Page 24 of Sincerely, Your Enemy

He shrugs it off. “Doesn’t matter.”

I move closer to him, staring him dead in the eye to make sure my words are registering.

“Look, you don’t like talking about personal shit, I get it. But Ihatewasting my time, so either you tell me and we find a way to move past it, or our little arrangement is over.”

He seems to weigh his options.

Then, a heavy sigh leaves his mouth. “It’s my sister. She might be getting kicked out of school.”

Now we’re getting somewhere.

I grab two glasses out of the kitchen cupboard. “You mean the girl I saw at your house?”

He gives a small nod, leaning against the kitchen counter as he watches me open the fridge and pull out the jug of lemonade I made yesterday.

“What’d she do?” I try another question.

He scoffs. “What didn’t she do? She’s skipping classes, lying to me, hanging out with low-life losers. She’s been like this since my mom went away…” He stops himself, and I get the sense that he’s said too much. “…for work.”

I have a sneaking suspicion that last part isn’t true, but I don’t mention it, nodding along to his story.

“I don’t know how to handle this. I’m not equipped to be a fucking parent,” he adds.

Been there.

When I first became my siblings’ guardian, all I did was doubt myself.

Hell, I still do.

I’ve just gotten better at pretending.

“What about your dad? Can’t he help?” I ask.

His features twitch with irritation. “Bastard left when I was young. We never heard from him again.”

Ah. That explains his reaction earlier. His dad didn’t just leave his mom. He left everyone.

“That sucks, I’m sorry.”

My answer makes him cringe. “Don’t be. He was a deadbeat anyway.”

I nod, pouring lemonade into his glass. I’ve just handed it to him when he asks, “So… you ready for your date tomorrow?”

“I guess,” I lie.

“Where’s he taking you?”

I take a sip of lemonade. “We’re going for coffee.”

He makes a face.

I narrow my eyes. “What? What’s wrong with a coffee date?”

He plops down onto one of the chairs around my dining table. “Nothing. It’s just… low effort.”

I raise an eyebrow. “And why is that?”

“It’s the date you go on when you’re not sure you actually like the person enough to want to have a full meal with them, aka the date of choice for people you’ve never met before. Online dating and shit. Not for people you’ve met in person. You should know if you’re into them already.”

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