Chapter 6 #2
Lily hung her tops in the closet and put everything else in the bureau drawers.
She’d brought a few books with her and her journal, which had been helping her to process her thoughts.
She looked forward to jotting down the events of each day before she went to bed.
Once everything was put away, she joined her mother and grandmother in the kitchen.
They were sitting at the island, drinking tea and chatting.
“I’m ready to go for a walk.”
Claire stood and asked Nana if she wanted to join them.
Nana smiled. “You two go. My knee is cranky this morning. I’ll see you in a bit.”
Lily suspected that Nana’s knee was fine, and she was just giving them time to catch up.
They headed down to the beach, walking silently until they reached the sand.
“I called the high school yesterday. You’re all set to start Monday,” her mother said.
“Okay.” Lily was excited but also slightly dreading her first day at the same time.
She’d fantasized a bit about what it might be like to go to school here.
She pictured parties on the beach and dreamed about new friends and possible boyfriends.
And hopefully it wouldn’t be a repeat of what she’d just gone through, where Dylan, the guy she’d been crushing on hard and who she’d finally thought might actually be interested too, started dating someone else.
And not just anyone else—Blake Sugarman, who Lily had thought was one of her best friends. Blake knew about Lily’s crush. But she didn’t care. Supposedly she’d wanted to date Dylan for ages too. Whatever. Lily was just glad that she didn’t have to see it anymore.
Lily glanced at her mother and really took a good look at her.
Claire looked good, better than Lily had expected actually.
She had color in her cheeks, and she seemed relaxed.
“How are you doing, Mom?” The last time Lily had seen her, Claire was quiet and pale and had overall seemed miserable. Not that Lily could blame her.
It was hard for Lily to imagine her mother having another baby. That just seemed so weird at this point. Especially now that her parents were getting divorced. And it was beyond disgusting that Rebecca was pregnant too. Lily really didn’t need to be around that.
“I’m good, honey. I’m better now that you’re here.” Claire smiled and looked out at the ocean. “It’s good to be here. There’s something calming about this island. I loved Manhattan too, but Nantucket is home.”
They walked along the shore and went for almost a mile, turning back when they reached one of several lighthouses on the island. On the walk back, her mother finally asked about her father.
“How is your dad?”
“He’s getting ready to move into a new place with Rebecca. He’s good. I think he’s confused. He wants me to visit, to come for weekends at some point. I told him I’m not ready for that yet though. I don’t want to be around her, Mom. It doesn’t feel right.”
Her mother was quiet for several minutes as they walked along.
Lily sensed that she was trying to find the right words.
Finally she spoke. “Obviously I don’t agree with his actions, but he’s still your father.
And if he’s moving in with…her, well, you might want to consider the occasional weekend visit.
Your father and I are going to have to work out some kind of custody arrangement for the next few years. ”
“Custody? You mean I might have to split my time between here and there? Equally?” Lily could hear the panic in her own voice. She couldn’t imagine how that would work. “I don’t want to fly back there every weekend.”
“Of course not. I think there’s some flexibility here. It can be whatever we all agree to. And you have a say. You don’t have to go there until you’re ready. Maybe one weekend a month possibly? We could ask him to start with coming here for a weekend, maybe?”
Lily liked that idea. “And he can leave her at home.”
Her mother smiled. “It doesn’t hurt to ask.”
A tension Claire hadn’t realized she’d been holding had eased when Lily walked into her arms at the airport.
Though her daughter was sixteen, she was still Claire’s baby.
She’d steeled herself to expect that Lily would want to finish out the year in Manhattan.
And she’d wanted her to have that option.
But she was so relieved and thankful that Lily had come to Nantucket.
They had a relaxing Saturday. After the walk on the beach, they ate a quick lunch.
Marsha had turkey sandwiches waiting for them when they returned.
They all headed into town after lunch for an afternoon of window-shopping.
Marsha’s knee was miraculously better, and she led the way to several new shops—a kitchenware boutique and a fragrance shop.
Lily wanted to see a matinee at the Dreamland—Nantucket’s only movie theater.
A cute romantic comedy was playing, and they all enjoyed it.
They walked around for an hour or so after, and Lily bought an oversize sweatshirt in the pretty Nantucket Red color from a shop along the wharf.
It was almost five by then, and Claire assumed they’d head home, but Marsha surprised her by suggesting dinner at Brotherhood of Thieves.
“I know Lily likes the burgers there.”
“They are awesome. Can we go there?” Lily sounded excited, so Claire happily agreed.
