About Last Summer

by Patricia B Tighe

  She scratched her cheek. “Maybe. But I need ID.”

  “I’m sorry?”

  “How do I know you’re really Geoff?” she asked. “The girl who left the clue said there might be imposters and that I needed to ask for ID.”

  Geoff actually stuck his head forward like a turtle coming out of a shell. “She what?”

  I laughed. I couldn’t help it. The look on his face was perfect.

  The lady waited.

  Geoff yanked out his wallet. “I don’t believe this.” He gave the woman his driver’s license.

  She put her glasses halfway down her nose and studied the card. A smile broke out. “It’s your birthday! How wonderful. Hope it’s been a happy one.”

  He cleared his throat. “So, the clue?”

  “Yes, of course.” She reached under the counter and retrieved a piece of purple paper, which she gave him along with his ID.

  “‘The bear is made of something more durable,’” Geoff read.

  “Not a stuffed animal then,” I said.

  “Guess not.” He lifted the note toward the lady. “Thanks. Appreciate it.”

  We left and backed against the building to get out of the way of tourists on the sidewalk. “Where now?” I asked.

  Geoff chewed on the inside of his cheek for a full minute. “I got it! Must be those chainsaw bears. Come on.”

  I followed him to a stoplight. “Chainsaw bears?” I asked.

  “Yeah, they carve them out of wood.”

  “With a chainsaw?”

  “Supposedly. I’ve never seen it done.”

  The light changed, and we crossed the street, and then headed left. A six-foot-high totem pole stood outside a shop we passed, and my thoughts flew to Gabby and last summer. There’d been a totem pole at the camp and people used to run races toward it during free time. Gabby and I always snuck off as soon as they began. I started to smile but made myself stop. I didn’t want questions from Geoff. I didn’t want to lie again. Besides, thinking about kissing Gabby definitely did not help. I needed to focus on settling everything with her.

  “Here it is,” Geoff said and sailed through the door of a shop that had carved bears in the display window.

  I followed him in and looked around. It was crazy. There were bears and turtles and dogs and rabbits all carved from wood. A bunch of other animals too, so realistic looking that hair rose on the back of my neck.

  Geoff went straight to the white-haired man behind the counter. “Hi!” Geoff said, a little too enthusiastically. “I’m on a scavenger hunt. Do you have a clue for me?”

  The man smirked. “I have a clue for someone who buys a bear,” he said, and then let out a wheezy sounding laugh.

  Well, okay. That was kind of weird. Geoff looked at me, and then back at the man. “Seriously?”

  The man’s laugh dwindled into a brief cough, but he nodded. “My instructions were very specific.”

  Geoff let out a frustrated breath. “All right. I’ll buy a bear.”

  He ended up with a foot and a half tall bear that only cost twenty bucks. “If my dad wants anything more elaborate, he can come get it himself,” he said as he set his purchase on the counter.

  The carving was really kind of cute. Had one of those goofy looks like it might be smiling. After Geoff paid and the bear was all bagged up, the man handed him a note on green paper. Kenzie must have a pack of assorted colored notepaper.

  We walked outside. “What’s it say?” I asked, squinting up at the cloudy sky.

  “‘What’s my favorite afternoon drink? Go order one from Mark and drink it,’” he read. “Assuming this is Kenzie—and who else would be so bossy?—that would be a latte.”

  “You would.”

  “What?”

  “You asked who would be so bossy.”

  Geoff twisted his lips. “You’re freaking hilarious.”

  “Yup.”

  He shook his head. “Never mind. There’s a coffee shop just up the street.”

  And that’s the way the rest of our search went. Every place the notes sent us, Geoff had to do something before he got the next clue. After the coffee place, we went to the Ruidoso Trading Post where he had to hold up a set of antlers and sing Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. At Grace O’Malley’s Irish Pub, he had to dance a jig, which might have been the best thing I’d seen all day. At All Lathered Up, he had to buy his mom a bar of lavender soap. And the entire time, I got to lug around a carved bear that was starting to feel like it weighed fifty pounds instead of fifteen.

