Page 2 of The Hallows Boys

His question slices through me, making me cry out. I can't control the sobs now; they come over and over, rocking my body so hard that I fall onto the back of the couch.

“Sage, what is it?” My uncle asks through the phone. I can hear him moving around, like he’s walking somewhere.

I gasp down air, trying to calm myself down. “It’s Mom and Dad.”

My tears soak my phone, and I can't find it in myself to care. My uncle speaks again. “What about them?”

“They’re dead,” I breathe, hearing the words leave my mouth for the first time. I scream at the top of my lungs as reality sinks in and grief takes over.

They’re dead. Dead.Dead.

ChapterOne

SAGE

Ieye the social worker, Paula, sitting across the coffee table from me, trying to do my best not to yell, but at her next words I want to beat her senseless.

“Your uncle rejected our request for placement. You’ll be moving to Georgia in a few days.”

“Georgia?!”I stand, squeezing my palms together to stop myself from launching at her. “What thefuckis in Georgia?!”

She crosses her hands in her lap. “Your grandmother lives in Georgia, Sage.”

“I’ve never evenmether!” I snip. “You can’t just uproot me from my life and send me across the country. I have a life here, I have friends here, my school is here. I can find someone to stay with until graduation!”

She sighs, pity lining her features and sadness in her eyes. “I really am sorry, Sage, but that just isn’t how this works. Your next of kin is your grandmother, so that’s where the system says you’ll go. You’re more than welcome to move back here when you turn eighteen.”

I scoff, a humorless laugh rippling through me as I sit on the couch once more, burying my face in my hands. I press my palms against my eye sockets, trying to get the pounding in my skull to stop.

“I’ve been on my own for a month now,” I whisper without looking up from my palms. “It’s been going fine. I haven’t skipped school. I haven’t gotten into trouble. Just let me stay here,please.I turn eighteen in a few months… there has to be something you can do.”

I hear the social worker stand and walk toward me before she sits down next to me, putting a hand on my shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Sage. A girl your age shouldn’t have to deal with all of this pain so early in life.”

My shoulders shake as I start to cry, grief and misery filling me up and spilling over the edge. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

She rubs my back, attempting to soothe me, but that’s impossible. “Try to find something to look forward to. You never know what Blackmore might bring. You could end up loving it.”

I sniffle, finally lifting my head from my hands to look at her. “Blackmore?”

“That’s the town in Georgia you’ll be moving to.” She nods. “Seems like a quaint little town that will bring you some happiness. It’ll be nice for you to get to know your grandmother too.”

I shake my head a bit, still in denial, wiping the tears from my cheeks. “Right.”

Paula stands up, brushing her hands down the front of her black pants. “You’ll leave in three days. Would you like me to stay and help you pack?”

I don’t look at her. “No, I’d like to be alone.”

“Okay, Sage.” She walks around the table and picks up her purse. “I left my card on the counter in the kitchen, so please call me if you need anything. Otherwise, I’ll see you on Friday to head to the airport. Eight o’clock sharp.”

“Okay,” I whisper, listening to her walk out. Once I hear the front door close, my eyes fill with tears again, and I fall over on the couch to cry.Fuck my life.

* * *

After a painful goodbye to all my friends in L.A., and a night of tossing and turning that eventually just morphed into me scrolling the internet, I wake up with swollen eyes and a knot in my stomach.

I take a shower, get dressed, and don’t bother to put on any makeup. It’s all packed in my carry-on anyways, and digging through my belongings isn’t something I have the energy to do this morning.

The sun is shining, the crisp air from the October breeze making goosebumps pop up all over my skin when I finally step out my front door for the last time. I turn to look at my home, my eyes wet and blurry, and say a silent goodbye while Paula puts my suitcases in the back of her SUV.

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