All Things Lost
Page 39
“What do you mean?”
“I need to say goodbye.”
“To…?”
“Aidan. I never got the chance, or I guess I had the chance, I just wasn't ready to take it then.”
“I don't understand,” I said, “I mean, I think it's great that you want to move on, but what does that have to do with me?”
“I want to say goodbye at his grave.”
“He's buried in Pennsylvania.”
“I know, in the town where your mom lives.”
I began to see where he was going with this. “And you want me to drive up there with you,” I finished.
Will nodded.
“Yeah, I'll do that.” I told him. It was something I could do at least, and I'd get to see my mom at the same time. “But we'll have to go within the next week if you want to do it soon. I start college the week after that.”
“That's fine. I can go anytime.”
“Ok, you just say when.”
“Let me talk to my mom and make sure she can take care of Darin while I'm gone and I'll call you.”
“Ok.”
We started walking back towards the house where everyone else was waiting.
Suddenly Will stopped.
“You know that painting I promised you for your 18th birthday?” he asked.
“Yeah?”
“I just decided what I want to paint.”
“What?”
“The angel.”
I thought about it for a minute and the line Bryan had quoted, “All lost things are in the angels keeping.” I'd lost a lot, friends, family, boyfriends; it was comforting to think that everything I had lost was in the angels keeping. I liked it. I nodded and slipped my arm through Will's as we started walking again.
“No past is dead for us, but only sleeping,” I whispered. “At last.”