"Does your brother often do that?" Dwayne asked Elizabeth, glancing down at her as they walked. There was a note of disapproval in his voice and she found herself wanting to defend her stupid brother but also pleased by the way Dwayne was looking out for her.
It was an odd if not unwelcome feeling.
He wasn't unfriendly, none of them were but he was certainly not as open and lively as Paul had been. With the perky blonde, it felt like friendship right away and she hadn't felt like that the the other three. Polite, welcoming and nice but not wildly friendly.
She thought it was nice that he was talking with her.
She'd honestly thought it would be a bit of an uncomfortable trip back to her house, not that she wasn't thankful for the ride. She just thought it would be a bit impersonal.
"You mean does he often stay out with girls?" she replied, not fully understanding what he meant and still slightly surprised, pleasantly caught off guard by his words.
She was hopeful for it but hadn't really been expecting much conversation from him.
"Ditch you" Dwayne said simply, before apologizing at the flash of hurt on her face, "I didn't mean it to sound like that"
"No, no it's OK. No harm" she assured him, moving a little to let someone walk by.
She felt his jacket against her arm as she did.
They might as well call a spade a spade. That's exactly what Michael had done, "but in his defense he's never done that before. I guess he's really into Star?"
It was strangely nice, strangely comforting to be feel somewhat protected by him.
He nodded.
He was taller than her, comfortably so, and she found herself walking closely beside him. Like the others, he could seemingly navigate the crowds with ease whereas she was destined to bump, smack and bash into people.
She really had thought that Dwayne was friendly but similar to David rather than Paul or even Marko; friendly yet cool. However, he had easily guided her gently past the thickening crowd, his arm fleetingly touching her back when the crowd was particularly dense. He was softer than she originally thought.
She glanced up at him.
They passed a small but loud gaggle of girls. As one of the drunk girls dry wretched over the railing of the boardwalk, two of her friends drunkenly rubbed her back and tried to hold her hair. She had been vomiting down and into the sand rather than ocean, the ocean was much further out. That would be an unpleasant reminder of the evening's activities the next morning when families arrived with their kids.
Looking away from the cluster of girls, she wondered a little as to why Michael's head was in such a twist.
"Honestly, I've never seen Michael act like this over a girl" she confided with a small shrug, continuing their small talk.
She remembered Michael's eagerness to see Star, then her coolness, then their hot dance.
It felt good to mention it to someone, good to talk to Dwayne about it. She was sure that she would have felt the same with the others, after all, Sammy had been so focused on Michael's weird behavior and she'd thought about it a little herself. It was nice to have someone to talk to.
Probably because he's impartial, Elizabeth told herself, he doesn't have the same level of investment as Sammy does. It's nothing to do with him..
She snuck another sideways glance at him, a small smile playing on her lips.
Maybe it's because he's so handsome...she corrected herself.
Dwayne extended his arm, letting her pass first through a narrow exit and she tried to hide her smile, "well, he seemed to be having fun at least" came his reply.
Elizabeth wondered for a second.
Sure, Michael seemed happy but did Star?
All thoughts of her brother left her when they emerged onto a busy but wide avenue lined with shops, restaurants and cafes.
Dwayne was leading a decent distance ahead of her despite how close they had been just a few moments before and she stopped for a moment, watching him.
As he approached what appeared to be his bike, she shook her head, walking slowly over towards him, "...that's yours?"
She couldn't help but raise her eyebrows.
So this is what Sammy meant when he made the comment about serious bikes.
It was a beautiful piece of machinery, she could tell that even with her disinterest in all things mechanical.
It was parked alongside three others in differing colors and she briefly wondered which boy matched which bike. One things was clear, however: none of them cared too much about the rules. They were parked confidently, almost challengingly under a 'NO PARKING' sign.
"Yeah" he sat down gracefully on the bike and smiled at her. He looked almost playful now, "what? Is there a problem?"
"Am I safe?" she asked, a worried but excited smile gracing her features.
Dwayne laughed and she found herself delighted by the sound, "OK, I wasn't expecting something that blunt to come from your mouth"
"What does that mean?" she asked him with a big smile now.
She took a few more steps towards the bike.
Towards him.
"You've been pretty polite all night" he told her easily enough, eyes dancing.
"What's wrong with polite?"
"Nothing, nothing. I just thought maybe you were too polite" he shrugged loftily, as if that was the worst thing someone could be and held his hand to her, "I promise, you're safe"
Elizabeth grinned, butterflies suddenly dancing in her stomach, "too polite? Coming from Mr Polite-but-Stoic?" she challenged, wondering where their playfulness..no, their flirting had come from.
She liked it.
Dwayne dropped his hand and laughed a little, "touché"
Elizabeth smiled at him, looking directly into his dark eyes this time, incredibly glad that she had come to the boardwalk that night.
She couldn't put her finger on it but she felt the promise of something.
Something wonderful.
Something amazing with the boys, something with the man before her.
Dwayne once again fully extended his hand and this time Elizabeth took it, sure of herself.
She could tell that he had a powerful grip, there was unmistakable strength in his masculine hands but his touch was gentle. As his fingers curled around hers, she smiled to herself, accepting his help.
"Hold on tight" he warned her.
