Tuesday, November 8th, 1960
It was a happy night.
The 1960 presidential election had just reached its conclusion. Well, for the most part. The election had pitted Senator John F. Kennedy against Vice President Richard Nixon. What a campaign it had been. Loretta and Penny had been enthralled by every moment of it. From the party conventions, to the debates throughout the fall, and election night itself, they felt as if they had truly been a part of this campaign.
The two girls were both juniors in college, and this was the first presidential election that either one of them had really cared about. They both remembered the elections in 1952 and 1956, but those had been Dwight Eisenhower’s elections—and everyone knew Dwight Eisenhower was going to win. This year had been different.
This year, people had really cared about the election. All across campus, everyone seemed to have an opinion, and everyone was taking a side. Loretta’s boyfriend, Johnny, had sided with Richard Nixon, saying he would keep America on the same path that Eisenhower had laid out. But Loretta and Penny were both infatuated by John Kennedy.
Kennedy was young and handsome. He was a fresh face with new ideas. By comparison, at least in Loretta’s mind, Nixon seemed old and crusty. Some were bothered by the fact that Kennedy was Catholic—she’d heard a lot of that. Others said he didn’t have enough experience. None of that mattered to Loretta, though; she’d picked her candidate and she was sticking with him.
She and Penny had thrown themselves into the election with gusto. They had become members of the campus’s Young Democrats group and volunteered to help in every way they could. They’d knocked on doors encouraging people to get out and vote, they’d handed out flyers, they’d made signs which were now hanging in various places around campus. They’d worn their campaign buttons every day, and they’d debated with classmates over the merits of each candidate. Loretta was particularly proud of that last fact, since she and Penny were in the first class of females at her college that was allowed to attend courses with male students.
She’d even had disagreements with her parents over who the next president should be. It seemed like most of the older generation was backing Nixon. Yet one more reason to support Kennedy, in Loretta’s mind, at least.
Election night had come at last. Loretta and Penny had spent the evening in the same place as everyone else—glued to the television. Most of the girls in their dormitory had watched the election returns in the dorm lounge—which featured the only television in the building. There were supporters from both sides watching, and all the girls had fun viewing the broadcast as the returns came in. They were chatting, teasing each other, and laughing. Some, like Loretta and Penny, were genuinely interested in the results, while others were treating it more like a party—but they all had a great time.
Now it was over. The final results of the election had not been officially announced yet, but at the time the station went off the air, it was beginning to look more and more like Kennedy would prevail. The party had broken up, and the dorm mother had shooed them away, telling them all to get to bed.
Loretta and Penny returned to their room that evening, glowing, with smiles etched on their faces. All that work, the emotional investment they had made in the election—it had really paid off. Sure, deep down, both of them knew that their efforts had not really altered the outcome of the election, but it still made them feel good—like they had really been a part of something big.
“I knew he’d win, I really did,” Penny said, beaming as she shut the door to their room behind them. “Ever since that debate. Ugh, Nixon looked so bad.”
Loretta flopped down on her bed and kicked her saddle shoes off without untying them (something her mother always hated). “Well, it’s not over yet,” she said cautiously. As she rubbed her tired feet, she added, “For all we know, we could get up in the morning and Nixon will be president.”
“It’ll never happen,” Penny retorted. Penny took off her shoes as well, and stretched her toes, wiggling them playfully. “Hey, I’ve been saving something for a special occasion.” She went over to a closet and produced two bottles of coke from their private stash. She used a bottle opener and opened both before handing one to Loretta.
“A bottle of coke?” Loretta laughed. “That’s not exactly something we save for a special occasion,” she chided. Loretta set her bottle of coke on a nearby desk and flipped open her red and white record case, searching for a good song to play. She selected “Maybe Baby” by Buddy Holly. As she gently placed it on the record player, she closed her eyes reverently and softly said, “We miss you, Buddy.”
