Emma
Mystic Hollow was the perfect little town, and as I drove down the coast, windows rolled down, I felt another wave of anger at my ex. I should’ve never left this town. The salty water, the white beaches, even the woods, they were all a part of me. I had all of my best memories in this place.
It’d never stopped feeling like home.
But he hadn’t wanted to move here. So, we didn’t. I resented him for that, but I resented myself even more. Because with each day that had passed since the Day of Strangeness, I’d started to realize how many times I’d given into Rick.
I’d given in and given in until I was living a life I wasn’t happy in. And that was just as much on me as it was on him.
I shifted my shoulder in the brace, and took the next one-handed curve in the road slowly. The urgent care doctors had said I’d probably bruised my bones, but they’d fixed the dislocated shoulder, so it wasn’t nearly as painful as before. Not that you’d know it from the gnarly bruise that had spread over my painfully white skin. Still, I was hurting as I came to this last stretch of the drive. A couple days in a car was already hard on my bum, back, and neck. The shoulder just added a whole otherfunelement to being crammed into a car all night.
Slowing down even more, I reached the road with all of the beautiful beach houses spread out, facing the ocean. If I stayed on this path, I’d come to the town of Mystic Hollow, and if I kept going, I’d find woods in every direction. This place was isolated.
Which was exactly what I needed.
I turned another curve and saw the spot where the road broke off. One way led to the quiet street with beach houses, and the other went into town. I took the quiet road, watching the ocean waves between the houses and tilting my face up to feel the sunlight on it. My gaze pulled from the ocean, and I looked ahead, waiting to catch sight of our house. But when it came into view, I was a little surprised. It was in rougher shape than I remembered.
Pulling into the driveway, I killed the engine and climbed out. Outside, the scent of the ocean was even stronger, and the sound of the waves hitting the shore was like the sweetest music. Muscles I didn’t know were clenched relaxed, and I walked slowly to the porch.
My brother rose from one of the two rocking chairs, and I froze. Was he taller than I remembered? Henry was always so tall and so thin. His dark hair, the same almost-black brown shade as my own, was still left long, like when he was a boy. And yet, he’d filled out a little. He even had some softness around his stomach.
I smiled. “Henry!”
He grinned and walked out to meet me. When we reached each other, he awkwardly leaned in and gave me a loose hug before he pulled back. “Welcome home.”
“It looks the same,” I said.
He shrugged.
“Want to help me bring my bags in?”
He nodded, and we went to the car and started unloading it. “What happened to your arm?”
“Just a car accident.”
He stood to his full height, loaded with my bags, and I closed the door. We went back up the path, climbed the patio stairs, and headed inside. The big living room, filled with huge floor-to-ceiling windows, made me catch my breath. I wandered to the windows and pressed a hand to the glass, staring out at the wild waters. How many times had I laid by these windows and read as a child? How many times did I sit out on that beach and let the waves wash over me?
“Do you want to go in your old room or mom’s and dad’s?”
I stiffened and looked back at him. “You’re not in the master?”
He shook his head.
“I guess—I guess their room.”
He nodded and took off down the hall.
I followed after him, through the big open kitchen, and passed my old bedroom, the bathroom we shared, and his room, before coming to the last room. The door was open, but I entered hesitantly. After my parents had died, we’d stayed in this house. After a time, I’d redone this room, erasing most of the memories that hurt to remember, but still it felt weird to be in here. He set the bags down on the bed and turned back to me.
“My girlfriend and I have plans to play War Guild online.”
I grinned. “So things are still going well with you and Alice?”
He nodded. “She’s my girlfriend.”
“Okay,” I said. “I’m fine. You go have fun.”
He left, not looking back, and I couldn’t help but smile. He and Alice had been dating for ten years. She still lived with her parents. He still lived here. They both just liked their space, according to him, and they were both happy with things exactly the way they were. It was kind of strange to me. Everything about their relationship was unconventional. They just did what made them happy, and yet, I was the one getting a divorce.
