Home For The Summer

All of my nights followed the same pattern. I would go to bed, sleep for three or four hours and inexplicably wake up from a nightmare I never quite remembered. There was always someone or something trying to get me. When I woke up, I would be so scared for my life that I couldn’t go back to bed. Tonight was unusual in the grand scheme of things- I had fallen asleep early from the jet lag of ...

Gretchen, Johnny, and I walked down the sidewalk, Johnny pulling along the red wagon leftover from his childhood, which we had filled with decorations and refreshments. Tonight at the Beachwood restaurant, Gretchen was hosting a party for all of her friends. Usually, Johnny and I had to tag along to whatever party she was holding- she couldn’t be trusted on her own for something like this- so we ...

The night of the party was a long one. I had to drag Gretchen and Johnny home- one drunk and one tired- and upon going to bed, a new nightmare woke me up almost right away. In the time I was awake, I decided to develop the photos I had taken since it was dark, and there wasn’t much else to do. I took the roll of film from inside my camera, setting everything I needed up by my windowsill. This was a...

Johnny, Gretchen, and I laid out on the sandy banks of Miles Lagoon- the beach section was only a stone’s throw from our back porch. It was too hot to do much of anything, especially as we neared the 4th of July. We wouldn’t even go in the water for fear we’d never want to get out. It was a shame, as I could see some of Johnny’s friends running up and down the shore, swimming out to the ...

The 4th of July was one whirlwind of a week. Star’s Ranch definitely took the holiday more seriously than other towns, lighting off fireworks every night over the lagoon from the first through the fifth, the parade being the talk of the town, and the Independence Ball at Seaside Manor ending the celebration on a high. Even though I had just begun work as a photographer for our town’s paper,...

One day, Johnny actually decided to go out with his friends, leaving Gretchen and I at the house. She was tanning in the backyard, reading her latest book that I knew she would never finish. She only read when she wanted to look intelligent to please someone else, not because she actually enjoyed it. I was painting behind her on the porch, looking out on the still water. Today was a new peace, a...

I put on a nice dress while I waited for Jack to show up. I wasn’t exactly eager for him to come over, mainly because I didn’t know how Gretchen and Johnny would react, and what Jack would think of them. I didn’t want anybody to be fake to him. Gretchen had Johnny help set her the table on the back porch, forcing me to stay inside and take time alone. She wanted me to be the one to greet ...

A few afternoons later, I found myself painting in my bedroom, looking out my window as if that would provide me inspiration. Then heard the most dreaded sound possible, one that usually only comes around every month or so - Gretchen crying in her room. I could see into her room from across the hall, and though her door was unusually open, I couldn’t see her.  I stepped away from my stool, leaving my pai...

“Has she gotten any better, do you think?” Jack asked as he sat down at the table later that night. I had gotten absolutely nowhere with trying to talk to her about it.  “No.” I replied simply. “Well, she’s stopped being so hysterical about it,” Johnny added, “I’d say that's an improvement.” “She’s still like a broken record. Won’t stop saying I won’t get it… I...

The day of my birthday, I woke up feeling bad. It was a rainy August day, which was fine by me, but it didn’t shake the feeling I held inside. Usually, my birthday didn’t make me happy, more just upset. I would realize I was getting older by the second, and feel pressured about where I should be by now. I knew girls that were already married, I knew people who owned entire businesses by now. But I...