We made long slippery love…again, apparently. Hey, when life gives you a nubile beautiful young woman in a tub of hot water with all the right stuff in all the right places, you take advantage of it.

Afterward, we settled into April’s immense bed, wrapping ourselves in robes. She lit a one of her long black cigarettes, and smoked as we enjoyed the afterglow.

“Mother will be home soon.” April said. “But this is practically endorsed by her, so I doubt she kicks you out.” She handed me the cigarette, and I inhaled the tobacco into my lungs and immediately began coughing.

“Neophyte,” she giggled, wrapping her arms around me.

I thought about all that had happened in ‘my’ reality, the way we’d been so uncomfortable with the Witch’s knot. What had changed between there and here? We obviously hadn’t exploded. I wondered what had happened.

“April, this is going to sound really stupid—“ I said.

She looked up at me as I handed her the cigarette back. “What?”

“Is your mom still planning to take your body for herself?”

April tugged her hair back over her ear. It was an ‘April’ gesture I knew so well. She stubbed out the cigarette in an ashtray on the nightstand.

She sat up in bed, folding her arms. I could tell she was angry. Which meant…

“So it’s true?”

She nodded, tears slipping down her face. “Does this mean you’re going to leave me now?”

“What? No, of course not,” I said. “Why in the world would you even think something like that?”

She burst into tears.

“Hey!” I said, gathering her up into my arms. “What’s going on, baby?”

She shook her head and continued to cry.

“Is this why you broke up with me when we were freshman?”

She nodded. “I f.f.figured you’d never want to be with someone w.w.who gave away their future like that!”

I held her tight and close. “So when is this supposed to happen?”

“It c.c.could happen anytime.” She sniffled and I handed her a box of tissue from the nightstand. “She’s been preparing for months. It’s why I had to offload the black magic I was building up into you. I was hoping to extend it a little longer.”

I nodded. “So we got rid of one tentacular creature, but we have to deal with another one?”

“If you mean my mother, than yes.” She giggled.

“And it could happen at any time, without warning?”

She shrugged. “More than likely it will be when we sleep. We’ll fall asleep one night, and when we awaken, we’ll be in the others’ body. I’ll live out Mom’s remaining years as her, and she’ll be me.”

She held onto me tightly. “Seth, she really will be me. We’ve been planning this for years. She knows all my habits, and I know hers—“

I plucked the black cigarette out of the ashtray and held it up.

She nodded, blushing.

“You can’t be with someone as old as I will be. I want you to know that…that…”

She began to tear up. “Hon—“

“No wait a minute, stupid!” she inhaled deeply. “I give you permission to stay with her as April, and not be with—“ she burst into tears again, great sobs wracking her shoulders.

“Hey, hey. None of that,” I said.

“I’m hoping I can last at least until graduation, but every morning when I wake up I feel—“

“Like it’s coming closer?”

She nodded.

“Well, there’s no way,” I tipped her face up to look at me. “No way that I’d allow myself to be attached to a tentacular horror like your mother.”

“But, I’ll be the tentacular horror. Mom will be in me. She’ll be me.”

I shook my head. “Nope, I’m with you. All the way to the end.”

“But honey, what kind of future—“

“Hey, I’ve been accused of worse things. If being in love with a Cougar is the worst thing to happen to me in this life, I’m for it. Plus, you know, your mom isn’t so bad—“

I tickled her ribs. “She gave birth to you, afterall.”

She looked at me, her mouth open. “You’d really do that? Be with me?”

“Of course! What, did you think I’d—“

She threw herself into my arms, kissing me all over my face and mouth and eyes. She parted her lips and kissed me open-mouthed and sensual then, pressing her body to me in ways she knew I liked—

We made love again, and again. We fell asleep, exhausted and happy. I held her close to me as she slept.

***

The next morning I awoke to find myself alone in the bed.

I rubbed the back of my head where I’d bumped it the night before. It was so strange, I’d been with Mitzy and Jeff at the Wolf rescue place…

April walked in wearing a slinky black dress and with her hair immaculately styled into a dramatic updo. Her makeup was heavily done with blood red lipstick and dramatic long lashes outlined by azure and black eye shadow.

I blinked. “What’s the occasion?”

“Oh, I just thought I’d dress up today!” She twirled. “What do you think?”

“I think it’s Saturday.” I said, holding my arms out to her. She came to me, but turned her cheek when I went in for a kiss.

“Yes, yes. Good Morning, Lover.”

Frowning, I crossed my arms. She had never called me Lover.

In my life.

She wasn’t April.

I swallowed. Obviously, Desdemonia didn’t know April had told me about the exchange. Which meant, April was in Desdemonia’s body somewhere in the house.

“So what’s your mom up to this morning?” I said.

April was putting on some heavy jewelry. “Oh, you know Mother, she’s probably already at the pool with a mint julep!”

I nodded. “Hmm, swimming sounds fun.”

“Yes? Well, you’re more than welcome to swim, darling. I, however, have some errands to run in town.”

“You don’t mind if I take a few laps?” I said. “It helps with my conditioning.”

“Whatever keeps that gorgeous body of yours ticking is A-okay in my book!” she said, taking a purse I’d never seen before down from a shelf. She filled it with cosmetics, a checkbook, a phone — but it wasn’t April’s phone—and other sundry items.

“Sounds good, ah…lover,” I said.

She kissed me on the cheek with her cheek. “Kiss kiss!”

I said “Kiss Kiss,” back to her and she left in a swirl of perfume and hair product.

Sighing, I opened the curtains to make sure Desdemonia, because that was Desdemonia and not April, had definitely left. Her black Mercedes sped off with a puff of cigarette smoke out the window.

I walked around the house, looking for April. The Landcaster’s had quite the mansion squatting at the top of a hill. It took me a few rooms before I found the Master Bedroom. I knocked on the door.

“Yes?” I heard from the muffled interior.

“Uh, April? Is that you?” I said through the door.

“No!” she replied in Desdemonia’s voice. “Go away!”

“We talked about this,” I said. “The bag is out of the cat.”

“Just…give me some time, Seth,” she said. “I need to get dressed and stuff.”

“Okay, I’ll be out swimming.”

“Make me a mint julep!” she called as I walked to the back and the large pool.