Authors Note: This is my first time publishing an erotica story, but not my first attempt at writing one. It's quite lengthy and focuses much more on the plot, dialogue and characters than the actual sex. If that's not what you're looking for, you've been warned. For those of you that are left I have a second warning. There will be angst and drama mixed in with the humor and sappy moments. In other words, I've tried to make this as accurate as possible to reality. I hope you enjoy reading this tale as much as I did writing it.
*****
June, 1996
"There goes my summer." I muttered.
It was the same thing I had thought a million times over the last two weeks since my parents had broken the news to me. They were going on a second honeymoon-a cruise that would take up most of the three months of summer. At first I was ecstatic. Three months all to me. I could stay up late, sleep in later and do whatever I felt like during the day. Then they told me the nasty bit about shipping me down to California for the duration of their trip and that ecstasy I had built up in my head instantly deflated.
I tried to argue with them about their decision. I had just turned eighteen after all, plenty old enough to take care of myself without a constant babysitter. In the end they wouldn't be swayed though, not trusting me to stay home all summer without completely destroying the house. Or whatever nonsense they believed.
I sighed again and pressed my head against the cold glass of the taxi window as it sped me off to my aunt from the airport. I'm sure most kids my age would think I was nuts, but I was dreading this visit more than anything. I would rather be exploring the forest than hanging out on a beach and I would take the sticks over the city any day.
Aunt Tanya was leaning against the red brick of her home as I pulled up, ankles and arms crossed as she surveyed the traffic. I smirked at the sight of her, at least my folks sent me off to the cool side of the family. That was a plus if nothing else was.
"Hey kiddo!" Tanya greeted with enthusiasm, and scooped me up in a big hug as soon as I got out of the cab.
"Hi." I choked out through her tight embrace. When she finally released me I had to push my glasses back up the bridge of my nose. The intensity of her excitement to see me had knocked them askew.
Tanya handed the cabbie a few bills and rounded to the back of the car. "Let me help you with your bags." She said and scooped them out of the trunk before I could get a chance to lift anything out.
"Uh, thanks." I muttered and rubbed my neck before following her into the house.
Aunt Tanya dumped my luggage off into the living room and huffed out a big sigh. Stretching her back she uttered a chuckle and admitted, "Not as spry as I used to be."
"I could have helped you know." I shrugged.
"Don't worry about it." She waved me off, "So are you excited to be down here?"
"Uh." I began, not knowing exactly what to say at first. I had always been blunt and direct though, so there was no hiding how I really felt-even to spare her feelings. "It's not how I planned to spend this summer."
Tanya didn't get upset like I expected her to, instead she nodded solemnly, "I understand completely, but I promise we'll make the most out of your time here. There are some great kids your age that live down the block, I'm sure you'll fit in and make some friends in no time."
That was the last thing I wanted. I had friends back home. I didn't want to meet some people that would just be occupying their vacant spot for three months. Still, I put on a smile for my aunt.
"That would be great." I lied smoothly, "Do you mind if I put these in my room and just settle in?"
"Sure thing let me show you where it is." Tanya agreed and started grabbing my bags again, I made sure to jump in and take two of them before she completely loaded herself up this time.
After Tanya showed me the room I thanked her for the help and sat down on the edge of the bed. She got the message and left me alone to my thoughts. I looked around at my foreign surroundings with some glum and laid back.
"There goes my summer." I said again and sighed.
***
"I have to take off for just a few hours, but there's food in the fridge and cable TV so I'm sure you can occupy yourself." Tanya explained getting into her car.
"I'll be fine." I shrugged, my hands dug deep into my pockets.
"I'm sure you will be." She smiled at me and then looked past my shoulder, before calling out, "Hey Alex!"
I turned around to get a glance at whoever Tanya was talking to and raised my eyebrows in surprise. It was a tall girl in short shorts and a loose tank top. She was riding a skateboard and zipping down the hill at a daredevil pace. A flat billed cap was jammed down crooked on her head and wild locks of her brunette mane whipped behind her in the wind.
Hearing my aunt's call, the girl looked over and raised a hand. She turned her heels and flung her hips out to make the board abruptly stop its descent to turn sharply towards us. At about a foot away she jumped off and brought her heel down on the tail end hard, the board jumped up and she caught it nimbly with one hand.
"What's happening Ms. D?" the stranger greeted, her voice full of cool confidence.
"Nothin' much." Tanya replied, "Have to head to the hospital for a quick shift."
"The Man always needs something right?" The girl laughed and nodded in my direction, "Who's your friend?"
"Niece, actually." Tanya corrected her.
"I'm Marley." I butted in, and held my hand out.
She shook it and offered me a wide toothy grin, "Alex. Nice to meet you."
"Marley just got into town today. If you have some time on your hands maybe you could show her around the neighborhood." Tanya suggested. She had started the car and was ready to leave at any moment.
"Of course, I can give her some Cali hospitality." Alex assured my aunt with a wink of her hazel eye and motioned for me to follow her. I shrugged and gave Tanya a good bye wave before following Alex down the sidewalk.
"Things are mostly chill down here. Not a bunch to do, but that's cool if you got some good friends." Alex told me, "Bobby Beats, Pockets and Jessie Stones are some of the coolest dudes you'll ever meet. I'll have to introduce you while you're here."
"I really hope that those are nicknames." I muttered to myself.
Alex laughed lightly, "Definitely, we all have nicknames down here."
I was enjoying this simple conversation as the sun began to set, the warm rays felt good on my skin. "So what do they call you?"
"Sunshine." Alex replied, "Everyone just calls me Sunny though."
"Why's that?" I chuckled. It was a bit ironic, given my previous thought.
"Who knows? Maybe it's because of my shining personality." Alex shrugged and flashed me another megawatt grin. "So what are you doing in Cali anyways? It's not my business, but I'm curious."
I had forgotten for a moment that I was here and not home, and that got me upset again. I sighed, "My parents took a second honeymoon and sent me down here for the summer."
"No better place to be in the summer." Alex said.
I'm sure she thought that I would agree with her, but I just kind of grumbled instead. "That's a matter of opinion."
"What do you mean? Don't you like playing in the ocean and hanging out in the sun?" Alex asked, actually stopping her forward movement to look at me like I was crazy.
"Yeah I guess. It's just not, like, ideal to me. And sand. Uck." I acted out a motion of disgust at my general dislike of the beach.
"Well, I'm convinced I can change your opinion by the end of the summer." Alex said.
"I severely doubt that." I told her with a chuckle.
Alex waggled a finger in my direction. "Don't underestimate me, I love a good challenge."
"This should be a challenge all right." I said honestly.
Alex put a finger to her chin, "Me and the gang are having a party this Friday on the beach, why don't you come down and hang out with us? I'm sure a little revelry will lighten your opinion some."
I shrugged "Guess that's a start." I noticed then that we had made a full circuit, and were back in front of my aunt's house.
"Gotta start somewhere, right?" Alex chuckled. Somehow, this tickled her funny bone, "Well, I would hang out longer but I gotta be somewhere before it gets dark."
"Oh." I said, trying not to sound as disappointed as I was about losing her company.
"But I'll be back in a couple of days to pick you up for the party." Alex did a little groove with her hips and grinned wider.
"Cool." I giggled and looked at the ground, "Thank you by the way. I really didn't want to come out here, but maybe you're right. It could be fun."
"I'm sure you'll have a good time." Alex told me, her voice more sincere now. "This place has a way of growing on you."
"Hope you're right." I said and raised a hand to see her off.
Alex took one last look at me and dropped her board on the ground. With equal parts grace and agility, she hopped on and pushed off the ground with one foot. In no time at all she was flying down the road once more. I watched the way that she swerved in and out of downhill traffic, her shoulders back in a lazy stance, her feet switching position to tell the board where to go next.
It was amazing.
Getting to hang out with someone as cool as Alex was a good trade off for this horrible trip at least. Her friends were probably as cool as her too. Maybe I hadn't opened myself up enough to the thought of this experience in order to actually enjoy it.
This could be a good summer after all.
***
Tanya didn't get back until midnight. I didn't mind really. I liked being by myself and night time was the best for me anyways. It was easier to think for some reason.
"Sorry I'm so late, ended up covering half of another guy's shift." She said, her voice sounding much more exhausted than her face gave away.
I put down the pocket notebook I had been furiously scribbling in a moment before and offered a friendly smile, "No problem."
"Whatcha doing?" Tanya asked, lifting her chin towards my notebook.
"Finishing the short story I started on the flight over."
Tanya scratched her chin. "I didn't know you were a writer."
I shrugged, "It's not a big deal. Mostly just to pass the time. Mom thinks I should try to get published though."
"I would listen to her, if anyone would know about that it's your mother." I had a hard time discerning if that was a jab at mom or an authentic compliment. She would know, being an English professor and such, but then again my mom thought she knew everything. "I don't know if you ate or not, but I brought pizza."
I sat up with more enthusiasm now. "I could eat."
"Can always count on a teenager to be hungry, right?" Tanya said with a laugh and motioned for me to join her at the kitchen table. She put a plate in front of me with three hearty slices of pepperoni pizza and my mouth began to water. I didn't need an invite to dig into the cheesy goodness.
"So did Alex show you around?" Tanya asked.
"Yeah, I suppose. We really just walked around the block and talked about stuff." I wiped sauce off my face with the back of my hand and suddenly realized that I was being a little cold with my consistently vague answers. "She invited me to a party in a couple of days down on the beach. I guess there are some people she wants to introduce me to."
Tanya nodded as she chewed on a piece of the pizza, after swallowing she answered, "Pockets and the guy's right? That should be fun."
"How do you know all of these kids?" I asked with a raised brow.
"I babysat most of them when they were younger, guess they still think I'm cool after all these years." She chuckled, "That was before all of the crazy nicknames of course. Bobby B was just Robert at one time and Alex-excuse me, Sunny-was just Alexandria."
I couldn't for a moment picture Alex going by Alexandria just in the short amount of time I spent with her. It was way too floral for someone as laid back and cool as Alex was.
"Yeah, what's with the names?" I didn't want to offend Alex earlier by asking, but maybe Tanya had an idea.
"Who knows? Some kid thing I guess." Tanya shrugged, "So are you planning on going?"
