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“I don’t understand. Why couldn’t you tell people?”
“My parents told me it was because they considered me theirs, and nobody else’s, so there wasn’t a need to tell anyone. But I think the real reason is they didn’t want people knowing where I came from, what kind of parents I had, that I lived on the streets.”
“But you couldn’t help that. You were just a kid.”
“My parents would rather pretend it never happened and that I was theirs since birth. They’ve done everything to make me forget my old life ever existed, even changed my name.” I pause as the memories flash in my mind; leaving Nova that day, the guilt I felt, the sadness as the car pulled away, not knowing if I’d ever see her again. “That’s why they didn’t want me seeing you. You were my past, the part of my life they were trying to erase.”
“So if you had told people about me, you would’ve had to tell them you were adopted.”
“Yeah, and I wanted to.” I turn to face her. “Nova, when I found you at the diner and we started hanging out, I felt like Sean again, and it felt fucking awesome. I wanted to stop being Easton and tell everyone the truth. But my parents wouldn’t allow it. They said nobody needed to know. But I still wanted to tell people. I was sick of keeping it a secret, and keepingyoua secret.”
“Then why didn’t you just do it? Why didn’t you tell people?”
“Because I was afraid. I was afraid to stand up to my parents and not do what they said. And I was afraid if people found out about you, they’d judge you for being poor and not going to the right school or living in the right neighborhood.” I take her hand and look into her eyes. “I shouldn’t have cared about that. I should’ve just told them. I was stupid, but Nova, I swear to you, I wasn’t keeping you a secret because I was ashamed of you. If anything, I’m ashamed of myself and what I’ve become.”
She gives me a sad smile, then lays her head on my shoulder. “I’m sorry you couldn’t be Sean anymore.”
“I’m sorry you got stuck with Ted.”
She shrugs. “He really wasn’t that bad compared to…”
I look at her. “Compared to what?”
She leans back on the bench, gazing at the ground. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Can you at least tell me where you’ve been the past week?”
“Chicago. Well, not in the city but a place that’s near there.”
“And you were with your dad?”
She looks at me. “How’d you know that?”
I sigh, realizing I shouldn’t have said that. “Rielle might’ve told me. Actually, I guessed and she didn’t tell me I was wrong. But don’t be mad at her. She was just being a friend. I could tell she was worried about you.”
Nova looks back at the ground. “My dad showed up after Ted died. I called him, asking for help, which was stupid because I knew he wouldn’t help me. He hung up on me, but then he showed up that weekend to take all the money Ted had stashed in his mattress. I didn’t even know it was there. Long story short, I begged my dad to let me live with him in exchange for cooking his meals and cleaning his apartment, basically the agreement I had with Ted. My dad agreed to it but said I’d also have to pay him rent, which I was okay with it. I just needed a place to stay. I was desperate.”
I want to fucking kill her dad. His daughter is scared and alone and asking for help, and instead of helping her, he makes her give him money and cook his meals. As if leaving her at the grocery store when she was four wasn’t bad enough. You’d think he feel some guilt over that and show some compassion, but that doesn’t seem to be a trait of Ted and his son.
“So did you guys have a fight, or what happened to get you back here?”
“He um… ” She shakes her head. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Maybe later?”
“There isn’t going to be a later. Your family hates me. You saw how they treated me on Thanksgiving, how they looked at me. If they found out we were friends again, they’d try to keep us apart.”
“And I wouldn’t let them. I already told my parents if they even try to do that, I’m moving out as soon as I turn 18.”
“You really said that?”
I nod. “And I meant it.” I grip her hand. “Nova, I’m not losing you again. I thought I did when you left town and it nearly killed me. I’d finally found you, only to lose you a few weeks later. But now that you’re back, I’ll do anything to keep us together.”
A gust of wind blows and she shivers.
“I need to get you someplace warm. Your hands are like ice.”
“They felt worse last night. I thought I might get frostbite.”
