Title: Sparks

Author: Alan Hitchen

Email: darkmere2000@yahoo.co.uk

Disclaimer: Popular is the property of Touchstone Television

Pairing: Brooke/Nicole (implied)

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Sam makes a discovery

Sam entered the Novak and was surprised to find it empty. She sat down in the corner and closed her eyes, trying to make the most of the peace and quiet before returning to the hurly-burly of school life. A subdued sob broke the silence. Sam swivelled on her seat to look at the stalls. Another sob confirmed the fact that she was not alone. She got up and crept over to the source of the sound. She extended her finger and gingerly pushed open the unlocked door. She was astonished to see Nicole, sitting head-in-hands, a picture of misery.

"What's up, Satan," Sam blurted out automatically, "lost your trident?"

Nicole's head jerked up. "Spam McBusybody, is there nowhere you won't poke your nose?!" she retorted angrily.

Sam groped for another witty put-down before deciding to try a different approach. "I'm sorry," she said, but not altogether convincingly.

Nicole ignored the apology, rose, and pushed past the brunette to repair her tear-stained makeup.

"What's going on?" Sam asked. Just the mere fact of Satan displaying normal human emotions was front page news already, but she needed to know more.

"Nothing that concerns you!" Nicole snapped back.

"C'mon, Nic, something's wrong," Sam persisted, trying hard not to sound like a pushy journalist.

Nicole span round violently. "Don't call me Nic! Only Brooke can... " her voice tailed off and she began to cry again.

"Has this got something to do with Brooke?" Sam continued to probe. Nicole didn't answer but her expression betrayed her anyway. "What's she done?" As she continued to scan the cheerleader's face for answers a little bulb lit up in her head. "It's her new boyfriend isn't it?" The stricken look told her she was on the right track. "I've been blind," Sam went on, "You're in love with her, aren't you?"

A look of sheer panic came over Nicole. "Don't tell anyone," she said urgently.

"I wasn't going to," Sam replied, sitting down as the implications hit her. All of a sudden a lot of little puzzling things suddenly made sense. "When she ditched Josh, you were hoping she'd choose you, but she threw herself at the next available boy instead."

"Yeah," sniffed Nicole, sitting down next to Sam. "What a joke, eh?"

"I'm not laughing," Sam said sympathetically. "There's nothing wrong in loving someone."

"There is when they don't love you back."

"How do you know, did you actually tell her how you feel?"

"Not in so many words."

"Then how do you know how she feels about you? Look, I can't stand you, but Brooke likes you, I think she likes you a lot."

"You think," Nicole asked hopefully, "you think she could love me?"

"I don't know, but I think you should tell her," Sam advised.

"What if she says no?"

"Then she says no. But if you love her, don't you think she's worth taking a chance on?"

Nicole nodded and smiled. "Yes, she's worth it."

"Then what are you waiting for?" Sam urged. Nicole leapt up to repair her face again then turned to go, but turned back to Sam instead. "One thing, this conversation never happened, right?" she demanded.

"Right."

"And we still hate each other, right?"

"Right."

"And, Sam, thank you."

Sam grinned at her arch-enemy as she left the Novak. "Right," she said quietly to herself. Then she took a deep breath and closed her eyes to make the most of the peace and quiet before the hurly-burly of the day to come. Because, if things worked out the way she hoped they would, she had a feeling she was going to need it.

"What the hell did you say to Nic?!" Brooke demanded angrily as soon as she entered the kitchen.

"She told you then?" Sam replied without outward concern, but was secretly pleased. "What would you like, Snapple or Sprite?"

"I don't want a drink; I want an answer!" Brooke insisted.

Sam placed the Snapple back in the fridge, snapped open the can of Sprite and took a swig before speaking as Brooke continued to seethe in front of her. "It's no biggie, I found out Nicole had feelings for you and I told her to tell you."

"Why did you do that?!"

"Because I'm a nice person?"

"Because you're an idiot! Didn't you ever think there was another side to the story, that you should have considered all the facts before handing out unsolicited advice?!"

"Ah," said Sam, conceding the point and belatedly realising things were not going her way.

"Yes, ah!" said Brooke. "Sit down. Where are the 'rentals, by the way?"

"No idea," Sam replied while taking a seat across from Brooke. "Look, I didn't mean..."

"Shut up!" Brooke interrupted, then took a deep breath before continuing. "FYI, I knew Nic had feelings for me. But as much as I like her as a friend, I don't desire her romantically. Now you've forced me to turn her down, she's terribly hurt, I've probably lost her as a friend, and it's all your fault!"

"I'm sorry," Sam said with a barely concealed grin, perhaps things were working out after all.

"You're sorry. Great. The thing that puzzles me is that you know I'm straight and yet you still advised Nic to..."

"No, I don't know that," Sam butted in.

"No, you don't know what?"

"I don't know that you're straight. oh, I know that's the popular impression, but is it the truth?"

"What do you mean?" challenged Brooke.

"Well, Josh was a washout and I don't see any sparks flying between you and Billy-Bob."

"His name is Robert," Brooke said icily. "And what would you know about sparks, little Miss I've-got-no-boyfriend-at-all?"

"You only make sparks with the right person, the right boy, or in my case - the right girl," Sam said emphatically.

"Oh," replied Brooke, the wind taken out of her sails. "Is there a girl you make sparks with?" she asked at last. "Lily perhaps?"

Sam smiled with a particular twinkle in her eyes. "No, not Lily, but yes, there is someone, and I'm looking at her right now."

Brooke simply couldn't believe her ears. "So what was the Nic thing all about?"

"Me being a nice person like I said. Once I knew how she felt about you I thought it only fair that she should have first say. Of course, if you'd said yes to her we wouldn't be having this conversation. But you didn't," Sam said in triumph.

