All of us had stopped and were gawking at Mom, who was breathing hard but looked proud of herself. Proud and worried, obviously.
“Are you all OK? Did he hurt you?” she asked.
I was too stunned to speak. I simply pointed at Mike, whose nose was gushing. Mom moaned and hurried over to take a look. I heard more footsteps, slow and heavy. It was Dad. He looked exhausted and rested his hands on his knees, only speaking after nearly a minute had passed and he’d caught his breath. “OK, it’s OK, you’re safe,” he said.
We walked to my parents’ house, where Mike stuffed his nostrils withtissue until he finally quit bleeding. We asked Sue how she’d managed to floor Monty, and she just laughed and said she’d taken karate lessons as a kid. Mom hadn’t actually called the cops, but her threat had worked. Monty didn’t come back, and he didn’t dare to call, either. My parents said we shouldn’t travel that night. It was dark, and we’d been through a traumatic experience. Sue, who looked exhausted, didn’t argue with them.
For the first time in a while, I felt at ease in my own home. Dad and Mom made beds for Mike and Sue in Spencer and Shannon’s old rooms, and Nelle slept in my bed with me. We stayed up talking till around two. After brushing my teeth, I peeked in to check on my roommates. Sue was lying flat on her back like a vampire in a coffin. Mike was splayed out with one leg hanging off the bed.
Dad came out to meet me in the hallway. “Sorry I didn’t make it in time to save the day,” he joked in a whisper. “I don’t run as well as I used to. Don’t tell anyone, though.”
I didn’t laugh or smile. He had a lot of explaining to do, and I wasn’t going to let him off that easy.
“Jenny, I know we haven’t treated you the way we should have,” he continued.
“You’ve got that right.”
“You deserve to be angry.”
“Right again.”
“I’m trying to say I’m sorry, OK? And I want you to know you’re welcome here again.”
“That’s great, Dad,” I told him, “but it’s a little late for words. You went for months without talking to me, you kicked me and my friends out of my grandmother’s funeral, and you turned your back on me for getting a restraining order against Monty when you’re the one who convinced me to go to the cops. I appreciate you guys being there for us tonight, but that doesn’t change what’s happened. We’re leaving tomorrow.”
I didn’t wait for an answer, I just pushed past him and walked into my room. Nelle was already in the bed in her pajamas, lying on top of the covers and looking at the ceiling. When I shut the door, she admitted in a soft tone, “I heard your conversation. I’m really sorry.”
“Don’t be. It had to be talked about.”
I pulled up the sheets and got into bed beside her, turning off the lights and thinking in silence.
“Some night, huh?” Nelle murmured.
“I’ll tell you one thing: if someone had said a week ago I’d be lying in my bed in my parents’ house with you, I’d have told them they were out of their mind.”
She laughed and swatted at me. “I’m not good enough for you?”
“I’m sorry to break this to you, Nelle, but you’re not really my type.”
Grabbing a pillow and hugging it to her chest, Nelle said, “Thanks for coming.”
“Don’t mention it.”
“I’m serious. Thanks for pushing me. After the way I treated you when your grandmother died…”
“Seriously,” I told her, “I’d rather not talk about it.”
I had managed to put the bad things out of my head, and there was no point in her stirring them up.
“Sure,” she agreed. “Good night, then.”
“Good night,” I said, turning my back to her and starting to drift off.
Nelle spoke again: “Thanks for helping me even though we’re not friends anymore.”
Opening my eyes, I replied, “You’d have done it for me.” That wasn’t true. We both knew it wasn’t true. But she didn’t argue.
“I can see your treehouse from here. Remember how I spilled a soda on the rug and then you never let me back in there again?”