I wanted to say yes right away, but that was because I wanted to see Alex again for some reason. In reality, I hadn't actually thought about whether I wanted to go to this party or not. There were a million things that could go wrong. At the same time however I considered my thoughts about not opening myself up to the experience of this trip.
"Yeah I guess. Parties aren't really my thing, but your right, it could be fun." I said after a moment's consideration.
"That's a good attitude to take." Tanya agreed and took another slice from the box.
"Can I ask you something Aunt Tanya?"
Tanya smiled in an open way that told me I could ask her anything. "Sure."
"I haven't seen you in years, why did my parents send me to stay with you out of the blue like this?" It wasn't something I had dwelled on, but after being here for the day I began to wonder.
Tanya looked down with the utmost concentration written on her face, as if she were searching for just the right words. "I regret not spending more time with you as you grew up. Hanging out with all these teens has actually made me wish that I would have settled down and had kids." She uttered a humorless laugh and then looked at me. "I have a niece though and I know nothing about her. I guess I was hoping that we could try and reconnect this summer."
"I hope we can too." I said quietly, suddenly feeling like an asshole for all my negative feelings about this trip. "Thanks for having me out here."
Tanya smiled and turned the pizza box towards me. "Want the last slice?"
***
By Friday I was actually feeling really settled in. There was an easy going vibe, especially in Tanya's house, which was completely unheard of around my parents. Everyone-and everything-felt so much cooler down here. It was the perfect environment for writing.
Since I had got here, my hands had been moving a million miles a minute to get all of the crazy tales that went on in my imagination down on paper. For the first time I seriously thought about throwing together a portfolio. I was starting to wonder if my mom was right about getting published after all.
I felt like I had so much to get out right now, and whether it was the environment or the freedom, it was all trying to get out at once. All I knew was that I was on a roll. The only problem was that my hands were starting to seriously protest their constant use.
I had woke up with a great story about dragons that I couldn't wait to get cracking on, but my wrist was feeling sore and stiff so I decided not to at first. Halfway through the day and I still couldn't get a comfortable motion going for writing so I sat on the couch and glumly stared at my notebook. I willed my thoughts to stay ironed into my brain until I could get them down on to paper.
"What's got you so down?" Tanya asked on her way out the door, she was already in her pale blue work scrubs.
"My wrist hurts." I told her, my voice as flat as I felt in that moment.
"That's right!" Tanya said and left without a word. I stared at the spot she was standing in just a moment before with pure confusion on my face. I had no idea how my wrist hurting could remind her of anything. Sometimes Aunt Tanya was really strange. It was times like this that made me wonder if it were actually possible for her to be related to my stick in the mud dad.
Tanya came back a minute later with a brown box in her hands and held it out to me. I was wary to take it. I wasn't too fond of random gifts.
"It's for you." Tanya urged, "Think of it like a really belated birthday present."
With one more uneasy glance at my aunt, I finally took the box out of her hands. It was much heavier than I expected and it fell in my lap with a dull thud. Now I was even more nervous about opening this. I couldn't stall her all day though, and finally I tore back the flaps to see what was inside.
My breath caught in my throat, and I pulled the contents of the box out and set it on the table in front of me. It was an old Royal typewriter, one from the twenties or thirties probably. I had always wanted an old school type writer like this. I knew everyone else was starting to move on to PCs and word processors, but I was still fond of the old timey purity of a good typewriter.
After a moment I stuttered out a response, "I don't know what to say."
"You can start with thank you." Tanya offered.
"Thank you." I said, more than enthusiastically.
Tanya beamed, "I'm glad you like it. Hopefully now you won't get carpal tunnel. At least not as quickly." She managed a quick laugh and checked her watch. "I really got to be heading out though. Have fun tonight, don't do anything too stupid."
"I won't." I muttered, but I wasn't really listening. My hands traveled up the sides of this wonderful ancient machine, still in fine working condition. I didn't even hear my aunt leave I was so caught up in the beautiful old Royal.
It was such a nice day and I couldn't wait to try the type writer out, so I lugged the heavy old thing out front and got comfortable on the stoop. The overhang roof provided enough coverage to keep the sun out of my eyes, but not so much that I couldn't feel the rays on my skin. I sat with the typewriter on my lap, pounding on the keys incessantly as I dug the story out of my brain and forced it onto the page word by word.
I had gotten so far into that zone of creativity that I had stopped hearing everything around me. I didn't feel the warmth on my skin slowly being sucked away, replaced by the slight evening chill. Nothing pulled me out of that fascinating imagination world-until I heard the voice of Alex right next to me.
"You can really go can't you?" She said with a chuckle.
"Huh?" I whipped my head up, my fingers finally stilling. Then I realized who was talking to me and felt tongue tied all of a sudden, "Uh, yeah."
"Please don't tell me that's homework." Alex said, with an appraising look. I noticed she was without the hat today but her attire was pretty much the same besides.
"God no." I rolled my eyes as I tucked a lock of thick auburn hair behind my ear, "I'm writing a story."
"What kind of story?" Alex asked, looking decidedly more curious now.
"The kind that has magic and swords in it." I chuckled. "I do all sorts of stuff though- thriller, sci-fi, and even the occasional horror tale." I had leaned back on my hands, realizing that my shoulders ached from the stiff position I had held for the last few hours.
"Wow. Can I read something?" Alex seemed interested enough, but I wavered at the thought. I usually didn't let anybody read the things I wrote. Not that I thought they were bad or anything, but they were mine.
"I don't know." I said finally.
Alex pouted, "Aw, that's no fun."
"I'll think about it." I amended quickly, not wanting to disappoint her. Geez, why do I care?
"Fair enough." Alex said, "So are you ready to head out, the gang is already starting a fire so we should get there soon."
"Yeah, just let me put this monster away." I told her and took the typewriter back in the house.
There was a moment of anxiety I felt when I was out of Alex's presence. Something about her unnerved me, and at the same time she drew me in like a magnet. It was the most peculiar feeling I had ever experienced.
"All ready now." I proclaimed when I reappeared out front.
"So how are you settling in so far?" Alex asked once we got on our way.
A story of love, loss and life - Trifecta - lesbian sex
Re: A story of love, loss and life - Trifecta - lesbian sex
"Not too bad actually. I've been more relaxed than I expected to be." I admitted.
"Told you." Alex said with a laugh.
"Yes you did. Guess that shows me."
"Shows you to trust what I tell you next time."
"Yeah, yeah." I muttered. "So are you sure it's okay for me to tag along with you tonight?" I asked, feeling a little more on edge and insecure the farther we got from Tanya's.
"Of course." Alex scoffed, "I invited you didn't I?"
"Well, yeah-" I started, but Alex cut me off.
"There you go. You're cool as long as you're with me."
I didn't argue with Alex about it. She seemed sure in what she was saying so what was the point anyways? I wouldn't be a burden, this would be fun, I forced myself to think. Alex took me further down than the typical public beach, to a much rockier and secluded region of the shore. I noted the sudden influx of palm trees immediately.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
Alex flashed me a grin, "The place." I finally came into view of 'the place', seeing a half a dozen kids about my age around a large pit stacked with wood. It looked like they were preparing for the big blaze still.
"Hey guys!" Alex called and the collection of people standing around turned to her with shouts and waves.
"This her?" A tall blond boy walking towards me and Alex asked.
"Yeah." Alex replied, "This is Marley."
"Dude, Marley? For real? That's dope as shit." This response came from the only African-American of the bunch. He was all smiles with a backwards ball cap much like the one Alex had worn last time I saw her.
"That's my name." I shrugged.
The first kid that approached us held his hand out to me, "Good deal. They call me Bobby. Or Bobby B, Bobby Beats, the list goes on. Whatever you prefer really."
"I've heard about you actually, nice to finally put a face to the name." I replied and shook his hand. This was clearly the ring leader of the bunch.
"Yo Marley, I'm Jessie." Smiley kid said, holding his hand up for a high five instead of a hand shake. "You can call me Stones though."
"Okay." I said with a laugh. I could already tell that I was going to like these guys. They seemed just as cool as my first impression of Alex.
"Everyone's getting ready for tonight still, but the big guy carrying logs is Samson, and the twins sparking this thing up are Clutch and Ignition." Bobby pointed out the other members of his gang to me, first a mammoth of a man with long hair and then an Asian brother and sister that were squabbling over what looked like kindling.
"And I'm Pockets." A slight Latino girl exclaimed jumping on Bobby's back without any warning.
"Yes you are." He said with a rueful smile.
"So I have to ask, what's with these nicknames?" It had enticed me since I first met Alex, I was hungry for an actual answer despite the fact that it was probably just some little thing they did as a group. Bobby gave me a one over, as if determining if I were worthy of some secret.
"It's how we identify ourselves. The rest of the world - the 'adults' - think that we're nothing more than a group of punk kids, but we know that we can make our own destiny no matter what they say. The nicknames are just a reflection of that." Bobby explained. He was a lot more poetic than I took him for at first glance.
"That's really cool." I said and truly meant it. "You're right. It's hard to get respect when you're kicked down before you can even try."
"Exactly!" Bobby replied and grinned at Alex, "Finally brought someone around that has half a brain."
"Hey!" Jessie called, "I take offense to that!"
"Tough." Bobby replied.
"So is this everyone?" I asked to no one in particular.
"Oh no." The girl named Pockets replied with a giggle. "This is just our core group. Some of our other friends will be around though. Dash and Skully and Jon Jon and ... well you get the idea."
"Yeah." I said. This party might get overwhelming. I looked over at Alex who was still grinning like a maniac. Suddenly I didn't care as much. I'm sure she would make this fun.
"Ready to get this party started or what?" the one pointed out as Samson said in a deep bass voice. Flames crackled behind him and grew with every second that passed.
"Damn skippy!" Jessie called back.
"Gotta get the tunes." Bobby said, mostly to himself and disappeared.
Pockets rolled her eyes, "He always waits until the last minute." She said with a sigh.
At this point I was thoroughly confused, but I just held back and watched the action unfold. In a minute all my question were answered when I saw Bobby backing up an old blue truck towards us, I could see speakers peeking out of the bed of it. Bobby stopped the truck and jumped out of the cab, toting with him a couple of six packs this time. He dropped the cases next to me and handed Alex a beer and then offered me one. I hesitated to take it though.
"I'm not twenty one." I said.
