Heather walked me out to my car after we finished, and the whole time, my heart raced.

Was this a mistake?

It doesn't feel like a mistake.

Was it though??

"Are you alright?" Heather asked me as we reached my car, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Oh. Yeah, I'm good," I smiled at her.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure," I nodded, trying to feign confidence, "Thanks for walking me to my car."

"It's the least I could do."

"I mean, you just did...a lot for me."

I leaned my back against the driver's side door of my car, facing Heather.

Heather stood in front of me and flashed me a smile, "True."

She then laughed, easing some of my nerves. Her eyes seemed to try and read my expression as she then asked, "Would you want to see me again?"

I found myself nodding, "Yes, I definitely would."

"Okay, good. I'd like to see you again as well."

I could tell that Heather wanted to kiss me, and I certainly wanted to kiss her. However, something about her waking me out to my car and then kissing me somehow felt even more intimate than us kissing, knowing we were about to fuck.

As if reaching a happy medium, Heather leaned in and gave me a gentle kiss on the cheek.

"Get home safe," she said, "Goodnight."

"Goodnight," I said as she turned and started to walk back to her apartment.

Something then dawned on me.

"Wait," I called out.

Heather stopped and turned around to face me, "Yes?"

"Can you unblock me?"

Heather laughed and said, "Yes, I'll unblock you, Alice."

As I drove home, my mind ran a million miles per second, yet at the same time, I felt a sense of happiness that I hadn't felt in a long time.

As I pulled up to my house, my phone vibrated.

As the name "Heather Rayne" popped up on my dashboard, my heart skipped a beat.

I haven't seen that name on my phone in a long time.

The text read: See? You're unblocked. Hope you got home safe.

I texted Heather back saying that I was home, and as I walked up to my house, I noticed my mom's car was missing, indicating she was working a night shift at the hospital.

It was past midnight, but I knew Caroline would be up. And with my mom not home, I could talk freely about what I had just done with Heather.

When I got to my room, I FaceTimed Caroline.

She answered, "Hey! How did tonight go? I'm guessing okay since you are Facetiming me now and didn't text me hours ago saying you left?"

I told Caroline about the beginning of the party, and it was weird with Heather. I then continued, telling her how we talked, and Heather then asked me to stay after to see her tattoo ideas.

"And?" Caroline asked eagerly.

"We wound up fucking."

Caroline's eyes widened, "I called it! I fucking called it!"

I laughed sheepishly, "You did."

"How was it?"

"Incredible."

"You said it always was with Heather. Are you good?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Because I know you, and I know you're probably overthinking everything."

"You're right, I am. I'm glad it happened, of course. I just keep harping on what's going to happen from here."

"All you can do is see what happens next. And if you want more to happen with Heather...make it."

"I should go for what I want for once, shouldn't I?"

Caroline nodded, "Yes. You absolutely should."

I stayed on FaceTime with Caroline for a little while longer, and I then realized how tired I was. I wound up passing out in my outfit I wore to the party, makeup still on.

When I woke up the next morning, my eyes were crusted with mascara.

"Fuck," I muttered as I walked to the bathroom to wash my face immediately.

I had work that night, and I knew I was going to see Michelle.

I wonder if she heard anything...?

For the whole day, I wondered if I should text Heather. Or if she was going to text me. I didn't receive a text, and I hated that it bugged me before heading to work.

I thought about what Caroline said, that I should go for what I want.

So, I decided to text Heather before leaving for work.

I said: Hey! Hope you're having a good day.

I knew it was simple, but it would get the point across that I was thinking about her.

I didn't hear from her on my way to work. When I got to the hospital, Michelle was already there in a pair of pretty pink scrubs.

"You wear the best scrubs," I greeted her, "I love the colors."

She grinned, "Thank you. Sometimes I think I'm meant to work in pediatrics so I can wear fun scrubs."

"Hey, you never know where this career is going to take you."

Michelle nodded and then said, "Thank you for coming to my little birthday get together. I presume you had fun?"

Michelle gave me a knowing smile, and I was sure my face turned beet red.

"Did you...hear something?" I asked quietly.

Michelle laughed, "No! Heather told me that you two hooked up. Don't worry, she didn't go into detail."

"Oh okay," I said, relieved, "Good."

As my shift went on, I did not get a text back from Heather, and my anxiety heightened.

Maybe she doesn't want to talk to me?

I mean, she could just be working.

But what if she wants nothing to do with me still?

I distracted myself with patients and training Michelle, who was going to be with me for a couple more weeks.

