With her morning class over and nothing to do for the rest of the day, Moira decided it was finally time to update Neesa about everything that had happened so far. Moira glanced at the time, it must be pretty late back in White Banyan but Neesa had been known to stay up past midnight on some occasions, so Moira crossed her fingers and hoped she would still be awake.

Moira only needed to ring once before Neesa picked up, wearing her pink pajamas.

"Oh, hi cousin, I was gonna go to sleep but it's not every day that you call, so what is sleep? Sleep is for the weak. Okay, that was uncool, but seriously it's lonely here without you."

"Ah. Sorry for the bad timing. I'll make it quick. So, first thing you should know is Nardho asked me to date him and I said yes. Secondly, there was this epic thing he did with a former roommate of his who had been very mean to Nardhia. Did you know he is a martial artist?"

"Nardho? No way. Such a skinny boy is into martial art? But anyway, I see the part about dating coming. He likes you a lot, Moira, I always caught him staring at you in video calls even before you guys went off to college. So, did anything else happen? Like, how were classes?"

"Classes were fine and there's one class in which everyone will band together to create a play. It's the prelude class to the study abroad trip. Also, I made a new friend called Rain, I think they're genderless but they haven't specified yet. They are mute but everyone here loves them, we baked cupcakes to welcome them."

"Oh? I don't think I've ever met a genderqueer or gender non-conforming person. What do they look like, appearance-wise? Are they androgynous? Do they have any piercing?"

"They look like a woman, actually. They wear a head scarf and modest clothing."

"That's interesting, you've met interesting people, I'm kind of jealous. By the way, I went to the open house of the local community college. Turned out that the culinary arts program have two sub-programs: Classic Pastries and Fusion Pastries. I wasn't sure which one I liked, I had thought that the fusion one would be exciting, but I e-mailed Kenta with questions since he's such an amazing baker. He said when he first started out as an amateur baker on a whim, he began by learning to make French and Italian pastries, like croissants and tiramisu. It was difficult, no doubt, but he said it was rewarding too because once you master the hardest techniques of baking the oldest pastries out there you have enough basic knowledge to create your own recipes. So, I think I'm gonna apply to the Classic Pastries program!" Vannie waved her hands animatedly. Moira smiled, it had been a while since she saw Neesa's hyperactivity.

"That's great, Neesa, you'll definitely follow in his footsteps. Okay, I gotta hang up."

When Moira ended the call, she heard a soft knocking on her door. It was Rain, standing with Vannie, clutching their dry erase board. They looked eager to tell Moira something important.

"Hey, Vannie. Assalamu'alaikum, Rain. How was the performance? You went with Nardhia, right? I hope you had fun. Maybe one day I'd ask Nardho to bring me there."

Wa' alaikum salam, Rain signed. They showed Moira the dry erase board and Moira leaned in to read their handwriting. Vannie surprised me back stage when the poetry slam was over. She said she thought of me as a very poignant person and asked if I ever wanted to have a romantic partner. I'm new to this whole romance business, like you and Nardho, but I said yes. So, we come here to tell you that, but there's something else. Oh, I run out of space.

"Well, congratulations Rain and Vannie! Oh, no, you run out of space, can you erase everything then and I'll wait for you to finish writing your thoughts down?"

"No need." Vannie said. "Rain brought me here to interpret. So, they said they have an assignment from their class Sociology of Intersectionality. They had wanted to interview Kenta and Johan, because it's rare to see a Catholic in an interracial relationship with a deaf person. Rain wanted to know how their love story started and maybe use it to compare that with the relationship that they and I just started. So, could you please take notes for them? They would be too busy typing into their text-to-speech device to effectively do note-taking. I would have helped but I still have an early evening class to attend in a few minutes."

"That's all? Sure, happy to lend a hand. Meet me in the Writing Center in ten minutes."

Kenta's office was brightly lit, with posters about grammar and punctuations lining the walls. There was a book shelf too, full of books about Crimson Yeasts but also about linguistics and rhetoric of compositions. Johan was sitting across from Kenta, reading Nardhia's petition. When Rain and Moira arrived, both men waved their hands hello.

"Okay, Rain, I heard about your assignment. Where should we begin? I can tell you about how I figured out I am gay and how my Shinto parents reacted." Kenta asked.

That would be a fine starting point, if you don't mind, of course.

"So, in Shintoism we have a deity called Inari, they are the god of foxes or kitsune. They don't usually get gendered. When I was a child, I thought boys were so beautiful but I had no such feelings for girls, so then as I entered puberty I figured I must be gay. When I told my parents, they thought being gay meant being like Inari, but I told them it just meant I like the same gender as mine. At first they were so confused but then I said it doesn't make me any less of a human being. Then they began to cry because they had wanted a grandchild from me. I was in high school, a junior at that time, I hadn't even thought about babies yet! Then I said I could adopt one, and that was that, no drama."

Wow, your parents are the coolest, but yeah, babies, huh? What about you, Johan?

"Me? Oh, at first I hesitated to come out because my priest at home and my parents always taught my siblings and me that relationships are strictly between men and women. But then one day Nardho caught me crying in our backyard, so I came out to him. I asked him if Mother Mary would stop blessing me if I failed to avert my eyes from men. Nardho just hugged me wordlessly and then he called Nardhia. I asked Nardhia the same question. She said that liking men should not be a sin, if God had allowed these feelings to grow in my heart then He had a grand plan for my life. I didn't believe her back then, but I had wanted to, it sounded beautiful. Then I met Kenta our sophomore year of college. I remembered Nardhia's words when he confessed to me. I was so scared but I really liked him so I said yes."

