Page 2 of Emerald Moon
So much for that plan.Jo kept their head in the trunk and pretended to get something from their bag.They shut their eyes, let out a breath, and decided that honesty was better than a weak lie.“Yeah, sorry, I have trouble remembering people sometimes.”
“It’s fine.I’m not that memorable.But you, though?You make quite the impression.”Cass smiled as Jo took a step back so she could shut the trunk.
Jo panicked.In social settings, they were either bubbly and fun or way too loud and abrasive.Which had they been around Cass?
“You ready?”Cass asked.
Jo nodded, making their way to the passenger side of the car, mind reeling with the possibilities of what impression they’d left on Cass.They opened the door and flopped down into the seat, already anxious about the rest of the trip.
As they pulled away from the pack house, Jo realized there was no music playing, not even news on the radio.It was dead silent.Cass sat in the driver’s seat with her hands at ten and two like she was in a driver’s ed manual and showed no signs of wanting to talk.She didn’t look irritated or anything, just content with the silence.
Jo definitely was anything but content with the silence.They got one of their prepared topics ready.“So, you like camping?”
They never thought they were good prepared topics, but they were ready to go.
“Yes,” Cass replied.
Jo waited for more of a response.When it didn’t come, they added, “Yeah, of course you do, right?Otherwise you wouldn’t have agreed to go on this trip.Not that you have to love camping to go on a trip, but it makes sense that you like it.”
Cass kept her eyes on the road and didn’t say anything.
“Anything in particular you enjoy?”Jo asked.
“Being outside.”
Jo internally screamed at the minimal response, but attempted to keep trying.“Same for me.I like the sunshine and the smell of the forest.I like at the end of the day when I smell like the forest, too.It’s all good, honestly.I like a good hike, like roasting marshmallows, like sleeping outside, especially when you wake up and it’s all dewy in the morning.”
“I like that, too.”
It wasn’t much, but it was something.“Do you like hiking?Do you go often?”
“I go birding.”
“Oh that’s cool!Like a hike but with an extra bonus activity.”
Cass nodded.
Jo wondered how they were going to survive this car ride, let alone the next day and half.“Do you go birding a lot?”They tried again.
“I apologize.I’m nervous,” Cass said, gripping the steering wheel and staring straight ahead.
Jo relaxed against the seat.Cass was nervous.That made sense!Jo was nervous, as well.This they could connect about.“Don’t even worry about it.I’m nervous, too,” Jo admitted.“Krista is like the bubbly, adorable social glue that holds conversations together.I wasn’t sure what to do without her here.”
“Exactly,” Cass agreed, letting out a sigh.“I’m glad you understand.”
“Oh totally.I wasn’t even sure I was going to go, but I really wanted to go camping.”
“I knew I was going to go, even after Krista had to cancel, but I was nervous about being alone with you.”
The phrasing was a bit odd to Jo, but they understood the feeling.“It’s tough for me when I don’t know someone well.I get all anxious and don’t know what to do with my face or my hands.”They laughed.
“When I feel anxious, I copy what others are doing, but I do it quietly, so I can go unnoticed.”
Jo figured it’d be hard for Cass to go unnoticed anywhere she was.She was tall and had a figure that could command attention in a room.She looked imposing and confident, but that maybe didn’t match how she felt inside.
“Kind of hard to go unnoticed when it’s just two people,” Jo noted.
“I know.So I prepared ideas for us to talk about, but I was too nervous to say any of them.”
