Six Days: Book One in the SIX Series

by Randileigh Kennedy

  “Skinny jeans, really?” I grimaced. “What about this body makes you think these would be flattering for me? I’m not sure they should make them in all sizes,” I said, looking down at my hips. I was relatively in shape, sure, but my bone structure in general did not seem to coincide with smaller-than-normal pants. I just didn’t get the obsession. I was only five-foot-six, not short by any means, but I didn’t see the need to emphasize that my legs weren’t nearly as long as all the trendy model type girls who wore them.

  “Well at least put on these black ones, they’ll feel more like leggings to you,” Mallory said, holding up some black semi-stretchy pants. “Besides, Steve will be there tonight, as you know, and I’m wondering if he has some kind of crush on you,” Mallory said, handing over the pants. I almost choked on my own spit.

  “Steve? Why on earth would you say that?” I asked, sounding quite surprised.

  “I don’t know. I mean, obviously he thinks you’re pretty. I’m sure all the guys do. But he’s just been a little weird lately now that you’re spending so much time with Griffin, even though I pointed out it’s only been two days,” Mallory said casually. “Don’t you think he seems more attentive to you when you’re around? I don’t know, just something I noticed. I just thought maybe he kind of liked you, and if you’re not into Griffin…” Mallory paused as if she was setting me up to have a rebuttal for the Griffin comment.

  Suddenly there was a knock at the door, interrupting Mallory.

  “Damn, Mal, I’m not even dressed yet. Can you grab that?” I asked, happy our conversation was cut short. I finished putting on her tight black ankle pants and one of her white chiffon tops that had a little black belt around it. Too nice for a fair? The door burst open and Mallory grabbed my arm, leading me out to the living room.

  “Wow, Addie. You look really nice,” Griffin remarked, standing near the door with his hands in his pockets. “You too, Mal,” Griffin said winking. Griffin wore dark jeans and a black button down shirt, looking as sexy as usual with little effort.

  “Steve, Meg, and Johnny are going to meet us all there. Let’s go,” Mallory said, shoving us both out the door.

  Griffin looked at me with surprise, seemingly taken aback by Mallory’s presence. I guess she just assumed we were all going together, and since I didn’t exactly know the plan, I never said otherwise. As we walked out to Griffin’s car Mallory immediately climbed into the front seat. I slipped in the back, noticing a conflicted look on Griffin’s face.

  The drive to the fair wasn’t long, and the place was pretty busy despite it being a week night. There were families, teenagers, and 4-H kids everywhere. Within minutes of our arrival, Steve wrapped a fuchsia wristband around my wrist.

  “What’s this for?” I asked curiously.

  “So we can go on as many rides as we want,” Johnny chimed in, throwing his arm around my shoulders. “We haven’t done this since we were kids. Our moms used to drop us off here and we’d get the armbands and we would literally ride every ride, until at least half of us puked,” Johnny added, beaming at the memory. “Oh Steve, you remember that one time you dared me to drink that half gallon of milk and then ride the Vortex?” Johnny said, pointing at one of the rides.

  Megan covered her face. “That was one of the grossest nights of my life, Johnny, don’t remind me!” she said, punching him in the shoulder.

  The six of us walked through the sea of people and the guys exchanged stories of their roller coaster days as kids. The first few rides we went on were mild, which I was thankful for. Then I was forced on the Elevator Drop, which I quickly determined I wasn’t a fan of. We filed into a small metal box and strapped on some harnesses. The ride then slowly lifted us up into the air then plunged back down to the bottom. My stomach didn’t appreciate the rapid free fall motion, and I secretly hoped this was the worst ride I would have to go on tonight.

  We finally took a quick break from the rides to eat some fair food. We snacked on pork sandwiches, fried vegetables, and split a couple of funnel cakes. It wasn’t long after eating that we realized heavy food while trying to defy gravity was a terrible idea.

  “You doing okay Addie?” Griffin asked politely. “You look a little pale.”

