by Alexa Woods
few seats over gave them dark, nasty looks and shook their heads in the
direction of the empty seats which were now covered in spilled popcorn.
Arabella briefly debated flinging herself over the seats and scrambling to
pick up every spilled piece.
“You heard me,” June said softly as Arabella scrunched down another
inch. “Yes, we’re dating. We’re dating each other. It’s going really well. I
anticipate it will keep being amazing. I’m really happy.”
“But she’s…she’s…”
“Super awesome, selfless, caring, kind, and amazing?” June suggested.
Summer leaned over June and gave Arabella a very obvious stink eye.
She tried not to wither away from it. She hadn’t expected Summer to do a
happy dance and tell her how much she trusted her and wanted to welcome
her into her best friend’s life. No, she’d fully expected a real stink eye and
that’s what she was getting. If looks could kill, she’d most definitely be
mangled at the moment.
“No!” Summer protested, her look of disbelief switching to one of total
defiance. “I was going to go with the word monster, or some variation of
that. Why? June? Of all the, like, six billion people in the world, why her?”
“There are only about three billion women,” June corrected, still eating
popcorn at a normal rate.
“No!” Summer shook her head. “No. Not her. I’m going to fix this.”
“You’re not,” June told her. She finally set her popcorn down on the
ground between her feet. “You’re not going to fix anything, because nothing
needs to be fixed.”
“No way! She has to own what she did. All of that, that’s on her.”
“Everything has already been owned.” June plucked Summer’s popcorn
safely out of her hands and set it beside her bag, between her shoes.
“Enough. I don’t want to hear about that anymore. I’m done with talking
about it or thinking about it. Maybe we should try this again. I’m sorry that
I didn’t tell you sooner or give you warning. So. Summer, this is Arabella.
We met at work. She’s gorgeous, but she’s also incredibly sweet, loves the
heck out of her family, works so hard, is very talented, and she likes plants.
She does the right thing because doing the right thing is the right thing to
do. Which is why she isn’t saying anything to defend herself or combat
your horrible attitude even though it definitely needs to be combatted.”
“I…she…this…” Summer spluttered. She was so flushed it looked like
she was sunburned after sitting outside all afternoon.
June shook her head. “No. This is how it is. You’re my best friend, and I
know you trust me to make good decisions and to be an informed person
and a deep thinker. I know you know I give everything proper
consideration, from business to my personal life.”
“Business.” Summer latched onto that. “The business. You work together.
Wouldn’t that look bad?”
“No, I don’t think so. We’re going slow anyway. We’re telling people
slowly. No one at work needs to know for a while yet. We’re not hiding or
sneaking, but there’s nothing wrong with enjoying your privacy, and our
personal relationship isn’t going to affect our working one.”
“What about the power dynamic? You can’t date her because you’re her
boss!”
June sighed. “You know that I would never fire someone for anything but
legit reasons, and even then, it would have to be a crazy reason. I’ve
worked with people I didn’t really want to before. Sometimes even difficult
people. That’s how the world works. If something should ever happen, I
know it might be a little bit awkward, but that’s not a reason to not take
chances. Now. I know you’re happy that I’m happy, and you’re going to
give me the benefit of the doubt because you love me no matter what kind
of crazy you think I get myself into.”
“But, but…”
“No. No more insults. No more nastiness. No more revenge. You can
harbor private doubts but be the Summer I know and love. The Summer
who is happy for me because I’m happy.”
Someone behind them a few rows back let out a long, impatient sigh.
Arabella wasn’t sure if it was because they’d been listening in and didn’t
like what they were hearing, or because they were still annoyed about the
popcorn, or maybe they were just sighing because it was hot, and they were
tired and lazy feeling on the weekend. Arabella refused to turn around. She
did move her head just a fraction so she could make sure Summer wasn’t
going to grab for both the bags of popcorn and spill them over her head.
Arabella didn’t know if she was horrified or wildly exuberant and crazy
ecstatic. Dating. It was real. They were real. They were really doing this.
This was their first real date, and while June looked calm enough when
Arabella snuck a glance at her, she could see a flash of thinly masked
excitement on her face too.
“Summer?” June asked. “Introduce yourself. Let’s have a new beginning
and a fresh start.”
Summer rolled her eyes. “No. I’m not doing that. That’s stupid.”
“Alright, then, I hope you can put on a smile, suck back the bad thoughts,
and say a few nice things, even if it’s about the weather, or about puppies,
or about how delicious this popcorn is.”
