Laura Anderson Kurk

Thanet is having a moment,_ I said, leaning forward so Quinn could see him.__hat__ wrong, man?_ Quinn said. __ere you not aware high school dances suck? That they always have sucked and they will continue sucking as long as the world turns?

I won__ forget it,_ I said. __ hope you meet someone perfect one day.___a_yeah, that__ just it. I think I already did._ As we opened our doors to step out, he touched my arm. __ust to be clear, if I, like, leaned over and whispered your name in your ear, still nothing?

I needed out. The Jeep wasn__ fast enough. I shut it down, grabbed the keys and started running like a bear was at my heels. I couldn__ even see Henry anymore through my tears so it surprised me when he caught me in his arms halfway. The first thing I did was pound on his chest and ask him why he hadn__ called. The second thing I did was kiss him so hard he couldn__ answer me.

My dad used to say, __his is what your right arm__ for, son,__ John said. __his is the time and these are the people and I__ give my right arm to be a light, a comfort, to them. I know you would, too. In whatever form it takes. Use these materials and make something great. Do it on faith, knowing you probably won__ be around to see how the story ends.

I thought back to Meg__ advice about Hemingway sentences__imple declarative statements that showed the truth and distilled the meaning. My first attempt at that had been cynical and messed up. I gave it a go again.Find one lost sheep.The angels rejoice.

I recognized Meg__ swirly handwriting and crooked my index finger into the side of the envelope to rip it open. There was no letter. Just a picture. A picture of Meg holding a picture of me. The word HOME echoed through my body like a rifle shot.

Her problem is with pretty,_ Tennyson said. "She thinks I__l need all these dresses in college. Like I would ever in a billion years pledge a sorority. I__l pack a few of these to be ironic, though. I can wear them to, like, truck stops at night with mascara running down my cheeks and stuff.

Wait,_ Quinn said. __here__ one more thing._ I turned around and raised an eyebrow. His eyes were wary and he lacked his usual confidence.__o to the Winter Dance with me.

He smiled and squinted at me again, tilting his head up and to the right as he stared. __aybe what I__ attracted to in you is more than your looks and your brain and your humor._ He leaned closer like he had a secret. __t could be your soul,_ he whispered.I pushed his cheek until he was squinting at the door to the kitchen instead. __s this when you tell me I__ your soul mate, O__eill?

It was about how men walk into a forest afraid because they know all the things that can happen. They might wake the noisy birds and cause chaos. But kids come into the trees and see the magic. They climb them and see stars that the men were too afraid to see.

I reached down and picked up a baseball bat at my feet and I flung it as hard as it could. It circled and arced high in the air until it slammed against the side of the dining hall with a crack and fell.I sat down in the dirt. Then I lay down in the dirt.Because not only was there no trail to follow, there was no evidence he__ ever been here.There was no evidence any of them had been here.