Page 11 of Bucked By Love

Daddy taught me never to pull my punches. I hear a snap.

Loren falls over, clutching his nose and howling.

I take my chance and escape, pushing past him and rushing out of his room. The buckle bites into my pocket, my stolen reminder that this was worth it.

8

CLAIRE

Ifidget all throughout Sunday service.

Riley doesn’t sit behind me anymore. I haven’t felt his hands in my hair since his parents passed away. He lives with his grandmother and grandfather now. His grandfather is in a wheelchair, so they have to sit in the back pew.

My hair goes un-braided these days.

For once, I don’t slouch. Not for any of it. My heart is pounding too hard in my chest, keeping me alert. When service ends, I drag my feet about leaving.

“Can I pray?” I ask Daddy.

He blinks at me. “What?”

“I need a minute. To pray.”

He looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. But then he turns away. “I’ll be in the car. Don’t take long.”

“I’ll take as long as God requires of me,” I tell him, offering the prettiest smile.

He doesn’t find that even slightly amusing.

Daddy and the rest of the congregation leave. The Ransoms are the last to go. I watch as Riley helps the older man into the chair.

I approach behind him. I take the present out of my pocket. I’m shaking, and I don’t know how to stop it.

I clear my throat. “Hi.”

Riley looks at me. “Hi.”

His expression is guarded.

“I’m—”

“Sorry about my parents?” His tone is clipped. His spreads his hands wide, stopping me in my tracks. “Yeah, I’ve heard that one before. But who cares, right? They were trash and trash sinks in this town.”

His tone is thick and bitter. People have been unkind, and it’s wearing on him.

I hold out the present. I put the buckle in a box and carefully wrapped it with red and gold paper. “I broke a boy’s nose for this,” I tell him. “You’re welcome.”

Riley accepts the gift. He stares at it, dumbfounded, as though he doesn’t know what to do with it.

I don’t wait around to find out. I leave the church quickly, tucking away into the safety of Daddy’s black car.

When I look through the tinted windows towards the church, I can see Riley still staring into the gift, as though it holds some deep, mystical meaning.

9

CLAIRE

Time runs away from me.

---