Epic Sins (Epic Fail #1)(48)

Her tone is serious, and I know she means every word that she’s saying. Aunt Peggy says the same words to me all of the time.

“It’s weird, Cass. I feel like I have a purpose, you know? I appreciate what I have and how I can help others. It scares the hell out of me that somehow I’ll mess it up, but I know what I’m supposed to be doing. Don’t you feel that way?” I ask her, curious.

“Hell no,” she answers definitively. “I don’t know what my purpose is or the reason I’m even in nursing school. I’m following your lead. Following in your footsteps. I see what makes you happy. What makes you tick. And I want to feel the same way. I want to be like you.”

I snort out loud.

“No you don’t. Trust me. You know me better than anyone and know everything that I’ve gone through. You do not want to be like me.”

“Sam, what you’ve overcome is tremendous. I’m going to get sappy on you again for a second, and you have to bear with me.” Her eyes are still wet, and I lie back down on my bed, staring up at the solar system poster tacked to the ceiling above me.

“Yeah, your life at sixteen was torn the f*ck apart. I completely get that. But your entire outlook on life and how you function day-to-day is remarkable. Your strength is astonishing. You almost drowned when you were seven. What did you do? You got swim lessons and learned pool yoga.”

I shake my head and shrug my shoulders. Her analogy is comical.

“Psycho Todd Mitchell tries to feel you up in a pool. What do you do? You nut-crunch him and then become a black belt in kickboxing.”

All of this is true.

Hearing Todd’s name, however, makes me cringe. A few months after the incident in Trish O’Toole’s pool, Todd was arrested for multiple rapes and attempted murder. He’s been in prison since he was convicted of all of his crimes. The faces of the victims are still fresh in my head. Every single one of them. The media played out the story over and over again and it made my skin crawl. I wish I could have hurt him more than I did that day he attacked me in Trish’s pool. I was definitely one of the lucky ones, and I became a stronger person for it.

Cassie continues, “Your parents get killed by a deranged psycho drug addict and you vow to become a nurse to help people get better. You save people’s lives every single day, Sam. You’re amazing.”

Hearing her describe my parents’ murder sends a jolt to my heart, and I take a quick breath and hold it. What little reminders I have of them adorn my room. My bracelet dangles from a hook next to my bed. The blue ribbon is attached to the poster that I fall asleep staring at every night. My Googie sleeps next to me, reminding me of their comfort and love.

I exhale slowly and turn on my side again to look at Cassie.

“I’m done earning my badges,” I say softly. “It’s time for me to give back.”

Her eyes light up with victory.

“Exactly my point,” she says and turns off the light.





Garrett

Past

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Age 25



“I CAN’T BELIEVE HE DID IT,” I say, shaking my head and tossing back my sixth shot of Jameson.

“Dude, I can’t even.” Tristan does the same and clinks his empty shot glass against mine.

“Can’t believe who did what?” Kirsten chirps as she slides onto the barstool next to Tristan.

“Alex, man. Dude got married.” Tristan’s eyes glaze over, and his smile freezes on his face. He’s about to pass out.

Kirsten pokes him in the side, and he sits up with a jolt. “Why don’t you go upstairs?” She nudges him and holds a plastic key in front of his nose. He swipes at it until it comes into focus and stands from the bar stool. “Whoa, I shouldn’t have stood up so fast.” He wobbles a bit on his feet and backs up toward the hotel lobby. We’re in the bar after Alex and Tabby’s wedding reception. It ended two hours ago, and the newlyweds are long gone.

“Where’s Alex?” Tristan acts confused. And drunk.

“He’s upstairs sleeping with his bride, Tristan. Exactly where you should be.” Kirsten waves at him and blows him a kiss.

“Will you be up soon?” he asks, hopeful.

“Of course.”

Tristan stumbles to the elevators and practically falls in. He disappears behind the doors, and I laugh.

“What an amazing wedding,” Kirsten says as she flags down the bartender. She orders a glass of Pinot Noir and turns to face me. “Don’t you think?”

“Sure, it was amazing.” I humor her with what she wants to hear. If she starts talking about flowers and centerpieces, I’m out of here.

The bartender places a large glass of wine in front of her and says, “This is on me.” He winks at her and she ignores his advances.

“I think he likes you,” I joke and grab the last shot of whiskey that was lined up in front of me. I toss it back and take a large swig of my beer.

“Nah, he’s just hoping for a big tip.”

She sighs, raises her glass of wine and says, “Cheers.”

I take another sip of beer and nod.

“There aren’t two people in the world more deserving than Alex and Tabby.” Kirsten is Tabby’s best friend and boss. She owns a bookstore in the city and seems to be pretty successful.