Chapter 7

by early december, just over to reer dark before miss garber us leave, and jamie asked me if i mind o. beaufort exactly a bed of criminal activity back t abbed outside of maurices tave, caused quite a stir, and poy of a crazed lunatic reets, preying on innocent victims. doors by t of t be creeping doreet. but t o tation to give it out of ly tim . t six years in tate penitentiary. to till liked to strut around in coffee salked about t;big crime,“ as if the lindbergh baby.

but jamies o mine, and i couldnt say no ing t i liked get t inue doing t for at least anot to do anyt mig day miserable for either of you.

to be performed t friday and saturday, and lots of people alking about it. miss garber s telling everyone it o be t play tion, too, . e ation in toervie t;its going to be marvelous,“ s;absolutely marvelous.“ so e an article about it, primarily because of t connection, even to it. but miss garber less, and just t day sold us to bring in extra seats to accommodate tra-large croed. t of oo t o some of t t time in be interested in . you migting excited about it, too, but i really . my friends ill teasing me at sc eoon off in kept me going t i ;rig; i knos not muc frankly, it of good about it, too, tted it to anyone. i could practically imagine tanding around and staring fully do me tle tears filling talking about how wonderful i was for all my sacrifices.

so i nig tuff, wion.

“is it true you and your friends sometimes go to t nig;

part of me serested. t exactly a secret, it didnt seem like t of t at all.

“yea; i said, s;sometimes.“

“ do you do t peanuts?“

i guess s t, too.

“i dont kno; i said. “talk . . . joke around. its just a place o go.“

“does it ever scare you?“

“no,“ i ans; scare you?“

“i dont kno; s;it mig;

“;

“because id i mig;

“e dont do anyt knock over tombstones or leave our tras; i said. i didnt to tell our conversations about on because i kne t of t to . last could lie in bed and . . . well . . . you know.

“do you ever just sit around and listen to t; s;like ts cling of leaves are at tars?“

even teenager and kno t teenagers, and trying to understand teenage boys for rying to decipivity.

“not really,“ i said.

stle. “i ts look around to really see t quietly and listen.“

tion struck me as strange, but i didnt press it, and s. and since stle about me, i sort of felt obliged to ask broug i could do.

“so, ; i asked. “besides ters or reading t; it sounded ridiculous, even to me, i admit, but ts w she did.

s me. i tion, and even more surprised at my interest in her.

“i do a lot of tudy for my classes, i spend time .“

“do you ever just go off ;

“no,“ sell by t even to no one ed her around much.

“ill bet youre excited about going off to college next year,“ i said, c.

it took to answer.

“i dont to go,“ ster-of-factly. me off guard. jamie grades in our senior class, and depending on semester , s even end up valedictorian. e o imes sion t een, being t ses.

“ about mount sermon? i t ts ,“ i offered.

s me rig you?“

times t bethe eyeballs.

“i didnt mean it t ; i said quickly. “i just meant t id ed you o be going t year.“

s really anso be , i didnt knoo make of it. by t of opped on t front. from s sains. tting on t he bible.

“t; s me for a moment before finally starting up the walk.

as i c t of all times id ever talked to rangest conversation ically normal.

t nig my father.

“, i reckon,“ i said. “but around muc;

“do you miss t? not gro;

“sometimes.“

“i miss my mom, too,“ s;even t;

it time id ever considered t jamie and i mig t sink in for a while.

“it must be ; i said sincerely. “even tranger to me, at least ill around.“

s me as ugged gently at o notice t s sure o say.

“it is, sometimes. dont get me -but times alk about t my fat.“

i assumed salking about boys. it until later t i leaed how wrong i was.

“s it like, living ;

“no. ually got a pretty good sense of ;

“?“ i blurted out. i couldnt even imagine it.

i to name, but s me off t respond to my comment. instead s;dont look so surprised. youll like to know ;

“i doubt if ill ever get to know ;

“you never kno; s;;

i ed kneo t t;big guy upstairs“ old even ticket into i mean, being as how good a person she was.

“ to know ; i asked.

s ans so t sed it w.

t nigalked about her bible.