Bobby began to laugh hysterically and slapped his leg, "Not twenty one, oh that's priceless. Here, unwind a bit." He said and thrust the brew into my hands.
I wasn't sure what to do until Alex tapped her can to mine with a knowing smile. I cracked the top and took a greedy drink without a thought, just as long as Alex thought that I was cool still. The taste was bitter and unappealing, but the unknown wave of euphoria that washed through me was worth another drink.
In my little foray into drinking for the first time I didn't realize that Bobby had disappeared again. I heard the music began to thump around us and looked over at the truck, suspecting that they had rigged up the speakers somehow. I was right, but Bobby had also brought a beat up old sound board that he was using to mix the tracks.
Beats. Of course. Now I got it.
The music seemed to set a perfect atmosphere with the quick flickering flames of the growing bonfire. More people showed up as the sun crept lower into the sky and then vanished completely. Alex would wave and call out to some of them, but she didn't leave my side for any of the new additions that showed up.
She didn't leave me at all in fact until someone started dancing around the fire. It became a quick trend and everyone was quickly pairing off or just jumping up to groove in time with the music. Alex was one of the first up and out when the dancing began. It took me by surprise a little bit, but I didn't mind. I didn't want to hog her attention all night.
As it was, I was one of the few not dancing wildly around the fire. I chose to observe instead. There was something free about how each body moved to the rhythm. There was plenty of sexual fueled vibes of course; we were a bunch of teenagers without any authoritative supervision after all. There was something else though. Something more. It wasn't just the mass of hormones that had this night feeling so charged.
My attention kept coming back to Alex dancing alone. She had no cares that she wasn't partnered up. In fact she was probably better without.
Both her hands raised to the sky, her hair twisted all about in time with the rhythm as her head bobbed back in forth. Her eyes were closed as she danced and it made me feel better about stealing glances at her. Until she caught me.
There was no disgust or irritation on Alex's face, only a simple smile. She motioned with a hand for me to join her, her body still rocking to the beat. I gave her an apprehensive look. I wasn't big on dancing.
Alex pouted her lip out and I offered an awkward shrug. She tilted her head and considered me, her body ceasing its movement finally. With one finger at the level of her face, she motioned again for me to come to her.
I felt the air rush out of me from some unknown force that I couldn't rightfully define. Despite the incessant thoughts in my head screaming this was a bad idea, I felt myself get up and walk closer to Alex. It was more like floating than walking however.
"Hi." she said, a wide smile unfurling on her face as I got closer.
"I can't dance." I blurted out. Real smooth, my brain retorted cynically.
Alex didn't let this get to her however; she turned her back to me and grabbed my hands in hers before placing them on her waist.
"Just move your body with mine." Alex said over her shoulder, her voice low and throaty.
Then she began to dance to the beat again. I felt awkward and exposed for some reason, especially as I felt Alex against me. First her shoulders against my breasts, and then her behind on my crotch. I looked all around, expecting the reprehensive stares and dismissive glances. They weren't there though. No one cared what Alex and I were doing.
What the fuck. I thought finally and gave into the night with everyone else.
My fingers tightened around Alex's hips, drawing her closer to me, while my own began to sway in time with hers. We synced up in no time and began to move as one. This was a whole new exhilarating experience. I had never been this close to anyone before.
I relaxed more and more the longer Alex and I danced. She could tell too, because she got closer to me the more I unwound. Alex wrapped her arms around my neck and ground her ass into me harder. Soon her head was resting on my shoulder and her fingers had begun to play with the short hairs on the back of my neck. This sent delightful shivers down my spine.
"Do you want to get out of here?" Alex asked breathlessly.
I had no idea what compelled me to answer "Yes," so quickly, but I did.
She took my hand and we broke away from the rest of the pack and down the beach until we were completely alone. Neither of us spoke and the longer we walked there was an increase of that same charge flowing between us that I had felt initially at the bonfire. She had even dropped my hand and put her own in her pockets.
"Thanks for inviting me. I had a really good time." I said, breaking the silence first.
"I'm glad you came." Alex replied and rubbed her arms, "A lot colder out here away from the fire."
"I bet. Look at what you're wearing." I chuckled, "But, uh, we can hang out at my aunt's place. If you're not ready to go home yet I mean."
"Won't we bother her?" Alex asked.
I waved a hand in dismissal, "She won't be back until later."
Alex eyed me with a sideways glance and chewed her lip.
"Yeah, okay."
I had no idea why I offered to take her back to Tanya's. I had a pretty good idea of what was on her mind. Not that I was adverse to the idea. I was more or less neutral on the stance of girls with girls. Or girls with boys. Or basically any pairing of any kind. Honestly, I preferred to keep the romance in my life at arm's length, more often than not in the pages of a novel - and only when it was appropriate to advance the plot of course.
There was something about Alex though. She was reckless, confident, charismatic and cool. Basically everything I wasn't. For whatever the reason, all of that excited me more than I could comprehend.
The cool silk of Alex's hand filled mine once more and the train of thought I had been carrying on seized up. I couldn't process anything when she touched me. I was afraid to open my mouth to say anything, so I gave her a coy smile instead to show I accepted her affectionate gesture.
Just like I predicted, Tanya wasn't back when we arrived at her doorstep. This fact filled me with both anxiety and relief simultaneously. I tried to push the feelings back and focus on the mantra I was taking about this trip: Stay open minded and just go with the flow.
"See? Told you." I said with a point to the vacant parking space.
"That you did." Alex murmured.
"Yeah." I said with a nervous laugh. I dropped her hand to fumble with the house key. It kept slipping with how bad my hands were shaking. As soon as Alex shut the door behind us something switched. All of a sudden, the air became thicker and harder to breathe.
"I can get you something to drink if you want." I offered quickly, afraid of the sudden loss of innocence in our relationship. It was still so new and lovely just having Alex around to talk to. Despite my thoughts earlier this week I was happy to have made a friend in her.
Alex slid her hands around my waist and whispered in my ear. "I know why you brought me back here and it wasn't to have a friendly chat over tea."
I swallowed hard, "Yeah about that, I just don't have much - or any - experience in this whole area. I'm a little scared."
"Don't be scared of me." Alex purred, nuzzling my neck with her nose. "Remember what I said about trusting me earlier?"
I took a deep breath and nodded. Alex spun me around to face her, the usual toothy smile planted on her face. She took my hand, led me to the living room couch and sat me down before taking a seat next to me. We looked at each other for a moment, and then Alex reacted. She brushed the hair out of my face, and then ran the back of her hand across my cheek. I closed my eyes for a moment at the sensations of her skin on mine.
That's when Alex pounced.
My eyes shot open when her lips touched mine, she had caught me completely off guard. It didn't take long for my lids to droop closed again however. If her skin on mine turned me into an idiot, then her lips on mine turned me to jelly.
Alex's hands went to the back of my head to draw me closer. My paralysis finally let up and I put my hands on her bare arms. I could feel the tiny goosebumps that popped up on her flesh under my palms. I had a feeling these weren't from the cold this time either.
"Lay back." Alex muttered against my lips.
I scrambled back on the couch while Alex got situated over me. I laid my hands on her neck and enjoyed the novelty of her silky hair brushing against my fingertips. Alex cupped my face with both hands and stroked her thumbs against my cheeks. She seemed just as content as I was to live in this kiss forever.
Unfortunately forever isn't too long in the real world. The sound of the front door had both of us looking up at the same time. Not a moment after that my aunt came around the corner. I put my face in my hands, completely mortified. Alex however gave my aunt a cheeky smile.
"Having a nice night Ms. D?" she asked as if things were completely normal.
"Relatively. Sorry to interrupt. I'll be right out of your hair." Tanya said. An ounce of surprise crept into her voice but she let no other emotion shine through. I was confused, wasn't this the part where I was supposed to get scolded or something?
"You okay?" Alex asked, pushing up and off of me.
"Yeah. Just a bit embarrassed." I admitted.
Alex grinned and pushed the hair out my eyes, "Don't be." She sighed and gave me a regretful look, "I should really be going though."
"Because of me?" I asked, the pit in my stomach dropping further.
"Nah. I was getting too excited." She shrugged, "I don't want to rush anything."
"Oh."
"Yeah. I can usually pace myself pretty well, but you drive me wild." Alex laughed this off like she did most everything else. It made my heart flutter even faster though.
"You get me pretty excited too." I nearly whispered.
"Good." Alex said and grinned at me knowingly, "Can I see you sometime again then?"
"Anytime." I blurted out, instantly feeling desperate and idiotic. Alex didn't seem to mind though.
She leaned down and pecked my cheek softly, "I can't wait until tomorrow then." She said just low enough for me to hear.
I knew that she had left because I heard the door but my eyes had closed and I fell back on the couch as soon as she had turned from me. I couldn't breathe, and my heart was pounding harder and faster than ever before. What was coming over me all of a sudden?
***
I expected breakfast to be an awkward experience the next morning, but Tanya was acting like things were completely normal.
"You want me to throw a bagel in for you?" She asked when I made my first appearance into the kitchen.
"Sure." I replied slowly, still expecting the wrath of God to come down at any time.
"Did you get to meet the guys last night?"
"Yeah, they were really cool." I said, feeling like I was watching a ticking time bomb. Any second now ...
"Told you they were a fun group. Bit wild and loud sometimes but their intentions are good." Tanya said with a good natured smile and slid the toasted bagel across the table to me.
"They seemed cool enough. I didn't get to talk that much with anybody though." I said and bit into breakfast.
"I can imagine. Alex was probably taking all your attention." Tanya said nonchalantly and sipped her coffee.
"Huh?" I choked on the bite I was chewing.
Tanya gave me a knowing smile and winked, "It's our little secret."
I hung my head and drew on the table with my finger, "I'm not sure what happened last night." I admitted, "One minute I was just sitting there, the next minute she was grinding against me."
"Was that what you wanted?"
"I don't know." I shrugged, "It wasn't bad."
"No better time to figure out what you do and don't like than your teenage years." Tanya said. She had the same easy breezy attitude as Alex and her gang. Was this just a California thing or did they all just learn it from her?
"Yeah, I suppose." I muttered.
"So how do you like that typewriter?" She asked, sensing my distance from the topic of Alex and emotional junk.
