Reunion Girls by J. J. Salem

self-destructive story? All you did was invest in a literary masterpiece."
    Gabrielle laughed.
    Lara shrugged helplessly. This time she didn't take offense. There was genuine affection in Babe's ribbing.
    "I made a mix tape of his favorite songs and played it whenever I slept with another guy," Babe announced. "There's a certain power in recycling music like that."
    "My first two singles were about him," Gabrielle put in. " 'He Was' and 'Prince of My Pain.'" She laughed a little. "It was cathartic, and I'm still earning royalties."
    Babe's rapidly reddening eyes flashed with a quickly lit anger. "Does he even acknowledge what he did to us?" she demanded hotly.
    Lara and Gabrielle merely looked at her.
    The expression on Babe's face was furious and expectant. "I don't mean what he did to us as individual women. I mean what he did to us as a group."
    Her announcement was punctuated by the hot tub jets going dead. A pregnant silence boomed.
    Babe thundered on. "We were tight. Before college, I never had girlfriends like the two of you. I haven't since. Jesus, I don't even know how to make friends with another woman. You know? I've turned into the enemy. When I'm at a party, I usually ignore other women and talk entirely to men. Yet I call myself a feminist. It's so messed up."
    Lara felt compelled to speak next. "Everyone thinks I live this glamorous life." She tilted up her chin airily and trilled, "The city's social diva. That's what New York magazine said once." She rolled her eyes. "But it's work for me. It's my business. And on the odd chance that I don't have an event on a Saturday night, you'll find me home alone in sweatpants watching Scandal with my maid."
    Babe looked uncertain. "I can't picture you in sweatpants."
    "Okay, I only wear Lululemon,” Lara admitted. "But you get the point."
    "I do, girl," Gabrielle said. "In my case, I don't think there's anyone in my life who isn't on my payroll. Producers, A&R guys, publicists, stylists, personal assistants. These are the only people I interact with. And if the hits stopped tomorrow, they wouldn't give a damn about me."
    "At least you both come from decent families," Babe said. "My parents are worthless."
    Lara said nothing. Her relationship with her own mother and father was pure gold. She couldn't imagine not having that to fall back on.
    Gabrielle sighed. "Mine are unhappy about this Brown Sugar thing. We've been at an impasse for a long time." Her tone was somber, the look in her eyes faraway. "They just don't understand."
    Lara gazed at Gabrielle for a long moment. "Frankly, I don't either," she said finally. "Why did you have to make up an image that's not anything close to who you are?"
    Gabrielle shook her head. "It's a complicated story, baby girl. I'm too drunk to tell it, and you're too drunk to hear it." She stood up, a little unsteadily. "How cold do you think that pool is?"
    Lara shivered at the thought.
    "Why don't you dive in and tell us all about it." Babe smiled. "I dare you."
    That's all Gabrielle needed to hear. She stepped out of the hot tub and made a daring dash for the pool. There was a big splash. Seconds after that, a scream. "Oh, my God! It's freezing! This feels so great!"
    Babe needed no more prompting. She was out of the hot tub, off and running, and into the deep end within moments.
    Now both of them were calling for Lara to take the plunge.
    Slowly, she stood up, wrapping her arms around herself to brace against the cold. The night air was so chilly. This was insane. Here it was in the wee hours. She was drunk, practically naked, and under peer pressure to leap into a pool of ice water.
    If only Dean Paul could see her now. That boy would never believe it. He always chided her for being so strait-laced and dignified. In bed, he made love to her so slowly and with such tenderness, as if she were a porcelain doll that might shatter under the roughness of too much passion. Out of bed, he would nuzzle her neck and whisper, "My perfect little