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Chapter Text

“This is a final boarding call for flight 2464 to Billings, Montana.”

Randvi rushed to the back of the short line, clutching her boarding pass as she caught her breath. It had been a rush to get to the airport from the newspaper office, especially so with her boss, the editor, insisting that she attend one last minute meeting that hadn’t even been relevant. She dragged her carry-on behind her, straightening her brown jacket as the attendant smiled politely and scanned her pass.

She breathed a sigh of relief to finally be here, to finally be going home, whatever that meant for her. All she needed to do was spend a few weeks with her sister’s family, write her article, and get some rest so she could return to Seattle refreshed and ready to tackle her work again. 

Or at least that’s what she told herself as she found her seat, crammed in next to the window. 

She’d moved away from Fornburg as soon as she’d been able to as a young adult, wanting to see the world outside of the remote town in the Montana mountains where she’d grown up. And Seattle was great, truly, full of opportunity and the challenge of creating a name for herself as a young journalist with a fresh perspective. 

And yet… she was lonely. She had a few friends here and there, people she’d get drinks with from work. But coming home to the same empty apartment week after week, and now year after year had lost the charm of independence and now just seemed cold and dreary. 

Randvi expected that a few weeks at home would change her mind, remind her of why she’d left in the first place. It was oh so small, and though she loved her sister, her brother-in-law, and her niece and nephew, it wasn’t the life she’d imagined for herself, cooped up in the mountains and so disconnected from the outside world.

Yes, a few weeks with Thora would set her right again, and then she could return to her life in Seattle with renewed appreciation. 

The flight was a short one, and it wasn’t long before she was pulling her checked bag from the carousel and hauling it outside. A blast of cool air hit her as the doors opened, and there, waiting by a car, was her sister. She stood with her arms crossed and her familiar resting expression that tended to intimidate everyone but those who knew her.

“Thora!” Randvi called, immediately brightening. Thora’s look shifted into a warm smile and she waved.

Randvi greeted her sister with a tight embrace, though Thora pulled back after a moment. She’d never been one for much physical affection. “You’re here! I almost couldn’t get the kids to go to school this morning. They were so excited I was picking you up.”

Randvi laughed, hauling her worn suitcase into the trunk of the small SUV. “They’ll have plenty of time with me this time around. Then they’ll realize how boring I am and move onto some other favorite person.”

Once they were on the road and had passed the initial catch up, Thora looked over at her curiously. “So are you going to tell me about this article you’re supposed to be writing or are you being purposefully cryptic?”

Randvi grimaced a little, looking out the window at the passing city. It was a long drive to Fornburg, nearly two hours from the airport, so she shouldn’t be surprised Thora would use this as a chance to corner her. “I wasn’t sure if Todd would go for it at first, so I didn’t want to get your hopes up, but-” 

Thora slapped the steering wheel, hard enough that Randvi jumped. “Ha! I knew it was about Raven Ridge. That’s what you’re writing about, right? It has to be. Why else would you be coming all the way back out to Fornburg. You’re going to try to save it, aren’t you?”

Raven Ridge State Park was verifiably the only attraction in their small town, outside of the single bar on Main Street and the small local history museum off the highway. Fornburg didn’t have much by way of events, but it did have one hell of a view in the mountains. 

“I’m not trying to save it,” Randvi clarified, although Thora didn’t seem to hear her. “I’m just writing about the local perspective. It’s a big deal for a State Park to potentially be developed. I’m just one person.” 

The news had only come out a few weeks ago: Raven Ridge State Park, under threat of development by a luxury real estate corporation who wanted to buy out the land from the state and turn the area into rolling neighborhoods of charmingly rustic cabins for rich people wanting to venture outside of the city. It would bring hundreds of jobs to the area, revitalize the community! 

Or so they said.

Thora waved her hand. “You’re a journalist, aren’t you supposed to be able to convince people of anything?” 

Randvi scoffed. “I write perspective pieces, not change legislation.” Sure, she could shed light on the hypocrisy of the situation, that the local people who would actually be affected didn’t want that. The park was a matter of pride for the community. Sure it was small compared to other parks, but it attracted visitors nearly year round and kept at least a few people coming through. It served everyone in the area and beyond. A wealthy, gated community would do the opposite. “I don’t even know if anyone at the park will talk to me yet. The only reason Todd agreed to let me work remotely is because he doesn’t have to pay for me to stay.”

In fact, Todd had been blatantly disinterested in her pitch until she’d pointed out that she would stay with her sister and wouldn’t have to expense a hotel. A few weeks of remote work wasn’t unusual for other journalists or freelancers the paper worked with, and it helped too that Randvi was in good standing and had an excellent track record.

“They’ll talk to you,” Thora said confidently. “You’re good at getting people to open up.” 

Randvi didn’t argue with her. She knew she had a skill with people, making them comfortable and working out their personalities and motivations. It was one of the reasons she’d become a journalist in the first place.

“Soooo,” Thora said, glancing over with a sly look only a sibling could give. 

Randvi groaned, dropping her head back against the seat. “I know what you’re going to ask, and the answer is no.” Thora was ever pestering her about whether or not she was dating anyone, pushing her for even the slightest details about the people she worked with, the people she saw around town, at the grocery store, at the gym, for a scrap of information. Randvi wasn’t lying when she said over and over again that there was no one, but Thora didn’t ever seem to take her word for it.

A few people had interested her over the years and she’d had various dates here and there, but the relationships always seemed to fizzle out before they got anywhere. It wasn’t that no one was interested in her, it was that she never seemed to care about anyone as much as they cared about her, not really. 

She’d gone out with a woman a few times last year who’d been perfectly lovely. Everything was right on paper. She was beautiful and charming, had a stable life and could offer Randvi kindness and warmth. The only problem was that Randvi had felt absolutely nothing for her. 

She was fine being single–there was still time to find someone. She was barely in her thirties and yet Thora treated her like she was getting left behind. It was far better being single than with someone she didn’t care about, much less lead them on. 

“The longest relationship you’ve ever been in was in high school and that lasted what, six months?”

Randvi cut a harrowing glare over at her sister. “ Seven. ” 

“I see Sigurd around town sometimes, you know. I don’t think he’s with anyone.”

Randvi gazed out the window. They were outside of the city now, the multi-lane highway replaced with a two lane stretch of road winding through the mountains. “I guess he came back after all?” 

Sigurd had been a moment in high school, nothing more. They’d broken up amicably before going off on their separate ways–Sigurd to explore the world, Randvi to continue her education. She wished him well, truly, but there was nothing else to pursue there. There’d barely been anything in high school.

“He came back a few years ago, from what I’ve heard. He seems different though.” Thora shrugged. “I don’t know what happened. I get the feeling that nobody really talks about it much.” 

Back in high school, he’d been adventurous and bold, dreaming about getting out of their small town and seeing everything the world had to offer. His ambition was one of the things she’d liked about him at the time. He’d been confident and easy to laugh. It was hard to think of him any other way. On weekends, they’d spent days trekking through the woods and finding new adventures for themselves, most of the time with his younger sister in tow. Eivor was several years their junior and had followed Sigurd like a loyal puppy, eager for his admiration and praise. She’d been a gangly creature back then, all elbows and knees with her blonde hair always braided. Randvi briefly wondered what she was up to now. She hadn’t thought of her in years.

Later, when they pulled into the driveway of Thora and her husband Finn’s respectable suburban home, Thora turned to her. “I hope you’re prepared for an onslaught of attention. The kids should be home from school by now.”

Sure enough, when Randvi followed her sister inside, shrieks of delight came from the other room. She was expecting her niece and nephew to look older of course–she’d seen them in various video calls over the recent months–but guilt panged through her when the seven and three year old barreled into the room so much taller than before. She hadn’t made it home last Christmas, which meant it’d been almost six months since she’d seen them in person. 

“Aunt Randvi!” Liv jumped at her with enough force that Randvi stumbled back. 

“Look how big you are!” Randvi said, embracing Liv and brushing a hand down her long red braid. Both of the kids had inherited the family hair somehow, and Thora was always talking about how much her daughter resembled Randvi as a child. “It’s so good to see you both.” 

Erik giggled as he clung to her legs and looked up at her with a dimpled smile. While Liv had grown into a string bean, Erik was still young enough to have chubby cheeks and a baby face.

“Guess what?!” Liv drew back and danced around. Before Randvi could respond, she leapt into an explanation of her latest accomplishments, which included being able to do a cartwheel, read a clock–she shoved her princess watch in Randvi’s face so quickly that Randvi couldn’t read it–and catch a ball even when someone threw it really high in the air. 

Randvi found a place on the couch and dutifully listened, asking questions here and there, but mostly letting Liv ramble about nothing and everything while Erik sat in her lap and stretched out the hair tie on her wrist with mysteriously sticky hands. Eventually Finn came out of the kitchen where he’d started on dinner and greeted Randvi with a hug. While she’d never been all that close to her brother-in-law, she still appreciated that he made an effort and treated her sister well. 

They spoke about the flight and the travel, Randvi’s job and how long she would be staying, until Liv dragged on Randvi’s arm with a groan. “Stop talking about boring stuff and come play with me in my room!” 

Randvi laughed, getting up from the couch. “Just until dinner, then I have a few things to do for tomorrow.” 

Liv pouted as she led Randvi upstairs, passing a wall of school and family photos. Thora had always been so much better about putting pictures up than Randvi. Her own apartment was decorated to her simple, practical tastes, but it was much less homey than this. 

Dinner passed in chatter about the kids’ school and preschool, and Randvi barely had room in her head for thoughts about anything else at the endless stream of talk. She enjoyed her family of course, and genuinely loved to hear Liv and Erik babble on about their friends and favorite activities, but by the time she made it up to the guest room, she eagerly collapsed on the bed. Letting out a long breath, she stared up at the ceiling with her hands resting on her stomach. 

She could do this. It was a few weeks and then she’d happily return to Seattle again with a fresh article and renewed appreciation. It had to work. There was no other option.

Eivor clipped their radio to their belt as they got out of the Park Services truck at the north trail access. It was only midmorning–a few hours into their shift–and already everything seemed to be falling apart. One of the early morning hikers had tripped and broken her ankle, so Eivor had sat with her until her daughter arrived to take her to the hospital. Then someone’s dog had gotten loose and terrorized the sheep clearing weeds by the visitors center. And now, Birna had called in a downed tree completely blocking one of the trails. 

They’d accepted the role of Supervisory Park Ranger earlier that year, and while they enjoyed the challenges of managing the small team of people who kept Raven Ridge State Park in operation, every problem that arose was now their problem.

They walked around to the back of the truck and grabbed the chainsaw out of the bed, shoving a pair of work gloves into their back pocket. The June day was just beginning to heat up, and although the mountains kept things relatively cool, all the running around was starting to take its toll.

Eivor adjusted their hat and picked up their radio. “Birna, I’m at the trailhead now. Where are you?”

They started to head down the wooded path while they waited for a response, nodding politely at a few park guests as they passed. 

A crackle of static resounded from the radio. “Left at the first turn and you can’t miss me.” Not far then, at least.

Eivor called back with an affirmative, then set the radio back onto their belt. It won’t be like this for much longer, they tried to remind themself. After the peak season, the park would close and get sold out from under everyone to the highest bidder. They knew they needed to start looking elsewhere soon, as everyone else was doing, but it felt like a betrayal to look at other jobs when this perfect one was still right here. 

They found Birna standing by the downed tree, directing a few hikers back down the trail. At the sight of Eivor, she brightened and added, “Although it looks like our savior has just arrived! Eivor!” 

Eivor lifted the chainsaw aloft. “I come with power tools!” 

The hikers, two young women with high ponytails and expensive looking athletic wear, seemed happy to wait and stood off to the side. As Eivor put on their work gloves and got the chainsaw primed, they overheard Birna chatting with the women. “Eivor here may be the one running the heavy machinery, but it’s only because they won’t relinquish the power to the rest of us.” 

Eivor said over their shoulder. “You kept carrying it around to impress women instead of doing your job. What was I supposed to do?” 

Birna let out a mock gasp. “I would do no such thing. I was–”

Eivor tugged back the starter cord, drowning out whatever Birna was about to say as the engine roared to life. They pulled out a pair of safety glasses from their shirt pocket and set to work breaking up the tree into manageable chunks.

They could hear Birna’s muffled talking with the other woman over the rumble of the chainsaw, but soon enough Birna came over to haul away the branches that Eivor cut from the trunk.

Luckily enough for them it wasn’t too big a tree and soon, they hefted a few sections of trunk off the path. Breathing a little hard by then, Eivor stepped back enough for the two women to pass through the gap. One of them waved as she passed Eivor, offering a familiar smile that left Eivor a little dumbstruck, not because it was unwelcome, but rather unexpected.

Eivor froze, watching the two women walk ahead. The one who’d looked at Eivor glanced over her shoulder, her cheeks pink when she caught Eivor looking. They quickly looked away, focusing on the tree again and the women disappeared around the bend.

Once they’d cleared the trail, the logs rolled neatly off to the side, Eivor and Birna were more than a little sweaty. As Eivor turned off the chainsaw, they wiped their brow with the short sleeve of their shirt. Birna said with her hands on her hips, “All that flirting I did and she gives you that look? It’s the arms. Leave some muscle for the rest of us, why don’t you?” 

Eivor shrugged innocently. “I guess I’m just too practiced at stealing your thunder.” They clapped Birna on the shoulder. 

Truthfully though, Birna was just as broad. The physical labor of their job had that effect and they’d even visited the gym together a few times.

A call came through over the radio at Eivor’s hip. “Hey boss, could you come down to the visitor’s center? We’ve got a woman looking to… interview someone?”

Eivor frowned. Interview? Maybe someone looking for a job, although they wondered who hadn’t heard the news about the park yet. It wasn’t often that big things happened in Fornburg, so the closure was still the talk of the community. 

“And that sounds like a very boring job not for me,” Birna said resolutely. She squinted up at the sky then checked her watch. “I’m supposed to replace Dag at the entrance in fifteen minutes. I’ll catch you later.” She gave Eivor a teasing salute, something she’d picked up after Eivor’s promotion, and headed down the trail. 

Eivor pulled off their gloves and lifted the radio. “I’ll be there in ten.” They shook out their arms one at a time, stretching their neck as they walked back to the trailhead with the chainsaw. Some days all they did was sit behind a desk dealing with the inevitable bureaucracy of a government-run facility. Other days it seemed an endless stream of hard labor and trekking across the same park back and forth to deal with one problem or another.

At the gravel parking lot, they slid the chainsaw back into the bed of the truck and got behind the wheel. They briefly flicked the mirror down, grumbling at the sawdust sticking to their sweaty collar and the smear of dirt across their cheek. Whoever this woman was, hopefully they’d make at least a decent impression.

They attempted to brush the sawdust off their collar and they wiped at the dirt until it at least reduced the smear. Their hands were still dirty, dust caked under their short nails even though they’d worn gloves, but that would have to do. 

The drive down the mountain to the visitor’s center was only a few minutes, but it increased when a group waved them down looking for directions. They were at least five minutes late when they pulled into an open spot in the visitor’s center parking lot. As they walked up to the door, they adjusted their hat, running a hand through their cropped blonde hair.

Hopefully whoever this was would take it lightly that there wasn’t any good news to offer her. 

Eivor strode inside. A woman in slim black slacks and a tucked-in blue button down shirt was standing by the front desk. “Hello ma’am. Sorry to keep you waiting, I–-” Eivor stopped short as the woman turned around. “Randvi?”

Recognition lit up on Randvi’s face. It was her. Eivor hadn’t seen her since high school when she’d been dating Sigurd, but they’d be able to spot her anywhere. She’d lost the softness in her face since then and now wore her wavy red hair up in a claw clip at the back of her head. She was shorter than Eivor remembered, although they’d been a scrawny young teenager back then, so maybe it was only Eivor who’d done the growing. It was easy to see why they’d had a raging crush on her nearly twelve years ago. Her blue eyes were just as knowing and piercing as before.

“Eivor?” Randvi’s eyes glanced down Eivor’s form before flicking back up to their face. “I hardly recognize you.” She let out a little laugh. “Although you were what, only 14 when I saw you last?”

Eivor laughed sheepishly and rubbed the back of their neck. “Somewhere around there. 14 isn’t a good time for anyone.” Suddenly they very much wished they’d put more effort in scrubbing the dirt from their face. “And just so you know, I go by they/them now.”

Randvi nodded, not missing a beat. “Noted. Thanks for telling me.” 

The brief nerves that arose in their chest at telling someone new abated. It was never a sure thing, coming out to people who’d known them before. They smiled and gestured towards her. “You–I mean you look great. Very professional.” 

Randvi glanced down at herself and adjusted the notebook in her arms. “I should’ve been more casual, but I didn’t think about it when I was packing.” She shook her head and when she glanced to the side, Eivor almost thought she was blushing. “It’s good to see you, I didn’t know you worked here or I would’ve gone about this differently. I’m not sure if you know, but I work for a paper in Seattle now, The Seattle Journal, and I’m doing a story about the development.” Her voice had shifted into something more controlled, as if she was used to introducing herself like this. 

Ah. So this kind of interview. Well, it was certainly better than someone looking for a job. There’d been an article in the small local publication about the park’s development, but no one from the paper had spoken to any of the park staff about it. “Your big Seattle paper cares about Raven Ridge?” Eivor asked, skeptical. 

“Well, no. Not at the moment. It’ll be part of a bigger picture though, about the environment and economy. And don’t worry, after this, people will care.” She waved her hand absently. “I’m good at that.” 

The way she smiled at Eivor, all knowing confidence, sent their heart pounding. For a moment, it felt as if they were 14 again, basking in awe at Randvi’s cleverness, unbeknownst to her. “I trust you.” As soon as they’d said it, they hoped they didn’t sound too hopelessly honest.

“Good, I appreciate that.” She opened her notebook and glanced down at a page. “Well, I’d love to interview a few of the staff here, get some different perspectives. And you too, if you’re willing. Is now a good time?” 

Eivor grimaced at the thought of their piling up to-do list. “Today is busy, but if you come by on Saturday, more people will be around to talk to and we’ll all be in the same place. Would that work?”

Randvi smiled and nodded. “That’s perfect, I don’t want to make things difficult for you.”

“There’s a talk I’m giving here at the visitor’s center that afternoon at 11. If you’re here after that, I can organize a few people for you to speak with.” Birna and Dag came to mind immediately. Of course they had the most opinions about the impending closure and would likely give Randvi more than enough salacious comments for her article. Eivor could at least give her the facts. 

“Excellent. Well, I don’t want to keep you if you said you had a busy day.” She wrote down the time in her notebook, then snapped it shut. 

“I’ll walk out with you.” 

Something high and hopeful arose in their chest when Randvi casually fell into step next to them. She said, “It really is good to see you. How have you been?”

It seemed too much to tell, the conflict with Sigurd and the way they’d found a home back in Fornburg after years away. Randvi would likely expect Eivor and Sigurd to still be thick as thieves, but that was too much of a story for now. Eivor was still working it out for themself. “Good, really. I never thought I’d come back here, to be honest. But here I am, living just up the mountain from where we grew up. What about you? I’d guess Seattle suits you?” 

They opened the door for Randvi and followed her through. 

“I like it there. I never pictured myself coming back, so this is everything I could want.” Her voice took on an odd tone for a moment, but it quickly passed. “I’ll be up for a promotion next year, plus there’s so much to do in Seattle. I don’t think I could ever move back here.” She quickly turned to Eivor and added, “Not that I am judging you for staying. I’m glad you like it here.” 

