2 - Epilogue

                                    

                                          

                            

                                
                            
                              
                                  
                              
                              
                                
                                  
                                  
                                
                              
                             
                            
                            
                          
                          
Even from where Holly stood on the deck, cleaning up the crumbs of the barbecue dinner and watching Malcolm and Gia play with Billie Jean in the grassy yard, they could hear the argument through the open door. Or, well - maybe argument wasn't the right word for it. It was a little one-sided.
"No, listen- This system has worked since we moved in!" That was Juniper, sounding a little disgruntled.
"Totally. That's why you could tell me where the tackle box was." Eddie, as chill and unbothered as ever.
"I mean, okay, yeah, I thought the fishing gear was near the Christmas lights and actually it was behind the furnace, but that's an easy mistake to make! It's not my fault my skis take up a lot of room."
"You thought the lights were in the back corner when they were right there by the door in a box marked Christmas."
"Yeah, well- Holly could've told you where any of that stuff lives."
"You ask Holly every time you need to find something in your own storage room?"
"Please. Didn't you help them put those lights away? You're just fucking with me to prove a point."
Juniper stomped out the open door onto the deck, a deep furrow in her brow, her arms full of fishing poles. "Holly, tell your wife that she doesn't need to build us a bunch of shelves and move all my skis around where I'll never find them. Our storage room organization is fine. I mean, you know where everything is."
Behind Juniper, Eddie set down two tackle boxes, one old and dented, one much newer but equally dusty. She met Holly's eyes, the corner of her mouth twitching. "Did we get married? My bad. I forgot."
Holly tugged their bottom lip between their teeth, fighting their own smile, and scooped the last salad bowl up from the table. "I thought the storage room shelves were a great idea, June."
Juniper scrunched up her face. "Holly. Please. We have a system."
"If you mean how you yell across the house at me to ask where things are any time you need to go in there? I guess you could call that a system. But I wouldn't say it's a good one."
Their sister threw up her hands. "Well, fuck me. I guess I'm the third wheel in my own house now. I knew I should've thought harder about letting Eddie move in. Just wait 'til Summer arrives tomorrow. The power is gonna shift. Trust me."
Eddie's faint smile faded as Juniper flounced back inside.
Holly shuffled dishes in their arms, freeing a hand to place against Eddie's toned, and tanned, forearm. "She's joking."
Her hazel eyes turned to bronze in the sun that hung syrupy over the early summer evening. "You know her better than me."
"I promise I'd tell you if there was really a problem, okay?"