Between by Jessica Warman Read Free Book Online

went up the road, parked in Richie’s driveway, and walked down to my parents’ boat. We spent the rest of the night in each other’s arms, talking about what it would be like to be seniors, about what college we might go to together. There was never any question, not for either of us, that we’d stay together after high school. Richie Wilson was the love of my life.
    “So that’s your stepmom,” Alex says, yanking me out of the memory. He’s still at my side.
    “Yeah,” I say. “Her name is Nicole. She’s Josie’s mom.”
    Alex lets out a low whistle. “Man, she is hot .”
    “Would you shut up?” I give him a shove, so hard that he almost loses his footing on the dock. Not that it would matter. What’s the worst that could happen to him at this point?
    “How can you treat all of this so lightly?” I demand. “These are people’s lives. My parents, my friends—their lives are probably ruined.”
    Alex gives me a look. “Somebody sure thinks highly of herself.”
    “Alex. They just found my body in the water.”
    He nods. “That’s true. But they’ll move on eventually.”
    I look at my father. His gaze is lowered. I can’t imagine what he must be thinking. “No, they won’t,” I say. “Not all of them. Not my dad.”
    “Death is a part of life,” Alex murmurs. “Everyone dies.”
    “Not like this.” I look toward my body, zipped and concealed on the shore. Why are they just leaving it there? Why aren’t they taking it somewhere, like, now? Small-town cops , I think to myself, are incompetent . What do they know? It’s not like there’s ever any real crimes in Noank for them to solve.
    A local news crew has arrived. People from the other boats are awake and staring, hands over their mouths. Looking past the docks, I can see my neighbors standing on their front porches or peeking out from their windows. Watching. Fascinated. It’s probably like a movie to them, something to dish about over coffee all morning, a gruesome story to share with their friends who might have missed the big show. Beyond the latest hot gossip, people in Noank care about things above all else. They might be upset that I’ve died, sure, but I’d bet anything that they’re all wondering what my death will do to their property values.
    Joe Wright looks like he’s doing his best to keep things from dissolving into total chaos. He’s gathered my friends and my parents on the front deck of the boat, and they’re heading inside.
    I look at Alex. He nods. “Let’s go.”
    Inside the Elizabeth , there’s a mess kind of suspended in time: sleeping bags still unrolled on the floor, the coffee pot filled with grinds but no water, empty beer cans scattered on the kitchen countertop. Above the captain’s seat there is a photograph, taken only a few months before my mother died. Ironically, it was my stepmom, Nicole, who took the picture—she and her husband were always close with my parents, and Josie and I were always best friends. I’ll never forget that day on the boat, both of our original families together and happy for what was probably the last time. At least, we were as happy as we could have been, considering the circumstances. See, my mom was really sick by then. In the picture, I’m eight, almost nine, and am wearing my dad’s captain hat. My parents stand on either side of me. We are all smiling. My mother is so thin that her cheeks are sunken into hollows. Her arms are like rails. Any fool could have seen she wasn’t well.
    Mommy. I want to be with her so badly right now. I would give anything. I close my eyes, trying to imagine her from a better time, before she got so sick.
    And like magic, there we are: I stand watching the two of us in the bathroom of the elementary school. I’m wearing a black ballet leotard, pink tights, and pink ballet slippers. My light blond hair is pulled into a tight bun, secured with bobby pins. It must be the evening of a dance recital. When I was a little girl, I took