Westboat Willow

As they rode forward into the darkness, a pause after Katie and Saint so that space could be made, the two awkward girls began their ride. To her own surprise, Frankie was actually quite enjoying this. With the relative quiet of the dark hallway and the ice against her belly, she was almost in heaven. The sticky seat however kept her firmly grounded in reality.

“So… uh. This isn’t too bad… haha.” The pained guest made an attempt to share her peace of mind.

“What did I tell you?” Cheryl just stared ahead in frustration.

“Um- oh. Sorry.” Frankie bit her tongue. “I just- silence is really only making this feel longer for me.”

Passing by animatronics of Ron Racoon on horses, listening intently so she could tell if Saint was in any danger- Cheryl just sighed. She couldn’t hear over the boat’s ambient shaking along the water anyway as it hit the sides of the aging display every few seconds.

“What happened to your belly?” She gave in.

“Uh… shotgun.”

“Really?”

“Pretty sure it was a rubber bullet. Er… bullets?”

“…Can I see?”

Frankie nervously removed the ice from under her rolled-up shirt, exposing her stomach to the girl. Cheryl looked over.

Cheryl leaned in.

“Uh…” Frankie was starting to feel quite strange about this whole situation.

Then she backed away.

“Sorry. Can’t see shit in here.”

Frankie laughed through the awkwardness.

“That’s… okay.”

“You satiated my curiosity, anyway. Can… I satiate yours?”

“What?” Frankie blushed.

“Like, do you have any questions. Christ, girl, just- make some small talk or something. This is awful.”

“Okay… uh. You… shoot at the ranges here often?”

“I’ve made bets with people there since I can remember. Sometimes money, other times tokens, these days at least. The game just made my whole racket more legitimate. It was kind of affirming when it started up.”

“Oh… really? Are people… like, scared of you now? You think they’d know better after all that time.”

“Well… I’ve changed a lot over the years. And-“ she stuttered- “Used to, I wouldn’t try the big ranges. They scared me, among other things.”

“You don’t like people either, huh…”

“Never did. Never will.”

“But… that’s okay, right? Because you can still make money with how talented you are, even alone.”

“It’s a cool party trick, but it won’t ever land me a real job. Like hell I’m gonna join the military and leave my brother behind.”

“Oh… yeah. That makes sense.”

Frankie didn’t know what to say after that.

“You wondering about our parents or something?”

“Yeah… but- you don’t need to tell me. Not if you don’t want to. That’s… your life.”

“Hey, I never really even knew ‘em. It’s not that touchy a subject.”

“O-oh? I’m… so sorry.”

“It’s fine. I’m kinda glad, honestly.”

Frankie blinked, unable to picture herself in the same situation.

“Why’s that?”

“No folks to hold me down… nobody to hold me accountable to my past but my little brother. I think that’s how it should be. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“So you and your brother… how… long have you been caring for him, then?”

“We grew up in the same foster home. We aren’t blood relatives. We thought there was no way we could ever make it in the outside world. But that place sucked, so I broke him out of there. Ever since, we’ve made do however we could manage.”

“That… doesn’t sound easy.”

“Not one bit. That’s why I’m working so hard to place high enough in this game. Otherwise, I’d only be shooting for money, not these useless silver coins.”

Frankie gazed down at the water.

“Something wrong?”

“Nah, just… still thinking about my parents. I’m selfish like that.”

“I’m guessing yours are the present kind.”

“Sorta. It’s stupid… they- they’re just on a trip, no biggie. To the moon at that. I feel privileged as hell to say it, but… I miss them.”

“Don’t feel bad about what you have. I didn’t know my folks, so I don’t care about them. You’ve known yours for years, so you do. You’ve got them- I’ve got my brother. It’s no different.”

“Y-yeah. You’re right.” Frankie wasn’t crying, but she wasn’t not-crying either.

“Tell me about them. Your parents.”

“Dad never really got me. My mom is a pervert. But… before this, I spent all my time inside, so… they were my whole world, along with my sister.”

“You really do seem to care about her, huh?”

“We’ve been through a lot together.”

In the darkness where nobody could see, Cheryl smiled.

“You’d do anything for her, right? Even if it hurt you?”

“Without a second thought.”

And just like that, the gunslinger’s mind began to wander.