by Emma Nichols
‘She is,’ Gianna nodded.
‘And hot,’ Soph added, watching Gianna’s response.
Gianna flushed, swallowed, and tried to speak. ‘Hmmm,’ was all she could say, her words deserting her, her body reacting to Soph’s clear revelation.
Soph laughed. ‘She is.’
The thump of a ball landing at her feet shifted Gianna’s attention. ‘Practise,’ she said, grateful for the diversion.
Soph dived to the other side of the net and glared as Gianna prepared to hit the ball into the air.
‘This is practise, not competitive, right!’ Gianna said, knocking the ball up high over the net.
Soph didn’t have to move much to get to it, put her arms out, hands clasped, and sent the ball back to the other side with perfect precision.
‘You can play,’ Gianna remarked, sending the ball higher.
Soph stepped in, jumped, and smashed the ball down over the net, a mischievous smile creeping across her face as the ball thudded into the sand.
Gianna flung her arms in the air. ‘Hey, that’s cheating!’
‘I was just getting warmed up,’ Soph shrugged, starting to chuckle.
Nikki approached with the two beers. ‘How’s the game going?’
‘One, love,’ Soph responded with a beaming grin.
‘We’re just practising,’ Gianna retorted with a half-grimace, unable to stop the smile forming as her eyes lingered on the ruffled brown hair and deep-blue eyes glaring at her.
‘Aye,’ Nikki said, smiling at the obvious attraction between the two young women. ‘I’ll be in the kitchen if you need anything,’ she added. ‘Ferry will be back shortly,’ she said, heading towards the bar, pointing to the boat on the horizon heading in their direction.
Soph’s eyes lost their shine as she gazed out to sea. She was having fun and didn’t want it to end. But it would stop because the fun always did.
‘Soph!’ Nikki called over her shoulder. Soph looked towards her and nodded. ‘I was wondering, do you want to play guitar here tomorrow, after the volleyball?’
Soph frowned.
‘She’s really good,’ Gianna added excitedly. ‘Go on Soph, say you’ll do it.’
‘I can pay you,’ Nikki offered, with an encouraging smile.
Soph was sipping at the chilled beer, her ears failing to register Nikki’s words fully. She shrugged, her heart racing at the idea. She’d never performed solo before, but there was something about this place, already, and about Nikki, and Gianna. She’d felt it as she stepped onto the beach yesterday, as she had mooched around the house in the early hours and watched the sunrise, then wandered through the gardens and sat on the cliff top looking out to the dark-blue sea, the warm breeze against her face, the sun on her skin. It made her feel good, confident, and for the first time in a long time, she had enjoyed strumming. If she dared to think about it for long enough, she might even begin to write music again. She wouldn’t make herself any promises though. A smile slowly formed. ‘Okay,’ she said. Gianna was leaping towards her, raising her hand for a high-five. She responded, but instead of slapping palms she found herself holding Gianna’s hand, their eyes connecting, the touch sending an unexpected wave of fire through her fingers and down her arm. ‘Your serve,’ she said through a croaky voice, releasing the hold.
‘Practise, right!’ Gianna reminded her, collecting up the ball and running to the back of the court.
Soph smiled, Gianna’s cheeks were darker than usual. ‘Sure,’ she said, taking her position on the sand, a mischievous-smile gracing her lips again.
5.
Nikki leaned back in the driftwood seat, sipped at her coffee and watched the ferry docking. She had enjoyed watching the girls having fun. She liked Soph; she reminded her of Ariana all those years ago, and yet Soph was also a lot like her great-grandmother. She missed Sophia, and she knew Pops did too. They all did! She stood, suddenly alerted. Ariana was marching across the beach, directly towards her, at a pace, and judging by her posture; she wasn’t happy. Nikki felt like laughing at the peacock display, but something suppressed the rising chuckle. Compassion, concern, pity?
‘Why weren’t you on the ferry?’ The words flew at Nikki like a sniper’s bullet, picking off its target directly and with ease.
Nikki flinched, an instinctive reaction to the assault, but didn’t respond. This wasn’t Ariana; she reminded herself.
‘Where were you? I’ve wasted a whole day,’ the assault continued.
Nikki frowned. Such passion!
‘Ithaka is a beautiful island, there’s lots to see,’ Nikki said, calmly.
