One Summer

by Teegan Loy

“How do you know Harry?” I asked.

  “We’re roommates at school.”

  I leaned on my elbow. “Hmm, same as me and Jamie. We both graduated this spring, so I don’t know what’s going to happen next.”

  “I have a confession,” Dylan said.

  I sat up and watched as he bit his lip.

  “I really like Harry, but I have no idea how to tell him. Every time I find the courage, he goes and picks someone else up.”

  “Again, sounds like Jamie and me.”

  Harry raised an eyebrow.

  “I mean, someone just pointed out to me that I might be in love with Jamie. It’s a pain in the ass.”

  Dylan sighed and rolled over. “Harry thinks I’m straight, and I don’t know how to tell him that I’m not.”

  “He watched me kiss you.”

  “I still don’t think he gets it.”

  “Me and Jamie have been roommates for four years. I didn’t even know I liked him.”

  We commiserated a while longer, not wanting to go find Harry and Jamie. Dylan was a really great guy and we had so much in common it bordered on creepy.

  His family had a cabin across the lake from us, and it turned out, he and Harry were here for a few weeks to unwind from a stressful year at school. When he told me that little tidbit, I had to call Stef. The story tumbled out, and she insisted I put Dylan on the phone where he had to endure her interrogation.

  “You’re both dumb,” she said and hung up on us.

  “That was interesting.” He looked slightly shell-shocked. “I’ve never been lectured by someone I don’t know.”

  “That’s my Stef.”

  “She said she’d be here this weekend to observe our interaction. What the hell does that mean?”

  “Basically, she’s going to spy on us for about five minutes and then shout at us for being stupid again.”

  “It’s hot in here. Want to go down to the water?”

  “Let me grab some towels.” I rummaged through a dresser and tossed him a couple of floral beach towels.

  “Nice.” He laughed and we raced down the steps to the dock and jumped into the cool water.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Jamie and Harry going into the cabin. I wondered if the pictures were going to dance on the wall tonight.

  Things were easier and harder with Dylan and Harry around. At least I had Dylan to deflect some of the feelings when I felt like crap and wanted to throttle Jamie. When Stef came up for the weekend, she immediately hit it off with Dylan. By Sunday, she’d decided that we needed to forget about Jamie and Harry and become boyfriends.

  “Not helpful, Stef,” I said.

  Dylan sighed and went to get more drinks.

  “Jamie already thinks you’re having dirty sex with him,” she said.

  “I figured that out the first time he asked me if Dylan swallowed.”

  She snickered. “Dylan’s a nice guy.”

  “He loves Harry.”

  “You guys are fucked up.” She pointed at Dylan glaring in Harry’s direction as Jamie massaged Harry’s shoulders.

  She stood and grabbed my hand. “We better go save Dylan before he does something he regrets. Although maybe chucking his beer can at Harry’s head would open his eyes.”

  “Maybe.” I touched Dylan’s shoulder and he jumped. I gently pried the beer can from his fist and smiled at him. “Let’s take the boat out.”

  We didn’t even ask Jamie and Harry if they wanted to go with us. Not that they noticed since they were busy laughing and snapping each other with beach towels.

  Stef herded us toward the dock where we quickly jumped into the boat and roared away. We spent the remainder of the afternoon listening to Stef devise plans for us to get Harry and Jamie away from each other. By the time we returned, Dylan and I decided there was no hope. Stef promised to come back in a couple of weeks. She also tried to reason with us.

  “You could just tell them the truth, instead of trying to come up with some elaborate scheme,” she said as we followed her to her car. “Things can’t get any worse.”

  “Don’t say shit like that.” I shuddered.

  She hugged me. “I’ll call you.”

  She sped down the road and Dylan hip-checked me. “What do you think they’d say if we just stormed up to them and blurted out the truth?”

  “Jamie’d think I was doing hard drugs or that I’d emptied the liquor cabinet.”

  Dylan sighed. “Let’s get something to eat.”

  “Someday, I might think all of this is funny.”

  Dylan chuckled and put his arm around my shoulders as we headed inside. Nothing appealed to either of us, so I dragged him over to meet Mrs. Jorgenson and possibly beg dinner off of her. She was one of those people who could whip up a meal in no time and it would be absolutely delicious.

