CHAPTER FIVE: Oh Fudge!

Simplicity was the name of the game. Tina wanted it this year, so of course, Bette didn’t have any choice but to abide by her wishes. Not that she had any objections, mind you, she was always more than happy to obey her lover’s every whim. Although, the heiress did have a lot of trouble fulfilling her beloved’s request to practice austerity this time around. A generous being by nature, it was in her blood to spoil and pamper the ones she held most dear to her heart. She justified her splurging with the argument that since she only surrounded herself with the best people, shouldn’t it follow then that they deserve the best from her too? For more than three years of being a couple, Tina was the major recipient and beneficiary of her girlfriend’s unselfishly giving ways. From jewelry to vacations to state-of-the-art gadgets and large parties in her honor – a benevolent Bette didn’t hold back when it came to the love of her young life. And with the anniversary of the day they first crossed paths in Redwind Academy looming near, and her penchant for showering close friends and family with extravagant gifts, the challenge to give a simple present this year proved to be a daunting and overwhelming task. How can you make things simple when you were anything but simple? She promised to spend little to nothing – but how little was little? How cheap was cheap? That was Bette’s dilemma. If Tina didn’t want to receive expensive luxuries like the newest Eau de Parfum by Valentino which was being retailed at $100, should she get her the slightly inexpensive – well it was about ten dollars cheaper – Very Irresistible Sensual perfume by Givenchy instead? How about the gorgeous white $3,200 mini-dress from Chanel’s spring/summer collection, or maybe the slightly similar but $150-less version of it by Jean Paul Gaultier?

Apart from other pressing things in her life, thinking about her present for the blonde was one of the things that kept her awake at night. At her wits end after a particularly draining brainstorming session, she caved in and asked Tina to set a specific price range for their gifts and put her out of her misery once and for all. And believe me, it was something Bette regretted immediately. To her absolute horror, her notoriously frugal – bordering on being a complete cheapskate – girlfriend didn’t want anything past the $15 mark. And for someone who wanted to give her love the best present ever, a fifteen dollar budget was, for the lack of a better term, pitiful.