I hesitate. “Everything,” I say, and he nods as if he understands exactly what this means. Maybe he does.
“You two will be fine. You always are.”
But I’m not so sure. Teddy texted to make sure I got home okay last night, which I suspect was more out of concern for his mother’s instructions than concern for me. I wrote back a shortyes,and he didn’t respond after that. Even once I’d crawled into bed I kept glancing at my phone, wondering if it would light up again. But it remained dark and silent, and I knew deep down there would be no reply.
After school, on my way to the animal shelter—where I spend Wednesday afternoons walking a pack of cooped-up dogs who are heartbreakingly eager for the fresh air—I try texting him again.
Break a leg,I write. Then I wait a minute to see if he’ll respond.
He doesn’t.
When I come downstairs the next morning, I see that the small television in the kitchen is switched on and an overly cheerful morning news anchor is discussing unexpected uses for empty soda cans. Aunt Sofia normally hates these types of shows; we tend to listen to NPR over breakfast, the measured tones of world news filling the kitchen. But this morning is different.
“Did I miss it?” I ask, grabbing a piece of toast and sitting down across from Leo, who shakes his head.
“I always knew that kid was going somewhere,” Uncle Jake says, opening the refrigerator. Beside him Aunt Sofia is making a pot of coffee. They’d have both usually left for work by now, but neither wanted to miss Teddy’s segment.
“It’s just a talk show,” I say. “There’ll probably be a piece on cat tricks right after him.”
“I don’t know,” Aunt Sofia says. “I think this could be big for him. He’s so charming, you know? And such a good-looking kid.”
Leo makes a goofy face at me across the table and I smile gratefully.
“Plus, he’s insanely rich,” Uncle Jake adds, walking over with his plate. “There’s a recipe for stardom if I’ve ever heard one.”
“It’s just Teddy,” I say, but with less certainty this time.
A commercial break comes to an end and the jaunty theme song of the show returns, then Teddy is suddenly on-screen. He’s sitting stiffly on a green couch, his hands folded in his lap, and seeing him there—that familiar set of his shoulders and the nervous twist of his mouth—is enough to send my heart up into my throat.
“And we’re back now with Teddy McAvoy,” says a chipper anchorwoman. “He’s the youngest lottery winner in U.S. history, still a high school senior and already a millionaire many, many times over.”
Teddy gives her anaw, shuckssmile. He’s wearing a pale blue button-down and a pair of khaki pants. On someone else it might look normal, but on Teddy—who usually wears jeans and plaid—it just makes him seem older and very, very far away.
“So, Teddy. Tell us. How does it feel?” she asks him, crossing her legs and leaning forward. “You won 141.3milliondollars. That’s no small chunk of change.”
“No,” Teddy agrees. “It’s kind of mind-boggling, actually. I’m still trying to get my head around it.”
“Now, this happened the day after your eighteenth birthday, right?”
“Right. The ticket was actually a birthday gift. From a friend.”
I feel suddenly dizzy. From across the kitchen Uncle Jake gives me a thumbs-up.
“Wow,” the anchor says. “A hundred-and-forty-one-million-dollar present. That’s a pretty nice friend you’ve got there. Will you be sharing the winnings at all?”
Teddy shifts in his seat. My heart drills away at me as I wait for his answer.
“We’re still working that out,” he says after a pause. “But I hope so. It’s an incredible gift. One that’s already changed my life. I’d like to be able to thank her in some way.”
I lower my eyes, afraid to know whether my aunt and uncle are looking at me.
“Well, there are always diamonds, right?” the anchor says, smiling with all her teeth, and Teddy lets out a bark of a laugh. It’s the first genuine moment from him since the interview began, and I suspect it’s because he’s imagining me in diamonds. It’s enough to make me want to laugh too, though I know it doesn’t fix anything between us.
“Maybe,” he says to the anchor, still chuckling. “We’ll have to see.”
“Well, either way, you’ve got a pretty good friend there.”
Something changes in Teddy’s smile then, and there’s a flatness behind his eyes. All at once I feel cold down to my toes.
