Everything to Everyone

by Sherryl Hancock

  Lyric looked back at her for a long moment, “So Jazmine saying that Dakota is only interested in Savanna because of her money, is really Jazmine saying that she feels like shit because she’s living off of Dakota?”

  “Exactly!” Savanna said, nodding.

  “Hmmm,” Lyric murmured, “well, that really kind of backfired on her, didn’t it?”

  “When someone isn’t recognizing their own issues, it really does tend to do that.”

  “So are we going to hate her or not…?” Lyric asked.

  “Dakota loves her,” Savanna said. “So no, we’re not going to hate her. We’re going to help, that’s what we’re going to do.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Lyric said, grinning.

  ***

  After three days, Harley finally started feeling somewhat better. Shiloh was there every step of the way. After multiple steam showers when the congestion kicked in, Shiloh quickly learned why Harley had all the brown bottles in the medicine cabinet, they were essential oils. She used eucalyptus with the steam to help clear her head. Shiloh learned to brew tea from a few different herbs and roots, one of which was ginger. She even learned to make cough syrup out of various roots, cinnamon, honey, and fresh ginger. It was definitely a different experience.

  The fourth morning, she woke with Shiloh lying next to her as she had for the last three days. Breathing in the smell of the eucalyptus and lavender vaporizer next to the bed, Harley smiled. Shiloh had been a champion when it came to learning how to take care of her without medications. Looking at Shiloh as she slept, Harley couldn’t help but feel completely moved by everything Shiloh had done for her. What’s more, she hadn’t treated her like she was crazy for not just popping a few pills. She’d been beyond attentive, spending hours on end changing cloths on her forehead and back to keep her cool. She’d been sitting up and talking whenever Harley was feeling up to it or watching L Word with her. She’d made chicken soup from scratch and any number of batches of tea for her. She’d been absolutely amazing.

  She touched Shiloh’s cheek, her look so tender that when Shiloh opened her eyes, she felt her breath catch in her throat. Their eyes met and neither could tear themselves away. Harley gently brushed back her hair, her eyes searching Shiloh’s.

  “Thank you for taking care of me, Shy…” Harley said softly.

  “You don’t have to thank me, Harley. I did it because I care about you.”

  “Then thank you for caring about me enough to take care of me,” Harley said, her eyes sparkling with emotion.

  Shiloh smiled softly. “How are you feeling this morning?”

  “Better,” Harley said. “Still kind of congested though.”

  “Do you want to do a shower to help?” Shiloh asked.

  “Yeah I think I will,” Harley said, nodding.

  A half an hour later Harley climbed out of the shower, wrapped herself in a towel, and walked into the bedroom. Dropping the towel, she climbed back into bed, having exhausted herself with a coughing fit in the shower.

  Shiloh came into the bedroom a few minutes later, having heard the shower turn off. She saw Harley lying on her stomach. Her back was bare, and her arms were around the pillow under her head. Once again, Shiloh was struck by the sheer sexiness of that picture. She was also reminded of the tattoo that extended two feet down her back.

  Shiloh sat down on the bed next to where Harley lay. Harley immediately sensed her there, and moved to put her head in Shiloh’s lap, her arms encircling Shiloh’s hips like they had been around the pillow previously. Shiloh smiled fondly and slid her fingers through her hair, her nails grazing Harley’s scalp.

  Harley moaned in pleasure. “That feels so good…”

  “Good,” Shiloh said, smiling, continuing her ministrations.

  Eventually she moved her hands to Harley’s back, smoothing over her skin, and once again grazing her nails over Harley’s bare skin.

  “Don’t ever cut your nails… ever…” Harley murmured.

  Shiloh laughed softly. “Okay, got it.”

  Harley sighed happily, turning her head to nuzzle Shiloh’s abdomen affectionately. Shiloh bit her lip, enjoying Harley’s closeness thoroughly.

  “Can I ask you a question?” Shiloh said at one point.

  “Mmmhmm,” Harley murmured, her head still against Shiloh’s stomach.

  “What do these mean?” she asked, touching the tattoos on Harley’s back.

