“Oh my God!” Leonidas’s yell travels up the staircase.
A loud bang is followed by Elijah’s yelp. Twisting, I find him rubbing the top of his head, grumpy. I climb onto the bed on my knees, and my fingers rub at his scalp, messing up his already-messy hair. As I coo, he melts into a puddle, and any hints of grumpiness in his body is gone.
You’re welcome, everyone.
Fast steps climb the stairs. Appearing in the door, huffing and puffing, Leonidas looks frazzled. “We?—”
Trinity storms to him and forces his hand to her chest. “You nearly gave me a heart attack! Feel what you’ve done.”
Amen, sister.
I think I swallowed my tongue.
Leonidas lets out a shaky laugh that sounds more like a cry, and his body trembles. “We fucking won.”
Everyone’s bones lock.
Then eerie silence.
Leonidas says in disbelief, jolting like new life was zapped into him, “The judge ruled in our favor on all counts. We fucking won, guys!”
I watch the two other Drakos siblings, afraid of how they’ll react. Is relief going to win, or is pent-up anger going to burn this bus down?
Elijah blinks. Amelia’s mouth pops open.
Trinity grabs her boyfriend’s hands and squeezes, trying to bring him down to the present. “It’s done, baby. You guys are finally free andseen.”
He looks down at their interlocked hands, and whatever trace he was locked in is forgotten. He hoists her up by her thighs, and Trinity’s legs wrap around his waist.
That breaks the ice, sending everyone into motion. Elijah’s hard, warm body tackles me to the bed. He falls and lands on me with a laugh, and the feeling of wet tears lands on my neck. Shaky, muffled chuckles that sound more like sobs rack his body.
Holding on tight, I embrace every cry, every laugh because this is healing…
Little Elijah.
Little Leonidas.
Little Amelia.
This is the sound of freedom.
Of being heard after years of forced silence.
The sound of them winning their lives back.
FIFTY-EIGHT
ELIJAH
I’m on cloud fucking nine.
There’s a bounce in my step that has never been there before. I feel like a jittery boy right after kissing the girl he’s been pining after for years—wait, that was me too.Oops.
Yesterday made all of us feel high. A high that no drugs could bring because this washappiness. Something was in the air because, bang after bang, all the missing pieces were put together.
Sadness was a constant in our lives, but now that glee has moved in, we aren’t sure how to process the euphoria.
Is that why I feel like I’m floating rather than just walking to my dressing room?
