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babysitters100 that I had to do a bit of research for, and I found myself CTRL+F'ing through Graduation Day, only to find Charlie's letter to himself.![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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of_dreamdust pointed this scene out to me about a year ago on IM, and it is still amazing. I was rereading this book the other day and thought it needed to be posted here!When that topic had been exhausted, [Patrick] turned to Charlie, who’d been almost entirely silent, and said, “So, Chuck. Tell me what’s been going on. Bring me up to speed.”
Charlie gave Patrick a level look. “No one calls me Chuck, for one thing,” he said. “I’m going to college next year. I was in fifth grade when you walked out. In spite of everything, Mom’s been great, and Watson is going to help pay for my college education.”
Whoa. Sam’s eyes widened and I let out a little gasp.
Patrick said, “I don’t think I like your tone.”
Charlie just looked at him.
Sam jumped up, grabbed the Frisbee, and said, “You’re it,” to me. He winged it in my direction. I jumped up too, and we took off down the beach.
When we came back, Charlie’s figure was just a speck on the shoreline and Patrick was leaning back on his elbows, his dark glasses on, his face turned to the sun.
ozqueenI handed Sharon the phone and headed upstairs. I was in my room barely half a minute when Dad appeared and stood in my doorway. “What’s the matter?” he asked.
“Is it that obvious?”
He nodded.
“I broke up with Logan,” I told him.
He came into the room and sat on my desk chair. “I’m not surprised.”
His not being surprised surprised me. “Why not?” I asked.
“I thought I noticed a certain lack of enthusiasm lately when Logan was around.”
I was impressed. I didn’t think Dad was that observant. And I didn’t even know I’d been acting unenthusiastic.
“Logan’s great,” I said. “But he’s just…I don’t know… too much.”
“I suppose you did what you thought was best,” he said. “But if that’s true, then why are you so upset?”
“Because I’ve really hurt him.”
“Someone always gets hurt in a breakup,” said Dad. “But he’ll get over it.”
“I guess I’m disappointed too,” I added. “Deep down, I always thought Logan and I would be like Sharon and you.”
Dad smiled. “It wasn’t all that smooth,” he reminded me. I knew the story. Sharon’s parents had thought Dad wasn’t good enough for Sharon, so they sent her off to college in California just to separate her from him. That’s where she met and married Dawn’s father and had Dawn and Jeff. But then they divorced, and Sharon and the kids returned to Stoneybrook – where Dawn and I learned about our parents’ past. (We were looking through Sharon’s high school yearbook.) We arranged for my dad and Sharon to meet again. And the rest is romantic history.
“Maybe things will work out for you and Logan in the end,” Dad suggested, “just as they did for Sharon and me.”
“I don’t think so. I don’t think Logan can change that much.”
Dad stood up. “Who knows? Life is funny.” He kissed me on the top of my head. “Good night, honey. Try not to think about it anymore tonight. Get some rest.”
“Thanks, Dad,” I said as he walked out.
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