Lina 1
It was Friday. New Year’s Eve, to be exact. I should have been at Stickshift downing Cherry Bombs with my roommates, Jilsey and Gavin. Instead, I was in the musty, dirty catacombs of Saebo American History Museum, and the only thing I was downing was coffee.
Don’t get me wrong, I loved my job. I worked my ass off, logging more unpaid hours than I could count to earn my spot. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I was pretty damn good at it, too. Long hours and a lack of sunlight and fresh air were a small price to pay. With the exception of tonight, since if I’d had my way, I’d have been gone hours ago. But when the boss looks like she’s settling in for a long night, you do the same.
Seline Giles, my boss and the curator, had recently received a grant to excavate the miles of tunnels under downtown Saebo. She was good at her job, and as far as I knew, she never slept, functioning solely on adrenaline and caffeine. Lucky for me, Catalina Franklin, newly promoted Museum Technician, I got to help.
Sitting dutifully at my makeshift desk, I cataloged the artifacts the team had brought up earlier. All they’d managed to recover today were some wine bottles, old newspapers, and a box of clothes that had seen better days.
"Lina, I'm going to go grab more coffee so I can finish the daily report. Are you almost done?" she asked, standing and stretching her back like a cat.
"Yes, ma'am. I only have about six more," I said, pulling the half-full box of wine bottles closer.
"Very good. You can leave when you're done. It's past midnight. You should get home to that delicious boy of yours.”
“Gavin isn’t my boy,” I sighed. “We’re just…roommates.”
“Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me,” she teased, winking. “The team is off tomorrow—well, today...” She shook her head at their audacity to request a holiday off. “So, we won’t have much to do. I suppose we should take the rest of the weekend off as well. We will be pulling a lot of early mornings and late nights for the next couple of weeks. Happy New Year, Lina," she said, smiling and climbing the ladder up to the basement of the museum.
"Happy New Year," I said, toasting her with my empty soda can.
After midnight? I swore it was only eleven the last time I’d looked at the clock. After finishing my last bottle, I packed my bag and headed out. My suppressed excitement at tonight was starting to bubble over. Most of my downtime was spent at home. The three of us were hardly ever able to go out together and I didn’t like to go out on my own. Even though I was smart enough to not get behind the wheel drunk, not everyone else was. I didn’t want to take the chance of being too intoxicated to notice someone was about to run me over. I made an exception for tonight—since it was a holiday and all.
The museum was deserted, everyone sane long gone. My footsteps on the marble floors echoed throughout the hallway. It amazed me how I could still be so taken with the beauty of this place after all the time I’d spent here. My phone vibrated in my pocket. Yep. Twenty-three missed calls and eighteen texts between Gavin and Jilsey, and a text from a blocked number with a long string of profanities that I hoped was from one of the two. Jilsey, if I had to guess.
Ugh, I cringed internally a little, turning my ringer on before slipping my phone back into my pocket. She was going to be so mad. She even had my outfit picked out. As I locked the gold-rimmed glass double doors, I took my first clean breath in hours. The air was frigid and slightly wet, but I didn't care—it was fresh and didn't even remotely smell like musty old things that might have contained asbestos or the remains of dead people or animals.
I stifled the urge to skip home to change, better late than never, right? Even being so late, the city was alive with people. Girls chased each other down the street, and guys were hooting and hollering as they spilled out of the bars. Halfway down the street, my phone rang and I pulled it from my pocket. Gavin’s picture flashed back at me, accompanied by the Cops theme song. At least it was Gavin, he would be gentler in his chiding than Jils.
"Well, hello, handsome, what are you wearing?" I said, using my best flirty voice, hoping it would distract him from being upset with me.
"I'm wearing my boxers, the black silky ones you got me for my birthday. Jilsey is wearing her Don’t Be a Litterbug shirt and pink boy shorts. She has also decided that when you get here, you can wear that weird red thing," he said, just as flirty.
"What? Aren't you guys at Stickshift?" I asked, confused, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk.
They had planned this New Year’s for weeks, months even, and several of Jils’ texts had been full of detailed threats on what would happen if I didn't hurry up and get there. I was pretty sure the Department of Homeland Security was now tracking her cell phone. She was s-c-a-r-y when she was angry.
