Page 22 of Saving Tracey
They were friends. Friends joked around like this. It wasnormal.
Kaleb came into the room, pocketing his phone. "Lacie is coming over for dinner.”
Paul and Trevor groaned. I panicked a little. "Man, she's such a whiny little bitch. Why haven't you dumped her yet?" Trevor leaned his head back on the couch, his head surprisingly close to my leg.
Kaleb sent Trevor a scowl. "You know why."
"Just let her fucking do whatever she's stupid enough to do.”
This was the same girl that terrified me that day in the hallway. The one that I had to run to the safety of a classroom to get away from.
I jumped up, my entire body tensing when I heard the doorbell ring, knowing that it had to be Kaleb’s girlfriend on the other side of that door. Kaleb ignored it, his eyes locking onto mine. "Tracey, are you going to be okay? I swear, I will send her away the first stupid thing she says, okay?"
I nodded slowly. He sent me a small smile and went to the door when the bell rang again. Paul and Trevor both rolled their eyes at the same time and smiled at me as they got up from the floor. "Come on. Let's be the first bitches to get food." Paul barely got the words out before he sprinted from the room, heading for the kitchen.
"Not before me!" Krista screamed, running down the stairs.
"Hey, no fair! You can't push me out of the way!" Kaleb's littlest sister Emily shouted.
"Yes, I can, because I'm hungrier than you are!" I heard Paul shout back childishly.
"I'm so glad I'm not blood-related to him.” Trevor shook his head.
I raised my eyebrows at him in surprise. "Huh?"
They were related, but not blood-related?
Trevor stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans as he looked down at me with his dark, brooding eyes that had been drawing me in since the moment he stepped into this house. "Paul met me at school when I was thirteen, and he was worried about me.” Trevor shrugged. Dread curled in my stomach.Did he know what I was going through?“He told his parents about me, they called child protection services, and they gained custody of me."
"Why would he have been worried?" Trevor didn't act like someone that would cause worry in another person, especially not enough worry for child services to get involved.
Trevor sighed but gave me a small smile. "Tracey, you're not the only person who's been abused. Everyone at school knows what happened to you.” I swallowed vomit. Word certainly spread fast. I went from being the girl that didn’t exist to being the girl everyone knew about. “I knew who you were the moment I stepped into the house.” He ran his eyes over me. “Your bruises may be non-existent," how wrong he was. I was just covering them with make-up, "but I can easily tell you've been abused. I think Paul notices it, too, because there was once a point in my life when I acted exactly as you do." He shrugged. "You get through it though, and you come out stronger. This is only a period in your life, Tracey." His words planted a little seed of hope in my chest that my life may eventually get better.
That one day all of the pain, the nightmares, it may all go away.
But I couldn’t help but gape after him as he walked toward the kitchen.
Trevor was very attentive.
I heard a smack and then Paul's whine of pain. "Man, what'd you do that for?”
"Stop acting like a fucking lunatic."
"Don't use that language in my house!"
Kaleb came into the room holding hands with Lacie. I bit my lip and spun around, quickly walking to the kitchen, not trusting her.
She took safety away from me.
Kaleb was supposed to be my safety.
"Gosh, she could have said hi."
"Lacie, no rude comments or anything of the sense, understand?"
I didn't hear her reply because I entered the noisy kitchen. Trevor handed me a plate of baked chicken, yellow rice, and peas. "I made you a plate before Paul and Krista heaped their plates like the pigs they are.” Krista cut him a dirty look behind his back, making me giggle.
A grateful smile pulled at my lips. "Thanks."
