The Long Winter #69
Unseen part three
As soon as they entered the building Penny's new girlfriend Becca stole her away from Sandra’s side. The brunette tried to keep up with them, following them around from game to game, watching the boys beat each other up on the balance beam with their padded jousting sticks, and ducking needlessly when anyone passed overhead on the zip line. And Becca kept herself between Penny and Sandra, speaking over her every time Sandra was ready to say something, blocking her so much Penny was casting baffled looks at her behind Becca’s back. Then Becca needed to go to the bathroom, firing a look with her ice-beam-blue eyes that froze Sandra in place. Penny tried to bring Sandra with them but Becca’s hand was on her shoulders, wrestling her away.
“You look like you could use a friendly face.”
“Bart!” Sandra whirled around and embraced him. “You’re not exactly the first person I’d have wished to appear, but you’ll do!”
“I’ll bet!” he answered with a laugh. “So you were invited to this party, too.”
“I was. It’s been less fun than I imagined.”
She and Bart watched two people swing past on the obstacle course overhead.
“How so?”
“Penny’s new girlfriend hates my fucking guts.” Sandra scowled in the direction of the bathroom. “Whatever. The feeling’s mutual at this point.”
“Maybe she just needs some time to get used to you.”
“Or she’s an insanely jealous bitch who can’t handle her girlfriend having any kind of freedom. Even Clark didn’t act like that.” She paused and glanced at Bart, a shadow of regret on her face. “But maybe I did a little. At the beginning. But that was before I knew Penny!”
“Well, if she’s having a good time with her new girlfriend maybe we just need to give them some time to get comfortable with each other.”
“Yeah, maybe.” Sandra sighed and sipped her beer. “How did you get invited, anyway?”
“Me and Helmstrom go way back. My girlfriend Annelise is his niece.”
“Annelise Gelberg? She’s gorgeous.”
“Ah, so you know her as well.”
“We went to the same high school. I knew she came up here, but we weren’t really all that close.”
“I can reintroduce you. Maybe you can get reacquainted.”
Sandra glanced towards the bathroom again. Penny and Becca had not reappeared. Another person swung past above her head to a chorus of cheers.
“Fine. But only if you can get me into these games.”
“Deal.”
She went with him, spotting Clark and Maddie on their way across the polished concrete floor. She resolved to ignore them lest she say something regrettable in her current state of mind and swung her gaze back ahead of her. But on the way there her eyes were snagged on perhaps the most perfect male face she had ever seen. Instead of swooning, however, a shiver of caution ran down her spine. This young man was glowering after Maddie and Clark and she wondered if he was the abusive ex-fiancé. Before she looked away he spotted her and smiled, a splash of grease on his perfect features. She snapped herself against Bart’s arm and the rest of the gym faded into static.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine.”
“You’re going to make Annelise jealous, you know.”
“I already am!”
“Annelise!” Sandra jumped away from Bart and smiled at the willowy blonde. She batted her blue eyes back at Sandra and smiled.
“Sandra Young! I forgot you were up here!” She embraced the brunette and kissed her cheek. “What a wonderful surprise. And on the arm of my boyfriend, no less. This isn’t you trying to get back at Taryn in a weird, roundabout way, is it?”
Sandra responded with a bitter laugh. The gossip of Sandra’s best friend with Sandra’s boyfriend had reached far beyond their little downstate home.
“Well, I’m pleased you two know each other so well. It saves me from an awkward introduction.”
“Oh, I’m ready to make it awkward if you like,” Annelise leered at him.
“No, it’s fine.”
They shared an awkward laugh.
“So, Sandra, what brings you up here?”
“The Institute.”
“You’re there?”
“I was valedictorian.
“Yeah, out of how many? Eight?”
“Twelve.”
