CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE Cooper
“There you are,” he said, rounding the corner into the kitchen. He abruptly sucked air in when he saw Druzella. “Oopsie,” he said. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
For some reason Mom slid the library book under an oversized notepad she used when Druzella visited. The three of us stared at one another while Cooper’s eyes bounced between us.
“Hi,” I said, standing and pulling him in for a hug. “I was just yakking with Mom and her friend.”
“Should I come back later?” he asked. “We actually do have food at our house, but it’s just not as good as your guys’ though.”
“Leftover meatloaf is in the fridge, Cooper,” Mom said. “Make yourself a sandwich.”
I had a better idea to get Coop out of the house. “You know what?” I asked, tweaking his arm. “I’m craving McDonalds fries. How about we go get some and a burger?”
“Excellent choice,” Coop pointed out. “No slamming your meatloaf, Mrs. H.,” he wisely added.
I grabbed Mom’s keys from the decorative bowl on the kitchen counter where she dumped them in and dangled them in the air to get her permission to use her car. Mom nodded and reached for her purse that was hanging on her chair.
“I’m set with money, Mom, but thanks. Let’s go, Coop.”
“Did I interrupt something?” Coop inquired again. “Because I feel like I did.”
I yanked on his arm so we could leave. “Just a bunch of Mom’s mumbo-jumbo stuff, Coop. If anything, you saved me.”
Both her and Druzella gave me the stink eye.
“I only have an hour,” Coop stated, as we headed out. “I promised Dad I’d go to the lumber yard with him later.”
I gave the ladies a quick glance and handed Coop the car keys. “Can you go start the car and start the AC? I’ll grab a clean T-shirt and be right out.”
I waited until I heard the door shut behind him. “Do not go anywhere, you two,” I said. “We need to finish this when I get back.”
“Is this a joke, Michael?” Mom asked. “I have time for you but if this is a silly prank or something like that, I’d rather not.”
“I know you’re totally thinking that, Mom, but I’m serious about what I said. I can’t just ask Coop to leave and not have him freak out that something is wrong. Especially since a lot of what I want to discuss is about him.”
Druzella waved me off. “Go,” she shooed. “I’ll catch your mom up the best I can.”
Coop was sitting in the car jamming to “Same Love” by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis when I hopped into the driver’s seat. “I love this song so frikkin much,” he announced. “The lyrics are about same-sex love, and I for one think it’s amazing for a rapper to sing about that.”
“Yeah, I agree,” I said. “The chick who wrote the chorus is from Seattle. I believe her name is Mary Lambert. Did I ever tell you I saw her at a poetry slam once?”
“You did? When was that?” he asked. “I think I’d remember something like that.”
I’d just royally fucked up. Cooper had died before that happened which caused me to attend the University of Washington instead of WSU with him. I’d seen Mary Lambert on Capitol Hill in Seattle with Jennifer after we began freshman year.
I had what I thought was a perfect cover for my mistake and I doubted he’d verify the timing. “Jennifer made me go listen with her. Remember when I toured UW with her to get her off my back about not at least giving her choice of college a chance?”
“Oh, yeah,” he replied. “But wasn’t that before this huge hit?”
I didn’t know that answer. “Yeah. I’m sure it was.
Doesn’t matter, Coop,” I said. “But I do love the song. Crank it up.” He did as I asked and I let out my breath, hoping I hadn’t sounded confused about dates and shit.
“What does your dad need at the lumber yard?” I asked, hollering over the music and swiftly changing the topic.
Coop lowered the volume. “He wants to price lumber for a new deck.”
“Why do you need to go if he’s just pricing the shit?” I asked.
“You know my dad. If he likes the prices he’ll buy today and he needs the cheap labor to load up the truck,” he explained. “Oh my God!” he exclaimed. “I love this part.” Up went the volume as Coop sang along.
I breathed a sigh of relief and drove us to McDonalds.
