If Only for the Summer
Ten
“Okay, good you made it out. First thing-”
“Josh, I can’t leave. I can’t exactly just walk out the front door and take my truck,” Henley interrupted him over the phone. He sighed. “I can walk down the hill, but I’ll need to go through the back and that will take longer because I’d have to go all the way around.”
“No, no don’t walk. You don’t need to be walking down that hill by yourself with your tank.”
“Hey-”
“Is there any other way for you to at least get to the fork?”
Henley was only half paying attention as she heard her dad’s and his wife’s voices, trying to arrange getting Henley’s half-siblings into town for something. “I’ll call you back.”
She crossed the hallway and leaned over the railing to hear the conversation. They had made plans with friends, but both of their parents had other things planned for the day and couldn’t drive them. Henley saw her opportunity. “I can take them,” she called from the floor above.
Her dad looked up at her angrily, but his wife had a hopeful expression. She whispered something to him and he stared at her incredulously for a second before giving up. “If I so much as hear of you doing anything against my rules, so help me.”
“Okay, sure, I’ll be ready in ten minutes.”
Henley smiled as she typed out a text to Josh and told him she’d be in town in half an hour.
-
The ride to the movie theater on Main Street was silent, besides the minimal chattering between the two siblings. Henley felt significantly out of place, but knew that she would have some time away from the house in just a short while.
“The movie should be over in a few hours. We’re probably going to get dinner afterwards so be back here by eight or I’ll tell my dad,” the girl said as she slid from the seat onto the concrete sidewalk in front of the theater. Henley rolled her eyes, and pulled off down the road toward the diner.
As Henley walked in, she noticed Annie first at her spot behind the counter. When she smiled, the two men in front of her spun around. Josh grinned while Patrick kept a straight face and eyed her oxygen tank. “Ready?” Annie asked. Henley looked at her unsurely. “We’re going to the lake up by the house.”
Josh glanced in Henley’s direction with a question in his eyes. She knew he was checking in on her, seeing how she was holding up. He still didn’t trust the crutch that her tank had become to her.
“Let’s go,” Henley said, looking at Josh.
The pairs separated into Patrick’s and Josh’s pick up trucks, then headed back in the direction that Henley came. “I need to be back here by eight,” she said to Josh in the driver’s seat next to her. He glanced at his phone which read four thirty.
“No problem. That’s partially why Pat and I drove separate.”
“There’s more than one reason?”
“Since Annie’s tagging along, I know they’re going to go off on their own, and I don’t want to be stranded because I know Pat will leave without us if Annie’s involved.”
-
The pairs got to the lake twenty minutes after, and while the guys headed right into the water, Henley took up a spot on the shore. The trees that framed the lake billowed in the wind as they swam around and the girls watched them.
The boys finally were tired enough to rejoin Annie and Henley back on the shore an hour later. Pat nodded at Annie, and she smiled as she stood, took his hand and followed him into the woods.
“Told you,” Josh said with a smirk as he got dressed. He picked up his shirt from the ground, revealing his pistol that had been aimed at Henley more than once.
“Josh, what the hell?” Henley panicked.
“What?” he replied calmly, tucking the firearm into the waistband of his board shorts. “Big deal, it’s a gun.” He dropped onto the packed soil beside Henley to put his shoes back on. He looked up at her while he tied his shoes and was met with a scowl. Josh only laughed. “You’re cute not intimidating.”
“Fuck off,” Henley said with a grin. She shoved him away, then pulled herself up to stand. Josh stood too and faced her as he crossed his arms. Henley had to crane her neck to look up at him. She didn’t know what came over her, but a moment later, she pushed herself up onto her toes and pressed her mouth to his.
They stood, pressed together awkwardly, for less than a minute before Josh took ahold of Henley’s arms and broke the kiss. He saw it in her face that she was hurt, so he tightened his grip enough that she wouldn’t run off. “Hen, wait-”
“Let go.”
“I’m not going to let go until I explain.”
“You’re allowed to kiss me. I'm not broken, Josh. I'm not some fragile little porcelain doll. I'm still a human being. And I want to experience the world and do all these things that normal people do even if I'm sick. I don't want to be treated like a child. My dad already treats me like that so I especially don't need it from you.”
“I’m not trying to treat you like a child, and I didn’t hate it when you kissed me, okay? I handled it badly, I know, but I get worried. I feel like if something happens to you when you’re with me, then it’s my fault. And I get overprotective.”
“I hate this thing,” Henley said, dropping back down onto the dirt and hugging her tank. Josh sat down next to her. She coughed loudly, trying to clear her throat, as he stared out at the lake.
“Is it just temporary, or...?”
Henley laughed bitterly. “If you mean temporary as in as temporary as my life, then yes.”
It went silent for a while as Josh tried to figure out how to respond. “How long is temporary?”
She responded with a sigh, “Miller thinks a year at best. My lungs are shit and my pancreas is mediocre, so the pills and the inhalers are pretty much just extending my life. I can survive with the pancreas thing for a while, but if I don’t start moving up on the transplant list back home in Raleigh for a set of lungs, I’m done. At this point, an average case of pneumonia could kill me if I don't do something about it in time.” Henley breathed an empty laugh. “Back home they just thought I had complications with my asthma.”
Josh didn’t respond, instead they both looked out onto the water.
Annie and Patrick reappeared a while later, laughing loudly. They stopped when they noticed that Josh and Henley weren’t speaking. Henley checked her phone and turned to the three, “We should probably head back so I can pick the kids up.”
Josh nodded then pushed himself up. Henley was surprised when he offered his hand to help her up with a small smile. He didn’t let go as he moved back to his truck and boosted her into the passenger side of the cab.
