After the Rains Read Online Free

explain it to everybody. And then they go crazy, like”—she laid a hand on her chest and put on her church-lady voice—“ ‘Oh, you poor girl, how awful, how tragic, how terrible it must be for you.’ ”
    Sara broke into contagious laughter that warmed Natalie’s heart and made her laugh too. When they finally quit giggling, Sara said, “Well, my story isn’t quite as good as yours, but I know what you mean. I hate having to explain about Jon.”
    “Well, why is it you’re adopted and he’s not?” She hesitated. “Oh … sorry. Here I go making you explain it.”
    Sara put a hand on Natalie’s arm. “No. I don’t care if you ask. My mom had to have surgery after Jon was born. It made it so she couldn’t have any more babies, but she and Dad wanted a whole bunch of kids, so they decided to adopt. That’s where I came in. They might even adopt some more kids someday.”
    “That would be cool,” Natalie told her. A thought struck her, and before she had time to think about it she blurted out, “Hey! If you guys adopted more kids, then Jon would be the oddball.”
    Sara screwed her face up and pronounced in a cartoon-character voice, “Oh, believe me, honey, he’s already an oddball!”
    They dissolved into laughter again, and Natalie decided then and there that Sara Dever would be her best friend forever .
    The parking lot of the Sonic Drive-In was almost empty in the lull between the supper crowd and the late-night Coke-and-burger runs. Natalie sat behind the wheel of her mom’s car, the cherry limeade in her cup holder barely touched.
    Beside her, Sara sipped a slush and shivered. “So, are you going to tell me what’s bothering you or not?” Sara asked.
    Natalie had been stewing in silence, forcing Sara to carry the conversation, ever since the carhop had brought out their drinks. “Did you know Jon was asking Nikki to the dance?” she blurted.
    Now it was Sara’s turn to be silent.
    “You did, didn’t you?” Natalie accused. “Why didn’t you say something, Sara?”
    “And why would I think you’d care, Nattie?” The knowing look on Sara’s face made Natalie nervous. Sara looked at her lap. “Because I knew it would hurt your feelings.”
    It took Natalie a minute to process the implication of Sara’s comment. “Why would you think that?” she hedged.
    “Look, Natalie, you aren’t even making sense. It’s your business if you don’t want to talk to me about your crush on Jon, but if I’m not supposed to know about it, then don’t go getting mad when I don’t report his every move to you.”
    Natalie looked hard at Sara. “You knew?”
    “I guessed.”
    “How? Did Nicole say something to you?”
    Sara shifted in her seat and turned toward Natalie. “I hate to break this to you, Nattie, but I’m your best friend. I can read you like a book. I’ve seen how you are when we’re over at my house and Jon’s around. And the way you’re always asking about his plans. Why would you give a ripwhat my brother does if you didn’t have a thing for him?”
    Natalie’s palms grew clammy, and she hoped the pinkish glow from the neon lights on the restaurant’s signs hid the warmth she felt rise to her cheeks. “Is it that obvious?”
    Sara nodded. “Did Nicole know you like Jon?”
    Natalie’s anger at her sister returned with a vengeance. “Yes, she knew. I told her last summer. I thought I could trust her.”
    “So, she’s known all along that you like Jon?”
    Natalie nodded.
    “I’m sorry, but that just doesn’t sound like Nikki. She’s such a sweetheart,” Sara said.
    “Yeah, well, looks can be deceiving.” Feeling strangely disloyal to the sister who had stabbed her in the back, Natalie picked up her drink and took a long slurp. “Does Jon like Nikki, Sara? Has he said anything?”
    “Natalie, you are really putting me on the spot, you know?”
    The last meager ounce of hope she felt dissolved. “So I take that as a yes?”
    Sara nodded. “Yeah. I’m