Seafoam //Completed//

Chapter 1.2

"What do you wanna do next?" the boy asked Lulu as they continued to walk. She was hyper aware of her hand in his warm one but she liked the feeling of security it offered.

"Let's just sit on the beach for a little while," her voice was soft. They found a nice spot by the water, where the tide reached only as far as their outstretched legs.

"So," he began, "are you gonna tell me why you were up there?"

"No," she stated simply. She was hoping he wouldn't bring that up again.

He looked sideways at her and but her eyes were trained on the crashing waves. The night was surprisingly warm and she buried her feet into the wet sand, feeling the warmth seep into her bones.

His eyes were still on her and she looked at him with a sigh. Searching his face, she wondered if she could trust him. Before she would tell him anything she wanted to know a little more about him. No names though, that had been the deal.

"Where are you from? I've never seen you around town. Are you new?"

"If I answer, will you answer me?" he challenged with a smirk.

"It depends on what you ask," she countered matter-of-factly.

He pretended to think about it making a loud 'hmmm' sound and rubbing his chin. "Deal!" he finally said. "I'm not from here. I'm visiting my grandparents for the summer."

"The summer is over," she replied. "School started weeks ago."

"Not back home," he bragged. "I've still got until next Monday. My turn!"

Oh boy, she thought. "Shoot."

He played with the sand as he asked in a serious voice. "Were you really going to jump?"

"It's difficult to explain," she said haltingly. "You'll think I'm crazy." How could she explain to him that she just didn't belong in this world anymore without sounding completely bonkers?

"Oh, that won't be a problem. I already do think you're crazy."
"Hey!" she whipped around to look at him. He was trying to hold back his mirth and she playfully threw some sand at him.

"I'm kidding! Kidding!" he laughed jovially, dodging her sand attack. "I won't think you're crazy, I cross my heart."

She looked at him dubiously, her eyes narrowed. Maybe it wouldn't matter if she told him. He was a complete stranger, and he didn't live here. If he thought she was crazy, he would take his judgment away with him when he left town, and she would be gone by then too. Sighing, she lay on her back on the sand and looked up at the star strewn sky. The music of the waves helped her clear her mind and she began.

"My mother got sick a few years ago," she swallowed the knot that instantly formed in her throat. "Cancer. Ever since I can remember, she's been in and out of hospitals and our lives have been consumed by chemo, emergency rooms, new doctors, second opinions and false hope," she spat out bitterly. She cleared her throat to try to reign in the sob that threatened to escape her lips. The boy was still, his face turned towards the water. "One day, about a year ago, my parents had gotten into a huge fight because my mom didn't want to do chemo anymore. She said she wants to die with dignity. They didn't even notice me leave the house, they were too busy screaming at each other. He was calling her selfish for wanting to leave us after everything. She was calling him egoistic for trying to keep her here, in pain, saying she no longer belonged on this earth. Those words kept replaying in my head, like a jammed record, over and over. If my mother doesn't belong on this earth anymore, do I??

"I walked for maybe an hour and found this beach. I saw the lighthouse and climbed it and ever since then I've come here whenever I can. They never notice," she finished grimly.