Chapter 4 #2
As she worked the shampoo through Carly’s long curls, her mother said, “Here’s how this is going to go.
You can have as much time as you need to get past what’s happened, but you’re going to get up every day, you’re going to bathe, you’re going to eat, and you’re going to help out around here.
Your father’s right. This has gone on long enough.
I know you’re terribly sad. We all are, but enough is enough, Carly. Do you understand me?”
With tears rolling down her cheeks, Carly replied with a small nod.
Carol wiped away her daughter’s tears. “Brian called to check on you.”
Carly looked up at her mother to see if it was true.
“He loves you very much, but of course you know that. He told me you two got engaged the night of the accident. You never even got a chance to tell us, did you? You probably thought we’d be upset to see you getting married so young, right?
Well, we probably would’ve been, but now .
. .” As Carol rinsed Carly’s hair she brushed at her own tears.
“Don’t you want to marry Brian and go to Michigan the way you planned? Isn’t that what you want, honey?”
Again, Carly nodded.
“Then you have to talk to us. All those feelings you’ve got locked inside must be eating you up. You’ll feel so much better if you let them out.” She grasped Carly’s chin, forcing her to make eye contact. “Will you try? Please?”
Carly opened her mouth, but nothing came out.
Carol kissed her cheek. “That’s okay, love. We’ll try again tomorrow.”
Carly’s mother invited Brian to their annual Fourth of July cookout.
For days before the holiday, Carly was on pins and needles while she waited to see if he would come.
She hadn’t seen him in two weeks, the longest they’d ever gone without seeing each other in more than four years of dating.
Every day without him had felt like a year to her.
On the morning of the Fourth, she spent extra time getting ready. She wore the white shorts she knew he loved and a red halter that made her feel sexy. For the first time since the accident, she felt a spark of interest in something and hoped that maybe she was finally beginning to recover.
Standing in front of the mirror, she was shocked by her pale face. Her once-vibrant brown eyes were now flat and sunken into her face.
Seeing herself looking so sickly spurred her to try to speak.
Just one word, she thought. Come on, no one will hear.
When nothing happened, she cleared her throat and tried again.
Nothing. I’m not doing it on purpose. She was startled to realize it was true.
Until that moment, she hadn’t been entirely sure.
I want to talk, but I can’t. I don’t know why.
Still absorbing the discovery she’d made in the bathroom, she spent the rest of the morning helping her mother in the kitchen.
Her sisters were in and out with their friends, and her brother Craig was home from Boston with his wife Allison.
The house was a beehive of activity, and for once Carly’s father seemed to be relaxed.
Perhaps he’d decided to take the day off from ranting.
Carly put the finishing touches on a huge bowl of potato salad and handed it to her mother.
With a grateful smile, Carol took the bowl from her and covered it with foil. “Thanks for the help, honey.” In years past, Carly would have spent the morning at the lake with Brian and their friends, returning home just in time to eat.
By one o’clock, the preparations were done, so Carly wandered onto the front porch.
The day was thick with humidity, and the electric wires that lined South Road buzzed in the heat.
Across the street, the Durhams arrived home from the parade downtown and unloaded chairs and a cooler from the back of their van.
Little David Durham, who Carly had babysat for years, waved to her.
She waved back, wishing he’d wander over to see her the way he used to.
But he turned away and followed his parents inside.
Overwhelmed with sadness, Carly suspected he was afraid of her because she didn’t talk anymore.
Her mother had invited Brian for one thirty, but he’d been noncommittal.
By the time one forty-five rolled around, Carly was convinced he wasn’t coming.
The smoke from the barbeque wafted over the house, bringing with it the sounds of laughter and chatter from the backyard.
As she got up to go inside, he appeared at the gate, looking hesitant and adorable.
Her heart beating fast with excitement, Carly went down the stairs to open the gate for him.
With relief and maybe even joy in his eyes, he cradled her face in his hands and kissed her.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and fell into the kiss with the first bit of exuberance she’d felt since the accident.
Apparently, he felt it, too. “Carly,” he whispered. “I’ve missed you so much.” He kissed her more greedily the second time, as if he was afraid he wouldn’t get another chance. “I’m sorry about what I said the last time I was here. I was frustrated.”
She let him know she understood the only way she could, by reaching up to kiss him again.
“I can still see everything you feel in your eyes,” he whispered against her lips. “That hasn’t changed.” They held each other for a long time, until Carly’s mother came to the door.
“Oh, hi, Brian,” Carol said with a smile. “I’m sorry, don’t let me interrupt. You two take your time, and come on back when you’re ready for something to eat.”
“Thanks, Mrs. Holbrook.” After her mother had left them alone, he smiled down at Carly. “Other things sure have changed, though, huh?”
She rewarded him with the first genuine smile she had given anyone since they left the willow tree and their innocence behind.
In the backyard, picnic tables were covered with festive red-and-white-checkered tablecloths.
Caren and Cate played croquet while Craig helped their father at the grill.
Carly’s sister-in-law Allison reclined on a lounge chair with a hand resting on her pregnant belly. Her first child was due in October.
“Craig, get Brian a drink, will you please?” Carol called to her son.
“Thanks,” Brian said.
Craig pulled an icy can from the cooler. “Nice to see you, Brian.” They shook hands. “I’ve been thinking about you. How’re you doing?”
“Hanging in. How about you?”
“Can’t complain.” Craig glanced over at his wife and smiled. “I’m enjoying my last few months of relative freedom.”
“How’s the job at the law firm, Brian?” Steve Holbrook asked as he tended to the grill.
“Not bad. It’s boring sometimes, but it’s nice to have the chance to be in that environment and to see what goes on.”
Carly hung on his every word, wanting to know everything he’d been up to since she last saw him.
“After a few months of delivering mail and fetching coffee for the partners, you’ll be wondering why you ever wanted to be an ambulance chaser,” Steve joked.
Brian smiled. “They haven’t ruined it for me quite yet.”
Carol chuckled and asked Carly to help her bring out the rest of the food.
She followed her mother inside and began taking covered bowls out of the refrigerator. Carly had made multiple trips to the picnic table by the time her father announced that the food on the grill was ready.
“Someone bring me a plate!” Steve called. “Hurry!”
Carol handed the platter to Carly, and she rushed outside with it. As she approached the stone patio, her father flipped a rack of ribs. The grease falling into the fire below caused the flames to flare up with a great roar.
Carly dropped the platter, and it shattered on the patio. Unable to tear her eyes off the licking flames, she began to tremble.
Brian rushed over to lead her away from the fire. “It’s okay, baby.” He sat with her in the shade and held her tight against him. “I’ve got you.”