  “Hello, gentlemen,” she said when she answered the door.

  Instead of beating around the bush, I introduced Dylan and begged for dinner. “Please, I don’t know him well enough to subject him to my cooking,” I said.

  “Where’s Jamie?” she asked.

  “Uh, hanging out with my roommate,” Dylan answered.

  Mrs. Jorgenson eyed us. “So, let me get this straight. You two are here with me, and they’re over at your cabin doing—”

  I clapped my hands. “What are we having for dinner? Let’s get cooking.”

  She laughed but threw open several cupboards and then dug around in her fridge. With a menu picked, she ordered us around, and soon she’d created a lovely dinner of pork chops, potatoes, and a salad. Dylan volunteered to set the table and Mrs. Jorgenson immediately took a liking to him. Especially when Agnes laid her head on his thigh and he cooed at her.

  “Explain to me why you guys don’t just tell your boys you like them?” Mrs. Jorgenson asked.

  Dylan sputtered and dropped his fork. I tried to change the conversation to something less embarrassing. Mrs. Jorgenson finally quit asking questions when Dylan mentioned his own dog. They happily discussed all the pets they’d owned.

  After dinner, we helped clean up.

  “Thank you so much for the food, but I better go find Harry. We’re supposed to head back to see my parents tonight,” Dylan said.

  “It was nice meeting you. Don’t be a stranger,” Mrs. Jorgenson said.

  “Thanks for dinner,” I said as I followed Dylan out the door.

  “You should think about telling your boys,” Mrs. Jorgenson shouted as we left.

  “How did she know?” Dylan asked.

  “She’s psychic.”

  “Really?”

  I shrugged and shoved him through the door where we found Harry and Jamie hanging out in the living room, playing video games. Both had a look of comfortable satisfaction on their faces. Dylan shook his head, then grimaced when Harry buried his face against Jamie’s neck.

  Dylan coughed and cleared his throat several times, but they continued to ignore us.

  “Harry, we need to go,” Dylan snapped.

  Jamie let go of Harry and slapped his ass. “See you guys later.”

  The moment the door closed, he started in on me.

  “You have the worst timing,” Jamie complained. “Maybe I should buy you a bell.”

  “I don’t need a bell,” I grumbled. “You’re the one who—”

  “Who what?” he challenged.

  I frowned and waved my hands because I couldn’t find any nice words to say to him.

  “You seem to be doing okay yourself,” Jamie said.

  “I’m not doing anything. I think you have all that covered.”

  He ran his fingers through his hair and frowned. “You’re not making any sense. I’m going for a swim.”

  He grabbed a towel that was draped over a chair and stomped out of the house. If I didn’t know better, I’d think Jamie was jealous. But that was only wishful thinking. He could believe what he wanted. I wasn’t going to spill any of Dylan’s secrets, and Jamie didn’t need to know I was drow
ning in my own jealousy.

  I had no desire to tell him that Dylan and I were just hanging out. It was Harry and Jamie who were having dirty, noisy sex. Dylan had decided they were doing it to annoy us. For once, I was pleased I had someone to keep the madness at bay when the pictures hanging on the wall bounced and Jamie shouted obnoxious lines from terrible porn movies.

  A few minutes later, the screen door banged and Jamie stumbled inside and flopped on the couch.

  “I thought you were going swimming?”

  “Too many mosquitoes.” He tossed the towel in my face and grabbed my wrist, forcing me to sit.

  He sighed and rested his head in my lap. “Even if you won’t admit to having sex with Dylan, at least you seem to be in a little better mood.”

  He closed his eyes and I stared down at him, yearning to run my fingers through his hair and trace the lines of his jaw and his mouth. I was so lost in him, I didn’t notice my phone buzzing.

  “Either you’re really excited or your phone is going off,” Jamie said.

  I immediately stood, almost sending him to the floor as I dug in my pocket. “Why would I be excited? I’m not excited. Hey, Dylan.” I pulled the phone away from my face. “It’s Dylan.”

  Jamie rolled his eyes. “I figured that out. I’m going to take a shower.”