“If you’d give it back to me, maybe I could comment on it.”
“Can I trust you not to fling it all over anyone again?”
“That was an accident. You shouldn’t surprise me like that.”
“Okay. Here.” June passed over the half-empty popcorn bag. Summer
mumbled something as she took it. “Oh look. They’re getting ready to
start.”
“How very convenient,” Summer muttered. She did make an effort to
smile, and it was clear there was no underestimating the power of
friendship. “Fine. I’ll be nice because I love you. You know that. But don’t
say that I—never mind. I’m cutting that off too.” Summer literally went
behind June’s back and pointed a finger at Arabella. “Hurt her and I’m
going to come for you. If you think the lake had some sinister aspects, I
promise that you’ll regret it times twenty.”
“Only twenty?” June asked dryly. “I thought for sure that murderous
impulses would be up there with the times forty or sixty.”
“Times a hundred,” Summer amended.
“Infinity would be better.”
“Fine. Times infinity.”
Arabella bit down on her bottom lip, working it while she tried to think
of something reassuring, but her brain blanked. Eventually, Summer turned
back around, and June resumed eating popcorn and watching the activity on
the field like she was actually into it. She was probably the only one who
knew what was going on, no matter how much she did or didn’t like
baseball. When the right words finally came, Arabella twisted around to
Summer to say them, but oddly enough, Summer had a small smile in place,
and she looked perfectly content with handing out threats and then trusting
June to live her own life. It was quite mature of her.
The seats filled up around them, the national anthem was sung, and the
game got underway. Summer cheered at all the right and some of the wrong
times, clapping and hooting and shouting. She was clearly having a great
time, and even if she was forcing it, she was still trying, and that was
incredibly good of her. Or maybe she actually had a secret love for baseball
that she’d never let on about or she’d just discovered. Whatever it was,
Arabella was grateful. She felt warm and tingly inside in a brand-new way.
June had told her best friend that they were dating. It was out there. It
was real. Someone knew. And Summer was, well, maybe she was going to
be okay with it.
Halfway through the first inning, Arabella knew just enough to know
what it was called, June slipped her hand under the armrest between them
and set it on Arabella’s knee. Arabella covered it with her own, and if
Summer noticed the hand holding going on, she didn’t mention it even
once.
Chapter 15
June
Summer was the best time for walks in the park. June loved the park they
had their annual work barbeque in so much that she often walked there in
her free time. After the baseball date went better than she thought it would,
she wanted to do something lower key, more private and intimate,
something that was just the two of them. Something that wasn’t token or
cliché like dinner or a movie.
Arabella was more than glad to join her in the park after work and had
packed a change of clothes and sneakers so June could drive them there.
They both lived so far away from each other that it was the best
arrangement time wise. June would drop Arabella back off at the office
parking lot after so she could get her car.
June was so darn proud to have her hand curled in Arabella’s as they
walked through the park. They got a few stares from a few couples, but
nothing June would consider hostile. Some people just liked to take a
second glance, and that was okay. Arabella was smoking hot, so why
wouldn’t people want to check her out? She could barely keep her eyes off
her at work and not stare herself. They hadn’t told anyone they were dating
yet, and June tried to keep things low key, which involved not getting slack
jawed and drooling whenever Arabella was in the same room, but it was
hard.
“I was thinking,” Arabella said when they were about halfway around the
park. “I was thinking that maybe, if you’re up for it, you’d like to meet my
parents?”
June squeezed Arabella’s warm hand. She didn’t want to sound
dismissive or trite, but she was also worried about pacing. How fast was too
fast? She realized she couldn’t carry that conversation on in her head, or
rather, it would be better if she had it out loud instead of trying to sort
things out in private.
“I just…I’m not sure it’s the right time. When do people usually meet
parents?”
“I don’t know if there’s a timeline. Maybe you’re right. It’s too soon. I
don’t know what I was thinking. Actually, I guess I do. I was thinking that
my parents are going to notice you coming to the house sooner or later,
seeing as they live downstairs, and my mom will be all bubbly and excited
and want to come up and say hello. She might ambush you one time when
you’re over. They don’t use their key without my saying they can, and they
wouldn’t walk in without knocking, but if they know I have someone over,
they might keep knocking and not go away.”
June smiled at the image of Arabella’s parents pounding on the door and
peeking in the windows, their curiosity getting the better of them. “Then
maybe I should meet them sooner rather than later.”
“I’m not trying to force the issue, I’m just saying. Things could get
awkward. I want you to be prepared.”