"But I'll say yes to you, is that it? What is the colour of the sky where you live, Sam? If I was gay, and I assure you that I'm not, why on earth would I want to date you?!"

Sam's brow furrowed. This moment had worked a lot better in her imagination. She was a journalist. She had all the words. So why couldn't she think of a thing to say? "Because I'm worth it?" she said lamely.

Brooke threw her hands into the air. "I'd sooner date a mountain gorilla!" she said expressively, leaving the table in disgust and heading for her room.

"I thought you already were!" Sam called after the retreating figure. Yes, it had all worked much better in her dreams. Brooke had said yes then. What was she going to do now?

~ One Week Later ~

"Cheerios, Brooke?" enquired Sam, trying yet again to start a friendly conversation.

"Froot Loops, Sam?" Brooke stonewalled with a thin smile cold enough to chill a melon.

Jane looked meaningfully at Mike as the girls glowered at each other across the breakfast table. He was too busy reading the paper to take the hint, so Jane stepped into the middle of the cold war with a question. "Will Robert be dining with us on Friday?" she asked Brooke.

"No, Jane, as a matter of fact I'm breaking up with him today."

Sam choked at the unexpected news. "Oh dear, I'm sorry to hear that," Jane replied, ignoring her daughter's coughing fit. "Any particular reason?"

"No, no particular reason, it just isn't working out," Brooke said, then noticing Sam's smirk out of the corner of her eye, she added, "I'm going to invite Nicole over on Friday for a sleep-over, if that's okay with you?"

"Oh, that'll be fine - Mike?"

"What? Oh, yes, fine."

Brooke smiled at Mike, Jane, and finally Sam, who looked like she'd just swallowed her spoon.

~ Later That Day ~

"You okay, Sam?" asked Lily, noticing her friend's distraction.

Sam couldn't help but stare at Brooke and Nicole, tight as ever, holding court at the popular table. She switched her attention to Robert, who was sitting with his friends, and who didn't seem to be too put out by his curt dismissal from the magic circle of popularity. Then, belatedly realising she'd been addressed, she turned back to Lily.

"What did you say?"

"I said, are you okay, Sam?"

"Oh, yeah, I'm just a bit.. tired," Sam replied. She mentally shook herself. She'd had her chance with Brooke and blown it. So much for the daydream, now back to reality. "Sorry, Lily, you were telling us how you were going to boycott Japanese goods until they stop 'scientific' whaling."

~ Friday Night ~

"I'm so glad you could come, Nic," said Brooke as she prepared for bed.

"Me too, I was afraid that we couldn't do things like this anymore."

"We'll always be friends," Brooke said warmly, sitting down next to Nicole perched on the side of the bed. "I'm so mad at Sam for interfering with us and then saying what she did. Things were so much easier when we just hated each other. Now with this crush she's got on me..." Her voice trailed off and her gaze fell into her lap.

"And things were so much easier when we were just friends too," Nicole said quietly.

Brooke's head lifted to see her friend's worried expression. "I've been thinking about that," she said. "I've been thinking about that a lot. We've been friends for a very long time now. You've stuck by me through thick and, literally, thin," she said while patting her flat stomach. "I don't think I ever told you just how much that meant to me."

"No need. You'd have done the same for me," Nicole replied.

"Yes, I would," Brooke confirmed, then went on. "I always knew you liked me, even if at times I wondered why. It was only recently that I realised that you more than liked me. I didn't say anything because I didn't think I could ever return those feelings. But then Sam said something about sparks. About how you only get sparks between the right people. I tried so hard with Josh, but it never worked because there were no sparks between us. And Robert - I felt nothing for him at all. But you..."

Nicole looked down to see Brooke reach out to take her hand, then up again to see her smile. "You, Nic, I think I spark with you. When I look into my heart and search for the one who means most to me, I see you. I don't know if that makes me gay or not, but it makes me want to change my answer. I want... I want to be your girlfriend, Nic. If the offer's still open that is."

Nicole nodded in reply, her eyes full of tears, unable to speak for sheer joy. Then they kissed. And that night they were not divided.

Brooke's consciousness gently rose to the surface and she awoke with a breathless sigh. Her eyes slowly opened to examine the early morning scene. She was naked, lying on her left side facing another naked woman. The smaller blonde slept on in ignorance of her lover's gaze. The rapid movement of her eyes beneath the firmly closed lids told Brooke that Nicole was dreaming, and judging by the smile on her lips she could guess what about.

Brooke rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling, re-examining the events of the previous night. Her cheeks flushed pink as she remembered how kissing had led to touching had led to - the most amazing night of her life.

She knew now, despite what she had told Sam, that she was definitely bi, if not out-and-out gay. Nicole had known where all her buttons were and just how to push them for maximum effect. In comparison, Josh hadn't even found her A-spot, let alone get as far as her G-spot, which Nicole's eager fingers had located in an instant. Not that Brooke was any expert in these matters herself, but under Nicole's inspired guidance she soon discovered how to return the pleasure many times that night.

Brooke turned again to face her friend, girlfriend, lover, partner? She couldn't quite decide which was the right description now. But even as she debated this trivial point another thought came to her. Not a short blonde thought, but a long brunette thought.

Sam.

Unbidden, a tune began to play. It was a song from 'High Society', a film she'd watched a few days ago. It should have been 'True Love', but it wasn't. It should have been sung by Bing Crosby to Grace Kelly, but it wasn't. In her head she was Grace Kelly and she was singing the song to Sam, who, like her, was all dressed up in designer gowns and high heels, laquered hair and exquisite makeup.

I love you, Samantha
And my love will never die
Remember, Samantha
I'm a one gal girl
Together, Samantha
We could ride a storm
And ride it high
Remember, Samantha
I'm a one gal girl
And if some distant day
You decided to say
Get along, go away, goodbye
Remember, Samantha
I'm a one gal girl
Remember, Samatha
I'm a one gal girl

One gal girl? The Technicolor dream bubble burst. "This is so unfair," Brooke said to herself.