  When we left the soap shop, he waved the clue—on blue paper that time—in the air. “Kenzie is a dead girl. I’m absolutely going to kill her.”

  “Read it.”

  “‘The next clue can be found under where you lay your head at night,’” he said in a high voice that sounded nothing like Kenzie.

  I frowned. “Is there a pillow store around here?”

  “I don’t know,” Geoff said. “But I’m sure she means to go back to the house. She’s just doing this to waste time so they can get the party set up somewhere. We’ll get all the way back there and then have to go out to some weird place again. I’m gonna have to figure out something truly evil to do to her on her birthday. She’s made me buy presents for my parents! A person shouldn’t have to do that on their own birthday.”

  I looked away so he wouldn’t see me smile. “When’s her birthday?”

  “December.”

  I turned back. “That’s a long time to wait for revenge.”

  He raised his arms wide. “I know. But I could dress up as Santa and show up at her school.”

  The thought of getting back to the house and finally talking to Gabby made my pulse speed up. “Let’s go.” I headed toward where the car was parked several blocks away, and Geoff fell into step beside me. “Why would impersonating Santa embarrass her?” I asked.

  “Anything that happens in school is embarrassing. I’ll pretend I’m a singing telegram guy and serenade her.”

  “Wouldn’t it be easier to hit her in the face with a cream pie or something?”

  “At school? That might be too mean. I’ll have to think about it. But she is so dead.”

  I sidestepped a mom with two little kids. “How do you know it was even Kenzie? Maybe Molly was involved. Or it could’ve been a group effort.”

  He eyed me sidelong. “Did you have anything to do with it?”

  I laughed. “No. I think they knew I’d be hunting with you. They didn’t tell me anything.”

  “Figured. I don’t know who helped, but this has Kenzie written all over it.”

  By the time we reached the car, I’d stopped listening to Geoff’s evil plans. I needed to make my own plans. Just not the evil kind. I still didn’t know what to do about Amanda. If she kept dealing crap about Gabby, it could end up in a huge blowup that would be awkward for everybody. I needed to ask Geoff again, but he was in full rant. I’d give him a couple more minutes before I interrupted.

  Once on the road to the house, I brought up the subject again. “Hey, I never asked you what I should do about Amanda. Should I apologize? Or would that be too weird?”

  Geoff tapped his index finger on the steering wheel, staring at the road ahead. “I don’t know, man. That might be too much for her to take right now since she’s hurting.”

  “But if she keeps making snarky comments—”

  “Let me talk to her, okay?”

  “Right. Can y’all even talk without arguing?”

  Geoff laughed. “It’s happened once or twice. How about this? I’ll tell her I know it’s hard, but it’ll get easier once school starts. Also, that you’re willing to talk about it if she wants.”

  Was I? “Seriously? I don’t know.”

  “Come on, dude. Man up.”

  “Hey, I am. I’m happy to apologize, but I definitely don’t want to get involved in a long conversation about whether there’s a future for us or not.”

  Geoff laughed so hard he almost missed our turn.
“Crap!” He slammed on the brakes and took the corner tight, tires squealing.

  I gritted my teeth and grabbed the “oh shit” handle above the door. “Nice one,” I said when the car leveled out.

  “Thanks,” he said. “It’s all in knowing when to accelerate.”

  I snorted. “Exactly.”

  “Anyway, don’t worry about a long conversation with Amanda. She probably won’t want to.”

  “All right, but just don’t tell her I’ll marry her in ten years.”

  “Are you sure? It might help.”

  I cuffed him on the back of the head.

  “Hey! I’m driving here.”

  “And I’m helping you stay alert.”

  “Right, ’cause I need to think of more ways to get back at Kenzie.”

  I let him ramble on, grunting in the appropriate places, but my mind turned to Gabby. Was she thinking about me? Would she answer my questions or keep avoiding them? I had no idea, but I knew, way down deep at the opening of the pit, that I needed to be careful. To just take it one step at a time. Ask a question; get an answer. I couldn’t give in to her warm brown eyes, or her sweet scent, or her soft skin. I had to get my answers and go from there. Because, if the tight feeling in my gut was to be trusted, it was probably time to start rebuilding the wall around my heart.

