"Sarah! There you are!" Red braids hit Sarah in the face when her friend assaulted her with a hug. The hint of bright pink bangs disappeared behind Des.

"Hey!" Sarah returned Des' embrace. She was eager not to lose hold of her friend who seemed to be in a more forthcoming mood than in the days before. "We just got here." She looked around, trying to locate her brother, Tyler, and Robin. "Well, the boys seem to have disappeared already but they're here somewhere."

"Robin and Tyler are probably making out in a bush already." Des rolled her eyes, seemingly a bit annoyed at how frequently things like that occurred. She had after all known Robin much longer than Tyler had since they grew up together, and perhaps his new relationship made him not as available to Des as she was used to. Sarah and Des met soon after Robin and Tyler became a couple, allowing Sarah to conveniently step into the friend-shaped hole in Des' life.

"So... should we talk?" Sarah asked, wanting to seize the moment for a heart-to-heart while Des was in a good mood. Perhaps she had encountered the resident cat and got to pet it during the party, which Des' chosen method for dopamine kicks since she shied away from alcoholic beverages.

"Of course," Des replied, taking Sarah's hand and dragging her into the garden, away from the hustle and bustle of the pool. "There is a pond here with koi fish and I think it may even have a turtle." This explained Des' current excitement: she had spotted a new animal to befriend. "It has a nice bench beside it where we should get some privacy."

The music fell to a lull as they walked up to the pond, where orange and white fish swam. Lush green lilypads floated atop, coloring the water underneath turquoise. A dark shade moved underneath. Was it an elusive turtle or just a shadow playing tricks on their eyes?

The marble slab of the bench was cold against Sarah's thighs when she sat down, soothing aching muscles from the recent game. She flexed her calf upon sitting down as it had started to stiffen. Perhaps she should have stretched more after the game but meeting up with Des had seemed more important.

"How did your game go?" Des asked, tugging on flared her orange-and-white striped dress--perfectly matching the koi fish-- to make sure it covered the seating area before sitting down. "Hernan forgot to tell me when we talked."

"We won!" Sarah exclaimed. She also added, "I scored the winning goal," because she wasn't shy about her prowess.

"Well done!" Des put an arm around Sarah's shoulder to congratulate her. "One of these days, I'll catch one of your games."

When the pleasantries were over and done with, an awkward silence fell over the pond. Only the clucking from the water, caused by fish swirling around, could be heard, accompanied by the low lull of the music from the party.

Sensing that it was on her to break the silence, since she was the one who had wanted them to talk to begin with, Sarah cleared her throat. "So..." she started, trying to find words that sounded right. "I'm sorry about the other day. I just had a lot on my mind that day already and I had been worrying about my brother catching feelings for you. So I kind of snapped. But obviously, you can hang out with Hernan any time you want to."

Keeping her gaze fastened on the pond, Des nodded. "I like him," she simply said.

"Like, like him, like him?" Sarah asked.

Des shrugged. "I don't know. I don't know if I've ever liked someone like that. Does it really matter? We both like to spend time together. Why can't that be enough?"

"It is," Sarah assured her friend, putting her hand on Des atop the cold bench. "I'm happy he has you as a friend. I know you mean a lot to him."

"I'm not saying I don't like him like that though." Des twirled one of her long braids--decorated with magnolia flowers in the ends--between her fingers. "Or that I won't one day. It just may take some time to figure out. That's why I got cross with you. Because it felt like you didn't want to give us the time to explore our feelings. Not everyone can be wham-bam like Robin and Tyler you know."

Sarah giggled at the terminology, which probably fit to describe her situation with Victoria as well. But Des was right. Not everyone was the same and Sarah had probably been assuming a lot of things about the people she cared about, based on her perception of them. But perception wasn't necessarily the truth.

"I won't meddle again," she promised. "I trust you and my brother not to hurt each other."

"Thank you." Des smiled at Sarah, squeezing her hand in hers. "Now, what has been going on with you since we last talked?"