"This is so unfair," Sam said to herself and rolled over to face towards Brooke's bedroom. Squinting her eyes in a futile attempt to ignite the x-ray vision she wished she had, she had to content herself with her imagination's VistaVision reconstruction of Brooke's night of passion with Nicole. "That should have been me," she sighed, as another of Brooke's ecstatic moans echoed in her memory.

Why, oh why, had she let her sympathy for Satan cloud her judgement? Why encourage her to make the first move? Why had she been so confident that Brooke would choose her over Nicole? These and other questions taunted her, but she had no answer to any of them. It was all academic anyway, she reasoned. Brooke had made her choice and it wasn't her, it would never be her.

Sam sighed again, got up, and propelled herself out to the bathroom in the fond hope that a minty-fresh start to the day would make things seem a little better.

"Sam," said the quiet voice behind her. The brunette stopped brushing her teeth, spat expressively into the bowl and looked up to face the blonde reflected in the mirror. "You're up early. You usually lie in on Saturdays," Brooke continued, tugging the dressing gown more tightly around her slender frame, hiding her wanton nakedness in complete contradiction to her inner desires. For even wearing a shapeless nightshirt instead of a fifties frock Sam was looking more desirable than ever.

"I had a restless night," Sam explained concisely. "And I wasn't the only one was I?" she added with a meaningful look.

Brooke blushed. "You heard?"

"I think the whole neighbourhood did."

"Really?" Brooke squeaked in alarm. "Do you think Dad and Jane heard?"

"No. I think they were too busy making noises of their own to notice."

"Eww!" said Brooke. Sam laughed at that and Brooke joined in, happy that Sam wasn't taking it too badly.

"So, you and Nicole?" asked Sam, finally turning to face Brooke directly.

Brooke's radiant expression faded. "Nicole and I are... together," she admitted.

Sam advanced towards Brooke. "So, when you said you weren't gay, you were lying, or is it that two cheerleaders don't add up to one lesbian?"

"Sam, please. I'm sorry if I've hurt you, but I never meant..."

Sam stepped back and threw up her hands defensively. "Don't, Brooke, don't. I almost forgot that I'm an unpopular loser. But you'll always be here to remind me of that, won't you?"

Brooke wanted to deny the accusation, but her actions were forestalled by another voice. "No, Spam, that's my job," Nicole sneered. "Now get lost, McPondlife. Brooke and I are taking a shower and you're not invited!"

Sam left the bathroom in silence, went back to her lonely bed and cried.

"You're kidding me!" Lily goggled in amazement at her friend sitting opposite.

"That's what happened," Sam solemnly confirmed. "No kidding," she said with a quiet sigh.

"No. First your Mom and Mike, now Brooke and Nicole. I... I don't know what to say."

"That's okay. I don't think there's anything you can say. What's done is done. The only thing is, and I probably imagined it, but just before Satan barged in, just for a second I thought Brooke was going to say she'd made a mistake."

"Hi, guys, what's the 911?" Harrison interrupted, swiftly sliding onto the bench seat next to Lily. "Meet at the coffee shop pronto you said. Well, here I am."

"Thanks for coming," said Sam, then looking behind Harrison she greeted the approaching figure with a smile and a wave. "Hi, Carm."

"I came as quick as I could," replied the would-be cheerleader, pushing in next to Sam. "Well," she said, acknowledging her other friends, "the gang's all here, what's the big emergency?"

"It's Brooke," said Lily, earning herself a scolding frown from Sam.

"When is it not Brooke?" Harrison observed dryly.

"Guys!" Carmen said firmly. "Sam has got us here to say something, why not let her say it."

"Thanks, Carm. Look, you all know I'm gay, right?" The others nodded affirmatively, this was old news to them. "Well, when I told you I also said there was someone I was crushing on, but I hadn't told her because, amongst other things, I wasn't sure she was that way inclined. Well, it turns out she is."

"That's great," Harrison interjected, "isn't it?" he added, noting Sam's sad expression.

"No, Harrison, it's not great. Not for me... or you."

"Me?" Harrison queried, but almost immediately the penny dropped. "Brooke."

"Yes, Brooke. It's a long story, which I don't feel like repeating. I've told Lily so you can ask her about it later, but the short version is that Brooke is now dating Nicole."

"That's one word for it," Lily said, rolling her eyes.

"You've got to be joking," Carmen said in disbelief.

"I wish I was," Sam replied. "You okay, Harrison?"

"What? Oh. Yeah. Yes, I'm okay," he said as his distracted expression turned into a weak smile. "This is a good thing."

"Really?" asked Sam.

"Really. You all know how I've always had a thing for Brooke. How I was her friend, then a nobody, and most recently..."

"A doormat?" Carmen suggested, a touch unkindly.

"A doormat," he accepted. "For too long I've waited for Brooke to notice me..."

"Are we getting to the good thing soon?" Lily asked impatiently.

"Yes. The waiting is done. Now I know for sure she's never going to notice me, my obsession with Brooke McQueen is officially over."

"That is a good thing," Carmen agreed, adding, tongue in cheek. "Once word gets around you're a free man you'll be inundated with offers of dates."

"You think?"

"No," Lily giggled, "but I think you might get at least one offer." Adopting a Texan drawl she went on, "Oh. Hi, Joe, would you like to come up and see me sometime?"

Harrison put his head in his hands. "Oh. My. God. Not that!" He peeked out from between his fingers to see that Sam was laughing along with Carmen and Lily. When the hilarity subsided he asked: "You okay, Sam."

She nodded. "Not really, but I will be. Thanks to you, my friends, I will be. But Carm made a good point about word getting round. I wouldn't want to be outed before I was ready. I'm sure Brooke thinks the same, so this is just between us four, okay?"

