Page 20 of Spin Serve

“Hey. How is it?” Kendra asked.

“Oh, hey. You saw?” Monica asked.

“Yeah. Rolled it?”

“It’s fine. Just sore. I’ll ice it after the massage and wrap it up later. I don’t play again until tomorrow, so if I can keep it from swelling, I’ll be good.”

“I’m glad to hear it. I was worried.” Kendra placed her hand on Monica’s shoulder. “Where’s Selena?”

“Getting food. She always has to eat after a match, but she’s bringing me something, too.”

“I’m glad she takes care of you.” Kendra smiled down at her friend.

“About that…”

Kendra tilted her head and said, “No!”

“Yeah…”

“Really? Finally!”

“Finally?” Monica laughed.

“You’ve liked her forever.”

“Not forever.”

“Two years, Monica. You’ve been partners for two, roommates for one, and you’ve liked her that whole time.”

“She had a girlfriend when we first met, and after they broke up, I wanted to give her some time.”

“But now?”

“I told her how I felt a few weeks ago. It turns out, she feels the same way. We’re together now, which is interesting because we still live together, so we’re adjusting to that new normal.”

“I’m happy for you,” she replied and tried to push her mild jealousy out of her mind.

Kendra wasn’t jealous that Selena was with Monica. She was envious that they had each other, and she still didn’t have anyone.

“Hey.”

She turned at the sound of Aspen’s voice.

“Great match. I saw you hanging in there,” Aspen said to Monica as she moved to stand next to Kendra. “Hey,” she added in Kendra’s direction.

“Hey,” Kendra replied.

“Hi, Aspen. And thanks.”

“We play you next, so should I make sure to tell DJ to aim for that ankle?” Aspen teased.

“Asshole,” Monica said with a laugh.

Kendra looked over at Aspen and saw that she was wearing a pair of navy-blue flip-flops, a pair of black shorts that exposed her long legs to Kendra’s traitorous eyes, and a white tank top with her red suit bikini top underneath. She looked like she didn’t have a care in the world, and it was sexy to Kendra. The thought of not having a care in the world and just grabbing a pair of blue sandals that didn’t go with anything else she was wearing, leaving the house like that without wondering if people were staring and asking themselves why this stranger couldn’t color-coordinate, had Kendra sighing internally.

She’d struggled picking out a paint color for that guest bedroom for months. Well, she hadn’t specifically known about that guest room for months, but she’d been planning what colors she’d want in her house for years. She’d gone back and forth over what colors to use in certain rooms, and when she’d finally bought this house, she had gone to the hardware store and grabbed one of those paint swatch things to take back to her apartment. She must have flipped through that massive book of paint colors ten times before landing on the blue section, then another fifteen when she hit the lighter blues she liked, and all she’d managed to do was narrow it down to seven different versions of a pale-blue. She had to hold the swatches to the wall after she’d closed on the house before landing on the one she’d actually chosen. And that was just for one room. She still had to figure out what to do in all the others.

“Seriously, you’re all good?” Aspen asked Monica.

---