Everything with Julia felt like a test. A test of wills, a test of smarts, a test to see if you were somehow “enough”. The pressure on Nicole’s thigh wasn’t much, she could have gotten up and walked away, but there was something about the foot, the older girl’s posture, the order, that let Nicole know that to leave now would end the friendship.

“And, let me clarify here, a good one doesn’t mean that your dad sometimes sneaks a peek at you when you accidentally leave your door open a crack after a shower or that your sister smokes pot on the roof when she thinks your parents and the neighbbors are asleep, nobody cares about that shit.”

The juxtaposition of Julia permeated the room. Her wealth and “good breeding” were apparent in her clothes, her house, the cars parked in the three car garage but her manner of speaking was sometimes shocking. Even trashy.

“Aw, did I hit a nerve?” Julia looked down at the pink creeping up Nicole’s neck.

“C’mon Jules, let me think,” Nicole looked up at her pursing her lips.