Everyone agreed, then Lily asked: "So what are we doing today? I was going to do a protest at the Zoo... but it doesn't matter, Sam comes first today."

"I'd suggest the Mall if I wasn't flat broke - again." Carmen moaned.

"Miniature golf anyone? My treat!" Harrison suggested with a smile.

Sam grinned back in response. "Miniature golf here we come. And don't fret, Lily, we can picket the Zoo later."

"Where have you been all day?!" demanded Brooke as soon as Sam stepped in through the front door.

"Oh, I'm sorry, didn't I say? I've been out having fun with my friends," Sam replied lightly.

"I... we were worried."

"Then worry no more." Sam paused to take a good look at the vision in blue before her. "Pretty dress. New is it?"

Sam's appreciative gaze caused Brooke's heart to skip a beat. "Nic bought it for me. She's taking me out to dinner," she said apologetically.

Sam sighed regretfully. "I'm sorry. This is all my fault. I shouldn't have said anything. You and Nic - I hope you'll be very happy."

"Sam, I..." She was going to say that Sam could make her happy too, then a car horn told her that Nicole had arrived to pick her up and the moment was lost. "Thanks," she said, stepped out of the door, and without even realising it, stepped out of Sam's life.

Sunday went by quietly. Nicole insisted that Brooke should spend the day with her at her place and Sam retreated to her room on Brooke's return home. On Monday Sam was unexpectedly delayed and so burst into the homeroom just as the bell stopped ringing and the class began to stream out for first period.

"Sorry I'm late," she gasped, crashing to a halt in front of the desk.

"No problem, Sam," said her teacher. "Here, take a tardy slip."

"Thanks, Mr Baxter, I'll treasure it," she replied with a wry smile, taking the proffered item and cramming it into the pocket of her cargo pants.

"I'm sure you will," he went on with a grin of his own. "Now, before you dash off again, I'd like to introduce you to a new member of your class. Miss McPherson, meet Miss Stevens."

Only now did Sam notice the tall slim girl standing close by who extended a hand for Sam to shake. "Ren," she said with a captivating smile. "Sam," Sam replied automatically, taking a closer look at the new arrival. Wearing buff-coloured deck shoes, beige trousers, powder-blue vee-neck sweater revealing a fine chain necklace bearing her name, brunette hair pulled back into a ponytail and a pair of butterfly slides either side, Ren looked as neat as a new pin.

In comparison, Sam's casual ensemble looked like a collection of thrift shop rejects, and she, the very embodiment of the word dishevelled. She inwardly sighed, another Brooke-clone destined for the popular table she thought.

"Ren has just moved here from Sacramento," Mr Baxter explained. "She was editor of her school paper. So who better than you to show her the ropes at Kennedy High?"

Sam perked up. "Editor?"

"That was me," Ren acceded modestly.

"Do you do numbers as well as words?"

"Yes."

"That's good, it's double maths next. Welcome to Kennedy High," Sam said with an ironic laugh, and shepherded Ren out of the room.

At lunch, Sam guided Ren over to the unpopular table and introduced her to her friends.

"So, Ren, is that short for anything?" asked Carmen, waving a roll for emphasis.

"Yes, Renata, but no one calls me that, not even my mom."

"What brings you to this part of California?" was Lily's question.

"In short, my younger brother, Louis."

Lily decided to press for details. "And in long?" she asked.

"Well," Ren began in confidential tones, leaning across the table to be closer to Lily. "My mom was a state senator until Louis brewed up a little political scandal and she had to resign. Next he came up with a little legal scandal and Dad had to leave his law firm. Then, after causing Donnie, my older brother, to be dropped from the football team over a betting scandal, he accidentally burned the house to the ground. So after all that we thought a change of scene was in order. Donnie went to college. Louis went to a military academy. And the rest of us came here. Mom and Dad are now working for a local law firm, Murphy, Matthews and Dearborn. Have you heard of them?"

"Is any of that actually true?" queried a sceptical Carmen before Lily could reply.

Ren sat back and gave her a mischievous smile. "Maybe, I'll let you decide."

At the lunch counter Harrison was nerving himself up for action. Over the weekend he had been examining his dating options. Since the revelation about Brooke had finally closed off all hope of his ever attaining his childhood dream he had decided to be more realistic in his goals. And, as Lily had pointed out, as the only person of the female gender who had ever shown the slightest interest in him was Mary Cherry, he had decided to go for it.

"Opportunities are there to be grasped," he said to himself, as he moved closer to his target, who was busy picking out a low-fat dessert. "Hi, Mary Cherry," he began.

She turned and smiled before replying in her distinctive Texan drawl. "Hello, Joe, what can I do fer you this fine day?"

"I was wondering..." It was a good start, but his nerve gave out before he could finish the sentence. "I was wondering, why do you call me Joe?" he said instead of his intended question.

Her brow wrinkled in concentration as she thought it over. "I don't rightly know. You jes look like a Joe to me. Now, you answer me this. Why does everyone call me Mary Cherry? It's not as if there's another Mary to confuse me with."

"True," Harrison conceded, "I don't know why," he answered. Then a sudden burst of courage drove him on. "Perhaps we could discuss it after school, and get something to eat, or something, if you'd like?"

"Would this somethin' we're talkin' about be a date?" she asked hopefully.

"Oh, er, a date, yes, a date. Mary, would you like to go on a date with me?"

"Joe, this is so sudden," she simpered. "Yes, I'd love to. Wear somethin' smart and I'll pick you up at seven, 'kay?"

"Okay," he agreed.

"And this is Harrison," Sam said as he took a seat next to Ren. She said, "Hello" but he didn't respond. "Hey," said Sam. "Earth calling Harrison. Are you alright?"

