Chapter 16 #2
He hesitates, like he’s not sure if he should answer. But then he looks up, meeting my gaze for the first time. “The last time I was in there was with my sister,” he says quietly.
His words hang in the air between us. “And where is your sister now?” I ask softly.
He looks away, his voice barely a whisper. “She died.”
“I’m sorry.” I sit, feeling my chest tighten. “My brother died too,” I add slowly, my voice not as shaky as it usually is when mentioning him.
The boy turns to me, his eyes meeting mine. “Sorry,” he murmurs, his voice sincere.
I nod, swallowing hard. “You know what I think?” I say, my voice steadier now. “I think you should go in there and show them who’s boss.”
He blinks. “You think?”
I smile, a small but genuine one. “Yeah. I think it’s better to face our problems than run away from them. It’s scary, I know. But you’re braver than you think.”
For the first time, a flicker of hope crosses his face, and he smiles. “You remind me of her,” he says quietly.
I feel something in my chest at that, the poor boy came face to face with loss too early. It’s not fair. “I’m glad,” I say softly.
He stands, determination straightening his small frame. “I’ll go in. I’ll show them. My brother doesn’t even know I’m here.”
Curiosity sparks in me, but I don’t pry. Instead, I watch him take a step toward the door before I call out, “Hey, wait. What’s your name?”
He pauses, turning back to me. “Elliot. But you can call me Eli. What’s yours?”
I smile. “Adeline. But you can call me Addie.”
Eli grins faintly before heading toward the building. Just before he disappears inside, he glances back. “I hope I see you again,” he says.
I let him go, the ache in my chest settling into something that feels almost like peace.
***
The door creaks open, and I step into the quiet of the house. Quiet, except for the faint hum of the refrigerator and the subtle creak of the floorboards under my weight. It’s late too, later than I anticipated.
So late that I don’t want to think about anything other than getting a good sleep, although with my current streak of not being able to, somehow, I doubt it’s going to happen. Tomorrow, I’ll give Camille her phone back. But tonight? It’s settled; I’m relaxing.
“Naomi! Sam!” I call out, my voice echoing through the empty rooms. Not even the sound of hurried footsteps in response. Just silence. Of course. Somehow, I’m not surprised.
In the kitchen, I yank open the fridge. The plate I prepared earlier—untouched. Still wrapped, the edges of the cling film starting to curl. I close my eyes and let out a sharp breath. Of course, they didn’t. Why would they?
“Naomi! Sam!” This time, there’s a bite to my voice, frustration clawing its way out.
Naomi appears first, her arms crossed, and her face already set in that look—her classic What-did-you-do-wrong-now? look. It grates on me, every time.
“Where have you been?” she asks, her tone accusatory. “You’ve been gone for hours.”
I don’t have the energy for this. “I don’t owe you an explanation,” I snap, not bothering to make it polite. I turn back to the counter, peeling the cling film from the plate and reheating the meal. The microwave hums, loud in the quiet.
Sam appears just as the microwave dings. I don’t look at them when I speak. “I asked you to do one thing. One. Thing.” My voice is even, despite my brewing fury. “I asked you to give her food. But you didn’t. It’s not hard, so please. Please, can you help me?”
Sam scoffs, arms crossed. “She’s an adult. She can make her own food.”
I resist the urge to yell in her face, because as much as I want to —a nd I really want to—I’m really not in the mood for an argument. Struggling to keep my hands steady, and gripping the plate like it’s a lifeline, I take a breath. A long one. “She’s grieving, Sam. She needs our help.”
Naomi doesn’t miss a beat. “We have our own lives, Addie. She’s fine.”
Fine. I almost laugh at that. Instead, I turn to face them, my eyes burning, my voice sharper now. “Well, in that case, you can take care of yourselves. You’re the older ones, after all.”
I don’t wait for their responses. I don’t care to hear them. Not until they bother to do something useful around here.
***
Breathless and feeling incredibly foolish, I sprint through the hallways, my backpack bouncing against my back, my breath coming out in ragged gasps.
I fell asleep on the bus, and now I’m paying the price for my carelessness.
Late. Again. Stupid. Why can’t you just be on time for once? I scold myself silently.
Somehow, my steps quicken even more as I manoeuvre through the empty hallways.
I don’t think things can get any worse until I find myself colliding with someone, a girl who seems to materialize out of nowhere.
“Oh, I’m so sorry!” I splutter in a rush, immediately recognising her as Berlin’s sister, Paris Brooks.
