Summer

  The sound of the cicadas was drowned out by the roar of well over a hundred people talking, laughing, and making all the other noises that came with a mob. While most of the local booths were set up yesterday, a semi and a bus rolled in earlier in the morning filled with people and gear. Suddenly the town square was a small fairground filled with game booths, outdoor kitchens, art displays, and the smell of overly priced and overly greasy fair food. Hot on the heels of these people came the buses full of city people either for the summer festival itself or the sandy beach of the Big Lake.

  Jay’s original plan was to serve coffee samples and hopefully sell off some of the twenty dollar bags he had stocked up. He soon found himself in a non-stop rush to serve overpriced cups of coffee to people who wanted a drink right now, not tomorrow. At some point Lilly and Nohana started helping. Well, Nohana was helping. She was wearing light gray cargo pants, a yellow tank top that had open sides, a sports bra or something of that sort to hide what the tank top wasn’t, and a red baseball cap. She was looking good and Jay was sure it was helping sales. Lilly was in a light blue summer dress that showed a lot of shoulder and leg as well as a wide brimmed straw hat with openings for her horns. She was doing the far less important job of sitting in a canvas chair in the shade with her bare feet propped up on Nohana’s chair. Occasionally the Tel’ani girl would shift or twitch, Nohana would glare at her, and Lilly would give the blonde a shit eating grin. Jay was missing something, but he was too busy to ask about it.

  Jay flopped down into the grass with his back against an oak tree. “Abyssal-Hell.” He said, slouching into the trunk and hanging his head.

  “I can’t believe we sold that much coffee.” Remarked Nohana.

  “I can’t believe I’m out of coffee.”

  Lilly, still staring at her cellphone, gave them a thumbs up. “Great work guys.”

  Fuck you.” Nohana spat back.

  Lilly looked up. “What? Right here?”

  Nohana glared at her.

  Lilly grinned.

  Jay looked to Nohana. “How much?”

  “One thousand seven hundred and five.”

  “Abyssal-Hell.” Jay said again with more enthusiasm.” I should give up roasting coffee and be a barista.”

  “Not here.” Mumbled Lilly, Benton Cove’s only barista. If someone working a single coffee machine at the general store counted as a barista.

  “Keep two hundred for yourself.”

  “Ooo, That’s more than I make at work. Are you hiring?”

  Jay shook his head. “Maybe next year.”

  “What’s my cut?” Lilly asked.

  “You didn’t do anything!” Snapped Nohana.

  “I brought the cups.”

  “I already paid for the cups.”

  “Yeah, but not the service of purchasing them from a closed store.”

  She technically had him there. “Five dollars.”

  “A pleasure doing business with you.”

  Lilly stretched. “Lots of clean-up tomorrow.” She said, breaking the moment's peace.

  “You might be out of coffee, but that stand over there still has funnel cakes.” Nohana motioned with her chin.

  Jay sighed. He couldn’t deny the seductive allure of a funnel cake.

  ***

  Lilly pushed herself onto her toes and reached for the ceiling in a glorious early morning stretch. Once that task was complete she threw open the curtains to reveal dark skies and steady rain. “Hmm. Guess that was thunder.” She turned to glare at her clock. “Guess I slept in.” Lilly then dashed through the kitchen and out the door. Her tail performing the inherently learned serpentine motion necessary to avoid getting crushed between the door and its frame. Lilly cringed even before the door slammed shut.

  “Fuuucckk.” She hissed.

  “Lilly?” Came the voice of an older woman from behind the door across the hall. “Sorry Mrs. Fox.”

  Lilly crept up on Nohana’s door, gave it two soft knocks and placed her ear to the wood. No sound. She slid her key into the lock and poked her head in. “Hana? You home?” The room was dark and empty. “Right it’s Wednesday isn’t it?” Quietly she closed and relocked the door. Entering her own apartment and remembering not to let the door slam shut this time, Lilly surveyed her home. “Hmmmm.”

  "Morning!" Lilly said to Jay as he stood in the doorway looking for all the world like a wet cat. The umbrella had kept his upper half dry, but he was soaked from the knees down.

  "Good morning." He began pulling his shoes off. "Thanks for inviting me over."

  "Not a problem. Hana's at work and I had nothing to do. So I thought why not hang with the one person in town who can't do anything when it's raining."

  "To be fair, I can always spend the day roasting coffee now."

  “And you’d rather roast coffee than hang with me?”

  Jay gave her a look that said. “I’m here, aren't I?”

  “Nevermind. Come in, I’ll start the food.”

  “This really is a mirror of Nohana’s place.”

  Only the furnishings in Lilly’s apartment were different. Where Nohana’s home was clean and lightly decorated, Lilly’s was a chaotic mess of anime posters, figurines, and fabric. The wall in Nohana’s apartment that was dominated by her video games and console here was taken by a sewing machine, laptop computer, and a haphazard pile of scrap fabric.

  “What’s with the sewing machine?” He asked.

  Lilly looked up at him. “Where do you think I get my skirts?” She gave a swing of her hips, making the pleated skirt sway.

  “I thought you bought them.”

  “Nope. I make most of my clothes. Mom taught me when I was like twelve. I make some cosplay stuff too.”

  “Cosplay?”

  “Yup. I hit the convention in the city every year.”

  “Huh. Never been to one. Kind of just thought of it as a bunch of sweaty nerds.”

  Lilly glared at him.

  “Sorry.”

  The small wall had a large bookshelf stuffed with manga. Jay wandered in that direction, looking over the titles.

  “May I?” He asked before touching.

  “Yeah, just don’t get them out of order.”

  Jay pulled out a single book and cracked the cover.

  “You like manga?”

  Jay shrugged. “I like graphic novels. Not really a fan of superheroes. So yes, but not specifically.”

