Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

After one missed turn and the constant dodging of critters that scurried right in front of my moving car, the Subaru pulled up in front of a simple log-style cabin. This was just about as remote as you could get. My headlights illuminated a generator that sat beside the structure and a basin that collected rainwater for the cabin. Luckily we’d have toilets that flushed into a septic tank, but that was it for modern conveniences. For years now Northwind University had managed this cabin that served as the research base for graduate students studying the forest, and judging by the state of things, it had seen its fair share of students. Grabbing my two bags, I made my way up the gravel sidewalk to the front door of the cabin.

Surrounded by evergreens, the air had the scent of pine. I took a deep breath before climbing the stairs that led to an oversized porch with two rocking chairs. Overgrown plants climbed up the porch, covering the railings and some of the wood planks in purple flowers. As I lifted my hand to grab the door, someone flung it wide open, letting a musty smell out of the cabin. The screech of a small female as she grabbed me in an embrace bombarded my senses. Unable to use my arms because of the bags I was holding, I awkwardly stood there, my face smothered by her curly blonde hair.

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! I’m so glad you’re here! I’m so glad you’re a girl! There’s a guy here already, and I was so worried that I’d be the only girl. Can you imagine? The bathroom would be a war zone.” The woman let go of me, and I finally got a look at her face. She was a petite girl with petite features. Her curly blonde hair framed her face and fell just past her shoulders. Her blue designer sweat suit matched her eyes, although her eyes were lighter.

“I’m Jenny. Leo, the guy, is in his room unpacking. I think he said he was from Canada? I don’t know,” she said, barely pausing to take a breath. “I’ve just been so excited since I got here. I’m having trouble focusing.”

Setting my bags down, I looked around the interior of the cabin. Simply constructed, it was the epitome of rustic . A small kitchen with a stove, oven, and refrigerator opened to a cozy living room with a fireplace. The living room had minimal furniture, only two couches and a coffee table. Shelves stuffed with books lined the walls on either side of the fireplace. I walked over and ran my fingers along the spines. Most were local topics ranging from flora and fauna to tourist destinations. Jenny vibrated in the small space with a smile on her face as she watched me explore.

The light in the cabin came from the fireplace and the few electric lanterns scattered around the room. A small round table had been placed between the kitchen and the living room, surrounded by four wooden chairs. I could see myself having my breakfast at the table before setting out to explore for the day. Instead of art on the walls, pieces of iron hung as decoration. Some were twisted and manipulated into artistic swirls. Others looked like rudimentary weapons with points that had once been sharp and blades that would have been deadly had orange rust not formed on them.

Stepping back—and feeling thankful for my mother’s insistence that I keep up to date on my tetanus shots—I turned to the only part I had yet to explore, a narrow hallway in the back.

“Sorry, but you get the last room,” Jenny said, following my eyeline. I picked up my bags and followed the bouncing blonde through the living room and down the hallway. The first room to my right had the door open and was already decorated with pink bedding, and the closet was already full of mostly pink clothes.

“My friends all say I’m obsessed with pink, but I just like to wear what makes me happy!” Motioning to her blue sweat suit, she said, “This is about the only thing I have that doesn’t have the color pink somewhere on it.”

Across the hall was a small bathroom with a simple sink, toilet, and shower.

A couple of steps later, we paused at another room on the left side of the hallway. The door stood cracked open, and I could hear music coming from the room.

Jenny knocked on the door and stuck her head in. “The last roommate has arrived!” she announced, swinging the door open.

A man wearing a T-shirt and jeans turned around quickly, surprised at the loud intrusion. His shoulder-length brown hair that had been tied back came loose with the sudden movement. A sly smile crossed his lips as he walked over to us. Deep brown eyes glanced between Jenny and me. He was good-looking in a nature, folk, granola kind of way. Not my type, but I could appreciate an attractive man when I saw one.

“Wow, a blonde and a brunette. How’d I get so lucky?” he asked. Jenny giggled as she looked at me. My eyes did a complete rotation in their sockets. A guy this eager to live with two girls was not an ideal roommate. This wasn’t summer camp—it was supposed to be a professional environment for students.

“Hi, I’m Elise,” I said with an outstretched hand.

He took my hand and shook it. “Leo.”

Our eyes made contact, and I could tell from the look he was giving us he was interested in getting to know his new female roommates further. I wasn’t looking to get involved with anyone while I was here studying. I was here to study forest conservation, and trees were the only wood I was interested in. Lucky for Leo, it seemed he might have a willing participant in Jenny, who was standing there like a nervous schoolgirl meeting a boy for the first time.

When I turned to look at her, she snapped out of her trance and smacked me playfully in the arm. “Gosh, I’m such a talker that I didn’t even ask you your name. Elise. That is such a pretty name,” she said. “How did you end up stuck in a cabin with us? You’re pretty enough that you don’t need to rough it out here.”

