“She’s my friend,” Jonathan announces like everyone should know this.Except I didn’t know this.Not until now.“So, leave her alone.”
“Or else we’ll shove those sticks up your butts.”Collin looks proud of himself.His threat works.Or maybe it’s because Jonathan is taller than the rest of the boys.They walk away, dragging their sticks in the dirt behind them.
Collin holds out a plastic bag, filled with chocolate chip cookies.“Want one?My mom made them and said I had to share.They’re good.”
“They are,” Jonathan assures me.
I take one and smile without saying a word.
“You should sit with us at lunch,” Collin says, stuffing a cookie into his mouth.
So, I do.And they don’t care that I don’t talk.Collin does most of the talking anyway.He says funny things and makes weird faces to make me laugh.I laugh a lot.Jonathan protects me from being made fun of for not talking for two whole weeks.And no one does.At least not for the rest of fourth grade.
Did you talk?”
“Define talk.”I wrap strands of hair around my finger as I lie on the bed with my phone to my ear.I inspect the split ends and frown.
“All you did the entire time was make out?You two are really horrible communicators.”I called Collin to help me feel better after Jonathan left.He sounds impatient and not his usual take-nothing-seriously self.I rely on him to distract me with wit when my brain’s gone all fritzy—which is more often than I want to admit.
“We said words,” I defend weakly.
“What’s going to happen in school on Monday?Am I allowed to talk to you, or do we keep ignoring each other like we have been since school started?”
“I… don’t know.”
“Sadie!What the hell?This is stupid.”
“I know,” I grumble.“But it’s not my fault, exactly.We were totally fine with being seen together, but now…” I’m still trying to decide how to tell Collin since this also involves him.
Collin is never the instigator of trouble.Jonathan usually isn’t either, if I’m being honest.He just doesn’t know when to walk away.So, Collin always gets involved in whatever mess they get themselves into because of Jonathan.He’s never blinked at being labeled a problem, or trouble, or whatever delinquent tag that gets attached to them because he’s loyal and knows his friends are important.So do I.Which makes this really, really hard to say.So, maybe I don’t say it.
“Tell me.”
I swallow.
“Sadie, if you don’t tell me, you know he will.And you might not like the words he uses.”
I close my eyes.“My mother asked me not to be seen with you guys for a while, and Jonathan overheard.”
“I knew it.Because it won’t look good for your dad’s campaign if his daughter’s seen hanging around criminals.”
“You’re not criminals.”
“That’s not what they’ll say when they uncover our arrests.”
“Never prosecuted.And those records are sealed.”
“Thanks to your dad, which won’t help him either now that he wants to sit on the other side of the courtroom.”He is so matter-of-fact about it, like it’s already decided.“And you know nothing’s really sealed.”
“So, that’s it?You’re done being friends with me because of my father’s career choice?”My eyes tear up with frustration.
“Not what I’m saying.But I’m aware of what’s at stake—that’s all.Guess we’ll just have to be careful.”
“And you weren’t before?”I accuse, knowing that Jonathan’s been warned that he could get kicked off the swim team if he’s caught up in another incident, especially one involving the police.And he’s relying on swimming to get into college.
“Now we have even more to lose.”
“You’re not going to lose me.Ever.”My head is pounding, and my chest is tight.“Can we talk about something less irritating?”
