“You know I see what you’re doing, right?”
“I’m just saying, friendships can be a work in progress.”
“Like you and my brother?” she asked slyly.
“Hey, no playdates, no matchmaking.”
We worked side by side. Hailey hummed under her breath.
“I guess I could ask Liv,” she said after a while. “But she’ll probably say no.”
“Liv?”
“Olivia Lipinsky. We used to walk to school and hang out all the time. But she got sick of waiting for me, and then I didn’t show up for a sleepover, and she got really mad when I ignored her birthday. She said if our friendship was really important, I wouldn’t blow her off all the time. But I didn’t. Not on purpose. It’s my ADHD.”
I swished the sponge around. I’d learned about ADHD inschool, techniques for behavioral classroom management. Lots of positive reinforcement, I remembered. Extra help staying organized. Breaks to move around. But Hailey seemed like a pretty typical teenager to me.
“Do you want to talk about it?” I asked gently.
She jerked a shoulder. “I’m seeing a therapist already. She said lots of girls never get diagnosed. Because ADHD in us looks different than it does in boys. But I saw these videos on TikTok, and I knew. Being late, not paying attention, forgetting shit, crying all the time…That’s me all over.”
Me, too.But I didn’t want to minimize what she was saying.
“That’s got to be a challenge,” I said.
“You would know.” Hailey smirked. “Seeing as we’re kindred spirits.”
I smiled back uncertainly, my mind pinging like a video game screen, bright colors and animated explosions bursting in every direction.ADHD?
“Honestly, it’s a relief knowing I’m not crazy or lazy or stupid,” Hailey continued, spraying the inside of a kettle. “But I still feel really bad about Liv.”
Not crazy or lazy or stupid…
I could relate to that. And if she was having problems with a friend, well…Daanis’s hurt face flashed across my memory. I could relate to that, too.
I pulled my thoughts back to Hailey. “Have you, um, reached out to her? Liv? Since her birthday? I bet she’d forgive you if you explain.”
“Maybe I should tell her I’m on meds now and we can sell them. Kidding!” Hailey added hastily as she saw my face.
“Or,” I said, finding my teacher voice, “you could invite her to the tea party.”
“Fine. But only if you invite your buddy, Daanis.”
“That’s extortion,” I said.
“No. Yeah, maybe.” Hailey’s eyes, brown and hopeful, met mine. “Is it working?”
“Yes.” I bumped her shoulder with mine. “But only because we’re true friends.”
21
Joe
Joe wedged a pry barunder a rotten trim board. The nails pulled free with a satisfying shriek.
The door to the house opened. Honey, panting in the shadow of the house, woofed and wagged her tail in greeting.
“Joe Miller,” Maddie said from the porch. “What do you think you’re doing?”
