Page 94 of Pride High

“I don’t know,” Silvia said. “But this has to stop. Do you hear me?”

Her brother scowled. “Peter keeps taking my Turtles! And now I can’t find Mikey’s nunchucks either!”

“Forget your stupid toys!” Silvia snarled. She clamped her lips together and listened. She could hear the television in the other room. Good. She didn’t want to be overheard. Silvia had always known the time would come when she’d need to have this talk with her brother. Although she had hoped to wait until he was older. She got down on her knees, grabbed Hugo’s shoulders,and looked him in the eye. “You can’t get in trouble. Ever again,” she said, her chin quivering. “Or they’ll take Mom and Dad away from us.”

“What?” her brother said, looking scared. “Nuh-uh!”

“I mean it!” Silvia said. “We’re not like other families because our mom and dad are from so far away. They only get to stay here if everyone behaves. Like when you go to someone else’s house, you have to follow their rules or they’ll ask you to leave. Right?”

Hugo nodded while on the verge of tears.

“That’s why you can’t get in trouble from now on.Ever. And you can’t talk about this to anyone. It has to stay a secret.”

“Why?”

“Because mean people might use it against us. Jerks like Pete and his family. We have to keep Mom and Dad safe from them, and that means being good. All the time.”

“But he took my—”

“I know. And it sucks. You shouldn’t let people hurt you. It’s okay to tell your teacher when something like that happens. But you don’t tell her about Mom and Dad. Do you understand?”

Hugo stared at her.

Silvia searched his eyes for comprehension. “What happens the next time someone steals from you?”

“I tell Mrs. Drexel.”

“Good! What if Pete pushes you tomorrow?”

Hugo furrowed his brow. But he gave the right answer. “Mrs. Drexel.”

“That’s right.” Silvia wanted to reassure him that their mom and dad wouldn’t really be taken away, or that it was unlikely, but she couldn’t afford to. He might not be old enough to understand the complexities of the situation, but it was time for him to start learning the rules. The same ones that she’d been living by for most of her life. But at least she could hug Hugo close and say how much she loved him, which is exactly what Silvia did.

Within minutes, he was back to playing on his bed, as if the conversation had never occurred. She would remind him though. Often enough that he wouldn’t forget.

Normally around this time, she would help him get ready for bed, but she still had another call to make. She wasn’t concernedabout how late it was. Omar had reminded her repeatedly that he had a private line and that she could always call. Silvia dialed his number and he answered like he always did.

“Hey.”

“Hi,” she replied.

“Silvia! Hey, babe! I was hoping you’d call tonight.”

“How did you get my number?” she shot back, not hiding her disapproval.

“Oh. I hooked up my parents’ caller ID box to my phone awhile back. I know!” he added quickly. “You’re very private or whatever. I just wanted it though. You’re my girlfriend. It’s weird to not have your number. What if there was an emergency?”

She pictured him at the hospital, on the verge of death, asking with his last breath for the nurse to call her. That wasn’t going to happen. But it was a very Omar thing to do. “So what’s the emergency?” she demanded.

“Err… Less of an emergency. More of a really great idea. I hope. Remember when we were talking about family camping trips?”

“Yes.” Whenever her family took a vacation, it was usually a road trip to another state and a pitched tent in a national park.

“There’s this great pond on the west side of town that not many people know about. I thought we could… Do you like to fish?”

“I love it,” she said, sitting upright.

“Really? That’s awesome!”

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