I waited on the porch for her to get safely inside.
Later that night, when Monica’s mom pulled the car into the driveway, I walked over to speak with her. Mrs.Cole wasn’t the biggest fan of me, and to be fair, I wasn’t a fan of hers either. She was a nasty woman who belittled Monica’s looks on the regular. Every crash diet Monica ever had was due to her mother’s orders. It must’ve been easy for Mrs.Cole to judge other people’s bodies, seeing as how hers was nearly all made at a plastic surgery clinic in Mexico.
“Mrs.Cole. Can I talk to you for a minute?” I asked.
She looked at me, seemingly already bothered by the fact that I was speaking her way. Her eyes moved up and down as she studied me. Her gaze flicked upward. “What is it, boy?”
She knew my name. She just preferred to never use it.
“I wanted to let you know that I think your daughter may need some help. She’s been getting into trouble, and she’s struggling. I wanted to give you a heads-up to see if—”
“Aren’t you the one who used to smoke pot and get drunk with my Monica?” she barked, holding her purse tight to her side.
“Well, yes, but—”
“No buts needed. My daughter is fine, as long as you keep your toxic self away from her. I know you, Harrison boy. I’ve heard stories about your dark, dark soul. Keep away from my daughter, do you hear me? You’re no good for her.”
Was she even hearing what I was saying?
“Look, hate me all you want, but Monica is sick, and she needs her parents—”
“She has her parents. Don’t come here telling me how to raise my daughter. She is fine. Now get off my driveway before I call the cops. If I see you anywhere near Monica again, trust me, there will be consequences.”
She wouldn’t listen to me. She couldn’t get her head out of her own ass to realize that there was a big issue at hand. She couldn’t deal with the possibility that she was slipping as a mother.
I left her place, then sent KJ a text message to cuss him out for selling to the most unstable teenage girl alive.
I walked back into my house. In the living room sat a huge grandfather clock that was ticking loudly. Monica was right about one thing: The ticking in my mind was growing louder and louder with each passing day as my birthday approached. I was working hard to avoid the explosion, though.
21Shay
October16th.
Greyson told me Landon’s birthday.
October16th.
Today’s date.
October16th.
The day Lance took his own life.
October16th.
The hardest day of Landon’s life.
* * *
I didn’t see Landon until lunchtime. He was standing in the cafeteria, seconds away from picking up his lunch tray, and I darted toward him.
Without any words, I wrapped my arms around his frame and pulled him into the tightest hug known to mankind. Everyone in the cafeteria was watching, I was sure. Everyone was staring as Shay Gable wrapped her arms around her sworn enemy. Everyone looked on as Landon Harrison wrapped his arms around me, too.
He hugged me back.
Oh my gosh, he was hugging me back, and that made me tug on his body even harder. There was no way to tell where his heartbeats began and where mine ended. It was as if theywere beating as one, as if we were two willows tangled up with each other.
For his birthday, he smelled like smoky oak and dressed like darkness.