Eternal Youth (10 page)

Callie wrapped her arms around herself and sunk so low in her seat that she could no longer stare angrily out the window. “I should care, but I don’t. I thought he really liked me. At least when I’m trekking through the mountains, I don’t have to worry about this crap.”

“You’ll be leaving again soon. I’m sure you can find some beach bum to crush on.” Braden signaled to leave the interstate.

“Can you take me to Avery’s?”

“Sure, I’ll take a rain check on the pizza.”

Callie narrowed her eyes. Her stomach
was
growling. “Actually, I’m starving. I’m not going to let that jerk make me miss a meal. Pull into the first fast food joint you see, and I’ll drown my sorrows in fries and a milkshake.”

“That’s my girl.” Braden eased the car into the drive-thru of an
In and Out Burger
. There was nobody in line, so they pulled right up to the speaker. “Just fries and a shake?”

“Yeah.”

As he ordered, Callie stared blankly at the row of cars parked in the lot of the restaurant. She had thought that something special had happened with Jonathan. He had been so kind and perfect…

Not perfect
, Callie thought, her ire rising at the same time the tears hit again. Avery was right; nobody was perfect. Braden either didn’t notice—or just pretended he didn’t—as hot, fat tears began to course down Callie’s cheeks. They drove around to the window.

“Here, Mom gave me some cash,” Callie said, lifting her butt from the seat to pull the wad of money from her pocket. After six years of travel, she’d learned to live without a purse. They weren’t conducive to riding camels in the Sahara.

Braden waved her off and handed a twenty out the window to the cashier. “Nah, I’ve got it.”

Callie raised an eyebrow and stared at her cousin across the dim car. “Bray, you’re on a budget, remember?”

In the orange glow of the drive-thru lights, Braden smiled sadly. “Dad…gave me some.”

The sad tone of his voice made Callie’s face fall. She didn’t know what to say.

“Thank you,” Braden told the cashier, and handed the bag off to Callie. He whipped out of the lane and into a parking spot.

Callie pulled her box of fries from the bag. She noticed movement from the corner of her eye, and turned to find a couple making out in the car next to them.

Fury shot through her once more. Callie shoved a fry in her mouth. “Why are guys such jerks? He seemed so perfect. I must really have bad taste in guys.”

“Teenagers are just very self-centered. Maybe you should wait ‘til you’re thirty to date.” Braden grinned, and then took a sip of his chocolate milkshake.

“Maybe. I guess I just thought having a boyfriend would make me feel—normal. Or something.”

“Welcome to the real world, Callie. Heartbreak
is
normal.” Braden stared into his burger for a moment before flashing an ironic grin. “I’m sure you’ll have forgotten his name when you’re climbing the Swiss Alps.”

“Swiss Alps? Ugh, is that where we’re going next?”

“Just teasing. I haven’t seen your mother’s latest itinerary. Come to think of it, that’s kinda strange. She usually shares her plans with me while she makes them.” The two were silent as they considered the implications. Braden shrugged. “Maybe she really is taking a long break this time.”

“Don’t get my hopes up.”

Neither said anything else as they polished off their food and milkshakes.

After Braden crumpled his wrappers and shoved them in the bag, he turned in his seat, one hand dangling on the steering wheel. “You okay?”

Callie took a deep breath and let it out. “I think. Full belly calmed me down slightly. Let’s go to Avery’s.”

“Oh, no. What’s wrong?” Avery asked. She stepped back to allow Callie to storm through the front door and into the hallway. Braden honked from the driveway, and Avery waved at him as he backed out and left.

Avery’s house—like Gran’s—was one of the only constants in Callie’s life. Her best friend had lived there as long as Callie had known her—which was pretty much their whole life. It was a two-story Cape Cod with dark blue shutters and lots of symmetrical windows. Avery’s mom had made use of all the natural light: she painted the walls pale pastels and put in light-colored hardwood floors. So while it was a small house, it didn’t feel like it on the inside.

Avery shut and locked the door. Callie turned to face her best friend, biting her lip and fighting away yet more tears. “Jonathan. You were right—he
isn’t
perfect. I ran into him and his
long-term girlfriend
.”

