, she spent her one night as a VIP learning the details of the rest of the team and eating the pretzel Mona bought her. She dipped torn chunks of dough into the fake yellow cheese and shoved it into her mouth each time her team played defense on the other end of the court.
Time had moved so quickly with each team seeming to only have a fastbreak offense in their playbook. Charleigh became so engrossed in the game; she didn’t even notice halftime was approaching until the fans began to count down the last ten seconds.
As the team headed her way, Charleigh looked up to find
the tired brown eyes standing out against the sweat sheened skin. They were locked on her once more, and she remembered when she thought it was because she mattered.
Those important eyes had looked at her…
had chosen her to dance with…
had wanted her over the rest in the room…
had looked her over and decided she existed…
Just like they were doing at this moment. Hundreds of people were watching as Lexa walked directly to her.
She turned her body to face Mona. The familiar warmth of Mona’s arm wrapped securely around her. She gazed at a different shade of brown. An earthy brown that flitted down to her lips, however, didn’t move forward. Their kissing days had passed with their youth. Now in their twenties, Mona had someone she didn’t want to know Charleigh.
And Charleigh had her first house. Her dog, Rexa Pawson. And her job.
Charleigh’s eyes closed. She thought of the time kisses were stolen between them in their shared bedroom or between classes. But the past was the past, and the present was not a love story between two foster sisters.
“Well, she can’t keep her eyes off you,” Mona said. “But that’s not unusual. You always are the brightest star in the room. Mainly because you’re like fluorescent.”
Charleigh placed her fingers to the red lips. She closed her eyes and locked the door to the past, then pressed a kiss to the flushed cheek. “Thanks for bringing me, even though you hate basketball.”
They cheered for the tiny hip-hop team during halftime, then for the Devils as they made their way back to the court. Charleigh pointed out each of the players, taking warm up shots on their side of the court.
“…and 15 is Denise Forte. She is only 5’6”. One of the shortest players in the league so she never really gets to play much.”
A ball rolled into Charleigh’s feet, and she stooped down to pick it up. She turned to pass the ball back on the court but froze. Lexa Jenson stood in the same spot where she’d missed every attempted shot all season with her hands held out.
With a deep breath, Charleigh thrust the ball back to the woman. A strong chest pass caused Jenson to take a step back. Jenson caught the ball and looked at her. Her eyebrows cinched again. Instead of going back to shooting though, she walked over to Charleigh and Mona. That cocky smile from quarter one was plastered back on her face.
“You want to go out tonight?” Jenson asked with her feet still on the court.
Charleigh swallowed. “Uh, we…”
“Aren’t interested in hangin’ out with misogynistic assholes like you,” Mona snapped. Her arm fell over Charleigh’s shoulder. “Anyone ever tell you that you give lesbians a bad rap?”
“Feisty. I like a little fight.” Jenson cast her eyes back on Charleigh. Then she asked, “What about you? You busy tonight or is the girlfriend just threatened?”
“I…” Words wouldn’t work.
“You know, you could use your hall pass.” Jenson’s eyebrows rose and fell. “I promise it’ll be worth it.”
Charleigh studied the way the woman’s lips curled at the corners in a self-approved smirk when she spoke this time. And a familiar feeling settled in her chest.
“I… I can’t tonight.”
Jenson grabbed the Sharpie a fan waved in her face from the row behind them. She scribbled on the ball before handing the marker back to the owner and the ball to Charleigh.
“I’m here all year,” Jenson said with another wink.
Charleigh turned to show Mona the birthday prize realizing it was Lexa Jenson’s phone number instead of an autograph. There was a point in her life that she would have fought someone over ownership of that ball. However, when the ball came loose from her grasp, Charleigh didn’t rush after it.
She steadied herself on Mona, then looked back to see what had hit her and caused her to lose control of the now lost ball.
“Don’t touch her,” Mona barked. Her fingers dug into the ball player’s wrist. Jenson’s bicep flexed as the gears tattooed over Mona’s wrist seemed to give her cyborg-like strength. “She’s too good to end up like the last girl that thought you were something special.”
Lexa Jenson’s lips formed a straight line, but her eyes widened in surprise. She pulled her wrist back, but Mona didn’t release her.
“Let go of me,” Lexa rumbled. The surprise was gone, and the frame of her body rose from the slumped position. Her height loomed over Charliegh’s back.
“What?” Mona scoffed. “You don’t like it when people put their hands on you?”
Charleigh placed her hand on Mona’s, and she released Jenson’s hand. She glanced up at Lexa and tried to remember the girl she’d seen in college. With a soft shrug, she explained, “She’s just worried you're going to hurt me. You and I have a bad history of touching.”
Lexa’s glare softened when she looked down at Charleigh. Her brows furrowed, and Charleigh awaited a bitchy comment. Waited for Lexa Jenson to snap, like she had done both times she’d been that close to Charleigh.
The music in the arena was getting louder. A buzzer rang when the clock hit zero. The sound seemed to flip a switch in Lexa Jenson. The woman’s eyes widened; this time not dilated with lust.
