by Nicole Casey
I am really glad I didn’t spend a month waiting for that. Speaking of anticlimaxes…
I waited for what I thought was an appropriate amount of time before slipping my legs over the side of the bed.
“Where are you going?” he asked. “Give me a minute and we can go for round two.”
Ugh. Had there even been a round one? Not for me.
I forced a grin and shook my head.
“I’m too tense,” I told him. “I keep thinking that Amanda is going to wake up.”
“She won’t,” he promised. “And I can give you a massage if you’re tense.”
I shook my head with vehemence.
“No,” I insisted. “I should get back to work for a bit and get some rest. I have to collect samples tomorrow.”
I could almost feel his eyes narrow in the darkness but I was too busy locating my clothes to address him.
“Good night,” I said brightly, sneaking out of his room.
“Sasha…”
I stifled a groan before turning back toward him.
“Hm?”
“Are we good?”
I smiled briefly.
“Of course we are,” I said with forced cheer. We were, after all. It was just a one-night stand and we were adults.
Adults who work together, I reminded myself, cringing. How stupid was I to have slept with a co-worker on a work trip? I was going to be stuck looking at him every day without avoidance.
Too late for regrets now. What’s done is done. Moving on…
“Is there something else, Hunter?” I asked, trying to keep the impatience out of my voice as he remained silent. His eyes met mine and he shook his head.
“No,” he muttered and I felt a stab of guilt touch my gut. He wasn’t a bad guy—he was just terrible in bed. Not really his fault but also not my project. At least now I knew. No harm, no foul.
As I hurried out into the common area, I saw that Queenie hadn’t moved an inch from where she’d passed out and I exhaled with relief. For the first time since knowing her, I was glad she was around.
Then again, things were bound to get really awkward now.
4
Sasha
To my chagrin, Queenie was up before me the next morning, staring at me with daggers in her eyes. I gulped back my guilt even though I didn’t owe her an explanation.
“Morning,” I said brightly. “How did you sleep?”
As far as I knew, she’d slept exactly where she’d fallen but as I studied her face, she looked much better rested than I had expected of someone who had downed half a bottle of scotch in the span of three minutes. Hell, she looked like she’d gotten more rest than me.
She didn’t answer me and instead spun away from the kitchen counter to take her tea into our makeshift lab.
“Good morning!” Hunter chirped, strolling into the common area from the bathroom. He wore nothing but a towel around his waist, his dark hair still wet from the shower and I gaped at him in shock as he strutted toward me to place a kiss on my neck.
“Will you make me a coffee, babe?” Hunter asked and for a second, I thought he was talking to someone else.
Did he just call me “babe”? Is that what just happened here?
I rationalized that I must be dreaming but when my eyes automatically moved toward Queenie, I knew I was in a waking nightmare. Her mouth had become a line so thin, it was almost invisible.
“Hunter, can I speak with you for a minute?” I asked, struggling to keep my composure, even though I felt like my head was about to pop clear off my shoulders.
“Sure,” he agreed, leaning in for another kiss. “But not before you say good morning.”
Please, floor, just open up and swallow me whole. I won’t fight back.
The burn of Queenie’s eyes seared holes into the back of my head as I ducked out of his reach and yanked his arm. Once inside his bedroom, I slammed the door closed and stared at him, unblinking.
To add to my consternation, he reached for me, grinning.
“I’ll never say no to a morning quickie,” he jeered, lowering his head to kiss me but I pushed him off me.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I hissed. “Are you trying to get me fired?”
“Fired?” Hunter seemed genuinely confused. “Why would you get fired?”
I could feel my body threatening to hyperventilate.
“Hunter, what are you doing?” I asked, fighting to keep myself from yelling. “Why are you acting like we’re together?”
The confusion on his face magnified.
“Uh…we were together,” he answered slowly. “Last night, remember?”
I closed my eyes and steeled myself before answering.
“Yes, of course I remember,” I said, grinding my teeth. “But that was last night.”
Understanding slowly colored his eyes and hurt overcame his confusion.
“Oh…I see.”
“Look, you’re a good guy, Hunter,” I rushed on quickly, amazed that I had to do this. We’d had a lackluster one-night stand. What was he thinking?
“But we’re co-workers and Amanda already hates me,” I continued, making up the spiel as I went along.
As if she was listening in on our conversation, there was a pounding on the bedroom door.
“If you two are done copulating, maybe you can get to work!” Queenie howled and the malice in her voice was almost palpable. “You’re not getting paid to screw! What a concept, huh, Sasha?”
Fury raced through me at her disgusting innuendo but I checked my temper.
“Coming!” I called quickly before turning back to Hunter. “See? She’s furious!”
“She’s always furious!” Hunter spat at me. “I told you, she’s jealous of you.”
“Hunter,” I sighed. “Last night was…special.”
I almost choked on the lie but I needed to let this guy down easily. Matters were not going to get easier if Hunter wasn’t on my side.
Jesus, what a mess.
