Bronx (Western Smokejumpers #1) - Tess Oliver Page 0,4

toes were basically sitting in the wide open. That same week, my mom's car had to be repaired and the fridge was basically empty so no breakfast. Then I got in trouble in third period just before lunch—"

"Seemed to happen to you a lot," King commented.

"Looks who's talking. Principal Harrison used to tell you he was going to have your name painted on one of the chairs in detention."

"That's right, he did, didn't he?" King beamed with pride about it.

"Anyhow, I missed lunch, and Harrison, jerk that he was, never asked if I got to eat. He sent me back to class. I ran three races at the track meet on an empty stomach and in a pair of shoes that were more air than shoe."

"Ah, I see why this is a perfect moment. You got two first places and a second that day."

I shook my head. "Nope, those ribbons didn't mean shit to me. I was so cold and hungry by the time the meet ended that I was pissed as hell."

King snapped his fingers and pointed at me. "That's right. You got into a fight with that sixth grader, Chuck whatever the hell his name was. He was pissed cuz you left him in the dust on all three races."

"Yep, took a punch to the stomach that knocked the wind right out of me. I couldn't wait to get out of school that day only I knew I was going home to an empty house . . . again . . . and an empty fridge."

A tarantula crawled out from beneath some dead leaves. The two of us left our nostalgic memories a second to watch the monstrously big critter make its way across the trail.

"Shit, that thing looks like it could carry off a squirrel or possum," King said. "So where does the crystal clear, perfect moment come into play? Cuz I've got to say—if this is one of your great memories, I don't want to hear about the bad ones."

A lizard skittered out from under the fallen tree we were perched on. "Thought you checked this thing for reptiles before you sat down," King chided.

"Yeah, the kind with diamonds printed along their backs. Those lizards are harmless."

King rested back on his hands. "When does this moment get perfect?"

"That's where Millie Price comes in. Robbie saw me sitting on the icy ground still trying to suck air back into my lungs. He offered me a hand and asked if I wanted to go to his house and hang out for awhile. I felt bad that we were always ignoring the guy, so I said yes. Wasn't like my mom was going to be waiting for me with a warm bath and a plate of cookies. We walked to his house—"

"I only went inside his house once for a birthday party," King interrupted. "It was small but I remember there was a red and white checked table cloth on the kitchen table. I don't know why, but I thought that was cool. I even asked my mom if we could get one. She didn't even respond. I don't know why I liked it—guess it just showed Robbie's mom cared enough to put a nice cloth on the table."

"Yeah, the same cloth was on the table. Along with those cookies I'd been dreaming about. Chocolate chip. Millie gave me some warm sweats to wear. She even stuck them in her dryer first to heat them up. Robbie didn't mind me wearing his sweats. In fact, I think he was kind of glad." I shook my head. "Why the hell were we such jerks to him?"

King shrugged. "Maybe deep down we were jealous that he had a mom who baked cookies and put checked cloths on the table."

I nodded. "You might be right about that. Especially after that day. I'd been freezing my ass off that whole, terrible day. Hunger had been gnawing a hole in my stomach from the second I stepped out of bed, and after running all those races, I could barely see straight. Millie sensed it too. She cooked up a can of tomato soup and tossed a cheese sandwich on a frying pan. It was only stale white bread and that weird sliced stuff we called cheese back then. It was the best fucking grilled cheese I ever ate. And I remember that hour in Millie's kitchen, with her clock that had a rooster painted in the center and her collection of tea cups, like