The Kate'n'Steve game.

In another place, in another time.

His name was Justin. And I didn't know much. We were just two American kids in Greece, on this island called Corfu. The water was postcard-turquoise, the waves rolled softly in over sandy beaches below a cotton-candy sky, in a landscape dotted with jagged rocks and goats. At least I think I remember goats and their weird satanic eyes.

My parents were busy getting drunk on Retsina and fighting in the hotel room. Justin's parents had a house that they returned to every summer for a month or two. His father was a writer and would sit typing on an actual typewriter, on the terrace overlooking the sea. I thought that was pretty badass, even back then. His mother, on the other hand, wore the apron as if it was tattooed on her body. And she always seemed uneasy, as she served us crackers and milk or Greek salads or whatever it was she served us. I remember thinking, even back then, that I'd rather die than be like her.

Justin and I spent the days snorkeling, reading comic books and perusing shops in pursuit of souvenirs that we didn't have any money to buy. One day I shoplifted a key-ring with a shell that said Corfu attached to it. I gave it to Justin. Maybe he saw that as a sign.
Because that evening – we were alone in their house for some reason – he suggested we'd play a game that he called the 'Kate'n'Steve game. Steve was his older brother. He had plenty of chest hair and a gold earring. And Kate was his girlfriend back in the States.

I said: Ok, let's play this 'Kate'n'Steve game.

Justin instructed me to lay down on the sofa in the living room. He went to get his dad's briefcase. Then he went outside. I lay there waiting for a moment. After a minute or so Justin opened the door and shouted: Honey, I'm home. Then he sat the briefcase down and came and laid on top of me. First he just laid there. I felt uncomfortable under his weight. Then he started to move up and down, rubbing his crotch against mine.

I didn't mind. I didn't mind at all. I felt carbonated and flushed.

After that we began to play the Kate'n'Steve game all the time.


Thing is, this Justin guy just showed up on FB. He lives in Los Angeles now.