"Oh shit."

Matty folded her arms and stared at Randi.

Bill walked past Matty, to Randi.

"Hey you."

He gave her a quick awkward hug and turned to Matty.

"Matty. This is Randi Oxford."

Randi stepped forward, hand extended.

"Its nice to meet you, Matty."

Matty ignored her hand.

"What are you doing in my house?"

Randi turned to Bill and back to Matty.

"I'm sorry. The man at the store, over there, told me this was Bill's place. He said I could go on in, that you wouldn't mind."

Randi turned and walked back toward Bill.

"I'm sorry if I have intruded."

She walked quickly into the kitchen and put the mug on the table. She hurried back out, grabbing her coat off the arm of the arm chair.

"I will get out of here."

She looked at Bill.

"I have some of your stuff in the U-Haul. Can you give me a hand?"

She turned to Matty.

"I am so sorry. I will get out of here as quickly as I can."

She hurried out the front door.

Bill threw his hands in the air.

"Ah fuck."

He walked by Matty.

"Where are you going?"

"I have to help Randi get my shit out."

Matty never said a word, as Bill left the house.

Bill closed the door and walked to Randi, who was at the back of the U-Haul.

"Randi, I am so sorry."

Randi punched Bill in the chest, with both hands.

"You fucking asshole."

She wiped her eyes on her coat sleeve.

"You leave and never come back. You just walked out on me. Not a fucking word."

"Things had changed between us."

"I was going through something, asshole. I was fucked up. And just when I needed my best friend the most, what do you do?

Disappear."

"Randi, there's more to it."

Randi stared at Bill.

"What more, Bill? The fucking money?

Did you honestly think I would not recognize you? You win all that money and you run away.

Why?

Did you think I wanted your fucking money?"

"I wasn't thinking."

Randi shook her head.

"Wow. There's a fucking original response."

Randi hit him again.

"You were my best friend in the whole world, Bill. I needed you. I needed the one man I loved and trusted more than anything in the world."

"You stopped talking to me. We stopped doing things. We were drifting apart."

"Did you ever think to ask me what I was going through?

Not once. Not one fucking time did you come to me and say, 'Randi, what is going on?'.

Not fucking once."

Randi wiped her eyes again.

"You just kept your distance. You even went to night shift, so we barely saw each other."

"You knew I was no good at that shit."

Randi hit him again.

"I was your best friend. Fuck, I was your only fucking friend.

And you run away and hide out here. Did you think I would never find you?"

"I didn't think you would look."

Randi stomped her feet and yelled.

"Fuck. You are so stupid."

Randi put her hands over her face and started sobbing.

Bill put his hand on her shoulder.

"No. No. You don't touch me. You lost that privilege."

Randi fumbled with the keys to the padlock on the U-Haul.

"Fuck."

She threw the keys at Bill's chest.

"You fucking do it."

Randi hurried around the U-Haul, nearly running into Matty.

"I'm sorry. As soon as that asshole empties his shit out, I will be out of here."

Matty took a deep breath.

"You are right about one thing."

She looked at Bill.

"That asshole is going to empty that U-Haul, now."

She turned back to Randi. "But you are not going anywhere."

Randi shook her head.

"No. This was a mistake. This is too fucked for me."

Matty stepped forward and put her arms around Randi.

"Come on. Let's get out of the cold."

"I will wait in the truck."

Matty shook her head.

"No. You come inside with me. We need to talk."

"You sure?"

Matty took Randi's hand.

"Come on."

She turned to Bill.

"Get that thing emptied," she demanded.

Bill nodded, as he watched the two women walk into the house. He wasn't sure if it was a good thing, or a bad thing.

"Ah, fuck," he sighed, as he opened the back of the U-Haul.

He looked at the stuff inside. Mostly old furniture and odds and ends. He looked at the lighthouse. 

"Guess I will put it inside there."

He pulled out a broken floor lamp.

"Fuck, I hate this lamp."

"Why don't you sit down," Matty suggested.

"I will get you a coffee."

"Look, Matty. I see that my being here is causing stress between you and Bill and it is obvious that that you two have something going on here."

Matty returned from the kitchen and passed Randi a coffee.

"We are getting married. Supposedly, next weekend."

"Fuck, I'm so sorry. Look, I am not here to cause trouble. Seriously, Bill and I were just friends."

Matty sat on the couch and patted the cushion next to her.

"Please sit."

Randi slowly sat down.

Matty offered her a cigarette.

Randi took the cigarette and Matty lit it.

Randi blew out smoke and sipped her coffee.

"Thank you. I need this."

Matty spoke, after lighting her own cigarette.

"Look. I am sorry if I came across as a bit of a bitch. I only found out about you last night. Well, I only found out that you were a woman."

Randi sighed.

"I'm sorry about that, but that's Bill. Getting information out of him is like pulling fucking teeth. He keeps everything inside."

"You don't have to tell me that. Twice, or was it three times, he was going to leave. Just get up and fuck off. Once he actually left and I had to chase him out of the village to stop him. I threatened to cut his fucking nuts off."

Randi laughed, a sheltered laugh.

"Hey, I think I could actually like you."

Matty took a deep breath and smiled.

"I think the same.. I like bitchy women."

"Well you will love me."

Randi took a facial tissue from a box on the coffee table and wiped her eyes.

"Sorry. I am not usually like this. Not one to cry anymore."

"Don't apologize."

Matty waited a moment, until Randi regained her composure.