  “They’re Chinese,” Harley said. “The red one represents love, the orange hope, the yellow joy, the green is for nature, the blue is strength, and the purple is courage.”

  Shiloh smiled, smoothing her hand over the symbols. “They all sound like you.”

  “That’s supposed to be the idea,” Harley said, grinning.

  “I didn’t even know you had tattoos.”

  “Those aren’t the only ones I have,” Harley said, grinning.

  “Where are the others?”

  “Got one on each ankle, one on my right hip, and one over my left breast.”

  “Wow,” Shiloh said, “what do they look like?”

  “You can see the ankle ones, but the other two… Well…”

  “Well what?” Shiloh asked when Harley’s voice trailed off.

  “Those are a bit more intimate.”

  “Oh,” Shiloh said, biting her lip and grinning.

  “So when you decide to stop being straight, we can talk about those two,” Harley said, lifting her head to wink at Shiloh.

  “I see,” Shiloh said, her look narrowed. “Okay, let’s see the ankles.”

  Harley shifted her feet under the covers and stuck one foot out. Shiloh had to crane her neck to see it. It was two rainbow-colored lightning bolts with the word “Pride” in black script between them.

  “That’s cool,” she said, smiling. “And the other one?”

  Harley did the same with the other foot. That tattoo was the classic Harley Davidson logo in black, orange, and white.

  “Guess that gives ‘identifying tattoos’ a whole new meaning, huh?” Shiloh asked, grinning.

  Harley chuckled. “Yep.”

  “Don’t they hurt to get?” Shiloh asked.

  “Some spots hurt more than others, but it’s not super painful, more jarring than anything else.”

  “Still, I’d be too chicken to get one,” Shiloh said. “Let alone, what? Like ten.”

  Harley grinned. “Yeah, like ten.”

  “Are you going to get more?” Shiloh asked.

  Harley shrugged. “Don’t know till I decide I want one, so… Hard to say.”

  “But for the most part no one can see them,” Shiloh said.

  “I’m stealth like that, yeah,” Harley said smiling mischievously.

  “Why?” Shiloh asked.

  Harley shrugged. “I guess cause of my dad.”

  “He doesn’t like tattoos?” Shiloh asked.

  “He has tons of them,” Harley told her. “I don’t want people judging me because of my ink, like they do him.”

  “Oh,” Shiloh said, nodding, “I see.”

  She shook her head then, there were so many things about Harley that weren’t what they seemed. She was a brilliant and extremely dedicated programmer, but seemed so easy and free in her life. She had a wild look about her, but was the sweetest human being Shiloh had ever encountered.

  “You really do like to surprise people, don’t you?” Shiloh asked.

  Harley gave an impish grin, her blue eye sparkling.

  “I’ll take that as a yes,” Shiloh said, nodding. “Okay, what can I get you to eat?”

  “I’m okay, not really hungry.”

  “Tough,” Shiloh said. “You’re going to eat something, even if it’s toast.”

  Harley gave her a baleful look, but her grin seconds later spoiled it. “Fine,” she said, sighing.

  “I need to go shopping today, we’re running out of stuff,” Shiloh said offhandedly as she got up.

  “Cool, we can do that,” Harley said, nodding.
>
  “You’re still sick,” Shiloh said.

  “I could do with a little bit of time out of this house.”

  Shiloh gave her a narrowed assessing look. “We’ll see.”

  In the end, Shiloh allowed Harley to drive them to the local market. Shiloh could tell that Harley was still feeling sick, because she was driving the speed limit and the volume of the music in the car was really low.

  “You really still don’t feel great, do you?” Shiloh commented.

  “Uh-uh,” Harley murmured. “But I needed to get up and move around a bit. I can’t stand lying in bed all that time.”

  Shiloh nodded. “I know, that’s why I allowed this little trip,” she said with a wink.

  “Ah,” Harley said her grin wry.

  “So do you get sick often?” Shiloh asked.

  “No, almost never, actually,” Harley said. “I was a bit run down, that’s probably why it hit me.”

