Just My Luck

by Jennifer Honeybourn

  I pay for everything in my basket before setting off to find him. He’s standing in front of the cooler, holding a small tray of spam musubi.

  “I think I’m going to need to try this,” he says.

  “You haven’t really lived until you do.”

  He gives me a look like he doesn’t quite believe me, but he adds it to his basket, which is already filled with bags of chips and pretzels. We pick up a loaf of bread, a small brick of cheddar cheese, and some beef jerky. We’re loading up on water when we hear Nalani and Hayes arguing from across the store.

  “There’s no way I’m wearing anything from this place,” Hayes says. He’s standing beside a shelf crammed with colorful tiki statues, holding a half-empty bottle of iced tea that I’m pretty sure he hasn’t paid for yet.

  Nalani snorts. “Why? You’re too good for it?”

  “Yes,” he says. “I’ll wait and get something at the resort. They have to at least have a Lacoste.”

  “Speaking of hotels, where are we staying?” Will asks Hayes.

  “I haven’t booked one yet,” he replies.

  I stiffen.

  “Please tell me you’re kidding,” Nalani says.

  Hayes’s eyes widen at her panicked tone of voice. “I, uh, I thought we could just pick a hotel once we were here.”

  “It’s high season.” Nalani’s cheeks start to flush.

  “You told me you would handle this,” Will says in a I-should-have-known-better voice. He pulls out his phone and frantically starts to scroll, looking for somewhere we can spend the night. His brow furrows. “There has to be a vacancy somewhere. Every room in Hana can’t be booked.”

  “It’s … high … season,” Nalani repeats slowly. “And there aren’t that many hotels on this side of the island.”

  “Crap.” Will’s shoulders sag. He closes his eyes and pinches the skin at the bridge of his nose.

  Hayes lets out a long, world-weary sigh. “Let’s just drive back.”

  “We can’t,” I say, ignoring their confused looks as I turn around and rub my back against the glass shelf like a horse scratching itself against a post. The bite is right underneath my bathing suit strap. “I told you before we left: it’s too dark to drive on the highway at night. We’d probably go right off a cliff.”

  “So what are we going to do then?” Hayes’s voice raises an octave. His eyes dart from me to Will to Nalani.

  “Well … I guess we’ll have to sleep in the van,” I say.

  Hayes shakes his head. “That’s not an option.”

  “I think it’s our only option,” Will says.

  “It won’t be so bad,” I say. “At least there’s enough room in there for all of us. We can put the seats down. Pretend we’re camping.” I used to camp with my dad. Of course, that was a long time ago. And we slept in an actual tent—although truthfully, I think the van might be more comfortable. “It’s just one night.”

  This day has definitely played out a lot differently than I expected it to. But then, my life isn’t running so smoothly lately, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.

  “We should grab some extra food and water,” Nalani says. “Everything else is probably closed.”

  Hayes glances at his phone. “It’s only eight o’clock.”

  She shrugs. “Hana isn’t exactly a wild time, especially at night.”

  Hayes frowns. I guess I’m not the only one who expected this day to turn out differently.

  * * *

  Ten minutes later, after we’ve stocked up on snacks, we pull into the parking lot of a Thai restaurant that’s already closed for the evening. Nalani parks the van behind the squat brown building so we’re hidden from the street. The plan is to spend the night here and leave first thing in the morning, before the owners return and discover us camping out on their property.

  “Anyone else getting a horror movie vibe?” Will asks when Nalani shuts off the headlights. A light rain has started tapping against the windshield. A motion-sensor light mounted above the back door of the restaurant shines into the van, throwing just enough light that we can make out the graffiti on the building.

  “Nah. There hasn’t been a murder here in years,” Nalani says.

  “If we were in a zombie movie, this would be the moment they’d all come stumbling out, ready to eat our brains,” Hayes says.

  “Well, if that happens, we can head for my house,” Nalani says. “We’re prepared.”

