Weekend Getaway: Saturday Morning

Riley walked into the gas station with low expectations. She was looking for silverware, but didn't expect to find it. The store sold little more than chewing tobacco, energy drinks, and condoms, but her shopping alternatives were few. Without forks, knives, and spoons, how would she serve - and more importantly eat - Mackayla and Mackenna's birthday cake? Her friends were likely starving back at the rental cottage while Riley ran the vital errand. In truth, she relished the moment of solitude after driving several hours to their vacation property.

From behind the counter, an exceptionally ugly man stared at her. Riley was keenly aware that there were no other shoppers in the convenience store and she hurried through the aisles, scanning each shelf. Miraculously, she spied a dusty package of white plastic forks tucked between extra-large packs of beef jerky and barbecue corn nuts. The pricetag was shocking, but she gladly paid the exorbitant fee and hustled out of the shop, the cashier's gaze palpable.

Across the half-paved, desolate rural highway stood a roadhouse. Illuminated by the open sign, a young man beside a motorcycle crouched in his cowboy boots to light a cigarette in the hot, dry wind. The heat felt like it would have been enough to ignite it without the zippo. Even from a distance, Riley could see that sweat was gluing his dark hair to his forehead, despite the evening breeze. Riley squinted at the man in a worn denim jacket, unsure in the twilight. When she took a step forward, the man looked up and called out her name.

“Riley? Riley Campbell? 

“Hi! I thought that was you, Jake!”

Riley left her car at the gas station, feeling the cashier’s stare finally release her, and moved towards the familiar beaming face.

“I knew you moved up north, but I didn’t know you lived here,” she greeted him.

“Yeah, but I live in town. Anyway, hi! How are you? Haven’t seen you since high school, jeez.”

“I know, yeah, it’s been awhile, huh? Surprised you recognized me even without the purple undercut.”

“Hah, yeah, wasn’t your best look," he laughed. "But you look great now. I mean, really great. What are you doing out here in the sticks?”

“It’s a girls’ weekend. Some friends of mine are having a birthday, so we rented this adorable little cabin. It’s right on the lake.”

“So, you’re here to fish,” Jake said slyly, reading between the lines.

“Ha! You caught me.”

“Maybe. Come on inside, I’ll buy you a drink. We can catch up.”

“I should really get back. I was just picking up some necessities.” She jostled the plastic bag in her hand as evidence. “It was nice seeing you again, though.”

“Come on, just one drink. Are appletinis still your favorite?” 

She laughed and shook her head. He flashed the smile she knew well. It was the same infectious, dimpled smile that made her teenage self weak in the knees. The same smile that she kissed backstage at their high school spring musical. The same smile that ignited envious leers from unpopular boys and earned Riley jealous whispers from lovestruck girls. 

“Oh alright, just one. But I’m a grownup now, so make it a beer.”

The pair migrated inside the darkened bar, greeted by the stale smell of tobacco and spilled beer. Few patrons clustered around the bar and none of them looked up. With a gesture, he ordered drinks and settled into a discreet corner. 

“So who’s birthday is it?” Jake asked as he scooted his stool closer to Riley’s.

“Mackayla and Mackenna’s. Remember them?”

“Ah yeah! Mackayla was the prankster, wasn’t she? Or maybe it was Mackenna. Honestly I never could tell them apart.”

Riley’s eyebrows twitched, then she continued. “And of course Zoe is with us.”

“The four Musketeers! I guess some things never change. It’d be nice to see them again, too.”

“Sure, yeah, we’ll have to all get together before the weekend ends.”

“You know, I could show you girls around the area. I’ve lived here awhile, you know, and I fished the lake almost empty.”

“Noooo!” Riley moaned in mock despair. “You didn’t leave any for me?”

“I know where there might still be a fish or two, don’t worry. But not the monster I caught last week!” Jake and Riley exchanged fishing stories until it became clear that their increasingly fantastical catches were becoming hyperbolic. The pair delved into their more personal experiences in the years since high school, highlighting their new jobs, family and dating histories, new hobbies, and ending with their current weekend plans.

“So where exactly is the place you’re staying?” Jake inquired.

Riley described the cottage and its location. Jake’s brow furrowed, not recognizing the place, and she displayed the printed directions from her pocket. Jake leaned in close to take a look; furrow deepened as he inspected the map.

“I didn’t even know there was anything down this road. Actually I didn’t know there was a road over here at all.”

“Yeah but you live over in town, don’t you? You can’t know every gravel road around here,” Riley said as she looked up from the paper. Her eyes met Jake’s. He was so close, she could see every detail of his prickly unshaven skin in the dark. She inhaled his musky cologne. 