‘I didn’t go to see the island. I went to talk to you,’ Ariana retorted, her arms straightening down her side, her fists clenched in frustration.
‘Hmm!’ Nikki responded. She couldn’t think of anything to say. She hadn’t known Ariana was going to take the ferry to speak to her, how could she have known? ‘I asked Pops to take the run today, so I could…’
‘That’s pretty damn clear,’ Ariana spat, her vision starting to blur through the tears that were forming.
Nikki gazed at the lost woman, seeing clearly, the little girl inside fighting to survive, overshadowed by the life she had lived. She sighed. ‘Would you like a drink?’ she asked softly.
Ariana’s shoulders dropped, her hands unclenched, and she rubbed at her sore eyes. She held Nikki’s compassionate gaze, momentarily letting her guard down and feeling the sadness escape in an instant. She swallowed it down, restored her defences and nodded, but not before a tear slipped onto her cheek.
‘It’s okay. Come on,’ Nikki said softly, taking a small step towards Ariana. She wanted to hold her and comfort her, but Ariana didn’t give off any vibes that would suggest that was either wanted or would be well received. ‘What would you like to drink?’ she asked, turning quickly and heading into the bar.
Ariana followed her, rubbing her hands through her hair, confused by the conflicting emotions that seemed to be competing for her attention. ‘Wine please,’ she replied.
‘White? Red?’
‘White.’
Nikki poured two glasses and wandered back to the driftwood seat, followed by Ariana. She smiled at Pops as he passed with a crate of supplies. ‘Good day?’ she asked him.
‘Aye,’ he responded, his coy smile and the glint in his eye revealing all she needed to know. It was always a good day in Pops’ world.
Ariana sat, still rubbing her hands through her hair, still processing her thoughts, and wrestling with her feelings, overwhelmed, and tired. She squeezed a tight smile at the old man as he passed. ‘Thanks,’ she said, taking the offered glass from Nikki, her tone tense. She sipped at the drink, staring into space. Eventually her breathing softened, her eyes scanned the cove, and she smiled. ‘I’d forgotten how beautiful it is here,’ she said, easing her back into the seat.
Nikki didn’t respond. She watched Ariana, perplexed, wanting to ask questions but sensing Ariana wasn’t in any place to have a conversation let alone answer them. She’d never seen anyone as out-of-place as Ariana looked. Lost, confused, and so uptight. Ariana may have only arrived yesterday, but she was indeed giving off some strange vibes.
She had fleetingly sensed something else last night, as she held Ariana’s gaze, and she had known Ariana well enough to realise she had felt something too, but in an instant that connection had disappeared. She swallowed, turned, and stared out to sea. The sun had started its descent, although still providing light and warmth and highlighting the white house on the hill. Her eyes drifted to the beautiful building and her distant memories.
‘What can you see?’ Pops asked her.
She squealed with delight, looking through the binoculars he had just given her for her eighth birthday. ‘The white house, there’s a girl up there,’ she responded.
‘Are you spying?’ he asked, teasing her.
She turned to him with a serious gaze. ‘Do you think I can be a real spy one day?’ she asked.
He chuckled. ‘Of course you can. You can be whatever you choose to be.’ He kissed her on the forehead.
‘Why doesn’t she come down and play with us?’ she asked.
He took in a deep breath, gazed towards the white house. ‘I don’t know, Nikki.’ He ruffled her hair. ‘Have you seen any new ships?’ he asked.
She hadn’t realised that he was deliberately trying to distract her, but when he had gone back to the bar, she redirected the binoculars towards the white house with increased fascination.
‘I’m sorry Nikki.’
Ariana’s voice grabbed her attention from the fleeting memory, and she sipped at the wine in her hand. ‘You seem tense,’ Nikki replied.
Ariana twisted the stem of the glass in her hand, her thumb rubbing the light condensation that had formed on the outside. ‘Yes,’ she said, through a deep sigh, her tone marginally calmer than moments earlier. Pops passed them again, heading for the ferry. ‘Do you need to help Manos?’ she asked.
Nikki shook her head. ‘Nah, he enjoys the exercise,’ she said with a wry smile.