“Josh, I can’t leave. I can’t exactly just walk out the front door and take my truck,” Henley interrupted him over the phone. He sighed. “I can walk down the hill, but I’ll need to go through the back and that will take longer because I’d have to go all the way around.”
“No, no don’t walk. You don’t need to be walking down that hill by yourself with your tank.”
“Hey-”
“Is there any other way for you to at least get to the fork?”
Henley was only half paying attention as she heard her dad’s and his wife’s voices, trying to arrange getting Henley’s half-siblings into town for something. “I’ll call you back.”
She crossed the hallway and leaned over the railing to hear the conversation. They had made plans with friends, but both of their parents had other things planned for the day and couldn’t drive them. Henley saw her opportunity. “I can take them,” she called from the floor above.
Her dad looked up at her angrily, but his wife had a hopeful expression. She whispered something to him and he stared at her incredulously for a second before giving up. “If I so much as hear of you doing anything against my rules, so help me.”
“Okay, sure, I’ll be ready in ten minutes.”
Henley smiled as she typed out a text to Josh and told him she’d be in town in half an hour.
-
The ride to the movie theater on Main Street was silent, besides the minimal chattering between the two siblings. Henley felt significantly out of place, but knew that she would have some time away from the house in just a short while.
“The movie should be over in a few hours. We’re probably going to get dinner afterwards so be back here by eight or I’ll tell my dad,” the girl said as she slid from the seat onto the concrete sidewalk in front of the theater. Henley rolled her eyes, and pulled off down the road toward the diner.
As Henley walked in, she noticed Annie first at her spot behind the counter. When she smiled, the two men in front of her spun around. Josh grinned while Patrick kept a straight face and eyed her oxygen tank. “Ready?” Annie asked. Henley looked at her unsurely. “We’re going to the lake up by the house.”
Josh glanced in Henley’s direction with a question in his eyes. She knew he was checking in on her, seeing how she was holding up. He still didn’t trust the crutch that her tank had become to her.
“Let’s go,” Henley said, looking at Josh.
The pairs separated into Patrick’s and Josh’s pick up trucks, then headed back in the direction that Henley came. “I need to be back here by eight,” she said to Josh in the driver’s seat next to her. He glanced at his phone which read four thirty.
“No problem. That’s partially why Pat and I drove separate.”
“There’s more than one reason?”
“Since Annie’s tagging along, I know they’re going to go off on their own, and I don’t want to be stranded because I know Pat will leave without us if Annie’s involved.”
-
The pairs got to the lake twenty minutes after, and while the guys headed right into the water, Henley took up a spot on the shore. The trees that framed the lake billowed in the wind as they swam around and the girls watched them.
The boys finally were tired enough to rejoin Annie and Henley back on the shore an hour later. Pat nodded at Annie, and she smiled as she stood, took his hand and followed him into the woods.
“Told you,” Josh said with a smirk as he got dressed. He picked up his shirt from the ground, revealing his pistol that had been aimed at Henley more than once.
“Josh, what the hell?” Henley panicked.
“What?” he replied calmly, tucking the firearm into the waistband of his board shorts. “Big deal, it’s a gun.” He dropped onto the packed soil beside Henley to put his shoes back on. He looked up at her while he tied his shoes and was met with a scowl. Josh only laughed. “You’re cute not intimidating.”
“Fuck off,” Henley said with a grin. She shoved him away, then pulled herself up to stand. Josh stood too and faced her as he crossed his arms. Henley had to crane her neck to look up at him. She didn’t know what came over her, but a moment later, she pushed herself up onto her toes and pressed her mouth to his.
They stood, pressed together awkwardly, for less than a minute before Josh took ahold of Henley’s arms and broke the kiss. He saw it in her face that she was hurt, so he tightened his grip enough that she wouldn’t run off. “Hen, wait-”
“Let go.”
“I’m not going to let go until I explain.”
“You’re allowed to kiss me. I'm not broken, Josh. I'm not some fragile little porcelain doll. I'm still a human being. And I want to experience the world and do all these things that normal people do even if I'm sick. I don't want to be treated like a child. My dad already treats me like that so I especially don't need it from you.”
“I’m not trying to treat you like a child, and I didn’t hate it when you kissed me, okay? I handled it badly, I know, but I get worried. I feel like if something happens to you when you’re with me, then it’s my fault. And I get overprotective.”
“I hate this thing,” Henley said, dropping back down onto the dirt and hugging her tank. Josh sat down next to her. She coughed loudly, trying to clear her throat, as he stared out at the lake.
“Is it just temporary, or...?”
Henley laughed bitterly. “If you mean temporary as in as temporary as my life, then yes.”
It went silent for a while as Josh tried to figure out how to respond. “How long is temporary?”
She responded with a sigh, “Miller thinks a year at best. My lungs are shit and my pancreas is mediocre, so the pills and the inhalers are pretty much just extending my life. I can survive with the pancreas thing for a while, but if I don’t start moving up on the transplant list back home in Raleigh for a set of lungs, I’m done. At this point, an average case of pneumonia could kill me if I don't do something about it in time.” Henley breathed an empty laugh. “Back home they just thought I had complications with my asthma.”
Josh didn’t respond, instead they both looked out onto the water.
Annie and Patrick reappeared a while later, laughing loudly. They stopped when they noticed that Josh and Henley weren’t speaking. Henley checked her phone and turned to the three, “We should probably head back so I can pick the kids up.”
Josh nodded then pushed himself up. Henley was surprised when he offered his hand to help her up with a small smile. He didn’t let go as he moved back to his truck and boosted her into the passenger side of the cab.