Radiant - By Christina Daley Page 0,10

of pearl! That was the sorriest "thank you" in the history of the universe.

Carter smiled. "You are welcome."

"Really?" she asked. "You're not, like, mad at me?"

"Should I be?"

That was actually a good question. "I don't know," she said. "I mean, that whole bus thing was my fault. And you are—"

"—fine," he said. "I appreciate your gratitude. But you owe me nothing."

Mary stared at him. He had just answered the most important question that she hadn't thought to ask. "I don't?"

He shook his head. Like his lunge-walk, he did it in a deliberate way. She thought his head would fly off for a moment.

Mary didn't know what to say to that. Except, "Thank you." And she really meant it.

"You are welcome. Again," he said.

Neither of them spoke for a moment. Mary started picking at a stray thread on the seam of her bag. "Um, so, any news on your car?" she asked.

"News?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yeah. Is it going to be fixed?"

"Oh. No. My…dad…said it was totaled." The way he said "dad" just then seemed like it was a foreign word to him.

"Your parents are back in town?" Mary asked. At the hospital, Mr. Romero had said they were out of the country.

Carter nodded. Again, deliberately. "They came when they heard what happened."

Mary was glad for that. She could only imagine what a wreck Mom would have been if she were on the other side of the world and something had happened to Mary. Then, she realized what he had said, and she felt even more miserable. Cars weren't cheap, and she knew that his red sportster was a big loss. "I'm so sorry."

"For what?" he asked.

"Your car," she said.

"It was just a car."

Did he say it was just a car? Sophomore year, Carter went ballistic when Katie Peterson accidentally nicked his back bumper with her Jeep. Mary normally ignored other people's drama, but Carter wouldn't shut up about it for days, and he only became remotely human again when it was fixed. But now that his precious ride was beyond repair, he didn't seem to care at all.

He looked at the sketchbook in her hands. "What is that?"

"Oh," she said, coming back to the present. "Just some sketches. I was going to the computer lab to look something up."

"I see," he said. "May I accompany you?"

"Huh?" she asked.

"To the computer lab," he said. "If you do not mind."

She did, actually. But she didn't want to be ungrateful anymore, so she said, "Sure. I don't mind."

He didn't speak as they walked. Or, she walked and he lunged.

Mary cleared her throat lightly. "So, Carter."

"Yes?"

"You got back to school kinda quick. Doesn't that seem a little rushed?"

"I wanted to come," he said. "Back. I chose to come back."

"Really?"

"My…dad…spoke with a specialist," he said. "He suggested to not change my routines. That it may help with my recov—oof!" One of Carter's lunges turned into a trip, and he fell forward.

"Carter!" Mary grabbed his arm to help him up. He felt pretty warm through his black sweater. "Are you all right?"

"I am, thank you," he said as he stood up again. "I am learning how to walk and talk at the same time. Again."

"I see," Mary said. "Well, take it easy. We don't have to walk fast. Are you sure its okay for you to be at school?"

"Yes."

She waited for him to explain more, but he didn't. They were quiet for a bit, since Mary didn't want him to trip and fall again. But the silence was also starting to make things more awkward, so she asked, "So, um, how's Laci doing?"

"Who?"

"Your girlfriend," she said.

"Oh." He looked as if he was trying to remember who she was. Like when he said "dad" earlier. "She is well."

"Have you been out since you left the hospital?" she asked.

He cocked his head to the side. "Out?"

"Yeah. You know. Out on a date?" she asked.

"Oh," he said again. "A date. No. I have not been out on a date."

"I see," she said.

"And you?" he asked. "Have you been out on a date?"

"Huh?"

"Have you been out on a date?" he repeated.

"Oh, no. I heard you the first time." What an odd question, she thought. "I don't date. I don't have a boyfriend."

"A boyfriend," he pondered aloud. "Like Laci is my…girlfriend."

This was getting weirder.

"Why do you not have a boyfriend?" he asked

"I just don't, you know?" she said. "Some people date, and I don't."

"What do you do?" he asked.

"Like in my free time?" she asked. "I don't know. I paint, I