Chapter 5

I let out a tired laugh and closed my eyes.

The lock on the door rattled. I sat up and watched Piper come in carrying a steaming bowl of chicken noodle soup.

"Eat. You're going to wreck your stomach."

My throat tightened. I'd been hungry for so long that the smell alone almost broke me. I stopped caring about how I looked and wolfed the whole thing down.

Piper watched me eat. Her expression was hard to read. "Logan, after you finish, apologize to your parents."

I forced down another mouthful. My chest was so tight that it hurt. I looked up at her slowly.

"Piper, do you remember what you told me once? You said that even if the whole world turned against me, you'd still be on my side."

She went quiet for a moment, then looked away. "But this time, you were the one in the wrong. You're a student. Why would you go work at some sketchy place like that?"

I laughed. "What if I told you I really needed the money?"

Piper frowned. "I already told you. Whatever you want, if your parents won't get it for you, I will. Logan, why do you insist on dragging yourself through the dirt?"

I looked down at the bowl in my hands and felt whatever appetite I had left drain away. In that moment, everything became painfully clear.

I'd put my faith in the wrong person. Whatever future I'd been imagining, she wasn't going to be part of it.

I set down the spoon and wiped my mouth. "Thanks. I'm done. You should go."

She froze. "Logan..."

I guided her out, closed the door, and shut out the sound of her voice along with the version of myself that had ever believed in her.

Over the days that followed, I was still confined to the house, though at least they let me eat again.

However, not being able to leave meant I couldn't earn money, and that gnawed at me constantly. I reached out to classmates who had summer jobs and asked if anyone knew of anything I could do remotely.

Before long, someone connected me with a video editing gig that paid per project. The money wasn't great for each job, but it was something. From that point on, I worked around the clock, picking up orders, editing, and delivering them back.

The silver lining of being punished was that my family had stopped speaking to me entirely. They treated me like I didn't exist, which actually gave me more time to focus on what I needed to do.

Two weeks later, I was watching the number in my bank account climb little by little. I finally felt a sense of calm. Right around the time I'd saved up enough for a month of living expenses, Mr. Kensington sent me a message.

"Logan, your flight is booked. Get your things in order. You leave in seven days."

I stared at that message for a long time. In seven days, I could leave the place that had been suffocating me for over a decade.

I looked out the window at the clear blue sky and let out a breath that felt like it had been trapped inside me for years. Just seven more days, and I'd be free.

I just had to hold on a little longer.