The only thing worse than the town boys are the ones out there, your grammy once said, nodding toward the perfect Manitoulin darkness, but what were you supposed to do with that?

So you got in Donnie’s dark blue F-150.

Everything was still ahead of you. You were fifteen and newly reckless. You were fifteen and hopeful. You were fifteen and you thought you were ready.

— From a new story called “Dark Blue,” coming in the Jan/Feb issue of This Magazine. Thanks are due Dani Couture for accepting the piece and for her amazing editorial input.