Eivor laughed. “No offence taken. It’s not for everyone. Good on you for getting out and doing what you want. There are plenty of people here who are too scared to do the same.”

Randvi smiled, a little sadly. “The only bad part is that I’m so far away from Thora and Finn and the kids. I don’t know if you ever see them around town at all, but Thora has a son and daughter now and they’re absolutely wild and adorable.”

Eivor did know the family. They saw them at the park sometimes and had bumped into them once at the library. Thora had always been pleasant, if a little distant, and it didn’t miss Eivor’s notice that her bag bore a little she/her pronoun pin. “I’ve seen them. They seem like good kids.”

They’d reached Eivor’s truck, and it turned out Randvi was parked right next to them. Despite the beckoning call of everything else they had to do today, they suddenly wanted this to last longer than it had. As they found their keys in their pocket, they said, “Hey, some of us are getting together at Sigurd’s house on Sunday. If you want to stop by, I’m sure everyone would like to see you again.” They hoped it sounded casual enough. “If it’s not weird for you.” 

Randvi opened the car door, looking over the top of it at Eivor and smiling. “I need to check with Thora about the car since I’m borrowing hers, but sure. Can you text me the address?” 

Eivor got out their phone and put in the number Randvi told them. They sent a quick “Hey, this is Eivor :)” 

“Thanks,” Randvi said. “I’ll see you Saturday?” 

“See you then.” 

After Eivor got into their truck, they sat for a moment, trying to process everything. It had been bad enough when they were all kids and Eivor had just been trying to figure things out about themself and their place in the world. They honestly hadn’t thought about Randvi in a long while and had been content to have that part of their life behind them. Falling in stupid puppy love with your brother’s straight high school girlfriend was a messy move that somehow felt like a right of passage. Eivor wasn’t keen on repeating that.

It was one thing to follow her and Sigurd around when they were teenagers, four years their junior and just happy to be included. And now they were both solid adults with real jobs and lives in separate cities. Randvi was probably only here for what, a week? Maybe it was the wrong choice to invite her to Sigurd’s. 

A movement caught Eivor’s eye and they looked over to see Randvi waving as she backed out of her spot. Eivor immediately smiled, returning the gesture. They watched the car pull off, heading back for the main gate. 

No, they were sure it wasn’t a mistake at all.

Chapter Text

The next morning was a Friday and Thora had taken off from work. Randvi wasn’t much of an early riser but she’d mustered up enough energy to see Liv off to school and Erik to preschool, sleepily promising to play with them later and hear all about Liv’s day. She grumbled a little over her first cup of coffee with Thora, sitting at the cluttered kitchen table still in her sleep shorts and an old borrowed sweatshirt.

Thora was well accustomed to letting Randvi wake up on her own–mornings were rough for her–so they quietly went about their activities, Thora cleaning up the kitchen while Randvi caught up on a few emails on her phone. 

There hadn’t been much time yesterday to talk about her encounter with Eivor at the park, so Thora was still in the dark. Right after dinner, Liv had dragged her off to her room again and in the bustle of getting the kids off to bed, tidying up the house, and Randvi barricading herself in her room to do some research, another weekday had concluded.

After sending off her final email, Randvi looked up from her phone. “Did you know Sigurd’s sibling works at the park? I’m going to interview them on Saturday.”

Thora turned from loading a plate in the dishwasher. “Eivor? Is that who you talked to?”

“We only talked for a few minutes, but yes. I’m going back after this talk they’re giving on Saturday and they’re going to let me interview a few more people. I haven’t seen them since high school.” 

Their encounter yesterday drifted across her memory. Eivor looked absolutely nothing like the child who’d tagged along with her and Sigurd all those years ago. Young Eivor had been eager and scrappy, always ready to arm wrestle with their brother or chase him through the woods. The Eivor from yesterday was, well, very much an adult now. They’d filled out considerably, all strong sturdy shoulders beneath their button down shirt and tattoos winding down their muscular arms. They were taller than Randvi, and still bore the same scar along their cheek that Randvi remembered from before. Sigurd had told her it was from the car accident that took Eivor’s parents and had left them behind.

Thora looked over her shoulder. “You mean the nature talk they give? I think that’s the one. Check the schedule.” 

Sure enough, when Randvi searched for the park’s sparse web page and clicked through to the calendar, there was a slot on Saturday morning for Nature Talks with Ranger Eivor!

“It looks like it.” Randvi opened the link to a flyer, just a page of colorful text with the park’s logo and some clip art of a raven in one corner and a leaf in the other. 

Nature Talks with Ranger Eivor!

Every other Saturday, rain or shine

Special guest this week: Valka from Mountain View Animal Rehab! 

Please park at the visitor’s center and join us inside for a 20 minute talk about the park’s plants and animals

Pick up a junior ranger scavenger hunt at the desk for extra fun! 

Family friendly facts, year round. Join us!

Thora rinsed out a mug in the sink. “I’ll go with you and bring the kids. They love it, especially when Valka comes.”

Something twisted in Randiv’s gut at the thought of Thora butting into her interview, but she could hardly deny her, especially with all that she was doing for her. Thora had a habit of pushing her way into Randvi’s life whether she was wanted or not. She did as she pleased, which Randvi both admired and despised. It all depended on which end of it she was on. 

Thora continued, as if reading Randvi’s expression, “I won’t bother you for the official stuff. Finn and I can take the kids on the short trail by the creek and be done by the time you are. It’s only half a mile but the kids are still in that easily-distractable phase where they want to look at everything, you know?” 

Randvi nodded, but really didn’t know. Everything she knew about kids came from her niece and nephew in the sporadic visits she spent with them. “We can all go, I just need to make sure I get what I need out of it.” She idly spun the dregs of coffee in her mug. “They also invited me to a party at Sigurd’s place.”

“Wow, really? Are you going to go?” 

“I think so, if I can borrow the car tomorrow.” 

“Sure.” After a moment, Thora added. “Do you think it will be weird to be around him again?” 

Randvi considered it. “I don’t think so. We always said we would keep in touch, we just never did.” Truthfully, she’d barely thought about what it would be like seeing Sigurd again. She was more interested in the other people she might run into.

Later, Randvi went upstairs to get ready to go out with her sister, lost in thought about the party. It hadn’t been quite as long since she’d seen Sigurd, but they’d both done a lot of growing up over the years. Or at least, she presumed he’d done as much growing as her. Maybe she should do some research before seeing him and Eivor again. Just so she didn’t embarrass herself. Research always did her good.

She rifled through her suitcase for a minute or two, piecing together a suitable outfit, then couldn’t resist the urge anymore and picked up her phone. 

She opened instagram and searched Sigurd’s name. Instagram had barely been in use back in high school, so they’d never been friends. She’d deleted Facebook ages ago, too annoyed with it, and wasn’t on social media any more than she had to. Even then, most of that was work-related research.

Sigurd’s familiar face greeted her immediately. He’d grown a beard since she’d known him, and from the looks of it, had gotten more tattoos. 

[A profile photo of Sigurd standing on a mountain peak, the view distorted, making him look like a giant towering over the world.

“Sigurd Styrbjornsson. 

Exploring the world one place at a time.

Find me on Youtube”]

She scrolled down through the photos. He appeared in various places Randvi didn’t recognize, but could tell were abroad somewhere.

[A photo of Sigurd standing under an archway. A shirtless selfie mid-run, smiling and sweaty. A video of him from a riverbank, riding in a kayak down mountain rapids. A slightly blurry photo of him with a group of guys in a bar. A selfie of him flexing in a gym mirror. A video of him trekking up a mountain and turning over his shoulder to grin at the camera.]

Visually at least, he seemed like the same Sigurd she’d known before.

One photo caught her eye and she hesitated, biting her lip before clicking through. She didn’t realize how far she’d scrolled in his profile until she saw the date. Nearly four years ago. 

[A photo of Sigurd holding the camera high up in the air to catch a view of the group behind him. He was posing with his tongue out, eyes a little glazed over. In the far upper right hand corner, Eivor, still with a bit of youthfulness in their face, their bicep pulling at the fabric of their rolled up t-shirt. They had a drink in hand and were laughing with someone Randvi couldn’t identify.]

Randvi’s gaze caught on their flushed cheeks and the sharp cut of their jaw. She tapped the photo, bringing up a scattered list of tagged people. There, in the far corner, was eivor.v. She hesitated, her thumb hovering over the tag. Chewing on her lip, she glanced up at the door, as if Thora were about to burst through and discover her at any moment. 

Ugh, she was being ridiculous. She closed her screen and tossed her phone on the bed. She needed to get dressed and at least run a brush through her hair or Thora would be even more impatient than she already was. 

Randvi was a professional . Eivor was just being nice, inviting her to Sigurd’s and agreeing to talk with her on a work-related basis.

She got dressed, shoving her legs into a pair of jeans and quickly doing the buttons on a casual short-sleeved button up. As she stood at the dresser, dragging a brush through her hair and detangling the knot that had formed at the back of her neck overnight, she glanced in the mirror at her phone on the bed. 

What harm could it do? No one would know about it, after all. And who could blame her for being curious? This was just a bit of personal research about someone she would be writing about. She did this all the time. 

She fixed her hair part and stretched across the bed on her stomach, grabbing her phone again. The photo was still up when she unlocked the screen, and this time she didn’t hesitate to click on it.

The account that greeted her was surprisingly bare. 

[The profile photo: A selfie of Eivor grinning with a giant white dog licking their face. 

“Eivor (they/them), Ranger at Raven Ridge.”]

Randvi scrolled slower this time.

The most recent photos were landscapes, various views of what she presumed were the park. A few sunrises or maybe sunsets, Randvi couldn’t tell, and a healthy dose of animals. A fox on a path, a few deer, and plenty of photos of what could only be their pets. 

[A view looking down a couch to blanket-covered legs with a fluffy white cat curled at the bottom. Another of the same huge white dog on a trail. The cat looking through a window at a raven perched on a post outside. The dog on its back, rolling in a pile of leaves.]

Randvi froze when she reached the most recent selfie. 

[A photo in a bathroom mirror of Eivor flexing one bicep and wearing a tank top cut low on the sides with a sliver of fresh pink scars pink emerging on the sides of their chest. Their hair was cut short on top with shaved sides and there was a sheen of sweat on their skin.]

The date was barely a year ago and this time they had the haircut Randvi had seen them with just yesterday. Seeing the way their tattoos curled across their muscular arms made her mouth go dry.

She tapped on it, pulling up the caption: Cleared to work out post top-surgery! It’s good to be back.

Eivor was… very handsome. She didn’t remember the last time she’d had this much of a reaction to someone. The people she’d been out with had certainly been attractive, but not stalk-them-on-social-media attractive. Not bite-her-lip-over-mildly-sweaty-mirror-selfies attractive. 

A knock on the door jolted her so much she fumbled and dropped her phone, feeling like a teenager caught in the act. “Are you almost ready?” Thora called through the door. “We need to get going so we can be done in time to get the kids.” 

“Be right there,” Randvi called back, heart pounding. She opened instagram again to make sure she hadn’t liked the photo, and breathed a sigh of relief to see that she hadn’t. She closed out of the app for good measure, lest Thora open her phone for any reason, and grabbed her shoes on her way out the door.

On Saturday morning, Randvi was squeezed into the back seat of Thora’s car with Liv’s car seat on one side and Erik’s on the other. Liv bounced excitedly, chattering away about all the animals she’d seen at the park and that one time she’d gone on the longest trail of her life and had almost starved to death on the way back (Thora gave Randvi a look from the front seat that read “it was an hour of walking and she’d refused all the snacks I packed for her”).

It felt contrary to her normal way of operating, to be packed into the back seat with a snack bag wedged next to her leg and her nephew spilling crumbs across her sleeve. She’d opted for something more casual than her last trip out to the park, but still dressed in a pair of wide-legged pants and a tucked in shirt. She didn’t want to intimidate anyone but still wanted that air of professionalism that would make people respect her. It was a fine line to walk. 

“Aunt Randvi, I hope we get to see a snake,” Liv said. “Did you know we learned about reptiles in school?” 

“That sounds exciting, why don’t you tell me what you learned?” 

Liv rattled off a few facts and Erik helpfully offered, “Snakes don’t have legs!”

“I bet you don’t know how to make a snake sound,” Liv said, leaning forward to look across Randvi at her brother. 

“I can too!” 

A few seconds later, Thora had to turn around in the passenger seat, to break up a hissing fight growing more and more vicious with Randvi caught in the middle. 

“How much longer?” Liv asked after a while. “This is boring.” 

They’d been in the car for no more than fifteen minutes at that point, which Randvi made the mistake of pointing out. 

“Fifteen minutes is a long time,” Liv insisted. “That’s a quarter of an hour! One quarter!” 

Finn spoke up from the driver’s seat. “It’s another thirty minutes to the park. Why don’t you show your aunt the book you brought?”

Liv was distracted for the moment, and if Randvi had to choose between two upset children or listening to Liv talk about all the details of the magical adventure books she was reading, she knew which was the better option.

After a while, a few games of tic-tac-toe on a paper from Randvi’s notebook and one minor spill of Erik’s juice, the car pulled off the winding mountain road next to a sign for Raven Ridge. Randvi gazed out the window while they waited behind a few cars at the front gate to pay the entrance fee.

At the foot of the mountain where they were, the pine trees were packed closely together and stretched out into the distance, only broken up by a few rough rocky outcroppings. With the exception of pure wilderness and the massive national parks, this was about as remote as you could get in the area. Regardless of whatever effect her story had, it would be a shame if all of this were to disappear into a vacation development. 

“Alright, who’s ready to hear about some animals?” Finn said later as they pulled into a spot by the visitor’s center. 

Randvi helped unbuckle Erik and soon they were heading inside. Even though they were still–Randvi checked her watch–twenty minutes early, the parking lot was much busier than it’d been during the week. 

Randvi felt a hand slip into hers as Liv fell into step next to her. “Aunt Randvi, you have a really cool job.” 

Randvi laughed, taken by surprise. “Well thank you, I do enjoy what I do. But it’s not just going to things like this, you know. It’s a lot of hard work and deciding how to represent people and getting stories that are both true and what people want to read.” 

Liv tilted her head, her pale brows drawing together. “Can I read it when you’re done?” She looked up at Randvi, earnest. 

“You’re welcome to. I’m sure your mom can show it to you when it comes out. But I won’t be offended if you don’t think it’s very interesting.” 

“You won’t be here by then?” 

Randvi held back her wince at the innocent question. No, she would definitely not still be here by then. “I’m afraid not. But I’ll be here for a while,” she said, trying to save the mood. “You don’t have to worry about that yet.” 

They walked inside and Randvi looked around. There were a few shelves against one wall with a small store selling firewood and various camping supplies, a few magnets and a shelf of dusty wooden bear carvings. Opposite the desk where she’d waited a few days ago, a wide terrarium displayed a pond ecosystem with a variety of fish and one turtle sunning itself on a log beneath a heat lamp. 

“Welcome to Raven Ridge!” A bright voice called from the desk. “Are you here for the nature talk?” The ranger, a tall woman with close cropped dark hair and a spirited smile, gestured behind her to a small seating area where a couple of people were already gathered. “It starts in about twenty minutes right back there.”

Finn took Erik from Thora’s arms. “Do you want to save us some seats? We’ll go see the sheep outside for a few minutes. How about that, Liv?” 

Randvi thanked the ranger, a pang of guilt briefly overshadowing her relief at being free of the kids for a few minutes. They were lovely, but after sitting between them in the car for almost an hour, she was more than ready for a little break. 

She and Thora found a spot near the side front and Randvi set her bag on a seat between them to save it for Liv while Thora guarded two chairs on her other side. Randvi looked around at the room, logging details away for later. It was small, but cozy and friendly. The chairs were arranged in rows in front of an unlit stone fireplace and there was a folding table set up at the front next to a poster board of the same Nature Talks with Ranger Eivor! sign she’d seen online. An addition had been taped up as well, a logo for Mountain View Animal Rehab. 

It would be good to incorporate any of this into the story, to really sell what they were getting rid of. Raven Ridge may not have been the most well funded, but everyone she’d talked to so far had been friendly and the building was well taken care of despite the obvious lack of budget. Readers tended to latch onto the small things, like the turtle in the pond display or the handmade signs for a beloved nature program. 

The bell attached to the door jingled as it opened and a now-familiar voice caught Randvi’s attention. She glanced over her shoulder before she could stop herself. 

Eivor was standing at the desk, leaning down on both elbows as they spoke with the woman stationed there. They were in the same uniform as last time, all buttoned up and official with heavy hiking boots and a ring of keys hanging from their belt loop. 

Randvi couldn’t hear what they were saying, but a few moments later, their eyes met across the room. Eivor’s face lit up. As the other ranger turned around, following Eivor’s gaze, Randvi offered a friendly wave. 

She could feel Thora’s eyes on her as she turned back around in her seat. 

“What?” Randvi asked. 

Thora shook her head, looking back down at her phone. “Nothing.” 

Randvi narrowed her eyes at her sister, suspicious, but her thoughts were interrupted by a brief hand on her shoulder. 

“Hey, Randvi, you made it.” Eivor moved to stand in front of her and leaned back on the folding table.

Randvi smiled at them. “I did. And I hope it’s okay, but my sister and her family are here too. The kids and my brother-in-law are just outside looking at the sheep.” 

“Of course!” Eivor smiled and nodded at Thora. “The more the merrier. I think I’ve seen you at the talk before, haven’t I?” 

Thora smiled, adjusting her bag in her lap. “You have. The kids are always excited to hear about everything. Especially when Valka brings an animal or two.” 

“Well they’ll be extra excited today. I hear Valka is bringing a whole host of creatures.” Something over Randvi’s head caught their eye. “Speaking of which, that’s her now.” 

They rose and looked at Randvi. “We’ll talk after, yeah? I have someone for you to interview.” 

“Great,” Randvi said, wearing a professional smile as Eivor went to the door. They disappeared through it for a few minutes, then returned helping a slender woman with long black hair bring in a variety of animal crates. They positioned the crates on the table at the orders of the woman who Randvi assumed was Valka. 

Although she was on the shorter side, Valka carried herself with poise and an air of mystery Randvi couldn’t put her finger on. All good details for whatever she wanted to include in the article.

As Eivor helped Valka get set up, more people had begun to find seats around them. Finn returned with the kids, and Liv settled in next to Randvi while Erik ignored the chair for him and climbed into Thora’s lap. 

Randvi debated about getting out her voice recorder to get footage from the talk, but decided against it at the last minute. Usually she didn’t bother to ask for permission about public things like this, but she didn’t want to lose Eivor’s trust before she’d even spoken to them, just in case that was an issue.

The noise in the crowd of about twenty people settled as Eivor faced everyone with Valka sitting in a chair off to the side. 

“Hi everyone! Welcome to Nature Talks with Ranger Eivor. As some of you might know, I’m Eivor and I work here at Raven Ridge. How is everyone doing today?” 

The kids in the audience cheered and a few adults joined in. 

“That’s great! I hope everyone’s having a beautiful day at Raven Ridge. There’s a lot to see out there, especially in the summer. Today we’re going to be talking about how to spot some of the animals at the park. Has anyone seen an animal since they’ve been here today?” 

“A squirrel!” a boy in the back called out. 

“Sheep!” Liv said. 

Eivor laughed at that. “Yes, you can see sheep and squirrels too right outside the visitor’s center.” 

They walked over to a worn poster board and held it up for everyone to see. There were several laminated photos of muddy tracks. “While you’re out on the trails today, make sure you’re paying attention to the ground. You can tell a lot about what animals are nearby by what you might see in the dirt! Does anyone have a guess about what animal made these tracks?” They pointed at a photo. 

