A Chance to Reappear

Chapter 7

Saturday comes. I'm lying on the couch, staring at the ceiling as the clock on the wall ticks away to noon. Evan will be here soon. I am going out with a friend. I have plans to leave the house that aren't to buy weed or art supplies. Today will be a good day.

Maybe.

I hope so.

15 minutes away from noon. I am the only one home today, a bold move on my mother's part. At least she trusts me. Hell, she trusts me more than I trust myself.
My hands shake violently. My eyes trace the plaster patterns on the ceiling. Anxiety and energy course through my veins and I feel like I am made of lightning. I want to run, far. I don't know where or how long, but I just want to get out of here. I bolt up, grab my messenger bag, and make for the door. As I rip it open, the doorbell rings. Evan stands there.

"You're early," I smile widely. Mania is setting in. He opens his mouth to speak, but I cut him off. "Let's get out of here. I'm driving."

Not a good idea.

We climb in the car and take off down the empty streets.

/\/\/\

"You're going a little fast," Evan says nervously on route to A La Mode Ice Cream Parlor. I just shrug, keep driving. I'm only 15 over the limit, it's no big deal. Everyone drives a little fast every now and then. We skid into the parking lot. Evan is all shaky as he exits the car, but I pay no mind and jog up to the parlor, holding the door open for him. My entire body is practically vibrating with uncontained energy.

We order our ice creams. I go overboard on size and toppings, knowing full well I won't finish it. The wind outside is strong today, but we still choose to sit on the curb. My hair blows every which way, getting into my hair and my ice cream. I don't care. I usually do, but not today. Evan just nibbles at his cone quietly, like a little rabbit.

"You ever been here before?" I ask, wiping my mouth on my sweatshirt. Evan shakes his head. "What do you think?"

"It's pretty good," he says, smiling a little. "I just got vanilla. You?"

"I don't know, just some weird combo shit."

Evan laughs. I smile. This isn't so bad.

"Any idea where you want to go next?" I ask, launching the rest of my unfinished ice cream into the brush. A small party of adults give me a disapproving look, but being the classy individual I am, I just flip them off.

"No, not really," Evan says. "I don't know this part of town."

'Okay, hmm... well... Oh, wait! I have an idea!"

I push myself up from the ground, heading to the car. I don't wait for Evan, just expect him to be right behind me. He's not. His footsteps are quick behind me as he tries to keep up with my long strides. Neither of my parents are particularly tall, yet I somehow shot up to 6'3" and every day it's a blessing and a curse. Evan is only around 5'7" in height.
"So, uh, where are we going?" he asks, buckling in. His knuckles are white. He doesn't like my driving.

"You'll see," I smirk, shifting into gear, no seatbelt. The destination isn't far from A La Mode, so we'll be there in about five minutes. Evan still seems worried, nervous. We haven't spoken much in nearly an hour of being out and about, but before I can stop myself, I am spilling over. "I won't tell you exactly what it is or where, but my family used to go all the time. We'd spend hours—whole days even—just together. You're gonna love it so much—it's right up your alley. And Zoe loved it, too. That's back when we were—"

The conversation drops off and suddenly I'm sad. The world around me turns to static as I process those memories of Zoe and I being more than just siblings: friends. The scenes play in front of me, like I'm reliving them. Running through the trees with Zoe, playing hide and seek. I'd purposefully let her win, thinking that I was some noble big brother by doing so. I'd take her through the seasonal mazes, play all the games with her. I never really had any friends, but she had many. She used to always choose them over me, but at the orchard I was the first choice. Always.