Chapter 10: The Fourth

On the Fourth of July the sky over the lake was a hard, clean blue.

Lunch was set on the little beach below the house, at two picnic tables pushed end to end under a red, white and blue banner.

Brooke had hung the banner herself, and she had hung her phone from a tripod beside it.

I sat between my parents with a paper plate I had not touched.

Across from me Colin sat with his hands folded on the table and a calm smile on his face.

I had not slept.

At midnight I had asked him whether he was ready to say it, and he had said, "Babe, I've got it, go to sleep."

Nate stood up on the lawn by the fire pit, with a clipboard, checking the burn permit for the night.

He was not looking at us, which meant he was listening to every word.

Colin's father cleared his throat for no reason and said nothing.

Then Gail rapped her fork on a glass.

"Before we eat," she said. "Colin has something for the family."

Colin stood, smiling, and he took the stack of envelopes out of his back pocket.

"I know it's been a hard year," he said. "Some of us have been through a lot."

He glanced at me with soft, sorry eyes.

"And I wanted everybody to know that no matter what, I've got you. All of you."

Brooke squealed and swung the tripod to follow him down the table.

He handed one to his mother first, and she held it against her chest.

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