Chapter 1
After the SATs, my boyfriend Ryan Brooks, my best friend Emily Carter, and I planned a beach graduation trip.
As soon as we hit the highway, Emily covered her mouth, looking like she was about to puke.
Ryan immediately pulled into the rest area, grabbed some tissues, and unscrewed a bottle of water, holding it to her lips.
Emily leaned against the passenger seat, her eyes red. "Sophie, I am sorry. Did I ruin the mood?"
Ryan turned around, frowning. "She's feeling really sick. Go grab some motion sickness pills, and hurry."
I nodded and ran all over the rest area under the blazing midday sun.
When I came back with the pills, the parking spot was empty.
I thought they'd just moved the car, so I waited so long my legs went numb.
My phone buzzed with Ryan's voice message.
Ryan said in the voice message, [Emily is throwing up badly. I am taking her to the hotel first. Find your own way there, and do not ruin our plans.]
I stared at the voice message and remembered that before we left, Ryan had said the passenger seat had the best view and was reserved for me.
By nine that night, I'd hitched a ride with a truck driver heading back to the city.
If the graduation trip couldn't wait for me, I wasn't going.
*****
As the truck rolled out of the rest area, the blue road sign in the rearview mirror grew smaller and smaller.
The driver glanced over. "Young lady, did you have a fight with your family?"
The wind whipped in through the window, making the box of motion sickness pills in my hand rattle.
After a while, I finally replied, "No. The graduation trip was canceled at the last minute."
My phone screen lit up.
Ryan sent me a location, a beachside B&B.
Then another message appeared: [Let me know when you get here. Do not be dramatic. Emily is really sick.]
The words [do not be dramatic] burned in my chest like the highway heat.
Before we left, Ryan had patted the passenger seat. "Sophie, this spot is reserved for my girlfriend. No one else may take it."
Emily, clutching her teddy bear backpack, grinned and slid over. "But what if I get carsick?"
Ryan paused for a couple seconds, spinning the car keys between his fingers. "Then Emily can take the seat for a while. You'll still get a good view from the back."
I didn't say anything.
Ryan had ruffled my hair. "When we reach the beach, I will make it up to you and show you the sunrise."
The truck rolled over a speed bump, making my stomach churn.
My phone buzzed again.
Emily sent me a photo.
She was draped in Ryan's jacket, sitting by the big window, with two glasses of coconut water and a plate of sliced mango on the table.
Her caption read: [Sophie, we got here first. Stay safe on the road. Ryan says the sofa bed is yours.]
Just the sofa bed, huh.
Guess I don't even get a real room.
The driver glanced at me and handed over half a pack of tissues. "Here. Wipe your face."
When my fingers brushed my cheek, I realized I'd been crying a lot.
Ryan called just as the truck was getting off the highway.
When I picked up, the first thing I heard was Emily's soft, weak cough.
Ryan sounded angry but controlled. "Sophia Winston, where are you? Why does your location show you heading back?"
The streetlights slid past the window one by one.
I said, "I'm going home."
There was a brief silence, then the sharp sound of a chair scraping across the floor.
"Are you crazy? We planned this for a month, and you are bailing now?" Ryan snapped.
Emily whispered, "Ryan, do not be harsh on Sophie. She must be upset with me."
Ryan grew colder. "She is overreacting. Even buying medicine became drama."
I squeezed the pill box so hard it got all bent out of shape.
I asked softly, "Ryan, when you left me at the rest area, did you think I might be scared?"
He clicked his tongue. "The rest area is safe. You are eighteen. Can you stop making me worry?"
On the other end, it sounded like Emily had knocked over a glass.
Ryan immediately panicked. "Did you burn yourself? Let me see your hand."
The call was still connected.
His gentle voice came through the line, so clear it hurt.
After a moment, he remembered I was still there. "Go home and cool off. Come by yourself tomorrow. Do not make this awkward for everyone."
Emily asked softly before the call ended, "Sophie is not truly angry, is she? She always listened to you."
The call ended.
I tossed the motion sickness pills into the trash can.
By the time the truck pulled over at the edge of the city, it was already past midnight.
At the edge of the city, I spotted Daniel Reed, our class president, standing under an umbrella outside a convenience store.
The fluorescent light cast a pale glow over his shoulders, almost like a dusting of frost.
He frowned. "Sophia, why are you coming back alone from the highway?"
My throat felt tight for a long moment.
I finally said, "I want to go home."
Daniel didn't ask any more questions. He just tilted the umbrella over to me.
Rain streamed down the umbrella's frame.
My phone screen lit up again.
Ryan had posted on his feed.
The photo showed Ryan and Emily beneath beach fireworks. Emily held the shell hairpin I had made.
The caption read: [Happy graduation. No regrets.]
The convenience store's automatic doors slid open behind me, and a blast of cold air hit me.
I opened my photo album and deleted the group pic at the top.
As the delete confirmation appeared, Ryan sent: [Be there at nine tomorrow morning. Do not be late.]
My finger paused on the screen.
A moment later, the gentle ping of the delete confirmation sounded.