Whatever Happened to Claire

Whatever Happened to Claire

CHAPTER 3

My name is Ray Hino. Yeah, I knew Claire Jones pretty well at one point in time. My ENTIRE life is a little complicated, but I can easily explain our old relationship.
My friend Aimy and I were going on a cruise. Unfortunately, we boarded the wrong cruise, and ended up on a whole boat full of lesbians! Aimy was sucha homophobe, but I... Well, if worse came to worse, I wasn't afraid to give lesbianism a try. How bad could it be? Though I thought I was straight at the time, I figured a little experiment wouldn't hurt.
That was where I met her. Claire seemed more interested in Aimy at first, but after she invited us over for a three way, that all might've changed. Aimy and I had no choice but to do each other. Well okay, we had a choice. But I just didn't feel like hurting anyone's feelings. Unfortunately, I might've traummatized her for life, but for some bizarre reason, I liked it. It was like nothing I had ever tried before. Licking her breasts, kissing her neck, and the sent of her nether regions aroused me like nothing else ever had before.
While Aimy ran out the room mentally scarred for life, Claire showed me what it's like to be on the receiving end. I'll admit, I'd done it to myself once or twice in an attempt to make the more miserable days of my life a little better, but the fact another woman was doing it to me just made it that much more interesting.
I would never have guessed. Me, the student of a monk, a lesbian! Life sure is confusing sometimes.
Unfortunately, my grandpa didn't think much of it. I ended up getting disowned, and kicked out completely. I'm surprised he didn't issue a restraining order! But when Claire heard of this, she let me stay at her apartment. I admit, Claire and I were lovers at the time, but the loving turned to fighting within due course.
It was only a matter of time before it happened. Serina had gotten us tickets to WWE, as well as backstage passes. As Claire and I toured the bak stage area, I noticed something. I asked Claire what was wrong, and though it took her a while to muster up the ability to speak to me, she spoke.
Sadly, it wasn't what I wanted to hear. For one, that moment there marked the final experience we'd ever share as lovers. For she dumped me right then and there!
It took me a while to recover from it. I couldn't help but feel betrayed. The one person who I thought cared about me left me! Yes, I was crushed, but I recovered with a little help.
Lita and I were just friends at the time, but she really helped me out. Gave me a shoulder to cry on, and what not. She was a real friend, and I owed her. Unfortunately, she was having problems of her own. She was having THE hardest time trying to decide which team she played for if you will. She couldn't decide if she still liked men, or if she prefered the touch of another woman.
Apparently, she still hasn't made up her mind, for she went bisexual after the worst part of this period subsided. And apparently, she wanted me to be the first woman she'd ever kiss. At first I figured it was worth a try. Besides, she helped me get through a rough period in my life; so I guess I owed her this much. Well, one thing led to another, and we began dating. Then a few more things came along, and we became lovers.
That was how it was. Oh I still paid Claire an occasional visit. Of course I only saw one of her other girlfriends before she finally decided to just give up dating completely. Sad really. College was a little tough for her. And rightfully so. Mr. Tinaka's a dick! Thank god he got fired from the college Lita and I both attended. But still, I could tell something else was on her mind. And I wasn't sure what.
But after a while, college became so relentless, so god damn difficult, I had to stay home with Lita just to complete my term papers and what not. Same story with Lita, who occasionally accompanied me on such trips.
And finally, the summer came. College would be out for a while, and Lita and I could finally relax; maybe get a little "romantic" at the same time. But first thing was first. I wanted to pay Claire a visit before we did anything else. Hopefully the fact college was out for a while would cheer her up.
Unfortunately, I made it to her little apartment (which at the time had seen better days), and saw a note on the door. "Gone to Vegas, be back shortly."
"Vegas?" I thought. "Where the hell is Vegas?" Then it hit me. "Oh LOS vegas. I get it now." But what was Claire doing in Los Vegas of all places.
But after about two weeks, she came back from her vacation. However, when I knocked on the door, I didn't get Claire, but I got another woman instead!
She had dark hair like I did, and wore a yellow shirt with a white mini-skirt. She was barefoot at the moment, and seemed rather glad to see me despite the fact I had no clue who she was, and vise versa.
"Hello." She greeted.
"Hey." I said. "Did Claire move out or something?"
"No. She's out getting some film developed. She'll be back in a minute or..."
"Ray?" a voice asked.
I turned around, and saw Claire standing right there behind me. She was wearing that greenish shirt with those black sweat pants; the very same outfit she wore when we first met. Not to mention the same one she was wearing when she dumped me.
"Hey, there you are." I greeted. "How was Vegas?"
She gave me a wicked smile as she invited me in.
We sat down at the table, and began talking in our usual manner.
"So, what's new?" Claire asked.
"Apparently she is." I said, pointing at the other girl. She had her back to us while she was cleaning off a picture that was on the wall.
Apparently, she overheard the comment, but remained polite. Still, she diverted her attention away from what she was doing, and turned it toward us.
"Oh her?" Claire asked as she made her way to Claire's left. "Yeah, I don't think you've been introduced. Ray, this is Kasumi. Kasumi, Ray."
"Kasumi, eh?"
"Yip. Funny story really. At first, I thought she was straight, but then she proved me wrong in the best way imaginable."
The woman known as Kasumi blushed ever so slightly.   "Yeah... Well..." She said, not sure what to say.
"Sounds like how I met Lita." I commented. "So how was Vegas? Pick up any souvenirs?"
Kasumi extended her hand, allowing me to look at the back of it. "See for yourself." She said. So I did. And there I saw it.
"A wedding ring?" I asked in absolute shock. "Is this sort of thing legal?"
"Not here." Claire commented. "That's one of the reasons why we went to Vegas in the first place."
"I... Uh... I see."
I couldn't believe it to be honest. I felt like there was just so much I didn't know about Claire now that we were separated. One minute, she's depressed like a mother fucker, next thing I know, she gets married to this chick! Don't get me wrong, I wasn't jealous or anything. Uh... I think.

