Chapter Eighteen
March Twenty Fifth
Juniper
Today was her first time watching people join the community on Placement Day. The dynamic of the girls had changed a lot in the last two months. One gone, one engaged and one in a relationship. She felt bad for Brittanya, even though she had made it clear that she wasn’t ready. She was still young and Wolfgang said we were going to help her.
“I’m ready!”
June yelled into the empty living room while Brittanya and Whitney were taking their time to finish up. A door opened and closed, “For someone who wants to find someone, wouldn’t you be ready first out of eagerness?”
“I’m actually not looking for someone, it was a lie to Wolfie so he would join us. He didn’t want to go.”
“Oh, he never told me that.”
June pressed down the skirt of the black satin dress.
“Well he doesn’t know I’m not looking, so just act along.”
June laughed, “Okay.”
A burp came up the hall with a door slam, “Wow you’re pulling out all the stops to be ladylike tonight, aren’t you?”
Brittanya turned her head to Whitney.
“That’s it!”
Whitney shouted, rubbing the lotion into her arms.
“What?”
Brittanya replied.
“Fade said he would pay for me to get a tattoo as an engagement gift. Ladylike.”
She held both fists up next to each other, showing her bare knuckles except the gold ring wrapped around her ring finger.
Brittanya grabbed her clutch, “You’re going to tattoo ladylike on your knuckles?”
“Hell yeah, I was thinking of that area anyway.”
She opened the door, “Let’s go, since you insisted on going together so Brittanya wouldn’t be alone.”
They followed her out and Juniper grabbed the door as she walked out the entry.
Brittanya opened the driver door, “Are you both not coming home tonight?”
“I’ll most likely go to Fade’s.”
Whitney puffed her worthless electronic cigarette into the car.
“I figured I would come back home with you.”
June closed her rear passenger door.
Brittanya eyed June in the rear view mirror with a smile, “I’m not going to count on it.”
Wolfgang
Fade sat across from Wolfgang at the round table for six, “Congrats on your proposal man.”
“Thanks, it didn’t take too long to ask.”
He pulled his hand away then re-cupped his fist, as his elbows were propped up on the table.
“You two were together for some time.”
Wolfie arched his back out looking towards the door, ignoring everyone else there.
“Yeah, well she’s all I’ve known on the island, people think we were together when we arrived. It helps that I like her.”
“She’s definitely a wild one.”
Fade’s head snapped towards the door, “They’re here.”
He stood to greet Whitney and Wolfgang followed his lead.
‘Fucking hell, June in that black dress. She knew what she was doing, no jacket to hide a thing and a huge grin across her face.’ Wolfie thought and wasn’t sure he liked what others could see, he was going to have to do something about that dress.
“Hey.”
June’s eyes lashes beat together in a flutter.
He grabbed her, engulfing her as his lips went to her ear, “What are you wearing?”
His hand lowered on her waist, like the material was anything he could grip onto. Besides, he didn’t want anyone thinking she was available.
She pulled back, “That black dress you liked so much?"
“You’re asking for it.”
He stepped to the side and pulled her chair out, “Happy one month anniversary.”
She gasped, “Thank you, it’s also been two months since you walked into my place of work for the first time.”
He smiled at her, impressed that she remembered the date for that as well, “Would you like a beverage?”
“Sure.”
June turned to her roommates picking back up in conversation. Wolfgang followed Fade to the refreshment area for beverages and noticed his order for two.
He nodded his head as he passed him and stepped up to the counter, “Three red wines.”
The older female behind the counter smiled and poured three small glasses. “There you go Wolfgang.”
“Thank you.”
He grabbed the three cups and headed back to the table, stopping at Brittanya, who was between Whitney and June. “Here you go.”
“Thank you Wolfie!”
He bent over and kissed June, looking at the front of the dress that went too low for his liking in this environment. “Here.”
He smiled at June, passing her the glass and sat next to her.
