Lindsay’s aunt Joyce was going to take Lindsay to France for a month during the summer, so there was a ton of shopping to do, and they went in Grace’s Blazer, and helped Grace with traffic and parallel parking.

“So … how were things between you when Austin left?” said Grace.

Macey shrugged.

“You can’t get away with that,” said Lindsay. “We’ll ask you yes-and-no questions so you don’t have to talk much and you won’t start crying, but you have to answer. First question. Did you know he was going?”

Nod.

“Did he tell you and was he nice about it?”

Nod.

“Is he coming back?”

Macey wanted to believe that she and Aus would have some lovely long-distance relationship, with e-mail and cards and phone calls and visits, and she would fly to Chicago to go to his prom, and eventually they’d attend the same college … but she doubted it. The year had gotten too hard for Austin. Everything came down upon his shoulders like a building being demolished, and Austin had stepped out of the rubble and left. If he came back, he wouldn’t be the same Austin.

Macey began sobbing and her two friends tried to hug, tried to comfort, but the Blazer, like life, had too many obstructions; things were in the way; the hugs couldn’t quite hold.

School drew to a close. Everybody was on a countdown. Ten days of school left.

Nine.

Eight.

In the media center, Macey attempted railroad research. She had no more interest in it than Aus had had.

The place was crammed with other kids in the same situation. Since Macey was the kind of kid who started assignments the day they were given and neatly spread the work over the weeks allotted, she had never hung out with the kids who pretended there was no assignment until the day before it was due.

That, however, turned out to be much more fun than doing it the regular way.

The media center was one big party.

Graff had bought soda—the cheap Brand X kind that nobody liked, except in desperate circumstances like this—and boxes of Nilla Wafers, pointless cardboard cookies that nobody liked either, but if you had one, you’d attack the whole box, and even hide the rest from other people so they couldn’t have any of yours.

Austin had gotten most of his stuff from history books and volumes on transportation. Going online was so much more fun than using books on the shelf. Macey and a dozen other kids had to wait for a free terminal.

“Rachel,” said Jennifer, “are you giving the speech on Sophomore Class Day?”