Marlene cursed as Padfoot tugged his lead out her grasp, the demon she called her dog galloping away quicker than she could sprint. An almost cartoonish cloud of dust rose in his wake. Her beaten up chucks slapped the floor as she began to run, a steady beat breaking up her gasps for air. God, she was unfit. It was only after five minutes that she caught sight of him again, tongue lolling as he pushed through a wooden door. A great big wooden door. She huffed. Marlene was new to the neighborhood but even she knew this was a church, crosses populating the grass more than daisies. Why the fuck did she decide a Sunday morning would be a good time to walk him?
She slowed to a jog, tired but hoping to catch up before he got too far into the place of worship, praying a little for a reception or an entrance hall. Anything to slow down her mutt. No such luck. The door creaked as she crept through, but the sermon continued. One deep voice echoed around the room. The morning light struck the floor, spilling out from the doorway. It outlined her silhouette, pasting her crude form over some religious depiction on the floor. Thankfully, it also illuminated a pile of dark fur, only a few pews deep. A pair of hands were buried deep in his pelt, and his paws on their floral lap. Marlene looked up. That's when she saw Her.
Ginger hair, a halo in the beam of light, silken over her shoulders that shook as she silently laughed at the dog. Marlene's dog. She looked up and her eyes struck Marlene's. Her eyes were the dewy grass outside, but had mirth instead of crosses entangled in the green. She slipped a hand under Padfoot's collar, gently guiding him back to Marlene. Her nails were painted pink, the red leather looked garish against it.
They sat together on the curb. Marlene learnt a lot about the girl. It was her dad with the echoing voice, she was seventeen as well, she wished she could have a dog and her name was Lily. They exchanged addresses, promises to meet up saccharine on their tongues. Marlene only got up when Lily did, when the sun had risen to its peak, the bells rang and she hastily told Marlene she was needed. She sang in the choir, only as chorus but she didn't want to let the youth group down. It felt a little like Marlene had swallowed the asphalt they sat on, but Padfoot was growing restless and could do with getting home anyway.
.
Marlene was not moping when she got home. She wasn't. She just didn't have much else to do other than lie across her porch, Padfoot a solid weight on her ankles. Her brothers were all working this summer and her dad wouldn't be back till late. So no.she wasn't moping. At least that's what she told Lily, when the girl snapped her out of her boredom with two ice lollies and a bike. Marlene stood on the back as Lily rode, strawberry stickiness sweet on their chins, their palms. Lily had changed out of her floral dress, replacing flowers with light denim shorts. She was a pretty mirror of Marlene's hand-me-down cutoffs.
They lay together on the dock that bordered a lake Marlene never noticed. They threw a bottle of suncream between themselves, Lily's light packing only due to the tiny bike basket, and this was priority according to Lily's freckled skin. Marlene didn't think the sun was too bright, and she had applied it earlier on her arms before she left the house. But Lily was thinking ahead. Marlene had only briefly paused their game of catch to muse over the dragonfly that zipped past. But when she sat up, Lily had shirked her shorts and t-shirt, diving into the murky water in only mismatched underwear and a wooden cross.
She surfaced, peals of laughter poring out of her pink mouth. Marlene grasped her wet hand to pull her up when Lily asked her to cream her back. The sun must've been stronger than Marlene thought, as Lily remarked on a red strip that scorched Marlene's cheeks.
.
Lily's mom let Marlene stay for dinner, where they said grace and used both knives AND forks, and said things like ‘please pass the peas’. It felt like playing house but Marlene was happy enough. They even let Marlene stay around, after she called Micheal to tell her dad she wouldn't be home this evening. She was too far too pick up a spare set of pajamas and she was too gangly to borrow a pair of Lily's, so she was offered an odd combination of a church camp shirt and paisley shorts from Lily's sister.
Lily's older sister was called Petunia. She had all Lily's features but wrong. Her eyes were a snake green, and her brown hair only shone auburn in the evening light. Her freckles seemed harsher on her sallow skin. Her cross was a stunning silver. But Marlene thanked her nevertheless. Lily told her stories way into the night, some biblical, some just from her imagination. Marlene traded secrets for her stories, whispering about her absent mom, and her drunken dad. They spoke for so long that it seemed pointless to pullout the mattress under Lily's birch bedframe.
Marlene slept with Lily's socked feet in her face, the smell of lavender and lake tickling her nose. Her heart thrummed all night, but she put that down to the way the immaculate house was eerily quiet compared to her own.
.
Morning came slowly and the day repeated. They spent the whole summer enjoying variations of the same day, until it was abruptly different.
They had biked to the shop, picking up oranges and two bottles of Dr pepper, as well as green beans for dinner tonight. Marlene held the orange net in her teeth, head straining high to not hit Lily on the way back. Marlene lead grace that night, stumbling over blessings as Lily's parents frowned, eyes closed, and Lily grinned, eyes gently piercing.
The night went weird when the silence that was only broken by cutlery clanking was interrupted by Petunia’s cough. She announced she had a boyfriend. The son of the Dursley’s. He was a choir boy in his youth and still attended church when his work freed him to do so. Even still, Lily's father pushed his chair back from the table and left. Lily's mom followed. Then that echoing voice was back. Petunia had two purple spots High on her cheekbones but she slapped Lily away when she reached for her clenched fist.
Marlene snook upstairs and they lay together, sharing the oranges they bought earlier. The window was open but the smell still hung heavily in the air when they fell asleep. Tangled together. Ginger and blonde and pith.
They woke to echoing voices. But this time it was because of Lily's arms wound around Marlene’s waist and her hand on Lily's collarbone. Next to her cross.
.
A week slunk by before Marlene saw Lily again. She was sat on the curb outside of the church. Her neck was bare, only dusted with freckles. Her green eyes were pink, dewier than that grass all that time ago. They sat side by side with Padfoot lay in front. Lily began to choke out an apology but Marlene closed her mouth by pressing hers to Lily's. Time was honeyed. Then Padfoot barked and they separated, spit shining on pink and red lips. The bells rang and Lily left to sing.
.
Another week went and a letter dropped on the empty floor beneath Marlene's front door. It was a pink envelope. Her name was spelt wrong. A waft of lavender spilled out when she tore the paper open.
Lily was sorry. She shouldn't have sinned.
Lily is grateful. Her church won't speak of the matter.
Lily is alone. Her sister left and tears dot the page of cursive.
Her words echo in Marlene's head, but her soul weeps quietly, pink and green blooming in Marlene's chest. After reading Lily's letter, the envelope still weighed something.
A wooden cross fell out.