“The coke is not what I’ve been saving,” Penny said. She then opened up one of her drawers and rummaged through it, finding something that she had clearly hidden underneath her clothes. She withdrew a bottle of vodka and showed it off to Loretta with a smile.
Loretta snorted with laughter and put a hand over her mouth. “Where did you get that? We could get in so much trouble if anyone found out.”
“No one’s gonna find out,” Penny said as she stepped over and locked the door. “I stole it from my parents,” she explained, “they’ll never miss it.” As she spoke, she carefully broke the seal on the bottle and opened the top. She drank a small amount of coke out of her own bottle, so there would be enough room for the alcohol, and poured some in. She then turned to Loretta and held out the bottle.
Loretta had never drunk before—well, not really. She had taken sips of her parents' wine, and she’d taken a drink of a beer that Johnny had been drinking one night. But she had never ‘drank’ before. She studied the bottle carefully, trying to make that crucial decision.
“Come on, you know you want to,” Penny teased.
With a sip of her coke, Loretta made up her mind. She accepted the bottle from Penny and poured the vodka in.
The first drink was revolting. It was so strong and foul, she nearly spat it out. “Ugh, is it supposed to taste like that?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Penny responded. “You’ll get used to it.”
Loretta took another drink. The second wasn’t nearly as bad, because she was expecting it. “Yuck, I’m not sure I want to get used to it. It tastes about like Richard Nixon looks.”
Penny took a swig of her own coke and rolled her eyes. “Ugh, no more politics. I’ve had enough of that to last me about—oh, four years, I suppose.”
They both laughed wholeheartedly and each took another drink of their pop. Penny was right, Loretta got used to the taste pretty quickly, and before she knew it, she had finished off the entire bottle of coke. She could tell her cheeks were very flushed, and a somewhat pleasant buzzing sensation seemed to be filling her entire head.
She and Penny chatted up a storm as they unwound from their exciting evening. They changed into more comfortable clothing as they prepared for bed, but neither one of them was in any kind of mood to go to sleep. They each put on a nightie that came down to about mid-thigh. Showing off that much leg might have been scandalous if anyone else had been in the room, but with just each other, neither one felt the slightest reservation.
After they had changed, Loretta sat back down on her bed, leaning with her back against the red brick wall, her bare feet and legs stretching out in front of her.
“You want another?” Penny asked, reaching back into the closet for two more bottles of coke.
“I don’t know, two cokes in one night, I’ll have to pee in the middle of the night! What the hell, you only live once,” she finally agreed.
With that, Penny uncapped the two bottles, took a drink out of each one, and poured in more vodka. Loretta couldn’t help but notice that Penny poured in quite a bit more than she had the first time around. As the other girl brought the drinks over to the bed, Loretta smiled at her. “I saw how much of that you poured in.”
“I know, I know,” Penny admitted. “It’ll be a little stronger, but—like you said, you only live once. Now, scoot over.”
Loretta shuffled her body, making room for Penny on the bed. The two girls had known each other practically their entire lives, so this type of closeness was common. They’d slept on the same bed before. They’d changed clothes in front of each other, and when they were little kids they had even taken baths together on occasion.
As Penny made herself comfortable on the bed, the old metal bedsprings creaked loudly beneath them. She tilted the top of her bottle towards Loretta, as if to toast. “To the new President—whoever he may be,” she said.
Loretta tapped her own bottle against Penny’s, making the glass clink together. “To the new president,” she repeated. They each took a big gulp from their bottles. This time, Loretta didn’t gag, or recoil from the taste, she simply drank it down, eagerly.
As they drank their second bottles, they talked about a lot of different things—anything but politics. They discussed their classes, they dreamed about what they were going to do after they graduated, and they chatted about guys. They’d had dozens of late-night conversations like this over the years, and ever since they were about twelve, it always seemed to come back to boys—always boys.
“So, why don’t you go on a date with Brad already?” Loretta asked. “He obviously like you.”
Penny seemed to shy away from the question. “I don’t know, I guess I’ve just always had bad luck with boys that have blond hair.”
