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“Do you want me to come with you? I’m not a good moderator, but I can kick you in the butt if you start falling back into old patterns again.”

A stifled laugh escapes me. “You would do that?”

“If you want me to,” he replies surprisingly gently.

I don’t think about it, I just answer. “Yes.”

“Okay. Then let’s do it.”

“Thanks, Jase. That’s . . . nice of you.”

“I have my moments,” he jokes, trying to lighten the mood between us. But he quickly becomes serious again. “About Thanksgiving . . . if you don’t want to go to Mom and Dad’s, Zoe said we can celebrate with her family instead.”

I am stunned into silence. My eyes fill with tears. “Really?”

“Only if you want to. You don’t have to, of course.”

“She doesn’t even know me.”

“Yes, but—” Jase makes a noise of protest, and suddenly there is another, much brighter voice on the phone.

“You’re welcome to come stay with us, Lia,” Zoe says. “My parents definitely wouldn’t mind, and neither would my brother. And yes, we don’t know each other. But you’re Jase’s sister, and after everything that’s happened . . . You don’t have to spend the holidays alone if you don’t want to.”

“Thank you,” I manage to say, choked up. I’m so overwhelmed that I don’t know what else to say.

“You’re welcome.” I can hear her smiling. “And now I’ll give Jase back to you. Sorry for interrupting.” There are soft voices as the two of them say something I don’t understand, then Jase is back on the line.

“Like I said, you’re welcome to come with us to Zoe’s family, but if you don’t want to, that’s okay too. And if you want to celebrate with Mom and Dad, that’s also fine. And if you want me to be there, I’ll come with you. If that’s really what you want.”

“What do you want?”

“Honestly, I don’t mind either way. Everything will be awkward and strange with Mom and Dad, but we can either try to move forward or leave it alone. It’s your call.”

“Would you go spend it with them without me?”

Jase hesitates briefly. “Probably not. Things aren’t as bad as last year, but we’re still a long way from getting along well. I kind of thought they would do something this year to mark the anniversary of Sam’s death. It wouldn’t have had to be a big deal, but they didn’t do anything. They didn’t even reach out. They were probably at the practice the whole time.”

“I didn’t reach out to you either,” I say quietly, a little sheepishly.

“That’s different.”

“It’s not.”

“It is to me. Because we’re really trying, aren’t we? To be like siblings again, I mean.”

“Yes,” I say, my voice cracking, on the verge of tears. “We’re trying.”

“That means it’s different.” He clears his throat. “Well, if it helps, I’d come with you to Mom and Dad’s for Thanksgiving.”

“I’ll think about it, okay?”

“Sure. Just let me know.”

“Thanks, Jase.”

“No problem,” he says, and I think he really means it. We talk briefly before saying goodbye. I’m alone again, but being alone doesn’t feel lonely in Phoenix’s apartment. It also helps to know that Jase is there if I need him.

Phoenix comes back two hours later. We order pizza, and then he watches the next romantic comedy with me. Although really, we’re not paying much attention to it. It feels like we’re in our own little world this weekend. We don’t talk about Pearson, or school, or his job, or the performance.