June 3rd, 2017 – August 28th, 2017

Kinsky, California, USA; Portland, Oregon, USA; Hanover, New Hampshire, USA; Santa Cruz, California, USA; Fairbank, California, USA; Providence, Rhode Island, USA

Boys & Girls

It was the time of day when the sun woke from its nightly slumber and cast off its first set of golden light. An old red pickup truck drove up and parked along a dirt road outside an old two-story home. A young girl came out from the driver’s seat. She wore a plaid jacket, red and black. She had long blonde hair which she usually held in a high ponytail, but just a week prior she started ironing it to give it a wavy texture. She had on a pair of denim jeans, and a rectangular wrapped box under her arm.

The girl walked up a set of empty porch steps and, reaching the front door, let out a short and hard sigh. With her free hand, she pressed the doorbell.

“It’s open! Come in!” a muffled voice from inside called out.

The girl turned the doorknob and came inside. The dining room at the front of the house was littered with boxes and other miscellaneous items. As she came in she turned her head to see a Mexican girl her age, who wiped her hands as she walked towards the door. There was a smile on her face.

“Hey Kat.”

“Hey, Maria.”

Maria looked over at the junk on the dining room table. “Sorry for the mess. I’m just rearranging things, getting rid of some stuff we don’t need… you know.”

“It’s no problem. I, uh…” Kat looked at the box in her hand. “My family’s been giving out these end-of-the-year presents to everybody. It’s like, fancy pears… that sort of thing.”

Maria took the box happily. “Ah, maravilloso! I love fancy pears.” Once she had it she placed the box on top of an oak cupboard nearby. “So you’re going to Oregon, huh?”

“Yeah. I’m going later this week, actually.”

Maria looked at her, excited. “Really? You taking a plane there?”

“No, Amtrak.”

Maria nodded, walking over into the living room. Kat followed her. “I’ve always wanted to take the Amtrak. All the videos people take on it are so pretty.”

“So… what are your plans?”

Maria sat on the couch. She took a deep breath in, as if to say she was uncomfortable discussing the topic. But not enough to reject talking about it.

“I’m not going to college. At least, not right now. I’m staying here for a year to help mi mama, maybe get a job somewhere in town.”

“If you need help getting one, I can ask my dad. He knows all sorts of people around Kinsky.”

Maria smiled. “I might take you up on that, if I end up really struggling.”

“You not going to college… it’s not financial, right? Sorry if that’s too personal.”

“No, no, it’s fine. It’s not financial. I just want to stay with her for a while more because… well, you know.”

Kat nodded. She knew.

Maria looked at Kat. “I like your hair, by the way. And your earrings.”

“Oh, thank you,” Kat said calmly, waving her hand through their long gold loops. “They were a gift from Lukas, actually.”

Maria readjusted herself in the armchair to better face Kat. “And how’s Lukas doing? I haven’t talked to him in what feels like forever.”

“Oh, he’s, um… he’s good.”

“Is he going up to Oregon with you?”

“No, I think he’s… he’s… staying in Kinsky too, I think.”

Maria immediately picked up on the strangeness of Kat’s answer. But she remembered what Emily had said. She didn’t want to pry.

“Oh! I’m still so bad at this hosting thing. I didn’t offer you anything to drink,” Maria stood up. “Did you want anything? Water, iced tea?”

“It’s alright.” Kat stood up as well. “I actually should get going. Still need to do a lot of packing and everything.”

Maria stopped midway to the kitchen. She nodded. “Don’t let me keep you then. It’s always great to see you, Kat.”

“You too, Maria.”

The two hugged, and Kat began walking towards the front door. Just as she reached the doorknob, she suddenly remembered the real reason why she came.

Kat was stuck in a moment of shock. Her body didn’t know which way to move. Suddenly, almost automatically, she turned her head back and let out a quick breath.

“Maria-”

She looked behind her. Maria was standing at the living room doorway.

“Yeah?”

Maria looked concerned. Every fiber in Kat’s body told her to tell the truth, and yet there was still something holding her back. Something she couldn’t control. Maybe it had something to do with the look in Maria’s eyes. After what felt like an eternity, she finally spoke again.

“…have a great summer.”

Maria’s face morphed into a grin. “You too, Kat.”

Kat quickly left the house. In a brisk walk she went back to her truck and didn’t start breathing again until she sat inside the driver seat. She let out a pained breath. She felt like a failure. She sat there for a few moments, gripping the steering wheel, looking down into her lap. Finally after a few moments she gained the courage to turn the car on and back out of the driveway.

…

Isaac Broderick was at a library. He didn’t think he would be there either, if not for the fact that the books his father had requested were available virtually nowhere online. Holding a pile of large hardcovers in his hand, he awkwardly walked up to the front desk. Working there was a volunteer librarian – a 13 year old girl, with long curly red hair, freckles, and a pair of thick-rimmed black glasses. She looked at Isaac as he approached.

“Here to check out?” she asked.

“I, uhh… maybe…” Isaac looked around at the people reading behind him. “I was wondering… am I only allowed to check out one book at a time? Or can I have multiple?”

The girl, who sat in a swivel stool a bit too tall for her legs to reach the ground, scooted it closer to the counter. “You can have up to five books checked out, sir.”

“And um… do I need to check out the books first, if I want to read them? Or can I just read them now and check them out later?”

The girl smiled at him. “Is this your first time at a library, sir?”

“Outside of school? …Yeah.”

“If you want, you can just read your books here. But if you want to bring them with you, I can check you out here.”

