Page 3 of Come Back to Me

His mouth parts open before it closes, his lips flattening into a cute frown. “I wasn’t expecting that. Most people who live on this side of town don’t know a lot about where I live. They live in their own world and don’t realize other people exist outside of it.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not like other people.”

I’m so happy he can’t read my mind because the way his words are scrambling in my brain right now is so embarrassing.

I don’t know how to act around Grayson because he makes me a little nervous.

He studies me, his eyebrows furrowing. “You’re definitely not.”

I’ve never met a boy like Grayson before. He seems more mature compared to the other boys I know. Not to mention, he watches my entire face when I talk, which shows me that he’sactuallyinterested in what I have to say.

I’m not used to people wanting to hear what I have to say. My mom doesn’t listen to me. She doesn’t really see me for who I am and who I want to be. She treats me like I’m a mini version of her, dressing me up like her and making me act like her.

I don’t want to be her.

I want to be me.

Isthat not enough?

He points to the TV, taking his gaze off me. “So, you like this show, huh?”

“Yeah. It’s one of my favorites. It makes me wish that magic existed in real life.”

He grins at me. “Sometimes you don’t need to make a wish for something to come true. You just have to believe in whatever it is you want to become real.”

“Are you sure that you’re twelve years old?”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure. I wouldn’t be in sixth grade if I wasn’t.” He chuckles. “Okay, it's your turn now. Tell me something nobody knows about you.”

My mouth drops open as I look around my room.

There are posters of Selena Gomez, Ross Lynch, and Demi Lovato that I ripped out of teen magazines and plastered onto the walls.

“Um, that’s a hard question.”

“Why?” He raises an eyebrow.

“Nobody has asked me that before.”

“Well, I’m not nobody.”

You’re not. You’re somebody.

Particularly, he’s somebody who is going to get me into a lot of trouble with Blake. There’s no way I’m going to be able to stay away from Grayson. And there’s nothing my brother will be able to do to get rid of me.

“Okay, well, what’s your favorite color? I’m going to guess that it’s pink,” he says.

“How can you tell?”

“It’s like it threw up all over everything in here.”

“Be careful. It might throw up all over you.” I put my hand over my mouth, laughing and feeling my hot breath hit against the inside of my hand.

“Do you think I’d look bad in pink?” He places his hand underneath his chin.

“I don’t think so.”

Grayson moves from the bed over to the doorway. I look back and forth between him and my TV, unsure of who or what I should focus on.