As Autumn Leaves by Kate Sands Page B

parts, what makes you think I’m going to touch hers?”
    “Kayla Margaret Caruso!”
    Hysterical laughter bubbled in Kayla’s throat, threatening to spill so she slapped her hand over her mouth. It didn’t stop her, and she hunched over in laughter.
    “Mom! Your face!”
    “I can’t believe you said that.” She sounded baffled by what had happened. Kayla looked at her, and burst out laughing again. Kayla was a little bit too, because she couldn’t believe it. It’d been the closest she’d ever come to admitting she was… who she was. As good as it felt to say it out loud, she also wanted to throw up and run away and not face any impending disappointment.
    “Mom, I have to get to class,” Kayla finally said, standing straight. “And Althea and I are friends. That’s all.”
    “If you say so.”
    “I do say so. I….” Kayla paused, worry taking over the hysteria. “Would it matter if I was—not what you expected?”
    Kayla’s worry must’ve shown on her face, because her mother’s softer reaction was instant. “Oh, honey, no. I’m so sorry. My comments about Althea were… not appropriate. Not at all.” She stood and pulled Kayla into a hug, squeezing tight. “I’m worried because you’re not talking to me about something. And I need you to know you can come to me about anything, all right?”
    Kayla nodded into her mother’s shoulder, but the words she should have said snuck away to hide again. Instead, she said, “There are probably videos on the Internet for this.”
    “Daughters saying inappropriately sexual things? I’m sure there are.”
    Kayla pulled away, and brushed away an unexpected tear. “Mom, I think it was the exact opposite of sexual.”
    “Okay, I don’t know if I can take any more of this conversation.” She laughed and patted Kayla’s cheek. “Are you okay?”
    “Yes. Are you?”
    “I—yes. I’m sorry if I seemed… unsupportive.”
    “You are the most supportive mom,” Kayla said. Overbearing and off the mark sometimes, maybe, but Kayla loved her mom. However, she needed some space. It was too much to handle right now. “I need to go.”
    “Go, go.” Her mom shooed her away. “Have a good class, honey.”
    “I will, thanks,” Kayla said. She grabbed a granola bar and an apple to take with her in case her hunger came back, and picked up her backpack from by the door. She was thankful to leave and ready to dance the confusion away.
     
     
    EVEN IN the fall, Johnston Resort was beautiful. In Kayla’s eyes, more so than in the summer. Sure, the trees were starting to get more naked, all the flowers and gardens were pulled up and left bare, and the lake didn’t reflect the sun quite as brightly. Nonetheless, the leaves were a speckle of warm autumn tones, oranges and rusty yellows. The air smelled like burned foliage and the waves lapped gently against the shore.
    “I love it here,” Kayla said. “It’s such a great place for a shoot.”
    Althea beamed. “It’s going to work out so good.”
    As previously planned, Kayla and Althea came to the resort with Mr. Ritter and Darnell. Kayla hadn’t met Mr. Ritter before. He was a big man, thick in the middle and easy to believe was a former state football player, but he was soft-spoken and kind, and clearly loved his kids. He distracted Darnell from following the girls and disturbing their project, instead heading to the shack that rented little boats to take on the lake before it froze over.
    Kayla and Althea walked down one of the many trails, discussing what they wanted to do. When they were far enough away from the cabins, with nothing but thick trees and bushes lining the paths, Althea stopped.
    “This’ll work.” She dug around in her backpack, pulling out the digital video camera Chantelle’s family lent them for the project. She looked a little nervous with it, handling it with care, and relaxed after she got the strap around her neck. Kayla didn’t doubt Althea would treat Chantelle’s