Shock

-25-

When our stomachs were a little fuller and our bags a little lighter, we got ready to continue our journey. While Peter, Nathan and I put away the leftovers and empty packaging, Paisley and Haley went to find a quiet place to pee.

I hummed a random melody while flattening the now empty bottle of water.

"Nathan?" Peter said suddenly.

"Yeah?"

"Do you ever miss your mum and dad?"

I kept humming, pretending not to listen, but out of the corner of my eye, I could see Nathan tense up.

"Haley said you live in her house and not with your parents." Peter continued.

Nathan didn't speak for a while. The only sound was my humming, and that was getting harder and harder to keep doing.

Finally, Nathan nodded.

"Yeah. Sometimes I do miss them. But it's better this way. I love living with Haley and her mum. Did you know she makes the best pancakes?"

"Mrs. Stratford?"

Nathan nodded.

"She waits 'till they're almost done, and then she puts little blueberries in them, and..."

I zoned out on Nathan's description of Grace's pancakes, mostly to contemplate the new piece of information I'd just received.

Nathan lived with Grace and Haley.

His relationship with his parents must be worse than I had suspected.

While I forced myself to keep humming and cleaning, my mind went over all the different possible causes for this disagreement. When everything was cleaned up and my hands had nothing left to do, I started fidgeting with my skirt.

Had this happened before of after his brother died?

Did he ever even see his parents anymore?

Finally, Paisley and Haley reappeared, empty-bladdered and ready to go.

"Let's get this show back on the road, shall we?" Paisley exclaimed.

I smiled and nodded in response.

Yes, distraction, please.

We were about two-thirds of the way to Peter's primary school, and hope was starting to creep into the back of my mind again.

I pushed it away. Hope would only lead to disappointment and I wasn't sure how much of that I could handle.

So I tried to downplay my expectations, reminding myself of how minuscule the chance was of finding my family there.

Still, I couldn't stop hoping. If not for me, then for Peter's sake. He'd been through a massive amount of disappointment today, and his bubbliness was visibly wearing thin.

I looked at him - he and Haley were walking next to each other, not talking, or singing like they'd done before. They'd been a bit more light-hearted during our lunch break, but the mood had shifted once we'd recommenced our journey.

Before them walked Paisley. Since Nathan and I were closing the parade, she was leading.

We'd both been to Peter's primary school as well, so she knew where to go.

Her steps were almost rhythmic, as if she was listening to a song none of us could hear.

Her long hair grazed the small of her back and swished from side to side.

I looked up.

The sky had cleared, leaving only a few little white clouds to mark the blue canvas. A pigeon flew across and found a resting spot on a high voltage cable. Nathan noticed too.

"You gotta wonder how they don't get electrocuted, huh?"

"I once heard it had something to do with the fact that they don't touch two wires at the same time."

My gaze wandered from the pigeon, further and further down the wire. It wasn't strained as tightly as it should've been, and it got even looser further down the road. We were close to reaching the point where the cable touched the ground. The street around that spot was reflecting light and it took my tired brain longer than usual to figure out that meant the cable was laying in a puddle of water.

My eyes widened as I noticed tiny sparks sprouting from the wire.

I looked from the electrocution hazard to Paisley, who was less than a foot removed from it.

Time seemed to slow down as I watched the scene before me unfold.

The sparks were livid, exploding with light as they emerged from the cable and traveled through the liquid.

Paisleys foot, hovering over the puddle, inching closer, was still clad in my worn-out sneakers. Her short, navy cocktail dress was stained with water and alcohol.

I wanted to call out to her. I opened my mouth but no sound came out. I just stood there, my feet static, as if nailed to the ground.

My limbs turned to spaghetti and I felt more helpless than I'd ever been as I watched my friends foot touch the water.

She fell to the ground and started shaking sporadically.

It took mere seconds for her body to turn to stone.

"No." The first word came out as a whisper. Then, my brain went ballistic. I couldn't think. I couldn't breathe. I could only look at the lifeless body lying at the end of the street.

"Paisley!"

The only thing I could hear were my footsteps, bolting forward, and my voice, calling out my friends name, again and again.

Shapes, shadows passed me by, but didn't pay attention to them

I reached her. My feet, her shoes, stopped right before the puddle.

"Paisley, please, look at me. Open your eyes, look at me!"

My voice was hoarse.

"Please, just.... Don't. Don't be dead. Please..."

Suddenly I was on my knees. Gravel was digging into my flesh

I could see her more clearly now.

Her skin, pale as always. Her head, cocked to the side, eyes closed.

"No!" I screamed,

"You're not dead, you're not! I know you're not."

My chest was shaking.

"Open your eyes, Paisley, this is not funny! Please..."

My nails dug into my scalp

"Look at me. Look at me, Paisley, you're not dead!"

But she was.