“Okay, I think I’ll just… read the books for a bit, then. Do I need a library card to check out?”

The girl seemed very amused by the conversation. “Yes, you do. I can get you one of those if you need it as well.”

“No, I think it’s… I think it’s okay. I’m getting these for someone else. Is it okay if I use his card?”

“As long as he has the space to check out more books, it’s fine.”

“Okay. Okay. Got it. Thank you.” Isaac waved to the girl and sat down at a nearby empty table. He was a bit intimidated by the fact that a girl that young could have such good etiquette. He dreaded to think what he was doing at her age.

“Well, this is the last place I’d expect to see you,” he heard a voice behind him speak.

Isaac turned around. Sadja Ayoub was standing in front of him, a book in her arm and a hand on her hip. Isaac grinned, leaning back in his plastic chair and pointing at her.

“I could say the same for you, you know.”

“I read!” Sadja spoke in an aghast whisper, taking a seat next to the boy. “I’m here to rent Guys I Met Last Summer. You heard about that one?”

“Doesn’t really sound like my kind of thing.”

Sadja opened the book, thumbing through its pages. “It’s Donna Kang’s memoir. You know, from SNL? She was also in… oh, what was it… Spy Bitches. She played the main character.”

“I have no clue what you’re talking about.”

Sadja frowned. “I think you need to expand your horizons, read new things.”

Isaac blew off the words. The two read in silence for a few moments, but the truth was that neither could really focus on their book. It was Sadja who broke concentration first, turning back towards Isaac once more.

“You gonna keep the glasses look?”

Isaac put a finger to the frame of his glasses. He smiled, turning towards Sadja.

“Maybe I’ll be able to trick people into thinking I’m smart.”

Sadja smiled back. In a deep, primordial part of her brain, the idea of Isaac wearing glasses turned her on. But this idea was quickly shot down by her superego – she was okay with being friendly to Isaac now, but she didn’t want it to be like that. Not even if Kat approved, or if Isaac changed. She had started on a quest to change up her life, inspired by Magyar. She wanted to turn a new leaf when it came to her relationship with men.

To get the thoughts out of her head, she looked around for a distraction. She saw the large pile of books that Isaac had with him, and decided to skim through the titles to see if she could spot anything embarrassing. Starting from the top, there was Modern Hydroponics, Small-Scale Agriculture, Raising Healthy Cattle…

“What the hell are you reading?” Sadja suddenly blurted out.

Isaac turned the book he was reading to its cover, Irrigation for Dummies. “Oh, I uh… I’m staying in Kinsky. To help my dad start a ranch.”

Sadja let out a little laugh. When she looked back at Isaac, she realized his expression didn’t change. Her face morphed into that of shock.

“Wait, you’re serious?”

Isaac nodded. “Things didn’t really work out with Delilah, and I honestly have no idea what I’d want to major in at college. My dad said he was starting a ranch, and so I said… ‘Sure, I’m in.’”

“I mean, is there any… is there any reason for this?”

Isaac thought for a moment. He shrugged his shoulders. “Not really. I mean, my dad’s gone back and forth with the ranch idea over the past few years. He bought the land for it a long time ago. Now, all of a sudden, he’s gotten really serious about it. No idea why, but at least now I have something to do after graduation.”

Sadja just looked at him for a while, mouth agape. Her eyes looked him up and down. “Ah… huh. Isaac Broderick, farmhand.”

Isaac scooted back in his chair, reaching out his arms to present himself. “Got a nice ring to it, eh?”

The two of them suddenly jumped as they each felt a hand touch their shoulder. Isaac looked up. It was the librarian girl from before.

“I’m going to have to ask you two to be quiet. Others are trying to read.”

The two nodded, rather sheepishly. The young girl walked back to her place at the front desk. Isaac and Sadja looked at each other, embarrassed, then went back to reading.

…

Lukas stood in front of his parent’s sedan in the driveway of the Wilkins mansion. The back of the car was opened, and covered in boxes. Lukas scratched his head – his hair was a lot shorter now, his long wavy unkempt hair replaced with a more standard yet clean crew cut.

He watched as the front door to the house opened, and out came Kat with a backpack and a duffle bag. Kat walked past him, putting the duffle bag in the back seat.

“Is that everything?” Lukas asked.

Kat nodded. “Yeah, that’s it.”

Lukas closed the trunk door while Kat climbed into the passenger. After he was done, Lukas got in the driver seat and drove off. The ride was quiet for awhile, and it wasn’t until Lukas got onto the highway that he spoke up.

“You know, I…” Lukas searched for the right words to say. “If you ever need anything, while you’re in Oregon… for whatever reason… you know you can talk to me, okay?”

Kat didn’t answer. She didn’t look at him, either.

Lukas sighed. “I know that things are different. I’ve accepted that. But that doesn’t mean that I stopped caring about you.”

“I know,” Kat blurted out assertively. She cooled down in the moments after. “I still care about you, too.”

Lukas turned the wheel, leaning forward to catch the words on one of the signs. “You look good today.”

Kat let out a scoff, looking down at herself. “These are just thrifted clothes I found in the back. Didn’t want to wear anything good while on the train.”

“I said you, not your clothes.”

Kat let out a little smile, then for the first time that car ride turned towards Lukas.

“I like your hair.”

Lukas smiled, his eyes still on the road. “Really? I thought you hated this look.”

“I’ve changed my mind over the years.”

Lukas changed lanes. “The whole reason I got it was because I figured that — since we broke up — you wouldn’t care as much.”

