Chapter 4: Things That Go Bump in the Night
Ophelia woke to the sound of her alarm. Rolling over, she silenced it and took a moment to bury her head in her pillow. She took a deep breath and got out of bed. After her shower, she checked her phone to see that Antoinette had called. Nine times. ‘Well,’ she thought, ‘I guess she found her phone then.’ She chuckled lightly to herself and called her back.
The phone rang, once, twice, three times aaand, “Heyyy Lia!”
Ophelia chuckled to herself. “Hey, Nettie. What’s up?”
Her friend eagerly began speaking and as skilled as Ophelia was at deciphering Antoinette’s rapid-fire ramblings she only caught about half of what the other woman was saying. She shook her head with a smile and sat down on her couch, holding the phone to her ear with her shoulder as she toyed with the miniature bouquet pensively.
She glanced up to the kitchen counter where her cat figurine still sat, broken in two, and sighed. “Okay, you’re going to need to slow down. I gather you need a favor?”
Ophelia smiled at the laughter that echoed into her ear from the phone’s speaker. Antoinette tittered playfully, “Maybeee. I was just wondering if we could carpool to the bonfire tonight. I know the spot is pretty close to your place so I figured we could go together and then I wouldn’t have to worry about driving.”
Humming thoughtfully, Ophelia shrugged, dropping the flowers and replacing the shoulder holding the phone to her with her hand. “I don’t mind. I was planning on riding my bike though, it’s a bit of a hike to the campground. You think you could bring yours over and we can ride together?”
What she didn’t mention was that she was nervous about repeating the incident the other night. Whatever was watching them didn’t seem like a threat but she didn’t want to risk having to drunkenly outrun a creature with a wingspan like that.
She turned her attention away from her paranoia-laced thoughts and back to the sound of her friend’s voice.
“That totally works! I’ll be there around 6:30, okay? Then we can get ready and head over together.”
A small smile spread across Ophelia’s face. “It’s a bonfire, Nettie, how much ‘getting ready’ do you plan on doing?”
She was answered with a resounding PLLLLBBBT, the sound she knew well as her friend blowing a raspberry at her for her attitude. She could practically hear Antoinette’s eyes rolling as she responded, “I’m not saying I’m going to make you go full glam, okay? Just a little touch-up. My friend Daphne is bringing her cute cousin from out of town and I heard she’s into the quiet sarcastic types. Might be just what you’ve been waiting for.”
Ophelia slumped back onto the couch. “Nettie come ON. I’m not interested in being set up with some random out-of-towner. I can barely maintain relationships with the people who live here, there’s no way I could keep a long-distance thing going. And besides, I’m perfectly content on my own. You’re single too, you big dork, why don’t you pursue this ‘cute cousin’?”
Antoinette groaned. “BeCAUSE it sounds like you’re just her type. And you know I’m only interested in long-term romantic connections anyway.”
“Well, no one said it had to be a one-night stand, Nettie. You know that’s not what I’m interested in either, it takes time and deep emotions for me to want… all that. Besides, maybe she’s ace too, you never know.”
A grumble emanated from her phone and she knew her friend was struggling to come up with a meaningful retort. Antoinette sighed. “Okay, fine. But, be nice, okay?”
Ophelia’s face scrunched up and she narrowed her eyes, slightly offended. “Excuse you, when am I not nice?”
The silence from the speaker said everything she needed to hear and she could vividly picture the look her friend was sending her way through the telephone.
“You’re impossible. You know that? Whatever, I’ll be over in a little while, see you sooooon!” A click and then silence told Ophelia that her friend had hung up.
She dropped her phone from her ear and went to pick out some clothes for the evening. She thumbed through her closet knowing she needed something warm for once it got dark and something that covered as much of her skin as possible, to avoid giving mosquitos and other bloodsucking parasites an opportunity to latch onto her.