  Shiloh nodded, pressing her lips together to keep from saying something about the person who’d run her down. Harley caught the look, a narrowed her eyes slightly, knowing Shiloh wanted to say something but didn’t.

  “So can I ask why you don’t take medicine?” Shiloh asked after a couple of minutes.

  “It’s mostly because of my dad, I mean, that’s how it started anyway,” Harley said, her thumbnail rubbing at the seam of her jeans.

  “Why?” Shiloh asked, wanting to know more about how Harley’s mind worked.

  “Well, remember the night of the infamous kiss?” Harley said, grinning.

  “Who could forget that?” Shiloh said, smiling widely.

  “Well, I don’t know if you remember that I was really tired that night…”

  “I remember, you actually fell asleep at one point,” Shiloh said.

  “Yeah…” Harley said, grinning. “Well, it was because the day before that my dad had been shot on the job, and I’d spent the whole day and night in the hospital with him and my mom. My mom completely falls apart when my dad is hurt, she’s really dependent on him…”

  Her voice trailed off for a moment, Shiloh could tell there was more to that story, but she didn’t want to get Harley off track by asking, so she mentally filed it away for a later time.

  “Anyway, he was okay, but he was in a lot of pain and he started taking painkillers and became addicted to them. That summer really sucked. We found out that he has an addictive personality, which work-wise is great, but not so much with things like narcotic painkillers. He almost lost his job and things were a real mess during that time. So I decided then that I wasn’t going to get attached to any kind of medication.”

  “In case you have an addictive personality too?” Shiloh asked.

  “Oh, I do, I already know that.”

  Shiloh nodded, her look contemplative.

  “What?” Harley said, grinning.

  Shiloh shook her head. “I guess that makes sense. It still surprises me… But it does explain a couple of things.”

  “Like?” Harley asked, her tone amused.

  “Like a week and a half of needing headphones,” Shiloh said, her look pointed.

  Harley grimaced. “I’m sorry about that.”

  “Which part?” Shiloh asked.

  Harley was obviously taken back by the question, and narrowed her eyes slightly.

  “What did I miss?” she asked.

  Shiloh looked contrite immediately. The last thing she’d wanted to do was to complain about Harley’s girlfriend.

  “Nothing, it’s not important,” Shiloh said, shaking her head.

  “Shy, if it’s bugging you, it’s important,” Harley said, reaching over touch Shiloh’s hand.

  “You’re addicted to her, aren’t you?” Shiloh said evenly.

  Harley was surprised by the question, but looked considering. Finally, she nodded.

  “I guess I was in a way,” she said, “but probably not in the way you think.”

  “What way do you think I’m assuming?” Shiloh asked.

  “I think you mean that I’m addicted to her as a person.”

  Shiloh looked back at her and shook her head. “No, I know you’re not, because you didn’t bat an eyelash when she wasn’t there anymore.”

  Harley nodded. “Okay, so maybe you did know what I meant,” she said, grinning.

  “You meant the sex,” Shiloh said.

  Harley looked contrite, but nodded.

  “It doesn’t bother you that she just left like that? When you were sick?” Shiloh asked.

  Harley shook her head dismissively.

  “It doesn’t make you mad?” Shiloh asked persistently.

  “Why should it?” Harley asked, pulling into the parking lot at the store.

  “Because it was kind of a fucked up thing to do…” Shiloh said, her tone upset.

  Harley pulled into a parking space, turned off the car and turned to Shiloh, taking both of her hands in hers.

  “The person who mattered was the person who didn’t leave, Shy.”

  Shiloh had no idea how to take what she’d just said. She wanted to ask questions, but didn’t know what to ask and if she’d like the answers anyway. She nodded, blowing her breath out.

  They got out of the car and did the shopping they needed to do. A half an hour they were on their way back home.

  “Can I ask you a question?” Shiloh said.

  “Of course,” Harley said.

  “Why did you kiss me that night?”

  Harley smiled. “Because you wanted me to,” she answered simply.

  Shiloh’s eyes widened. “How did you know that?”

  Harley grinned. “I saw it in your eyes.”

  Shiloh looked back at her shocked, but then nodded.

