All characters are fictional and over 18 years old.
Lily felt Talia's breath on her lips. It was hot, desperate, and laced with rum and cherry lip balm.
"I'm going again. Truth or dare?" Lily interrupted. They didn't touch, but it felt like they were intertwined.
"Truth." The word formed deep in Talia's throat, then fluttered as a whisper from her lips.
"Would you like me to do that to you?" Lily spoke quickly as if she was scared she would stop herself from suggesting the idea. Talia's eyes lit in passion. The hair on her arms stood as a breeze mingled with the erotic suggestion.
"I would do anything for just one night of that," Talia breathed.
"Anything?"
"Everything."
***
"I mean, they have to show up at some point, right?" Lily asked. Her eyes darted between her hiking watch and the blonde woman sitting on a stump next to her.
"Yeah, it's not like Emily to be late to something like this. Do you have her or Kate's location?" Talia looked up after sending a flurry of texts to the late women.
"It says they're both still in the city. Are they answering you?"
"No... hold on, Kate's calling me." Talia put her phone on speaker.
"Where the hell are you? Lily and I've been waiting for an hour," Talia immediately jumped on the offensive.
"I am so sorry, you're not going to believe me but we were loading the car at Emily's house and then BAM -- a truck fucking swerved off the road and went straight into her car. It was nuts, the guy had to have been drunk to hit a parked car in the middle of the day," Kate spoke frantically.
"Holy shit, are you guys ok?" Talia's mouth hung open.
"We're good, no one was hurt. But we're not going to be able to make it up until tomorrow. I'm sorry, I know we had this planned for a while but there's a lot to deal with back here."
"It's ok, listen, Lily and I will head up early and get things settled, that's cool with you, right?" Talia smiled at Lily, who nodded with red cheeks. In truth, she wanted to spend more time alone with Talia but never knew how to initiate it. The four women had been friends since high school, and this was the first time they were all free since they graduated from their respective universities.
"You sure you guys will be ok up there? You have enough food and everything?" Kate asked.
"We're all good, don't worry about it. Just keep me posted on when you're coming up," Emily stood up and adjusted her backpack straps.
"I will, see you soon," Kate hung up the phone.
"Goddamn. There's always something with Kate, isn't there?" Talia popped open the trunk to her car and started packing extra supplies in a bag.
"Remember when she lost her passport in Brussels our junior year? She was so convincing with the airport security that they got her ID'd AND got us an earlier flight," Lily laughed and followed Talia's lead. Their packs were significantly heavier, which would be a challenge for the six mile hike to the Adirondack cabin.
"That was crazy. Hey, listen -- I know I put you on the spot over the phone, I just got excited and didn't want to turn around. I totally understand if you don't want to spend a night alone with me on top of a mountain," Talia said.
Funnily enough, that's exactly what Lily wanted, but she tried to keep her cool.
"Of course, it'll be fun. I don't think we've gotten to hang out like this, just us two, since... well it's been a long time," Lily blushed again, her memories resurfacing as pink spots in her cheeks.
"Too long," the memory surfaced on Talia's cheeks too. Let's get going. Nowhere to go but up."
***
"Just a quick break," Talia panted. Her neck and cheeks were red and slick with sweat. Her blonde hair was back in a loose ponytail and her bangs stuck to her forehead. By now, she had taken her sweatshirt and thermal off, stuffing them into an already over-packed drawstring.
"Super quick," Lily nodded. She dropped her bags and collapsed on a massive rock to the side of the trail. She wore an old tie-dye camp t-shirt and jean shorts, both of which were soaked with sweat and streaked with dirt. She opened her water and took a long pull of cold nectar. "Here," she offered it to Talia, who accepted the offering and drank greedily. The women laid on the smooth rocks, their heads inches apart.
"I'm sorry, I'm sweating through everything right now," Lily wiped her forehead with the top of her shirt. She felt self conscious in front of the beautiful woman, who somehow looked perfect even after two hours of hiking.
"Me too. I wish I could just take it all off," Talia tugged at her tank top. Lily bit her lip, stifling all sorts of lewd thoughts. She got up, stretched her back, and offered a hand to Talia.
