Page 62 of Pieces of Ash

Since waking up this morning, she’s been reading on the front porch swing, ignoring me completely and lookingdisdainfully at the sandwich I placed on the table beside her at lunchtime.

When I returned an hour later, she hadn’t touched it.

My little sister is freezing me out.

After making my delivery in town—Noelle refused to come along for the ride—I return home and stand at the foot of the porch steps.

“Enough is enough, Noelle.”

“You’re right,” she answers, turning the page of her book, but not looking up.

Phew.“So come for a walk with me and Bruno.”

“No, thanks.”

“But I thought you just agreed that enough is?—”

“Enough ofyoushuttingmeout,” she snaps, closing her book and marching into the house.

Andof course, who is standing there in the doorway watching the drama unfold? Ashley.

Great.

She stares at me through the screen, her expression unreadable.

“She’s a fucki—she’s abrat!” I yell, loud enough for Noelle to hear. A door slams shut in the back of the house in response.

“She loves you,” says Ashley softly, pushing open the door and stepping onto the porch with me. “And you love her.”

“I guess you know something about difficult siblings, huh?”

She offers me a small smile, but I feel it everywhere. “Tig? Oh, she was…terrible. Yes.”

“But you loved her?” I ask, feeling strangely invested in her answer.

She averts her eyes as her smile fades. “I did. I think I did. It was…hard to know Tig.”

“My sister won’t come for a walk with me and Bruno,” I say, ignoring the warning bells going helter-skelter in my head as my lips form the following words. “How about you?”

Her eyes widen, and her lips part in surprise. “Me?” I’m about to yell,No! I take it back!when she nods emphatically. “Sure. I’d love to.”

I whistle for Bruno, who’s sniffing for something at the white lattice under the porch. “Come on, boy.”

I don’t know why I asked her. And I don’t know why I didn’t take back my invitation when I had the split-second chance. But I blame it all on Noelle. If she hadn’t harassed me about dating someone and opening up and being a big, fat liar last night, I never would’ve suggested this.

Well, suck it up. You asked, and she accepted. Besides, it’s just a walk.

As we round the barn, Ashley moves into step beside me, and I take note of her little white tennis sneakers. No good for traipsing through the woods. We’ll have to stay on the path.

“Have you seen the pond?”

“No,” she says, her voice breathless as she tries to keep up with me. “I haven’t seen anything.”

I slow my pace a little. “It’s not much, but if we follow the path, we’ll come to it.”

“Sounds good,” she says.

We walk in silence for a few minutes, Bruno’s happy baying breaking the quiet every few minutes.