Hi! Welcome back for Chapter Three of Someone Borrowed, Someone Blue. If you're new to this series I strongly recommend you start with Chapter One because, not gonna lie, I'm too lazy to write a recap. Get the full experience! It's fun, doesn't cost anything.
If you're a returning reader thank you so much for following this tale. This chapter got written much more quickly than expected (not much else to do when you've got a positive Covid test, right?) and I will do my best to get the final chapter up as soon as possible (but not as rapidly as this one, sorry). As always please leave a rating if you enjoyed your read and comments are always encouraged as well. Thanks again!
TW: depression is a discussed issue, and some characters engage in hate speech.
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I wadded up my erstwhile tissue and flicked a finger toward the windshield. "Is that the hotel?"
Her head bobbed as we moved in that direction. The place looked pretty big - at least ten or fifteen stories - while nothing else around it appeared to broach more than four. "Yeah. Sticks out, right? After they got it built they manipulated the zoning board to forbid any new structures topping five stories. Nice way to limit competition, although land around here is cheap enough to allow others to sprawl horizontally." Tapping her chin, she added, "That info might be slightly out of date, of course."
I made a noncommittal grunt, using it to clear the lump in my throat. Between talking about my issues and learning that Tish was moving three thousand miles away, I felt as if I'd gone ten rounds with Mike Tyson. "S-so if we're not staying at the venue, where are we rooming? Bates Motel?"
That earned me a good laugh. "Nah, they were all booked up. We're in a place on the lake."
"There's a lake?"
"It's Pennsylvania, of course there's a lake. It's man-made like most of them, but a lake's a lake."
"Cool." I sniffed again, but the waterworks in my head appeared to have relented for the time being. "We have time to go for a swim in the lake, man-made or not?"
"Time? Yes? Will we? No." She smirked. "You're with a local, kid. There are much better places to swim around here."
"I choose to trust you," I said, as we motored through town and past the hotel - it was called 'The Gauthier' which I suppose is a bit pretentious but it works for the Hiltons, so why not? The town became more residential for the most part, although there was an authentic-looking dive bar on the corner of the road we turned onto. Tish parked in the driveway of the last house before the street ended in a cul-de-sac, a little blue Cape Cod with white trim and a tattered Penn State flag stirring in the gentle breeze. After rubbing her hands together with what I assumed to be glee, Tish grabbed my shoulders and gave me a solid shaking. "We're here and we don't have to go to the crappy wedding yet! Fun! C'mon!"
With that she popped out of her side of the SUV and headed up the front walk, pausing to move an old-timey milk jug to reveal a key hidden beneath it. Scrambling to follow, I caught up with her as she pushed open the front door to reveal a very cozy and well-appointed living room. She continued on, with me following, until she passed through an updated kitchen and out a pair of sliding glass doors to reveal a deck overlooking a good-sized lake. Wooden stairs led down to a small patch of sand at the water's edge.
"Not bad, right?" She sucked in a deep breath. "I mean, I'd rather be at the ocean because it smells so good but at least this is better than Bridgeport."
I nodded, stepping up to stand beside her. "It's very pretty. But why can't we swim in it? Pollution?"
She rolled her eyes. "No, because it's boring. It's just a lake! And the nearest float isn't far enough away for a good swim."
"Not far enough away?" By my estimate it was a good half a mile from the shore. Why anyone would put one that far out was beyond me but given the size - it looked pretty big - maybe it was a place to dock as well? "You part dolphin?"
"Maybe part sexy dolphin. Is that a thing?" She frowned. "I'm not sure that's a thing but then again, Rule 34. So, let's get unloaded, changed, and off to a much better place to swim." She held her hand up for a high-five. "Before the debacle, swimming. So sayeth me."
I gave the expected response and the next few minutes consisted of us hauling stuff in, including a selection of beers Tish referred to as 'crucial post-nuptial liquid therapy' that went into the fridge. She claimed the master bedroom, which was dominated by a four-poster king size bed, while I took what appeared to be the only other bedroom. The house felt much more like a home than a rental. "Hey, what gives with this place?" I raised my voice a bit so she could hear me in the other bedroom. "I feel like we're breaking in someone's home while the owners are in Morocco or something."
"It is a home - I mean, there's a family that lives here most of the time but they're in Spain on vacation and were happy to get some income while they're gone." There was a pause. "Don't trash the place."
"Sorry, you knew I was an anarchist when you hired me as your wedding stud." After hanging my suit in the closet I tossed my duffle bag on the twin-sized bed. "So, which bathing suit? You prefer a neon Speedo, or should I go full Borat?"