When we pulled into the parking lot I spotted Jen’s car. Her and Hastings, along with Megan and Greg were outside sitting on one of the bright yellow picnic tables scarfing down combos, Jennifer’s ever-present chocolate shake sitting in front of her.
“She’s got her milkshake, Mikey,” Coop quipped.
“Should I tell her I get my dick sucked whenever I want now?”
“Yeah, right,” he scolded. “Only if you want the last time to be the last time.”
“Aye, aye, Cap’n.”
I parked next to Jennifer’s car and we hopped out, heading toward their table.
Hastings and Jen were wrapped up in each other like two pretzels.
I was actually happy for them. Hastings had been good for Jen and didn’t take any of her shit.
Jen would never admit it, but I think she secretly liked not being the boss and controlling everything.
“You go ahead and grab a seat, Coop. I’ll grab our fries and a coupla McChickens,” I said, “Hey, I see they’re buy one get one. Want two each?”
“Does a bear shit in the woods?” he asked.
“Not if the bear’s in a zoo,” I replied, dusting off an oldie but a goodie.
I stood in line, got our food, and headed back outside.
While I’d been inside, Cammie Swenson and her girlfriend Josie had shown up and were sitting at the table with the group.
I’m positive I turned as white as a sheet at a Klan rally when I noticed her.
Cammie was the classmate that had egged Cooper on the day he died.
Other kids had said she’d teased him so much he’d finally given in and attempted to cross the lake, thus drowning because he was a weak swimmer.
There was no way in this parallel universe that Cammie could possibly know that I hated her fucking guts.
In fact before Coop had drowned, I’d liked her and her bold choice to live out and proud as a lesbian in Idaho.
Particularly because she was as feminine as they came and could’ve hidden the fact had she wanted to.
With that said though, she also spoke like a goddamn trucker.
After the funeral I got in her face and said some horrible things to her.
Most of our classmates had witnessed us and things went south for her after that.
In fact, Cammie never returned from college.
I hadn’t seen her in more than a decade, and here she was sitting right in front of me with no clue about what had happened.
Hell, for that matter none of them did. I paused and took a deep breath.
She doesn’t know, Mike. She doesn’t know.
Nothing has happened. Calm the fuck down.
“Hey, Mike,” she said, patting the space beside her. “You have to join us tomorrow, dude.”
“For?” I asked, ice running through my veins.
She didn’t need to tell me. I’d already been expecting this.
My pulse quickened as dread filled my body to the point where I could have puked. Today’s date was August 29th. Tomorrow was the 30th. The day and the reason I was here in their universe.
“We’re all heading out to Campbell Lake and Coop said he’s in so I figured you’d be coming along,” Cammie said, updating me. “Unless you’re a chicken shit,” she added. She was pretty but she was a piece of work.
“Yeah, hardly,” I stated. “I’m working. Coop and I can’t go.”
“When did you become his boss?” she asked, turning to Jennifer. “Jeez, girl. You dodged a bullet with this chauvinist pig.”
Jennifer laughed out loud, pumping her fist in the air.
Yeah, I still hated Cammie. “He won’t go without me,” I casually said. “We like hanging out together as much as we can. Sorry though.”
“You hear that, Cooper? Daddy says you can’t go,” she said so everyone could hear. Cammie loved to stir the shit. Funny how I’d forgotten that fact. “Sounds to me like someone’s been neutered.”
I’d heard enough. “Do me a favor, Cammie, and fuck off. How about that?”
“Ouch,” she half-seriously spoke. “That hurts, Mike,” she added, making a pouty face and touching her chest.
“Doesn’t matter because I’m actually going,” Coop stated. “With or without you.”
“I don’t think so,” I corrected. “Maybe another time.”
By then Hastings and Greg decided to share their two cents worth. “Jesus, Hill. Lighten the fuck up,” Greg said, high fiving Cammie.
“Fuck Hill, Cooper,” Hastings interjected. “I mean, I assume you are fuckin’ him and shit, but you can ride with me and Jen. I gotcha, bruh.”