Loretta snorted. “Oh, come on, it’s not like you have to marry him. Just go on a date with him. Who knows, you might hit it off.”
Penny was quiet for a moment, as if she was contemplating something. She took another sip of coke and then said, “I have a question.”
“Okay, shoot,” Loretta said playfully as she took another swig of her own drink.
Penny seemed to hesitate, as if she wasn’t sure how to ask what she was wanting to ask. “How do you kiss?” she finally blurted out.
Loretta giggled. “What do you mean, how do you kiss? You know how to kiss, I’ve seen you do it. You just put your lips against the guy and, voilà, you’re kissing.”
“No, that’s not what I meant,” Penny explained. “I mean, how do you kiss?” she asked again, emphasizing the word ‘you’. She raised her knees and placed her hands on them. “I mean, I’ve watched you do it before—out of the corner of my eye, I mean—and you just look so confident, like you really know what you’re doing.”
Loretta thought about it for a second, trying to find the right words. “I have no idea, to be honest. I don’t think about it, I just do it.” She was quiet for a moment, still attempting to put her kissing technique into words. She curled a lock of her short blonde hair around her finger, contemplating. “Why do you want to know?”
Penny rested her head against Loretta’s shoulder. “I’ve just always been very self-conscious about my own kissing ability. I never feel like I’m doing it right.” She sighed, “I’ve felt that way ever since Tony Scaponi.”
“Tony Scaponi?” Loretta said, trying to remember the name. “Oh, I remember him. Little rat-faced guy that moved away—you kissed him?”
“Sure did,” Penny admitted. “At that Halloween party, remember?”
“Ohhhhh, yeah, I remember,” Loretta replied.
“Anyways, he told me I was a lousy kisser and I needed to learn how to do it right,” Penny explained. “Ever since then, I’ve always…” she trailed off, not finishing her sentence.
“You shouldn’t worry about what Tony Scaponi or any other guy says. You kiss just fine and if they don’t like it, forget them,” Loretta said emphatically.
“How would you know how I kiss,” Penny replied, now twirling her own curly brunette hair through her fingers.
“Well, you’re right, I don’t,” Loretta agreed, “but I’m not sure there really is a right way to kiss someone. You just do it.”
“Would you teach me?” Penny said suddenly.
“Teach you? How can I teach you, other than—” Loretta started, then assumed a look of dawning comprehension. “You mean you want me to—”
“Kiss me,” Penny said with a nod.
Loretta balked. “But, we can’t—that’s not—”
“Please,” Penny begged. “No one will ever see it. It’s just you and me. No one will ever know.”
“Are you really that self-conscious about your kissing abilities?” Loretta asked, more than a little nervous.
“Yes. It would really mean a lot to me if you would,” Penny answered. Then, she assumed a playful expression and gave Loretta her best imitation of a sad puppy dog. “Come on, do it for me,” she said, in a mock-tearful voice.
This made Loretta laugh. Penny could always make Loretta laugh—every time. No matter her mood, no matter how bad of a day she had been having, Penny could make her laugh. Penny also had a way of getting Loretta to do every single thing she wanted. So, from the moment the request was made, subconsciously, Loretta knew she would give in eventually… and she did.
“Well, if it means that much to you, then, come here,” Loretta said. Her heart was thumping inside her chest so hard, she was surprised Penny couldn’t hear it. She had never even dreamed of kissing another girl before. The thought had never crossed her mind, not once.
The two girls leaned in towards each other, and their lips met. That was the first thing Loretta noticed. Penny’s lips. Penny’s lips were so soft, so delicate. She was used to Johnny’s lips. Johnny was, well, a man. His lips were coarse, and she could always feel his stubble where his mustache would be if he had one. But not here. Penny’s skin was so soft, her lips moist. There was a delicacy to the way their lips came together.
