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Ah, so that’s how things were. It was all finally starting to make sense. I was pretty sure I knew what was behind Calvin’s behavior now, but I needed to tread carefully if I was going to be of any help to the kid.
“You like him,” I said carefully.
“No,” he blurted, looking up at me with wide eyes. “I definitely don’t like him. Didn’t you hear what I just said? He drives me crazy.”
“Okayyy. Well, he can’t be all that bad. Tell me three things that you do like about him,” I suggested.
He rolled his eyes at me, and I laughed. “Humor me,” I said.
“Fine,” he huffed. “He’s smart. I guess… I mean, the kid does really good in school, you know? Works hard, I think. Studies a lot.”
I nodded. “Go on.”
“And he’s nice to other people. He holds the door open a few extra seconds, even if the bell has already rung and he’ll get in trouble for not being in his seat. If he sees me coming, he waits so the door doesn’t close in my face.”
“That’s thoughtful,” I agreed, biting my tongue to keep from smiling. “What else?”
He blew out a breath and looked up through the canopy of the trees above. “He draws pretty good pictures,” he said in a small voice. “He doesn’t know I know, but I saw his notebook once.”
“Hmm,” I said. “Sounds like the kind of guy I’d like to be friends with.”
Calvin rolled his eyes again, but didn’t spout off a snarky remark like I was expecting. I waited for him to say more, but he didn’t.
“So why does he seem to bother you so much?” I asked. “Why do you give him such a hard time?”
He thought for a beat before responding. When he finally spoke, his eyes were bright and he looked earnest. “Because the kid needs to learn that being smart and nice and shit is just going to get him beat up. People don’t like that. People don’t like it when you’re artsy-fartsy, you know? So, he needs to keep himself to himself. Grow a thicker skin or he’s gonna get hurt again. He’s gotta learn sometimes you gotta use your fists to make people listen, you know?”
Nerves skittered in my gut. “What do you mean, again? You mean like last night, or did something else happen?”
Calvin looked off into the woods to avoid meeting my eyes. “Nah, man. I just meant last night.”
I wasn’t sure I believed him, but knew he wasn’t about to tell me whatever else had happened. “Calvin, do you understand that you’re the one who has a problem with him being the way he is? That last night, the person who was out to get him wasn’t some random stranger, but you?”
“Yeah? Well, better me than someone who could do some real damage,” he muttered as he turned to walk off, back toward the group.
“Calvin, wait,” I said, reaching out to stop him. When he turned back toward me, his eyes were full of unshed tears. “Talk to me. What’s this really about?”
“I don’t want him to get hurt,” he said, one tear slipping over the edge and making its way down his face. He dashed at it, flaring his nostrils in disgust at the show of weakness. Clearly he hadn’t intended to get emotional around me.
“You’re the one who’s hurting him, Calvin. If you stop, he won’t be in danger anymore. Don’t you see that?” I asked in frustration.
Defiant eyes snapped up to mine and Calvin leaned in toward me. “I’m not the one who wants to hurt him. Last night was an accident! Frankie got between us, and he’s the one who hit him. But it was an accident. It ain’t me he’s gotta worry about! It’s his goddamned foster family, you asshole.”
And just like that, he took off through the trees to rejoin the group. I stood there in total shock as his words left me reeling. Could it be? Could Lucky really be in danger from Ed and Gloria Durant? No. No way. I’d met them personally many times, and Lucky would have told me if he was in trouble.
Wouldn’t he?
Surely, Calvin was just trying to stir shit up.
But the reminder of that lone tear slipping down his face hit me right in the gut, and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I needed to figure out what the hell was really going on.
When I emerged into the sunshine of the meadow, the bears were gone and the boys had broken into song again as they skipped through the wildflowers and joked about being in a movie. All except Lucky and Calvin. Lucky was kneeling by a tree, his hands roaming over Bear’s big body, while Calvin was sending the younger guy covert glances as he pretended to tie his shoe.