“ ; i asked.

no t big of an assumption, given felt about scripture and all. but tty looking, and i figured t s to try or to sion to thing.

seps before answering.

“it ; she said simply.

“o; i said it like id stepped on someones pet turtle, squas under my shoe.

s me. “its okay, landon. ;

“im sorry i asked. . . .“

“dont be. you didnt mean anyt.“ s;my mot my mom first. s all time, especially wime in ;

i t about t on.

“so read it at nig to sleep, and s al s of tal at time.“

“im sorry,“ i said again. ells you somets to say, even if youve already said it before.

“it just gives me a o . . . to be a part of and t?“ s saying it sadly, just more to let me knoo my question. some made it worse.

after sold me tory, i t of again, and i didnt really knoo say. as i my anss opped and tued around at time as o the side.

eric and margaret on t to us.

“ell, lookee old teenage minds took priority over anyt i jamies story.

“,“ jamie said cheerfully.

“alking ; i could see ttle devil behind erics smile.

“; i said, wishing hed never seen me.

“its a beautiful nigrolling, isnt it?“ eric said. i t because margaret tle bolder t tunity pass sticking it to me.

jamie looked around and smiled. “yes, it is.“

eric looked around, too, ful look in aking a deep breatell . “boy, it really is nice out t; o it be ually ars, and i you to miss it.“ h a favor.

“o to my ; jamie said. “i o offer landon a cup of cider. ould you like to meet us ty.“

a cup of cider? at mentioned t. . . .

i put my , any worse.

“os all rig o cecils diner.“

“on a sc?“ sly.

“o be out too late,“ ;but ;

“topping to say ; jamie said, waving.

eric got t slo , t getting out of trouble ime of ts , mom, t of no darted out in front of me, and i couldnt stop in time.“ no exactly dart anyhe way.

once t of sigued to me and smiled.

“you ;

“sure i do.“ notice the careful way i phrased my answer.

after dropping jamie off-no, i didnt stay for any cider-i started back to my ime. by tory me completely, and i could practically me, all the way from cecils diner.

see w happens when youre a nice guy?

by t moing everyone at scarted up a neion about time it i o spend my lunc to get a all.

t nig t one before t to do. riger sco load all to ted truck to take to t eddie and i ly t coordinated individual in ory. ed be ems, and every critical moment umble over some dust or an insect on t of t t painful way possible.

“s-s-sorry,“ ;d-d-did . . . t ?“

id stifle t and bite out, “just dont do it again.“

but stop umbling around any more top time t even get a co eat before rearted. moving taken t finisting til a fees before everyone else arrived to begin. it day, suffice it to say i ty bad mood.

i ran t even t t say t long. ser jamie simply smiled and told to everyto be all rig trying to make tter for me, but o ance out of my to be seen again doing it. but miss garber and s id be glad to do it. “you talk about t; s;maybe you can t; by kinks, of course, s me specifically.

so once more i ended up really in to talk because i tle bit in front of s, even really tuing back to see t fees, and i said a o her.

“youre not in a very good mood, are you?“ s;you didnt even try tonig;

“you dont miss a t; i said sarcastically looking at her.

“maybe i can ; s kind of tle angrier.

“i doubt it,“ i snapped.

“maybe if you told me ;

i didnt let her finish.

“look,“ i said, stopping, tuing to face ;ive just spent all day eaten since lunco trek a mile out of my o make sure you get even need me to do it.“

it time id ever raised my voice to o tell you trut felt kind of good. it ime. jamie oo surprised to respond, and i on.

“and t even like me. to do it.“

“youre just saying t t;

i cut h a shake of my head.

once i got on a roll, it imes o stop. i could take imism and coday to pusoo far.

“dont you get it?“ i said, exasperated. “im not nervous about t dont to be to my friends to keep talking about me, and i dont to spend time ing like . ere not anyt to be over so i can go back to my normal life.“

s by my outburst, and to be , i couldnt blame her.

“i see,“ o defend o make s. all so of ed to cry, but s, and i finally stalked aer, tart moving, too. s five yards be of to try to talk to me again until sarted up the sidewalk when i heard her voice.

“t; s.

i eful to t t kind of girl, and i tually ed .

or rated myself.