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I bite my tongue so hard not to tell her, You didn’t raise me. Harry did.
“We’ll be right back,” my dad says, and my mom puts Maika down. We watch them distance themselves from us to get some privacy. I know my dad. He never holds a grudge. And if it were up to him, we’d stay. I have a good idea of what their argument looks like right now: my father is trying to convince my mom to let us stay until we find an apartment while she tries to convince him to kick us out.
“Winter’s got a Prince Charming?” Maika’s voice interrupts my spinning thoughts. I glance down at my little sister, only to see her staring at Haze with sparkly eyes. “Are you going to get married?” she says, in awe of him.
Kendrick and Will burst out laughing simultaneously. I can hear them thinking, Haze Adams? Married?
“I-I don’t know, Mai. Maybe one day.” I huff out a nervous laugh. Haze and I never really talked about this before. He once joked about me being his future wife, but that’s all.
“Why not now? Don’t you love her?” she addresses Haze.
“I do. Very much,” Haze says, and I internally squeal. “But we’re still young. We’ve got time.”
Maika nods, satisfied with his answer. “He’s so handsome,” she tells me, battling her eyelashes at Haze.
“Well, thank you. How old are you, cutie?” Haze smiles, kneeling down to her level. She blushes at the nickname.
“I’m five.” She lifts four tiny fingers to show him, and he chuckles, not bothering to correct her. “Do you want to play dolls with me when Mommy and Daddy are not mad anymore?”
“You don’t have to,” Kendrick says.
“No, I don’t mind. I’ll play with you if they let me stay.”
Excited beyond belief, Maika bounces up and down and jolts around, running toward the toys she left out in the backyard.
“You have no idea what you just got yourself into,” Kendrick scoffs. “There is one thing that kid never gets tired of, and it’s playing dolls.”
Haze glances at me, his eyes asking me to confirm or deny Kendrick’s statement.
“I’m sure she won’t remember it tomorrow,” I reassure him.
“You wish. She still bugs me about last Christmas when I told her I’d play. You’re screwed, man,” Kendrick mocks, and Haze half-smiles. I’m still not used to them being somewhat civil toward each other, but I like this evolution.
My breath leaves me when my parents make their way back to us.
“So?” I ask as soon as they reach us.
“You can stay as long as you want,” my dad says.
Relief is all I can feel. “Thanks, Da—”
“But he can’t.” My mother motions to Haze with her chin.
Shit.
“He has a week to find a place. Then, he’s gone. Understood? And meanwhile, he sleeps on the couch in the basement—nonnegotiable.” A smile tugs at the corner of her lips.
“A week? That’s nothing. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a decent and available apartment on such short notice? We’ll need more time.”
“Maybe you should’ve thought about that before lying to us, Winter.” My mother seems to be enjoying this moment so much, it makes my blood boil.
“Plus, if he doesn’t find a place, you can still stay at home, pumpkin. You don’t need to move out. Only he has to go,” my father says to ease his guilty conscience. I can tell this decision isn’t his. It’s hers. It’s a wonder he convinced her to let me stay.
“It’s fine. If he goes, I go,” I sigh. Haze did not just leave his entire life behind for me to live alone in an unknown city.
“As for you two—” My mother’s eyes travel to Will and my cousin. “—Maria asked me to take in Kendrick for the summer. Nothing was said about his reckless friend who makes a mess in my house. Kendrick, you can stay, but he has to go.” She points to Will. “I’m sure Florida will be glad to have him back.”
Kendrick stiffens up. “But… he can’t go back.”