She looks at me with wide, frightened eyes, freezing in place as if struck by fear.
I hesitate, feeling a pang of confusion.
“It’s Paris, right?” I ask, and Paris nods quickly, before she turns and darts away with astonishing speed.
I’m left standing there, baffled. What was that?
Am I scary now? Intimidating? Really? A furrow forms on my brow. Why was she so frightened?
But the realization of my lateness jolts me back into action. I sprint to the classroom and stumble through the door, breathless. The whispers start immediately—stifled laughter, side-eyes. I ignore them.
“Sorry I’m late, Mr. Anderson,” I pant. “I was just —”
He cuts me off with a raised hand. “On the contrary, Adeline, you’re right on time. For the test.”
Test? My stomach drops, and my eyes widen in shock. We weren’t told about a test. I glance at Kym, already flipping through her textbook, calm as ever. Of course she’s ready.
“Hey, Kym,” I whisper as I slide into my seat, still not recovered from the shock I’ve just experienced.
She doesn’t look up. Not even a flicker of acknowledgment.
“Um,” I try again, lowering my voice. “Did you know about the test?”
Finally, she glances at me, but her expression is blank. “No one did,” she replies curtly before dropping her gaze back to the page.
The silence hangs between us, and I feel an inexplicable need to fill it. The words tumble out before I can stop them.
“Do you think I’m intimidating?”
That gets her attention. She looks at me, blinking, like I just asked her if the sky is purple. Then, she snorts. “That’s funny.”
“I can be intimidating,” I grumble.
Her lips twitch, like she’s holding back a laugh. “Sure,” she says, her voice dripping with sarcasm, before turning back to her book.
Fine. Whatever.
I slump back in my chair, my hands covering my eyes, trying my best to accept the fact that nothing I can do now will change the fact that I’m going to fail.
Because let’s face it, I can barely focus on my feet right now.
How the hell am I supposed to focus on a test?
My eyes scan the room as I try to gather my thoughts.
The test papers are being handed out. My stomach tightens.
I just need to get through this. But my head is pounding, my body feels like it’s running on fumes, and I can feel my eyes getting heavier by the second.
Just rest your eyes for a second, I think.
When Mr. Anderson drops the test paper on my desk with a thud, I jolt awake.
Right. No time to waste. I blink at the questions. But the moment my vision clears and I see the first question, I know this is going to be a disaster.
***
I stumble through the lunchroom that seems even louder than usual, my hunger gnawing at my insides. I think about Rick’s coins in my pocket, change from the cab fare. It’s not much, but it’s something.
I spot Bea and Lilia waving from the line. “Addie! We saved you a spot!” Bea calls out.
“You okay?” Lilia asks, squinting. “Did you eat the school’s chicken or something?” she asks, making a face like she’s about to throw up at the thought of it. “It’s seriously, horrifyingly bad.”
“Uh, no. Thanks for the heads up though,” I say with a smile.
I eye the sandwich on the counter—simple, attainable. Maybe, just maybe, I can scrape enough together to buy it. As I inch closer to the cashier, my stress builds. The line moves quickly, and before I know it, it’s my turn to pay.
“Name, please?”
“Adeline Ross,” I say, hoping I don’t sound as nervous as I feel.
Her face lights up. “Oh! Free meal pass, right?”
I blink. “Uh, no, I don’t have one.”
She checks her list. “Actually, you do. It was updated yesterday.”
Lilia leans in, whispering loudly, “Who cares why? Free food is free food!”
I accept the tray, but unease settles in. Why would I have a meal pass? It makes no sense. “Did the school upgrade you to a free meal pass or something?” Bea asks as we walk to our table.
“Well, if they did, they didn’t tell me about it,” I say as we sit down.
Bea shrugs as she takes a bite of her apple. “Maybe the school did it after they heard what happened.”
I nod because it makes perfect sense. Maybe Mr. Ryder heard and felt bad for me enough that he decided to enable the free meal pass. If he’s as loyal to my father as he said he was. Or if he knew him at all.
I glance across the room. My eyes catch Kai and his friends—Will, Liam, and Christian—all laughing at something I can’t hear. My gaze lingers on them for a moment.
It was updated yesterday.
Addie
Three years ago
The final bell rings and relief washes over me as I gather my things.
The end of school has become the best part of it, it seems. Away from the mean glares, and bored people who spend their time patronising others.
I’ve had enough of them all. All I want now is to get home as quickly as possible, where a comforting hot chocolate with an extra spoon of sugar awaits me.