In the Middle of Nowhere (28 page)

The man started gathering the heavy ropes
that held the ferry in place so he could leave the harbor. James
called to me, “Come on, Willow! Hurry!”

I looked up into Michael’s eyes. They did
more than just look back at me. They penetrated me, delving deeply
into my soul, as if it would be for the very last time.

“I gotta go,” I managed and started to walk
away.

“Wait!” Michael called. He unzipped his coat,
reached into an inside pocket and pulled out a small piece of
paper. “Here. It’s the poem I wrote you the other night.”

Michael stuck the paper in the palm of my
hand, but told me, “Don’t let it freak you out.”

I smiled at him, quickly stuck the note in my
pocket and hopped on board with seconds to spare. The ferry revved
its engine and steered away from the dock.

James and I went inside the warm cabin and
closed the metal door securely behind us.

“Who was that guy, by the way?” James asked
as he pulled out his DS.

“Just a friend,” I answered as we walked
toward open seats.

“He seemed like more than just a friend to
me. I saw you making googly eyes at him,” James said
matter-of-factly right before he sat down and switched on his
game.

I ignored his comment and stood, staring out
the small, frosted window next to me. I tried to see beyond the
heavy snowfall, but it blurred my vision and I was barely able to
make out Michael’s silhouette off in the distance.

I took my sleeve and wiped the condensation
from the inside of the window in order to see better. For a few
brief seconds the snow completely stopped coming down and I could
clearly see Michael standing on the shore watching as the tired,
old boat ferried me away from him and delivered me to a cold,
remote island situated in the middle of nowhere.

CHAPTER
THIRTY-SEVEN

Pike’s Island was completely blanketed in a
thick layer of fluffy snow. From a distance it looked like a giant
heap of whipped cream afloat in a cup of dark blue liquid. I hadn’t
realized just how much it had snowed because it didn’t stick to the
ground in Portland as shoppers walked up and down the streets,
disturbing its final resting place.

As the ferry pulled up to the dock, I
remembered I still had the note from Michael in my pocket. I had
forgotten all about it because I was too preoccupied imagining the
inevitable confrontation with my mother. Maybe it needn’t be
confrontational after all, I thought. I could just humbly agree
with everything she said, accept every insult she hurled at me and
not challenge her one bit as she prescribed a fitting punishment
for me. That’s what I would do. I’d shut my mouth and listen.

I took the note out and held the folded piece
of paper in my fingers, but wouldn’t open it. Why had Michael told
me not to “freak out” when I read it? That made me more curious,
but also frightened me at the same time.

The boat finally pulled into the harbor and
hit the side of the dock with a thud, giving all the passengers a
good jolt. I told James to put his game away in the deepest, driest
pocket he had because it was going to be a long and wet walk home.
I put Michael’s note in the inside, front pocket of my jacket and
hoped it would stay dry. I’d read it later when I was back in the
safety of my room, in case I needed to climb into my bed to find
solace beneath my big, warm comforter.

• • •

By the time we got home, James and I were
soaking wet. It seemed to take us forever to walk through the deep
snowdrifts that lined both sides of the streets.

My brother and I saturated the family room
floor as we traipsed through it on our way to the kitchen and the
tiny room off of it that served as a laundry room. James and I took
turns stripping off all our clothes, boots and coats. We needed to
get all of our clothing into the dryer. I went first because I
wanted to hop in the shower and warm up. It felt like every inch of
me was frostbitten, even though I knew it wasn’t.

I let the hot water run over me as I stood
directly under the shower nozzle. I reflected on the day and was
filled with a slew of mixed emotions. I was happy on the one hand
to have seen Michael and been able to spend a little time with him.
We had never had a meal together before, although Michael didn’t
eat very much. It was nice to meet his little brother Kevin, too.
He was so adorable and opposite from Michael in the looks
department. Michael’s hair and eyes were so dark, while Kevin was
blonde and blue-eyed. I knew, though, that it was because Kevin was
adopted.

I lathered my hair and thought back to what
Michael had said to me about wanting my love. Of course it scared
me. How could it not? And then he casually mentioned that I
shouldn’t let the note freak me out. The note! I totally forgot
about the note! It was still in my coat pocket tumbling around in
the dryer with the rest of the wet clothes.

I turned off the shower and dried myself off.
As apprehensive as I had been earlier, I really wanted to read it
now.

I went into my room and was searching for
some cozy sweatpants and a sweatshirt to put on when I heard the
front door close. At first I thought it was my brother and was
about to yell down for him to stay inside. Then I heard voices,
familiar voices and realized it was my mom and Brian. They were
back and I was dead.

• • •

I didn’t know what to do. I could stay in my
room and try to find a hiding spot where no one could find me. I
looked around the small space. That wasn’t an option. Or I could go
downstairs and deal with the messy situation.

I decided to take a deep breath and get the
whole thing over with. I would plan for the worst and hope for the
best.

I walked down the stairs. James sat in front
of the television, as usual, still wrapped in the blanket he had
used when he had taken off his soggy clothes.