"I'm going to assume you're kidding and ignore you."
"Right, skinny-dipping is the better option." I pulled out my bathing suit, which was a pair of boardshorts I'd gotten in hopes it would encourage me to try surfing. No luck there so far.
"Still ignoring you. Your bandage is water-proof, right? Also, bring a shirt, towel, and shoes that aren't flip-flops. There's some walking."
"I thought we were swimming?"
Her sigh was audible from rooms away. "First walking, then swimming. Well, first driving, then walking, then swimming. Just get dressed already, you goof."
A few minutes later found us in the living room, Tish clad in some sort of coverall wrap that left everything but her ankles and face to the imagination. She gave me the once over. "The Speedo was a bluff? Disappointing. C'mon, let's go do this so we have enough time to get ready for the wedding."
"Good thinking. My makeup takes forever."
"Keep it up and you'll need concealer to hide your raccoon eyes."
"Don't threaten me with a good time, Tish."
She shook her head, doing her best to suppress a smile. "Let's go."
A ten minute drive found us away from the lake, up a mountain, and parking in an open space in front of a chained-off road. Two other cars and a couple of bicycles were also in the makeshift lot. A faded sign on the chain warned against trespassing with dire consequences that were no longer legible. All around us were leafy trees and the cacophony of summer insects doing their thing. I could already feel the itching from the pending mosquito bites.
Tish hopped out, grabbed her beach bag, and motioned for me to follow. We stepped over the chain and began following the remains of an asphalt road that was dwindling to pathway-size as the forest continued a slow but inexorable reclamation. The overhead canopy made it difficult to see the sky.
I swatted at something that buzzed near my ear. "If you're going to kill me and dump my body I would prefer the ocean, if possible. I like the thought of crabs fighting over my carcass."
"Why on earth would I kill you *before* the wedding? That defeats the whole purpose of bringing you." She gave me a lazy smile. "Although this would be an ideal location for both murder and body disposal."
"What does that mean - oh. I see." We rounded a corner to discover what I assumed to be an abandoned quarry. It was a huge hole in the ground I couldn't currently see the bottom of, partially carved out of the face of the mountain, so I'm not sure what else it could have been. As we drew closer there was an excited cry from a figure across the way who plummeted out of our range of vision. Since there was a splash as opposed to a splat I assumed it was filled with water, a deduction confirmed as we drew near the closest edge. A rough ramp wound down one side, while the diver - divee? - emerged unscathed, sitting down next to a pair of people on a large, flat ledge. Four others, all dripping, were ascending a makeshift ladder up the side of the wall above the platform. It all looked terribly dangerous and wonderfully fun at the same time.
Tish let me gawk for a few more moments before giving me a nudge and jerking her head toward the wide pathway. "C'mon. Try not to die, it's a bitch getting a coroner's van up here."
I knew she was joking but the way down was unsettling - it might have been a ramp designed for heavy trucks at one time but now it was a pitted and uneven decline, with footing smooth and uncertain. I heaved a little sigh of relief when we reached the bottom, Tish throwing a disinterested wave at the teenagers sitting on the other end. I craned my neck to look up at the mountain climbers - had to be at least thirty feet to the top, which they were close to. Seconds later I stifled a shriek as cold water splashed my legs, and I whirled to find a grinning Tish on one knee at the slab's ledge.
"Must have rained here recently - surface water always gets colder. Need it by the end of the summer as it gets a bit too warm, if you can imagine that." She stood up, flicking extra drops from her fingers as she looked around. "Lots of good memories here. Thanks for coming with, although it would have been better to have the place to ourselves."
I shrugged, feeling the sun's rays beating down on my head and shoulders. "I was promised a superlative swimming experience," I said, moving next to her and peering at the water. "Why isn't it, uhm, scummier? This is like a bucket made of stone, no?"
She shook her head, blue tips whirling around. "This was both a quarry and a mine, evidently, and when they sealed the mine up they did a crappy job. It leaks, and up there-" she pointed to a distant corner - "is a stream that comes down the mountain and empties in here. So there's a flow, of sorts." Her face got serious for a moment. "Be careful, though, because it's pretty deep. Like sixty, seventy feet. The road that the trucks used to take is still there, just underwater." She gestured toward the top of the ladder. "That's important to know before you jump."
"Before I-" I was interrupted by a healthy yell and looked up in time to see someone come hurtling over the edge, limbs flailing as they hit the water both away from the wall and the slab itself. They surfaced a moment later with a hoot, brushing back long dark hair before swimming over towards us. Three others followed in rapid succession. None of them appeared to die, which made me feel a tiny bit better.
