by Angela Blake
“So?”
Tane turned and resumed walking gesturing for her to precede him, “So it’s your birthday and we’re here to celebrate right?”
Liviana snorted. "Sure, that’s what we’re here to do. If your mom hadn’t made you bring your cousin would you have come at all?"
There was a splash as Liviana's foot hit a shallow puddle a few feet in front of Tane. He sidestepped it a moment later.
"Of course I would have come, if I’d known. I mean wha-"
Thung.
Liviana spun around, turning to face Tane, who was now rubbing his head. "Ow." He said.
"Did you just… walk into a fire escape ladder?" While her first instinct would normally have been to rush to anyone else's side, Liviana was very tempted to burst out laughing or yell ‘karma!’ Or some shit.
"I was distracted by you," Tane's hand reached out, fingers curling around the lowest rung of a ladder attached to the wall. "You trying to get me killed, Livy?"
She scoffed, both at his insinuation and his shifting the blame. "I was strolling down the middle of the alley. Heaven knows why you were walking pressed up against the wall."
"You stepped in a puddle," Tane offered, still not moving. His fingers strummed the rung. "This ladder go anywhere?"
Liviana glanced up. "Rooftop of the bar we were just in, I'd wager. Or one of the adjacent shops."
"Wanna take a look?"
Liviana rolled her eyes at his choice of words. "Ha-ha. I presume that's private property, Tane."
"Mm." With a short hop he grasped the ladder, pulling himself up in one fluid motion. "But it's you and your twin’s birthday which means y’all get to do as you please, remember?"
"We're going to get in trouble!" she called out, as he continued to ascend.
"I just want to wander around," Tane shouted back, leaning slightly over the lip of the building. "Don't worry; I'm sure I'll find all the edges by myself."
"Asshole," mumbled Liviana, sighing heavily. Glancing around to make sure nobody was watching - she'd bungee jumped with less apprehension than this - she scampered up the ladder as fast as her arms could pull her.
Tane had barely moved from the top of the ladder, idly toeing a leaf that had drifted to the roof, still crisp underfoot. They could still make out the pounding bass of the bar, but it was mercifully muted. They wordlessly crossed the length of the building, before Liviana found a well-positioned air-conditioning unit for them to perch on.
Chapter Nine: Ruminating
"There's a fire in the distance," Liviana noted, though there was no agitation in her voice. She squinted. "Probably campers on the beach."
"As long as it’s not my beach they can knock themselves out," mused Tane. He leaned back, staring up towards the sky. Liviana followed suit a moment later, two pairs of legs left dangling.
"I can't see the stars tonight," Liviana said, referring to the thick clouds that had gathered overhead. The more time she spent with Tane, the more she found herself relaxing into him, feeling like he was home. She knew he didn’t feel the same, heck he had flat out told her he didn’t know how he felt a few minutes ago. Still, she couldn’t help feeling like whatever they had between them was mutual.
"Me neither," Tane replied, earning him a bump on the shoulder from Liviana. He grinned a little. "It’s crazy how they look from the water."
Liviana turned her head to face him. "The stars?"
He nodded. "Not all of them, obviously. But all the big constellations and a lot of the smaller ones." He propped himself upright, his gaze focused on the horizon. "Which way's north?"
Liviana sat up, casting about. A few people she knew could tell what direction they were facing almost all the time, but she was not one of them. "The lighthouse is that way so… you're facing it."
Tane nodded softly. "At this time of year in Maui…"
His arm jutted out at an angle. "Andromeda, or the Princess of Ethiopia, whatever you call it." The arm drifted a little. "Aries. Canes Venatici or the Hunting Dogs. The Bears. Or again, the Ursa Major and Minor, depending on where you're from."
His arm drifted a little more, gently brushing against Liviana's. Her heart skipped a beat. With anyone else the gesture would have been an accident, but not Tane. He paid far too much attention to his surroundings to have forgotten where she was, for his choice of extended contact to have been anything but deliberate.
