TheLord’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the dwelling of the righteous. Toward the scorners he is scornful, but to the humble he gives favor. The wise will inherit honor, but fools get disgrace.
I couldn’t rememberthe chapter and verse, so I left that off. Knowing he wouldn’t reply, I locked the screen as a tear slid down my face. I didn’t know if I was crying because I felt weightless or because I was beginning to hate Shio’s father with everything in me.
Lighthearted
“P issss cute, Pearla!”
I was lying on my side at the door so that I had a clear view of Pearla through the slot, who was also on her side with her eyes locked on mine. She pulled her phone back after showing me a picture of P. He appeared to be in a tuxedo at some sort of formal event, but he was handsome either way.
“Yeah… I couldn’t find any pictures of him online. This came from Jisei’s photo album from the wedding last year. He’s worse than Grind with this no digital footprint mess,” she mumbled the last sentence, and as soon as it escaped her lips, the amusement left.
“You still care deeply for Grind.”
Pearla rolled her eyes and looked off past me. It wasn’t much she could see from our position, just as it wasn’t much I could see outside of her face, but she kept her eyes away from mine for a beat.
“I don’t want to.”
“But you do.”
“He doesn’t deserve it.”
Pulling my knees to my chest, I pressed my face into them. “A lot of people don’t deserve things, Pearla. That doesn’t stop them from getting them. You can’t just turn your feelings off.”
“I wish I could.”
So do I.
“So what now?” I asked.
Pearla had been excited about P. He’d been upstairs, apparently, along with another friend of Italian’s for the many days I’d been here. I’d even heard them a time or two somewheredown here playing dice, but the slot was never opened when they were down here. He looked like a nice boy, which would pair perfectly with Pearla because she was a nice girl.
“I don’t know… I don’t want to move fast. Both of us are healing. He had a girlfriend. I had a… uh… Grind. But he’s cool. And he got money.” She giggled.
“You and Mahzeyah with the ‘he got money’ about these boys. Like you all don’t come from money.” I giggled.
“I don’t come from money. You wouldn’t believe it by looking at me, but this time last year, my sister was struggling to make my payments for my braces. Struggling to keep me at my school. Nel, Rio, my dad, my brother… They were all heaven-sent. They say a lot can happen in a year, and while the saying is one we sometimes brush over, I know for a fact it is true.”
“I’m so sorry you went through that… Not having money to prosper.”
Pearla had told me every detail of the shooting that had Grind in a coma, and my heart went out to her. In turn, I told her about the shootout Shio and I had been in. We exchanged a secret for a secret, and although I shouldn’t have been telling that to a teenager, I wanted her to feel comfortable talking to me.
“You really like Shio.”
“Si.” The admission hurt. It was the only thing about me hurting today.
“I know you think you’re not good enough, Solana, but you are. My nephew, Neltz, is a really good judge of character. He likes you. But, then again, he liked Grind too. Ugggh! I have to stop saying his name.”
“It’s okay to say his name. It’s okay to love him, Pearla.”
“I don’t want to love him, though,” she whispered.
“I know…”
She shook her head and turned onto her back. I was now looking at her side profile as she looked at what I figured was the ceiling.
“You’re kind. Patient. Understanding. You’re a good listener, and you’re not judgmental. I know it has to be hard being here, in a whole other country, eating our foods and hearing our slang. Then, you’re locked in a room and battling an addiction, and we come down here every day bothering you.”
“You’re not bothering me. I welcome the distraction, and I enjoy all of you.”
