“Yes, just up the coast from Philly… I attended Yale for my undergrad and masters… History of Art…” Hearing Tina giggle, she glanced over, “What?”  questioning the blonde’s amusement.

“Oh, I was just thinking how my mother would react if she knew I was on a date with a fellow alum from her alma mater.”  Tina said turning her gaze to the distance offered by the window as she reflected on the thought with a grin.

After a pause, “Wait a minute…”  Bette began, getting the blonde’s attention.  “Kennard?... Rachel Kennard… is Rachel Kennard your mother?..”  Seeing the affirmative expression on the cellist, “OMG Tina, your mother is a… well she’s… “ suddenly stumbling her words after trapping herself into stating the obvious.

“A Lesbian?...”  Tina finished with a chuckle.

“Well yeah… her publications are legendary… I remember reading her column in the Yale Herald archives after I finished ‘Leaving Him Behind’ … I couldn’t get enough of her work… she’s amazing… wow.”  Bette said completely star-struck. “You must have had an interesting childhood.”

“Yeah, it was different… mother moved back to North Carolina when she became pregnant with me, she wanted my grandparents active in my life… well, Chapel Hill is the home of University of North Carolina and probably the most liberal town in the state….”  The blonde chuckled, “but mother manages to push the buttons of most liberals, not to mention the conservatives who get her way….” Laughing lightly, “it was never dull, that’s for sure.” 

“I can only imagine…”  Bette said.  “Was it hard…” hesitating, “…I mean… growing up with an out lesbian as a mom?” 

Tina smiled warmly, noting the concerned expression on the gallery owner’s face. “I had a loving home to grow up in, that makes up for a lot, but there were times when our non-traditional lifestyles would get me down… mother’s spotlight wasn’t anymore of a challenge than my own when it came to making friends my own age or doing normal childhood activities.”

Bette remained quiet, hoping she hadn’t been insensitive with her question. 

“I didn’t attend regular school…” Tina continued with a positive tone.  “My grandparents taught at UNC and they home schooled me…  music was my gift and they made sure I had every opportunity to pursue it… I loved it… my music lessons and practice were in the mornings and my academics were in the afternoon.”  The cellists sighed and her voice softened.  “I was the little kid with the big wooden instrument and I didn’t go to school like others my age… that was strange to other kids all by itself…”  she chuckled, “mother… well, after she went head to head with Jessie Helms, I was five, people either applauded her  or feared her… that pretty much kept intolerance at bay in the town…” giving Bette a smile, “I was a social outcast all on my own… mother being a lesbian didn’t really make it hard as I experienced it.”

Bette looked on compassionately, she could relate to being a social outcast, being bi-racial introduced prejudice early in her life.  The brunette really hoped to lead the conversation to a more positive topic.  “You said earlier that you attended Juilliard, did you enjoy living in New York?” 

“Yes and no…” Tina began as she settled her gaze looking forward out the window.  “I moved there when I was sixteen and was excited to be going to a place where there were so many like-minded people…”  She took in a deep breath and exhaled with a sigh.  “I really thought going to school with other musicians was a dream come true.”  Tina paused her words for a few moments letting the emotions pass as she remembered them, loneliness chief among them.

“My teacher at Juilliard had the influence to keep me out of required orchestra performing so he could mentor me as a soloist… though it proved to be the best for me in transitioning from prodigy to professional, it kept me in the role of social outcast.  For the first year I was pretty much a loner, then I met Shane…”  The cellist laughed lightly and a bright smile returned to her features.  “She lived with her great-aunt, an admissions secretary and used to hang out on campus waiting on her aunt to get off work…” she looked over at Bette.  “Shane was very caring with her elder aunt and would come to walk her home, it was sweet; she never missed a day…. Anyway, she was my age and we hit it off… I helped her with her schoolwork and she helped me out of my shell… New York became enjoyable after I met Shane.” 

Bette learned that Shane’s Aunt passed away shortly after Tina graduated and began touring.  To the gallery owner’s surprise, the unassuming brunette had earned a bachelor’s degree in Music Business at NYU Steinhardt and either personally handled or supervised the virtuoso’s business affairs. 

They had talked comfortably for the duration of the drive out of LA to the ocean road; Bette had talked about her friends, Dana and Alice, and found it easy to talk a little about her family life after talking about Kit.  The flow of their conversation was easy and amazed the brunette how open she was with the cellist. 

While at an intersection, Bette engaged the automatic convertible top, and as soon as the top cleared the blonde’s head she raised her arms above her head and looked up with a laugh.  “You should always ride with your top open!”