The Other Boy

by Hailey Abbott

  He was treading water as she strode out onto the dock. The gray planks were smooth and hot under her bare feet. She stood at the end and looked down into the green depths. Sunlight filtered through the top of the water, turning it translucent. Below that, it was just dark. A spray of water splashed her feet and calves. “Stop!” she shrieked, retreating to the other side of the dock.

  David grinned and splashed her again. “Come on, chicken girl!”

  She stuck her tongue out at him, took a deep breath, and dove into the water. She gasped as she came to the surface. “It’s freezing, you ass!”

  David laughed. He turned a somersault and then swam away from her across the water. Maddy struck out after him, pulling at the water with her best summer swim-team strokes. Swimming in the lake felt very different from swimming in the chlorinated crystal-clear blue depths of the Bay Swim Club pool. For one thing, it felt very big. She couldn’t help feeling a tiny bit nervous about the deep, dark water below her. She knew that there weren’t any sharks or anything in a lake, but maybe…snakes? Immersed in her thoughts, she hadn’t noticed David disappear from her line of vision. She stopped swimming and treaded water for a minute, looking around. Where was he? She couldn’t see him anywhere. Suddenly, from under the water, something grabbed her ankles and pulled hard, forcing her head under the surface. She tried to scream but inhaled a mouthful of lake water instead. For one terrifying instant, she floundered under the water, still held around the ankles, choking on the water she had swallowed.

  Then her ankles were released. Her head broke the surface and she gasped. David was beside her, his arm around her waist, supporting her as he held on to the dock with the other hand. Maddy sputtered a minute, catching her breath, clinging to his strong shoulders. “Thanks a lot!” she finally managed.

  He looked abashed. “Sorry about that—I didn’t mean for you to swallow water. You can get me back.”

  Suddenly, she was conscious of how close she was to him. She released her hold quickly and swam away. “I’m okay now!” she called back over her shoulder.

  “You sure?” he called after her.

  “I’m fine!” she said, breaststroking along the waterline. Now that she was more used to it, the contrast between the warm sun on her shoulders and the cool water felt good. She swam laps for a few minutes, plotting out a little friendly revenge. Some long strands of pondweed floating near the surface of the water close to the shore gave her an idea, even if it was a little silly.

  She pulled up some of the slimy green weeds and twisted them into a cool, wet wad. Then, holding her weapon in one hand, she paddled back toward David. She was pretty near him when he saw her and said, “Hey. What’s up?”

  “This!” she yelled, and threw the pondweed. She scored a direct hit right on his forehead. He yelped and pawed the stuff off before dunking his head in the water to get rid of the sliminess.

  He was laughing when he came up. “Oh, you’re bad,” he said. “Better run away.” He tried to grab her around the waist but she slipped out of his hands and back-stroked across the lake beyond his reach. “Bye!” She waved.

  “Nice try!” he called and swam rapidly toward her, beating the dark water into white froth behind him. Maddy shrieked with pretend fright and paddled in a large circle. David snared her, this time successfully wrapping his arms around her. She felt a thrill of excitement at the touch of his smooth chest, deliciously warm under the cold water.

  “Arrrrahh!” David attempted a kung fu yell and, lifting Maddy like she weighed nothing, threw her into the water. She shook her hair out of her face as she came up.

  “You’re in so much trouble, jerk!” she yelled, and flung herself onto his back, sticking there like a suction cup. They sank and David started swimming near the bottom of the pond, Maddy still hanging on to his shoulders.

  All of the surface noises disappeared, leaving the two of them in cool green silence. The pondweed waved beneath them, and dark logs lay here and there, half buried in the underwater mud. Maddy felt like she and David had entered their own world for a moment—a bubble where no one existed but the two of them.

  Then the spell was broken as David swam upward and they surfaced. “Woo-hoo!” Maddy gasped. “I had no idea I could hold my breath that long!”

  “You just have to practice—Jeremy Olson and I used to have contests in his basement in fourth grade. First one to black out was the loser.”

