Take Back the Night

“Hey Mister, get your hands off my sister!”  “Take back, take back, women take back the night!”  “One, two, three, four, we won’t take it anymore, five, six, seven, eight, no more violence, no more rape!”  “What do we want?  Safe streets!  When do we want them?  Now!”  “The women united will never be divided!”  “No means no, yes means yes, wherever we go, however we dress!”  “Hey hey, no no, domestic violence has got to go!”  “End the violence, break the silence!”  “Claim our bodies, claim our right, take a stand, take back the night!”

Uber-Date

  I asked Anthony to go to Take Back the Night with me.  Charlotte didn’t even have to tease me about it.  He said he’d been hoping I’d ask, and that it would be our first ‘uber-date’.  H explained that an uber-date was a more serious date, and he even did it with a straight face.  For our two month anniversary I had him over to my apartment to watch a movie, Will Ferrell so Charlotte didn’t feel left out.  Mocha ignored him until he went and picked her up, and she fell asleep in his arms.  We watched half of the movie before we started kissing, Mocha being put gently on the floor.  I let him take my shirt off and he held me quietly, moving against me when I felt down his pants.  After half an hour we went  into my bedroom.  It didn’t hurt like I thought it would, only ached for the first few minutes.  He used his hand while we had sex, and I orgasmed before he did.  He made a small noise when he came and I liked that.  I thought I should feel different, maybe like I was in love.  Instead I just really liked him in a warm fog.

Chocolate Kitty to the Rescue

  Mocha had been throwing up so Charlotte and I were paying extra close attention to her.  Anthony had sent his best wishes for her, but I was afraid she was on her way down.  I had her in my lap, petting her smooth fur.  It had taken a month of good food and brushes to get her glossy and grease-free.  My phone rang and I didn’t recognize the number.  I stopped petting Mocha to pick it up.  It was a telemarketer, I hadn’t even known telemarketers were allowed to call cellphones.  It felt too rude to hang up and he kept interrupting me when I tried to say I wasn’t interested.  Charlotte huffed at me and told me to just hang up on him or fake another language.  Mocha stirred in my lap and a litter-encrusted paw slipped over my mouth.  I jerked my head back and my phone slipped into my lap.  Mocha looked at it, then stood up and took one step, and layed down on it.  I smiled at her and Charlotte laughed.  “I love chocolate kitty,” she stated.

Bandages

  Charlotte and I went grocery shopping.  She made me buy condoms, “Just in case”.  Charlotte liked Anthony and I felt a little jealous because I really liked him.  We hadn’t gone to each others apartments yet, but we went on a date three or four times a week.  The last time he gave me a flower he’d made out of paper napkins at one of the campus cafeterias.  He was an Art History major and minored in Painting.  I picked out the package of neon-colored condoms because I figured I should go all out like Charlotte always told me.  We went to get some fish oil capsules for Mocha’s food because she had dry skin, and I saw the bandages across the aisle.  I’d forgotten I needed bandaids so I grabbed a box.  “Nude-colored?” Charlotte asked, then paused.  “Nude if you’re white,” she finally added.  I looked at them and realized what she meant.  I put the box back and got neon-colored bandages too.

Anthony

  Anthony and I met outside class and walked to the cafe together.  He was tall and skinny and had a nice jaw.  I thought that he would look prettier than me if he put make-up on.  We walked without touching, making odd conversation.  I didn’t know what to say and all Charlotte wanted to do was find out if he was a sexist or not.  We got to the coffeehouse and he paid for my hot chocolate, which made Charlotte flip out.  I must have looked uncomfortable because he asked me what was wrong when we sat down.  “Nothing,” I told him, smiling.  “Come on, tell me.  I’ll just agonize my own reasons up if you don’t,” he teased.  “Well… I just feel weird that you bought my coffee.”  He sat back and grinned at me closed-lipped.  “Are you a feminist?” he asked.  I want to deny it but decided not to.  “Yes.”  He slapped the table in exaggerated excitement, “So am I!”  I giggled and Charlotte was too stunned to talk.  “Next time you get the coffee?” he asked.  I could tell he really just wanted to know if I would go on another date with him.  “Ok,” I agreed.

Date

  A boy from one of my english classes asked me out.  I wanted to choose a safe place to meet him but I didn’t want to look distrustful.  Charlotte suggested a movie but I think she just wanted to see the newest Will Ferrell blockbuster.  I decided to meet him for coffee at the local cafe even though Charlotte yawned that it was cliche.  We would meet up after our next class in two days and walk there together.  I wanted to get around it but I didn’t want to seem like I was blowing him off.  “Don’t cater to his feelings, Marie, pay attention to yours,” Charlotte told me.  “Don’t tell me what to do all the time,” I replied and she griped until I made pancakes for dinner.

Minor

  I got to sign up for classes.  Charlotte hovered while I chose fifteen credit hours’ worth.  “You should take an intro to women’s studies!” she exclaimed.  I clicked on it and read the summary, then signed up for it.  I browsed the women’s studies courses and found a ot that I wanted to sign up for.  I couldn’t switch my major though.  “So make it your minor,” Charlotte reminded me.  Not that it mattered, because I couldn’t take any of the other classes until I took the introductory course.  I told Charlotte and she just said “I’ve created a monster.”