My grandfather peered at me through half-awake eyes. My aunt and uncle picked me up at the train station, and I insisted on being taken to the hospital right away. Visiting hours were over by the time we got there, but the nurse said she would let us in anyway, for fifteen minutes.
“If you really want to get out of work, Liza, there are easier ways,” my grandfather said.
I rushed to his side and wrapped my arms around his shoulders. “Grandpa, are you okay?”
“I’m perfectly fine,” he said. “How are you? And what are you doing here?”
“Mom called—I had to see you. She said you’d be all right, but I wanted to see for myself,” I said.
My parents had decided to sit outside in the waiting room with my aunt and uncle, who’d brought them a late dinner from the outside world.
“They’re keeping me here overnight for observation. Isn’t that ridiculous? What will they learn by observing me?”
“That you’re a stubborn old man who hasn’t had a checkup in three years,” my grandmother said. “That’s what.”
My grandfather ignored her. “So. How are things at the Inn?”
“Oh, fine,” I said with a smile.
“Fine? That’s all you’re going to tell me about one of my favorite places in the world?”
“Well . . .” I hesitated. “I’m not really here to visit and chat, you know. I’m here to see how you are!”
“You’ve seen. I’m fine. Now tell me a story to take me away from all this.” He swept out his arms, knocking a plastic water cup off the tray beside his bed.
My grandparents are the ones I confide in most. They don’t tend to overreact the way my parents could. Platinum hair? Jet-black hair? Belly-button piercing? All fine. Or at least not freakworthy. My parents, on the other hand . . . They’d only agreed to let me go away for the summer after my grandparents persuaded them to.
Sometimes I know that what I’m telling my grandparents is going to go straight back to Mom and Dad, but there have been enough times when they haven’t done that, so I still basically trust them.
Still, was I ready to tell them about Hayden?
“Don’t we have more important things to talk about? Like how you are?” I asked my grandfather.
“That’s boring. Give us something so we can live vicariously. I’m cooped up in this hospital room when I could be at the beach,” Grandpa complained. “What does Bucko have you doing for work? Bill, I mean. Mr. William Talbot Senior, to you.”
“Didn’t Mom tell you? I’m the official Tides Inn gofer.” I explained the various jobs I’d been called on to perform so far.
“Sounds interesting,” my grandmother said. “And what about your social life? Friends?”
“Everyone’s been nice,” I said.
“And what about Mark?” my grandfather asked.
“Don’t pry,” Grandma said.
“Too late,” Grandpa replied.
“Mark and I? We’re on a break.”
“What does that mean?” Grandma asked.
“It means . . . I probably have to go talk to him while I’m home. I think I met someone who’s . . .”
“Perfect for you?”
Was he? I thought about the way Hayden had held and kissed me that night while we waited for the train. “Yeah, maybe,” I said.
“We’ll be the judges of that. What’s his story?” Grandpa asked.
I laughed. “You’re so vague, Grandpa. I never know what you’re getting at.” I rolled my eyes at him.
“Spill,” he said.
Thankfully the nurse came back into the room just then. “It’s really time to go,” she said to me.
“I’ll spill tomorrow,” I promised. “Right now you get back to sleep—I’ll come by again in the morning.”
I went to find Mark at his uncle’s boat factory at 6:45 a.m. As I drove there in my mom’s car, I tried not to think about the Inn, but I couldn’t help wondering about everyone there and when they’d be getting up and what they’d be doing today. I’d been home for less than twelve hours, but it felt like the longest night in history. I really missed Claire and Hayden and Miss Crossley.
Just kidding on that last one.
I’d tried calling Hayden to tell him everything was okay, but never reached him on his cell. I hadn’t spoken to anyone back there yet.
Anyway, I figured catching Mark as he got off his work shift was a good idea. He couldn’t avoid me, the way he could if I called ahead. Not that he would, necessarily. But I wasn’t sure.
I was sitting on one of the picnic tables outside the factory when he emerged into the early-morning haze. He seemed a little out of it as he rubbed his eyes and focused.
“Yeah, it’s me,” I said, giving him an awkward little wave.
He said good-bye to his buddies and came over to me.
“Peace offering,” I said as I held out a large cup of Dunkin’ Donuts coffee to him.
“Thanks. I think.”
“I brought doughnuts, too,” I said, pointing to the bag on the table. “And a muffin, and a bagel, and—”
“What are you doing here, Liza?” He narrowed his eyes as he slid onto the bench seat across from me. “After all that, don’t tell me you quit. Did you quit?”
I shook my head. “No. Not a quitter.”
“Right,” he said. “SATs. Volleyball. Et cetera.”
“Right. So how’s your summer been?” I sipped my coffee and reached for the bag to fortify myself with a honey-glazed.
“Are you kidding?” Mark asked.
“No, I’m interested.” I tore off a piece of doughnut and put it into my mouth.
