“You’re off. I can’t believe you’re still claiming you can see auras.”
“I can.”
“Sure, you can.” I knocked him with my hip. “When did you meet her?”
“When I came to surprise Jay, she was there, being all jittery. She’s cute of course, but Jay’s all stiff and weird when he introduces her. The whole time he’s acting like he’s trying to get rid of her, especially when I said we had to go get you.”
I tensed a little. “You’re looking too deep into the situation.”
The ceiling lights near my table went out. More followed. This clerk was really ready to go and being that it was Saturday night, I couldn’t blame her.
“I can’t believe you’re here. What have you been doing?” I paused. “Hold up. You said you were in Miami earlier? Are you joking? How long were you in Miami?”
“Six months.”
I hit his shoulder with mine. “And you’re just now telling us? If I’d known you were down there, I would’ve come to see you, maybe taken a bus or something. All the times you texted me, you never mentioned it.”
“I’m sorry. I had to get my stuff together before I visited you guys.”
“What were you doing down there?”
“Well, I was with Frederick.”
“The old man?” I joked.
“He’s not old.” Pipe frowned. Usually, he made a funny comment back, but this time he seemed sad. We headed to the front door.
“What’s wrong? You know I’m joking right? He looked pretty hot in the pictures you sent. So, what’s up?”
“It’s a long story.”
“Wait. You said was. You’re not with him anymore?”
“It’s no big deal. Let’s talk about it later.”
I twisted my lips to the side. “You’re hiding something.”
“Now who’s looking too deep into things?” he asked. “So this town, Coventon, sucks. No wonder you’re hanging out at the library on a Saturday night. There’s nothing to do. The club scene is nonexistent, and it has only one bar, and a sports bar at that.”
We arrived at the doors and pushed through them.
“It’s a college town, baby.” I hooked my arm around his. “In order to party you have to stay on campus. All the bars around here can smell a fake ID a mile away.”
“No way. These sweaty jocks and beer head-crushing fraternity brothers are creeping me out. Where are all the weirdos? That’s where I feel at home.”
I pointed behind us. “They’re at the library or hiding in their rooms from the smelly jocks and frat boys.”
A lemon-yellow convertible drove our way and parked in the street in front of us. The top was down. Jay drove. Cynthia lounged in the passenger seat.
Oh great. I’ve got to be around him and her tonight.
I didn’t have a problem with her. I just wasn’t too excited about hanging with them all night. Pipe studied my reaction as I spotted Jay’s arm resting on her shoulder. I rolled my eyes and sucked my teeth.
“You’re still in love with him, huh?” Pipe flung the cigarette on the ground and stomped it out.
“I’m in lust not love.”
“Sure you are, honey, and I’m a heterosexual man who loves football and farting in public.”
“You’re so crazy, Pipe.” I slowed my pace, but the inevitable came as we approached the car.
Jay turned off the vehicle, stepped out, and rushed over to open the door on the other side. His body appeared more pumped up, probably due to working it out on the field all day. His shoulders and arms swelled, pushing up against the green and yellow Coventon Wildcats shirt. On the front, a cat’s claws ripped through the letter C. His jeans hung low. I imagined if his shirt was off, how delicious the curves of his lower abdominal muscles would be.
So yummy.
“Hey, Evie.” He embraced me, blanketing my space in vanilla and mint.
I inhaled him. “Hey, Jay and Cynthia.”
He tensed under me when I said the last two words. “Pipe will be here for a few days. You like the car he just bought?
“It’s nice.” I noticed we’d been locked in that embrace longer than we should have. Clearing my throat, I backed away. He tightened his grip on my waist and targeted me with a needy gaze, one that sped up my heart. I shoved him a little, hoping no one would notice. “You’re driving?”
“Yeah.” He released me. “I’m driving.”
“Of course, he’s driving. It’s nine o’clock.” Pipe flashed his watch my way. “By this time, I’m high as a kite. You have three more hours before I pass out. Whose dorm room am I sleeping in this trip?”
“Mine,” Jay and I both said.
