have to return to my mother.
My eyes dart to my phone, and I regret deleting the message. I should respond.
What if things go wrong here? Where will I go then?
I draw my bottom lip between my teeth, and trepidation tightens my insides.
Colton wouldn’t do that to me. Right?
Ugh, this is really hard. What do I do? I really don’t want to go back to my mother.
Maybe I should get a job.
My eyes widen at the thought.
Yeah, I’ll get a job, and then if things go wrong, I can maybe find a place of my own.
Deciding to look for work after school, I feel a little better and leave my room. When I reach the front door, Colton presses a kiss to his mom’s cheek.
With a quick wave, I dart out of the house.
On the way to school, Colton mutters, “It’s finally Friday.”
“Yeah,” I agree. “This week was super long.”
“Do you want to do anything tonight?” Colton asks.
This will be the first weekend I won’t have to deal with my mother, and the thought alone makes my blood rush through my veins with exhilaration. “Anything is good.”
“Want to show me around town?” he asks. “I’ve been here for three months, and I only know where the store and school are.”
“Okay,” I agree, excited to spend time with Colton. I’ll also be able to see if there are any job vacancies in town.
After Colton parks the truck, we walk into school, and it’s the same as yesterday. Students stare, but no one says anything.
We take our seats in English, and minutes later, Colton drops a piece of paper on my desk. Opening it, a wide smile spreads over my face.
‘It is never too late to be what you might have been.’ – George Eliot.
I glance at Colton and mouth the words ‘thank you.’
Knowing he meant well by giving me the quotes, I have to admit I missed them.
As the day progresses, there’s no sight of Sully and Michael. I find myself relaxing a little and not feeling as anxious.
That is until Lindy and her friends corner me at my locker before social studies.
“Dang, just when I thought you couldn’t look gloomier,” she taunts me.
My muscles tense, and I glance at Colton as he walks closer after shutting his own locker.
He glares at Lindy before turning his eyes to me. “Tell her to go to hell.”
Crap.
Okay.
I suck in a deep breath for courage.
Before I can think of anything to say, Lindy sneers, “Should’ve known the psycho and freak would become a couple. You know, birds of a feather and all that shit.”
Her words hurt because she’s insulting Colton, but I still can’t think of a way to respond.
Then Colton steps between us and glares at her, “Jealous much?”
Feeling a little braver, I mutter, “Green isn’t your color.”
Colton lets out a burst of laughter, and throwing his arm around my shoulders, he nudges me forward. Glancing over his shoulder at Lindy, Colton says, “Stop looking for attention from Brie. It makes you look desperate.”
Once we’re a distance away from Lindy, Colton smiles down at me. “You did good.”
I turn my gaze to him. “I did?”
“Yeah,” he gives me a sideways hug.
It makes me feel ten feet tall, knowing Colton is happy with the single sentence I managed to get out.
Walking to class, my chin lifts slightly higher, and I don’t feel as intimidated by the other students.
COLTON
When we get home, I go look for Mom while Brie changes out of her uniform.
“No, Jonah,” I hear Mom say before I nudge her bedroom door open. Mom’s pacing up and down at the foot of her bed, a frown on her face.
My heart immediately begins to beat faster, knowing she’s talking to my father.
“I want a divorce.” Mom lets out a huff and stops pacing, then hisses, “I won’t let you near Colton.” There’s a couple of seconds pause from her, then her voice climbs with anger, “I don’t care!”
I’ve never heard her talk that way to my father, and it fills me with hope that she’s finally done with him.
“Don’t come here,” she bites the words out.
I move forward, and only when I reach for the phone does Mom notice me. She begins to pull away until I say, “Let me talk to him.”
Mom hesitates for a moment, then relents and hands the device to me.
When I press it to my ear, I hear Dad say, “We all need to sit down and talk about this. I have to tie up things at the office,