Something about it felt so perfect, so right. It felt like nothing she had ever done before—because she hadn’t. Loretta backed away just a bit, and whispered, “And then, when you know it’s the right time, you do this.” She kissed Penny again, and this time, slipped her tongue inside Penny’s mouth. Penny accepted it eagerly, feeling Loretta’s tongue with her own.
The second thing Loretta noticed was Penny’s freckles. She had always known her friend had freckles, but seeing them from this close was a different experience. She liked them. It made Penny’s face distinct, and cute.
The second kiss lasted for ten or fifteen seconds before Loretta pulled away again.
“That was amazing,” Penny said, stunned. “You really are an incredible kisser. How was I?” She asked apprehensively.
Loretta giggled. “I don’t know, I forgot to check,” she admitted. “We better try it one more time,” and she leaned in once more, kissing her friend for a third time.
This time, it lasted longer, and Loretta could sense that both of them were losing their inhibitions towards the act. She pulled away once more, sucking on Penny’s lower lip just a little as she did so. “Oh, Penny, you’ve got nothing to worry about, you’re a great kisser.”
“Really?” Penny said, blushing just a little. “I mean, you’re not just saying that? To make me feel better?”
Loretta smiled coyly. “If I was just saying that to make you feel better, would I do this?” she asked, as she leaned in again, and placed her lips on Penny’s for a fourth time. Now they weren’t practicing. There was no more instruction, no more teaching—she was just kissing Penny because she wanted to be kissing her… and Penny was kissing back.
After several minutes of increasingly passionate necking, Loretta whispered through heavy breathing, “What in God’s name are we doing?”
“I don’t know,” Penny answered, “But whatever it is, don’t stop.”
“I won’t,” Loretta promised.
Penny’s lips found Loretta’s neck, and then the area where her neck met her shoulder. Instinctively, one of Penny’s hands landed on Loretta’s bare thigh. Loretta shuddered. This isn’t right, she thought. We shouldn’t be doing this. But then, Penny’s hand drifted further up the leg, and Loretta shuddered for a different reason.
As Penny’s hand moved higher and higher, her delicate fingers were now on Loretta’s inner thigh, just inches from her vagina. She realized that Penny was now touching her in a spot that only she herself had touched—no other hands had ever been this high up on her thigh, not even Johnny.
Then, she touched it. Penny felt Loretta between her legs. For the first time, it occurred to Loretta how incredibly hot and wet she was. She could feel the wetness as Penny pressed against her panties with her hand. As Penny massaged her, Loretta’s thoughts were caught somewhere between Oh my God, this is wrong and Oh my God, this feels so damn good. But she knew that this feels so damn good was winning out—quickly. She spread her legs apart and whispered, “Whatever you’re doing—keep doing it.”
Penny’s fingers slipped past her panties, and Loretta felt another human’s fingers brush up against the lips of her pussy for the very first time. She quivered with delight. It felt so good. Everything about it.
While Penny’s hand seemed to be acting of its own accord, their kisses continued. Penny alternated from kissing Loretta’s lips, to kissing her neck and chest. Loretta was in ecstasy. She had no idea that something like this could be so pleasurable.
Then, Penny’s hand was not between her legs anymore. The kisses suddenly stopped, and Penny pulled away. For a moment, Loretta thought she had done something wrong. Or maybe Penny was suddenly feeling guilty about what they were doing. But Loretta didn’t want it to end. She felt a longing inside her like she’d never felt. She couldn’t let it stop there. How cruel could Penny be to leave her in such an aroused state?
Fortunately, Penny had not suddenly felt guilty. To Loretta’s relief, Penny’s next words were exactly what she had been thinking herself.
“If we’re going to do this,” Penny said, sounding fully in command of the situation, “then we really should do it right.” As she spoke the words, she reached down and started pulling Loretta’s nightie up over her tummy. Loretta knew what she was trying to do and assisted. In just a moment, Loretta was sitting on the bed, wearing only her panties. She then returned the favor, lifting Penny’s nightie up and over her head.