  “You’re prepared for a zombie apocalypse?” Will replies.

  She nods. “And any other kind of disaster. We have a bunker in our backyard, stocked with a million bottles of water and enough food to feed us for an entire year, in case the world goes to hell in a handbasket.”

  “Could we not with the zombie talk?” I say. Zombies are pretty much the last thing I want to be thinking about while we’re sitting in a dark parking lot—even if they are fictional.

  “So you’re totally ready if there’s an earthquake or a hurricane or something?” Will asks.

  “Please,” she scoffs. “Any natural or unnatural disaster you can think of—nuclear war, solar flare, comet collision—we are prepared.”

  “She’s giving you the wrong impression of her parents,” I say, digging through the plastic bags to find the calamine lotion. “They’re really great people.” A little eccentric, sure, but well-meaning. I don’t really understand why Nalani is so desperate to get away from them.

  I locate the calamine lotion, but it suddenly dawns on me that I forgot to get cotton balls. I frown as I run through a list in my mind of all the things that I should have bought instead of extra beef jerky.

  “Um … by any chance, did someone grab toilet paper?” I ask.

  No one says anything.

  “You’re kidding, right?” Hayes says. “Please tell me you’re kidding.”

  Nalani pops open the glove compartment. She pulls out a wad of fast-food napkins. “Jeremy must have had this van before you,” she says to me. “He’s always at Jack in the Box.”

  “Okay, but where are we supposed to go?” Hayes looks around the empty parking lot.

  The rain has started in earnest, ricocheting like bullets against the van.

  “Hana Bay Beach is just across the street—I’m pretty sure there’s a public restroom down there,” I say, twisting the cap off the calamine lotion. Nalani passes me a napkin and I douse it with the pink liquid, then dab the napkin against a row of bites on my left arm.

  “It’s probably locked for the night.” Nalani gestures toward the jungle, about twenty yards away. “Just go behind those trees.”

  “You mean the trees where the escaped convict is hiding, waiting to murder me? Those trees?” Hayes says.

  She nods. “Yup, those are the ones.”

  “Come on,” Will says. “I’ll go with you.”

  Nalani turns on the headlights so they can navigate through the dark.

  “They’re going to come back, right?” I say as they disappear into the bushes. “I wouldn’t want to have to explain to Marielle that I lost them.”

  “Right. I keep forgetting that this is your job,” she says.

  “Me too.” It doesn’t feel like a job anymore. If I’m honest, it never did.

  I prop my foot against the back of the passenger seat so I can apply lotion to the bites on my ankles.

  “Need some help?” Nalani asks.

  I nod. “I definitely do.”

  She climbs into the backseat. I wipe my fingers on the napkin and then shed my shirt, turning away from her so she has access to my back.

  “Yikes, they really got you,” she says. “You have, like, twenty bites.”

  I scowl. “How am I the only one who was bitten?”

  “Your bad luck, I guess,” she says.

  My bad luck. That’s what it all keeps coming back to.

  “Nalani?” I ask as she dabs the lotion on so softly, I can barely feel it.

  “Yeah.”

  I chew my lip. “I stole some
stuff when we were working together.”

  “Like the chocolate macadamia nuts?” she says. “Because honestly, I think of those as a job perk.”

  “No. Like … from the guests.”

  Nalani’s hand stills. “Oh.”

  My cheeks are hot. I’m glad I can’t see her face, because I don’t think I’d have the courage to tell her this otherwise. I take a deep breath. “It was stupid. And ever since I took that stuff, it’s like I’ve been cursed,” I say. “I’ve been sending the stuff back, but so far it doesn’t seem to have made any difference.”

  “Marty, a few mosquito bites doesn’t mean you’re cursed,” she says.

  “What about what happened this morning? I almost drowned.”

  “That was an accident.”

  It wasn’t an accident. It was Karma.

  “What about all the good things that have happened over the past few months?” Nalani applies some lotion to a ring of bites on my lower back. “You were promoted to the front desk.”

