Page 110 of Absorbed

“We’d set up camp next to the Colorado River so we could wash off and have water to cook with. Some nights we just rolled out our sleeping bags and fell asleep staring up at millions of stars.”

“Sounds incredible.” Stacey sensed that if Gabe asked anyone to watch a meteor shower with him, they wouldreallybe watching the stars. Gabe always meant everything he said.

“Mom stayed at a condo in Oceanside with her sister. She loved having a two-week break from us.”

Gabe flipped through the CD organizer. He ejectedDookieand replaced it withYellowcard. He turned the volume dial up until “Ocean Avenue” filled the car. They sang along at the top of their lungs, bouncing in their seats.

Murphy slept peacefully, oblivious to their karaoke session.

An hour-and-a-half later, Stacey turned into the lot a half mile north of the Huntington Pier. Murphy jumped to her feet, caught a glimpse of dogs running on the sand, and started whining and panting, beating the seat back with her tail enthusiastically.

“Alright, alright.” Stacey grabbed the end of the leash and opened the car door. Murphy squeezed between the seatbacks and into the driver seat before Stacy’s feet were even planted on the asphalt.

“You have me to thank, you know, Murphy,” Gabe chided. “Stacey would have left you at home.”

Stacey’s mouth fell open in mock indignation. “Don’t feed my dog your lies.”

“She’s gonna love me even more when she sees this.” He grinned, pulled a tennis ball from his pocket, and waved it above the top of the car.

Stacey scowled playfully at him. “She’s loyal to me. She won’t fall for your bribery.” She held the leash firm against Murphy’s pulling as she retrieved the towels from the trunk. “Grab that ice chest.”

Murphy’s breath was raspy as she tugged against the leash, pulling them toward Dog Beach. Once their feet were on the sand, Stacy unclipped the leash, and Murphy ran happily over to another golden retriever. They wagged their tails like long-lost siblings and sniffed each other in circles. They ran toward the rock wall that was infested with ground squirrels. The dogs barked and dug under the rocks as the squirrels scampered out of sight.

Stacey and Gabe dropped their flip-flops, towels, and ice chest near the rocks, and whistled for Murphy as they made their way to the shore. It was late morning, but there was still a light haze of the marine layer over the water, obscuring the view of Long Beach and Catalina in the distance. They walked along the damp sand, tossing the ball for Murphy every few yards, only for her to abandon the game of fetch in favor of sniffing seaweed.

“I’m so glad we did this,” Stacey said, her lungs filling with the cool, damp ocean breeze. “It’s been too long.”

“Yeah. Me, too.” Gabe stopped and turned toward her. “But, to be honest,” he said, crossing his arms, “I was afraid we wouldn’t ever be able to hang out like this again.”

Stacey saw the hurt reflected in his eyes. “We should talk about the night of the party.”

Gabe nodded gently, his mouth twisting to one side.

“I made so many mistakes that night,” Stacey said, shaking her head and looking him straight in the eye. “This whole summer, really. I’ve acted like a jerk. And an idiot.”

“Umm, hmmm…” Gabe nodded again, his eyebrows high. “Go on.”

Stacey play-slapped his bicep. “Shut up. I’m trying to apologize.”

He grinned. “I’m not stopping you.”

“Can we sit, please?” Stacey pointed at dry sand nearby.

They walked over and sat beside one another, facing the water. Gabe dug his toes under the sand, his elbows resting on his bent knees.

Stacey sat crisscrossed and leaned forward, scooping the warm sand with her hands, feeling the grains slip through her fingers. She kept her eyes on Murphy as she spoke. “What I told you in your room about my night with Jessie was true. I wasn’t ready and he didn’t use protection. I was so scared and angry, and then embarrassed. I wanted him to hurt as much as I did.But I shouldn’t have said any of those things about him at the party. That was awful. I apologized to him and we talked about everything.”

Murphy trotted up between them and dropped the ball. Gabe chucked the ball into the white water for her. Murphy happily hopped over the rolling waves and scooped it into her mouth. She swam out a few feet before she returned to where they were seated. Murphy shook the salt water on them, then flopped down by their feet, panting.

Stacey lifted her knees and crossed her arms, resting her elbow on her knees and her chin on her forearm. “The drinking, smoking pot…getting trashed…that was completely stupid. At first, I felt nervous talking to so many people. When Melissa handed me a shot, I was glad to take it. But then it seemed like all those people liked me better when I was drinking and talking dirty, so I kept doing it until even I forgot who I was.”

“What people?” Gabe dug his heels deeper in the sand, a pile mounding under his feet. “That’s what I can’t understand. Did youwantTrent Stevenson to like you before that night?”

“God no! And I still don’t!” Stacey turned toward Gabe, tucking one leg under her. “I can’t thank you enough for rescuing me from him. He’s a total asshole.”

“That’s about the nicest thing I would call that guy.” Gabe clenched his jaw. A muscle on his cheek twitched.

A loud dog barked behind Stacey and she glanced over to see Murphy still panting, unbothered.

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