  Lilly dropped several pieces of egg and cream soaked bread onto the griddle. “Got a favorite?”

  Jay went to put the book back when he noticed there was another layer behind the first. The books had different cover art so they were likely a different series. “I’d say Mor-ag City Tales, but I guess that depends on your definition of manga.”

  “Eeh, I’ve read it. Dark and gritty, kind of, umm, noir I think?”

  Jay nodded as he fished out one of the rear books. “That Time We Got Ravished by Slimes?”

  “No!”

  Jay wasn’t sure how Lilly had gotten to his side of the counter so quickly, but the book was ripped out of his hand and she was pushing it back into its place. “First layer, you can only touch the first layer.”

  “Umm, sorry?”

  Lilly slowly returned to her place at the griddle.

  Jay quietly pulled a different book out, there were still more in the back. “So… How often does someone do that? Look at the back row, I mean.”

  “No one. No one has ever given enough fucks to take a book off the first row.”

  “Hmmm. Not a lot of company or just no one else in town that likes this stuff?”

  “Uh, both.”

  “Nohana?”

  “Doesn’t care for it.” Lilly said, dropping the finished french toast onto a plate and sliding Jay’s portion over to him. “She mostly just plays video games… So we can either break into Hana’s place and raid her game cabinet or watch anime?”

  “I’m fine with anime, but nothing too long. I’d hate to start a series and not have time to finish it.”

  “Sure, but then I could get you here every time it rains.”

  “Ah, but the more I get done, the less the rain prevents me from getting other shit done.”

  “You’d rather work than hang with me?”

  “Ah but I need to work.”

  “I seem to be slipping in my powers of seduction?” Lilly said with an evil grin.

  “Nat twenty on Will save.” Jay responded with a grin of his own.

  Lilly’s smile faded. “What?”

  “Natural twenty on Will save.”

  “I don’t know what that’s supposed to mean?”

  “Oh you poor kid."

  Lilly frowned and paused the show.

  "What's up." Jay asked.

  "Shhh. Listening for Hana."

  Jay held still and listened. About a minute later, someone could be heard moving down the hallway. Lilly jumped up and ran out the door when they could identify the sound of a key in hitting a lock. There was hushed arguing that moved from the hallway into Nohana's apartment. Jay found himself in Lilly's home completely alone. It was a little awkward. Just when he was considering getting up, the sound of arguing reentered the hallway. Lilly burst through the door dragging an annoyed blonde behind her. She was wearing a blue tank top and yellow-orange short shorts. Jay realized at that moment that he had never seen Nohana’s legs before, and she had damn nice legs. Actually, Nohana was kind of hot. It was a revelation that hit him just as Lilly pushed the blonde down onto the cushion next to him. He had always pegged the girl as attractive, so why was it only now that he thought of her as hot?

  Lilly shut her door and pulled a beer out of the fridge. She cracked it open and thrust it at Nohana. The blonde took it while glaring at Lilly. The purple skinned girl plopped down next to her human friend and hit play on the DVD player. Jay felt acutely aware of Nohana's presence. Maybe it was the humidity as she seemed to radiate a slightly sweaty odor that mixed with whatever shampoo she used. It was intoxicating. Her smooth, curvy figure existed next to him and he spent the rest of the afternoon trying damn hard not to look. Damn biology.

  ***

  Lilly drew in a deep breath and let a shudder run through her body. The forest was beautiful. Green tinted sunlight hit her light purple skin under the shade of the canopy. The air was warm with a gentle cooling breeze coming off the Big Lake. Birds chirped, squirrels chattered, cicadas and other insects set a consistent background melody. The foot falls of deer could be heard. No, not deer. They were too heavy. Lilly turned her head and cursed. She frantically scrambled to get her cell phone, knocking it off the log and into the detritus below. Lilly followed, landing on her knees with a shudder and trying desperately with shaking hands to deactivate the bluetooth connected devices.

  “Lilly? Are you ok?” Jay asked.

  Lilly took in a deep breath, steadied herself, and picked herself off the ground.

  “You scared the shit out of me! What the hell are you doing in the middle of the woods?”

  Jay looked over his shoulder towards his property. He couldn’t see it from here, but that was due to the trees, not distance. Samuel looked towards town.

  “I wouldn’t call this the middle of the woods.” Samuel stated dryly.

  Lilly brushed off her skirt and looked the two over. Samuel was carrying a chainsaw. Jay had a large hammer, some wedges, and a battery powered reciprocating saw. Both were dressed for manual labor complete with heavy boots and work gloves.

  “Right. Well… I’m’a find a quieter place to be. Have fun.”

  The two men watched the Tel’ani girl walk off awkwardly. Her tail twitching spasmodically.

  “She’s a weird one.” Samuel said as they continued to the dead tree they had marked out the day before.

  Samuel was short, had sandy brown hair that almost matched his sun soaked brown skin, and wore large coke bottle glasses. Long and gangly in appearance, if it wasn’t for his corded muscles and obvious tan lines he would look like the stereotypical description of a nerd. Sam was far from it though. He preferred living outside and made his living teaching rich city people how to start fires with sticks and stones. In the winter months he left to work the ski resorts up north.

  “Yeah.” Jay agreed. “Kind of fun though.”

  The two began clearing the obstacles from the base of the dead tree and deciding on exit paths.

  “She’s always with Nohana and Nohana is fucking hot.”

  “Tch-Yeah.” Jay agreed with a laugh. “During the last thunderstorm I ended up sitting next to her while she was in short shorts.”

  Sam nodded. “Wait until you catch her in her swimsuit. There’s nothing particularly special about it, other than her body trying to escape the damn thing.”

  “Too small?” Jay asked.

