About Last Summer

by Patricia B Tighe

  Nothing happened. No roll of distant thunder or burst of applause from the atmosphere. Well, what had I expected? Should I have picked two different stars? I’d made two separate wishes after all. I shook my head. The whole thing was silly. I ambled toward the house, moving faster as I went. I could do this.

  I would do it. Gabriela, let’s kick some butt.

  Time to get back in the game.

  The next morning, we were well into the second run-through of the play in the garage when the rumble of tires sounded on the long gravel drive. Knowing Kenzie was getting frustrated with everyone, I tried to hurry through my line. “Dearest Bill, there’s still so much I must say to you.”

  But Bill, aka Geoff, didn’t answer right away. He squinted into the bright sunlight. “Who’s that?”

  Frowning, Kenzie looked up. “That’s not your line.”

  “Someone’s here,” Geoff said.

  A tan SUV was trundling toward us, a small cloud of dust puffing out behind it.

  “It’s probably Aunt Jenny’s gardener,” Kenzie said. “Isn’t he supposed to be here today?”

  “I don’t know,” Geoff said and hopped off the stage.

  His movement propelled the rest of us closer to the circular driveway. A reggae beat boomed from the SUV as it rolled to a stop in front of the garage.

  “Oh look, Kenz,” Geoff said. “Your boyfriend’s here.”

  “He’s not my—”

  The car cut off, drowning us in sudden silence. Thank goodness Kenzie had stopped talking, because the guy already had his door open. He unfolded himself and straightened, and I had to snap my mouth shut. He couldn’t have been less of a reggae guy if he tried.

  He was huge. Not football player huge, but tall and muscular. Sunlight gleamed off his blond hair. He adjusted tortoise-shell glasses on a nose that looked like it had been broken at least once.

  I glanced at Kenzie, who was standing beside me, a tense expression on her face. “You’ve been holding out on me,” I whispered.

  Kenzie inhaled loudly, but whatever she might have said was lost in Geoff’s loud greeting. “Dylan! Awesome. Glad you could make it early.”

  “Hey,” Dylan said, then shook hands with Geoff before yanking him into a guy hug.

  Kenzie cussed under her breath. “He did this on purpose,” she said in a low voice.

  “Who, Geoff?”

  “Maybe both of them,” Kenzie muttered.

  Geoff made the introductions, and Dylan walked around shaking hands with everyone like a politician. Then he was in front of me, his hand swallowing up mine as he said, “Nice to meet you, Gabriela from Spain.”

  “You, as well,” I said, trying to keep the accent in place. It was difficult because his gaze had slid past mine so fast he probably wouldn’t recognize me again if he saw me on the street.

  He stared at Kenzie with a slight quirk to his lips. “Mackenzie.”

  “Dylan,” she said.

  And that was it. Nothing else. No “good to see you” or “it’s been a long time.” They just stood there, so much electric current running back and forth that the hair stood up on my arms. I slipped away from them, unable to hold back the smile that spread across my face. I’d never seen Kenzie act like that around a guy. She was usually assertive. Or standoffish. Nothing like that complete absence of emotion. Like she was working really hard to hold something in. It was crazy. And freaking awesome.

  Kenzie stuck her hand out, and Dylan raised an eyebrow. Then he grabbed her and pulled her in for a hug. After what had to be the longest five seconds in history, Kenzie patted him on the back in a classic tap-out. “Okay, that’s enough,” she said, her words muffled against his chest.

  Dylan laughed and let her go. “What’s all this?” He gestured toward the set. “Not another play?”

  “Yup,” Geoff said. “And we saved you a part.”

  Dylan shook his head. “You shouldn’t have. You really shouldn’t have.”

  “We need you, man,” Geoff said. “Come on. Mom and Dad said to bring you in as soon as you got here.” He pulled Dylan toward the door into the house and then looked over his shoulder at Kenzie and winked.

  I couldn’t see Kenzie’s reaction, but it was probably a scowl. Or more silent swearing. I grinned. I wanted to jump up and down. Or to slide across the cool cement floor of the garage, but that definitely wouldn’t work in flip-flops. Dylan really liked Kenzie—at least it seemed like it to me—and Kenzie … well, that was harder to pin down. Because if I knew my friend well at all, I knew there was a long story here.

