Chapter Nineteen
Sarah
ZACH AND SARAH spent Sunday at home. Zach was puking up a storm, while Sarah was his caretaker; their parents insisted on going to church for a congregation crawdad cookout, but Sarah and Zach weren’t into that way of life anyway. Sarah had once tried a crawfish, and one girl had chased her around with its broken skull; therefore, Sarah had become an anti-crawfish killing activist and could not bear the sight of a mudbug.
Zach had eaten bad chicken the previous night while Sarah and Joel were flitting about. Of course, Sarah had obliged to staying home, because she had found a book she could not put down, and this gave her ample time to finish it as she nursed her brother back to health. While she was not big into reading, the boring summer offered her plenty of time to do so anyway.
Between the puke and moans, Zach finally managed to say, “So, you got another bouquet of flowers yesterday while you were out.”
Sarah straightened. Joel? Again?
“Mom threw placed them in a vase on the kitchen counter. She was so excited. She thinks you have a secret admirer, but then she started screaming that if it is Joel Sealet, she’s going to have a cow.”
Sarah pulled her long hair into a messy bun on the top of her skull. “Well, it’s not any of her business who got them for me, is it?”
“Do you like Joel Sealet?” Zach asked the question with innocence, but Sarah could see through the innocent façade. Zach had his suspicions, and he was known for being dead-on in his observations.
“Do I like him? Well…”
“Because he’s standing on our doorstep.”
Sarah whipped around to look outside, noting his crystal blue Jeep in the driveway. She rushed down the stairs as fast as she could, hoping her fluffy pajama pants and ratty old T-shirt wouldn’t change his perception of their friendship. She looked like a disaster, and now her ankle hurt even more, but the pain was dulled by his visage through the window. She unbolted the door and smiled as he said, “I wanted to check up on your ankle. I left church early when I saw you weren’t there but your family is.”
“Scandalous,” she said. “You really left early to see me?”
“Of course I did. When I left, your ankle was in a precarious state.”
“This is really dangerous. What if my parents magically come home right now?”
He shook his head. “They’re not going to. There’s a special guest speaker from the parish. All I know is I wanted to see you… And to tell you this: Mom, Chloe, and I are leaving for Savannah for the next week. We’re going to stay with my grandma. It may be longer, but we won’t see each other, okay? And it’s not because I don’t want to see you, but because I can’t see you.”
She nodded respectfully. “Of course. Well, I’ll work on my ankle, and you can work on your…”
“Arrogant behavior,” he answered.
“Sure.”
Just then, Sarah noticed a pair of binoculars above the rosebushes on the edge of the property. She scowled and found herself limping over to the spy, and upon discovery, instinctively knew Joey had been watching them. Joel followed and a few seconds later screamed, “We know who you are if you try to run.”
Joey placed his binoculars off and narrowed his eyes. “Who are you, big talker?”
Joel laughed. “Joel Sealet. And you?”
“Only Sarah deserves to know who I am. Listen, bud, why’re you hanging around the Towson house? This is my turf.”
Zach shuffled out onto the lawn, a string of puke behind him, as he shouted, “Joey! What’re you doing?”
This caused both Joel and Joey to disappear like hunted wild turkeys, and Sarah couldn’t help but laugh. A few moments later, Joey toppled over a large rock Helena always complained needed to be moved. He stood up, wide-eyed, and rushed off again.
A few minutes later, Joel appeared on the back porch. He pressed his face to the glass and looked inside the kitchen area, hoping Sarah would still be around to see him. She walked into the kitchen a few minutes later and grabbed a box of cookies before stuffing a few into her mouth. When she finally saw him, she jumped in fright and hurried to open the door.
“How’s Zach?” he questioned.
She shook her head at him. “He’s up in bed now, with a trashcan. I’m not the best one around vomit. Why’re you still here? This is a little scary, Joel.”
He nodded and waited. “I just wanted to officially say goodbye. A pukey goodbye is not good enough, at least in my opinion.”
“I’m sorry about that,” she said, backing away a few feet. “Well, goodbye then.”
Joel straightened, wanting more; somehow, though, he found the ability to turn around, jump the fence again, and leave.
Meanwhile, Sarah plopped a cookie into her mouth, and wondered what she was getting herself into.