  “I don’t think so. She just has like… The perfect amount of body fat you know?”

  “Yeah I know.”

  “Second hottest girl in town.”

  “Second?”

  “Amanda was the hottest.” Sameul said, nodding as if to confirm his statement.

  “I don’t know who that is.”

  “Lilly’s sister.”

  “I didn’t know she had a sister… Wait, no Hal mentioned it once.”

  “I don’t think they're on good terms. Amanda left and just never came back. Oh but damn was she good looking. If Nohana is the girl next door. Amanda was a runway supermodel.”

  “Huh.”

  Samuel pulled on the chainsaw’s cord. It choked, sputtered, and died. “Seriously, I’d put Lilly as generally attractive, but she’s kind of the ugly duckling in that family.” He gave the cord another pull. “The girls are always falling head over heels for Hal.” This time the chainsaw almost stayed on. He stopped pulling. “Thing about Nohana is that she doesn’t seem interested in anyone. I personally think Lilly’s bi and Nohana friend zoned her years ago just like everyone else.

  “It’s hard to tell with women.” Jay responded.

  Samuel nodded. “Yeah that’s true.” He pulled the line and the saw roared to life. Samuel said something else, but his words were lost to the noise.

  ***

  Lilly heard the key hit her lock and the bolt open. She spun around and greeted Nohana, posing with a frying pan and apron, stars swirling around her. She quickly dropped her anime styled perception of reality when she noticed the dark cloud and angry aura of Nohana.

  “Ummm… What’d I do this time?” Lilly asked.

  “Samuel asked me to check on you.” Nohana said coldly. “He seems to think you were in the woods getting high.”

  "Umm. I wasn't."

  "I know you weren't! I know what you were doing and I distinctly remember having this discussion after the summer festival!" Nohana growled.

  "Ye, yeah?"

  "And you promised not to do lewd shit in public!"

  "I wasn't in public!" Lilly retorted. "I was in the woods. I didn't know new guy and Sam were going to walk up on me while playing lumberjacks."

  Nohana buried her face in her hands. "I didn't know it was more than just Sam."

  "I'm totally going to ship those two."

  Nohana snatched Lilly by the horns, gaining full control of her head. "Listen to me." She demanded. Lilly didn't fight the angry blonde. "You're going to make me a promise ok?"

  "Okay."

  "Repeat. I Lillyana Illiana Fisher."

  "I Lillyana Illiana Fisher." Lilly always knew she was in deep shit when Nohana used her full name. Just like her mother, come to think of it.

  "Promise not to do lewd shit in public." Nohana continued.

  "Promise not to do lewd shit in public."

  "I will keep it to my apartment."

  "I will keep it to our apartments unless you say otherwise." Lilly grinned.

  Nohana grit her teeth. She pushed Lilly's head down and away. “Close enough.” Lilly stood up straight and massaged the area where her horns connected to the skull. Nohana glared at her. Lilly gave the blonde large golden puppy dog eyes. Nohana's expression softened and she let out a long sigh. "You're lucky you're cute."

  “Are you going to keep me?”

  ***

  Jay finished loading his cart of lettuce into the cooler. The door was closed, the dead bolt locked, and Hal pushed the cooler back onto the truck. When the truck door was shut, the driver pulled out and began his two hour trip back to the city.

  "You profitable yet?" Hal asked conversationally.

  "Running just under five hundred a month."

  Hal frowned. "That's not much."

  Jay shrugged. "I have no house payment, no electricity bill, and no internet bill at the moment. This will pay my cell phone, insurance, and taxes for the year. I do sell coffee as well. That's just going to have to be enough for food this winter. I also still have some savings, but that's set aside for expansion next spring."

  Hal nodded. "I suppose that works." He shut the loading bay doors once Jay pushed his cart out of the post office. "So… About this game you're playing with my sister and Nohana?"

  "Yeah?"

  "That's not the one about demon worshiping is it?"

  Jay stared at Hal for a long moment trying to tell if the guy was being serious or not. He couldn't tell, so he just asked. "Are you being serious right now?"

  Hal frowned. "Of course."

  Jay took a deep breath. "The gun on your belt. Is it evil?"

  Hal's brow furrowed. "Of course not. It's just a thing."

  "Well the game I'm running uses a system of rolling various dice to determine the success or failure of actions. Like flipping a coin. It would be possible for a demon worshiper to use it in starting some type of cult, but it's just as possible as a demon worshiper using a gun to start a cult. Does that make sense?"

  Hal nodded. "Just checking."

  "I promise I’m not a demon worshiper. You can sit in on one of these games if you want."

  ***

  Silverware clinked against plates as the Fisher family sat around a fully extended dining table. The serving of food was full of “Thank you”s, “Here you go”s, and “Please pass the gravy”s.

  “Mmm. Oh my gods Milana. How do you get the yams like this?” Asked Selena.

  “Secret family recipe.” Quipped the Matriarch of the family.

  Selena looked up at her with hesitation in her eyes. Wondering if she wasn’t considered family.

  “I’m joking Selena. I’ll show you later.”

  “So Lilly?” Hal started. “How was yesterday’s… Game?”

  Lilly opened her mouth to speak.

  “Finish chewing!” One of her fathers snapped.

  Lilly finished chewing and swallowed before replying. “It was awesome. We were clearing out a mausoleum. Some death cultist idiot thought it would be a good idea to raise a bunch of undead or something. Nohana is a paladin so getting through the zombies was pretty easy, but the boss was a tricky fucker…”

  “Lilly!” Snapped her other father.

  “Sorry. Was a tricky guy.”

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  “This is one of Nohana’s video games?” Milana asked.

  “No, it's pen and paper. Umm, so in a video game you are limited to what the programmers put in, but with this, you can basically do anything you want.”