“Raccoon?” 

Erik screeched out, “Duck! Quack!” 

“Not a duck,” Eivor said with a chuckle. “Raccoon is a good guess because they’re about the same size. What other mammals can you think of?” 

No one said anything, so they continued. “I’ll give you a clue. It’s black and white and they have a bad reputation for their smell.” 

Liv bounced in her seat. “A skunk!” 

Eivor beamed. “That’s right! And guess what, my friend Valka from Mountain View Animal Rehab has one for you to see today.” 

At her cue, Valka rose and approached one of the crates. As the kids (and Randvi too, out of curiosity) leaned forward in their chairs, Valka reached in and withdrew the rotund striped skunk.

A chorus of amazed noises arose from the children. 

“Now, let’s all use our inside voices around this girl,” Valka said. Her voice was quieter than Eivor’s, but it commanded the room just as well. “She’s primarily nocturnal, which means she’s usually asleep during the day. And I don’t know about you, but I would prefer to not be disturbed at my nighttime, right?” 

Randvi felt herself nodding along as Valka paced from side to side, stroking the skunk's back as she cradled her in one arm. The skunk snuffled around in her arm and Valka fed her a treat from her pocket.

“Let me introduce you to Grape,” Valka said. “Now, most skunks you see in the wild are not this friendly, but Grape has lived at our sanctuary since she was a baby. Unfortunately she came to live with us because someone found her after her mom was hit by a car. She can’t live in the wild anymore, so we take care of her and she shows families like you how excellent skunks are for the ecosystems around us.” 

As Valka continued, Randvi’s eyes drifted to Eivor, who was watching Valka and Grape with an attuned expression. They were a good pair, presenting like this. Eivor full of childlike wonder and eagerness, and Valka, wise and firm.

Valka and Eivor traded off as she brought out each animal individually. After Grape, there came a snake, a toad, and a hawk that perched with surprising contentment on Valka’s gloved arm. Eivor spoke about how to spot the signs of animal activity around the park, the places people had seen various wildlife before, and the animals to stay away from. As she brought out each animal, Valka chimed in with facts, sharing about each creature’s personality and what it was like to care for them. 

It wasn’t long before Eivor was thanking everyone and taking final questions. As soon as everyone was starting to disperse, Liv turned to Randvi with wide eyes. “I didn’t get to ask my question.” 

“You didn’t raise your hand,” Randvi said, then quickly backtracked at Liv’s upset expression. “But that’s okay, I’m sure Eivor wouldn’t mind answering it now.” 

Eivor looked over at them, overhearing. “Let me help Valka get packed up and I’ll be right back.”

Thora set Erik on his feet. “I’m going to take him to the bathroom before we head off to the trail. Then we’ll be out of your hair.” She tried to get him to leave his bunny stuffed animal with Finn, but Erik clutched it and made such an angry little face that Thora sighed deeply and let him bring it with him.

Someone Finn knew had been sitting behind them, so they happily talked while Randvi waited for Eivor, who was helping Valka carry the crates outside. After a few minutes, they returned and smiled, squatting down with their forearms braced on their knees in front of Liv. “So, I hear you have a question for me?” 

Liv suddenly seemed shy then, because she grasped Randvi’s arm and leaned into her. “I was just wondering if you ever get to pet the animals?” 

Eivor listened with careful consideration. “Not the ones Valka brings, no. They’re not pets, they’re ambassadors. Do you know what that means?” 

Liv shook her head. 

Eivor continued on. “It means they need humans to take care of them but they’re still wild animals. So the people who care for them, like Valka, can touch them, but mostly to share information with you and your family. They represent all of the other creatures out there who can’t speak up for themselves.” 

Liv giggled. “Animals can’t talk.” 

Eivor looked thoughtful. Randvi found it astonishingly charming, the way they took Liv seriously. “Not like people can. But they can communicate, right?”

“I guess so,” Liv admitted. 

Just then, the nearby bathroom door opened and Thora emerged with a teary-eyed Erik. He bawled, red-faced, as she gently guided him back to the chairs with a look of begrudging acceptance. 

“He dropped his bunny in the sink,” Thora said dryly. “Now it’s wet.” 

Eivor looked at the crying toddler with sympathy in their eyes, seeming unphased by his wails. He clutched the blue stuffed bunny to his chest, one of the arms dripping wet. “Hey buddy, no one wants a soggy rabbit, that’s no good, is it? Here, I think I know something that can help.” 

They disappeared through a door in the back of the building and came back a few moments later with a roll of paper towels. “Sorry, I know there’s just air dryers in the bathroom. But it’s lucky you know someone, right?” 

They crouched down next to Erik as they ripped off a few paper towels. “Can I see your bunny for a second? I promise I’ll take good care of him.”

Erik cried harder, then at last let go when Eivor gently pulled it out of his grasp. They wrapped the arm in the paper towels, squeezing it out a few times. As they worked, Erik seemed to realize they were actually helping him and watched with rapt, teary eyes.

“There, see? He’ll dry out in no time.” When they handed the toy back, Erik held it to his chest, reduced to sniffles and wet cheeks instead of outright bawls. “Yeah,” Eivor said, ruffling his hair. “You’ll be alright, won’t you? You’re a brave boy.” 

Randvi swallowed hard. Eivor was so genuinely good with the kids. Randvi enjoyed being around them, but never seemed to know what to do when they were upset. It had been difficult enough to figure out how to talk to them, so she mostly just treated them like little adults, and even that she wasn’t sure of. But Eivor didn’t even know them and had already earned a little of their trust.

“What do we say, Erik?” Thora prompted. 

He uttered a muffled, “Thank you.” 

Thora caught Eivor’s gaze and mouthed a sincere thanks over Erik’s head. 

Eivor pushed up off their knees and rolled up the rest of the paper towels. “No problem. We have to look out for all the creatures here, including stuffed bunnies.” 

Randvi chewed on her lip. Was this doing something for her? No, she shouldn’t be ridiculous. Eivor was just being nice, that was all. She cleared her throat. “So, about those interviews?” 

“Of course, you can talk to Dag first, and then I’ll be around if you want to talk to me.”

Finn ushered the kids off. “And that’s our cue to go for our walk. How long do you think you’ll need?”

“An hour?” Randvi glanced to Eivor with raised brows, to see if that met their expectation. They shrugged, nodding. 

“We’ll be back in an hour, then. How about it, kids?” 

Once they were alone, Eivor turned to Randvi. “I have an office in the back. I figured you could use that, if that works for you. There’s not many indoor spaces that provide much privacy here–there’s not much need for it.”

“That will suit me just fine.”

Eivor started to lead her through the back door, then glanced over their shoulder. “As long as you don’t go snooping through my desk or anything. Not that there’s anything to find.” 

“I’m not that kind of journalist,” Randvi said, lightly. She wasn’t offended. Truthfully though, she wasn’t above a little light snooping. Nothing in depth, just a little advantageous research if the need called for it, which this didn’t.

They went down a short hallway, briefly stopping by a storage closet to set the paper towels on a shelf inside, then stepped into a tidy but small office at the far end of the building. There was barely enough room for anything but two chairs and a bulky wooden desk, the same kind one might find at the front of a dated classroom. There was a neat stack of papers on one side and a calendar pinned to a board on the wall. There wasn’t even a computer. A line of carved wooden animals (maybe hand carved?) stood in a row along the windowsill. 

“I’m sure you’re used to better,” Eivor said, standing aside for Randvi to walk in. 

“This is all I need, Eivor,” Randvi insisted. She was used to more, but Eivor didn’t need to know that. And besides, a lot of the people she spoke to had no use for their spacious offices with expensive wall art and shelves of decorative books no one ever touched.

“I have another person for you to talk to as well, if you’re not satisfied with what Dag and I have to say to you. She had to leave early today, but she’ll be around later this week. I hope you don’t mind coming back.”

Randvi took the seat behind the desk, drawing the creaky office chair closer in. “I don’t mind at all.”

Eivor stood in the doorway for a moment, hands in their pockets, watching her. Then, as if jolted by a thought, they stood a bit straighter and said, “I’ll be right back with Dag.” 

While she waited, Randvi got out her notebook and phone, opening the app she used to make recordings. She opened a new file but didn’t start the recording yet. 

It wasn’t a minute later before she heard the sound of someone striding down the hallway. A gruff, burly man with dark hair and a beard appeared in the doorway. He seemed all business, unsmiling and a complete 180 from Eivor’s friendly demeanor.

“Dag Nithisson,” he said simply, extending a hand. His grip squeezed her hand tightly–a little too tightly–but she didn’t grimace. 

“Randvi,” she replied, ““I work for The Seattle Journal and I’m doing a piece about the potential park development. I’m getting local perspectives and would love to hear from the park employees, but I’m sure Eivor has filled you in on that. Would you mind if I record our conversation?” She gestured for him to sit down across from her, and they both took their seats. 

“Why?” He stared blankly at her. 

Randvi’s brows rose in surprise. She was used to handling people’s hesitance about being recorded, but no one was usually this standoffish about it. “Oh, it’s just for my notes. No one else will hear it, it’s just so I can stay engaged in the conversation without having to keep up with writing anything down. It gives me more material to work with.” She offered him a charming smile, catching up with herself. 

He didn’t respond for a moment, glancing down at her phone with the recorder pulled up on the screen. “I guess that would be okay.” He didn’t seem convinced, but he wasn’t giving her much to work with in general. 

“Thank you, and again, no need to worry. It’s just for internal purposes.” She tapped the button to record and shut off the screen, folding her hands in front of her and meeting his eyes. “Would you start by telling me your first and last name and spelling it out please?” 

“Did you already forget it?” He looked at her with a slight grimace.

“Oh, it’s just for the recording. So it’s easy to identify your interview. And the spelling is so I can quote you.” She plastered on a signature polite smile.

Dag repeated his name and spelled it out for her stiffly. It was alright though, usually she just needed to get people talking a little and the words tended to flow a little easier between them. She had him tell her about his role at the park next, to get him talking about something he could elaborate on. He spoke of the expected duties: trail upkeep, directing visitors, monitoring the conservation areas. Then he added, “But if you ask me, I should be the supervisor here, not Eivor. The park wouldn’t be under threat with someone else leading it.”

Randvi didn’t let the surprise come through on her face. “Tell me more about that.” She leaned in, hoping her expression of interest would encourage him. 

He frowned. “Eivor is all talk and no action. Everyone around here knows that I should have gotten the job instead of her.” 

Randvi bit the inside of her cheek with all the effort it took to hold her smile. “Them?” 

Dag waved his hand. “Whatever. Eivor bides her–their time doing nothing while the rest of us get all the work done. It’s no wonder we’re not going to make it. The park probably isn’t making any money and now it’s their fault the government wants to sell us out. There’s one single reason the park is closing and that’s because of Eivor.” 

Randvi nodded, carefully considering her next words. This wasn’t going in the direction she’d thought, but there were still useful bits in there somewhere. She just needed to extricate them. “What are you going to do if the park does close?” 

Dag scoffed. “It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when. Even if they replaced Eivor and got someone else in here, it would be too late. They’ve already run it into the ground. I’m looking at parks to transfer to. The forest service has some jobs a few counties over. But then I’d have to move my whole life and–” 

He continued on, and Randvi almost wished she hadn’t found what would get him to talk. What he was saying didn’t completely add up, and she could tell the stories he spouted off were heavily embellished. The more he spoke, the more it became clear that everything wrong at the park, from the rust on the front gate lock to the work schedule to the road maintenance and everything in between was all Eivor’s fault and he could apparently do it better. She just wasn’t sure if his problem was with Eivor’s gender or them as a person. Or maybe it had nothing to do with Eivor and everything to do with his own brash narcissism.

After a while, after Randvi tried time and time again to redirect the conversation away from Eivor to the park in general, she realized she’d gotten all she could out of him. He circled back every time to his own park improvement ideas, which he failed to elaborate on, even when Randvi prompted him. 

As she nodded along to him, Randvi wondered passively how much of a trend this was, regardless of the state of the park. 

“Well, Dag,” she said with a long breath, “Thank you very much. You’ve given me a lot to work with.”

He sat back in his chair, crossing his arms. “Of course. Everyone knows if you need the real story, you come to me.” 

Randvi smiled through her annoyance. “Of course.” She shut off the recording and thanked him again, standing. 

He took his cue and rose. 

“I’ll be in touch if I need anything else.”

Once he’d gone, she glanced at the time on her phone and let out a long breath. There was just enough time to interview Eivor, if they were still available before her sister’s family would likely be back. She wasn’t sure what state the kids would be in. They’d be worn out either to the point of falling asleep in the car or fighting the whole way home. It really was the toss of a coin. 

Just as she was getting ready to go out and see if Eivor was still around, they appeared in the doorway. After the conversation with Dag, they were a welcome relief and Randvi’s smile was genuine. 

“Still time for me?” Eivor asked as they stepped inside. 

“Of course.” She didn’t stand up like she had for Dag, instead watching Eivor drop into the seat across from her with a grunt. 

“I’ve been on my feet all day and it’s barely noon.” They looked around curiously. “It’s weird to be on this side of the desk. Usually I'm over there.” They nodded at Randvi’s seat. 

“We can switch back if you want?” Randvi offered. “It doesn’t bother me.” 

Eivor waved her off. “Nah, you’re the one interviewing me after all. Change is refreshing. How was Dag?” 

Randvi’s grimace must have been obvious on her face because Eivor laughed. “That bad?” 

“Not bad!” Randvi said quickly. “Just…” she glanced sideways, chewing on her lip. 

“Yeah, he’s like that.” 

“Let’s stop talking about him or my professionalism might lapse.”

Eivor looked at her conspiratorially. “Well we wouldn’t want that.” 

Randvi tried to shove down the pleasant tingle of nerves in her stomach and distracted herself by pulling up a new recording file. “Ready to start?”

“Let’s do it.” Eivor leaned forward in the chair, crossing their arms on the table in front of them. Compared to Dag’s bravado, Eivor’s easy confidence was a breath of fresh air. 

After they’d gone through the usual introductions, Randvi went immediately into Eivor’s opinions of the closure. She was surprised when Eivor’s first words were, “It hurts like hell.”

Randvi’s brows drew together. “What do you mean?” 

Eivor looked around, suddenly seeming melancholic. “I’ve spent my whole adult life here. I volunteered at the visitor’s center right after high school while I was trying to find a quote, real job. And then a position opened up for the next season and I got it. I’ve been here ever since. Everyone who works here is my family. We look out for each other and we have each other’s back. After–I mean,” They stared into the distance with a hard expression. “After everything from my childhood, this is almost everything I’ve ever wanted.” 

Randvi wanted to ask what else they wanted, but that was too personal for the interview.

“And as ridiculous as it sounds, Dag too. He’s in everyone’s face and fucking annoying sometimes, but he’s family too. The park wouldn’t be the same without him.” 

Randvi wondered if Dag would say the same about Eivor. 

“You’re not going to tell him I said that, are you? Maybe, uh, don’t publish that.” 

“I won’t include it.” Under other circumstances, she wouldn’t have made a statement like that, but it was a harmless fact anyway, and it’s not like it was related to the article. “Tell me more about the park.” 

Eivor stared out the window thoughtfully. The view looked out into the trees, the slope of the mountain dropping away before them. “The park closing would be devastating. I bought a house a few miles away, just to be close. Well, really more of a cabin.” They huffed out a laugh. “We don’t make a ton, you know. It took me forever to save up for it and it’s not huge or updated or anything, but it’s mine.” 

Their eyes met Randvi’s and she could see the breadth of it there, how much this place meant to them. “I figured out a hell of a lot about myself here. Being alone, out in nature, sometimes it does that to you. You either have no time to think because you’re run ragged off your feet or you have all the time in the world and you see maybe one person an hour.” 

“What did you learn?” 

“My identity. Not the lesbian part–that I already knew.” They glanced at her with an amused smile. “The gender part, being nonbinary. It sounds corny, believe me, I know, but when it’s just you out there? Everything else disappears. It’s so much easier to hear yourself think when the rest of the word isn’t leaning over your shoulder, breathing down the back of your neck with heteronormativity and gender norms. It’s easier to know yourself–who you actually are–when you’re taking care of land like this. It’s like the land–the mountains and rivers and wildlife–they all return the favor and take care of you too.” 

The beauty of that struck Randvi right through the chest. “That’s very eloquent.”

A faint flush rose on Eivor’s cheeks and they shrugged. “It’s just how I feel.” 

She asked Eivor about their plans after, but they brushed her off, so she continued on with a different question. It was refreshing hearing from Eivor. They laid out the facts of the matter, essentially the same thing Randvi had discovered with a little digging of her own. The date for the state council session was about a month and a half away, and then it would be officially decided in a vote with the state officials. 

It wasn’t looking good. Despite the local backlash, the real estate company–an out of state corporation originally from California–had strong backing and investors already lined up to complete the project within two years. 

It would be one clean evisceration of Raven Ridge State Park.

After Randvi had turned off the recording and they were wrapping up, she said, “You know, Eivor, it’s not a lost cause.” 

Eivor stood, rubbing their wrist. “I know. I’ve talked to a few people, the county commissioner for one, but everyone seems to have their minds made up. I want to do something, but everything I try comes to a dead end.” They frowned. 

Randvi looked up at them. “Have you made a nuisance of yourself?” 

“I’ve tried, but they never return my calls.” 

“Keep calling. Annoy them into caring about it. You do a lot for the park from what I’ve heard and it seems like a really great place. State parks don’t just easily disappear. If there’s one thing I know about the government, it’s that everything takes three times as long as everyone says it will. One good blow to a fragile system can cause a world of problems. You just have to figure out what will break it.” 

Eivor looked at her with something new in their eyes. “I didn’t expect you to be so devious.”

Holding back a smile, Randvi stood too and collected her bag. “It’s not deviousness, Eivor, it’s pragmatism. You just need to jam up things enough. Create a stir. People don’t like that, but it works.” 

This technically wasn’t supposed to be why she was here. Interfering was tricky. Whether or not she agreed with it, a story about a park on the brink of development that the government didn’t decide to close after all wasn’t going to sell.

“I can’t tell you what to do,” Randvi said as she came around the desk. “But if I were you, I’d fight for it.”

Eivor opened the door for her and let her walk through. They always seemed to do that. “Maybe I will call again.” As they walked down the narrow hallway, Eivor said, “Hey, Randvi?” 

She glanced over her shoulder. “Yes?” 

“Thank you.” 

“For what?” 

“Listening.” 

Randvi reached out, squeezing Eivor’s arm. “You’re easy to listen to.” 

In the distance, she could hear the sounds of Thora’s family in the main area of the visitor’s center. For a moment, she didn’t want to return. She stood with Eivor in the cramped hallway for half a second more, then turned and headed silently out to greet her family.

Chapter Text

Eivor grumbled to themself as they tossed another shirt onto the bed. Too formal. 

They stood in front of their dresser, staring down into the open drawer with a dissatisfied expression. Where were all their good shirts? Why the hell was everything either stained or didn’t fit the way they wanted or too casual or just too much of anything.

They looked over at Dwolfg, who had his huge white head resting on his paws as he lounged on the bed. “You’re lucky you have fur and don’t have to dress yourself.” 

The dog looked up at them, then let out a sigh and closed his eyes in a world-weary way that made Eivor chuckle. 

It was just a casual get together at Sigurd’s house, nothing special at all, but Randvi would be there. And Eivor knew they hadn’t made an entirely positive impression. First they’d met her sweaty and covered in sawdust. At least the second time they’d managed to keep themself clean, but they’d still been in their park uniform, which wasn’t exactly flattering. 

