The sudden passing of eighteen-year-old Lily Hamill's grandmother causes Lily to return to her Nana's bizarre hometown of Willowbrook after a ten-year absence. There she meets a strange boy named Marcel, who offers her a mysterious parting gift inte...
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"I thought I was going to be back by the end of the week, but I just started thinking about things, you know? I really thought I knew my Nana well and now I have so many questions, I feel like I need to stay until I have the answers."
"Stay for how much longer? Another week?"
"Actually, I was thinking more like a month. . ."
I laid on the guest bedroom floor while I spoke on the phone with my boyfriend Alex. We started dating when I became captain of the women's soccer team for my school over a year ago. Alex was the guy every girl in school wanted to be with, and I felt so lucky to be with him. I tried my best to be what i thought he wanted or needed in a girlfriend. Our relationship had it's ups and downs, but for the most part it had been functional.
The problem with high-school sweethearts is what happens when you both graduate?
Alex's voice sighed heavily.
I knew he was disappointed. After the summer Alex was going to a college in Portland and I was going to one in Seattle. Originally, my plan had been to attend college in Seattle to be closer to Nana, but now with her gone, my plans felt hollow.
"I'm really sorry, Alex, but it's just four weeks and then we'll have the rest of the summer together."
"Lily, I really didn't want to do this over the phone, because you deserve better than that. . ." His voice trailed.
The tone of his voice made my heart feel like it was breaking into a thousand pieces. I knew where this was going. I could tell when someone was trying to give the 'break-up speech'.
I rolled over from my back onto my stomach and pressed the heated phone firmer against the side of my face.
"Alex, please. . .not tonight, okay? Don't do this to me right now, not after just burying Nana," I begged. I didn't care how desperate I came across.
"No, Lily," Alex said firmly. "There's never going to be a good time to do this. We've put off this conversation all year. I can't put it off anymore. Look, I really love and care about you, but we're going to be in two different states and schools. Our lives are going in different directions. I want a fresh start in college, not be to hung up on someone I can only see once a month."