I laughed uncomfortably. I couldn’t tell if she was teasing me or was serious. Maybe she was nervous like I was. I wasn’t used to the attention she was giving me.

Hoping to change the subject, I answered her question. “I’m from the East Coast. I’ve been studying forest conservation around the mountains for the last couple of years.”

“I’ve never been to the mountains. There usually aren’t the predators I’m interested in out there,” Jenny said. “I’m here for the wolves. I study pack behavior and hierarchy.”

“I’m a water guy myself. Winding streams, wet marshes…any damp environment, really.”

Jenny’s eyes widened as Leo finished his sentence. My head tilted to the side, trying to read the situation. I couldn’t tell if he purposefully spoke in sexual metaphors. Maybe I was reading too deeply into the situation—I tended to do that.

I made a move to excuse myself and unpack. Jenny quickly grabbed my arm at the elbow and pulled me down the hall to my bedroom. I could hear Leo laughing to himself.

My room was at the back of the house. A full bed with a patterned quilt took up most of the space. There was one large window that looked out into the woods and a small closet with minimal hanging space. I made a mental note to grab my plants from the car. They would be happy on the sill of the window here. A sizable desk stood under the window, complete with a couple of drawers and a chair. I set my bags on my bed. Luckily I didn’t have much to unpack.

Jenny bounced on my bed, making herself comfortable. “Was it just me, or did he come on…strong?” she asked.

“I think he came on super strong.”

“He’s cute.” Jenny played with her curls, wrapping them around her fingers.

“He’s all yours. I’m not here for any of that.”

“Good. Because I might be interested in some of that.”

Raising my eyebrows, I looked at her. “Well, he seemed very interested. Especially in wet and damp places.”

Jenny groaned and rolled her eyes. “Not you too, with the sexual innuendos. I’m going to be in trouble this summer. I just know it.”

Shaking my head with a smile on my face, I started unpacking my clothes, hanging what needed to be hung and folding the items that couldn’t fit on a hanger.

“You sure have a lot of athletic clothes,” my new roommate concluded as she watched me unpack.

“Yeah, I do a lot of running for exercise and hiking for research,” I said.

“Makes sense. I have a lot of athleisure too.”

I noted her words. Athleisure usually meant a two-hundred-dollar sweat suit, like the one she was currently wearing. My athletic clothes were not as nice.

“I brought a few jumpsuits as well. Never know when there will be an opportunity to go out.” Jenny looked hopeful. “There’s one jumpsuit in my closet that might be a little short, but you could make it work.”

I couldn’t imagine what I would need a jumpsuit for out here—they seemed like a bitch to pee in—but I thanked her anyway.

Just as I finished putting the last of my clothes away, Jenny and I turned our heads to the sound of glass shattering in the kitchen. Meeting each other’s eyes, we rushed out of my room and down the short hall to find Leo with a tray of two shot glasses. One shot glass was shattered on the floor.

“Well, jeez, that’s what I get for trying to kick off our research program with shots,” Leo said. He looked defeated as he set the tray down and picked up the pieces of glass. Jenny and I laughed as I grabbed a rag and started to wipe up the floor.

The smell of strong liquor hit my nose as I cleaned. “Is this tequila?” I asked.

“Yep, I thought we needed some welcome drinks to start this semester. And you two look like tequila drinkers to me.”

I couldn’t deny that I enjoyed an occasional margarita. Leo took my rag and threw it into the sink as we watched Jenny pour a shot into a fresh glass.

She raised her glass. “Cheers to new friends and a new summer semester!”

We raised the glasses to our mouths as Leo said, “May the marshes be damp and rivers flow. Here’s to the friends I’m about to get to know!”

Tequila sprayed all over the kitchen as Jenny started laughing. I couldn’t help but join her. She had one of those contagious laughs that drew everyone in. Unlike Jenny’s, my shot went down my throat. It burned and settled in my stomach, warming my body.

“We have to do another one! I didn’t even get to drink mine!” Jenny said. She started pouring from the tequila bottle into our empty shot glasses. “No toasts this time! Just drink!”

Jenny, Leo, and I raised our glasses and then drank the second shot. This one went down easier as the warmth spread to my extremities.

It was fun talking with my new roommates. The tequila loosened our lips, and we got to know each other quickly. Leo was from Canada, as Jenny had thought, and was studying water ecosystems. It seemed like he had quite a few articles already published. He was starting a research project involving the freshwater amphibians that lived here. Although she never said it, I deduced from stories of her upbringing that Jenny had lived a very comfortable life. Her interest in wolves stemmed from her family’s frequent ski trips to Canada when she’d been growing up.

Leo and Jenny grew even more comfortable with each other, and they found themselves cuddled up on the couch together at the end of the night. After one too many shots, I said good night to the lovebirds and found my way to my room. Closing the door, I collapsed on the bed and fell asleep on top of the covers, still fully dressed.