“Mmhmm.” Shane says.

“Are you from here?” Harper says testing the waters.

“Nope.”

“Lived here long?”

“Twelve years.”

Harper smiles at Shane’s to the point answers and begins to rapidly fire out questions.

“How old are you?”

“27. You?” Shane says.

“33. Favorite color?”

“Black. You?”

“Blue. Favorite place?”

“My truck. You?”

“The beach. Why your truck?”

“It’s the first thing that was ever really mine.” Shane says with an almost sad voice.

“Family?” Harper continues on.

“Next.” Shane dismisses the question.

“Love?”

“No.”

“No?”

“No.” Shane shakes her head.

“Relationships?”

“Don’t do them.”

“Do you love your friends?”

Shane answers, “Yes.” Unsure of what that has to do with anything.

“Well?”

“Well, what?”

“Friendship is a kind of relationship.” Harper wants to make a point.

Shane can’t argue that, “True.”

“Love and friend relationships aren’t all that different.”

“Yes, they are.” Shane disagrees.

“Not really. Eighty percent of a relationship is friendship.”

“No way! Eighty percent is ***** and possession.”

“Possession?” Harper raises her eyebrows.

“Yeah, the whole ‘you are mine’ thing.”

“Ok, yeah that is the case sometimes. But when you find the right person it’s not like that.”

“Bullshit.” Shane says flatly.

Harper chuckles to herself. “Perhaps I have a rather romanticized view of the whole thing. It’s what I hope is the truth. I know it’s possible, I’ve known people who have had it.”

“But you never have?” Shane says.

“No.” Harper pauses, “I’ve never been too lucky in love.”

Shane and Harper just look at each other.

Harper finally breaks the silence, “So what else Shane?”

“What? About me?”

“Yeah, about you.” Harper grins at her.

“There really isn’t anything else to tell.”

Harper knows that answer all to well and honors Shane’s unspoken wish to stop.

Shane quickly changes the subject. “So I hear Dana’s big introduction was soaking you with beer.” Shane laughs getting a clear mental picture in her mind.

They continue to sit and talk about Dana and Alice. Friendships. The local ***** scene. Shane even gives brief details of her hair career. The conversation flows effortlessly and naturally, as if the two have known each other a long time. They are completely unaware of the darkness filling the sky. It’s as if their collective energy is creating some sort of time warp. They are both so caught up in each others eyes, voice and smile. What feels like 45 minutes has actually been closer to three hours.