CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
HANK
Angie drives us out of downtown Seattle, guiding the car toward Elliot’s neighborhood. She’s wearing a bow tie for game night, and I’ve gone with a more casual pair of suspenders, white-and-gray striped.
“Thank you again for driving,” I tell her. “I’ll sink down in the seat when we get closer to Elliot’s.”
“It’s exciting,” Angie says. “I’m pretending that we’re undercover.”
“High stakes for a game night.”
“It’s cool that you’re going for it,” Angie says. “You and Elliot obviously make each other happy.”
“Maybe the island had an effect on me. Before we crashed there, I’m not sure what choices I would have made these past few days. But life feels so much more precious now. Time with you, with Mom and Dad. Everything that lies ahead of me feels exciting and new again. And I guess from here, feeling the way I do about Elliot, it seems wrong to let that slip by.”
Angie comes to a stop sign and squeezes my arm with an encouraging smile. “Ready to see how these youngsters play games?”
I laugh. “I swear, you’re going to forget yourself and call them youngsters in person if you keep doing that.”
Angie laughs as I hide myself from any prying eyes on the street, reclining the seat. The car pulls through the driveway, and it’s not until we’re safely to the fenced-in backyard that I sit up and look around.
The old house is ramshackle and immediately charming. Handmade wind chimes sing quietly from the rear, and there are beach chairs set up by a weedy flower patch. I grab my bags and follow Angie to the rear door, where Elliot greets us with a huge grin. He’s sporting a blue-and-purple jumpsuit with a sharp collar and short-sleeves, and he throws his arms around me when I step into the kitchen.
“Hi. Welcome to my place.”
“Lovely house,” Angie says as she kicks her loafers off.
“Thanks. We get a deal on it because it’s falling apart,” Elliot says and leans on the kitchen counter, which is held up on one end by a plank of wood.
“You’ve made it yours,” I tell him. I smile, my eyes dancing around. The room is full of art and photographs, kitschy objects and cookbooks and kitchen projects. It’s well-loved, and I see Elliot’s presence everywhere.
We step around the corner and into the living room. Taylor sits in an armchair in a pair of overalls with a pink sports bra underneath. Beside her is Marko on a beat-up red leather couch, his casual and flowy black dress draping off the side. They both stand to greet us, and we get the introductions out of the way before settling down again.
Elliot and I end up beside each other on the couch, hip to hip, and I slide my arm over his shoulder without thinking much of it.
“Congratulations on the rally,” I tell Marko, but make sure to nod to Taylor and Elliot, too. “It looked like a success.”
“Thanks!” Marko says happily. “Our senator has opened an inquiry into the legality of the drilling project, so we’re feeling pretty powerful right now.”
Angie starts looking through their stack of games, and Taylor sneaks off to make the first round of tea. I find it easy to talk with his friends, with more shared geeky interests than I had initially expected given our age difference. By the time Taylor returns, I’m lost in a conversation about local watersheds with Marko.
The next thing I know, there’s techno music on the speakers, and we’re all drinking peppermint-and-nettle tea, a glob of honey melting at the bottom of the little cups.
“Very nice nettle,” I say and enjoy another sip.
“Thank you,” Taylor says. “I’ll be lobbying for your vote later.”
“Excellent game collection over here, too,” Angie adds. “I love all the cooperative titles.”
Marko points at the game on the table. “Elliot has proposed that we start withMycelius.”
“For Hank, clearly,” Taylor adds.
“I figured,” Angie says.
I glance around. “What’s that?”
Marko sits up and clears his throat. “Myceliusis a cooperative tile-based game with simultaneous play. Each player occupies a terrain board, which combine into the eco complex. Turns advance as players build a mycelial network in tandem with plant cards, the microbiological life dice, and evolving soil conditions.”