He turned to face Sam, still in something of a daze. "I've just asked Mary Cherry out on a date," he said softly, not quite believing he'd actually done it.

"What? Are you mad?" Lily said, choking on her tofu treat. "She's a meat-eating, fur-wearing psychopath!"

"What? Are you mad? said Nicole in disbelief. "He's a nobody, and an ugly nobody at that. Why would you want to date a loser like him?"

Sensing jealousy and bridling at the slur cast on her prospective boyfriend Mary Cherry went on the offensive. "Well, Nic, pardon me fer spellin' it out, but he did ask me, I do have a date. One I didn't pay for," she added pointedly. "Can anyone else at this table say the same?"

Poppy shook her head and continued to crunch on her celery stick. Brooke looked to Nicole with a 'please don't tell' expression and backed it up by squeezing Nicole's hand under the table. Nicole answered with a squeeze for Brooke and a sad shake of the head for Mary Cherry.

"I'm very happy for you both," said Brooke.

"Thank you, Brookie, ah know this must be painful for you. Him havin' such a crush on you fer so long an' all."

"Oh, yes, very painful," Brooke agreed with a straight face, as Nicole shook with silent laughter and she thanked God for delivering her from Harrison's unwanted attentions. However, she still couldn't resist shooting a glance over to the unpopular table. Not to see Harrison, still arguing with Lily, but to look at Sam, who was trying to act as peacemaker between them.

She knew it was wrong to have these thoughts and feelings for another girl while she was with Nicole. And now she began to question herself why she'd asked for Nicole's silence. Was it just not the right time to come out, or was it that she wanted to keep her options open, to avoid public commitment to Nicole and to leave the way open for Sam? But the real question was one she could not answer. Which one did she really want?

Brooke entered the kitchen and went to the fridge to get a drink. "Where's Sam?" she asked.

Jane stopped cutting the carrots. "Gone over to Ren's." she said matter-of-factly, then continued her work, slicing the orange vegetable into neat strips.

Brooke slammed the fridge door shut then slammed the juice container down so hard the cap popped and a jet of cranberry shot into the air.

"Careful!" cautioned Jane, who rushed to mop up the mess with a cloth.

The willowy blonde shook with emotion unrelated to the spillage of the juice. "Ren, Ren, Ren! It's always Ren!" she complained bitterly.

Jane stopped what she was doing and looked quizzically at her almost-daughter. "What's all this about?" she asked.

"Nothing." Jane looked sceptical. "Nothing, really," Brooke insisted with a false smile of reassurance. "I just think Sam should be here more often, this is her home after all."

Jane gently guided Brooke over to the table and sat down next to her. "Brooke, you've been acting strangely for weeks now, and you haven't had a good word to say about Ren since she arrived. Clearly something is wrong, please tell me what it is?"

"Really, it's nothing. I, er," Brooke cast about for a reason other than the truth, "I just don't like Ren spending so much time with Sam, she's a bad influence," she said, without much conviction.

"Bad influence?" Jane scoffed. "Ren is intelligent, hard-working, dedicated, ambitious, sensible, polite, kind-hearted and thoughtful of others. She doesn't drink, smoke, do drugs or... Hold on, you're not trying to tell me she does do drugs are you?"

Brooke seriously considered saying yes but decided against it. "No, I'm not saying that."

"Then what are you saying? Ren has done nothing but good for Sam. She's even managed to smarten her up, and that's something I thought I'd never see happen. They've both worked hard on revamping the school paper, which is now up for an award, and thanks to her Sam's grades are improving. They make a great team and even better friends. What's wrong with that?"

Brooke couldn't trust herself to speak so merely grunted non-commitally.

"Brooke, I hate to ask this, but are you jealous of Ren?"

There was a long silence before Brooke, cheeks burning with shame, finally admitted it. "Yes, I am jealous of Ren."

"Why, exactly?"

Brooke turned away from Jane, unable to look her in the eye. "Because she's got Sam," she said quietly, and then quieter still, "Because I'm in love with Sam."

Jane was startled by this unexpected turn of events but quickly rallied her thoughts and continued to speak calmly. "Oh, well, that's okay, many girls get crushes on other girls, it's not..."

"It's not a crush," Brooke cut in, this time firmly fixing Jane with an unwavering gaze, "it's who I am. I'm gay, I'm a lesbian, and I'm in love with Sam."

"I... I don't know what to say, Brooke, but if I'd known that was the case I'd have bet good money you'd be sitting here telling me it was Nicole you were in love with." Brooke looked away again, shamed again. "You are? You're with Nicole?" Brooke turned back and nodded. "Are you... intimate with her?" Brooke nodded again. "Oh, Brooke, what are you doing?"

"I don't know. I knew something was wrong when I was with Josh. There were no sparks between us - ever. Then I was with Robert simply because he asked me out. I didn't care for him at all. Then Nic told me she had feelings for me. I was shocked at first. You see, I'd known about this for some time, but it wasn't real to me until she said it out loud, because then I knew. The reason why I was shocked was not because Nic was gay but because I knew I was too. But I came to terms with it, made it up with Nic and... we got together. The thing is, although Nic is the one who made me realise what I was, that I liked girls, she also made me realise which girl it was I liked."

"Sam."

"Yes, Sam."

"Does she know about this?"

"No."

"What about Nicole?"

"She doesn't know either. She loves me. She loves me so much..."

"What do you feel for Nicole?"

"I like her. I care for her. I can't ever hurt her. But I don't love her."

"Okay, leaving Nicole to one side. If you were a free agent and you told Sam what you felt about her. How'd you think she'd react?"

"I think she'd laugh at me."

Jane was taken aback, Sam wasn't that cruel surely. "Why would she do that?"

"I... I can't say."

"Why can't you say?"

"It's her place to tell you, not mine."

