Know Him
Courtney E. Loney
For my mom & dad who have always
encouraged me to chase my dreams and instilled in me I can accomplish anything, I put my mind to. I love you both.
I.
Chapter 1:
The ice cream sent chills down my spine as I took my first bite. “I don’t see how you can bite ice cream Sutton! It makes me cringe just watching you!” My mom said quickly slurping up her coffee.
The sun beamed down on the top of her head causing her red highlights to glisten in the sun. Her bright red nail polish matched her highlights perfectly, causing them to pop even more.
We made our way over to a bench next to a little pizza shack. “I love it here.” My mom softly said. I nodded in agreement.
It was insane to think just a few weeks ago I was still back in Massachusetts celebrating my high school graduation. The sound of my mom screaming my name as I strutted across the stage echoed in my head.
My entire class was dressed in blue caps and gowns from head to toe. I couldn’t help but think we looked like hundreds of blueberries all seated together on the turf of the football field.
Graduation wasn’t anything special for me. Don’t get me wrong I was a good student. I graduated with high honors but I didn’t have the typical high school experience. I was kind of a loner.
Reagan was the best friend for the entirety of my life so far. She was everything that I wasn’t, wild, spunky, bubbly. We literally considered ourselves two halves that made a whole. When she ended up moving away right before high school started I was devastated. Since I was basically forced to take on high school without her I just did what I had to do to get by.
Mom, Gia, and I came down to Coopersville at the beginning of the summer. Our family had a little bit of a downward spiral just after I graduated. My mom and her longtime boyfriend Lawrence split and it was a tough breakup for sure. It wasn’t only tough on her but on my little sister Gia and me as well.
Our father left when we were very little and we saw him on the holidays and the breaks. He really did try his best and he was a good dad; Lawrence had just been around more.
Lawrence was a nice guy...or so we thought. He was always kind of uptight so after five years of being with mom we were very surprised to find out he had a wife on the side; especially because he spent A LOT of time with us. It made me sick to think that we were taking a man away from his wife and kids for five years. I mean I know we had no idea and Lawrence did a great job hiding it, but the fact that trips to our house, dinner dates, and vacations were work-related according to his real family gave me a knot in my stomach.
Mom found out after he left his phone behind one day while he used the bathroom. A text from Doug popped up and read something about the kids missing him. My mom quickly investigated. She found a secret folder in his phone filled with photos of Lawrence, a beautiful blonde woman, a stocky preteen with glasses, and a young little girl with pudgy cheeks and a cheesy smile. In one photo, Lawrence even wore a “World’s greatest dad t-shirt”. These pictures were recent, too.
My mom confronted Lawrence as soon as he got out of the bathroom. He didn’t say anything. He just waited for mom to be done shouting, gathered his belongings then left. That was the end of that.
We were all really hurt by what happened. The summer began and we found ourselves sulking around unsure of what to do with all of our free time. So when mom’s Aunt Helen emailed her explaining she was struggling medically and financially a light bulb went off in her head.
Aunt Helen lived in a small beach house on the shore and my mom was a CNA. Aunt Helen needed help and it seemed like the perfect excuse for a much-needed getaway.
When my mom sat my sister and me down to tell us about her idea for a summer trip right before I started college and Gia the second grade her eyes lit up and there was no way we could turn it down. We packed up our bags and off we went.
When we had come down to Coopersville about a week and a half earlier my mom drove Gia in her van and I followed behind in my Jeep.
The atmosphere in Coopersville was clearly something special. As I drove through the center of town I heard the hum of upbeat music. The air smelled like a mix of sunscreen and saltwater. There was a gentle breeze flowing in my window but the sun was shining as well. People lined the streets, all smiling and laughing enjoying their days. I couldn’t help but smile myself as I navigated through the hustle and bustle. My GPS scolded me to take a right hand turn into a residential neighborhood and I could still see a slight glimpse of the beach in my rearview mirror.