"Oh, it's great! I probably got fifteen sheets out yesterday." I said, ecstatic at the remembrance of the old Royal.
"I'm just happy I could help. You sure love to write."
"I just like creating things. Maybe it's a God complex." I said with a laugh.
Tanya opened her mouth to reply but the doorbell rang before she could. We looked at each for a moment before she went to answer it. I tried to finish my breakfast in some peace without having to fill the void with conversation.
"Hey! Morning Alex!" the cheery voice of my aunt said.
My stomach dropped and all of a sudden I couldn't even think about eating anymore. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to go greet her at the door or wait here. I didn't know the protocol of these kinds of situations.
"Marley, c'mere for a second would you?" Tanya called back to me, giving me a final answer.
With a deep breath I steeled myself and walked to the front door. As soon as my aunt saw me she slipped away, giving me some amount of privacy. Alex leaned on her skateboard and stared lazily down the street while she waited for me, looking the picture of Cali cool like always.
"Hey." I said softly.
"Hey." Alex replied with more enthusiasm.
"What's up?" I asked, not knowing anything else to say.
She shrugged, "I wanted to come see you."
I couldn't help but grin now, "Here I am."
"Here you are." Alex agreed, her trademark smile bubbling up, "You wanna go for a walk with me?"
I nodded, "Yeah."
If I were back home I would have talked to my parents, or left a note or done something more responsible. Alex's hypnotic hazel eyes gave me the feeling of 'fuck it' however. I walked off the porch and down the road with her without even a backwards shout to Tanya.
"Do you carry that thing with you everywhere?" I asked with a point to the skateboard in Alex's grasp.
"Pretty much, it's my main form of transportation, but I also love it. Skating brings people together. It's how me and Stones met after all." Alex looked at me, "You ever try it?"
I raised my brows. Had I ever tried riding a death trap? No. "Umm, I don't think I would do well on one of those things."
Alex frowned, "It's not a 'thing' it's a skateboard."
"Whatever."
"So you're saying that you're scared to try?" Alex asked.
I shrugged, "Something like that."
Alex leaned in close to me and whispered in my ear, "I told you not to be scared. I won't let anything bad happen."
"Told you." Alex said with a laugh.
"Yes you did. Guess that shows me."
"Shows you to trust what I tell you next time."
"Yeah, yeah." I muttered. "So are you sure it's okay for me to tag along with you tonight?" I asked, feeling a little more on edge and insecure the farther we got from Tanya's.
"Of course." Alex scoffed, "I invited you didn't I?"
"Well, yeah-" I started, but Alex cut me off.
"There you go. You're cool as long as you're with me."
I didn't argue with Alex about it. She seemed sure in what she was saying so what was the point anyways? I wouldn't be a burden, this would be fun, I forced myself to think. Alex took me further down than the typical public beach, to a much rockier and secluded region of the shore. I noted the sudden influx of palm trees immediately.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
Alex flashed me a grin, "The place." I finally came into view of 'the place', seeing a half a dozen kids about my age around a large pit stacked with wood. It looked like they were preparing for the big blaze still.
"Hey guys!" Alex called and the collection of people standing around turned to her with shouts and waves.
"This her?" A tall blond boy walking towards me and Alex asked.
"Yeah." Alex replied, "This is Marley."
"Dude, Marley? For real? That's dope as shit." This response came from the only African-American of the bunch. He was all smiles with a backwards ball cap much like the one Alex had worn last time I saw her.
"That's my name." I shrugged.
The first kid that approached us held his hand out to me, "Good deal. They call me Bobby. Or Bobby B, Bobby Beats, the list goes on. Whatever you prefer really."
"I've heard about you actually, nice to finally put a face to the name." I replied and shook his hand. This was clearly the ring leader of the bunch.
"Yo Marley, I'm Jessie." Smiley kid said, holding his hand up for a high five instead of a hand shake. "You can call me Stones though."
"Okay." I said with a laugh. I could already tell that I was going to like these guys. They seemed just as cool as my first impression of Alex.
"Everyone's getting ready for tonight still, but the big guy carrying logs is Samson, and the twins sparking this thing up are Clutch and Ignition." Bobby pointed out the other members of his gang to me, first a mammoth of a man with long hair and then an Asian brother and sister that were squabbling over what looked like kindling.
"And I'm Pockets." A slight Latino girl exclaimed jumping on Bobby's back without any warning.
"Yes you are." He said with a rueful smile.
"So I have to ask, what's with these nicknames?" It had enticed me since I first met Alex, I was hungry for an actual answer despite the fact that it was probably just some little thing they did as a group. Bobby gave me a one over, as if determining if I were worthy of some secret.
"It's how we identify ourselves. The rest of the world - the 'adults' - think that we're nothing more than a group of punk kids, but we know that we can make our own destiny no matter what they say. The nicknames are just a reflection of that." Bobby explained. He was a lot more poetic than I took him for at first glance.
"That's really cool." I said and truly meant it. "You're right. It's hard to get respect when you're kicked down before you can even try."
"Exactly!" Bobby replied and grinned at Alex, "Finally brought someone around that has half a brain."
"Hey!" Jessie called, "I take offense to that!"
"Tough." Bobby replied.
"So is this everyone?" I asked to no one in particular.
"Oh no." The girl named Pockets replied with a giggle. "This is just our core group. Some of our other friends will be around though. Dash and Skully and Jon Jon and ... well you get the idea."
"Yeah." I said. This party might get overwhelming. I looked over at Alex who was still grinning like a maniac. Suddenly I didn't care as much. I'm sure she would make this fun.
"Ready to get this party started or what?" the one pointed out as Samson said in a deep bass voice. Flames crackled behind him and grew with every second that passed.
"Damn skippy!" Jessie called back.
"Gotta get the tunes." Bobby said, mostly to himself and disappeared.
Pockets rolled her eyes, "He always waits until the last minute." She said with a sigh.
At this point I was thoroughly confused, but I just held back and watched the action unfold. In a minute all my question were answered when I saw Bobby backing up an old blue truck towards us, I could see speakers peeking out of the bed of it. Bobby stopped the truck and jumped out of the cab, toting with him a couple of six packs this time. He dropped the cases next to me and handed Alex a beer and then offered me one. I hesitated to take it though.
"I'm not twenty one." I said.
Bobby began to laugh hysterically and slapped his leg, "Not twenty one, oh that's priceless. Here, unwind a bit." He said and thrust the brew into my hands.
I wasn't sure what to do until Alex tapped her can to mine with a knowing smile. I cracked the top and took a greedy drink without a thought, just as long as Alex thought that I was cool still. The taste was bitter and unappealing, but the unknown wave of euphoria that washed through me was worth another drink.
In my little foray into drinking for the first time I didn't realize that Bobby had disappeared again. I heard the music began to thump around us and looked over at the truck, suspecting that they had rigged up the speakers somehow. I was right, but Bobby had also brought a beat up old sound board that he was using to mix the tracks.
Beats. Of course. Now I got it.
The music seemed to set a perfect atmosphere with the quick flickering flames of the growing bonfire. More people showed up as the sun crept lower into the sky and then vanished completely. Alex would wave and call out to some of them, but she didn't leave my side for any of the new additions that showed up.
She didn't leave me at all in fact until someone started dancing around the fire. It became a quick trend and everyone was quickly pairing off or just jumping up to groove in time with the music. Alex was one of the first up and out when the dancing began. It took me by surprise a little bit, but I didn't mind. I didn't want to hog her attention all night.
As it was, I was one of the few not dancing wildly around the fire. I chose to observe instead. There was something free about how each body moved to the rhythm. There was plenty of sexual fueled vibes of course; we were a bunch of teenagers without any authoritative supervision after all. There was something else though. Something more. It wasn't just the mass of hormones that had this night feeling so charged.
My attention kept coming back to Alex dancing alone. She had no cares that she wasn't partnered up. In fact she was probably better without.
Both her hands raised to the sky, her hair twisted all about in time with the rhythm as her head bobbed back in forth. Her eyes were closed as she danced and it made me feel better about stealing glances at her. Until she caught me.
There was no disgust or irritation on Alex's face, only a simple smile. She motioned with a hand for me to join her, her body still rocking to the beat. I gave her an apprehensive look. I wasn't big on dancing.
Alex pouted her lip out and I offered an awkward shrug. She tilted her head and considered me, her body ceasing its movement finally. With one finger at the level of her face, she motioned again for me to come to her.
I felt the air rush out of me from some unknown force that I couldn't rightfully define. Despite the incessant thoughts in my head screaming this was a bad idea, I felt myself get up and walk closer to Alex. It was more like floating than walking however.
"Hi." she said, a wide smile unfurling on her face as I got closer.
"I can't dance." I blurted out. Real smooth, my brain retorted cynically.
Alex didn't let this get to her however; she turned her back to me and grabbed my hands in hers before placing them on her waist.
"Just move your body with mine." Alex said over her shoulder, her voice low and throaty.
Then she began to dance to the beat again. I felt awkward and exposed for some reason, especially as I felt Alex against me. First her shoulders against my breasts, and then her behind on my crotch. I looked all around, expecting the reprehensive stares and dismissive glances. They weren't there though. No one cared what Alex and I were doing.
What the fuck. I thought finally and gave into the night with everyone else.
My fingers tightened around Alex's hips, drawing her closer to me, while my own began to sway in time with hers. We synced up in no time and began to move as one. This was a whole new exhilarating experience. I had never been this close to anyone before.
I relaxed more and more the longer Alex and I danced. She could tell too, because she got closer to me the more I unwound. Alex wrapped her arms around my neck and ground her ass into me harder. Soon her head was resting on my shoulder and her fingers had begun to play with the short hairs on the back of my neck. This sent delightful shivers down my spine.
"Do you want to get out of here?" Alex asked breathlessly.
I had no idea what compelled me to answer "Yes," so quickly, but I did.
She took my hand and we broke away from the rest of the pack and down the beach until we were completely alone. Neither of us spoke and the longer we walked there was an increase of that same charge flowing between us that I had felt initially at the bonfire. She had even dropped my hand and put her own in her pockets.
"Thanks for inviting me. I had a really good time." I said, breaking the silence first.
"I'm glad you came." Alex replied and rubbed her arms, "A lot colder out here away from the fire."
"I bet. Look at what you're wearing." I chuckled, "But, uh, we can hang out at my aunt's place. If you're not ready to go home yet I mean."