I flipped my middle finger at Jay. “Last time Pipe came to visit he stayed with you. It’s my turn.”
Jay wagged his finger. “Remember our agreement? Pipe sleeping in your bed violates the agreement.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me?” I almost yelled out. “Pipe’s gay, dickhead. We won’t be having sex.”
“What agreement?” Pipe asked.
Jay jumped in before I could blurt out a stupid excuse. “We made a sort of bet that she couldn’t keep a guy out of her bed for three months.”
Pipe turned to Jay. “Is this due to what you were telling me about earlier? That fraternity douchebag from last night?”
“I can’t believe you told him that.”
“I heard he had gold teeth.” Pipe held his hands out. “Really, Evie? Gold teeth?”
“Oh, be quiet.” I pushed at his hands.
“Why don’t we all just do a big slumber party in our room?” Cynthia clapped her hands and glanced over her shoulder. “Jay sleeps with me. Pipe is over with Evie in her bed.”
“Hell yes. And we can buy popcorn, paint our toenails, talk about boys, and when the first person goes to sleep, we grab all of their underwear, wet it, and put them all in the freezer.” Pipe hopped in the back of the car. “Then we’ll throw them at the window and watch the icy underwear burst into tiny little pieces.”
Cynthia had an odd expression on her face as if she wasn’t sure if Pipe was joking or not. I didn’t know either. Pipe probably would do all the things he said and smoke a joint the whole time he did it.
“Get in, please.” Jay looked me up and down, stirring lust inside my core.
“Bossy,” I muttered under my breath.
He slapped my behind. A simple friendly hit to everyone around us, but when I directed my attention to his eyes, I spied the wide outline of his dilated pupils, signaling his arousal. I dragged myself away from watching him any further.
We kissed hours ago and already everything had changed.
“Does this town have a beach?” Pipe asked.
“Of course, it does. It’s Florida.” I didn’t glance Jay’s way anymore.
“Then let’s go to the beach. When in doubt, head toward sand and ocean, baby!”
“Shouldn’t we go get our swimsuits first?” Cynthia asked.
“Fuck no.” Pipe lit another cigarette. “We’re skinny dipping like the old days, baby.”
“No, Pipe.” I held my hand to my forehead. “That’s crazy. Every time we go to the beach, you yell that out and we tell you no.”
“It’ll be fun,” he countered. “Right, Jay?”
Jay closed the door on my side and pierced me with another hungry gaze. “Skinny dipping sounds good to me.”
Oh god. This isn’t going to be good.
* * *
Darkness painted the sky and hid the ocean in waves of black as we all sat on the beach. Wind blew through our hair, lifting up my curly strands and bringing the salty aroma of the sea to our noses. If I hadn’t been with my best friends, I would’ve simply sat in a Buddha-like position and meditated on the soothing sound of water splashing against water.
Something about nature made everything okay when things were going wrong.
Jay and I had sat out on the beach for days after his parents died. He’d claimed I helpe
d him heal, but it was always the sensation of nature around him—birds soaring above us in a layered sky of blues and whites, the crystal-clear surface of the Pacific Ocean, the sand skittering by our feet as the wind guided it around. Nature reminded us that something greater moved around, God, powerful beings, or a unity of many great things. I kept him near the sea as he mourned, believing that Jay being around nature would confirm to him that he didn’t have to deal with his parents’ deaths all by himself, that there was something surrounding his grief and nurturing his journey the whole time. Something greater than himself.
“What are you thinking about, Evie?” Pipe rested his head on my lap.
“About the power of nature.”
“Don’t start that mess again.”
“What?”
He wagged his arm around and imitated my voice, “There’s something so great out here, Pipe. Look how the water flows in waves.”
“Shut up.”
“I swear sometimes I think you’re one of those Wiccan hippies.”
“You’re the one that claims you can read auras.”
“It’s not a claim. It’s a fact. I happen to be cursed with two things, beauty and the power to see auras.” Pipe lifted his head and turned in Jay and Cynthia’s direction. They sat six or so feet in front of us, mumbling about whatever they needed to discuss. “What do you think they are talking about over there?”
