The Day Before Read Online Free PDF Page B

makes
everything
better.
I say friends make everything better.

Six months ago
Dear Amber,
We have stopped writing for the past three months, as you requested. But obviously, we couldn’t, and didn’t, drop the case. And we are terribly sorry you are upset. It hurts us, but we understand.
We realize you are a very smart young woman, but the fact of the matter is, you’re still a child and we’re sure you can’t quite grasp the concept of what this all means, now or for the future.
Again, as we’ve said all along, we are family. It’s only right that we know each other, rely on each other, and love each other.
We are thinking about you now that the verdict has come down from the judge. We are happy knowing that soon you’ll come here to share your life with us. You have so many people here who are anxious to meet you—grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins! It’s going to be wonderful, just wait and see.
Your parents have asked us to give you some time to come to terms with the court’s decision. They seem to think this will be better for you in the long run. So we are granting them the first turn of shared custody. They will get their six months, and then we will get ours. We look forward to seeing you in March!
Much love,
Jeanie and Allen

extraordinary
    “He’s cute,” Madison says
as she gnaws on what’s left
of her thumbnail.
    “I know.
He’s cool, too.
He writes songs
and he loves movies—”
    Then I stop because
I don’t need to give
my best friend
a Cade commercial.
    If I’m sold,
she’s sold.
    “How’d you meet?”
    “We were both in awe of the jellyfish,” I say.
Like it’s the most ordinary way
to meet someone.
    Nothing ordinary about it.
Nothing ordinary about this day.
    Mostly, nothing ordinary about Cade.

Some friendly insight
    He goes into
a fishing supply store.
    We sit across the street.
Watching.
Waiting.
    Madison throws
question after question at me,
and I shoot back
short answers,
too distracted to say
anything more.
    I am focused
on the front door.
    “Wow, this is bad,” she says.
    I whip around to look at her.
“What? What’s bad?”
    “You’ve fallen for him, cat.”
    “What?” I laugh.
“He’s my friend.
I mean, we only met eight hours ago.”
    “I’ve known you a long time, A.
I’ve never seen you like this.”
    I turn back to the window.
Watching.
Waiting.
Wrestling
with the idea that my best friend is right.

me and him
    So, I care.
    I care about his love of the beach.
I love it too.
    I care about his songwriting.
I want to know more.
    I care about the boy
who watched the sharks
and wished for confidence like that.
I understand.
    I care about the fact
that’s he’s hurting,
even if I don’t know why.
I want to help him.
    That’s why I’m here,
wanting to know what he’s doing.
    He’s like me.
I want to know more.
I understand.
I want to help him.
And I care. A lot.

dark thoughts
    Cade cradles
a black ball
in both hands
and carries it
to his car.
    The way he walks,
the way he holds it,
I know it’s heavy.
Like a cannonball.
    But Cade’s not a pirate
so it can’t be a cannonball.
    Can it?
    He carries one.
A staff person
follows with another.
    Why?
Why are they carrying
heavy round weights
to his car?
    Have you seen that movie?
    Master and Commander?
    Hollom grabs a cannonball
and jumps into the ocean.
He’s so distraught,
he doesn’t want to live anymore.
    I know.
    Oh my God, I know.

our day
    Jellies and sea stars,
sharks and rays.
A day of wonder,
of magic, no fright.
    Warm sun on skin,
sweet taffy on tongues.
A day of exchanges,
of finding delight.
    Ghost in the lighthouse,
tunes in the car.
A day of adventure,
of seeking the light.
    Castle on sand,
kite on a string.
A day of discovery,
of reaching new heights.
    A day
that must not,
cannot,
end in any kind
of terrible
way.

Six months ago
Dear Mom,
Remember when I was like ten years old and I wrote you all kinds of notes after I learned about sex because I was too afraid to ask you the questions