"You know how busy medical school can be."
"Those are just excuses, doll. We can all make excuses until the cows come home, but you do realize that it's perfectly okay to let loose and enjoy yourself once in a while, don't you?"
"I know it's okay to have fun. I just happen to think that learning medicine is a lot of fun." When Grace looked like she'd just swallowed and chewed an entire lemon, Sage repeated herself more emphatically. "It is fun."
"Yeah, for smart kids like you. Even high school was a struggle for me. Add to that the fact that my best friend is freaking Albert Einstein's reincarnation, and it was never fun. I wouldn't have made it if I hadn't cheated off you so much."
"That's not true, Grace. You did just fine in college without me. I think you just can't stand sitting down for six hours straight. There's nothing wrong with that."
"That's true. I hated having to sit there while the teachers went on and on and on. Who cares who the twentieth president was?" She stopped to send a vicious glare Sage's way. "I swear, if you utter his name, I will smack you right here and now."
Sage closed her mouth. Grace knew her well-yes, she'd been about to blurt out James A. Garfield. But today her head was feeling better, and Sage wanted to keep it that way. She remembered the time Grace slammed Bobby Tetter's head into a locker just for correcting her grammar when she had said seen instead of saw, or vice versa. Bobby was always correcting people. The guy was sure to be a teacher. And man, did Grace have a mean right hook.
"I wasn't going to say it," Sage lied.
"Good. But still, I'd rather be smart and have all the answers. I really wish I'd taken my education more seriously. I guess I always just thought I was going to grow up, get married, and have a dozen kids. I didn't think I'd ever need to use a degree. But I've learned that what a person expects doesn't matter. You could get your dream, live just the way you imagined, but you should always have a backup plan. Otherwise . . . well, otherwise, you might find yourself in a tight spot."
The sadness in Grace's eyes ripped Sage apart. Why wasn't her friend telling her what had happened? Surely it couldn't be so bad that the two of them couldn't fix it. "We've always handled everything together, Grace. I know I can help if you'll just let me in."
"I will. I pinkie swear, best friends forever," Grace said, holding up her hand.
It was the code. Sage took her pinkie with her own and shook, then kept her mouth shut. It was hard to do, but she'd respect Grace's wishes, and right now Grace wasn't ready to share. But it wouldn't take her long.
"You know you have to move in with me, right?" Grace said. "I'm sure it's been heaven living at home again, having Grandma serve you and wash your clothes and treat you like the princess you are, but I demand that we become roomies. After all, that was the plan after high school. If I'd paid more attention during school and could have gotten into Stanford with you, that might have happened. But at least we're both still single and in the same place now, so we can carry out our plans. I can start packing you up right away."
Sage's eyes brimmed with tears. "I'd be more than happy to move in with you." Heck, she wanted to leave this very minute.
"Why do I hear a but coming?" Grace asked.
"No. That's not it. Let me wait a few days before I break the news to Grandma. A week at most. She's missed me a lot since I left and I know my return and our time together have been special to her. If I move out while I'm still supposed to be resting, it will break her heart. I don't know why she likes babying me, but she really does. And it is kind of nice, though I would like to have five solid minutes of awake time without being asked if I'm okay."
"I get that. We've waited this long, I can stand to wait another week. Maybe I'll just sleep here on the couch so Grandma can take care of me, too."
"Did you say you need someone to look after you, Grace?"
The two looked over at the door as Bethel walked through with a tray containing her patented lemonade, special homemade granola, and two thick sandwiches.
"Always, Grandma. What's that?" Grace asked, instantly sitting up, yanking one of Sage's pillows from beneath her head so she could prop herself up against the headboard.
"Don't worry about permanent brain damage," Sage griped at her, and sat up much more slowly than she normally would have.
"I thought you girls might be hungry," Bethel said, not hearing Sage.
But Grace had heard, if the smirk on her face was any indication. She ignored Sage's grumbling.
"You didn't have to do that," Grace said, but she took the tray eagerly, grabbed one of the sandwiches, and bit in.
Sage was always amazed at the amount of food her best friend could put away without ever gaining a pound. No wonder so many girls in high school had despised her.
"I love to take care of my girls," Bethel said. "Besides, you've always done so much for me."
"That's because I adore you," Grace said when she'd finished swallowing.
"If you need a place to stay, dear," Bethel said, and Grace had to turn away for a second to hide her emotions.
"I was just kidding, Grandma, but it means the world to me to know I always have a place if I need it," Grace said, giving Bethel a radiant smile.
"Well then, I won't keep you girls. I'm sure you have a lot of catching up to do." And Bethel left.
"We're going to break her heart when you move in with me. Maybe we should wait a month . . . or ten years," Grace said, only half kidding.
"A week, Grace. One week at most." Sure, if Bethel became too upset, Sage would wait a while longer, but she really hoped her grandmother wouldn't mind. Sage had missed Grace terribly.
"All right," Grace said. "If need be, we just won't tell her. You're going to be working a lot of hours. You could always come in the front door and then sneak out your window like you used to do when we were kids."
"That will have to be our plan B."
The two young women laughed heartily as they continued catching up. But Sage's medicine soon kicked in, and though she fought hard to stay awake, sleep overtook her.
Driving her grandmother's old Chrysler slowly through the center of town a few days later, since her own car had been totaled in the wreck, Sage smiled when a couple of kids on their bicycles turned and waved.
Sterling had a population of only three thousand people spread out over many miles, and despite those miles, if you wanted privacy, you weren't going to get it. The nearest large city was about thirty miles away, but Sterling had everything you could possibly need, though maybe not exactly what you'd want.
For a teenager, it could get a little boring, and the local teens had been known to tip a few cows on a Friday night, or party in some of the farmers' barns, but nothing too terrible ever seemed to happen in the close-knit community. The biggest industries were oil and ranching, as was the case for a lot of Montana towns. There wasn't much else to do with the miles and miles of open land.
She drove through the one-stop-sign "metropolis" and reached her grandmother's house in a few minutes. She'd been too afraid to tell her grandma that she was planning to move-hopefully tomorrow.
Pulling the car into the small driveway, she paused to look fondly at the planters sitting on the large front porch. Sage thought there must be a city ordinance requiring every house to have an inviting wooden front porch with colorful flowers adorning it.
She finally climbed from the car, feeling much better after almost a full week of total rest and relaxation-too much rest, if anyone cared to ask her humble opinion. Before she was able to take two steps, she heard the familiar creaking of the wooden screen door as her grandma stepped outside.
"I've been so worried," Bethel said as Sage came up the front path. "You were gone too long."
"You shouldn't be worrying about me, Grandma. And you shouldn't be out here in the heat." Sage climbed up the steps and threw her arms around Bethel. The familiar scent of butterscotch and flour drifting off her grandmother's clothes would always be a reminder of home and happiness.
"I just hate knowing that you're out there driving all by yourself after that terrible wreck, sweetie. You've only been feeling better for a day. I could have driven you."
"I told you I'd be fine, and see?" Sage spun around in a circle. "I'm all safe and sound. And for the millionth time, it was a minor wreck, though my car might disagree. Now let's get you back inside where it's cool."