Well, today was certainly interesting.

If you define interesting as really fucking irritating.

I swear the women in my life are trying to drive me insane. It's enough to drive a man to a monastery, it really is. If it wasn't Stacey being clingy it was Cara being aloof or it was Eva bugging me about Cara. I don't even know why she would do that - if she won't tell her best girly pal stuff why would she tell me?

Not like she tells me anything.

Like oh say that she reneged on that whole Ed Taylor thing and agreed to go out with him. Why, precisely? Why? I mean, okay, I think she's been feeling a little pushed out with me and Tom doing the whole pseudo double date thing, but that's not my fault and it's no reason to run at the first guy you see: especially when the first guy you see happens to be my arch nemesis.

Well, alright, he's actually kind of a friend now but that's not the point, he used to be my arch nemesis.

What really pisses me off is that she didn't tell me. I open the door to find him standing there asking if she's ready to leave, and Cara did not mention one single solitary word about this whole thing to me. Tom just rolled his eyes and said I was being a 'whiny punk ass bitch' but I'm sorry, you'd think she'd mention it! What, is she like ashamed or something? She fucking should be; she said she wouldn't go out with him. Of course I asked her what was up and she totally avoided the issue. I mean, I wasn't expecting a detailed answer with Ed in the other room waiting for her, but the Cliff Notes version would have been swell.

She was really off with me about it though. She was just all calm and chirpy and all like 'I haven't got time JT, he's waiting. I'll talk to you later.' Do you now see how fucking bad this is? I mean, how Stepford is that? Since when has Cara the Gossip Queen never had time to chat? She suddenly turns around and practically betrays to me, almost like she lied to me and she doesn't have time to talk? The movie never starts at the published time anyway, that's just when the previews start!

I pointed this out to Tom and he came all out with the derogatory terms again, which I take to mean he had no counter argument.

So, alright, I was in kind of a bad mood when I met up with Stacey but really, I don't see why she had to get on my back so much. I turn up there and she's all cute in her jeans and her vest shirt thing and her beads and we head on out for coffee and we're holding hands as we walk and this should be every freshman girl's dream date right? Older guy, strolling through campus on a hot summer day to go see some local band at the snootiest coffee place in the town (like Starbucks or Java isn't good enough)…

But no, that's not good enough. She kept complaining I wasn't talking to her. It's a gig; you're supposed to listen to the music, it's fucking rude to talk through other people's sets. And whatever happened to companionable silence anyway? I paid for everything, I talked, I did, but she's looking at me all puppy eyed and wounded like I'm not paying attention to her. I mean, excuse me if I have things on my mind. There's no way I'm taking her to Tony and JC's set if they do wind up doing a gig here like JC maybe said they would, I can't have her talking through my friends' shit.

I was gonna take Cara because she was in love with JC and Tony when MMC was airing, but I'm too annoyed with her ass right now. I mean fuck…

Oh, yeah, we were at Stacey now.

We've only been dating a little while, it's too soon for her to be riding my ass about talking and feelings and shit. I like her and she's sweet and we have a lot of fun, but she's overstepping the bounds a little. In fact, she's been like that ever since we started having sex. The sex which I must say has not been getting much better despite my efforts; I never realised how awkward it is trying to direct another person in bed without completely insulting them. I mean, doesn't she read Cosmo and shit? I've flicked through Cara's copy before and I tell you women are dirty, the thing's full of features on how to get better orgasms and stuff.

There's some improvement, but it's going a little slower than I expected it to - much like our little arrangement or relationship or whatever. Whereas my relationship with Cara is just hitting a little road bump in the form of her completely pissing me off. I'm resigned to the fact I'm destined to go through Hell any time she has a date and I try not to blame the guy in question, but Ed fucking Taylor? I mean, what right does she have to go out with him?

I swear - Cara gets on my last damn nerve sometimes.

***

Stacey stared into her glass with a sigh. Mindlessly she poked and swirled the melting ice with her straw, watching the last few dregs of her drink become more and more diluted, slowly paling in colour. That was how bored she was.

In fairness, she'd been in a bad mood even before her 'big sister' had decided that it was time they caught up with each other. Normally she was quite happy to spend an evening in Susanne's company - thankfully when the volunteer sophomores had been assigned to the various new pledges she'd managed to get one of the decent ones. On this occasion however she was finding no joy in their dinner date whatsoever despite the fact they were at Mel's, the best junk food place around.

This was mostly Justin's fault. She honestly didn't understand what she had done wrong. He'd been moody and distant for pretty much their entire date, but the particularly adverse reaction had come after she had dared to observe that he was a little quiet. She failed to see how "you're a little quiet, Justin, you okay?" translated to being overly nosy or demanding, but he had seemed to take it as some excessive questioning of his actions. She didn't think she'd said it in a particularly whiny way; she'd just wanted to make sure he was alright.

The other part of it was Cara's fault. Well, it wasn't her fault per se, she couldn't be blamed for being in the same diner, but it just served as a honking big Justin reminder.

"You know I'm starting to think I'm boring you." Susanne said wryly, gazing at Stacey over the rim of her glasses.

"Huh? Oh…" She looked sheepishly up, tucking a strand of honey coloured hair back into her hair clip. "Sorry."