"After about midnight when you still weren't there, we figured you were once again working late. And rather than you missing out on the party, we brought it to you. Including the bar. Hurry home, babe," he said, hanging up.
I rolled my eyes at him, but my annoyance quickly changed to a smile. They really were awesome. Jilsey was a nurse at University Hospital, and Gavin was a cop. We lucked into finding each other when Gavin and I responded to a roommate-wanted ad in the newspaper. We instantly clicked, despite the four-year age gap; Jilsey and Gavin were twenty-five. They were for roommates who didn’t party all the time and I was looking for…basically the same thing. Living on campus was getting old and living with my mother was not an option. Now we share a three-story Victorian manor in historical Saebo. Some great aunt willed it to Jilsey a few years back. It was fully furnished and her aunt had great taste.
Picking up my pace a little, I booked it home as fast as I could without falling flat on my ass. The sidewalk was slick from the snow that had melted earlier and was now refreezing in the frigid early morning air. With the wind chill, I was pretty sure the temperature was dropping into the teens.
After treading carefully on the stairs of our porch, I barely got my key in the lock before Jilsey jerked it open. She pulled me through the door, embracing me in a huge hug, enveloping me in the smell of vodka, beer, and cookies. Smells like home. Jilsey was taller than most girls, probably around five-foot-nine, and skinny as a rail. She kept her platinum hair in an edgy sling bob—it was apparently easier with work. Her brown eyes regarded me in disapproval as she tsked. She shut the door and pulled me toward our living room.
"Dammit, Lina, you really need to learn to say no!" she scolded. “Repeat after me: I will not stay late.”
“It’s not that bad,” I said, waving away her worry. It was hard for them to grasp just how much I loved my job—that most days, working late wasn’t an issue for me. Tonight had been a different story. It was one of the few times working had been a burden.
“You were at work for almost fourteen hours today. And you missed the ball drop. I almost had to kiss Gavin,” she said, shuddering delicately. “You know how grabby he gets when he drinks. Luckily, I was able to grab the bartender—you know, the cute little redhead with the nice rack—before Gavin could make his move on me."
Rounding the corner to the living room, I saw that they had gone all out. Our pillows and blankets were arranged on the floor. Bowls of popcorn and candy, a pizza, and a plate full of oatmeal chocolate chip cookies adorned the coffee table. Cherry Bomb supplies and a case of Bud Light sat on one of the end tables. There was a stack of movies next to our outrageously big TV. God, they knew me so well. I didn’t know what I would do without them. Probably just live at work. And starve, I was hopeless in the kitchen.
Gavin was lain out on the couch, his tousled blond hair highlighted with what looked like glitter and maybe Sharpie. True to his word, he wore only black boxers. Seeing me walk in, he stood and threw a silky red ball at me, nailing me straight in the face. It was only the top, the silky black bottoms missing.
"Get changed, I'll start the movie and make you a drink," he said, kissing me on the top of my head, which only came to his chest. It wasn’t just that I was short—I mean, yeah, I am pretty short—but Gavin was also freaky tall. His whole family—dad, both brothers, and even his mom—was tall.
“I can’t wear just this,” I said, dropping my stuff on the floor by the door. “It’s too short. My ass is going to hang out.”
“That’s what I’m talkin’ ‘bout,” Gavin said, his lips twisting into a Cheshire cat smile. I shot him a ‘really?’ look, and he conceded by tossing me the matching black shorts. “Fine, be like that. Now, hurry up and get your ass back out here.”
Obligingly, I headed to the bathroom and quickly changed into my favorite jammies, an impulse buy from one of my many mandatory-shopping dates with Jilsey. The top had spaghetti straps, was low cut, and had lace around the bust and hem. After putting my dirty clothes into the hamper, I splashed my face with some cool water. Looking into the mirror, I could even tell I looked tired. My blue eyes were heavy with the aftereffects of caffeine, and soft, bluish-purple arcs were making their way to the surface of my skin below my eyes. I looked like death warmed over. It wasn’t pretty.
“Girl, you are gross teeth away from looking like a meth head,” I muttered, and then shook my head at the fact that I was now talking to myself.
