"Have you told him yet?" Lynn asked as she poured herself a cup of coffee.
"Not exactly." Marie sighed. She closed the book she had been studying at the kitchen table and picked up her own cup of coffee.
"What does that mean?" Lynn asked as she sat down adjacent to Marie at the table. They had moved from the dorm to a small apartment off campus, just 2 months ago. Both women liked the privacy and independence of having their own place compared to dorm living.
"It means, no I haven't." Marie explained.
She and Lynn had had an exclusive relationship for over six months until Lynn made it clear that she wanted a committed relationship with Marie. Marie had realized at that point that although she loved Lynn as her best friend and lover. She couldn't make the emotional commitment that Lynn wanted in an exclusive lesbian relationship. They had talked for hours that night Lynn did understand Marie's feelings. She knew that Marie enjoyed sex with men and wasn't able to make the same emotional connection to a woman she did with a man. They had decided to remain friends, occasional lovers and that they both hated dorm living so they had moved.
"I just don't know how to tell him." Marie started. "Suppose he doesn't understand? I mean, suppose he's totally turned off by the fact that I'm bi and dumps me?" Marie asked her friend.
"I think you're underestimating Earl. Even if he is a man." Lynn joked as she chuckled at Marie.
Marie had met Earl in her Psych class several weeks ago. He had asked her out for coffee after class one day and they had been dating ever since. Marie thought Earl was a kind, gentle, intelligent person and a great lover in bed but she wasn't sure how accepting he'd be once she told him that she and Lynn had been and still were lovers on occasion.
"I'll tell you what." She offered. "Why don't you invite Earl over for dinner and I'll help you tell him. We can both explain the situation to him and make him understand." Lynn smiled at her friend across the table.
Marie looked at Lynn and thought about it for a moment. Perhaps Lynn was right. Maybe she and Lynn could talk to Earl and he'd understand.
"All right. When?" Marie asked.
"Tonight. I don't have any plans. We'll order Chinese in and have a long talk about human sexuality. Then we'll see what Earl thinks and we'll know better how to explain to him about us." Lynn said standing up. "I have to run, have a class in 20 minutes." She said as she dropped a quick kiss on Marie's mouth. "I'll see you this evening." She said as she left.
Later that day after psych class, Marie was walking with Earl to the local coffee shop as they discussed the day's lecture. She felt nervous and happy all at the same time. Earl was everything Tim hadn't been. Earl
cared more about his studies than the teams football stats and he cared about her. Earl had told her, on many occasions, how bright, witty and pretty he thought she was. He wasn't a man to shy away from talking about his feelings. Emotional or sexual.
The first time they had slept together Marie was amazed. Until Earl, her heterosexual sex life had left a lot to be desired. Lynn had been the only one to truly awaken her sexual but Earl had quickly learned to please Marie and truly seemed to enjoy doing it.
With his arm around her shoulders he hugged Marie to his side, loving how her slight 5 foot frame fit nicely against his 5' 10" body. Turning his cobalt blue eyes on her he dropped a kiss on her forehead.
"So, what's on the agenda for tonight? A movie, dinner, what would you like to do?" he asked smiling into her eyes.
Marie knew the moment was at hand. "How about you coming over to my place and we'll order Chinese in. Lynn will be home so we'll think of something we can all do?" she asked.
"Sounds great!" he told her. "Has Lynn finished that black and white photography assignment she's been working on? She told me I could see it when she had." He asked.
"Yes, she finished it two days ago. I'll remind her you want to see it tonight." She told him but her mind was already racing, thinking of what she and Lynn had planned.