  Maddy laughed, still panting. She treaded water, holding on to his shoulder with one hand. “Sounds great.” The words died on her lips as she suddenly realized how close their faces were—only inches away. Her eyes were drawn to his lips like magnets. Her hands grew numb and her face started tingling as she realized he was staring at her too.

  What are you doing, Maddy? A little, sane voice in her head pushed through the haze in her mind. Excellent question. She ripped her eyes from David’s face and, turning, swam slowly back toward the dock, which was now only a thin gray line above the water. David paddled by her side.

  For a minute, neither spoke. Maddy cast a glance at David under her eyelashes. His face was pleasant as usual but told her nothing about what he was thinking. Then he turned to her. “Can I tell you something?” he asked.

  “Sure,” she said, watching the dock slowly grow larger in front of them.

  “I was wrong about you.”

  Maddy blinked at the boldness of his words. “What?”

  He turned his head as best he could while still swimming. “I mean it. When I first met you, I thought you were someone different than you are.”

  Maddy was almost afraid to ask. “What…what did you think I was?”

  “Oh, I don’t know—maybe a little snobby?”

  She opened her mouth.

  David rushed ahead. “Hey, that’s not what I wanted to tell you. I was wrong, because it turns out that you’re really a hell of a lot of fun. I know this isn’t exactly the summer you’d hoped for. It wasn’t my plan, either. But this summer is turning out fifty times better than I thought it would. Score one for changing plans!”

  Warmth flooded Maddy’s body as she took in his words. She felt buoyant, like she could just float across the lake instead of swimming. She grinned at David. “I can’t disagree with you.”

  David pulled himself out onto the dock, but Maddy swam to the shore and waded in, wrinkling her nose at the feel of the muddy sand. Her parents and Fred had returned from their walk and were busily shaking out blankets and folding chairs. Maddy wrapped a towel around her shoulders. David came up behind her, panting a little and dripping.

  Maddy picked up an armful of blankets and worked her feet into her flip-flops.

  “Back to the grind tomorrow,” she said to David with a mock sigh as they struggled toward the woods.

  “Yeah, we can inhale bleach fumes together all day. I’m sure I have a few brain cells left that haven’t been fried yet.”

  Maddy pulled a mournful face, but the truth was, as they all walked together toward their trucks, tired and sandy, she didn’t really mind the thought of working on the tasting room with David. She actually couldn’t think of anything else she’d rather do.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Maddy sat with her parents in the living room that night after dinner. She had washed off in the outdoor shower stall after coming back from the lake, and the scent of citrus soap still lingered on her skin. Her stomach felt pleasantly full of her mother’s penne with sun-dried tomatoes and fresh local broccoli. Idly wondering why it was that her parents had decided to start living without a TV, she dug a puzzle out of the closet. The box sported a sweeping photo of the Grand Canyon in an improbable shade of orange. She spread the pieces out on the shiny pine coffee table and sat down on the floor to sort them out.

  The windows were open and the white lace curtains fluttered softly in the night breeze. Maddy’s mother was curled up in a big soft armchair, reading under a pool of yellow lamplight. Dad had stretched out on the slouchy green velour sofa. He looke
d like he might fall asleep any minute. Maddy snapped two puzzle pieces.

  Her mother looked up from her book and cleared her throat. “Maddy, honey.”

  “Yeah?”

  She leaned forward. “Your dad and I were talking about your birthday and considering what you said last week.” Maddy’s heart leaped for a minute. Maybe they had changed their minds. “And while we haven’t changed our minds about a trip to the city, we understand that you want to see your friends.”

  Maddy nodded. “I do, Mom.”

  “So we thought that you might want to invite Brian up to the vineyard for a birthday dinner here. That way we can still be together as a family.”

  Maddy considered the offer. It wasn’t what she’d had in mind, but it was better than nothing. At least they were trying. “Thanks, guys. I think that would be great.” Her mom relaxed visibly.

  “I know this hasn’t been your ideal summer, honey,” she said. “But I want you to know just how much we appreciate all your hard work on the tasting room and around the place. You’ve done a really nice job.”