  “I’ll sit out the next few rides with you if you want,” Steve chimed in.

  “Oh no, I’m fine. Really. It’s just been awhile since I’ve been flipped upside down this much,” I replied.

  Johnny raised his eyebrows and Megan quickly covered his mouth with her hand. “Oh no, no comment on that one, Johnny. Give the girl a break,” Megan pleaded sarcastically. I blushed.

  “Well the fireworks start in about a half hour. Maybe we can just do the Ferris Wheel or something light and then set up our spot on the lawn,” Mallory suggested, looking at each of us for agreement.

  As we waited in line for the Ferris Wheel, Griffin stood beside me. He leaned down and whispered in my ear.

  “Sorry Addie, I originally had something else in mind,” Griffin said with a sly smile. We were pushed onto the ride and I was happy when Griffin slid into the seat next to me.

  “I was going to take you to a concert in Sacramento tonight since you said you’d never been to one before,” Griffin said, staring at me with gentle eyes. “I forgot I had already promised the group awhile back that we would all go to the fair together. I knew Mallory and Meg were really excited about it. I couldn’t let them down, I just didn’t have it in me.”

  “Oh Griffin, that’s okay. This is great, really. I haven’t been on a roller coaster in ages, I think tonight has really been fun. I mean I haven’t felt this dizzy and terrible in forever, but somehow it’s still been great,” I replied with a big smile.

  “Well, I promise you a concert Addie,” Griffin said. He sat back into the seat and the ride picked up the pace since everyone had loaded.

  We sat in silence for a moment and I stared up at the clear night sky. As a kid, I didn’t star gaze very often. The thought of it back then made me feel so alone, like just a mere speck in this vast universe. But tonight, well, tonight I liked the stars. In fact, it took me back to the first night I met Griffin, looking up at the stars on the stone patio. They felt striking then too. Somehow, surrounded by this good group of friends, I felt comforted by the twinkling overhead.

  “Pretty night, huh?” Griffin asked, staring directly at me.

  I nodded my head, smiling back at him.

  “So what exactly do you do for work, Griffin? That has been nagging at me for awhile. I know your work frustrates you, but I guess I don’t really know what you do,” I asked. I just couldn’t take the not knowing any more, and since his friends never really explained it to me, I figured it was about time I asked him directly. It seemed so much easier to inquire about that type of thing on a night we were all hanging out together, just as a group of friends, rather than one of the evenings where it was just the two of us.

  “Well, I’ll give you the fancy answer first. I oversee three different departments for my dad’s company; accounting, reporting, and a property design team which handles any type of structural renovations we make. Those all fit well enough within the qualifications of what my dad thinks my business degree covers, so it sounds like I am qualified enough to head up those positions. But the honest truth, and I know I should be embarrassed to say this but I just don’t care anymore, I really don’t do anything nearly that important. My dad actually has people who are really in charge of those departments, and I am just supposed to sign off on the decisions they make,” he explained.

  “So what do you do day to day then? Like what type of a business is it? I’m not sure I really understand,” I asked, trying to clarify what he was saying.

  “Well, the majority of the business has to do with the hospitality industry of course. All those hotels and restaurants downtown, my dad has some type of involvement in almost all of those. That’s what this town is really about, other than the nature aspect of what surrounds it with the lake and all. But that’s
why all the tourists really come here, the glitter and lights. Sadly it’s more for that than for the lake, or all the hiking and boating around here. Anyway, as far as what I do, I am supposed to supervise all of these departments within the company. But like I said, the decisions are already made by people who are actually qualified to make them. Basically they just get my blessing as if I am the genius behind it all. I know, it sounds ridiculous. That is exactly why I have been trying to get away from it. That is not who I am. It’s so hard to go through my day to day like that. Every time there is an important board meeting, I must be present, as if I am really the second in command behind my father. The honest truth is that I hardly know what my father is doing half the time and I’m already told what my position on everything is. So I nod, I shake hands, and I sign papers all day. It’s really awful,” Griffin said shaking his head.

