My dad glances at me as he stops at a red light. “Why do I get the feeling it’s more than that?”
“It’s not. I just don’t like him.” I say it casually so he doesn’t suspect anything.
When Briggs made it his mission to bully me a few years ago, I decided to hide it from my dad, and I’m going to do the same now. He can’t do anything about it, so why tell him?
The light turns green, and he continues down the road. “I heard the Kingsley kid got in trouble at the docks last weekend.”
“You mean Finn, or his older brother?”
“Finn, the younger one. I heard the Hensons’ pool guy talking about it when I was doing their lawn last week.”
“What’d he get in trouble for?”
“He was searching through some boats last Friday night. One of the dock guys saw him and called it in. The cops said nothing was missing but I’m thinking he had to be looking for something. Why else would he be breaking into boats?”
“Did he get arrested?”
“He got off with a warning.”
“How did the Hensons’ pool guy find out about this?”
“His brother works down at the docks. He was working that night. He saw the police arrive and saw them take Finn from one of the boats. Sounds like he was pretty drunk, or maybe he was on drugs.”
“Maybe that’s what he was looking for,” I say, thinking about the drugs in my locker. Did Finn put them there? Were they his? Why would he search a boat for drugs when he could just buy them?
“You stay away from that boy,” my dad says as he pulls into our driveway. “He’s nothing but trouble.”
“Trust me, I have no plans to go anywhere near Finn Kingsley. Or Briggs Chadwick. Or Parker Sterling. I can’t stand those guys. I’m counting the days until I graduate and never have to see them again.”
My dad parks the truck and shuts off the engine, then turns to me, smiling. “Speaking of graduation, I have a surprise for you.”
“What is it?”
“I’m flying your grandparents out here.”
“Dad, they can’t. It’s not good for Grandpa.”
My grandparents live in Florida, and my grandpa gets really bad leg cramps when he can’t stretch his legs. In those tiny plane seats, he won’t be able to move and it’s a really long flight.
“I’m flying them first class.” My dad beams. “I’ve been saving for this for months. I was going to wait to tell you, but I couldn’t keep it a secret anymore. My little girl is graduating and I want you to have your grandparents here.” His smile drops. “Your mother would’ve wanted that too.”
He always gets sad when he talks about her, even all these years later. And when special events come around, like my birthday or holidays or my upcoming graduation, he gets even sadder, wishing she were here to celebrate with us.
“Did you talk to Grandma about this?”
He nods. “I did, and they’re thrilled. Your grandfather even talked to his doctor and got the okay. First class will give him more room to move around and he’ll be able to get up if he needs to.”
First class must’ve cost my dad a fortune. That’s money he could’ve put into the business, or into buying something for himself, which he never does. I wish he’d do less for me and more for himself, but he won’t.
I reach over and hug him. “Thanks, Dad.”
“Oh, and I might’ve told them the surprise.”
I pull back, looking at him. “What surprise?”
“About you being valedictorian, not that they didn’t already assume you would be, but I told them anyway. I hope that’s okay.”
“Um, yeah.” I turn and open my door.
