two

Saturday mornings during my senior year were reserved for music lessons, so I could prepare for college auditions. I was going to school to be a music teacher, like I'd dreamt about for the last ten years.

I had just finished up my lesson with Mr. Williamson, and I was waiting for Danny to pick me up outside of the church our families attended. Mr. Williamson was the choir and music director of the church, and had been hosting lessons there for years. I had met Danny through church, when my family first switched from Catholicism and I signed up to help with Bible school music. I wasn't the most devout, but I believed. Easter and Christmas were typically my most attended days. Danny was a little more of a firm believer, since his father was the preacher.

Danny was taking a little longer than usual to pick me up, and it was starting to get chilly throughout the day now. I pulled my varsity jacket out of my bag and slid into it. Just as I was about to text him, I heard his truck pull into the lot. A huge grin swept across my face when I noticed his little sister, Aly, in the middle seat. She was a miracle in the Schwinn family; his parents had tried for years to have a second child. They decided to give up attempting when Danny turned ten, and by grace, had Aly a year later.

"ABBY!" I heard the six year old squeal, and she scooted over as close as she could to the window to greet me.

"Hi, baby girl." I laughed, opening the door before I hopped in the truck. The sound of a Luke Combs song greeted me, a sound I'd come to find comforting. Danny was a huge country music fan, and if I was with him, it was playing. "Thanks again for picking me up, babe." I said to Danny, and he leaned over his sister's head to peck me on the cheek.

"Gross!" Aly covered her eyes with her hands and giggled.

"Your boogers are gross." I joked, poking her on the nose.

"Abby! We're going to the farm!" She squealed, and I knew Danny had spilled the beans. The only thing Aly loved more than her big brother was her pet goat, Samuel.

I gave him a knowing look and he shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry we're late, someone had to go pee six times before we left."

"I drank a lot of water!" Aly defended her bathroom habits. I chuckled and ran a hand through her platinum blonde curls. Being an only child, I enjoyed their banter. My parents must have thought I was enough, because they never tried to have a younger child. I envied Danny and Aly's relationship, but Aly had grown to become a little sister to me. I always joked with Danny and told him that if we ever broke up, I would have to come get my dose of Aly every now and then.

The drive to the farm was just about an hour, up through the calming Pacific Northwest. Autumn was my favorite time to live here, it was full of life and color. Barton had a lot of tourist traffic in the summer and early fall, but by mid-October, it slowed back down until deer season, when the cabins outside of town were packed full. The locals celebrated the quiet time with a fall harvest parade and weekend festival in the town square, an oxymoron if you ask me, but a tradition I loved nonetheless.

The Schwinn Family Farm, known as Schwinn's, sat about a mile off the road, and there were signs that let you know where you were headed five miles out on either side. We pulled into a smaller path off the main gravel road, into Danny's grandparents' driveway. Aly squealed and bounced in her seat, anxious for either of us to get out so she could run to the house.

"Alright, race you to the front door?" I asked Aly, and she excitedly nodded her head and ushered me out the truck door. Danny was already out of the truck, grabbing a box of items from his parents to give to his grandma. His phone rang suddenly, and a strange look crossed his face when he pulled it out to look at the caller. He looked at me quickly and shook his head.

"I've got to take this. Would you take Aly in and let my grandma know I'll just be a minute?" He asked.

“Of course," I said, and looked back to Aly, who was already ringing the front doorbell. "I guess she couldn't wait to race me." I laughed, but Danny was walking out of earshot to answer his phone, which I assumed was another heads-up call from his coach about a scout. He had been getting calls from multiple college advisors about scouts for the last few weeks. Although Danny already knew he was going to go to USC and play for them, he wasn't willing to give up any opportunities.

I grabbed my purse from the passenger seat and followed Aly inside. Getting closer to the house, I could smell the pumpkin pie his grandma was baking. As soon as I walked in the door, Linda, Danny and Aly's grandma embraced me in a big hug.

"Oh, Abby, don't you look beautiful." She stepped back, giving me a once-over. Linda was completely ageless, keeping up with an intense skincare regime that she had attempted to start me on several times. "Where's my devilish grandson?"

"He's on a phone call." I assured her.