Ariana smiled, watching the old man go about his work. Guilt pricked her, and she wriggled in the seat. She hadn’t taken the news that Nikki wasn’t on board the ferry too well and had been quite rude, insisting that he bring her back. Even as she had been asserting herself she had known her request was unreasonable, but she had been outraged. She had thrashed all night, building up the courage to speak to Nikki, and the ferry trip had seemed the perfect opportunity. Now, she was struggling to speak, furious with herself for behaving like an emotional adolescent.
‘What did you want to talk about?’ Nikki asked.
Ariana sipped at the chilled drink, savoured the light, zesty sensation on the back of her tongue. ‘Nice wine,’ she said, avoiding the question.
‘Yes, it is.’ Nikki turned to face her and smiled. ‘It’s locally produced,’ she added softly.
Ariana’s breath hitched. Nikki’s light-hazel eyes seemed to penetrate her, expose her. She couldn’t deny the warmth in her core, melting the frustration and stress. It was also disconcerting, messing with her mental plans, confusing her logic. And, the feeling was unexpected. But, it felt so good. Better than anything she had experienced in a long time. One look. One smile. One slither of her shattered heart bonding with another! That’s all it had taken, and the woman sat next to her, on a bench so familiar, as if they had perched here every day of their lives, together; Nikki was the source of that feeling. She leaned back into the seat, her proximity to Nikki instantly deepening her sense of comfort and security, sucking her into a world in which she did not belong. The intensity caused her to flinch, and she sat stiffly again.
Nikki studied Ariana carefully, her heart burning with the pain she could see her struggling with, but they needed to talk. ‘Your grandmother didn’t want the house sold,’ she said calmly.
Ariana tensed.
‘That’s why she left it to you and not your mother,’ Nikki continued. She didn’t want to cause any more distress than Ariana was already suffering, but Ariana needed to know the truth. ‘Sophia knew your mother would sell it in a heartbeat for the money, but you…’
Ariana stood abruptly, the glass in her hand shaking. ‘I need to go,’ she said. Placing the drink on the rock that backed the driftwood seat, she turned swiftly and set off across the beach.
‘That went well,’ Manos remarked, passing with another box of groceries.
Nikki’s eyebrows rose in response. ‘I’ll give you a hand,’ she said.
‘There’s one more box,’ he said.
‘Do you think she’ll go through with it?’ Nikki asked, watching the back of the ash-blonde head as it bobbed towards the path leading up to the white house.
Manos shrugged, flicked the toothpick from one side of his mouth to the other. He moved to speak but remained silent.
‘She’s so…’ Nikki started in a whisper, unable to articulate the aura Ariana had thrust upon their small island.
‘Scared,’ Manos muttered, his tone etched with remorse. Ariana reminded him of a baby bird, waking up, before it realised it had wings and could fly, floundering in a nest built by its mother, too frightened to leap out, take off, and soar.
*
Gianna sat on Soph’s bed watching with fascination, Soph’s hands flitting between the strings of her guitar and the pencil and paper in front of her. There was something about the intensity as she worked that was having a strange effect on Gianna. Giddy and excited, Gianna didn’t want the feeling to end.
Soph looked up and smiled.
Gianna stared intently. ‘Did you study music at college?’ she asked, her heart racing.
Soph shook her head, tinkered with a few notes and made some comments on the paper. ‘No,’ she replied, tinkered again, scribbled over the previous comments and wrote something else.
Gianna flushed. She’d interrupted. ‘Sorry,’ she said, interrupting again, adjusting her position on the edge of the bed.
‘I didn’t go to college, and we came here,’ Soph clarified, her eyes avoiding Gianna’s troubled gaze as she worked.
‘Oh, sorry!’ Gianna frowned.
Soph silenced the strings with her hand and looked up. ‘It’s cool here,’ she said, with an approving smile.
Gianna tilted her head, assessing the musician. Soph seemed to have missed out on a lot, and yet, it didn’t appear to bother her. She was the most laid back person she’d ever met, except for Nikki maybe, and Pops of course.
‘Hey, you want to try?’ Soph asked, standing and holding out the guitar. ‘Come on; I’ll show you.’
Gianna giggled, stood reluctantly, crossed the space, and sat in the chair. Soph rested the guitar in Gianna’s lap, cupped Gianna’s hand around the neck and positioned her fingers on the strings.
