Chapter 15
Tuesday morning another stack of papers lands on my desk. I barely got any sleep last night because my dad went on another drinking spree and stayed up all night shouting about money. So it’s probably because of my exhaustion that I don’t register who hands me the papers at first.
“Hey,” I say quickly, snapping my head up to look at Clarissa while she’s still facing my direction.
She nods to the papers, and that’s the only form of acknowledgement I get. I flip through them and see that they’re blueprints, printed off some website called Easy Greenhouse Construction.
“This is everything we need,” she says. “I can bring all of the tools.”
“Tools?” I flip through the papers, grateful that they make some kind of sense to me. I’m not a carpenter, but I can read instructions. This doesn’t look too hard.
“Saw, hammers. That kind of thing.”
It’s the most she’s talked to me since we went on that date. I try to smile. “Sounds good. I can’t wait to get started.”
“When will that be, exactly?” She’s staring at me now, like she’s finally decided to acknowledge that I exist, but the quirk in her lip tells me she could change her mind any second. I’m sitting in my desk and she’s still standing, hovering over me, her eyebrows taut and lips pressed together.
“Soon,” I say, realizing that’s not a good enough answer.Right freaking now, is what I wish I could say.Let’s blow off school and spend the day together.Instead, I quickly think over my schedule.
“Wednesday. I’m off work so we can start right after school.”
“That’s tomorrow,” Clarissa says. “Do you mean tomorrow or next Wednesday?”
She’s so mean it’s almost sexy. “Tomorrow,” I stammer. This girl’s got me all flustered. I hate thinking it, but I’m still holding out hope that she’ll decide to give me another chance. “Sorry, I meant tomorrow.”
Her expression softens a little. “Then why didn’t you just say tomorrow?”
I shrug.
She swallows and then sinks into her chair. “Tomorrow then,” she says, and then she turns toward the front of the class and continues to ignore me.
*
That conversation with Clarissa haunts me while I’m at work. The second I’d walked in the door of Magic Mark’s, my boss had pulled me aside and asked if I could come into work tomorrow. I told him no, and he seemed annoyed, but he let it go.
But now, I’ve had to listen to two voicemails from my mom and I’m wondering what the hell I should do. After my next delivery, I park back at the pizza shop, pull out my phone, and play the messages again.
“Honey, it’s Mom. Your dad’s not going to tell you this, but he was laid off from work two days ago. He told me I wasn’t allowed to tell you, but I am, so please keep this between us. I know I said I wouldn’t borrow money from you again, but if you have any to spare, we could really use it. I love you, Gavin. Call me back.”
The second one is much shorter.
“Hey, sweetie! It’s Mom again. I know you’re busy at work but can you call me ASAP?”
I dig in my pocket and pull out the wad of cash I’ve received in tips tonight. Twenty six bucks. I know there’s around a hundred left at home and my paychecks are much higher now that I’m working five days a week. I’ll get paid on Friday, so I add it all up in my head, minus the money I need for gas. Then I call my mom.
“Gavin! I’m so sorry I kept bothering you.”
“Mom, it’s fine. I don’t mind.”
“Did you listen to my voicemail messages?”
“Yeah. How the hell did Dad get fired?”
She sighs. “Apparently he just wasn’t working hard enough. Probably because he goes to work hungover every damn morning. Honey, I don’t even know. I’m trying to pick up extra shifts but they don’t want me going over thirty-nine hours a week. I even put up an ad on Facebook saying I can clean houses on my days off.”
I grit my teeth. My mom already works her ass off at her job and at home, taking care of us and the house. She doesn’t need a second job.
“How much money do you need?” I ask.