Every time they put on a shirt, they grimaced in the mirror at each one. At the next one, they muttered, “Ugh, this is stupid.” 

They seized a plain black tshirt–one they’d discarded earlier for being too plain–from the growing mountain of clothes on the bed and dragged it on over their head. They cuffed the sleeves a few times, and before they could change their mind, grabbed their keys.

“Don’t get into trouble while I’m gone,” they said, scratching Dwolfg between the ears. He huffed out a breath, settling into the covers. They stopped by Nali the cat perch by the window as they walked through the living room of their cabin, giving her a pat too. “You either.” Nali cracked one green eye open, flicking her tail. 

That was all Eivor was likely to get out of her.

On the drive over to Sigurd’s, about twenty minutes towards town, Eivor tried and failed spectacularly not to think about Randvi. It was stupid, truly, how much they hadn’t been able to get her out of their head. Even though she’d barely crossed their mind in the years apart, apparently the embers of their crush had still been alive. All it took was one sharp glance in their direction, her blue eyes finding theirs, and the embers flared to life again. 

They’d had flings here and there over the years. In their first year at the park, they’d had a thing with Petra but had eventually both realized they were better off as friends. A few women–and some men, whether they were clueless or bold–came through the park every once in a while and made their move. Eivor accepted some of the women and none of the men. There’d been a particularly notable night with a red headed musician that Birna still teased them about.

No one ever stuck around long though, and Eivor was perfectly fine with that. It was what they wanted: the flirting and fun and sex without any of the complicated feelings.

There were already a few cars outside Sigurd’s house when they parked their weather-worn Subaru on the street. They flipped the mirror down, running their hand back through their short blonde hair even though it was already all in place. They picked a piece of white fur off their shirt, then grunted at the realization that they could be here all day if they tried to remove every piece of fur. They got out before they could find something else to do. 

Sigurd’s house was nice enough, a reasonably sized two bedroom home near town that Styrbjorn had helped him purchase once it became clear he was moving back home for good. In the beginning, it’d been no more than a bachelor pad, but between the stern reminders from Styrbjorn and help from their friends, he’d gotten it to a better place.

Faint music and the sound of people talking drifted around from the back yard, so Eivor let themself directly into the fence and walked around to the back. 

“Eivor!” 

“Hytham! Good to see you!” Hytham, one of their better friends through Sigurd, came over and embraced them. He was dressed in a linen shirt that was somehow equally crisp and relaxed, and his dark beard and hair neatly trimmed. One hand rested on his cane, so it must have been a worse day than some. 

He and Sigurd had grown closer over the years since his return, and Eivor was glad that they could find companionship between each other. They’d both lost a common friend after all. 

“How’ve you been?” Hytham asked as they walked back to the small crowd.

“Oh, you know. The park might close. It’s a lot of bureaucracy and paperwork. I’m sure you understand.” 

Hytham nodded along. “I heard about that, I’m sorry.” His response was genuine, and Eivor loved him for it. Not everyone understood the devastation Eivor felt, but Hytham was all too familiar with wrapping your identity up in an occupation until it became a part of you. 

A creak came as the door from the kitchen opened. “Oh, Eivor!” Sigurd came out carrying a tray of meat. “You made it.” 

The siblings embraced, a little awkwardly and one-armed around the six pack Eivor was carrying and the platter Sigurd held. It was better now, but it still didn’t feel quite right.

“Need any help?” Eivor asked, watching Sigurd walk over to the grill at the edge of the patio. He turned a few knobs to get it started.

“Nah, that’s fine. There’s a cooler inside, by the way, if you want to put the beer in it.” 

Hytham walked inside with them, and they said hi to a few more of Sigurd’s friends on the way. They glanced around inside but there was no sight of Randvi yet.

Hytham shifted through the drinks already in the cooler as Eivor opened the pack of beer and dumped them in. “Sigurd said someone you both knew in high school is coming?” 

Eivor took one of the beers they’d brought and shut the cooler. “I forgot, you and Randvi never overlapped, did you?” 

Hytham had become a fixture in Fornburg a year or two after Randvi had graduated. The two never would’ve met. “I don’t know her. Sigurd just said he dated in high school? I want to reserve my judgement, but I’ll be honest that I don’t understand why anyone would want to see their high school ex again.” 

Eivor chuckled, popping open the top of their beer with the nearby opener, some freebie keychain emblazoned with the logo of the bar in town. “Their breakup was amicable enough. I’m the one who invited her. She can catch up with everyone, brag about her fancy journalist job and put the rest of us to shame.” 

They took a drink and nearly sputtered as a voice said behind them, “If you wanted me to brag about my work, you could’ve just asked nicely.”

Eivor spun around.

Randvi was standing in the doorway to the kitchen, her hair twisted up in a bun with a few strands of red hair falling around her face. She wore a sly expression and carried a bottle of wine by her side. She was dressed more casually this time in a pair of dark shorts with a sky-blue shirt tucked into the waistband. Eivor’s eyes flashed briefly across the shape of her pale legs.

Randvi stepped forward, holding out the wine. “Someone let me in. I brought this, but from the looks of it, this isn’t that kind of party?”

Eivor took the bottle out of her hands, unable to resist a smile. “Nah, we probably need someone to refine our tastes. We’re all used to the cheap stuff.” 

They looked at each other for a moment, then Hytham cleared his throat. 

“Of course!” Eivor said, catching up with themself. “Randvi, this is my friend Hytham. And Hytham, this is Randvi, who–er, well we were just talking about.” 

Randvi shook his hand. “Nice to meet you, Hytham.” 

“Hytham works at the library,” Eivor explained. “Probably one of the only well learned people here today. Besides you, obviously.” They gestured to Randvi.

“We all have our talents,” Randvi said, smiling. She looked around at the room. Many of the other people milling around had arrived in town after she’d gone, but there were plenty that she might recognize too. “Wow, is that Sunniva? I haven’t seen her in forever.”

Eivor followed her gaze. “Yeah, she hung around after high school.” 

Before they could say anything, Randvi was already crossing the room. Sunniva’s eyes widened at the sight of her, then the two were hugging and grinning, talking quickly between them. 

Hytham leaned against the counter, propping his cane next to him. “Now that’s an interesting development.” His tone was casual.

“What?” Eivor asked, taking a sip of their beer with their eyes still on Randvi. They shoved their free hand in the pocket of their shorts. 

“Your brother’s high school ex, huh? Well, enough time has passed that it’s not dangerous, but it’s still a funny turn of events, isn’t it?” 

Eivor elbowed him in the ribs, maybe a little too hard because he winced. “Do you want me to punch you? Because I will.”

He didn’t seem bothered by the threat. “I know what I’m looking at.”

Eivor suddenly turned to him. “If you tell Sigurd–” 

“You’ll punch me, I get it.” He waved them off. 

Eivor narrowed their eyes, trying to gauge his seriousness.

He added, straight faced, “I won’t say anything. It’s none of Sigurd’s business.”

Eivor nodded once. Good. They glanced back to Randvi, who was still locked in a conversation with Sunniva by the dining room table. “Nothing’s going to happen anyway.” They opened a drawer, rummaging around until they found a corkscrew. “She’s only here for two weeks. Less than that now.” 

Hytham hummed at this. He watched Eivor twist the corkscrew into the wine Randvi had brought. “Then why the hell are you over here and not talking to her?”

They searched through the cabinets until they found a few cups that would work. Sigurd didn’t even own a wine glass. Did they own a wine glass? Maybe they’d have to buy some. It seemed like something an adult should have. “Give me a minute, God, man.”

Hytham simply observed as they poured out two glasses of the red wine and left a few other glasses out for anyone else.

“You want this?” Eivor said, holding out the beer they’d only had a few sips of. 

Hytham looked at it with pursed lips. “I’m good.” 

“Suit yourself.” They abandoned the beer on the counter and picked up the two glasses of wine instead. “Wait, shit.” Spilled wine from their messy pour stuck to the outside of the glasses, more staining the counter. 

They glanced over at Randvi, who was still fully occupied, and quickly wiped off the counter and glasses.

“How you ever get women is beyond me,” Hytham said dryly as Eivor picked up the glasses again. 

“It’s because I’m so loveable,” Eivor said with a grin as they started to walk away.

Hytham added, “And I thought it was your rugged charm.” 

Eivor’s confidence quickly dissipated as they approached Randvi. She was just so beautiful and intelligent and she probably knew so many people in the city. There were so many options, how was Eivor supposed to compete with that? To say nothing of her sexuality.

“Oh, thank you!” Randvi said when Eivor approached her and held out the glass. She glanced at the one in Eivor’s hand. “Weren’t you just drinking a beer?” 

Eivor stepped in front of her view of the counter. “No.” 

She gave Eivor a sideways glance, then turned to Sunniva. “We were just catching up. Did you know Sunniva does those guided kayak tours at the lake?”

“I didn’t know you started that, that’s great,” Eivor said.

Sunniva smiled and started talking about the tours, but Eivor didn’t hear her, too focused on the way Randvi’s eyes lit up as she listened. God, they were hopeless.

Once Randvi got started talking to everyone, there was no stopping her. She worked her way through the crowd, spending time with everyone she’d known from before and greeting the new faces. 

Eivor wandered in and out of conversations with everyone, attempting to be cool and casual about the whole thing. 

Only nothing about the way they were feeling felt cool or casual. 

At work, it was easier to maintain a professional boundary. They were used to that environment and they were talking about official things after all. Here, with all the people they’d known for years and the drinks flowing, it was becoming dangerously easy to forget that any boundaries existed at all.

Sigurd eventually called inside that everything was ready to eat and then of course Randvi caught up with him as well. Eivor watched that conversation like a hawk, barely touching their grilled chicken as Randvi and Sigurd chatted over the food table. 

Their conversation was brief but friendly, and eventually Eivor let out a breath as they parted again. Randvi’s eyes flicked over the crowd, catching on Eivor’s. Shit . They quickly looked away, embarrassed at having been caught. 

They laughed at something across the table, hoping it camouflaged them enough as they plunged their fork into a potato. When they looked up again, Randvi was already absorbed in another conversation.

The night continued on like that, most everyone sitting outside on the patio in a scattering of lawn chairs and the picnic table in the yard. Once the sun was starting to set, Eivor gathered up some logs and kindling and started to prepare the fire pit built into the far corner of the yard in a ring of stones. 

Just as they were lighting it, footsteps crunched through the leaves behind them.

“That looks nice,” Randvi said over their shoulder.

Eivor stared into the growing flame, watching it catch, then tossed the match into the kindling. “Are you having a good time?” They rose, dusting their hands off. 

“I am,” she said, nudging at one of the rocks with her foot. “It’s good to see everyone. I didn’t realize how many people stuck around. I’d assumed more people would’ve gotten out of here.”

Eivor pulled two chairs closer to the fire. It was still warm, but the night was cooling things off. “A lot of us are still here. Some of us left and came back, some never left at all. For a while there I never thought Sigurd would settle down here, but he seems happy.” 

They sat down and Randvi took the chair next to them. “Do you mind if I ask… what happened?”

Eivor glanced over at her and found Randvi watching them carefully. “Between Sigurd and I?”

“I know it’s none of my business, but I can tell it’s different now. You two used to be so inseparable. And I don’t think I’ve seen you share more than a few words tonight.”

Eivor leaned back in the chair, stretching their legs out in front of them. “Is it that obvious?”

Randvi shrugged. “I’m also observant.” 

Eivor chuckled and took a swig of their beer. They’d finished the wine earlier and had gone back for their slightly flat but still good first drink. “I don’t know why I expected anything less. Sigurd had this friend back in college, Basim. You remember Hytham from earlier? The three of them were always together.”

Randvi nodded, so Eivor continued, “They all met while they were traveling and started going places together. They backpacked across Europe and Asia and everywhere else, going all over the place. I didn’t even see him for a year or two while that was going on. Basim and Hytham came back with Sigurd to Fornburg eventually and we got to meet them. Hytham I liked, but Basim… I’m not sure. I think at first it was jealousy on my part. I was used to doing everything with Sigurd and then all of a sudden here was a new best friend, someone he looked up to instead of chastising.” 

They reached for a stick, poking at the logs on the fire. One of them settled with a crackling pop. Randvi said nothing, listening intently. 

“They convinced me to come traveling with them. I had a lot of vacation days saved up by that point, so we all took a trip to Norway, where our family is from, you know. It was all great at first, being around all this heritage. The mountains look like they were carved by some ancient god and it was frozen solid, but it was stunning. The whole time, Basim was… weird. I couldn’t put my finger on it at first and whenever I brought it up with Sigurd, he brushed me off.”

“And Basim, he’s not here, is he?” Randvi nodded back towards the others on the patio. 

“No, I haven’t seen him since all this happened. And I’m glad of that. It turns out he’d been manipulating Sigurd the whole time, trying to get on his good side and gain his trust just to get back at him. I’m still piecing it all together myself, and Sigurd is… tight-lipped about what he did. Anyway, it ended with Basim taking our only transport off this mountain and abandoning us there.” 

Randvi’s eyes widened and Eivor quickly continued. “We’re all fine now. But getting down the mountain was hard. That’s how Hytham’s leg got injured. I’m not sure we would’ve even made it down if Sigurd weren’t so capable and I wasn’t a ranger. We didn’t see Basim again. It was a punch in the gut for Sigurd but I think Hytham was the one who took it the hardest. He’s loyal to a fault and idealistic and–”

They stared into the flames, then shrugged. “Well, he and Sigurd relied on each other a lot. And I didn’t. I didn’t need to. We’d drifted apart too and… it’s all complicated.” 

It was hard to explain the chasm between them and Sigurd. The relationship was a tangle of knots, some worked loose, some pulled too tight to ever touch. 

“That’s awful, Eivor, I’m so sorry.” Randvi looked at them sincerely. “Thank you for telling me.” 

Eivor waved their hand and took a drink from their beer. “It’s all in the past. What’s done is done. We’re okay now, it’s just vastly different.” 

Randvi nodded, sipping her own drink. She’d swapped the wine for sparkling water at some point over the evening, which Eivor found charmingly sensible.

“So, how’s the article coming?”

Randvi groaned a little. “I don’t want to talk about work tonight, Eivor. There’s already enough of that.” She looked over at them with a playfully weary look.

“Tell me about Seattle, then.”

Randvi sighed. “It’s big. It’s different. That’s what I wanted, you know. I didn’t want to see the world like you and Sigurd, not in the same way at least. I wanted to meet new people and find somewhere that challenged me. And I did. But…” She stared into the fire, her lips twisting as she bit into the corner of her mouth. 

“But?” Eivor prompted.

“It’s become a little hard to appreciate. That’s part of the reason I came back, too. I wanted to remind myself why I’d left.” 

Something hard formed in Eivor’s gut. “Is it working?”

Randvi smiled faintly. “In some ways.”

Eivor took another drink of beer, longer this time, and Randvi continued as they were swallowing. “I love my job at the Journal, but I wish I could write about the things I actually want to write about. The filler is what pays the bills most of the time, but it’s tiring, writing drivel that the editors know will sell.” 

Eivor looked over at her with a teasing smile. “I thought you didn’t want to talk about work?”

Randvi smiled, looking a little sheepish. “I’m moderately afraid I don’t know how to talk about anything else. You go this time. Tell me about Fornburg.”

“But you’ve already lived here. Don’t you already know about it?” 

“I lived here twelve years ago. Tell me why you stayed. Why do you like it?”

“The nature–it’s beautiful here.” Eivor loved the wilderness at their doorstep. The fact that they were surrounded by it at work, that it was one short drive to splendor.

“But most everywhere has nature. What is it about here specifically?”

Eivor’s mouth quirked up in a half-smile. “You’re just as inquisitive as you ever were, you know that?” 

Randvi glanced over, meeting their eyes. The firelight flickered across her face, casting shadows across her cheeks. She returned their same teasing smile. “Humor me.” 

Eivor thought for a moment. “I love where I live. I already told you about it partly, during the interview, but there’s more. It’s a little bit off the road in the middle of the mountains. It’s dark and drafty sometimes, but it’s cozy. There’s this huge window that looks out over the mountains and there’s a deck too. I could sit out there for hours and watch everything go by. There’s this fox that comes around sometimes and a few ravens that visit.” 

They could feel Randvi’s eyes on them as they spoke. “In the winter I practically have to dig myself out to get to the road, but it’s worth it. I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. It’s… special.” They looked at Randvi, taking in her soft expression. 

“It sounds beautiful,” Randvi said.

“And not just home, you know. There’s that spot at the park on a side trail that’s a little hard to find. My dog likes to go too. In the summer, after a long shift, sometimes I go down there and jump straight in. I just float and stare up at the branches. You feel like the only person in the world.” 

Even just talking about it made them feel more at peace. Meditating on a mossy rock at the edge of the water while Dwolfg napped in the shade was one of the things that had gotten them through their rift with Sigurd.

“And you walk back soaked to the bone?” Randvi laughed a little. 

Eivor chuckled at the mental image. “Of course not, what do you take me for? I swim naked. In the summer heat it only takes a few minutes to dry off again and then you’re good to put your clothes back on.” 

Randvi took another sip of her drink, chewing at the corner of her mouth. If Eivor had to guess, they’d say that was a blush darkening her cheeks. “You’re lucky no one has stolen your clothes. Didn’t you and Sigurd do that to someone before?” 

Eivor huffed out a laugh, smirking at the memory. It’d been their idea, sneaking up to the pile of clothes at the edge of the lake while the silhouette of two swimmers floated in the far distance. They’d cackled together all the way back to their family’s campsite, hiding the clothes in the hollow of a stump so Styrbjorn wouldn’t scold them for their mischief. 

A smile grew on Randvi’s face. “You did! I can see it all over your face!”

“We did,” Eivor admitted. “That’s why I’m smart enough to close the trail before I do that.”

Randvi gave them a sly look. “Eivor Varinsdottir, using their park privileges for nefarious purposes? I don’t believe it.” 

Eivor shoved down the thrill in their chest at hearing Randvi say their full name. “You say nefarious, I say sensible.”

“Whatever it is,” Randvi said, “That sounds like a nice place.” 

“You’ve never been?” 

Randvi shook her head. 

“Really? I would’ve thought you knew about it. I’ll take you,” Eivor offered before thinking it through. “While you’re here. It’s the perfect time of year. You’ll love it.”

“I think I’d like that.” Randvi looked over, smiling faintly. She bit the corner of her lip. “But I do have to warn you, I will be bringing a bathing suit. And I expect you to do the same.” 

Eivor lifted their hands. “Noted. No skinny dipping.” 

“This time,” Randvi said, then before Eivor could process that comment, continued, “So you have a dog?”

They blinked at her for a moment, but Randvi was looking at them so casually that they had no other choice but to think they misheard her. “Yeah, Dwolfg. I adopted him a few years ago.” Acting on instinct, they pulled out their phone.

Randvi smiled at the photo they showed her: a shot of Dwolfg sitting and staring at the camera, waiting for a treat. A quizzical look came over her face. “D-wolf-g?”

Eivor swiped through a few more photos. “I know, I know. The shelter named him and it’s the only thing he responds to. Believe me, I tried to change it.” 

They thought back through the hours of training. Every attempt to rename the creature had ended in frustration on Eivor’s part and Dwolfg happily flopped on his back, confused at Eivor’s insistence to call him something he wasn’t. 

“I have a cat too. Nali.”

Randvi closer to look at the next photo Eivor pulled up: their cloud of a cat perched on the counter. For a moment, Eivor could smell the fresh, fruity scent of Randvi’s hair. 

“She’s so pretty! I’ve always wanted to get a pet,” Randvi said, still looking at the photo, “but my schedule is too irregular.” 

