Mia's Complaint

Only when that was out of the way and he was in the shower did Bob get around to thinking carefully of what he'd seen. Did Mia know? Was it just a coincidence? Did it even matter? Would she even care if he'd seen her? Surely she realized he could have come out to the pool any time!

One thing was for certain: he'd misjudged his new friend in a big way. But he couldn't make up his mind what, if anything, to do about it just now.

He and Mandi had had a modesty screen put up to block the view of the pool from the back door, for the very purpose of protecting guests like Mia, so there was no risk of him seeing anything she didn't want him to see when he came downstairs. As he set about making breakfast in the kitchen, Bob made up his mind to pretend he hadn't seen anything.

Nevertheless, he felt a naughty grin come to his lips when he heard the back door open, and the thought crossed his mind that she might still be nude. "Mia?" he asked without turning to see her.

"Morning, Bob!" She sounded much too casual to be harboring any big surprise. Sure enough, he turned to see she was now fully clothed, her wet hair being the only clue as to what she'd just been up to.

"Made good use of the pool, I see," he quipped, figuring she could take or leave the bait as she liked it.

"I hope you don't mind," she replied, helping herself to a seat at the kitchen table and pouring some coffee from the ancient percolator he had set there.

"Not at all. That's what it's there for." The memory of many a skinnydipping party with the old gang flooded over him, though he still couldn't tell if Mia knew that he knew. He opted to let sleeping dogs lie. "Cantaloupe?" he offered, having cut a thick wedge from his latest one in the fridge.

"That'd be great, thanks," she said. "Thank God you don't put brown sugar on it. My mother's boyfriend does that, and, you know, gross."

"Couldn't agree more," Bob said. He cut a slice for himself and sat down across from Mia. "I've never even heard of such a thing."

"He and my mom, well, there's a lot they like that I don't get," Mia said. "That's got a lot to do with why I came up here."

Bob was only too happy to have the boat steered into safer waters. "You know, I have been wondering," he said as he poured himself some coffee.

"About what possessed me to apply for this job, right?" Mia intercepted. "I'm not the type, am I?"

"I'm delighted to have you here, but you're right, you're not," Bob said. "I hope you don't mind my saying so."

"Not at all," Mia said with a sad smile. "Honestly, Bob, I hoped we could talk about it before too long. I know what it looks like, a preppy gal like me with a fancy degree from a snobby school, who's got it all together..." She took a deep breath and gazed out the kitchen window at the blue summer sky over the wooden fence. "It's a great act, isn't it? That's just the problem, though. It's an act I've been putting on all - well, not all my life, but most of it. Since about the eighth grade, like I said. But it goes back further than that. I guess that was only when I learned how to play the prep, the schoolgirl, the smartypants. Before that, I was a lazy little brat who whined about everything!"

"In other words, a typical kid," Bob said. "That's nothing to be ashamed of once you've grown out of it."

"I don't feel like I ever really have," Mia said. "That's the problem! That's what I'm hoping to figure out while I'm here."

"Why would you feel like that when you've done so well for yourself?"

"That's the question, all right." Mia took a long drink of her coffee, and smiled as she looked Bob in the eye, clearly struggling not to laugh.

She must at least suspect that he knew, Bob thought. But still he kept it to himself. "Now, just what is this discontentment you wrote about, and is that the same thing you were referring to just now?"

"Exactly," Mia confirmed. She took a deep breath and continued. "Right, the lazy brat is where I left off. I was a smart kid, but I never liked school. I think that's because home was a little too comfy for me up until I was eight. We had a nice little three bedroom apartment, my parents and just me, in a really blue-collar town but I never knew that because the apartment complex we were in was a perfect garden spot. It was the garden of Eden, Bob, neat trimmed lawns, well-kept buildings, a playground I loved, and even as a little kid you could ride your bike all over the grounds and it was perfectly safe. It was only four blocks, but it seemed like the wide world to me at that age!"

"You moved when you were eight, and you never felt that comfortable in your new home," Bob said.

Mia looked surprised for a moment, then said, "You too?"

"Navy brat," Bob said. "Lived in Hawaii with my folks until I was six. No place else ever measured up."

