Return to Paradise Read Online Free PDF Page A

enough, Matt struggles out of his T-shirt. Now he's got their undivided attention. A few kids gasp, some cringe, and some stare. His chest is still scarred and he's got less than ten inches of his arm left.
    He sits back down. "I'm not feeling so invincible now. Lost any chance of a football scholarship and ... and ... and..." He swipes at his eyes. "And I'll never be able to catch a football again." He looks up, his expression defiant. "Try putting your pants on using one hand. Just for one day, try doing that simple task with one hand. I can tell you right now, it isn't a piece of cake when you've got one arm. If you want the God's honest truth, it sucks. I wish I could turn back time, but I can't. I made a stupid decision because I thought I was invincible, and I'll pay for it the rest of my life."
    He sighs and hangs his head.
    Well, that was a downer. Damn. And all along I'd hoped we were gonna roast marshmallows and make s'mores. Some bonfire this turned out to be.
    My gaze turns to Maggie. Our eyes meet for an intense moment, but then she breaks the connection quickly and focuses on the ground.
    When she looks back up, she says though the strained silence, "I'm Maggie. Almost two years ago I was hit by a car ...
    When she stands, she focuses her accusatory gaze on me. Is she going give it up that I was the one convicted of hitting her? I wasn't the one who did it, but she doesn't know I'm holding that secret. Or, even worse, does she expect me to stand up and say I ran into her while driving drunk? I'd choke on the lie. Dammit, I can't deal with this. Not now.
    Before she says another word, I stand and head back to the cabin.
    "Caleb, get back here," I hear Damon hiss.
    I ignore him and keep walking.
     

FOUR

Maggie
    pause as Caleb retreats into the darkness, the light of the campfire flickering against his dark shirt. I want him to hear my story. The accident changed my life forever, and if anyone needs to hear my side of it, it's Caleb. He owes it to me to listen. The fact that he picked up and walked away was a slap in the face. It means he doesn't care ... about me, about what happened to me, and about our relationship that he professed to be real.
    Feelings of anger and betrayal settle inside me. I take a deep breath and look around at the faces of the teens watching me, waiting for me to explain how teen reckless driving affected my life.
    "I still have scars ..." I say, my voice trailing off. I let out a slow breath as I think about the reality of it. "Inside and out. A boy I liked was convicted of hitting me, and he went to jail for it. The sad part is, the accident not only affected the two of us, it affected both our families ... and pretty much our small town as well. None of us have been the same since."
    A small blonde girl with French braids raises her thin hand. "What about the boy?" she asks. "What happened to him?"
    I look over at Damon, leaning against a tree in the back. He thinks Caleb was the one who hit me. "I don't know. I think he blames me for being the reason he went to jail."
    "That's stupid," the girl mumbles.
    "If you make a mistake, you pay the price," one of their counselors says.
    The woman has no clue of the truth ... that Caleb didn't make a mistake but paid the price anyway.
    Trish stands next. She talks about how she was at a high school party and someone at the party slipped cocaine into her purse. When she got pulled over for speeding and running a red light, she got arrested. The drug charge is on her permanent record, and now every time she applies for a job she has to check the box that she's a convicted felon.
    With emotions running high, Damon and the rest of the leaders say it's time to head back to our cabins.
    When we reach the cabin, Damon storms inside. "Yo, Becker!" he yells in a deep voice I swear could scare the toughest person. The girls are startled and the guys are practically standing at attention. "Get the hell up!"
    Caleb is lying on his bunk, his arm resting