Eivor slid their phone back into their pocket. “Nali wasn’t a choice. I was a victim of the cat distribution system. She turned up at my door one day and never left. Once she came inside, it was all over for me.”

“From what I hear, I think cats are like that. And it makes sense that animals would like you.”

“What do you mean?” 

Randvi straightened a little, looking away. “Oh, well… you like them too. Animals can tell those kinds of things.” She paused a moment, then said. “I hope this is okay, but I have a follow up question about your interview.” 

Eivor took a swig of beer. “For someone who says she doesn’t want to talk about work, you sure do bring it up a lot.”

Randvi fixed them with a sharp look. “It’s not about work. At least not like that. It’s… off the record. Personal curiosity.”

Eivor raised their brows. “Shoot.” 

“You said that the park is almost everything you’ve ever wanted. What’s missing?”

Eivor shrugged. “Someone to share it with.”

“You don’t…have anyone right now?” 

“No. Believe it or not, but the queer dating prospects aren’t exactly numerous out here.” 

Randvi laughed. “I can only assume so. But you’re–I mean, don’t take this the wrong way, but you have plenty to offer someone. You just haven’t found the right person yet?” 

Eivor struggled to see how they could take that any other way but a compliment. “Be careful, that might go to my head.” 

Randvi rolled her eyes, shaking her head in a curiously fond way.

“The right person hasn’t come along, no. The park service is filled with queer people, sure. And I’ve uh– dated around. But nothing ever sticks.”

“You can say you’ve slept around, Eivor,” Randvi said plainly.

“I’m good at that part, you know? Just not the long term stuff.” Then, they realized what they’d said and balked. “I mean, just that–Not sex. I mean, I am good at sex, but–” They ran a hand down their face, groaning. They weren’t like this with other women. Most of the time it was easy to pull flirtatious retorts out of thin air.

Randvi laughed fully, and Eivor could feel their cheeks growing hot. Hopefully the fire hid it. What were they even saying? “It’s alright, Eivor, I know what you mean.” 

If only the way Randvi said their name didn’t do terrible things to their chest. 

“Let’s move on before I keep embarrassing myself. What about you? Anyone back in Seattle?” 

Randvi’s grimace made them laugh, forgetting a little about their own blunder. “The last person I dated was this guy my parents tried to set me up with. Some friend of a friend thing. And he was fine, I guess, but,” She wrinkled her nose (adorable) and shook her head. 

“Not your type?” 

“When our date was over, he walked me back to my car and I was so afraid he would try to kiss me that I shook his hand instead of hugging him.” 

A bark of laughter escaped before Eivor could hide it. “Ouch, Randvi. A handshake at the end of a date is brutal.” 

She hid her face in her hand. “God, it really was that bad, wasn’t it?” 

“Well, I wouldn’t want to be him,” Eivor admitted.

“Now you have to tell me about a terrible date to make me feel better.”

“Are you forgetting I already embarrassed myself enough?” At Randvi’s stern look, Eivor smiled, waving their hand and saying, “Fine, fine.” They poked at the fire with a stick, thinking. “I was dating this girl for a couple weeks and she invited me to meet her parents in the city, so of course I got dressed up and did my research about them. All the usual parent-meeting activities.” 

Randvi nodded, looking amused. 

“And we get to her parents house and she introduces me as her best friend. Her BFF I think was the literal phrase.” 

Randvi’s mouth fell open. 

“It turned out she wasn’t out to her family, but she’d never said that to me.” 

Randvi’s brows were raised. “I don’t mean to be rude, but in what world does a girl bring you home and not have her parents question her sexuality?” 

Eivor shrugged casually. “Heteronormativity is one hell of a drug, baby.” 

Randvi chuckled. “I think you might have me beat.”

Eivor finished the rest of their drink and checked their watch. Almost 9. As much as they wanted to stay, they had an early morning at the park tomorrow.

“Do you need to go?” Randvi asked. 

“Yeah, I’m opening the park in the morning.” They stood up and stretched. The sky had completely darkened in the time they’d been sitting by the fire. A few fireflies winked across the dim yard between here and the light shining on the patio. 

“I think I’ll stay a little longer, catch up with everyone some more.”

Together, they walked back across the yard. They were silent, but it felt nice. Companionable. Comfortable. Eivor glanced over, as discreet as possible. Randvi’s hair was golden red in the dim light and the shadows softened her features. This close, Eivor could see each freckle dusting the bridge of her nose and forehead. 

Back in high school, Eivor had often found themself mesmerized by Randvi’s clear focus and the tumble of her wavy red hair. Now, her intelligence, sharp retorts, and understated beauty impressed them into stupidity. 

Randvi walked with them back inside. The distant sound of chatter and laughter sounded in from the open windows as Eivor rinsed out their beer bottle. “You still coming out on Tuesday for that other interview?” 

“I am. Birna, right? I just hope she’s more pleasant than–” 

The door from the patio swung open and Randvi was abruptly quiet. They both looked over, but it was just one of Sigurd’s friends who gave them a wave and walked over to the bathroom. 

Eivor waved back, waiting for the door to close before they said, “Birna’s not the most tactful, but the sun shines out her ass on even her worst days.”

Randvi laughed. “I’ll take that.”

Eivor hesitated once they’d dropped their beer bottle in the recycling, a bin Sigurd only had because Eivor had shamed him into it a few years ago. “I’ll see you Tuesday, then.”

“See you then.” Randvi offered a small smile before heading for the door to the patio. 

Eivor turned and started to walk towards the front door. They paused, glancing back over their shoulder, but the patio door was already shut behind Randvi.

The next morning was suspiciously quiet at Raven Ridge. Ordinarily, the quiet would fill Eivor with an undeniable dread that something was lingering on the horizon. Today though, they set out on the trails with a long stride and a smile for everyone that passed. They stood at the top of the waterfall overlook for nearly an hour, telling people about the geology of the falls and the way the stream had shaped the landscape thousands of years ago. Then they marched downhill and drove back to the visitor’s center in their rickety park services truck, whistling with one arm resting out the open window. 

A lingering pile of paperwork awaited them, but the thought of spending their day behind a desk seemed like wasted time, especially with a field trip from a summer camp scheduled to arrive in the late morning. After leading the wandering group of kids along the shortest trail at the park, pointing out mushrooms and birds and plants, one of the teachers pulled them aside. The kids were all at the pavilion, eating packed lunches in the shade. 

“Thank you,” the teacher–Eydis, if Eivor was remembering correctly–said. “You’re very engaging with the kids. It’s not easy to get a group of young creatures like these to listen to you, but they all had a great time.” 

Eivor simply nodded. “I’m happy to talk to them, they’re great kids.” 

“It’s a shame the park is probably closing,” Eydis said with a sigh. “We bring the camp here every year. There’s not many good places like this left. It’s cheap for the parents and it’s different every time we come.” 

Randvi’s words echoed in their head. Have you made a nuisance of yourself? “We’re still here for now, and if I have anything to say about it, we’ll be here for your camp next year too.” 

Eydis gave a sadly sympathetic smile, as if humoring them. 

Eivor had always considered themself a person of action. Now was no different, especially with Randvi’s encouragement. “I have a favor to ask of you.” 

“I don’t see what I can do for you,” she said, eyebrows ticking upwards. She crossed her arms. “But go on.” 

“Call the state department of natural resources. Hell, call the governor. Tell them what you just told me. Tell your friends.” They gestured back to the kids, “Tell their parents. We’re not letting go peacefully. I’ve been told to be a nuisance.” A faint smile touched their lips. “And I intend to be.” 

Eydis considered them, nodding slowly in thought. “I just might have an idea.”

Later in the afternoon, when Eivor had finally shut themself in their office to sort through the stack of paerwork, they leaned back in their chair and propped their boots on their desk. 

Everything just might work. Randvi would be arriving tomorrow for her next interview, Eivor was calling every local representative they could find a number for like clockwork every day on the drive home, and they’d gotten most of the other rangers to start doing the same. Even Sigurd had grumbled, but promised to make a few calls himself.

Now, they had a few more people to contact. First on the list was the head ranger at the next closest state park. It was far bigger than Raven Ridge, boasting acres and acres of protected land on the plains with stunning views of the distant mountains.

The service on the mountain was unreliable, but there was just enough that the call went through with only a few flickers. “Hey, Soma!” Eivor said, “I need to call in a favor.” 

Chapter Text

When Randvi arrived at the park on Tuesday afternoon with Thora in the passenger seat, Dag was working the front gate. His smile fell once he saw Randvi behind the wheel. 

“Back again?” He had whatever decency to sound at least slightly disgruntled.

“Hi Dag, good to see you,” Randvi said with all the politeness she could muster. She reached for her wallet.

“Eivor left you a parking pass,” Dag simply replied. 

“Oh?” She took the slip of paper he passed through the open window. 

“Don’t know why,” he mumbled. “You’d think we need all the business we can get.” 

“Well, thank you.” Randvi slid the pass onto her dashboard. 

“Eivor said you were interviewing Birna. You want my advice?” Dag said. She didn’t, but she didn’t say anything. “Birna’s one for tall tales. Take everything she says with a grain of salt.”

Randvi didn’t have to pretend to smile, fully amused with the irony of that statement. “Thank you Dag, always a pleasure.” 

He tipped his hat to her, looking satisfied. 

As she drove away, Thora looked at her with a huff of laughter. “That’s the guy you interviewed before? What a dickwad.” 

Randvi shook her head to herself as she took the curved road up to the visitors center. The drive was becoming familiar by now and she was glad to see the old park services truck parked out front.

Inside, a ranger was stacking bags of firewood on a wide shelf in the store area. She turned over her shoulder at the sound of the bell and called over, “Randvi, right?”

“Yes!” 

The ranger stood and dusted off her hands. She was taller than Randvi expected, broad and muscular with a full sleeve of tattoos on one arm and even more on the other. Oh, she’d been the one at the desk during the nature talk. Her vibe was none other than distinct and enthusiastic raging dyke. 

“Sorry about that,” the ranger said. She wiped her hand on her shirt and extended it to Randvi, who took it with mild amusement. “I’m Birna, nice to meet you.” She shook Randvi’s hand with a firm squeeze. 

“I remember you from Saturday, pleasure to see you again. This is my sister Thora,” she gestured to her sister, who shook Birna’s hand too. “She won’t be joining us for the interview, but we had to share the car today.”

“I understand. Plenty to do in the meantime!” Birna’s voice had a pleasant singsong lilt and it was already easy to see why Eivor said the sun shone out her ass. “Let me get Eivor. They’re going to watch the desk while we’re busy.”

“Of course,” Randvi said, expecting Birna to leave the room.

But all Birna did was turn and yell in the direction of the private hallway to the back, “Hey! Sunbeam! Your journalist’s here!” 

Randvi flinched slightly in surprise, but offered Birna a smile when the ranger turned back to her with a grin. Your journalist. 

“They’ll be just a moment,” Birna explained with a nod. 

Randvi glanced at Thora. Her sister was observing Birna with a look so intrigued that Randvi almost smacked her arm to get her to stop. 

A few seconds later, the door to the back opened and Eivor emerged with a furrowed brow. They glanced around, and when they found the room otherwise empty, they said, “How many times do I have to tell you not to do that? It’s not professional.”

Birna didn’t seem phased by the concern. “No one else heard it. Last I checked, you didn’t hire me for my professionalism.” She winked at Randvi.

Eivor still frowned as they came over. “I must apologize on behalf of my staff,” they said, giving Birna a pointed look as they faced Randvi and Thora. “My staff who don’t understand what kind of opportunity this is for the park.” They said the last part through gritted teeth, like a frustrated parent to an unruly teen. 

Birna clasped Eivor on the shoulder, jostling them. “Oh don’t worry about me, Sunbeam. Worried what I’ll say out of your presence?”

“No. Should I be?”

Randvi interrupted the exchange. “Birna, you can say whatever you want in your interview.”

Birna smirked. “Oh, can I? I have a few words in mind if we’re going to be alone together.” She fixed Randvi with such a heated, flirtatious gaze that Randvi bit back a smile.

Eivor let out something between a sigh and a groan, rubbing their temple. “Birna, you’re going to drive me to an early grave.” 

Randvi laughed. “Don’t worry, Eivor. It’s charming, really.” 

Birna looked suddenly like a proud peacock. She shook Eivor’s shoulder again. “See, there? Someone appreciates my charm.” 

“You can charm me anytime,” Thora added, bi menace that she was. 

“Shall we get started?” Randvi said quickly, before anything could continue. 

Eivor jumped in too. “You can use my office again. I cleaned it up for you.”

Funny, because it hadn’t been anything but clean before.

With a final glance in Birna’s direction, Thora turned to Randvi. “I’ll see you when you’re done, yeah? I’ll just be around here.” 

As they walked down the hallway, now alone, Birna glanced over her shoulder at Randvi. “I’m available after this too, you know.”

Randvi hid her smile. “I’m flattered, Birna, but I’m just here for your interview.” 

Birna shrugged. Did anything phase her? “No worries. Can’t blame me for the attempt, can you?” 

“No, I think you would be quite persuasive to someone else.”

“So your sister…?” Birna started. 

Randvi snorted. “Married.” 

Birna shook her head and said mournfully, “It sinks its teeth into the best women.” 

They reached the office. It looked nearly the same as before, only this time it smelled a little fresher, as if everything had been wiped down and polished. She imagined Eivor hunched over the desk, scrubbing with dedicated precision at the crease between the drawers. There would’ve been a line between their brows, irrefutably focused. 

Randvi took the chair behind the desk, shifting into a familiar air of professionalism. 

“Let’s sit, please,” Randvi said, offering her the chair on the other side of the desk. Birna shut the door behind her and they sat. “I’m guessing you already know all the details about why I’m here?” 

Birna nodded. “Oh yes.” 

“Great. Would it be alright if I recorded our conversation?” 

“Record all you want,” Birna said, gesturing with open arms. She relaxed back in the chair and took off her hat, running a hand through her dark brown hair. Her undercut looked fresh and Randvi caught the peek of a few more tattoos at the collar of her uniform shirt. 

“Perfect, thank you.” Randvi got out her phone and pulled up the recorder. “Ready to start?”

“Ready!”

She pressed the record button and closed the screen. “Let’s begin with your full name. Spell it out for me as well.” 

“Hello!” Birna said, directing her voice towards Randvi’s phone as if she were on a call. “I’m Birna Roarsdottir, B-I-R-N-A Space R-O-A-R-S-D-O-T-T-I-R.” 

Randvi held back her smile at Birna’s inclusion of the space. “You can just talk to me as you would normally,” she said, offering a reassuring look. “It will still pick up your voice.” 

“Oh,” Birna said simply. 

“And could you tell me your job title and a little about what you do here?” 

“I’m a ranger here at Raven Ridge. I do a lot across the park.” She squinted up in thought. “I work the gate, I work the visitor’s center desk, I walk the trails and clear them if I have to. I help take care of the sheep.” She paused, then added, “I basically do whatever Eivor tells me to do.”

“That’s a lot of good information. What was your initial reaction to the potential closure? How did you find out about it?”

“Oh, that one’s easy. Eivor gathered us all up one day and told us it was on the table. They’re good about getting ahead of stuff like that, you know. And how did I react?” Birna let out a rough breath. “I was pissed the fuck off.” She leaned in, glancing at the phone. “Am I allowed to say that?” 

“Use whatever words suit you. You can be open with your language.” 

Birna nodded, seeming satisfied with that answer. “Okay, in that case I was fucking pissed the fuck off.” 

Randvi smiled, bidding Birna to continue. 

“The state just thinks it can sell off some land quietly without any backlash? What a fucking joke. We’ve been working here for years, some people decades! Pillars of the local community. Not me, but some of us, you know.” 

It seemed that once Birna was set off, she continued on without pause, like a toy wound up and happily marching itself off the table. Randvi didn’t have to ask her any more questions after that, taking in the rant Birna went on with spirited gestures and scoffs between sentences. The more Randvi nodded and agreed along with her, the more vibrant she became.

She went on and on about the good work the park did, the people who visited and told them how much it meant to have this on their doorstep, the weddings they saw, the families out who said there wasn’t much to do with a car full of people for just $5 anymore. The way they worked with Valka’s animal rehab and fielded calls nearly once a week they had to direct her way. 

She even spoke briefly about how her work at the park had gotten her laid a few times, which Randvi listened to with raised brows, unsure of the relevance but mildly curious enough not to interrupt her. 

“Do you know how much action that work truck has gotten?” Birna said, leaning across the desk with a conspiratorial glint in her eyes. 

“No, but I have a feeling you’re going to tell me either way.” 

Birna ignored the jab and went on, “A few blankets in the back? Under the stars at the top of the mountain? It’s the ultimate queer experience.”

“That sounds…” 

“Fun? It was.” Birna nodded slowly, eyes glazing over with a faint smile. 

Dear god, Randvi had to snap her out of it. Though to be fair, fucking a park ranger in the back of a truck at the top of a mountain did strike something within her. No one in particular. A very faceless (muscular, tattooed) body with their uniform shirt untucked and hot breath against her bare skin. A hat cast hastily aside. Sort, blonde hair beneath her nails. Hands running—

Randvi cleared her throat and sat straighter in the chair. It creaked beneath her with the movement. “Can you tell me about your plans if the park should close?” 

That launched Birna into another word vomit, something that turned from her plans about the closure to what she wanted to do about it (anonymously mail a box of live mosquitos to the state parks department and release raccoons into the personal attics of the developers). 

Once Birna was off again, Randvi found her questions being ticked off one after the other without having to ask them. It wasn’t a typical interview, more of listening to someone rant, but as long as she collected what she wanted to know, it didn’t matter to her how she came by it. 

Eventually, Birna seemed to reach a natural pause and she let out a long exhale. At least fifteen minutes had passed since Randvi had said anything. She waited for a moment, to see if Birna would pick back up again, but she was at long last silent. 

“Well, it seems like you already answered everything I wanted to know about. Is there anything else you wanted to add?” 

Birna considered. “No, I think that about covers it.” 

“Great, in that case…” Randvi opened her phone and shut off the recording. “It was great hearing from you. I appreciate you taking the time to share your perspective.” 

And what a unique perspective it was. Randvi wasn’t sure she’d ever had an interview like it. 

“That’s it?” Birna braced her hands on the arms of her chair. 

“That’s it,” Randvi said. “I’ll be in touch if I have any more questions, but in the meantime, you’re free to get back to work as far as I’m concerned.” She stood, shaking Birna’s hand again.

As they left, Birna said hesitantly, “Hey, the sex stuff I said…”

An email notification from Randvi’s work email briefly distracted her. She said absently, “That’s not relevant to the article so no, I won’t publish it.” 

Birna laughed. “No, I don’t care if the whole world hears what I said word for word. If you do include it, make sure it’s clear I’m gay. Wouldn’t want anyone getting the wrong idea. I’ve got a reputation to uphold, you know.” 

“Well,” Randvi said, opening the door leading back to the main room. “I’m not in the business of damaging your reputation.” 

Back in the visitors center, Randvi suddenly realized she might have a bigger problem than flirtatious interview subjects. Thora was leaning over the desk, a hard expression on her face as she spoke to Eivor, who was standing on the other side with their hands in their pockets. 

Thora abruptly stopped speaking when Birna and Randvi walked back in. Randvi witnessed the shift before her eyes: Thora’s expression smoothing over into something easier and friendlier as if her calculating look had never been there.

“Thora,” Randvi said, a warning. She didn’t need to say anything else. 

