The Day After, an Amazon Short by Hannah R. Goodman

I like this author's two YA novels so had to read her short story. Here Ms. Goodman explores the abusive high school relationship. Each party blames him/herself and they alternately attract and repel each other. The story takes place at the girl's home when the boy brings flowers for her birthday, but flashes back to earlier moments in their manic love/hate relationship. Goodman's writing, alive with description, shows a girl, without a clear model as her parents "stay together" for her sake, who falls for a boy in the care of his grandmother when his own parents split literally and figuratively. The girl has honors classes and rehearsals, while her guy speaks with pride of being a skater punk and uses mood-altering substances. As I've noted in other Goodman works, she masterfully handles character development. Readers of any age can't help but relate to the feelings evoked or situations described. At 16, we either were these people or we knew them. As with Goodman's novels about Maddie, I can't wait to read more of her short stories.