“Thank you.”
She sat there a moment longer and her eyes burrowed into him without a word.
“You look beautiful Juniper.”
His hand was placed on her bare knee.
“Thank you.”
He noticed her face fell slightly and watched her go back to the girls’ conversation. June was stunning as Wolfgang took in the way she talked to her friends, how she used her hands to help her get her point across, the way her hair sprayed across her back and how that damn dress hugged her perfectly around the waist. Wolfgang was caught off guard by Brittanya staring at him smiling. He shot her a look of question and she picked up her phone.
Brittanya ‘I’ve never seen you so in love.’
He smirked and responded, ‘Whatever.’ A plate was placed in front of him along with the others in order around the table.
Brittanya ‘I’m happy for you.’
“What about him?”
Whitney pointed to a man walking in.
“Mr. White? He was my English teacher, no thank you.”
“He’s kinda cute.”
Whitney couldn’t see the problem. Wolfgang also had Mr. White. He couldn’t grow facial hair and it made him age a lot slower, he had to be in his forties. Brittanya didn’t deserve someone old. He looked at June who was half way done with her plate and on her second glass of wine she had asked the waiter for.
He finished his fish and spotted Max and Shianne heading over. They smiled and stopped at the single empty chair, “Hey how are you guys?”
Wolfgang was polite.
“We are good.”
He pulled Shianne in as she awkwardly smiled, almost in pain to see him at a Community Day.
“That’s awesome man.”
He nodded in their direction while stabbing broccoli onto his fork.
“Have a good night.”
Max waved to Wolfie and looked around the table with a grin.
Juniper
“Look.”
Whitney pointed to the door. “More newbies.”
“No,”
Brittanya finished her glass, “They were here last time, you just didn’t notice.”
“Oh.”
Whitney curled under Fade’s arm draped over the back of her chair.
Wolfgang stood, “Do you want another drink?”
“Maybe one last glass?”
June smiled up at him.
“Do you guys think Shianne is happy?”
Whitney asked while ignoring half her food on her plate as they were removed one by one from the staff.
“I don’t know.”
Brittanya pressed her cheeks back by the corner of her mouth. “I’m happy if she is happy.”
“Your boyfriend doesn’t live with her boyfriend, so there’s that. I wish we met on different terms.”
Wolfgang placed the single red stained cup on the table. “Where’s yours?”
June looked at him with warm cheeks.
“I’m driving.”
He went in for a kiss following June taking a big sip of wine.
“What about him, the guy in blue?”
Whitney preceded her mission, pointing at the man standing in the corner next to a man and woman. “He’s definitely new.”
He caught June’s attention. It couldn’t be, that face wasn’t new. She looked at Wolfgang who wasn’t invested in the game and back at the man. He had turned around and June didn’t want to admit who that was or who it looked like. His mousey brown hair, toothy smile and narrow face. The face that she thought was her saving grace and ended up creating her hell. Ben couldn’t have found her.
She caught her breath and leaned into Wolfie, “I want to leave.”
June cautiously looked back towards him as her palms began to sweat and tracked the man before scanning back at Wolfie who had barely moved. “Now.”
She had felt that her fight or flight had kicked in. Once upon a time neither took control, she always chose to freeze from fear.
“Okay.”
He stood lending her his hand.
June turned to the girls, “We’re going to go.”
“Oh,”
Whitney’s eyebrows raised, “Okay, get it girl.”
June smirked a little, trying to ease her mind and play it cool at the same time. “Goodbye.”
She hugged Brittanya and stood next to Wolfie. He escorted her to the exit, his hand sliding lower with each step. She was stuck between two feelings, not caring if “Ben”
saw she had moved on and he could just deal with it or everything he ever said and did to her before she got here.
“What’s going on?”
He stopped at his passenger door with his brow furrowed.
“Nothing, I just wanted to leave.”
“June, you looked like you saw a ghost.”
He stood his ground.