A sudden realisation hit Jane like a blow to the stomach. "Sam is a lesbian too, is that what you mean? You're jealous because Sam is with Ren, and not in a 'just good friends' sense?"

"I don't know for sure but I think they are. Sam told me just after Nic had made her move. She told me she liked me that way also. I rejected her as well. It was all too much for one day and when I discovered that she had been behind Nic's revelation I was angry with her and confused and upset and... What am I going to do?"

Jane sighed. "I don't know, darling, I don't know, but I need to talk to Sam, and you need to talk to your father."

Brooke climbed the stairs with a heavy heart and Jane's words: "You need to talk to your father," ringing in her ears. She padded silently along the hallway and knocked quietly on the bedroom door behind which she knew her father was taking a nap. She hoped he would be asleep so she could put it off till later, but his voice asking "Who is it?" dashed her dream of an easy escape.

"It's me, Daddy."

"Come in, princess, is dinner ready so soon?" he asked, glancing at the clock on the nightstand as he sat up.

"No, Daddy, I have something important to tell you."

Mike patted the bed beside him to indicate she should come in and sit down, but Brooke continued to hover awkwardly in the doorway. "I'm gay," she said, nervously wringing her hands.

"What was that?" he said in total surprise.

"I'm a lesbian, I like girls," she amplified, stepping into the room to emphasise the point.

Mike looked shocked and perplexed in equal measure until he recalled the words of the parenting book that Jane had been reading to him and his expression changed to an indulgent smile. "That's okay, honey, many girls get crushes on other girls, it doesn't mean..."

"Yes it does!" Brooke snapped at him. "It's not a crush, a fad, a fancy, a whim or a passing phase. It's a fact. I'm gay. I fuck girls. Get used to it!

She hadn't meant to shout, it had just come out like that. She expected an equally angry outburst in response, but what actually happened completely floored her. Mike began to cry.

In another bedroom not so far away, Ren was laughing at one of Sam's anecdotes.

"Really?"

"As God is my witness, that's what happened," Sam confirmed with a final chuckle. She rose from the bed and made her way towards Ren, who was busy typing up yet another article for the Zapruder Reporter. She leaned over Ren's shoulder, nuzzling the nape of her neck while encirling her waist in a warm hug. Then moving to lick the shell of her right ear, she whispered, "Don't you think you've done enough typing for tonight?"

"Don't you think you've done enough flirting?" Ren countered with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh no," said Sam in silky tones of seduction, "not nearly enough. Not when there's a big soft bed so close at hand."

"Sam! Must you do this all the time I'm working?"

Sam petulantly withdrew her embrace and threw herself back onto the bed. "It's not just when you're working; I want you all the time."

"Well... don't."

"I love you all the time. You don't object to that do you?" Sam whined from her recumbent position.

Ren sighed, stopped typing, and swivelled in her chair to face her grouchy girlfriend. "I want to join you on that bed and make love to you, but I can't. Maybe your secret fantasy is to have your mother catch you in flagrante with your girlfriend but it certainly isn't mine."

Sam sat up, eager to overcome her objection. "We can lock the door. Okay, we can't, but we can jam the chair under the handle."

"Oh yes, I can see that... 'What's going on, Ren? I can't open the door. And what's all that moaning about?' It's okay, Mom, I'm just having sex with Sam... That would work," she said sarcastically.

"I could get a 'do not disturb' sign for the door," Sam suggested facetiously.

Ren laughed at that and joined Sam on the bed, crawling up next to her and snuggling close. "I do love you," she said, then leaned in for a kiss that sent Sam's pulse pounding. "And I do want you."

"Then can we?" Sam asked again, tracing her fingers down Ren's lithe form in ardent expectation.

"No."

Sam snatched her hand away as if she'd been burned. "You're a rotten, wicked tease, Ren Stevens," she scolded, then immediately continued. "You could tell your mom you know, then she wouldn't come barging in."

"And you could tell yours, but I don't see that happening."

"I'll do it," Sam insisted, "just not now."

"So when will you tell her?"

"When I'm thirty-five."

Ren laughed again. "I was thinking twenty-five."

"Okay, split the difference, thirty."

"Thirty it is. Anyway, who's a rotten tease? Who's got pouty lips, a gorgeous smile, a body to die for, and sex appeal by the yard? I still can't believe you chose me. I'm nothing compared to you," said Ren, looking from Sam's bust to her own modest endowment.

"Hey, you stop that right now! Don't ever put yourself down. You've got the body of a supermodel."

Ren bridled at the suggestion. "Are you saying I'm anorexic?"

Sam sighed. "No, I'm saying you're beautiful. So you don't have a huge rack, who cares? I don't. I love you. I love all of you, just as you are."

Ren blushed at the sincerely meant compliments and rewarded Sam with another searing kiss. A beguiling mixture of tongues and pineapple lipgloss that tempted Ren to change her mind until a voice came floating up from downstairs: "Sam, it's your mother on the phone, she says you've to come home at once."

Ren broke the kiss and shrugged at Sam's evident disappointment at the interruption. "Okay, Mom, tell her Sam's on her way."

Meanwhile in a Humvee parked somewhere in Lover's Lane, Harrison and Mary Cherry were enjoying a conversation of their own, though not much was being said. But eventually the kissing had to stop so they could draw breath.

"Mary."

"Yes, Joe?"

"We've been dating for some time now, and..."

"And?"

"I'd like us to move onto the next level."

Mary Cherry smiled then suddenly frowned. "So would ah, Joe, so would ah. But 'fore we do, ah need to tell you somethin' important. Somethin' that might make you change your mahnd about takin' things further."

"What's that?"

"Lil' Lily and Carmen are out theyuh videoin' our every move."

As Jane set down the phone Brooke re-entered the room with an ashen face.

"Brooke?"

"I told him."

"And?"

"He's crying his eyes out. Why, Jane, why?"

