“That alright?” I asked again. I was pretty sure I had more experience than her and I wanted her to be comfortable.
“It is, but,” she paused, looking down at my chest, “I’ve never gone all the way before.”
I nodded, understanding. “I haven’t either. Should we stop?”
She wrinkled her nose, looking disappointed. “Probably.”
I kissed her. “I’m good with that. Wanna snuggle?”
“Hell yeah,” she said with a smile. I flipped so we were bothon our sides, facing each other. Our kisses rolled on with more tenderness. We fell asleep with her tucked against my chest, the waves and our own breathing our lullaby.
Chapter 5
Guy
When I got back from the beach trip with the Gattos, everything fell apart. Maman had drinks with Heather the night we got back, and she came home red-eyed and puffy-faced.
Maman sat me down the next morning and told me what was going on. I was right. She was sick. While I was at the beach, she had a number of medical tests done. She had Stage III ovarian cancer. The prognosis was uncertain, but with the cost of healthcare in the States, it didn’t make sense for her to stay.
She told me I could stay if I wanted. Heather and Mark offered to take me in to finish high school. But I could never leave her alone to manage her sickness. If I was going to lose her, I was damn well going to be there with her every step of the way.
And besides, I didn’t really have anywhere to keep up my hockey skills in West Virginia. That was my likely ticket to a good college. Going home to Quebec where I could sharpen my skills and get scouted made far more sense. Our life on the run was coming to a close.
So for the second time in my life, I was packing it all up anddriving away. When Maman and Heather had wine in the Gattos’ backyard that next night, they invited Kitty to join them. Frank and I snuck some liquor out of his parents’ liquor cabinet and got drunk, too. Our moms knew, but they didn’t care. Frank was a pretty tough guy, not really one to show a ton of emotion. We both lost it that night, though. It just wasn’t fair, for any of us. Especially Maman, of course, but it was ripping all of us apart.
Kitty texted me that night while she was drinking with our moms.
KITTY BIRD
You should hear them singing
It’s hilarious
Come up here
Me n Frankie 2 drunk
lol
I’m here for you tho Frenchie
<3
I hid those texts from Frank. I hadn’t told him about kissing Kitty, nor did I act any differently toward her on our trip. Once I found out what was going on with Maman, I was glad I hadn’t told Frank. No sense making him mad at me right before I left. It was selfish of me and unfair to Kitty. I wished I could have her out in the open without everything getting messy.
I was hung over the next day. Maman had to go into work, as she was determined to work her last few shifts at the restaurant. Around noon, I sent Kitty a message. I was still laying in bed, miserable.
Can u come over
KITTY BIRD
on my way <3
I heard the front door open and her climbing the stairs.
“Up here,” I called from my third-floor room. It was a converted attic, and Maman was nice enough to let me have it all to myself. I sat with my head in my hands at the edge of my bed, not sure how I wanted to greet her. My bed was unmade, and I was still in my athletic shorts and t-shirt from the night before.
“Guy.” The way she said my name held the weight of everything we faced. Her nose sounded stuffed up, probably from crying and being miserable like I was. I lifted my pounding head to look at her. Her hair was in a wet ponytail that left a damp spot on her shoulder. She wore her wandering around the house clothes: a big t-shirt, tiny shorts, and flip-flops. Her skin glowed from our time at the beach. That seemed like a lifetime ago, even though it had only been a couple of days. So much had changed.