June dropped her head and with enough air to whisper out, “I did.”
He grabbed her chin and revealed her wet eyes. “What are you talking about?”
“I don’t want to talk about it here.”
She opened her door and he caught the handle.
“Get in then.”
He closed the door. Sitting in his seat he turned to her, “Am I dropping you off?”
Her eyes burrowed into the exterior of the building, “Please don’t.”
“Did I do something?”
He grabbed her hand.
“No.”
Her gut tightened and she looked at him.
“Please tell me what happened.”
A tear fell from her lashes and she looked ahead again, “Take me to your place and I can.”
He put the car in reverse and grabbed her hand again, “You’re sure it's not me.”
She sniffled, “Yes.”
June sat unbuckled, holding it together as her chin twitched. “Okay.”
She inhaled with an exhale to calm her breathing as they pulled down his street. “I saw my ex.”
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly that. Whitney pointed at him and said he was new.”
Wolfgang parked the car, “June, you’ve been drinking, are you sure?”
“Yes I’m sure.”
She side eyed him irritated.
“You could have pointed him out to me, I know practically everyone on the island.”
She stared through the glass, “It was him.”
Her mind raced with broken up thoughts between Wolfgang's questions, “Do you want me to check for you?”
“What do you mean?”
She trembled, afraid he was going to go back.
“You know I looked up your information, I can see who came on the last Placement Day.”
He pulled through the empty parking lot and into his designated parking spot.
“I mean, I guess, Yeah.”
A sliver of relief overcame her.
“Alright.”
He turned the car off and dropped the glove box, pulling out his work tablet. It lit up the entire interior, glowing on their faces and he showed June the exact application he and Margaret use. He filtered through the people, sorting the newest to the top. Five men and two women. “Okay, we have guy number one, Ethan, twenty two years old, mechanic, does that sound like him?”
She shook her head, “No, he’s not good with his hands.”
Tears dried up on her cheeks.
“Makes sense.”
He joked, “Okay, guy number two, Jacob, thirty, beekeeper.”
“No, are these their island given names?”
“Yes. Do either of those two sound like they could be him?”
She shifted in her seat, waiting for someone who would sound like him, “No.”
He brushed his hair back, “Okay,”
He exhaled annoyed, “Guy number three, Everett, twenty five, metal working?”
“No, he’s twenty eight, or I guess twenty nine now.”
She picked at her cuticle in the dark.
“Well this next guy is twenty eight, Elijah, agriculture.”
“No, he’s never been to a farm in his life.”
“Okay, well the last guy is thirty and a teacher.”
He exited the app and turned off the tablet. “Do you feel better? People can look similar to others. You have only been here for two months, you’re still getting adjusted. Do you think this could be like,”
Wolfgang couldn’t find the words, worrying her that he could offend her, “Trauma or something?”
He closed the glove box and set a hand on her bare thigh.
June shrugged.
“Maybe you should consider therapy?”
“Maybe, but what happens if he is here?”
“Well, we can talk to The Council about it. The protocol is if they deem him a threat, they give him the ML825 shot and sends him back.”
She dropped her hand on her lap next to his pinky, “What is the ML825 shot exactly?”
He grabbed her hand, “It’s an injection that makes him forget the island, the people and everything up until the moment Jay approached him. There’s different doses for different people, it depends on how long you were here.”
Wolfgang’s seat creaked under him, “You don’t need to be scared, I couldn’t let anything happen to you.”
He tightly gripped her hand in her lap and planted a kiss on her palm. “I love you.”
“I love you too, can we go inside?”
“Yes.”
He jumped out of the Jeep and flew to the other side, the door flying open. He grabbed June by the waist and threw her over his shoulder.
“Wolfie!”
She squealed covering her back end. “What are you doing?”
He charged to the apartment door, “I told you about this dress.”
“Are you serious?”
She could hear the smile in his voice. The door opened and her butt grazed the top of the door frame.
