Come Out, Come Out...

But first, she had a little something to settle.

A short while later, four fifths of the clan exchanged goodbyes for the evening, departed Sam's place and piled back in their cars. Bridgette slid into Em's passenger seat beside her as Lauren climbed into the back.

"So...home?" asked Emily.

"Actually, Emmy...there's somewhere else I wanna go first. And I wanna bring you there too, Lauren."

"Sure; where?"

"...Home."

*****

"...Get Used To It!"

Tuesday, May 14th, 2013, 8:03 p.m.

It had been just over four months, and Bridgette was one nervous nelly.

"Oh, gosh, Em..." she breathed uneasily as Emily pulled up and parked. "I know what I said, but...I dunno if I can do this."

"Babe, you'll be fine. Your sweetie-honey-bear and I'll be right there with you."

Bridgette marched to the door, a supporter on either side. She still had her key with her, but considered it a better idea to ring the bell. She almost chickened out and dashed back to the car, but held on to her courage. If she didn't do this tonight, she didn't know when she might muster up the moxie again. She slowly pressed her finger into the doorbell, and winced as she heard it activate.

Well, she couldn't back out now. She was terrible at Ding-Dong-Ditch, or Ring 'N' Run, or whatever they were calling it these days. But at least the torturous suspense didn't last long. A couple moments later, she heard the other side of the door click. Her heart rate doubled and her breath caught in her throat. For a half a second she thought she would throw up.

"...Bridge?"

"Oh...hi, Dad."

"...Well, hey, pumpkin, haven't seen you in a while."

"Yes, well...there's a reason for that, Dad...but it's not you." Nick nodded. "Oh, yes, this is Lauren..." Bridgette gestured her over.

"...M—...my girlfriend."

"...Oh, yes..." Nick replied indecipherably. Bridgette didn't know if the way he reacted was good or bad news, but he egressed and offered his hand. "Well, it's so nice to meet you, Lauren."

"You too, Mr. Carter. I see Bridgette has your lovely blue eyes."

"Eh, yes, yes, we're all gorgeous," Bridgette stepped in. "Dad, is...um..."

She swallowed. "...Is mother here?"

"Certainly is, honey, right upstairs. You want me to go get her for you?"

"Mmmm...actually, Dad, maybe instead, you could let her know we're here? Uh...see how she reacts?"

"Oh, sure, pumpkin...though, be honest, I don't think there's anything to worry about," Nick nodded, stepping inside. "Just a sec."

He disappeared back behind the front door. Bridgette's heart started going like a hammer. Her Dad's words were a good sign, but...

"Guys?" She held out her hands. "Hold on to me. I have a feeling I'm gonna need some comfort in a sec."

It was a 66° spring evening, but the blood in Bridgette's extremities felt cold as ice. The other reason she'd asked Em and Lauren to hold her was so she couldn't bolt for the car again. She stood brave, waiting for the axe to fall, for Nick to return with the predictable epilogue. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity later, the door creaked back ajar.

"Okay, wait a second, Dad, I-I think I've changed my..."

The figure who appeared at the door was not Nick.

"...Mo—?"

Charlotte stood before them, her expression inscrutable. The step up to the front door was only three inches, but right now her mother looked eight feet tall, towering and looming over her like an ominous presence.

Bridgette's mouth went dry. Her words panicked and ran in fright. She didn't know what to say. To her amazement, however, though Charlotte's face remained unreadable, she opened the door.

"Bridgette...I'd like you to please come inside."

A flicker of hope ignited in her daughter's heart.

"R—...really??"

"Yes. And your friends too."

She took them to the living room, where Bridgette first broached the news to her in January. "Go ahead and sit down, girls."

Bridgette took her usual seat on the couch beside her Mom. Lauren perched next to her on the other end, which Bridgette allowed, even though she wasn't sure it was a great idea. Em sat on the other side of the room across from them.

"Erm...mother?...Pardon my uncertainty, but...should we be frightened?"

"But no, dear daughter. Not at all."

There was something about her tone Bridgette didn't quite trust.

"...Then...why am I?"

Charlotte placed a hand over Bridgette's, on her thigh.

"Bridgette...I said some things to you that day...and though I was too proud to admit it until now...

"...I owe you an apology."

Bridgette's eyebrows catapulted up about two miles.

"Mother?...Um, all due respect; I mean nothing by this...are you drunk?"