The chain around my neck glinted in the light, and I pulled it out of the neckline of my silky top. A dainty sterling silver ring with a red inlaid rose at its center hung from the chain. I found it in the park two years ago during Jilsey’s yoga phase. Gavin insisted that I turn it in because someone was likely looking for it. Screw that. It was so crusted over with mud, and God knows what else, that whoever lost it had probably long since given up on finding it. Plus, I couldn’t give it up. From the minute I saw it, as dirty as it was, it felt like mine.
I quickly ran a brush through my shoulder-length brown hair, untangling the cluster of knots caused by the wind. Once I was slightly less of a mess, I trotted back to the living room.
"There she is," Gavin announced, handing me a shot glass. I downed it in one gulp and he passed me another, along with a beer to chase them. "Feel better?" When I nodded, he patted my spot on the floor between him and Jils. "Since it’s late and Jils and I are sorta drunk—” Jilsey snorted a laugh “—we’ve decided to watch highlights from last year's Shark Week, ‘cause chances are one or all of us is going to pass out soon," he said, handing me a slice of pizza and watching until I took a bite.
"Thank you, guys, so much," I said and pulled them each to me with a one-armed hug, kissing both of them on the cheek.
I finished my pizza and another beer then snuggled down under the covers next to Gavin. The lack of eating most of the day combined with the quick intake of alcohol made my head swim. I steadied myself on Gavin’s shoulder to avoid falling sideways into a snoozing Jilsey and giggled at her absurd sleeping position: facedown with her pillow over her head and her blanket only covering her feet. Gavin shot me a strange look and yanked me into his lap.
“Shhh, you’re going to wake her up, and she’s gonna start baking. You don’t know what I had to do to make her step away from the oven earlier,” he whispered into my ear, only making me laugh harder and snort, which, of course, made me laugh even harder.
“I thought you put the baby lock on the oven door so she couldn’t get it open when she was drinking?” I asked between breaths.
“I did, she sawed it off with a steak knife and put it in my bed,” he said, laughing quietly.
“I don’t know if I told you this lately, but you’re awesome. I’m a lucky girl,” I said finally, snuggling into his chest.
“True.” He smirked as he slid the rest of the way down onto the floor next to me. “But we’re pretty lucky, too.”
“True,” I said, throwing his statement back at him and grinning. “This was a great New Year’s. Thank you again, for setting all this up.”
“Yeah,” he said, propping his head up on my pillow. “Too bad you weren’t there at midnight. I had my New Year’s kiss all planned out.”
“Well, unless you kissed someone else,” I said, emboldened by the alcohol coursing through my veins, “it’s not too late.”
Taking his cue, he cupped my face in his hand, gently brushing his thumb back and forth over my skin. He slowly leaned forward and pressed his lips to…my cheek.
“Happy New Year, Lina.”
“That was weak, Hollow,” I said.
“Yeah, I guess it was.” He rolled to his back and switched off the TV. “Maybe next time you’ll remember you have plans and leave work on time.”
Touché.
Not wanting to let him off that easy, I rolled over and straddled his waist, ran my hands up his chest to his face. In a motion too graceful for my tipsy state, I pressed my torso flush against him and brushed my lips over his.
“You’re not playing fair,” he murmured, and rolled us so he was on top.
“Your point, Officer Hollow?” I trailed my lips along his jaw and was rewarded with his Adam’s apple moving hard, once.
“My point is that you made a promise you would go out with us tonight.” He moved back to his side of our makeshift bed. “And you broke that promise. Again. Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” I sighed.
If there was one thing I was better at than work, it seemed to be breaking promises—for work.
The aroma of freshly brewed French roast wafted into the living room. The sun was out, so I knew I had slept in. Usually, I was up by five a.m. on workdays, and not long after that on the weekends.
Gavin's arm tightened around me. My head was resting on his bare chest and one of my legs stretched across his body. Clatter from the kitchen indicated Jils was already awake. Hence, the source of the coffee.
The clock above the fireplace told me it was noon. Noon! I couldn’t remember the last time I had slept past eight! I gently slid out of Gavin's arms so as to not wake him, dropped a quick kiss on his cheek, and headed to the kitchen. Jils was at the stove, pouring pancake batter onto the griddle.
“Morning,”
“Morning,” Jilsey grumbled.
Though she was normally a ray of sunshine, hungover Jilsey was a little bit of a grouch. She hadn't gotten dressed yet, so she was just in a shirt and her underwear. It was one of the things I loved about living with them; we were so comfortable around each other that pants were optional.