“That’s better,” Penny said with a smile. She leaned in and kissed Loretta’s breasts. Another sensation that Loretta had never experienced. Penny’s lips were so soft, her tongue so gentle. She felt the other girl’s tongue caress both of her nipples in turn.
Penny kissed her way down Loretta’s torso. First, she kissed the spot between Loretta’s tits, and then between her rib cage, and then just above her belly button. The next kiss landed on her belly button, and she licked at it tenderly. Another kiss just below her belly button. Loretta let out a long sigh, half exasperation, and half disbelief. She knew where Penny was going, and couldn’t believe it was happening.
She’d heard people talk about lesbians before. She knew they were out there, she knew people joked about them, made fun of them. Is that what this is? Is that what Penny and I are doing? It feels too damn incredible. Why would people make fun of it and dismiss it?
Penny tugged Loretta’s panties off. That was it. Loretta was now completely naked, lying on the bed, waiting for Penny to make the next move. Loretta had relinquished control of the situation. It had started out with Loretta kissing Penny, but now, whatever they were doing, Penny was calling the shots.
She felt Penny’s lips once more, this time, in the middle of her mound of pubic hair. She generally tried to keep it well-groomed, so it wouldn’t be coming out from around the edges of her panties, but it was still a full-fledged tuft of hair. Then, Loretta quivered once more as lips met lips. Penny’s wet, soft lips kissed Loretta’s labia. And then a tongue. “Oh, God!” Loretta softly moaned.
She couldn’t believe that she was doing this with Penny. Little Penny, who she walked to school with every day. Funny Penny who’d slept over at her house a dozen times. Crazy Penny who had convinced her to skip school that one time in ninth grade. Pretty Penny, who had convinced her to cut off most of her hair during their senior year in high school.
Involuntarily, her legs spread further apart, and Penny’s tongue began to dart in and out, and then found Loretta’s clitoris. Loretta moaned and gently placed a hand on the back of Penny’s head, playing with her curly brown hair as she worked her magic—making Loretta want more and more.
It was over too soon though. Penny came up for air, and crawled her way back to Loretta’s side. “Why’d you stop?” Loretta demanded. “That felt incredible.”
“That’s why I stopped,” Penny said with a smile. “I want it to last all night… and… it’s my turn,” she said simply.
“Your turn?” Loretta questioned at first, not understanding what Penny meant. But then she understood. “Oh,” she replied. Suddenly, she felt her courage wane. She wasn’t sure she could return the favor. She wasn’t sure she could—and then something snapped inside her, and she was certain she could. “You mean, it’s my turn, don’t you?” she finally replied with a mischievous grin.
She pounced on top of Penny, kissing her breasts the same way that Penny had done to her. She suckled Penny’s nipples, making them hard. The novelty of having Penny’s tits in her face was enough to almost make her laugh. They were beautiful. Round and firm, just the right size—just like everything else about Penny. She’d always had an amazing body. She was also pleased to see that the freckles were not confined to Penny’s face. They dotted her chest and shoulders as well. This attracted Loretta to Penny even more.
Loretta began her descent, very slowly. Kissing her way down Penny’s tummy, mimicking Penny’s actions from earlier. Kissing her belly button, kissing that little spot right below her belly button.
And there she was. At Penny’s mid-section. The moment of truth. Penny was still wearing panties. Loretta reached out nervously, her fingers trembling. She gripped the panties with both hands and pulled downward, slipping them off. As she did so, she felt Penny’s smooth legs. She couldn’t get enough of them. She ran her hands up and down, caressing her thighs, her calves, back to her thighs, her inner thighs.
She finally brought her full attention to Penny’s pussy. She stared down at the glorious mound of hair between Penny’s legs. So full, so black, so curly, just like the hair on Penny’s head. Penny had exquisitely groomed herself so that the hair created a perfect triangle.
Loretta made a split decision and decided to try something Penny had not. Once again, with a trembling hand, she reached out to make physical contact with Penny’s private parts for the first time. Before she had even touched it, she could feel the intense heat radiating from her friend. Then, she felt its wetness, it was sopping. Penny must be even more aroused than I am, Loretta thought.
