The Kaleidoscope Album Box Set

by Bryce Oakley

  Zoey raised an eyebrow. "Artistic license," she said, her voice solid.

  "Liar," Pia said, edging slightly closer toward the woman in front of her.

  What was it about Zoey? What made her want to take Zoey's hair and wrap her fists in it, to hold her in place, to kiss her again to make sure it hadn't just been some... fluke.

  Zoey didn't answer.

  The air was thick with tension. Pia's heartbeat pounded in her ears.

  She had to get herself back under control.

  "Grab any two bottles you want," she said, turning on her heel and walking out of the wine cellar without taking a glance over her shoulder.

  What in the world was happening to her? She held two bottles in her hands and jogged back upstairs, hurrying to put as much distance as she could between her and Zoey.

  "What's my budget?" Zoey called up to her, and Pia couldn't help but smile.

  Finally, when it was time for dinner, Pia was able to sit and relax. She was always on her guard around new people, and The Shrikes band, even though they were lovely and sweet, were still brand new additions to her life.

  Pia lifted a glass of wine as Meg slipped into the last chair. "A toast." She quoted a poem:

  Wine comes in at the mouth

  And love comes in at the eye;

  That's all we shall know for truth

  Before we grow old and die.

  I lift the glass to my mouth,

  I look at you, and I sigh.

  She purposefully avoided looking at Zoey until the very last line.

  Zoey had a grin on her face. "My second favorite Yeats poem," she said.

  Pia’s chest clenched with interest and appeal and attraction.

  "What's your first?" Billie asked, turning to her. "Wait. Let me guess."

  Zoey raised an eyebrow, the wine swirling in her glass.

  "Yeah, I'm joking, I don't know any of those poems by title alone," Billie confessed.

  "Roses are red, violets are blue, I'm starving right now," Domino paused, thinking of the next line. Eventually she shrugged. "Billie and Zoey, will you please stop talking about poetry-ooh?" She ended with a laugh, trying to make the line rhyme.

  Pia raised her glass again. "Here, here."

  Zoey played her part well during dinner. No one would have known about the tense moment they'd had in the wine cellar. Apart from the slight flush in Zoey's cheeks when she returned back upstairs, she'd have never sensed that she was bothered at all.

  But Pia didn't want sexual tension. As fun as that was, she wanted what came after that part.

  "Oh my God, stop talking about the pho place," Domino said, laughing.

  Pia came back to earth.

  Zoey looked animated. "No, it's the best pho on earth," she said definitively.

  "Except in Vietnam, you mean," Billie said, raising an eyebrow.

  Zoey rolled her eyes. "Of course I mean the best pho anywhere on earth besides Vietnam," she said.

  "Where is it?" Pia asked.

  "Houston," Zoey said.

  "I'd have never guessed," Pia said, smirking. “My favorite place is in Santa Ana.”

  "Please, take Zoey, put us out of our misery. She talks about it constantly," Domino said, looking exasperated but still amused.

  Pia smirked with a grin. “We’ll go and maybe get that Houston place out of your system.”

  Wow, if that didn’t sound like a euphemism…

  Zoey's brows pulled together in confusion. "Uh," she said, as if she had forgotten what words were. Six sets of eyes snapped to look at her.

  Zoey’s cheeks flushed. “Sure,” she said finally.

  As dinner ended, the group sat around the table finishing the wine and chatting.

  Pia felt grateful that she had invited them over. They were a sweet and kind and funny group of women, and she hoped that she'd be able to call them friends in the future.

  They wrapped up conversation and began saying their goodbyes. Pia hugged them.

  Sabrina squeezed her tightly. "Be careful," she said quietly, taking a step back.

  Pia raised her eyebrows, surprised. Be careful? Of what?

  Sabrina gave her a look as though she could read her mind.

  Pia gave Zoey a loose hug, keeping her distance.

  If Sabrina had noticed, who else had? She hadn't exactly done a stellar job of hiding her attraction, but she was friendly with everyone. She had made dates with Billie and Meg to check out the new exhibition at LACMA later that week, and she had promised Domino she'd get to meet the dogs the next time she came over.