"I still can't see them," Liviana murmured, "but I'll take your word for it."
He grinned a little at her answer and her sped up just to see the smile on his face.
"I know you grew up mostly in the city so you're probably used to stars that look completely different, and I didn’t bother to learn what they look like when I was there so…" He was speaking fast, almost tripping over his words, an incredibly rarity. Then he paused, taking a calming breath through his nose as he did.
Liviana's hand found his, and he didn't flinch. His breaths were like thunder to her ears. She listened to each deep inhale, to each long exhale, her hand moving up his bare arm with the utmost delicacy as she did.
Inhale. Exhale.
Her right hand found his face a minute later, and her left quickly came to join it. She played across his features, tracing the contours of his cheekbones, his jaw. She kissed him first, turning his jaw ever-so-slightly until their lips were in perfect alignment. She felt his hands at her back a moment later, encircling her, pulling them together as their lips locked and parted a dozen times. She closed her eyes, shutting out the sights of the world, her universe collapsing to the pressure of his lips on her face, of his breath on her skin, of his body against hers.
They kissed until the fireworks erupted, until the night sky was pockmarked with celebratory starbursts. They could just make out the bar employees below, releasing the bright flashes of phosphorescent light into the air while the party goers ooohed and aaahed below. They would be looking for Livy soon. Cake cutting was sure to follow the fabulous display. Their serenity was shattered a few minutes later by the sounds of a fight breaking out on the pavement. Liviana peered over the edge at the ruckus two stories below.
"See how fuckin' tough you are without your entourage!" Kade screamed, barely restrained by both Jules and Mya. Kade and Jules were Wilson Enterprises staff and Livy cast a nervous glance sideways to see how Tane was taking their unruliness. A few feet away one short-haired redhead was gleefully skipping around Kade, a handful of blonde hairs clutched triumphantly in her hand, all while being chased by two more friends desperate to prevent the situation from escalating any further.
"I've fucking had it with these fucking tiny menaces! Gimme two minutes, s'all the re-match I need!"
Giuliana glanced up, somehow sensing their presence, a finger sliding down her huge birthday glasses to reveal surprised eyes beneath.
"Livy, Tane, could you get your asses down here?" she called, her Air Traffic Controller' voice impossible to miss. "We've got a very tall drunk and a very short drunk. I don't care which one you take, but you're getting somebody into a cab."
Liviana shot him an apologetic glance. "Come on Tane," she said, pulling him along as she headed for the fire escape. It was time to get back to her party anyway.
"We were having a moment," she hissed, mock-venom dripping from her voice as she passed her sister.
Giuliana grinned, knowingly. "This is why I can't let you out of my sight for a minute, Livy," she teased. "Who knows what kind of trouble you'd get up to un-chaperoned?"
Liviana glanced at Giuliana, and caught the unmistakable glint of pride in her eyes. Whatever embarrassment, whatever confusion, whatever uncertainty she'd felt melted away at that.
"Only the best kind."
Chapter Ten: Honest to Goodness Date Night
“Tane?” Liviana cautiously made her way down to the dock, pulling aside a branch. “Tane, are you down here?”
“Livy?” A voice came from somewhere in front of her as she emer
ged from the shadows. He grinned. “Thank you for coming.”
Livy shrugged, “Tane, I’m not the one who is opposed to giving this a try. So if you want to see if there’s something here, I’m on board.”
“I feel bad about that. Like I might be using you?”
Livy laughed, “Using me? How? You’ve been nothing but upfront with me…haven’t you?”
Tane’s eyes skittered away toward the shoreline, “I wanted to show you something,” He reached out a hand, helping Liviana down the slight incline. When her feet touched the dock, he pulled her to him, kissing the top of her head. “I’m not using you okay?”
She nuzzled into his t-shirt before looking up at him. “Okay. I’m not using you either just so you know.” She stood on tiptoe, kissing him on the lips. “What did you have in mind?”
“Follow me.” He took her hand, leading her up the bank and over a little ways to a nearby tree. He stopped in front of it, pointing up. “Look up there.”