  Amanda and Haley followed the others, and I heard Haley ask wistfully, “You think Geoff knows any guys our age?”

  Amanda mumbled her response as they walked into the house.

  Still smiling, I let out a long sigh. I took one step forward, but a hand dropped onto my shoulder stopping me.

  Noah

  Gabby grinned at Dylan as if he were there to save her from the wicked witch. Make that the wicked ex. I ran my tongue across my front teeth. I wanted to walk out of the garage, down the driveway, and get lost in the forest. But I couldn’t move. My gaze was stuck on Gabby’s smile.

  She used to look at me like that.

  And even when Dylan grabbed Kenzie, Gabby kept on smiling. Wow. Must be love at first sight.

  Geoff herded everybody to the door, but Gabby stood there in a trance watching them all go. I should have walked right past her. Follow everybody else. Just go.

  But when I got close, I couldn’t help myself. With my pulse making my whole body vibrate, I took hold of her shoulder. “See something you liked?” Great. Not just a regular tool. I was a whiny tool.

  After looking briefly startled, her smile lit up her face again. She seized my upper arm and shook it. “Did you see that? Did you?”

  She seemed to glow. Just standing there with her hand around my biceps muscle. My arm tingled at her touch, and I wanted to lean in closer, but first I had to understand what was going on. It didn’t sound like she was into Dylan like I thought. But she was so changeable. The night before we had fought, and then in the morning she treated me like it had never happened. And I still didn’t know whether I could believe she hadn’t dated anyone since me. “Uh …”

  She shook my arm again. “He likes her,” she said and then burst out laughing.

  I frowned, still slow on the uptake. “Who?”

  She gave me a playful shove. “Pay attention. Dylan likes Kenzie. And she’s never acted that weird around a guy.”

  “Didn’t look weird to me,” I managed to say.

  “Oh, it was.” She kicked off her flip-flops, and then spun around on the ball of one foot. “This is so great.” She launched herself forward as though trying to slide, but her foot stuck to the cement, and she ended up hopping. “Oh, poop. I need socks.”

  I found myself smiling. “Poop? Who says poop? No one says that.”

  “I do,” she said, her dark eyes still glittering with happiness.

  I almost swayed. I was falling into those eyes, but Gabby swung away to pick up the flip-flops. Right. Get it together. She’s happy about her friend. Not you.

  “Come on. I don’t want to miss anything.”

  “Okay.” I followed her into the house, wrestling with the thought that I’d probably follow her anywhere.

  Everybody except Gamma was standing around in the kitchen listening to Geoff’s parents suck out all the pertinent information from the new guy. Gabby found a spot next to Kenzie, who leaned against the wall. I moved in as close to Gabby as I could without looking obvious.

  “And what will you study at UT?” Mrs. Bryson asked as she placed deli meats on a serving plate. Sandwich stuff covered the whole kitchen counter. Loaves of bread, lunch meat, mayo, mustard, lettuce, tomato, and a basket with bags of chips on one end.

  “Well,” Dylan said with a half-laugh, “I may end up changing, but for now I’m majoring in biomedical engineering.”

  “Sounds serious,” Mr. Bryson s
aid, and people smiled.

  So. A science dude. Not sure why he might appeal to a drama/basketball chick like Kenzie, but whatever. If he could keep her distracted, we might not have to spend so much time on the stupid play.

  “It’s nice that you’ll be in Austin,” Geoff said. “You can go over to Kenzie’s and sponge off her parents. Real food has got to be better than dorm food.”

  Dylan glanced at Kenzie before answering Geoff. “That would be great, but I should probably ask them first.”

  Geoff put on his most persuasive grin. “Oh, they won’t mind. Will they, Kenz?”

  Kenzie shrugged. “Pretty sure they wouldn’t care.”

  It sounded like she was trying to act like she wouldn’t care either. Her face wore a blank mask. Gabby, on the other hand, looked like she’d just gotten the best news of her life. I held back a snort. Why was she so stoked about Kenzie and Dylan? Probably just best friend stuff. I’d have to ask her.