"Come here, sit with me," Jane urged, taking Brooke into a comforting embrace before sitting her down. "You knew this wasn't going to be easy."

"Yes, but I expected him to be angry, not sad, and not like this."

"Well, leave him be for the moment, let him cry it out."

"But why, Jane?"

Jane took a breath before answering. "He thinks he's let you down. The split with your mother, trying to rebuild a stable homelife, your anorexia, the recent difficulties with Sam. This has been very hard for the both of you. Now he sees his hopes for a happy future for you taken away."

"But it isn't like that. Times have changed. I can have the happy-ever-after he wants for me. The white wedding, the 2.4 kids, a good job, big house and two cars in the driveway, the whole nine yards. Nothing is impossible these days."

"In a perfect world maybe, but things are never perfect, and right now all your father can see is a mountain of difficulties. He can't see the possibilities. But he will. You'll see. You'll make him so proud of you."

"Really?"

"Oh yes, Brooke, really."

"Thanks, Jane, your support means a lot to me."

"Don't thank me yet, because I've got a question that you need to have an answer for. Does this bright future of yours have a place for Nicole?"

Harrison got out of the Humvee and stormed up to his friends. "What do you think you're doing?!" he demanded.

"I'm saving you from yourself," Lily responded sharply.

"What do you mean by that?"

"She's corrupting you. I saw you. At that restaurant. The new French place on Main."

"So? We went out to dinner. So what?"

"At La Maison Rouge - The Red House. Do you know why it's red?"

"No."

"It's because it's soaked in the blood of innocent animals. Do you know how cruel veal is? Do you even care?"

"Lily," he pleaded, "it's not like that. She had the veal, not me, and I did try to talk her out of it."

"No, Harrison. You stop seeing Mary Cherry or I'll show this tape to your mom, or the whole school if needs be."

"Carmen?"

The larger girl blushed and stepped back. "It's nothing to do with me. I was just curious about what you did with her."

"There are words for people like you."

"Yeah, well, at least we're not sleeping with the enemy," Lily retorted.

"But I'm not, and thanks to you I probably never will be. Now give me that tape."

"No!"

"Is there a phrablem here?" queried Mary Cherry as she shimmied up to the scene.

"Lily is trying to blackmail me into dumping you," Harrison explained. "Carmen just came to enjoy the view."

"Hmmm... You'all heard of the sayin': Publish and be damned? No? Well, there's another: Publish and get sued! Hand it over, squirt." Lily reluctantly gave the tape to Mary Cherry, who tucked it away in her ample cleavage for safe keeping. "And don't think ah don't know a jealous woman when ah see her. Joe is mine now. You heah? Mine! C'mon, sweetcheeks," she said affectionately, patting Harrison's behind, "let's getcha home and tucked up in a nice warm bed where there ain't no pryin' eyes."

Sam entered the Palace and almost immediately wished she hadn't.

"Samantha, we need to talk," said Jane, in that disappointed voice of hers and Sam knew she was in big trouble. "You remember that discussion I had with you and Brooke about the birds and the bees?"

"Yes," Sam replied cautiously, sitting down at what she hoped would be a safe distance from her mother.

"Well, it seems we were discussing the wrong subject. From what Brooke tells me, I think we should have been studying the birds and the birds and the bees and the bees."

"Oh," replied Sam, trying not to give anything away.

"Am I really that unapproachable, Sam?"

"No. But what's Brooke been telling you?"

"She's told me that she's gay and that she's involved with Nicole. And she's led me to believe that... Sam, are you and Ren more than friends?"

"Yes," Sam admitted freely, there seemed no point in denying it.

"Is it a crush or something more serious?"

Sam looked pensive for a moment as she tried to gauge her mother's reaction to the truth. "It's serious," she said.

"You're sure?"

Sam smiled. "You know that expression 'walking on air'? When I'm with Ren it's just like that. I swear if she didn't keep hold of my hand I'd go drifting off into space. Yes, I'm absolutely sure."

"Oh, Sam," said Jane as she began to weep. Sam threw herself into her mother's arms. "Sorry, Mom. I was going to tell you, just not now. There's no need to cry, this is a good thing, really it is."

"That's okay," Jane sniffed, covering her face with fond kisses. "You're my daughter, I love you, and that will never, ever change. It's just been a bit of a shock, that's all." She gave out a little laugh. "My two gay daughters. That'll impress the neighbours, or get me on Jerry Springer," she joked. "Okay, we'll leave it at that for now." Sam got up and made to leave when Jane spoke again. "Just one thing. Did you ever have feelings for Brooke?"

Sam was surprised. "She told you about that?"

"She told me."

"Yes. Yes, I did. I don't know why but I did. But since Ren... Ren is the real thing, Mom. Brooke was just a silly crush. I mean, she's my sister, sort of, how pervy can you get?"

"Sam, please be careful with Brooke."

"Okay, any particular reason?"

"It's not gone well with Mike and I think she's going to break up with Nicole."

"But I thought... Never mind, I'll be supportive," Sam promised, then went upstairs where she found Brooke waiting for her in the hallway. "Can we talk?" she asked nervously.

"Sure," said Sam, following Brooke into her bedroom. She sat on the bed as Brooke continued to move about the room, unable to relax or keep still. "You're not angry then?" she asked.

"Should I be?" Sam responded neutrally.

"I don't know."

"Mike knows?"

"Yes, he took it badly, but Jane says it'll be alright."

"Then it will be. Are you okay?"

"Not really."

"Trouble with Nic?"

"No. Yes. No. Yes. Maybe."

"Well, that's clear."

"You and Ren?"

"Yes?"

"There is a you and Ren?"

"Yes."

Brooke suddenly stopped moving and picked up a picture of herself and her lover. "I'm breaking up with Nicole," she announced firmly.

"Why?"

