A floating island counter in the kitchen stood between Naomi and the entryway. Shimmering clean plates and cups waited in the dish rack next to the sink. She glanced at the time on the microwave held between two overhead cabinets. Satisfied, she focused on her duty. She had another two hours before her mother got home from work. Steeling herself for battle, she raised the plastic gun, a drop of water slid down her finger frozen on the trigger. The silence was broken only by her gentle breathing. If Val wanted to get her, there was a single entrance, and Naomi would be ready. "Val?" she called.
She waited for the rush of footsteps across the wooden flow but there was none. She knew Val was waiting somewhere out there. Beyond the seemingly empty hallway, Val had prepared the perfect attack. Well, Naomi wouldn't leave, she was far too smart to be pulled out of her position by elementary tactics. "Val?" she said slowly. Hearing nothing, she tiptoed towards the door, slow and steady as to not make any noise.
She was at the edge of the cupboard, any farther and she would be an open target. She peered through the archway, spotting dark shadows of furniture in the hallway. Val had drawn the drapes and turned the lights off to hinder her visibility. Somewhere out there, Val lay in waiting. Like a tiger before it pounced on its prey.
Another ten minutes passed. Naomi dipped her head and burst into the hallway. She got a glimpse of Val's profile pressed against the wall and cursed herself for being rash. Water hit her back in a powerful jet and soaked her shirt. She turned and found Val pointing the gun at her face. Val's lips twisted into an amused smirk. "Well, well," she said, "what do we have here?"
Naomi pointed the barrel of her gun at Val's head. "You tell me."
"Don't you know it's against the law to trespass into someone else's house?"
Naomi played along. "Joan Watson, FBI, I'm here to arrest you for drug trafficking."
"Really?" Val stepped forward and placed a hand against the wall right next to Naomi's head. "Then I dare you to."
Naomi's pulse slowed for a moment, caught unaware. She quickly recovered and kicked Val's leg, attempting to trip Val. Val stayed upright, her face scrunched up from the effort of withstanding the blow. She tackled Naomi to ground and pinned her to the floor. Naomi's elbows hit the ground hard, her grip on the gun loosening, and then it fell. Val kicked it away, drawing a broken strip of water on the wood. "You're not very good at this," Val said, smiling. She aimed again and fired a fresh stream of water into Naomi's face.
The water was freezing and sent a sudden chill through her bones. It stung her eyes and crawled up her nostrils. "Jerk," Naomi spat and punched Val in the stomach.
She felt the muscle beneath Val's hoody. Val winced and doubled over, gasping. "Damn, that actually hurt," she muttered. While she was recovering, Naomi stole the gun from her slackened grasp.
Val held up her hands in an attempt to block, but the water slapped her face through the gaps. Wet, and clearly pissed, Val tried to recover the gun, but Naomi flipped the brown skinned girl beneath her. She brushed matted hair away from Val's eyes to reveal a piercing glare. Val struggled to sit up, but Naomi pushed her down. "Now, who sucks at this?"
Dark splotches of grey riddled Val's hoody from where the water hit. Val chuckled, the tremors racing down the length of her body to where Naomi sat on her abdomen. She said, "Alright, I surrender." She held her hands up. Naomi squirted the gun once more and Val spread the water across her face, sweeping her hair back to reveal her forehead.
"You look sort of good like that," Naomi noted.
"A young Ryan Gosling?"
"Ew, I prefer David Beckham," Naomi said.
"Way too old for you."
"You're not," Naomi said.
Val drew letters on Naomi's leg, running her fingertips over the thin leggings. "Don't say things like that when you don't how it makes me feel; I think it's time for you to get off, unless you want me to get turned on. "
"Shouldn't happen if you're not gay," Naomi fired back.
"You don't have to be gay to get aroused by intimacy," Val said coolly. "Get off."
"It depends on whether or not you'll return the hoody to me." Naomi pointed the gun at Val's chest.
Val said, "It's mine."
"It was yours, but I've had it for over a year, so now it's mine." A wicked grin spread across Naomi's lips. "Now hand it over."
"Is that how this works? Then if I take something of yours for a year, it's mine." A pleasant smile appeared on Val's lips. "Alright, get off me, I'll give it back to you. But I want the necklace you're wearing."
The necklace was a gift from Naomi's mom- a silver crescent adorned with diamonds. She unconsciously thumbed it. Val held out her hand. Naomi said, "If you give me yours." She wanted to trade something important for something of equal value, a sort of deal that bound them together whether Val realized it or not.
Val took off hers. An obsidian arrowhead clung to a black chain. She pressed it into Naomi's palm. Naomi didn't want to be so impersonal. She unlocked the chain from her own neck and wrapped it around Val's neck, her fingers grazed Val's skin as she clasped it at the back. She tucked the pendant into Val's shirt. "There," Naomi whispered.