  What are you thinking? It wasn’t like we were best friends who talked about everything together. Besides, if I got the chance to really talk to Gabby, I wouldn’t waste it talking about Kenzie. I had way more important questions to ask.

  Beside me, Gabby chuckled at something Mr. Bryson had said, and I turned toward her before I could stop myself. I wanted her to laugh at stuff I said, to smile at me. Could I have been any more useless?

  Probably sensing my stare, Gabby looked up. A question formed in her eyes, and maybe a little bit of apprehension. I had to get rid of that look. I hated that she worried any time I was near. I smiled. “I think you want to get me a Coke,” I whispered. There. I was still ordering her around, but hopefully, she could tell she really didn’t have to obey.

  The apprehensive look faded. “I do?” she whispered.

  “Yup.”

  She cocked her head and time seemed to stop. It was that same motion, that same look that had drawn me to her last summer, the first time we’d done a skit together. As though, in spite of whatever was currently happening, she wanted to know me. Back then, she was supposed to be playing a bored fast food worker while I was an irritated customer. Our performance was horrible, to say the least. Because every time she spoke, I smiled. And vice versa. We became the perfect example of how not to act in a scene.

  Gabby drew her teeth across her lower lip, dragging me back to the present. My fingers twitched with the need to touch her lips. I slid my hands into my pockets. Then, without another word, she strolled to the refrigerator and pulled out two drinks like she did it every day. Like she wasn’t just some guest there. But no one seemed to notice.

  “When do you move into the dorm?” Mrs. Bryson asked.

  “In about two weeks,” Dylan said.

  “That’s soon, isn’t it, Kenz?” Geoff asked.

  I almost shook my head. Geoff was really piling it on thick.

  Kenzie’s smile looked like it might crack her face, but then Gabby handed her an iced tea, and Kenzie’s smile turned real. “Thanks.”

  Gabby grinned, then turned to me. “Here you are,” she said, the Spanish accent making an appearance.

  I took the cold can, wishing I could get rid of that accent for good. “Appreciate it,” I whispered.

  “Sure,” she said and, after a brief look, turned away.

  I went on high alert. Some emotion had been in her eyes, but it had happened too fast for me to figure out. Could she actually still care about me? There was definitely something there. I knew it. And it was beyond time to find out. Somehow, some way, I was going to be alone with her before the day was over. And I’d get the answers I needed.

  We could’ve hashed it all out last night, but I blew it. I was not going to make that mistake again.

  Gabby

  After lunch, I pulled Kenzie aside. “We need to talk,” I whispered.

  Kenzie frowned but then abruptly came to a decision. “Let’s walk,” she whispered and headed for the back door.

  I hurried after her. We were outside and down the back steps before I had a chance to speak again. “Hang on. I’m only wearing flip-flops. Where are we going?”

  Kenzie slowed her pace. “Just inside the line of trees. I have to get away from the house.”

  “Okay.”

  We crossed the yard and wandered into the shadows of the trees, where the chattering birds instantly hushed. Kenzie stopped, looked around, and then sagged against a tree trunk. “I’m not sure I can do this,” she said in a low voice.

  “What?” I asked.

  “Be around Dylan. It was different when he was supposed to get here Friday or Saturday. I could’ve dealt with that. We leave on Sunday after all. But now Geoff goes and invites him to come up early—”

  “It’s only one extra day, Kenz.”

  “I know. But it feels way longer.”

  “I thought he was just a middle school boyfriend. What’s the big deal?”

  Kenzie massaged the back of her neck and then started pacing. “You really want to know?”

  I pushed out a puff of air. “Of course I do!”

  “All right. We met out here when we were little kids, but it was when I was twelve, and he was thirteen that we became girlfriend and boyfriend.”

  I wanted to say I already knew that part, but the look of fierce concentration on Kenzie’s face stopped me.

  “We walked around holding hands like a couple of idiots,” she continued. “And then when the week was over, everything else was over too. I had a huge crush on him, so you can imagine how I felt. Or how I acted when I got home.”