  “I know you think it’s better than working in housekeeping, but trust me, nightshift is no fun.”

  “There’s no way that it’s worse than cleaning toilets,” she says. “And how do you explain getting paid to show rich tourists around the island, then?”

  Nalani and I see things so differently. Sure, getting to spend time with Will has been amazing, but it would have been so much better if the only thing I felt for him was friendship. I’m having all these feelings for someone who’ll be leaving at the end of the summer.

  “Anyway, you’re sending the stuff back,” she says. “That has to count for something.”

  I sure as hell hope so.

  After Nalani finishes with the mosquito bites, she digs in the grocery bag while I slip my shirt back on.

  “So, I was thinking we should start our trip in San Francisco,” she says, fishing out a granola bar. “I found a hostel that’s, like, thirty bucks a night, right near Fisherman’s Wharf. We could stay there for a few nights, then make our way down to San Diego.”

  Nalani rips open the granola bar wrapper with her teeth. She’s about to take a bite when she catches the look on my face. Her eyes widen. “What’s the matter?”

  I swallow. I really hope she doesn’t hate me for this. “I can’t go with you.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I just … It’s not a good time. I can’t leave my mom alone.” It’s the truth, but it’s only part of it. I’m just not brave enough to take the leap. Life is changing … faster than I can handle it. But I don’t know how to make Nalani understand why I’ve decided to stay here instead of heading out on an epic adventure with her, when I don’t fully understand it myself.

  “Have you told your mom you’re staying?” she asks.

  I shake my head. I haven’t talked to her about it because I don’t want her to try to change my mind. I know she’d tell me to go. But I also know she needs me. Even if she wouldn’t admit it.

  “I’m really sorry,” I say.

  Nalani sighs. “This trip is definitely not going to be the same without you.”

  “You’re not mad?”

  “I’m not mad.” She puts her arm around me and I lay my head on her shoulder. Relief courses through me.

  “Why do you always expect the worst from people?” she asks.

  I never used to. But when the person you believe will always be around, no matter what, leaves without a backward glance, it’s difficult to trust anyone. Even if that person is your best friend.

  Eighteen

  “It smells like cat food.” Hayes tries to hand the spam musubi back to Will. “I’m going to stick with pretzels.”

  “Just try it,” Will says wearily. His hair has been flattened by his run through the rain, which hasn’t let up in the past hour. We’ve been locked in the van, and our nerves are all starting to wear thin.

  Hayes grimaces, but to my surprise, he decides to be adventurous. He takes a small bite of the sushi. After chewing for a minute, he shrugs. “If you can get past the smell, it tastes kind of like ham.”

  “That’s because it is ham,” Will says. “Sort of.”

  After we finish our dinner, Nalani tears open a box of animal crackers and passes a handful over the seat to me. She’s sitting in front of Will and me, and Hayes is in front of her, in the passenger seat, his feet resting on the dash.

  Now that my mosquito bites have calmed down, my head is starting to hurt again. I lightly touch the bandage on my forehead, feeling the bump of stitches underneath.

  “You okay?” Will asks. Even though there’s plenty of space for the both of us back here, he’s close enough that his shoulder keeps brushing against mine. I’m pretty sure it’s intentional. It sends electric shocks through me every time.

  “I’ve felt better,” I admit.

  “I know what will help.” Hayes leans down and searches for something underneath his seat. He holds up a bottle of tequila, a sly grin crossing his face.

  Will stiffens. “Where did you get that?”

  “I never reveal my sources,” he says, but I notice Nalani’s cheeks redden. “We’re just lucky the thieves didn’t find it. Otherwise we’d be facing a very sober evening.”

  “Put it away, Hayes,” Will says.

  Hayes slowly twists off the cap and takes a long, deliberate swig from the bottle, his eyes never leaving Will’s.

  Will throws his hands in the air. “Okay, fine. You know what? Do what you want. I’m done worrying about it.”

