Page 21 of Like A Moth To A Flame

I turned to look at him, and I saw tears swimming in his eyes.

“Now I insist. What’ll it be?”

Barrett ordered a southwest omelet, hash browns, and a vanilla milkshake. I ordered the same, except for chocolate to replace the vanilla. Mama Mae laughed as she took our orders.

“I remember,” she started, jotting out orders down on her notepad. She tore the page off and turned, handing it through the window before she turned back. “You were in here with your ma. You wanted a milkshake for breakfast, and she said no, and you said—”

“‘When I grow up, I’m gonna have milkshakes for breakfast every day.’” I finished for her.

She laughed, a musical sound that echoed through the whole diner.

“Yep,” she said, grinning. With that, she turned away and made her way into the kitchen.

I sat in silence for a few minutes, spinning on the bar stool and looking around. Sheriff Banner was gone. He must have slipped out without me noticing. Tammy and Ray were just getting up to leave, and they both waved at me, Tammy giving me the ‘call me’ signal as she moved out the door. Tommy was still sitting by the door, his face hidden behind a newspaper, and across the room, I could see one of my high school teachers with her two kids. They were grown now.

Again, I felt so old.

I twisted in my seat when I heard the clatter of dishes being laid across the counter behind me. The food and the milkshakes were here. Mine looked beautiful, rimmed with chocolate sprinkles, and topped with whipped cream, pieces of fudge, and a cherry on top. Small-town aesthetic was a whole different beast.

“Enjoy,” Mae said, giving me a wink before rushing off to take Mrs. Rhodes’ order, the high school teacher.

“Remind me to tip her big,” I told Barrett, picking up my spoon. Milkshake first.

“30%,” Barrett said, digging into his omelet with a grunt of happiness.

“Nah, bigger. 50%.”

We ate in relative silence, only turning occasionally when the door would open. We watched Tommy and Mrs. Rhodes leave, one after the other, and a whole gaggle of high school kids filled in soon after.

Time to go. We were done anyway, and we didn’t wanna miss our movie.

By the time we stepped outside, the sun had just begun to kiss the horizon. The heat of a southern summer was beginning to fall away, replaced by the cool breeze and screaming insects of night. It was a short walk across the dusty red brick road, to the newly built theater where the antiques shop used to be.

Like most things in this town, it was small, but it could be. At the last census check, Cottonwood Falls had a population under one thousand, and I didn’t guess it’d grown anymore since then.

We had a good time. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, Barrett had been right about getting me out of the house. Laughing and joking with a friend at a movie felt like high school again, and by the time we walked out of the theater almost three hours later, I had a huge grin on my face. I had missed this so much. I had missed stepping away from work and adult life and enjoying myself again. We piled into my convertible, and this time, I let Barrett drive. Itfelt good to let go. It felt good to act like a kid again and pretend I had no worries.

As we pulled back onto Lake Street, I turned to Barrett.

“When I tell you to? Gun it.”

He looked at me with narrowed eyes as I clicked off my seatbelt and tossed it over my shoulder.

“What are you gonna do?”

“Just trust me.”

I kicked my shoes off onto the floorboard and hopped onto my seat, my feet firmly planted and my legs shoulder-width apart. As I rose to full height, I grabbed the top of the windshield to steady myself.

This would go one of two ways. Either I’d flip over the trunk and smash my head open, or I’d have the ride of my life.

“Nessa!” he hissed, grabbing the front of my skirt and trying to yank me down. “This is a bad idea!”

“Oh, come on, Barrett!” I said, bracing my butt against the headrest of my seat. My hands were shaking, my palms sweaty and my heart racing in my chest. I felt scared, and I liked it. “Humor me!”

“Vanessa!?”

“Now!”

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