I said a silent prayer of thanks when I saw the little section dedicated to cheesy T-shirts and thin foam flip-flops. I ripped the tag and slid them on my blackened feet. They were a little big, but it was better than nothing. Three Red bulls and some snacks later, I approached the register to pay. The cashier looked about my age and had a sleeve of tattoos on either arm. His gaze met my cleavage before my eyes. I didn’t mind as much as I did with the guy outside.
“Anything else?” he asked.
Was there anything else?
“Nope,” I said, accentuating the P sound. “This is it.”
God, I hope this isn’t it.
He told me my total and slid my stuff into a bag.
Once I was back on the road, I felt the buzz from the Red Bulls kick in. That’s what I seemed to be living off of these last few months.
I managed to make it to Aunt Meg’s without falling asleep behind the wheel. I jostled up and down in my car as it negotiated the bumpy dirt driveway. I parked the car next to Uncle Jim’s pickup truck and found a stray hair tie in the glove box to throw my hair in a ponytail. I pinched my cheeks to give them some color and surrendered to the dark circles under my eyes.
I lit one more cigarette and got of the car to grab my bag in the trunk. Maybe Aunt Meg would still be sleeping. Fat chance. That woman never slept-in a day in her life. Jack, Uncle Jim’s sheepdog, came barreling out of the house in my direction.
“I can smell that cigarette from here,” Aunt Meg’s voice boomed.
I scratched behind Jack’s ears as he pounced on me with a wagging tongue. I turned around to face her, my bag slung over one shoulder. “Hey, Aunt Meg.”
“Don’t think you’re coming in this house with that cancer stick still on your lips.”
I threw it on the ground and smashed it with my cheap foam shoe.
“Didn’t think you’d be here this early,” she said as I walked toward her.
“I told you I would be.” I opened my free arm and gave her a hug. “Besides, Kasey’s been texting me non-stop for the last two days.”
“I’m glad you decided to come,” she said, patting my back.
I followed her inside the old farmhouse. It smelled like maple syrup in the kitchen. “Where’s Uncle Jim?”
“Checking on one of the goats. She’s about to give birth.” She poured a cup of coffee and handed it to me. “Have you eaten at all?”
“I picked something up on the way.”
“Your sister’s still asleep. She had another bad attack last night.”
“Again?” It’d seemed like her asthma had worsened these last few months.
Her pediatrician kept insisting she’d grow out of it. We weren’t convinced. But when you have subpar state-based health coverage, you’re lucky if they even listen to you long enough to get your health history.
“Doctor put her on another medication. Hopefully, it’ll help.”
“How come no one told me about it?” I said.
Aunt Meg rummaged through the cabinet with all of the prescription medications. Between her, Uncle Jim, and Kasey, they could open up their own pharmacy. I should be thankful that Kasey had health insurance; I had trouble enough affording her out-of-pocket costs.
“Here,” she said, handing me the bottle. “This is what she’s taking.”
I read over the label and recognized it as an oral steroid.
“The copay for prescriptions has gone up,” Aunt Meg said.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”
She gave me a onceover. “You look like you haven’t eaten a decent meal in a month.”
“What time’s everybody coming over?” I slid into one of the wooden chairs.
“Around three.” She grabbed some eggs from out of the fridge.
I’d have to collect some before leaving. The eggs from the grocery store didn’t compare to the ones Aunt Meg and Uncle Jim’s chickens produced. Uncle Jim had handcrafted this special feed that took years to perfect. As a kid, I loved to dunk my toast into the deep yellow yolk.
“I’ll make you something to eat, and then you should go back to bed for a little while.”
“I’m fine.” I didn’t want to tell her that I’d gone a lot longer than twenty-four hours without sleep. With enough caffeine, I could run a marathon. “I came early to help you set up.”
“There’s not much to do. Everyone’s bringing a little something. Tables and chairs are already out.” She eyed me as she cracked two eggs into the hot cast iron pan. They sizzled, and the smell snaked to my nose. “Are you nervous?”
“About what?”
“Seeing Jacob again.”
“Why would that make me nervous?” I ran my fingernail in the small groove in the wooden table.
“I don’t know.” She reached for a spatula. “It’s been a long time since you’ve seen each other.”
Eight years to be exact. I’d thought about him a lot. Wondered what kind of person he turned out to be. “I’m sure he barely remembers me.”
“Of course he does. You two were inseparable since the first day you met.”
“That seems like a lifetime ago.”
“His mom said he was looking forward to coming back. I’m sure he’s dying to see you.”
The eggs popped in the pan as Aunt Meg peered over her shoulder to look at me. What was I supposed to say? That I was afraid I wasn’t going to measure up?
“I’m going to wake lazy up.”
“Okay. But don’t think you’re getting away without eating breakfast first.”
I inhaled breakfast, remembering how much I’d missed a homecooked meal. Aunt Meg put another load of laundry into the washing machine, and I scurried up the steps to Kasey’s room.
I knocked on the door but opened it when no one answered. She lay in the bed, a mess of dark hair covering half of her head. It was hard to believe she just celebrated her tenth birthday. It seemed like yesterday when I was putting her hair in pigtails.
I jumped up and landed on the bed with a thud.
“Hey!”
