The Summer I Died: A Thriller Read Online Free PDF

nothing; you know I’m right. Why don’t you drop out and move to California with me? ”
    “ You still talking about that California crap? ”
    “ Hell, yeah, California is where it’s at. Sunny all year round, beaches littered with models in bikinis, weed growing out of the cracks in the pavement. And I’m talking about the good kind of weed, not dandelions. C’mon, it’ll be great. We c an rent a place on the beach, get drunk, fuck girls. You still like girls, right? ”
    “ Hey, Tooth? ”
    “ Yeah. ”
    I gave him what I hoped was a serious look, one that conveyed friendship but wasn’t to be taken as a joke either. “ Not my sister, okay. ”
    “ Whoa there, buddy. You didn’t think I meant anything by w hat I said about Jamie, did you? Please , she’s still that annoying pipsqueak I used to want to kick outta your room all the time. Coming in and hiding our shit and taking my keys. I screw her I might as well be screwing my own sister. ”
    “ Which you would do if you had one. ”
    “ No, I wouldn’t. ”
    “ Yes, you would. ”
    “ Would there be beer involved? ”
    “ More than likely, ” I said.
    “ Then you’re probably right. ”
    “ Listen, Tooth — ”
    “ No, seriously, about Jamie, I’m kidding. Relax, I didn’t know it was gonna ruffle your panties. ”
    Tooth had definitely meant what he said about Jamie, I’d known him long enough to know his thought process. But we were square now, he knew the deal, and him acting like this was his way of shrugging the whole thing off. As for me, after hearing myself worry about Jamie, I contemplated an exorcism.
    Tooth spread out on the couch and kicked me with his feet, answering my earlier question about him staying. I moved to the recliner as he put his Red Sox hat over his eyes. He never took that damn thing off, even when he slept. He’d had it since he was twelve, when his mom gave it to him as a birthday gift. Came in the mail with a card that said “ Happy Birthday ” and nothing else.
    He said, “ You know what, Roger? ”
    “ You’re gay? ”
    “ No, I’m being serious. Maybe I’m just drunk, maybe I’m lonely, or maybe I’m in a nostalgic mood, but I miss you. When you’re not here, I don’t do shit but get drunk with Tony and Derek from the warehouse, but they’re married so it ain’t much fun. And video games get real old when you play by yourself. So, yeah, I’m glad you’re back for a bit. It’s gonna be a good summer. ”
    I’ve got to tell you, that kind of moved me. He was drunk, sure, but it sounded genuine and it made me feel, I don’t know, wanted. As I watched him fall asleep on the couch, I kind of felt bad for him. His life had been screwed up for so long, and yet he’d pulled through okay. A drunk, religious zealot of a father, a mother who barely kept in touch, and enough alcohol to sterilize a Scottish commode. It was amazing he wasn’t lying in the same heap of discarded garbage where they’d found Mark Trieger, bloated and blue from a leap off the edge of life.
    “ A good summer, ” he repeated.
    Before I could respond, he was snoring.
    I went upstairs and plopped down in my parents’ bed. What is it about lying in your parents’ bed that always makes you feel like you’re intruding ? Perhaps because at som e age it’s made clear to us that we ha ve our own room, and there are no monsters in the closet, and crying isn’t going to change anything so just go back to bed. When I was little I’d jump ed in bed with them after having nightmare s . It became an epidemic for a while, and my father didn’t really know how to handle it. In typical male fashion he picked fights with my mom over it. Of course, I had no one to blame but myself since I would continually sneak downstairs and watch whatever monster movie was on the late show. Doesn’t make a whole lot of sense in retrospect, kind of like an acrophobe choosing to live in the penthouse apartment.
    I remember one time I overheard my