  “And Jay just makes up what happens?” Hal clarified.

  “Mostly, yeah. Depending on what the dice say.”

  “Oh, speaking of Jay.” Milana got up from the table and wandered into her home office.

  Lilly looked to Hal. Hal shrugged.

  “So…” Said Lilly’s non-biological father. “You’re spending a lot of time alone with the new kid.”

  “Some. Nohana’s there most of the time.”

  “The three of you?”

  “Yeah. We’re not exactly having a threesome.”

  “LILLY!” Snapped both her brother and mother who had come out with a photo album. Selena stifled a giggle. Hal could have had any girl he came across and somehow managed to fall for one that was plain looking and actually found Lilly amusing.

  “So, not dating?”

  “No dad. We’re not dating.”

  “Hmmm.” He looked over to his son.

  “Jay seems like a decent guy.” Hal replied to the unasked question.

  “I think what your father is trying to say, dear, is that you aren’t getting any younger.”

  “So, you want me to have a threesome?”

  “LILLY!” Chorused the family.

  “Sorry.”

  “Don’t piss off your mother.”

  “I said sorry.”

  “Anyway.” Milana said, clearing off a place on the table for the photo album. “I saw Jay the other day wearing a blue t-shirt and I had one of those deja vu moments. So I went through some of the old pictures and… where is it… Ah, right here.” Milana put her finger on a photo of four children. A four year old Lilly holding an ice cream cone waving at the camera, a five year old Samuel who didn’t yet have his glasses also holding an ice cream cone, Clare at seven with a bowl, and an unknown boy at about six with unruly brown hair and coal black eyes in a blue shirt, also with ice cream. The kid did resemble Jay.

  “Huh.” Said Lilly. “I don’t remember that.”

  “You were so cute back then... Honestly I just remember that he was here visiting family and not with the tourists.”

  Lilly continued to look the image over. It probably actually was Jay, he had mentioned that he spent a week with his grandfather when he was six. Kid in the picture looked to be the right age. It was a neat coincidence, nothing meaningful though.

  “It’s destiny.” Milana affirmed.

  Lilly rolled her eyes.

  ***

  “We thank you for our food. We thank you for our family. Please continue to watch over Nathan and guide him in his continued success.” Nohana’s mother prayed.

  “Nathan doesn't need guidance. He’s smart enough to do it himself.” Nohana quietly thought to herself.

  “We pray for your divine guidance to help Nohana find a good man.”

  Nohana winced.

  “We pray for your divine guidance to guide us in being good people.”

  “Nathan doesn’t believe in this crap! That’s half the reason he isn’t here!” Nohana screamed in her mind.

  “And we pray for your divine guidance for our community, may it never go astray. Amen.”

  “Amen.” Repeated Nohana and her father in unison. Finally they could eat.

  Nohana loaded up on ham and potatoes and waited for the inevitable.

  “So.” Her mother started.

  “Here we go.”

  “Any interest in Mr. Higgs?”

  “Same amount as last time you asked mom.” Nohana poked at her ham. “He’s ok.”

  “Yes. I hear he’s a nice guy, but I asked if you were interested in him.”

  Nohana looked to her father for help. He would, but only after his wife had interrogated their daughter enough that he could get away with it. Nohana shrugged.

  Her mother sighed. “I’m just worried you’re going to miss your chance. That Mrs. Fisher might steal him away from you.”

  “What if he and Lilly are a better fit?” Nohana asked, happy to implant that idea into her mother’s head.

  “Hmm. Have you tried online dating?” Her mother suggested.

  “Aren’t you worried I’ll end up with some freak?”

  “Mmm, there’s that.”

  Silence. Sweet silence.

  “I just want you to find a good man to make you happy.”

  Nohana sighed. “What happened to the silence?”

  “You’re too young for a boyfriend.” Her father finally chimed in.

  “Thanks dad.”

  He gave his daughter a smile.

  “She’s twenty two.” Nohana’s mother reminded her husband. “She only has eight more years of good child bearing in her.”

  Nohana poked at her ham some more. She just wanted to go back to her apartment, turn on one of her first person shooters, and kill some thirteen year old kid in another Polei.

  Her mother gave her one of those “Mother Knows Best” smiles. “At least go on one date with the guy, okay?”

  “Sure.” Nohana acquiesced. Arguing was futile.

  ***

  Lilly knocked twice and pressed her ear to Nohana’s door. Dead silence responded. She moved to her own door and slid the key into the lock. The building's main door opened. Lilly waited as the footsteps revealed a tired looking Nohana. The blonde gave Lilly a weak smile.

  "Grilled about getting a boyfriend again?"

  Nohana slid the key into her lock. "Yeah. You?"

  Lilly shrugged. "I guess. It's not the same though."

  "Well. Got work tomorrow and I'm tired."

  Silence hung in the hallway. Neither of the two moved.

  "Wanna watch a movie?" Lilly suggested.

  "Sure. Give me fifteen minutes."

  “It’s a date then.”

  Nohana frowned.

  ***

  Lilly considered what she was going to say to Jay when she was close enough to be heard. Many iterations went through her mind, but she eventually settled on. “Holy gods in Hell Jay, what have you done?”

  Jay looked up at her and let out a small chuckle. The foundation of the old cabin had been fixed up, but aside from the floor that Jay was currently nailing in place the whole damn thing was gone. Behind where the cabin used to be was a haphazard pile of crappy wood, a slightly more organized pile of less crappy wood, and a nearly perfect pile of new wood, likely from Corbin’s mill.

  Jay shrugged. “It just wasn't worth trying to fix.”

  Lilly tapped on one of the new floor joists.

  “So, what’s up?” Jay asked, moving over toward Lilly and dangling his legs over the edge.

