When I Forget You Read Free

us.
                  Nope. Sadly, I’m definitely not dreaming. Cynthia has been crying; she has red marks on the apples of her cheeks and she isn’t wearing her glasses. I know Cynthia’s crying routine. When she first starts crying, she wipes her tears away while still keeping her glasses on, but when it gets to the stage where the tears are just overflowing, Cynthia takes off her glasses. God I know her so well, it’s kind of creepy. She looks at my mom, waiting for her to speak.
                  “Honey, Cynthia and Rey can no longer afford to stay in the US. They have to move back to Mexico. Ever since Destiny ran away, we haven’t received any of the money she’s making at work. Those checks she gave Cynthia and Rey every month really helped. Now that we aren’t getting them, they can’t afford to live here.” I go blank. My body feels cold and my head feels warm. Literally, blank. Like nothing. Just a big blob of nada. Destiny is Kade’s older sister and practically mine too. She had been acting kind of weird throughout the last year we had contact with her, but about four months ago she took her car, packed a bag, and we haven’t heard from her since. Cynthia has been a wreck. I mean, I would be a wreck too if my daughter ran away from me without telling me where she was going. Sadly, Destiny is twenty-two so she doesn’t really have to listen to any of us. If Cynthia had it her way, Destiny would have been back home and grounded an hour within leaving.
                  Comprende? “What?”
                  “Honey, I think you should sit down.” I have to sit down, mom’s right. I’m not being dramatic. I can feel Kade watching me; I pretend not to notice. I can’t look at him right now. I wish he weren’t here. I hate crying in front of Kade. I mean, I know I cried in front of him all the time when we were kids, but not now. At least Cynthia is used to my teenage crying.
                  “Why can’t we just call Destiny and tell her we need the money?” Why do my mom and I keep saying “we?” It’s really Cynthia and Rey that need the money, not us. But they’re basically my second parents, so I think of it as we are all going through this crappy event together.
                  “I don’t think you quite get it, Bebé, we have no way of contacting Destiny. We have no idea where she is or what her number is, or anything.” Cynthia finally talks, but she doesn’t look at me. She looks at the counter and the windows. At least she called me Bebé. She has always called me that, ever since I was two. And she also said “we.” That means she knows I’m in this situation just as much as she is, and it hurts me just as much. Every moment Cynthia and I have shared together flashes back through my memory. The late nights watching movies while she massages my feet. Not that I asked her to, she just wanted to. The braids that I called “little lambs” in my hair when I was little. The brownie mix she would always mix for me after my arms would get tired. She’s been with me through everything. I don’t know what I am going to do without her. Plus, it’s my senior year. I need her here.
                  “What about you? We start senior year in less than a month.” I finally look at Kade. He’s wearing a green t-shirt that matches his eyes and brown khakis. His green eyes meet mine, then look at the ground. He runs his hand through his dark brown hair and looks at my mom.
                  “Becca, I know it will be an adjustment, but Kade is going to come live with us. It’s best for all of us. You and Kade can finish high school under our roof and then you will both go off to college.” My mom rubs my back as I start to sob. Kade sighs. I don’t want Cynthia and Rey to move; I really don’t want Kade to live with us. What the hell am I going to do? And typically, you won’t hear me cuss. But