"Spill." She received a light poke across their newly arrived hamburgers. "What's eating you?"

"Ugh…" She groaned, miming bashing her head against the table. "Justin."

"Should have known." Susanne smiled wryly. "What's lover boy done now?"

"Oh he just pulled some classic accusing me of being clingy shit because I dared ask why he was quiet." She rolled her eyes heavenward before picking up a fry and taking an overly aggressive bite of it.

"You still worrying about this girl he hangs out with?"

"Shh!" Stacey hissed, horrified. "She's right over there!"

"Where?" Susanne asked, purposely keeping her head forward and not letting her eyes wander around the restaurant.

"Your left, two o clock… or I guess more like eight for you."

Casually Susanne's elbow came to rest on the table and her head tilted to her left with an amiable expression. Her right hand played with the bangles on her opposite wrist as she managed to slowly let her eyes do a sweep, not letting them linger any longer on the woman in question than they did on anything else. Stacey was astounded by the display - it was masterfully subtle.

"Cara Richardson? That's who you were talking about?"

"Uh huh." She nodded.

"I thought you said this girl was amazingly attractive?"

"You think she isn't?" Stacey nodded at her where she was sat with some basketball player, her tinkling laugh filling the air. She looked the epitome of poise, even her hand gestures seemed graceful and she was wearing a pair of chocolate suede boots that were seriously to be coveted.

"Not amazingly so, no." Her companion shrugged. "Don't get me wrong, she's pretty, but she's no prettier than any other girl on campus."

"You sure that's not you saying that because of this big beef Pi Beta's supposed to have with her crowd?" The blonde arched a questioning eyebrow.

"Like I give a shit." Susanne stuck her tongue out and gave her a cross eyed look, which had the desired effect of making Stacey laugh. "Seriously, Cara's good looking but she's not Angelina frickin' Jolie or whatever. And you told me they've lived together two years without anything happening, why you paranoid? She's not that hot."

"Guys think she is." Stacey informed her as Susanne picked up her burger and started work on it, still watching her and nodding or shaking her head to what was said. "Hell, half her friends bitch about her behind her back because they're jealous about it. Not that I think she knows that… she just has something about her they like, and I see it - she's so together and laid back and she just doesn't give a shit, and whatever it is Justin's mesmerised with it too… except with him it's just a friend thing."

"So…" The older girl had to pause a moment to swallow her food. "If it's just a friend thing why's it a problem?"

"Because I still have to live up to that either way." Stacey dragged a fry through her ketchup with no real intention of putting it into her mouth. "She's older and cooler and more mature than me and they're so close and right now they probably look like more of a couple than me and him do. Besides, if she decides she doesn't like me I figure I'm gonna get trashed before I can breathe."

"So, you're panicked about her, you feel like he's more into her than you even though all he wants from her is friendship… and you slept with this guy? Stacey, honey, does this picture look right to you?"

"He's really sweet!" She protested, not liking what she was hearing.

"I'm sure he is." Susanne replied grimly, eyes taking another sideways glance at Cara who was smiling and chatty and clearly unaware she was being talked about. "What I'm saying is that to an outsider it looks suspiciously like you panicked and slept with him so you'd be giving him something she's not. I mean, we've all done it sweetie so I'm not judging, but it's not smart. Though…" She continued after a quick pause to pop a slice of tomato in her mouth, "I'm more concerned about this obsession you're developing with measuring up to her."

"I do not have an obsession with measuring up to her; I just know that she's somebody I need to be getting along with. It's a genuine concern, and honestly if you saw the way he is with her you'd understand."

"Stacey…" The brunette raised a newly shaped eyebrow at her, lips pursing in a slightly worried manner. "I have nothing against Cara, she seems alright, but there's plenty of sisters could tell you she can be a total bitch if she sets her mind to it. There's plenty of guys on this campus have dumped her, there's plenty of guys who wouldn't be interested, there's plenty of girls on this campus you could say are prettier than her, and I'm sure that even if she is his friend there's plenty of things she does that irritate the shit out of him. This idea that you have in your head about her being so perfect needs to go, because until you relax and quit worrying about it you're gonna spend most of your time getting worked up over silly stuff like Justin just having a bad mood and taking it out on you."

"But…"

"Sweetie, you're great as you are. Justin's not dating her, he's dating you." Susanne told her firmly. This was a bit of a soapbox subject with her - she'd seen too many of her friends get tied up in knots trying to be somebody they weren't for some guy. "You don't need to live up to her. Quit worrying and just be yourself."

As if on cue, Cara let out a small shriek and drew the attention of most of the restaurant to herself, including the two gossiping sisters. She was staring at a yellow flyer in her hands that she had suddenly noticed from the stack that were piled next to her table. For a moment the giddy expression on her face made her look kind of stupid (her composure having slipped for a second) and Stacey felt mildly comforted by it, the noise she had made being not much more attractive than the expression.

"Oh my God, JC Chasez and Tony Lucca! I have to tell Justin!"

Stacey turned back to Susanne and sat back in the booth, crossing her arms over her chest and shooting her an 'I told you so' look.

"What's that about?" Susanne asked weakly.

"I have no idea but I'm gonna find out."