Cierra stuck her tongue out at Mia before taking a sip of her cocktail.
“So, are you guys seeing each other this weekend then?” Mia asked.
“No. We got dinner a couple of nights ago, and he’s got a trip with friends this weekend, so I took the Lawsons up on an offer for some extra work. They’re renting a house up in the Catskill Mountains. Pool. Hiking. Delicious food, of course.” She lookedcuriously at Mia. “Actually, they said I could bring a friend if I wanted. I’d be cooking a decent amount, obviously, but would still have a lot of time to chill. Would you wanna come?”
“Are you serious? I’d love to!”
“For real? I wanted to invite you sooner, but figured you’d be busy. Wait, what about your birthday?”
“My party isn’t ’till the weekend after, so all good on that front.” Mia took a sip of her Aperol spritz, the candy-cane looking straw now disintegrating into the drink. “Feel free to invite Julian if you want, I wanna re-meet this guy. But in the meantime, I’m trying to go out less lately, and a wholesome weekend in the mountains sounds like the reset I need. Oh! And I can bring some books, and this new yellow bikini I just bought . . .”
Mia and Cierra chattered away for the next couple of hours, which was mostly Mia laying out ideas for Cierra, now that she had real influencer status. A mountain getaway sounded like an ideal reset, and Cierra knew she needed to be honest with herself about her feelings toward Julian. What were they, and why did she care so much? Cringe-worthy pangs of doubt, which she hadn’t felt since her break-up, slowly crept into her mind, like ivy growing on stone. The dinner date they had was awkward at best, and it did nothing to convince her that their casual arrangement would be enough. While she didn’t want to prove Mia right just yet, she knew already that, most likely, she’d need to cut things off for her own sake. With mountains, sunshine, a pool, and her best friend, she hoped the weekend away would help to clear her mind.
Zelda, Elliot, Erik, Mia, and Cierra arrived at their Catskills rental near midnight. There had been bumper-to-bumper traffic leaving Manhattan, as thousands of others fled the swampy island metropolis for the weekend. Getting all the necessaryfood supplies on such short notice had been more stressful than Cierra had anticipated, as grocery stores were cleaned out of popular summer ingredients. But with some last-minute adjustments to the menu, she had managed to pack everything into the van before their departure; Zelda’s last-minute work call ended up being the reason they left an hour later than planned. Two other guests were joining them: an old friend of Zelda’s, Amy Henry, as well as Erik’s friend, Randy.
“Are we almost there?” Amy whined at the driver as they wound deeper into the mountainside of the Catskills. Outside the black van, the dense tree-lined woods, which had walled either side for the past hour, had transitioned to black jagged outlines against a sparsely starlit sky.
“Just a few minutes out,” the driver replied, the late hour reflected in his voice.
Cierra wondered how much driving he had left to do after dropping them off and hoped Zelda had paid enough for him to at least rent a hotel for the night. Cierra never overlooked the way the rich traveled. With enough money, so many inconveniences could disappear. Last-minute transportation to a remote location for eight people? No problem. The driver needs an extra two hundred dollars to rest overnight before hitting the road again? Done.
Unsurprisingly, Mia fit into the group like a duck to water. She had Randy and Erik laughing with stories from various trips she’d taken and had already sent her skincare routine to Zelda and Amy. Which was fine with Cierra: if anything, she was glad to have her friend distract from her own withdrawn state. Before leaving New York City, Cierra had wished Julian a fun time with his friends over text, but no new notifications had appeared since.
Sounds of unseen nocturnal creatures in the woods around the property disquieted Cierra when she finally stepped out of the van.
Unlike the villa in Mexico City, this residence was far closer to a regular home. It was still enormous but appropriately weathered by time; each room was confined and separate, obviously constructed before open floor plans dominated. The exterior was white painted board with stone on the bottom and a large spire on the northeast end. Cierra knew which room was hers and Mia’s from the Airbnb link Elliot had sent her earlier. On the second floor, it was complete with two twin beds and matching bed covers quilted with a mix of greens, browns, and oranges, resembling sleepaway camp accommodations.
But Cierra didn’t care what any of it looked like. As soon as she unloaded and packed away the food she brought from the city, she went straight to her quilt-covered bed, where she slept long and hard.
The sun hadn’t yet risen above the tree line when Cierra awoke. Outside her bedroom window, stringy clouds stretched along an ombre blue sky, making room for the sun. Ever since she could remember, she had been an early riser, but as an adult she increasingly savored that quiet period existing between the past and present.
She quickly checked her phone: Still no word from Julian.
Quietly, she sighed and crept out of bed to the bathroom, taking care not to wake Mia. She was relieved to see her curls co-operating this morning and decided to let them hang free; less so the case for her boobs. Those went promptly into a sports bra before she slid on a thin T-shirt and jean shorts and went downstairs to brew a pot of coffee. From a selection of ceramic and handmade looking mugs, she selected one with a darkblue glaze and hand warmer, before catching the view from the kitchen for the first time, causing her to pause.
Since the home was situated on high ground, the kitchen’s large, curved windows displayed an expansive early morning sky, with a vast view of sloping woods and a lake below. As soon as the coffee finished brewing, she silently went to the porch and stood for fifteen minutes, enjoying the cool morning with her steaming cup in hand.
Even in the serene quiet of the mountainside morning, all she could think about was Julian. She tried to stay present, she really did. An eagle would fly by, and she’d gaze in awe, or she’d try to listen to an animal call, but despite her best efforts, her attention always came back to him. Or maybe, more accurately, everything surrounding him. What had made her so attracted to him in the first place, anyway?
Resting her mug on the porch’s ledge, she let out a huff. It wasn’t like rejection was foreign to her, but that didn’t make it easier to face. The alternative was making up silly excuses though, and she couldn’t stomach lowering herself to delusion. Not again.
He’s just not that into you,a voice in her head suggested.
“Yeah, probably right,” she said faintly, and took another sip.
“Morning, Cierra,” a male voice called, startling her.
Cierra turned back and saw Erik, already dressed in shorts and an over-sized charcoal gray T-shirt, with wet hair. She smiled, and waved him over to watch the day come in.
“Hey, Erik. What are you doing up this early?”
“Couldn’t go back to sleep. You?”
“Um, I work here, remember?”
“Oh, yeah. Sorry.” He scratched the back of his head. “That was dumb. Just a little out of sorts this morning.”
Cierra frowned at the shifty nature he was exhibiting. “You all right?”
