This is my second chapter named after a Chappell Roan song, and it certainly wont be the last!

Tara was nice.

While Penny couldn't completely understand her bestfriend's choice, she could understand the appeal of someone like Tara. She was pretty, funny, kinda boring but overall a decent person to hang out with.

Though she would never willingly feed her brother's already massive ego, Penny would be the first to admit that he would be her first choice of partner for her best friend. In fact, the two were so compatible that she always assumed that they would end up together.

So when Carla invited Penny and the rest of their friends to a cafe to formally introduce Tara to the group Penny jumped at the opportunity to get to know the dark haired stranger and maybe get answers to why Carla was so drawn to her.

Arriving at the cafe, Penny stopped in her tracks at the sight of the lovestruck teens wrapped up into each other in a small booth in the corner. The blonde's heart ached for her brother but Penny pushed that hurt down deep inside of her and plastered a wide smile on her face. She had promised herself she would be open minded about the new relationship.

Carla looked up from her and Tara's conjoined hands and her eyes caught on to Penny's, her expression grew uncharacteristically excited and full of glee. She waves her friend over while Tara reaches over across the table to move the black bag on the seat in front of her to make way for Penny.

Penny flashes a toothy grin at the girls and makes her way over to their table.

"Hey Carla!" Penny greets her friend and waves to Tara before sitting.

Carla gestures to Penny while looking at Tara. "Tara, Penny. Penny, Tara."

The girls squeak out awkward greetings towards each other. Penny quickly averts her gaze towards the door and back to the couple in front of her, waiting for others to arrive and save her for this situation that is quickly starting to be unbearable.

"So, Pen, what do you like to do?" Tara broke the silence before it could get awkward. Slinging her arm around Carla's chair.

Penny snickered at the new-found nickname then tilted her head to the side in thought.

"Umm, well, I like to crochet, I make plushies!" she added with a smile.

"Oh, do you sell them?"

"No, I just make them for my family and friends." Carla let out a sigh of relief that they were getting along. "Like, I just made one for my brother-" Carla's eyes snapped toward her friend, glaring at her with the intensity of a thousand suns.

"Penny!" she stage whispered, despite Tara being right there looking very confused at the turning atmosphere.

'Sorry!' Penny mouthed from across.

"What's going on?" Tara awkwardly chuckled. Moving her eyes back and forth between the girls in confusion. "Carla?"

"Um, sorry, there's just some weird beef going on with my brother and Carla." Penny attempted to laugh it off while her friend across the table grew progressively more red and flustered.

"Penny!" Carla exclaimed significantly louder. Going to kick her under the table but ended up hurting her toes on the other girl's robotic skin. She winced silently to herself, cursing in Spanish to herself under her breath.

"Carly, It's ok." she laughed, placing a comforting hand on her girlfriend's shoulder. "I'm sure whatever 'weird beef' you had with this kid is long in the past. I wouldn't worry about it." Carla returned her gratitude with a side smile, either ignoring or forgetting her previous anger at Penny (more-so at her brother) and prioritizing her new girlfriend.

Penny looked at them with a pang of hurt in her heart on behalf of Monty. She knew that the pair were perfect for each other they were just two stupid to acknowledge it. Part of her feels a little bad for Tara, this relationship almost definitely won't last.

Monty would be devastated if he could see this now, Carla tucked comfortably in Tara arms after the older girl comforted her before she could get even angrier.

Penny wanted to grab Carla from under her and make her see what has been right in front of her for years.

But it wasn't her business, and this wasn't her relationship.

The bell above the coffee shop door dinged, signaling another customer. Four bodies enter through the small door frame. Billy is the first to spot Carla and Penny sitting in the corner. He waved ecstatically at them prompting the others to turn their heads and do the same. A bit less erratically.

"Wow," Tara's monotone voice lowered so only the ones at the booth could hear. "Your friend group is pretty big." she chuckled awkwardly as the group made their way over.

Adrian pulled a chair on the side of the booth while Nugget and Lily squeezed in on Penny's side and Billy was practically laying on Carla and Tara. Tara winched at the growing group. "Sorry," Carla senses her partner's discomfort. "Billy has no sense of personal space." In response, Billy lays his head on Carla's shoulder. He waves at Tara.

The first round of hot drinks and pastries the conversation drifted from Tara to the last day of school the upcoming Monday to Twin's upcoming birthday and resulting party next month.

"It's just our fifteenth! We don't need a big party!" Lily argued while her brother across from her gasped dramatically and leaned back in the chair, shaking both Tara and Carla.

"It is not just our birthday party, it can double as an end freshmen year party as well."

"Wasn't that what Jerome and Monty's party was for?" Adrian comments. Tara nudges the girl next to her at the memory of their first meeting while Carla winces but does not let it show.

"Nope, I think Jerome just wanted to impress Diana. Felix and I were talking about it yesterday." The black haired girl reminisced about her late night phone call with the blonde last night. A light blush formed on her cheeks.

Nugget noticed.

"Well look how that turned out, Diana still refuses to be in the same room as him." Carla sipped her coffee, keeping her hand on Tara's. "Damn, what happened?" The older girl asked, looking around the table.

Penny debated the merits of telling one of her close friends business to this person they didn't know, and no doubt disliked, before Lily opened her mouth excitedly telling the story while giggling into her cupped hand.

"So, Jerome is one of our friends from elementary school and he has this massive crush on our other friend, and when his dumbass friend group threw that party a couple weeks ago he got drunk so while talking to her that she splashed a fifth of Vodka in his face!" her voice got higher as she told the story. Lily, Carla, and Billy laughed loudly while Nugget chuckled into his sleeve.

"All of you guys have known him since elementary?" Tara asked quietly.

"Oh yeah, pretty much our entire friend group has been together since kindergarten." Adrian interjected. "We're like family."

Tara laughed as well but it was strained. "Damn, so you guys seem to have history."

"...me and Jerome?"

"No, your entire friend group. You guys have known each other for years ," The normally calm and cool teenager sitting in the corner of the table rambled on awkwardly. "And I'm just getting here, It's strange is all.'' she chuckled awkwardly and Carla squeezed the hand that was intertwined with hers.

The gesture did little to calm her growing nerves.

"Oh! I know how to solve this!" Billy leaned his body over the table and turned so he was facing her. His shirt touching the crumbs of the empty plate in front of him. "You should come to the party!" his eyes were wide with excitement. Carla nodded her head excitedly. "That's a good idea."

Penny interjected. "Um, I don't think-"

"Um, sure why not?" Tara looked into her partner's eyes and saw the happiness in her expression at the suggestion and smiled. "They are like you're family after all."

The table, excluding Penny, chatted loudly at the idea of Tara meeting the group. And lowkey preparing her for what to expect. Penny couldn't, in good faith, get on board with the idea. Knowing her brother and his friends could be ruthless and she would almost certainly have a target on her back. She imagined the hurt on Monty's face when he saw them walk in and her stomach dropped on his behalf.

Tara looked over at Penny, lost in thought. They made eye contact and Tara flashed her a genuine smile. The blonde smiled back, but her lips wobbled and the smile was quite strained.

'This will be a fucking disaster.' 

If you're wondering why this chapter took so long I have MANY excuses.

I really didn't want to write this chapter. That's it, I do like how this turned out but I was REALLY dragging it out (Like one sentence per day)

While I was putting this off I mapped the ENTIRE rest of the book and started writing chapters 12 and 13 so HOPEFULLY I will be done with this book before I go back to school (Senior year bitches!!)