"Won't we bother her?" Alex asked.
I waved a hand in dismissal, "She won't be back until later."
Alex eyed me with a sideways glance and chewed her lip.
"Yeah, okay."
I had no idea why I offered to take her back to Tanya's. I had a pretty good idea of what was on her mind. Not that I was adverse to the idea. I was more or less neutral on the stance of girls with girls. Or girls with boys. Or basically any pairing of any kind. Honestly, I preferred to keep the romance in my life at arm's length, more often than not in the pages of a novel - and only when it was appropriate to advance the plot of course.
There was something about Alex though. She was reckless, confident, charismatic and cool. Basically everything I wasn't. For whatever the reason, all of that excited me more than I could comprehend.
The cool silk of Alex's hand filled mine once more and the train of thought I had been carrying on seized up. I couldn't process anything when she touched me. I was afraid to open my mouth to say anything, so I gave her a coy smile instead to show I accepted her affectionate gesture.
Just like I predicted, Tanya wasn't back when we arrived at her doorstep. This fact filled me with both anxiety and relief simultaneously. I tried to push the feelings back and focus on the mantra I was taking about this trip: Stay open minded and just go with the flow.
"See? Told you." I said with a point to the vacant parking space.
"That you did." Alex murmured.
"Yeah." I said with a nervous laugh. I dropped her hand to fumble with the house key. It kept slipping with how bad my hands were shaking. As soon as Alex shut the door behind us something switched. All of a sudden, the air became thicker and harder to breathe.
"I can get you something to drink if you want." I offered quickly, afraid of the sudden loss of innocence in our relationship. It was still so new and lovely just having Alex around to talk to. Despite my thoughts earlier this week I was happy to have made a friend in her.
Alex slid her hands around my waist and whispered in my ear. "I know why you brought me back here and it wasn't to have a friendly chat over tea."
I swallowed hard, "Yeah about that, I just don't have much - or any - experience in this whole area. I'm a little scared."
"Don't be scared of me." Alex purred, nuzzling my neck with her nose. "Remember what I said about trusting me earlier?"
I took a deep breath and nodded. Alex spun me around to face her, the usual toothy smile planted on her face. She took my hand, led me to the living room couch and sat me down before taking a seat next to me. We looked at each other for a moment, and then Alex reacted. She brushed the hair out of my face, and then ran the back of her hand across my cheek. I closed my eyes for a moment at the sensations of her skin on mine.
That's when Alex pounced.
My eyes shot open when her lips touched mine, she had caught me completely off guard. It didn't take long for my lids to droop closed again however. If her skin on mine turned me into an idiot, then her lips on mine turned me to jelly.
Alex's hands went to the back of my head to draw me closer. My paralysis finally let up and I put my hands on her bare arms. I could feel the tiny goosebumps that popped up on her flesh under my palms. I had a feeling these weren't from the cold this time either.
"Lay back." Alex muttered against my lips.
I scrambled back on the couch while Alex got situated over me. I laid my hands on her neck and enjoyed the novelty of her silky hair brushing against my fingertips. Alex cupped my face with both hands and stroked her thumbs against my cheeks. She seemed just as content as I was to live in this kiss forever.
Unfortunately forever isn't too long in the real world. The sound of the front door had both of us looking up at the same time. Not a moment after that my aunt came around the corner. I put my face in my hands, completely mortified. Alex however gave my aunt a cheeky smile.
"Having a nice night Ms. D?" she asked as if things were completely normal.
"Relatively. Sorry to interrupt. I'll be right out of your hair." Tanya said. An ounce of surprise crept into her voice but she let no other emotion shine through. I was confused, wasn't this the part where I was supposed to get scolded or something?
"You okay?" Alex asked, pushing up and off of me.
"Yeah. Just a bit embarrassed." I admitted.
Alex grinned and pushed the hair out my eyes, "Don't be." She sighed and gave me a regretful look, "I should really be going though."
"Because of me?" I asked, the pit in my stomach dropping further.
"Nah. I was getting too excited." She shrugged, "I don't want to rush anything."
"Oh."
"Yeah. I can usually pace myself pretty well, but you drive me wild." Alex laughed this off like she did most everything else. It made my heart flutter even faster though.
"You get me pretty excited too." I nearly whispered.
"Good." Alex said and grinned at me knowingly, "Can I see you sometime again then?"
"Anytime." I blurted out, instantly feeling desperate and idiotic. Alex didn't seem to mind though.
She leaned down and pecked my cheek softly, "I can't wait until tomorrow then." She said just low enough for me to hear.
I knew that she had left because I heard the door but my eyes had closed and I fell back on the couch as soon as she had turned from me. I couldn't breathe, and my heart was pounding harder and faster than ever before. What was coming over me all of a sudden?
***
I expected breakfast to be an awkward experience the next morning, but Tanya was acting like things were completely normal.
"You want me to throw a bagel in for you?" She asked when I made my first appearance into the kitchen.
"Sure." I replied slowly, still expecting the wrath of God to come down at any time.
"Did you get to meet the guys last night?"
"Yeah, they were really cool." I said, feeling like I was watching a ticking time bomb. Any second now ...
"Told you they were a fun group. Bit wild and loud sometimes but their intentions are good." Tanya said with a good natured smile and slid the toasted bagel across the table to me.
"They seemed cool enough. I didn't get to talk that much with anybody though." I said and bit into breakfast.
"I can imagine. Alex was probably taking all your attention." Tanya said nonchalantly and sipped her coffee.
"Huh?" I choked on the bite I was chewing.
Tanya gave me a knowing smile and winked, "It's our little secret."
I hung my head and drew on the table with my finger, "I'm not sure what happened last night." I admitted, "One minute I was just sitting there, the next minute she was grinding against me."
"Was that what you wanted?"
"I don't know." I shrugged, "It wasn't bad."
"No better time to figure out what you do and don't like than your teenage years." Tanya said. She had the same easy breezy attitude as Alex and her gang. Was this just a California thing or did they all just learn it from her?
"Yeah, I suppose." I muttered.
"So how do you like that typewriter?" She asked, sensing my distance from the topic of Alex and emotional junk.
"Oh, it's great! I probably got fifteen sheets out yesterday." I said, ecstatic at the remembrance of the old Royal.
"I'm just happy I could help. You sure love to write."
"I just like creating things. Maybe it's a God complex." I said with a laugh.
Tanya opened her mouth to reply but the doorbell rang before she could. We looked at each for a moment before she went to answer it. I tried to finish my breakfast in some peace without having to fill the void with conversation.
"Hey! Morning Alex!" the cheery voice of my aunt said.
My stomach dropped and all of a sudden I couldn't even think about eating anymore. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to go greet her at the door or wait here. I didn't know the protocol of these kinds of situations.
"Marley, c'mere for a second would you?" Tanya called back to me, giving me a final answer.
With a deep breath I steeled myself and walked to the front door. As soon as my aunt saw me she slipped away, giving me some amount of privacy. Alex leaned on her skateboard and stared lazily down the street while she waited for me, looking the picture of Cali cool like always.
"Hey." I said softly.
"Hey." Alex replied with more enthusiasm.
"What's up?" I asked, not knowing anything else to say.
She shrugged, "I wanted to come see you."
I couldn't help but grin now, "Here I am."
"Here you are." Alex agreed, her trademark smile bubbling up, "You wanna go for a walk with me?"
I nodded, "Yeah."
If I were back home I would have talked to my parents, or left a note or done something more responsible. Alex's hypnotic hazel eyes gave me the feeling of 'fuck it' however. I walked off the porch and down the road with her without even a backwards shout to Tanya.
"Do you carry that thing with you everywhere?" I asked with a point to the skateboard in Alex's grasp.
"Pretty much, it's my main form of transportation, but I also love it. Skating brings people together. It's how me and Stones met after all." Alex looked at me, "You ever try it?"
I raised my brows. Had I ever tried riding a death trap? No. "Umm, I don't think I would do well on one of those things."
Alex frowned, "It's not a 'thing' it's a skateboard."
"Whatever."
"So you're saying that you're scared to try?" Alex asked.
I shrugged, "Something like that."
Alex leaned in close to me and whispered in my ear, "I told you not to be scared. I won't let anything bad happen."
Re: A story of love, loss and life - Trifecta - lesbian sex
I stopped as the shiver ran up my back. "Okay, fine. I'll try it." I whispered, knowing this was a bad idea instantly.
Alex straightened up and offered her board to me. "Excellent!" She said, a triumphant smile on her face.
I huffed a sigh and took it from her with shaking hands. I dropped the skateboard on the ground and tested it with one foot. The other, of course, firmly planted on the ground while I did this. With all the caution in the world I then set my other foot on the board.
Only having the knowledge of what I'd seen Alex do, I wasn't exactly educated on the next step. I knew that you were supposed to use one foot to gain momentum though so I tried that. I kicked off the ground hard and the board went flying forward.
It only occurred to me after I was going that I had no idea how to stop. It was also about the time that I started going down a decline in the road, making the board pick up speed with every second. I felt like I should have been afraid but I wasn't. I was exhilarated at the speed I felt under my feet and the wind whipping me violently.
"Marley, be careful!" I heard Alex shout behind me desperately, but I wasn't listening at all.
This was the same feeling that I got when I would get into a deep writing groove. The world didn't exist. Nothing existed. It was just me and adrenaline-and it was fantastic.
Of course, I still had a lot to learn about skateboarding. A misplaced pebble threw off my whole adventure by sending me and the board sprawling in different directions. I was lucky enough to land against some plastic trashcans, which softened my blow. Alex's board however lay cracked in half against a curb twenty feet away.
"Ugh." I groaned and pulled myself up into a sitting position.
"Marley!" Alex called, running towards me, "Are you okay?"
She fell to her knees in front of me and grabbed my shoulders, looking at me in utter horror.
"I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to." I said and pointed to her busted up board. Alex turned to look at it and then back at me. Her face went from horrified to that of disbelief until she started laughing.
"I don't care about that. Are you all right? Did you break anything?"
"I'm fine." I assured her and stood up, brushing the dust off of my front, "Just a couple of bruises. Lucky my glasses stayed on my face."
"Shit. I shouldn't have pushed you." Alex muttered.
