Shelly left shortly after that. I didn’t know or care where. Adam’s dad had been yelling at him earlier, but they must have migrated to the other bedroom, because it’d been a while since I’d heard anything. I paced my room and chewed my nails till they bled. He’d find some way to let me know what happened, wouldn’t he? Once he calmed down and let Adam explain, his dad wouldn’t keep us apart forever, right? I tried to reason with myself but it didn’t help.
The thing that finally drove me from my room was another fist pounding on the front door.
I honestly hoped it was Adam’s dad. I was ready to tell him everything if it meant I could still see Adam.
But it wasn’t.
Jeremy craned his neck to peer past me into my apartment. “Is Shelly home?”
I had barely uttered the wordnowhen Jeremy pushed past me. “What happened with your dad?”
Jeremy crossed his arms and looked me over. “Well, you don’tlookstupid...”
I pushed the front door shut and gritted my teeth. “I know Adam’s in trouble. What I don’t know is how much.”
“Yeah, but you can guess, can’t you?” When my only response was a glare, Jeremy went on, “He’s grounded until the end of time, but that was a given. No phone, no internet, no life. Thanks to you, my little brother is going to be a shut-in until he graduates.”
I dropped into the dining chair next to me, my indignation forgotten. I looked to my future weekends at Dad’s, and I saw myself running out the clock in my room, watching movie after movie with nothing to focus on except the number of fingernails that I hadn’t chewed to the quick. Mom’s wouldn’t be any better now that Mrs. Cho was gone. I’d have school but soccer was over and Cherry and I weren’t talking, and I had all the footage I needed for Venomous Squid so I wouldn’t see Gabe or the guys as much. There’d be no more texting with Adam. No more Adam, period. It was like having the wind knocked out of me. “He can’t.”
“Uh, yeah, he can. Do you even care what you put my dad through last night? I mean, do you?” He broke off with a note of disgust that made me flinch. “Adam and our dad were starting to make progress and in one stupid night, you destroyed all that. You deserve this. Adam, too. But our dad didn’t.”
My heart took the hit from his words and pain lanced through me. “I’m sorry,” I said. “Please don’t be mad at Adam about this. Something happened last night and I didn’t know who else to go to. You have to tell your dad it wasn’t Adam’s fault.”
Jeremy sighed. “Yeah, it was. Unless you physically prevented him from going home last night, it was his fault. Whatever excuse you try to come up with makes Adam look cowardly as well as stupid. Trust me, stupid is plenty.” Then he walked back to the door and opened it. “You don’t have anyone to blame but yourselves.”
Tears spilled over onto my cheeks.No, I thought.That can’t happen. I can’t lose him and ruin everything he wants. I was already on my feet, striding toward the door as if Jeremy had opened it for me.
“What do you think you’re doing? I told you he’s grounded. He can’t see you.”
“I need to talk to your dad.”
“Yeah, that’s a bad idea.” Jeremy stretched his arm across the door, barring me when I stepped forward.
When I didn’t relent, he sighed again and dropped his arm. “I’m also supposed to tell you that Adam’s waiting for you on the balcony.”
I didn’t stop to yell at Jeremy for withholding that crucial bit of information. It was just another thing that didn’t matter. Instead I shoved him into the hall and slammed the door before running to the balcony.
“Adam?” I couldn’t lean far enough out to fully see into his balcony, but I heard him perfectly.
“I’m here.”
I let all the air out of my lungs, the still-freezing temperature turning it into fogged clouds. “Your brother just told me.”
“I figured he would be less than forthcoming. I had my doubts about him telling you at all.”
“He’s pretty mad.”
“He’ll get over it.” Adam’s hand crossed over the railing in front of me, and I covered it with my own.
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m not.”
“You don’t even know what you got in trouble for,” I said.
“It was for you. That’s all I need to know.”
My heart swelled, then shriveled in the space of a single heartbeat. I lifted my hand free and clutched my elbows tight to my chest. “I did something stupid last night.”
