Detached Read Free Page A

smile.
    â€œMaybe I’m getting the flu or something. Or it could be heat stroke,” I offered. “I feel like I might throw up.”
    He looked at me sideways.
    â€œDon’t worry. I won’t lose it in your car.” I leaned a little closer to the air vent.
    We were pulling onto the bridge when I reached up and locked the door. The urge to bolt from the car was overwhelming.
    â€œYou’re not pregnant or something?” Joe asked. I could see him trying to puzzle through my unexpected visit.
    â€œNot pregnant, not a druggie, not addicted to gambling. Maybe I’m just a little nervous about heights.”
    â€œBut you can’t even see how high you are from here.”
    â€œI still know.”
    â€œThen how’d you walk across in the first place?”
    â€œIt was foggy,” I managed to squeak, even though I knew there was no logic in my answer.
    When we got home, Sherlock met us at the door. His tail slapped the wall with the excitement of seeing both me and Joe arriving at once. Joe leaned down and rubbed his ears.
    â€œHey, Sherlock, how’s the old boy?”
    Sherlock dropped to the floor and let Joe rub his belly. For a dog who’s supposed to be a guarding breed, he’s a total coward. We have a lot in common that way.
    Joe stood up and looked at me.
    â€œAre you going to be okay by yourself?”
    â€œYeah, I’ll be fine. I’ve got Sherlock.”
    â€œYou want me to call Mom?”
    â€œNo. You know how she gets when she thinks you’re getting sick. She’ll be all over me like fleas on a stray dog.”
    Joe walked into the kitchen, opened the fridge, and drained the milk jug in one long gulp. He put the empty container back, then grabbed a hunk of kielbasa.
    â€œThat’s disgusting,” I said when he started gnawing on it.
    Joe just laughed. “I won’t have time for breakfast. Anyhow, I gotta run or I’ll be late for my computer lab.”
    â€œThanks for the ride.”
    â€œNo worries.” He kissed me on the cheek and slammed out the front door.
    I wondered all morning if Joe would text Mom and tell her about me showing up at his dorm and needing a ride home, or if Dad managed to talk to her about our argument that morning. So when I heard her car pull into the driveway, I braced myself for a hundred questions. It must have slipped both their minds, though, because when Mom found me in my bedroom reading, she was cheerful.
    â€œHi, honey. How’s your day going?”
    â€œGood. I went for a walk this morning before it got too hot. Had a swim. Gisele and Aliya came over for a bit before lunch.”
    â€œWas Joe here?”
    â€œYeah, he stopped by. I think he picked up a piece of computer from his room.”
    â€œStayed long enough to finish the milk?”
    â€œHe ate the rest of the kielbasa too.”
    Mom smiled and shook her head. “Figures. Anyhow, I’m going for a quick swim, then I thought we could make a pizza for dinner.”
    â€œSounds good. I’ll join you.”
    The thought of changing into my bathing suit seemed like a lot of effort, but I knew if I didn’t go swimming, Mom would start to ask questions. And the last thing I wanted was her fussing over me.
    I was floating on an air mattress, watching the sun turn my eyelids bright red and thinking about my walk across the bridge, when Mom slipped into the pool.
    â€œThat feels so good,” she said and flipped onto her back.
    I didn’t answer, just continued to stare at the inside of my eyelids.
    â€œHey.” Mom splashed water over me. “What’s got you so preoccupied?”
    I cracked one eyelid.
    â€œNuthin. Just enjoying the sun.”
    Mom climbed onto another air mattress and we floated together, but lost in separate thoughts.
    I was thinking about how from the outside I look like a completely normal teenager. I live in a normal city, on a normal street in a very normal