It was about eleven in the evening. Lita and I had decided to get a little "romantic" if you catch my drift. Okay, it was Lita's decision. Normally, I'd agree to it, but tonight, I just didn't seem to have the heart for it.
We had just ended a kiss, and I had moved down to her breast. I started to lick her, but I stopped in mid-lick, and sighed.
"Huh?" She said, realizing she wasn't getting any of the usual satisfaction she got when I licked her completely. "Hey, what gives?"
I sighed, and lay down on my side of the bed. "Sorry." I said, trying not to sound offensive. "I'm just not in the mood tonight."
She gave me a puzzled look as she lay down on her side, and put an arm around me. "Did I do something wrong?" she asked, looking a little concerned.
"Don't worry about it, it isn't you. I just... Well..."
"Well what? Come on, we've been together for what? Four years now? You know I'll love you no matter what."
I figured if I didn't tell her now, she'd find out about it when she decided to accompany me on a visit to Claire's. "It's funny really." I explained. "You remember Claire. She was all depressed when we last saw her, remember?"
"Yeah, and why not? Tinaka teaches at her college."
"Well, you know that was like six or seven months ago. Hadn't seen her sense. Somehow, in those months, she found herself a girlfriend, and... and..."
"Whoa! Hold on a second. Claire gets a girlfriend, and you're all of a sudden not in the mood. You're not making sense. What's so disturbing about a lesbian and her girlfriend. After all, you and I..."
"Aren't married like they are."
She froze. Apparently, it was as shocking to her as it was to me. "Married?" She asked. "I could've sworn same sex marrage was illegal."
"Not in Vegas." I answered. "And for some reason, I just can't get it out of my mind!"
"Look, Ray, settle down. So Claire found a girl she loved enough to give a ring. That's them!"
"Well, what about us? Would you marry me if you had the chance?"
Another pause. "I... I... Look, I don't really know what'll be in our future, but..."
"What's that supposed to mean?!"
"What? I'm just..."
"If you don't see a future for us, Maybe I shouldn't stick around and wait for a second heart break!"
I got out of bed, got dressed, and walked out; tears streaking down my face. Lita tried to stop me, but she gave up once I left the house.
I couldn't believe I just did that. I should've let her finish, but that damn Kasumi and her wedding ring was tearing me apart on the inside! Slowly, gradually, but surely.
Right now, I needed a walk. Or something to clear my thoughts. There was too much going on in my head.