Annelise laughed. She was at the University, saying so to Sandra, and they caught up with each other, the longest conversation they had ever had together. Bart led them through the gym, stopping to occasionally shake hands with a smiling buddy. Eventually Annelise said something that caught his interest and Sandra turned into a third wheel. She stayed near them in case they remembered she was there, but sipped her beer with an eye on the crowd. Penny had not reappeared. She sighed and her eyes dipped to her worn-out tennis shoes. She had arrived ready to compete, but now she was ready to go home.
“Night’s not turning out how you imagined, is it?”
Sandra jumped and looked up to see the incredibly handsome man behind her.
“I’m with my friends—“
But they were gone. All they needed was a moment (but just how long had Sandra been gazing at her shoes?) and she was indeed by herself.
“Some friends. Maybe you need someone a bit more loyal.”
She eyed him for a moment. Perfect hair. Twinkling dark eyes. Broad chest and shoulders.
“Who are you?” she asked.
“Travis.”
“Travis…” She could not keep the suspicion from her face. “That’s the same name as Maddie’s ex.”
“Maddie. Are you friends with her?”
“No,” Sandra answered with a snort. “In fact, she’s here with my ex—“
“Sounds like all the reason the two of us would need to bring us together.”
Sandra looked down at his hand as it landed on her arm. She remembered Penny’s story about her encounter with him and pain radiated from his touch despite the friendliness of it. The weeks of self-defense training kept her heart from sending her into a panic and she smiled up at him.
“We have a mutual friend who is very important to me,” she said, sliding her foot back and easing her way out of his reach. “I’m not looking to be the source of any unnecessary drama.”
“Seems to me like you already are,” he said, nodding behind her.
Maddie stood not far away with Clark, pretending not to see the two of them.
And a fine time it is for them to suddenly appear out of nowhere…
“I’ll go talk to them. Maybe they’ve seen our mutual friend somewhere. It was a… it was something to meet you.”
He nodded at her and turned with a sneer on his face as she did her best not to rush away from him. Clark raised his bottle at her as she absolutely did not run towards them, and Maddie turned to greet her with a scowl that withered into confusion as Sandra joined them.
“Something wrong?” Clark asked.
“No.” Sandra looked at Maddie and shuddered. “I mean yes. Holy shit, Maddie, your ex gives me the creeps.”
“What? Why? What did he do to you?”
“Nothing, but he put his hand on my arm and said we should leave together since you and Clark are here together.” She rubbed her arm. “He hurt Penny.”
“He hurt me, too.”
Sandra nodded. She ignored Clark’s hand on Maddie’s shoulder.
“Have you seen Penny?”
“Yeah, she was over at the beam joust,” Clark said. “I thought you came with her.”
“I did. But her new girlfriend is stealing her away from me.”
“Wow,” Maddie said. “I didn’t know you and Penny had become so close.”
“She’s my best friend up here,” Sandra said. She looked away from them. “She’s my only friend…”
“Come on, Sandra,” Clark said, reaching for her. “Let’s go hook back up with them. She can’t keep you two apart forever. I mean, you and her are buddies.”
“Yeah.” Sandra stared right back at Maddie. “We’re buddies.” She smiled at Clark. “Let’s go.”
***
He was watching her. Penny could feel Travis’ eyes on her from somewhere in that giant gymnasium. All of Becca’s loving attention could not keep her dreading something terrible was about to happen.
“Come on, Penny,” Becca said, laughing as she pulled Penny towards the jousting beam. “Come watch me beat the crap out of Melina.”
“Okay!”
Penny answered with her brightest smile and watched Becca pull the padded fighting headgear on before picking up the stick. It was almost two meters long with vinyl bags on either end full of soft stuffing. It looked like a giant sucker, if suckers had candy at both ends. Becca’s quarry was someone Penny had never seen before, a dark complexioned girl with curly black hair sticking out of her padded headgear and a body the product of more hours in the gym than Penny ever put it. In a sports bra and tiny skin-tight shorts she was a knockout, and Penny could not stop herself from casting a smile in her direction.
