Page 52 of Don't Let Me Go
As we were settling in, I remembered the eel pie I had in my pocket and I asked the boy if he was hungry. The boy nodded, so I broke the pie in two and gave him half. He devoured it in one bite, and once again I found I couldn’t stop myself from smiling.
I know I said you can’t depend on other people. And I stand by that. Even so, it occurred to me under the arch that there might be worse things in this world than having someone depend on you.
“You got a name?” I asked as the first stars started to appear in the night sky.
Wiping the crumbs off his mouth, he answered, “Charlie.”
That was six years ago, and Charlie and me have been together ever since. He still follows me wherever I go. Still refuses to sleep unless he’s by my side. Still looks at me like he’d be lost without me.
And I suppose, if I’m honest, I’d be lost without him.
I asked him once, not too long ago, why he’d been so keen to follow me home that day he spotted me at the market. He said he didn’t know. Just that he’d had “a feeling.”
I asked him what kind of feeling, and he said, “Like we belong together.”
Orlando, Florida
(The Present)
Chapter 20
Jackson
“He’s awake!”
I can hear the relief in Charlie’s voice, but I’m not sure who he’s talking to. My head feels like it’s full of wet cement. It’s a struggle to even open my eyes. And when I do, the world is upside down.
“Jackson, are you all right?”
Jackson? Why’s he calling me Jackson? And why am I on the floor?
I don’t recognize this room. Are we in an air-raid shelter? Did something happen?
Charlie slips his hand into mine, and his green eyes stare down at me, full of tender concern. Despite my confusion, I can’t help smiling. Those eyes always make me smile.
“Charlie,” I murmur.
Charlie frowns. “Jackson, it’s me.Riley.”
The name is a slap. It knocks the drowsiness from my brain. And everything comes into focus.
“Riley?” I hear myself say.
Right. Shit. Of course. He’s Riley. And I’m Jackson. And we’re in Orlando. Not London. London was?.?.?.?a dream? Right. Yeah. A dream. And now I’m awake.
Aren’t I?
Shaking the uncertainty from my head, I force myself to concentrate.
I’m in Heartbeats. On the floor. I don’t know how I got here, but there’s a crowd gathered around me. Duy, Tala, Audrey, and severalcurious drag queens are staring down at me with bated breath like I’m some sort of sideshow attraction.
“What happened?” I ask.
“You fainted,” Duy, Tala, and Audrey answer in unison.
“I what?”
“You passed out,” Riley explains, still looking concerned. “In the middle of my song. You don’t remember?”