  She led them out the door and the group walked into the night. She watched them go, trying not to read into how only Zoey looked back over her shoulder to give a small wave.

  She walked to the bedroom where Tulip and Cricket, her dogs, were and pulled out her phone to find two unread texts from Freya.

  Freya: New motto. SFWSW

  Pia raised a brow, reading another incoming text.

  Freya: Stop flirting with straight women.

  Pia: Can you tattoo that on my hand?

  Freya: OMW

  And sure enough, Freya showed up ten minutes later. Freya was the type of friend who could walk right in the side door.

  Pia was sitting on the sofa in her bedroom, both Tulip and Cricket were cuddled up on either side of her. Freya was such a common sight that the dogs barely even stirred, except to wag their tails until Freya came over to pet their big, blocky heads.

  “So, tell me the worst of it,” Freya said, rolling her eyes. Her perfectly straightened bob bounced as she shook her head. “Wait, we need more wine for this.”

  She ran out of the room and returned shortly with two very generous pours in a pair of glasses.

  "I'm in trouble," Pia admitted.

  Freya snorted. "Don't you dare open that door," she said, shaking her head again. "She's a straight woman in the public eye, P. It's never going to happen."

  "I'm not saying I want a relationship," Pia said, swirling the wine around in her glass and holding it under her nose. Fruity and floral and musky, all at once. Her favorite scent in the world. "No doors. All doors are closed. No room at the inn, you could say."

  "What inn? The Vagina Inn?" Freya said with a snort.

  Pia almost choked on her wine. "Jesus, Freya," she said, wiping at her chin. Tulip groaned, shifting in her comfortable sleeping position, annoyed about the commotion.

  "My point exactly," Freya said with a wink.

  "I don't want to sleep with a straight girl," Pia said.

  "And we're positive that Zoey is straight?" Freya asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow.

  Pia blinked, trying to remember if Zoey had said those exact words. She hadn't, right?

  "Oh no," Freya said, watching her. "Stop rationalizing this little crush."

  "Aren't you supposed to encourage me to get out of my comfort zone?" Pia asked.

  "Not if it sends you full speed ahead into Disasterville," Freya asserted.

  "Disasterville? Is that where The Vagina Inn is located?" Pia asked.

  "The one and only. Population: Every lesbian who thought that a straight woman wasn't trouble." Freya nodded definitively.

  "Maybe it's not like that. It could just be a fun fling, couldn't it?" Pia asked.

  "'Just For Fun' is the first stop on the train to Disasterville," Freya said, as though she was exasperated that she even had to explain herself.

  "And what's the second stop?" Pia asked, laughing.

  "The second stop is 'Just One More Time.' 'We Don't Have To Tell Anyone' is the third," Freya said, counting the stops on her fingers.

  "This train sounds like a good time." Pia grinned.

  "You mock me, but I'm right," Freya said, pointing at her with narrowed eyes.

  Pia raised her fist in the air as if she were pulling the cord for the train horn. "All aboard."

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Zoey

  Zoey fidgeted with her hair, sitting at the table. She had arrived a
bit early, mostly just to stop herself from standing in front of her mirror at home, touching up her makeup or adding another bobby pin to her hair.

  She always got this dressed up to go out with completely casual friends to a very, very casual hole-in-the-wall restaurant in Santa Ana. What if there were paparazzi? Or fans? She had to look her best.

  That was the driving factor of her spending two-and-a-half hours getting ready that afternoon. Completely.

  She glanced around the shop. It was clean and tidy, but there were only four or five tables. She sat at a small two-person table around the corner of the kitchen, where she could see a female cook inside. There seemed to be only one server, a very kind man named Minh who had given her the impression that with serving, he was also the owner and the other cook.

  Despite the small interior size, it was absolutely packed with people. She was lucky to get a table at all, but mentioning Pia had gotten her in immediately.

  She unfolded the sticky menu for the third time as she lifted her plastic water cup to her lips, gingerly taking a sip for fear that she'd mess up her lipstick.

