Chapter 30: Trust, Luck, and Compassion

Belinda groaned.

There was no way for her to know how long she’d been slumped back in the booth. Once she was done eating there was little more will remaining inside of her, and she’d slumped like a puppet with all of her strings cut. Slouched back against the booth, she stared forward with her eyes half closed because they’d fallen that way and she lacked the will to close them the last little bit.

She couldn’t move, and her mind could only barely process that there was a world around her. Her breathing was shallow. If not for the way she was sitting, she would have looked asleep.

Claire bit her lip, sipping at her coffee.

It had already been refilled a good three times.

Fuck… Claire set down the mug, and ran her fingers through her own hair. What the fuck am I going to do…?! She ate when I told her to eat, but… I can’t just… she won’t be convincing if I told her to do anything else… and I remember the way Mae kept insisting I not do this to her, so…

She stared at her phone, her thumb hovering over the contacts button for Mae.

She might find out what I’ve done to her… and I really, really don’t want that to happen…! Claire groaned, bowing her head. But I also kinda can’t… I can’t let Belinda suffer because I’m being stubborn about this, so… someone, something…

A sign for what I should do, please…?

Patricia smiled bright and chipper as she approached the table with a fresh carafe of coffee. “Top you up again?”

Claire’s eyes widened.

Perfect!

Maybe!

Possibly!

“Uhm… sure…!” Claire smiled weakly up at Patricia as she tried to soften her expression. “Thank you…! I’ll uhm… be sure to tip. Sorry for the uh… outburst earlier.” Claire motioned to Belinda with a little sigh. “She’s had a very long day.”

“It’s okay!” Patricia quietly laughed, leaning in closer to whisper in a low, conspiratorial tone. “I told the manager that you told me she just pulled a muscle. I knew that way they wouldn’t kick you out, and nobody needs this to be a bigger scene than it was.” She winked as she pulled back, still whispering. “Your secret’s safe with me. Just tell your girlfriend to be quieter next time.”

Claire’s cheeks burned. She couldn’t find any more clever words to express what she needed to say no matter how hard she tried.

“She’s… not my girlfriend…”

Patricia giggled quietly as she refilled Belinda’s mug. “Look, it’s okay. Girlfriend… friend with… you know… bennies… whatever… I’m not going to judge. Just have her drink some more and maybe that’ll help her wake up a little better.”

Telling Belinda to walk out to her car will only get us so far… and she might fall along the way… I was hoping to ask Patricia for a hand with that, but she already covered for me… Claire deflated. I can’t ask for more. She’s already being freakishly understanding, and I’d hate to make her day worse by getting her in trouble with her job…

Claire nodded slowly. “Thanks… I really appreciate it, really!”

Watching Belinda’s chest rise and fall was almost hypnotic. The rhythm wasn’t perfectly the same every time, but it was still so calm. The look on her face was so absolutely wasted.

She really is just… so cute. She might not have a mom bod goin on, but…

Claire quivered.

Maybe she doesn’t need one. I can have more than one type…! We’ve been friends for… ever though… and she’s really pissed at me, so I probably shouldn’t be thinking about her like this right now…

“Hey, Belinda…?” Claire spoke softly, choosing her words as carefully as she could. “Have a little more coffee. Carefully. Don’t spill. Sit up straight while you sip.”

Belinda didn’t respond, but she did sit up and reach for the white mug full of fresh coffee. Claire breathed a sigh of relief, and stared down at her phone again. Belinda wasn’t completely out of it even if she was clearly not functioning at a normal adult level, either. She could follow instructions, and that was something.

Maybe we could safely get to her car… but if she tripped, if she fell… Claire winced. It’d be my fault… fuck! Why did I let her convince me to use it on her?! Stupid! That was the worst idea! I should have told her that Mae said it would be bad… maybe she’d believe that…!

Her cheeks burned when she thought about her parents. If it hadn’t been Belinda at the window things would have been so much worse. Casually fondling her parents seemed like a thing that didn’t hurt anyone, but voyeurs made that less than perfectly true. If it had been someone from Sophie’s work who hadn’t bothered ringing the bell…

She groaned, and buried her face in her hands.