Finally settling on one of her thicker pairs of jeans and an oversized black hoodie, she got changed. Moving to her mirror she applied her usual minimal amount of makeup. She was just rubbing in the little bit of blush she wore when she heard the front door open. Antoinette walked into the house singing, “O-O-pheliaaa, where are you, girl?”
She emerged from her bedroom with an eyebrow raised. “I see you found the spare key.”
A blinding smile split Antoinette’s face in two and she wiggled her eyebrows at her friend. “I did indeed!” She started to do another twirl but stopped halfway through with a look of fear on her face, seemingly remembering what happened the last time she danced in the living room.
Ophelia let out a breathy laugh and shook her head. “So, are we going?”
Antoinette’s eyebrows furrowed and her bottom lip stuck out, quivering slightly. “We were supposed to get ready together!”
She scoffed but smiled. “I’m sorry, you were taking a while. Do you want to help me finish my makeup?” Ophelia had technically already done everything she planned to do, but if it would get Nettie to stop pouting she’d let her have her fun.
“Ughhh,” the red head let out a long-suffering sigh, “Yes.”
The two women retreated to Ophelia’s room and Nettie immediately picked up the eyeliner that was still sitting on her dresser. Turning around to look at her friend, she hummed thoughtfully, clearly plotting, before turning back to the drawer that held Ophelia’s makeup and digging around with purpose. She grabbed a small container, thrusting it into the air triumphantly.
“Exactly what I was looking for!” She grabbed Ophelia’s face, squeezing her cheeks with a bit more force than necessary while her hapless victim stared at her wide-eyed.
Ophelia looked away from the smug look on her friend’s face and saw an old eyeshadow palette, some gold sparkly sh*t she had gotten years ago and never really played around with. She sighed, as much as she was able with her cheeks pinned between her friend’s fingers.
Antoinette shot her a glare. “Oh don’t give me that. You know this gold will look GORGEOUS with your skin tone. And with a little extra eyeliner, those big brown beauties will be shining from here to California.”
Ophelia couldn’t help the smile that crept onto her still-smushed face and decided to let her friend have her way. The application took only a few minutes, with all her theater experience and her penchant for bold self-expression, Nettie was basically an expert when it came to making people up.
Her bedside manner left a little to be desired, as she slapped Ophelia’s shoulder when her eyelid twitched with a, “Sit still!” But the experience was enjoyable and reminded Ophelia of the many other times she had been Nettie’s mannequin. She was grateful to have a friend so bright and bubbly. It provided a nice contrast to her internal monologue and helped her be a better person.
She was startled out of her thoughts by another slap, albeit a lighter one, this time to the back of her head and accompanied by a triumphant laugh. She opened her eyes to see Antoinette grinning back at her, far closer to her face than she expected. She startled and her friend laughed again, backing away and waving the makeup brush in her hand around theatrically. “Vóila! You are perfection!”
Ophelia turned to the mirror and her breath caught in her throat. Antoinette was right, the shimmery gold did compliment the burnt umber tones of her skin and the extra eyeliner really made her eyes pop while not being too over the top. Sometimes she forgot how well Antoinette knew her.
She smiled, turning back to her friend who was waiting expectantly for feedback. “Thanks, Nettie. You did a fantastic job. I feel really pretty.”
Antoinette beamed so hard you could nearly see her wisdom teeth. “Well, you ARE pretty. I’m glad I could help you see it. Now let’s get out of here, we've got wood to burn and beers to drink!” She let out a whoop and skipped out of the room.
Ophelia chuckled, perpetually amused by her friend’s energy, and followed her out of the room.
The duo hopped on their bikes and sped off into the night. Dusk had fallen and the sky was getting darker with every minute they rode. Antoinette chattered about rehearsals and the theater drama Ophelia would need to know to be up to speed with the ever-changing dynamics of Nettie’s friends.
Ophelia was paying attention, mostly, until she started to feel that ever-familiar sensation again. It itched at the back of her mind like a mosquito bite that she just couldn’t reach. Grimacing, she tried to focus on Antoinette’s words but was unsuccessful.