“I don’t care.”
“Excuse me, Ms. Uptight. What’s wrong with you?”
“Nothing. I’m feeling the vibe of the sea.”
“Hey, Jay! You want to partake in a smoke?” Pipe wagged his joint in front of Jay’s view. Jay waved him away and returned to his conversation.
“Leave him alone.” I took the joint from Pipe’s fingers and smoked it myself.
“I just keep thinking that one day the golden boy will stop shining.” Pipe rolled off my lap and lay down in the sand.
“Not happening. He’s too perfect for us bad guys.” I handed the joint back to Pipe.
“No.” Pipe waved it away. “I’m done.”
“What was that, Pipe? You’re finally done putting cancer into your lungs?” Angry lines covered Jay’s face as he twisted my way. “Throw that crap out in the ocean.”
“That’s littering,” Cynthia jumped in.
“The herb should return back to earth.” Pipe stuck the joint in a hole near him, spread sand over it, and then looked at me. “What are we doing this summer? Dad wants me to go to London with him. Now that he’s retired, he’s all about hanging out. Too bad we have nothing in common but the fact that we both have penises and like to stick them in places.”
I did a fake pout. “Aww, poor baby. Daddy wants you to go to London. Life is so unfair.”
“That city is overrated.”
“I wouldn’t know, spoiled boy.”
“Shit. You’ve never been? I’ll take you then.” He shrugged. “Dad would love to see you. In fact, fuck yeah. Come with me, Evie. What were you going to do?”
“I don’t know.”
“Hang out with me in London. We’ll tear it up over there. Come on. Say ‘yes’ right now so I can lock you into it.”
“I haven’t even planned my summer yet.” I glanced Jay’s way.
Pipe followed my gaze. “What’s Jay doing this summer?”
“He’ll probably hang at his grandparents’ and then do something dealing with football.”
“He’ll also slip in a visit to you and your mom’s too, as he does every summer.”
“Maybe.”
Pipe shook his head, closed his eyes, and whispered, “Definitely. He’s crazy about you and just too scared to act on it.”
He’s not scared anymore, apparently.
A breeze blew through my curls and blew them past my cheek, concealing some of my face. I tilted my body in Pipe’s direction and said in a low voice, “We kissed last night.”
That woke him up. His eyes popped open. He rose into a sitting position. “Shut the fuck up!”
“Quiet.” I stuck my tongue at him. The euphoria of the joint settled down over me, lifting up my cheeks into an unavoidable silly grin. “No joking.”
“So what is he doing with her then?”
I stood up and gestured for him to walk off with me. I had to tug Pipe to a standing position. We slung off our shoes and rolled up the bottoms to our pants.
“Where are you two going?” Jay asked.
“Just for a walk.” I dragged Pipe off before Jay could invite himself with us. When it seemed like we were at a good distance away, I spilled everything to Pipe, from the moment Jay told me he wasn’t scared, to our kiss in the stairwell the next morning.
“He won’t break up with her in two days. You understand that, right?” Pipe formed his mouth into a frown. The wind blew stronger, laying the fur on his hat flat on one side. “He’ll just be all detached to the point that she’ll want to break up with him, which will take forever.”
My hopes died down. I’d figured something similar. Pipe squeezed my hand. We strolled down further, in silence. Sand formed around our feet. Tiny rocks skimmed the pads of my toes. Our footsteps trailed behind us. A few times cool water raced by my feet and chilled my skin. I glanced behind us; Jay and Cynthia still sat together, only two small dots now within darkness.
Pipe studied my face. “You know what? Forget what I said. I’ve been wrong about him before.”
“When?”
“Huh?”
“When have you ever been wrong about Jay? I can’t think of a time.”
He twisted his lips. “I’m just saying, maybe he will really break up with her in two days.”
“You think maybe he’s delaying breaking up with her for reasons other than he doesn’t like to break up?”
“I don’t know, Evie. I’m pretty biased in this situation. I’m on your team.”
“There aren’t any teams.” I released his hand.