  “Thanks,” Maddy said. “I’m going to go call Brian then, okay?”

  Maddy’s room was filled with the scent of honeysuckle from the night air. Her dad had installed some screens, so now she could keep her porch doors open without getting eaten alive by mosquitoes during the night. She didn’t bother turning on the lights. Just enough light filtered in from the kitchen windows below. Maddy pulled on a pair of soft gray jersey shorts and a camisole and stretched out on her bed. She reached for her phone, ignoring the nervous feeling in her stomach. She and Brian still had talked only once since David had grabbed the phone, and it hadn’t gone particularly well. It was weird calling and not knowing if Brian would be mad or not. Hopefully, this invite would just smooth everything over. He could come up here and they could pick up right where they’d left off. Maddy smiled at the thought and speed-dialed Brian’s number.

  “Hey, babe,” he answered.

  “Hi—how are you?” Maddy said.

  “Great.”

  There was a moment’s pause and then Maddy said, “What are you up to?”

  “Nothing—just hanging out on the couch, watching the Giants. Chad’s coming by—I think we might go over to Morgan’s in a while. She’s having some people over to hang out in her hot tub.” He didn’t sound angry.

  “That’ll be fun,” Maddy said automatically. “Um, Brian?”

  “Yeah?”

  “So, you aren’t still mad?” she asked carefully.

  “About what?”

  Maddy couldn’t believe it. “You know, the last couple times we talked? And—” She didn’t really want to remind him of the whole David incident if he barely remembered.

  “Oh, whatever. I’d completely forgotten about that. It’s no big deal,” Brian said. Maddy could hear the roar of the television in the background. “Yes! Touchdown!” Brian yelled.

  Maddy fell on her back and stared at the ceiling. Incredible. Here she was, obsessing for days, worrying he was mad at her, going over everything in her head a thousand times, and he wasn’t even thinking about it! That was so typical.

  Oblivious to Maddy’s inner turmoil, Brian went on. “So, did you ask your parents about coming down for your birthday?”

  Okay, apparently we’re moving on. “I did,” she replied, “and we had the worst fight. I was so mad—they actually wanted to take me to dinner and a movie with just them instead of letting me drive to see you.”

  “That’s typical of them,” Brian offered. “They’re so lame.”

  Maddy felt a stab of defensiveness. She’d called her parents lame herself a million times, but for some reason, it seemed different when he did it. “Well, it turned out okay, actually. They said today that you could come up to the vineyard for my birthday instead!”

  “Cool.”

  Maddy waited for a moment, but he didn’t go on. “Cool? That’s it? That’s all you’re going to say?”

  “Yeah, well, it’ll be great to see you, but obviously it’s hard to get all worked up about a two-hour drive, followed by hanging out on a farm.”

  “Well, I think it could be fun,” Maddy said quietly.

  “Yeah, maybe. Anyway, what are you doing up there in No Man’s Land?”

  “Oh, we had a good time today. We all went up to this lake that Fred knew about—Fred’s my dad’s business partner—and had a picnic, and David and I swam. It was beautiful. There was a little beach and a dock….” She trailed off.

  Brian laughed. “Wow, swimming in a lake. I guess that guy’s rubbing off on you, nature girl. What’s next, volunteering for Greenpeace?”

  Maddy sat up in bed. “It was fun! Look, you’ll see when you come up here—it’s actually really gorgeous. Wait until you see the room we’re fixing up—it looks so different than when we started. It’s all scrubbed and clean. We’re getting ready to paint it now.”

  “You’re getting me all turned on talking about scrubbing and painting,” Brian scoffed. “I can’t handle it.”

  “Stop. You don’t get it. I’m not just talking about the work. It’s just the whole feel of the place….” She struggled to find the right words. “I mean, everyone’s so much more relaxed—like, today, we watched six deer meet in the yard. Do you see what I mean?”

  “No. What do deer have to do with being relaxed?”

  “I don’t know. I’m not sure what I’m talking about.”