  “I have the day off. Nohana doesn’t. And I'm bored. So I thought I’d come over and bug you.”

  “Well, I’m not doing anything terribly important. Want to take a walk?”

  Lilly thought about it for a moment and nodded. “Yeah. Sounds good.”

  It was one of those perfect summer days. Lazy clouds occasionally covered the sun casting massive shadows over the world below only to move on and let the light drench the ground like a downpour. It was hot, but the breeze off the Big Lake was cool. The birds and insects sang the songs of deep summer and tourists played on the beaches leaving the town in relative peace. They made a few circuits around town and out to some of the random places only the locals knew about before returning to Jay’s property. They cracked a beer and sat on the edge of the cabin floor. Talking about everything and simultaneously talking about nothing.

  Lilly liked being around Jay. He was the kind of accepting and decent person she would consider dating. He didn’t berate her for her language or shy away from her crass humor and perverted comments, and often he would play along. Maybe it was the summer atmosphere. Maybe it was their closeness. Maybe it was the small amount of alcohol in the cans of beer Jay called swill. Lilly leaned closer. Her golden eyes locked on his coal black ones. She wanted just a taste of his lips. When they were mere inches apart, she realized just what the fuck she was doing.

  “Oh shit!” She said, pulling away and grabbing her horns. She pulled her head down towards her knees. “I have to go.” Emotion cracked in her voice as she jumped down from the short wall.

  “Lilly I…” Jay’s voice died as the Tel’ani girl ran down his driveway back towards town. Jay sat there trying to figure out what he had done wrong and what he should do about it. In the end, he just didn’t know.

  ***

  Nohana was the next girl to walk up his driveway. Jay had put himself back to work assembling the floor. It was helping him think through the day’s events though he still hadn’t come up with any answers. Nohana was wearing a pair of tight blue jeans and a tank top. It was highly likely she didn’t own anything other than tank tops. The pretty blonde girl stopped at the edge of the cabin and looked at the various wood piles.

  “You tore it down.” It wasn’t really a question.

  “Yep. What’s up?”

  “Have you seen Lilly? I can’t find her and she’s not answering her cell phone. I thought maybe I’d find her here.”

  “She came by this morning. We spent most of the day together and she ran off about an hour ago. I think I pissed her off or something.”

  Nohana cocked an eyebrow. “You pissed her off?” She sounded skeptical. “How?”

  “Well I thought we were about to kiss.” Jay raised his hands and gave the blonde a confused look. “Then she ran off upset.”

  “Ah, I see.” Nohana nodded. “I know where she is. Thanks. And umm. Don’t worry about it. She’s not mad at you.”

  Jay watched as Nohana walked off back towards town. “Ok, so… I didn’t do anything wrong?”

  ***

  Lilly heard the footsteps. She didn’t move, just continued to look out over the rocks and across the Big Lake. The distant shore was too far to be seen even on a clear day such as this. The waves lapped against the rocks in a calming rhythm. An inland sea of fresh water so large one could practically make out the curve of the planet. Nohana sat down next to Lilly and looked out over the rocky beach to the blue-green waters beyond.

  “How’d you know I was here?” Lilly asked quietly.

  “I talked to Jay. He seemed confused. I told him not to worry about it.”

  “Mmm.”

  “Lilly, I…”

  Lilly grabbed hold of Nohana and buried her face into Nohana’s chest. “I’m sorrrryyy.” She cried.

  The blonde wrapped her arms around the little Tel’ani girl. “It’s ok Lillyana. It’s okay.”

  ***

  Nohana opened her closet, picked out a tank top, thought about the color, and put it back. As the hangers moved she caught a quick flash of the neck of her guitar. She pushed the hangers out of the way so she could take a good look at it. Long and black with four thick metal strings leaning against its amp. Nohana sighed. Put the hangers back, picked out a white tank top and closed the closet door. She opened the closet door, moved the clothes, and picked up the bass guitar. She pulled on the thick A-string and let it snap, the solid deep sound of the cord reverberated. She put the guitar back and shut the door.

  Nohana flopped down into her beanbag chair and stared at her game console. She got up, pulled the guitar out of the closet again and returned to her seat. A minute of tuning the instrument later and she had it sounding correct. Nohana pressed the fingers of her left hand against the strings and plucked at the metal cords with her right. The quiet rhythm of the dull sounding strings filled the tiny apartment. If only she could use the amp. Maybe if she turned it to the lowest volume or if she sat on it, then perhaps she could feel the music. Make her bones vibrate. She pulled at the stings.

  “Why don’t you play a feminine instrument, like a flute or violin?” Nohana growled to herself, pulling at the strings and making the dull unamped sound of the metal cords sing.

  “Why don’t you find a nice man and have a happy life?”

  “Why don’t you wear a dress?”

  “Why don’t you participate more in church?”

  “Video games are for boys! Lilly is a bad influence! Why can’t you be more like your brother?!”

  Nohana wrenched the strings on the bass guitar, its only reply to the abuse was to emit a dark thrum.

  “Nathan ran away from you, mother!”

  Nohana swore when she heard the knock on her door.

  “Nohana? Are you ok?” Came the sweet old voice of her neighbor.

  She set the guitar against the wall and opened the door a few inches. “I’m fine, Mrs. Fox. Sorry to bother you.”

  “You had me worried, dear.”

  Nohana gave the old woman a pleasant smile. “Thank you for checking up on me. I’ll try to be quieter.”

  Nohana relocked her door and stared at her guitar. If only she could play it the way it was meant to be played. Loud. Loud enough to feel it.

  “You know why Lilly likes the new guy?” The instrument didn’t respond. “No expectations. He showed up, learned what people were like, and expected them to be themselves. He didn’t grow up here. He doesn't have an opinion on how we should have ended up.”

