Time to Bounce (Carter Brothers #6)

Chapter 27

Being a sleepy girl with a busy life is hard.

— Text from Athena to Gable

GABLE

It was weird.

I decided I was dead.

I stared at the open air in front of me.

Everything was white.

Pure .

Bright .

But my eyes didn’t hurt.

My body was at peace.

And there was no more pain.

“ What are you doing here, man?”

I looked over and found myself smiling. “ Gavrel .”

“ You can’t leave her alone,” he murmured. “ You leave and she has no one left.”

I frowned. “ Who ?”

He looked at me like I was dumb.

“ Why are you dressed like that?” I asked.

He flicked at his white tee and said, “ This is your afterlife, not mine. I don’t choose what people wear in the afterlife; you do.”

“ Afterlife ?” I asked. “ There’s an afterlife?”

He touched his temple. “ Why did you leave her? I thought you’d take care of her.”

Her ?

Her .

Her .

Her .

Athena’s face slammed into my mind like an anvil.

One second, she was in the periphery, there, but not there.

Then , she was all I could think about.

My mind spun.

The moment I met her, she looked up and her eyes met mine, and I felt something inside my chest shift. Something that clicked into place, as if just seeing her was exactly what I needed to know that she would be there for the rest of my life.

“ I love your sister,” I said, looking over at the man still standing there, waiting.

“ You love her, but you’ll leave her behind?” he asked.

I closed my eyes as I imagined her face.

The way she looked when I told her I loved her.

The way she parted her hair.

The way she filled out a pair of jeans.

The sundresses that drove me wild.

The way she slept with one leg hiked way up to her chest, partially on her chest, and partially on her side.

“ I don’t want to leave her,” I disagreed. “ I …” I trailed off. “ What’s that?”

“ That’s the end, buddy,” he said. “ Welcome home.”

My heart panicked inside of my chest.

“ Will she be there?” I gasped.

He shrugged. “ Eventually . Time passes weird here. It feels like I just left Athena yesterday, but when I look back, years have passed.”

I didn’t like that.

“ She is by herself,” I commented. “ I don’t want her to be by herself.”

His eyes gleamed. “ Then don’t let her.”

I wouldn’t.

I wouldn’t let her be alone.

Only , that white light… it felt freeing.

It felt like there would be no problems there.

It felt like…

Athena’s laugh. I loved that laugh.

The first time she’d laughed across a table from me, I’d felt like she’d yanked and snatched my heart right out of my chest. I’d remember that laugh forever. She was so beautiful. Her eyes had sparkled, and her mouth was wide open, and her jaw line was sharp.

“ Time to go,” Gavrel said.

I opened my eyes and the white light was closer.

A white so pure that it beckoned me in.

There was no pain there. No gangs or drunk people. No kids starving, or women being beaten by abusive husbands. Only peace.

I wanted peace.

But …

Athena’s hands were so small. Yet when they were in my own, they felt like they were exactly where they were meant to be. Like my big hands were made to shield her small ones. So soft and smooth compared to my callouses.

“ Choose ,” Gavrel pushed.

My eyes were staring at the white light now, my irises so huge that it almost hurt to look into the light.

“ Gable ?”

My heart.

My heart burst inside of my chest.

“ Addison ,” I breathed.

“ Hey , little brother.” Addison smiled so huge. “ I’ve been waiting for you.”

My heart broke inside my chest. “ What are you doing here? Why are you here?”

She gestured behind her. “ Finally at peace.”

At peace.

That’s what I wanted for her.

I didn’t want her to suffer.

“ I’ve missed you,” she murmured. “ I feel like I’ve been waiting forever.”

Tears .

I was crying.

“ Can I hug you?” I asked.

“ Sure ,” she smiled. “ You just have to come to this side. I can’t come to that one. I’ve already made my choice.”

I looked over at Gavrel . “ What choice have you made?”

He looked behind me, as if his heart was in a different location. “ I’m waiting.”

“ For what?” I asked.

“ For her to be fully happy. Settled . Once that happens, then I’ll go.” He looked at the white light. “ I’m not ready to go until she has… someone.”

I was instantly offended. “ She has someone.”

My defensiveness shocked me and him.

But he rallied and said, “ But does she?”

I took two steps back.

“ Gable , where are you going?” Addie asked.

I looked at my sister, feeling like my heart was breaking. “ I have to go back.”

She smiled. “ You can do that.”

“ I don’t want to leave you behind,” I whispered.

She patted her chest. “ You won’t leave me behind. You may not be able to see me, but I watch. I know all about you. I know about Quincy , Quaid , and Quinn . I know about Auden and Atlas . You and Garrett . Mom and Dad . The new nieces and nephews. I’m not alone. I’m right here.”

She patted her chest, and I couldn’t stop myself from patting my own.

“ Choose ,” she whispered.

It broke my heart.

But I chose. “ I love you, Addie . I love you so much.”

“ Say hi to Mom and Dad for me,” she smiled.

Then I was gone.

The pain was back.

And Athena wasn’t alone.