Page 59 of Fight or Flight
The door closes, and I whip my head toward Claire.
“What the fuck?”
“I really like your parole officer. She’s cool,” she says, genuinely seeming to think so, and I eye her like she’s grown a second head.
“Claire, I’m pretty sure she just invited us to have a threesome. With her. A threesome.”
“Yes, I think she did,” Claire shrugs. “So, are you ready to go?”
“Go?” I ask, stupefied.
“Yes. I want you to take me somewhere. Remember?” She asks softly.
“Oh. Um, yeah. I didn’t know if... Okay, just give me a second.”
CHAPTER XX
I WAS SURPRISED WHEN Claire told me to take her to the lake, where I first showed her my art. That night was burned into my entire existence, and I’m apprehensive about coming back in case things go wrong and the memory of us making love under the stars surrounded by fireflies will be tainted.
But I could never say no to Claire. So what she wants, she will get. Other than that, she willingly wanted to spend time with me, and my grandmother used to tell me never to look a gift horse in the mouth, so I decided to go with the flow.
I’ve been borrowing Brody’s company truck and was told specifically to only use it for work. Well, I guess I better not scratch it on the thick bushes that overgrew the narrow dirt road leading toward the pier.
“So, are you in contact with Saint?” Claire asks from the passenger seat as I try to remember where is the little clearing by the forest where I can leave the car.
“There’s not much that we can say to each other anymore. We wrote a few letters back and forth while I was inside, but with time, it turned out how little we had in common. Less than I originally thought, to be honest. Also, the contact with him can be difficult sometimes. Unlike the rest of us, Santiago ended up in a federal prison in California because he was already wanted in three other states for some shit he did years before he took me in. And to top that, when I last called the facility after getting out myself, I was informed that he was in solitary because of misbehaving or some shit. Supposedly, he’s been doing that a lot, so there’s that... Okay, here we are.”
At last, I spot the little field of grass with a view of the trees and a lake and turn off the engine.
Claire doesn’t wait for me; she just gets out and confidently struts toward the wooden pier. Just as I did all those years before, she tests to see if the wood is strong enough to support our weight and waves me in to join her.
It’s late, so a few fireflies already made their appearance, blinking slowly in unison in the distance.
I sit down cross-legged, mirroring Claire’s pose, and watch the peaceful scene playing in front of me. I take a deep breath of the fresh air and am once again struck with amazement when it comes to being outside. Free and just able to breathe.
My eyes drink in the tranquil landscape before they travel to Claire, who continues to stare ahead in wonder.