I wondered if Justin was a docking station because of it or in spite of it. Had he learned to be steady and reliable and safe out of the needs of the people he loved, or did he fight to stay their anchor through all the tragedy? Either way, his family was lucky to have him.
Leigh popped her head in the door. “Hey, Emma,” she whispered. She looked over her shoulder and came back to me. “Hey, you think you can convince him to rename the dog? You got that kinda pull yet?”
I grinned. “I don’t know.”
“Well, work on it, will ya? We’ve just about given up. He’s stubborn as a mule, you’re our last hope.”
She vanished again. I waited a second to be sure she was gone and then I leaned in over Sarah’s shoulder.
“I don’t really think he should rename the dog,” I whispered.
“Me either,” Sarah said, conspiratorially.
Both of us smiled into the mirror.
CHAPTER 29 JUSTIN
You have to drag your leg,” Emma said.
“Why?”
“Because you’re dead? And you have to amble.”
I grinned. “I’m not sure I know what ambling is. Can you show me? Give me your best amble?”
Emma crossed her arms, trying not to smile. “You know how zombies walk, Justin. Walk like that.”
“Should I moan? With my arms out? Sort of drool a little bit?”
“Feel free to use any artistic interpretation of a zombie that you want. All I care about is that you walk zombie speed. This has to be an accurate experiment.”
Emma bet me that she could survive a zombie apocalypse. She said zombies were slow and easy to outrun. I said they’re slow but steady and that’s how they get you. She said we should try it, so here we were at almost midnight in front of Neil’s mansion getting ready to prove my point.
The night wasn’t what I’d planned, but it ended up great anyway.
I don’t know what the heck Emma had said to Sarah, but my sister was in a good mood for the first time in—I couldn’t even remember how long. She emerged from the bathroom with Emma with blue-and-purple hair and a new attitude. Not the outcome I’d expected after the way the night had started but I’d take it.
After we finished with the lice, I set up the blanket in the backyard. With the landscaping Mom did, it was pretty nice back there with its hanging lights, citronella candles, and magnolia trees. I ordered a pizza, connected my phone to a Bluetooth speaker, and poured the wine I brought, and Emma and I hung out and talked. Mom had a giant Jenga and we set that up and played a few rounds.
One of the onlookers from the fake bridge proposal had offered to send me the picture he got. It was a shot of me on one knee and Emma looking surprised, the Toilet King on her shirt in clear view. It was hilarious. We cracked up about it all night and made it our screensavers.
“Okay. So where do we start?” I asked.
Emma looked around. “How about you start from across the street. I’ll be getting out of the car. You have until the dock to catch me.”
“All right. I’d just like to point out though that if I do catch you, there’s no way you’d outrun a real one in the great uprising.”
“Noted. But you won’t catch me.” She smirked and got into the passenger seat and shut the door.
I smiled and jogged across the street and waited.
When she jumped out of my Acura, I started after her.
She left the door to the car open. Smart. Saved time not closing it and I had to go around it, which bought her a few seconds. She was making good progress and I was beginning to think she might actually get away, until she hit the grass. Her sandal flew off. She looked over her shoulder at me. “Shit! Shit shit shit shit shit!”
I ambled closer and made a moaning sound, trying not to laugh, and she got frantic. She left it—and then her heel slipped out of the other one. She kicked that off too and started to run again and bolted around the side of the garage.
I thought for sure I’d lost her this time, but when I rounded the corner, I practically crashed right into her. She’d dropped her phone and went back for it. Rookie move.
When she saw me, she abandoned her cell in the grass and spun to get away from me, but I grabbed her by the waist. She shrieked and tried to wiggle out of my arms, but I pulled her closer. Both of us were laughing our asses off. I had her from behind and I put my mouth down on her neck and bit her gently. “You’re dead,” I whispered.
She giggled and turned in my arms to face me, her hands on my chest, the Toilet King pressed between us. We were both cracking up.
“Look at you,” I said. “Thirty seconds into the zompoc and you’ve already lost your shoes, your phone, and you’ve been bitten.”
She beamed up at me. “So what now?”
“I guess we just wait for you to turn.”
She laughed and I felt it rumble against me.
Then her eyes dropped to my lips. My eyes dropped to hers.
“You could always kiss me while we wait,” I said, my voice low.
“But it won’t count if I kiss you.”
“Well, if you only want to kiss me to check a box,” I said, talking to her mouth, “it’s better that we don’t.”