Charlotte smiled for the first time. "I'm not the slightest bit tipsy."

"High? Medicated? On painkillers?"

She even got Charlotte to chuckle with these three supplemental guesses.

"No, no, and no. But you see, I've been thinking a lot about all this since that night, and I cannot lie to you, Bridgette. At first, I was quite crestfallen. And very disappointed in you. I tried so hard to figure out just where I went wrong. I even prayed for God to give you hope and support and guidance. I mean, you cannot believe just how—"

Bridgette waved it off. "YEAHyeahyeahyeah," she leapt in. "I-I get the picture, Mom. Can we get to the part where you apologize?"

"Of course. You see, a couple of weeks ago I finally visited St. Ipsen's to speak with Father O'Hanlon. I told him how I wasn't sure what to do about this, or how I should feel. Do you know what he told me?"

"I don't see how I could, mother, not having been there myself, but go ahead, go on."

"He told me that he and I have something in common. His daughter Valerie is gay too. And she's deeply involved with someone."

"Really??"

"That's exactly what I said. I asked him a lot of questions, and he gave me a lot of answers. Bridgette...sweetheart...

"...He...actually...really opened my eyes. This is not easy for me to admit, but in the midst of my virtue and spirituality...I had something to learn. He quoted some scriptures and Bible verses to give me context, and the way he interpreted them was...new to me. It was like an entire new world opened up. He made me see that...that there can be another way of looking at things."

Her daughter and her girlfriends looked around at one another. Lauren and Emily seemed very pleased. Bridgette was a bit skeptical.

"Well, that's...that's great, Mom, but...are you asking me to believe that you've had some sort of mind-altering epiphany?...I mean, you made it pret-ty gosh-darn clear how you felt about this four months ago."

"A lot can happen in four months, Bridgette. I remember that night too, and..." She sighed, shaking her head. "...This is difficult for me, but...I am so ashamed of the way I felt and the things I said to you then. Bridgette...um..." She looked about. "...Bridgette's friends...

"...I was wrong." She dropped her eyes to her lap, then brought them back up to meet Bridgette's astonished gaze. "I was...I was just so very, very wrong. You are still my daughter, you always were, and you always will be. And I do love you...just like Father O'Hanlon loves his daughter. It's like I told you: he truly, truly enlightened me. And I may not be able to make you believe me, but, cliché as it sounds...I've come to see the light. God loves all the flowers He plants, all the beautiful varieties. And you're my little girl, and...even if you've grown up to be different from me, in this regard...that can't make me stop loving you." She held out her arms. "Nothing can."

That was good enough to convince Bridgette. "Oh, Mom!" she joyfully cried out, flinging her arms around Charlotte and squeezing her. "Oh my God, I wish you'd called and told me this before!"

"Oh, honey, I would've," said Charlotte, rubbing Bridgette's back, "But after that night, I wasn't sure if you'd ever speak to me again."

"Ever speak to you again??" Bridgette repeated. "You're my mother, mother!"

"True. But the title of World's Poorest Mother's Daughter has to go to someone."

"As long as Christina Crawford's still around, that title's never coming near me. I love you, Mom!"

Bridgette felt another pair of arms embracing her from behind. "And I love you too!" Lauren rejoiced.

"Erggh...uh, mother?" said a sandwiched Bridgette. "This is Lauren...the girl I told you I was in love with. She's my girlfriend now."

Charlotte shook Lauren's hand under Bridgette's armpit. "It's lovely to meet the person who's captured my daughter's heart."

"Likewise, Mrs. Carter."

Emily bounded over to them and joined the group hug. "And I love all you guys!!"

"ERRGGGHH...uh, and of course you know Emily, Mom."

"Hey, Mr. C.!" Em shouted over her shoulder. "Get in here! We're having a group hug!"

"Oh, God!" Bridgette grunted. "I don't know if I can handle all this love!"

It turned into a wonderful evening. Bridgette had back everything she thought she'd lost. After another short spell, she told Emily she believed she could take Lauren back without her. Em acquiesced, formulating a mission to get herself on. Creating this matchmaking masterpiece inspired her to go home, strike up contact and declare her feelings for a certain Mr. Ian Summers. As her honey and her B.F.F. headed off together for tonight, Bridgette realized how tired she was, what a toll the day had taken on her. Before she knew it, she was off to put herself to sleep, back in her old room again, in the snug comfort of her beloved childhood bed.