Coldwater Revival: A Novel Read Online Free PDF Page B

abundance, though I wonder now why her exuberance had stunned me so that night. It was, after all, a most notable occasion—Holly Heleen’s eighteenth birthday. Before the evening ended, I believed Mama and Papa’s firstborn would have another, even more hallowed rite of passage to celebrate.
    As I returned to the parlor, I envisioned the front-porch scene. Within the stirring of nocturnal breezes, but out of range of the night bird’s call, Holly and Flynn would be sitting on the swing, heads together in whispered secrets. No doubt, their breaths interlocked with vows of eternal love. Love not measured in mere days and years … but in forever. Holly and Flynn would be holding hands in the moon’s full glow, their promises signaling a beginning with no end. An unbroken circle in the curve of time, like the ring Holly would soon wear. As my fanciful mind conjured up romantic pictures that titillated my senses and sped the beat of my heart, my eyes filled with moisture. I’d been fighting back tears the entire day.
    Papa smoked his pipe and Elo scanned the newspaper, both looking uncomfortably rigid in their starched shirts. Polly thumbed the Sears catalog, the toe of her slipper compelling the rocker back and forth. She had spruced herself up, wearing her Sunday-best bodice and the flowered skirt that flowed in a multitude of tiers. Even I had donned a dress for the affair.
    Earlier in the evening, as I had studied my reflection in Mama’s freestanding mirror, I considered marked changes in my almost thirteen-year-old body. It had sprouted in places, extended in others, narrowing my face and middle. Even my gimpy leg seemed to be feeling the effects of the growth spurt Mama claimed had overtaken me.
    A few weeks earlier, I used Mama’s tape measure to mark the breach between my right and left legs. The difference: a trifling inch-and-a-half. Thus began my feverish pleas for God to narrow the gap even more. Not allowing my excitement to take center stage, I continued putting on airs for the family, as though a waltz around the house on one good leg and a crutch suited me fine. Nevertheless, my heart held the hope that someday my leg would grow to its rightful length. Oh, to run across a meadow, free of crutch; slide into home plate; attract the attention of whisker-sprouting young men who worked the fields.
    Though I had packed my heart with love for Mama and Papa, I wearied at the thought of living my entire life with them. Discontent filled my soul, knowing there’d be no handsome stranger to sweep me off my feet. No one to plunge head over heels for me as Flynn had fallen for Holly. Who would want to marry a three-legged lass when pretty girls were in such abundance?
    When I was in Holly’s presence, the joyous expressions on my countenance seemed artificially valiant, for her elation reminded me of my own impossible dreams. At the oddest moments, murky playscapes wiggled to the forefront of my mind, granting me glimpses of secret places I had yet to visit. They whispered tales about the true nature of romantic love, filling my head with puzzling questions. I felt defenseless to parry the emptiness they left behind, when, invariably, they faded from view.
    I sat beside Nathan on the settee and waited with the rest of the family for Holly and Flynn to vacate their love nest. I lowered my voice, choosing Nathan alone to witness the lonely outburst of my heart. I dared not speak of romance, or lack thereof, as I felt certain that romance remained as great a mystery to Nathan as it did to me.
    “It’s like I’ve got this vacuum in my heart that needs filling, Nathan. I can tell the hurt isn’t going away anytime soon.” A whisper of irritation rose in my voice as I talked, along with a scrapping of tears.
    Nathan scooted a few inches away, granting me more space on the love seat. Or, perhaps he sought distance between himself and the gloomy cloud perched over my head.
    “It won’t be the same without Holly