"No, that was a blast! I wanna do it again." I said with actual enthusiasm this time.
Alex grinned, "Really?"
"Yeah, really. Too bad I broke your board."
Alex waved me off, "Don't worry about that. I have plenty of spare parts back at my place. We'll change the deck out and she'll be good as new. If I need anything besides that we'll call Stones."
"Sure you're not mad?" I asked one last time.
"Positive." Alex replied, "Come on."
***
"Are your parents around?" I asked, approaching the tiny house that Alex resided in.
She scoffed under her breath and shook her head before opening the door for me, "Don't count on it. My dad left when I was three and my mom is still trying to be an actress. She's probably in some producer's bed working for a role."
That harsh bite in Alex's words was a complete flip than I was used to from her. It was almost off putting how different it was from her norm.
"I'm sorry." I muttered, feeling bad for bringing it up in the first place.
Alex shrugged, "It's whatever." Those words made absolute no sense, but I'm sure it meant 'who cares?' in Alex's special way.
"The board?" I asked trying to change direction from the awkwardly tense moment we were in.
"Right." Alex said and directed me to the back of the house.
There were posters covering every inch of the walls in her room. Band posters and cut outs from skateboarding magazines depicting ridiculous tricks, to pictures and scraps of papers with various drawings and such on them. The rest of the room was chaos too, with laundry across the floor to a messy bed. My obsessive need to organize had me in disarray instantly. At the same time though, there was an overwhelming feeling of Alex in this room and that was calming in its own way.
Alex threw open the door of her closet and there were indeed plenty of skateboard parts in there. In fact there was a mountain of spare parts in there. One had to wonder how - and why - Alex had accumulated so many. She kneeled down and dug through a few things before turning back to me with a grin.
"You know, I could make you a board if you want. I have enough pieces to scrap something together. It would be a bit of a mash up on parts though, a frankenboard if you will."
I beamed, "That would be awesome!"
Alex turned back to her parts and started sifting through them once more. She would pick something up and consider it only to put it down a second later. I waited patiently as she processed through things, never asking questions or pushing her, just observing Alex as she did something that she was clearly well versed in. Eventually she had a pile of pieces that she chose for my so-called 'frankenboard' put off to one side.
"Let me show you how to put all this together. You got to learn how to do your own maintenance if you're gonna ride. Only posers pay a board shop to get their set up fixed." Alex informed me, a screwdriver in one hand and a wrench in the other, both waved animatedly as she talked.
"Yes wise master." I said with a sarcastic bow.
Alex disregarded my snark and set a scraped up deck on my lap face up. I could tell that the board had seen some action back in its hay-day by the small chips off of the side and scratches across the paintjob. It still looked like it had plenty of life in it though.
The trucks were then set on the board. Alex lined them up to the holes on the board the best she could before handing me the screwdriver. She popped the four screws through the board and trucks before spinning a bolt onto the top of each one.
"I'll help you with this first set to get you started." Alex told me, placing the wrench on the bolt. "Screw it in from the other side of the board. I'll hold onto the bolt so it doesn't move. It's a little awkward at first but you'll get the hang of doing it by yourself."
"Okay." I said and did as she said, screwing in the trucks from all sides.
"Good deal, now try for yourself." She said handing me the wrench, before standing to get her own tools to work on her broken board.
It was indeed awkward, Alex wasn't wrong there, but it wasn't hard. I propped the deck against my shoulder, one foot holding it steady and followed the same process she had shown me. Alex was halfway finished with putting her new ride together when I had finished the job she had set me with.
"Awesome!" she exclaimed, "Now just screw the wheels onto the trucks and you're good to go."
Alex tossed me the wheels and the parts I needed, this step was a little more straight forward and I didn't need her to tell me what to do anymore. I set straight to work. I liked that we didn't need to talk to have a good time. Just sitting here and working on the boards in silence was the most relaxing and comforting thing I had experienced since I got here. Still, there were a million questions I had about Alex.
"I just realized I know nothing about you." I said and began laughing.
Alex looked at me with some amusement before she spoke, "I don't really know anything about you either."
"You know my last name is Denning." I pointed out.
"Actually I didn't know that you had the same last name as your aunt. She could have been your mom's sister." Alex retorted.
"Touché." I remarked with a point of the wrench.
"But because fair is fair, my last name is Reed." Alex said with a sideways glance.
"Have you always lived here in California?" I asked, not able to help myself anymore.
"My, my, aren't we a curious one?"
I chuckled, "It's the aspiring author in me."
"Fair enough," Alex replied with a chuckle, "I've lived here all my life, California is all I know and I doubt I'll ever leave. The sun and the sand are as much a part of me as my blood and bones. Besides where else are you gonna find the killer spots that Cali has?"
I was listening to her speak, but I couldn't help watching her lips as she did. She licked her lips in between sentences and it left them looking smooth and glossy. I remembered how nice they felt against mine last night. Without any real thought, I leaned over and pressed my lips against hers.
I pulled back after just a moment, pushed my glasses up and smiled sheepishly towards the ground. "Sorry. I couldn't help myself."
Alex stroked my bare knee, "I really like you too."
I chanced a glance back up at her and she was smiling. I managed my own grin back. Alex got close to me, pressed her nose against mine and looked at me in that close distance. It was so intimate it was almost intimidating. After an intensely long moment, Alex pressed her lips against mine again.
She pulled away from me just as quick as I did however. The sparks flew between us at such a heat both of us were afraid to be burned. We kind of sat around for a second unsure of what to say or do. Last night had been a crazy, emotion fueled-partially alcohol driven- experience. This was us being honest with each other.
I didn't regret anything though. I enjoyed the time that Alex had given me so far, and I wanted so much of her time in the future. Without any reservation I reached over and took her hand in mine. Alex looked at our hands and smiled, before looking up to my face.
"So," She said slowly, "You wanna go skate?"
July, 1996
"How 'bout we race there? Winner buys lunch." I suggested.
"What if I don't like those stakes?" Alex asked with a frown.
"Too bad." I said and laugh before putting a foot on my board.
The two of us were standing at the top of one of the many hills in town, discussing the wages of our most current bet. It had become somewhat of normality for Alex and me to be in constant competition. Especially in the new addiction she had instilled in me: skateboarding.
"Fine." She agreed begrudgingly, obviously there was something else that she wanted to wager. I had an obvious idea of what that thing might have been, and it had nothing to do with boarding.
Both of us readied ourselves to go down the hill and eyed each other with mischievous smiles. It was also normal for one or both of us to cheat. On that exact thought, Alex pushed forward without even a countdown and was flying down the hill. With an agitated growl in my throat I chased after her as fast as my board would allow me.
It was hard to believe it was already midsummer. I had really settled in here, feeling like California could be a second home after all. Of course, that may have just been because of my current company, but I liked to think that something actually clicked with me here.
Despite my foot pounding against the pavement as hard and fast as I could to catch up, that split second Alex had on me allowed her to pull ahead completely. I arrived at the bottom of the hill with a sour face. Alex however, was looking smug.
"You cheated!" I accused. I knew it wouldn't mean anything, but I said it anyways.
"I won. Besides, you didn't set any rules." Alex replied, pointing a finger at me.
"Whatever." I huffed.
Alex folded her arms over her chest, "C'mon, pay up."
My hand crept to the wallet in my pocket and then stalled. I eyed her for a moment longer and grinned. I could pay up all right.
Taking the straps of Alex's tank top in my fingers, I pulled her closer to me. Alex's face was surprised at first, but the deviousness of my smile infected her eventually. She uttered a breathy chuckle, a grin of her own unfolding.
I stood on my tiptoes and touched my lips to hers. The grip on her clothes faltered as my hands sought the warm satin skin of her neck instead. It was so easy to get lost in her.
Alex pulled away breathless and cleared her throat. "I suppose I can cover lunch today."
I put a hand to my chest and fluttered my eyes, "Oh would you? I would be ever so grateful."
"I'm sure you would temptress." Alex chuckled, "What sounds good to you?"
"I dunno." I shrugged, "Burgers? That place that Bobby and Pockets took us to a couple weeks ago was pretty good."
Alex grabbed my hand and was off in a sprint. It was impossible to slow her down for even a second. Although, it could be argued that the keeping up was half the fun.
One of the things I had really begun to love about California was how many grab and go places they had to eat at. Not just fast food , but plenty of the local joints were right on the boardwalk and because the weather was rarely bad it was common to just order your food and eat right there at the beach. This was something that Alex and I did often despite my general lack of enthusiasm for sand.
We had slipped into such a good routine that one of us would order and the other would find a good spot on the beach that hadn't been taken over by a group of tourists or volleyball players. It was sunny as always, but there was a slight breeze and the beach ended up a little less crowded than usual. This made it much easier to spot a good place and settle down to wait for Alex.
"Here you go." Alex said and handed me a paper bag. She had already opened up the tinfoil wrapper to her burger and there was a pronounced bite taken out of it.
"Thanks." I said and pulled my own burger out.
"No problem." She said and sat down in the sand next to me before plucking a few fries out of the bag.
"I wanted to ask you something earlier. I don't know if you have any plans or anything, but my aunt wants to shoot off some fireworks with me and she told me to invite you over. Not that I wouldn't have asked you if she wouldn't have told me to, but I just-" I stopped myself mid sentence and waved a hand in front of Alex's face. She looked like she had blanked out.
"Are you even listening to me?" I asked, cocking my head in consideration.
"No." she said with a huge grin, "Your eyes are so pretty when the sun catches them. They get super bright. Like, the same green as healthy grass."
I rolled said eyes "You spaced out comparing me to shrubbery?"
"Well it doesn't sound romantic when you put it like that." She chuckled, "So what were you saying?"
I sighed, "Fourth of July plans?"
"Nope."
"My aunt's house?"
"Sure." Alex nodded biting into her burger.
I laughed, "I should just talk to you like this more often. I can get to a full point without you getting distracted."
"Not my fault you're so pretty." Alex argued.
I scoffed, "Yeah, that's obviously my fault."
Alex threw me a knowing grin. I had no idea why, but every time she would do some little thing like that it would make my heart beat a million times faster. I blushed for no real reason and looked down at the sand.
"So we'll plan on the fourth then?" I asked.
"Yup. It's a date." She confirmed.
"Fireworks with my aunt isn't much of a date, but whatever gets you going I guess." I shrugged.