"Abigail? What a surprise." I beamed as Ed, Danny's grandpa, greeted me. "Where's that sneaky boyfriend of yours?" He teased.

"He's on the phone, Ed." Linda said and shook her head. "Christ, if you'd listen sometime." She snickered.

"Those cell phones are the devil's design. If I had it my way, this farm would be a no-phone zone. Too many damn teenagers taking pictures on their phones at the front of my driveway." He bickered. I leaned in for a hug, and he wrapped his arms around me, patting my shoulder bone. Ed had become my stand-in grandpa, after my last living grandparent had passed away this past winter. He was as warm and welcoming as you could get, always inviting me on fishing trips with Danny, and designating a seat at the dining table for me.

"Should we get lunch ready? I made grilled cheese sandwiches." Linda asked. Aly, who was hanging onto Linda like a monkey, squealed with glee. My mouth instantly salivated at the thought of a good grilled cheese, it was my weakness.

Ed, not getting around as easily as he used to, paced his steps into the dining room. Linda followed behind him, with Aly on her shoulders. I decided to check on Danny and let him know we were going to eat.

I opened the elderly Schwinn's front door, and stepped onto the long wooden porch that wrapped around to the two-car garage, as the autumn air greeted me. The smell of the changing foliage and harvests always cleared my mind; the summer air lingered, while the promise of winter trickled at the end of a breeze.

As my eyes searched the gravel drive for my boyfriend, my cell phone buzzed in my hand. Not seeing Danny, I checked my phone, to see another text from an unknown number. I huffed in annoyance, and shoved my locked phone into my jacket pocket. I never gave my phone number out to people, and I knew it was another text like I'd gotten last night.

"Abby?" I heard Danny ask, and looked up to see him rounding the corner of the porch. He looked slightly distraught, like he was caught off guard. "What are you doing out here?"

"Looking for you. Your grandpa was going off about modern technology again." I laughed, and he shook his head.

"How long have you been out here?" He asked curiously.

"Why so many questions?" I joked, and he shrugged his shoulders, shaking off his cautious demeanor.

"I'm always curious about my girl." He said, a cheeky grin spreading across his face. I rolled my eyes and tried to contain my smile. He was such a genuinely sweet guy.

"Well, I wasn't abducted or anything," I started, grabbing his hand in mine. "But your grandma made grilled cheese sandwiches, and she'll have a heart attack if you don't eat with us."

*

Aly was sleeping peacefully with her head rested against my arm, while Danny drove us home. She had worn herself out with the corn maze and petting zoo today, and she was going to be wired before bedtime tonight.

The drive home was much quieter than the drive there, especially with Aly being sound asleep, but it was a good silence. I loved being so comfortable with Danny, because we knew each other well, and knew when we didn't need to fill the space with anything other than our breathing.

We pulled onto my street, and Danny came to a stop on the curb outside of my house. The driveway was empty on my dad's side, meaning he was most likely on a work call. He was a Gastroenterology nurse, and often worked the on-call shift at the emergency room. Danny never parked in his spot, respectfully.

Danny turned off the ignition, and gently woke his baby sister. Aly latched onto my arm, and I popped the passenger door open so Danny could come grab her from me. "Thanks, Abs." He said, grabbing onto waist and setting her down on the ground. I grabbed the pumpkin that was at my feet before getting out, and the three of us walked up to my front door. It was a smaller house than his family owned, but still quite lovely. We lived in a split-level brick home, and the trees that surrounded it always greeted me with open arms.

"I should probably head in before my mom has another hissy fit about my curfew. I'm still in trouble from last night." I stepped up on the porch, and put the pumpkin I was carrying down on the top step. Danny grimaced, knowing he'd been the reason for a lot of my late nights.

"Am I forgiven yet?" He pouted his bottom lip.

"By my mom, yes. Dad? Not so much." I joked, and he chuckled. "I better get in there."

"Alright, I'll let you face the wrath."

"Goodnight, Aly. I'll see you in class tomorrow morning." I kneeled down to give her a hug, and she sleepily nodded her head. Her little arms wrapped around my shoulders, and she squeezed me tight. "Be good for your mom tonight, promise?"