"Then you know!" Mia looked for all the world like she wanted to jump across the table and hug him, but she also looked reticent about doing so. "But it wasn't just that we moved, it was the reason why we moved. Mom and Dad got divorced, and Mom got custody of me because that's the way it always worked back then, you know. And she never had a nice day after the divorce. Bitter and angry all the time, and she found a job in a new city that was just crumbling apart, and we ended up living in a duplex there just a couple of blocks out of the ghetto. And me, well...most of my friends hated school with a passion and didn't even try, and for a few years neither did I."

"That's the one way you're a lot like everyone who came before you," Bob said, rubbing her hand between the empty fruit dishes. "But it sounds like you grew up soon enough?"

"I just got tired of Mom yelling at me and putting me down all the time," Mia said. "I still hated school, but I finally figured out I was only making it harder on myself if I didn't start trying, you know? So I did. I started keeping track of my homework for the first time and almost always did it, and I joined the choir and the school newspaper, and yes of course I played basketball --"

"I guessed as much!" Bob laughed.

"And that was good enough to get into a great college, where I continued being Miss Goody Two Shoes. And had a couple of boyfriends here and there and plenty of friends, and an internship that landed me a boring but sensible job when I graduated last year. But, Bob, I want that same contentment I remember from those earliest days, and I've never once felt it. That's why I still feel like I'm playing a part, you know? And when I heard about this place, I figured it was worth a try."

"It is worth a try," Bob said. "I can't promise you're going to figure anything out, but you're in good company among other people who came up here to try."

"You mean the spirits of your friends who don't live here anymore?" Mia said with a meaningful look around the otherwise-empty downstairs.

Bob grinned and very nearly spilled the beans about what he'd seen -- but surely there was a more graceful way to bring that up. "Well, Mia, some of them come back for a visit in the summer," he said. "You'll be meeting them, and I think you'll be able to identify with them pretty well."

Mia's hair was still a little damp when they went on duty in the café. Jenny took notice right away. "I see you've discovered our pool," she said. "Did Bob join you?"

"My hair isn't wet, is it?" Bob pointed out.

"I didn't want to get close enough to look," Jenny quipped. Mia looked horrified until Bob's roaring laughter registered with her, and even then she didn't join in. "Oh, Mia, it's fine, my darling. Bob and I've been needling one another since before you were born, my friend."

"Oh, that's fine." Mia did finally allow a laugh. "It's just, I grew up hearing that sort of thing all the time and it wasn't a joke, you know? Hard for me to get used to." With a smile as she tied up her apron, she added, "But it's great to see old friends who are that comfortable together."

"I'm sorry, honey," Jenny said. "Bob and I ought to invite you next time we take a dip. That pool has so many memories for us, I'd love to share some of them with you."

"I'd love that!" Mia said, revealing no secrets of her own swim that morning.

Bob was glad he had an excuse to face away from the two women at that moment as Don and Kris, a couple who'd lived at the commune years before but had since gone townie, came in for lunch. Kris was the first to notice him blushing. "Well, I'm happy to see you too, Bob, but this is ridiculous!" she said, and they all shared a laugh that caught Jenny's attention.

"Sorry," Bob said. "Long story. But it is great to see you guys."

"So is the big day on this year?" Don asked.

"He already said probably not, remember?" Kris reminded her husband.

"I did say that," Bob said. But with a furtive glance back at Mia, who was hanging up a tray of coffee mugs, he said, "But I think it might be on after all. I'll let you know for sure as soon as I know."

"Let 'em know what?" Jenny demanded as she arrived at their table with a pot of coffee and poured each of them a cup.

"That we're having..." Kris lowered her voice to a whisper. "...Nude Day after all!" She looked as tickled with the news as Bob felt to be delivering it.

"We are?" Jenny gave Bob a surprised look and then turned to look at Mia behind the counter. "Bob, are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Yeah, she really doesn't look the type," Don said, following Jenny's gaze. "Is this wishful thinking, Bob?"

"Surprisingly, I don't think so," Bob said.

"You don't think so," Jenny and Don repeated in unison.

"I'll explain later," Bob said. "But the answer is maybe."

Jenny reluctantly gave the same answer to two more townies who asked the same question during the lunch rush, and kept a close eye on Mia until her next bathroom break. "Maybe?!" Jenny said to Bob as soon as the coast was clear. "You think you're going to talk that girl into doing Nude Day with us?"