“Are you scared of me meeting them?”
“Scared? Or worried? Or excited and nervous?”
“I guess excited and nervous.”
“I don’t know. A bit, I guess. Who isn’t nervous about things like that?
I’m not nervous about them meeting you. They’ll love you. I’m nervous
about you meeting them and them saying something totally embarrassing.
Mom never would have dared before, but now she seems more relaxed. I
guess after we, um, moved, a lot of the old, forced habits stopped
happening. No more fronts. No more pretending. What was the point? That
was one of the good things, as far as I can see. My mom isn’t exactly happy,
but I think deep down she’s a lot happier now that she doesn’t have to load
on the bullshit so thick and deep every single day.”
“Being an actress all the time would be hard.”
“That’s what I did in high school,” Arabella blurted. She flushed and
looked away when June glanced at her. “I mean, that’s… I know we
shouldn’t talk about that.”
They passed by the huge stretch of water and June’s attention was
momentarily distracted by a major duck fight going down on the water. She
thought it was a fight. Two ducks were quacking the heck out of the place.
They were just giving it to each other. They weren’t beating wings or doing
anything physical. Maybe it wasn’t so much a fight as a telling each other
off. She laughed at the wild quacking and Arabella joined in.
When they’d walked past, June remembered what they’d been talking
about. “It’s not that we shouldn’t. I want to make sure you’re okay with it.
That we’re not beating a dead horse. You can talk about it. I don’t need to
from my end, and Summer doesn’t need to. That’s all I meant before.”
Arabella bit her bottom lip and nodded. “In high school, I was always
putting on a mask and pretending to be something and someone I wasn’t. I
was so much happier when I graduated and didn’t have to do that. I know
exactly how my mom felt. She didn’t leave that life by choice, but when she
was forced out, she actually found the other side to be alright. Aside from
the worries about other things.”
“How’s your dad doing?”
Arabella hesitated. “He’s okay.”
June wanted to ask about things that weren’t her business, like how
Arabella was coping with getting her parents insurance and the hospital
bills and if she needed help, but she didn’t want to be nosey or pushy.
Arabella wasn’t a proud person, but everyone had their pride, and she didn’t
want to go too far too soon. Pacing. But what was the right pacing for
wanting to help someone you cared about?
“So. Not meeting the parents this week or next week. Maybe not the
week after or the week after that,” Arabella said, bringing them back to her
original question. “But if they ambush you, then at least you’re prepared. If
they decide not to be nosey, then maybe in a month we could have a dinner
with them at my place.”
“That would be nice. I’d like that. You’ve already met my mom, but I’ll
also arrange something.”
“Have you told them? Or would you if they asked?”
“I love my parents,” June said carefully. “But I
like to keep my private
life private. They don’t ask about who I’m dating because I don’t live at
home. They don’t want to pry. If they know that I’m seeing someone,
they’ll ask about her because they care about both of us and that I’m happy
and that things are going okay. They’re good that way. The best parents.
They give me space but not too much space.”
“I can understand that. I don’t know that I’d want to go downstairs to my
parents’ part of the house and just announce it. That would be pretty
awkward.”
They were silent for a few minutes as they circled the water, watching the
birds, and occasionally watching the people watching the birds.
“I think we should brainstorm some fun date ideas,” June said to break
the quiet between them. It wasn’t painful silence, but date ideas were
always fun.
“Oh. Wow. Date ideas… Can they be cheap date ideas?”
June spun into Arabella and kissed her impulsively on the cheek.
Arabella stopped walking and beamed back at her. “I love that you can ask
me that. That you’re okay with being open. I love that you don’t need this
great big shell around yourself or all that armor you were carrying around
before.”
“I was hoping I didn’t need it with you.”
“Never.” June kissed the edge of Arabella’s jawline and ran her lips down
her throat, over to her ear. “No armor needed. If you geared up, I would just
end up stripping it away to get to the good parts of you. And I can’t imagine
putting it on would be easy. It seems like it would be a massive waste of
effort.”
Arabella giggled. She looked stunned and a little bit scattered by the
public affection, but she also looked happy. June took her hand again and
resumed walking.
“Well, I can think of one date idea, but you might think it’s a little bit
funny.”
“What’s that?”
“You commented on my plants. And you asked me about my air plants
again this morning. I was thinking that if you don’t have any, you might like
to get one. Something potted or an air plant. A succulent or a cactus.
Something easy to start with.”
“Yes! That’s a great idea.”
“I know a few really good stores that have some great plants. We could
