I took her hand and led her to a nearby bench. Never mind the old man sitting there. “I should’ve told you this a long time ago,” I said, “but I didn’t and I’m so sorry.” I paused, on the precipice of disaster. “Ev and I hang out together outside of school and family stuff. Not as much as you and I, obviously, but we do hang out.” I gulped. “And the truth is—”
“Grace, stop,” Isa said. “I know the truth.”
My heart heaved. “You do?”
“Yeah.” She nodded. “And it’s no big deal.”
“It’s not?”
“No, not at all,” she said, and laughed—actuallylaughed. “I know you help him babysit Margot and Abigail whenever his mom needs a night out or a weekend away.” She shrugged. “Mamá told me.”
“Oh,” I said, feeling stupid for being surprised. Our moms were best friends—they got coffee together, took barre classes together, ran a book club together, and sent memes back andforth in their group chat. Of course it would come out that Ev and I shared his babysitting responsibilities.
“I’m honestly glad you help out,” Isa continued. “Mrs.Adler is swamped.”
I nodded. Not only was Ev’s mom an in-demand children’s book illustrator, but she was on the elementary school board, a Girl Scout troop leader, and had dinner religiously on the table by six-thirty every night.
“It’s really sweet that you and Everett volunteer to babysit together so she can have some time for herself,” Isa continued. “Especially…”
She trailed off, and for once, I wasn’t going to finish her sentence for her. Because whatever she’d been about to say—I knew it was about Ev’s dad. Isa and I didn’t talk about Mr. Adler much. He’d been a cool uncle to me, but he was more like Isa’s second dad. Her own father wanted her to achieve her goals no matter the cost; I’d once overheard Mr.Adler tell Isa that she could accomplish anything she set her mind to while still having fun.
And I managed to process my grief over Mr.Adler’s death with my family, but I would never forget hearing my mom on the phone with Mrs.Cruz one night. “Pilar, I wonder if Isa might benefit from talking to someone….”
Mr. and Mrs.Cruz didn’t believe in therapy. It was Everett’s dad who’d been her confidant for so many years.
“Really, G,” she said now. “Everett’s sisters love you, so if they invite you over, get in the Subaru and go save them. I getit.”
No, you don’t,I thought sadly as Isa put her arm around my shoulder and gave me a side squeeze.You don’t get it.
If Ev were anyone else, I would without a doubt be sitting on this bench and spilling the whole story to Isa, and she would be helping me laugh away the embarrassment of making out in such a public place.And then you propositioned him to have sex in a janitor’s closet?I could imagine her saying.Not classy, G! So not classy!
If Ev were anyone else.
I wanted to tell her, I did. I just couldn’t watch Isa’s face crumple in this gallery—this gallery she loved so much. Maybe she didn’t mind me co-babysitting the Adler girls, but I think she was picturing Margot and me trolling online for bat mitzvah dresses rather than watchingThe Officewith Ev once his sisters went to sleep.
“And hey, while we’re on the subject,” Isa said, shifting in her seat, “there’s also something I feel like I should tell you—”
She got cut off, an obnoxious beeping noise suddenly filling the high heavens. Everyone—and I do meaneveryone—in the gallery turned to locate the sound’s source.
I.e., us.
“Crap,” I muttered as Isa squeaked “Yikes!”
We quickly unlocked our phones and switched off their identical alarms.
“It’s time,” I said quietly, and together we bidles artistesand their masterpiecesadieu.
Chapter 15
Everett
Every bone in my body told me to run after Grace when she sprinted away from me, but it was as if she had used her industrial hot glue gun to cement my feet to the floor before leaving.
Don’t follow me.
I had to respect that. I didn’t want to, but Ihadto. We would untangle the knot that was our friendship—to see if it could actually be something more—later. That’s what I told myself every time her Subaru backed out of my driveway after a night of babysitting and TV. She always flicked her headlights as a final goodbye, and I waved back.
It’s not in my head,I couldn’t help but think.I’m not making something out of nothing.