"I don't think I'll have to talk her into it," Bob said.

"Right," Jenny said. "You think she's going to suggest it?"

"Entirely possible."

"What on earth makes you think that, Bob?"

"That swim she took this morning?" Bob grinned at his old friend.

"Yes?"

"Let's just say her bathing suit never got wet."

Jenny giggled like a schoolgirl. "No!"

"Yes."

"What did she say when you saw her?"

"She doesn't know I saw her. I barely did see her. Honest, I turned away from the window as soon as I was aware, and she had her back to me."

Jenny had known Bob too long to think he could be lying. She gave him a look that was believing, but perplexed. When Mia returned from the bathroom a moment later, Jenny looked at her in a new light as well, and thought she detected a knowing look in the younger woman's eyes.

"Say, Mia?" Jenny asked the next time the two women found themselves near one another while busing dishes.

"Yes?"

"Are you settling in okay with Bob?"

"Completely," Mia said. "He really is a gentleman, isn't he?"

"You don't know the half of it." Jenny turned her attention to loading the dishwasher as she said it, so she didn't see the quizzical look on Mia's face in response.

Before closing time, Jenny elicited an invitation from Bob to come over for a swim the following morning, when it would be his turn to work the breakfast shift. Bob gave the same answer he'd been giving ever since the day Jenny had moved to town -- "You know you don't have to ask me" -- but this time he gave it with a twinkle in his eye that Jenny wasn't at all sure she'd ever seen since Mandi died. She was tempted to comment on that, but responded only with a nod and a knowing smile.

Morning found Jenny still fondly remembering that look when she arrived at the commune. It was serene as ever in the midsummer sunshine, but too quiet by half; she would never get used to that as long as her own wild days here lived in her memory! It was, in any event, perfect swimming weather, and that was worth the discouraging silence in the deserted downstairs as Jenny walked through the house.

Through the back door she could hear the sounds of someone already swimming in the pool. Bob would have had no objection to Jenny swimming nude, but she knew it wouldn't do to spring herself on Mia even if she were also skinnydipping. Besides, Jenny admitted to herself, she still wasn't quite certain Bob hadn't been putting her on yesterday. He'd been quite the joker back in the day, a talent that had occasionally gotten him in some trouble with the matriarchy.

She climbed the stairs and stepped into a vacant bedroom to change. As she set her backpack on the bed, it occurred to her: Bob was on duty at the café, so it must be Mia in the pool, alone. Here, then, was a chance to see if Bob really had been telling the truth. Jenny kicked her sandals off and stepped up to the window, which was open to a breeze that was blowing the old gingham curtains and giving her almost no hope of remaining hidden if Mia happened to look up from the pool. But then, did the silly girl really expect any privacy anyway?

Jenny stood as far off to the side as she could while still having a view of the pool, and waited until Mia swam up to the near end. It didn't take long to see for herself that Bob had been telling the truth after all. The glimpse was fleeting, but it left Jenny hungry for more as the lithe young woman twisted gracefully around just in time to avoid giving up too many secrets just yet. Two laps later, Jenny's patience paid off as Mia came to a stop and climbed out of the pool.

Having seen what she'd come to see, Jenny stepped back from the window and undressed. She had packed a swimsuit just in case, but decided not to wear it. Instead she put on a bathrobe and went downstairs to have a cup of tea and wait.

Once again she didn't have long to wait: the water hadn't even boiled yet before she heard the back door swing open, and she turned to see Mia, also swathed in a bathrobe. "Morning, Jenny," she said. "Are you here for a swim?"

"I am!" Jenny said, grateful that Mia didn't know the unmistakable look she always got with people she'd seen naked. It was a unique bond, a casual intimacy she loved, and she almost felt sorry for Mia's unawareness that she was now in the club. But it wouldn't do to let the poor thing know she'd been peeped on. "Perfect weather for it, isn't it? Want a cup of tea before I go?"

"Yes and yes," Jenny said, sitting down at the table. "You know, Jenny, I've been trying to imagine what this place was like back when it was 'The Commune'. Was it as great as Bob makes it sound?"

"Better," Jenny said. "Especially if you were a woman." The teapot was whistling, and she got down a second cup from the cupboard.

"Right! The matriarchy!" Mia said. "I...I can't imagine."