Alex was not amused. "Ha ha, smart ass."
"Better than being a dumb ass." I said and bit a fry in half with a cheeky smile.
"Aww, c'mon Marley. What makes her better than me?" A new voice groaned behind me.
I turned my head to see Jessie looking back at me. Bobby and Pockets stood right behind him. How long had they been standing there?
"I've got charm." Alex replied.
"Like shit." He threw back with a good natured smile.
I giggled at my new found friend's interaction, "Sorry Stones, but Sunny shreds like no one else. That's where she's got you."
The look of unbelief on Jessie's face was priceless. Bobby, Pockets and Alex all died with laughter at his shocked expression. I simply smiled, waiting for a reaction.
"Low blow man." Jessie muttered finally.
I held the paper bag up that had been sitting between Alex and me, "Peace offering?" I asked.
He snatched the bag and peered inside, then with a gleeful grin he announced, "Sweet!" before hunkering down in the sand.
"So what are you guys up to?" Alex asked, looking between Bobby and Pockets.
Pockets shrugged, "Same old, same old. Just hanging around really."
"How 'bout you?" Bobby asked before squatting next to Jessie and stealing the fries right out of his hand. This was met with a loud protest of "HEY!" from Jessie.
"Just relaxing after the usual morning race." Alex drawled. She had stretched out in the sun next to me with her eyes closed.
"Cheated again, didn't you Sunny?" Pockets asked in complete innocence. She wasn't looking at us or the comical scene of her boyfriend and his best friend wrestling beside us now over the paper bag, but out at the tide washing in.
"Yup." I answered for Alex.
"Can it Webster." Alex said with a scowl.
"Webster?" Pockets asked, her face turning to Alex for a moment, one perfectly sculpted eyebrow arching up in question.
Alex shrugged, "Y'know, the writer thing."
"Wait, did I just receive my very own nickname? Oh, I'm honored!" I gushed in clear sarcasm.
"She really does fit in here." Bobby grinned, holding up the bag triumphantly, despite the fact that it was no more than a shredded piece of paper now. Jessie was coping with his loss by kicking copious amounts of sand into Bobby's shoes while he wasn't watching.
"Yeah, I think so." Alex grinned and looked down at me.
I smiled back, "I try."
"Told you that you would love it here eventually." She mused.
"Yes." I said in defeat. "I should realize when I'm beaten and just give in, shouldn't I?"
Alex kissed me out of nowhere. It was never unwanted when she did, but it almost always caught me in a state of surprise. My eyes would go wide and I would wonder who was watching before the 'fuck it' instinct took over and I appreciated the amazing feeling of her lips gliding over mine.
"Something like that." She muttered low enough for only me to hear it.
"I was going to say they were too much," Pockets said with a hiked thumb at Bobby and Jessie, both staring at us in what could only be described as open mouthed shock, "But you guys are worse."
Alex grinned even wider at Pockets, "You know I do my best."
"But I think you sent Stones into shock." Pockets argued, pointing to Jessie.
"You better not be kissing my little sister with that mouth, Sunshine." Bobby said. There was a hint of actual threat in his voice.
Alex rolled her eyes, "Please. No matter how big her crush is my lips are sealed."
"What are we talking about now?" I asked.
"Don't worry about it." Pockets advised me with a sideways glance.
"Let's go skate." Alex said, quickly changing the subject.
I looked between Alex and Bobby once more, detecting an odd tension about them all of a sudden. I swept the dust off of my shorts and stood up, grabbing my deck along the way. "I'm down." I said.
Jessie jumped up too, "Count me in."
"Yeah, sure. Let's hit the park." Bobby agreed with a nod. The sudden switch was really weird. I had only seen Bobby and Alex on good terms.
Alex didn't have any intention of telling me anything, even after Bobby had turned his back on us, so I assumed it was none of my business. That suited me just fine too. I didn't come down here to spend my summer on anyone else's drama. I just wanted things to be peaceful so we could all have a good time while I was here. While I was still free to do as I pleased before life clipped my wings.
***
"So is it just us tonight?" Tanya asked, bringing a cooler full of ice out back where I was unwrapping fireworks.
"Nope." I said with a shake of my head, "Alex should be around any time."
"You guys are almost inseparable now, you know that?" she chuckled.
Alex straightened up and offered her board to me. "Excellent!" She said, a triumphant smile on her face.
I huffed a sigh and took it from her with shaking hands. I dropped the skateboard on the ground and tested it with one foot. The other, of course, firmly planted on the ground while I did this. With all the caution in the world I then set my other foot on the board.
Only having the knowledge of what I'd seen Alex do, I wasn't exactly educated on the next step. I knew that you were supposed to use one foot to gain momentum though so I tried that. I kicked off the ground hard and the board went flying forward.
It only occurred to me after I was going that I had no idea how to stop. It was also about the time that I started going down a decline in the road, making the board pick up speed with every second. I felt like I should have been afraid but I wasn't. I was exhilarated at the speed I felt under my feet and the wind whipping me violently.
"Marley, be careful!" I heard Alex shout behind me desperately, but I wasn't listening at all.
This was the same feeling that I got when I would get into a deep writing groove. The world didn't exist. Nothing existed. It was just me and adrenaline-and it was fantastic.
Of course, I still had a lot to learn about skateboarding. A misplaced pebble threw off my whole adventure by sending me and the board sprawling in different directions. I was lucky enough to land against some plastic trashcans, which softened my blow. Alex's board however lay cracked in half against a curb twenty feet away.
"Ugh." I groaned and pulled myself up into a sitting position.
"Marley!" Alex called, running towards me, "Are you okay?"
She fell to her knees in front of me and grabbed my shoulders, looking at me in utter horror.
"I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to." I said and pointed to her busted up board. Alex turned to look at it and then back at me. Her face went from horrified to that of disbelief until she started laughing.
"I don't care about that. Are you all right? Did you break anything?"
"I'm fine." I assured her and stood up, brushing the dust off of my front, "Just a couple of bruises. Lucky my glasses stayed on my face."
"Shit. I shouldn't have pushed you." Alex muttered.
"No, that was a blast! I wanna do it again." I said with actual enthusiasm this time.
Alex grinned, "Really?"
"Yeah, really. Too bad I broke your board."
Alex waved me off, "Don't worry about that. I have plenty of spare parts back at my place. We'll change the deck out and she'll be good as new. If I need anything besides that we'll call Stones."
"Sure you're not mad?" I asked one last time.
"Positive." Alex replied, "Come on."
***
"Are your parents around?" I asked, approaching the tiny house that Alex resided in.
She scoffed under her breath and shook her head before opening the door for me, "Don't count on it. My dad left when I was three and my mom is still trying to be an actress. She's probably in some producer's bed working for a role."
That harsh bite in Alex's words was a complete flip than I was used to from her. It was almost off putting how different it was from her norm.
"I'm sorry." I muttered, feeling bad for bringing it up in the first place.
Alex shrugged, "It's whatever." Those words made absolute no sense, but I'm sure it meant 'who cares?' in Alex's special way.
"The board?" I asked trying to change direction from the awkwardly tense moment we were in.
"Right." Alex said and directed me to the back of the house.
There were posters covering every inch of the walls in her room. Band posters and cut outs from skateboarding magazines depicting ridiculous tricks, to pictures and scraps of papers with various drawings and such on them. The rest of the room was chaos too, with laundry across the floor to a messy bed. My obsessive need to organize had me in disarray instantly. At the same time though, there was an overwhelming feeling of Alex in this room and that was calming in its own way.
Alex threw open the door of her closet and there were indeed plenty of skateboard parts in there. In fact there was a mountain of spare parts in there. One had to wonder how - and why - Alex had accumulated so many. She kneeled down and dug through a few things before turning back to me with a grin.
"You know, I could make you a board if you want. I have enough pieces to scrap something together. It would be a bit of a mash up on parts though, a frankenboard if you will."
I beamed, "That would be awesome!"
Alex turned back to her parts and started sifting through them once more. She would pick something up and consider it only to put it down a second later. I waited patiently as she processed through things, never asking questions or pushing her, just observing Alex as she did something that she was clearly well versed in. Eventually she had a pile of pieces that she chose for my so-called 'frankenboard' put off to one side.
"Let me show you how to put all this together. You got to learn how to do your own maintenance if you're gonna ride. Only posers pay a board shop to get their set up fixed." Alex informed me, a screwdriver in one hand and a wrench in the other, both waved animatedly as she talked.
"Yes wise master." I said with a sarcastic bow.
Alex disregarded my snark and set a scraped up deck on my lap face up. I could tell that the board had seen some action back in its hay-day by the small chips off of the side and scratches across the paintjob. It still looked like it had plenty of life in it though.
The trucks were then set on the board. Alex lined them up to the holes on the board the best she could before handing me the screwdriver. She popped the four screws through the board and trucks before spinning a bolt onto the top of each one.
"I'll help you with this first set to get you started." Alex told me, placing the wrench on the bolt. "Screw it in from the other side of the board. I'll hold onto the bolt so it doesn't move. It's a little awkward at first but you'll get the hang of doing it by yourself."
"Okay." I said and did as she said, screwing in the trucks from all sides.
"Good deal, now try for yourself." She said handing me the wrench, before standing to get her own tools to work on her broken board.
It was indeed awkward, Alex wasn't wrong there, but it wasn't hard. I propped the deck against my shoulder, one foot holding it steady and followed the same process she had shown me. Alex was halfway finished with putting her new ride together when I had finished the job she had set me with.
"Awesome!" she exclaimed, "Now just screw the wheels onto the trucks and you're good to go."
Alex tossed me the wheels and the parts I needed, this step was a little more straight forward and I didn't need her to tell me what to do anymore. I set straight to work. I liked that we didn't need to talk to have a good time. Just sitting here and working on the boards in silence was the most relaxing and comforting thing I had experienced since I got here. Still, there were a million questions I had about Alex.
"I just realized I know nothing about you." I said and began laughing.
Alex looked at me with some amusement before she spoke, "I don't really know anything about you either."
"You know my last name is Denning." I pointed out.
"Actually I didn't know that you had the same last name as your aunt. She could have been your mom's sister." Alex retorted.
"Touché." I remarked with a point of the wrench.
"But because fair is fair, my last name is Reed." Alex said with a sideways glance.