Considering my mom drove like a grandma, I had pulled up to Aunt Helen’s before she and Gia had arrived. I got out of my Jeep and stretched my legs examining my new home for the summer.
The cottage itself wasn’t anything amazing. It was a cape house style home that clearly had never been updated. The siding and roofing were different shades of worn-out grey and there were red shutters with a matching door. A large picture window was front and center and I could see the outline of Aunt Helen sitting in the living room. The warm glow of the television was surrounding her.
I sighed and stretched as my mom's van pulled into the driveway behind me and our summer in Coopersville began.
“That boy’s looking at you.” My mom said poking me in the side. I snapped out of my daydream and was back to reality on the boardwalk.
“Shut up.” I hit her lightly. “You always say that.”
“Suit yourself.” She snorted.
I quickly glanced up. There was a boy looking at me. Our eyes met. I started choking on my ice cream. He was cute. He grinned at me with a genuine smile. He had dirty blonde curly hair and was wearing a red muscle shirt, khaki shorts, and a grease-stained apron. I jerked my head in the opposite direction. My heart was beating out of my chest.
“Let’s go back to the house,” I said, my cheeks getting redder and redder as I spoke. My mom giggled and I shot her a look walking away.
..
“I can’t hold it in anymore!” Reagan squealed.
“What are you all hyped up about?” I snarled.
“I’m coming to Coopersvi-!”
“You’re what?” I replied before she could even finish.
“Yeah! I’m coming to see my one and only, best friend!”
“What, how?!” I questioned.
Reagan lived with her mom, Angela, and her mom’s live-in boyfriend Stephen. Once Reagan’s parents got divorced in eighth grade because of her dad’s alleged affair, Reagan’s mom packed her up and moved back in with her parents in North Carolina. A short time after moving, she met a guy named Stephen and they were inseparable. Reagan was outgoing so she settled into North Carolina life just fine. She made friends and even found a delinquent boyfriend. Reagan and I made a promise to always keep in touch and this consisted of everyday facetime calls and yearly visits. Reagan usually came to visit me. Although after a wild weekend with her boyfriend, Shane, Reagan’s mom punished her by refusing to pay for our yearly visit.
“Shane just bought an old stalker van.” Reagan chuckled. “Specifically for road trips. I figured Coopersville would be a great first trip. And Sutton, he’s really trying to better himself. He’s staying out of trouble and is going to work on getting a job when we get back.”
“Oh my God, I’m so excited!” I screamed into my phone.
“We’re gonna start driving down tomorrow morning! We should be there that night!”
“Wow Reagan I can’t believe it. I can’t wait! And your mom’s okay with all this?” I asked, belly flopping onto my bed.
“She said she wasn’t paying. She never said I couldn’t go!”
I laughed. “Okay, well I’m gonna get some sleep. So I’ll see you tomorrow night then?
”
“See you then! And let’s hit the boardwalk right away.” I nodded and disconnected the facetime call.
The next day I woke up to my sister Gia shaking me silly. “Sutton, wake up! You said today was MY day. Ronnie is already waiting downstairs,” she whined.
The previous week after my charger broke and all the stores were closed, I had promised Gia if she let me use hers overnight, I would take her and her bestie Ronnie anywhere she wanted.
Ronnie was Aunt Helen’s next-door neighbor. He was the cutest little guy with big round glasses. When we began our summer in Coopersville, Ronnie introduced himself to Gia and they instantly became the best of friends.
I picked up my phone and checked the time “7:43.” “Ughhhh,” I groaned. “You’re kidding, right G?”
“No! This is a rare occasion; we have a full day planned,” she said pursing her lips making the sweetest little puppy dog face ever.
“And what does this day consist of?” I asked. “So I can prepare.”
“Well, first we wanna go to breakfast at Seaports. Then we wanna go to the bay to catch a turtle to be Theo’s friend. You know Ronnie thinks Theo is getting depressed, missing his friends in the bay. Then we wanna get ice cream. Then-”
“Stop right there.” I interrupted. “Reagan is coming tonight. I am done being your slave at 4, got it?”