You are so lucky you didn’t just ruin everyone’s life because you’re a horny girl who wants to live out her childhood fantasies of marrying her mother.

Belinda’s sipping was quiet, but it was loud enough for Claire to hear even with her face hidden in her hands. Each sip tugged at something inside of her, imploring her to call, to find some fix that wasn’t just hoping everything worked out.

You are a piece of work.

For a long time Claire sipped at her coffee, watched Belinda sip at hers, and wracked her brain for some other, helpful alternatives. She knew that her mind pieced itself back together, but that took a long time. There was no way she could bring Belinda home, or to her own house. Claire was very familiar with Lauren’s job, and the last thing she needed was to explain why Belinda looked like she was high.

So… Her place is out. My place is out. Even if Fi was in town, her place is a no go… Groaning, Claire ran her fingers through her hair again as Belinda loudly sipped. Maybe you should call Michelle and see what the fuck gives with her claiming you were hanging out with her…?

No.

Claire shuddered

The last thing Michelle needs, or I need, is for Michelle to know I’ve been fucking my mothers. Claire smirked. Goodness, I am such a bad mother fucker.

Giggling to herself, Claire shook her head and rolled her eyes.

A hand rested on Claire’s shoulder, and she nearly screamed. Patricia giggled, squeezing gently before pulling her hand back. “Sorry, hon. I’m just about to head home. Before I go… can I help you at all? When I leave… you probably won’t have anyone covering for you…”

Claire bit her lip.

“Bring me the check, and help me get Belinda to her car…?” Claire twisted up her face. “I know it’s a lot to ask. I promise she should be okay, she’s just… you know… out of it…?”

“Hun.” Patricia smirked. “Calm down. I’ll bring the check, and once all of that is taken care of… just tell her to walk between us. We can get her to where she needs to go. You don’t need to worry about it so much. I really understand.”

“Uhm…” Claire flushed. “Okay…! I’ll… tip you. Really good.”

Patricia nodded. “Damned right you will.”

It took longer than Claire wanted to pay, making sure to leave a tip that would have impressed Belinda, and then with a quick whispered suggestion into Belinda’s ear she was between Patricia and her best friends as they made their way to her car. Belinda’s movements were unsteady, but she followed along without complaint.

She hardly seemed capable of it.

Before long they reached her car, and Patricia helped Claire pull her into the back seat. Before long she was strapped back into place, and the door pushed shut. Claire leaned against it, and exhaled in relief. “Thank you… Thank you so much… I can’t thank you enough.”

“You could kiss me.” Patricia grinned, reaching out to tease her fingertips along Claire’s cheek. Her touch made Claire’s entire body tighten up, and her breath caught in her throat as she whined. “Kiss me and make me feel like you made her feel… just somewhere more… private. I can’t believe you would do that to her in public… Here I thought that Weavers were usually a lot bigger into being smooth and undetected…”

Claire’s eyes widened. She still couldn’t stop herself from shuddering and squirming, her thighs pressing together tight as Patricia’s tender touches continued. They weren’t the touches Mae used to subdue her, but now that she was actively trying to feel for the touch of Sapphistry there was an undeniable tingle in every touch.

She… she knows but this… this doesn’t feel like what I can do… or what Mae can do… Ohhh…Claire groaned, arching forward so her hips met Patricia’s. This is… really… dangerous…

“You… know… what a Weaver… is…!” Claire’s sentence ended with a cute, adorable little squeak. Patricia nodded slowly, her grin shifting into a calm, serene smile. “You… you knew… knew what happened to Belinda and you… you… ohhh…” Fingers grazed along the shape of her jaw, and Claire’s eyes fluttered as she felt the sensation like a cascade of feathers brushing downy smooth along her body. “You covered for me…”

“Of course I did, hun…” Patricia rolled her eyes. “I’m part of a conspiracy too, you know. Did you think I was just some pretty face in there, and not an older, more experienced woman trying to look out for another Sapphic who was in far over her head…?”

Claire sputtered, still rubbing her face into Patricia’s hand even if she couldn’t find any possible words.

“Mankind must make heaven before we can go to heaven.” Patricia smiled, and teased a fingertip down along Claire’s neck. “I would tell you to remember my name, because you’ll be screaming it later… but I’m not sure that would be good for you, and I’m not of a mind to make your life worse at the moment.”

