Page 103 of Bending Under Pressure

We all grin at the same time. I can’t believe this is happening. I’ll finally be theirs. I am already, I know, but taking on their last name firmly plants me in this family.

“Then we’ll start on all the paperwork,” Dad says firmly. His eyes are a little misty, and I realize this means as much to them as it does to us.

“We’ll go to Mrs. Elsie’s for banana splits after dinner, so save room, boys,” Mom tells us, giving Dad a pointed look, making us laugh.

“I always have room for a banana split,” Dad boasts.

“This is really happening?” Cameron seems to be struggling to keep his cool, and I can’t blame him. With so many unknowns about his past, he’s desperate to have something like his last name come from people who love him. He wants something to seal him into this family, too.

“It’s really happening, son,” Dad confirms.

Cameron nods, but then stands. Dad barely has time to stand before Cam is hugging him. Pretty soon, we’re having one big family hug. Mom can’t hold back her tears any longer and I swear I see Cam quickly swipe one away. I can’t wait for all of us to have the same last name. Sure, I’ll still have a sister with a different last name, but this is different. These people are my family, and I can’t wait to be called Keelan Sanderson.

“Keelan, I wasn’t expecting you,” Mrs. Rita says when she opens the door.

“I know. I’m sorry for just showing up, but I was wondering if I could see Haley for a bit.” I’m practically bouncing on my toes; I’m so excited to tell her the news.

“Of course.”

“Glad to see you and Mr. Walter are feeling better,” I say as she moves aside for me to go in the house.

“Not as happy as we are,” she laughs. “She’s in her room, but I warn you. She’s irritated. It’s hard to read a paperback when you only have one good hand to use. We’ll probably have to get her an e-reader for Christmas. She’s been asking for one for a year already.”

I laugh. “I’ll cheer her up.”

She narrows her eyes at me. “Keep the door open.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I grin. Haley is indeed pouting when I enter her room. “Cheer up, Hales.”

“No. I’m going through reading withdrawals and can’t do anything about it!” She pauses as I sit next to her on the bed. “What are you doing here?”

“I hope you’re not too attached to calling me Keelan Moore.” Her brows pull together with confusion. “Mom and Dad are going to let Cam and me change our last names. I’m going to be Keelan Sanderson soon.” Though I’m not sure how soon. I don’t know how long it’ll take.

“Really? That’s great! I bet y’all are so excited. Keelan Sanderson,” she says, testing it out. “Do you think it’ll be hard to get used to it or answer to it?”

I shrug. “Probably not too hard. I mean I’m still Keelan. I don’t care either way. I’m too happy about it. I wish we could go up the water tower.” I lean over to kiss her softly, but I’m quick about it. I don’t want to get caught.

She smiles. “Yeah, I don’t think that’ll happen anytime soon. Are you going to hang out for a while?”

“If you want me to.” I glance at the book on her nightstand. There’s a bare-chested, muscular man on the cover. “Is this what you were going to read?”

“Yeah.”

I flip it open to a random page. My mouth drops because I’ve landed in the middle of a sex scene. “This is porn, Hales! I didn’t know you read this kind of stuff.”

She snatches the book from me. “It is not. It’s just romance. If you’re going to make fun of me, you can leave.”

“I won’t. Want me to read it to you? Or hold it, so you can read?”

The offer is tempting to her, I can tell by how she keeps glancing back and forth between the book and me. “Won’t that be boring?”

It probably will be, but I want to spend time with her and I don’t have anything better to do. This surely has to have a positive effect on her, too. I’d rather play video games or go racing than read, but no one wants to race after what happened with Haley, even though she was driving alone.

“Hanging out with you is all I want to do, Hales. If you want to read, then I can hold the book for you.” It’ll be interesting to see just what she is reading, too.

“No, that’s okay,” she answers, her cheeks turning a shade of red. She must not want me to see just how dirty the book must be. “We can watch a movie with Mom and Walter though.” We do just that.

Soon, I’ll be Keelan Sanderson. We’ll hopefully continue on to the championship and win. I’ll still have a sister and an aunt. Maybe Natalie and I will eventually have a better relationship, but it’ll be okay if we don’t. I feel like I can breathe a little easier now, even with all that pressure sitting on my chest. My life has balanced back out and it feels stable again, like it’s easier for me to tackle. But when it gets hard, I’ll have Haley, my parents, Cameron, and maybe even Keira and Frances to help me through it.

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