Vivienne: I trusted my friends’ hedge enough to shower naked on their porch—until Lina appeared with shampoo and I discovered the neighbors weren’t the people making me nervous.
“You’re trying to hide behind your shoulder,” Lina said, finding me naked under the porch shower with one elbow pointing at her like a faulty weather vane. I had been happily washing fence dust off myself until she appeared. Now I couldn’t remember what people normally did with their arms. “It’s a surprisingly versatile shoulder,” I told her. She held up a shampoo bottle. “Should I leave this with your security team?”
The security team was a hedge. A substantial hedge, admittedly, which I had inspected from several angles before undressing. Beyond it were trees and the roofs of neighboring houses; behind Lina was the open kitchen door. I had accepted the possibility of distant strangers existing somewhere beyond the bushes. I had apparently not prepared for my friend standing a few feet away, smiling while warm water ran down my bare skin.
“Do you want me to go?” she asked. That helped more than reassurance about the hedge. “No. Just stop looking so entertained.” She put the shampoo within reach, but I went for it at the same moment, our wet fingers bumping around the bottle. I nearly thanked her twice. Lina’s smile softened. “You’ve got a leaf stuck to your elbow.” So much for looking casually magnificent. I peeled it off and handed it to her with as much dignity as the situation allowed.
Twenty minutes earlier, I had been firmly in favor of the indoor bathroom. We’d spent the afternoon helping Mark repair a fence, and I had dirt in places that hadn’t participated in the work. He showed me the outdoor shower as though everyone kept plumbing beside their garden chairs. His girlfriend emerged with wet hair and said, “Try it. There’s hot water.” I said there were also neighboring houses. Mark made a chicken noise, then immediately pointed toward the perfectly available bathroom. Unfortunately, by then I had requested a towel.
Getting undressed had taken longer than necessary because I kept discovering urgent reasons to inspect the bushes. Then the first splash was cold, I yelped, and Mark called through the kitchen window, “Very fierce chicken!” Once the water warmed, though, I forgot to be annoyed. I stood beneath it with my head tipped back, looking at a strip of sky instead of a bathroom ceiling. My shoulders dropped. For a few lovely minutes, I stopped checking anything at all. Then Lina brought the shampoo, and suddenly I was worrying about my posture.
She turned to leave just as voices carried across from the next garden. I froze, one hand in my hair. Lina stopped too, listening. Someone was discussing a ladder with impressive seriousness. “They can’t see the shower,” she said quietly. “But you can check again if you want.” I considered making another naked patrol of the porch, which seemed a poor solution to my concern about being visible. “I’ll trust the security team.” She nodded toward the leaf still in her hand. “One of them was getting very close to you.” That made me laugh hard enough to get water up my nose.
After she went inside, I rinsed my hair and caught myself glancing toward the doorway instead of the hedge. That was embarrassing information to have about myself. I liked Lina’s easy warmth; I also liked that she had noticed me without making a spectacle of it. When she came back to collect her sandals, I didn’t turn sideways. “Better?” she asked. I pushed my wet hair out of my face. “Apparently I needed a shampoo delivery and a gardening incident.” She grinned. “Full service.”
I switched off the water and reached for the towel. Then I left it on the chair. The boards were warm beneath my feet, and for once there was no practical reason to hurry. Mark appeared at the doorway with three glasses of lemonade, saw that I was still standing there naked, and kept his eyes on my face. “Shower broken?” “No. I’m letting the hedge earn its keep.” He laughed and set my glass within reach. Lina sat on the step beside the door, leaving me plenty of space. I picked up the towel at last, folded it over the chair, and sat down on it. “Oh, you’re staying?” she asked. “For a minute,” I said, accepting my lemonade. “I inspected this view very thoroughly. I might as well enjoy it.”
The security team was a hedge. A substantial hedge, admittedly, which I had inspected from several angles before undressing. Beyond it were trees and the roofs of neighboring houses; behind Lina was the open kitchen door. I had accepted the possibility of distant strangers existing somewhere beyond the bushes. I had apparently not prepared for my friend standing a few feet away, smiling while warm water ran down my bare skin.
“Do you want me to go?” she asked. That helped more than reassurance about the hedge. “No. Just stop looking so entertained.” She put the shampoo within reach, but I went for it at the same moment, our wet fingers bumping around the bottle. I nearly thanked her twice. Lina’s smile softened. “You’ve got a leaf stuck to your elbow.” So much for looking casually magnificent. I peeled it off and handed it to her with as much dignity as the situation allowed.
Twenty minutes earlier, I had been firmly in favor of the indoor bathroom. We’d spent the afternoon helping Mark repair a fence, and I had dirt in places that hadn’t participated in the work. He showed me the outdoor shower as though everyone kept plumbing beside their garden chairs. His girlfriend emerged with wet hair and said, “Try it. There’s hot water.” I said there were also neighboring houses. Mark made a chicken noise, then immediately pointed toward the perfectly available bathroom. Unfortunately, by then I had requested a towel.
Getting undressed had taken longer than necessary because I kept discovering urgent reasons to inspect the bushes. Then the first splash was cold, I yelped, and Mark called through the kitchen window, “Very fierce chicken!” Once the water warmed, though, I forgot to be annoyed. I stood beneath it with my head tipped back, looking at a strip of sky instead of a bathroom ceiling. My shoulders dropped. For a few lovely minutes, I stopped checking anything at all. Then Lina brought the shampoo, and suddenly I was worrying about my posture.
She turned to leave just as voices carried across from the next garden. I froze, one hand in my hair. Lina stopped too, listening. Someone was discussing a ladder with impressive seriousness. “They can’t see the shower,” she said quietly. “But you can check again if you want.” I considered making another naked patrol of the porch, which seemed a poor solution to my concern about being visible. “I’ll trust the security team.” She nodded toward the leaf still in her hand. “One of them was getting very close to you.” That made me laugh hard enough to get water up my nose.
After she went inside, I rinsed my hair and caught myself glancing toward the doorway instead of the hedge. That was embarrassing information to have about myself. I liked Lina’s easy warmth; I also liked that she had noticed me without making a spectacle of it. When she came back to collect her sandals, I didn’t turn sideways. “Better?” she asked. I pushed my wet hair out of my face. “Apparently I needed a shampoo delivery and a gardening incident.” She grinned. “Full service.”
I switched off the water and reached for the towel. Then I left it on the chair. The boards were warm beneath my feet, and for once there was no practical reason to hurry. Mark appeared at the doorway with three glasses of lemonade, saw that I was still standing there naked, and kept his eyes on my face. “Shower broken?” “No. I’m letting the hedge earn its keep.” He laughed and set my glass within reach. Lina sat on the step beside the door, leaving me plenty of space. I picked up the towel at last, folded it over the chair, and sat down on it. “Oh, you’re staying?” she asked. “For a minute,” I said, accepting my lemonade. “I inspected this view very thoroughly. I might as well enjoy it.”
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