Page 126 of Wicked Serve

Nikolai

“How much did you say she weighs again?” Isabelle asks the sanctuary worker, Lex. “She’s so dense!”

I lounge against the trunk of a eucalyptus tree, watching as she wrestles with the slow-moving, yet determined, koala in her arms. When we finally arrived in Brisbane, after flying to Los Angeles first, it was morning the next day; we spent the day napping and exploring the city. Early this morning—with enough anticipation she was practically vibrating—she dragged me out of bed, and we headed to Fig Leaf Koala Sanctuary.

Somehow, Isabelle’s joy is even greater than I thought it would be. She hasn’t stopped smiling since we arrived. During the tour of the sanctuary earlier, she danced with excitement over each new animal and tidbit of information.

Whenever she looks at me, that adorable beam of pure sunshine on her face, my heart feels close to exploding. I’ve followed her around dutifully, enjoying the warm weather and the sight of her in tight khaki shorts. March in Brisbane is a far cry from New York.

“Lovey is on the heavier side for a female,” Lex says, her lips quirking up as the koala presses her paw into Isabelle’s chest. “She’s about nine kilograms. The Southern koalas are larger than their Northern counterparts, as well.”

“And the prettiest girl ever,” Isabelle croons. “Does she like me? Can you tell?”

“She’ll definitely like you when you feed her later.” Lex gestures to the tree canopy. “They’re very picky about which leaves they choose to eat, so you might need to try a few times to find some to her liking. They eat nearly half a kilogram of leaves a day. That’s a pound.”

“I—Nik, you’re seeing this, right? I’m obsessed.” She gently pulls the koala’s hand away from her hair, adjusting her in her arms. The koala blinks, her eyes inquisitive; the distinctive nose and tufts of gray fur make her downright charming. “Did you say a pound? Each of them?”

I look at the trees around us. That’s a ton of leaves; no wonder half the property is reserved for plant life. We’re alone, save for Lex and the koalas. The moment we arrived at the sanctuary, one of the owners—an older man with an accent thick enough that it took us a moment to figure out what he was saying—handed us off to Lex, insisting on a private tour. Apparently, they don’t normally get such large donations.

“They’re even cuter than I thought they would be.” I reach out carefully, stroking one of Lovey’s soft, teddy-bear-like ears. “For a bear, I mean.”

“They’re actually not bears,” Lex says. “That’s a common misconception. They’re marsupials, like kangaroos. The gestation period in the pouch is six months.”

“Does Lovey have any babies?” Isabelle asks.

“She had one about a year ago. I’ll show you him later, he’s really sweet. His name is Striker.”

“You should hold her.” Isabelle takes a few steps in my direction, swaying the koala like a baby. The koala tries to grip her hair with her surprisingly well-defined claws, but Isabelle patiently pries the strands free. “She’ll hold on to your arm like it’s a tree branch.”

Before she can try to foist the koala-not-bear on me, the older man from earlier walks over, flanked by a woman his age in a tan uniform like Lex’s.

“There they are,” the man says, gesturing to the two of us with a proud smile. “They gave the largest private donation on record.”

“Oh,” Isabelle says, glancing at me, “that wasn’t me, it was—”

I wrap my arm around her waist, giving it a light squeeze. “We’re glad to be able to support your mission. I keep looking around and thinking that you must go through a hell of a lot of eucalyptus.”

“Maintaining our own eucalyptus plantation is a huge part of what we do here,” the woman says, holding out her hand for us to shake. “I’m Maren. I’m so glad that you met Ralph, my husband, and our niece Lex, already. And truly, we want to give you a huge thank-you. For the donation, and also for making the trip to see us in person, so you can meet the animals you’re helping to support directly.”

My face is heating up, but I just keep smiling. I’m glad to be able to do this, although if this wasn’t for Isabelle, I’d have kept the donation anonymous.

“They’re beautiful,” Isabelle says eagerly. “We saw the kangaroos earlier, and the raptors. Oh! And the wallabies were adorable.”

“Aren’t they?” Maren says, with a fond look at her husband. “How long have you two been together?”

“Since last summer,” she says before I can answer. She throws me the tiniest wink she can manage, eyes dancing. “And sometimes he goes off and does wonderful things like this.”

Since last summer. Even though it’s not technically the truth, it’s close enough. My life changed the moment I first saw her, over a year ago now, and the only thing that I wish happened differently is how long it took for us to put a label on what we have. By the expression on her face, she feels the same way.

“Do you want us to take a photo of you?” Maren asks. “Both of you with Lovey?”

“Yes,” Isabelle says immediately. “Please. You hold her, Nik. It’ll make your whole life.”

She carefully deposits Lovey into my arms. Isabelle’s right; she’s heavier than she looks. Lovey stares at me with a slow blink. I adjust her in my arms, more or less holding her the way I was holding Charlie by the end of winter break. She reaches a paw—larger than I’d expect, but still a lot smaller than my hand—to my face.

“They like to cling to things,” Maren says fondly. “A couple of them refuse to be weighed in our veterinary office without a stuffed animal in their arms. We have to weigh the toy separately to get an accurate reading.”

Isabelle literally squeals, clapping her hands together. “I’m going to pass out from cuteness.” She whips out her phone and snaps a picture of me and Lovey. “Ugh, stop, you both look perfect. I’m making this my phone background.”

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