It's what besties do

 "I just can't stand her," Liv said before she meant to. She could hardly take her shift these days with Abby who replaced Jade. Liv and Jade met up at the HUHOT for a Mongolian lunch deal. 

"How so?" Jade looked curious enough as she was pondering over some crunch noodles on her stirfry.

Liv sighed. Did she dare tell her? Would she be exposing more of herself than the co-worker?

"She's a lesbian." She said in a hushed voice.

"What's wrong with that?" Jade came back as she took a bite of grilled chicken. She then mentioned how their neighbor was a lesbian that was a family friend when she was growing up. "She was in the military."

Liv frowned. This was not the conversation she meant to have. She shook her head, and said, "Forget I said anything."

"She didn't come on to you, or anything, did she?" Jade looked at her wide-eyed while Liv tossed her stirfry more.

"No." She frowned. Maybe this wasn't about Abby. "I..I just don't know how to act around her."

Jade nodded. "I'm sure it'll be fine. Are you sure that's all it is?"

Liv winced hard. Honestly, she didn't know what it was, but couldn't she just blame it on somebody she hardly knew.

"Look, You'll be taking college classes this year, your last year of school. The tuition is free. You are so lucky," Jade smiled at her.

Liv nodded. She supposed.

"How are things with you and Rico?" Jade asked like a good friend would. Liv could only shrug.

"It must be perfect with you and Ari." Liv couldn't help but say as she took a sip of iced lemoned tea.

Jade sighed. "It's not perfect." She shook her head, no.

"Why?"

"Oh, everybody has something to deal with, you know," she grinned. "It's nothing really."

"Rico gets on my nerves," Liv nodded. She didn't want to tell her the truth. She hated that he could be friends with Sammie and Gabe too. Yes, she might have been a little selfish. She wanted her time to be just with him, not those two. "He can be too nice."

"And that's a problem?" Jade chuckled. "I just want a well-done burger, actually. Ari thinks he should do all the cooking and he likes everything so rare." She said that must have been why he started working for the Red Cross, he liked blood. Jade sighed then. "I just want to make my grandmother's curry, you know." She made it sound like a good memory.

Liv didn't know what to say to that. Did she really miss her mother's cooking? She'd been a lunch lady, but most of their meals were quick twenty-minute meals from a box, when she was growing up. She rested her chin on her fist in thought.

"Maybe you need to move back home," Jade told her.

"Home?"  Liv looked at her bright-eyed. "Why would I do that?"

"Some day, you might wish you had." Jade was serious.

Liv shook her head.

"Look, your brother is on his own. You need to be with your parents," Jade shrugged. This was the last thing Liv thought she would hear from her best friend.