This was fine.
His mom closed the apartment door softly when she came back in. “It’s only six,” she muttered. He watched her glance around as if she’d lost something. “We need to have dinner still. I don’t think I can cook. Pizza?”
“Yeah.”
“All right.” She smiled tiredly, her eyes puffy and pulling down at the edges like they couldn’t hold themselves up anymore. “Hey, you know what? There’s some good news too. I got a promotion today.”
“You did?” Everett asked in shock.
“Yeah. You’re looking at the new regional manager of Neighborhood Storage District Three.”
“Whoa. That’s cool.”
“You know what the coolest part is? We can live anywhere. Well, anywhere in the district. So we have some big decisions to make, you and I. We can look online tonight if you want. See what kind of houses are out there for rent.”
“Oh. Wow. We’re moving out of here?” He glanced at the tiny living room. “Cool. Hey, can I bring Shadow?”
He didn’t know why, but her eyes filled with tears at that. “Yes, sweetie, you can bring Shadow. We’ll find a house that allows pets, okay?”
“Thanks, Mom.”
“A boy should have a pet,” she murmured. “I’ll order the pizza, and then I have to do a little work. Go ahead and do your homework. Tomorrow, we’ll . . .” She waved a choppy hand. “Figure out everything else, all right?”
Everett nodded. After hesitating to see if they were really done, he went to his room, closing his door softly behind him. He’d noticed her tablet still on the floor beneath his bed. She hadn’t seen it or had forgotten it, and thank God for that.
Shadow was lying on the floor, cleaning her paws, and Everett hunkered back down next to her, relieved to be alone. Because he had to fix something. Or maybe it was something more like pulling off a Band-Aid. He didn’t want to do it, but he had to.
For once when he logged in, his dad was actually waiting.
LM! You there? Are we set for tomorrow?
He’d sent it fifteen minutes earlier, and he was still logged on.
For a moment Everett imagined what he might say. Imagined he could meet his dad a little later, even if his mom dropped him off. He could skip out during PE or lunch hour. Meet his dad at the park and spend some time with him before admitting he didn’t actually have the notebook. He could see him, at least. Remember what his face looked like.
Sorry, he typed instead. I was wrong. It was just some kind of calendar book for Mom’s work. I don’t know where your notebook is.
There was no response, not for a long time. Everett hung his head, so tired of trying to figure out what to say to who and how they might respond. Why couldn’t he just have a dad who’d do the right thing no matter what? Wasn’t that what dads were supposed to do?
Finally a bubble popped up. Oh. That’s bad news. I really need that, can you keep looking?
Well, at least he wasn’t angry. Yeah I guess. I pretty much looked everywhere but maybe you can check back once a week or something just in case.
Sure. Of course. You’re positive it’s not the right one?
100% And I can’t look more this week bcuz I’m grounded & don’t need more trouble. Maybe I’ll look more later. Sorry Dad.
When he felt a tickle, Everett wiped his cheek and realized he was crying. Last night when he was falling asleep, Everett had imagined seeing his dad. He’d imagined they might go away together. Not tomorrow, but sometime. A summer trip to Mexico or something. They could stay at the beach. Have adventures. Be a family just for a little while. He didn’t want to leave his mom, but he wanted Dad too, and for a couple of days, it had felt possible.
But that had been imagination, and this was reality. This was goodbye. For now.
A window popped up. And it didn’t say goodbye. Instead it said, Grounded, huh? Is everything okay? You want to tell me about it?
Surprised, Everett stared for a full minute, wondering if it was a trick. But if it was, he could be ready for it, right? And if it wasn’t . . .
He shot a worried glance at the door. Then he started typing. Well, I saw something weird in one of the lockers a week ago . . .
CHAPTER 31
Lily had been exhausted and gritty-eyed by 7:00 p.m., but somehow she’d managed to stay awake until midnight, waiting for a response from Mendelson.
She’d tried calling him before dinner, but he hadn’t answered, so she’d texted a message. I believe you are right about Jones. If he’s still in town, he will be near the school at 8AM tomorrow. That’s all I know.