Thora brushed her off and said casually, “I was just talking about how you and I used to go down to that gun range down the mountain. Remember? It’s still there. Sometimes Finn and I go on a date night.” She shrugged. “I’m still a better shot than he’ll ever be.”

Eivor was glancing between the sisters with a guarded expression. It seemed they had enough sense to at least stay out of whatever was going on and let Thora speak her peace, whatever she was playing at. What was this, a first prom date?

Birna’s eyes gleamed. “I’ve always said there’s nothing more attractive than a woman with a gun.”

Eivor nodded in agreement. “Massive respect for that.”

Thora gazed at Eivor and Randvi almost blanched at the I’m sizing you up expression on her face. She glanced from Eivor to Birna, then said casually, “I have a question for you both.”

Oh no. 

Before Randvi could stop her, not wanting to know whatever was about to fall out of her mouth, Thora said, “So are you butch before you become a ranger or does becoming a ranger awaken some innate butchness?” 

Eivor visibly relaxed and Birna cackled, saying, “Well, I was already like this. Can’t speak for Eivor, but I think it’s the uniform.” 

Birna gestured down at herself: the short-sleeved shirt in utilitarian brown, the forest-green belted pants, the heavy boots. It was a nice look on both of them. 

Thora took in the response with a serious nod.

Eivor added, “I was also like this, but I think it can work both ways.” They picked up their hat: wide brimmed and emblazoned with the state park seal. “The hat increases your butchness by at least ten percent.” They placed it on their head, tipping it lower over their eyes. 

Randvi’s heart thudded.

“See?”

Thora nodded along, still painfully serious. 

“But that could apply to anyone,” Eivor continued. They took off their hat and leaned over, placing it on Randvi’s head. It settled down over her hair. 

“I can’t imagine I look very… butch,” Randvi said, hoping her cheeks weren’t as red as they felt. 

“No, they’re right,” Birna said, taking a step back to look at Randvi. “Ten, maybe twelve percent.”

Randvi reached up, touching the brim. She could almost feel the imprint of Eivor’s fingers, adjusting it throughout the day. 

“What do you think?” She braced her hands on her hips. “Do I look like I know what I’m doing? Or should I brood about my unprofessional employees and work out my biceps?” She flexed her arm as Birna doubled over with howling laughter.

Eivor’s face was pink, but they laughed good naturedly as Randvi passed back the hat.

Her phone buzzed in her back pocket. She slid it out to glance at the notification. Another work email, ugh, this one from Todd with “Checking In” as the subject line. Randvi’s grimace must have been palpable, because Thora said, “Todd?”

“Todd,” Randvi agreed, shoving her phone back into her pocket. “I should probably deal with that.” 

They said their goodbyes, Randvi thanking Birna again for her time. In the car, she tried to open her email, but the service was so spotty that the loading circle spun over and over again. 

“Fucking mountains,” Randvi grumbled and dropped her phone in her bag. 

Ignoring her, Thora said thoughtfully, “I should come here more often. The views are great.”

Randvi scoffed, looking over her shoulder to back out of her parking spot. “Can you pretend for one second that Finn is here, just so I don’t have to listen to your thirsty ass.” 

Thora smirked, looking out the window. “I love Finn with all my heart. I adore him. He’s my north star and all that sappy stuff. But I cannot help that I’m attracted to men. It’s a disease.”

Randvi didn’t disagree. “I know , but still… keep it in your pants, will you?”

Thora turned to her with narrowed eyes. “You realize I have eyes, idiot. Don’t think I can’t see what’s going on between you and Eivor.” She giggled in a high pitched, mocking tone and pretended to adjust a hat on her head.

Randvi almost reached over and shoved her. “There’s nothing going on.” 

“You can say that, but I gave Eivor the if you hurt my sister, I know how to handle a gun talk and they were taking it very seriously.” 

Randvi groaned. So that’s what’d been going on. How deeply embarrassing. “I can’t take you anywhere.”

“When it’s my car, you can.” 

And Randvi couldn’t argue with that.

After Randvi and Thora had gone, Eivor helped Birna stack the rest of the firewood. It went faster with two people, and after a morning at their desk working on the shift schedule for next week and cross checking last month’s timesheets, Eivor was more than ready to do something active.

They had to pause to check in the campers that came in, then after the door had shut again, Eivor said, “I’ve been meaning to ask you. Are you interested in talking to some people in a few weeks at the Department of Natural Resources? I asked around and got some time set up with the chair of the board.” 

“That’s great, Sunbeam! Sure I won’t embarrass you at something like that?” Birna paused, tilting her head. “Either I’m misremembering or I talked to Randvi about the joys of lesbian outdoor sex on the record.”

Eivor looked up at her. They weren’t sure how they were supposed to react to that. “I think as long as you avoid the topic of lesbian sex, you should be good. In fact, maybe just avoid the topic of sex in general.” 

Birna shrugged. “I don’t get why anyone wouldn’t want to hear about it, but I understand. Not everyone is prepared for that. I’ll get out my nice suit and everything.” 

Birna continued on, Eivor watching her. That was the great thing about Birna. She was overzealous at times, loud and boisterous most others, but she showed up when she meant it. She’d been the first person Soma had recommended when she’d offered to set up the meeting. Eivor just wasn’t sure whether or not to mention that to Birna. She’d been doing so well in the year or two away from her old park, her old boss.

“I want to ask you something else,” Eivor said carefully. They wanted a second opinion, while the floor was open at least. And Birna of all people would understand.

Birna looked at them with a meaningful expression. She rested a gentle hand on Eivor’s shoulder, looking into their eyes. “I love you as a friend, Eivor. I don’t want to break your heart.” 

Eivor shook her off with a chuckle. “Fuck off, Birna. I’m trying to be sincere.”

Birna broke into a laugh. “I thought you knew me better than that.” 

“With Randvi…” Eivor started. “You think she’s straight?” 

Birna’s brows rose. “Well,” she said, considering. “I’ve been flirting with her all morning and she very explicitly turned me down.” 

“What does that mean, do you think?” 

Birna shrugged. “If she didn’t respond to me, I guess she’s just not into women. She’s gotta be straight.” 

Eivor thought back over their interactions with Randvi. They knew she’d dated Sigurd, that she’d dated a man more recently in Seattle but hadn’t been interested in him. Had she just been teasing Eivor? Or was that flirting too?

This was all so much easier when they were only looking for a hookup or a short term fling. Whatever they wanted with Randvi… it wasn’t just that. And it made them feel like the biggest idiot in the room.

That evening, Randvi was still reading the email over again. She hadn’t responded to it, too worked up to deal with it on her first read. She’d mulled it over throughout dinner, as Liv grabbed at her arm and made faces at the brussels sprouts on her plate. 

Hi Randvi, 

I got your proposed outline and made a few changes, which you can find in the attached doc. The main point is that I don’t understand the LGBT angle and I think the inclusion would alienate some of our readers. This is about a park closure for everyone and the article should reflect that. Have a look at the revised outline and let me know if you have any questions. 

Thanks and looking forward to reading your first draft next week!

Todd

She’d typed out and deleted her initial five paragraph long response. Then she’d typed out a big FUCK YOU and quickly backspaced, just in case she accidentally clicked send without realizing it. Now she was sitting on her bed in her pajamas and baggy sweatshirt, staring at the blinking cursor on her screen. All she’d come up with so far was: 

Hi Todd, 

She was used to dealing with Todd’s issues, his insecurity and cowardice, but it felt different this time. It wasn’t the first instance he’d wanted to cut out a queer angle from her writing. The only reason he didn’t think it was relevant was because it wasn’t relevant to him . She was going to include it in the first draft. If he still wanted to edit it out after that, she’d fight him on it.

Randvi’s phone lit up with a notification. Whatever it was, useless email about a sale or somehow even more useless linkedin notification, it was a welcome distraction. 

But at the name Eivor Varinsdottir beside the text notification, Randvi seized her phone. 

How about that waterfall on Saturday afternoon?

As she was reading it, another message popped up. 

(Saturday is my only day off so if you want me to take you, it has to be then)

Another: 

That sounded better in my head. I’m not good at texting.

Randvi smiled into her phone and typed out a response. 

I just need to check about the car. You seem fine at texting to me :)

Why don’t I just pick you up? Give Thora a break.

I think you’re just saying that so Thora doesn’t crash our hike with her threatening aura

If I say yes, do you think she’ll sense it and hunt me down? 

She senses ALL

The responses came so quickly, Randvi imagined Eivor sitting in their cabin, probably decorated in rich reds and forest greens. Eivor in bed, just like her, smiling at the screen while their giant wolf dog and fluffy cat napped at their feet. They were probably wearing some old tank top, their hair ruffled from running their fingers through it too many times. A stack of books on the nightstand and a breeze wafting in through an open window.

A few minutes came and went without a response. Randvi kept staring at the phone, willing a typing bubble to appear. 

She didn’t want the conversation to end, so she quickly typed another message before she could stop herself.

Thora did have a good idea though. She said there’s a festival in town near the end of June. It would be a good spot to campaign for the park.

What do you think?

At dinner, Thora had mentioned it. One of her friends needed more booth registrations and was looking for local groups or businesses. Why not raise awareness and campaign for the park? They could pass out flyers, give people the names of who to call and what to say. Maybe Valka could come with an animal or two as well?

Randvi had told herself she would let Eivor know when she saw them next, but this was just as good. When was the last time she’d been this giddy over texting someone? 

She bit her lip, staring at the screen. The Delivered notification changed to Read: 8:43 PM. 

Of course Eivor had their read receipts on. They didn’t hide behind anything. 

Typing bubbles appeared. 

The Summer Festival? I like the sound of that.

Randvi pulled up the link Thora had texted her earlier in the evening. It led to the booth application form for the organization putting on the festival. She sent it to Eivor.

Here’s the application. If you do decide to go through with it

I’ll look it over. Did I tell you I got a meeting at the DNR next week? I’m talking to the chairman. One of my friends at another park got it set up.

Wow, that’s impressive. You have good friends!

Soma’s great. She’s the head ranger at Grant Bridge. I could tell stories about her all night, but unfortunately I’m going to bed. Just let me know what time to pick you up on Saturday and I’ll be there. Night! 

Randvi hearted the message, then closed her phone, staring up at the ceiling curiously. She idly tapped her fingers on her stomach. Firstly, she couldn’t fathom going to bed at 9pm, but maybe that’s what working the opening shift at a State Park did to you. Second, she was already itching to research this Soma. Should she? It wasn’t the best idea.

Who was she kidding, of course she was going to research her. It was just a matter of when. 

She started with the website for Grant Bridge State Park. The site was much more fleshed out than the Raven Ridge one, a slideshow of meadow sunsets, grazing elk, and smiling visitors. There wasn’t a staff section, so she tried a web search next. 

‘Soma Grant Bridge’ turned up a number of results, the first being an article about the revitalization of the park under its new leadership. 

Grant Bridge Now Great Bridge?

Randvi skimmed the article until she reached the first instance of Soma’s name.

Head Ranger Soma Jarlskona has been at the forefront of these efforts and the results are starting to show. Jarlskona credits her success to her background as a volunteer firefighter and the strong team she has on staff. If you visit the park, the last place you’re likely to find her is behind a desk. Jarlskona takes on park management head-on, whether that’s helping upkeep a trail or showing a new hire the ropes. 

[A photo of a woman in a ranger uniform gesturing to a view of grassland behind her. A small group of visitors are watching her with their backs to the camera.]

Jarlskona (left) instructing visitors on plains habitat loss. 

Randvi zoomed in on the photo. Despite the brightness in her eyes, Soma’s face was set in a hard expression. She looked 35, maybe 40, with a few lines around her eyes and tattoos winding down onto the back of her hand past the hem of her jacket sleeve. 

One thing led to another and then Randvi found herself buried in a LinkedIn profile last updated four years ago, a high school soccer team list, and a blog post about the hot firefighter that saved the writer’s little brother and family dog. 

Randvi realized what she was doing and immediately closed the pages, hesitating on the professional photo of Soma on her profile. The one seared into Randvi’s memory: Soma’s dark hair shaved short on the sides and dark eyes staring right into the camera. 

Well. This was the woman Eivor could talk about all night. 

Randvi blew out a long breath. A volunteer firefighter who looked like something straight out of a sapphic wet dream? No wonder Eivor wasn’t picking up on any of her flirting. 

No doubt Eivor was just being nice to Randvi. Returning the favor by showing her around a beautiful place that also happened to be at the very park she was writing about. Perhaps she would have to reign in her interest. There was no use in chasing after someone interested in someone else, was there? 

Sure, Eivor was single, but there was no reason to believe they didn’t have people to pursue. Soma was right there, after all.

Besides, soon Randvi would be back home in Seattle and everything would go back to the way it was. That was what she wanted, after all. She would enjoy her time, lean into the friendship with someone she liked regardless of the circumstances, and return to her dating apps in Seattle. 

That was just the way it was. 

Chapter Text

Randvi was still debating about cancelling her trip with Eivor when the green subaru pulled into the driveway below her bedroom window. She rubbed her eye, turning to the mirror over her dresser. Dark circles made shadows under her eyes and her freshly brushed ponytail didn’t do much to hide the sleepiness in her face. It’d been a late night of writing, first working on her story, then rounding up the last few edits for another article going out in a few days.

The noise of the kids shouting drifted up from downstairs and she winced to herself. Here she was again, subjecting Eivor to the chaos of her sister’s family when Eivor was going out of their way to be nice to her. 

With a resolute breath, she grabbed the backpack with her towel and change of clothes off her bed. She gave one last lingering glance to her laptop. 

No, it would have to wait. Her deadline loomed but Eivor was already here and she couldn’t just send them away now. 

Shaking herself, Randvi slid her phone into the side pocket and left her room, grabbing the hiking boots she’d stolen from Thora along the way. At the top of the stairs, the sound of voices drifted towards her. After what Thora had said last time she was alone with Eivor, Randvi didn’t trust her. The kids were a slight buffer, but not for long.

She cursed herself as she hurried downstairs. She should’ve been waiting at the door, in the driveway even. 

The problem was she’d gone back and forth so many times, hesitating over her phone with the text thread between her and Eivor open. She’d typed out a “Hi, I’m so sorry but I think I have to write today,” then hovered with her finger over the send button. Then she’d backspaced it and done the same thing all over again even as she dithered over what to wear. 

She hadn’t packed a swimsuit with her, so she’d clawed through Thora’s dresser drawers that morning, grimacing at her options of a black one piece or a color-blocked bikini last in fashion eight years ago. She was pretty sure she remembered Thora wearing it in high school.

The swimsuit options alone almost made her cancel again. The one-piece dug into her hips, but it would have to do. Now it was sitting in the bottom of her bag, resting under the unicorn beach towel Liv had so kindly offered to loan her.

She paused at the foot of the stairs. There they were, dressed in a pair of cargo shorts and a t-shirt with the Mountain View Animal Rehab logo emblazoned across the chest. 

“Can we see your dog?” Liv was asking, tugging at Eivor’s arm. “I want to see your dog and Aunt Randvi said you were bringing him. Where is he?”

“Sure, we can see him. He’s waiting in the car,” Eivor said with a beaming smile. 

Thora noticed Randvi coming over. “There you are. Why do I feel like your mom sending you off with your friend?” She frowned and Randvi resisted the urge to point out the semi-permanent line in her forehead that looked exactly like their mother’s.

“Aunt Randvi!” Liv said, immediately taking her hand and dragging her towards the door. “Ranger Eivor is going to show me their dog!” 

Erik added to his sister’s statement, but the only word Randvi could make out was “doggy!”  

“Are you sure it’s okay?” Thora asked Eivor. “You can say no.” 

Eivor laughed. “It’s fine, really. Dwolfg is great with kids and I’m sure he’d enjoy the attention.”

While Thora opened the door and took Erik’s hand to walk outside, Eivor touched Randvi’s arm. “Hi, by the way.” 

Randvi couldn’t resist the smile that rose to her lips, bypassing her fatigue. “Hi. Sorry you got roped into this.” She sat on the bench by the door, shoving her feet into Thora’s boots. 

Eivor shrugged, nonchalant. “I like your family. They’re nice.” 

Randvi looked up with a dubious expression. “Are we looking at the same family? Blink twice if you need help.”

Eivor laughed again, brighter this time. “I’ll keep that in mind.” 

Once Randvi had her laces tied, they walked down the path and out to the driveway. Eivor went around to the hatchback trunk and popped it open, letting the mass of white fur and pointy ears hop out. Dwolfg was bigger than Randvi had thought, a mountain of a dog that looked something between a Husky and German Shepherd. Or maybe just a wolf.

Holding the leash, Eivor said, “Alright, boy, sit.” 

Despite Liv excitedly babbling to Thora, Dwolfg’s ears perked up at Eivor’s voice and he dutifully sat, tongue lolling out of his frankly monstrous mouth. 

Eivor turned to the kids. “Okay, he’s ready for you to pet him now.”

Liv scooted over, reaching out her hand for Dwolfg to sniff first, then scratched him between the ears. Even sitting down, the dog was almost taller than the girl. 

Liv giggled when Dwolfg licked her arm, fluffy tail whooshing back and forth on the concrete. 

“There you go, good boy,” Eivor said through a laugh when Dwolfg flopped over, paws up in the air.

Liv knelt, utterly delighted as she rubbed Dwolfg’s belly, the dog worming around in excitement, occasionally licking Liv’s hands. 

So he really was good with kids. After a moment, Thora didn’t hold Erik back anymore and he joined in on the petting, stroking the dog’s ears with a gentleness Randvi didn’t know he was capable of. 

The kids watched the dog, Eivor watched the kids, and Randvi watched Eivor. They crouched down at the kids’ level, showing Liv the spot on Dwolfg’s side that made the dog’s leg scratch of its own accord. While Erik stood between Eivor’s arms, running his hands through Dwolfg’s thick fur, the dog ignored all the attention and only seemed to be interested in licking the breakfast crumbs off of Erik’s face, much to his delight. 

Something was happening in Randvi’s chest again, but she wrapped it up in a neat little box and shoved it in a back corner of her brain. Not now. It threatened to resurface again when Eivor glanced over at her, meeting her eyes in a private smile, but not to worry, she squashed it back into place.

After a moment, Dwolfg stood, shaking himself off in a light dusting of white fur that made Erik and Liv burst into laughter. 

“Alright,” Eivor said, bracing their hands on their knees as they rose. “That’s him saying he’s ready to be off on his hike already.”

As Thora ushered the kids back over to her, whispering to them to say thank you, Eivor opened the back door of the car for Randvi to put her bag inside. At first glimpse, the car was astonishingly clean considering the presence of a huge dog with an immeasurable amount of fur. 

“Thank you!” Liv said, throwing her arms around Eivor’s legs. A little startled, Eivor steadied themself and patted her on the back. 

“You’re welcome. You’re a good friend to Dwolfg and I’m sure he’d be happy to see you again.” 

As if in agreement, Dwolfg wagged his tail and licked Liv’s outstretched hand. 

Once they’d loaded Dwolfg back into the car again, Erik shrieked and took off sprinting towards the house. Liv cackled, running barefoot across the grass after him. 

Thora let out a long-suffering sigh. “That’s my cue. Have fun, you two,” She turned, giving Randvi a practically indiscernible look. 

Randvi shook off her sister’s expression. Why couldn’t Thora ever let her have anything?

Her spine stiffened as she caught the thought before it could go further. Not that there was anything to have.

She settled herself in the passenger seat as Eivor walked around to the driver’s side. The first thing she noticed was the organization. At any given moment, Randvi’s car back in Seattle was a mess of papers, notebooks, and sweaters left abandoned in the back seat. Even freshly cleaned, change jangled around in the cupholders and a few packs of plastic-wrapped takeout utensils sat in the door pocket. Eivor’s car was spotless, save the lingering smell of dog and the mud-stained floor mats. 