"Anyway. Like I was saying, I only really found out about you last night. Bill forgot to mention that you were a gorgeous redhead."

"Not compared to you, I'm not," Randi sniffed.

"You are stunning. Sure you don't want to play for the other team?"

Matty simply smiled.

"So. Can I ask about you and Bill?"

"Can I have something stronger than coffee?"

Matty stood up.

"Name your poison."

"Rum and coke?"

Matty headed for the bar.

"You will fit in, here in the Bay."

She mixed both of them drinks and sat back on the couch.

"Anyway. me and Bill."

Randi sipped her drink.

"Not much to tell. We met at work. I was a little outgoing and he was a fucking turtle. Always in a shell.

I kinda liked the little twerp, so one afternoon, I asked him to take me out to dinner."

"You asked him?" Matty laughed.

"Well, fuck. How long do you think I would have had to wait for him to ask me?"

"Point well taken," Matty agreed.

"Anyway, he did and we hit it off. I was attracted to him in a romantic way, at first, but to give you full disclosure ..."

Matty nodded.

"I know you and Bill fooled around."

"Yea. It was fucking weird. Like kissing your brother."

Randi made an exaggerated shiver.

"It was just fucking weird. I had to stop it. It would have fucked us forever and I didn't want that. Bill was my best friend. I just loved him."

"So you guys moved in together?"

Randi shook her head, as she sipped her rum and coke.

"No. It wasn't like that. I got into a fucking huge fight with my family and they basically threw me out of the house. I had no where to go, so Bill immediately took me in.

I don't know what I would have done, if Bill had not been there. I was going through all kinds of shit and I needed someone close to help me through it.

But things got strange. Bill changed his shift and we started drifting apart. Right when I needed him the most, he fucking deserted me."

"Sounds like Bill."

"It wasn't all his fault," Randi defended Bill. "I withdrew. I took up with a new crowd and got a little fucked up and right when I wanted to get away from it all, Bill tells me he is going to Ontario to find some long lost family. Then two weeks later he says he's not coming back.

I was fucking lost.

Then I find out that he won the lottery. Fuck what a dumb picture he had in the lottery magazine. But I knew it was him.

What I didn't know was, why did he leave."

Randi sighed.

"I didn't want his fucking money. I just wanted, no, I fucking needed Bill."

"I'm sorry you had to go through that."

"Shit happens, Matty. It took me months to track the fucking asshole down. I was so excited, all the way down here. I just wanted to give him a huge hug and get my best friend back."

Randi smiled a sad smile.

"But, I see that he has a new best friend."

"I think the asshole has room for another best friend. Or enough room for his first best friend to come back into his life."

Matty stared at Randi for a moment.

"What are you not telling me?"

Randi took s deep breath.

"Its stupid now and, well, ..."

"You were hoping that you and Bill could go back to the way you were?"

"I know its stupid, but I thought, hey, if the asshole is still single and he has a big place, maybe we could hook up again."

"Well he's not single."

"I know. And I am sorry for adding any undo pressure."

Randi laughed a strange laugh.

"But, just on the off chance, do you know somewhere I can find work and a room?"

"You quit your job?"

Randi nodded, as she sipped her drink.

"Quit my job. Sold most of my shit. Gave up my apartment. Rented a U-Haul and drove across the country.

Fuck, I'm stupid."

"No," Matty disagreed.

"You might be a little lost, but I don't think you are stupid."

She finished her drink and stood up.

"Can I ask what you fought with your family about?"

"I'm gay."

Matty turned.

"Gay?"

Randi nodded.

"That's why I couldn't go through the sex thing with Bill. I mean, if I were straight, I would be a fool to let him go. He might be an introvert, but he is a good looking man.

You are lucky."

"Yea, but there are times I think I am the asshole in this relationship."

"I don't see how that is possible. You seem like a pretty strong woman, who has her shit together. I mean, if you have managed to get that stubborn ass to marry you, you deserve some kind of Nobel Prize."

Matty poured another drink.

"Fuck. This time it was me who jumped to conclusions. When I saw your pic, I lost it. All I could think was, fuck, another gorgeous woman after my man."

Matty laughed.

"Half the women in the village are in love with him, but they know better than to go near my man."

Randi took Matty's hand, as she sat on the couch.

"Look. I will get out of here, as soon as I can. I will get a room in the Motel tonight and I will leave in the morning."

Matty shook her head, as she squeezed Randi's hand.

"No, you won't. You will stay here."

Randi looked around.

"It will be a bit crowded, won't it."

Matty stood up.

"Follow me."

She opened the door to the hallway, that joined the two sections of the house. When she opened the door at the opposite end, Randi just stood in silence.

"We have lots of room. You can stay in the old section.

For as long as you want."

"Wow. This place is beautiful."

Randi looked through the patio doors. She could see Bill.

"Looks like someone has finished moving his stuff."

Matty turned to Randi.

"Why don't you go and talk to him?"

"You sure?"

Matty nodded.

"Yea."

She took a heavy coat from the tree, near the patio doors.

"Put this on. Its cold out there."

Many held the coat for Randi, as she put it on.

"Go talk to your best friend."

Randi leaned forward and gave Matty a kiss on the cheek.

"Asshole is a lucky man. I hope he realizes that."

Matty looked out at Bill.

"I think I am the lucky one."

She put a toque on Randi's head.

"Now. Go."

She kissed Randi's cheek.

She opened the door for Randi and watched, as she walked to Bill's side.