“I am.” I nodded, doing my best at retrying that poker face Mom said I sucked at doing. Thankfully, Nate was too focused on himself to grade my expressions.
“Good for you.” He opened the refrigerator to grab a carton of eggs, a jar of applesauce, and a bottle of mustard.
“Do I even want to know?” I gestured to the supplies in his hands.
Nate gave me a lopsided grin. “Not unless you want in.”
“Is it something that could get me in trouble?”
“Only if you can’t execute the plan correctly,” he shared. When I raised a brow, suspicious, he laughed. “You know, one of these days, you’re going to be too old to enjoy doing weird shit on a whim.”
“And one of these days, you’ll realize you’re currently too old to still be doing weird shit”
He chuckled and shook his head. “We’ll see about that.”
I smiled back. “I will help you readjust to adult life once you’re ready.”
“Much appreciated.” He nodded and started towards the door but paused before he exited. “Did you need a ride? Dad took the Civic.”
I tried not to look disappointed. “Where’d he go?”
“Don’t know.” He shrugged. “Just said he wouldn’t be back till late. Where are you going? I could drop you off first.”
“No, it’s fine.” I waved my hands.
“You sure? I don’t mind.”
“Positive,” I promised in a firm voice. “I can get a ride.”
“Alright, cool.” Nate shrugged. “See you for my readjustment classes later.”
I snorted and waited for him to leave before pulling out my phone. After scrolling through the list of people who’d be willing to give me a ride, I was reminded that I didn’t know anyone who didn’t have a relationship with my brother. And if I wanted to keep my spending time with his best friend on the down low, I couldn’t ask anyone for help.
I chewed on my lip, thinking about asking Leo to pick me up. But his flashy car would attract attention from our nosy neighbors. And I didn’t want to spend money on a rideshare since my wallet was a little lighter these days. So, it was public transport for me.
It would take a few transfers to get to the nicer part of town. I readied myself for the journey by pushing away the lingering insecurity Mom triggered. As usual, I placed all the extra shit in the tiny box and shoved it in a corner of my mind. I went forward hoping the box would stay hidden long enough for me to be better than the contents.
If I improved myself, I wouldn’t have to worry about what was inside anymore. I had to become better and better was a person who didn’t have enough flaws to pick apart.