Kat didn’t reply, but just turned back to the windshield. The light bumps and sounds of the road calmed Kat. Relaxed, she put her head against the window. Her eyelids slowly closed, and she eventually drifted off to sleep.

…

Kat felt something gently pushing her arm.

“Hey, Kat,” a young man’s voice softly whispered to her. “We’re at the station.”

Kat slowly opened her eyes. Lukas was in front of her, leaning in close. She yawned and stretched out her arms. As she did so she realized her jacket, which she had been keeping in her lap, was cloaked over her like a blanket. She took it and went out the passenger side door.

“I already got all your luggage checked in,” Lukas said as Kat went to the back to see an empty trunk. He handed her the duffle bag, and a small ticket. “Just hand this to the Amtrak person in Portland, and they’ll help you get the stuff loaded into the rental car.”

Kat looked up at the boy. She thought about hugging him, or kissing him. But she knew that moment had now passed.

“Thank you, Lukas,” she replied.

Lukas said nothing, but nodded. As Kat slung the duffle bag over her shoulder and put the ticket in her purse, Lukas called out to her one last time before she reached the station door.

“Have fun in Portland.”

Kat turned back. Lukas was holding his hand up, waving at her. She hesitated for a moment, but ended up waving too. She turned back and opened the door. Lukas waited a few minutes out in the parking lot by himself, before finally getting back in his car and driving back to Kinsky.

…

Isaac parked his car at the pier’s parking lot, and took a deep breath in. He still couldn’t believe who texted him saying they wanted to talk.

As he went down the boardwalk in a pair of cargo shorts and a sleeveless gray shirt. It didn’t take him long to find her – there weren’t many others on the pier at that time of day – but he was shocked at what he saw.

“I… you… you’re…” Isaac let out as he pointed towards her.

Ash turned around. “What, something different?”

“Well, I mean, there’s the whole…”

The girl laughed. She put her fingers through her hair, now much longer and the shade of a beautiful auburn brown. “This is how it’s supposed to look, naturally.”

Ash scooted over so Isaac could sit next to her. “I like it. It’s even better than the blue, to be honest.”

Ash nodded. “To tell the truth, I think I changed my hair color for the wrong reason. There was no specific reason for blue, no overarching message. I just did it to rebel. To be something I’m not. In art class, they tell us not to do things like that. That everything’s got to have a meaning.”

There was a small easel in Ash’s hand. Isaac leaned over to see it. It was a watercolor painting of the view in front of them. To Isaac, it looked the same quality as stuff he’d see at a museum.

“I like your artwork. I like the, uh… blue,” he said, trying to find something to say to sound smart.

Ash looked down at it. “I’m still working on it. It’s not done yet.”

“Well if you need any stick figures, I’m pretty good at that.”

Ash looked at the boy, and smiled – if only for a moment. Then she turned back and looked out at the ocean, taking a deep breath in.

“I mostly wanted to talk because… I wanted to give you an apology.”

Isaac looked shocked. “You want to give me an apology?” he repeated, pointing at himself.

Ash turned back towards him. “Six months ago, I was certain you were the epitome of everything that I hated about guys. Egotistical, rowdy, sexist… but now that I’ve gotten to actually know you a little bit, I realized I might be wrong.”

Isaac looked out towards the ocean. He put his arms behind him, leaning back on the bench. “Well, I’ve changed a lot in six months. So maybe you were still right.”

“No. I also thought you couldn’t change. I thought no man could change.” She looked down at her easel, rubbing the side of it nervously. “I think I spent the past few years so blinded by my own beliefs that I never stopped to think that things might be different. This summer’s finally given me that chance to slow down and think.”

“I think I know what you mean. I’ve got a lot of beliefs about women that I’ve realized now are also wrong. Guess it’s what happens when you grow up with just your dad and only hang out around other guys.”

Ash nodded. She hesitated for a moment, clutching the easel.

“Well, that’s all I had to say. Sorry for dragging you all the way out here for such a short talk, but it just wouldn’t have sat right with me if it was over text.”

“Nah, it’s all good. I’m hanging out with a friend near here anyway,” Isaac got up, wiping some of the sand from the bench off his shorts. “Have fun in Rhode Island. If you ever decide to come back, I’ll show you around the farm. Though I’m not sure how interested in that you’d be.”

Ash looked up at him, a bright smile on her face. “I’m sure I could make some good summer pastorals out of it.”

The two of them said their goodbyes, with Isaac walking back down the pier and Ash continuing to paint her watercolor. Inside, both of them felt good about their conversation.

…

Ash looked nervously into her mirror. She wondered internally if maybe the earrings were a bit too much. Emily did say to wear a dress, sure – Ash was wearing one that was a deep maroon to complement her new hair – but these earrings glistened a bit too loudly for her taste. She was worried Emily might think she was a try hard.

As it turns out, she wouldn’t get a chance to decide. The doorbell rang and Ash jumped like a house cat. Quickly she went down into the front entrance and got the door.

Emily looked different. Very different. Her old afro was shortened and cut down the sides to make a more vertical style, giving the illusion that she was slimmer even though she was the same size. A few curly bangs dripped down next to her right eye. Ash wasn’t sure why, but her eyes too felt like they had changed – they were a golden brown, as if the color of sweet honey.

“I love your hair,” Emily spoke first, looking at Ash’s auburn cut.

“I… I love yours, too,” Ash let out in response.

