“You’re here on your own?” I say tersely before catching myself, but he doesn’t seem to notice my clipped tone.
It’s none of my business what Bubble does or does not do, and with a cabin that size, I doubt someone as outgoing as he will be spending Christmas alone.
“Oh no, my best friend, Juju. She’s coming from LA in a few days, and it’s going to be great. She’s never seen snow. Can you imagine? She’s going to drop dead when she sees all these trees and the white.”
I’m mesmerized by Bubble gesturing at the surrounding landscape, lost in his own bubble. If there was ever a time for his name to fit him perfectly, it would be now.
“It’s quite magical, isn’t it?”
“Yes. Very…anyway, I saw you struggling with something.”
He pulls his beanie lower on his head. I wonder if he didn’t grow up in a cold-weather state because he seems to struggle with it as much as I do.
“Oh yeah, I need to take my suitcase out of the trunk, but it’s stuck. I had to push it all the way back because of all the food.”
I should go back to my cabin and avoid Bubble at all costs, but since I came over to help, I can’t exactly run away now.
“Okay, let me see.” I go around him to the trunk to see where the case is stuck.
I try to wedge it out, but it’s not budging.
“Christ, what do you have in here? A dead body?”
“Yeah, I like to carry them around. My therapist says I have attachment issues.”
I snort-laugh and end up bumping my head on the inside of the trunk.
“Shit.” I reach for my head to see if there’s any sign of blood, but I think I’ll only end up with a bump.
“Well, at least neither of us is naked this time,” Bubble says.
I’m not sure if it’s the bump on the head, the freezing cold, or Bubble’s smiley eyes. Eyes that are basically all I can see under his coat, beanie, and scarf, but his quick comeback makes me laugh.
It surprises me, and it seems to catch Bubble too because he stares at me for a second too long before pointing at the suitcase.
“Come on, Coach, let’s get Jeremy out of the trunk so we can have a hot cocoa by the fire,” he says.
“Who’s Jeremy?”
“He’s the top boss in my dildo collection. What did you think? That I really did have a dead body in there?”
I stare at Bubble, dumbfounded because I don’t even know what to say to that.
I sigh. “Let’s get Jeremy home then.”
Bubble claps as I rescue the suitcase.
He closes his trunk, and since the suitcase seems to weigh the same as three grown men, I also take it up the porch steps.
“Christ. How did you even get this from your place to the trunk?”
“Resilience and determination, Coach.” He walks past me to open the door. “Also, a neighbor was walking past. I guess I’m lucky with neighbors, huh?”
Bubble’s cabin is most definitely an upgrade from mine. He’d probably run a mile if he saw the old stained wooden floors and the lack of decent furniture.
“Can I treat you to a cup of hot cocoa for helping me?” he asks.
“I really should get going. I have a few jobs to do at my place. Thank you anyway.”