  “Did I interrupt?” Dylan asked.

  I laughed. “Hardly.”

  We talked for a while until I heard Harry shouting in the background. Dylan said goodbye and told me to have fun and he’d see me in a couple of days.

  Jamie looked a little depressed when he came back into the living room. I figured it was because Harry wasn’t going to be around, so there’d be no sex this weekend. But it wasn’t a total bust.

  Just as I was getting comfortable, my phone rang again.

  “Dylan again?” Jamie asked.

  “Uh, no, but I have to take it,” I said.

  Jamie nodded and wandered into the kitchen. I went to my bedroom and closed the door. The phone call was unexpected and changed my plans for the next few days. I thought we’d be able to hang out, but I had to make a quick trip back to the city to speak with a prospective employer.

  I found Jamie sitting on the porch, staring at the colors in the sky as the sun slowly sank into the lake.

  “We should go fishing tomorrow,” he said.

  “That would be great, but I have to make a trip to the city tomorrow.”

  I waited for the standard questions, but he stayed silent. In a way, I was thankful because I didn’t really know what to say to him.

  “Hopefully, I’ll be back late tomorrow night. We’ll have all day Saturday to fish if you want,” I said.

  “Yeah, I guess,” he said. “I’m going to go crash, so I suppose I’ll see when I see you.”

  “Sure.”

  The morning came quickly. Jamie was up but didn’t ask any questions. Once again, I thought about telling him why I was going, but he didn’t seem interested. I left him pouting on the porch.

  The drive back to the city allowed me plenty of time to reflect on the past four years. It also made me realize that by going to this job interview, I was taking a step away from Jamie. The idea gave me a headache.

  I returned to a quiet and very dark cabin late the next night. I wondered if Jamie was in bed or out with someone new. His door was closed and I was exhausted, so I crawled into bed and passed out.

  Jamie woke me from a beautiful dream just as the sun was peeking over the horizon. “Come on,” he said, bouncing on my bed. “It’s a great morning to drop a line.”

  “It’s too early. The fish aren’t awake,” I grumbled, but then he smiled sweetly and I melted. “Fine, let me get dressed.”

  We scavenged around the kitchen and packed a cooler before searching out the fishing gear. I didn’t really care about actually catching anything because if we did, we’d have to clean it and cook it. I’d rather go into town to the bar and eat fish prepared by them. But Jamie looked bound and determined to play fisherman today, so I allowed him to boss me around as we gathered supplies. We loaded everything into the boat and he tossed me a goofy hat along with a bottle of sunscreen.

  “Can’t have you turning into a lobster.”

  “Thanks.” I plopped the hat on my head and threw him the keys.

  He grinned again and revved the engine. I kicked back and relaxed, letting the wind blow through my hair and the sun tickle my skin. The conversation was light and didn’t center on Dylan or Harry. When he found the perfect spot to fish, he dropped anchor and we sat at the back of the boat, shoulder to shoulder, with our lines dangling in the water. He even slathered sunscreen on my back. Whenever I felt stirrings in my groin, I jumped in the water and killed it.

  The spot he chose was secluded and beautiful, and maybe I should’ve taken that moment to talk to him. But as the day progressed, things felt normal between us again and I didn’t want to rock the boat. It was Kellen and Jamie, best friends just hanging out and having a good time.

  When we arrived at the cabin, we convinced Mrs. Benson and Mrs. Jorgenson to fry the fish we caught. They agreed under the pretense that Jamie would clean them.

  “Don’t I get a say?” Jamie asked.

  “Not if you want dinner. We’re just saving you time because Kellen won’t help you. He doesn’t like fish guts. Stef terrorized him with them when he was a kid,” Mrs. Jorgenson said.

  “Is nothing sacred?” I asked.

  Jamie chuckled but agreed after I described how wonderful Mrs. Jorgenson could make a fish taste. While he worked, he babbled about spending the day on the lake. I was swept up in the joy he was exuding. Twice, Mrs. Jorgenson elbowed me and pursed her lips. I pretended I had no idea what was going on.