As Ash invited the girl in, it was only then that she saw what Emily was wearing. It was a form-fitting off-beige dress which perfectly complemented her milk chocolate skin-tone. Near her waist Ash saw her holding a small purse bag that she had only seen once or twice before. If Ash was loud, Emily was a jet engine – but Ash loved it.

“I’m happy we finally have time for another play date,” Emily mentioned as they both walked over to the Monticello apartment dining area. The chair and table were made of cheap wood which barely fit three people, but Ash had reorganized it with tablecloth and candles she had gotten off Etsy earlier in the year. Emily looked at it in awe. “Wow, you really did a great job this time.”

Ash shrugged. “Yeah, well… since this is our last one and all.”

Emily raised her finger. “Our last one in Kinsky.”

Ash smiled. Then her eyes lit up tangentially.

“Ah, I almost forgot! I have something for you. Hold on.” Ash got up and walked over to her bedroom. Emily waited patiently, taking one last look around the apartment to soak it all in. When Ash came back, Emily’s face widened in shock.

“Oh my God, Ash!” She cried, standing up with her hand covering her mouth. “You shouldn’t have!”

Ash handed Emily a massive bouquet of flowers – fresh, almost all of which had a unique scent which put together created its own medley. Ash motioned that she could place the bunch on a nearby armchair for now.

“Well, I got it from my friend… you know, the one who works at the flower shop,” Ash explained. “They were the one who picked out the flowers, I just bought it from them. This is the post-grad gift I was talking to you about.”

“Wow, this almost makes my watercolor set look like a stupid gift in comparison…”

Ash shook her head. “Really, don’t think too much about it. It was just convenient, is all.” Ash sat back down at the table. “So, you still want to check out Boston together?”

Emily nodded. “We could even do New York at some point, too. I’ve always wanted to see it.”

Ash looked quizzical. “Isn’t that a little far for you?”

“Nah, it’d be a weekend trip anyway. We could even do a road trip there.” Emily looked down at her palms, smiling, thinking of the possibilities. “Rodrigo and Maurice are gonna be there with me in my first week at Hanover. You’re invited to come along, too.”

Ash shook her head. “I don’t get to Providence until later. But I’ll check out your place when I’m there.”

Emily nodded again, scooting back a bit to get an overview of her plate. “So, what are we eating tonight?”

Ash’s eyes dilated. “Oh, shit!” She jumped back out of her chair and ran into the kitchen. “I think I kept it in the oven too long!”

Emily let her head back in laughter. “It’s fine! Worst comes to worst we can gorge ourselves on tortilla chips!”

…

After dropping her belongings off at her dorm, Kat drove the rental car to Portland’s downtown. There was a nice little chic coffee shop at a populated intersection. After Kat found a parking spot, she walked up to the entrance. Leaning near the front door was Sadja.

“Hey,” Sadja called out softly, extending her arms.

“Hey,” Kat called back, accepting the hug.

The two walked into the coffee shop together, getting in the rather long line. “You really didn’t need to come all the way out here, you know,” Kat mentioned to her.

Sadja shook her head defiantly. “North Cal’s move-in date isn’t until way later than most places. Plus, well… this is what girl friends are for.”

Kat smiled. Her eyes turned towards the menu board. “God, I have no idea what to get.”

“Maggy says the cortado here is really good.”

Kat turned back to Sadja. “Magyar’s been here?”

Sadja nodded. “She comes to Portland sometimes for work. Maybe you’ll see her.”

After ordering and receiving their coffee, the two found a private, quiet little nook in the corner of the cafe. Sadja looked down at her cup.

“So, is Lukas here with you?”

“Uh, no… no, he isn’t.”

Sadja looked up at her, concerned. “So it’s true, then?”

Kat looked into Sadja’s eyes. She let out a deep sigh. “Yeah, we’re… no longer together.”

“You wanna talk about what happened?”

Kat stared off into space, trying to think of the right words to say. “It just, didn’t really work out,” she gave as a non answer.

Sadja nodded solemnly. In an effort to lighten the conversation, she looked up at Kat’s appearance.

“I like what you did to your hair,” Sadja commented.

Kat smiled. “What, throwing a curling iron at it? Other than that it’s the same as it’s always been.”

“It’s a subtle change, I like it. Seems like everyone’s been going through their post-grad style changes. Not sure if you saw it on Instagram, but Ash turned her hair back to its natural color. She looks beautiful.”

Kat leaned back, a smug expression on her face. “You’ve been going through your own style change, I can tell.”

Sadja smiled, picking up some of her hair. It now reached to her shoulders.

“I’ve been rocking the bob cut since middle school. I’m hoping that if I can grow it out long enough, no one from Kinsky will be able to recognize me at North Cal.”

Kat laughed. Sadja was happy to see her friend back to her usual self.

“That reminds me!” Sadja continued. “A week ago, I saw Isaac. At a library. He says he’s gonna start a farm!”

“Oh, yeah. He’s mentioned that to me before. That his dad bought a bunch of land or something.”

“That’s what he told me. Still, it’s a crazy transition.”

Kat took a sip of her coffee. “You ever think up those post-grad resolutions you were talking about?”

Sadja smiled. “I thought you’d never ask…” The Persian girl cleared the table in front of her – there was no real reason for her to do so other than to look dramatic and use her arms more. “…my first rule, no more random hookups with guys.”

“Alright. Commendable.”

“Secondly, I’m gonna start reading. I’m starting with dumb chicklit I see on Insta, but I’m hoping to move up to smarter stuff with time.”

“Gotcha.”

