Under the Summer Sky, Michelle Stone [good book club books txt] 📗

due for another fill up. The room was a plain room with a bed and a dresser along the back side of the wall. It had another door off the side of the room that went to this beautiful balcony. Nolan and I stepped out. The breeze was slow and steady.
Below, people were dancing, swimming, playing beer pong, and sitting around the fire. I saw Star sitting around the fire laughing at something, still hanging out with the boys.
I felt out of place here. I knew only a few people and Star was off in her own little world with people she knew all her lives.
Nolan came up behind me and put his arms around my shoulders. He leaned in and kissed my neck. Its suddenness made me shudder. I slowly turned around looked up into Nolan’s eyes. His smile was charming and sweet.
I leaned up and kissed his lips which were soft and tasted slightly of rum.
I followed him back into the room and onto the bed. He stood in front of me as I was sitting down and leaned down and kissed me some more. Each time a little bit quicker, until I was lying down and he was hovering over me.

I woke up the next morning in my bed. I had no recollection of how I got here. I looked around and realized that all of my clothes seemed to be in tact with the exception of my shoes.
My head hurt and my mouth was dry. I picked up a glass of water next to my night stand and chugged it.
Whoever got me to my bed obviously knew that I was going to need water when I woke up.
As I tried to remember what happened last night, someone knocked on my door. I jumped up and looked at myself in the mirror and I looked like a wreck, with my eyeliner and mascara smudged. I hurried up and fixed it as best I could.
“Come in.” I said.
The door creaked open and in came Brady.
“Hey, are you okay?” he asked.
“I’m as good as I could be.” I laughed and then asked “How did I get home last night?”
Brady must have found this amusing with his shit-eating grin. I could tell he was trying to hold back laughter.
“You don’t remember?” he prodded.
“While you might find this funny, I don’t.” I said glaring at him. Man, he was so fucking annoying.
“I’m sorry.” He said still smiling. “This is just…weird for me. I’m too used to it being the other way around.”
“Don’t get used to it.” I said still irritated. “Seriously, I don’t remember how I got here. Help me out or get out.”
He looked away from me. Something must have been bad seems how he won’t make eye contact with me.
“I guess you were upstairs in the house with Nolan right?” I nodded “Well, Star went to find you and she saw you were passed out on the bed and Nolan was trying to do stuff with you. I don’t know. So, Star came and got me and I kind beat the shit out of him last night.” He looked up at me and smiled. “Then Star and I got you out to her car and we got you upstairs to your room.”
My stomach plummeted. So, this is how it felt to be the one on the other side of the fence.
“Where’s Star at?” I asked him.
“She fell asleep downstairs on the couch, but when I got up this morning she was gone.” He said looking at me.
“Damn.” I said looking down at my hands. “I really need a cigarette.” I laughed
“I’ll come with you.” He said.
Brady and I walked down the stairs that led to the beach. We walked in silent until I felt we were far enough away and sat down in the sand watching the waves roll in and out.
I pulled my pack of smokes out of my pocket and then lit one.
My stomach still felt upset as I pulled the first hit deep into my lungs.
“So, how was Sandy?” I asked looking at him.
“I wouldn’t know.” He said looking off into the distance somewhere.
“What do you mean?” I looked up at him as I took another hit,
“I saw her last night but she ignored me. It looks like she has a new guy under her arm.” He laughed.
“Well, I guess last night went pretty well.” I smiled.
“Yea, I guess.” We both laughed. “We should go uptown and stop by that good place with the chili fries. I could use some greasy food.”
I looked at him and realized how much we are alike. Brady is only a little over a year older than I am but we still understood each other. People often thought we were twins because when Brady was in the 2nd grade he got held back so growing up we were always in the same classes.
It was easy going through school together. We played after school sports. We both were tutored together. We also hung out on the weekends together.
Over the past year though, things change.
“Yea, that sounds great.” I smiled.