“Reagan’s coming?” Gia squealed. “Okay. Okay. Deal. Done at four, but you have to be ready to go at 8.” I groaned again and stood up shuffling her out of my room to prepare for my day of babysitting.
After a breakfast of M&M pancakes, and chocolate milk, I parked my old jeep on the side of the road and grabbed my beach chair and book out of the trunk. Gia and Ronnie found their spot near the murky water and searched for turtles. I sat in my chair and sunbathed.
Around 3, we were on our way to the Ice Cream Hut with a turtle named Penny in a bucket in my trunk. Gia and Ronnie both enjoyed dreamsicle cones and had melted ice cream running down their faces.
“I love summer,” Gia said, quickly trying to lick her cone clean before it all dripped onto the cement.
“Thank you, Sutton.” Ronnie said pushing his glasses up on his nose with one finger and grabbing the bucket that Penny was in. Gia talked over him discussing the plan for Penny and Theo’s initial encounter. I giggled.
“I’m going inside Gia; stay close.” I shouted over my shoulder as I walked towards the front door. She ignored me and continued on barking orders at poor Ronnie.
I pulled the screen door open with a creek. “Hello!” I yelled, my mom and aunt Helen not in sight from the entryway.
“In the kitchen!” My mom called out. I could hear the stress in her voice.
“No, Lynn. I told you we don’t need to wash them. You think my mom washed all of the berries when she made these pies for the whole town at the start of every summer?” My mom sighed.
“Making your famous blueberry pies Aunt Helen?” I said with some excitement in my voice trying to take some of the pressure off of my mom.
“I wanted to have them done weeks ago.” Aunt Helen muttered under her breath.
“I’ll help you out. I have a little time before Reagan gets here.” My mom smiled and mouthed a thank you in my direction. I strolled over to the sink and washed my hands then took heaping handfuls of blueberries and distributed them into the pie shells. Aunt Helen continued to boss my mom and I around as if we had never made a pie before.
The key to changing the subject with Aunt Helen was to ask her to tell a story of some sort. I figured it was the perfect opportunity to ask her about the time she won the Coopersville bake-off. Aunt Helen went on and on about how she gave the mayor’s wife a run for her money, telling me in great detail what the key to an award-winning pie was, melting a stick of butter on top of the shell.
After I placed the last pie in the oven to bake and set the timer, I decided to take a few minutes to relax before Reagan arrived. I was so excited to see my best friend. I wasn’t exactly ecstatic about the fact that I’d be third-wheeling it, but it would be nice to spend some time with people my own age. I found myself ripping through my closet trying on a bunch of different outfits for the occasion. By the time I finally picked something to my liking, I heard voices downstairs.
“It’s so good to see you! We’ve missed you so much!” I heard my mom chirp. I hurried down to be a part of the welcoming committee. There stood my beautiful best friend. Her hair dark brown, curly and long and a big smile etched across her face.
“Sutton!” She squeaked and gave me a huge hug.
“I’m so happy to see you!” I said. “Where’s Shane?”
“Oh he’s in the van getting his stuff together.” Reagan pointed at the front door and I grabbed her hand immediately walking towards it.
“I’m going to save you before Aunt Helen tells you her whole life story again.” I whispered. Reagan threw her head back and laughed; her waves bouncing up and down. We hurried out, ready to start our evening.
“Be back later!” I shouted into the house, pulling the door closed behind me.
There it was, an old white van clearly falling apart parked on the grass on the side of the cottage. It was rusted almost all over and it even had tape holding up the front bumper.
Shane bursted out of the back doors. A handle falling off as he exited. “The party has arrived!” He announced.
Shane’s blonde hair was almost as long as mine and hung down past his chest. He wore a beanie on his head, some tight black jeans and beat up vans. He was shirtless and a tank top was hanging out of his back pocket. Reagan and I laughed.