Her eyes followed where his finger was pointing and she laughed. “A rope swing? That’s your idea?”
“What’s wrong with it?”
“Nothing. It’s just…different.” She stopped at the look on his face. “Different in a good way.” Her eyes trailed back up the tree. “There’s just one problem…”
“What’s that?”
“I…” Liviana swallowed. “I don’t know how to use…or I guess, jump, off a rope swing. We mostly grew up in apartments before we came here so…”
“No worries. If you’d have been nicer to me I would have shown you my swing earlier…” he said with a smirk.
“Nicer to you my ass; you were the one who was rude to us…spoilt ass lil’ rich boy,” she murmured the last part with an even bigger smirk.
“Me? Spoilt?” his voice had raised several octaves on the last word, “I’ll have you know I’m the very last thing from spoilt. My mom had me doing chores from as early as I can remember.”
Livy lifted her hand rubbing two fingers together, “I’m playing the world’s smallest violin for you.”
Tane snorted, “So we doing this or are we gonna starts some yo mama jokes?”
Livy held out her hands extravagantly, “By all means show me.” She said.
“Here I’ll show you.” He pulled away from her, taking a few steps back before pulling his t-shirt over his head and throwing it to the side. Liviana gawked at him. “What?”
“N-nothing. It’s just…I’ve never…” her mouth went dry and Tane gave her a warm smile.
“I can throw it back on.”
“No. I’m good.”
Tane smirked, “You sure? I know how irresistible I am. I don’t want—“
She slowly walked over to him, gently placing a hand on his bare shoulders and looking up at him. Her eyes shone in the moonlight. “Wow, how do these hold up that massive ego of yours? You must be a lot stronger than you look.”
His smile widened and he reached a hand down, gently brushing a strand of hair from her face before leaning down and kissing her.
When they broke apart, she stared at him. “Tane?”
“Yeah?”
“Rope swing.”
“What?”
“Rope swing.”
“Rope swing?” He stared at her a moment, then started. “Oh yeah!” He placed both hands on her shoulders, gently walking her backwards before stopping. “Stay right there Livy.” He backed up a few steps. “Now watch what I do.”
He ran a few yards up the bank, then came to a stop. He yelled down to her. “The trick to this is getting a good running start so you build up some momentum!”
Tane crouched down, pausing for a moment in a perfect sprinter’s crouch before jumping up, tearing down the bank. When he was a foot in front of the rope swing, he took a giant leap, grabbing onto the rope and swinging himself over the bank before letting go, doing a cannonball into the water. He emerged from the waves seconds later, scrambling up the bank.
He ran a hand through his hair and grinned. “See? It’s easy.”
Liviana gulped. “Do I have to take a running leap like that? Because I don’t know—“
He took her hand in his, leading her over to the rope swing. “You actually don’t have to get a running start. It’s just more fun that way.” He shrugged. “Like I said, it gives you more momentum. You can swing just by using your body as a weight.”
“I’m still scared.” She gulped again and slowly backed away. “You know, I think dinner would be a better use of our time.”
“Aw come on Liviana; this is way more fun.” Tane looked up at the rope swing, giving it a gentle tug. “You know, maybe we can…” he paused in thought. “Yeah, that should work.”
“What should work?”
He grinned. “I have an idea.”
***
“Tane, I don’t think this is a good idea.” Liviana gulped, her body trembling not only from the feel of his bare skin against her t-shirt, but also from the sheer drop off below. “What if it can’t hold our weight?”
He chuckled. “We’re both on it right now; it would have already broken if it couldn’t hold our weight.”
“But—“
His voice softened. “It’s okay Livy. I got you.” He wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. “Just let me know when you’re ready to start swinging; we can stay here all night if need be. No hurry.”
Liviana slowly turned around, coming face to face with Tane behind her. His eyes sparked with mischief and she smiled, quickly kissing him on the lips before taking a deep breath. “Okay, I’m ready. Let’s swing this thing.”
