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NO.
Their father glanced up from the paper. “What’s going on?”
“Simon just made the JV basketball team,” she said smoothly, used to covering for her brother’s hostile signing. Their father knew enough ASL to get by, but he’d never put the time in that Layne and her mother had. Most of what Simon said went right over his head.
Something that irritated Simon to no end.
Her brother could talk, though. He just refused to do it, since the first day of high school when half the freshman class had decided his affected speech meant Simon was a retard. She’d just about fallen over when he’d spoken in front of Gabriel Merrick.
Especially since their father had tried no shortage of threats to get Simon to speak at home.
“Basketball?” said their father. “Is that possible?”
Simon flung his fork against the plate and shoved away from the table.
“Get back here,” their father snapped. The paper dropped to the table. They had his full attention now but Simon’s back was turned, and he was already going through the doorway.
“He played all through middle school,” she whispered un-necessarily, since Simon couldn’t hear her.
“That was different,” said her father.
She thought of those bullies in the hallway and agreed with him.
Though she’d never say that to Simon, of course.
“How’s the chicken?” she asked.
“It’s fine,” said her father, spearing another piece before picking up the newspaper again.
She’d burned two pieces before figuring out the timing, but she’d made sure to give her father one of the good ones.
She’d already failed one parent.
She couldn’t afford to let it happen again.
CHAPTER 7
Fire surrounded him.
Gabriel dropped to his knees and ran a hand through the flames. It reached for him, licking along his palm.
punched her in the shoulder again.
Layne dropped her hand. “And he hates it when I don’t let him see what I’m saying.”
Simon was signing again, so fast that Gabriel had no idea how anyone would be able to make sense of it.
But Layne did. “He wants to know if you’re going out for basketball again this year. He just made the JV team. He made me take him to every basketball game last year, so he saw you play.”
Everyone made JV, but Gabriel didn’t say that. “Yeah,” he said, “varsity tryouts are Friday.” He probably didn’t have to show up.
“I’m sorry I didn’t make it to the library.” Layne gestured to the mess around them. “I was busy.”
“It’s cool,” he said, feeling a flash of guilt that he’d assumed she was standing him up. “Let me know if those dicks mess with you again.”
“Why?” she said, her voice flat again. “You gonna rumble under the bleachers?”
“What does that mean?”