Memories flooded her senses. She remembered their first kiss and the way he stared at her from across the room during class. She remembered rehearsing lines from the play, making mistakes, and laughing until their stomachs hurt. She remembered long drives to nowhere, just listening to music and watching the lightning, hands clasped tight. She remembered the heartbreak she endured when Jake's parents moved up north, effectively ending their budding romance. She saw the stronger, more self-assured man he had become, grown out of the blooming youth she remembered so well. Riley saw a new Jake overlaying the one who stole her heart all those years ago. She did not want him to move away again.

A bar patron laughed uproariously and glasses clinked, shattering her reverie. Jake looked down at his watch and issued an exclamation of surprise and showed his watchface.

“Shit, I’ve been gone way too long. I’m sure they’re starving back at the cottage. I really gotta go, I’m sorry.” Riley gathered the plastic bag of silverware and fished her keys from her pocket.

“Let me drive with you, make sure you get back okay. I’d like to say hi to the girls, too.” Riley accepted his offer without argument; the rural roads were unlit and the woods could be disorienting, even under the best circumstances. 

He led the way on his motorcycle down the winding gravel road through the dense pine forest. His helmeted head swiveled, taking in the landscape and frequently looking down at the map. It was clear that he was entirely unfamiliar with this side of the lake. When they crunched to a stop and parked their mismatched vehicles on the flattened grass, Zoe, Mackayla, and Mackenna burst out of the house and down the front steps, eyes shining and bags packed. 

“Jesus, Riley, where were you? Do you have any idea how late it is?” Mackayla exploded.

“Guys I know, I’m so sorry, one thing led to another, but look who -”

Mackenna hobbled on her twisted ankle towards the car, shoving past Riley, who was attempting to exit the vehicle. “I don’t care! God, Riley, you have no idea what we’ve been through! We have to get out of here. Right this minute.”

“What are you talking about, we just got here!”

Through gritted teeth and wild eyes, Mackenna pronounced, “There is a body in the hot tub.”

“What? A body, body? Like, a dead human being?”

“It had all the silverware --”

“Whoa! How much did you girls drink?”

“Jake, shut up. Riley. Listen to me. There is. A body. In the hot tub. We need to get to town and call the police. NOW,” Zoe said, her tone deepened and serious.

“There’s no way. This is a vacation home, not a morgue. Let me see this so-called body.” Zoe opened her arms wide in a “be my guest” gesture and pointed him towards the deck at the rear of the house. Jake twisted his winning smile into a patronizing sneer as he walked casually onto the porch and around the back towards the jacuzzi. His demeanor said cool indifference, but his eyes betrayed him. The lid was slammed down and unlatched; the cover was tossed aside haphazardly, just as the trio had left it after their discovery. Jake cautiously opened the lid and peered inside.

“I knew you girls were drunk as skunks. Just like high school," he scoffed. 

Chastened by their incendiary glares, Jake softened his tone somewhat. "You must have been seeing things. I know sometimes these woods can get scary. Plays tricks on your mind, you know?” 

They protested vehemently and defended their sanity. Riley followed Jake’s lead and plucked up the courage to peek. Inside the jacuzzi was a pool of crystal-clear chlorinated water. The bottom of the jetted tub, clearly visible even by the light of the fire pit nearby, boasted an intricate mosaic pattern.

“I don’t know what you guys saw last night, but I’m telling you, there’s nothing there now,” she soothed. “Let’s just go inside now and eat some cake, okay?”

The trio eventually looked into the water and saw nothing. They were left speechless, furiously confused and still unnerved.

Jake rattled the sliding door back into the house. “Alright, who’s got the key?”

Nobody had brought the key to the sliding door since they had exited from the front entrance. The group descended the back stairs and tromped through the grass towards the front of the house. Jake and Riley led the pack. When they approached, they stopped in their tracks and the twins nearly bumped into their backs. Laid neatly across each stair was a rabbit. Riley recognized them as the family of bunnies that jumped out from under the deck when they arrived Friday afternoon. The largest rabbit stretched unnaturally far across the bottom step. Its furry gray ears were cleanly separated from its head. Four more rabbits occupied the rest of the stairs in a similar manner, ordered in size from largest to smallest.

Jake swore colorfully while the twins shivered and clutched each other. Zoe begged Riley to open the car and forget the baggage, still waiting at the top of the stairs. Jake wheeled around.

“Is this some sort of a prank? First you claim there's a body, now this. We’re not kids anymore, Mackayla. And I didn't know you had such a sick sense of humor."

She seethed. “I was standing right next to you this whole time and you know it.”

Riley sided with Jake. “I don’t know what kind of joke you guys are up to, but I’m not laughing either.”

As the five of them argued and cast blame, the sun peered over the horizon and cast long shadows between the trees. Robins ceased their morning song as the black shadows shifted deep in the woods.