Page 10 of The Run Home
I had two dozen each of peanut butter cookies, brownies, chocolate chip cookies, lemon bars, and gingersnaps by the time I heard the deep rumble of the truck next door leave the property. Not that I’d admit it to anyone, but I may have snuck around my house in a half crouch, peeking out the windows to make sure Boon had left his mom’s house. Then I grabbed the plate of cookies, put a sheet of tinfoil over it, and stepped out my front door.
A brown paper lunch bag sat on my welcome mat, right on top of the swirly writing that announcedScience Nerd. I stooped and snatched it up, unrolling the top and peering inside to find my glasses. I sucked in a quick inhale. I wondered where they went. I had to get out another pair last night when I tried to read to settle my brain. They must have fallen off my head when I took a tumble yesterday.
And Boon must have found them, cleaned them off, and brought them back.
I turned in a circle, unsure what the hell I was going to do about that. It was out of character for him to do something nice for me. Had I actually hit my head yesterday? Was I somehow living in an alternate universe where Boon thought about someone other than himself? It was discombobulating to say the least.
Putting my glasses on the kitchen counter, I went back outside, headed for Gigi’s. She’d been so kind to me when my parents passed so quickly after each other, coming over with food and letting me cry on her shoulder. Her sons were little shits, but I love Gigi.
She answered my knock at the door, a big grin on her face. “Come in, come in, Shae. How are you?”
I handed her the plate of cookies as I walked inside. She hummed as she lifted it to her nose and took a whiff. “I’m good, thanks. I’ve been baking, and I can’t possibly eat them all. Thought you might like some.”
“Oh, gosh, yes. My granddaughter is here to help eat these. What great timing! Do you mind if I introduce the two of you?” Gigi leaned in closer, her voice dropping. “She starts at the high school on Monday and she keeps things close to the vest, but she has to be nervous, you know?”
My heart lurched, thinking about those tumultuous teenage years. Starting a new school in the middle of senior year couldn’t be easy. “Of course. I’d love to meet her.”
Gigi hollered up the stairs and soon there was the sound of bare feet plopping down the stairs and music coming from a cell phone. Gigi’s granddaughter rounded the corner at the bottom of the stairs and finally lifted her head. She hit the pause button on her phone and tucked it in her jeans pocket.
“Yeah, Gigi?”
Gigi put her arm around her and brought her over. “I’d like you to meet our next-door neighbor, Ms. Fletcher. She’s alsoa science teacher over at the high school. Ms. Fletcher, this is Kinsley Wolfe.”
We shook hands, and I had to hand it to Kinsley. She kept eye contact the whole time, even if she did look like someone kicked her puppy. “Hi, Kinsley. Maybe some cookies will help you forget about Monday?”
Her lips quirked into a ghost of a smile. “Not sure even cookies can do that.” Her voice was soft and shy.
“Yeah, sugar can do a lot, but a new high school is a big deal. Can I answer any questions? Tell you anything about it that might make you feel more comfortable?”
Gigi waved us to the couch and we all sat down. Gigi passed the plate around and we all bonded over the sweet treats.
“I guess I’m mostly worried that everyone knows each other and I’ll stick out,” Kinsley finally said with a mouth full of brownie.
“Can I be honest?” I leaned forward as she nodded. “You are going to stick out. It’s a fact, so instead of panicking over whether it’s going to happen or not, I think you should expect it and have a plan on what to do when it happens.”
Kinsley stared at me for a few seconds, and I feared I was too blunt. Then she burst into a grin and tucked her leg under her, getting comfortable in the crook of the couch. “Okay. So what’s my plan?”
“I think it starts with the perfect outfit. From there, we work on a friendly but confident smile. Have you heard the phrase fake it ’til you make it?”
Kinsley nodded. “Yeah, that’s what I’ve been doing for the last week.”
I didn’t touch that comment with a ten-foot pole. Her relationship with her dad or her move here was none of my business, but if I could make her feel more comfortable at school, I could at least take one worry off her plate.
“Well, get ready to use that phrase some more. Let’s role-play.” I stood, twirling my auburn hair around my finger, my hip popped out to the side. “Hey. You new here?” I gave her a casual head bob that all the kids did instead of saying hello these days.
Kinsley cracked up, but then cleared her expression. She rolled back her shoulders and pasted on a calm smile. “Yep! I’m Kinsley.” She popped the p, sounding just like every teen that came through my classroom door.
I sank onto the couch. “That’s perfection. Girl, you got this.”
Kinsley’s warm smile melted my heart. I knew what it was like to feel like the odd woman out. To feel like you didn’t fit in with the kids around you. High school had been hard for me. If I could make it just a tiny bit easier for other teenagers, I felt like I was making a difference.
“There. Aren’t you less nervous already?” Gigi said, beaming from her leather recliner.
The back door banged open and Boon strolled into the living room, taking all the oxygen with him. “Wait, you’re nervous, Kinsley? I thought you said you didn’t care?”
Kinsley huffed, rolled her eyes, and turned to me. “Nice meeting you, Ms. Fletcher. See you Monday.” Then she ran up the stairs to her room without another word. The door slammed shut and all three of us winced.
Boon turned to Gigi, who glared at him. Then he turned to me. “What did I say?”
