He nodded half-heartedly. “I guess so. We’ve never had any bad luck though. Well, except for my dad screwing some twenty-five-year-old, but I highly doubt it had anything to do with the pet cemetery, and more to do with the piece of ass.”

“Your mom must be pretty mad.”

His face grew concerned, but he kept his eyes straightforward. “Yeah, she isn’t taking it well. Please don’t ever say anything, but I found her in the bathroom. She took a bunch of pills and cut herself.”

My jaw dropped. I tried not to let it, but it did it anyway. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry, Shane.”

“The worst part is, that when I found her she looked at me and said, “Let me die, son,” but I called the police and an ambulance. What kind of shit is that to say to your kid?”

I looked down at my hands as I fidgeted with my ring. “I think when she’s feeling better, she will know you made the right choice.”

We were quiet for a long time both, lost in contemplation. Neither of us wanted to make the other dwell on the misfortune in our life.

It amazed me how many bad things could happen in a small town, in such a short amount of time. Maybe the land was all cursed.

We entered the neighboring town and turned onto a road, I had never been on before. Within a few driveways, we were at a small bungalow.

“This is it,” he pointed to the man, or guy our age, in the garage. “That’s Wade.”

I felt nervous, as I opened my door and got out gingerly. Shane hopped out roughly and bound into the garage to scare the guy bent over the hood of a car.

He spanked his bum hard, causing the guy to shoot up and smack his head on the hood of the old beater.

“Son of a bitch, Shane. That’s gonna leave a mark.” He rubbed his head.

Shane laughed and pointed to me. “This is Aimee, the girl who got drugged at my party.”

Wade turned. He looked about the right size, a few inches over six foot and strong but not fat. He was wearing jeans and white t-shirt. His hair was dark blond. But when he turned his face to see me, he was definitely not the same guy.

His eyes were nowhere near as blue and his face didn’t have the devastating beauty. He smiled at me. His face was attractive, but not nearly as handsome as the guy I had seen. “Hey gorgeous, you know what? I don’t recall you but I know your face. I’ve met your sister.”

“I’m pretty sure everyone has ‘met’ my sister.” I smiled.

Shane frowned. “Anyway, buddy, we thought we would take a drive out and see if meeting you could help jog her memory.”

I had never seen Shane roughhouse with anyone, except on the field.

Wade shoved him back. “Did we find out who that creepy bastard is yet?”

“Not yet, but when we do, we will be sure to ask for some assistance from you boys.” Shane punched him in the arm and started to walk toward the truck.

Wade’s smile grew menacing. “Yes, be sure you do. Nothing we Handley boys like more than giving out a good ass kicking. Well, I better get back to the car. Nice meeting you, Aimee. Hope your memory comes back.” He looked at Shane, smiling but speaking to me, “Hey, did your sister break up with Shane there?”

I nodded.

He smiled even bigger. “Well, tell her I said hello then.”

Shane laughed and gave him the finger.

I waved at him as I climbed back into the truck, using all my strength and trying not to cry out loud.

“I thought he was dating that girl.”

He laughed. “He is, but he likes to mess with me. Everyone did. They thought I was nuts for dating your sister.”

"Why did you? I don’t get it."

He shrugged and looked lost. "I don’t know. Trying to force something that was never going to happen, I guess." He looked at me and closed the door. “Wanna get something to eat?”

“Yeah, I’m starving and it’s been like six hours since I ate. I’m never going to gain anything back if I don’t eat regularly.”

“I think you look pretty, no matter what you weigh.” He smirked at me.

I felt a funny feeling in my stomach. I had long believed guys who dated my sister or thought she was sexy were bad news. With him, it was harder to convince myself.

He pulled into the town’s local burger shack. “The Wood Inn” was not exactly known for its gourmet, but the veggie burgers were pretty yummy.

He hopped out quickly to open my door for me and help me out. I liked this about him. Shane was a gentleman, regardless of dating my sister, and that was always appreciated. I got a slight hint of laundry soap and deodorant when I climbed out, and it made me smile. He always smelled clean, not draped in aftershave or cologne like every other guy our age.

We got a seat inside by the window.

“Ready to order?” The server seemed to appear out of nowhere.

I nodded. “I’ll have the veggie burger, no bacon, with cheese, extra tomato and a side of yam fries.”