  Nohana paced her apartment. “He’s an outsider. Like Selena. Selena doesn't berate Lilly for having no filter on the shit she says, because Selena never met the innocent little girl. She only knows Lilly as she is now.” Nohana continued pacing. The guitar continued to say nothing, because it was a guitar. "I bet Jay would let me play you. He’s probably far enough out." She stared hard at the instrument. Her shoulders slumped. "I guess I could at least ask."

  Nohana stood in front of the mirror and looked herself over. Chain necklace that disappeared into a white tank top, khaki colored capris, and a pair of comfortable sneakers. No dresses, no skirts, no frilly bits. She didn't care for that shit. She gave the girl in the mirror a nod. Today, she would play her guitar. She would play it loud. Loud enough to feel it in her bones. Make her chest thrum. Make her teeth vibrate. Play it the way it was meant to be played.

  Jay was setting boards out on the floor he had finished installing the day previous. Nohana waited for him to finish.

  "What's up?" He asked.

  "I wanted to know if you would let me play my guitar out here? It's too loud for my apartment."

  "Fine by me. Acoustic or electric?"

  "Electric."

  "I'm going to need the generator for a while every few hours or so."

  Nohana nodded. "That's fine."

  Jay gave her a thumbs up then lined up a couple boards and hammered them together.

  "Umm, do you need help?"

  Jay shrugged. "I don't need help, but I won't say no if you're offering."

  Nohana jumped up onto the floor and looked down at the boards.

  "So," Jay started, pointing at the longer board that ran the length of the floor. "This is the bottom plate. I've got it all marked out. All I need you to do is grab a stud." He kicked one of the many boards lying parallel to each other. "Place the end against the bottom plate on the Xs, and line up the edge with the line."

  Nohana grabbed one of the boards, pushed it up against the longer board, and used her hand to tap one edge to the line, covering the X. "Like this?" She asked.

  "Just like that." Jay put his foot on the board to hold it still and hammered a couple nails into it. "Stop if you see a J or a K instead of an X"

  "What are they supposed to be?" She asked as she tapped another board in place.

  "Jack and King studs. It's where a window goes and there are a few extra things that need to be done." He hammered in a few more nails.

  Thirty minutes later, Nohana was helping Jay walk the wall into a standing position. He hammered it into position while she held it up and with a couple braces, one wall was standing on its own.

  "Damn, is there anything you don't know how to do?" Nohana asked.

  "Lots of shit. I've been helping to build stuff since I was eight, but most of the other stuff I just learn online and try it until it works."

  "Ah. So, is there anything you can't do?"

  Jay thought about that one for a moment. "Music. I can learn to read sheet music, I can learn to mechanically play an instrument, but I can't…" He waved a hand in the air. "I don't even know how to explain it. If you take away the sheet music, I can't play. If you want me to whistle the sheet music, I can't do that either. The notes are, positions, on an instrument to me, not sounds."

  "So you're ok at the mechanics of something, but not the art of it."

  "Yeah. As far as music goes anyway."

  "I get that. So, what's next?"

  "Next, we cut the studs for the other wall."

  Nohana’s muscles throughout her entire body were sore, she was drenched in sweat, her bra was clinging to her skin as if it had been glued there, and yet she had the strangest feeling of accomplishment. After leveling the walls and putting on the first run of planking Jay basically didn't need any help at all. She and Jay had built the first floor of the building in mere hours. Nothing Nohana had ever done in her life had such an obvious impact on the world around her. It was… amazing. Jay continued putting runs of planking up as Nohana went home to shower and grab her guitar.

  Lilly followed the sound of angry cords down Jay’s driveway. At the end was a small fire pit, Nohana sitting in a lawn chair with guitar in hand and the amp pointed toward her, and Jay on a ladder putting boards on walls that weren't there yesterday. Lilly gave the new guy a wave as she pulled up another lawn chair and sat across the flames from Nohana. She could feel the anger and stress the blonde was putting into the dark rhythm. Lilly wondered if it was her fault or if it was a build up of all the small things again.

  “How did you know I was here so quick?” Nohana asked, pausing in her playing for a drink of her beer.

  “I could hear you from town.”

  “Ah, shit.”

  “It’s not bad, but you should turn it down in an hour or so.”

  Nohana sighed and nodded, then went back to playing. At some point Jay joined them, offering Lilly a beer. Lilly watched Nohana’s strong fingers work the strings as she listened to the dark, melancholic sounds of Nohana’s soul. Jay merely watched the fire, looking more like he was resting than paying any attention to the blonde pouring her heart out. He couldn’t see it, couldn’t hear it, couldn’t feel it, but then why should he? Only Lilly understood Nohana to this level. The vibrating low tones weren't just music. They were Nohana.

  Jay handed Nohana a wad of cash as Lilly picked up the amp. The blonde looked at it with some confusion.

  “What’s this for?”

  “Work.”

  “Oh, I thought I was just helping.”

  “No-HAN-a!” Lilly butted in. “Selling yourself to new guy?”

  Jay and Nohana stared at a grinning Lilly who was waggling her eyebrows.

  “I am so sore.” Nohana moaned. Lilly’s expression turned to one of confusion.

  “So am I.” Jay said, joining in on the reversed joke.

  Lilly looked between the pretty blonde girl and new guy, then at the half built cabin. “You, you were actually working, right?”

  Nohana stiffly moved past Lilly toward town. “Yeah… Mostly.”

  Lilly followed. “Mostly?”