“What a jackass!” Avery raged, slamming her fist to her other palm. Her face softened at Callie’s tears. “Come on, let’s go to the kitchen, and you can tell me what happened.”

The kitchen of the Lewis household was the heartbeat of the house. It wasn’t anything special—just a weird-patterned linoleum floor and old, scratched wooden cabinets over a navy-blue counter. But anytime Callie was home, she always spent the majority of her time in Avery’s kitchen. Gran always said the hearth of a home could be anywhere the owners made it.

Mrs. Lewis was washing dishes in an electric pink apron with yellow dish gloves pulled up to her elbows. She was an attractive woman with the same blonde hair as her daughter and the same heart-shaped face. The woman had always been absent-minded, and she proved she hadn’t changed by giving Callie a big hug and getting soap in her hair. “Callie, it’s so great to see you.”

“Hey, Mrs. Lewis.” Callie hiccupped from the effort of holding back her tears, and wiped her nose with the sleeve of her shirt.

“Oh, sweetie.” Mrs. Lewis frowned. “What’s wrong?”

“Just boy trouble, Mom, she’s fine.” Avery grabbed Callie’s arm and directed her to sit in a chair at the table. “You want something to drink?”

“Um. Coke?”

“His loss, honey,” Mrs. Lewis said, as if Avery hadn’t spoke at all. “You’ll go through a slew of boys in your lifetime, and he’ll soon be nothing but a bitter memory. I wish I could say you’d forget him, but you won’t. I still recall my first heart break, Mark Jackson.” Mrs. Lewis’s face smoothed, and she stared over Callie’s head with a faraway look in her eyes. “That boy crushed my soul. I saw him at my high school reunion, and he was fat, bald, and unemployed. I guess I got the last laugh.”

Callie giggled. It did make her feel a little better. “Thanks, Mrs. L. Since I’m here, can I convince you to let Avery come on vacation with us? Pretty please with sugar on top.”

Mrs. Lewis laughed, swatting Callie gently with the back of a gloved hand. “Nice try. Sorry, kiddo. Avery probably didn’t mention that she is failing
two
classes. She can’t afford to miss any school. If she manages to pull her grades up, I’ll consider letting her go with you on the next school break.”

Callie rolled her eyes and frowned in Avery’s direction. “You didn’t tell me you were doing bad.”

“I don’t want to talk about it. I want to talk about what happened to
you
,” Avery said pointedly. She put a glass and a can of soda on the table, then sat down with her own. “What did you do?”

As Mrs. Lewis returned to her dishes, Callie replayed the scene for them. When she was done, Avery burst out laughing.

“Good for you! You showed that asshole who’s boss.”

“Avery. Language,” Mrs. Lewis admonished, but she was still chuckling.

“You wanna make some popcorn and watch a funny movie to get your mind off it?” Avery asked. “You’re only home another two days. You should stay the night.”

“That sounds fantastic. I’ll call Mom and let her know.”

Callie made a quick call and got the okay from her mom, all the while thinking of her best friend’s sad declaration.

Two days
.

May 30th, 2011

Egypt—another place I can’t spell

Lots of freaking spiders. And we aren’t talking itsy-bitsy spiders that don’t bother the natives. We’re talking spiders as big as my foot and just as lethal. I found one in my boot this morning. In the “nice” hotel in town. Good thing Braden told me to check my shoes before sticking my feet in or I’d be checking out the wallpaper at the local hospital.

I swear Mom’s off her rocker. She wants to break into the Great Pyramid because she’s certain the fountain must be underneath. Let me repeat: SHE WANTS TO BREAK INTO THE GREAT DAMN PYRAMID.

Let’s review the facts:

1.) This is the desert. Camels store water in their HUMPS because they can’t F*ING FIND WATER. No water, ergo NO FOUNTAIN!

2.) The Great Pyramid may as well be called The Great You’ll-never-find-your-way-out-alone. That place is a death trap. We die = NO ETERNAL YOUTH ANYWAY!

