The Other Side of Someday by T. K. Leigh

it,” I urged. “I mean, if it’s something you’ve always wanted to do, look into it.”
    “And you should finish what your mother started.”
    My eyes widened.
    “What’s stopping you, Baylee?”
    I shrugged. “It just doesn’t seem right to me. This was my mother’s list, and—”
    “A list that was never finished. You said you never knew her. Maybe doing this will make you feel closer to her. I think it would be a wonderful tribute…and maybe you’ll find yourself along the way.” He raised himself from the park bench and began to walk away.
    “What do you mean by that?” I called after him.
    “Exactly what I said,” he replied over his shoulder. “I’ve learned a lot about you over the past several weeks, Baylee. From where I’m standing, it looks like you’re still trying to figure out who you are as a person. It might be good for you to leave yourself open to new things, new experiences.”
    I opened my mouth to protest and rattle off a million reasons why completing my mother’s bucket list was the worst idea ever, but he cut me off.
    “Just think about it.”
    Then he jogged away from me with Gidget, leaving me to give some serious consideration to his proposition.
    Bastard .

C HAPTER E IGHT

    Skydive.
    Ride on the back of a motorcycle.
    Fly in a private plane.
    Watch as many cinematic masterpieces as possible.
    Learn to ballroom dance.
    Spend the night in a haunted house (a legitimately haunted one, not just a cheesy house decked out with zombies for Halloween).
    Break a few rules and don’t get caught.
    Go to a farmer’s market and make something with all the fresh produce.
    Learn how to skateboard.
    Go wine tasting.
    Learn how to do yoga (and not just from a workout video. Go to a real yoga class).
    Put my feet in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Pacific Ocean…all in one day.
    Learn how to surf.
    Write a book.
    Learn how to toss pizza dough.
    Sleep on the beach under the stars.
    Have a champagne picnic in Central Park by Bethesda Fountain at midnight on New Year’s Eve.

    My eyes ran down the items on my mother’s list that she never got to experience. Her list was quite extensive and my face lit up when I pictured my father and mother doing some of the things she had crossed off…  

    Get a fish pedicure .
    See the Great Barrier Reef .
    Pet a penguin .
    Attend the Kentucky Derby .
    Write something in wet cement .
    Cross the intersection at Abbey Road .
    Watch the sunset from Key West .
    Have a child .

    Since arriving in town, I was unsure of the direction my life would take. I couldn’t just sit around my condo all day and do nothing. I had told myself time and time again that this could be the perfect opportunity for me to do what I had said I would do for years…write a book. Perhaps this list was exactly the inspiration I needed to find my story.
    A chiming from my laptop caught my attention, indicating a FaceTime call. I folded my mother’s list and placed it back in her journal, then clicked on my laptop. I was greeted by my uncle’s comforting eyes that reminded me of pulled pork, cornbread, and sweet tea.
    “Uncle Monty,” I breathed. “It’s good to see you.”
    “You, too, kiddo.” He wore a pressed suit over a crisp, white shirt and designer tie. Based on his wardrobe and the large glass windows behind him, I knew he was at his office. I didn’t think he had taken a day off from work since my wedding. Even then, he was constantly on his cell phone “putting out fires”, as he called it. “How’s everything going out there? I’ve tried to get in touch with you a few times, but kept missing you.”
    “Sorry about that. I’ve been pretty busy.”
    “Making some friends, I assume?”
    “A few,” I answered, then proceeded to tell him everything that had happened since leaving North Carolina. I asked if he had heard any news from back home, to which he said he hadn’t. I didn’t expect him to. He rarely spent time in my hometown, apart from