Before You Say Goodbye

12

Once I had left home, I made my lie into truth and did end up going to work. I spent around half an hour there before walking to a café nearby – Hot Cups. Since I hadn't been in the mood to eat any lunch, I had only opted for a steaming cup of hot chocolate and a muffin. I had spent nearly three hours there, reading a book on my phone as I relished on the muffin and the hot chocolate.

It was only about twenty minutes ago that I had shown up at Terry's house, laughed, and talked with everyone there, pretending everything was fine and dandy in my life. When Terry and I left for the bonfire, no one in her family knew something was bothering me, but two minutes alone with me, Terry knew.

"How's your leg now?" Terry asked, her arm looping through mine, an easy smile on her face.

"Healed. But Joe says I still shouldn't put too much pressure on it yet."

"Then don't. Put your weight on me while walking," she said, pulling my arm over her shoulder and supporting my weight. When she noticed the half-assed smile I gave her, she frowned, "What's got you sulking? You've been acting weird since you came home."

I shrugged. Where do I even start? "Dad's home."

I think that's enough explanation needed. Terry knew how I dealt with my dad's return. I looked ahead at the large ground we were walking towards; the bonfire could be heard from here, it was loud. She squeezed my shoulder a bit, her way of letting me know that she was there for me. I knew that. Terry has always been there for me.

By the time we got to the empty ground, the bonfire was raving.

Everyone from school seemed to be there. Only a very few freshmen turned up, but there were more seniors to compensate for their number. They slinked away in the shadows, for some reason, not staying in one place for more than a few minutes. The Sophomores were rowdy, they were loud. The loudest. Maybe they thought moving around in a bonfire and getting everyone's attention was the key to becoming popular.

Most of the others were by the pier on the makeshift dance stage someone had taken the time to put together. Music was loud and since this was a gettogether happening in the open, no alcohol was involved. Our sheriff's daughter had been an addict, hence he was always pretty strict when it came to underage drinking. The last thing anyone wanted was to get on a scorned father's bad side. But that didn't mean a few people snuck in alcohol – like Piper for example.

We were sitting by the fire, enjoying the warmth, and here she was next to me, drinking from a Pepsi can. From the smell that it emanated, I could only guess how strong of alcohol she was consuming. "Easy there, Tiger," Terry pulled the can away from her mouth, "This is your fourth can. You're going to be nursing a bad hangover tomorrow."

"Don't I always?" Piper scoffed, "With Robin around the house, it always seems like my head's going to explode. How's a hangover any different?" Robin the wonderful stepfather Piper had been blessed with. I would trade my dad for Robin any day, why couldn't this girl appreciate what she has?

I sighed, turning to Sophia on my other side, "When will you start preparing the s'mores?"

"I'm waiting for someone," she looked around trying to see through the crowd, "Once they arrive, we can start."

My eyes widened as I recognized the mischief laced in her voice. "Oh, Soph. What did you do?"

She didn't answer me, but she grinned with glee, jumping a little as she spotted someone through the crowd. She raised her hand and started to wave it around frantically. "Here! Here!"

"Here comes lover boy," Terry sang in her off-range tune, giving me a creepy grin.

I closed my eyes, inhaling sharply as Ezra and his friends walked closer, an uneasy smile spreading on his face. As I'd already mentioned once, I was never a fan of Ezra's friends. Often, I didn't understand how and why a sweet, kind boy like Ezra Harwood hung out with people like Oliver Adams, Cade Dawson, and Noah Bailey.