Page 30 of Beneath the Desert Bloom
“Because it is, babe.” Lauren sipped her beer. “You two were inseparable and then—poof. Vanished from each other’s socials. No subtweets. No passive-aggressive memes. Just a digital void. You owe me closure.”
Nora laughed despite herself. “Closure implies there was ever an open ending. We weren’t exactly star-crossed.”
“No,” Lauren said, “but he was hot. In a haunted T.A. sort of way. And rich. And very into you. That trifecta always spells disaster.”
“He was into control,” Nora said, more bitterly than she meant to. “Not me.”
Lauren blinked at her. “Okay, ouch. That sounds... like something you should’ve said six months ago.”
“Yeah, well. I didn’t know how to say it then.”
Silence lapped at the edges of the conversation. Miso gave a tiny sneeze and curled tighter.
“Sorry, I don’t even know why I brought him up,” Lauren said. “You just…” She paused, frowned. “You’re different. Like... lighter. And I guess I was hoping you got there without having to torch a relationship and flee into the desert.”
Nora smiled faintly. “Maybe a little torching was necessary.”
Lauren gave a mock toast. “To healthy pyromania.”
They clinked again, bottles lighter now.
Outside, the wind picked up a little, pushing a refreshing breeze through the open windows.
“Hot tub in ten?” Lauren asked.
“Five,” Nora said, already rising. “I’ll grab the towels.”
* * *
The hot tub hissed as Nora pulled back the cover. Steam coiled into the night air, mingling the scent of creosote and chlorine. She stepped onto the porch with two fresh beers in hand and passed one to Lauren.
They both slid into the water with groans of relief, letting the heat soak into tired muscles. Nora’s skin prickled, still too aware of itself, like she hadn’t fully come down from… everything. She leaned her head back and stared at the stars, arms spread over the rim, cold beer in one hand. They clinked bottles, and the foam spilled over the rims.
Lauren leaned her head back, her long curls already starting to frizz. “This is heaven. Honestly, you could charge rent for this view alone.”
Nora stretched out, arms skimming the water’s edge. “Don’t tempt me. Might be the only way I pay off student loans.”
“Tellme about it.”
Miso yapped from his perch on the porch steps before curling up in a fuzzy little comma, watching them.
Lauren cleared her throat and pulled a joint from behind her ear like a magician.
“Oh my god,” Nora said, grinning. “Of course you did.”
“Babe, don’t worry. It’s organic. You’ll hallucinate responsibly.”
Nora took it with a raised brow. “You’re a menace.”
“Only in the best ways.”
Lauren lit the joint and took a slow drag, then passed it to Nora. Nora took a long hit, held it, and let it out in a slow, curling cloud.
“Did you ever think about what you’d be doing if you hadn’t gone back to school?” Lauren asked, shifting to face her. “Like… if the world hadn’t just expected us to keep collecting degrees like Pokémon?”
Nora gave a low laugh. “Oh, totally. I’d probably be working in some creepy antique bookstore and pretending it was temporary. Or I’d have opened that apothecary I always joked about.”
“Oh my god,” Lauren said, slapping the water lightly. “You would. You’d be brewing herbal potions and gossiping with ghosts.”
