and in the two years I dated him, I never met his parents. They were always gone on business, but it must have been good business to afford him everything even most adults wanted. Without parents around in the gigantic house, you’d think he’d be alone, but that wasn’t the case either. There were butlers, maids, cooks, and people to do just about anything for him. He could have whatever he wanted, and could do basically anything he wanted. It was amazing what money could buy you. My grandfather had money, but nothing like Logan. I always felt like a commoner around him.
“Amy, Mari,” Stephanie Miller called out to the both of us.
Steph ran down the hallway, sliding the last few feet in her socks on the polished floor. We stopped her slide as she threw her arms around us in a big hug.
“You found our missing sister!” Steph cheered, hanging on tight.
In high school we were the three musketeers. We did everything together. I don’t even think I took more than half a dozen classes that didn’t have either Steph or Amy in them. They were my everything. I hugged Steph back. How could she be familiar, yet so different now? The people were the same, and just as I remembered them, but something felt different.
Steph looped her arms through mine and Amy’s, pulling us back to the party room. I had no choice but to reluctantly go with them. In reality, I’d have been happy to sit in the car. It was too weird to be back with everyone. Nothing had changed, and I really didn’t want to see Logan or his friends. This wasn’t my world any more. But Amy would never let me sit out there alone. She was determined to make me have a good time.
“When did you get home?” Steph asked.
I didn’t answer as I looked around the house. There was something magical about this place. I always thought that. Too bad it had to be Logan Jones’ house. Amy and Steph stopped, so I stopped along with them. Then I realized Steph was talking to me. Guess it had to be me as I remembered the question. Amy really hadn’t gone anywhere to get home from.
“A few days ago,” I replied. By this time I wasn’t completely sure. My memory of the past three months was a bit hazy with the change in time without Seth in it. My memories were all a bit mushed together right now.
“And it took you a few days to call us?” Steph asked accusingly.
It was true. The old me from high school would have called them before I made it into the driveway, but the new me was a bit more preoccupied. I shrugged to her as my response. There wasn’t anything I could actually say that wouldn’t make it seem like something was up, or like I completely ditched them.
“She’s got a boyfriend,” Amy replied in hushed tones as we neared the noise of the party in progress.
“A boyfriend?” Steph squealed. “I need to see.” She grabbed my phone before I could stop her. I normally would have protested, but she would find nothing there. Amy grabbed my phone back and gave it to me before Steph could look through it.
“Later,” she promised over the noise. Steph led us into the room filled with both students from my old high school, St. Maria’s Preparatory, and Bishop Glenwood, the male school we did everything with.
Steph wove between the groups of people standing around. I recognized most of them, but was glad we didn’t stop to say hi. I felt disconnected from everyone. What would I say to them? Could I continue to smile and take the ribbing about Minnesota? I actually liked it there. Steph wove her way further into the room and a couch that was miraculously empty. She pulled us down to sit before anyone else could, and was right back to talking with Amy about the latest gossip she had heard.
I ended up pretending that I cared about their conversation, too. I was really too removed to even know what they were complaining about now. Someone named Ned got in a fight with someone else named Jim at some club because they were from different colleges. I
Douglas E. Schoen, Melik Kaylan