get it. She wants to hang with her friend , but I ditched Trav for her. She thinks I ' ve been weird lately so I try to be sweet and do something nice, and she can't get away from me fast enough .
Whatever. I pull out my phone to text Travis.
CHANGE OF PLANS. WHERE ARE U?
Before I look like an idiot loitering around my girlfriend's car in the parking lot , I get into my truck. It ' s an older Ford. Not old old , but not brand new like my friends ' cars. I wait a few minutes , and when he doesn ' t text back , I send him another.
WHERE U AT?
Ten minutes later I realize he ' s not going to reply. Lame.
With nothing else to do , I drive to Mom ' s shop , frustrated that my first day of practice ended with Mel flirting with someone else and then ditching me.
" Carter! Carter! " Sara yells when I step inside. She always says my name twice like that. It makes me smile.
" What ' s up , Twig? Are you helping Mom? "
She shakes her head. " Nope. Mommy ' s busy. There ' s a girl here. "
" Thanks , Twig. " I pull her ponytail then head down the aisle to find Mom and Mel. There are shelves of glass figurines all around me. Some of Mom ' s paintings hang from the walls. The lights are dim , but they ' re always kind of dim in here. The store is small , but usually keeps pretty busy. Everyone in town loves Mom.
When I clear the aisle , I freeze at the sight of black and purple braids.
" Hey , honey! " Mom waves when she sees me , and Kira turn s around. For some reason , it ' s a little hard to breathe.
Kira ' s eyes widen , but she recovers quickly. " Hey , Sleepy. Are you stalking me? "
Chapter Four
This is my perfect chance to mess with Kira, and I don ' t intend to let it pass me by. " Me? I think it ' s the other way around. English , Art , the basketball court , and now my mom ' s store? You know I have a girlfriend , right? " A girlfriend I ' m mad at , but still.
" Carter! " Mom gasps , but Kira is smiling. Somehow I knew she ' d be okay with the joke.
" I ' m teasing her , M om . "
Mom shakes her head , but she ' s smiling too.
" Well , now I ' m not sure I can get a job here. I ' m already in charge of keeping you awake — "
Please don ' t say in English. Please don ' t say in English.
" — when you ' re supposed to be practicing. Not sure I can handle it at work , too. "
Thank you , Kira , for saving my ass! " Nah , if you ' re here , that means I don ' t have to be. You can work , I ' ll sleep. I like that deal. "
" I ' m pretty sure she wasn ' t talking about you sleeping on the court , Carter. " Mom ' s eyebrows rise . Busted.
" What? I ' d never fall asleep in school. Nothing like a quality education. " I smile at Mom and walk behind the counter with her. These are my favorite times , where she ' s not just Mom , but she ' s also not guilty Mom. She ' s Sara ' s mom and in these times , I can almost forget about the rest of it.
" Sure. And I was born yesterday. " She pats my cheek.
" So , how was your first day of practice? " Kira asks. " Are you brushing up on your skills so I won ' t mind going to the games? "
I cock my head at her , trying to figure out why it gives me a rush that she asked about practice. It ' s a joke ; I know she ' s playing off what I said to her yesterday , but I like it.
Before I can reply , Sara comes barreling over , wrapping her arms around Kira . She once did the same thing to Mel , who froze , not knowing what to do. Kira hugs Sara back.
I don ' t have time to keep comparing the two because then Sara is reaching up. " You ' re pretty. I like purple. I want purple hair. " She touches Kira ' s braids.
" No , no ," Mom says to Sara. At the same time , I reach over the counter.
" Just because I ' m allowed to pull your hair , Twig , doesn ' t mean you can touch other people ' s hair without their permission. "
" I don ' t mind. " Kira turns to Sara. " I had red in it last time. What do you think I should do next? Too boring to keep the same style for very
Whatever. I pull out my phone to text Travis.
CHANGE OF PLANS. WHERE ARE U?
Before I look like an idiot loitering around my girlfriend's car in the parking lot , I get into my truck. It ' s an older Ford. Not old old , but not brand new like my friends ' cars. I wait a few minutes , and when he doesn ' t text back , I send him another.
WHERE U AT?
Ten minutes later I realize he ' s not going to reply. Lame.
With nothing else to do , I drive to Mom ' s shop , frustrated that my first day of practice ended with Mel flirting with someone else and then ditching me.
" Carter! Carter! " Sara yells when I step inside. She always says my name twice like that. It makes me smile.
" What ' s up , Twig? Are you helping Mom? "
She shakes her head. " Nope. Mommy ' s busy. There ' s a girl here. "
" Thanks , Twig. " I pull her ponytail then head down the aisle to find Mom and Mel. There are shelves of glass figurines all around me. Some of Mom ' s paintings hang from the walls. The lights are dim , but they ' re always kind of dim in here. The store is small , but usually keeps pretty busy. Everyone in town loves Mom.
When I clear the aisle , I freeze at the sight of black and purple braids.
" Hey , honey! " Mom waves when she sees me , and Kira turn s around. For some reason , it ' s a little hard to breathe.
Kira ' s eyes widen , but she recovers quickly. " Hey , Sleepy. Are you stalking me? "
Chapter Four
This is my perfect chance to mess with Kira, and I don ' t intend to let it pass me by. " Me? I think it ' s the other way around. English , Art , the basketball court , and now my mom ' s store? You know I have a girlfriend , right? " A girlfriend I ' m mad at , but still.
" Carter! " Mom gasps , but Kira is smiling. Somehow I knew she ' d be okay with the joke.
" I ' m teasing her , M om . "
Mom shakes her head , but she ' s smiling too.
" Well , now I ' m not sure I can get a job here. I ' m already in charge of keeping you awake — "
Please don ' t say in English. Please don ' t say in English.
" — when you ' re supposed to be practicing. Not sure I can handle it at work , too. "
Thank you , Kira , for saving my ass! " Nah , if you ' re here , that means I don ' t have to be. You can work , I ' ll sleep. I like that deal. "
" I ' m pretty sure she wasn ' t talking about you sleeping on the court , Carter. " Mom ' s eyebrows rise . Busted.
" What? I ' d never fall asleep in school. Nothing like a quality education. " I smile at Mom and walk behind the counter with her. These are my favorite times , where she ' s not just Mom , but she ' s also not guilty Mom. She ' s Sara ' s mom and in these times , I can almost forget about the rest of it.
" Sure. And I was born yesterday. " She pats my cheek.
" So , how was your first day of practice? " Kira asks. " Are you brushing up on your skills so I won ' t mind going to the games? "
I cock my head at her , trying to figure out why it gives me a rush that she asked about practice. It ' s a joke ; I know she ' s playing off what I said to her yesterday , but I like it.
Before I can reply , Sara comes barreling over , wrapping her arms around Kira . She once did the same thing to Mel , who froze , not knowing what to do. Kira hugs Sara back.
I don ' t have time to keep comparing the two because then Sara is reaching up. " You ' re pretty. I like purple. I want purple hair. " She touches Kira ' s braids.
" No , no ," Mom says to Sara. At the same time , I reach over the counter.
" Just because I ' m allowed to pull your hair , Twig , doesn ' t mean you can touch other people ' s hair without their permission. "
" I don ' t mind. " Kira turns to Sara. " I had red in it last time. What do you think I should do next? Too boring to keep the same style for very
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