Page 35 of The Homecoming

Autumn stared at him for a beat, shrugging in total honesty as she walked off.

***

Autumn turned the key in the back door as quietly as possible and eased the door open, closing it softly before she spotted a shadowy figure at the kitchen table. She jumped, flipping on the light and illuminating Jason at the table. He was pale now that his sunburn had faded, but he still looked gaunt. He blinked and scowled at her. “Why the hell’d you turn the light on?”

“Why are you sitting in the dark?” she asked. “Scared the living bejesus out of me.”

He shrugged. “Sorry. Didn’t want to wake anyone. Where’ve you been?”

“Bonfire out at the farm,” she replied. “I invited you.”

“Yeah…” he nodded. “That was tonight?”

“It was.” She sat across from him. “Weasel asked about you.”

“Oh,” he said, rolling a cup between his palms.

“I invited him to come out and bow shoot with us one night.”

He nodded agreement, and she was slightly relieved that he didn’t seem to mind.

She was silent for a moment before she finally asked, “You wanna talk about it?”

He shook his head. “There’s nothing to say.”

“Sure there is. You’ve haven’t been sleeping since you got home, and you don’t go anywhere or do anything.”

“You couldn’t understand.”

“Try me,” she said. “Maybe just talking about it will make you feel better.”

He rolled his eyes, standing. “I seriously doubt it. Goodnight, Autumn,” he said before leaving the room.

***

The sun started setting earlier and earlier as the days marched into November. Soon, she’d be driving home from work in the dark, and she didn’t relish the thought.

Autumn returned home to find Jason, Weasel, and Justin in the backyard target practicing. She watched them for a minute and again wished that Dan was there before bringing a hand to her stomach. Weasel shot with impressive accuracy, which she guessed was a good thing. Jason was still a bit shaky and inconsistent on his aim, but sometimes he was better than others and she tried not to dwell on it. Justin shot like a newcomer to the sport. She smiled at herself for the thought, like she’d become some expert in the matter. At least Jason had agreed to practice with the guys. Maybe hanging out with them would help him feel more normal again.

They spotted Autumn observing them from the fence.

“Come on, grab your bow,” Jason called.

“You guys don’t want me busting up your practice.”

Jason shrugged. “It’s cool. You shoot as well as Justin.”

“Kiss my ass,” Justin said as Weasel laughed. To prove the point that he could shoot, Justin aimed at the target and hit near the center. “That’s right, bitch,” he said to Weasel, who smiled and immediately shot his arrow cleanly into the center of the same target without trying all that hard. There was a bit too much testosterone in the yard for her liking, but she grabbed her bow and joined them. Her first two shots, the guys did nothing but stare at her.

“For heaven’s sake, stop staring at me. I’m not some freak.”

“Naw,” Weasel said. “Impressive.”

“What, that I can get remotely near the target?”

“Yeah,” he nodded.

She gave him the finger, and they all thought it hysterical as she sighed. “Alright, dummies, you gonna stand around with your thumbs up your asses or are we going to shoot?”

---