***

“Can I get 2 orders of Chili cheese fries and 2 Coney dogs?” Brady looked at me and then asked “What do you want to drink?”
I thought about it then said “Pepsi.”
“Then can I have a large Pepsi and medium lemonade.”
The guy behind the screen was busy writing down our order while also single handedly pouring our drinks. The line behind us slowly packed up. Brady paid the guy and we walked down to the beach and sat there with our greasy chili fries and Coney dogs.
We sat there eating while moms were holding onto their children with disinterested teens lagging behind. A couple of small boys were building a sand castle near the water. Some girls that looked like they were in there beginning years of high school were lying on some towels reading magazines and wearing oversized sunglasses.
I would’ve enjoyed this day so much better if I hadn’t still been hung-over. I ate half of my chili fries and my stomach started to get upset. I wish I hadn’t got drunk last night I thought.
“I really want to go swimming. I haven’t been yet.” I said looking at Brady.
“I want to go too. I just think it would be more fun if we had more people.” He sighed. “That’s the one reason this sucks. We can’t bring friends on this trip.”
I looked at him somberly “I don’t have any real friends.”
Brady chuckled. “Yea, right Myra. Who are those kids you hung around outside in the school parking lot all the time then?”
I got instantly irritated. The one time I actually start to open up to Brady he shuts me down.
“You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about.” I shook a cigarette out of my pack and lit it. “Do you see me texting anyone? Did you hear me calling anyone since school got out?” I took a deep drag of my smoke. “Do you see me making plans to hang out with anyone?” I exhaled the smoke.
Brady huffed and looked down at the ground. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize.”
I looked at him. “Realize what Brady? That my life sucks? I don’t want your pity.”
He suddenly became extremely involved in the sand and running his fingers through it. “That’s not what I meant.” He said looking at me.
“Let’s just drop it.” I said taking another hit of the smoke and trying to calm myself down from the outburst. “But we should go swimming. I can invite Star over or something.”
Brady smiled at the thought. “Yea, that sounds fun.”
I finished my smoke and flicked it onto the concrete parking lot behind us, got up and wiped off the bottom of my pants. I walked over to a trash can to throw away what was left of my chili fries and Coney dog.
As I was walking back I dropped my pack of smokes on the ground –Just my luck the pack was wide open-and they went rolling everywhere. Seriously? I thought. I bent down and started picking some of them up and a hand came out of nowhere and handed me a couple that rolled a little farther than the rest.
“I’d say that smoking is bad, but I don’t exactly have any room to talk.” Someone said from above me.
I followed the hand up to a guy with dark, almost black, curls springing about every way. He smiled and it instantly made my heart race. I smiled shyly back as I took my smokes from his hand.
He was wearing a white t-shirt with a pair of ripped up jeans and a pair of converse shoes.
He gave me his hand as I took it he helped me up. It was rough but also soft.
“Thanks.” I said.
“No problem.” He chuckled. “Hey you wouldn’t mind if I got one of those from you would you?”
“Get what?” I said staring at his dimples in his cheeks.
“A smoke.” He said smiling some more.
“Oh right.” I handed him one of them and then he took a red zippo out of his pocket and lit it up.
He took a drag of the smoke and then said “You look kind of familiar. I know you don’t stay here though, because it’s a small town. I would know if I seen you at school.”
“Yea, my family stays up at one of the cabins on the lake.” I said looking over at Brady who was still sitting on the beach eating looking over at me smiling.
“That still doesn’t say how I know you.” He said straight forward.
“Well, I mean, I come to town a lot, and I’ve been to a few parties.”
“Wait a second. Don’t tell me you’re the girl at Nolan’s party last night wasted getting carried out by Star and some guy.” He said making the connection.
His charm left him as I suddenly got annoyed. “That random guy being my brother.” I said matter-of-fact.
“Well, I’m Ramon.” He said sticking out his hand.
“Myra.” I took his hand and shook it.
“Myra.” He repeated trying it out for the first time. “Well, it was nice to meet you Myra. Thanks for the smoke.” He said as he started to walk away.
Brady came up and stood next to me and then said “What, no number?” I socked him in the arm.
“Jeez, it was a joke.” He said laughing rubbing where I hit him at on his arm.
“Whatever, let’s go.”
Me and Brady got back to the cabin and went over to the picnic table by the fire-pit and sat across from our mother and father.
My mother looked up from another book and said “So, how was that place you guys went to? Your dad and I wanted to try it.”
Brady answered saying “Yea, it was really good, kind of greasy. I’ll be paying for that later.” He laughed as my father joined in laughing.
I looked at him and then said “That’s repulsive. Seriously, you’re in company with women here.”
My mother agreed and shook her head up and down.
“Actually, I only see one women and a girl who wants to be.” Brady said smirking.
“Shut-up Brady. God, you’ll never grow up will you?” I said looking at him with annoyance.
“Whatever.” He said turning to my father chatting with him about cars.
I got up