ANMELDENIt was Nicole calling.I immediately rushed out of Jace's arms, ignoring his muttered curse of frustration, and put the phone to my ear, my words tumbling out in a rush. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry I forgot to call you guys! Were you and Jake able to get out okay? Are you safe?""We're okay!" Nicole's voice came through, slightly breathless but relieved. "Jake took the long way around so we could sneak in late and our parents wouldn't be there to ask us questions. But when we got to Jace's house, his dad was still up, so we got scared. Now we're at mine for a sleepover."There was a pause, and then Nicole's voice took on a worried edge. "What about you? Are you calling from prison? Do you need me to come help bail you out?!""What? No!" I said quickly, unable to help the small laugh that escaped. "Jace and I went back for it, and it's with us now!""Holy shit, are you serious?" Nicole breathed.There was a crackling sound on the line as the phone changed hands, and then Jake's voice cam
LenaWithout a word, I watched Jace's father, dark cloud that he was, pass by us and keep walking down the hallway. Where he was going, I didn't know, but I was grateful he was no longer glowering at us like we'd committed some unforgivable sin.The tension in the air was suffocating. I could feel my heart still hammering in my chest, could feel the heat of embarrassment crawling up my neck and settling in my cheeks.I looked over at Jace, my voice barely above a whisper. "What did he want?"Jace kept his eyes trained on his father's retreating back, watching until the man disappeared around the corner and out of sight. "I don't know," he said, his voice flat and hard. "But whatever it is, he'd better save that shit for later. We've got too much going on right now."I swallowed hard and nodded. "Let's go.""Okay," Jace said, finally tearing his gaze away from the empty hallway. "Your room or mine?""Yours," I said, and despite the awkward encounter we'd just had, I couldn't help the
"Yeah, whatever," I mumbled, but I couldn't help leaning into his warmth. "So your mom doesn't mind it? It's still unprofessional, isn't it?"I was about to put the last piece of tape on the gift, carefully securing the final tier of what Martin and I had designed to look like a three-tiered birthday cake. It had been Martin's idea to stack the boxes that way, so it looked fancy, like something you'd see in a bakery window. He'd also spent what felt like hours writing and rewriting a note to tuck inside, crumpling up draft after draft until he got the words exactly right.What he'd written in it, I would never know; he'd been very private about that part, but I was sure it was the cutest, most heartfelt little scribble ever."Oh, you're about to finish?" Jace said suddenly, sitting up straighter. "Hold on one second."He stood up and disappeared out the door, and I heard his footsteps heading toward what I assumed was his own room. A moment later, he was back, holding a small box o
LenaIt didn't take long for Martin to fall asleep in my lap.He'd been trying so hard to stay awake, fighting the exhaustion pulling at his eyelids as he carefully chose which ribbons would go where, explaining in meticulous detail why the red satin one was better than the red grosgrain one for this particular arrangement. But eventually, around eleven-thirty, he just couldn't do it anymore. His words had started slurring together, his careful explanations trailing off mid-sentence, and then his head had drooped against my shoulder, and he was out.As soon as I was sure he was completely asleep, I carefully shifted his weight, lifting him as gently as I could and carrying him over to his bed. He was heavier than he looked, all gangly ten-year-old limbs that didn't quite know where to go, but I managed to get him settled without waking him. I slipped his shoes off, set them neatly by the foot of his bed, and tucked the blankets around him so he could sleep comfortably.If I could
He answered immediately, his voice completely deadpan. “Bothering me.”I couldn’t help it; I just had to laugh. Not at him of course, but at the pure honesty and the completely serious way he’d said that.“I don’t mean that,” I said, still smiling. “I mean, what kinds of things does she enjoy? Like hobbies or activities or—”“Watching bad TV,” he said, just as deadpan as before.I laughed again, harder this time, and he looked at me with genuine confusion written all over his face.“What’s funny?” he asked. “She does like bad TV. She watches this show about people who live in a house together, and they’re always yelling at each other, and I told her it’s not very good, but she says that’s why it’s fun to watch.”I wiped the tears from the corners of my eyes, trying to compose myself. “Okay, okay. What about toys? What kinds of toys does she like to play with?”He thought for a moment, then started ticking things off on his fingers. “The slide at the park. The living room couch. The TV
LenaNow that there was no one shooting at me, no starving dogs barking in my face, and no Allison screaming at me and kissing my boyfriend, I was grateful to return to normalcy, if only for a little while.Having ordinary troubles like wrapping up a kid’s birthday present felt like a blessing compared to the chaos of the last few hours.I walked into Martin’s room and stopped dead in my tracks. The place looked like a craft store had exploded. Wrapping paper in every colour imaginable littered the floor, little trinkets and ribbons scattered across every surface, and what looked like an entire collection of miniature trains lined up on his desk.“What’s all this, bud?” I asked, picking my way carefully through the mess. “It's past 10; I thought you'd be tucked into bed by now.”Martin looked up at me from where he was sitting cross-legged on the floor, surrounded by scraps of red ribbon. “Nope. Also, no tutoring today,” he announced matter-of-factly. “It’s Rosie’s birthday tomorrow
Jace's POVWe lost the fucking game.Now, Coach was screaming at me, the team captain who’d royally fucked up, and I stood there with my helmet under my arm and took every word with my mouth shut because what the fuck was I going to say.That I couldn’t see the field, because every time I’d lined u
"Miss Hartwell.”Nothing.“Miss Hartwell.”Still nothing.“Lena!”I opened my eyes.Coach Miller was peering down at me curiously.I fell asleep. In the middle of class. Impossible.In my defence, I had been awake until three. Cross-referencing Martin’s therapy notes with books on autism I download
ThreeThe days after I received the news of my father's death went by in a blur. I’d stopped counting how many times I woke up and forgot, only to remember and feel the loss all over again.Two weeks. That's how long it took for the reality of our situation to crash down on us completely.Mom had s
You know that feeling of staring longingly at something inches away from touching or reaching out to…. but can’t get..?That’s how I felt watching the cheerleading team practice. You might wonder why I couldn’t join them or what was holding me back….well a lot.For starters I obviously didn’t fit i







