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SAGE
It was hot and muggy like it always was in early August, which made the iced coffee I was drinking that much better. Rocking slowly back and forth, I withheld my laugh as Alex checked his watch for the tenth time.
“I told you she wouldn’t be ready on time,” I reminded him as he leaned against the porch railing.
“We were supposed to leave over an hour ago,” he grumbled under his breath.
His OCD was showing. Being late or unorganized drove him up a wall, and ever since he’d moved in with Lacey and me last year, it had been a huge adjustment for him. I wasn’t the tidiest person, and my sister was even worse.
“While we have a minute alone…” He shot me an apprehensive smile, making my stomach twist with nerves. “Have you given any thought to what we talked about a couple weeks ago? About getting our own place?”
I bit my lip, debating what to say. Was I ready? I wasn’t sure. But I knew Lacey wasn’t ready to live alone. She might be three years older than me, but at twenty-four, I didn’t think she was ready to adult by herself yet. I took care of everything. Our dad’s bank accounts. The bills. The house. She helped financially but hated any kind of responsibility.
“I don’t know, Alex,” I murmured as he shook his head. “This house is huge. I don’t think she could take care of it all by herself.”
He hesitated. “Maybe it’s time to sell it.”
“No,” I snapped, not able to stop myself. “I’m not ready to do that yet.”
I kept my eyes on the white, chipped wraparound porch. My parents had bought this house when they got married. It was a huge old farmhouse that they’d planned to fill with kids. Before my mom disappeared. This house was my dad’s pride and joy before he got sick. I couldn’t imagine selling it. Or moving. Which was why Alex had moved in with us last year.
“Lacey is old enough to take care of herself,” he said gently, sitting on the swing next to me. “She’s the older sister.”
“I could say the same about you,” I argued back. “You’re more mature than both your older brothers combined.”
“No. They just want different things in life. You know this. I’m ready to settle down when you are. I already know what I want in life. They’re still figuring it out.”
“Just like Lacey.”
He wrapped an arm around me and pulled me closer. “Unlike Lacey, they don’t lean on me for anything.”
Opening my mouth to start arguing again, I stopped as Jamie walked out of the house. Alex gave me a kiss on the forehead before standing up. “We’ll talk about it later.”
“We’re making good time this morning, don’t you think, Sage?” Lacey asked, walking out of the house. She shot me a wink as a vein twitched above Alex’s eye.
“This is going to be a long drive,” I muttered, climbing into the back seat of Lacey’s truck. Instead of going to college, she’d bought this beast of a vehicle with her college fund. It was so loud everyone in our small town knew who was driving down Main Street when they heard it.
“It’ll be fun,” Lacey corrected me as she pulled out of the driveway. “Going up north is the best part of the summer.”
* * *
The five-hour drive was fun. Lacey’s truck was comfortable and had more than enough room for all the camping supplies. We sang songs and talked about childhood memories. Jamie was the odd one out, not growing up in Capac. He mostly just listened and didn’t add anything about his past. He was shy compared to most of Lacey’s other guy friends.
Finally, we made it to Mackinaw City, and nostalgia washed over me. I had so many great memories up here with Lacey and our dad. He made sure we went every year, even if it was only for a couple of days. It was a tradition he kept even after Mom disappeared. We pulled into the hotel parking lot, and the guys started to get the bags out while Lacey and I went to check in. I rushed everyone out of the hotel room because I wanted to get the day started.
We walked down to the Mackinac Bridge first. I could tell that Jamie was excited to be here, especially with Lacey, as we all gazed at it in awe. The suspension bridge was massive. The tall cream-colored arches that held the suspension cables towered over the army green–colored bridge. It was so long that the other end of the bridge could only be seen on a clear day. The large beach was busy with all the people who had come here for vacation. Kids were running and chasing the seagulls. The water was a deep blue, and people were standing in it as the small waves hit the sand. Laughs and happy chatter could be heard over the cars driving over the bridge. A smile crept into my face as I took it all in. Up north would always be my happy place.
“We’ll have to come back when it’s all lit up at night,” Lacey told Jamie. “It’s beautiful.”
The beach was rocky; the sand was full of pebbles and stones. I walked forward slowly, my bare feet stepping gingerly over the rocks until cool water ran over my skin. The sun was high in the sky, and there wasn’t a cloud to be seen. Alex wrapped his arms around my waist, and I leaned back, closing my eyes as memories swallowed me.
One of my favorite photos of my mom popped into my mind. It was taken here, almost in this exact spot on the beach. I hadn’t even been born yet, but the picture sat on my nightstand table. Lacey was a toddler in the picture, and she was surrounded by seagulls because she was throwing food to them. Our mom was in the background, laughing. Her smile was so genuine. So joyful. Full of life. A pang of grief speared my heart, thinking of all the things we were never able to do with her. Alex’s arms tightened around me, bringing me back to the present.
With one last look at the bridge, I turned away so we could go explore Mackinaw City. There were so many little shops with one-of-a-kind items. We saw about five different T-shirt shops in the first half hour, all fighting for customers to come in and get whatever they want printed on them. We each chose a crazy colored shirt and had something funny printed on it. Lacey and I slipped our new shirts on and walked around looking like tourists instead of Michigan natives.
There was a little photo shop where we dressed up in outfits from the Old West and took pictures. We visited a fun house and got lost in the maze of mirrors. I sat on a bench to pose for a picture next to a bronze statue and nearly jumped out of my skin when the so-called statue moved. Alex, Lacey, and Jamie were in tears from laughing so hard. We finally got hungry, and I convinced everyone to eat at my favorite pizza place for dinner.
Alex held the door open for everyone, and we sat at one of the few free tables. The chairs were the cheap metal folding ones, and the tables had seen better days. But no one who came here cared about that because the food and atmosphere made up for it. There was such a friendly vibe. The walls all had colorful murals on them. One wall was full of people’s signed names from all over the world who had visited.
“Jamie, how are you enjoying it so far?” Alex asked once we were all settled at our table.
“It’s so much fun up here. I’ve never seen a town like this before. It’s like this all year?”
Lacey answered, “No, only in the summer. Everything pretty much closes by the end of fall because of the weather.”
“I’m surprised my aunt and uncle have never been here. They’ve been in Michigan for a few years now,” Jamie said as he looked at the wall of names.
“What does your family do?” I asked, curious about the guy who was so smitten with my sister. I had a suspicion that Lacey really liked him. He was the first guy Lacey had ever invited up north with us.
Jamie paused for a moment. “Oh, we have a family business. They wanted to expand it out of Texas. Which is why I’ve been here setting it up…” His voice trailed off as he reached for his glass of water.
“His family business is a big secret. Even I don’t know all the details,” Lacey joked, and I shot her a questioning look. She didn’t know what he did? How was Lacey okay with not knowing details about the guy she was sharing her life with? I could never do that. I was too nosey and needed to know everything about anything that interested me. My dad had always told me I was too curious for my own good. Before I could ask another question, the server came with the pizza and asked if anyone needed refills. The conversation turned to what we had planned for tomorrow, and when I glanced across the table, it seemed Jamie was relieved about that.