"Back to it?"
"Back to it." They got up from their rock and kept trudging up the trail. Despite the summer heat and the heavy bags, it was a beautiful hike. Giant thickets of trees seemed to stretch forever into the sky. Creeks and streams crisscrossed the trail. Birds, squirrels, and other creatures paid the humans no mind while they walked through their domain. Lily adjusted a strap on her bag and broke the tranquility.
"So, tell me about Drew. Are you still planning on moving in with him?" she asked. Talia immediately groaned in response, throwing her head back.
"God, I don't know," she shook her hands to the sky as if to find an answer. "He's just so... I don't know. I love him, I do, but he's just so casual. I've been trying to get him to move in with me for like, a year now. All he says is, 'Yeah, that'd be chill,'" Talia said.
"That sounds infuriating."
"You have no idea. I mean you actually have no idea, I'm beginning to get jealous of your male aversion."
"Well, it's kinda the exact opposite in my corner. Every woman I date wants to become best friends, move in together, and get married within a month," Lily laughed.
"Yeah, well who can blame them? I'd marry you right now if I could," Talia gave her a side smile, her bright green eyes flaring in excitement.
"Oh yeah? You must be desperate."
"You have no idea."
"You keep saying that, but I think I do have an idea. I haven't had something remotely steady since... ever. I'm starting to look at that big tree over there, maybe get some feeling back with that thing," Lily pointed at a particularly large oak.
"If I ever get so horny I want to fuck a tree, I want you to shoot me," Talia laughed. They were quiet for a couple of minutes. The trail was silent, save for the lazy birdsong and Lily's staggered exertion.
"We're actually on a break right now," Talia broke the silence. Lily's heart skipped with her step.
"Are you serious? What happened?"
"He forgot our anniversary. I know it's stupid, but I spent all day waiting for him to say SOMETHING. I had it in my calendar forever, you know how I am, and he didn't realize until he went on his phone and saw my post about it," Talia spat, still in disbelief.
"You know we never liked him, right?" Lily was used to these rants about Drew's apathy towards just about everything.
"Yeah, I know. Feel free to tell me you told me so."
"I'm not gonna do that."
"Hey, it might be your only chance, so take it or leave it," Talia smiled at Lily.
"I FUCKING told you so. You're so beautiful and confident and sure of yourself, and he has the personality of a wet fucking leaf," Lily picked up a leaf and waved it in front of Talia's face. "Why not just break up? Come on, you know how this plays out."
"Enlighten me."
"He's gonna try and fuck a bunch of people, realized no one compares to what he had with you, and then pretend as if he's a changed man. And you're gonna sit on your ass waiting for him to make some giant personality change that we both know he isn't capable of," Lily's voice grew; she was practically shouting into the forest.
"Damn, I guess that's how it is," Talia's face fell a little.
"I'm sorry -- look, I just want to see you happy. I don't mean to tell you what to do."
"No, no. You're right. Fuck him," she kicked a rock into a tree. "If he's gonna go fuck around, so am I. WHO WANTS IT?" Talia shouted up the mountain, spreading her arms wide. Life returned to her eyes and she looked at Lily with a big smile. "No takers out here, I guess."
***
Three years earlier, the women were in a basement absolutely hammered. Talia was organizing a drinking game, rallying dozens of drunken college kids to drink competitively. Kate and Emily were busy hustling overpriced weed to freshmen. Lily leaned against a concrete pillar, her beer bottle dangling between her thumb and forefinger, frozen in intoxication.
"Lily, come play!" Talia urged, holding a red cup with mysterious contents up in the air. Lily shook her head and took a lazy sip from her drink. Talia frowned and left the circle. She took Lily's hand and dragged her up the stairs and into Kate's bedroom. There was a couple sloppily making out in the corner.
"Get outta here, my friend's gonna hurl," Talia shouted. The couple looked at Lily and bolted out the door. "Sorry about that, they didn't look like they were gonna move anytime soon."
"It's ok, you might be right," Lily felt her head pound.
"Here," Talia passed Lily a water bottle. "You ok? I was losin' you there for a second."
