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Katherine had been going out with Sarah for a while now, and it was wonderful. Everything was just about perfect. There was just one thing: Katherine wasn’t attracted to Sarah in all of the ways that she thought partners were supposed to be attracted to each other. Sure, she loved her, so much. She loved being around her and holding her hand and giving her flowers and spending time with her and looking at her and all that. But there was one thing missing. And that thing was sex. That just wasn’t something that Katherine was into. But she heard the Newsies talk about it, and she remembered when she interviewed Jack for the strike, and when she asked him what he was hoping for tomorrow, he decided to show that he was interested in her by saying, “I’d rather tell you what I’m hoping for tonight.” And all of this made her think that she did need to be into that.
So she talked to Davey about it, and much to her surprise, she wasn’t alone in feeling that way. Apparently, he was like that too. He said he’d thought there was something wrong with him or maybe he didn’t actually love Jack like he thought he did. So he’d talked to Miss Medda, and she told him that it was actually completely normal to not feel that way about your partner, but still love them. He encouraged Katherine to communicate this with Sarah and suggested that she go to Miss Medda for advice on how to do it, because that’s where he learned all the best tips for telling Jack.
So after work, Katherine went to the theater, hoping Miss Medda was still there working on something. And she was. She was rehearsing a song for the next show when Katherine knocked on her door.
“Miss Larkin? I’m sorry to interrupt, but may I come in?” she asked, more timid than she usually was for some reason.
Miss Medda turned around and her face lit up when she saw that it was Katherine standing there. “Oh, hello, Katherine! Of course you may! Are you here to do an interview?”
“Hi, Miss Larkin. No, there’s no interview today. But I was hoping to ask you some questions.”
“Please, call me Miss Medda. And fire away! What questions?”
“I’ve been talking to Davey lately, and we seem to be having a similar…dilemma, for lack of better words.”
“What dilemma?”
“He already said something to you about this, but the dilemma of questioning the love we have for our partners because we’re not attracted sexually. We already solved that problem, he told me what you said to him about being asexual and not having to feel that way to know we love them. But I came to you for advice on how to tell Sarah about it.”
“Oh, of course, Katherine! Now tell me, do you want to bring this up casually or would you rather have it be more of a formal discussion?”
“Definitely more formal. I want to make a point of telling her this.”
“Alright sweetheart, here’s what you’re gonna do. You’ll get her alone, or maybe you’ll bring Davey along if you want, and you’re gonna explain to her that you love her so much, but sexual acts just aren’t how you show that love. Then explain that you’re asexual.”
“I will. Thank you, Miss L- Medda. Thank you, Miss Medda.”
“Anytime!”
“I’ll come back to let you know how it goes. I’m still a little nervous, but Davey said that any partner worth having will understand. So I’ll keep that in mind.”
“And he’s absolutely right about that.”
“Thank you.”
The next day, Katherine asked Sarah if she wanted to go take a walk around the city. This was something they did relatively often; it was their idea of a date. Once Katherine was sure that no one else would overhear the conversation, she began.
“So Sarah, there’s something you should know.”
“What is it?”
“Sarah, I love you, but you know that. I love you and I love spending time with you. But…”
“But what? Is everything okay?”
“Have you ever heard the word asexual?”
“I have. David told me he’s asexual. Why?”
“He did? Woo, that makes this so much easier.”
Sarah smiled. “You’re trying to tell me you’re asexual, aren’t you?”
Katherine nodded. “I am.”
“Well, that’s okay.”
“Really?”
“Of course it is, Kath! I’m glad you told me.”
Katherine gave a sigh of relief. “That’s good. Miss Medda told me that you’d understand.”
“That’s funny, David went to her for advice on how to tell Jack, too!”
“He’s the one who told me to ask her. Not too long ago, I told him how I was feeling, then he told me he felt like that too and to ask Miss Medda for advice.”
“And what did she tell you?”
“She said to either get you alone or bring Davey for emotional support, which I decided against because this feels like the kind of thing I should do alone, and just explain everything. That I love you, but I don’t feel that way about people.”
Sarah smiled. “I’m glad you took that advice, Kath.”
Katherine kissed Sarah on the cheek, wondering how she got so lucky.