As Eivor backed out of the driveway, a small rock pendant swung from the rearview mirror. Randvi covered her yawn with her hand, but Eivor still noticed.

“Tired of me already, huh?” 

“I was up late writing,” she confessed. Her frustration with Todd had fueled her into a desperate writing frenzy. There would be a lot to edit down later, but she preferred to get out the words first and then trim out the excess until she had the perfect article. 

“Ah, so you’ve started, then?” Eivor rolled down their window, bracing one elbow on the door as they drove. Randvi’s eyes fell briefly on their hand gripping the steering wheel, silver rings on their index and middle fingers. “Giving us a good image, I hope.” 

Randvi couldn’t imagine doing anything else. “Dag’s doing his best to ruin it, but I’m used to his type.” 

Eivor huffed. “His type? You mean so self-inflated he can’t see past his own troll nose?” 

Randvi laughed before she could stop herself. She’d never heard Eivor sound so… accurately sharp. 

Eivor seemed to collect themself at Randvi’s laugh because they added, “Sorry you had to hear that.”

“By all means. You’re not wrong.” 

And then she realized just how alone they were. At the park, they were both professionals. Eivor oversaw their staff and Randvi had her integrity and reputation to uphold. At the party at Sigurd’s house, they’d been surrounded by people. And here they were, for the first time since they’d reconnected, entirely alone. 

They were just two friends alone in the car, driving to a hike where they’d be possibly even more alone. 

Randvi swallowed past the hardness in her throat. There was a line that existed between her and Eivor, there had to be, but the further they drove, the harder it was to find.

Luckily, Dag wasn’t working the gate at Raven Ridge this time. The ranger who greeted them was a woman Randvi hadn’t seen before. She was young and friendly, her sleek, dark brown hair tied back in a neat bun. 

“Back on your day off?” the ranger said, clicking her tongue teasingly at Eivor. 

“Yeah, yeah,” Eivor said, taking the pass the woman handed her through the window. “I’m showing Randvi the falls.” 

The ranger ducked her head, peering over into the passenger seat. Randvi smiled and said hello, reading the name tag pinned to the ranger’s chest. Petra. 

Petra smiled at her, then glanced back at Eivor with a knowing expression. “The trail closure signs are right where you left them, by the way.” 

Eivor busied themself with sliding the pass onto their dashboard. “Thanks, Petra.” If Randvi wasn’t mistaken, there was a blush darkening their cheeks.

Randvi bit her lip, wanting to comment. Had Eivor taken other women up to the waterfall and closed the trail? Maybe she didn’t want to know. 

As they drove up the mountain, Randvi reached around to the back seat and dragged her backpack into her lap. “Do you need any sunscreen? I have some.” 

She uncapped the bottle and started rubbing it into her arms. 

“I should probably use it,” Eivor said, grimacing.

Randvi looked over at them, narrowing her eyes. “Don’t tell me you don’t wear sunscreen out here.” 

“If I wore sunscreen every single time I was out here, do you know how much I’d go through? And how long it would take?” They pulled off the road onto a gravel drive with the sign North Lookout Trail Parking. 

Randvi finished her other arm as they were pulling into a parking spot. There were several other cars in the gravel lot and a shaded map with a trash can next to it, but nothing else.

When they got out, Randvi shoved the bottle of sunscreen into Eivor’s hands. “You’re pale, put this on.” 

With her hands on her hips, Randvi watched Eivor haphazardly rub the sunscreen into their bare arms and legs. And as much as Randvi imagined how cute they’d be with pink cheeks, she said, “Did you do your face?” 

And then she watched attentively as Eivor rubbed the lotion around their face too. They capped the bottle, passing it back to her. 

“Oh, you have some–” Randvi said, and before she thought about what she was doing, she reached out and rubbed in the white mark still stuck to Eivor’s chin. 

Eivor smiled faintly, standing quite still as Randvi finished spreading it out across their jaw. Their skin was warm and smooth, and when she realized how close they were standing, that she could see a few faint freckles on Eivor’s nose, she suddenly stepped back. 

“There,” Randvi said, and focused on finding a spot for the sunscreen in her backpack. 

“Thank you.” 

“Sure, you don’t want to get burned,” Randvi said with a shrug.

Eivor opened the trunk, and Dwolfg loped out of the car, shaking himself off and looking around with bright eyes. He was astonishingly well behaved, not even pulling on the leash as Eivor got their own backpack out of the car.

Randvi watched them while their back was turned, her gaze catching on the broad stretch of their shoulders through their t-shirt. If Randvi took notice of the way their muscles bunched and stretched when they lifted their arm, there was no one around to see her watching. So sue her. 

“Ready?” Eivor said, turning around as they clipped their keys to their belt loop.

“Ready.” 

They set off down the trail, Dwolfg leading the way. The packed dirt path was wide enough that they could walk side by side, passing the time in companionable silence. The trail was easy at first, a leisurely path through the towering pine trees. 

Then, as they rounded the side of the mountain, the elevation grew steeper and Randvi found herself breathing heavier as they trekked past boulders and steep drop-offs. Dwolfg happily jumped along the uneven rocks and across the stray roots in the path, and Randvi felt less embarrassed when she noticed the sheen of sweat on Eivor’s forehead.

As they climbed a few steps carved into a rock, Randvi said, trying not to sound as breathless as she was, “I think we should keep work-talk off the table for the rest of the day, but I’m curious if you applied for the festival.”

Eivor glanced over their shoulder. “I did. I can work out the park schedule so whoever wants to come can have the day off, too. It was a good idea, but then again, you seem to always have good ideas.” 

Randvi was suddenly glad for the heat of the day and the exertion of the hike, because otherwise Eivor might have noticed her blush. “It was Thora’s idea, technically.” Mostly. Thora had brought it up and Randvi had run with it, but still. 

“Well, maybe I’ll compliment Thora next time.” Eivor looked back again, a glint in their eye.

They really had to stop teasing her, if Randvi was going to remain sane for the afternoon. 

They passed the rest of the way to the peak chatting about less important things, Eivor occasionally pointing out something or other of interest along the way. A spot at the base of a tree where they’d seen a fawn curled up on a misty spring morning. A narrow view between two rocks that Randvi had to stand on her tiptoes to look through, finding the strain worth the effort at the sight of a magical looking pool surrounded by moss and delicate purple flowers. A nest high up between two branches where hawks nested. 

There was plenty to do outside of Seattle, but Randvi was so busy she’d rarely partaken in any of the hikes or natural wonders nearby. She was a little jealous, suddenly, that Eivor was surrounded by all of this every day. There was so much life here and Eivor didn’t seem to take it for granted.

If only that didn’t endear them to Randvi even more. 

It was growing hotter by the minute when they reached the peak. They’d greeted a few people on the trail on the way there, but a small group was gathered at the lookout. The trail opened up, running along a mountain stream. In the distance, the roar of falling water sounded and a breeze picked up Randvi’s ponytail. 

“Here it is!” Eivor said proudly, and walked faster now towards the edge. A small wooden bridge crossed the creek, and Randvi felt the breath leave her body as they approached the edge of the falls. 

Below, the stream ran off the edge of the ridge, plummeting down the side of the mountain. The view opened up through the trees, revealing a sweeping view of the surrounding ridge and distant peaks. There was nothing but green tree tops and rocky peaks as far as the eye could see. 

It was only after a moment that Randvi realized Eivor was looking at her expectantly. “It’s beautiful,” she said with a smile.

Eivor looked back out over the falls. “It is.” There was something wistful in their voice that Randvi couldn’t quite place. 

After a moment, they let out a quick breath and turned to her again. “Come on, let me show you the rest.”

Randvi followed them around the side. Almost hidden in some trees on the opposite side of the falls, a smaller trail disappeared into the trees. Dwolfg seemed to know where he was going as he headed right down the dirt path, trotting over rocks on nimble feet. 

“A lot of people don’t know this is here,” Eivor said as they headed downhill this time. “I want people to know but…” 

“You want to keep it for yourself?” 

Eivor looked back with a grin. “Guilty.” 

This was a much shorter trail, doubling back along the mountainside. The sound of the falls grew more distant as they went, replaced with the babble of trickling water. 

Then they rounded a bend past a towering boulder and Randvi stopped short. A pool sat in the shade of the trees, filled by the stream that fell just a few feet into the pool from an outcropping of stones. The result was a peaceful clearing with crystal clear water and mossy rocks at the edge. It was everything Eivor had described and more. 

Eivor had already set their backpack on the ground and was getting out a much longer leash. “What do you think?” they asked. 

“It’s perfect. I see why you want to keep it for yourself.” 

As Eivor tied Dwolfg off on a tree, the longer leash letting him roam more freely, Randvi set her own backpack down and took a long drink from her water bottle.

She braced her hand on her waist as she caught her breath, looking around. Eivor dropped onto a rock, sitting and looking out at the water. Their shirt was damp at the collar and back. 

She imagined a different day, a different summer, where Eivor peeled off their sweaty clothes and dove into the pool in a blur. Eivor here with a different woman, teasing her with kisses and drifting hands. 

Randvi pressed her lips together in a thin line. She dismissed the thoughts and went to join them, propping her feet up on a smaller rock. Eivor seemed equally content to sit in silence, which Randvi was perfectly fine with. It was companionable and soothingly quiet. Sitting here, both watching the water as they rested, seemed exactly what they were supposed to do.

At last, Eivor took a drink from their water bottle and turned to her. “You brought a bathing suit, right?” 

Randvi almost grimaced at the thought of the ill-fitting black one piece that awaited her, but nodded. “I told you no skinny dipping, didn’t I?”

“Just checking,” Eivor replied, a smile quirking up one corner of their mouth. They rose, and offered a hand to Randvi. She didn’t need it, but she took it anyway. Their grip was strong as they helped her to her feet. “Should we trust each other not to turn around while we change?” 

“I’m trustworthy,” Randvi said, walking to her backpack. “I don’t know about you,” she added, eyeing them. 

Laughing, Eivor lifted their hands up in surrender. “I swear I won’t look.” 

“I guess I have to believe you.” 

She sat on the rock first, standing a few yards away from Eivor as she undid the laces of her boots and stripped off her socks. She glanced over her shoulder once, just to see if Eivor was looking, and caught them pulling their sweaty t-shirt over their head.

“You’re sure nobody comes on this trail?” Randvi asked, pausing with her fingers hooked in the waistband of her shorts. 

“Even if people come, we’ll see them long before they see us.” 

Sure enough, from her vantage point, she could see the trail twisting along the mountainside above them, just visible over the top of the nearest rock that blocked most of the clearing from view.

She watched for a moment, but seeing nothing moving on the trail, quickly peeled off her shorts and underwear. She stepped into the swimsuit, awkwardly pulling the top up while keeping her shirt on with her sports bra in a sweaty bunch around her neck.

The rustle of fabric came from behind her and just as she was shoving everything into place beneath the swimsuit, Eivor said, “Can I turn around?” 

“Yeah.” Now fully covered beneath, Randvi pulled her shirt and bra over her head and turned around. She didn’t know what she’d been expecting, but it wasn’t the expanse of bare tattooed skin that greeted her. 

Eivor was shirtless, spreading out their clothes on a sunny rock. A stylized tattoo ran the length of their spine, and when they turned, another stretched up from the top of their dark blue swim trunks over their hip. When they straightened, Randvi could see the two faint scars running along their chest.

Without their shirt, the slope of their muscular shoulders was on full display, and Randvi could at last see the rest of the tattoos that had previously been partially hidden beneath their short sleeves. 

“I–” She needed to do something, fast, or she didn’t know what might fall out of her mouth. “I’m going to get in.” She tossed her clothes haphazardly on a rock with her backpack and turned towards the water. The pool was deep enough that before she could doubt herself, she leapt off the rock. 

A shock of cold water greeted her, stealing the breath from her throat. Hissing a little, she surfaced and paddled to the middle. 

Eivor was laughing from the shore. “Damn. I was going to say you should let yourself get used to it first.”

Compared to the heat of the day, the mountain water was almost freezing. Randvi shivered, goosebumps dotting her arms and legs. 

Eivor climbed up on a taller rock, one that extended out over the deeper part of the pool. They spread their arms for balance as they tread carefully to the slippery edge, then with a whoop, jumped off the top and landed in a messy splash. They surfaced, flicking water out of their eyes and running their hand back through their hair. Little waves bumped over Randvi’s shoulders.

When they grinned at Randvi, all she could focus on was the beads of water dripping down the line of their neck. She cleared her throat. “You said this was refreshing but I think I might be dying.” 

Eivor swam closer to her. “You trust me, right? Let your body get used to it.”

As Randvi continued to tread water, Eivor pushed off a rock and maneuvered onto their back. They stretched out their arms, floating and looking up at the tree tops shading the pool.

Sure enough, the more she sat there, the warmer it seemed to feel. The hot air above water helped, and once the shock had worn off, it really did feel nice after the hike. 

Randvi drew in a deep breath, letting it out slowly as she let herself relax into the sensation. She gazed around, watching Dwolfg dozing on his side on a sunny rock.

“I’m glad I didn’t cancel on you.”

Eivor turned to her sharply. “You didn’t want to come?” 

“I want to be here, I just have so much writing to do… I’m bad at relaxing.” 

Eivor’s brow rose. “You? I never would’ve guessed.” 

Randvi sent a small splash of water in their direction. “I came, didn’t I?” 

Eivor cackled, wiping the droplets from their face. They turned, splashing her back. 

“Hey!” Randvi sputtered and pushed damp hair off her cheek. 

Eivor let out another laugh and swam closer. “What? Don’t tell me you can give it but can’t take it?”

Randvi swept her arm out, trying to frown but failing spectacularly as another splash drenched Eivor. 

“So that’s a yes? I think you’ll regret that,” Eivor said, playfully dark, and then attacked with reckless abandon. 

Randvi put up a good fight, their laughs and splashes echoing between the rocks as they struggled for the upper hand. Eventually, absolutely drenched and losing ground, Randvi put her hands up and squinted against the water dripping into her eyes. “Okay! I yield! I admit it!” 

Eivor paused, the water churning around them. On the shore, Dwolfg had long ago lost interest in the activity and was now dozing with the occasional flick of his ear. 

Then Eivor ducked beneath the surface of the water. 

“What are you–” Randvi started, then let out a strangled yelp when Eivor surged forwards and grabbed her around the legs. “Eivor!” She clutched at the closest thing within reach for balance: Eivor’s shoulders. 

Eivor pushed off the rock beneath them, rising and tossing Randvi back into the water. She plunged beneath the surface, and when she surfaced again, Eivor was wheezing. 

While they were busy laughing, Randvi splashed over and outright tackled them, pushing down on their shoulders. 

She had the satisfaction of seeing Eivor’s brief look of surprise before their head bobbed below the surface. When they rose again, snorting out water, Randvi said with a smirk, “Serves you right.” 

“Serves me right? You’re the one who started this.” 

“Me? You–” Eivor backed away this time when Randvi started after them. She saw her opening, splashing on the right so they’d duck to the left. She kicked forward, then all at once had Eivor backed against a rock. 

“Hah!” She shouted, and closed their escape with an arm on the rock behind their head. She leaned in close and–

They both froze, their legs brushing as they found purchase on the slippery rocks underfoot. They were both breathing hard, hair dripping and cheeks flushed. Her gaze dropped from Eivor’s grey eyes to their parted lips. 

It would only take one small movement, barely a motion at all, to lean in and press her lips to theirs. For a moment she wondered if Eivor could feel the pounding of her heart rippling through the water. 

Eivor panted, their gaze dropping from her eyes. They exhaled and murmured, “You win.” 

And then with dark eyes, they ducked under her arm and swam back, leaving Randvi reeling.

Eivor never quite recovered on the walk back to the car. They’d spoken of other things, Randvi apparently ignoring or entirely unaffected by what’d happened in the pool. And the whole while, they forced their voice past the knot in their throat and tried to calm the pounding of their heart. She’d been there, so close. Eivor hadn’t even been thinking about winning by that point, too wrapped up in the close heat of Randvi’s nearly naked body and the brush of her breath across their lips

Maybe it would’ve been easier if she wasn’t in that fucking black swimsuit that made divots in her hips and that was thin enough they could see the outlines of her nipples in the cold water. Eivor had fought with themself from the moment they’d first turned around and seen her in it, halfway between confessing everything about what they were feeling right there and refusing to look at her to preserve her dignity. 

But when she had hips Eivor wanted to sink their teeth into, strong thighs they imagined yielding beneath the grip of their fingers…

When they changed back into their clothes again, they stared firmly at the trees in front of them, ignoring the painfully insistent thought to just turn around. She’s right there.

They weren’t sure what they expected from this trip, but going from vague yearning to full on thirsting wasn’t on their card. Although, in retrospect, maybe it should’ve been. 

Birna would sure get a load of this later, Eivor knew. 

The hike back felt shorter this time, but that also might have been because they weren’t stopping every hundred yards for Eivor to point something out. As they were getting back in the car, Dwolfg sitting peacefully in the back again, Randvi said, “I decided to move my flight back.” 

Eivor glanced over at her, trying to read her face, but it was carefully composed. “Oh?” 

“Yeah,” Randvi continued, letting out a long breath and speaking faster now, “I still have so much writing to do and I want to be around just in case I have any more questions. And while I’m here, I figured I could help you with the festival planning. I’ve arranged events before and of course Thora will jump at the opportunity to order people around.”

Eivor appreciated that it wasn’t a request. They didn’t comment that maybe Randvi also liked ordering people around. “Sounds like you’ve made up your mind.” 

“I know you didn’t ask for it, but I want to help,” Randvi said simply. 

“I didn’t say I don’t want the help. I do. I appreciate it.” They glanced over at her, but she was looking out her window. 

When Randvi had first turned up, Eivor had thought it merely nice that she was interested in the park. But now that she was here, seeing what it was like and listening to Eivor talk about the little things that made it worthwhile, taking the time to see it from their perspective, it was more than they could’ve ever hoped for. It twisted a blade buried deep in their chest, Randvi listening with genuine interest and insisting so casually to be a part of the effort to save it. 

Even if the park closed, even if Eivor had to find another job and feel burn of bitterness at their beloved park getting developed into luxury rental homes, at least Randvi would’ve been here, doing everything in her power to resist right alongside them. 

Chapter Text

A week later, Randvi was in her ideal state: up to her elbows in work with too much to do and not enough time to do it in. While Liv sprawled next to her with a coloring book, Randvi submitted her final edits on previous articles between compiling quotes for her piece about Raven Ridge. Over lunch at Thora’s cluttered kitchen table, she made calls to organize festival details. Her days were meticulously planned to meet every deadline, her online calendar packed to the brim with hourly updates of what she should be working on. It left no room for other thoughts, which was probably better for her anyway.

It turned out the park had some funds squeezed into a corner for outreach activities, so Randvi tracked down the best deals she could find on everything they would need for the event. A friend of her coworker had a printing business that graciously gave them a discount on stickers, ready to ship within 24 hours of uploading the design. An hour or so of work at midnight and Randvi had the layout for a “Save Our Park” design with the Raven Ridge logo and the outline of mountains and an elk in the background. 

It was past one AM by the time she sent the design file and the discount code to Eivor’s park email for ordering. She woke up the next morning to a response from Eivor time stamped 6:55 AM: 

Damn, do you ever sleep? 

An additional text had come a few minutes later: 

Thank you <3 Ordered. 

Posters were outside of Randvi’s graphic design capabilities, but luckily a specialty of Thora’s friend with a penchant for doing side projects during work hours.

