Read Online On the Island by Tracey Garvis Graves - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Tracey Garvis Graves
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the world. My dad and I are both certified,” T.J. said, digging his toes into the white sand. “When I was really sick, he made a big deal out of telling everyone that as soon as I got better, we’d take this major vacation. Like I gave a shit.”
“You didn’t want to come here?”
T.J. shook his head.
“Why not?”
“Nobody wants to spend the whole summer with their family. I wanted to stay home and hang out with my friends. Then they told me you were coming and I had to make up all the work I missed or I’d have to do tenth grade over. That really pissed me off.” He looked at me apologetically. “No offense.”
“None taken.”
“They didn’t listen to me, though. My mom and dad convinced themselves that this trip would be the greatest thing ever for our family. But even my sisters were mad. They wanted to go to Disney World.”
“I’m sorry, T.J.”
“It’s okay.”
“How old are your sisters?”
“Alexis is nine and Grace is eleven. They drive me nuts sometimes—they never stop talking—but they’re okay,” he said. “Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“I have one sister, Sarah. She’s three years older than I am and she’s married to a guy named David. They have two kids—Joe’s five and Chloe’s two. I miss everyone so much. I can’t imagine what they’re going through, especially my mom and dad.”
“I miss my family, too,” T.J. said.
I scanned the brilliant blue sky and stared out at the turquoise water, listening to the calming sound of the waves hitting the reef.
“It’s actually very beautiful here,” I said.
“Yeah,” T.J. agreed. “It is.”
Chapter 12
—
T.J.
One of the hardest things about being on the island was the boredom. It took time to gather food and firewood, and go fishing two or three times a day, but we still had too many hours left over. We explored and we swam, but we also talked, and it didn’t take long before I felt almost as comfortable with Anna as I did with my friends; she listened to what I had to say.
She asked how I was doing emotionally. Guys are supposed to be tough, and Ben and I sure as hell never sat around talking about how we felt, but I admitted to Anna that I got a weird feeling in my stomach whenever I thought about whether they’d ever find us. I told her I got scared sometimes. I said I didn’t always sleep well. She said she didn’t either.
I liked sharing a bed with Anna, though. Sometimes she curled up right next to me, with her head on my shoulder, and once when I slept on my side, she pressed her chest against my back and tucked her knees into the space behind mine. She did it in her sleep, and it didn’t mean anything, but it felt good. I’d never spent the whole night with a girl before. Emma and I had only slept together for a few hours and that was mostly because she was so sick.
I liked Anna. A lot. Without her, the island would have really sucked.
No one rescued us, so I missed my follow-up appointment with the oncologist at the end of August. Anna mentioned it at breakfast one morning.
“I’m worried about you not being able to go to the doctor,” she said, handing me a piece of cooked fish. “Careful, it’s hot.”
“I feel fine,” I told her, blowing on the fish to cool it before putting it in my mouth.
“Yes, but you were pretty sick, right?”
“Yeah.”
She handed me the water bottle. I took a drink and set it down.
“Tell me about it,” she said.
“My mom thought I had the flu. I had a fever, and I started sweating at night. I lost some weight. Then the doctor found a lump on my neck that turned out to be a swollen lymph node. They ran some tests after that: X-rays, biopsy, MRI, and a PET scan. Then they told me I had stage-three Hodgkin’s lymphoma.”
“Did you start chemo right away?”
“Yeah. It didn’t work though. They also found a mass in my chest, so I had to have radiation, too.”
“That sounds awful.”
She cut off a piece of breadfruit, and
“You didn’t want to come here?”
T.J. shook his head.
“Why not?”
“Nobody wants to spend the whole summer with their family. I wanted to stay home and hang out with my friends. Then they told me you were coming and I had to make up all the work I missed or I’d have to do tenth grade over. That really pissed me off.” He looked at me apologetically. “No offense.”
“None taken.”
“They didn’t listen to me, though. My mom and dad convinced themselves that this trip would be the greatest thing ever for our family. But even my sisters were mad. They wanted to go to Disney World.”
“I’m sorry, T.J.”
“It’s okay.”
“How old are your sisters?”
“Alexis is nine and Grace is eleven. They drive me nuts sometimes—they never stop talking—but they’re okay,” he said. “Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“I have one sister, Sarah. She’s three years older than I am and she’s married to a guy named David. They have two kids—Joe’s five and Chloe’s two. I miss everyone so much. I can’t imagine what they’re going through, especially my mom and dad.”
“I miss my family, too,” T.J. said.
I scanned the brilliant blue sky and stared out at the turquoise water, listening to the calming sound of the waves hitting the reef.
“It’s actually very beautiful here,” I said.
“Yeah,” T.J. agreed. “It is.”
Chapter 12
—
T.J.
One of the hardest things about being on the island was the boredom. It took time to gather food and firewood, and go fishing two or three times a day, but we still had too many hours left over. We explored and we swam, but we also talked, and it didn’t take long before I felt almost as comfortable with Anna as I did with my friends; she listened to what I had to say.
She asked how I was doing emotionally. Guys are supposed to be tough, and Ben and I sure as hell never sat around talking about how we felt, but I admitted to Anna that I got a weird feeling in my stomach whenever I thought about whether they’d ever find us. I told her I got scared sometimes. I said I didn’t always sleep well. She said she didn’t either.
I liked sharing a bed with Anna, though. Sometimes she curled up right next to me, with her head on my shoulder, and once when I slept on my side, she pressed her chest against my back and tucked her knees into the space behind mine. She did it in her sleep, and it didn’t mean anything, but it felt good. I’d never spent the whole night with a girl before. Emma and I had only slept together for a few hours and that was mostly because she was so sick.
I liked Anna. A lot. Without her, the island would have really sucked.
No one rescued us, so I missed my follow-up appointment with the oncologist at the end of August. Anna mentioned it at breakfast one morning.
“I’m worried about you not being able to go to the doctor,” she said, handing me a piece of cooked fish. “Careful, it’s hot.”
“I feel fine,” I told her, blowing on the fish to cool it before putting it in my mouth.
“Yes, but you were pretty sick, right?”
“Yeah.”
She handed me the water bottle. I took a drink and set it down.
“Tell me about it,” she said.
“My mom thought I had the flu. I had a fever, and I started sweating at night. I lost some weight. Then the doctor found a lump on my neck that turned out to be a swollen lymph node. They ran some tests after that: X-rays, biopsy, MRI, and a PET scan. Then they told me I had stage-three Hodgkin’s lymphoma.”
“Did you start chemo right away?”
“Yeah. It didn’t work though. They also found a mass in my chest, so I had to have radiation, too.”
“That sounds awful.”
She cut off a piece of breadfruit, and
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