61
I drive to First Beach and pull up in the parking lot, telling her what scanty Quileute history of the landmarks I can remember.
"Can we get out of the car?" she asks when I'm done.
"Sure, if you want to." The light is changing, pale pinks and oranges washing over the grey-blue of the sky.
We walk along the beach, picking over the driftwood that litters it.
"I know all about you and Izzy," Marie tells me, breaking the silence. "We're pretty close. She told me everything that happened when you were at school."
"Really?" I ask.
"She said she was a class-A bitch to you."
"Did she give you the details of that?" I ask.
"She told me a lot of stuff."
"Everything?"
"How would I know? I wasn't there!" She laughs and shoves me with her shoulder.
"I don't really want to talk about the past. She's not that girl anymore."
"Uh-oh. I guess I hit a nerve."
"You have no idea." I stare out at the sea.
"It can't have been all that bad if you're still friends," she says, as I turn and catch her watching me.
"Yeah, I can see why you'd think that, but trust me, it was."
She laughs.
"What?" I ask.
"I don't know what to think of you," she says, tucking her hair behind her ears. "You're quiet one minute and flirty the next, laughing then deadly serious, friends with my cousin but then telling me how awful she was to you." She shakes her head but the smile remains. "You're kind of fascinating."
I stop walking and Marie carries on for a couple of steps, then turns. She's watching me expectantly and finally laughs, throwing her arms up in the air.
"You see? What are you doing now?"
"Kind of fascinating?"
"Yes! Don't over-think it; come on." She turns and walks away and I follow.
Half way along the beach, Marie sits down on an old washed-up tree trunk. I drop down beside her, watching the birds wheel around in the sky.
"I left my jacket in Izzy's car," she says, shifting along so her arm is pressed against mine.
"Let's head back if you're cold," I say, my own exposed arms feeling the chill too.
"It's so nice here, I want to stay a while." She pouts and I laugh.
"Does that face usually gets you your own way," I say. She drops it and grins at me.
"Of course."
"How did I guess?"
"Would you keep me warm?" she asks cheekily.
"I … uh …."
She cracks up laughing.
"I only meant like this!" She pulls my arm around her shoulder and moves in as close to me as she can. It feels nice. And completely wrong.
"Marie." I sigh and begin to move. She catches the hand that drapes over her shoulder and holds it in place.
"Edward, relax. This is literally only about shared body heat. Trust me."
I do as she says and try to relax, but even though I'm not technically doing anything wrong, I know Izzy would be upset if she saw us like this. The guilt I feel about her sits heavily in my stomach.
"What are you and Izzy now?" she asks, when we've sat in silence for a while. "To one another, I mean."
"I don't know," I murmur, my arm still sitting across her shoulders, and my fingers absentmindedly playing with her hand where she still holds onto me. "We're two steps forward and three back. A fairy-tale ending or a disaster waiting to happen. Take your pick, because I have no idea."
~S~