“It was special,” he agreed, eyeing her. “So what if we’re co-workers. It’s not against policy to date.”
“Hunter!” My voice was sharp. “There are only the three of us here now. Think about how Amanda’s going to feel if you and I couple up and leave her in the cold. It’s not right.”
His eyes narrowed.
“Suddenly you’re worried about how Amanda feels?”
I hated that he knew me so well.
“Just think of the optics here,” I implored him. “It’s only going to build tension among us.”
He studied me speculatively.
“So we’re just on hold until we get back to New York?”
Is that what he inferred from what I just said? God, and he’s a scientist.
I wanted to lie to him and say yes, if only to placate him but I couldn’t bring myself to do that. I thought about how long I’d pined for him. How would I have felt if he’d given me false hope? I didn’t want to lead him on. It wasn’t my style.
“We’ll see,” I managed to say but he wasn’t an idiot. He knew where I stood at that moment.
“I see.”
His shoulders stiffened and he exhaled in a breath of anger.
“I-I’m sorry, Hunter,” I mumbled, knowing my face was bright red with embarrassment. I’d never done well with confrontation and in this situation, it was a hundred times worse. His face twisted in anger and he folded his arms over his chest.
What a waste. He’s got a washboard on his stomach.
“Whatever. Can you get out so I can get dressed?”
I nodded quickly and turned away, grateful to have been given an out but I knew I was just walking out one door and entering another dragon’s den.
I hurried into the kitchenette and poured myself a coffee, carefully averting my gaze from Queenie’s piercing stare but I knew that avoiding her wasn’t going to help me now.
“You guys are disgusting,” Queenie spat. “Couldn’t even keep it in your pants for
a couple weeks, could you?”
I glanced at her, hearing the contempt in her voice and a dozen retorts jumped to my lips.
No, Queenie. Human people like sex—not that I expect you to understand that.
“There’s nothing going on between Hunter and me,” I muttered, taking my spot at the computer.
Queenie snorted rudely.
“Yeah, right.”
I pretended to busy myself with my research but it was hard to concentrate with all the animus flying around, none more so than when Hunter stormed out of his room, determined to make as much noise as possible.
What is happening? Am I in hell?
On a whim, I reached into one of the desk drawers and removed my earbuds, slipping them into my laptop and found the Modest Mouse album in my playlist. The only surefire way to drown out misery was with music, after all.
It worked for a few hours as I somehow forgot about my boss and disastrous one-night-stand-turned-scorned-ex.
I probably would have gotten through the day in my own little world if my Skype phone hadn’t started ringing around one.
“Alex!” I breathed aloud, forgetting that I wasn’t alone in the room. Her deceptively serious face appeared on the screen and I jumped up to disconnect the computer from the charger so I could get myself some privacy.
I made my way inside the room I was sharing with Queenie and shut the door, flopping on the single bed as Alex’s smile lit up the screen.
“Oh well look at that! You haven’t been consumed by snow monsters or whatever it is that gets you in Iceland!” Alex chortled.
“You have no idea how glad I am to see your face,” I sighed. “How’s it going over there?”
“The entire city has shut down without you, Sash. The roads have closed. The post office is on strike—”
“Shut up,” I laughed. “Have you spoken to my mom?”
“You’ve been gone four days, Sash. Everything is fine, I promise. Don’t worry about us. Focus on yourself.”
“No,” I muttered, keeping my voice low. “Everything is not fine.”
Alex’s dark eyes widened but her brow knit with worry.
“Why?” she demanded. “Is it that bitch still on your case? Do you want me to send her some anthrax?”
I kind of did. I groaned and flopped back on the lumpy mattress, pulling the laptop onto my stomach as I propped my head up on the pillows.
“I made matters way worse,” I confessed. “I slept with Hunter last night.”
Alex’s face instantly brightened and she squealed with happiness.
“It’s about damned time!” she cheered. “Give me deets!”
I shook my head.
“No. Trust me, you don’t want any.”
Alex’s face turned to surprise.
“That bad? I wouldn’t have guessed it. He always looked like he knew what to do.”
“He does—for himself,” I breathed, worried that Queenie or Hunter might be listening in. They couldn’t hear Alex since I still had my earbuds in but if they wanted, they could still hear me.
That’s on them, not me. I shouldn’t have to worry about where I’m getting my privacy.
I shouldn’t but I did.
“Shit, that’s too bad. Are things really awkward?” Alex asked and I nodded.
“He was acting like we were in a relationship this morning and when I set him straight, he started storming around like a three-year-old.”
Alex howled with laughter.
“And they call us emotional, right?”
“God, Alex, I don’t know how I’m going to get through the next few weeks like this.”
Alex paused, her brow furrowing.
“Do you want to come home?” she asked and I scoffed.
“Of course not!” I growled even though that was a big, fat lie. I wanted nothing more than to hop the first flight home but I was an adult, not some high school freshman.
“You sure?”
“Of course I’m sure. Alex, this project is my baby. I’m not going to let a little bit of personal friction scare me off.”