  Gabby

  Kenzie had just tied off the last green balloon in the backyard when her phone buzzed. She whipped it out of her pocket and motioned for us to move in close. We gathered around the long table with its cake and snacks and drinks. “It’s from Amanda. The SUV is coming down the driveway. We need to hide.”

  “Where?” Dylan asked.

  “The forest is best,” she said. “There aren’t enough other places back here.”

  I gazed across the expanse of backyard where we’d set out a badminton net and a ring toss game. She was right. Molly realized it first. She was already calmly heading for the trees.

  The house door opened, and Amanda and Haley raced down the steps and past us. “Hurry up,” Amanda hissed as she went by. “He’s gonna be here any second.”

  Dylan, Kenzie, and I ran for the forest where we joined the others, hiding behind separate trees. But we really didn’t need to hurry. Geoff had to go to his room first for the clue that the party was in the backyard. Then once he and Noah were outside, Mr. and Mrs. Bryson and Gamma would follow, and their arrival would be our signal to jump out.

  Adrenaline made my hands shake as I chose a wide tree for my hiding place. But just as I got there, Amanda appeared out of nowhere. “Haley and I need this one because there’s two of us,” she said, not quite meeting my surprised gaze. “Go find another tree.”

  Irritation rose, but I clenched my teeth together. She’d been rude to me all afternoon, especially when no one else could hear, and I so wanted to tell her to grow up. But I dropped it. I didn’t have the energy for her angst. I had enough of my own.

  I clomped through the bushy undergrowth to a different tree. Molly gave me a sympathetic look but didn’t say anything. I pressed my palms against the rough bark and peeked into the backyard. The balloons we’d attached to the table, back deck, and chairs danced in the light breeze. Late afternoon sunlight created slanting shadows on the lawn, and if it weren’t for the fact that the food hadn’t been touched, the area looked like a party mysteriously abandoned.

  Seconds turned into minutes, and my anticipation turned into worry. How soon would Noah want to talk? And what would I say to him? Every time I thought about explaining what I did last summer, my heart pinched tighter. I couldn’t bear the thought of hurting him again. Would he argue with me? Fight for us to have a relationship? I let my head rest on the tree. I just didn’t know.

  Voices came from the house. I tensed, smiling over at Kenzie who met my gaze with a ferocious smile of her own.

  Laughter. The rolling sound of male voices. “Hey,” Geoff called. “Where is everybody?”

  Party horns blared out from his parents, who had sneaked out the door behind him. He wheeled to face them, saying something I couldn’t hear. At Kenzie’s nod, the rest of us left our hiding places. “On three,” Kenzie whispered. “One, two, three.”

  “Surprise! Happy Birthday,” we yelled, laughing at Geoff’s clumsy swing back toward us.

  He laughed as we approached. “I’m killing every one of you, starting with Kenzie,” he said, raising his voice. Molly strode toward him and slipped her arms around his waist. He dropped a kiss on her head. “I’m taking suggestions on the best way to kill Kenzie.”

  “I think you need a swimming pool for that,” Amanda said.

  “Not a bad idea,” he said, and Amanda looked happy for the first time that afternoon.

  Noah stood nearby, hands in his pockets, oozing adorableness. He met my gaze and grinned. I couldn’t help myself. I smiled back, knowing that I shouldn’t, that I should keep my distance so he wouldn’t get the wrong idea. An idea, which felt jumbled in my mind. I suddenly wished I could whisk him away and get our conversation over with, so I wouldn’t have to spend the entire party with my insides tied up in knots.

  He started toward me, but Kenzie suddenly appeared between us, handing out noisemakers of every kind. Even Gamma had one of the ratchet kinds that she looked ready to twirl. “Okay,” Kenzie called out. “Once my lovely assistant, Dylan, finishes lighting the candles we’ll be ready to sing.”

  At the table, Dylan gave her a brief smile and then continued lighting all eighteen candles on the cake. He had to redo several of them because of the breeze. “Sing quick,” he said.