Claire quivered.

“You’re… not going to break my mind apart…?”

Patricia snorted, and withdrew her hand with a hurt expression on her face. “I want to help you, hun, not terrify you. How very little can be done under the spirit of fear.”

Claire blinked, her mind racing to understand what was happening.

Mom told me that she left the Weavers because they were too… goal oriented… not focused enough on the women they were weaving… This woman isn’t a weaver, judging by the way she talks about them…

“Wh…at…?” Claire whimpered. “I… I only learned about all of this…” She held up her hand, and thought carefully back over the past days. So much had happened, so much that changed the entire world around her in such a brief period of time. “Two… days ago…? I’m…” She took a deep breath and leaned forward, whispering as quietly as she could. “I’m technically… not a Weaver…”

Though Patricia opened her mouth to speak, it fell shut before any words came from her lips. She narrowed her eyes and reached a hand towards Claire’s waistband. “May I?”

Claire flushed.

“Actually… I… was going to ask… can we…” She coughed to clear her throat. “Can I take Belinda to your place…? I know it’s a lot to ask, but when we get there you are invited to stare at my naked crotch as much as you want. I’ll keep my hands where you can see them.

Patricia frowned. “You really are new to all of this, aren’t you?”

Claire simply gave a shy nod, her eyes glued down to stare at her feet.

“And you’re at least… twenty…?” Green eyes scanned over Claire before Patricia sighed. “There’s no way a Weaver wouldn’t be trained in the basics, if not technique, well before now. Well. This makes things much more complicated… but at least you can be glad that I was the one who found you.”

These organizations… Mom mentioned some of the others… Wasn’t one of them… something about a sun goddess…? Patricia is warm enough to be following a sun goddess…

When Claire looked up and saw Patricia was walking away, she nearly screamed. “Wait…!” She almost tripped, stumbling forward after the one woman who seemed ready to help her. “I really need your help…!”

“I know!” Patricia laughed. “I’m going to get in my car… You can follow me. I’m not leaving it at work!” She balked, shaking her head with a hand on her hip. She was still wearing the apron-styled dress, and the way it complemented her curves made it hard for Claire to not allow her eyes to wander along the edge of the white-and-brown that made up the dress. “Calm down, I’m not going to abandon you, Claire.

“If a nurse declines to do these kinds of things for her patient ‘because it is not her business…” Patricia spoke with a serious, if pleased expression. “…I should say that nursing was not her calling.”

Claire blinked, and stared as she watched Patricia pull out her keys. She said that the way that Mae-mommy recited the one… Aphrodite… Zeus… daughter… brocaded… throne… thing…

“How did you know my name?!” Claire called out louder than she needed to.

“Your friend said it, and you kept mumbling ‘damn it, Claire’ under your breath!” Patricia laughed, shaking her head as she slid into her car. “Now hurry up and get ready to follow me—let’s not make this any more complicated than it already is!”

For a moment, Claire stood in the middle of the parking lot. Patricia was acting so very reasonable, but that didn’t make things any easier to process

“…Okay…! Be right behind you…!”

Driving Belinda’s car felt weird as a concept, but that didn’t stop Claire from sliding into the driver’s seat and putting in the key. Adjusting the rear view mirror let Claire look at Belinda with her eyes now closed, her body still slumped.

“Remember who you are, hun… Please.” Claire whispered it quietly as she could. Even she could barely hear the sound on her own lips. “Mae was afraid of saying much, so… I should be, too… But if you don’t get better…? I’ll uhm… Fuck, I will make your mom take care of you like this, and love you like this or… adopt you into my family.

“Least I could do…”

Pulling back out of the parking space, Claire’s cheeks darkened to a deep, rich red as a realization hit her like a truck full of bricks.

Because I used secret, forbidden, lesbian mind control techniques on my best friend I am now driving to the home of a milfy waitress that I’ve never met before… knowing that I’m going to be practically shoving my pussy in her face to prove that I’m not a weaver because all of them have trashy tattoos.

Patricia honking her horn was the only thing that snapped Claire back to reality enough so she could follow close behind.

And I thought my life couldn’t get any weirder…