The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones by Daven McQueen

Author:Daven McQueen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wattpad Books
Published: 2020-09-02T16:00:00+00:00

Thirteen

The dust swelled in Ethan’s wake as he pounded down the path. Arms pumping, head tipped forward, legs carrying him in long strides. By now he knew these paths by heart. At the next turn, he’d see the old magnolia whose branches bent nearly to the ground. There was a fork coming up: to the right was Alligator Hill and to the left, the lake. He knew the spots where the birds chirped the loudest, where the grass was filled with hidden burrs, where the path became almost smooth and the dust nearly disappeared. Juniper had taught him well.

But it was Juniper he was trying to forget today as he ran. There was a state he could reach sometimes during his longest distance races when his mind went blank and all he knew was the way his heart beat in time with his footsteps. He couldn’t quite get there now, but he was close, his skin burning with the effort. Just another mile, maybe, and he could forget that he hadn’t spoken to Juniper in nearly four days.

He made it half that distance—maybe less—when a rumbling sound cut through the forest, seeming to come from the trees themselves. It had been cloudy all day while Ethan was at work, but now, with a flash of lightning, hot rain poured down between the branches. The trees offered little protection; in a few paces, Ethan was soaked. He swiped a hand across his eyes and turned right at the next fork, toward home. Now, as he ran, dust was replaced by spurts of mud and his sweat mingled with rainwater. By the time he reached Aunt Cara’s front porch, his curls were plastered to his forehead and his sneakers felt like they were filled with water.

Aunt Cara met him at the door with two towels, motioning for him to stay on the porch until he was dry. “First real storm of the summer,” she said, peering out at the downpour. Ethan didn’t respond as he scrubbed the towel across his face, wrung out his hair, and kicked off his shoes. Even with two towels wrapped around him, he still dripped all the way to the bathroom.

“Lunch is ready when you’re done!” Aunt Cara called as he stepped inside.

“Okay,” he said to the closed door. “Thanks.”

One hot shower later, he emerged into the kitchen in sweats. Though it wasn’t cold outside, Aunt Cara scooped him up a bowl of thick bean soup and set it at the table. She hovered for a moment as he silently began to eat, then blurted, “So, Juniper hasn’t been around lately.”

Ethan paused, spoon halfway to his mouth. “No,” he said carefully. “She hasn’t.” He didn’t look at his aunt. He was worried that she would catch on after half a week without Juniper stopping by the house at least once, but he’d hoped that his disappearances during his now-daily runs would be mistaken for meetings with Juniper.

“Is everything all right?”

Ethan considered—if he told her, she’d keep asking questions.

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