“No. No. Aunt Cece does it much better. Try it like this.” She suddenly opens her mouth and shrieks, which explains the noise we heard downstairs.
Cosmos imitates the sound at half volume before he notices me watching from the doorway. The little girl follows his gaze and spots me as well. If Cosmos hadn’t told me that his niece was Julia’s daughter, I’d still know. She looks so much like her mom. Short bobbed straight dark hair, thin lips, green eyes and a pert little nose that tilts up at the end.
“We’re learning the mating call of the cicada,” she says.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard a child use the word mating before. “Well, it sounds very convincing.”
Cosmos winks at me. “I’m an expert at irresistible mating calls.”
I laugh, and the little girl wrinkles her nose.
Cosmos hops to his feet. “Riley, this is Miss Hazel.”
“Is she your girlfriend?” Riley asks with almost no inflection.
Cosmos looks at me, and time stops around us. “How do you want me to answer?” He pauses for a breath, stepping close, his eyes searching mine. “Because personally, I want to say hell yes.”
Relief is a drug, making me relax and soar at the same time. I love that he’s so unembarrassed about admitting what he feels and what he wants. Normally, it would freak me out. I’d want to keep things casual and unofficial for a while before adding the pressure of a title. But being with Cosmos makes me want to say hell yes, too. All I manage is a nod.
We look away from each other.
“Yep, this is my girlfriend.” Cosmos stands, crosses the room, and slides his arm around my waist, pulling me to his side. The movement is more natural than it should be, considering it’s the first time he’s ever done it. But it feels right. And reassuring. Like two puzzle pieces snapping together.
Riley tilts her head and squints at me. “You’re not as pretty as I thought you’d be.”
Apparently, the whole family knew he was interested in me before I did, and I can’t say I’m completely comfortable with that.
“Your lips are thin, and your ears are a little big. You have nice eyes, but I don’t see how they’re magic.”
I swing my head toward Cosmos. He rubs his cheek and doesn’t look at me.
“When exactly did your uncle tell you about me?” I ask, trying to keep my tone casual.
“Hmmm.” Riley tilts her head, contemplating for a few seconds. “It was before the school play and afterour field trip, so I guess almost a month ago.” She stands up and steps uncomfortably close. “Maybe if I look more closely, then I’ll see the magic.” She tugs at my wrist to get me to bend down, so she can grab my face in both her hands and look in my eyes.
Cosmos and I will definitely have a conversation about this later. I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be telling people what we can do. For starters, most people won’t believe us. They’ll think we’re batshit crazy. And if they do believe us, won’t they want to study us or something? It seems like something the government would want to study, use, and monetize. No, thank you.
Hopefully, his niece is the only one he told about the time-stopping thing. But I have a growing suspicion that’s not the case.
“Sorry to disappoint, Riley. But my eyes aren’t magic.” I try to soften the blow and distract her from whatever her uncle told her by adding, “It is pretty miraculous that our eyes can do all that they do, though, taking in information from the world, letting us see a cicada.” Riley seems like the type of girl to be won over by science. I squat down, so I’m kneeling on the floor with her. “Did you know our eyes see everything upside down and then flip it back around?”
“It’s actually our brains that flip the images,” Riley says matter-of-factly. I can’t decide whether I should be embarrassed to be corrected by an seven-year-old, or impressed. I decided to be impressed.
“Well, they’re amazing, none the less.” I pull mypurse around so I can reach the gift I brought for her. “I brought you something.”
Her smile starts slowly, on just one side of her face, and then spreads.
“Open it,” Cosmos prompts, and I get the impression that he’s just as eager to see what it is as she is. It’s clear he loves her very much.
Riley unwraps the dinosaur book I’d brought. It’s full of interesting facts and beautiful pictures. As soon as I saw it, I thought it’d be perfect for a dinosaur lover.
“I have this one,” she says curtly. “Besides, I’ve decided insects are cooler than dinosaurs. They’re like dinosaurs that are still living. Some scientists just figured out that tarantulas were around all the way back in the Cretaceous period.” She points to the terrarium on the table along the wall, and for the first time I realize there’s a giant tarantula in it. “That’s Mr. Harry. MooMoo lets me bring him here when she watches me. You should have gotten me a book about tarantulas.”
The little eight legged monster skitters closer to the glass like it knows we’re talking about it. My skin starts to crawl, and my palms sweat.
“Riley,” Cosmos says with a bit of authority sneaking into his tone. “That was rude. Thank Hazel for the gift.”
I stand up and take a step back, trying not to look at the tarantula, which just makes me more anxious. If I don’t look at it, I won’t know if the monster somehow gets out.
