Why Did She Have to Die?

  “My folks wouldn’t let me go to the funeral. They thought it would bother me too much.”

  “It might have helped,” Elly said.

  “Probably. Because I didn’t see him again, I didn’t really believe that he wouldn’t come take me fishing. He’d never broken a promise. So, on my birthday, I got up very early and got dressed. I sat on the back porch with my fishing gear and waited.” A frown creased Kenny’s forehead. “Of course, he didn’t come.”

  A lump rose in Elly’s throat as she imagined Kenny as a boy, waiting for a man who would never arrive.

  “Of course, I wouldn’t be that way if it happened now,” Kenny said. “But whenever I smell pipe tobacco, I think of him. And, you know, I still miss him.”

  Elly knew. She waited while Kenny gathered his feelings.

  When he looked at her again, his ears were slightly red. “I never told anybody that story before.”

  “I’ll never forget Kathy,” she said, attempting to make him feel more comfortable for sharing his secret. “I know that she was smarter and prettier than I am. I used to think that Mom and Dad loved her more than me, too. But I’d give anything in the world if she could come back home again.”

  The day had turned quiet and soft. Above them, shadow patterns twirled and danced as a breeze riffled the leaves. The scent of honeysuckle filled the air. Kenny’s fingers touched the side of Elly’s face. “She was very pretty,” he confirmed. “But so are you.”

  Elly’s mouth went dry as she stared into Kenny’s blue eyes. He leaned forward, hesitated, then leaned closer and kissed her gently on the mouth. Sunshine chased the shadows from the corners of her mind, and Elly Rowan smiled.

  For further information about support groups for those who have lost a child or sibling, contact:

  The Compassionate Friends, Inc.

  P.O. Box 3696

  Oak Brook, IL

  60522-3696

  Toll-free: (877) 969-0010

  Fax: (630) 990-0246

  E-mail: nationaloffice@compassionatefriends.org

  Website: www.compassionatefriends.org

  The mission of The Compassionate Friends is to assist families toward the positive resolution of grief following the death of a child of any age, and to provide information to help others be supportive.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Lurlene McDaniel lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and is a favorite author of young people all over the country. Her best-selling books about kids overcoming problems such as cancer, diabetes, and the death of a parent or sibling draw a wide response from her readers. Lurlene says that the best compliment she can receive is having a reader tell her, “Your story was so interesting that I couldn’t put it down!” To Lurlene, the most important thing is writing an uplifting story that helps the reader look at life from a different perspective.

  Six Months to Live, the first of the four-book series about cancer survivor Dawn Rochelle, was placed in a time capsule at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. The capsule is scheduled to be opened in the year 2089.

  Other Darby Creek books by Lurlene McDaniel include If I Should Die Before I Wake, A Horse for Mandy, My Secret Boyfriend, and Mother, Please Don’t Die.