‘Oh my god!’ Sierra exclaimed. ‘No more secrets, do you both hear me?’ She pointed an accusatory finger at each of them in turn. ‘Let’s just all be honest with each other.’
Alice laid a gentle hand on her arm, and her expression softened. ‘The purple tips are a little 2014 Tumblr.’
Sierra cracked a smile, and Freddie laughed. ‘What a mad summer,’ he said, shaking his head. ‘What would Susan think if she was looking down on us now?’
‘She would hate the drama,’ Alice said thoughtfully. ‘But she would be proud of us for pulling it off, despite everything. And she’d be happy that the party went on without her.’
‘Aye,’ Cook said, stepping out from behind the shed and startling the three of them.
‘Christ!’ Freddie exclaimed. ‘Have you been there the whole time?’
Cook dropped the still-smoking roach from his hand and squished it with his shoe. ‘You lot are an entertaining bunch. Almost as good as the raccoons.’ He smiled and then disappeared into the house.
‘So, when the kids always insist that there’s a camp ghost…’ Sierra said, and the three of them doubled over laughing.
Alice stayed in the garden, chatting with the partygoers who came out of the packed house to smoke or cool off. Slowly, the guests trickled home as the hour grew late. When Briar finally came out, Alice guessed it was well past midnight.
‘Hey,’ Alice said, uncertain how Briar would be feeling after all the emotions of the party.
‘Hi,’ Briar said, gazing around the garden in wonder. ‘This place looks amazing.’
‘Thanks,’ Alice said, taking Briar’s hand and pulling her to lay in the center of the grass with her. She wanted to look at the stars together one more time before she left. ‘Who’s still around?’
‘No one,’ Briar said, propping up on her elbow to look at Alice. ‘Noah and Harper just finished cleaning up and are headed back to camp.’
The crickets chirped, and the birds would be up before long. Alice knew there was no way she would fall asleep tonight, and Briar seemed to feel similarly.
Briar pressed a kiss to Alice’s hairline. ‘Noah didn’t care.’
‘Neither did Harper, if that was a concern. Or Freddie. Or Sierra – but she already knew. Or Cook.’
There was a long moment of silence, and then Briar said quietly, ‘I think Noah’s just glad you were here to keep me from falling apart this summer.’
‘You could’ve done it without me.’
Briar nodded slightly, settling against Alice’s side as the two of them gazed at the stars. ‘I’m glad I didn’t have to.’
‘Why…’ Alice struggled to get the question out, not sure she wanted to hear the answer. ‘Why did you want to keep things between us a secret?’
‘I was embarrassed,’ Briar said, after a minute. ‘Of what happened in high school. About how I fell apart afterward. Of how’ – Alice felt her swallow – ‘I needed you.’
‘That sounds like something Susan taught you,’ Alice said. ‘Unseemly, to need someone.’
Briar lifted her head. ‘I guess I thought that if people knew about us, they’d be watching me when you left, trying to make sure I was okay. And I couldn’t stand that, not on top of everything else.’
‘It’s okay for people to see you struggling. I mean, not that I would be the cause for any sort of… you know.’ Alice felt heat creep up her neck.
‘You do cause a lot of problems for me,’ Briar said, and Alice couldn’t tell if she was joking. ‘I think I’ve felt more things this summer than I have in a long time. And I don’t have the strength anymore to pretend I don’t care. Because I do, I care a lot. I…’ She sat up quickly, facing away from Alice.
She wanted to reach out and lay a hand on Briar’s shoulder, but something held her back.
‘Why did you leave?’ It was so quiet, Alice almost didn’t hear her. She desperately wished she could see Briar’s face, to get a sense of what she was thinking. ‘I just want to know before you go again.’
‘I was going to come back,’ Alice said after a moment.
‘What?’
She sat up too, and Briar turned to her. ‘When I left for Noah’s that morning, I thought I’d come right back and tell you that I loved you.’