Alex shrugged.
“If you change your mind—”
“I won’t,” I assured her. “I just need to throw myself completely into work and forget about their drama.”
Alex sighed and bobbed her head.
“If anyone can keep her eye on the prize, it’s you,” she agreed. “But if things get too weird—”
“You’ll be the first to know,” I assured her. “I gotta get back before I give Queenie even more ammunition to use against me.”
“All right, girl. Make sure you email me every day.”
“Will do,” I agreed even though I knew our internet was sketchy. Honestly, I was surprised the call hadn’t dropped already.
“Love you, Sash.”
“Love you too.”
We disconnected but I didn’t move immediately as I stared at the blank chat screen.
Maybe going home wasn’t a bad idea. I could ask to be put on another team and come back later…
I snickered at my own naivety. There would not be another expedition. We’d waited this long to get the funding approval for this one. It was now or never.
You’re not going to sacrifice your career over a shitty sex choice, I told myself. That’s not even an option.
5
Sasha
After the video call with Alex, I brought my computer back into the lab and set it down, glancing out the window to see the amount of light left in the day. Getting used to the early sunsets was something I still had to accept and I was worried that I’d missed my opportunity.
“I need to collect some samples,” I said, realizing that if I wanted to go, I needed to go then. Neither Queenie nor Hunter acknowledged my words as if I hadn’t spoken so I said it again.
“So go,” Hunter barked without looking up from his microscope. I wondered what he could possibly be working on. I doubted he was doing anything at all but sulking. It was like being in the twilight zone. I was surrounded by scientists with the emotional quotients of toddlers.
I gritted my teeth before posing the next question since I really didn’t want to be asking it.
“Are you coming with me?”
“No.” He didn’t even let me finish asking before spitting out the word. I looked at him with disgust.
So much for being adults.
“I can’t go out alone,” I reminded him. “It’s against company policy.”
Queenie laughed mirthlessly and looked at Hunter.
“Oh, look who’s worried about company policy,” my supervisor snorted. “The one who gets drunk and sleeps with the team members!”
There were so many things wrong with her statement, I didn’t know where to begin.
“I didn’t do—” I stopped myself from saying anything more on the subject. Suddenly I was being double teamed and fighting them both off was just wasting time I didn’t have.
Screw both of them.
“I’m going out to collect samples. Are one of you coming to help me or not?” I tried again in a more reasonable tone.
“No.”
The answered in such perfect, flat unison that they almost sounded like the same person.
“No?” I echoed dubiously. “You’re going to let me go out there alone?”
Neither of them bothered to even look me in the eye.
“Hello?” I snapped. “Seriously?”
Queenie glared at me.
“Do you need someone to hold your hand to collect moss, Snow? It’s not like you’re going hunting for food.”
“I’d go for that!” Hunter chortled and they exchanged an amused look. Fury smashed through me as they laughed at me.
“Wow,” I muttered, spinning away. “That’s great.”
I didn’t need them to come with me but it was a buddy system implemented on all research trips, as per the Mirror, Mirror guidelines. I knew it was a way for them to cover their asses but like Queenie had just said—
it wasn’t like we were in the deeps of the Amazon. I wasn’t going to get mauled by the non-existent wild animals of Iceland or get lost in the thick of a jungle. I just needed to trek north toward Jokulsarlon for a couple miles and gather whatever samples I could around the lake. It wasn’t like I was apt to get lost on such an easy route.
Not in Iceland.
I cast the pair one last scathing look but they purposely kept their eyes down and I left the rectangular structure, bundled in a parka and fur-lined boots.
The ground wasn’t frozen over yet which was a blessing and despite my anger, I had to admit that it was much being out and alone than with the odd couple inside.
It was the first time I’d really been out to explore the secluded land where we’d been stationed and it was breathtakingly beautiful. The air smelled like it had never been touched by mankind and fleetingly, I imagined this was what it was like to be on another planet or at least to a time when mankind hadn’t completely ruined our habitat.
But this was our planet, the only one we had and that was what I was doing there—trying my best to save it.
Onward I moved, pausing here and there to snap a photo on my iPhone to send to my mom and Alex but when I peered at them, I knew I wasn’t doing the sights any justice.
I vowed to bring Alex back here with me, just her and I. But in a place with a hot spring and a jacuzzi.
Maybe a masseuse.
The terrain was uneven but it was easy to find Lake Jokulsarlon. Again, my breath was stolen as I took in the body of water and I marveled at how it could belong to humankind.
Screw coming back here for a visit. I might just move here forever.
Sighing, I unloaded my backpack and dropped to my knees, looking around the rocky shore for signs of the Icelandic moss I needed for my research.
It was easy enough to find—the stuff grew everywhere and I gathered samples from wherever I could find, using my GPS to properly document the coordinates.
I didn’t feel like I’d been at it very long but suddenly, the little bit of sunlight I’d been granted was fading away and I realized I was standing in the cold dusk as the wind whipped at my cheeks.
It was time to get back.