Seahorse Sex by Molly Giles art by Robinson Accola At first she sees nothing but worms in water. But as her sight adjusts to the darkened aquarium, she sees that each seahorse is unique. Some are saddled with stripes, some are crowned with wreaths, some have tiny dragon wings. Each moves in its own way, speeding, or rocking, or gently idling. She follows a red one, a green one, a swift orange courser. One pair seems to be mated. Freckled in gray and brown batik, they rise together, slide sideways through the long green grasses together, descend to the coarse sand floor to sway back and forth in place like Javanese dancers. They have proud ridged manes, outthrust chests, long articulated tails, gold sequin eyes. She smiles, thinking of her husband. She remembers that seahorses are loyal and mate for life, that the male even carries the babies. A docent sidles up as she peers into the tank. "See how small their mouths are?" he says in his retired salesman's voice. Yes; she sees; their mouths are tiny yellow suction cups at the end of a fairy's long trumpet. "They can only eat what will fit into their mouths," he confides, "and," his voice lowers in disgust, "they eat all the time." The woman is relieved when he leaves. She does not want him to see what she now wants to watch. For her two are about to have sex. The larger one passes over the smaller one. He pauses, returns, brushes over her again while she waits, submissive, the eyelash fins at her neck and flank fluttering. When he descends, she dips her head. He winds his tail around hers, seeking her center with his tip. The woman holds her breath as both lift their necks in unison. Just then another seahorse, a slim young gilded thing, slips out of nowhere, dances toward them, pirouettes around the male, brushes him with her pretty tail, and then—unbelievably—draws him toward her. The woman leans forward and raps the glass with her wedding ring. All three seahorses separate and rise to different sides of the tank, indifferent, inviolate, upright, acting as if nothing has happened, as, of course, nothing has. The docent, beside her in the dark, chuckles. The woman spins away. Back on the cold city streets, her cell phone pressed to her ear, she listens as it rings, unanswered, again and again. All content in SmokeLong Quarterly copyright 2003-2012 by its authors. Molly Giles has recent stories in Epoch and Subtropics and teaches fiction writing at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. Read the interview. Robinson Accola creates artwork for SmokeLong Quarterly as needed. Issue Twenty-Eight (July 25, 2010): Young Waitresses by Steve Almond «» Frank by Matt Baker «» The Life and Times of Dmitri Kulikov by Tobias Amadon Bengelsdorf «» Scapegoat by Thomas Cooper «» What You Could Catch Me Bumping by Craig Davis «» Complicit by Gay Degani «» What You See When You Think of Home by John Mark DeMoss «» In the Attic by Murray Dunlap «» A Flower Thing by Jen Gann «» Seahorse Sex by Molly Giles «» Gertie by Kyle Hemmings «» Vertigo by Ann Hillesland «» Rock by Stephanie Johnson «» A Shot of Whatever by David LaBounty «» Palo Alto by Paul Lisicky «» The Lake House by Michelle McMahon «» Hell Is a Headline by Emily McPhillips «» How I Liked the Avocados by Wendy Oleson «» Regrets by Bridget Pelkie «» What Passes for Normal by Michelle Reale «» Avalanche by Joseph Scapellato «» Last Seen Leaving by Laura Ellen Scott «» Explicable by Sabrina Stoessinger «» A Fistful of Buttercups by Nancy Stebbins «» My Maggie by Eugenia F. Tsutsumi «» The Ghost by Russell Whitaker «» The Strain of Collusion by xTx «» Interviews: Steve Almond «» Matt Baker «» Tobias Amadon Bengelsdorf «» Thomas Cooper «» Craig Davis «» Gay Degani «» John Mark DeMoss «» Murray Dunlap «» Jen Gann «» Molly Giles «» Kyle Hemmings «» Ann Hillesland «» Stephanie Johnson «» David LaBounty «» Michelle McMahon «» Emily McPhillips «» Wendy Oleson «» Bridget Pelkie «» Michelle Reale «» Joseph Scapellato «» Laura Ellen Scott «» Nancy Stebbins «» Sabrina Stoessinger «» Eugenia F. Tsutsumi «» xTx «» Cover Art "Wall Street Must Be Tripping" by Marty D. Ison «» Letter From the Editor Interested in subscribing to SmokeLong's weekly newsletter? Click here. An email should be created. Send it as is, and you'll be subscribed. If the link does not work for you, send an email to imailsrv@smokelong.com with Subscribe slq-info in the body of the email (no subject is necessary). You'll receive updates detailing the release of new issues, new reading periods, contests, etc. We do not make our mail list available to anyone else.