"Promise." She mumbled. I laughed lightly and stood back up to kiss Danny. He gave me a quick peck on the lips, just as the front porch light flickered off and on. We laughed and I shook my head; how fitting.

"Alright, I'll see you guys in the morning. I love you." I said, and walked inside the house. The smell of chicken and spices filled the air, and my dog, Tony, greeted me. He was a chihuahua mix, and was the most lovable little pup, when he wanted to be.

“Mom?" I called out, knowing she couldn't be far away. She always toyed with the light switch when she knew I was home, to let me know it was time to come in.

"Abby, baby. I'm making a pot pie casserole!" I heard her call from the kitchen. I tapped my thigh, and Tony stood on his back legs so I could pick him up. I scratched behind his ears and carried him into the kitchen with me to feed him supper.

"Hi." I greeted my mom as I entered the room. She poked her head up from the oven, and smiled. Her bun was falling in her face from all the activity, and she had worked up a little bit of a sweat. She was a curvier woman, and was starting what she considered to be premature menopause. If you asked my dad though, she just liked to keep the heat running as high as she could stand it, because she'd once heard high temperatures and hot showers could help protect aging skin.

"Hi baby doll, how was your day? How were Linda and Ed?" She asked, a million miles a minute. Lucy Reynolds was one of the friendliest, most liked people around. She could strike up a conversation with someone she had no common interests with, and last for an hour. She loved to socialize, it kept her busy when she wasn't working. She was a hairstylist, and making connections was her strong suit. "I found this recipe on P*******t." She closed the oven door and placed her mitt on the stove.

"It was good. Danny helped Ed out with some of the yard work, and Aly and I went pumpkin picking with Linda." I set Tony down near his food bowl that was nestled in the corner of the kitchen, and poured a scoopful of his dry food into the bowl.

"I'm glad you had fun."

"I'm going to go up to my room and get a little bit of reading in before dinner, okay?" I asked, and she told me she'd call me down when it was ready.

My bedroom and the guest room were on the second floor, across from the bathroom. I liked being tucked away from my parents' room on the first floor, it felt like I had a little extra privacy at times. I opened my door, which was covered in varsity cheer letters and decorations, and instantly relaxed when I walked inside. I left the door slightly ajar for Tony, and put my backpack down beside my desk. I took my dead cell phone out of my pocket and placed it on the charger, before hanging up my varsity jacket and plopping down on my bed. I had a little stack of my current library books on my bedside table, and reached for the top one.

A few pages in, my phone powered on and instantly started to buzz. Putting my bookmark in the page, I jumped up to check my notifications. I had several messages from Stacy and some of my other friends, and a notification that Linda had tagged me in some of our photos Danny and I took today. My phone buzzed again, and I forgot I'd never checked my texts earlier. I braced myself and scrolled through my regular messages, before checking the unknown number.

‘Danny is lying to you.’

Oddly enough, it was from the same number as the text that I received last night. I let out an aggravated sigh, and decided I'd respond, to let them know that I wasn't bothered.

‘Who is this? Please leave Danny and I alone, thanks!’

Three dots immediately popped up, and disappeared just as quickly. I rolled my eyes and tossed my phone on my bed, settling back down on top of the comforter. What could Danny even be lying to me about? Whoever it was clearly just wanted to mess with my head. That was proven when I heard my phone buzz with another text.

‘You'll understand when you meet me tomorrow. Brew Brothers Cafe at 3.’

"Whatever." I muttered under my breath, and shut my phone off. There was no way in hell I was going to meet someone I didn't know at a coffee shop that maybe had twenty customers a day.

"Abby, is everything alright?" I jumped at the sound of my mom's voice, and looked up to see her standing at my door. "I called for you twice already." She said, her thick brow furrowed with worry.

"Yeah, sorry, I must've been watching a video Stacy sent me." I lied, and my mom's face softened.

"Well, come on. Supper's going to get cold." She left my doorway, and I followed her. I was a little unsettled, but it wasn't anything a serving of chicken pot pie and some water couldn't fix.

But, I just couldn't shake the feeling that there was a little bit of truth behind the text. Why would the same number have texted me twice? I tried to clear my head, and knew that I'd talk to Danny in the morning. He'd calm me down, he always did.