Page 121 of Them Bones

And so Cody found himself in the woods, snorting a decent-sized pile of cocaine off the rickety wooden table in the tiny bunkie.

“Take it easy,” Jenna said, popping a valium. “You know they don’t party anymore."

Shane’s girl had OD’d last Christmas, and Shane had gone cold turkey after that. He still drank a bit, and consumed more hash than any human being should be able to burn through, but neither Cody nor Jenna had seen Shane touch a pill once, since then. And they’d been around for a good chunk of the summer.

Jenna’s mom owned a hair salon not far from Jerry’s place, and after watching Laney cut everyone’s hair one night –Cody had to admit, it was the nicest haircut he’d ever had – she suggested Laney go in, meet Jenna's mom, maybe work there part-time. Laney had warmed up to Jenna considerably, after that.

Her mom, Judith, was a nice lady. She always wore aquamarine eyeliner and walked with a limp from a bad car accident a few years before. That was where Jenna had picked up the oxy habit, all her mom’s painkillers lying around for close to eighteen months while she got back on her feet.

Judith took to Laneyimmediately,although everyone did, really. Laney was the exact opposite of Shane in every way – she was outgoing and funny and a great conversationalist. She could be a bit prickly, but with her tiny body and stunning face it was charming, endearing. Nothing like Shane’s morose, broody vibes. She was like too-bright sunshine, burning your retinas, and probably the only thing that could have ever penetrated Shane’s black cloud.

Business picked right up at the salon, with appointments starting to book out weeks in advance. Cody couldn’t tell if it was Laney’s skill or personality that people were so eager to show up for, but either way Judith was delighted.

Cody loved Jenna, he really did. But sometimes he caught himself looking at Laney, the corner of her lip sucked into her teeth when was concentrating on someone’s hair, and he knew exactly why Shane was so bent out of shape over her. He was pretty sure he was a little in love with her himself.

There was a much bigger male clientele coming around the salon, which she handled with ease and grace and just enough bite to keep them all on the hook without daring to push their luck. She was an artist with her hands, creating beautiful haircuts that sharpened round faces, softened angular jaws, and distracted from too-big foreheads and ears that stuck out too far.

Artistry must have run in the family, because her little brother had a whole crew of people, apparently from his school, that were designing strange mobile jack-in-the-box looking crates to move some sculptures out of Jerry’s workshop. They were being shipped to a private residence in New York and Cody got the feeling that Dustin had made quite a bit of money at it, somehow.

“It’s fine,” Cody said to Jenna, wiping his nose and offering her the straw. She declined.

They walked outside hand in hand, Jerry tossing steaks and asparagus on a grill, Dustin curled up by the grate of the campfire with a sketchpad. Shane and Laney were in shorts and hoodies, feet bare and tossing a volleyball over a net they’d erected in the sand by the water. And Jenna was staring at them.

It was hard for Cody, sometimes, the way Jenna looked at Shane. The wayeveryonelooked at Shane. There was clearly a part of her that was always going to pine for him. Cody tried not to let it bother him, but sometimes his jealousy – especially fueled by cocaine – reared its ugly head.

“Can we play?” he asked, as Shane spiked the ball into the sand out of Laney’s reach.

“Sure,” Shane said. “Guys against girls?”

“Nah, that’s no fair,” Laney whined. “Cody, you be on my team.”

Shane’s nostrils flared, his habitual possessive streak always roiling just below the surface, but he sighed and tossed the ball to Jenna who joined him on his side of the net.

Jenna tossed the ball up in the air and lobbed it at Laney, who bumped it back to her. Jenna one-handed it back over the net to Cody, who spiked it hard at Shane’s head, the ball bouncing off his raised arm and out of bounds.

“Point,” Cody said.

Shane glared at him, picking up the ball and tossing it underhand to Laney for her serve.

She served overhand and Jenna bounced it back into their court, Cody jumping up for a spike again, but Shane was ready this time and volleyed it back. Cody lunged for it and lost his balance, falling face first in the sand.

“Point,” Shane said.

Laney reached out a hand to help him up but he waved her off, hopping back up, shrugging off his hoodie and tossing it to the side. Jerry and Dustin were watching with interest as he threw the ball to Shane with such force that he stumbled backwards.

Jenna and Laney exchanged glances as Laney picked up the ball and served again, to Jenna this time. She volleyed it back to Laney, clearly trying to dissipate the competitive tension, but Cody intercepted and snapped it to Shane, who threw out an arm to clear it out of the way, the ball bouncing off him and straight at Dustin.

“Hey!” Dustin shouted, dropping his notepad.

“Okay, boys, I think that’s enough,” Laney said.

“We’re not done,” Cody said, glaring at Shane.

Laney rolled her eyes. “While you’re bothwonderfulspecimens of the male sex, I think it best if we call this a tie. Nobody needs to know who the volleyball champion of the world is.”

Jenna tittered, and the girls walked towards the fire pit, plunking down in the uncomfortable striped woven camping chairs with aluminum legs, brushing the sand off their feet and grumbling to each other.

Cody blew out a long breath, as did Shane.

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