  We launched into a slightly off-key version of the Happy Birthday song, while Geoff, with a smug look, strode to the table to be ready. He blew out the candles with more skill than I’d expected, and everybody clapped.

  He picked up the knife to cut the cake, but Kenzie stopped him. “I’ll do that for you. It’s time for presents and Uncle Mike needs to light the coals.”

  “But we are having cake first, right?” Geoff asked.

  “Of course,” Amanda said. “It’s tradition.”

  “Good,” he said. “I was worried there for a sec.”

  Dylan and Amanda stretched out a huge blanket next to Geoff’s presents, and people began to sit. I hung back a little, waiting to see where Kenzie would sit, but she was busy cutting cake while Mrs. Bryson passed out the slices. Geoff’s dad helped Gamma into a nearby chair and then set off to light the grill.

  I was about to chicken out and take one of the chairs next to Gamma when Noah appeared at my side. “Come on,” he whispered, angling his head at the blanket. I exhaled a long steady breath and made myself follow him.

  We sat side by side—close, but not touching. Still, my arm prickled as if he were running his fingers along it. The scent of peppermint lingered between us as though he’d recently had an Altoid. A sudden rush of memories from last summer crashed into me, and I blinked away hot tears. Thank goodness Mrs. Bryson handed me a piece of chocolate cake just then. I didn’t know if I could eat it but was relieved to have something else to focus on.

  The party went on, Geoff throwing out one hilarious comment after another about his gifts, and then announcing it was game time. Kenzie actually made us run a three-legged race, with everybody except Gamma participating. Noah and Dylan, who’d been forced to partner up because Kenzie had grabbed me, won the race, probably because I slowed Kenzie down and Molly slowed Geoff. After five races, in which Geoff and Kenzie alternately tried to sabotage Noah and Dylan, resulting in wins by Amanda and Haley and Geoff’s parents, Kenzie declared the racing done and passed out the goody bags.

  And whenever the activity paused for even a moment, I felt Noah’s gaze on me. Half the time I ignored him because we really couldn’t leave the party until later. But when I felt brave enough to actually make eye contact, he would give me a closed-mouth smile, which did nothing to calm my ping-ponging emotions.

  Around the time the steaks were ready, Dylan’s parents arrived. Tall
and blond just like him, they made the round of introductions the same way he had, shaking everybody’s hand and spending a few extra moments in awkward conversation with Gabriela, the girl from Spain. I had gotten so lax in the role that I’d let my accent get sloppy, but no one seemed to notice.

  The sun set, twinkle lights and background music were turned on, and the adults relaxed in lawn chairs. I was sitting beside Gamma, watching Geoff and Molly try to play badminton in the dark with Amanda and Haley, when I realized Noah was missing. Not only him, but Dylan and Kenzie, too. Should I search? Or wait for Noah to come back? The conversation ahead caused my palms to sweat. I ran them down the sides of my T-shirt. I needed to find him. I’d made him wait long enough.

  And as though she could read my mind, Gamma said, “Go on, then. I think you’ll find him inside.”

  Why didn’t that surprise me? I stared back at her calm face, partially lit up by twinkle lights. “How do you always know?” The question came out with no Gabriela accent at all.

  “Like Molly, I pay attention to what’s going on.” She patted my hand, her fingers gentle. “Don’t worry. Most everybody else is too busy to notice.” She tilted her head toward the house. “Go on,” she whispered.

  I smiled and stood. No other words were necessary. I headed around the side of the house, needing to walk off some of my tension, but stopped abruptly when I reached the front. Dylan and Kenzie were on the porch, standing super close to each other. I froze, but they didn’t even glance my way. They were talking so quietly that it sounded like mumbling. Then Kenzie bent and rested her forehead against Dylan’s chest. He raised his arms slowly, as though any sudden movement might make her bolt, and placed his hands on her shoulders.

  Time to go. But stealth was a priority. I didn’t want to stop whatever was happening between them. I stepped backward until I was hidden from view, and then swung around. I made it to the back door without anyone noticing—I hoped—then slipped inside. When I reached the bottom of the stairs and looked up, I faltered. Noah stood at the top, staring down at me with a questioning look.