"I never told her this but I am proud that she stuck to her guns about it and didn't let her mother talk her into seeing a psychiatrist." A smirk came to the older woman's lips. "I dare say I've been known to jump over the fence once or twice. You remember the old Wagon Wheel series? The actress that played Carol, I could tell you stories about her."

The reference went over Crystal's head, knowing the show only as something that was in reruns when she was a young child but she understood the meaning clearly. "So you're bi?"

"I suppose I am. I haven't been with a woman in quite a few years but I suppose anything is still possible. What about you?" "I'm straight," Crystal replied.

"Oh, any men in your life right now? I know this absolutely devilishly handsome young man who would just die for a pretty blonde like you." Crystal gave a short laugh and shook her head. "I don't think so. I'm not looking."

"What a shame. Bad breakup?"

"No." As was her habit, Crystal looked down at the table when talking about herself. "I haven't ever been in any serious relationship."

"Now that's a real shame. You're a young thing but isn't it about time you start looking for a love to share your life with?" Helen reached out and slapped her hand atop Crystal's. "Take it from this old broad, deary. There is nothing lonelier than not having someone to love you at the end of the day. Personally I think you're limiting yourself by not looking at the other side of the fence. My niece is really quite the catch, you know. Accomplished author, college graduate and she certainly isn't hard to look at, is she?"

Crystal saw the mischievous glint in Helen's eye and smiled. "No, she isn't. Laura's a very nice person but it's just not like that between us. Besides, I'm far from her type."

"I don't know about that, deary. My little pumpkin seems to think very highly of you."

"What did she say about me?"

"Ah, curious aren't you?" Helen said knowingly. "I'll tell you what. We have at least twenty minutes for dinner, right?"

"Yeah. At least."

"If you would be kind enough to share a hit or two I might be persuaded to reveal certain things Laura has said about you." Crystal didn't need to be asked twice. "Let's go."

Chapter Twelfth

Laura was bone tired when she finally pulled into her parking space but pleased to see the familiar Omni parked next to her. That meant Crystal was home and hopefully had driven Aunt Helen to retire early for the evening. Remembering the bag of cleaners in the back seat, Laura retrieved them and headed inside.

Setting the bag on the side table, she was surprised not to find either woman downstairs. What did not surprise Laura, however, was the mess in the living room. The kitchen was better, clean dishes drying on the rack but clearly done by her right handed roommate, the strainer on the opposite side of the sink than usual. Laura took a few minutes to rearrange the kitchen back to the way she wanted before heading upstairs.

"Hello?" Laura called when she was halfway up the stairs, hearing voices.

"We're in here," Crystal called, letting the writer know which room they were in.

Laura couldn't resist raising an eyebrow at this new development. Her Aunt Helen and Crystal were in the same room and from the sounds of it, getting along quite nicely. The pungent smell wafting under the door gave Laura her answer as to why they were in Crystal's room. Opening the door, the first thing the fastidious woman noticed was the pile of laundry strewn about, jeans flung carelessly over the back of the orange chair and Crystal's work boots laying where they were apparently kicked off earlier. Crystal was propped comfortably on her bed while Helen was sitting in the orange chair, using the bed as a footrest.

"Hi there," Crystal said. "How's your mom doing?"

"Hi pumpkin," Helen waved. "Come have a seat and tell us all about it."

"Don't worry about stepping on anything," Crystal said. "Just kick it out of your way."

"Or rent a bulldozer," Laura replied dryly. She carefully stepped over dirty clothes until she reached the bed, sitting cross legged on the lower corner near the door leading to the balcony. It allowed her to look at her aunt directly with only minimal eye movement to see Crystal. "So I see you two found something in common," her tone making it clear what she thought of that.

"You take after your mother too much." Helen frowned and took the little blue pipe from Crystal. "So tell us, how is she?" "She looks a hundred times better than when she went in," Laura said. "If everything goes well tonight they might even let her out tomorrow morning."

"What time are you going to see her tomorrow?" Helen asked.

"I'll most likely head up there around nine or ten."

"I'll go with you." Helen said, holding her hand out for the lighter which Crystal finally handed over.

