(NEW in bold) Your Madonna is way better...

"Okay, so that was intense," JJ said. We'd closed the restaurant and were sitting at one of the tables sipping wine. It was the first time we'd had the opportunity to talk since Ben had dropped the multiple bombs.

I took a big sip, hoping it might anesthetize my screaming nerves. "I honestly don't know what to think?" I said.

JJ took issue with that. "Um... what do you mean you don't know what to think? You should know exactly what to think."

"What?"

JJ blinked in disbelief and leaned forward. "Honey, that's a real man right there."

"Huh?" I shook my head. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Have you ever heard anyone be so brutally honest before?"

"No, but what's that got to do with it?" I was starting to get pissed off.

"Hello, he's not perfect and he can admit it out loud—even if he knows it will paint him in a crappy light. And he accepts responsibility for what he did. He admits his fault. Big respect!" JJ said this while holding his glass in the air momentarily as if he was toasting someone, then took a sip. "I'm not sure I could do that. Could you?" He shot me a loaded look, and I knew exactly what it meant. I knew I also had secrets that I hadn't shared with Ben. But at least I hadn't pulled him into a very public lie. I was still not as moved by Ben's confession as JJ clearly was.

"How much have you told Ben about your past?" JJ asked. "How many times have you failed to mention it so people don't judge you."

"So what are you saying? That I should forget what happened and go out with him? A self- confessed cheat?"

JJ shook his head. "No. Not at all. You've got to figure that one out yourself, but all I'm saying is that he's the most real human being I've ever met."

Bruce nodded. "It took guts to do what he did."

"I suppose," I said, "but he has an ex-wife and a kid, and he was a bad husband, and he beats people up."

"Judgemental much?!" JJ spoke again, "Remember, he also got married at nineteen, and to a mad bitch by the sounds of it. Of course he was a shitty husband. What teenage guy wouldn't be? God, I could never have settled down at nineteen. Let alone have a kid and be the kind of father he clearly is."

"So that makes everything okay?

"No, of course not. But sometimes you have to look at the full picture. Not everything is black and white, Sera."

I put my head down and slumped forward onto the table, letting out a long and loud moan. "Urrrgggghhhh. But he lied."

"He's also mad about you." I felt JJ put a hand on my back, and I shot up.

"And that's the other thing I don't get about him. Why? How? He hardly knows me and he claims he's in love. He's obviously mad. And I could never go out with anyone who was a lunatic."

"Love is mental, honey." JJ tipped his glass at Bruce. "Just ask that one how he fell in love with me?" He smiled at his partner affectionately and I turned to look at him.

"I saw him doing a Cher impersonation at a club." Bruce said.

"I do a really good one," JJ piped up quickly.

"You fell in love with him when he was dressed as Cher?" I asked.

Bruce nodded. "On the spot. I hadn't even spoken to him yet." He turned to JJ now. "Your Madonna is still way better, though."

JJ nodded in agreement.

I couldn't believe I hadn't ever heard this story before. It had never occurred to me to ask how they met; I just assumed they'd always known each other. "What did you do?" I asked.

"Well of course I was too shy to speak to him," Bruce said. "I was this nerdy little accounting student hiding my sexuality, and he was this fabulous, loud, performer who was the center of every single room he was in."

"Little did he know how much I loved nerdy little accountants." JJ smiled over at Bruce.

"So what happened next?" I asked.

"Well," Bruce continued, "I just watched him. I went to all the gay clubs he was preforming at and would sit there and have a few drinks trying to pluck up the courage to speak to him."

"For a whole year!" JJ added loudly while patting Bruce on the arm. "It took him a whole year to finally speak to me."

"And what did you say?" I asked.

Bruce laughed. "I overheard him complaining to someone that he had no idea how to do his taxes, so I offered to help."

I burst out laughing, "After a year, your big pick up was "can I help you do your taxes?"

"It worked, though." JJ leaned over and gave Bruce a kiss on the cheek.

"But you guys were meant to be together though." I said.

"And how do you know you and Ben aren't meant to be together? JJ looked across the table at me.

"What?"

"He seems to think so at least." JJ said topping up our wine.

"He said that?"

JJ nodded. "That guy has it sooo bad. And I don't know...I don't think I've ever seen you so messed up over a guy before either."

