"I'm Abby." She held her hand out to Serene, who took it.
"Serene. I live across the street from Steve."
"Oh. Taylor mentioned you," she said. "You're great on a skateboard. Apparently, all the boys are coming to you for lessons."
Serene was a bit taken aback at her statement. Abby's smile was genuine and open. There was nothing spiteful or hidden in her remark. Serene felt surprised that Taylor had anything good to say about her.
"She's practically a boy herself," Julie said in her bored way.
"Oh." Abby's voice rose up as if she were startled. "Well, that's okay. It's so nice how people can be themselves these days."
Serene wondered what she was talking about.
"She's not gay," Steve said. His mouth twisted in a disapproving way. But then he glanced at Serene, frowning. "Right?"
Serene shook her head, no, feeling confused. Abby did this little fluttery thing with her hand and one of her eyes half closed. "I've got some cokes in the fridge," she said. But Taylor returned, the red strings of her bikini snaking up out of her tank top, tied in a bow at the back of her neck.
"Let's go," she sang out.
"Oh, you're leaving?" Abby's face fell.
"Steve's gotta be back by four for a dinner thing," she said to her mom and kissed her cheek affectionately. Abby's face lit up with a love that Serene found momentarily mesmerizing. She had never had a look like that from Ramani.
16
Barbara - February 2020
The surface of the ocean held a glossy silvery quality reminding Barbara of mercury. Laird ran across the recently combed beach toward the hillocks of water rolling to shore, crumbling into white froth. Sheena scampered by his side, tongue lolling. Sara and Jesse in matching blue one-piece suits followed at a more sedate pace. Snorkeling goggles rested atop Jesse's head as he scowled up at the grey sky. Barbara trailed behind all of them, wondering if she even wanted to be at the beach. It wasn't hot, maybe seventy degrees. Tera said the overcast would burn off and it would get a lot warmer in the next hour. Laird splashed through the white water. Sheena plunged all the way into the waves and then returned to shore, running circles around Laird, making him laugh hysterically and pulling a smile out of Barbara despite her pensive mood.
Once she'd begun thinking about her mom last night and the amnesiac state she was in, Barbara couldn't stop brooding about her. She picked up her gait, passing her siblings, who were laying out their towels. Tera still had her beach bag over her shoulder, letting Laird have this moment.
"Hey." She said, eyeing Barbara. The wind whipped a strand of her reddish-brown hair across her cheek and she tucked it away behind her ear.
"I think I'm going to head back," Barbara said. "Would you be okay with all of them? If not, I can stay."
"Oh." Tera's shoulders slumped in slightly. "Everything alright?"
"Yeah, no, I'm fine." Barbara forced a smile. "I'm just not really in a beach mood right now."
Tera nodded and her eyes darted away toward Laird as she cupped her hand over her forehead to block the light. He squatted, digging in the sand near where the water petered out into a mass of dancing bubbles before receding back to its source as the next frothy bath came rushing forth. Sheena helped him dig.
Tera focused back on Barbara.
"I'm really sorry about your mom. I know this must be very difficult."
Barbara felt herself stiffen. She liked Tera, but she didn't want to have this conversation with her.
"She'll be okay." Her voice came out a little sharper than she had intended.
Tera nodded and didn't pursue the topic.
"So I'm gonna go."
Tera nodded again. "Okay. We'll be back in a few hours. Don't worry about your sisters, I can watch all of them."
"Jesse identifies as a boy."
Tera blinked and looked crestfallen at her mistake. It was all new––him wearing dresses––only two months now. To be fair, they hadn't been over much in the last few months. Their dad had been swamped with work lately. And Jesse hadn't wanted to come by when their mother was in the hospital.
"It gets a little confusing sometimes," Barbara said to smooth over her correction.
"Right, but thanks for letting me know." Tera walked away toward her son.
Sara squinted up at Barbara before unfurling her legs and getting up, her head cocked to the side. Barbara walked over to her siblings. Jesse was transferring sand from one hand to the other, his back hunched, hair blowing across his face.
"I'm going to go back to the house," Barbara told them.
He looked up and frowned. "Why?"
"I'm not in a beach frame of mind."
"Me either. Can I come with you?"
"Stay here with me," Sara said to Jesse. "I want to stay, and it won't be fun if you leave."
Jesse sighed. "Okay," he mumbled and returned to transferring the sand between his hands. Sara glanced at Barbara and their eyes met. Sara's seemed to say, “I get it, take some space.” The sisters shared a smile before Barbara made her way toward the highway. Up ahead on the hill sat the house, the massive windows glimmering in the distance.
"I told him there's no way he can get out of that contract without compromising his career." Steve paced the living room, texting while he talked. Barbara paused in the doorway, watching her father. At forty, he was still in good shape, lean, taut, brown from the LA sun. His dark hair, peppered with a few strands of grey, was still thick and full, and there was a cragginess to his features that added to his good looks in a way that Barbara thought only men seemed to benefit from. He glanced at Barbara, jumped, and then grinned, holding up his hand in greeting before his eyes darted to his phone.
"He did what?" Steve growled, fiddling with one of his Bluetooth earbuds.
Barbara
