After that night was a resounding failure, it became clear that one, she needed to take this step by step, not rush to the finish line and two, boost her confidence by challenging herself to do things in settings she was more comfortable with. This began with regular clubs and bars they often went to, Terri being her totally awesome wingwoman and lesbo radar, this then progressed onto small LGBTQIA meetups and then finally dating apps, her profile set up with the help of her friends who probably got more gratification out of it than she did.
She came across a few weirdos, quickly realising that just because she was gay now, didn’t mean she was weirdo-free.
She was gay now; she had to keep telling herself that because it felt so weird to mentally accept and weirder still to actually say.
It wasn’t all bad though, as for every weirdo she met, there were some incredibly down to Earth women, some who had been lesbians as far back as they could remember, others like her who had only recently come out of the closet. Learning about their journeys gave her a tremendous sense of ease and the boost of confidence she needed.
Her first official lesbian relationship was with a young woman named Trisha Heist, a black woman with plenty of lesbian experience and not stereotypically lesbian in her appearance, if that made sense. One might even deduce that she was straight from the offset, compared to many of the other women Rachel had encountered.
Trisha was cute, flirtatious and sweet, but Rachel wasn’t aware of her virgin-stealer alias until she herself admitted to it one tipsy night. Rachel wasn’t initially comfortable with the premise of being used for Trisha’s gain and secret fetish or whatnot, so she almost called it off right then and there, but Terri and Jeremy saw opportunity. Trisha could be her sexual tutor in all things gay sex. It made a lot of sense, what was it worth getting with someone she did care about and ruining something that could have been for lack of experience?
Despite panicking about what a lesbian relationship would be like, it blew her mind more than she could possibly comprehend. The make out sessions, the steamy kinky fondling in public spaces, the naughty texts and finally the night she had been anticipating for oh so long, a night she had fretted about forever, but turned out to be the greatest night of her entire life.
Trisha was a master with her lips, fingers and tongue, her naked body was mesmerising and if Rachel had still had any reservations about her decision to accept her sexual orientation as a lesbian, they had all but gone now. Here she was at the prime of her life exploring new realms she never imagined or thought possible.
Like a flower pollinated, she bloomed with colours she wouldn’t have known she had and her life suddenly became something of an open gate, leading to an entire world out there of things she had yet to learn about. That right there was ultimate bliss.
The relationship with Trisha didn’t last long, after all, she was only ever interested in ripe fruits, but that didn’t matter, Rachel’s doors had been opened and now nothing seemed impossible anymore.
Once again, she challenged the mountain that was the gay club, this time only taking Terri along with her and compared to the previous time she had faced this obstacle, she was met with resounding success. She could happily tick this one off the list.
Next, coming out to her parents… yikes!
CHAPTER 7 - EDWARD & CHRISTINE
10:58am - 5 Days until outbreak
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As the crew readied themselves for departure, passengers were now more than settled in; even stragglers had had their chance to embark in the last hours leading to departure.
With all passengers accounted for, settled in and the ship ready for departure, a twenty minute safety briefing required all staff and embarked passengers to participate before the ship could leave port. Leading the briefing for Christine, Edward and Martha, was Faye herself.
Finally, the horns of the ship sounded, alerting all to impending departure and the vast anchors raised, lumbering the ship to the dock no more and signalling the beginning of what would be a glorious fourteen day voyage away from dreary Southampton, across the Atlantic and over to the luscious heat of the tropics.
The ship pulled away from the docks, a magnificent 371 meter long, 73 meter high and 227,141 tonne feat of modern engineering, the second largest ship in the world.
From the highest point it was difficult to not feel on top of the world and looking down at cheering spectators, ship enthusiasts and those cheering on the first departure of a ship now known worldwide for its sheer size, didn't exactly diminish that feeling.
The lucky ones able to board and sail upon a ship like this for the first time were probably amongst the most envied people in the world right now; beside ordinary passengers were celebrities, politicians and more.
With tickets selling out like water in the Sahara, it was with tremendous luck and patience that Christine was even able to get