3.) Even if we get there and get inside, we gotta find a way out. Eternal youth inside a temple to the dead would suck.

I’ll never reach my 17th birthday. My mom’s gonna get me killed.

I
t was the night before they were set to leave before Callie went back home. She couldn’t bring herself to say goodbye to Avery any sooner than necessary, especially since being with her best friend was a balm for her wounded heart. They spent their last two days together just being
normal
—the mall, the movies, even a pool party. Callie basked in the glow, knowing it was just the train at the end of the tunnel.

She was packing her suitcase when Emma poked her head in the open doorway. “How’s it going, baby?”

Callie shrugged and carefully folded the T-shirt she held. “Fine. Should I bring any long-sleeved shirts?”

“I wouldn’t think so.” Her mother picked her way into the room, dodging piles of dirty laundry and towels. “Please clean this before we leave.”

“Okay.”

Her mom pushed away the mess of covers on the bed and sat down. “Are you excited?”

Callie raised an eyebrow, not bothering to look at her mom. “Um. I guess.”

Emma reached out and laid a hand on Callie’s arm. “Nothing crazy this time, Calista. Just a simple vacation with your grandmother. We’ll live in our bikinis and eat a lot and then come back home.”

“Yeah. But for how long? A couple days? Until you drag me off again?” Callie’s voice cracked, and she turned away so her mom wouldn’t see her eyes get teary.

“Oh, Callie.” Emma sighed deeply before tugging her daughter to sit beside her. She wrapped her arms around Callie and laid her chin on the top of her head. “I’m sorry.”

Callie wasn’t sure what her mom was apologizing for—ripping her daughter from familiar life to chase a dream? Bringing her home only to take her away again? Or dragging her off on a vacation when she only wanted to remain home?

Callie circled her mom’s waist with both arms and squeezed tightly. Whatever it was that her mom’s apology covered—whatever her mom couldn’t put into words—Callie would take it.

Even if she knew it wasn’t true.

Gran had breakfast on the table at five in the morning when Callie trudged down the stairs, still half-asleep.

“You do realize you’re wearing two different colored socks?” Braden asked, his eyebrow raised over his coffee mug.

Callie glanced down at her feet and groaned. One purple, one blue. “Fabulous.” She fell into a chair at the table and laid her head on her arms.

Gran chuckled from where she was scrubbing the stove top. “Eggs, bacon, and pancakes, love. Eat up.”

Callie sat up as Braden pushed an empty plate in her direction, and she started filling her plate.

She’d always loved the silence of her Gran’s house in the early morning. Even with her cousin and grandmother in the room, there was nothing to break the silence but the steady ticking of the coffee maker and the low hum of the refrigerator. Gran had opened the small window over the sink so that the morning chirp of bird song filtered through the gauzy curtains.

“Where’s Mom?”

“In the shower,” Gran answered. She put the skillet in the dishwasher and closed the door. “We’ll leave as soon as she’s eaten.”

“You should change your socks first,” Braden quipped, turning a page in the newspaper.

“You should change your…face,” Callie retorted.

Braden shook his head and shoved a forkful of eggs in his mouth before saying, “Original.”

Their playful banter was something Callie was used to—she had a hard time picturing the next couple of weeks without him. She pouted. “I still can’t believe you aren’t going with us.”

“It will be good for you guys to have an all-girls trip.” He lowered his voice and looked her in the eye. “I think you and Aunt Emma need it, Cal.”

“I guess so.” She crunched on a piece of bacon.

“I know so. I don’t want to read about you in the Sunday paper. ‘Sixteen-year-old girl drowns mother in bathtub’.”

“Ha ha.” Callie stuck out her tongue, conveniently covered in chewed bacon. She swallowed and took a drink of orange juice. “I plan on laying by the pool and reading books the whole trip. Maybe I can make time for a massage or two.”

It probably
was
going to be nice to have a regular vacation. It would be the first time since her dad died that she could lounge around and do nothing; she wasn’t even going to leave the hotel.
If Mom or Gran wants to do any sightseeing, they’re going to be on their own
, Callie thought.
Heck, I’m so tired right now I could sleep the entire vacation.