Chapter Thirty-Two Luca
THIRTY-TWO LUCA
The boardwalk is a riot of color, people, and lights. The sun hangs low, burning bright gold and streaking the sky with soft shapes of pink and purple, while the shops lining the boardwalk are illuminated with warm lights and vibrant umbrellas.
Luca trails a few paces behind Juliette and Livia, who is giving Juliette instructions and scolding her to act natural while she snaps hundreds of photos. Most are of Juliette taking photos with her vintage camera of the beach and people on the boardwalk.
Crowds weave around them, caught in their own little bubbles, and no one pays them any attention.
It’s strangely euphoric. A weight lifts off her shoulders at being able to wander through the throngs of people without having to act a certain way.
She doesn’t need to smile, worry about where her hands are in photos, or focus on giving every kid an autograph.
She does love doing those things, it’s an integral part of her job as a professional athlete, but it does get exhausting.
Luca has never been to the Miami boardwalk before—too many people—and yet, nostalgia aches in her chest. It reminds her of the February Carnival in Zadar that she used to go to as a child with her mother. Colorful, bright, full of laughter and music, and the scent of fried food wafting in the air.
But the Floridians are wearing big sunglasses to ward off the sun instead of masks to ward off evil spirits.
The ocean is off to their right, crystallized aqua, and full of women in string bikinis and men in Speedos, all toasting over some occasion. Luca smiles as she looks away, just in time to catch Juliette with her camera trained on her.
“Hey,” Luca admonishes even though she isn’t upset, “no photos, paparazzi.”
Juliette flushes. “Sorry.” The wind ruffles her curls, getting a few strands caught in her lashes.
“I’m kidding, relax,” Luca says, walking in step with Juliette as they weave around a bunch of teenage girls taking a group photo, arms wrapped around each other.
“You always catch me, it’s hard to get a candid of you,” Juliette says, fiddling with the camera. She holds it close to herself, protecting it from anyone who could carelessly throw their limbs into her path.
“I guess I always know when you’re looking,” Luca says, and she expects Juliette to laugh and look away, but instead her gaze stays steady with hers.
The sun slants perfectly over Juliette’s face, the silhouette of the palm leaves tracing her cheekbone.
“Thank you for inviting me,” Luca says softly.
A small smile touches Juliette’s lips, more shy than usual.
“I’m glad you said yes,” Juliette says, and Luca’s heartbeat picks up. She rubs the back of her neck and nods, suddenly too hot under Juliette’s gaze.
“Jules!” Livia breaks the moment, coming out of nowhere, and Luca almost stumbles into her. “Can you get me a fruity cocktail of some sort?” she asks, batting her lashes.
“You’re twenty,” Juliette says.
Livia pouts. “I can legally drink in Europe! It’s not fair that America has silly rules.”
Juliette frowns at her, but with a heavy sigh, she slips her vintage camera back into her satchel and nods. “Fine. But only one.” She looks at Luca. “You want anything?”
Luca shakes her head. She isn’t one for cocktails, preferring a small glass of wine when she does indulge. “I can come—” Luca starts to say, but Livia’s arm loops through hers.
“Thanks! You’re the best!” Livia calls over her shoulder as she tugs Luca toward an open storefront ornamented with dream catchers and wind chimes.
A shopkeeper sits on a stool next to one of the tables covered in racks of necklaces, eyeing them as they approach.
They sweep through the thin gauze that hangs as a doorway.
It’s much smaller inside than Luca anticipated.
Most of the wares are on the tables outside, but the two rows of counters hold dozens of sparkling crystals.
Another shopkeeper sits next to the counter, watching them under hooded eyes as an elderly woman asks about getting a ring polished.
“Do you like crystals, Luca?” Livia asks.
“Crystals?”
“Yes. They’re used for all sorts of things. I snuck a clear quartz into each of my sisters’ tennis bags to help them reach their dreams. It’s like channeling energy. Or at least that’s what the internet tells me.”
Luca fiddles with her fingers as Livia moves with ease through the middle aisle.
“I’m not much of a jewelry person,” Luca says. Every necklace or bracelet she’s ever worn, she’s fiddled with until it snapped or wore away.
“What about a fidget ring?” Livia asks, spinning one of the ring stands. “You pick at your nails a lot.”
Luca shoves her hands into her pockets, swallowing back a defensive retort. “I don’t like wearing rings.”
Livia pauses. “Interesting.”