I’m sure I had to be red with rage by then but had no reasonable way to explain my behavior. I was tempted to pop some heads then grab Coop and go the fuck home.
“We aren’t going,” I stated emphatically. “Zero chance. Nada. None.”
“But I want to go,” Coop said.
“You can do what you want, Coopie,” Cammie egged him on, glaring at me. “Big bad Mike Hill will just have to deal with it. Right, guys?” she asked, glancing around and rallying the troops.
Everyone agreed with her and kept razzing me.
I was as angry as a murder hornet getting its nest busted apart but had to try and mask my reaction.
I was supposedly a teenager as well, and they were right, I did sound like Coop’s father.
I was fucked three ways to Sunday no matter what I said or did.
I tucked my tail between my legs and glanced at Coop. “I’d better get you back home now,” I spoke softly, turning to leave.
“I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” Coop said. “Text me when you’re heading over.”
They all cheered while I unlocked the car door, sliding in and pounding my hands against the steering wheel. Coop got in and stared at me like I’d lost my mind.
We were halfway home before either of us spoke. He was stubborn as fuck so I broke the ice. “You’re not going.”
“Yes, I am,” he declared. “What’s up with you? Of course I want you to go, but there’s no reason I can’t go just because you’re working, is there?”
“I just don’t want you to.” I had no ground to stand on but I’d beg if I had to. “Please just don’t go. I . . . I . . . can’t explain why but I need you to stay home, Coop.”
“You’re serious, aren’t you?” he asked, sliding his hand into mine after hearing my quivering voice.
My eyes had welled up when I turned to him. “I’m afraid, Coop. I know I’m acting crazy here, but I’m totally anxious about something right now.”
“Okay, Mikey. I won’t go then.”
His announcement surprised me. “You promise?”
“I promise. You know my word is my word.”
“And you swear? On us?” I asked.
“What is going on? You’re freaking me out, Mikey.”
“I just feel like something bad is going to happen,” I answered. “I know. I know. My whatever feeling probably sounds crazy. I get that, but I’m really scared, Coop.”
“Then I won’t go. Simple as that,” he said, squeezing my hand. His brow furrowed and he looked at me. “Your hand is sweaty, baby.”
Cooper had never called me baby or any nickname except for Mikey. If I’d been in near panic and about to have a full-on anxiety attack before, his endearment crushed my heart. I was so in love with him and what I feared was about to happen. This was the event and I was freaking the fuck out.
“I can’t lose you, Coop. I just can’t, and now I’m embarrassed about what just happened in front of our friends.”
“Pull over,” he said, motioning to the road.
I pulled onto the shoulder and shifted the car into park. Cooper leaned over the console and laid his face in the crook of my neck. His free hand ran up and down my arm.
“You are all that matters to me,” he whispered against my skin, his kind voice pulling on my heartstrings. “You asked me not to go so I’m not going. Do you honestly think I’d ever put our friends before you?” he asked.
I mumbled what I hoped sounded like no.
“I wouldn’t, Mikey. Not today. Not tomorrow. Not ever,” he vowed.
“I’m not going to work tomorrow,” I said quietly.
His brow twisted again but he quickly relaxed after noting I hadn’t calmed down. “Because of this feeling you have?”
“Yep,” I stated. “Don’t trust it.”
“Would you like to spend the entire day together tomorrow then?” he asked.
“If you can, I’d like that a lot,” I admitted. “Can you stay overnight at my house tonight?”
“I sure can.”
I felt the fear subside a bit. I wasn’t sure how this August 30th was going to play out. Not to mention I’d realized this universe wasn’t exactly like the one I remembered. “Thank you, Coop. And thank you for calling me baby. I kinda liked that a whole bunch.”
“You caught that, huh?”
I grinned at his sweet face, overcome with how handsome he was. “I love you.”
“I know you do, Mikey. Trust me, I know.”