  “I guess I can see why you don’t talk about it much then,” I said sincerely, feeling a little bad for bringing it up.

  “I’ve really had fun with you these past few days, Addie,” Griffin said, turning his body slightly towards mine in the seat. He stared into me.

  “So have I. Thanks for taking it easy on me so far with the adventures. I was a little nervous at first,” I replied, trying to lighten up the conversation. I was happy we were no longer talking about the one thing Griffin hated the most. I could tell he was relieved with the subject change as well.

  “Well, we’re just getting started,” Griffin said, cocking his head to one side. “Life’s short, you know? I know that is so cliché, especially with this whole ‘yolo’ craze going on and all, but it’s true. It just seems crazy to me when people really aren’t living it. That’s why I am trying to figure out how to separate from this thing with my dad. It’s just against everything I really want. I mean, I know we all have to get through our day to day, I get that. But when you really think about just how much time we have to actually live, it doesn’t really seem like that much time in the grand scheme of things. So then the day to day, what’s the point of it all, you know what I mean? I just… I want to feel…” Griffin’s voice trailed off and the ride came to a sudden stop. What were the odds our cart was the first one to have to exit?

  Griffin reluctantly stood up, grabbing my hand to lead me off the ride. “Are you cold?” he asked, changing the subject. He put his other hand on the zipper of his sweatshirt, ready to unzip it and take it off.

  I smiled up at him. “Not with you,” I uttered shyly, quickly mortified for saying that out loud.

  Within seconds, our space filled with noise as the rest of the group poured off the ride and gathered around us. Mallory threw her arm around my shoulder and steered me towards the parking lot.

  “We’ll go grab the stuff from the car for the fireworks show if you guys want to go find a spot,” Mallory said to the others. Griffin and Steve ended up walking with us to help carry the load while Johnny and Megan left to find some open space on the lawn. The grassy field had already started to fill up with families and couples laying down blankets for the show.

  We set up a couple blankets and Mallory unloaded a cooler of plastic cups with a box of wine, along with a large container of chocolate covered strawberries. Mallory and Megan gathered on either side of me, stretching out for the show.

  A few minutes before it was about to start, Griffin crawled up behind me and tapped my shoulder.

  “Hey, will you come with me for a second? I want to show you something,” Griffin said in a quiet voice. I nodded. A surge of excitement ran through my body, even though I had no idea what he wanted.

  “Hey guys,” Griffin said to the group, “we’re going to run and grab something real quick. We’ll be right back.”

  Griffin helped pull me up and led me away from the lawn towards a large arena-type building.

  “Where are we going?” I asked, confused as to why we were walking away from the fireworks show.

  “To the best seat in the house, trust me,” he replied with a mischievous smile. We walked around to the back of the arena where there were some stairs, presumably a fire escape or some maintenance steps of some kind.

  “Follow me,” Griffin said, holding out his hand to lead me up the narrow metal steps.

  “Where are we going? Are we allowed to do this? Oh no, you really are going to get us arrested, is that what this is about?” I replied, hoping he really knew what he was doing.

  “I think there technically has to be a sign telling us we can’t climb the maintenance stairs before they can actually handcuff us for this,” Griffin said, grinning. “Come on, Addie, it will be fine. Trust me.”

  Griffin and I continued up the steps. Once we reached the top, Griffin explained we were standing on top of the arena where they kept all of the 4-H animals. Within ten seconds there was a loud boom overhead, with crackling sounds falling down around us. As I looked up at the sky, I realized they were lighting off the fireworks from the roof of one of the hotels right next to us, about five or six stories up.

  The fireworks covered us overhead. It was the closest I had ever been to such a thing. Burnt pieces of cardboard were falling down around us like confetti as one giant firework after another filled the entire sky above us. It looked as if handfuls of glitter would fall to the Earth and cover us at any moment. We sat down on the concrete roof, gazing up at the sky. It was magnificent.

