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LANDON
“Where are we bringing Ana?” Kai asked me, standing outside Imani’s car.
Ana sat in the backseat, yawning and barely able to keep her eyes open as she brushed a Barbie doll’s hair with a small pink brush. She kept nodding off, and I wished she would fall asleep by now because I didn’t know what to do with her or what to say to her.
“Your place?” I said, shrugging one shoulder.
“We can’t bring her to my place,” Kai said. “I barely have room as it is and don’t have any shit that she’s going to want. You know the moment we get back into that car, she’s going to be wide awake and asking to make brigadeiros. She always does when she’s nervous.”
Glancing back at João’s house, I grimaced. He and Imani hadn’t come back out since they had taken his mother away. I didn’t blame him either. Besides Ana, his mother was the only person he had left. If Imani wasn’t here, he would’ve fucking broken even worse.
“Let’s take her to Mrs. Abara’s house,” I said, unsure if we really should or not.
We weren’t on the best terms, but she was growing closer to me and starting to warm up to us. We kept Imani safe, especially around Akio and his parents. The least she could do was let us crash for the night, right?
“You think she’ll appreciate being woken up at this time?” Kai asked, brows drawn together. “It’s almost six in the morning. She’s either sleeping or probably at work already. School should be starting soon for all of us.”
“Well, screw it,” I said, walking toward the front door. “We don’t have anywhere else to go. It’s already been a long night. We’re not going to that shithole, and Ana is staying home today. She can’t go to day care after that.”
Kai ran a hand over his face and slid into the driver’s seat of Imani’s car. It wasn’t like we’d be getting back on his bike or walking to her house in this frigid fucking air. It was barely even December yet, and Redwood was cold as fuck.
When I opened the front door, Imani sat on the floor with her back against the couch and João sleeping in her arms. His body twitched, his cheeks stained with tears. She looked up at me through tired eyes and frowned.
“How are you holding up?” I asked her.
She closed her teary eyes and shook her head. “I just want to keep crying.”
“I know.”
“I don’t understand how someone could do that,” she croaked, lips trembling.
“Neither can I,” I said, my gaze dropping to João. “If you weren’t here, João would be so much worse off. You’re …” I couldn’t believe that I was saying this because only a couple hours ago, I had gotten pissed off that Kai had Imani’s attention. “You’re holding us together. All of us.”
Imani gave a hoarse laugh. “I don’t know about that. I can barely hold myself together.”
My bottom lip curled up slightly, as I wanted to show her that no matter what she thought, she was really the one who had helped us through so much shit these past few months. I knew that João wouldn’t be able to get through this without her.
“He needs you right now,” I said. “Stay with him.”
“You’re not going to be upset if I do?”
“No,” I said honestly.
“Thank you,” she whispered, gently stroking his hair.
“We’re taking Ana back to your house in your car. Is that okay?”
She nodded to her purse on the kitchen table. “Yeah, my house key is in my wallet. You’ll have to turn off the security system with a code when you get into the house. My code is five-six-seven-four. Don’t forget because my dad will still probably be sleeping.”
“And your mom?”
Imani looked out the window at the early morning sunlight shining in. “She’s probably at work, but she might still be home. She’s been trying to call me all night. I kinda left in a rush and haven’t been able to call her back. If you see her, tell her that I’m okay.”
“I will.” I walked over to her and kissed her. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Landon,” she said, watching me walk out of the house and shut the door.
I didn’t want to leave because I knew that they were both hurting on the inside. But Kai and I had to take care of Ana, and Kai wasn’t getting into Mrs. Abara’s house alone. She had only warmed up to me so far.
