Side Effects (5 page)

His hair is messed up and if I'm not mistaken, he's missed a button or two on his shirt. I remember what Lexi said about kissing and smile to myself. Good for Keith.

“What did I miss?” he asks.

The four of us look at each other and try to hide our grins.

“Nothing!” Sam says loudly.

“Nothing at all,” Lexi seconds while Zak and I mumble the same.

Keith runs a hand through his hair. “Come on! Why am I always left out? I'm still hip.”

Zak groans and we all stand up. This conversation is over.

“Dude, hip?” Zak shakes his head sadly.

Lexi puts a hand on Keith's shoulder. “Calling yourself cool does not make you cool.”

“Got it.” Keith scratches his head. “I'll have to remember that.” He counts heads. “Where's Jason?”

At that moment, my other brother stumbles out of the woods. His hair actually has a twig in it. He raises his hand. “I'm here.”

Keith leans over to Jason and examines his neck. “Is that a hickey?”

“Yep!” Jason walks past him.

“You could have lied to me,” Keith calls out in the darkness.

Jason just smiles before climbing into the boy tent and collapsing in a heap on his sleeping bag.

Keith sighs. “Let's all get some sleep and figure out where we're going next in the morning.”

Sam yawns in agreement and we all turn in. I fall asleep before I can even ask Lexi the one other question I have about kissing—where do I put my hands while the kiss is happening—and the next thing I know the sun is streaming through the tent, birds are chirping loudly like an alarm clock and it's morning. When I venture outside the tent, I already see Sam and Keith sitting at the picnic table in front of the map. Sam has placed twigs and leaves on it marking stops along the California coastline. The campfire from the night before is still smoldering and it looks like someone tried to make oatmeal on the embers for breakfast. I'm not sure it worked. There's also an open box of cereal on the table. Smoke billows up to the sky as an owl hoots in the distance.

“If the campgrounds were flooded, then so were the back roads,” Keith surmises as I walk over. His head is covered in a navy sweatshirt hoodie.

Lexi stumbles out behind me. “Then let's stay with the route we're on.”

“That's my vote!” Sam seconds.

“No,” Jason protests. “The coach at the ball field said the
roads were washed out. Dad would have gone toward the coast. He loved the beach. I say we head west.”

“And what?” Lexi asks. “Search the whole Pacific Coast Highway? That's insane.”

Everyone starts talking over one another. I pull my red sleeping bag around my shoulders. I forgot how cold it is in the morning at the campgrounds. Zak appears looking sleepy and with bedhead.

“Hold up! I'm in charge,” Keith reminds them.

“Unfortunately,” Jason mumbles.

Lexi raises her eyebrows at me. I look at the ground. A Hershey's Bar wrapper lies at my feet.

Keith pulls off his hood and looks at Jason. “Do you want to do this? Be in charge? Take care of our finances, figure out Mom's medical bills, and have to leave school to come back here and take care of you guys? That's what you want?” He pushes Jason. “Be my guest!”

“Whoa,” Zak says and tries to step in between them.

Jason actually looks apologetic. “You're right. I don't,” he says quietly. “I'm sorry.”

Keith sighs. “Me too. Let's come up with something that makes sense. Look, Anna said maybe Dad headed someplace fun. A place that made him feel like a kid again.”

“Camping is fun,” Lexi suggests.

Zak shakes his head. “Camping is
not
fun.”

I have an idea. “What about Castle Park? We went every summer and Dad loved it.” I pull over the photo box and whip out a picture of us in front of a group of knights in shining armor.

Sam gets excited. “You mean the magical and wondrous Knights of the Round Table Castle Park?”

“It's in the direction we're going.” Keith looks at Sam. “Do you like this choice, Navigator?”

“Yes. Let's go for it.”

“Okay then, it's settled.” Keith looks at Jason who nods. “Let's pack up and move out.”

It's easier taking down the tent than putting it up. We pack up the cooler again and throw out our trash. Roll up our sleeping bags and start piling things in the car. Rachel appears suddenly and Jason and she start kissing again. This time it's Lexi who yells out “gross!” I don't say anything. I just jump in the shotgun seat (Sorry, Jason, you snooze, you lose!). I'm putting on my seat belt when Anna appears at Keith's car window. She leans inside and her park ranger hat almost gets caught on the door.

“I'll keep asking around about your dad,” Anna tells him. “If I hear anything, I'll call you.”

“Call me even if you don't,” Keith says, and they kiss through the window.

The backseats break out in applause. Sam whistles.

“All right, all right.” I can tell Keith is blushing. “Shut up.” We're still giggling when he starts the car. “I'll remember this when it comes to your dating lives.”

I smile to myself as Keith pulls down the road again and we pass the sign that says we're leaving Emmet State Park.
THANKS FOR VISITING
! it says underneath a picture of a friendly cartoon bear. But I'm still thinking about dating. After Lexi's pep talk, I'm actually looking forward to it now.

To be continued in Side Effects

Part 4—Where Do We Go From Here

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