“Third, I’m gonna start running every morning. Even if it’s just a lap around the dorm.”

Kat looked out the window. “I should probably start doing that, too…”

“And lastly-” Sadja looked at Kat for this. “-I want to keep in touch with all the girls. You, Rose, Maria, Emily, Ash – everyone. Weekly video calls, if we can.”

Kat smiled. “Sounds like a deal.”

The two continued to talk for a while until finally they left the cafe and moved on their separate ways. Yet before Kat returned to her dorm, there was one last stop she was going to make.

The City of Oregon Waste Management had a public use outside incinerator near the trainyard. It was meant for certain bulk items such as wooden furniture, yet Kat had other plans for it. She wandered inside the open fence into the incinerator yard, keeping her shirt over her nose as she smelled the burning trash from the nearby waste facility. She stepped carefully through the sooty gravel path, making sure no one else was around, before she came upon the smallest of the incinerators, sitting unused.

As Kat walked up to the incinerator, she pulled something out of her bag. It was a large, thick set of photographs. The photos changed depending on time, place, film – but there was one thing keeping them all together. They all contained an image of Cole.

Kat looked down at the pictures. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes and looking up towards the blue mid-noon sky.

“I’m burning these, if you don’t mind,” she whispered. “Whenever I look at these pictures, I don’t see you anymore. I just see evil. A distortion of you, a monster who almost ruined all our lives. But that’s not what I want to see. Instead, I’ll see the you that’s in my memories. The one who befriended me when I had no one. The one who was always my shoulder to cry on. The one who protected me, no matter what. That’s the one I choose to keep.”

Kat opened her eyes. She took the photos, and tossed them into the incinerator’s pit. Her hands moved over to the lever. She tried her best not to cry.

“Wherever you are… I hope you’re flying.”

She pulled the lever, and in an instant the flames engulfed the photographs, turning them into just another set of ash at the bottom of the trough.

…

Aaron looked into the boiling pot in front of him. His face grimaced as he tried to find something appetizing floating around in the soup. In the end, he just settled with picking out more beef slices and cabbage.

Rose looked at him disapprovingly. “Come on, Aaron. Hot pot is like, a white guy’s first Asian food. Certainly you could do better than this.”

The two were sitting cramped at the table in their new, tiny apartment. Realizing they were likely near the end of their meal, Rose unplugged the small hot pot machine her parents had given her.

“Doesn’t help that I ain’t ever seen half this shit in my life,” Aaron let out exasperatedly. “And I already told you I don’t like mushrooms.”

Rose frowned. “Mushrooms and tofu.”

Aaron pointed his chopsticks at her. “I swear, I thought my mom was a tofu freak. You take it to another level.”

While Rose picked the rest of the food out of the pot to put on her plate, Aaron turned to look at a wall mirror on the other side of the room. He scratched his new goatee, observing himself in the reflection.

“I think I know what I want when we go to that thrift shop later,” he announced.

“Oh? What?”

Aaron turned to Rose. “A beanie. I think with this cut and a beanie I can pull off a pretty good young Marvin Gaye, don’t ya think?”

Rose looked at Aaron, eyeing him closely. Suddenly, her expression changed. Her mouth opened in shock.

“Oh my God, I finally know who you remind me of.”

“Who, Marvin Gaye?”

“No…” Rose smiled. She snapped her fingers and pointed at Aaron. “…you look like your dad.”

“Bullshit. My dad doesn’t look anything like this.”

“He doesn’t look anything like it now, but there’s a picture – oh God, I can see it! – there’s a picture in that collage your mom made, the one from when they were younger, and they went on that cruise…  you look just like him in that pic.”

Aaron began to panic internally. “Y-you’re misremembering it. There’s no way I look like my dad.”

Rose let out an uncontrollable burst of laughter. “Ahaha, oh man – time, ha! – time really is a flat circle, huh? Hahaha!”

While Rose laughed, a dog’s bark could be heard from the bedroom. Rose suddenly snapped out of it.

“Oh! I should let Bonny back out now that we’re done eating. Can you wash out the thing? Be careful, it’s probably still hot.”

Rose got up, wiping the bangs out of her face. Her hair, once always kept in a bun, had now been let out in long, wavy strands. She opened the bedroom door and petted the dog who was anxiously clawing at it.

“Sorry, baby! Papa and I are done!”

The dog rushed out, past the living area and near the front door where a set of leashes were hung on the wall. The dog looked up towards Aaron, wagging its tail. Aaron, who had just finished cleaning the pot, put his hands on his hips.

“Think she wants to go on a walk. You want to head to that thrift shop now?”

Rose, a bright smile on her face, nodded. “Let’s do it. I’ll go change real quick.”

As the girl went into her closet, a thought arose in her brain. Four years ago she remembered feeling defeated and depressed over the possibility of her not making it into Stanford. But now – one Stanford rejection later – she felt fine. Because she was at North Cal living with the two greatest loves of her life.

Things always find a way of working themselves out.

…

Rodrigo walked down the streets of New Hampshire. It wasn’t quite his crowd, but he could appreciate the way every store he walked past smelled so nice. Yet, as he continued down the sidewalk, he couldn’t help shake the feeling… the feeling that someone was watching him.

He gave a side eye towards his right. Sure enough, Emily – who had been walking with him the entire time – was staring at him, a smile on her face.

“What?!” Rodrigo suddenly let out.

“I’m- I’m sorry, I just…” Emily started snickering to herself, her hand covering her mouth to try and hide it. “I still just can’t get over it.”