  “So you aren’t in love with Roslynn,” she said then. “Right?”

  “Right,” Harley said, surprised in the change of topic.

  “Have you ever been in love?”

  “Once,” Harley said, smiling fondly.

  “Really?” Shiloh asked. “Who? Wait, not Devin…”

  “No,” Harley said, chuckling.

  “It was a woman right?” Shiloh asked. “I mean, you’ve never dated men, have you? Or have you?”

  “No… no men,” Harley said, shaking her head vehemently. “Lots of women, but no men.”

  “So did you know you were gay in high school?” Shiloh asked.

  “Not really, no,” Harley said. “I just knew I was never interested in guys.”

  “But then you kissed me.”

  “And that was the end of my high school career,” Harley said, grinning.

  Shiloh bit her lip, wincing at the reminder. “I’ve apologized for that, right?”

  Harley chuckled. “Yes, you’ve apologized for that, Shy, more than.”

  Shiloh nodded, looking relieved.

  They arrived home and carried the bags inside. Even though Harley was still sick, she insisted on carrying in the bags herself. Shiloh made herself busy putting things away. Then she told Harley to get herself back upstairs and back into bed to rest for the remainder of the day. Harley grinned at being ordered to bed like a child, but did as she was told.

  Shiloh walked into the bedroom a little while later, finding Harley lying in bed on her side. She’d taken the time to take off her jeans and her boots, but that was it. Shiloh moved to sit down next to Harley on the bed, resting her back against the headboard, as she had for days now. And as she had for as long, Harley moved close to her, putting her arm over Shiloh’s legs. Shiloh moved her hands through Harley’s hair and Harley sighed.

  Shiloh’s mind was alive with questions and thoughts. Harley could sense it, and after a few minutes, she looked up at Shiloh.

  “What’s up?” Harley asked.

  Shiloh looked down at her, surprise evident on her face.

  “How did you…” Shiloh started to ask.

  “You’re practically vibrating, Shy,” Harley said, grinning as she sat up. “I can tell your mind is going. I just wondered
if it was anything you wanted to talk about.”

  “You’re supposed to be resting,” Shiloh said.

  Harley looked back at her knowing she was being evasive. “I’m resting. I’m sitting here, not running a marathon.”

  Shiloh blew her breath out, shaking her head. “I’m not sure I even know what’s going on in my head right now.”

  “So just talk and hopefully things will get clearer,” Harley said.

  Shiloh grimaced. “Or a really big mess, really fast.”

  “Okay, what’s that mean?” Harley asked, turning to look at Shiloh, her eyes searching.

  “It just means that some things are sometimes better not discussed,” Shiloh said.

  “That’s never been my experience,” Harley said. “Things not discussed tend to make things fester and get blown completely out of proportion in your own head.”

  Shiloh looked back at Harley for a long moment, just shaking her head.

  Harley watched Shiloh, knowing that she was wrestling with something. She thought she knew what it was.

  “Devin said that she thinks you’re in love with me,” Harley said unexpectedly, causing Shiloh’s eyes to widen. “Is she wrong?”

  Shiloh blinked a couple of times, swallowing convulsively. She looked almost terrified by the question, and Harley felt like she’d managed to back her into a corner. She hadn’t meant to.

  “Would it help,” Harley said, her look direct, “if I told you that the one woman I’ve ever loved was you?”

  Shiloh looked stunned, her mouth opened in shock, her eyes widened. Then she grimaced sadly. “That really makes me feel worse,” she said. “Harley… I had no idea…”

  “There’s no way you could have,” Harley said. “I never said anything and I would never have even now, but…”

  “But what?” Shiloh asked.

  “I need you to answer my question, Shy,” Harley said seriously.

  Shiloh finally nodded. “Yes, Devin is right. I am in love with you.”

  “And why is that hard for you to say?”

  “Because I’m afraid,” Shiloh said simply. “Because I’ve never felt like this for anyone and I’m not sure what to do, or say… But mostly, I’m afraid that I have no idea how you feel about me now.”

  “You have no idea how I feel about you?” Harley asked in disbelief.