She slipped a finger in between the dripping pink folds. Penny gasped. Loretta was almost certain that was the first time her friend had ever been penetrated. They’d never talked with each other about masturbation, but she knew the girl was still a virgin. She manipulated her fingers, working them in and out of Penny’s slit, first just with one finger, then with two. With a little practice, she discovered she could use her thumb to massage Penny’s clit as well. This made Penny moan with delight.
After fingering her friend for several minutes, Loretta finally decided it was time to take the plunge. In a way, she’d almost been avoiding it. Still unsure if she could go through with this final, ultimate act. She positioned herself between Penny’s legs, and lowered her head. She kissed Penny gently between the legs for the first time, taking in the powerful aroma, the heat, the wetness. She took a deep breath, bracing herself, trying to calm her nerves, and then dove her tongue inside.
From the moment her tongue tasted Penny’s pussy for the first time, she knew that she had made the right decision. It tasted like nothing she had ever tasted before, a flavor that she couldn’t quite describe. As she listened to the soft cooing noises that Penny was making, she also discovered something else.
She enjoyed giving someone else pleasure. This thought had never occurred to her before. It gave Loretta pleasure to give that much satisfaction to someone else. She was strangely reminded of the joy she had felt when someone else opened a present from her. It was like that, only 10,000 times more intense. It turned her on. The more little noises that Penny made, the more it aroused her.
Loretta gripped Penny’s thighs so she could bring the other girl’s waist into her face even more. Penny started grinding her hips, rocking and rolling. Loretta suddenly remembered what Penny had done earlier, and how it drove Loretta crazy with desire when she had stopped so suddenly. She pulled her tongue away from Penny’s clit, and slurped one more time at her labia, before backing off completely.
She glanced up at Penny, knowing that her face was probably a mess of spit and drool running down her chin, but she didn’t care. She was seeking approval. Just as much as Penny had wanted to be a good kisser earlier, now, Loretta discovered that she wanted to be good at this.
“How’d I do?” Loretta asked earnestly.
“You’re amazing,” Penny replied.
Loretta returned to Penny’s side and the two girls, now without a stitch of clothing between them, wrapped their bodies around each other. Legs intertwining. Arms hugging. Hands exploring. Lips locking. Tongues mingling. Neither one of them wanted it to end.
“I have an idea,” Penny said, “if you’re up for it, that is,” she added.
“I’m up for about anything, right now,” Loretta replied.
“Well, I don’t even really know if this is possible, but I’ve heard of people doing it,” Penny started to explain, almost bashfully.
“What is it?” Loretta pressed.
“I—I don’t think I could explain it,” Penny continued. “I’ll just have to show you.”
With that, she raised herself up and turned herself around. As she did so, she straddled Loretta, who was both confused, and at the same time, mesmerized by Penny’s tight ass, which she was now getting a full view of.
Penny continued to adjust her position, and then lowered herself down, bending over until Loretta once again felt her friend’s tongue tickling her pussy. However, to her surprise, Penny’s nether region was now right in front of her own face. It was obvious to Loretta what she was supposed to be doing, so she raised her head slightly and dug in.
It was an overwhelming sensation. The idea that she was both receiving pleasure, and providing pleasure at the same time was almost too much for her alcohol-addled mind to handle. She didn’t know it was possible to experience gratification on so many different levels at once.
They stayed in that position for quite a while, both perfectly content to continue pleasing the other. Loretta’s tongue locked on to Penny’s clitoris, she sensed that every time she focused on it, something happened to Penny’s body. She shivered, shuddered, gasped, and moaned. Within just a few minutes, her tongue became an expert, flicking, tickling, and licking.
Penny’s reactions were intense. She was trying as best she could to continue lapping away at Loretta’s slit, but what Loretta was doing to her proved impossible to ignore. She finally gave up, and surrendered to the onslaught of Loretta’s tongue. She sat up slightly, burying her pussy in Loretta’s face.
