Page 10 of Code Mages & Empty Pages
Mason: Hec and I can make half two
Luc: Sure, see you tomorrow
The next morning, I dipped into my local Dwarfoods to grab a few things for the picnic that afternoon. It was a beautiful day, and once again I wondered when exactly it had stopped raining so much in Scotland. I remembered how miserable the weather had been in my childhood. I huffed to myself.Probably climate change.
Des, Mia, and Harper lounged on a couple of blankets under the wide, sheltering branches of an enormous moss pear maple when I arrived.
“Luc, hi!” Mia called over with an enthusiastic wave as I approached them.
“Hey, guys.” I spread my own picnic blanket, not wanting to share someone else’s, and put the basket down. “I brought pasta salad and a bunch of other stuff. Help yourself.”
“Don’t miss out on Luc’s cooking,” Des advised Harper with a grin. “He should have been a chef.”
”Itriedto be a chef and hated it,“ I reminded my cousin. After training as a sysadmin—the job my father found even less suitable for one of his offspring than studying Informatics like Hector had done—I’d jumped from job to job in my early twenties, desperately trying to find the one I enjoyed.
The job at the electricians was what I thought I’d do for the rest of my life. That was until my Lupinian colleague had ruined it all. I’d done my best to get him to stop being a cunt, but he was too well established in the company. Instead of changing, he went to the boss and claimed I was out to get him, that I’d even threatened him with violence. When the boss confronted me, I didn’t even bother denying it. He told me not to come back the next day, and that was that.
Good fucking riddance.
I still felt guilty for not standing up to him more.
“I always knew you were a weakling, Lucien,”I heard my father scoff.
I was so lost in thought that I didn’t hear the newcomer until she stood right behind me. The moss under the tree must have muffled her footsteps.
“Hi.”
The conversation in my head stilled, as if her voice had pressed pause on my spiralling thoughts of the past.
I swallowed and turned, steeling myself for those dark, inquisitive eyes and the smile, warm as the morning sun caressing my fur.
“Hi, Luc.”
Hearing my name in her soft, gentle voice sent warmth curling through my chest.
“Hi.” I could only stare, mesmerised as dappled sunlight traced shifting patterns over her brown skin.
“Sit down! We have plenty of food. Hector and Mason will be here with more drinks in a bit,” Mia said as she consulted her watch. “And Aspen and Ed wanted to drop by, too. Aspen is my brother,” she added.
“Oh, crap.” Dawn’s eyes flitted from Desmond and Mia, to Harper, and me. “That’s what I wanted to grab from the hallway cabinet—my picnic blanket! Sorry, I…” Dawn’s voice trailed off and tears welled up in her eyes.
“Dawn, are you okay?” Harper jumped to her feet and threw an arm around her shoulders.
“Yeah, sorry.” She sniffed, dabbing at her face with the hem of her shirt. “It’s just been a morning.”
“You can share my blanket, if you want,” I blurted out as my eyes lingered on the glimpse of bare skin with faint silver lines and a tiny sliver of her black bra.You really need to stop staring!
“Oh, thanks, Luc. I really appreciate it.”
She settled at the very edge of my blue-and-green blanket. The flicker of annoyance I felt surprised me. Did she think she couldn’t take up space? Or was she just keeping a safe distance from me?
Did I do something wrong?
“I brought some snacks for all of us.” Dawn pulled a few stainless steel boxes out of her straw bag and spread them on the soft moss.
“Can I try these?” I asked, making sure I didn’t invade her personal space. The cookies in one of the tins looked delicious.
“Of course. I made them myself. They have raspberries and white chocolate in them. I found the recipe on a homesteadingblog online. Thickets & Tea Cakes, it’s my favourite.” She broke off as if she was scared she would bore me.