“You don’t like it?”

“No! No, that’s not it. I’m glad you found your style. I just really… I’ve seen a lot of post-grad switchups, but yours… yours is, just-”

Rodrigo suddenly stopped the procession, turning his body to Emily and putting a hand on his hip. He had a brand new moustache and mullet combo, wearing an old thrifted sleeveless shirt with a YMCA logo on it. “I told you, my look for the summer is homosexual fitness trainer. And I think I did a great job of it, thank you very much.”

This was clearly too much for Emily, as she suddenly burst into a fit of laughter. Maurice – who looked more or less the same, as costume changes were not part of his personality – pointed his hand over at Rodrigo.

“You see why I can’t take him anywhere?”

After a few seconds, Emily finally recovered herself, letting out a cough as she checked her phone. “This is the place, by the way. Right to our left.”

The three walked into a small cafe, framed to look like a cabin. The place was mostly empty, but it was also the afternoon and they were near closing time. They got their coffees and sat together at a wooden table near the corner.

“So, how is it?” Emily asked Maurice in particular.

“It’s decent.”

Things turned quiet. Maurice looked up. Both Emily and Rodrigo were leaned into him, looking at him expectantly.

“Oh, come on – seriously?”

Rodrigo nodded. “I need a full review on this thing, stat.”

Maurice looked down at his coffee. He let out a heavy sigh.

“Well, it’s a dark roast. A little too dark, they definitely burned some of the beans. But I can tell they roast the beans in house, because they got the machine in the back. It’s a Merciano, pretty standard in the cafe world, but I gotta give them credit for doing it. The beans themselves…” Maurice leaned over and smelled his coffee. “… it’s got a woody oud, but tastes of berries. Gotta be Costa Rica. I don’t think it’s a single origin though, more like a blend they got from some other third party.”

Emily took a sip of her coffee. She nodded her head. “Mm… yeah, I can taste the berry now.”

Rodrigo turned towards her. “No you cannot, bitch. Stop lying!”

Emily let out another burst of laughter, almost spitting out her coffee in the process. “Okay, okay, you’re right. I can’t taste anything but coffee. But I trust Monsieur Bryant’s expert palate.”

Maurice looked back at the two unamused. “I’m glad you get a kick out of this.”

After the laughter died down, Emily changed the topic. “So, you guys got it all figured out now?”

Rodrigo nodded. “We got an apartment for cheap, it’s a bit far away from the North Cal campus but it’s in range of the shuttle. I’m gonna be working, Maurice is gonna be studying – all in a tiny little place to ourselves.”

“I’ll be working too,” Maurice chimed in. “Once campus jobs open up. Want to use as little of dad’s money as possible, since you’ll need it more than us.”

Emily shook her head. “I was able to score a lot more scholarships. Still got some pending, too. Plus I’m gonna try and get a TA position pretty early.”

“Smart privilege,” Rodrigo muttered, scrunching up his nose. The three of them all laughed together.

After a while, they finished their coffees and began walking back to Dartmouth. However, as they went down main street, something caught Emily’s eye.

“Guys, look! Look!”

To their right was a building called Cupid’s Bakery. Painted on the window was a cute image of a cherub baking a loaf of bread.

Emily reached into her bag and pulled out a film camera. “I gotta take a picture of you guys in front of this. Can I?”

Rodrigo and Maurice both stood on opposite sides of the painting. “What do you want us to do?” asked Rodrigo.

“Well, hmm… let me see… what about-”

Emily shifted her left foot, her right foot raised behind her. With her hands, she made the shape of a heart.

“-like this?”

Maurice immediately shook his head, waving his hands in front of him. “Nuh uh. No way am I-”

“So like this?”

Maurice turned to his left. Rodrigo had copied the pose almost exactly.

“Yes, just like that!” Emily confirmed ecstatically. “Okay, Maurice, you turn towards him and do it.”

“Em…”

“Maurice?” Emily looked at her big brother with puppy dog eyes. “Please?”

Maurice frowned, let out a long, heavy sigh, and then did as he was told. Emily excitedly got into position, and took the photo. …

“So over here… is gonna be the greenhouse.”

Cael pointed to the far corner of the empty land, where a set of wooden posts stood. Isaac nodded along.

“So the greenhouse is for anything where we need to have a lot more control over things like sunlight, water, temperature…” Cael continued. “It’s mostly going to be plants that are non-native to Northern California. So with the greenhouse, the pens, and the barn, that still leaves us about two-thirds of the land left for actual farming. Which is about the ratio we want if we’re going to grow anything useful.”

Isaac surveyed the still mostly barren plot. “Alright, how hard could it be?”

Cael turned his head down, letting out a little sigh. Eventually, his face turned to a smile. He looked back up at the plot, and towards the sunrise.

“Been planning this on and off ever since I was in college, and it’s finally happening. I’m glad I’ve finally got the chance to do it… and that I get to do it with you, Isaac.”

Cael looked at his son proudly. Isaac, pushing up his glasses with his thumb, smiled back.

“The pleasure’s all mine, pops.”

Cael turned back to the plot, his arms crossed. “I’m also glad I was able to rope Gordon into this. The poor son of a bitch doesn’t know I’m going to work his contractors to death. He ended up charging me about one-fifth the price of the actual project, and I’m gonna use it to my full advantage.”

Cael turned around. To the back of him was a large ranch house that the two had recently moved into. The father patted his son on the back.

