Before I Wake
Page 89

Is Brendon coming? my dad asked softly, and I glanced at them in surprise. Why would he need to ask her if his own brother was coming to the lake? Had he and my uncle had an argument?
He said hed swing by after work, Harmony said, and the slight flush to her cheeks said much more than her words had.
Whats wrong? Tod asked, snatching a chip from the open bag on the table in front of me.
I pulled him close enough to whisper, though no one else could hear me, anyway. I think your moms going out with my uncle.
Tod laughed. Yeah. For a couple of months now. Do not ask me how I know.
See something you didnt want to see?
Occupational hazard.
Is that why he left Sophie at my house last night?
He left at, what, nine? Tod asked, and I nodded. Mom doesnt have to be at work till eleven. He scowled. Great. Now I need something more pleasant to purge the unwanted visual. Kittens on fire should do the trick.
Does Sophie know? I asked, and Tod shrugged, but I knew the answer before Id even finished the question. She didnt know. Nash didnt, either. If either of them knew, wed have heard about it during the sleepover.
While my dad and Harmony talked over the grill, Tod, Em, and I sat at the end of the dock with our feet dangling over the water, staring out at the lake while we waited for the burgers to cook. This is weird, Em said. I cant believe hes gone. She pushed her hair behind her shoulders and pulled her knees up to her chest. If Alec were here, what do you think hed be doing?
Sitting on the picnic table, eating all the cupcakes, Tod said.
Telling us how, in the Netherworld, cupcakes are stuffed with entrails and bile instead of cream, I added, and I could see him saying that so clearly in my head I didnt know whether to laugh or cry.
Thats kinda true, though, Tod said with a sad smile. Over there, we are the cupcakes. Human cupcakes.
And Alec would have been able to make us laugh about even such a horrific truthif I hadnt cut him open and spilled his bloody filling all over us both.
Fresh tears filled my eyes and I was trying to wipe them away without looking like I was wiping them away when a dark blue sedan squealed into the parking lot, spitting gravel beneath its wheels before swinging into the space between my car and my dads. Em stood and took off down the dock. Jaysons here! she called over her shoulder, and I was glad, because now there was someone to comfort her, too, even though Jayson had never met Alec.
What do you think the appeal is? Tod said as we watched Jayson get out of his car, grinning like hed just ridden his firstroller coaster. Evidently skipping school was a new thrill for him.
Emma threw her arms around him and kissed him, and he looked surprised by the enthusiasm of her greeting. I wasnt, though. Shed felt like a fifth wheelor maybe a seventh wheelfor the past eighteen hours.
I dont know, but I hope the appeal is that hes normal. Both human and alive. Ive dragged her into enough weird and dangerous crap this year.
She would have come willingly, if you hadnt dragged her, Tod insisted. Shes your best friend. Is there anything you wouldnt do for her?
No
Well, thats obviously mutual.
When I looked up, I found Emma dragging Jayson down the pier, their footsteps shaking the boards beneath us. Em dropped onto the end of the dock next to me, and Jayson sat on her other side with a nod and a Hey to Tod.
Tod returned the casual greeting, and I almost laughed out loud. His regular-guy act was good enough to fool anyone who didnt know him, but I couldnt think of him as a regular guy. Yes, I knew hed gone to a regular high school before he died, and hed played regular-guy football, just like Nash. And hed probably done regular-guy stuff like watch sports, and break curfew, and kiss girlsone of my least favorite visuals ever. But I couldnt see him like that. Tod was anything but normal to me.
Happy birthday, Kaylee, Jayson said, leaning around Emma to look at me. I brought you a gift, but I didnt see any others, so I left it in my car .
Oh, you didnt have to bring anything! I could hear surprise in my own voice. This is a gift-free party, except for my dad. Because hes my dad.
Jayson shrugged. Well, if you dont want it, maybe Emma will.
Yes. Kaylees rejected birthday present. Thats what I want. She laughed, then pushed him playfully, and Tod pulled me up by one hand.
Lets give them some privacy, he said.
What about our privacy? I asked as he tugged me down the pier.
We can make our own privacy. His fingers slid between mine, his hand warm in contrast to the cool breeze coming off the lake. You werent serious about the no-presents rule, were you? he asked.
Why? Did you get me something? You didnt have to get me anything.
Well, its not a present in the traditional sense. But its something Ive never given anyone else, and I want you to be the first.
Were not talking about your virginity, are we? Because I happen to know that ship has sailed. Long before Id been seaworthy.