“Well. It’s been fine. I guess. I work. I hang out. The usual.” He took a blueberry muffin from the bag. Maybe I was here to tell him we were over over, but at least I’d brought his favorite flavor muffin. I wasn’t completely horrible. “You?” he asked. “How’s the summer?”
“Same as yours. Working, hanging out.”
“Is it the dream job you said it was?”
“Yes. And no.” Enough beating around the bush; this was getting ridiculous. “Mark? The reason I came home is that my grandfather had a heart attack.”
“What? No!” Mark gasped.
“Oh, he’s fine. That wasn’t the big news.”
Mark looked sort of like he wanted to hit me with the blueberry muffin.
“I have something to tell you,” I said.
“Yeah, well. Me too,” Mark said.
I was thinking his might not be a compliment, so I decided to forge ahead. “I kind of met someone,” I blurted. “So—”
“Me too,” Mark said, and this sort of sheepish smile crept up the corners of his mouth. Then we both laughed. “Some summer, huh?”
“Hey, Hayden. Though you told me not to say that. It’s Liza. Just wanted to let you know everything’s okay. I’ll be back tonight—maybe you could pick me up? If you could call me, that’d be great. Okay, bye!”
This was like the tenth time since I’d been home that I’d called and Hayden’s phone had gone to voice mail. I hadn’t left a message every time—but they were starting to pile up. I could see that if he was already out on the beach, he wouldn’t have his phone. But was he going to be working every second of the day?
If so, I’d have to get a message to him another way. As much as I hated to do it, I called the Inn’s main number.
“Thank you for calling the Tides Inn, my name is Caroline, how may I assist you?”
“Hey, Caroline. It’s Liza,” I said.
“Liza who?” she asked.
“Liza McKenzie, who else?” She really killed me with this snobby attitude of hers. “Caroline, where is everyone?”
“What do you mean?”
“Could you tell Miss Crossley I’ll be back tonight? I tried to reach her, but all I got was her voice mail,” I explained.
“Oh, well, she’s busy organizing the wedding for next weekend. It’s Zoe’s sister, did you know that?” Caroline asked.
“No. I had no idea,” I said.
“It’s going to be so much fun,” she said.
“Great. Look, could you please ask Hayden to pick me up from the train, you know, on the normal shuttle run to the station?” I asked.
“Sure,” she said. “I can do that.”
“Thanks a lot,” I said.
“How’s your grandfather?” Caroline asked, seemingly out of the blue. She’d acted like she didn’t care, until now.
“Fine, thanks,” I said. “He’s checking out of the hospital tomorrow, probably.”
“Oh, good,” she sighed. “He was always so nice to me. Remember how he used to buy us all that saltwater taffy? And the time he and your grandmother took us to Block Island? That was so much fun.”
“Yeah, he’s great,” I said, surprised she remembered and surprised she was being so nice to me for a change. “Hey, thanks a lot, Caroline. I’ll see you soon, okay?”
“Travel safely,” she said. “Don’t let any weirdoes sit next to you on the train.”
I rolled my eyes. “Okay, Caroline.”
As much as I’d loved seeing everyone at home, I couldn’t wait to get back. I wanted to see the ocean. I wanted to see Hayden.
The train gradually slowed and pulled around the bend, up to the station. I was so anxious to get off of it that I was standing in the doorway with one of the conductors. “You know Hayden?” I asked. “The Tides Inn shuttle driver?”
“I’m sorry?” he said.
“Never mind.” I grinned as I saw the van parked in the passenger pickup area. I couldn’t wait to tell Hayden that I’d cleared things up with Mark, that we weren’t on a temporary summer break anymore—it was permanent. That meant I was really, actually free to date Hayden.
I hopped off the last step onto the platform and walked toward the Tides van. Then I started to run, with a big smile on my face.
And then the driver’s side door opened.
And Miss Crossley stepped out.
“Liza, about time you’re back. We need you desperately. Hop in.”
Funny, that’s what I was hoping Hayden would say. Liza, about time you’re back. I need you desperately.
I tried to hide my disappointment as I stepped up into the van. “I thought maybe Hayden would pick me up,” I said. “Isn’t he the official shuttle driver?”
“Yes, but he’s busy manning the pool tonight because Lindsay had a family emergency, too, and everything’s just chaos,” Miss Crossley said. She put the van in gear and we pulled away from the station. “Glad everything turned out well at home. Now. About your schedule for the next few days.”
I sank down a little in my seat, rolled down my window, and half-listened to her as I breathed in the not-quite-close-enough-to-the-ocean-yet salt air.
Maybe Hayden couldn’t leave, like Miss Crossley said, I thought. Maybe it wasn’t flat-out rejection.
But that didn’t explain why he hadn’t called me once while I was gone, or returned any of my calls.
What had I done?
Wasn’t our good-bye as romantic as I’d thought it was?
Or had he just been taking pity on me because I was so upset?