Until We Meet Again(72)
driveway. I wipe away the tears on my face. They won’t do
me any good now.
He slams on the brakes and unlocks the doors, but doesn’t
put the car in park. “Go,” he says, staring out the windshield.
A flicker of hope lights in me. “You’re not…going to tell my
mom what I’ve said?”
Finally, Brandon looks me in the eye. He doesn’t seem as
angry as I thought. More confused.
“I don’t ever want to talk about it again. And I don’t ever
want to talk to you again. As far as I’m concerned, this conversation, that conversation on the beach, none of it ever happened. Deal?”
I nod, blinking back surprise. “Are you sure you’re not going
to tell anyone?”
“Goodbye,
Cass.”
“I just—”
“Goodbye.”
I stumble out of the car. “Okay, bye.”
Before I can give him a final wave, Brandon zooms away.
Watching him speed down the driveway, I’m not sure what
to feel. I guess it should be a relief, but I also can’t completely
relax. It’s almost too good to be true…
Rubbing the shiver off my arms, I head back to the house.
Mom’s still gone, so I go straight for the beach. I just want
some time with Lawrence.
Passing through the bushy path, however, the hairs
on the back of my neck stand on end. Something’s off.
Something’s wrong.
Another step and I see them.
Lawrence and Mom. Standing together on the beach.
They both look up at me at the same time. Lawrence’s expression says it all. Though Mom’s furious, thin-pressed lips do a good job as well.
At that moment, part of me gives up. Maybe destiny is
involved, just not in the way I thought. Maybe Lawrence is
destined to die, and the more I’m in the picture, the more certain that becomes. Everything I do to help him only seems to get us both deeper into trouble.
Mom folds her arms across her chest, letting her glare sink in.
At this point, though, I’m done. I throw out my arms.
“I don’t know what to say, Mom.”
She looks more disappointed than mad. I’ve never been the
sneaking out type or one to lie to her. “I think your friend
needs to leave.”
Lawrence and I exchange a tense glance.
“He lives on the other side of the point,” I say quickly.
Lawrence gives an imperceptible nod, then bows his head to
my mom.
“Again, I apologize, ma’am. I never intended any disrespect.”
Mom visibly softens at his politeness, though she still tries
to maintain her look of stern disapproval. “I hope to meet you
again under better circumstances.”
“Indeed.”
Lawrence starts down the beach, casting a glance at me
over his shoulder. We’ll see each other later, but even so,
I don’t like seeing him leave. There’s so much we need to
plan for tomorrow. These interruptions are giving me a
serious headache.
When he’s far enough away, Mom turns to me, and her
expression hardens.
“How long?” she asks.
I feel sick to my stomach. “It’s a really complicated situation, Mom.”
“This explains your behavior lately,” she says with a sigh.
“You know my rules about lying.”
“I’ve never really lied.”
“All that time you spent ‘on the beach’? All those ‘trips to
the library’?”
“I really was at the library! You saw me!”
She shakes her head. “Don’t make this worse.”
“Mom,
listen—”
She holds a silencing hand in the air. “We’ll discuss this later,
when I’m in a better mood. For now, you are grounded. And I
mean at the house. No beach.”
My whole body tenses. “No.”
“In your room for the rest of the night. I will be watching the
stairs,” she adds. “I know you snuck out the other night.”
I grab her arm with desperation. “Mom, please. I can’t—”
“Enough,” she says firmly. “I need some time to think about
what I’m going to do with you.”
“Mom!”
She points to the house, a clear command. She can’t do this
to me. Not today, of all days. Lawrence and I need to spend
every minute crafting a plan for tomorrow. I won’t abandon
him. I can’t.
“Move it, Cass,” Mom says. “You’re just making things worse
for yourself.”
A wild, fierce energy wells up in my chest, and I want to
scream, “You can’t make me!” Eddie does that all the time.
Maybe I should give it a try. Or maybe I just make a break for
it. Hide out until she gives up looking for me.
I think of Lawrence, of how much he needs me, and take
a slow breath to calm myself. For him, I will show control. If