Melina did not see and Penny helped Becca up onto the beam and the two girls faced off. Becca’s legs were spread as far as her tight skirt allowed, and her toes curled around the beam as she fought for balance. Melina struck first, grazing the fine material of Becca’s blouse as she dodged backwards. Becca thrust back at her, keeping the other girl away, and then thrust again. The crowd cheered and catcalled the two girls, one of the boys shouting something at them that made Penny’s skin burn in embarrassment. Melina danced backwards but Becca turned into a ballerina, whirling back and forth on the beam, always just out of the reach of Melina’s stick. Penny joined the cheering and then there were friendly hands on her shoulders.
“Penny! Your GF looks good up there!”
“Sandra! There you are, I missed you!” Penny spun around and hugged Sandra and the two girls squeezed each other for a single too-short moment.
“What happened? I was waiting for you to get out of the bathroom!”
Penny turned away from Sandra. She hated the pensive glance she gave her new girlfriend, and the way Sandra’s hand tightened on her shoulder told her the other girl saw it, too. Becca and Melina continued to thrust and parry, their attention all on each other.
“I’m so sorry about that. Becca’s been acting weird about you all night. I know she doesn’t like the fact that we’re buddies, but I’m not going to stop hanging out with you.”
“And if she makes you choose?”
Penny took a deep breath. “Then I was prepared to be single up here anyhow.”
Sandra laughed and released her shoulder. Penny spoke without looking back at her.
“I think it would be a total shame for us to be split apart by something. And if she’s the type of person who wants to make me choose, well, I know the story of King Solomon.”
Sandra laughed again. “I had no idea you were Christian!”
“Don’t let my far-Eastern appearance fool you! I have a Western half, too!”
Becca leaped forward and smashed Melina in her face with the padded end of her stick. Melina reeled backwards and Becca put the other end of it in Melina’s belly and the black-haired girl fell to the mats to a mix of cheers and disappointment. Penny looked back to see Sandra’s eyes shining with excitement. They were already moving towards the beam before Sandra spoke.
“We’re doing that next,” she said.
“I'm totally not dressed for it,” Penny answered. Her skirt was loose and hung to her knees and she had thick black leggings underneath (it was very cold outside the gym).
“Hey, Becca! We’re going to try next!”
Becca smiled at Penny and her expression then darkened when she saw Sandra. She helped Melina to her feet and they pulled their headgear off and hugged.
“Here, these two skinny bitches are going next,” Becca said.
“Okay, if they really want to I won’t stop them!”
Penny and Sandra were soon ready and standing on the beam.
“Now you two better fight, we want a show, not two fairies giving each other love taps!” Becca said.
“We will!”
“You better, now fight!”
Becca swatted Penny’s bottom. Penny yelped and jumped forward, the cheers of the crowd vanishing as Sandra’s pretty face filled her vision. The brunette was a much better athlete than Penny, all her years playing softball paying off on the beam. She swung the stick at Penny like it was a bat, a rush of air pushing Penny back to the end of the beam. She took a wild swing at Sandra and then mimicked the thrusts she had seen Becca do and worked back to the middle.
“You’re good at this!” Sandra said.
“You are, too! Agent Marcotte will be so proud of us!”
Sandra smiled and struck back at her. Penny grunted when the padded end of the stick hit her belly and Sandra spun around and gave her head a glancing blow, enough to send Penny flying off the beam to the mat. She hit the mat in a lump, rolling onto her back and sighing.
“You okay?”
Sandra appeared above her, an angel given a halo by the overhead lights. She and Becca helped her upright and Penny pulled her headgear off.
“That was fun,” she said, wiping sweat off her forehead.
“You two looked good up there,” Becca said, helping Penny to her feet. “Come on. Let’s go try out the obstacle course. We can give the boys and girls some excitement with flashes of our panties!”
“You’re so dirty!” Penny squealed.
“Why do you think I wore this skirt? I knew what we were in for, and I am never one to disappoint.”
They laughed and Penny smiled back at Sandra. Her girlfriend was no longer between her and her best friend and everything felt right with the world.