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There was a pause on the other end of the line. Then: "River, do you remember when you and I first met?"
"You mean when you told me to stay off your lab bench?"
Vanessa laughed. "Interactions before ten a.m. don't count. No, I mean after that."
"Yeah," I said, thinking about the evening of the department welcome party.
"And I decided I wanted to sleep with Raheem, and you took me home before I could make a complete ass out of myself?"
I chuckled. "I still can't believe you didn't realize he was gay."
"I knew it; I just didn't want to admit it," Vanessa said brightly. "But you never told a soul, and you even helped me steal his phone and erase the drunk text I sent before he could see it."
"I remember. You were so lucky he was asleep when you sent it."
"Look…” She paused. "All I'm saying is…you can trust me. I know there's something going on, and you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But I just want you to know…I have your back. If you ever need help breaking into someone's apartment and stealing a phone, I'm here for you."
Her words brought tears to my eyes, and I took a deep breath as I blinked them back. "Thanks, V. I will tell you what's going on," I promised, trying to steady my voice. "Just not yet, okay? I need a little more time. And it's probably not something I can tell you over the phone," I added with a weak laugh.
"Okay," she said. "But I'm gonna keep checking in on you, so keep your phone close."
"I will."
"Go get some sleep," she said. "And tell that sexy Italian man I say hi. Oh, and Theo too." I could practically hear her grin.
I closed my eyes and smiled. "I will. Night, V."
I ended the call, surprised to find that even though nothing had changed, I still felt calmer and a little more centered. I stayed on my log for a few more minutes, enjoying the peaceful sound of the rushing water and the hum of night insects, then pushed myself to my feet.
Julian had joined the others around the fire pit, and all three stood as I approached the cabin.
“Are you all right?” Julian’s expression was completely neutral, but his voice was tight.
“I’m fine,” I said. I took in their cautious expressions, and my heart softened a little. If nothing else, at least I wasn't navigating this on my own. “I don’t suppose you came up with anything while I was gone.”
Theo exchanged a glance with Luca. “Well…”
Luca shook his head. “I assure you, Theo, it is far from as simple as that.”
“You don’t know that.” Theo’s jaw jutted stubbornly. “What’s the harm? And it could work.”
“Um, hi.” I waved a hand. “What are we talking about?”
“Theo,” Luca said, “wishes for me to politely ask Lilin to vacate your body.”
“Not you,” Theo corrected. “Abigor.”
“That will not happen.” Luca turned away from the fire pit.
“I mean, we haven’t tried it,” Julian said.
Luca’s head whipped around, an incredulous expression on his face. “Non anche tu.”
Julian shrugged.
Luca rolled his eyes and turned back toward me. “Va bene,” he said. “Lilin, would you kindly just leave River and find somewhere else to go.” He waved both hands around exaggeratedly. “There. Happy?”
Theo’s hand curled into a fist, and for a moment I thought he might actually take a swing at Luca. But then his gaze caught mine, and some of the tension went out of his body.