The pale seashell brown irises pulled Charleigh’s gaze. Even in a state of shock Charleigh couldn’t help but swoon over how beautiful Lexa Jenson was. How her eyes seemed to be just a shade paler than her skin. Her hair in a natural curl set, the bun having come undone in the first quarter.
The woman shut her mouth only to open it again. She did this a few times, but no words came out. Emma Delango came up behind Lexa. She shoved the basketball with the phone number back into Charleigh’s hands before pulling at Lexa.
“Jenson, let’s go,” Delango said, but then she looked at Charleigh. Her eyes grew as wide at Lexa’s. They were darker and sadder when they stared down at her.
“You’re the girl from the bar,” she breathed. “I went after you, but you were gone.”
Lexa’s posture shrunk once more. Her hands gripped the air like bars separating herself from Charleigh. Words began to fall and fail with each breath she took.
“The next day…"
Fans were screaming around them. Called for their team like sirens.
“I tried to find you…”
Inflatable tubes struck together. Their cracks loud like thunder in the cavernous space.
“…to tell you I was….”
Lexa was panicking. She was panicking, but halftime was over.
“I’m so sorry. I wasn’t going to…” Lexa’s head shook back and forth. Her hand extended to touch Charleigh but hovered just out of reach. “I didn’t mean to….”
Charleigh grabbed the dark hand. She squeezed it like a hug instead of a handshake. She told herself not to stutter, but it was hard. It was hard because she was holding the hand that pushed her into the railing. The hand that tried to push its way into her pants because the woman hadn’t cared.
“I forgive you,” Charleigh yelled over the people screaming around her.
It wasn’t the truth, but Lexa wouldn’t know that Charleigh looked at people’s noses when she lied. The woman would feel better about what happened, and the game would go on. Life would go one, like it always had without the blonde.
Lexa’s eyes blinked. In a single breath, she said, “I’ll make it up to you. I’m not the monster they say I am. You’ll see. I’ll show you. I’ll see you after the game.”
She turned before Charleigh could agree. Ran down the court as Stars inbounded the ball with only four Devil’s defenders in place.
Once Lexa was on the other side, Charleigh felt the weight lift from her chest. She leaned back into Mona with the ball over her middle, cradling it like a proud mom to be. Mona’s arms wrapped around her center, pulling the smaller woman flush to her as they waited with the rest of the fans for the Devils to score their first points before taking their seats.
Mona’s breath warmed the back of Charleigh’s neck. Her chin rested on Charleigh’s shoulder as she asked, “Were you the girl in the video at Echo’s Escape?”
Charleigh nodded. She nodded because there was no reason left to lie to Mona. There was no reason to try to hide something from Mona she already knew. Because if she tried to deny it was her, then Mona would question the other things she’d said over the years. She’d ask questions Charleigh hoped never to have to answer again.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Mona asked. “Call me to get you? I saw the video. You were scared.”
Charleigh lowered her head. Her eyes traced the inconsistent pattern of the floorboards. Taking a deep breath, she confessed, “I shouldn’t have been there. I wasn’t drinking, but I have said that before… so I figured it was better if no one knew. I just went home and hoped no one would recognize me.”
Mona’s arms tightened. She pressed another kiss to the honey hair. Her chin made its way to Charleigh’s shoulder where she rested the brilliant brain on the smaller woman. The woman had given up so much to stay with Charleigh. The least the blonde could do was not make Mona regret it.
Charleigh could hear the smile in Mona’s voice when she said, “Well you have a new ball out of it, and apparently an annoying douche canoe trying to make it up to you. I mean, she could be worse. She could be like Kyle, who used to try and watch you take a shower.”
“She could be worse,” Charleigh echoed. She tried not to hold her breath when she thought of their oily foster brother. “She could smell like unseasoned, boiling chicken.”
“You really do have the worst taste in women. Even Jenson’s sweat smelled better than the culinary chick.” Mona leaned into Charleigh. “But before you go calling that phone number, she gave you. I need you to ask yourself. Do you honestly think she is more than her latest catch phrase?”
Charleigh looked over just enough to scan Mona’s face. The woman watched the players on the court closer than she’d ever paid attention to a game before. The rich cognac eyes ran over the team, then fell on Charleigh’s face.
“What do you mean?”
Mona’s arms released her, and she held up her hands as she pretended to yell, “I’m Lexa Fucking Jenson.”
Charleigh snorted loudly, because even though Mona hadn’t screamed, she could hear the exclamation points in the words. Her hands shoved Mona back slightly.
As if on cue, number 1 held up an arm. Her bicep caught the Stars’ guard just over the chest. The blue uniformed player hit the ground hard as Jenson stood over the woman.
“You’re going to have to do better than that!” Jenson taunted the girl, who was still trying to catch the air that was forced out of her. “I’m Lexa Fucking Jenson, not your little school friend!”
Charleigh leaned down and picked up her drink. The tension she’d felt twisting within her began to unravel and she smiled at the cup of happiness. Her team was going to win, and they would go on to win a championship.
Just as she took a sip, a body slammed into her. Her lower back hit the chair behind her. The stands of people flipped sideways in slow motion. She knew she was falling, but there was nothing she could do to stop it.