Finally, at close to 11 PM, my phone vibrated in my pocket. I was typing up patient notes, so I was able to check it.

It was Heather.

The text read: Hey! Sorry I'm just responding, I had a super long tattoo session. Hope you've had a good day too.

As I was about to type up my response, another text from her came through.

It said: I've been thinking about you today.

I tried to suppress a smile, however Michelle, who was next to me, asked, "Are you texting Heather?"

I looked up, "How did you know?"

"Just a lucky guess by how you were smiling."

I texted Heather back that I was thinking about her as well, and she responded back, "What are you doing tomorrow night?"

Seeing you, I hope.

She told me that she had plans with Michelle, Mike, Lucy, and Edwin to get drinks, and wanted me to come with.

I texted her back that I'd love to.

I told Michelle that I would be getting drinks with her the next night, and she clapped happily.

I was exhausted by the end of my shift, and it was one of those times where I had to blast music and roll the windows down and feel the cool air on my drive home to not fall asleep at the wheel. When I got home, my mom was heading to work.

She took one look at me and asked, "Rough shift?"

"I wouldn't say rough, but it was tiring. I'm glad to have off for a few days."

As a nurse, I only work 3 nights a week, and each shift is 12 hours. Sometimes I have off multiple nights in a row. My sleep schedule is completely fucked.

My mom gave me a gentle smile, "Get some rest, sweetheart."

"Thank you, I will."

I changed out of my scrubs, and passed out for about 6 hours. It was a little after 2 PM when I woke up, and I was going to be meeting Heather and the others at the bar at 8.

Even though we drank plenty that summer in the mountains, we were never able to go to a bar together. This was going to be new for us to do together.

I got ready to go out, and tried to make myself look good to really catch Heather's attention. I layered on mascara and lip gloss and straightened my hair.

As I finished getting ready, I took one final look in the mirror and was then ready to go.

On my drive to the bar, which was only about 10 minutes away, I was nervous. Not as nervous as when I was driving to Michelle's party, but my heart still hammered.

As I was pulling up to the bar, Heather texted me that she was inside with Michelle, Mike, and Edwin.

Moments later I walked in, and the bar was packed. Rock music was playing, and there were neon signs everywhere. I glanced around and then saw Heather and Michelle at a high top waving at me.

As I approached, Heather's eyes very obviously looked me up and down, like she wanted to devour me.

When I reached the high top, I greeted everyone and asked about Lucy and Julian.

"Julian is working," Edwin said, "And Lucy is running late from work, she'll be here soon."

"I didn't catch what Lucy does for work," I responded, taking a seat in between Heather and Michelle. Heather glanced at me and smiled when I sat next to her.

"She's a medical scribe," Edwin responded, "She's doing that for a year before she very likely gets into medical school."

I am definitely not surprised Lucy is going to be headed to medical school.

I ordered a drink, we also ordered fried pickles for the table to share.

Heather grinned at me, "Glad you're here, Alice."

Lucy showed up not much later, and she looked annoyed.

"The doctor I work for yaps with the patients so much sometimes," she rolled her eyes, "She doesn't realize that it's a Friday night, and I want to get the fuck out of the office."

"What kind of Doctor do you scribe for?" Mike asked Lucy.

"Right now, an Ophthalmologist," Lucy replied, and she then turned to me, "Your mom is a doctor, right?"

I nodded, "Yes."

"What's her specialty?"

"She's an Internist."

"Interesting. Maybe I should talk to her sometime."

I nodded, "I'm sure she'd love to."

Edwin spoke, "I'm glad to hear that you and your mom are on speaking terms at least?"

I nodded, "I live with her again. We're on good terms now."

Lucy raised her eyebrows, "And she accepts that you're gay?"

"She does. She's really moved away from religion and realized that she was very much in the wrong."

Edwin lifted his Martini glass, "Cheers to her realizing that she fucked up."

I'm not going to mention how she realized I needed help after Haley's death, and that's how we reconnected.

I was having a really nice time with everyone. It reminded me of the summer in the mountains as well, with Heather giving me flirty glances and smiles and we all talked and drank. Except we were in our hometown, at a bar together.

A young woman then started to make her way over to our table. She had a similar look to Heather, dark hair, black clothing, and tattoos. However, she was dressed much more revealing than Heather.

"Fuck," I heard Heather mutter as the girl approached our table.

And she walked right up to Heather.

Heather didn't look thrilled as she said, "Maddie. Hey."

Maddie crossed her arms and then glanced at me and back at Heather.

"Seriously, you're here with another girl?"

Excuse me?

What the fuck is going on here?