Father's Song

6 • S W I M M I N G • 6

Abby Jones
9/13/2023 - SAME DAY

🟠
Emma

Lets hang out today

Where at, my house?

Nope. Mine. Let's go
swimming in my pool b4
we close it 4 the summer

What's up with all the
numbers?

I don't know. Just
thought it was fun

I'll let my mom know
she needs to drive me.
I'll text you when I'm
On my way!

You sound excited for
the pool

Damn auto correct.

I laugh at put my phone down after letting her know that my mom won't be home, then switch to Wyatt's contact to ask if he wanted to go swimming.

He says yes pretty quick, so I get up to find a swimsuit to put on. Our pool isn't big, but it's a good size for some friends to hang out in. The lounge chairs are still set up, but the sun has been peaking in and out of the clouds all day. It's probably not worth it to try to get a last minute tan.

---

I watch as the cars Emma and Wyatt pull up to my driveway. I text them both to let them know the gate to the pool is open. I grab my sunscreen and walk out the back door to the deck, then down the steps to the pool.

"Hey, guys." I say when they come in.

"Hey. Where's your mom?" Emma asks.

I put the umbrella up on the table. "Work. I don't know when she'll be home, but we have a lot of time to kill before then."

"What does she do again?" Wyatt asks, pulling his shirt off.

"Um..." I clear my throat, a little distracted. "She's a publisher, or something. It's for smaller stuff – like poetry books, short stories, sometimes people submit song lyrics to her. She's showed me some pretty brutal stuff people have written about."

"Like what?" Emma asks, jumping into the pool before I can answer.

"Breakups, cheating." I say.

Wyatt suddenly puts his arms around my waist and throws me into the pool. I scream. "What the heck, man!"

He laughs and jumps in after me. "Just trying to have a little fun, here."

---

"What if your mom found a new guy?"

I frown. "What?"

All of us had been swimming for about twenty minutes before deciding to get out and eat. But we found ourselves back in the pool not long after, just floating around.

"If your mom started dating again. How would you feel?" She asks again, this time a little sheepishly.

I shake my head. "I don't know. I haven't really thought about that... Why do you ask?"