Laura watched her fifty year old aunt take a small hit off the pipe, thinking eerily that she had fallen into something from the Twilight Zone. Laura was still uncomfortable watching Crystal light up but to see her own aunt doing it was something else altogether. "Um, Aunt Helen?"

"Yes pumpkin?" Helen looked at her but all Laura saw were slits for eyes. Clearly her aunt and roommate had been in this room for some time. "Could you not smoke that in front of me? It just seems so odd to me to see you doing that."

"I got an idea," Crystal said, taking the pipe and setting it in her ashtray. "I could go for a cigarette. Why don't we go out on the deck and that way we don't asphyxiate poor Laura here."

"Splendid idea, deary." Helen got her feet, wobbled a little, then straightened out and headed for the screen door.

"So what have you two been talking about?" Laura asked Crystal, hanging back so they weren't overheard.

"All sorts of stuff," the younger woman replied. "Sisters and families and freedom and of course you."

"Me?"

"Well," Crystal's eye took on a wicked glint. "You are the main thing we have in common. By the way, not too bright trying to jump those barrels with your bicycle."

"She told you about that?" Laura was shocked, remembering that as one of her most embarrassing moments, especially when the base commander called her father down to explain why she was playing in an unauthorized area.

"She told me a lot of things," Crystal said smugly. Helen had a bit of a wicked streak herself and had conveyed with painstaking detail about some of Laura's most embarrassing tales of childhood. "Or there's the time you went to visit her and got lost on the subways." "She said to stay on the red line and I'd be fine," Laura grumbled as they stepped out onto the deck. "So you spent your free time telling stories about me, did you?"

"You're just lucky I didn't remember to bring the scrapbooks," Helen said. "You remember summer at my campsite? When your cousins were up?" Laura was truly appreciative of the darkness which kept her blush from being seen. "I remember. Can we change the topic now?"

"But it's much more fun to tease you," Crystal said, leaning back in her chair and putting her feet up on the railing. "So Helen, you were telling me about the first time Laura got drunk."

"Oh no," the subject in question groaned. "And you wonder why I don't drink very often? Let your aunt get you drunk for the first time." "Hugged that porcelain goddess a few times, did you?" Crystal teased.

"It was her best friend that night," Helen said cheerfully. "The next morning too."

"But I'm sure you're more familiar with that particular goddess than I am," Laura teased back.

"Oh, you got me, pardner." The single bulb lighting the back deck gave little illumination but it was enough for Laura to see Crystal pantomime being shot in the chest. "But I never tried to crawl down the stairs."

"You don't forget anything, do you Aunt Helen?"

"Not much, pumpkin," Helen replied, clearly enjoying the banter. Both her and Crystal had cigarettes going and the older woman took a long drag on hers before continuing to embarrass her niece. "You should have seen her, Crystal. She was talking to the banister."

The friendly chat continued for the better part of an hour but Laura was spared any more embarrassment after her experience with the banister was told. Finally one too many yawns indicated the need to wind down for the night and Helen made her exit through the screen door to Laura's bedroom where she was staying. Laura followed Crystal in through her entrance, stepping on a pair of shorts laying on the floor near the sliding door. "How do you manage to get around in this mess?" Laura asked.

"I know where everything is. It's an organized mess," Crystal said, flopping down on her bed and quickly pushing herself up against the headboard. "So are you really beat or do you feel up to visiting for a while?"

Usually evenings while Helen had been spent downstairs, not allowing the opportunity for the two friends to just sit and talk to each other and Laura found she was missing those chats very much. "Sure but keep your smoking limited to cigarettes, okay?"

"Deal," Crystal cheerfully agreed, reaching out to pat the arm of the overstuffed orange chair. "Have a seat, take a load off." "You certainly seem to be in a good mood tonight," the writer noted as she took her seat. "I still can't believe you and my Aunt Helen were getting along, much less smoking pot with each other."

"I was kinda shocked when she asked me if I had any," Crystal said, fluffing a pillow before sticking behind her back for support. "But once I stopped being annoyed with her, she turned out to be a okay person. A bit out there, but okay."

"She hasn't given you her dissertation about aliens and secret labs hidden in the desert yet."