After pouring myself a cup of coffee, I took a seat at the breakfast bar of our eat-in kitchen. We had a formal dining room but rarely, if ever, used it. Finishing the pancakes, she set them on the island and took the stool across from me. We sat in silence while we finished our coffee. The smell of food and coffee roused Gavin from his blanket cocoon in the living room.
"Good morning, ladies," he said, coming to sit beside me. He grabbed a plate and piled it with pancakes. Seeing that all I had in front of me was a cup of coffee, he picked up another plate and set it in front of me. "You should eat."
They worried too much about me. I ate. I didn't have an eating disorder. But I’d get busy with work and sometimes go the whole day without eating, and then be too tired to bother when I got home. Humoring him, I added four pancakes to my empty plate and smothered them in syrup before taking a giant bite, closing my eyes, and humming for dramatic effect. Satisfied, Gavin began eating his own breakfast.
After we all finished, Jilsey tossed us each a legal pad and a pen. This was our fourth annual New Year’s resolution scribing, a tradition we’d started our first year together. We’d each list three personal goals for the new year, and then add one to each other’s lists. Last year my resolutions were: get promoted (check), go to the gym more (not so much), and eat healthier (if eating less is healthier then check). Jilsey's suggestion was 'get laid' (no time, sorry, Jils) which went well with Gavin's suggestion of 'relax' (sure, sweetie).
Each of us hunched over our legal pads. What do I need to do this year? I needed to paint the third floor bathroom. I’d honestly do more harm than good in there. I spent so much time on work that getting promoted was my defining moment in life at this point—how could I top that? Scouring my brain, I finally wrote:
Spearhead new exhibit for museum
Learn to cook
Get a tattoo
Smiling in satisfaction, I looked up to see Jils and Gavin waiting on me, their lists complete. We each passed our pads to the left and began adding our goal to each other's list.
Gavin’s resolutions were:
• Run 365 miles
• Call Mom and Dad every Sunday
• Go for it
Well, he could have fun with all of his running. I would not be partaking in that venture. Calling his parents every week would make them happy, especially his mother. ‘Go for it.’ Go for what? Whatever it was, he’d already done it, so I wasn’t even sure it still counted as a resolution. I decided not to mention it, though. Instead, I added:
• Finish 3rd floor
We’ve been getting around to finishing it since we moved in so Jilsey could rent it out, but our renovation mojo ran out rather quickly.
I passed Gavin’s to Jilsey and moved on to hers.
• Take a vacation
• Try Zumba or kickboxing
• Let hair grow out
Again, she could have fun with her kickboxing or Zumba. A vacation would do her some good; she hadn’t seen her parents in forever. As much as she got on to me about being overworked and underpaid, she was a nurse, the very definition of that. That last one wouldn’t last six months. She hated long hair. I’d seen it shoulder length once and she’d always kept it pulled up. To hers, I added:
• Apply for L&D position
She was a trauma nurse but really wanted to work in labor and delivery. She had the opportunity for a promotion last year and passed on applying for it. For as confident as she was in most aspects of her life, she was rather reserved professionally.
Getting mine back, I flipped it over to see what my roomies had added to the New Year Lina list. I had expected something along the same lines of last year. I was sorely mistaken.
Work less—Jilsey
Have dinner with me—Gavin
Jils’ suggestion, I guessed, was expected, especially after last night. Gavin's, on the other hand, completely threw me. I mean, we had dinner together all the time. The three of us didn’t have the same work schedule, so there were many nights when it was just Gavin and myself for dinner. But I knew that was not what he’d meant. He meant dinner.
Gavin and I had skirted around this for a while. I’d wanted something more than the flirty, sometimes kissy thing we had going on. Gavin, on the other hand, was always reluctant to let it go further than that. We were roommates, after all, what if things didn’t work out? One of us would have to move, or we’d have to find a way to deal with the post-breakup awkwardness. Regardless, our easy dynamic would change if things didn’t go smoothly for us.
I didn't have to stew in my awkwardness for long. Gavin stood and announced that he had to work the two-to-midnight shift and needed to get ready. He got up from the island, put his plate in the sink, and left the room. I went to start on the dishes, but Jilsey shooed me out of the kitchen, telling me to take a bubble bath and enjoy my day off from work.