Page 38 of Waking Olivia

Once again that night, Olivia picks at her food, pushing it around her plate as if that’s going to convince anyone over the age of five that she’s actually eaten.

“You aren’t eating much,” my mother frets. “Is everything okay?”

“It’s delicious,” Olivia says. For whatever reason, that hostility that seems to mark Olivia’s every interaction is completely absent when she deals with my mom. “I’m just nervous about tomorrow.”

"There's nothing to be nervous about, honey," my mother soothes. "You go out and run your own race, and what happens, happens."

"That's not the way the rest of the team sees it," Olivia says. "They’re looking at me like I'm about to cure cancer."

"You don't need to worry about what they think or want. Tell them if they're so desperate to go to regionals, then they should run faster."

"That's awesome, Mom," I sigh. "That's just what Olivia needs, advice on standing up for herself. Maybe you can teach her some new fighting techniques next."

My mother scowls at me but Olivia’s mouth twitches with the desire to laugh.

"Are your parents coming to the meet?" my mother asks her.

Olivia grows wary. "Uh, no, we aren't close."

I look over at her. "I thought you said they were traveling."

“Yes, and their travel plans don't include a visit to me."

It’s a lie, and now both of us know it.

That night, while Olivia is in the shower, my mother calls to me from the porch. “What was that today?” she asks. “The thing with Brendan.”

It’s an effort to make my voice sound neutral. “You saw the way he was looking at her.”

“She’s a beautiful girl, Will. I imagine that’s how most men look at her.”

“He wasn’t just looking, though. You heard him. He was gonna change his plans so he could sit here and hit on her all night.”

She sighs. “I don’t see the harm. That’s just Brendan being Brendan.”

“Well, he can go ‘be Brendan’ around some other girl. Olivia doesn’t need that shit. She has enough going on right now without adding him to the mix.”

My mother opens her mouth as if to argue, but then leans her head back and closes her eyes. “Maybe it’s time you told Peter what’s going on with her.”

“I can’t, Mom. If Peter knows, then the school is liable if something happens to her. They’ll kick her off the team.”

“It just seems like this is too much for you to deal with.”

“I don’t know why you’d say that. I was able to stop her last weekend. I’ll be able to stop her tonight.”

She stands and kisses my cheek. “Honey,” she says, turning to go inside, “I think we both know I’m not talking about the running.”

28

Olivia

When Will wakesme up the next morning, he can’t quite seem to meet my eye. It’s almost as if he’s scared of me. “Fuck,” I sigh. “Something bad must have happened last night. What did I do?”

“Nothing,” he replies. “I caught you before you even made it to the door.” Even as he says it, though, there’s something muted, reserved in his tone.

“And that’s all?” I ask.

“That’s all.”

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