The Missing by Kiersten Modglin (essential books to read txt) 📕

conversation had gone back to playful. It was where I was comfortable with it. Playful was what I needed our relationship to be, though I knew that wasn’t fair to him.

Hours later, Ava and James still hadn’t returned, and Noah and I lay on the sand, our bodies drying in the midday sun.

“What did you do? Before all of this? What did you do for work? You never told me…”

It was crazy how much we knew about each other, and yet how much we still didn’t know. I knew the way he slept, the sound of his snores, the expression on his face when he was scared, the different ways he moved when we hunted, the fact that he preferred fish to boar, and that when he hit the water in the falls, he would always dive as if he were a mermaid, then pop up and ask if I saw that—each time, as if it were something brand new. I knew about his brother’s death and his estranged relationship with his parents.

I didn’t know his favorite food, his age, his career, what clothing he wore when he wasn’t dressed in red swim trunks, or what he liked to do for fun. Was he into sports? What shows made him laugh? Was he a reader or a gamer? Did he go for a jog every morning or smoke pot in the afternoons?

We were simultaneously each other’s closest confidant and complete strangers.

“I was…a realtor. In what feels like a past life.” I smiled, almost bitterly, thinking of my life then. The stupid things I complained about. The luxuries I took for granted. “When my husband and I got married, I went down to part time, though. And eventually, I left it.”

“You didn’t enjoy it anymore?” His hands rested on his stomach, and he looked at me each time he spoke, before looking back toward the sky as he waited for an answer.

“No, I did… Honestly, I don’t know why I quit. It became too much of a hassle, I guess. I was working so much, and my husband was, too. We never saw each other, and it just felt like someone should make the sacrifice.”

“And that someone was you?”

I pursed my lips. “He never asked me to.” It was the truth, but it didn’t feel like it. The question never officially came up, though he’d all but hinted at it in the months leading up to my decision. “His company provides our health insurance, he has a 401(k). It just made more sense for me to leave. I’d been meaning to find something a bit more stable, but I just never got around to it, I guess.” I sighed. “What about you? What did you do?”

He laughed dryly. “I was a professional diver. Remember?”

His words shocked me, taking me back to our conversation on the boat so long ago. I gasped. “Oh my god. That feels like forever ago… I’m sorry I didn’t remember.”

It was my turn to look his way. He shrugged. “No biggie.”

I moved my hand to his arm. “No, Noah… I should’ve remembered. I’ve just had a lot…” A laugh escaped my throat at the ridiculousness of my statement. “On my mind.”

“Yeah,” he said, laughing too. “Being a hostage on a deserted island will do that to you.”

When the laughter stopped, we were both looking at each other, our heads turned and cheeks resting on the sand. My hand was still on his arm, and I felt him move it slowly, sliding his hand up until our palms met. There was a question in his eyes, and I couldn’t answer it. I looked away as my pulse sped up, my face burning hot. I laced my fingers through his, giving him the answer I both hated and loved all at once.

“So,” he changed the subject, but kept our hands pressed together, “do you think our Twitter campaign is still going on?”

I snorted, grateful for the release of tension, and shook my head. “Are you kidding? With a face like that? They’re probably just ramping up production on our Netflix special.”

“They’d better get Darren Criss to portray me.”

“I was thinking Manny Jacinto,” I teased.

He scowled. “Are you kidding? I’m totally a Darren.”

“Okay, whatever you say…” I grinned at him again, feeling looser already. It was easy with Noah, even here on this island. I’d misread his wall in the beginning for coldness, but in truth, I’d never met anyone warmer or kinder. I could do it, I thought. I could survive on the island with him. If this was how the rest of my life looked, though I wouldn’t be happy about the lack of modern conveniences and the fact that strange people were watching us apparently, I wouldn’t have too many complaints. As far as being a hostage went, a girl could do worse.

“Do you think we should be worried about them?” His brows shot up, nodding his head in the direction of the jungle.

“Because they’ve been gone a while or because they might kill us?” I was only half joking, and his expression told me he knew that.

“Both, I guess… They’ve been gone most of the day now. You don’t think they’re hurt, do you?”

I hadn’t thought about it, honestly. Any moment that Ava and James weren’t glaring at me with their accusing eyes was A-OK with me. “I just assumed they were avoiding us like usual.”

He hesitated, then sighed. “You’re probably right.”

“Honestly, I’d just rather not see them. It’s so awkward…”

He squeezed my hand gently, his thumb caressing my knuckles. “We didn’t do anything wrong. You know that. If someone’s going to feel awkward, let it be them. They’re the ones who made the situation what it is.”

“Do you think things will ever feel normal again? That it’ll blow over?”

“Normal as in the way it was?” His brows bounced up. “Nah, probably not. But we’ll find a new normal, just like we did here.”

“When did you become so wise?” I asked, chuckling to myself.