I heard noise coming from the kitchen and
realized my mom was in there. I closed my eyes as I walked toward
it, hoping that her wrath would hurt less if I couldn’t see it
coming. I walked straight into a wall.

I opened my eyes and found my mom and Brian
both staring at me. If they didn’t think I was immature and
irresponsible already, they did now.

I found my way into the kitchen, with my eyes
open this time, looked at both of them and put my head down.
“Hey.”

“What do you have to say for yourself, young
lady?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Willow, I specifically told you not to leave
the house and yet you disobeyed me.

“No,” I started to object, “you told me not
to go to a friend’s house and I—“

My mother cut me off and became irate. “You
knew exactly what I meant!

“Besides,” she continued, “the weather is
terrible and you ventured out with your little brother in the
middle of a nor’easter.”

I didn’t know what a nor’easter was, let
alone that we were in the middle of one. I guessed that was another
name for a bad storm.

My mom put away dry dishes as she continued
her speech. Brian sat back and enjoyed the show. “It was almost
impossible for Brian and me to get back here because of the snow.
We didn’t even finish having lunch because of you.”

Yikes! Not only did my mother cut her weekend
short because of me, she also cut her special luncheon short,
too.

But then I thought about what she had just
said. Did they come back early because of me or because of the
storm? I wanted to ask her, but I remembered the advice I had given
myself earlier about not saying anything, so I just stood and
listened.

My mother slammed cabinet doors as she
continued her tirade. “I should have forced you and your brother to
come and meet Brian’s family.”

I couldn’t hold back and calmly said, “I
don’t care if I ever meet them.”

“Well, you’ll have no choice but to meet them
very soon at our wedding. In June.”

My mother informed me of her wedding date as
if she were a nurse reporting my vital signs. If so, my blood
pressure would have plummeted immediately.

“This June?” I asked dumbfounded.

My mother nodded. She and Brian hadn’t even
known each other for a full year. How could she get married so soon
to a man she hardly knew, to a man who could very well be harboring
a secret girlfriend somewhere else on the island?

I felt as if I might get sick and my face
must have spoken volumes.

Brian chimed in. “Willow, I love your mother
very much.”

My mother put down the dishcloth, walked over
to Brian and stood protectively by his side.

Were they a team now? Team Mom-Bri against
me?

I didn’t know what to say. I was never going
to accept that they were going to get married, whether it was this
June or in June twenty years down the road.

With a wedding date set, apparently it was no
longer up for discussion. My mother shifted her attention toward
the real reason I was standing before the judge.

She started off slowly. “Willow, because of
today and how you blatantly disobeyed me and,” she stopped and, in
a show of solidarity, rested her hand on Brian’s shoulder. They
looked at each other.

My mom continued, “The fact that you broke
into Orchard Elementary and got caught by the police …”

My eyes widened with shock. I glared at
Brian. “How could you?”

Brian remained calm and stared back. “You
gave me no choice, Willow. I warned you.”

My mom was stern and serious as she handed
down my punishment. “You leave me no choice but to ground you for a
very long time, Willow, until the end of the school year. If you’re
disobeying me at sixteen, what will you do when you’re off to
college? You need to control yourself now and stop making bad
choices and stupid mistakes, mistakes that could cost you your
future.”

I was stunned and speechless. Only for a
moment, though.

“Until the end of the school year?” I
shouted. “That’s over four months away! That’s forever! How can you
ground me forever?” So much for receiving my mother’s terms quietly
and graciously.

Brian piped in. “I think that’s a fair
punishment considering the crimes.”

“Crimes? Crimes?” I asked dumbfounded. “Since
when is taking a ferry over to the mainland a crime?”

“Breaking into a school and trespassing are
crimes, Willow, felonies actually,” Brian stated. He looked to my
mother for support. With a slight nod of her head, she gave it to
him.

I felt as though my back was up against the
wall, like my life was over as my mom sided with Brian. Neither of
them cared about what I was going through or how I was feeling.

“I don’t care what you think!” I screamed at
Brian. “You’re not my father and never will be!”

I saw Brian flinch. I knew my words hurt him
and I was glad.

“Willow!” my mother scolded. “Apologize this
very minute.”

“Never!” I yelled as I turned from the two of
them and fled from the kitchen. This time I made sure to keep my
eyes wide open, even as tears fell from them so I could avoid all
obstacles in my way, as I ran to my room feeling overwhelmingly all
alone, the most alone I’d ever felt before.

CHAPTER
THIRTY-EIGHT

I stayed in my room for the rest of the
night. My mom didn’t come and check on me or offer me anything to
eat for dinner. I couldn’t have eaten anyway. I was too upset.

At one point I heard the front door close. I
snuck down to my mother’s bedroom and looked out her window. I
watched as Brian climbed into his car and drove off. He almost
didn’t make it down the road as the snow was really piling up
outside. I was so thankful that he wasn’t stuck at our house
overnight.

I kept myself busy by working on my project
and going onto MyWeb. At one point Michael called, but we didn’t
chat too long. He didn’t sound good on the other end and coughed so
much, he really couldn’t talk. He just wanted to know that James
and I made it home safely. I told him we did even though we were
drenched and freezing when we finally did.