However, she was abruptly drawn out of her thoughts by the sudden silence and lack of companionship as Nettie slammed on her brakes and stared at the sky ahead of them, eyes wide. Her voice low, she whispered to Ophelia, her tone a sort of frantic awe, “Lia, look. It’s back.”
Ophelia turned away from her friend and looked in the direction she had been staring to find a large shadowy creature darting through the sky. She gasped and Antoinette spoke again, “It was heading in the direction of the campgrounds, wasn’t it?”
Ophelia looked back at her and saw that her face had morphed into a smile. “Hey, who knows? It seems friendly. Your dad always said it was harmless anyway, maybe we’ll be the first people to crack open a cold one with the Bloodsucker of Boulder.” She wiggled her fingers spookily as she said the creature’s most well-known nickname.
Scoffing, Ophelia turned back toward the now eerily empty sky and huffed. She shrugged. “Maybe you’re right. If anyone can charm a vampiric beast into joining us, it would be you. I bet it has some great scary stories to tell around the campfire.”
Antoinette giggled and started riding again, blowing past her friend who still stood staring at the sky. “Come on, loser! Can’t seduce the Rocky Mountain Ravager from here!”
Rolling her eyes, Ophelia mounted her bike and pedaled hard, catching up to her cheeky friend in seconds. The two rode on in silence until they reached the campgrounds, cruising leisurely into the woods to the fire pit the group had agreed to meet at. Antoinette’s friends were already there, two of them bickering over the most efficient way to start a fire and the others gathered around the cooler.
Daphne saw them approach, her eyes lighting up as she grabbed the woman standing next to her and dragged her over to the newly arrived duo. ‘This must be the cousin Antoinette mentioned’ Ophelia thought. She was cute, Nettie was right about that.
She was clearly related to Daphne as the two shared the same thick black hair, though this unnamed cousin wore hers in a bob which was a stark difference to Daphne’s mane, and had similar ochre skin. They both had similar body types too, short and curvy with adorable broad noses and big brown eyes. Ophelia realized they were both staring expectantly at her and blushed, hoping the evening light masked the crimson painted on her cheeks.
Daphne smirked. “So, this is my cousin Marisol, she’s visiting from Texas.” She faced her cousin. “This is Antoinette and Ophelia,” she continued, gesturing to each woman as she introduced them, “the ones I was telling you about.”
Marisol nodded, clearly feeling shy, and shot them a crooked smile. “It’s nice to meet you two. Daphne had nothing but good things to say about you both.”
The women returned her smile and sentiment. Antoinette broke the brewing tension with a proclamation, “I need a drink! Where’s the beer? Let's get this party started!” She walked over to the cooler, grabbing drinks for herself and Ophelia before beckoning the three women, who were still standing in semi-awkward silence, over to the log she had plopped herself down on.
Ophelia sat next to her and accepted the beer gratefully. Marisol and Daphne sat down on the other side of Antoinette, and the two actresses immediately delved into the recent gossip. Maribel shared a furtive glance with Ophelia and they both giggled. Ophelia broke eye contact to sip her drink and look at the fire that had finally been roused from the slumbering ashes.
Antoinette’s friend, Joshua, a pale, lanky man with unkempt brown hair and perpetually red eyes, was standing next to the firepit and scowling at Ada, an equally lanky but much tanner woman with long brown hair and piercing gray eyes, who was standing over the fire with an air of superiority and a smug look on her face. Joshua gave her a small shove which she returned with a bit more force and the two began bickering again.
Ophelia shook her head with a laugh and turned her attention back to the women sitting on the log with her. Antoinette and Daphne were both intently focused on Marisol, apparently waiting for her verdict on whatever tidbit of drama they had told her.
The Texan looked nervous to be put on the spot and opened her mouth to respond when suddenly there was a loud crack in the woods behind them. The entire party quieted and nine heads whipped toward the noise.