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My heart grows rigid as I continue to stare at Jade, but she doesn’t see me watching her through the door, engrossed in a set of papers on her desk.
But just as I swipe under my eye and start down the corridor, she calls my name.
“Kayla? Hey!”
I pause and look over at her.
“Just the woman I needed to talk to,” she adds. “Have a minute for me?”
“Sure!”
Walking into her office, I grin, trying my best to appear like I’m not always falling apart. That I’m happy. That’s all everyone wants me to be.
But happiness is a weird feeling. I don’t know how to be happy. I don’t know if I ever will be either. So I’ve accepted that this is who I am now.
“So…feel free to say no…” She bites her bottom lip and gives me that look that says she really hopes I agree to whatever she’s about to ask me.
I internally groan, already anticipating the worst.
“Yeah…” I pull up a chair and sit before her desk. “What are you going to make me do?”
“How do you know I’m gonna make you do anything?” Her lips pull up.
“Because. You have that look in your eyes.” I squint a shrewd gaze.
“Fine.” Her shoulders slump, and she leans back. “You got me! There’s this girl named Cammie who’s really lost right now…”
Oh, no.
“She was actually in the house with you and Elsie for a couple of years before they took her somewhere else. She could really use someone who can get through to her, someone who knows what she went through.”
Please don’t ask me to do this…
“I was really hoping that would be you…” She gives me that sweet, hopeful look. “She’s mentioned how nice you were to her when you two were at the house… And believe me, I’ve tried to help her myself.” She throws a hand in the air. “But I can’t connect with her as well as I think you can.”
“Jade…please….” I slant my head to the side. “I can barely help myself. How can I help her?”
“You’re stronger than you think.” She purses her lips, her compassion seeping through her angelic blue eyes. “If I didn’t worry that she’d try running away again, I wouldn’t ask, I swear. I know you hate talking to people about it all, but I’m desperate. I want to help her so badly, and she pushes back even harder every time. So maybe you can give it a shot and see?” She bends her face in a desperate plea.
My chest squeezes, seeing her pure goodness. Jade wants to help the world. Wants to make all the women better.
“I love you, you know that?” I say with a sting in my throat. “I wish there were more people like you in this world.”
Her eyes mist, and she fans herself. “Stop it. You know very well compliments make me cry.”
“Shut up,” I laugh, tossing a pen at her.
She catches it. “I’m sorry I’m putting this pressure on you. I’m feeling bad about it now, so if you can’t, I really understand. I just know you’d be good at it.”
Releasing a dramatic sigh, I start to rise. “Can I see her now?”
Her gaze pops. “Sure can! She’s in the library right now, using the computers.”
“Great. Gonna go and pretend I know what I’m talking about. But highly doubt I’ll be able to do much for her.”
“All we have is our ability to try. So that’s all I’m asking for.”
“You’d make a good shrink.”
