AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You weren’t at school and you weren’t at the restaurant.”
Shit, I forgot about that. I was supposed to meet her for dinner tonight. She was going to use one of her gift cards to pay for it. A couple months ago, Karla gave Rielle a stack of gift cards so she could go out to eat instead of having to cook.
“Sorry, I totally forgot.”
“It’s not a big deal. I just got worried when you didn’t show up. You usually send me a text if you have to cancel.”
“Yeah, sorry. Things have been kind of crazy.”
“Maybe we could go tomorrow. Do you have to work?”
“No. I um…” I pause, going back and forth between telling her and not. “Rielle, if I tell you something, you need to keep it a secret. You can’t tell anyone at school, even Mateo.”
“Yeah, okay. What’s going on?”
“I moved.”
“What do you mean? Like out of the apartment?”
“Out of Milwaukee. I left town. It’s just for a couple months, until I turn 18, and then I’ll figure out a plan for where to go next.”
“Wait, so you’re quitting school?”
“I have to. My dad’s making me—” I stop, hearing what I just said. I wasn’t going to tell her about my dad, or where I was living. I’d like to think Rielle can keep a secret, but having Easton lie to me just proved what I thought all along, that I can’t trust anyone.
“You’re living with your dad?” she says. “I thought you called him and he hung up on you.”
“He did, but then he showed up. It’s a long story and I don’t want to get into it. Anyway, I won’t be coming back to school. If anyone asks about me, just tell them Ted and I moved. Don’t tell them Ted died.”
“So you’re doing this because you can’t live on your own?”
“Yeah. If I’m not 18, I’ll end up back in the system, and I can’t let that happen.”
“Maybe you could stay with me, just until you turn 18.”
“I thought you were living with Karla.”
“I am, but only until I can move back into the apartment. The landlord thinks it’ll take about a week for them to fix the damage from the fire. After that, I’ll move back in with my uncle.”
“He’d only let me stay there for a day or two. He’d kick me out after that. I need a place to stay for two months. And I can’t be there and risk someone finding out Ted died. One of the teachers at school would report me and I’d end up back in foster care.”
“Would that really be so bad? I mean, you said you liked that lady you lived with before.”
“Yeah, but you never know where you’re going to end up. And people tend to take in younger kids, not teenagers. I’d probably be put in a group home.”
“Oh,” she says, understanding my concern.
We’ve both heard stories about group homes. A lot of our classmates have been there and said they were really bad. I’m sure there are good ones, but with my luck, I wouldn’t end up at one of those.
“So where are you now? Where does your dad live?”
“I can’t tell you. I know you said you’d keep it a secret but—”
“You think I’ll mess up and tell someone.”
“Sorry. I know we’re friends. I just don’t want people knowing where I am.”
“Don’t worry about it. I totally get it. I’m not great at keeping my mouth shut. It’s even worse now, with pregnancy brain.” She laughs a little. “I didn’t think that was a thing, but believe me, it is. Some days my mind just goes blank. The other day I was going to class and went to the wrong room, so yeah, it’s probably good if you don’t tell me.”
