“It does! And if they’re lucky, I take them on a second date to my workshop and do the whole, let me hold you from behindGhostthing.” Maya knew she was joking, leaning into the cheese.
It made her even sexier.
Maya laughed, “Well for what it’s worth, if those are from high school I’d love to see what your work looks like now. Those look awesome.”
There was a pause before a blushing Hanna said, “Wait you seriouslymadeall those pieces?”
“Yep, all thehighbrow artin here was made by yours truly,” Lily said grinning, but Maya saw she was also blushing.
“Holy shit, Lily, they’re dope, I had no idea you were into art in high school,” Hanna said, looking at Lily like she was seeing her for the first time.
“Yeah they are really beautiful! I would love to see more.” Maya took another sip of her cider.
“Thanks, I’m more into the process of my work than the final product, but I do keep a portfolio of sorts on IG. You’ll have to follow me, maybe send a DM or two?” Lily winked.
“Rich kid, must be nice,” Hanna said, moving her body forward as if reminding them that she was there, as if Maya could forget. Hanna may not have felt it, but based on body language alone, Lily was including Hanna in her flirtations, her body turning toward the pouty-lipped beauty. Perhaps Lily was making sure not to put all of her eggs in one basket.
“It is,” Lily agreed. “Not going to sit here and act like it’s not. Can’t stand that. I mean, I go to Sarah Lawrence, tuition is over sixty grand a year. Come on.”
“Ah I toured Sara Lawrence,” Maya said. “For the writing,” she added when Lily looked surprised.
“Yeah well, it's great, just definitely has a fair share of folks who like to drive to the thrift store in a Beamer.”
“Doesn’t everywhere,” Hanna said, and Maya agreed.
“Yeah well, if you two play your cards right, maybe I’ll show you to the workshop.”
Maya took a sip of her beer, smiling as she watched Hanna’s face flush and her dark eyes go intense.
Interesting.
By their fourthround of ciders, a couple of hours later, both fair-skinned women were sporting flushes that Maya found adorable, and Hanna kept making lost puppy eyes at Lily, though Maya wasn’t sure if Lily noticed. She hadn’t known what to think of both women, but the feeling of them clicking into place only seemed to grow as time went on. Lily was funny, a bit crass, and assertive. She seemed like the type of person who took the world for what it was, which Maya found to be refreshing for a self-proclaimed “rich kid,” though she supposed if she weren’t so down to earth, she’d never acknowledge that fact about herself. Maya found her unbelievably sexy. No wonder Hanna couldn’t stop staring.
Hanna was sharp and had a bratty energy Maya appreciated. She was sultry, and when she spoke, her eyes had an intensity that Maya never wanted to look away from. Maya guessed that she was often underestimated, but had no problem ending up on top, in more ways than one. Maya could see that while Lily was poking fun at Hanna, Hanna was biding her time. It made for an entertaining and balanced dynamic, and the conversation flowed easily between them.
Lily let out an incredulous laugh, bringing Maya back to the present. “What? You dated Jeff for like two years! And you just what? Dumped him?”
Hanna’s flush deepened. “I mean it was like a high school thing, we went to college.”
“In the same city,” Lily chided, raising her eyebrow and dipping her head towards Maya, as if asking her to see her point. Maya held her gaze for a beat, and Lily actually winked at her.It should have been corny, but Maya was beginning to think Lily was one of those people who could make most things seem sexy and felt her cheeks burn.
“In the same very big city,” Hanna countered.
“God this is so good,” Maya said, taking another sip of cider, and relished the look she saw Lily make watching her swallow. Most ciders seemed syrupy, but this was sweet and refreshing all at the same time. Like each bottle contained a cold, fresh, crisp apple.
They were talking about their high school days, since Maya had asked how they knew each other and if they were friends. According to both, they’d orbited each other slightly, but otherwise ran with different crowds.
“Jeff was my boyfriend; he was nice, and then I decided to be single for college.”
“Jeff and Hanna were like, end-game,” Lily said as Hanna shook her head.
“I get that though. I broke up with my high school boyfriend too, before college. Though to be fair, he showed his true colors to be, well, dick, and not in the good way,” Maya said, shrugging her shoulders.
“Yikes, butthatmakes sense!” Lily said enthusiastically, like she’d won her point.
“It also makes sense to want to be single,” Maya said, glancing at Hanna. “I mean my boyfriend and I had a good time, but what with his use of the word “exotic” in describing me I couldn’t shake this feeling that while he was into me, he also was dating me to be…”
“...Edgy?” Hanna filled in, and Maya shook her head, understanding passing between them again.
