The Saddest Song - By Susie Kaye Lopez Page 0,29
see.” Then he simply began to fade away until I was standing alone in the concert venue wondering what to do.
Calling his name I awoke with a start and sat up. My face was wet with tears and my heart was heavy in my chest. I turned to look at my clock blinking red, and throwing off the covers, I turned my light on and stumbled to the desk. My ring was there, lying in the center of an M&M heart.
I sat down heavily on my bed dazed and afraid I was finally, really going crazy. Was he gone now? Really and truly gone? I looked at my hand and the tiny white line on my finger where the ring had been. I felt like I had been broken up with, abandoned all over again. I didn’t know what to do so I lay down and sobbed into my pillow until sleep rescued me once more.
This time I slept soundly until my phone alarm announced the start of a new day. I opened my swollen eyes and stumbled to the shower then dressed quickly and headed out the front door to wait for Max. I didn’t have to wait long before the truck pulled up to the curb and I jumped inside. I was hiding behind sunglasses and trying to smile when I got in but it hardly mattered, Max wasn’t paying any attention. He too wore sunglasses and his hair was messier than it usually was. Seems I wasn’t the only one who had a bad night. I decided to get it out in the open. I wanted to share my dream with him. Let him help me make sense of it.
“Max,” I said, breaking the silence. “I had a dream about Garrett. It was so real, and Max, I’ve never dreamed about him before.”
I expected him to look at me, show interest, and ask questions about the details of the dream. I did not expect him to stare straight ahead and tell me he dreamed about Garrett too.
“You dreamed about Garrett?”
He nodded, and I asked, “Have you ever dreamed about him since the accident?”
He shook his head no. His eyes never left the road.
“What are the chances of both of us dreaming of him for the first time on the same night?”
“We aren’t the only ones Rainey.” Finally he looked over at me. “Both mom and dad woke up talking about their dreams of him.”
“Oh my god, what did he say?”
“Basically, he said goodbye and encouraged us to live our lives without him and be happy. Is that what he said to you?”
“Yeah, pretty much.” I didn’t elaborate. I was reeling from the fact that it hadn’t been just a dream. I had validation that I was actually with Garrett. No wonder that I could still remember every moment, every word. It hadn’t begun to fade away like dreams always do.
“Are you okay?”
He looked at me with a grim expression. “I kind of feel like he died all over again.”
“Me too, but he seemed so calm and strong and healthy. He is at peace even if we aren’t.” Max didn’t reply so I asked, “What do we do now?”
“I guess we just do what he told us to do. Go on with living.”
On Thursday Max and I were eating lunch under our usual tree when he got a text from Colin asking him to come over on Saturday to work on some songs. Moments later I got a text from Rylee asking me to come along and hang out with her and Sophie.
“Do you want to go?” Max asked, his eyes studying me. I had been so excited to make new friends, but I had forgotten that after the dream. Being with him, and I knew I was truly, really WITH him, had emotionally slayed me.
“ Yes, do you?” I countered.
“Yeah, of course. It should be fun.”
“Yeah, I really liked them, I could use a little fun after the dream.”
“Okay. We’ll go.”
“Well, good. That’s settled then.” I grinned at him. We both spent so much time dissecting every activity and how it would affect each other. I texted Rylee back while he texted Colin.
“Max, if I didn’t think it would be good for you I probably would have stayed home.” I admitted.
“I know. Me too.”
I nodded and smiled. “I’m glad I have you to worry about.”
He laughed, crushing his empty lunch sack and jumping to his feet. He put his hand out and I grabbed it. He pulled