A few days later and Thora came home with a rolled up fabric bundle under her arm. When she unveiled it for the family, Erik and Liv couldn’t resist making their own. Randvi took them out that evening for supplies and ice cream, and even though Thora pursed her lips at the late hour, she didn’t protest at the kids lying on their stomachs in the living room, drawing in marker on the posters. 

Finn wrote out in careful block letters what they wanted to say. Liv’s read “My favorite place is Raven Ridge” and Erik insisted on “I love animals at Raven Ridge” (the “At Raven Ridge” only added at Finn’s suggestion). The edges of both were decorated with little drawings of animals and trees, which were probably recognizable. Liv even drew little stick people standing and smiling together. When Randvi asked who they were, Liv gave her a hard why do you even have to ask look. 

“Aunt Randvi,” she said, sounding long-suffering. “Ranger Eivor is your friend, you should be able to recognize them.” She pointed at the vague hat-shaped object on a figure’s head and then the scraggly outline of a dog next to them. “And that’s you.” The stick figure on Eivor’s other side had garishly bright red hair drawn with a heavy dose of crayon.

“Oh, of course,” Randvi said through a smile. “I don’t know how I missed it.”

She snapped a photo of the drawing and texted it to Eivor. 

Liv is your number one fan. 

Eivor promptly responded. You and Liv are the only fans I need.

It was another few days before they saw each other. Under normal circumstances, one of the Journal’s photographers would take care of any visual materials, but since Randvi was on her own, it was up to her to either source or provide what she needed. 

She’d kept her distance since she’d last seen Eivor, too worried that another date-not-date would lead to things she couldn’t handle. It was for the best anyway. She’d delayed her flight back for more time to finish her piece, not hang out with old friends. Seattle is full of people , she reminded herself as she drove out to the park again. If you’re really that lonely, you can find someone to date there. 

She ignored the nagging feeling that none of them would compare to the standard she’d hold them to. 

Randvi photographed a few of the rangers outside the visitor’s center at first, gathering them into a group and getting a smiling photo first, then a few individual shots of them working around the center. Birna happily posed for the camera, happy to flex and preen for Randvi’s camera. Randvi chewed the inside of her lip in amusement as Birna situated herself without much direction. 

“This would be better, I think. No-wait, I look better from this angle. What if you got a photo from over there? Maybe through the leaves?” 

Randvi truly didn’t need all the photos, but Birna was having so much fun that she didn’t stop her. By the time she was done, there were dozens of photos of Birna standing at the desk, holding the snake from one of the terrariums, moving firewood, stocking the shelves, sweeping the doorfront, building a fire in the fireplace, then even more of her doing tasks around the outside of the center. 

“Birna,” Petra laughed as she passed by. “Aren’t you done holding Randvi hostage by now?”

“You’re the only one I hold hostage,” Birna said from where she was posing with her foot up on a stray rock and her hands on her hips. “And you like that.” 

Randvi caught the wink Birna shot in Petra’s direction. When she turned to gauge Petra’s reaction, she was surprised to see her blushing instead of rolling her eyes like Randvi had been expecting. 

Interesting.

“There,” Randvi said, looking pointedly through the photos in her camera. “I’ll look through these later, but we should be done, Birna. Thanks for your cooperation.”

Birna stopped making eyes at Petra long enough to glance back at Randvi. “Any time you want to photograph a nice view, you let me know.” 

Petra scoffed behind Randvi. But she didn’t leave. 

Randvi glanced between the two of them. “Are you both coming to the festival?” 

Petra’s face lit up. “Of course, you couldn’t miss us.” 

Randvi didn’t miss that Petra had answered for Birna too. 

“I heard a few more people will be there from other parks too,” Randvi said. “Soma, I think?” 

Petra glanced at Birna, the briefest flash of movement. “Soma will be there?” 

Randvi paused, sensing some kind of line crossed. “Is that a problem?” 

Birna let out a bark of laughter. “No, Soma’s more likely to fix problems than make them. As long as you’re on her side, of course. Wouldn’t want to be against her.” She blew out a breath with raised eyebrows. 

“She and Birna…” Petra explained. 

Birna seemed to wave off Petra’s hesitation. “I can’t recommend falling in young, dopey puppy-love with your unattainable boss.”

Petra seemed to relax then, once it was out in the open. Ah. Randvi remembered that Birna had transferred from another park. She just hadn’t realized it was Soma’s park. 

“I saw some photos of her,” Randvi said as she replaced the lens cover on her work-lended camera. “The appeal makes sense.” 

“She and Eivor have been friends for a long time,” Petra said. “She’ll be good to have there.” 

Friends. For a long time. That pairing would also make sense. It made far more sense than whatever Randvi could offer. 

Randvi cleared her throat. “Speaking of Eivor, they said I could take a few photos of them too. But I haven’t seen them around since I’ve been here. Do you think they’re camera shy?” 

Petra snorted. “Eivor couldn’t be camera shy if they tried. They’re fixing a fence up on the Nature Trail. I need to head up in that direction anyway. Want a ride?”

Randvi hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “Sure, that would be great.” 

They both bid goodbye to Birna, who returned to her post inside with a cheerful wave.

Petra led Randvi over to a car parked at the edge of the lot - a personal truck this time instead of a park vehicle. 

“Sorry about the mess,” Petra said as they got in. “I’m borrowing it from my brother. He likes hunting and fishing and not cleaning.” 

Randvi waved her off. “I appreciate the ride.” 

She glanced at Petra out of the corner of her eye now that they were alone. Birna was so easy to get along with that it was one thing to interact in a group, a different matter now that they were in private. The woman seemed around her age, late twenties at the earliest. Pretty in an effortless way. Randvi rolled around a few questions in her mind as Petra started up the engine. “How is it working with Eivor?” 

Petra’s face broke into a smile. “Are you asking as a journalist or friend?”

“Friend,” Randvi said firmly. “Personal curiosity.” 

“Oh, it’s all been fine,” Petra said as she pulled onto the road, “They’re good at what they do.” She tapped her fingers on the steering wheel for a moment and Randvi didn’t say anything, suspecting there was more coming. “We used to date, you know.” 

Randvi’s brows rose. “Oh?” She hadn’t known, but she wasn’t surprised. But then there was also that little exchange between Petra and Birna. What kind of park ranger work-incest went on behind the scenes here? Maybe she’d chosen the wrong career.

Petra shrugged. “It didn’t work with us romantically. We both realized it, it just took me a little longer to come to the same conclusion.”

Randvi nodded silently. She couldn’t imagine ever getting over Eivor. 

Petra continued, “They’re one of those people who’s easy to love. They’re fun and enthusiastic and it’s great being around someone like that. Sincerity goes a long way. It took a bit of awkwardness to get through, but we’re still genuinely good friends. And that was years ago, too. We were young and we’ve both changed since then. For the better, I should add.”

That made Randvi laugh. “That’s good…” She looked out the window, then back to Petra. “Could I ask you a more personal question? It’s okay to say no. You can always blame it on my profession.” 

A different person might have stiffened and shut down, but Petra remained easy. “That probably depends on the question.” 

“Does Eivor bring many women to the park? It’s not–” she corrected quickly, surprisingly unsteady with her words. “We’re not , but I was curious. After what you said that weekend, I mean.”

Petra didn’t seem surprised by the question, only gave Randvi a knowing look. “Eivor likes to keep people at arm’s length. They have flings, from what I understand. I’ve never seen the same person twice, if that’s what you’re asking.” Petra considered. “Though not in a while. Not since you’ve been here.”

Randvi cleared her throat. That was definitely not what she was asking. “I didn’t–” but she didn’t know how to continue, so she let the sentence drift off. 

“There’s no reason to not have some fun,” Petra added. “Eivor’s good for that. But I wouldn’t expect more.” 

“I’m not expecting anything,” Randvi said, trying to sound as casual as she could. “I’m leaving soon and I won’t be back for a while. I was just curious.” 

Petra gave her a look that seemed to see right through her. “Sure, of course.” 

They pulled off the road into a gravel lot, and Petra came to a stop. “Want me to hang around? I don’t have to be anywhere for another twenty minutes.” 

“No, that’s okay,” Randvi said, gathering her camera and bag. “Thank you though.” She opened the door and got out, then looked through the open window. “And I appreciate the rest too.” 

Petra nodded and pointed to the left. “They should be over there. Take care.”

With a wave, she drove off, leaving Randvi to look across the lot. There were barely a handful of cars, one of them that worn down Park Services truck Randvi was getting used to spotting. She glanced around, looking in the direction Petra had pointed. 

Sure enough, there was a small garden next to the entrance to the trail. A dirt path wound through the ferns and flowers with a short wooden fence squaring off the garden. Randvi couldn’t see anyone at first, then there was a vague thump, scrape.

She straightened her camera bag over her shoulder and headed into the garden.

Eivor shoved the post holer into the ground, coming up with another load of dirt. The sun beat down on their back and their arms strained at the effort of shoving the tool into the dry, packed dirt, but it was a welcome distraction. Planning for the festival seemed to be taking up any bits of extra time in their schedule and it was all calling people and desk work. 

Even though the work was sweaty and it would’ve been easy to delegate the task to someone else, it was almost a relief to be outside doing something with their hands again. That was why they’d started doing this in the first place, after all.

They knelt, scraping out some of the dirt by hand. Whoever had installed the fence before hadn’t dropped the post deep enough. The post had been precariously leaning, threatening to pull the rest of the fence down if someone didn’t do something fast. 

The perfect task for a quick distraction. From planning as well as feeling. 

Just as they drove the post holer down into the dirt again, footsteps sounded. They glanced up, expecting to greet a park guest, only to find Randvi looking squarely at them from the garden. 

Shock jolted through them and their grip loosened. The handles slipped from their grasp and before they could catch it, one of the wooden handles plummeted right onto their foot. 

“Shit! Fuck!” 

Randvi rushed forward, climbing over the fence slats Eivor had set aside to replace. “Oh god, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean–” 

Pain shot through the bridge of their foot - it had gotten them squarely across the laces of their boot. “I’m okay, I just didn’t expect to see you .” 

Randvi paused for the briefest moment from where she was bent over, retrieving the tool. The sun shone brilliantly across her red hair, highlighting all the russet and golden tones in each strand. 

Their hands touched when Randvi passed the handle back to them. They hadn’t seen each other since their trip to the waterfall last week, though now that Randvi was standing in front of them again, it seemed much too soon. They briefly pictured her in that black swimsuit, the body Eivor now knew lay beneath her ever-professional outfit. 

In the back of their head, they tried to resist the thought that whatever she looked like, it would affect them all the same because it was her . 

“I didn’t mean to surprise you. Petra said I could find you here.” 

Petra? Not that they didn’t trust her (she was possibly the most trustworthy of their exes) but the thought of her and Randvi alone together made them queasy. Possibly more queasy than the thought of Randvi alone with Birna. 

Randvi gestured to the bag at her side. “I was hoping to take some photos for the article, if you’re open to it. I already got some photos at the visitor’s center but since you’re a focus of the article, I’d like some of you.” 

Eivor stretched their foot, wincing at the pain. “Photos? I– Sure.” Why did they suddenly sound like such an idiot? Had they always sounded like this? “I’m covered in dirt right now though. Sure you don’t want me looking a little more put together?” 

The way Randvi’s eyes glanced briefly over their body made them hot under the collar. Her eyes caught on the open button at the top of their park shirt. “I think you look great.”

Eivor cleared their throat, driving the post holer into some fresh dirt so it stood up straight. “How do you want me?” 

As soon as it had come out of their mouth, they realized what it sounded like. They almost started apologizing, but Randvi just gave them a curious look and moved on. “Just keep doing what you were before and I’ll take some that way. Then maybe we could do a portrait just in case.” 

“All right.” 

A songbird darted past overhead, landing in the mulch beneath the nearby coneflower and scratching at the dirt. They picked up the holer again and got back to work. 

“Did you get the schedule sorted out yet?” Randvi asked. She crouched, setting the camera bag on the ground to get it out. She popped off the lens cover. “Birna and Petra said they were coming.”

“Yeah, most of the rangers are coming.” 

“Not some, I hope,” Randvi said archly. 

Eivor let out a chuckle through the exertion of driving down the post holer again. “Dag won’t be there, no. Luckily for the running of this place, there’s a few sticklers who aren’t interested.” 

They tried not to look over at the first click of the camera, keeping their eyes focused on the hole in front of them. Kneeling again, they scooped out more loose dirt and eyed the depth. Just another inch or so. 

“Valka also confirmed she would be there,” they said between more digging. 

Randvi eyed one of the photos she’d just taken, then snapped another. “That’s great. Animals are a big draw. Who hates animals, right?”

Now satisfied with the depth, Eivor moved onto the post itself lying nearby. They hefted it up, heaving it over to the hole and dropping it inside.

Another click of Randvi’s camera and it was harder to ignore the way Randvi was eyeing them, studying their form for the perfect moment, then capturing it in a photo. What would they give to be under Randvi’s gaze again, have her eyes fixed on the way they moved their body in a different way, just for her…

Eivor cleared their throat. “Actually, could you hold this for me?”

“Sure.” Randvi let the camera rest on the strap around her neck and stepped up to hold the post straight while Eivor filled in the hole around it. They could feel her eyes on them as they worked, but good or bad they couldn’t tell. This close, they were starkly aware of their sweat-damp collar and the distant herbal scent of Randvi’s shampoo.

When they glanced into her eyes, her expression was curious. She held their gaze for one long moment. It was Eivor who looked away, overwhelmed and puzzled. 

“The slats now,” Eivor said for no reason at all other than to break the silence. 

They fed the slats through the holds in the posts, and in no time at all, the fence was back in place, standing tall and steady now. 

“Oh,” Eivor said when they realized Randvi was now stuck on the outside. “I trapped you out.” 

“It’s okay,” Randvi said. She passed her bag over the fence to Eivor, who stood watching as she climbed deftly over despite her creased navy slacks. 

They stood dumbly as she dropped to the other side and dusted off her hands along with the backs of her legs. She looked into their eyes and said, “Can I take some portraits of you now?”

It didn’t matter what she asked, Eivor would’ve said yes to anything. “Of course. Let me rinse my hands off.”

They emptied some of the water from their water bottle over their dirt-stained hands. A quick scrub, scraping the dirt out from under their short nails, and they wiped off the rest with the rag stuck in their back pocket. They gave themself a quick pat down, tossing the used rag next to their tools and facing Randvi, who’d been watching them the whole time. 

They let her position them. The brief warmth of her palms seared into their wrists as she angled them next to the repaired fence. They gazed down at her while she was distracted studying the light. A few wisps of hair had fallen across her forehead and her freckles stood out on the bridge of her nose in the late afternoon sunlight. When she stepped back, standing on the other side, they turned around to face her. 

“Can you take your hat off?” 

Eivor did as she asked, running a hand through their hair. “Like that?” 

Randvi cocked her head, studying them. She stepped forward, and Eivor froze as her fingers picked at their collar, setting it straight. She brushed a bit of dirt off their shirt next, then smoothed out a wrinkle around their waist. 

She leaned back, studying her work. Eivor stood there, captivated. One last adjustment to their collar and she gave a decisive nod. “There.” 

“How should I stand?” 

“Let’s do one from the chest up first and then I’ll get some of the rest of you.” 

Eivor straightened their spine, tipping their chin up. “Smiling or no?” 

“We’ll do both.” 

They stared into the lens, imagining Randvi’s gaze right behind it. They did as she ordered them, a few smiling first, then straight faced as she snapped several more from slightly different angles. 

When she glanced at the results on the camera screen, she said, “I’m no photographer but there should be some good ones in here.” 

“You look like you know what you’re doing,” Eivor said, hoping that didn’t sound the way they meant it. Like her capability didn’t turn them on. 

Her eyes flashed into theirs. “Thanks, Eivor.”

She took a few steps back, tilting her head to study the scene. “Let’s do some full body ones now. Maybe try leaning against the fence this time?” 

They stepped to the side, leaning one elbow on the slat they’d just repaired, adjusting slightly to make it as casual as possible, as if they’d just stopped to rest there.

“Perfect,” Randvi said, then put her eye down to peer through the lens. They looked into the camera with a straight face, imagining their gaze piercing right through the layers of the lens and all the inner workings of the camera, and shooting straight into Randvi.

The next morning, Randvi was sitting at the kitchen table alone, everyone else away at work and school, on a video call with Todd. He stared at her from the background of his office, a pleasant expression brightening his face as he detailed all his issues with her article. 

Randvi was used to taking feedback. In fact, she considered herself good at taking feedback. It was part of the process, after all, and it only improved the end result. But what Todd had to say was neither helpful nor an improvement. 

“The thing is,” Todd continued, “The parts about all the gay… issues, it reads as a tangent. What does that have to do with the closure of a state-run park?”

Randvi nodded through her frustration. She’d enumerated all the very relevant reasons the two were connected throughout the article, but Todd was either refusing to understand or unable to. “If you’ll look over pages two and three again, that’s where I get into the meat of it. The state park is a refuge for everyone. It’s impossible to ignore the queerness of the park’s staff and what they provide for the community without discussing the broader implications of capitalism overtaking natural resources and the people actually on the ground working to protect it.” 

Todd opened his mouth to interject, but she pressed on. “Without the queer people and activists protecting inclusive spaces, like the queer group I mentioned from Seattle cleaning up local parks on the weekends, not to mention the people I found that I couldn’t even include in the article, such as the trans man who leads the Montana Native Plant Society, these spaces wouldn’t be available for public use. Or even if the spaces did exist, they wouldn’t be nearly as nice or well used without the upkeep provided. It’s not their job to do any of these things, but making change–real, tangible change–is inherently tied up in queerness. Capitalism and consumerism are actively damaging the environment and the article is about the queer people working against the system to save it. Whether you can see it or not.” 

She let out a sharp breath, snapping her mouth closed. Todd tilted his head, considering. Through the webcam, his face was grainy. “Sure, I understand that,” he said with the same friendly tone. “But don’t you think that’s alienating readers?”

Randvi bit back an internal scream. She was good at doing that. In her lap, she dug her fingernail into the pad of her thumb. “No, I don’t think so at all. What do you mean?” 

“LGBT is a buzzword right now,” (another internal scream) “So it’ll get readers from that, but that’s only a small part of our readers. The majority of our audience can’t relate. Why should they care?” He offered her his characteristically cheerful smile, clearly unaware of his own ignorance. People like him usually were.

Randvi had enumerated all the very real reasons in her article why he should care, why everyone should care that spaces for everyone were being preserved. And even if those parts weren’t obvious, it was still a good story about the park closure and the people trying to keep it open, how their lives would change if it were to close. If Todd couldn’t see that by now, she wasn’t sure he ever would. “How about I do some edits and show you another draft. I think I can make some changes to the opener that will–” 

Todd shook his head. “I really don’t think it’s the right angle for this story, Randvi. You understand. It’s just part of the business.” 

It was rare that Todd pulled his editor card on her. For the most part, he was happy to let her get her work done without interfering in her business. It was just times like this that she wanted to punch him in his obnoxiously friendly face. As if his smile would erase everything he’d just said and all the reasons he was wrong, not to mention his assumption that she understood, of all fucking things. 

Randvi gave a pinched smile. “I understand that’s your opinion, Todd. If that’s it for today, I’ll get started on some revisions.” 

Todd seemed blissfully unaware of the tension radiating through her. “Sure, no problem, Randvi. Looking forward to seeing the change of direction!” 

Not long after, Randvi hung up and stared for a long moment at the blank screen asking her to rate the quality of her call. Fucking Todd.