Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
Malcolm
The air was warm, thick with the scent of cut grass and the lingering heat of the afternoon sun.
The day was slipping away, shadows stretching longer with every passing minute, and somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew this was my last full day here.
Tomorrow, everything would change. Tomorrow, I’d wake up in a different house, with people who weren’t just temporary guardians, but parents.
I should have been inside, packing up the few belongings I had, mentally preparing for what came next. But instead, I was here—sneaking out with Summer for one last adventure, because if there was anyone who could make me forget about the weight pressing down on my chest, it was her.
She had shown up this morning like she hadn’t spent the last few days pretending things weren’t different, her usual smirk in place as she dangled two stolen sodas in front of me and said, “One last day of crime before you become a law-abiding rich kid?”
I rolled my eyes, but I followed her anyway.
We spent the day wandering the city, taking the long way to nowhere in particular, stopping at gas stations for snacks, daring each other to try the weirdest-flavored chips we could find.
She made me pay for everything, of course, shoving the receipt into my hand with a grin and saying, “Gotta get used to spending money, Mr. Future Millionaire.”
I didn’t correct her. I didn’t tell her that money didn’t make a home, that I wasn’t convinced I was really wanted yet.
Instead, I just walked beside her, taking it all in.
By the time the sun started to set, we had ended up at the park—the same one we had visited a dozen times before. The playground was mostly empty now, just a few kids still lingering, their laughter mixing with the distant hum of traffic.
We sat on one of the old wooden benches, our legs stretched out, a pile of junk food between us. The sky was orange and pink, and everything felt a little too quiet, a little too fragile, like we were standing at the edge of something neither of us wanted to name.
Summer popped a piece of candy into her mouth, chewing slowly before glancing at me. “This is weird.”
I looked at her. “What is?”
She gestured vaguely. “You. Leaving. Tomorrow. Feels weird.”
I nodded, peeling the wrapper off a candy bar. “Yeah.”
She let out a slow breath. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m super happy for you. You’re finally getting a family, a home, all that good stuff.”
I smirked. “You sound thrilled.”
She rolled her eyes. “I am thrilled, you idiot. But that doesn’t mean I have to like it.”
I didn’t have an answer for that, so I just looked down, pressing my thumb against the ridges of the candy wrapper.
After a few moments, she nudged me with her foot. “At least tell me they’re not shipping you off to some rich kid boarding school where you have to wear a tie every day.”
I huffed out a short laugh. “No tie. Just a normal school.”
She made a show of wiping her forehead in relief. “Oh, thank God. I was worried you’d come back wearing boat shoes and talking about the stock market.”
“I’ll be sure to start every conversation with ‘Ah yes, the economy.’”
She snorted. “If you do that, I swear I’ll block your number.”
I smirked, shaking my head. “No, you won’t.”
She sighed, leaning back against the bench. “Yeah, I won’t.”
The sky deepened, the orange fading into darker hues, and we sat there in silence, just existing in the same space, something we had always done so easily. But today, it felt different. It felt final.
After a moment, I exhaled and said, “Thank you, Summer.”
She frowned, turning to me. “For what?”
“For not treating me like I was broken.”
Her expression softened, and for a second, I saw something there—something unspoken, something I wasn’t sure either of us was ready to admit. She bumped her knee against mine. “You’re not broken, dummy.”
I let out a small breath, something that wasn’t quite a laugh but wasn’t nothing either.
She sat up straighter, tilting her head toward me. “Besides, even if you were, I’d be the best person to deal with it.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah?”
She grinned. “Yep. I’m an expert at dealing with difficult, broody creatures.”
I rolled my eyes. “I hate you.”
She gasped dramatically, pressing a hand to her chest. “Lies! You adore me.”
I didn’t answer, because she wasn’t wrong.
Instead, I reached out and took her hand.
She stilled immediately, her fingers twitching slightly against mine, but she didn’t pull away.
“I like you, Summer.”
She blinked, her breath catching just slightly. “I?—”
But I cut her off, smirking. “But I’ll say it properly when I see you again.”
She stared at me, her lips parted like she wanted to argue, but for once in her life, she had nothing to say.
Finally, she swallowed. “And when will that be?”
I stood, stretching my arms over my head, trying to ignore the way my chest felt too tight.
“When I’m the kind of man who deserves you.”
She just sat there, staring at me, and for the first time since I had met her, Summer Adkins was completely speechless.
I smirked, stepping back. “Try not to miss me too much, yeah?”
She let out a breath that sounded suspiciously close to a small, nervous laugh.
I turned and walked away, feeling her eyes on me the entire time.
And for the first time in my life, I let myself believe in something real.