  Who wore lipstick to go eat pho with a completely casual friend for whom she did not harbor any illicit or strange feelings?

  She set the menu back down — she had already settled on a medium P13: Tofu pho with beef broth the first time she had looked through it. Last night. On her phone. Once or twice.

  The thought of meeting Pia anywhere for a meal made her stomach flip in anticipation. She hated not knowing what to expect, and Pia, as a whole, was something unexpected.

  The bells above the front door jingled and Pia stepped in, her short, dark hair perfectly touseled in a way that made Zoey think of running her hands through it.

  Down, girl.

  "Pia!" Minh exclaimed, leaving the kitchen to give Pia a hug. "You have a woman waiting for you."

  No one in the restaurant even glanced up at the superstar in their midst. Did she come here so often that it wasn't even exciting to the patrons? Or did they simply not care?

  Zoey was impressed, either way.

  Pia laughed, standing next to the table. "I told her this was the best pho in the world, so I hope you're ready to back me up with a good meal."

  Minh waved his hand in the air as though dismissing the idea. "You know it is," he said. "I'll bring you some water. Beer tonight?"

  Pia nodded, glancing down to where Zoey still sat. "Bring two," she said.

  Zoey stood, reaching to hug Pia in greeting.

  Pia held her body tightly in the embrace, firm and warm and strong. She smelled like notes of cologne — oakwood? Zoey tried not to creepily breathe in too deeply trying to determine it.

  "Were you here long? Parking was super annoying," Pia said, settling into the chair across the table from Zoey.

  Zoey shook her head. "No," she said, reaching to fidget with her hair.

  Pia reached, taking her wrist and holding from touching her hair. "It looks perfect, don't ruin it," she said with a soft smile.

  Zoey resisted the urge to gasp as Pia held her wrist. It wasn't aggressive, but it was firm, like Pia always got her way. "Oh," she said awkwardly. "Okay."

  The server gave them two beers and took their orders. Pia held the cold glass in her hand, and Zoey eyed her fingers. Pia had beautiful hands. Long, slender fingers — not delicate, but definitely soft.

  "How will they ever compare to what you've had before?" Pia asked, taking a sip from her glass.

  Zoey almost spit out her beer. "What did you just say?" She asked, staring at Pia's fingers. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand once she was able to swallow and regain some of her composure.

  Pia tilted her head to the side with a small, curious grin. "I only asked how this place compares to your favorite pho place in Houston," she said.

  Zoey took another large swig of her beer. "That's so funny, I was just thinking of how cozy this place is. I love my Houston place, but it's busy, and larger, and the food is good but this food looks like it's being made in my friend's kitchen. I like that," she explained, glancing around. Her cheeks were warm from embarrassment.

  "I hope you like it," Pia said.

  "Oh yeah? You're that attached?" Zoey asked.

  "I own it," Pia said, shrugging.

  Zoey laughed in surprise. "You own this restaurant?"

  Pia nodded, grinning.

  "This restaurant," Zoey said, pointing down to the table.

  Pia nodded.

  The server came and set their bowls down on the table. Zoey had ordered a medium, but the bowl was gigantic. Pia watched as they set down the condiments plate with basil, sprouts, jalapeno, and lime. The plate was overflowing.

  Zoey tossed basil, lime, and two slices of jalapeno into her pho, then reached to the end of the table for the sriracha, but Pia shook her head quickly.

  "Try it without first," Pia said. "Believe me."

  Zoey raised an eyebrow, looking from the sriracha and hoisin sauce to her bowl. "Okay," she said skeptically, taking a sip of her broth.

  The hot liquid burst over her tongue in a delicious array of salty and savory and rich flavors.

  She moaned, covering her mouth with her hand. "Oh God, that's good," she said.

  Pia nodded, grinning. She lifted her noodles on her chopsticks, slurping them into her mouth.

  Zoey laughed. "This is not very attractive date food," she said, eating a mouthful of noodles. "Wait, I mean." She tried to chew her noodles quickly to be able to explain herself and backpedal away from the word date. Fuck. Freudian slip?