  ***

  Nohana woke to her alarm. She let out a groan as she reached for the damnable clock. Everything hurt. Her arms hurt, her neck hurt, her back and butt and legs hurt. Even her fingers and toes hurt. She lay there staring up at the ceiling for another fifteen minutes or so. Jay did pay her, so even if she called in she wouldn’t be out any money. She took a slow and painful morning routine only finding relief in a hot shower and movement itself. She had called in and sitting still and stiffening up didn’t sound like much fun so she slowly waddled outside. Lilly was already at work. Might as well stop by for coffee and shoot the shit with the old fogies that hung out in the general store at this hour.

  Lilly, Harahk, Megan, and a brief visit from Hal. A typical morning in Benton Cove full of gossip about this person and that. A handful of comments about some of the tourists and a few lewd jokes from Lilly, half of which only Nohana caught. Nohana left the general store with coffee in hand and headed off towards Jay’s place. Mostly just to see if he was as sore as she was or if she was just weak.

  Jay was sitting on top of the wall hammering yet another board in place. "You're not sore?"

  Jay grinned down at her. "A little. Do remember I've been working my ass off since I got here... Are you ok?"

  "I feel like you dragged me out behind the shed and…" Nohana paused. "Uhh. I almost pulled a Lilly."

  Jay chuckled. "Since you're here, want to throw me up those joists?"

  "What's a joist?"

  "The larger boards right there."

  Said boards were twice as thick as the ones they put up yesterday and as long as the cabin was wide. "You're a slave driver."

  "Mmm, yes. Aren't you supposed to work today?"

  Painfully, Nohana handed Jay one of the joists. "I called in."

  "I see."

  It didn’t take long before Nohana found herself on top of the building looking out over Jay’s property with her legs hanging over the wall, a beer in one hand, and a completed floor under her ass.

  “Can I just say something?” Nohana asked, breaking the silence. The day was almost over. Both of them were moving slow and the floor was apparently all that Jay was willing to work on.

  “What’s up?”

  “Fuck you.”

  Jay looked at the pretty blonde woman, she merely stared out over the land and took another sip from her can.

  “You didn’t have to help.”

  “It’s not that. It’s just… Things were ok before you showed up.”

  Jay cocked an eyebrow. “Uhaamm. What'd exactly I do?”

  Nohana shrugged and winced at the pain in her shoulder. “Nothing. You’re a generally decent person and I want to hate you for that, but I can’t and that’s royally pissing me off.”

  “I…” Jay turned that statement over in his head a couple times. “Can you umm… maybe explain?”

  “It’s a secret. Nobody knows.” She lifted her beer as if toasting some unseen third person.

  Jay waited, wondering if he was going to hear this secret. Nohana was silent and motionless. She took a drink and Jay decided not to push it.

  “I’m gay.”

  Jay looked at her again. She simply stared outward. A groundbreaking revelation that was not. He had slowly begun to suspect something of the sort and he didn’t really see why it would be a secret. “That’s... it?”

  Nohana turned her head. Her eyes met his. “That’s it?” She repeated. “Of course. Why would you give a shit? It’s not the end of your world.” Her voice was getting stronger, more irritated sounding. “And that’s why, fuck you. My entire life of being so damn careful about what I say in front of others summed up with, ‘that’s it?’”

  Nohana took a deep drink of her beer. Jay wondered what the fuck he was supposed to say now.

  Nohana let out a long sigh. “I feel better.”

  “So? You got a thing for Lilly?”

  The blonde snorted. “I don’t have a thing for Lilly, I have a thing with Lilly.”

  “Oh. Ooohh.” That little statement drastically changed the meaning of about half of the Tel’ani girl’s wild ass comments.

  “Wait. You say no one knew.”

  “Well. Me and Lilly know.”

  “How the fuck did Lilly keep that a secret?!”

  Nohana failed to stifle a laugh which came out as a hoarse choking chortle. She lifted her beer. “Now, that is the question of the century. And think about it. That beautiful bundle of chaos says so much random shit. I don’t think anybody believes she’s fully straight and most people straight up ignore every other thing she says.”

  “Hmm. How long have you been together?”

  “Fuck! Four or five years now I think.”

  “And nobody's figured it out?”

  “We are sooo careful. We’re always watching what we say, and how much time we spend together. I’m so sick of playing this stupid ‘like sisters’ game. We were going to get an apartment and do the roommate thing, but what if people began to suspect? People talk. People always talk. That’s all they do in this fucking town. It can’t be that hard to figure out. I just, I just, gwaaa!” Nohana ran her fingers through her blonde locks and pulled.

  “So, why don’t you just leave?”

  Nohana swirled the remainder of her beer. “We tried that… The city’s a scary place and Lilly can’t do that to her family again.”

  “Again?”

  “Did you know Lilly has a sister?”

  “Amanda?”

  “We don’t talk about Amanda. At least not openly… Anyway, things weren't great, but they were stable, at least until you showed up.”

  “I can keep my distance from her.”

  Nohana shook her head. “I don’t know if that’s the right answer. We’re all technically bi.”

  “I don’t think I agree with that.”

  “Think about it.”

  “Eeeehh.”

  “But my problem is, Lilly floats more toward men. We live in a small town with no options. She just kind of… settled for me. And then she’s Tel’ani. They got that whole polygamy cultural thing. If she ends up like her mother, does that make me just one of her husbands? Am I expected to share her with another girl? Or another guy?” Nohana gave Jay a quick scan up and down. “Eww.”

  “Am I that bad?”

  “No, no, I just thought of something disgusting Lil showed me once.”

  Jay pulled another beer from the cooler and put it down next to Nohana.

  “Don’t tell her I told you. At least not right now. I need to figure some shit out.”

  “Yeah sure. You know. I’ve always had this mental image of you as quiet, stable, and content. Now you just seem miserable and, I don't know, lost maybe.”

  Nohana didn’t say anything. Merely cracked open the next can of cheap beer.

