The Summer of Me & You Read Online Free Page A

my hand. “P.S. You're not funny.”
    “Be careful,” she called.
    As soon as I cranked the car, I sped outta that driveway so damn fast the tires slung dirt. I bet my mom had a semi heart-attack, not that I was deliberately trying to give her one or anything. I  liked driving fast. I was halfway to the lake when I realized I didn't have my phone. There was no way I was turning back now, not when I was so close. There was probably fifty girls down at the lake today, but I only wanted to see one. I didn't know what made me want that one girl so badly, but it was uncontrollable. It was like I could have or be with any girl in town, but if I never got the girl—the one I'd wanted for so damn long, I'd never be satisfied. That was a terrible way to live. If Kayleigh didn't give me what I wanted soon, I was sure I'd probably go insane. If I hadn't already.  
     
     

CHAPTER FOUR
     Gravity
    *
     
    I needed the sun, that was for sure. I tried explaining to my mother that people could die from the kind of lifestyle she expected me to live, caged up in this house with rabbit food and no fresh air or sunshine or human interaction of any sort. It wasn't normal. I couldn't believe I was even having to state my case. It fell on deaf ears. My mom was so freaking worried about me eating a slice of pizza, lord forbid I enjoy myself while I eat it, but she didn't want me inhaling fresh air, and seemed totally indifferent about me sitting in the house watching MTV all damn day, as if that wasn't junk programming. You gotta feed the body and mind right, or else what's the point?  
    I didn't know what she was so worried about. I might make a few friends for Pete’s sake? What was so bad about that? Mom was a perpetual loner and wanted me to follow in her footsteps. I was sure the only interaction she had with another human being was either medical talk while she was working at the hospital, and then bitching me out as soon as she got home. Routine, routine. Ugh, so exhausting. I was glad when three o'clock arrived and she headed out. I bolted off that couch so damn fast you would've thought someone had sat fire to my booty.  
    I retrieved my bike from the garage, locked up the house, and rode down to the lake. Gunner, my neighbor who lived across the street from me since I was eight, was already at the lake. He'd been there since ten this morning. I'd tried to leave six times. For a woman who worked twelve hour shifts, sometimes longer, you would've thought she would've passed out and I could've made an escape. Nope. At sixteen, I was already counting down the days until my eighteenth birthday. I'd for sure be moving out just as soon as I graduated. No way could I live like this. I'd end up being a bitter old fat lady with a thousand cats and she'd eat food all day because she's been deprived her whole life. The horror. I'd also die a virgin. I had nightmares about it. Nightmares. Girls from normal functioning homes grew up to be those sweet old women who smile all the time, who have nice hair and nice clothes, who bake cookies for their grandchildren. I was going to be the bitter old fat virgin cat lady with ratty hair. I was thinking about this at the same time a car almost plowed right into me.  
    I'd been riding my bike without using the handle bars because I was trying to pin back my hair to keep it from whipping me in the face. I fell over and hit the concrete, scraping my elbows and knees. My head barely missed the impact against the ground. I glanced up at the oncoming car. I wanted to yell stop! But all the air had been knocked out of my lungs. At the last second, whoever was driving the car, braked, missing me by only a few inches. My heart almost beat right out of my chest. My knees and elbows throbbed where I'd been nicked. The fire spread throughout my whole body. Everyone in the picnic area at the lake front was staring at me. I was sure of it.  
     I wanted to see the asshole who was driving that car. He was driving