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Chapter Sixteen

It was three days before Mason's birthday and we were all gathered outside. Dan was standing in the middle of the empty arena and Kevin was kneeling right behind him. Dan was holding the remote to the plane.

"Okay, this is it," Kevin said. He sounded way too excited about a plastic plane.

I was sitting on the fence, my legs swinging back and forth. Mason was sitting beside me. It was hard not to reach for his hand. Addy was standing back by the barn. She looked like she was prepared for disaster.

"Alright, here we go!"

Kevin pointed at the controls and Dan followed his instructions. The blue and white plane slowly took off into the sky. Mason clapped.

"Awesome! Great job D--"

"Don't you dare hop off that fence!" Kevin called. Mason sighed.

The airplane soared up in the air. With the turn of the control, it did a fancy roll.

That's when it burst into flames.

Kevin and Dan watched open-mouthed. I wasn't sticking around. Mason and I toppled over the fence. Mason was shielding me from the renegade sparks.

"OUT OF THE WAY!"

Addy dashed past us. Now I knew why she was standing by the barn. She was keeping close to the water hose. She shot the hose directly towards the plane. Dan glanced down at the remote in disappointment.

"It blew up," he said sadly.

"That's because dad didn't listen to me," Addy said calmly. Kevin looked at her.

"What are you talking about?"

She snickered. "I told you not to put the blue and red wires together."

"Well I---"

Addy dropped the hose and leaned down and kissed him. Dan made a face. Of course, he got the next kiss.

"We'll get another plane and I will help you boys," Addy said with a snicker.

The snicker didn't last long. Kevin grabbed the hose and it was all over. She shrieked as the water smacked into her.

"This is gross," Mason said. I nodded. We glanced each other.

"C'mon."

He headed up into the treehouse. I followed him. It was almost sunset. I stretched against the wall. Mason sat right beside me. His hand rested on my jean-covered knee; he nuzzled my neck and kissed it. I currently had not one, not two, but three hickeys I was trying to cover up.

If I hadn't known better, I would have sworn he was part vampire.

"Mas, don't you dare..." I said, but I trailed off. It was impossible to scold him. I closed my eyes.

"You taste so good," he whispered.

My breath came faster. I was pretty sure that I was going clinically insane. I couldn't do anything without thinking about him.

Even before I had left Florida, I had bought Mason's birthday present. It was a hat and just some other gag junk that I thought he would get a kick out of.

Now I had a different present in mind. One that couldn't be unwrapped in front of an audience...

"Mas?"

"Mmm?"

"Do you think we can sneak out tonight?"

His lips paused. He looked up at me.

"Probably. Why?"

I stared into his eyes; they were the most amazing shade of green.

"I'm ready," I whispered.

He looked at me in confusion. Then he seemed to realize what I meant. His eyes widened.

"Ready...you mean?"

I nodded. My hand ran along his strong neck muscle. He leaned forward and kissed me.

"Ew, this is my house!"

Mason and I both looked down at the opening of the treehouse. Dan was staring at us. He grinned.

"I am so telling."

He started to dart back down but Mason was quicker. He yanked Dan up through the hole.

"You saw nothing."

"I saw you sucking Shelby's face off!"

"I'm warning you..."

Dan began to inhale like a human vaccum cleaner. I decided that I had midjuged him Dan was way more like Joe than I had initially thought.

"Dan, I will kill you if you tell dad."

"How much is it worth?"

"What?"

"I can keep a secret," Dan said sweetly. "But it's gonna cost you."

In the end Dan climbed down the ladder twenty dollars richer. Mason and I climbed down right after him.

"What were you three doing up there?" Addy asked.

Dan glanced back at me and Mason. He turned around and smiled up at his mom.

"I was teaching them the secret handshake. It's the only way to get into my fort."

Addy smiled and ruffled his hair. "When do I get to learn it?"

"Moms can't come in."

Dan ran off. Addy watched him go. She turned back to us.

"So what are the four of us going to do tonight?"

"The four of us?" Mason asked.

"Your dad's got something to do. So it's just us four."

Mason glanced at me. I could see the wheels turning in his head. I decided for once to help him out.

"My cell phone charger died. I was hoping Mas might be able to take me to Wal-mart so I can get a new one," I explained.

"Then we're going to grab some ice cream. We can bring one back for you and Dan," Mason offered.

"So you need the truck?" Addy asked.

"Well, yeah."

"You won't be gone long?"

Mason shook his head. "An hour...hour and a half tops."

"And you'll bring back ice cream?"

Mason smiled. "My treat."

Addy smiled. "Well, I think after putting out that airplane fire, I could use some ice cream. I'll give you my truck keys."

Kevin was backing out of the driveway in the SUV. He rolled down his window.

"Hey, Mas, can you pour one more cup of water over the plane in the trash?"

"Sure dad."

"Thanks son."

He waved and rolled the car window back up. Mason and I watched him take off.

"I'll go water the plane," Mason said. His eyes were sparkling. My pulse spiked.

"I'm going...to run inside...for just a second," I said.

We split up. I ran into the house and up the stairs. I closed the door to my room behind me.

"Deodorant," I mumbled. I grabbed my stick of Secret, yanked my shirt off, and applied. I wasn't sure of all the rules, but I figured good smelling pits would be appreciated.

I pulled open one of the dresser drawers. I exchanged my old sports bra for a nicer bra. I glanced up at the mirror.

"Here we go Shelby," I said to my reflection. "I'll be seeing you on..." I paused. "The other side when I get back."

I put my shirt back on. Then I thought twice and put on a nicer shirt. Then I thought that might make Addy suspicious and I put the first one back on.

By this time I had killed a pretty good chunk of time. I took a deep breath and pounded back down the steps.

Mason was standing by the truck twirling the key. The door to the barn was open and Dan and Addy were giving the horses a little extra hay. I turned back to Mason. There was a moment when we just stared at each other. We were the only ones in the world that knew what was about to happen.

"I'm ready," I said confidently. He opened the passenger door and I hopped up into the truck.

Mason climbed in and the truck roared to life. I knew for a fact that we weren't going to Wal-mart.

But I had no clue where we were really going.

Mason reached over and grabbed my hand. We didn't speak. There wasn't need for words. The clock was counting down to zero on this part of our lives. We were going to cross over...

Together.