“What’s up, Mo?” she asked, steeling a t-shirt from Aquilla’s bag.
“Did you fuck Julius in front of Quill?”
Seri snorted and closed her eyes. That girl had better not fall asleep. She was going to kill her.
“Sarah, you tell me now all the shit that happened in that house. I don’t want any more secrets.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s it.”
“How could you do that Sarah? I don’t even know who you are right now.”
“It was work. I told you. I didn’t even know who Aquilla was. I thought she was a chattel too. I knew you had to be 18 to be a chattel for Romano Chavez. I didn’t know, Mo.”
“God, Sarah. You fucked the guy she thinks she is in love with right in front of her?”
“Yup, that’s what happened,” Seri, admitted.
“I hope the hell he was worth it, must of been some good dick.”
“That’s an understatement, you should see this guy’s dick. Fucking huge, he makes you want to cum before he even has it all the way in.”
“So you did it with him more than that one time?”
“Hell yeah, every chance I got. That doesn’t need to be shared with Quill, though.”
“You’re crazy.”
“No, just horny, and if I don’t get out of here soon and get some, I’m going to go crazy.”
“I think you should leave after this week. Once her family goes back home, I think you need to go home and let her deal with her family without you around.”
“I am more than okay with that. You get it cleared with Houston and I will gladly hitch a ride back with you. You are staying the whole week, aren’t you?”
“I hadn’t planned on it, but I think maybe I should. We will stay here for a couple of nights and then go get a hotel. Maybe we can get lucky. I haven’t had any in a while either.”
Seri laughed, loving that idea.
Aquilla spent most of her time hanging around with Monica and Seri. She didn’t want anything to do with her family. She couldn’t help it. She just didn’t feel like she belonged. She did go for a long walk with her mom late one evening. She answered all of her questions, but still didn’t feel like this was her family or like she belonged there. What was she supposed to do? She couldn’t just drink the Kool-aide and magically love her family. She hadn’t had one bit of time to herself to continue reading Julius’s note to her. She was fine with it for a couple of days. She needed to stay away from it for a day or two. Her emotions couldn’t take it.
“I’m kind of tired. Can we head back now?” Aquilla asked her mom after Liz hit a nerve. She had asked her about Christmas’s growing up. Aquilla didn’t want to answer. She felt that time was sacred and she wasn’t interested in sharing. She was just going to judge her father anyway.
“Sure, sweetie. Grandpa is going to build a fire. You want to sit out with is for a bit?”
Didn’t I just say I was tired? “I don’t think so, maybe tomorrow night.”
Liz silently took a deep breath, feeling the wheeze in her chest. She didn’t know what to do. She didn’t know how to break the barrier that seemed to be forcing them apart rather than pulling them together.
Aquilla grabbed a shower and opened her shared bedroom, wearing a towel and stopping dead in her tracks. Seri didn’t have time to react. She quickly removed her fingers from her panties and sat up.
“Jesus, Quill. Can’t you knock?”
“It’s my room. Can’t you play with that thing in the bathroom?”
“Shut up, like you don’t take care of it too.”
“I haven’t since you came along. You won’t leave me alone long enough.”
“That’s because I worry about you when you’re alone too long.”
“Because you think I’m going to run away?”
“No, because, I worry about you.”
“Why?” Aquilla asked as she pulled on a night shirt and panties.
“I don’t know why. I just do. I guess you’ve kind of grown on me,” Seri explained, moving to her side of the bed as Aquilla crawled in.
“You can take care of that if you need to,” Aquilla offered, switching off the lamp.
“Yeah, right, shut the hell up and go to sleep.”
“Why? It’s not like you don’t want to.”
“I think maybe you just want me to. Does that turn you on, Quill?”
“Yeah, it kind of does.”
Shit. She was expecting to get a fuck you. Not that. What the hell? She didn’t go both ways. Quill was the first. Fuck, she was turned on knowing Quill was turned on. Quill wasn’t turned on. Quill was confused. That’s what it was.
“I will if you will,” Aquilla offered, turning to her in the dark.
“You will what?” Seri asked the dumb question.
“Get off.”
Seri laughed. “You’re crazy. I’ve caused enough damage to your already fucked up mind.”
“Suit yourself,” Aquilla countered, moving her hand to the wet folds of her pussy.
“Quill, I’m leaving if you’re doing that.”
“Go ahead. You could just go across the hall to the bathroom and pretend that I don’t know that you play with yourself.”
“You need help. You need more help than Monica or I could possibly give you,” Seri assured her.
“I don’t need help. The rest of the world needs help. I’m fine being different. It’s the rest of you who think I should be the way everyone else is. Maybe I am the normal one. Maybe I don’t give a shit about what you or anyone else thinks about me.”
“You already know how I feel about you. You’re like a leech.”
“Seri?” Aquilla warned with pant.
“Goddamnit, Quill. I’m leaving.”
Aquilla laughed as Seri jumped out of bed and pulled on a pair of shorts before she had to listen to her call out in pleasure.
Seri walked out, closing the door behind her, shaking her head as she leaned against the closed door. She stood there for all of five minutes before Monica stopped on her way to her own room.
“What the hell are you doing?” she asked, wondering why the hell Sarah was just standing there.
“I’m done,” Aquilla called with a laugh.
“I fucking hate that kid,” Seri claimed.
“Done what? What’s she talking about?”
“How about you ask her that during your session tomorrow? I’m going to bed.”
Monica stared at the closed door confused.
“Feel better?” Seri snapped, pulling the covers clear to her neck, turning her back on Quill.
“I do. Do you?”
“Fuck you, Quill. Go to sleep.”
Quill laughed again.
They lay in silence for a while, Seri facing the window and Quill with her hands over her head staring at the dark ceiling. This was when it was worse. This was when she missed Julius and wanted to snuggle into his safe arms. Julius seemed to always get to her most during the dark, still night. She lay there thinking about how much more she could take. What was she going to do when Seri left her and she was even more alone at night?
“Seri?” Aquilla quietly said.
“What, Quill?” she answered in a nicer tone than she had before. She could tell by the sound of Quill’s voice that she was finished being a brat. She detected the sad tone.
“Never mind,” Aquilla decided, rolling away from Seri. It didn’t matter. Seri wasn’t going to help her anyway. She may as well let it go.
Aquilla joined her family for breakfast and then announced that she was taking her laptop and walking to the park, letting all of them know that she wanted to be alone. She was really only telling Seri and Monica. Liz gave her space, not because she wanted to, but still. She didn’t have to worry about Reese at all. She was too busy chasing boys with her annoying friend Lil.