We Long To Explore

“Come on, it’ll be fun!” Delilah pleads, pouting at Emilio and Zosia. Laying it on thick, she knows, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

It almost works like a charm. Emilio, ever the weaker willed of her two friends, interlocks his fingers behind his head, looking back and forth between Delilah and Zosia whilst he bites his bottom lip. “Well…”

“I don’t know why you think exploring an abandoned warehouse will be fun,” Zosia chimes in, “that’s the kind of thing we did back at Solomon. We’re not kids anymore, Dee.”

Delilah visibly deflates, letting out a long, suffering sigh as she glances over to the warehouse in question. “If you really thought that,” she says softly, a little whimsically, “then why did you agree to come all the way out here?”

Gotcha, Delilah thinks, watching as Zosia fails to hide the reactionary twitch of her left eye. Unfortunately for Delilah, Zosia is quick to recover.

“To make sure your dumb ass didn’t get into trouble.”

Which is a fair statement. Delilah might believe it, any other day of the year, but she had seen the way Zosia had reacted when the three of them had crested over the hilltop and seen the warehouse down in the valley. With a noticeable shiver.

“Are you sure you’re not just scared?” Delilah asks. Try as she might, she can’t stop the way her voice lilts into a sing-song tone.

“I’m not twelve,” Zosia scoffs, glancing away from Delilah’s all knowing stare. She folds her arms across her chest and hugs them close. “I just want to make sure that you aren’t going to get yourself - or Emilio - hurt.”

“Uh huh…”

An accusatory finger jabs into her chest. Delilah rocks backwards, more out of shock than actual force, and tilts her head as she sends Zosia a question glance.

“Don’t you remember the last time we followed through on one of your ‘halloween ideas’? Emilio almost died!”

“Bit of an exaggeration there, Zee,” Emilio helpfully supplies with a shrug. Delilah’s happy that he does because that particular memory, a royal fuck up if she says so herself, always makes her feel guilty. “Look, as long as Dee assures us that it’s okay, I’m happy to look around. Even if it’s just for an hour or two.”

That sends equal parts shock and glee shooting through Delilah. She can’t help but grin, turning to Zosia with such unbridled joy that the other girl doesn’t stand a chance. Zosia looks from Delilah, to Emilio, and back again, groaning as she finally relents.

“Okay, okay! One hour, that’s all you get. Then I’m dragging your asses back home.”