He grabbed the door with his foot, slamming it backwards, “I am serious.”
“You are acting like a juvenile right now.”
Her hands pressed against his back as he opened his bedroom door.
He turned to lock it, laughing, “That’s not new.”
Stopping at his bed, he cast her over his shoulder. She looked up at him, his dark hair tousled, hanging down over his raised brow. “Are you-?”
He lifted the rest of the bottom of her dress, “Where’s your underwear?”
Her legs together, June bit her lips looking up at him, nipples growing harder.
“Oh June.”
He took note of her chest as he squeezed fingers between her closed legs, “It’s like you’re asking for trouble,”
Wolfie teased her, moving his hand upward. “I’m ripping this off of you.”
He grabbed two fistfuls of fabric across her stomach.
“Stop.”
Her brittle voice shook. Wolfie backed off, alerted by her voice and dropped his hands. “You’re acting like the person I am running from, deciding what I get to wear or not, do you not like this dress? Because I thought you did.”
His shoulders dropped, “That’s the problem, I like it too much.”
He crawled over her and rested on his elbow as the other hand followed his words in explanation. “The way it hugs your waist, just short enough on the bottom and low enough up top, let alone I can see your nipples every time you wear it.”
“So.”
She protested knowing she was a tease.
"So, you can wear whatever you want. When I argue about your choice, it's because you look so damn hot and I want to fuck you Juniper." He groaned.
His warm breath stroked her face, inching closer. “Besides, it leaves little to the imagination and I know every guy in there is thinking the same thing. Especially if they knew you were without underwear.”
He pushed his hips into hers, “Aggravated assault is frowned upon here, besides we could have had some fun if I only knew.”
June smiled and he began kissing her, his beard tickled her face. His mouth opened hers with his lips, inviting his tongue in. June returned the passion, arching her back up as he shoved his arms between her and the mattress, twisting her on top. Kneeling over him she felt sexy, powerful and in control. She leaned over, giving in to him and extended her legs out, lining her body with his while pressing her lips to his. Her body weight on his, June could feel every muscle twitch under her.
She heaved her hips and chest into him, one after the other, rocking the bed and his hands moved slowly up her hips, to her back. Touching her bare shoulders, Wolfgang gently unzipped her dress, reaching the end of the zipper and grabbing each panel on the sides and ripped it the rest of the way down.
June gasped sharply, straightening up as the thin straps dropped down her arms, exposing herself as the soft fabric fell to Wolfie, “I can’t believe you did that.”
She said in disbelief “This is Whitney's.”Her eyes grew.
“Was.”
The corner of his lip lifted into his beard, “And I’ll pay for it.”
He dragged the fabric out of the way not caring and looked at her body sitting on him. “I’ll pay for it ten times over.”
Wolfgang’s hands cupped the fullness of her breast, pawing at her soft skin.
June lightly gripped his wrist in a poor attempt to get his attention or stop him, she didn’t know. “I also don’t have any other clothes.”
“Even better.”
He smirked, focusing on her face as his hands continued to focus on her bare body, “I won’t send you home naked. In fact, stay all weekend.”
His fingers weaved into her hair. June snorted and rolled her eyes.
“Come here.”
He dragged Juniper’s face to his, and she was not able to ignore the other half of what she really felt. Feeling the rip against her skiing with a light sting and the material slinking from her, strangely it got her going. It's what her body wanted, to feel worshiped and Juniper surrendered.
******
June rested her head on Wolfgang's arm as the sheets cooled on their bodies, “If you need someone to take you to therapy, I’m here for you. If you want to talk, you can talk to me or I’m sure your roommates will be good listeners.”
“I don’t know.”
The texture of her hair rolled across the side of her face as she looked up at him. “Maybe I am seeing things.”
“Could be but I can’t tell you if it was or not. I think seeing someone would be beneficial either way.”
June sighed, “Okay. We’ll see.”