She isn’t sure what Livia is aiming at.
“How about a rose quartz?” Livia says, plucking an oddly shaped pink crystal from seemingly nowhere. “How is your love life?” She says it casually, as if she’s simply asking about the weather, but suddenly it all slots into place.
She’s asking about Luca’s relationship with Juliette.
Luca bites her lip, trying not to think about Juliette’s slick fingers driving into her and pushing her over the edge. She has no idea what to say.
Livia drops the rose quartz back into a tray and cocks her head. “Come on, Luca, you’re going to have to think of an answer for Claudia and Octavia. I’m the least scary Ricci.”
Luca highly doubts that, but she keeps her mouth shut. “We’re friends,” Luca says finally.
Livia slinks closer, her fingers trailing across the crystals. “Those hickeys tell a different story.”
Luca snaps her hand up to cover them with her palm. She had tried to cover them with concealer as best she could, but the heat must’ve made her sweat some of it off.
Livia smirks, but it’s not unkind. “Come on, I’m not trying to interrogate you. I only want to know that you’re not just fucking around with my sister.”
Luca swallows. “Quite the opposite,” she says softly. She doesn’t add that she worries that Juliette is going to ruin her heart.
“What’s your opinion on soulmates?” Livia asks suddenly, her hands stilling. Her focus lands entirely on her. She and Juliette have the same warm, bright, amber-brown eyes, and Luca is vividly reminded of how Juliette seems to see right through her.
“It’s complicated,” Luca murmurs, and Livia frowns, unsatisfied. “I know Juliette wants a choice in who she loves, and I want to be loved. If she chooses me, then that’s great.” She looks away from Livia, unsure if she should’ve laid all her cards on the counter like that.
“What about you choosing her?” Livia asks softly.
Luca’s throat tightens, her lungs constricting.
It’s suddenly too dense and humid in this tiny shop.
“I can’t stay away,” Luca admits, saying the thought out loud is more frightening than just thinking it.
Like her mother, she realizes, she has attached herself to her soulmate, for better or for worse.
“We’re trying to figure things out. It’s new for both of us. ”
“Be careful with my sister, Luca, and we’ll get along just fine,” Livia says, patting Luca’s arm as she exits the shop without getting anything.
Luca sways in place, her vision spiraling as dizziness crashes over her.
She needs to breathe. She pushes out of the crystal shop, but the boardwalk is too crowded.
Too many people are talking, and her head throbs with a headache.
She cuts through the crowd toward the beach and the rhythmic crashing of the waves.
Luca gets to the sand and rips her shoes and socks off, jogging down closer to the water and a secluded patch of sand out of earshot of the other beachgoers.
She digs her toes in the sand.
She breathes in the salty Atlantic air.
She focuses on the frothy white foam washing up to her toes.
And slowly, as she focuses on real sensations, her panic loosens and she sinks into the sand, breathing hard.
Juliette is her soulmate. They should work. She plunges her hands into the sand. It’s warm between her fingers and grounds her again.
She doesn’t need to leap with both feet immediately. She can warm up first, get her muscles loosened, and then slowly work her way into the relationship.
The tennis metaphor washes a sense of calm over her. Tennis is what she understands. It’s her safe space. Maybe they aren’t playing singles against each other. Maybe they’re playing doubles, and they just need to find their rhythm.
JULIETTE
Juliette hands off Livia’s drink as she catches sight of Luca making a beeline for the beach.
Livia shoves her shoulder. “Go talk to her.”
Juliette flips her off as she jogs along the boardwalk and down to the sand. She pauses to unlace her shoes before she continues scanning the beach for Luca. It reminds her of their first night in Naples, and she shudders. Better not to think of that.
Eventually, she spots Luca sitting alone, staring out at the ocean and the deepening twilight.
The ruby sun silhouettes the Miami skyline as shadowy spikes on the sand and paints the water with a shimmering ribbon of dancing gold.
She plops down next to Luca and sets her satchel and shoes next to her, not caring that she’s getting sand all over her silky skirt.
“Hey,” Juliette says, leaning sideways to bump their shoulders together. Luca’s T-shirt is soft against her skin.
“Hey,” Luca echoes, her voice barely there.
The waves lapping along the shore and the burble of the crowd create a soft atmosphere. It reminds Juliette that they’re in public, and as much as she would love to wrap her arms around Luca, she can’t.
“Are you okay?” Juliette asks, studying her profile.