  "Oh, I wasn't aware this was a date," Pia said with a smirk, not looking up from her pho.

  Zoey blushed, shaking her head. "That's not what I meant," she said, setting her chopsticks down. "Sorry. I mean, this isn't..."

  Pia held up a hand. "Don't worry about it, I'm just teasing you," she said.

  Zoey quickly put more food in her mouth to resist the urge to talk anymore.

  A date? Seriously? Get it together, Zoey. Game face.

  "You're right though, lousy date food," Pia said with a laugh. "Or, maybe a perfect date food? Nothing could be more revealing than the way a person sips their noodles."

  "True. Noodles. The great equalizer," Zoey said.

  They finished their meals — neither one getting to the bottom of their bowl. Pia pushed her bowl away from her. "I always think a medium is a good idea and it is never a good idea," she said.

  "Yeah, what I wouldn't give for elastic waist pants right now," Zoey said.

  "I'm surprised you agreed to come eat a meal with me," Pia said.

  "I ate pasta with you last night," Zoey answered in surprise, her eyebrows raising.

  "No, I just mean... I'm surprised you agreed to come," Pia said.

  Zoey tilted her head. "Why's that?"

  "Well, you're a model. I wouldn't really think salty broth, noodles, and fried tofu was in your food repertoire," Pia said.

  "I'm a musician. Sometimes people take my picture," Zoey said, waving the idea out of the air.

  "You're a model signed to IMG. You're a musician and a model," Pia said.

  Zoey shrugged. "I think people like my… uniqueness,” she said, gesturing to her hair and darker skin. With a combination of black and Filipino heritage from her birth parents she often had the hunch that she was hired because of her “look” — even though that word made her cringe. In fact, it made her feel more confident that she wasn’t the typical cookie cutter model.

  Pia shook her head, her elbows on the table. She bit her lip, and Zoey watched as warmth took over her expression. "You're stunning," she said, her voice almost a reverent whisper.

  Zoey's heart was going to beat out of her chest. Could Pia hear how loudly it was pounding? Her breath quickened. "Thanks," she said.

  Pia's eyes crinkled at the edges with a smile.

  "I'm not..." Zoey began, worried about how she was going to word it. "I don't date..." What was she going to say? Women? Anyone?

 
Pia kept her expression infuriatingly blank and didn't bother answering Zoey. "I don't want to date you," she said, and her tone was thick with meaning.

  "That's..." Zoey began. Was it hot in here? She looked around, suddenly flushed. Was it the kitchen? Was the entire room on fire? She wanted to take the front of her shirt and fan it out from her body.

  Pia didn't say a word. She merely watched Zoey.

  The room was actually much smaller than Zoey had originally thought. Were the walls getting closer? She took a sip of her water, the condensation sticking to her palm. She pressed her damp fingers to the back of her neck.

  "You okay?" Pia said, her brows furrowing ever-so-slightly.

  "Yeah, I'm..." Zoey said, her throat growing thick. She swallowed, taking another drink of water. "I'm going outside."

  Zoey grabbed her purse and took four large steps, shoving open the front door. The shop was along a busy road, and cars raced by, loud and too close.

  The May air was hardly cooler than inside the restaurant.

  Pia emerged from the shop after a moment, looking alarmed. She stood next to Zoey, holding a hand on her shoulder.

  "I'm sorry, I just..." Zoey said, shaking her head.

  "It's my fault," Pia began. "I shouldn't have said that. That was an asshole move."

  Zoey held her hands on her hips, leaning back against the brick at the edge of the storefront. "It wasn't that," she said. "I don't think so, at least."

  "I'm not trying to pressure you into anything," Pia said. "I think you're extremely attractive, and I'd like to get to know you."

  "I'm not gay," Zoey said, putting up her hand as though it was a stop sign.

  "Okay," Pia said slowly, looking confused.

  “I’ve never dated women," Zoey continued.

  Pia nodded.

  "I've never even kissed a woman before..." Zoey said, waving her hand in the air. "That." Her breathing was becoming a bit more normal now that she was outside with fresh air.