Freeze Frame by Heidi Ayarbe Read Free Book Online Page B

not the shed?
    I shoved the yellow plastic bag of clothes from the detention center into my dresser, put the watch on, and went downstairs. Five days of unread Nevada Appeal s were piled on the coffee table.
    I flipped through them until I saw Jason’s picture on the front page of Tuesday’s paper. “C-11” was printed under his picture. The headline read “Tragedy Puts Carson City on the Map: Is Any Community Immune from Gun Violence?”
    My hands trembled as I opened to page C-11.
    Obituaries.
    The words blurred on the page.
    You’re dead. You’re really dead.
    Yeah. Big surprise?
    It’s here. In writing.
    Well, you can’t believe everything you read.
    I tore out his obituary, crumpling it up and shoving it into my wallet.
    â€œKyle?” Mom hollered from the kitchen.
    Stay cool. It’s just the fucking newspaper. Keep your voice steady. I walked into the kitchen, wiping my sweaty hands on my jeans. “How come Mel’s not at school?”
    â€œWe thought we could all take a break this week.”
    I slumped into a chair. Maybe they all hoped that things would change if we stopped our lives, too. But the same Carson High was there with the same teachers, same students, same secretaries—same, same, same. All except for Jason. None of us could escape that.
    Dad went out to the shed. I sat in the kitchen while Mom worked.
    â€œDo you want to help me out?” She passed me a bowl.
    I squished the ricotta cheese and eggs between my fingers. Mom had made two lasagnas and was starting her second pie and a batch of cookies by midafternoon.
    Melanie slumped into the kitchen. “Is there anything to eat? I skipped lunch.”
    â€œI don’t have anything prepared. You’ll have to get something on your own.” Sweat trickled down Mom’s temple. She concentrated on her egg whites.
    Melanie looked at the table, heavy with food. “Where’s Dad?”
    â€œHe’s in the shed.” I stirred the chocolate chips into thedough. Dad had spent the whole day there since we got back from the courthouse. He’d taken a bucket and bleach. The police had taken all the photos they needed and said Dad could clean it up.
    Mel sat next to me. I handed her the bag of chips.
    â€œThanks,” she whispered. “I’m kinda hungry.”
    â€œMe, too.” It felt strange to want to eat something. Wrong.
    We heard the shed doors screech closed. Dad put a padlock on the outside and snapped it shut; then he stood and stared. He held a bucket of water in his hands. Bloody rags hung over the side. Dad looked like a frame still. He didn’t even move.
    â€œMel.” Mom’s sharp voice interrupted my trance. “Come with me. We’re going to take this food over to the Bishops’.”
    Mel looked at Mom. “What am I supposed to say to Brooke?”
    Mom paused. “I don’t know, Mel.” She shook her head. “We need to take things one day at a time.”
    I remembered how when I was little, Mom and Dad had the answers to everything. Or maybe I just thought they did.
    It was easier being little.
    Mel and Mom left with two baskets filled with food. I tried imagining the conversation on the Bishops’ porch. Iwatched out the front window as Mom and Mel walked down the street, slowly, deliberately. They returned fast. Mel ran up to her room, crying. Mom put the still filled baskets down on the table and dished out lasagna.
    She knocked on Mel’s door, screaming over the latest boy band’s music, “Mel, turn that down! Come out and eat some lasagna!”
    â€œI’m never leaving my room again.” Mel had said this millions of times before, but this time I believed her.
    Mom came back downstairs. She went to the door and hollered at Dad. “Michael, come inside! It’s late. It’s cold. You and Kyle need to eat.”
    I looked at the wavy noodles, doused in tomato sauce and melted