Sarah took a deep breath, wanting to prove to Des that she trusted her by telling the truth about her recent distracted state. "I... met someone," she started. "It's a bit... complicated though. More of a wham-bam situation than anything else." She laughed nervously at her own words.

"Someone I know?" Des asked curiously.

Sarah shook her head. "No... she's on my team."After letting the pronoun fall from her lips, Sarah paused to gauge Des's reaction. Her friend showed no signs of shock or disbelief. In fact, she hadn't even raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, I can see how that may be complicated," Des replied. "Having to not show your feelings in front of your teammates and all that. But I'm sure you can figure things out. So, when can I meet her?"

"You're not even surprised that it's a girl?" Sarah asked, surprised at Des' lack of surprise.

Now, Des raised her eyebrow. "Should I be? I mean, you're not the first friend who has come out to me, and just as I said to Robin, I'm just glad that you told me. But you can like whoever you want, Sarah, and you'll still be my friend."

Sarah flung her arms around Des to embrace her. It just felt right in that moment. Not that she'd wondered if Des would accept her, but it still felt nice to hear. And she'd missed having her friend to confide in.

"So what is she like?" Des asked when Sarah let go of her. "Your... wham-bam situation, I mean?" She giggled at the stupid expression that had now made its way into their vernacular.

"Terribly annoying..." Sarah muttered. "But somehow, also very enticing. She's from England so she sounds like she walked right out of the royal palace. And her hair is bright pink, like some kind of anime character."

"Like that girl?" Des asked, pointing to someone over by the pool.

Sarah looked in the direction of Des' finger, once again seeing familiar pink bangs.

"Yeah... just like her," Sarah mumbled, keeping her eyes on the pinkness in the distance to not lose track. "Exactly like her even. That's Victoria."

Des nudged her in the side. "Go talk to her! We're all good here. I'm going to see if I can find that turtle. I think I saw Hernan around here, maybe he can help me."

A discreet kick on the shin encouraged Sarah to get up. After straightening her shorts and retying her t-shirt, she went toward the alluring pink bangs.

The garden turned into a jungle while she followed her prey. Or perhaps Sarah was the prey in this situation? She certainly could never be sure with Victoria. Thick green leaves hit Sarah's face, obstructing her view of those colorful strands that seemed to have a magical hold on her.

Lost in a labyrinth of greenery, Sarah was about to give up and turn back when a hand reached out for her, pulling her into a private alcove made of leaves and branches.

"Mendoza," Victoria whispered, suddenly very close. The hidden space barely had room for them both, necessitating for their bodies to be smushed against one another. Perhaps this was the very reason Victoria had led Sarah to this spot."Are you looking for me?"

"No," Sarah said, unconvincingly.

"Sure..." Victoria replied, one of her patented annoying smirks spreading across her face. "If you say so. I know you better than that though." Her hand reached down Sarah's neck, playing with the strap of her bikini top, which stuck out under her t-shirt. "Nice bikini... can I see more of it?"

Before Sara could answer or protest, cherry-scented lips were pressed against her own. Once again, she lost herself in the moment, giving in to hungry lips and wandering hands.

But it only lasted a moment, because she knew she couldn't keep doing this. Not in this way. "Victoria, please," she pleased, letting her lips stray from the touch. "Can we just talk for a moment? I want to know why you left the game."

Victoria sighed in frustration. "You're no fun," she said. "I don't want to talk."

"I'll show you my bikini afterward," Sarah promised playfully, placing a soft kiss on Victoria's alluring lips.

"Those bikini bottoms will be in my pocket once I'm done with you," Victoria countered, returning Sarah's soft kiss with a light nibble on her lower lip. "Alright, let's talk then, Mendoza."

Author's Note: And that's it for now! Sorry to leave you on that note but my initial plan was always to submit this to the JustWriteIt-challenge, which requires 10 chapters. I do plan to continue this story but it won't be at such a break-neck speed (and I will focus on my other story Bitter Treats first) and there may be a few weeks until the next update since I now need to catch up on other stuff.