"Have you always lived here in California?" I asked, not able to help myself anymore.
"My, my, aren't we a curious one?"
I chuckled, "It's the aspiring author in me."
"Fair enough," Alex replied with a chuckle, "I've lived here all my life, California is all I know and I doubt I'll ever leave. The sun and the sand are as much a part of me as my blood and bones. Besides where else are you gonna find the killer spots that Cali has?"
I was listening to her speak, but I couldn't help watching her lips as she did. She licked her lips in between sentences and it left them looking smooth and glossy. I remembered how nice they felt against mine last night. Without any real thought, I leaned over and pressed my lips against hers.
I pulled back after just a moment, pushed my glasses up and smiled sheepishly towards the ground. "Sorry. I couldn't help myself."
Alex stroked my bare knee, "I really like you too."
I chanced a glance back up at her and she was smiling. I managed my own grin back. Alex got close to me, pressed her nose against mine and looked at me in that close distance. It was so intimate it was almost intimidating. After an intensely long moment, Alex pressed her lips against mine again.
She pulled away from me just as quick as I did however. The sparks flew between us at such a heat both of us were afraid to be burned. We kind of sat around for a second unsure of what to say or do. Last night had been a crazy, emotion fueled-partially alcohol driven- experience. This was us being honest with each other.
I didn't regret anything though. I enjoyed the time that Alex had given me so far, and I wanted so much of her time in the future. Without any reservation I reached over and took her hand in mine. Alex looked at our hands and smiled, before looking up to my face.
"So," She said slowly, "You wanna go skate?"
July, 1996
"How 'bout we race there? Winner buys lunch." I suggested.
"What if I don't like those stakes?" Alex asked with a frown.
"Too bad." I said and laugh before putting a foot on my board.
The two of us were standing at the top of one of the many hills in town, discussing the wages of our most current bet. It had become somewhat of normality for Alex and me to be in constant competition. Especially in the new addiction she had instilled in me: skateboarding.
"Fine." She agreed begrudgingly, obviously there was something else that she wanted to wager. I had an obvious idea of what that thing might have been, and it had nothing to do with boarding.
Both of us readied ourselves to go down the hill and eyed each other with mischievous smiles. It was also normal for one or both of us to cheat. On that exact thought, Alex pushed forward without even a countdown and was flying down the hill. With an agitated growl in my throat I chased after her as fast as my board would allow me.
It was hard to believe it was already midsummer. I had really settled in here, feeling like California could be a second home after all. Of course, that may have just been because of my current company, but I liked to think that something actually clicked with me here.
Despite my foot pounding against the pavement as hard and fast as I could to catch up, that split second Alex had on me allowed her to pull ahead completely. I arrived at the bottom of the hill with a sour face. Alex however, was looking smug.
"You cheated!" I accused. I knew it wouldn't mean anything, but I said it anyways.
"I won. Besides, you didn't set any rules." Alex replied, pointing a finger at me.
"Whatever." I huffed.
Alex folded her arms over her chest, "C'mon, pay up."
My hand crept to the wallet in my pocket and then stalled. I eyed her for a moment longer and grinned. I could pay up all right.
Taking the straps of Alex's tank top in my fingers, I pulled her closer to me. Alex's face was surprised at first, but the deviousness of my smile infected her eventually. She uttered a breathy chuckle, a grin of her own unfolding.
I stood on my tiptoes and touched my lips to hers. The grip on her clothes faltered as my hands sought the warm satin skin of her neck instead. It was so easy to get lost in her.
Alex pulled away breathless and cleared her throat. "I suppose I can cover lunch today."
I put a hand to my chest and fluttered my eyes, "Oh would you? I would be ever so grateful."
"I'm sure you would temptress." Alex chuckled, "What sounds good to you?"
"I dunno." I shrugged, "Burgers? That place that Bobby and Pockets took us to a couple weeks ago was pretty good."
Alex grabbed my hand and was off in a sprint. It was impossible to slow her down for even a second. Although, it could be argued that the keeping up was half the fun.
One of the things I had really begun to love about California was how many grab and go places they had to eat at. Not just fast food , but plenty of the local joints were right on the boardwalk and because the weather was rarely bad it was common to just order your food and eat right there at the beach. This was something that Alex and I did often despite my general lack of enthusiasm for sand.
We had slipped into such a good routine that one of us would order and the other would find a good spot on the beach that hadn't been taken over by a group of tourists or volleyball players. It was sunny as always, but there was a slight breeze and the beach ended up a little less crowded than usual. This made it much easier to spot a good place and settle down to wait for Alex.
"Here you go." Alex said and handed me a paper bag. She had already opened up the tinfoil wrapper to her burger and there was a pronounced bite taken out of it.
"Thanks." I said and pulled my own burger out.
"No problem." She said and sat down in the sand next to me before plucking a few fries out of the bag.
"I wanted to ask you something earlier. I don't know if you have any plans or anything, but my aunt wants to shoot off some fireworks with me and she told me to invite you over. Not that I wouldn't have asked you if she wouldn't have told me to, but I just-" I stopped myself mid sentence and waved a hand in front of Alex's face. She looked like she had blanked out.
"Are you even listening to me?" I asked, cocking my head in consideration.
"No." she said with a huge grin, "Your eyes are so pretty when the sun catches them. They get super bright. Like, the same green as healthy grass."
I rolled said eyes "You spaced out comparing me to shrubbery?"
"Well it doesn't sound romantic when you put it like that." She chuckled, "So what were you saying?"
I sighed, "Fourth of July plans?"
"Nope."
"My aunt's house?"
"Sure." Alex nodded biting into her burger.
I laughed, "I should just talk to you like this more often. I can get to a full point without you getting distracted."
"Not my fault you're so pretty." Alex argued.
I scoffed, "Yeah, that's obviously my fault."
Alex threw me a knowing grin. I had no idea why, but every time she would do some little thing like that it would make my heart beat a million times faster. I blushed for no real reason and looked down at the sand.
"So we'll plan on the fourth then?" I asked.
"Yup. It's a date." She confirmed.
"Fireworks with my aunt isn't much of a date, but whatever gets you going I guess." I shrugged.
Alex was not amused. "Ha ha, smart ass."
"Better than being a dumb ass." I said and bit a fry in half with a cheeky smile.
"Aww, c'mon Marley. What makes her better than me?" A new voice groaned behind me.
I turned my head to see Jessie looking back at me. Bobby and Pockets stood right behind him. How long had they been standing there?
"I've got charm." Alex replied.
"Like shit." He threw back with a good natured smile.
I giggled at my new found friend's interaction, "Sorry Stones, but Sunny shreds like no one else. That's where she's got you."
The look of unbelief on Jessie's face was priceless. Bobby, Pockets and Alex all died with laughter at his shocked expression. I simply smiled, waiting for a reaction.
"Low blow man." Jessie muttered finally.
I held the paper bag up that had been sitting between Alex and me, "Peace offering?" I asked.
He snatched the bag and peered inside, then with a gleeful grin he announced, "Sweet!" before hunkering down in the sand.
"So what are you guys up to?" Alex asked, looking between Bobby and Pockets.
Pockets shrugged, "Same old, same old. Just hanging around really."
"How 'bout you?" Bobby asked before squatting next to Jessie and stealing the fries right out of his hand. This was met with a loud protest of "HEY!" from Jessie.
"Just relaxing after the usual morning race." Alex drawled. She had stretched out in the sun next to me with her eyes closed.
"Cheated again, didn't you Sunny?" Pockets asked in complete innocence. She wasn't looking at us or the comical scene of her boyfriend and his best friend wrestling beside us now over the paper bag, but out at the tide washing in.
"Yup." I answered for Alex.
"Can it Webster." Alex said with a scowl.
"Webster?" Pockets asked, her face turning to Alex for a moment, one perfectly sculpted eyebrow arching up in question.
Alex shrugged, "Y'know, the writer thing."
"Wait, did I just receive my very own nickname? Oh, I'm honored!" I gushed in clear sarcasm.
"She really does fit in here." Bobby grinned, holding up the bag triumphantly, despite the fact that it was no more than a shredded piece of paper now. Jessie was coping with his loss by kicking copious amounts of sand into Bobby's shoes while he wasn't watching.
"Yeah, I think so." Alex grinned and looked down at me.
I smiled back, "I try."
"Told you that you would love it here eventually." She mused.
"Yes." I said in defeat. "I should realize when I'm beaten and just give in, shouldn't I?"
Alex kissed me out of nowhere. It was never unwanted when she did, but it almost always caught me in a state of surprise. My eyes would go wide and I would wonder who was watching before the 'fuck it' instinct took over and I appreciated the amazing feeling of her lips gliding over mine.
"Something like that." She muttered low enough for only me to hear it.
"I was going to say they were too much," Pockets said with a hiked thumb at Bobby and Jessie, both staring at us in what could only be described as open mouthed shock, "But you guys are worse."
Alex grinned even wider at Pockets, "You know I do my best."
"But I think you sent Stones into shock." Pockets argued, pointing to Jessie.
"You better not be kissing my little sister with that mouth, Sunshine." Bobby said. There was a hint of actual threat in his voice.
Alex rolled her eyes, "Please. No matter how big her crush is my lips are sealed."
"What are we talking about now?" I asked.
"Don't worry about it." Pockets advised me with a sideways glance.
"Let's go skate." Alex said, quickly changing the subject.
I looked between Alex and Bobby once more, detecting an odd tension about them all of a sudden. I swept the dust off of my shorts and stood up, grabbing my deck along the way. "I'm down." I said.
Jessie jumped up too, "Count me in."
"Yeah, sure. Let's hit the park." Bobby agreed with a nod. The sudden switch was really weird. I had only seen Bobby and Alex on good terms.
Alex didn't have any intention of telling me anything, even after Bobby had turned his back on us, so I assumed it was none of my business. That suited me just fine too. I didn't come down here to spend my summer on anyone else's drama. I just wanted things to be peaceful so we could all have a good time while I was here. While I was still free to do as I pleased before life clipped my wings.
***
"So is it just us tonight?" Tanya asked, bringing a cooler full of ice out back where I was unwrapping fireworks.
"Nope." I said with a shake of my head, "Alex should be around any time."
"You guys are almost inseparable now, you know that?" she chuckled.