  “I can’t give relationship advice, but on misery. Stop doing what makes you miserable.”

  “Easier said than done.”

  Jay nodded. “True, but you can either drink crap beer alone after working in hell or you can drink crap beer with a friend while looking over the fruits of your labors.”

  “You saying I should quit my job, move out to the middle of nowhere, and grow salad in plastic bins?” Nohana joked.

  “If that’s what you want?”

  The blonde laughed.

  “Hey Nohana?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Don’t pull my tail unless you mean it… Is that Tel’ani for ‘don’t pull my leg’ or is that some type of sexual comment?”

  “That is a Lilly-ism. So it’s both.”

  “Thought so.”

  “Does this change anything between us?” Nohana asked.

  “What? You being gay?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I don’t think so. Maybe I don’t need to watch what I say about women as much.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I don’t know. Stuff like, she’s hot or I think Lilly’s pretty, but everyone tells me she’s the ugly duckling of the family.”

  “Ah, you haven’t.” Nohana took a moment to look around. “You haven’t seen Amanda. If you’re ever at my place and Lilly’s not around. I have a picture with Amanda in it. She’s in this… sexy little black bikini.” Nohana reached out her hands as if trying to grab something. “Her waist and her ass and her thighs were… perfect.”

  “That good?”

  “Gooodddsss yes. I’d like to pull that tail.” The blonde took a drink of her beer.

  “So the tail thing is, totally a thing?”

  “Oh yeah. And have you seen Lilly’s mom?”

  “Yeah.”

  “And what’d you think?”

  “I umm... I don’t want to admit what I think about women old enough to be my mother.”

  “Yeah. I’d pull that tail too. I mean… Mentally. Not, for real.”

  “I get it.”

  “This is a little fucked up, isn’t it?”

  “What?” Jay asked.

  “Just, when I came by this morning, I sure as shit didn’t expect to be sitting on a building bullshitting about my girlfriend’s mom.”

  “I see. Well you better keep it down. I think your girlfriend is looking for you.”

  Nohana glanced down the driveway. Sure enough a dark haired Tel’ani girl was coming towards them. Long sexy tail curling around behind her.

  “You know, I don’t actually like the color purple.” Nohana admitted.

  “Ha! Well, I think you better get used to it.”

  Lilly eventually made it to the building, a grin on her face as she looked up at the two. “You two up there making out without me?”

  “Yeah.” Nohana said, clearly catching Lilly off guard with her answer. “Get your ass up here.”

  “I’ve got swill.” Jay added holding up a beer.

  “You’re going to cover us in swill?”

  “Ah, I, What?”

  Lilly grinned wider. The Tel’ani girl made her way up the ladder and plopped down beside Nohana. “So what’cha talking about?”

  “The random shit you say.” Nohana replied.

  “Oh like… Blood isn’t the only fluid men have?”

  “Umm.” said Jay. “I’ve read that one.”

  Lilly grinned and began chanting. “One, of, us. One, of, us.”

  ***

  Jay had been on the “Nohana is hot” bus for months now, but seeing her in her swimsuit was definitely a treat. It wasn’t anything special. Black and orange in coloration. A halter top type thing that started just below her breasts and ran up toward her neck, covering her endowments completely. There just wasn’t anything to see, other than shape and size. The bottom was a bikini and not the string type, but the kind that hugged the hips. Again it was nothing special except for the way her curvy body seemed to want to escape it.

  “Are you just going to stand there and stare at me?”

  “Sorry.” Jay apologized.

  Nohana jerked. “Guaahh… Gods Jay!”

  “What?”

  “I thought you were someone else.”

  “Lilly?”

  “Yeah. What are you doing here?” Her eyes drifted to the fishing pole in his hand. “Nevermind. How did you find this place?”

  “Well, there’s a giant map on the wall in the library.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yeeeaah. So, I'm guessing this is the swimming hole you don’t tell the tourists about?”

  “Yes.”

  “Any fish?”

  “I guess so.”

  Jay stood there awkwardly trying not to oogle the sexy blonde.

  “The Fall Festival is in about two months. I’m… planning something. Would you be willing to help me out, if I need it?” Nohana asked, completely changing the subject.

  “Sure. What’d you have in mind?”

  “Ahh. I’m still working out the details. I’ll need to get back to you on that.”

  “Alright.”

  “And Jay? Can I ask you to leave?”

  “Yeah, not a problem…” Jay turned to look toward the coming footsteps.

  Lilly was running with a black and red color scheme that almost matched Nohana’s. Lower cut boyshorts for her bottom, the more common and skimpier bra-like triangle thingy for her top, and a choker. She must really like chokers. She looked good with her wide brimmed straw hat, but in comparison to Nohana… Nohana was a Men’s Swimsuit Edition Sports Magazine cover. Lilly was a skinny model from the Female Fashion Mags that told girls what they should look like while simultaneously wondering why men flocked to girls with Nohana’s figure. Pretty? Yes. Hot? Not that much.

  “You invited new guy?”

  “No.” Nohana deadpanned.

  Jay lifted the fishing pole. “Was just seeing if there were fish in this hole. I plan to spend most of my day at the Big Lake.”

  “Oh. There’s a smaller harbor thingy just south of the main cove. That’s where my dads and Hal like to fish. If it’s not overrun by tourists.”

  “Really? I’ll check that out.”

  “You got some white stuff right here.” Nohana pointed to her cheek.

  Lilly wiped at her face, picking up leftover sun lotion and rubbing it into her arm when she realized what it was. She grinned. “I know some white stuff I’d like to see all over your face.”

  “Yeah, I’m leaving.”

  “What? Right now?” Lilly asked as Jay started off.

  “Yep, have fun.”

  Lilly looked at Nohana. “It wasn’t that bad of a joke was it?”