Wouldn't you know it. My walk brought me to Claire's apartment. What can I say? Serina was currently at WWE bootcamp learning to be a professional wrestler like her father, Mina was taking courses in an american college, and Aimy... Well, after that incident on the cruise all those years ago, I had a feeling my actions made her homophobia permanent. Therefore, there was only one person I could talk to. And unfortunately, I'd have to confront Kasumi in order to get to her.
I knocked on the door of their apartment, and got no answer. This figured, seeing as how Claire was usually halfway asleep on the sofa watching MTV2 by now. Then again, she DID have a girlfriend, or wife, or whatever Kasumi was to her. One person can really change your life as I had learned over the years. Hell, I wouldn't have known I was gay till I met her!
Just then, the door opened, and there she was. Claire stood there wearing that blue robe she always wore when she got out of the shower, or was about to present me the body I was to explore. Judging by the look in her eyes, I just woke her up.
“Well look who’s back.” She said, trying to stay awake.
“You okay?” I asked.
“I’m fine. Kasumi just fucked me into oblivion about an hour ago, that’s all.”
It was more information than I needed, but it DID explain why she could barely walk in a straight line.
Claire turned off the TV, which was playing the video to System of a Down's "Larrials", and took a seat on the sofa.
"So," she said, "What brings you here in the middle of the night?"
"It's hard to explain." I said. "I just wasn't in a real good mood today, one thing led to another, Lita and I had a fight, I left, and... Well, I ended up here."
"Come on, Ray. You're not giving me the whole story."
I don't know how she knew that, but I guess it didn't matter. "Look, I don't know anything about you anymore. One minute, you're totally depressed, and it was amazing how you could still stand up and move around. And I know the fact Tinaka teaches at your college had nothing to do with it either. I don't know what you were keeping from me, but apparently, you got over what was depressing you. Next thing I know, you find this Kasumi girl out of no where, and..."
I paused. I could tell Claire was trying to think of a good thing to say, and not coming up with anything at the moment. Then finally, something came into her mind.
"Look." She said. "I know how you feel."
"Huh?"
"Yeah. You see me with Kasumi, and probably feel a little jealous because of the whole wedding ring thing. This isn't easy for me to say, but at one point in time... Back when our break up was still recent, I still had feelings for you. And once I found out you and Lita were in love, I wouldn't have a chance in hell of ever regaining you. Granted you weren't married like us, but I still felt a little jealous; maybe a little envious. But there's a time in a woman's life when she has to just let go, and not worry about her. You're happy with Lita, and I would never want to be the cause of you two separating. I'm sure Lita loves you enough to where she'd marry you if she had the chance. Maybe she's not ready for such a commitment yet. Maybe she's just waiting for YOU to do it. Hell, maybe she's just waiting for the right place and the right time like I was. Who knows. You don't have a milinium eye; you can't see inside her mind. Just let fate guide you, and you'll find out where you two are going soon enough."
"Bravo." a voice said.
Both of us nearly jumped out of our skin when we realized Kasumi was awake, and standing there on the left side of the sofa in her bra and panties.   On one hand, I was a little embarrassed having to look at her like that, but at least she had the decency not to wander out naked as the day god made her; something Lita tends to do every once and a while.
"I thought you were asleep." Claire said, still recovering from the surprise.
"I got lonely." She said, taking a seat next to her, and snuggling up against her.
"Uh, I think I should get going." I said. "Thanks again. I'll see you whenever."
I got off the sofa, and left as The two began to engage in what would appear to be round two of their little game. The fact Kasumi was undoing the buttons on Claire’s robe was obviously a dead give away that they needed some privacy.

I had gotten back home, and went back into the bedroom. There she was; still in the nude, and fast asleep under the covers. The sleeping part was probably understandable, seeing as how it was about half past midnight by now. I wasn't sure about that, but I knew it had to be at least past midnight.   And it was pretty obvious she had pleasured herself, judging by the sweat , and the substance on three of her fingers.
"Lita?" I whispered. "You awake?"
She opened an eye ever so slightly, but only let out a small whimper as she closed it all over again. It was pointless trying to wake her up. She slept like the dead, and it wouldn’t surprise me if I told her what Claire told me about engagement and what not, and she’d have no clue what I was talking about. She has a tendancy to forget things when all she wants to do is sleep. I doubt she even remembered I left!
I undressed, and climbed into bed next to her. I gentley put an arm around her, placed a quick kiss on her cheek, and eventually went to sleep. Lita did have a point. No one knows what’s in their future. But as long as Lita was in mine, I would be happy.