Page 79 of No Place Like Home

“So why are we all here?” I questioned as I made my way to the other end of the room.

My skin was itchy all of a sudden. Hives maybe?

“To eat some food. Why else?” Mr. Carson said.

That man. If anyone was clueless, it was him.

“Let’s go outside. The weather is nice today.”

I took hold of Rosie’s hand without looking at anyone and led her outside. I proceeded to sit at the end of the table and sat Rosie next to me.

“So, how’s school?” I asked my sister as I stared intently at her so my eyes wouldn't wander.

“Are you okay, Jess? You’re acting a little weird.”

Shit. Even my sister had noticed.

This was bad. I need to pull myself together. I wasnota bimbo. As soon as I thought the words, Quincy chose that moment to sit across from me. There were so many chairs. Why would he do this to me?

My shoulders dropped in resignation. I took a deep breath and compartmentalized. Once I looked up again, I adopted the same blank look everyone else had.

“So, where’s Simba?” I asked Quincy because I couldn’t keep ignoring him.

“You miss him?” He smiled, and his eyes sparkled.

“No,” I lied.

His grin got bigger.

Mr. and Mrs. Carson brought out all of the food. People talked, and surprisingly it wasn’t awkward. The Carsons’ backyard was nice. It had come a long way since the first time I’d come here. The greenhouse Pete had built Cynthia was still going strong; it looked better than before. And the hole that Blake had once made was now an actual pool.

Blake wanted to finish what he’d started, and it had turned into a family project because no one trusted that Blake wouldn’t make an even bigger mess.

After I had relaxed enough, I enjoyed the meal and the people. It was hard not to laugh when you came over to the Carsons’ house. They were all fucking nuts.

“So, what’s your next plan?” Mr. Carson casually asked Quincy.

The table went quiet; I peeked at him through my lashes. I bet this was a hard subject for him, and I knew Mr. Carson didn’t do it to be malicious.

Quincy cleared his throat. “I’m going to start rehab on my leg and take it from there.”

Everyone smiled at Quincy, and I couldn’t help doing it myself. Our gazes locked, and I felt a sudden burst of shyness by the way he was looking at me.

“Would you look at the time?” I said as I brought my wrist to my hand even though there wasn’t a fucking watch on it. “It’s late, and I have school in the morning.”

My sister whined at the mention of this fact. I patted her head, and she turned to glare at me. I was hit with a sudden wave of nostalgia. Sometimes I still saw her as a baby, the little girl that used to be mine. Blinking back tears, I tipped my chin up and said goodbye to everyone.

“Hold up, Jess!” Quincy yelled after me.

Shit.

I didn’t slow much until I was out of the house. Only then did I turn around. When he closed the door, I finally yelled at him what I had been holding back since he’d showed up.

“What the hell were you doing here?!”

He shook his head and rolled his eyes. “You should be thanking me. I made myself sound pathetic for you.”

“And I thank you,” I replied.

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