“Hi, Nash. Just wanted to check in.” She sounds as though today is a good day for her, which is a relief.
“No need to check in,” I remind her as I continue to walk toward my car on Main Street.
She lets out a breath. “How is she? Bo?”
Ah, that’s why she’s really calling. “They’re… they’re fine. Bo seems happy. He’s a baby, after all.”
“That’s nice. He’s growing fast from what I see from the photos that Summer sends. We’re planning a time to come up and visit. And Summer? How is she holding up?”
A sting hits my body. How do I say she’s thriving if I’m not quite sure it’s the truth? I’m sure as hell not going to say that she’s keeping herself so damn occupied that I’m beginning to think she’s running herself thin. Or that me being in Lake Spark only stirs things that shouldn’t be touched.
“She’s doing the best she can for Bo.” That’s not a lie, at least.
“I’m happy to hear. You be sure to help them out while you’re in town. Your brother would have wanted that. He held Summer and Bo so close to his heart.”
I swallow because my parents have no clue the dynamics between Summer and Zac. Let alone when I’m thrown into the equation.
“I know, Mom.”
“I’m actually calling because I need you to check on thehouse. The realtor wants to take photos next week as we prepare to put the house on the market. But I would like you to run through to see if anything needs to be fixed or seems out of place.”
A grin curves on my mouth. “Would it matter? The size of the house makes up for anything that could be wrong. I’m sure it will sell fast.” Kind of a shame, too. It’s a great house full of memories.
“Maybe you’re right. Also…”
“Yes?”
She stalls for a second or two. “Your brother left you a box. He had set some things aside before… well, he wanted to ensure we saved some things for Bo. I guess he found stuff from when you guys were younger. I set the box in the den before we left to head south.”
Yet again today, I pause in my step before I reach my car. “Oh. I didn’t realize he did that.” Probably because I vanished after he passed.
“He loved you a lot.”
“Zac was special.” That’s why I let him have his gift that ended up being his wife and giving him a son.
“Mmhmm.”
I sigh. “I’ll check on the house, maybe on my way home. Have to run some errands.”
“Thanks, sweetie.”
Ending the call, I close my eyes for a second to adjust to the fact that I saw him less in recent years when he needed a brother more than anything. Yet, my brother did a kind gesture by leaving me mementos when he deserved more from me.
Still, I get in my car and throw the bag of baby shampoo on the front seat. It’s early, and I figure we have another hourbefore it’s dinner time. Or rather, Summer can eat after Bo goes to bed, so she doesn’t need to rush dinner.
My drive around the lake with changing leaves doesn’t do much for clearing my head. Nor does arriving to my childhood home. After parking, entering the security code, and walking into the hall, I do a quick assessment of the place. I know they still have a cleaner visit every other week and a lawn service for the yard. There isn’t much to check on, as everything is the way it should be.
That may be a stretch. The house is missing people inside who are happy, far from aching.
Remembering that there is a box waiting for me because our lives are in mourning, I enter the den where memories trickle into my thoughts. The way Zac would game or have friends over to watch TV and plan BBQs. He and I would watch movies. Summer would join us, and there was always popcorn being thrown. They were always good times.
I spot the box on the sofa, and I’m not nervous to open it. Maybe I should be. Lifting the lid off, I instantly snort a laugh. My eyes are greeted with a game system and collection of his old-school games. Summer wasn’t wrong about it being in a box somewhere. There is also a trophy that our friends got us because we apparently committed the best prank on the history teacher on Halloween. A pack of cards that we would always play when we would visit our grandparents. A plastic Easter egg because we got roped into manning the Easter egg hunt at the Dizzy Duck when I was sixteen.
I pick up more things from what would appear to be a box of junk but is anything but. One by one, a flood of happiness washes over me. His notebook of drawings, feeling like it’s a piece of art even though it’s mostly nonsense. I toss it to the side.
Everything is out when I notice one last thing at the bottom of the box. An envelope of photos with the seal broken, and I have a peek at the few, mostly family photos and Zac and me at a party together. One more that’s Summer, Zac, and me. Different to the one on Summer’s living room mantle. I turn the pictures for dates. Memory lane suddenly steals my breath, with my entire body experiencing its own clap of thunder.
A date is a reminder of how time passes.