“Oh yes, there are.” He motioned behind us at Cynthia and Jay. “Our boy is a stud with a hot body and a decent heart. He’s up for the Heisman, has a large bank account, and everyone on TV is constantly predicting he’ll be in the pros soon. Cynthia won’t let him go if she doesn’t have to. I don’t know much about her, but I can see that she’s smart and needy. She’ll stay around for anything he tosses her way. He’ll break up. She’ll beg and make him feel guilty. He’ll stay.”
“That’s what you see?”
“Yep. And you’ll begin sleeping with him because you can’t help it and because he’ll never stop pursuing you now that he knows you feel the same way he does. He’ll never let you go or leave you alone. You could move to a new school and I bet he’d move too. And even worst, Cynthia would probably come along. This is like a car crash waiting to happen.”
“No. It’s not.”
“Oh yes, it is.” He paused and yanked off his shirt. His fur hat fell to the ground. He threw his shirt down but put his hat back on. “Come on. Let’s go skinny dipping. It will cheer you up.”
“Pipe, stop.”
It was already too late. His belt dropped to the sand. The jeans fell next and finally the boxers, revealing a nice size penis that forced me to cover my face with both hands. It wasn’t the penis I didn’t want to see. It was the ridiculous tattoo I tried not to look at. When we were sixteen, he’d begged his ex-nanny to pretend to be his mom and go to the tattoo parlor with us. Once there, he got an elephant’s face tattooed on his groin. The gray ears spread out on each thigh. Its wide eyes rested below his belly button and the trunk was, of course, his penis. The next week, he regretted the tattoo and begged his dad to pay to get it fixed. His dad refused and wouldn’t give his accountant permission to authorize the spending for laser removal. Apparently, it was his dad’s lesson to stop him from being a further dumb ass in the future. I often wondered how he explained the elephant to his lovers.
“Put your clothes back on. You’re insane!” I giggled.
“Join me!” He raced o
ff into the water with his fur hat still on. The moon shined over his pale behind that flexed as he ran. “Get one with nature, baby! Come on, Evie! You know you want to!”
I did. I wanted to do anything when Pipe was around. He had that type of allure that made you yearn to be a part of whatever he had to offer.
Oh, why not?
I wrenched off my shirt, climbed out of my bra, jeans, and panties.
“Damn, Evie. With your body, I might consider being heterosexual again. Since when did your breasts get that big?”
“Be quiet.” I covered them with my arms and tiptoed in, not even tossing a glance Jay and Cynthia’s way. I was sure Jay was cursing up a storm. My hair whipped around my face. Freezing water stabbed at my toes. I jerked back. “The water’s cold!”
“Come on. This isn’t your first day at a beach. Jump in, silly.” Pipe sank all the way into the ocean, hat and all.
“Pipe!” I laughed and sped in, throwing myself into the icy water. My body shivered. Cold enveloped me. My teeth chattered. Dark liquid wavered around me. But as any beach baby like me understood, the water warmed after a while. With each second, my body got used to the water’s temperature, but not fast enough so I could stop screaming. “Pipe!”
Where is that crazy man?
I couldn’t find him. We used to have breath-holding competitions every summer. Pipe always won. Hands grabbed my waist. Pipe turned me around. “Hello.”
“Hello.” I splashed him.
His hat resembled a dead wet cat on his head. How it stayed on, I would never know.
“Thanks for jumping in with me, Evie.”
“You know me. I’m your partner-in-crime when all logical people have fled away in fear.”
“How long do you think it will take Jay to jump in and cop a feel of your wet, naked body?”
“Not happening.” I wiped water out of my eyes.
“Let’s make a bet.”
“Fine.”
“I bet you fifty dollars that Jay will jump in as soon as he realizes you’re naked, and
he’ll cop a feel within an hour of being near you in the water.”
“Fifty dollars it is.”
“Evie! Pipe!” Jay’s voice sounded from behind me. I turned. Jay kneeled down by my clothes and lifted my bra. “I expect this craziness from Pipe, but really, Evie?”
The COMPLETE Coventon Campus Series: Books I, II, & III Page 7