She looked away from the photograph to flash a bleak smile at Sam. "I can't give her what she wants."

"Which is?"

"Love."

"But I don't understand. Is there someone else?" Just then Sam's cellphone rang. "It's Ren... Hi, sweetheart. Sorry, it's a bit inconvenient. Can I call you back? Okay. Love you," she said, terminating the call. "Sorry about that. You were saying?"

"Love you." The words struck like a dagger in Brooke's heart. Now she knew for certain that Sam was lost to her. So she bit back the tears and lied through her teeth, determined that Sam at least would be happy. "No. There's no one else."

Next morning, Sam's drab brown VW Beetle crunched to a halt on the gravel drive outside the Julian family home, stopping next to Nicole's sleek silver Porche.

"I still don't think this is a good idea," Sam informed her blonde passenger.

"It's my decision, Sam, and it's final," Brooke replied with a warning note in her voice.

"Yes, so you keep saying, but I still think you haven't thought this through. Do this and Nicole not only loses a lover but a friend as well. Her best friend. Her only friend," she emphasised.

"We can still be friends," Brooke said blandly.

"Get real, Brooke, she'll be heartbroken; how could she be friends with you after this?"

"Sam, I have to do this, for her sake as much as mine. I can't live this lie any longer and she deserves better than this, better than me."

"Brookie," Nicole interrupted joyfully, bounding out of her front door and up to the car. "What brings you here?" Nicole asked, as it was she that normally drove Brooke to school. She leaned in over the car door for a kiss from her beloved but Brooke dodged away and Nicole's lips hit her cheek instead leaving the shorter blonde puzzled.

"We need to talk," Brooke explained as she stepped out of the car. "Sam, could you?"

"I'll be waiting in the road," Sam replied and then drove off, leaving the cheerleaders alone and facing each other, like boxers in a ring waiting for the bell.

"What's this all about?" Nicole enquired with a worried air.

"Us. I'm truly sorry, Nic, but there is no us anymore. I don't love you, and to be brutally frank, I never really did."

Brooke's verbal blow hit hard and Nicole's face drained of all colour. "You don't mean that. Please say you don't mean that," she begged.

"I'm sorry, Nic, but it's over."

"Why?" Nicole asked, her head turning to catch sight of the Beetle parking in the road outside. "Spam? You're chucking me for her?!"

"No. I'm not chucking you for Sam, or anyone else. It's finished and that's that."

"You're lying! I know when you're lying. I always know. You're leaving me for that... that... bitch!"

"I'm not, Nic, I'm just leaving you." Brooke turned on her heels and began walking down the drive before her tears gave her away.

"Come back!" Nicole screamed after her. "Coward! Liar! Loser!" she continued, but Brooke just kept on walking and Nicole sank to her knees. "I love you," she wailed despairingly as she watched Brooke get back into Sam's car and drive away.

Brooke watched the pathetic figure in the rear-view mirror grow smaller and smaller until it was finally gone. "It's done," she said without apparent emotion.

Sam did not answer.

"Nicole Julian?" called Mr Baxter. Brooke stared guiltily at the empty chair.

"Present," Nicole answered as she strode confidently in through the homeroom door.

"Running a little late are we?" asked Mr Baxter, ticking her name in the register.

"Sorry, Mr Baxter," Nicole said sweetly, taking her place next to Brooke as if nothing had happened, "a little domestic problem," she explained, "it won't happen again." She turned to fix Brooke with an expression of sheer malice that struck a chill in her heart. "Think you got rid of me, Brookie? Well, think again. I'm here to stay."

Later, as they entered the Novak, Carmen was discussing the Harrison affair.

"Face it, Lily, they make a cute couple, and at least he's got someone, which is more than either of us can say."

"That's not the point," Lily argued.

"Isn't it? Don't you think that Mary Cherry had a point when she said you were jealous of her?"

"No!... maybe, I don't know, am I? I mean Sam has Ren, Harrison has Mary Cherry..."

"You've got me," Carmen interjected brightly.

Lily laughed softly. "Thanks, Carm, but that's not what I meant."

"I know. Look, don't worry about it, your prince will come."

"Or princess," Lily added, needlessly reminding Carmen she played both sides of the field.

"Well, there you go, grab yourself a princess; if Harrison can date a cheerleader so can you."

"I am not dating a cheerleader!"

"You sure aren't," observed the blonde Texan as she emerged from the stall and made for the basin next to the Latina activist.

Lily shot a 'I thought you checked' look at Carmen who shrugged apologetically in response.

"So, Sam and Ren, eh? Ah thought there was somethin' funny about that Sacramento girl; besides bein' too damn perky that is."

"Mary, please don't spread this around," Carmen pleaded.

"Any reason why I shouldn't?"

Carmen looked to Lily for help and vice versa. How could they explain that Sam wanted to avoid conflict with Brooke and Nicole when Brooke and Nicole were also supposed to be a secret? They couldn't, so they said nothing.

Mary Cherry finished drying her hands and turned to face Carmen. "Well, seein' as you asked nicely and 'cause Joe says you're nice people," she said, shooting a sidelong glance at Lily, "ah'll do as you ask."

"Thanks, Mary," Carmen replied, smiling with relief.

Mary Cherry smiled back. "My pleasure, hun," she said, nodded curtly to Lily and left the Novak. Almost immediately she spotted Nicole at the water fountain and made a beeline for her.

"Niccie, you'll never guess what ah've just heard. Your suspicions were right on the money. Sam McPherson and Ren Stevens are sisters of Sappho!"

"Are you sure?"

"As sure as ah'm standin' here," she confirmed, then remembering what she had just promised Carmen she added, "but it's s'posed to be a secret."

"Oh, don't worry, Mary Cherry," Nicole said with a wolfish smile that betokened a thought of pure evil, "I won't tell a soul."