"You really can't, if you weren't there. But you know, it could be again, if we found the right bunch of people your age to join us and carry it on."

"I can only wish," Mia said with a wistful smile.

"You can do a lot more than that," Jenny said. "You can stay here if it feels right, and you can invite others like you. But it's really up to you, dear." She set the two steaming mugs on the table and sat down, quite forgetting to make any effort to hide that she was naked beneath her robe. But nothing inappropriate showed, she realized with relief after the fact.

"Others like me?" Mia asked with a wry grin. "I wish I knew some! Like I told Bob, that's why I wanted to come here. I haven't found my tribe, or my calling, or my anything."

"You sound just like me at your age," Jenny told her with a reassuring touch on her hand. "The rat race isn't for everyone, no matter how well-educated you are. And that's okay."

"It is tempting," Mia said. "I've loved it so far. But it must get awfully bleak in the winter."

"It wasn't when we had a full house here," Jenny said. "We'd have riproaring fires in the fireplace in there, and snowball fights out in the yard, and we had each other for company. Of course our parents thought we were wasting our lives 'buried up here', that's what my mother called it, when we could have been making a buck in New York or Boston or California. But we were happy! What more did you need, really?"

Mia looked ready to cry. She took a sip of her tea instead, and then smiled. "That does sound wonderful. If only."

"If only what, Mia?"

"If only there were others to share it with. The right people. But if I had any idea who they were, I wouldn't even be here!"

Jenny had to struggle to hold back a laugh as she said, "You know, Mia, I think you might find them right here."

"At the café, you mean? No offense, but it's mostly older folks who come in, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is. But there's an event Bob and I sometimes host here that always attracts some new people. We weren't going to do it this year, but I think he's reconsidering."

"An event. Like a party? Okay, but how will I see who is and isn't right for our gang?"

Jenny did her best to disguise her laugh as a cough. "Sorry! A little went down the wrong way! You'll see, though, Mia, I promise you'll see."

She had Mia somewhat mollified, if not exactly convinced, by the time they'd finished their tea. "See you on the lunch rush, then?" she asked as she set the mugs in the sink.

"Sure," Mia said. "I'm going to get washed up for that now. I don't want to smell like chlorine for the afternoon."

"Oh, gosh, I should've let you shower first," Jenny said. Then, taking all her resolve to tamp down a mischievous grin, she added, "Or at least change out of your swimsuit."

"Oh, well, yeah, it is feeling a little clammy in here," Mia stammered, and promptly she was late for the stairs.

Jenny let out a cathartic laugh as soon as the coast was clear. Then she strode out to the backyard and, careful to choose a spot at the far end of the pool where she knew she'd be visible from upstairs, she took her robe off. Tempting though it was to play coy, she turned and faced the house. Hands on hips and legs spread a bit, she stood proudly nude for a minute or more.

If any expectation of privacy was utterly fake, Jenny's smile was genuine. The sun felt marvelous on every inch of her body, the prospect of much more of this for the summer was palpable, and Mia was her first real hope of a next generation to carry on their dream in far too long. Jenny was tempted to look up and let Mia know, if she was looking, that her gaze was most welcome. But she opted to let the mystery be for now.

"Your summer help has luscious breasts," Jenny informed Bob a couple of hours later while Mia was in the bathroom.

"You snuck a peek too, did you?"

"Yes, and I also had a very nice conversation with her. Bob, I think she could really be the one."

"What did she say about the skinnydipping?"

"Nothing. I handled that the same way you did."

"So she still doesn't know that we know," Bob mused. "Well, I'll tell you what, I sent out some invitations last night, it's officially on again, but we're going to have to tell her."

"Bob, she's been going out there stark naked without even bothering to lock the screen door! I think it's safe to assume she won't mind."

"She still doesn't know that we know, does she?" Bob countered. "It's one thing to go out there on her own, but a whole backyard full of us? No, we've got to tell her and give her a fair chance to be elsewhere that day if she wants."

"Just how do you plan to ask her?" Jenny asked. "We never did think of a polite way to do that with any of them, did we?"

"There isn't one," Bob said. "But I've got an idea."

The ladies' room door swung open before he could tell Jenny his idea, so Jenny was left to wonder for an hour and a half before Mia excused herself again. "Now then," she demanded of Bob as soon as they had a moment alone behind the cash register.