Loretta was grateful for this because it took some of the strain off of her neck. She could lay back and focus on what she was trying to accomplish. She could feel Penny’s hips shaking above her. She could see her friend’s thighs start to quake. The girl’s knees trembled. Penny made a sound like Loretta had never heard her make before.
Penny collapsed on top of Loretta, allowing her full weight to bear down on top of her. She took a couple of deep, shaky breaths. Loretta wasn’t entirely sure what she had done, but she knew she had done it right.
Penny took another moment to recover, and then seemed to remember what she had been doing earlier. Loretta’s snatch was still right in front of her. Loretta felt Penny’s tongue once more, licking that special spot between her legs. Penny seemed to have learned from what had just happened to her, because Loretta felt Penny focusing on her clit, just as she had done.
Loretta began to realize just how much pleasure she had given her friend. She started to squirm. She reached up and grabbed hold of Penny’s ass, just because it was so smooth and so firm, she wanted to feel it—and she just needed something to hold on to. She bucked her hips, writhing in rhythm with Penny’s tongue. She started kissing at Penny’s thighs, wanting to do anything and everything she could to take her mind off of what Penny’s tongue was doing.
Her toes curled, gripping the sheets of the bed. She clenched the muscles in her ass. A low, guttural groan escaped her lips, coming from deep inside her somewhere. Perspiration gathered on her forehead. And then it was over. She sighed heavily with relief. Penny must have noticed the change in Loretta’s body. She relaxed on top of her and crawled off, resuming her position at Loretta’s side.
They kissed once more. “You really are a great kisser,” Loretta joked. “Tony Scaponi had no clue what he was talking about.”
They continued experimenting and exploring for much of the night. They eventually fell asleep in each other’s arms, still stark naked, with Loretta using Penny’s chest as a pillow. Just before she drifted off, Loretta gazed up at Penny and noticed a single tear streaking down her cheek. “Crying?” Loretta asked. “Did I do something wrong?”
“No,” Penny comforted. “It’s a happy cry.”
Loretta woke the next morning to the sound of “Dream, Dream, Dream,” by the Everly Brothers playing on her record player. Penny was sitting next to the open window, smoking a cigarette. They weren’t supposed to smoke in the dorms, but almost everyone did. Loretta sat up, leaning on her elbow, and couldn’t help but stare at her friend's beautiful bare legs. Before she had gone to sleep the night before, she had thought she would wake up and realize what a terrible mistake they had made. That wasn’t the case though. The night before had been incredible and she was still turned on by her friend.
“So, are we lesbians now?” Loretta asked, only half-joking.
Penny giggled. “Hell no, I’d look horrible in hiking boots,” she quipped before taking a drag from her cigarette. “I don’t know about you, but I still like men.”
“So, what are we then?” Loretta asked, smiling. “Because, yeah, I still like guys, but, I think maybe I like women too—especially you. And I’m certain I don’t want to live the rest of my life without ever experiencing that again.”
“I don’t know,” Penny said honestly. “Maybe we’re somewhere in between.”
Loretta smiled contentedly. “I think I like the sound of that. Somewhere in between.”
Loretta and Penny lived together for the remainder of their college careers. After that, they shared an apartment for about three years before both of them got married to great guys. However, throughout those four and a half years, they spent many nights in each other’s arms, comforting each other over lost boyfriends, and lost presidents, but also celebrating many happy moments as well.
(Author’s note): I had the pleasure of meeting Penny at my aunt’s funeral. Yes, it was a bit awkward, since I had heard this story in such detail. But, she was a super friendly lady and I could instantly see why my aunt had such an affection for her. She had a great personality and a wonderful sense of humor. I talked to her at length (not about this, of course) and she told me many fun stories about my aunt that I had never heard before.
Oh, and for the record, despite their youthful confidence when they turned in that evening, Kennedy wasn’t actually declared the victor until well into the next morning. Things worked a lot slower back then than they do today.