“Alright, you go ahead and get to plowing the land. I’m gonna put together the diagrams and the stuff we got from the city for the contractors to look through tomorrow.”

Cael began to walk towards the house. Isaac turned back towards him, panicked.

“W-wait… you want me to do all of it?!”

Holding the doorknob, Cael turned back to his son, a grin on his face. “How hard could it be, huh?”

Cael went back inside the ranch house. Isaac, giving an exasperated sigh, picked up the plow and went down the porch steps to get to work.

…

It was move-in day at Northern California University. Amidst the commotion, Billy walked into the dorm with a large box in his hands.

“Where you want me to put this? I think it’s your… videogame things, or somethin’ like that.”

Russell, who was rearranging clothes in his closet, turned towards his older brother. “Ah, just put it over there,” he said, pointing to a corner of the room.

Billy carefully put down the box and, raising himself up, surveyed the room. “The first one of the Israels to go to college… mama’d be proud. And before you know it, Mahalo’s gonna follow in your footsteps.”

Russell smiled, picking up a shoebox and walking it over to a rack on the other side of the room. As he passed by, Billy spoke again.

“And I’m glad you finally decided to get rid of those sunglasses of yours.”

Russell put the shoes on the shoe rack, and stood up. “I don’t got anything to hide anymore,” Russell answered in his baritone voice.

Billy eyed him suspiciously. “Is that what this was all about?”

Russell gave a somewhat resisted nod. “Growing up, was told real men don’t show tears. Thought I’d hide’em away with a pair of shades. Guess I never told anyone the real reason before.”

Billy put his hands on his waist. “And who taught you that? Sure as hell wasn’t me.”

Russell turned towards his brother. He sighed.

“Guess I just got it from the movies.”

Billy smirked. “Ah, here he goes again. Boy tryna get his lessons by watching TV ‘stead of listening to his brother with the eldest experience!”

In that moment, a young black boy – about Russell’s age but about half his size – came in to the doorway. Both Russell and Billy spotted him at about the same time – he wore a pair of glasses and had curly hair which he fit into a bun behind him.

“Hey… name’s Deshawn, I’ll be your roommate,” the boy awkwardly said, extending his arm.

Russell grabbed it firmly. “Rus. Good to meet you, man.”

Russell’s appearance intimidated the boy a little bit, but there was something genuine in his eyes that let the boy relax. Truth is, that was always the impression Russell wanted to give.

…

Ash walked down the hall at Alto’s very own art museum. It was something that was well known in the New England art world and now that her first week of classes had settled down she was able to let out her excitement of finally being able to see it. Admission was free for all students at the university, and they would often find a place inside the museum’s famous open garden to work on their art. Ash could picture herself there, sitting on the grass, painting on her portable easel while looking up at the pieces of Rembrandt that the museum housed. It was all a dream for her.

As she rounded a corner, she saw something that caught her eye. It was a painting which Ash recognized as being from the early 19th century, although she had never seen it before. She looked down to read the plaque that came with it:

THE EXPULSION OF ADAM AND EVE FROM PARADISE Benjamin West, 1791 Oil on canvas

The painting itself took up a massive chunk of the wall, which was part of the reason why she singled it out. It depicted a man, his face hidden in shame, a woman kneeling grabbing onto his arm, pleading with an angel above them. The angel, though very human, looked androgynous – Ash could only assume such a thing was on purpose. In front of them was the barren land of Earth, among it two horses being preyed upon by a lion. At the couple’s feet – if you could brave to call them that – was a snake.

Ash thought about how the painting made her feel. At first, she saw the painting as telling the story from a male’s point of view. Eve was highlighted with the light, her kneeling position making her seem more submissive. Yet as she kept looking into the image, she realized something: neither of them were at any advantage. While the woman was shown and the man was hidden, neither held any sort of superiority over the other. They were both ashamed, cast off naked into a harsh world. Both were suffering.

Ash took a deep breath in, then continued walking down to see the other exhibits.

…

Lukas walked down the forested path near his house. He had made it a habit for the past month to do so, every afternoon – it was a time where he could unwind from the stress of his job search and just be with himself. It was during the afternoon that the temperature also lowered to the point that was comfortable for him, and the insects were mostly dormant.

As he went down his usual path, something caught his attention. At first, it was just something vaguely reminiscent, a nostalgic note he couldn’t quite remember what he had heard it from. But as it kept playing out in the distance, he realized what made it sound so familiar.

It was the call of the diomedeo.

It was odd. He remembered Aaron mentioning to him that they only showed up at Mount Oswald (which he was nowhere close to) and that they only appeared as part of their migration in October and November. But it was August now, and unless the migration had gone much earlier than usual it shouldn’t be happening. Lukas almost thought he was mishearing things, if not for the incredibly distinctive sound of the call.

Being careful not to make too much noise, Lukas followed the sound. He thought he might take a picture finally and send it to Aaron. The call led him deeper and deeper into the woods, farther and farther off the path. And finally, after Lukas had gone far enough, the call stopped.

Lukas looked in front of him. There was a creek – roaring waves against rock. To the right it stretched far beyond what Lukas was capable of seeing, but to his left there was a small waterfall that served as the source of the water. The waterfall was connected to a large cliffside.

Lukas recognized it immediately.

He took a few steps down towards the creek bed. He looked at his reflection in the water. He put his fingers in, the cold liquid flowing past him as it made its way further down the creek. It was all real.

“But that’s impossible…” he whispered to himself.

“Hey there.”