He was right. I'd never been this messed up over anyone before. What was it about him? From our very first time together. He'd looked at me like he knew me and I'd felt so close to him for some inexplicable reason.

"But he made me lie today." My voice quivered. "I hate lying"—It reminded me of my father.

"You caught him off guard." JJ offered. "What would you have done in that situation? What if it was him walking in on you, on some crazy run-of-the-mill Saturday night with your dad being dragged off by the police? You would be the first to pretend you didn't know the guy and lie about who he was."

"I... uh..." I couldn't defend that. It was totally true.

"Let's be honest here, Sera. How many people have you lied to about who your family are, all because you don't want to be judged?" JJ wasn't mincing his words, and if anyone else in the world had said something like that to me, I would have been offended. But how could I be offended if he was right. I'd told so many lies about who my parents were and where I was from. I'd even gone as far as telling the girls at my new school, the one I'd tried to make a fresh start at, that my dad was dead when he was actually spending time in jail.

"I'm kind of on JJ's side here, I mean, how long did it take for you to tell Schnitzel about your family and why you were always having to rush off in the middle of the night?"

"His name was Manfred, not Schnitzel!" I looked over at the guys and rolled my eyes. My ex-boyfriend had been German which had automatically gotten him the name "Schnitzel". 'At least it's not Weiner,' JJ had said when I'd complained about it.

"So what are you guys trying to say here? That I'm also a bad person because I lied about my family?"

"Hey!" Bruce held his hand up. "No one is a bad person here, least of all our Sera. Personally I think Ben's a nice guy who's made some terrible mistakes that he's genuinely sorry for. We've all make mistakes. I'm not saying you should forgive him and just go out with him but..." He shrugged. "Well, I can't tell you what to do. We'll support you in whatever you decide."

I nodded slowly. "And everything at work? How can I go back there when everyone knows and they all hate me?"

"They don't hate you, they are all just jealous bitches." JJ clicked his fingers.

"But they know. And they think I slept with that photographer too."

"Dolce Delish." JJ suddenly burst out laughing and Bruce quickly followed.

"Schnitzel and Dolce Delish... what's with you and these European men?" Bruce and JJ were still laughing.

"I think the real questions is what's with you two naming the men in my life after food stuffs?"

"That is so totally untrue. We've been secretly calling Ben the panty smuggler behind your back!" JJ said and the two then roared with even more laughter.

I shook my head with an amused smile and waited for the hyenas to tapper off. When they finally did, "Now that you've stopped laughing at my expense, can we get serious again about work." The both nodded and tried to wipe the smiles off their faces. "I just don't think I can go back to work."

"Well, don't then." Bruce offered.

"Great idea. I'll just have to substitute my income by standing on the corner of Oxford Street with all those other girls. JJ, I'll have to borrow some of your whore heels though." I threw the wine back. It was a joke. Sort of. Because if I didn't have that job anymore, then how the hell was I going to make enough money every month? There were only so many burgers and drinks you could serve.

"The guy nextdoor finally sold." Bruce sounded triumphant.

"What?" I gasped. "That's great."

"We were going to tell you tonight and have a bit of a cele." JJ said.

"I can't believe it. That's amazing."

"And there's going to be a shitload to do. We want to set up a coffee shop asap, capitalize on lunch and breakfast." Bruce said excitedly.

"Morroccan inspired. Cushions on the floor, those low tables, intricate mosaic walls, those big brass chandelier lights and crazy strong coffee that will have everyone addicted." JJ added as if he already had the whole thing planned in his head.

"Sounds amazing." I said.

"We'll even hire of those hot barristers with a big sexy beard who'll draw all those coffee loving hipsters in." JJ added with a naughty smile.

I laughed. "Aren't you guys cool."

"And you'll run it and get it all set up." Bruce added.

"What?"

"You know this business inside out and we trust you. Besides, you'll have the worlds best bosses who you don't even have to sleep with to get the job."

"Ha Ha" I said sarcastically.

"It'll be so much fun." JJ chorused.

I smiled. "It does sound nice." But anything other than going into work on Monday sounded nice. Anything to avoid Ben and all those prying eyes.

I nodded. "When do we get started, "I asked."