  “You wanted to stand by his locker every morning.”

  Kenzie let out a desperate-sounding laugh. “Right. I wrote his name inside all my notebooks. I asked my parents when we would see his family again, and I compared every boy in school to him.” She picked up a twig and trailed it across the trees as she paced. “I didn’t hear from him at all. Not until we were here again when I was fifteen. Everything picked up as though we’d never been apart. That week we made out. A lot.”

  “I can’t believe you never told me about him.”

  “Yeah, sorry. There was something unreal about the whole thing. I guess because it only came to life when we were here in New Mexico. He wanted us to date, which was ridiculous because he lives in Dallas. So I said no. He said he loved me and always would.”

  My thoughts raced to Noah. The situations were so similar. Except, of course, that Kenzie had talked to Dylan, whereas I had just dumped Noah. “Wow.”

  “Yeah. He’s always been so serious, so intense. His feelings seemed to overpower mine. Like his were so strong that I could never figure out what mine really were.”

  “And now?”

  “I have no idea.” She tossed the stick away. “He seems calmer, almost … happier. But he’s going to college, and I have my senior year to think about, and I don’t want to get into this all again, but part of me does and—aah.” She grabbed the sides of her head. “I can’t think straight.”

  And even though I knew Kenzie was already thinking it, I said it out loud. “He’s finally going to be living in the same city as you.”

  Kenzie glared at me. “That’s not helping.”

  “But it’s true.”

  She waved the comment away. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll be in two different worlds.”

  “You don’t have to be,” I said.

  Kenzie didn’t say anything for a long moment. “Well, anyway. That’s why I don’t want to be around Dylan.”

  “Okay.”

  “What do you mean, okay?”

  I laughed. “Nothing. Don’t be so jumpy.”

  “I can’t help it.”

  “Look, don’t worry. Whatever happens, you can talk to me about it. Together we can get through anything, remember?”

  Kenzie finally smiled. “Right. The dynamic duo.”

  I gave her a sharp nod. “Dynamic duo.”

  Together, we walked out of the forest. “So, how’s Gabriela doing?” Kenzie asked. “Is Noah gi
ving you any more trouble?”

  It was hard to tell what was going on with Noah. During lunch, he kept looking at me in a way that made my pulse race. Something he shouldn’t do in front of everyone. Or at all. Amanda had left the table scowling. “Not really. But there’s still a lot of today left to go, right?”

  “Heh. I—”

  “Kenzie! Gabriela!” Geoff was walking across the lawn toward us.

  “Not sure I want to talk to him,” Kenzie said.

  “I don’t know how you can avoid it.”

  “Me neither.” Kenzie stopped walking. “Let’s make him come all the way to us.”

  I smiled.

  Geoff jogged up, panting a little. “Listen, Amanda and Haley have got Noah helping them bake brownies. We have to save him.”

  “Then go save him,” Kenzie said.

  He shaded his eyes from the sun with his hand. “I need an excuse. I’m gonna say we need him to play basketball with us. Now that Dylan’s here we can play two-on-two.”

  “I’m still mad at you, you know,” Kenzie said.

  Geoff grinned. “Why?”

  “You know why. I’ll only play under one condition.”

  “What?”

  “That you stop making all those little comments to get Dylan and me to notice each other.”

  “Aw, come on.”

  “I mean it, Geoff. If you do it again, I’ll walk off the court.”

  He rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Oh, all right. Just go change your shoes or whatever.”

  I figured it was past time for Gabriela to yank Geoff’s chain a little. “Should I change also?”

  Geoff’s mouth dropped open. “Uh … I’m not … I didn’t think …” He looked to Kenzie for help, but she just laughed.

  “It is all right,” I said, “I do not wish to play.” I patted his arm, and then Kenzie and I strolled toward the house, laughing.

  Noah

  The bright afternoon sunshine relaxed me, and I rolled my arms, trying to work out the kinks in my neck and shoulders. Even just fifteen minutes of helping Amanda make the double-fudge brownies had caused tension to grab a claw-hold on my muscles.