  Hayes snorts. “You don’t need to worry about me. Worry about yourself.”

  Will’s eyes narrow. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  There’s not enough room in this van for all the tension. I’m glad that Hayes is just out of Will’s reach—from the waves of anger radiating off Will right now, I wouldn’t put it past him to grab his brother and give him a solid shake.

  “Hey, there’s a really great shave ice place we should hit on the way home tomorrow,” I say. It’s a super-lame, super-transparent attempt to divert their attention and diffuse some of the strain, and of course it doesn’t work. Neither of them care about shave ice right now—they’re too busy staring daggers at each other.

  “Just keep doing whatever Dad tells you to do,” Hayes says. “Then you don’t need to think for yourself.”

  Beside me, Will goes very still. “At least I don’t use alcohol to try to get his attention,” he says. “How’s that working out for you, by the way?”

  Hayes’s fingers tighten on the bottle of tequila. He throws open the door and steps out of the van. I don’t know where he thinks he’s going—it’s dark and there’s nothing but rain out there—but he slams the door. The windows are so steamed up, I can’t see where he runs off to.

  Will swears under his breath, but he doesn’t make a move to go after his brother.

  “You’re not going to go check on him?” Nalani asks.

  “Nope,” he says. “I’m tired of his attitude. He’ll come back once he’s cooled off.”

  Nalani and I exchange a glance. I’m not sure how wise it is to let Hayes stumble around this time of night, especially if he starts drinking in earnest. He could easily get lost or hurt.

  Nalani must feel bad about supplying him with the tequila, because she volunteers to go find him.

  “Sorry,” Will says to me after she leaves the van. He sighs and rubs a hand down his face. “I just don’t know what else to do.”

  “Maybe you should tell your parents,” I say. This seems like too big of a problem for him to try to handle on his own. Hayes clearly needs help.

  “If my dad finds out he’s been drinking again, they’ll take him out of school.” Will picks up one of the beach towels and rubs the condensation off the window, creating a porthole so we can see outside.

  “Maybe that’s what he needs,” I say.

  Will shakes his head. “He loves that school. He’s already upset about leaving his friends behind this summer to come here
with me. I can’t imagine he’d take leaving them behind indefinitely very well—especially if I’m the one who rats him out. It would just push him over the edge.” He’s silent for a minute. “I keep hoping he’ll just stop.”

  I’m not so sure that Hayes can just stop. There hasn’t been one day that I’ve spent with them that he hasn’t been drinking.

  “What he said about me…,” Will says, staring out the window.

  “He was just mad.” Siblings always know just where to hit that will hurt the most.

  He frowns. “But he’s not wrong. I do everything my parents ask of me because it’s easier than fighting with them. And because I feel guilty.” He leans his head back against the seat. “How about your parents? How did they take it when you said you weren’t going to college?”

  “My mom wasn’t happy about it at first,” I say. “But she eventually came around once I told her that I am planning to go eventually.”

  Of course, that was when she thought I was taking a year off to travel. I’m not sure how she’s going to feel when she finds out I’m staying home.

  “But you still did it anyway.” I can tell that Will thinks that rebelling against my parents makes me brave, when really, the only reason I’m in this position is because I’m afraid.

  I really want to be the girl he sees. Not the one who is too scared to take a chance.

  So I reach for his hand. I thread my fingers through his and tug him gently toward me, until he is barely a breath away. His lips curve into a surprised smile as he closes the distance between us and kisses me. He pulls me onto his lap and I entwine my fingers in his hair. I ignore the distant warning bell as his lips explore my neck. I know these few weeks are all that we have and that I’m bound to have my heart broken.

  I know this, but I can’t stop kissing him.

  It might be ten minutes or two hours or an entire day later when I hear Nalani calling my name. I scramble off Will. I pull down my T-shirt and he smooths a hand over his hair, which is silly because there’s no way to hide what we’ve been up to.