“Alright, on the count of three. One…two…three.” Tane pushed off from the bank, the two swinging over the water. He let go of her waist and jumped off, making a loud splash in the water below.
She shook as the rope swung back to the bank. “Tane!”
His head broke the surface of the water and he looked up. “Just hang on Livy! Wait until you swing back over, then jump!”
“What if I miss?”
“I’ll catch you!” She looked down and her eyes met his. “Trust me!”
She nodded as the rope swung back toward the bank again before swinging out towards the water. She took a deep breath and jumped off. “Eeekk!!” She landed with a loud splash a few feet from the red head.
“You did it Livy! You conquered the rope swing!” Tane swam over and hugged her. “Wasn’t that fun?”
“Not really.”
“Oh.” His face fell. “I’m sorry Livy; it’s just—” he was cut off as Liviana reached up, cradling his face in her hand and kissing him. After a few seconds, she pulled back.
“It’s okay. At least I can say I did it.” She studied him a moment. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I just wanted to swing again. But if you don’t—“
“You can swing again.”
“Really?”
“Yep. I’ll—” before Liviana could get another word in, he was off up the bank. She laughed, watching the rope swing. A few seconds later, Tane appeared at the top of the bank. He grabbed the rope swing and climbed on, swinging back and forth before launching himself over the water.
“Woohoo!” He did a triple somersault in mid-air before landing with a splash.
Liviana smirked as he reached the surface of the water. “Showoff.”
“Really? I’m a showoff?” He smirked, gently splashing her. “How about now?” He splashed her again. “Or now? Or…” he slapped both hands on the water’s surface, splashing Liviana all over. The grin disappeared from his face. “Uh-oh.”
“Tane, you got me wet!”
He blushed. “Sorry Livy; I just—“
“Come here!” She swam after him and he laughed, swimming away from her, calling over his shoulder.
“You’ll have to catch me first!”
***
“Shit; my clothes are soaked!” Liviana pla
ced both hands on the dock, taking several deep breaths before pushing herself onto it.
Tane climbed out next to her, wringing out his jeans “Yeah. Rope swinging over the bay will do that to ya. Though I guess swimming in jeans wasn’t too smart either.” He patted a pocket. “These will take a while to dry.”
He watched as Liviana stood up, wringing her hair out and smiled. “You’re awfully pretty in the moonlight Livy.”
“Only in the moonlight?”
“Fishing for compliments?”
“Hey you started it.”
“I was just making an observation! Why do women always make a big deal out of little things?”
“Oh, women is it? Sexist pig.”
“I’m sorry, are we fighting?”
“I don’t know, are we?”
“Good cause it’s hard to concentrate when my jeans weigh a ton. Besides you need to get somewhere warm, you’re kinda shivering.”
Livy rolled her eyes, “Whose fault is that I wonder?”
“Come on, back to the car, I brought supplies.”
“Of course you did.”
Chapter Eleven: Back and Forth
He led her back to the jeep, extracting a large towel robe and handing it to her.
“Best to take off your clothes, I’m gonna start a fire.”
“Oh a fire. I thought you hated those.”
“I didn’t say I hated them. I said I didn’t want anyone starting one on my beach.”
“Ah, semantics.”
Tane sighed, “Are you taking off your clothes and drying off or what?”
“Why do you want me to take my clothes off so bad?”
Tane shrugged, “Fine. Shiver to death.”
Livy hesitated another second before walking to the other side of the truck to get some privacy before stripping. Tane collected some sticks and twigs that could get a fire started. He built it up as high as possible then sat on the sand, watching the waves coming in and out, wondering if there was some other mer out there watching, wondering at these humans, maybe wanting to be one of them? Or maybe it was one of his cousins, watching him. He thought about waving at the empty horizon just in case, but then remembered that he wasn’t alone. And so far so good, Livy had shown no sign of suspicion about him possibly being a shape shifter. So whatever she’d seen or not seen, she’d obviously repressed it or dismissed it.
