She had been pet and loved ten times before we could even make it to grandma Cindy’s room. Poppy was loving it and there was an aura of happiness throughout the home as well.
“Hi, grandma!” Luke said approaching grandma Cindy.
“Hi, Luke!” She replied. I breathed a sigh of relief; it was a good day so far. “Do you remember Sutton and we brought a friend too?” He turned to the side and I walked towards her with Poppy.
“Oh my! How precious! You brought a beautiful girl and a sweet pup, too! Looks just like the dog Rosemary your mother and uncle had as a child!”
Poppy jumped on her lap and licked her face. I could see the happiness in her eyes and Luke’s too.
“Well, she’s my puppy so I’ll be sure to bring her to visit when I come from now on. I didn’t know if it was okay but Sutton here set this all up.” He grinned at me.
We went out in the courtyard and took a walk with Poppy. Grandma Cindy didn’t have any episodes and it was a perfect way to spend the afternoon. When we got back in the truck Luke was glowing.
“Sutton that was the best I’ve seen my grandma in a while. I never even thought to bring Poppy to see her. So thank you.” He said grabbing my hand.
We pulled up to the boardwalk.
“Let’s grab some ice cream cones to go,” I said.
“I got it,” Luke said. He jogged onto the boardwalk and got us each a cone and Poppy some ice cream in a bowl.
“I gotta drive quick so our cones don’t melt.” I giggled.
A little while later we pulled up to the sunflower field. “You know I love it here.” Luke smiled.
“I figured this would be the perfect place to hang and enjoy our ice cream.” We walked hand in hand and Poppy followed behind us.
The grass was jagged and unkempt. It swallowed us whole. Poppy ran around the field and chased butterflies. The sunlight beat down on us. It was like a scene from a movie and I wished that moment could have lasted forever.
At 6:30, we pulled up to the side of the boardwalk and started towards the Pizza Shack. The pull door in the front of the shop was all the way down.
“Did the shop close early today?” I asked Luke as he started unlocking the front and pulling up the door.
Before he could even answer a sea of voices yelled “surprise!”
“Oh my god, Luke!” I said my mouth hanging open
“A little going away party never hurt anybody.” He said with a wink.
“Sutton!” I heard in a familiar voice.
“No way,” I said out loud before I even turned around. It was Reagan.
“I couldn’t miss my best friend’s going away party!” I pulled her in tight.
“Hey, Sutton.” Shane slapped me on the back.
“I’m so glad you guys are here,” I said. “This is great.” I planted a kiss right on Luke’s lips, trying to ignore the fact that in less than twenty-four hours I would be back home without him.
We had a great time at the party. Ate way too much pizza, played stupid games then went to goof around on the beach. At about 9:30, things started winding down.
“We better get going babe,” Shane said to Reagan.
“You guys have to drive back tonight?” I asked.
“Well I’m not exactly supposed to be here my mom is away for a few days so we snuck in a quick trip.”
“Ugh. Reagan, you’re seriously the best. I’ll see you soon okay?”
“Yes. You know I’ll definitely be visiting in December; Christmas in Dainstown is unlike any other.” She winked and hugged me.
There was a slight breeze but it was still warm out. My whole family strolled back to the house together. Luke and I walked hand in hand in silence. My mom was in front of us pushing Aunt Helen, Gia walking beside them. Luke was looking to his left. I just watched him as we walked. His skin was golden and his dimples showed as he bit his lip. His hair was sandy and unkempt, bouncing as he took each step. A warm feeling always filled my body when we touched. I felt a stream of tears rolling down my cheeks. Luke squeezed my hand but wouldn’t look in my direction. I couldn’t help but think he was crying, too.
“Let’s make the best of this shit!” Luke said emptying a backpack onto my bed. It was filled with junk of all kinds, candy, energy drinks, chips. “We are spending every last moment possible with each other. That means an all-nighter.” Luke flashed me a cheesy smile and lifted his eyebrows up and down.
We literally stayed up all night. We played stupid games that we made up as we went along, we binge-watched shows on Netflix and we ate almost all the snacks Luke brought with him.
At about 5:30 am I saw the sun peeking through the window. It was rising and it was almost time for me to go home. I looked over at Luke who was starting to doze off. I curled up next to him leaning my head on his chest. I was exhausted but I didn’t want to sleep. I forced my eyes to close and tried to ignore the tears that were falling. Maybe if I just went to sleep this wouldn’t be happening right now. I heard Luke whisper “I love you” and the comfort of those three words helped soothe me and I started to doze off as well.
II.
Chapter 7:
Sleep paralysis. My
