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Cantara.
    Dean smiles; Cantara is the only one able to disagree with Tara and not spark her self-defensive and argumentative nature. “Besides,” he adds, “those colors have only been gender specific since the twentieth century, and only for the outside world. We don’t want to go back to stereotyping.”
    Siddhartha Seshadri, whom everyone calls Sid, tries another approach. “Why don’t we just use the joined male and female symbols? That would be easy and everyone knows it already.”
    Dean cocks an eyebrow. “That could work, I suppose.” Although Dean is not crazy about the idea, he, like nearly everyone in the group, feels the need at least to consider, if not always agree, with Sid.
    â€œBoring,” says Cantara, who, unlike everyone else, is not so easily swayed by Sid’s unintended influence. Cantara is extremely difficult to please and has no qualms uttering her opinion, regardless of how curt itis or whom it might displease. “We need something colorful, something exciting. Something everyone can relate to. Something everyone loves, you know, to help make us more endearing. Right now when people think of us, all they think of are things like gross and despicable. We want them to see us as beautiful beings, just like every other human.”
    â€œThat’s the key, Cantara.” Dean turns and smiles her way. Cantara flushes with joy. “Somehow, we’ve got to get across the idea that we are just like everyone else. It doesn’t matter whom a person is attracted to so long as we respect one another as humans.”
    Sid laughs. “It sounds like you’re talking about the gay pride flag, all the colors of the rainbow.”
    â€œWell, we can’t use the rainbow flag; that’s just for homosexuals,” Tara objects.
    â€œWhy not?” Dean asks. The idea intrigues him. “I mean, the original pride flag was really meant to reflect the different colors of human sexuality, and we’re one shade of that.”
    â€œYeah, but in the outside world, het’ros mock homosexuals and their pride flag.”
    â€œDo they? Do they all?” Dean questions. “No, seriously, people, think about it. Most of us in this room are either straight or bi, except for Sid.” Everyone turns and smiles Sid’s way, even Cantara. So far, Sid is the only gay person willing to associate with the group to make it a real GSA. “According to the media, straight people don’t exist in Hadrian.” Smiling, Dean adds, “Well, we know better. Will Middleton was straight. His son, Todd Middleton, was straight. I’m straight. Tara and Cantara here are both straight.” Continuing with his reasoning, Dean says, “So, if the media is wrong about us, then no one really knows what people outside our walls might think. All we have extolling strais’ evils, and most certainly not any virtues, is HNN, and there are days when I doubt its veracity.” No one can deny Dean’s censorship of Salve! and Hadrian’s National News. In the past year, HNN has undergone a major shift in management, and Melissa Eagleton has often contradicted herself in many of the Salve! episodes.
    â€œI know,” Prasert Niratpattanasai adds. “It’s like she starts saying things that sound supportive, and then suddenly, she pulls at her ear and begins backtracking and spouting shit.”
    Sid agrees. Prasert and he are roommates and having been dating for over a year. Prasert is bisexual and his last lover was a girl. When Sidlearned of their affair, he proved to be the best of friends. Rather than expose his companion, he sat and listened when Prasert explained the way he felt about Edit and why. Sid never pretended to understand, but since Prasert had become his closest companion, he couldn’t bear the thought of ending their friendship. Sid understood why he had stood by Prasert shortly after Prasert’s breakup with