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“Stop.”
“It’s fun.”
“Don’t –”
Iara doesn’t listen to me. She runs to the cliff and dives off.
A desperate scream I don’t even recognize as coming from me rings out in the cold air as I run to the edge. I see her spread her wings and start the long glide down into the valley.
Wait, wings?
I wake up and slowly realize that I was dreaming. And that I’m freezing. I grab the edges of the sleeping bag and pull them together. The mouth of the cave is flooded with light, and I squint. What time is it? And where is she?
I fumble around for my comm. When Iara and I bedded down together, I skipped my usual before-sleep ritual of double-checking and repacking my gear. Now I feel completely unorganized. But it was totally worth it.
When I see the time, I groan. It’s probably good she’s gone. If I had her warm, soft body crushed up against me, it would make it that much harder to get up. I think I would stay in this tentwith her for days if she let me. Which she wouldn’t. She’s way too competitive.
I smile as I get up and look around for my clothes. What would she say if I suggested we hang back and just have a real day of rest? And by rest, I mean sex. Just sex, no actual resting.
I find my stuff folded in a neat pile. She must have done that. Sweet, but unnecessary. I have enough fresh clothes for today. I put the old ones on anyway. If she was nice enough to fold them for me, I guess I can be nice enough to wear them.
I stick my head out. Iara is sitting on a rock, sipping from a metal cup. I can’t help but notice how good she looks.
“Morning.”
“Hi.”
I come out of the tent and stretch out. My muscles don’t really want to wake up, not yet. I take a deep breath and realize I’m actually quite relaxed.
Must have been the sex,I think.
“Do you want some food?”
I walk over to the fire. “You packed up already.” I nod towards her tidy pile of belongings.
“Sorry, you were sleeping. I didn’t want to wake you,” she replies sheepishly.
“You didn’t have to wait for me.”
“I’m not. You want some?”
She hands me the pot without waiting for an answer. I use the spoon in it, probably the same one she used. I kind of wish I could taste her on it, that the metal could have held some residue of flavor from her. The mush – there’s no other word for it – is not half bad.
“You made this?” I ask. She nods. “Did you find all this stuff around here?” Another nod.
“I know plants. I was kind of a plant geek—”
“Geek?”
“It means, kind of awkwardly overly interested in something.”
“Ah.” I nod. “I guess that makes me a mountain geek, maybe. But this is good, thanks.”
When I’m done eating, she offers to help me pack up while I check my gear. I can’t really say no.Don’t give her the wrong impression,I tell myself. We are not mates. At least not willingly.
On the other hand, sex during the competition is not unheard of. It doesn’t mean anything.
When Iara has helped as much as she can, she picks up her backpack.