Lukas jumped. Fearfully, he turned his head behind him. It was Maria – she wore a white plain white dress, neatly pressed and stainless, and around her throat was a silver necklace lined with turquoise gems.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” she continued, walking over and taking a seat next to him at the creekside. “It’s just… my house is pretty close by, and I was walking down the path, you know… and I saw you.”

Lukas nodded slowly. “Yeah. It’s good to see you.”

“Long time no talk, huh?” Maria let out a small smile as she pushed her bangs out of her eyes. “Well, to tell the truth… it’s pretty fateful that we meet out here.”

“What do you mean?”

Maria paused. She looked up at the treeline, letting out a little laugh as if to acknowledge the ridiculousness of what she was thinking.

“It sounds pretty silly, but I… I started going to church again, pretty recently. Yesterday was Sunday, so it was service. I went, and when I came to the altar… I prayed to Anita.”

Maria looked back down into her lap. She was fidgeting with her hands.

“And I’m pretty sure that she answered back.”

Lukas felt a nervousness grip his chest, but he wasn’t quite sure why. He kept silent as Maria continued.

“I’m not really religious or anything, but… I don’t know. It was like- there was a voice. I can’t even describe it. But she answered me, and I could tell it was Anita. She said she forgave me, that nothing which happened was my fault. It made me feel so happy, so warm, like a huge weight had been taken off my chest. But funnily enough… she mentioned you, too.”

Lukas’ eyes widened. Maria turned to look at him.

“Yeah, I know,” she continued. “She didn’t mention any of the others. Not Sadja, not Rose, not even mama or Lorenzo. Just you. She said… that she understood you did what you had to do. That she knew you would use the strength of heart you gained for good. That the world was a better place with you in it.”

“…What?” Lukas let out weakly.

“I didn’t ask her what she meant. I figured that was between the two of you.” Maria turned back to the creek. She watched the water continuously roar down from the waterfall out in the distance. “I’ll never know what happened to Anita. I think I know – I’m pretty sure that I do – but I’ll never know for sure. Before, that feeling used to stab at me. But now, now that I’ve thought about it more… I don’t know why it would even matter to me. I don’t know what more details or more facts about such a thing would do other than to just break me more. For now, the most important thing for me to do is to heal. And to move on.”

Maria looked back at the boy. “I know Cole was your best friend. I want you to know that, out of all the things I feel, none of it is blame towards you. I love you like all my friends, and I feel the pain you feel from his loss.”

Lukas nodded. He turned his gaze towards the creek. “I don’t have any ill will towards you, either. I still feel sorry all of that happened to you to begin with.”

Maria smiled. “It’s all alright. Your feelings are more than enough.”

Maria stretched out her arms. Slowly, she laid her back down onto the ground – there was a stretch of soft grass that fit most of her body. She put her hands on her stomach, looking out towards the sky.

“There’s something I learned about the world recently.”

Lukas looked back at her. He, too, laid down in the grass – looking at her face.

“What’s that?”

“That men and women spend their whole lives pretending to like each other.”

“You really think so?”

Maria nodded. “We make friendships. We make relationships. Most of the time, we’re able to forget all about it. But when it comes up – it always hits. Sometimes it’s about sex, other times it’s about aggression, or privilege, or something else. The truth is that every single woman I’ve ever met has had a bad experience with a man. And she carries that with her, even when talking to her best friend, or her spouse. We’ve been told our entire lives to stay away from men in the streets, then we go home and have dinner with our brothers and fathers. When they tell girls to stay in groups, to never walk alone at night – they never say it outright, but they’re talking about men. To fear men, the monsters who live among us in our daily lives.”

Maria turned her head towards Lukas. The wind picked up her hair and her green eyes shimmered in the sunlight. “I bet men say something about women too, don’t they?”

Lukas thought for a moment. “Yeah… in a way.” He took his turn to look up into the sky. “I thought about it a lot, when I was with Kat. There’s always so many things we wish we could get a girl to be. A mother, a sister, a friend… a lover. There’s been so many points in my life where I’ve felt embarrassed, because I’ve gotten to know a girl only to realize I have feelings for her. Sometimes romantic, sometimes sexual. But always there. And yet, at the same time… I don’t want that. I want someone I can talk to. Someone… who will understand me better than any guy I know. It’s a problem all men have… we want a girl to be one thing, then the very next minute we want them to be something else. We get mad when they don’t change. Somedays I want to vent, somedays I want to fuck. But it’s always different. So many people out there say they have the solution to the problem… that you just need to treat women like objects, or let them walk all over you, or shun them entirely. But the truth – the scary truth – is that there is no answer. That this is a curse put on us that we have to live with for eternity. That the source of all our mental illness is in the face of the girl who looks back at us, and smiles.”

Lukas could feel something in his right hand. It was Maria’s palm – she interlocked her fingers with him, and he in kind interlocked his fingers with her. The two faced each other again.

“But it doesn’t have to be like this,” Maria continued. “The sisterhood whispering among each other to stay away from men, or the brotherhood protecting each other against the accusations of a woman. There are things that unite us – courage, loyalty, honor, empathy, devotion – these are not gendered words. They’re within all of us. They make us human. And if we can learn how to harness these things, if we can learn to see each other – really see each other – then maybe, just maybe, we’ll be able to forget all this. That we’ll be able to live together, without any of our misgivings. That we’ll all learn how to get along. Boys and girls. And everyone in between.”

“Boys and girls,” Lukas repeated softly.

The two laid there with each other, hands interlocked, looking up at the sky. In the distance, a diomedeo called.