  Mrs. Benson and Mrs. Jorgenson exchanged a lot of glances but kept their comments to themselves even after several glasses of wine. Mrs. Jorgenson finally kicked us out when she announced that she needed to pass out. Barbie was already snoozing in the recliner.

  Jamie and I returned to the cabin and played video games until we fell asleep on the couch. I woke up in the middle of the night, wrapped around him. Very carefully I untangled myself, placed a blanket over him, and softly kissed him on the cheek. He stirred and I raced out of the room.

  Harry and Dylan showed up in the morning, and after one glass of orange juice, Jamie was hustling Harry down the hall to his bedroom.

  “I think that’s a record,” Dylan said.

  “Mmm, probably not. I was surprised they actually talked to us for a few minutes.”

  “I need a latte and a donut,” Dylan said.

  “Sounds good.”

  I shouted that we were leaving. Someone moaned and we hightailed it out of the cabin, which meant things were back to normal with Dylan and me avoiding Harry and Jamie.

  Again, I was thankful for Dylan’s presence. We whined a lot but did nothing to change our predicament. So really, it was our fault, which was pathetic. We passed the days by skiing or tubing or driving the boat around the lake. I wouldn’t have been surprised to notice I was growing gills.

  “Hurry up, Kellen,” Jamie shouted as he busted into my room. When I ignored him, he yanked my blankets off my bed. “We’re taking the boat out for some fishing and sunning today.”

  “Fuck off,” I mumbled into my pillow.

  “C’mon, Kell?”

  “I have to mow the lawn.”

  “Just hire someone.”

  “I’m not paying someone to mow when I’m perfectly capable of doing it myself.”

  Jamie huffed. “Fine, call if you want us to come back in and get you. Dylan’s coming with us, so maybe we’ll have a threesome.”

  He tossed the blanket over my head and slammed the door when he walked out of my room. I swore a few times and waited for the house to go quiet. I wasn’t lying when I told Jamie I needed to mow the lawn. The place was starting to look like an abandoned lot, and if I didn’t clean it up, Mrs. Jorgenson would report me to the lawn police or
worse, my dad.

  The lawnmower was half buried in the shed and it took a few minutes to get it out. Then it wouldn’t start, so I had to search for the gas can. It took several pulls and a lot of swearing, but it finally roared to life.

  After a few hours of work, the yard was back in shape. My mom would’ve been proud I didn’t try to cut any designs in the grass. When I was in eighth grade, I mowed a giant heart in the middle of the lawn. Stef thought I was a genius, my dad thought I was an idiot, and my mom just shook her head and tried to hide her smile.

  My masterpiece survived about three hours before Mrs. Jorgenson pushed her mower over the heart and severed it. Love didn’t seem to sit well with her. Right now, I sort of felt the same way.

  I tucked the machine back into the shed, and as I was locking the door, I heard a long tirade of swear words. I turned and spotted Mrs. Jorgenson kicking her lawnmower, shouting at it and shaking her fists. She threw her large flowered hat on the ground and stomped on it. The sun made her blue hair sparkle.

  “I don’t think killing your hat will help get the mower started,” I said.

  “I know, but it makes me feel better and scares the neighbors,” she said.

  “I’m not scared of you.”

  “You used to be.”

  “You chased me with a hedge clipper.

  “You were peeing on my tulips.”

  “I was eight.”

  I frowned and bent down to inspect her lawnmower. Not that I knew anything about engines, it just seemed like the thing to do. I poked around and rolled my eyes. I was getting nowhere.

  “I wasn’t always old and bitchy, you know.” She placed her crushed hat back on her head of blue hair.

  “I know that.”

  “You never think it’s going to happen to you, and then one day you wake up and bam, there’s some wrinkly person in the mirror that has your eyes.”

  “Mrs. Jorgenson.”

  “I don’t want you to end up like me,” she said softly.

  “I promise I won’t ever throw my hat and swear at my lawnmower. And I don’t think I could rock blue hair.”

  She rolled her eyes. “It’s tough to live with regrets, Kellen. A long time ago there was a boy I was crazy in love with.” I raised my eyebrows. “I know, hard to believe, but I was absolutely lost in him. My parents were dead set against the whole thing because he wasn’t right for me.”