Page 7 of Jumping In

“Don’t worry about it, son. The town is going to think whatever they want to think. What matters is we know the actual story, right?” My dad asks. I take a pull of my beer and nod. “I’d rather focus on a plan for if this entire case goes sideways. I know you’re hoping for a lenient ruling, and I have faith that Bill will do all he can to help you, but I’d feel better if we had a plan, just in case.”

I take a deep breath and blow it out.

“Mr. Lawrence has been trying to get Henry to agree to a plea deal, but he’s not budging,” I explain. Running my fingers through my hair, I turn to my mom, who’s sitting on the edge of the couch now. Talking about the case always makes her nervous and a little on edge.

“What does that mean, Alex?” Dad asks.

“Well, it means we’re likely going to go to trial. Plead my case and hope they either find me not guilty or the judge goes easy on me with the sentencing.” I shake my head in frustration.

“And what if the judge doesn’t go easy on you?” my mom asks, rubbing her hands on her jeans.

“Mr. Lawrence says it could be a few months in prison.” My mom sucks in a breath and Dad curses. “But we’ll figureit out. I have some ideas on how to keep the garage open if that happens. But that’s the worst-case scenario right now.” I look at my mom, and she nods slowly.

“Have you heard from your brother?” Dad asks.

I shake my head. “Nah, not in a bit. I know he’s still in Cedar Bend, but that’s about it. I assume he’s doing okay since we haven’t had any calls to bail him out.” Rolling my eyes, I grab my beer and lean back onto the couch.

Dad huffs and leans back onto his recliner, rocking it slowly. Their TV show starts back up after the commercial break and, just like that, the conversation is over. Giving Mom and Dad the facts is easy. Hiding my anxiety about what might happen if I go to prison has gotten easier. But as the trial date gets closer, and a plea deal seems unlikely, I can’t help the unease growing in the back of my mind.

Chapter 4

MJ

After running a few errands throughout town, Shannon and I make it back to my parents’ house mid-afternoon, and we have a few hours before meeting the boys by the creek. I’ve been wanting to ask her about the gossip we heard at the bookstore, but I haven’t figured out the best way to approach it yet. Shannon is no stranger to my curiosity about Mac over the years but sometimes I worry I ask about him too much. While I didn’t know what the ladies were even talking about, I couldn’t just stand there and let them bad-mouth Mac and his family. Especially when Mrs. Macdonald was right there. I swear some people have no class. The gossiping is one of the few things I definitely did not miss about Oakridge while I was away.

Shannon plops on my bed and starts scrolling through her Instagram feed while I sift through my boxes, looking for some nail polish and my bathing suit for later. I find a few different nail polish colors and toss them on the bed by Shannon. “Em, your Insta feed is gorgeous. A little gray, but still so pretty!” she says as she grabs the bottles of nail polish and picks an emerald green.

“Thanks, girl. It’s definitely a lot gray, but I’m excited to get some shots of home into the mix, that’s for sure.” With all the city pictures of Piermont, my feed is mostly cityscapes or gloomy skies. I tried to mix it up as much as I could with pops of color from my apartment and around campus, but the city was just the reality of my life for the last four years. I can’t wait to add some gold, orange, and pink tones to my feed now that I’m back home.

I sit on the floor while Shannon readjusts and puts her feet on my thighs like we have always done when painting each other’s toes. I shake the bottle of nail polish, and Shannon looks down at me. “So, are we gonna talk about it?”

I look up at her with a questioning look, and she continues. “You told me you ran into Mac at Spoon, but I didn’t think you talked. So why would you defend him so vehemently like you did back at the bookstore?”Oh.

I shrug and paint her toenails. “I don’t know, it just felt like the right thing to do. What were they talking about, anyway?” Focusing on her toes, I can’t see her face, but I can tell her body went stiff for a second. I look up, but her face isn’t giving anything away.

“Maybe you should talk to him and find out.” She raises one eyebrow in challenge, but I shake my head.

“Nope. The phone works both ways,” I say. She rolls her eyes and laughs.

“You’re just as guilty of not reaching out, though,” she points out. I shrug.

“Enoughabout that. Who’s got your eye lately? You’ve barely mentioned going out on any dates or anything. What’s been going on with you?” I ask.

Her cheeks flush slightly, and I smile. “Eh, no boys, Em. You know how it is here. Oakridge is so small, and if I didn’t date them in high school, they probably weren’t worth dating.”

“I guess that’s true. You never dated Austin or Blake in high school, though, and we know they’re good guys.” Neither of us dated within our friend pool. For me, it was because the boys are like my brothers though I’m not sure that’s how Shannon feels. It’s a small town, but we still had neighboring towns and, of course, Cedar Bend. Shannon looks down at her toes, suddenly very interested in the lines of paint I’ve already put on. “Come on, Shan!”

“There’s nothing to tell, Em. Seriously. I know I wasn’t off at a fancy school like you, but I was still taking classes and working at the bar. I’ve been too busy to date.” I try not to wince at her calling Caracrest a fancy school. Looking up at her face, she’s annoyed and not going to budge on this, so I back off and focus on painting the rest of her toes.

A little while later I push out of the bathroom door after changing into my bathing suit. I’m greeted by my best friend’s smile which grows wider as her eyes trail my body.

“Damn girl, you look fucking hot!”

“Really?” I turn so she can see the back. “I bought this before my Spring Break trip to Mexico, but then never wore it. At least it still fits. Maybe it can be my summer suit.”

“It looks great on you. The high waist shows off your ass and the halter top . . . my god, your boobs look so perky. Interesting color choice, though.” She gestures at me with a pointed finger, eyebrows raised. “You haven’t worn a red bathing suit since we were sixteen, even though I always tell you it looks amazing with your skin tone and makes the green in your eyes pop.”

I roll my eyes and shake my head. Shannon is the best hype girl whenever I need it, and I’ve been needing it. I’ve been self-conscious about my body for years now, especially considering I put on more than the usual freshman fifteen while I was away at college. My stomach is not toned and flat like it used to be; it’s soft and squishy and my thighs jiggle when I walk. My mom raised me to believe I’m beautiful no matter what, but society and social media tell me otherwise. It’s been something I’ve had to work on, my mental self-image, over the last few years.

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