"Yeah." Val removed the hoody, revealing the purple shirt beneath. Naomi took it, happy to have it back in her possession. The perilous nature of what she had done lingered in the air surrounding them as the seconds dragged on. Naomi knew she was toeing the line between being friends and something else, but she didn't know how to return to what they were. She wasn't sure if she wanted to. They stood up, Val wrapped her arms around Naomi's waist and pressed her chest against Naomi's back, she held Naomi tight. "Don't turn around," Val whispered, her voice shaking from the overwhelming emotion she felt.
Naomi held Val's hand, losing her bearings in the passionate embrace. It choked her. It made everything before that point mean nothing. Val placed her head in the crook of Naomi's neck. Naomi felt warm drops of liquid run down her skin and slip down the collar of her shirt. When Val let her go, Naomi whirled on her, but in the dimness of the hall, she couldn't make out whatever tortured expression was reflected in the girl's eyes. She knew Val was pouting due to the faint downturn of her mouth. Naomi felt an unexpected desire to touch it and feel Val's lips pressed against hers. Val's countenance stopped her. Val was sad again. Naomi sighed. As of late, Val's mood had been fluctuating between the two extremes- either playful and happy or sad and withdrawn.
"I have to go," Val said.
"It's alright, my mom won't be home for another hour or so. You can stay."
Val said, "No, I have to go. I have something to do." She started for the door. "I'll see you."
"Coward." Naomi's voice travelled further than she expected it to. Val froze in the midst of the hallway, a few feet from the door. Day after day, Naomi and Val were playing this vicious game of hot and cold and it was wearing down Naomi's mind, driving her insane. She didn't want to play anymore.
Val didn't turn around. "What did you say?"
"Don't pretend you didn't hear me."
"I shouldn't have come," Val said, "I'm such a fucking fool." She didn't look back at Naomi. She didn't see the tears running down Naomi's face. She didn't register the other girl's pain.
Naomi watched the door close, and she was left alone. These days, she often felt alone. Other than Claire, she had no one else to talk to. And things with Val were- she shook her head. What the hell were they going to do? Would they be able to fix this? Was this the end? Her anxiety brought spells of nausea. Bile threatened to crawl up her throat and she held it down, muttering positive sayings, trying to convince herself that things would be okay. She distracted herself with chores and music, trying to rid her mind of Val.
The following day, Naomi went to school for the first time in over a week. Val had made some excuse about not being able to pick her up. Something about her sister needing a ride. When did Val ever give a shit about her sister? Naomi strutted down the hallway, her heels clipping the tiles. The silver dress swirled around her thighs as she went, and she gained the attention of a few boys who nodded at her. She didn't smile at them nor give them any reason to believe that she was aware of their existence. She didn't care about anyone anymore. Caring lead to pain. She thought of Hunter who had nearly raped her. She thought of Val who always protected her but often retreated when things got complicated.
Naomi could only count on herself. When she reached the locker she shared with Val outside the English class, she noticed a picture taped to its metal frame and many others. In the photo, Val was standing in front of a group of people, her pants pooled at her ankles, her underwear revealed to all present. Naomi removed the photograph, tore it up, then did the same to those on the surrounding lockers. She knew that if Val saw them, it would hurt her.
Sure enough, Val hadn't spoken to her since that hug yesterday. Naomi cared deeply for Val and didn't want to see her in pain. If she closed her eyes, she could feel Val's body pressed against hers, feel her warmth. But it was all in her head.
Naomi had gotten rid of most of Val's photos in the hallway when she came upon a girl from Val's soccer team. The girl always had a group of people surrounding her as if she were afraid to be alone. Val called her 'Delilah'.
Delilah said, "Don't bother taking them down, we have extras."
Naomi's hand shook, and she clenched it into a fist, stowing her wit as she prepared for what might come next. "Did you do this?" she asked, holding up a piece of one of the pictures.
"What if I did?" Delilah crossed her arms over her chest. "She's a dyke, you know? That fucking prick acts like she's better than me just because her daddy's a scientist and her mommy's a doctor. The truth is no one cares. She is dirt on the bottom of my shoe. The piece of gum under my desk that I accidentally touch. She is nothing. She's going to burn in hell and so will you."
Her friends laughed.
Naomi glanced at each of the three of them.
Delilah said, "By the way, what was it like to sleep with Hunter? Does your daddy know? I bet he's going to be so disappointed." She pretended to cry then broke out laughing. "His perfect daughter isn't so perfect, eh?"
Naomi released a lengthy breath. "Oh, God, I see why Val hates you so much. I didn't see it before but now I do."
Delilah puffed her chest out, the two chickens wobbling along beside her. She said, "At least I don't sleep with the first guy that pays me a little attention."
Naomi stepped forward, glancing down the length of her nose at the shorter girl. "If you need to talk shit about other people to feel valuable, then go ahead. But know this. As much as you like to talk crap about others, there's someone out there talking crap about you. And you can put up as many of the pictures as you want, I'll take down everyone." Naomi turned around and stomped down the hallway, thinking about all the lockers she had to do before Val got to school and regretting wearing heels. She texted Claire, Dana and a few of Val's other friends about the situation, and many replied saying they had already taken down a few and would happily remove more. Delilah's existence receded to the very edges of her mind. Naomi had more pressing matters to attend to.