She nodded at my order, not even considering how stupid it was to have to ask for no bacon on one's veggie burger.

She looked at Shane. “I will have the bacon cheese burger, with bacon, no tomato and a side of regular fries. I will also have a chocolate shake.”

She finished writing it down and glanced at me while taking the menus. “Water okay for you?”

I nodded and she was gone.

“So you like your bacon cheese burger with bacon?” I asked making him smile.

He grinned. “I don’t see how you can stomach a veggie burger without bacon.”

I laughed shaking my head at him.

“You’ve been a veggie for a long time. What is it, seven years now?” he asked playing with the fork and knife on the tabletop.

I smiled at him, completely taken aback. “Yeah, it will be eight at Christmas. How do you remember that?”

He shrugged. “I just notice stuff, I guess. So who are you going to the spring formal with?”

I gulped blindsided again. “Oh my God…I kind of figured it would be Blake. I guess I’m not going. I’m not a dance kind of girl, anyway.”

"You can't dance?"

I laughed. "I can dance just fine. I just don’t do popular kids and drinking and shit."

“Dances and cusses. Look at you. Well, I was taking Alise. Why don’t we go together?”

I sipped my water cautiously. “As friends?”

“Yeah. I don’t see how we can be anything else, Aimee; you need some time, I think, to get better.”

Relief and disappointment battled inside of me. “Okay sure. I have a rule anyway, about dating boys who date my sister.” My face reddened with the completely unnecessary statement.

He sat back still playing with the utensils. “Okay good. I like you so much, and I like being with you, as friends.”

I laughed wistfully. Secretly, I imagined what it would be like to be held by his strong arms, besides being carried all the time like a feeble invalid.

“Yeah, I was thinking the exact same thing. Unless it's weird, ‘cause of Alise and Blake. I mean, I know you said you never liked her, but every boy likes her. Let's be honest."

"Your sister is evil. I can't even believe you are related. You’re more like a sweet girl next door that I would want to marry. Your sister is not the marrying type; she's like the spring break type.”

I gulped at him saying marriage and my name in the same sentence, but then translated his whole speech and frowned a little. His little rant was not meant to hurt my feelings, but being told I wasn’t sexy was a little hurtful. It hurt, even though I have always believed sexy was not something teenage girls should ever strive for.

He shook his head and fiddled with the things on the table. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t say such bad things about her; she is your sister.”

“I have no illusions about my sister, Shane; she is exactly who she is. She burns through men. She has no self-respect and even less for anyone else. She is always attracted to the things she can’t have.”

“Great, speak of the devil and she shall arrive at your favorite burger joint.”

I turned to see my sister and Blake walking hand in hand. They stopped dead as they saw Shane and me sitting at the table. Our food arrived as the waitress brought them to the seat behind us. Blake dropped her hand and straightened up in his stance, not letting his gaze leave mine. It was as if he was trying to reassure me.

Alise smiled sweetly. “Fancy meeting you two here.” She looked back and forth between us suspiciously. "On a date?" Her words were sarcastic and biting.

I ignored it and muttered, “We went to see Wade.”

Blake looked nervous but tried to remain calm. “The elusive Wade—what did he have to say about the party?” He kept his gaze on me as if we were the only people in the room. I avoided him. I was still angry with him and not in the mood to discuss it in a diner.

Shane shook his head. “It’s not the right guy. She didn’t recognize Wade at all.”

It was tense. Every voice was filled with some kind of savage emotion.

“Can we just sit with you?” Alise asked innocently.

“No. Let’s just go somewhere else, Alise.” Blake wasn’t pleading; he was telling. He pulled her back toward the entrance. “Enjoy your meal,” he said, dragging her out onto the street.

I sighed and picked up my juicy veggie burger and smiled at Shane. “Bon Appetite.”

He tried to smile, but his anger was obvious.

I took the biggest bite I could. The tastes started to swirl in my mouth, the flavor was so similar. I hated the taste. I started to feel like I was going to throw up. My favorite veggie burger in the world was making me sick. I grabbed my napkin and spit the huge bite into it.

“I’m so sorry, Shane. I don’t usually spit out food, but it tastes exactly like my vomit the other night. I had a veggie burger for dinner that night before the party.”

His eyes lit up. “You remember the taste of your puke!”