‘Aww!’ Gianna moaned. ‘That hurts,’ she said.
‘You need to press down hard. Look,’ she said, showing her hand to Gianna.
Gianna rubbed her thumb tenderly across the callused skin at the tips of each finger. ‘Wow!’ she remarked, her mouth dry with the impact of the touch.
A wave of heat targeted Soph’s cheeks, and she pulled back sharply. ‘It’ll take years to get them like that,’ she said, reassuringly. ‘And it’ll hurt in the meantime,’ she added with a coy grin, her eyes indicating for Gianna to press down on the strings. She moved around the back of Gianna, leaned over her shoulder and reached for her free hand, guiding her through the strumming movement. The subtle sweet scent of Gianna’s skin stole her attention and she paused before swiftly releasing the hand.
Gianna turned her head towards Soph. ‘Is this right?’ she asked, allowing her thumb to brush softly over the strings.
The warm feel of Gianna’s breath so tantalisingly close, her dark eyes so alluring, and so innocent, caused Soph to jolt and she stepped back. ‘You sure you haven’t done this before?’ she asked, shaking herself off and re-establishing a physical distance between them.
Gianna giggled and continued to play. Soph tried to wince at the noise, but she was smiling too broadly. Gianna stopped strumming, stood and handed back the guitar. ‘I’ll never be as good as you,’ she said.
‘Practise, remember,’ Soph teased. ‘You’ll thrash me at volleyball,’ she added with a beaming grin and a shrug.
‘I need to go,’ Gianna said.
Soph felt her stomach drop. It was still early, but then again, they had spent the whole day together, and Gianna did have her family to be with too. ‘Sure,’ she said, placing the guitar on her bed and leading them up the stairs.
‘Tomorrow?’ Gianna asked.
‘Volleyball party, you bet,’ Soph said with a chuckle.
Gianna smiled.
‘Hey!’ Soph said as she opened the front door for Gianna to leave. Gianna held her gaze. ‘Thanks for showing me around, it’s been a fun day,’ she said. Gianna’s eyes sparkled at her.
‘It has,’ Gianna responded, her tone reflective.
‘Come round early tomorrow, and we can do something before the volleyball,’ Soph said, hunger in her voice.
Gianna beamed a broad smile, her white teeth contrasting beautifully with her tanned skin. ‘Okay.’
Soph watched as Gianna sauntered down the dirt path.
‘Did you have a good day?’ Ariana’s voice interrupted Soph’s reverie.
Soph turned into the house and faced her mum. ‘Yeah, you?’ she asked, still with Gianna’s warmth.
‘Packing boxes are arriving on Monday, so we’ll need to start clearing grandma’s stuff,’ Ariana said, ignoring her daughter’s question. ‘And then I need to write a list of the things we need, to get the place renovated.’
Soph’s sly grin went unnoticed. Soph had seen the state of the house and delighted in the fact that the renovations were going to take a while to complete. And in any event, she wasn’t the one in a rush, and she wasn’t inclined to jump in and help. If she did anything, it would be at her own pace and not dictated by her mother. She was enjoying herself, and she wasn’t going to let her mother get in the way of her having fun either. ‘There’s something going on at the beach tomorrow. I’m going with Gianna; you’re invited too,’ Soph said.
‘I’m not sure I’ll have time,’ Ariana said. ‘There’s too much to do here,’ she added.
Soph shrugged and rolled her eyes. There was always too much to do and too little time, in her mother’s world. For as long as she could remember, when not depressed, her mother had been stressed, and always seemed to need to be doing something, or achieving something, or changing something. She was exhausting to be around, and Soph was sick of chasing whatever it was her mother was seeking.
No wonder her parent’s divorced, she mused. That said; her father hadn’t been there for her either. He had always been busy, travelling; a Director in the Carter-Cruz family business, he seemed to relish his work and had never shown any interest in her or her music, or her mother come to think of it. In fact, he had sided with Teresa against Ariana when they had talked about whether she should be allowed to study music. Her grandmother Teresa was crazy, and, controlled everyone. She didn’t quite get the dynamics within her family, and she didn’t care to try to work it out. There were far more exciting things to be doing with her life. Being here for one! The welcome thought caused her face to soften momentarily. ‘Why are you always in such a hurry?’ she asked.