Brotherhood of Thieves had a pub-like atmosphere. It was perfect for Lily, who was a picky eater and usually ordered a burger no matter where they went.
It was early, so they didn’t have to wait for a table. Lily ordered her burger, and Claire and her mother both went for the grilled salmon. Over dinner, Lily asked them about the high school.
“You both went there, right? What should I know?”
Claire’s mother smiled. “Your great-grandmother went there too. I thought we’d visit her tomorrow for Sunday dinner, if that works?
” They both nodded, and Marsha continued.
“It’s a great school. I’m not sure I fully appreciated it while I was there.
I had a love-hate experience with high school.
It was mostly love, except for my first year, when I was awkward and unsure of my place in the world.
But then I met Carol when her family moved to the island, and everything changed. ”
She paused to take a bite of her salmon.
“Carol’s still my best friend. She was the kind of person that everyone is drawn to.
I was on the quieter side, and I’d get even shyer around the popular kids, especially the boys.
But Carol was so outgoing, so confident, and so much fun.
” She smiled, remembering. “Carol brought me out of my shell. And the next three years were an adventure. So my best advice is to find yourself a good friend and try to enjoy the experience. It will go by too fast.”
Claire nodded. “I mostly loved high school. And a big part of it was my friendship with Rachel. We met when I was nine or ten. Rachel declared that we were going to best friends forever—and she was right.”
“I always thought it was kind of weird that even in Manhattan, you still talked to Rachel almost every day,” Lily admitted. “Sounds like she was a much better friend than Blake was.” Her tone was bitter, and Claire’s mother raised her eyebrows.
“What happened with Blake?” Marsha asked cautiously. Lily rarely shared details about her social life, and Claire’s mother didn’t like to pry, even though she was curious to know more.
Lily sighed dramatically, then told her grandmother the saga of Blake stealing the boy Lily had a crush on.
Claire’s mother reached out and squeezed Lily’s hand. “This is your chance to start over. Make new friends, better ones.”
Lily smiled a little. Her eyes were shiny and damp, and Claire’s heart went out to her. “The high school is small, but they have a good football team and a wonderful performing arts department,” she said.
Lily perked up. “They do? That’s cool.” Although she was on the shy side, Lily enjoyed singing in the school chorus and had an ear for playing the piano. Claire had enrolled her in lessons when she was eight.
Lily had surprised them by being able to listen to a song on the radio and then play it almost perfectly from memory.
Claire knew she liked to write in her journal and wondered if she’d ever tried to write a song.
She’d asked her once, and Lily had just shrugged and said maybe she’d try one day.
She had a lovely voice, but Claire knew she didn’t like being the center of attention. Being part of the chorus suited her.
Toward the end of the meal, Lily asked if Claire planned to get a job.
“I’d like to. I’ve reached out to all the editors I’ve worked with to see if there are any possible writing assignments, but it seems like magazine work has tightened up.
There have been cutbacks and layoffs. I looked online to see if there were any jobs available on the island, but there’s nothing yet. ”
“It’s quiet here in the winter. It won’t pick up until summer comes,” Marsha said.
Lily chewed her lower lip for a moment, looking both confused and concerned. “Are we okay for money? I overheard Dad on the phone talking to someone. He said he told you he’s totally broke. That’s why he’s in such a hurry to sell the apartment and move in with Rebecca.”
Claire took a deep breath. They’d always been so comfortable, rich even, by many people’s standards.
Claire was glad she’d grabbed that cash, because she absolutely was broke.
She chose her words carefully. “Money is tight right now. And your father needs to sell the apartment quickly. He’s starting a new job though, so he’ll have money coming in soon.
” She glanced at Marsha. “And we have Nana to help with a place to stay and when the baby comes.”
“We have plenty.” Marsha smiled at Lily. “We have a roof over our head, a beautiful view of the ocean, food in the refrigerator, and each other.”
Claire nodded gratefully. “And I’ll keep watching the job listings to see if anything turns up. I’m happy to take over some of the cooking. I’ll have time for it. So you won’t have to cook as much during the week.”
Marsha laughed. “I’ll happily take you up on that.”
Claire didn’t mind either. She enjoyed cooking and found it relaxing.
Maybe she’d try out some new recipes and try her hand at knitting again.
She’d been meaning to pick it back up. But she would try to find some way to earn money as soon as possible.
She’d checked her stash of cash, and she knew it wouldn’t last long.
Kids—and life in general—were expensive. Especially on Nantucket.