Double Booked

Heavy, dark clouds loomed along the horizon, threatening more storms. Nora bit her lip as she watched out the front window, thinking a few nights back to her and Sidney trying to stay occupied during the power outage and getting drunk instead. She hoped if it did storm, the power would at least hold on.

The door behind her creaked open and she glanced over her shoulder to see Sidney step out from the bathroom, freshly showered with a faint cloud of steam chasing him out. A pair of flannels hung low on his waist, leaving his chiseled upper half on display. A sweatshirt hung over his thick arm - obviously he hadn’t gotten around to putting that on just yet.

“I think it’s gonna storm again,” she said for the sake of conversation. Things weren’t awkward between them now, but they were definitely different. Like finally confirming what was happening between them had thrown them off course.

He crossed the cabin in a few long strides and leaned close to get a good look out the window. Whatever body wash he’d used in the shower smelled amazing, alluring - it was all Nora could do to keep from leaning in for a better whiff.

“Looks like it,” he agreed. One arm hung casually against the wall while the other rested on his hip. “Should we hide the alcohol before the power goes out?” He rose an eyebrow at her and smirked.

Before Nora could think of a clever retort, the first rumble of thunder sounded in the distant. She felt her eyes widen; a thrill tingled up her spine. For as much rain as they’d gotten these past few days, she would have thought she’d be sick of seeing more storm clouds. Instead, she retreated from the window with a smile on her lips.

“Where you going?” Sidney asked, his arm dropping to his side.

“You’ll see,” she told him, grabbing an armful of blankets. “C’mon!”

---

Nora had drug him outside, much to his reluctance. He’d just gotten out of the shower - why would he want to go back into one? But she’d only lead him as far as the deck, where the roof’s overhang would block them from the rain’s path.

Once the storm had finally hit, he knew why she’d brought him out here. The rain brought a refreshing breeze and a clean scent. Lightning would flash every so often. Sometimes it was forked, making Nora ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’ at it. The thunder would make them both jump - it sounded so much louder out here, with no walls to dampen its impact. But the closest they came to direct contact with the storm were a few rogue raindrops that would barely stain the thick blanket over their feet. Other than that, they were in their own little observation bubble. Like they were trespassing on nature.

Nora sat huddled up beside him. Her legs - draped in the flannel blanket they shared - were pulled up to her chest with her arms wrapped around them. She wore a heavy, dark grey sweatshirt that was a few sizes too large for her. Her damp, blonde hair fell in stringy tangles over one shoulder and her face was free of makeup.

Careful not to over think his actions, he let a hand go around her waist to pull her closer. It wasn’t cold out, but it was chilly enough for some close contact to aid in warming up. Part of him was nervous doing this, because he didn’t take enough time to gauge what her reaction would be. They’d never really talked about what was supposed to happen after the kissed. And maybe that’s how it was supposed to be - maybe that’s how summer flings like this work.

He’d never really given what they had a title before either. Summer fling. Felt like back in high school, finding a girl while he was away from home at camps, falling madly in love for a week before returning home and pretending like it had never happened. He found himself hoping that wouldn’t be how it would end this time around.

He tried not to smile as her head fell onto his shoulder and her body curled against his. God, it felt good. It’d been a while since he’d been able to enjoy the closeness of a girl without having to watch her leave the room with disheveled hair and rumpled clothes an hour later.

“I’m happy you stayed,” Nora said softly after a comfortable silence. He felt her voice vibrate against him, felt the words work their way into him and tug in all sorts of places.

Slowly, though not cautiously this time, he turned his head and pressed his lips to her strawberry-scented hair. “Me, too.”

---

This first thing to wake Nora the next morning was the throbbing stiffness in her back. She hadn’t realized they’d both fallen asleep out on the deck until now. God, they were sure starting to make a habit of falling asleep on hard wood flooring.

Sidney was still asleep beside her, his light snores the only thing louder than the creatures busying themselves in nature. The birds sang, bees buzzed. Through squinty eyes, she could see their only neighbor’s horses grazing in a pasture far in the distance. Every so often, she’d catch a playful whinny from one.

As quietly as she could - which proved to be hard, considering how the stiffness in her muscles made her want to groan out in pain - she untangled herself from the blanket and slowly rose into a standing position. After she’d worked all the creaks and cracks out of her joints, she found the front door and let herself inside.

---

Waking up under a slightly damp blanket outside by himself was a little troubling for Sidney when he first woke up. His brow crinkled in confusion as he tried to piece together what had gotten him there in the first place. He remembered sitting out here with Nora last night during the storm, but had they fallen asleep out here, too? And if so, where was Nora?

His question was answered a few seconds later when the front door opened and Nora stepped out with two mugs of coffee in her hands. “Sore?” she asked, taking her time as she sat down beside him. Their view had taken a complete 180 from the night before - instead of dark clouds and rain, they had greenery so bright it almost hurt to look at.

He nodded and took the mug of coffee. The throbbing in his lower back became increasingly noticeable the longer he stayed sitting up. What was with the two of them and falling asleep on hard flooring, anyway?

Nora pulled out a large chunk of her brochures from her sweatshirt pocket and began sifting through them. “What do you want to do today?” she asked, throwing a good chunk of them in his direction. He had realized it was an unspoken truth now that decided they were on this vacation together. He picked up his share of brochures and began looking through them, as well.

Nora flipped through hers quickly. “Reptile Gardens, Bear Country, Cosmos…” she listed off, acknowledging most of them without much interest.

“What about this?” Sidney asked, holding up a flyer for ‘Wild Bill Hickok Days’ up in Deadwood.

Nora grabbed it and looked it over. “Looks fun,” she said, still looking over the flyer. Her eyebrows rose as they traveled further down the page. “It says they have free concerts,” she noticed aloud, her eyes still skimming the page. They must have found something that they really liked after that, because she bit her lip excitedly and looked his way.

“Rick Springfield? Count me in.”