  “Yeah, no kidding.” They were quiet for a minute. Finally, Brian said, “Well, I think that’s Chad at the door.”

  “Okay,” she said. She felt tired all of a sudden. “Do you want to come up on Saturday or not?”

  “Of course I do. I’ll see you then, okay?”

  “Yeah, okay. Bye.”

  “Bye, babe.” He hung up. Maddy clicked her phone off and fell back on the bed, stretching her legs up against the wall. She was irritated and didn’t know why. She really wanted Brian to understand, but for the first time he didn’t seem to get her. The vineyard was turning out to be different than she’d thought. Maddy examined her tanned arms, which were starting to show muscle definition for the first time in her life. She had never been outdoors so constantly and, honestly, it felt good. Being surrounded by the grapevines, trees, and flowers of Napa all day, every day, felt satisfying—like eating a really great meal. She was surprised at herself, too. David wasn’t the only one who hadn’t realized Madeline Sinclaire was more than a pampered city girl.

  Maddy crooked her arm over her eyes and relaxed into the pillows. Maybe Brian will understand once he actually gets up here, she comforted herself. As she lay in the darkness, spinning pleasant images of her and Brian frolicking in the stream at the bottom of the field, Maddy realized that the cricket on the porch had been singing his nightly song for a while now. CHEEP, cheep, CHEEP, cheep. She hadn’t even noticed.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The interior of the gray pickup was hot, but David had both windows rolled down and music blasting when Maddy climbed onto the passenger seat at noon on Wednesday. “Hi,” he greeted her.

  “Hi.” Maddy buckled her seat belt and rested her elbow on the edge of the open window. She noticed his eyes lingering on her hair.

  “I like that…um—hairdo,” David said.

  “Thanks,” Maddy said, hiding a smile. She had spent several extra minutes that morning pulling her hair into a high, elegant chignon that showed off her neck and bare shoulders. David passed her a crumpled scrap of paper.

  “Here are the directions. I think it’s next to Jay’s Ice Cream.”

  Maddy squinted at the smeary ballpoint pen scratchings. The tasting room had been scrubbed sparkling clean, so Maddy had convinced David that they should choose the furniture for it now, before they started painting. Even if they found the tables and chairs today, it would take a while for everything to be delivered. At first he had resisted, moaning that he hated shopping, but she’d won after pointing out that it was going to be pretty t
ough for the winery guests to relax in an empty room. So they were headed for the best furniture showroom in Napa. In honor of escaping to the nearest semi-large town, Maddy was wearing a lavender Marc Jacobs shift dress and silver hoop earrings. After weeks of shorts, jeans, and T-shirts, if felt good to be dressed up.

  Maddy looked up from the directions, noticing what was pumping through the stereo speakers. “Is that salsa you have on?” she asked incredulously.

  “Oh, um, yeah.” He glanced sideways at her and quickly turned it off.

  “Wait, don’t,” she insisted. “I like it.”

  “You do?” Now it was his turn to sound incredulous.

  “Yeah. It’s good driving music.” There was a long pause, as if David was trying to figure out if she was serious or not. Finally, a big grin split his face.

  “Okay.” He turned the stereo back on. “You’ve surprised me once more, Maddy-Mae,” he said.

  Maddy bit her lower lip and smiled. “Left on Redbrick,” she murmured.

  David started fidgeting the moment they walked into the showroom. The interior was all sleek dark surfaces and cool polished marble. Sun filtered through the skylights, casting shadows on the tables, and there were chairs scattered in tasteful groups around the cavernous space.

  “Okay, this was great,” David announced, turning back toward the big glass doors. “I’m glad we did this and—” Maddy grabbed his arm, trying not to laugh.

  “Come on, I’m sure you can handle more than two minutes of shopping. Get a grip!” she instructed. “Here, I made a list of the things we’ll need.” She took it out of her Kooba bag.

  “Four small round tables, sixteen chairs,” he read, “four armchairs, two love seats, two low tables, one high narrow table—oh my God, I think I’m breaking out in hives.”