Page 14 of Sunsets & Other Dangerous Things

“What do you mean, what else?”

“This ethnography thing is fun. What else do you see?”

What else did she know about Ashley? Not much really. Esther always sat at the front of the class, so the only time she saw Ashley was when she walked into class, her hair long and shiny like some anime character, heels as previously described. She wore that trench coat every day, rain or shine, but some days, it was thrown artfully over her shoulder as she sauntered into the classroom, shouting a greeting at the first person she saw and three others before taking a seat. It was always aproduction. What did they do that weekend? How was that project they were working on?

“You care about people,” Esther said. “Which works because you’re an extrovert that thrives under being perceived.”

“What?” Ashley’s laugh stuttered. “You got all that from my choice in footwear?”

But there was something more. All that energy projected outward, a grand and last-minute entrance that always centered the conversation around others. Was she hiding something? Or maybe she was just a private person. Esther understood and appreciated privacy, though boisterous conversation wasn’t an approach she’d ever considered.

“It’s just the way you carry yourself,” Esther said.

“Like a tall badass, right?” Ashley bumped Esther’s shoulder and gave her a wink, crashing into her orbit again. “I’m going to have to watch you. Looks like there’s more I could learn.”

Esther’s gut clenched. Despite that being exactly the point of their shared assignment, being noticed was not high on Esther’s list of fun.

“So, what were you doing at the Platt house?” Ashley asked. “If you’re not…”

In the unfinished sentence, Esther remembered Ashley assumed Esther was with August. “My internship,” Esther explained. “I’m cataloging their records, the Platt family’s. It’s going to be donated to the historical society. So, I’m there two days a week going through papers.”

“And you’re a GA the other two weekdays? Plus classes. Sounds like a busy schedule.”

“That’s how grad school works.” Esther shrugged. She knew when she signed on it would cost her two years of her life on top of tuition. “I have classmates with two internships and two student work jobs. Everyone feels the need to work harder, but there will always be someone doing more or better.”

“How does anthropology fit in?”

The memory filled the space behind Esther’s sternum with a warm fuzzy feeling. “It was my undergraduate degree. I loved anthropology. Every class was more storytelling than lecture. Humans are fascinating.”

“Ha, you don’t say. But you didn’t stay in it?”

“You’re good at these ethnographies already.” She needed to sidestep, to delay Ashley’s probing questions. Their quickfire was sending her arm hairs to standing attention and making her long for a dark cave to hide in. Luckily, they rounded a corner and came in sight of her uncle’s house. “I wanted…I guess I wanted something more behind the scenes. Something stable.”

Ashley nodded earnestly. “Stability. I get that.”

The front porch light flickered on behind Ashley’s head. Her uncle’s signal that she was in sight and expected. He would be setting out dinner soon.

“Friday works, by the way,” Esther said. “Did you want to come by for dinner? I think the assignment was to watch an everyday ritual, so dinner should fit.”

“Sure, I could come by for dinner.” Ashley’s smile grew at the invitation, the brightness drawing Esther’s eyes like a tractor beam.

She cut her gaze to over Ashley’s shoulder, trying to avoid the funny feeling she got when she met Ashley’s eye. “Before you agree, I should mention,” Esther said. “I’m staying with my uncle and cousin. They can be a lot, and I know family wasn’t part of the deal for this assignment. We could do another time if that doesn’t work.”

“Oh, that’s not a problem. I love meeting family.”

“Great,” said Esther, surprised at how cool Ashley was by the situation. But she could be just being polite. Who loved meeting family? “Well, I should get to dinner. Can you be by at six?”

“I can,” Ashley cheered.

Esther chuckled at the enthusiasm. It was refreshing. Maybe she could take a leaf from Ashley’s book.

“All right then.”

There was a pause like Esther was supposed to say something more but didn’t know what. Of course, she had to make this awkward. Maybe Ashley’s bubbly and friendly personality would rub off on her. In the meantime, she made a gesture she hoped looked like a wave and jogged back to the house.

5

Ashley

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