Free Out of the Blue by Opal Mellon

without stammering, without apology, and he looked surprised, and a little disappointed.
    “Ah, so that’s what it is? My pertiness?” He shoved a too big spoon of ice cream in and it filled his cheeks. He looked like a pouting child. She laughed.
    “I guess so,” she said.
    She knew he hadn’t forgotten her question so she waited for his answer.
    “I guess I don’t know what I’ll do with my life,” he said.
    “You’re pretty old for that.”
    “And you enjoy engineering?”
    “It’s a job,” she said. “It’s a career.”
    “And escorting isn’t?”
    She shrugged. “That’s what I’m asking. No need to be defensive Justin.”
    He tapped his fingers on the table. “I’m taking day classes here and there,” he said. “I’d still like to go into engineering.”
    “Then why not just commit?”
    “It’s not that simple,” he said.
    “Why not?”
    “There are factors,” he said. “Things I can’t control.” He swirled his spoon in the last melted remnants in his cup. “I don’t want to commit to something and get uprooted again.”
    Molly felt that if she was a more socially astute person there was a double meaning somewhere in there. “Uprooted like in college?”
    He nodded, paling a little.
    “Do you want to go?” she asked.
    He nodded. “But I’m not ready to go home yet.”
    “Where do you want to go then?”
    “The beach.”
    “But it’s dark.”
    “Best time to go.” He winked at her and she felt nervous about it. But it was Justin, so it would be fine, right?
     
    When they arrived at the beach, the sky was nearly black. Stars shone faintly around a bright moon, lighting the sky navy and midnight around it. The water reflected the blacks, the navy, and the midnight of the sky, along with occasional flashes of light along the waves. The sand sparkled and reminded her of the dark granite at Club Blue.
    “Pretty huh?” Justin said, coming up behind her. “Come on, let’s go sit closer to the waves.”
    “It’s cold.”
    “You want my coat?”
    “Yes,” Molly said. She took it and noted its gigantic size, and the warmth it transferred from him to her. He’d be cold, but maybe that was good because it would extinguish any weird ideas he might be getting about being alone on the beach with her.
    He plopped in the sand with his long legs in front and leaned back on his hands. He looked carefree, his hair blown back by the wind, T-shirt lightly waving. She could see his pecs outlined by his shirt.
    It was just like being with one of the beautiful boys from her comics, and she remembered that that was how it had been five years ago. She’d always loved watching his large expressive eyes, straight nose, full lips.
    “So I want to hear what you meant earlier.”
    “What do you mean?” She stuffed her hands down in the cold sand.
    “You said you wouldn’t even know what to do to take advantage of me.”
    She made a small gagging noise and knew her face was probably turning bright red. She hoped he couldn’t see it in the darkness.
    “You’re blushing. Uh oh.” He leaned in closer and pulled her hair back, and she tried to push him away but simply tumbled back on the sand away from him. Good enough.
    “I’m not blushing.”
    “Oh. My bad,” he said. “Why wouldn’t you know what to do?”
    “I think you can guess,” she said, pushing herself back up, making sure she was at a good distance from him. She brushed sand off her arms. “You’re just trying to embarrass me.”
    “Me? Never!”
    “Shut up.”
    “Molly, are you a vir—”
    “Shut up!”
    “That’s adorable,” he said.
    “I’ve kissed people,” she said.
    “Kudos to you.” He turned to his side and propped up his head on one arm.
    She looked at his biceps, sure that if she just looked for a couple seconds, he wouldn’t notice. The biceps flexed, and she looked up to see him smiling at her.
    “Stop that!” She blushed again.
    “Stop looking at me like a slab of meat.”
    “I don’t