As she slid behind him, she settled herself.
She'd ridden with Michael before but this..it felt different.
Dwayne was..she felt herself blushing a little..he was so masculine. So big and powerful and-
-he revved the engine once.
"Please don't kill me!" she implored with a laugh, and he grinned widely. He nodded to reassure her and she continued, "My house is-"
"-I know" Dwayne said over his shoulder and she tilted her head before he added a quick, "..Michael told us yesterday"
She looked at his profile, noting just how handsome he was.
Taking a breath, she moved her hands around his middle and shuffled closer to him.
She felt self-conscious, nervous but excited.
He murmured something to her again about holding tight and, at her nod, he revved the bike to life once more.
She moved closer.
Within seconds, the boardwalk and its flashing lights were nothing but a blur.
The ride was exhilarating and Elizabeth laughed in delight as the wind whipped her hair.
Dwayne had driven relatively slowly until they broke free of the busy roads.
He sped up slightly and, as she began laughing with enjoyment, he increased his speed some more.
She held on to him tightly, awash with pure exhilaration.
When they reached the drive to her house, slowly and more sedately, she briefly noticed that all the lights were off and she felt like their ride had come to an end all too soon.
She tried to hide the wave of disappointment that had washed over her.
She could do that forever.
As Dwayne shut the bike off, the house loomed silently before them.
Everyone must have still been out.
With shaky legs, she slid off his bike, using his offered hand as support. She took a moment to gather herself and Dwayne observed her with thoughtful eyes.
Her cheeks were flushed pink, the tip of her nose, too.
Her hair was windswept and wild and her breasts heaved with each deep breath.
"I wasn't expecting you to go so fast" she laughed at him, happiness and adrenaline practically pouring from her.
"Rude of me to ignore your screams of terror" he said sarcastically with a grin. Studying her face with an intensity that had butterflies dancing from her stomach, he leaned forward, resting on his handlebars, "did you have fun?"
"So much fun - I didn't say it was a bad thing" she faced him fully "do you always ride that fast?"
"Faster. I'll show you one day" he promised easily and she nodded eagerly.
She would love that.
He looked at her house, the dark windows still looming emptily, "you're sure you're OK?"
"I'm sure everyone will get home soon or they're probably already sleeping" she said with a little wave of her hand "thank you for the ride. It was really kind of you. I..I really did have blast"
Her breathing was still a little uneven.
She smiled up at him, wondering what else there was to say, not quite believing that she had gone to the boardwalk with her brother and left with the sparks of friendship.
More than friendship?
She smiled again.
No. That was crazy...was it?
She smiled and glanced at her house.
"I'll see you again soon" Dwayne said, another easy promise.
Again, she nodded happily. He started his bike, the powerful machine purring into action.
With another smile, a smile she felt sure was just for her, he began moving down the drive.
She watched him go, only moving towards the house when he was out of sight.
She opened the door and couldn't seem to stop smiling.
She felt good.
She felt amazing.
Putting her house key in a small bowl on the antique cabinet near the door, her eyebrows raised a little when she saw hers was the only one. She'd thought at least Sammy and Grandpa would be home sleeping.
"Hah, dirty stop outs" she kicked off her shoes, "Nanook?" she called and heard a dull thud as the husky, she imagined, jumped down from Sam's bed. Nudging her shoes neatly to the side, she padded into the kitchen, flicking on a table light as she pulled down a tub of biscuits from the top cupboard. Grandpa had shown it to her on the promise she didn't tell her brothers. There was a selection of cream, jam and chocolate biscuits and some rich, crumbly chocolate chip cookies.
What a night, she thought, taking a bite of a thick, vanilla cream filled biscuit.
It had felt so wonderful to be sitting behind Dwayne.
His body was so powerful and when he smiled, when he laughed and broke a little from his serious exterior she felt like it was a secret, something just for her.
She shook her head.
She hoped she could see him again.
She wanted to see him again.
The kitchen door was nudged open and she glanced behind her, readying herself to give Nanook a big cuddle but she paused.
Something was wrong.
Nanook was tensed, his tail high and his fur bristling.
He entered the room slowly.
"Wha…Nanook? Hey. Hey boy…" Elizabeth said uncertainly.
The dog barked and Elizabeth jumped.
He stalked into the room, growling lowly.
"Nanook" Elizabeth tried to coo, keeping her voice friendly, trying to keep the shake from it "Nanook. Hey, it's me…?"
The dog growled lowly again before pausing, sniffing. His body relaxed a little and he took another step forward, tentatively this time. She slowly extended her arm, offering her hand for the dark-eyed dog to sniff. He did so cautiously, "Nanook? What's gotten into you?" she asked quietly. He began sniffing fast, his cool nose moving around her fingers, into her palm, up her arm.
His tail started to wag and he moved in to rub against her legs in a brief, apologetic move.
Crouching down, she petted him lightly, "You scared me"
Nanook, who pretty much exclusively enjoyed Sam's attention, shook himself off and walked out of the room.
"Jesus" she muttered, realizing that she had been sweating.
Nanook was a big dog.
Keeping the lamp on as a kindness for the four missing Emersons, she moved from the kitchen and headed to the family bathroom.