Page 17 of Deliverance

“Where are you going?” I sigh, already exasperated with him.

“To get snacks.” He sniggers as he stumbles off towards the kitchen.

I shake my head as he goes, and Maggie turns to look at me.

“What’s wrong? He’s just fucking around.”

“No, he’s not. You better believe that when he is sober enough to get to an ATM, he will be handing you five hundred and will be ready for a show.”

Maggie shrugs. “I get an orgasm and five hundred bucks? Sounds like a win to me.”

I screw up my nose at that as she shrugs and clicks on a horror movie. Shocker. That seems to be all she watches.

“Do me a favor, don’t let him do something stupid like drive. He’s a fucking idiot, but he’s the only idiot I have,” I say.

Maggie nods. “You can hang with us if you want.”

I head for the stairs when I pause. That catches me off guard. Ever since Indigonanza, we’ve done a decent job of avoiding each other. There isn’t tension per se, but…we have nothing to say to one another. So why is she all the sudden trying to include me?

“Why?”

She shrugs. “I don’t know. You’re here, your brother is here. This is your house. We don’t have to avoid each other at all costs all the time, do we?”

I think on that for a moment before slowly moving towards the couch. Maggie is sitting in the middle of the sectional in front of the TV and I settle in the corner L section. We watch the start of the movie for a few minutes before Brad comes stumbling in with a plate of nachos, a bowl of popcorn, a carton of ice cream and…is that spray cheese on crackers? Gross, why the fuck do we even have spray cheese in the house?

He practically falls on his face as he spreads out all of his food like a feast onto the floor and begins stuffing his face. One minute, I’m watching the movie, and the next, Brad is snoring so loudly Maggie has to turn the volume up.

“For a stoner, he sure is a lightweight.” She laughs.

“Yeah, you’re not accounting for the three bong rips and dab pen he was probably hitting before he came over here.”

Maggie cocks her head like she hadn’t thought of that before she rifles through her purse, pulling out another joint. She lights it up and takes a slow hit before handing it to me. I hesitate for a moment, but honestly, I don’t really feel anything yet, so what’s the harm?

I take a larger hit this time, holding it for longer before blowing it out. Before I can stop it, uncontrollable coughs escape my chest, and no matter how hard I try to fight it, I can’t stop. A hand rubs my back before gently patting.

“There you go, easy. More you cough, the better you’re off.” Maggie laughs.

I smile weakly through the coughing fit, nodding before leaning my head back against the couch. My eyes move to the TV and I watch two best friends stare at each other. Of course, she would be watching some queer movie. Part of me wants to get up and leave, but a larger part of me can’t. So, instead, I watch with rapt attention. The kiss is so tentative at first, so testing, and the way they film it makes me feel like I’m personally involved. Like I’m the one being hesitant and curious.

I almost feel creepy intruding on this kiss. Shit, maybe the weed is hitting me already. I’m not sure how to feel about it. I’ve never really been in a situation where I’ve watched two women together…not since the other night. I was shocked when I woke up to moaning, even more so when I watched a woman’s bare ass thrust into Maggie. It took my sleepy mind more than a few seconds to realize how she was doing it and when I did, I realized Maggie’s eyes were on me. I ran out of there immediately and tried to banish the memory completely.

It's still there from time to time, though.

I can’t help but swallow roughly as the kiss on the screen turns more passionate before I feel a set of eyes on me. I turn to see Maggie watching me curiously. There isn’t an ounce of judgment in her gaze, she doesn’t say anything, and her face is pretty blank of emotion. All that remains is the fairest hint of intrigue.

I can officially feel the buzz from the weed. It spreads from my face to my toes. Shit, Brad was right. This is strong stuff. Definitely not like the shit he used to give me when I was a teenager.

Maggie takes another puff from her joint as her fingers play with the ends of my hair. It’s not much of a reach. My hair goes down to my ass and because I was coughing, she’s only a foot or two away from me now. I’ve definitely been touched more intimately, but something about her fingers running through my hair has every nerve of my body acutely aware of the touch.

When Maggie releases the smoke from her mouth, it billows around me, but I don’t fight it. I let it cloud the room, wrapping us up into a little bubble.

“Can I ask you something?” She questions.

I hesitate for a moment before nodding.

“How much did you see?”

I don’t respond for a moment as she continues.

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