Page 108 of Fish Out of Water

The rain that many had feared would postpone the dance had stopped entirely overnight. Now, not only was it not raining, but the birds were out chirping and hopping around, and the sky was as blue as the ocean, which was as calm as the sky.

Isabel returned in time for lunch, and Jake realized with burning cheeks that he was still in his bathrobe, never having gotten dressed in all the hours he had been up. He was lying on the couch when she walked in, and she only gave him a passing glance before striding over to the living room window.

“Never has there been better weather for the dance,” she said almost wistfully as she pulled open the curtains, letting the bright sun wash over them.

Jake groaned and pressed the back of his hand over his eyes. “That’s great for all of you.”

Isabel turned around. “You’re coming to the dance, Jakey.” She put her hands on her hips, staring down at a supine Jake.

Jake put on his best pitiful frown. “I’m really not feeling up to it, Aunt Isabel.”

“Why? Because you’re afraid of who you might see there? You’ve been broken up for almost as long as you were together, dear. I think it’s time to move on.”

“We were never—” Jake shook his head. It was no use anymore. “I think I’m coming down with something,” he said instead.

“I very much doubt that.” Isabel continued to glare down at him, and Jake realized he wasn’t getting out of this so easily. “But if it’s really that bad,” she went on, “I can always call Alex and have her come down to drive you back early. I wouldn’t want you to suffer here for another day.”

“No,” Jake said quickly. If Alex got involved, their parents would hear some version of this, and he would never live it down. “I’ll go.” He sat up, taking a deep breath as he mentally prepared himself for the hardest night of his life.

For so long, he’d told himself he would go to the dance, and that would be it. Then everything with Robbie happened, and he began to wonder if it was worth going at all. And then, every time he thought about it, he was overcome with a pit of dread that only grew, and grew, and grew until he was nothing but a dark vapor floating through Eventide.

The first Saturday in December was his breaking point. Isabel had shown him the listing for the Book Nook, dark and sad and empty, a total loss for so-called business moguls. Safiya had been spot on.

That same day, Robbie closed on the house. It was technically his now, and Jake and Isabel were still in it only out of courtesy. Robbie would never kick them out. He hadn’t even stopped by to check out his new home yet.

He didn’t need to, of course. He knew the place intimately; as well as Jake did. Maybe even more, given his entire lifetime in Eventide as opposed to Jake’s six months.

Jake shrugged his shoulders, rolling away the tension in them as he padded down the hall. The pictures that lined the walls were gone; packed away in the same box that held the afghan once draped over the couch and the frames and trinkets that once decorated the built-in.

The bathroom was a wasteland too, with little toiletry bags filled to the brim with their toothbrushes and toothpaste and deodorant and combs. Both Jake and Isabel lived out of bags now, a sad existence to be sure. Jake would have been more annoyed if he wasn’t leaving soon anyway, and if the man he was doing it for wasn’t…

Jake gazed at his reflection in the spotless mirror. Isabel had given it one last wipe down last night, and it practically sparkled now, it was so clean. There wasn’t a single streak from the glass cleaner on it.

He looked about the same as when he’d arrived. He needed another haircut, but he didn’t have the wherewithal to go all the way to Grayland again, so his usual waves formed into more distinct curls, framing his face until he slicked them back with a water-dampened hand.

He needed to shave still, something he would do after his shower. His nails needed trimming, too. He’d broken one carrying a box to his car for Isabel, and it still throbbed whenever he pressed down on the nail bed. It was what he deserved for not taking better care of them the past few weeks.

There was something else about him that looked off, though. Something that made him keep staring when he should have been running the water, getting it warm enough to not shock his body when he stepped into the shower.

It had to be the wells under his eyes where dark shadows formed. Or maybe it was the tightness in his jaw that snaked all the way up behind his eyes. He’d lost a bit of weight, too, no doubt from all his walking along the beach and his lack of appetite lately. But that was hardly enough to change his appearance so harrowingly.

He narrowed his eyes, leaning forward. He’d never inspected himself so closely before. Was this what Robbie had seen? How could he have ever loved him?

Jake’s gaze softened as he pulled back. His lips twitched, and for just a moment, he saw what Robbie saw. He saw both his old self and the man Robbie had uncovered in the time that they were together. Robbie had always noticed a part of Jake that Jake himself refused to acknowledge. That was what made him special—it was one of the many things that made Robbie special.

He turned away from the mirror and moved toward the shower. He had to stop thinking about Robbie before it became the death of him. This was what he’d always wanted: to get out of here, no strings attached. Now he finally had his wish come true.

28

THE DANCE

It was getting dark out by the time Jake and Isabel drove to the beach for the New Year’s Eve dance. The parking lot was full, with all kinds of cars, motorcycles, and bicycles parked in every place imaginable. Jake honestly hadn’t believed enough people lived in Eventide to populate an entire parking lot. He finally found an empty spot and pulled in next to a cute little scooter he’d seen around town a few times before.

They both stepped out, following the glow of the twinkling lights down the path to the water. The sea was smooth as glass, and the setting sun made it look like liquid gold. Jake glanced at Isabel. She was wearing a dark blue gown that swept the stones they walked on, and she hiked it up with her free hand, keeping her other arm linked in Jake’s.

Jake himself had put on the best suit he had, which happened to be his only full suit. It was black, and he wore a navy tie with a delicate gold fleur-de-lis pattern embroidered on it. He felt entirely out of place, both in the suit and at the dance, but he held his head high as they joined the crowd. Scents of roast pork, charred vegetables, and clam chowder mixed in the air. Laughtercascaded through groups, from clear trills all the way to hearty belly laughs.

Notably absent among the crowd of people in gowns and slacks and minidresses and tuxedos were the Eatons. Jake glanced around, still looking for the best-dressed couple on the beach, and then their son. According to Isabel, the elder Eatons always arrived fashionably late, but Robbie should have been there by now.