“Wow, how did that make it down here?” I questioned pointing towards the van.
“Don’t question my magic. As long as she makes it back we’re golden.” Shane smirked and put his arms around Reagan and I and we made our way down to the boardwalk.
Reagan and I slid into a booth at the Pizza Shack and barked our orders to Shane. “A large buffalo chicken pizza and two medium lemonades.” Shane pretended to jot down our orders on an imaginary notepad and bowed.
“Anything for the princesses.” Reagan rolled her eyes and I giggled.
“So update me on your life Sutton! You have to have something to tell me! You’re so lucky you get to be spending your summer here it’s beautiful! Hey speaking of beautiful, look at that hottie over there.” Reagan’s eyes led me to the cute guy from the other day and she stuck her finger up to point at him. I quickly snatched her hand down.
“Reagan don’t point!” I squealed.
I looked back over at him. There he was behind the counter in that same red tank top and grease covered apron. Shane was across the counter from him. They were laughing about something and he was pointing at the wolf tattoo on Shane’s arm.
“Earth to Sutton.” Reagan waved her hand in front of my face. “Why did you freak out and then just zone out on me! All I said was he was cute!”
“I saw that kid the other day and my mom said the same thing.”
“Damn, your mom has great taste too then.” She giggled. “I’ll have you two hooked up by the time we leave here.” She winked at me.
A few minutes later Shane came back with a pizza in one hand and a tray of drinks in the other. He walked carefully trying to balance them both and finally gently set them down on the table. “Dinner is served!” He announced.
We spent the next half hour stuffing our faces with pizza slices and slurping on lemonade. Reagan talked my ear off about how excited she was to take a year off before college. She had an extravagant plan that included her and Shane traveling the world in his beat up van. I didn’t have the heart to tell her I thought they’d be lucky to make it home from here. When we were finished eating we strolled along the boardwalk enjoying the night.
“Hey a beer pong game are you kidding me? I kill it at beer pong.” Shane pulled a crinked $5 out of his pocket and slapped it into the hand of the kid behind the counter.
After lots of mediocr
e tosses and $20 later, Shane finally sunk a few balls. “Must be better when I’m drunk.” He shrugged.
“You can pick anything from the bottom shelf.” The kid said, half paying attention, half counting the wad of cash he had in his hands.
“My lady,” Shane said presenting the bottom shelf to Reagan. She went with a small stuffed pink dolphin.
“Let’s get out of here before you spend all the money you have to your name.” Reagan chuckled.
When we got back to the house Shane snached the dolphin from and Reagan stuck it on his front license plate. “Let’s go for a joy ride. It’s a beautiful night. We’re young!” Shane yelled, jumping up on the hood of his old van and banging his fists on his chest.
“Let’s do it!” Reagan said. As she pulled the van door open it screeched. I flipped on my phone and shot my mom a text.
Going for a little ride. Be home soon. Love you to the moon and back.
We parked the van on the side of an old dirt road and found the perfect spot to lay down and look at the stars. Shane’s favorite youtuber posted a new video so he insisted on hanging back and checking it out before he joined us. Reagan and I threw our shoes in the back of the van and raced across the road. The dew had already fallen and the grass was wet underneath me. I couldn’t think of a better moment than this. I looked over at my best friend as she gazed at the sky above and saw the giant grin on her face.
Reagan loved astronomy. She rambled on, pointing out all the different stars and constellations above. “Did you know that the sky is filled with love stories?” Reagan whispered, her tone soft and steady like a song. Before I could even respond she continued. “There are so many different constellations that are all connected in some way. Some are enemies. Some are in love but the most romantic part about the constellations is that the greek gods and goddesses who fell in love remain up in the sky together for eternity.”
“That’s really cool Reagan. Are those two a love constellation?” I asked, unfolding my hands from my stomach and pointing to the sky directly above us.
Know Him Page 1