Nat and Sam meet one evening at a couples’ dinner party, and to the delight of the hosts they form a firm and immediate friendship. Gossip around the table turns quickly to plans for marriage and an end to the tragic solitude that has plagued the two women for years.
But all is not well. Nat and Sam take issue with the amatonormativity of the plot and, to the horror of the assembled guests, threaten to gag the narrator. A comedy of head-hopping ensues and the lovers are forced to flee into the forest, pursued by a priest and an amorous fairy.
Can a deus ex machina help the plot catch up with the misguided couple before it is too late? Or will the reader be cruelly denied a happily-ever-after…
Francis James Franklin (Alina Meridon) 
Wondering if people experience this differently when they think it’s Nat and Sam vs Natalie and Samantha.
I don’t understand. Do you mean because the longer forms of the names create different expectations of the characters, e.g., straight, adult, female, feminine, romantic?