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"What?" I repeated, my voice barely audible

Just before Janie reached for hted and pained A choking sound I’d never heard frorief in it was enough to force a sharp cry froainst Janie when she took the phone fro around er’s words A part of me understood what the horrified cries hout every one of ed the sense of loss that had added to the dread, unease, and grief--and knehy it was there

A part ofwould never happen

Chapter 1

Two years later

Grey

May 10, 2014

IN A FOG, I dressed, and sat down on the side of raduation cap, I looked down at it inother than blurred shapes I knew I had to leave, but at that moment I didn’t care

I didn’t care that I’d doneit I didn’t care that I was graduating fro twenty minutes late before I’d sat down

I just didn’t care

Falling to rabbed the necklace that hadn’t left my neck once in the last couple years, and pulled it out fro band I’d bought for Ben The one he should be wearing but I hadn’t been able to part with--almost like I’d needed to keep soet through than the one before it I hadn’t needed etageo But exactly two years ago today, I’d been showing off the place where I was going tobad in the world

And Ben had died

At twenty years old, his heart had failed and he’d died before he’d even dropped to the ground on the golf course He’d always seemed so active and healthy; no tests had ever picked up on the rare heart condition that had taken hi they could test for I didn’t believe theh I’d read news articles about si people, I wasn’t sure if I believed theone

Heavy footsteps echoed through the hall ofin the doorway of my bedroom, a somber look on his face