Sounds like Nardhia could read the future! Okay, then what, are you still closeted from your parents? It's okay if you are, I am not here to be a judge.

"I came out to my mom first because I'm closer to her than my dad. My mom was horrified, not because she thought I'm a sinner but because she thought I'd be carrying a burden from all the homophobia out there. But I know we all carry our own crosses and if this is my cross, then be it. Mom then told my dad and he was livid with me, he wanted to disown me. Mom slapped him real hard that day and filed for divorce. So now my siblings and I don't have a dad."

Astagfirullah! Your mom is a real heroine, Johan, I'm glad she accepts you no matter what.

"Yeah, and I have wonderful siblings too, I'd die for them in a heartbeat. I know Nardho thinks I'm terribly uncool and doesn't know what Kenta sees in me, but I know he's just teasing, he's a genuinely good kid. So, Rain, it's your turn. How did you choose your pronoun?"

I was assigned female at birth and was born as Fatima Alhurriya. The first name was the name of Prophet Muhammad's daughter and the last name meant freedom in Arabic. However, as I grew up I began to hate my last name. I had thought that I am both a woman and a man, but I didn't feel free to dress up how I wanted, I was always forced to wear a long dress. So, when I graduated from high school, I began to identify as a bi-gender. I didn't tell my parents, you guys in the dormitory and my professors are the only ones who know my pronoun. As for why I named myself Rain Qatari, it is because Rain sounds unisex and also because I have Qatar ancestry. Then I met Vannie and when she asked me to be her romantic partner I hesitated because I still haven't figured out my sexuality but I guess I like all genders, so maybe I'm pansexual like her.

"Wonderful, Rain, it takes courage to come out to yourself!" Kenta applauded.

"I'm so proud of you, thanks for being comfortable enough to tell everyone in the dormitory. Hope you've enjoyed the cupcakes, I wanted to make you feel belong," said Johan.

I did. You should teach me how to bake, Kenta, you're so multitalented and I'm envious.

"Yeah, he's wonderful, isn't he? That's why I love him!" Johan gave Kenta a kiss on the cheek.

"Aw, I love you too, teddy." Kenta returned the kiss. Moira and Rain smiled reassuringly.

Rain thanked Moira for her time and went their way to the athletic center, telling Moira that on top of being the stage decorator for Spoken Words they also helped the dance team with choreography because she had taken classes back home in ballet and hip-hop. Moira was amazed and reminded Rain that they, just like Kenta, was multitalented. Yet Rain was too humble to accept the compliment and said they still needed to improve their crafts.

Moira's phone vibrated and a message popped up from Nardho.

Hi, honey, I'm planning to go to the farmer's market not far from campus. Do you want to come and maybe get some bread and milk for your room's pantry? I myself plan to get some mini blue orchids to liven up my windowsills and maybe get some succulents for Kenta as well. Okay if Tony is third wheeling? He has something to buy too, like potato chips and popcorns.

Moira responded in affirmative then asked why Nardho invited Tony along. She distrusted Tony.

I know you dislike him for divulging the passcode to Wyatt but he really felt remorseful about it and said he would pay for all of our purchases in the farmer's market to make it up to us and Nardhia. Give him a chance, Moira. He's clueless at times but he has never disrespected women or been hostile to them. I think he's safe but if he tries anything funny you've got my fist.

Realizing that it was bad to hold a grudge, Moira met Nardho in his room and then the couple and Tony rode a bus to the market. It was bustling and the smell of sweet breads filled the air.

"Moira, thanks for letting me come with you two. I'm truly guilty about Wyatt, I didn't know he would be so mean to your friend. Anyway, what could I buy you?" asked Tony.

"You're forgiven now, Nardho cleared it up. If you still want to buy me something, then, how about some fruits?" Moira pointed to the fruit vendors who sold tangerines and bananas.

"Sure. I figured you'd say fruits, your boyfriend did mention your sweet tooth."

"Do you have sweet tooth, too, Tony?" Nardho asked, arms full of small orchids and succulents.

"Hey, I'm gonna ask for extra brown bags, your arms are full. Yeah, I think I share that trait with Moira. I can't eat too much, though, gotta maintain my figure to be a top athlete."

"That sounds like a hard diet. So, what is your diet like? Vegan? Vegetarian? Paleo?" Moira could not imagine not being able to eat whatever she liked whenever she liked.

"No, nothing restrictive like that, it's just that my nutritionist wants me to keep my protein intake high and my sugar intake low. I'm mostly a pescetarian but I'm flexible."

"So, you like fish? Johan and I used to fish all the time at home. We caught black bass from our own pond. Nardhia hates fish, though, but if you like fish maybe we should go to the river on the outskirt of town sometime. I went there with Moira already." Nardho offered.

"I like eating fish but I don't like fishing, so I have to pass." Tony declined politely.

"Your loss, then, the river is so pretty!" Moira spoke up. Tony scoffed and ate his potato chips.

"To each their own, honey, to each their own." Nardho laughed heartily. Moira stared at him, mesmerized that Nardho had a big heart and was so ready to forgive Tony when she was too caught up in her emotions to see the good in the athlete. She promised to be more like Nardho.