Caddie joined him. The concrete was cold against her legs. The night air, still warm, blew lazily across the water. She heard a gull call out in the darkness.

Nick reached into his jeans pocket and removed a crumpled cigarette pack. Tapping it open, he removed what Caddie saw was not a standard-issue smoke. Nick held the joint up. “Do you smoke?” he asked her.

“Sometimes,” she told him. “But not usually with strange guys.” She bumped her shoulder against him affectionately.

Nick lit the joint from a lighter he produced out of the same pocket. He drew on it, the end sparking up in a small orange glow. Caddie waited for him to hand it to her. When he did, she inhaled the sweet, sharp smoke and closed her eyes as it filled her lungs.

“So, tell me more,” Nick said.

“About what?” asked Caddie, taking another hit off the joint.

“You,” said Nick. “All I know is your name.”

“You know I like pizza,” Caddie countered.

Nick retrieved the joint from her. “Come on,” he coaxed. “Who are you? What are you doing here?”

Caddie turned and looked at him. “What’s the meaning of life? Does God really exist?” she said. “What difference does it make?”

Nick blew out a cloud of smoke. “If I’m going to kiss a girl, I kind of like to know a little bit about her,” he said.

Caddie felt the pot working its magic on her brain. It’s not as good as L.A. pot, she thought, but it’s not bad. She wondered where Nick got it and made a mental note to ask him to get her some. Then she remembered that Nick had said he was going to kiss her. Did she want him to? She hadn’t thought that far ahead. She supposed it would be okay.

Apparently, he was waiting for her to say something, maybe to give her permission. That annoyed her. She liked it when guys were a little more aggressive. She decided to punish Nick for being too nice by ignoring what he’d said.

“I’m here seeing my dad,” she said.

“Seeing him?” said Nick. “What, like he’s in the hospital or something?”

“No,” said Caddie. “I don’t live with him. I live in L.A.” She waited for Nick to be impressed by this piece of information, but all he did was nod while he took another toke on the joint.

“My parents divorced a long time ago,” she heard herself say. “My mom thinks it’s time my dad and I got to know each other better.” Why was she talking so much? Suddenly, she was anxious. It was like by mentioning her father, now she couldn’t stop talking about him.

To stop herself, she kissed Nick. When she first pressed her lips against his, he was taken aback, blowing some of the pot smoke into her throat. But then his mouth opened, and his tongue explored hers. Caddie felt her father’s presence retreat into the darkness as Nick’s hands pulled her closer. The agitated, flittering thoughts scattered like moths beneath the lights, and she relaxed.