“I just need to rest,” I sighed. Brandon leaned down a little closer to me, his hand coming up to lightly touch my elbow.
“Are they pressuring you to do things?” He asked, his blue eyes imploring me to tell him the truth. I was taken aback by the honest concern.
“It’s not like that,” I said, trying to dismiss him.
“It’s okay if you need a little space from them. I can explain it to them if you want.” Again I was surprised by how concerned he was about me. I looked down where he still touched my arm and he withdrew his touch, shoving his hands in his jean pockets.
“It’s okay, Brandon, really,” I said. This man confused me but I supposed it was my own assumptions that had to do with that. Caspianhadtold me that Brandon didn’t hate me—that it was Caspian he was mad at.
“I’m not afraid of them,” Brandon said, swallowing thickly—clearly lying. “You don’t have to leave them or anything, just tell them you need space because of what we’ve been through.”
“Space isn’t what I want,” I sighed, thinking about my increased libido.
“Here we are!” Ben said as we stepped into a clearing. Fog clung to the air despite the late time of day. Large boulders sat haphazardly in the short grass in front of us. It was a wide, round area with a worn-down walking path that circled it. Cabins were nestled into the trees around the clearing. It exuded a wholesome normalcy that was utterly welcoming. If I wasn't just completely exhausted I'd be ready for s’mores and a few rounds of kumbaya.
I heard growling and arguing and looked over to see Pollux tugging Caspian closer to the edge of the trees in a panic, trying to avoid the open clearing. Caspian was trying to fling him off without any success. His shirt was half-off, his hip v and sleek abs on display as he tried to twist in Pollux’s grip.
“Go frolic in the woods! Don’t you like that?” Caspian snapped. I heard Pollux huff in annoyance as a response.
“Um, yes, well let me get you all to a cabin. You must be exhausted. You’ve been through a lot it seems,” Ben said. His eyes latched on to the guys. Pollux noticed and stilled in shock before hunching further behind Caspian.
“They’re watching us,” I heard in my head. I looked over to see a group of five people staring at us with rapt attention. They saw me look over and began to approach.
“Hello!” One of the women called out as they all walked over. “Who are your friends, Ben?”
“Veronica, this right here is Ava,” Ben said, gripping my shoulder. I wiggled my shoulders but he didn’t remove his hand. Veronica and her friends looked at me with wide, friendly smiles. Was this his family? They were all in their thirties and forties and had a range of colorings. No one offered an explanation of who was who though.
Veronica stepped forward and hugged me. I was used to touch, my family were big huggers, but this was unexpected and awkward. She gripped me hard, all the while Ben kept his arm on my shoulder. When she pulled back, she didn’t let go of my arms.
“I’m so glad you made it. Ben was telling us all about you.” She was friendly,veryfriendly. Her hands gently squeezed my arms, massaging them almost.
“Thanks…” I trailed off, wondering what she meant by Ben talking about me. She finally released me. Ben gave my shoulder one last squeeze before pulling his hand away too. These people were strange. Immediately I thought about new-age communes.
The other people all took turns hugging me. Strong, long hugs with smiles stretched across their faces. Each time I felt more and more irritated. Usually touch meant nothing to me but I could feel myself bristling.
They were all very interested in Caspian and Pollux. They kept whispering and looking at them. It had to be Caspian. They must have recognized him. I looked over and saw Caspian standing there looking annoyed, his shirt pulled taut across the front of his body as Pollux clutched it in a death grip. He looked resigned to his position of blocking Pollux from sight.
“Mothman,” I heard whispered and jerked my head back around to the group. They all smiled at me. I suppose I just imagined it.
“These are Ava’s friends,” Ben said, sweeping his hand towards Caspian and Pollux. His eyes briefly went to Brandon but then moved on. Did he not like Brandon?
Veronica walked over and gave Caspian his own welcome hug. Pollux stood there hunched as much as he could. Caspian stiffened as her arms went around him. A moment later Caspian gently peeled her off him. She pulled back startled while Caspian shivered in disgust.
“Cas doesn’t like when people get too intimate with him,” Brandon said with an amused huff. “Well, except his Ava of course.” Brandon smiled down at me. I thought about a few stories from high school.
Caspian had gone off to a party once. He hadn’t wanted to go but I encouraged him to since the entire swim team would be there. He came back early, looking irritated. At school the next day I found out a girl tried to sit in his lap at the party. He’d shoved her off him and told her to fuck off—something I found out through the grapevine.
There was also the time a guy on his swim team started to hang around our house a lot. Caspian had been convinced the guy had a crush on me and was weirdly irritated on my behalf. Once I made Caspian realize the guy liked him, not me, he was much less irritated but still told the guy to get lost.
It was about that time I tried to ask Caspian if he liked anyone. He had looked at me like I was insane… guess I knew why now.
“Right, these guys are dead on their feet. Let me get them to their cabin,” Ben said. He reached towards me and I tensed. Brandon suddenly dropped his arm on my shoulders and tugged me into his side with a smile. Ben pulled back, looking irritated a moment before he guided us forward.
“Thank you,” I whispered. Brandon said nothing as he swaggered beside me, pulling me along beside him.
“These people are fucking weird,” he finally mumbled. I gave a little laugh. At least I wasn’t the only one thinking it. Ben walked across the clearing towards a cute little log cabin. He picked out a key from a large keyring and unlocked the door. We all shuffled in and looked around at the furnishings. It was cozy and simple, about what one would expect for a budget cabin rental in the woods.
“You guys get settled. There should be a phone in the kitchen. Cell phones don’t work out here, no service. Someone will come by and bring you guys some food. It’s getting dark so I’m going to suggest you stay inside. We’ve had a family of black bears sniffing around this week and I’d hate to see anyone get hurt.”