  Without asking, Griffin unzipped his sweatshirt and wrapped it around me, which I was thankful for. The fireworks show was spectacular, though at times I felt compelled to stare at Griffin instead, but my nerves didn’t want to find out whether or not he would do the same. We were inches apart, but yet it felt as if his skin was right up against my body.

  As the fireworks show ended, a security guard had climbed up the stairs. He called over to us, motioning at us to come down off the building, so we obliged. The security guard held his hands up at Griffin as if to suggest he should have known better, but Griffin just nodded at the guard, smiling. I tried to stifle my laughter, knowing that this wouldn’t be the most appropriate time to be giggling about the situation while being facially reprimanded by security. Griffin led me back down the metal stairs and we walked back to the lawn to find our friends.

  “Where did you go?” Megan asked, swallowing down the last of her plastic cup of boxed wine. She raised an eyebrow, and I wondered what she was thinking in that moment.

  “I was hungry so we just went to grab some food,” Griffin lied, squeezing my shoulder. “We still saw the fireworks though. We didn’t miss anything.” I loved the smirk on Griffin’s face as he spoke. It was like he had a boyish secret, even though everything that had just happened was completely innocent and wasn’t much of a story to the rest of them.

  We all helped pack up the cooler and we wrapped up the blankets. Everyone walked sluggishly back to the parking lot, full of cheap wine, greasy food, and overturned stomachs.

  Griffin drove Mallory and me back to my apartment, and I was happy to have the front seat for the ride home. As we drove, I reluctantly took off his grey sweatshirt and laid it on the console next to me. I wished instead I could keep it. I loved the smell of him, along with the warmth and softness of the material. It felt so comforting to me, but I felt too embarrassed to ask if I could leave it on, or worse, to try and get out of the car with it still on. We pulled into my apartment complex minutes later, and I gathered my bag from the floor. As I opened the car door to step out, Griffin grasped my arm. “Wait, here. This is for tomorrow,” he said, handing me a small grey box. He grinned and I couldn’t help but smile back.

  I nodded and mouthed the words ‘thank you’ to him, assuming he would understand that I meant it not just for the box, but for the night in general.

  Mallory and I didn’t have much work to do at the bakery the following morning, so she elected to stay over at my place since we didn’t have to wake up too early. We stayed up late watching The Notebook and eating rice cakes, the only thing that sounded good after the night of food w
e had just had.

  When the movie finished, Mallory and I spent an hour talking about all of her past soul mates. It turned out she was engaged once when she was twenty-two, a story she said she didn’t talk about often, which was why she hadn’t mentioned it before. It was a quick romance. They got engaged just four months after they met. Apparently he had cheated on her with an old flame just a couple months before their wedding. She said she was so embarrassed and distraught about it at the time, she didn’t even tell anyone the truth about what had happened. She simply explained that she just didn’t think they had enough chemistry to make it last. She was too mortified to tell everyone that he had cheated on her. She said it made her feel as though she wasn’t good enough for him and that’s why he did what he did. Mallory eventually told people the truth a year or so later, after she had finally moved on from her hurt and her anger over it. She started dating again and declared by now she was on soul mate number six or seven, she wasn’t quite sure. She wanted to take a break from all that though, to focus on the bakery. She was finally ready to figure out what she really wanted out of life. I commiserated with her on that.

  “So what about you, Addie?” she asked. “You’ve been spending a lot of time with Griffin lately. What’s in the box?”

  I tried not to blush at her mention of Griffin, but I figured Mallory was starting to figure me out anyway. “I don’t know. Our plans for tomorrow, I guess. I was going to wait until the morning to open it,” I replied, grabbing the box off the end table.

  Mallory shrugged and raised her eyebrows, insinuating she was curious about how this whole thing worked.

  “He just gives me a little message, like a little hint about what we’re doing I guess, and then information about when we’re getting together,” I stated, moving the box around in my hands. Mallory urged me to open it, so I did.