Georgie scrutinized him over dinner, though she didn’t say anything. Calum knew she was aware of the plans for the night. The whole town was, if Rett was right, and he had no reason to not believe her. As he pushed peas around his plate, he wondered why his aunt ever said he could stay. She had a market to run and a daughter to raise. Had she ever anticipated taking in her cousin’s ‘troubled’ kid?
Calum admitted, if only to himself, that living with Georgie and Charles wasn’t as bad as he expected. He’d thought they would be overbearing, knowing his history, and they’d not give him any slack in case he went too wild. He had imagined being locked away only to be let out of the house for school. But there they were letting him roam around town without needing to check in. Calum fully believed they would let him walk right out of Oak Creek if he decided to.
They were allowing him to join the rest of the teenagers down at the river, and he could breathe at the promise of fun.
Maybe it was because the town was so small that things were so different. He had never had the feeling of community at home, even in his neighborhood. Neighbors didn’t care if you had enough to eat, only that you left them alone. No one cametogether to help build a new barn for a family on the outskirts of town who’d lost theirs in a fire. Nobody ran a free-for-all drive of donated clothes, and people certainly didn’t take only what they needed and leave the rest.
Oak Creek did.
Calum had sat on the edge of the crowd with Rett, watching townspeople pick over the offerings. Nothing was left by the end—it would have been donated to a thrift shop—but no one hoarded everything they could see and want. No one argued over anything, even Misses Julia and Maudie who reached for the same shawl. Miss Maudie only laughed and pressed the fabric into Miss Julia’s arms, claiming the pink would look better with her fair complexion. Calum hadn’t felt the disappointment he’d expected at the lack of fighting.
He missed getting into fights. He always felt alive while punching someone.
Tiffany smiled as she helped wash the dishes after dinner. “Heard Rett invited you tonight.”
“She did.”
“What’s goin’ on ’tween you two, anyway?”
“She’s my friend.”
His voice was too defensive, he knew it. That was all Rett was, though. A friend. And if his cousin insinuated there was more, Calum would overthink everything. He would scrutinize every interaction with Rett until it became too awkward. She would walk away like everyone did. Kyle was the only one in Calum’s friend group that hadn’t ever left. People came and went, and no one could stop the facts of life. As sure as the sky was blue and the grass was green, people left.
“Well,” Tiffany began, breaking him free from his thoughts, “she’s pretty cool, so don’t mess it up.”
“Messwhatup?”
Tiffany rolled her eyes and flicked water in his direction. “The friendship, ya idiot. She’s a nice girl. Don’t screw it up.”
“I wasn’t exactly planning on it,” replied Calum with a scowl.
“You hate it here, don’t you?”
He blinked then blinked again. His cousin’s voice had gotten softer, as if she didn’t want her parents to overhear from the living room. He sighed, wiping the fork in his hand with the towel, then set the utensil in the drawer. A multitude of potential answers rattled around in his brain. Should he tell the truth, or should he say what he’d tell anyone else? Rett was the only one who could know the truth.
“Yeah, I hate it here.”
Tiffany snorted, pulling the plug from the drain. The pipes growled as the water swirled, and he waited until the sound stopped before looking at her. She leaned against the counter and crossed her arms over her chest. Her T-shirt today advertised a brand of soda, and a ‘T’ dangled from the chain around her neck. She stared at him with narrowed brown eyes, thin lips pressing together. He refrained from squirming under the intensity of her gaze. That would signify awkwardness, weakness, and Calum was not a coward.
“Stay friends with Rett,” she commanded, and he reared back.
“Why do you care?”
“Because as much as I don’t like you, I also don’t wanna deal with you whinin’ all year because you’re lonely.”
“Well, I don’t like you, either, so I guess we’re even.”
“You two almost done in there?” called Georgie, breaking up the conversation.
Tiffany rolled her eyes, but her voice was bright, sweet, as she said, “Yeah, Mama, just finished. I’m gonna go do my homework now.”
“That’s a good girl. I suggest you do the same, Calum.”
“I will, Georgie.”
Tiffany bounced past Calum with a smirk, her blonde hair swaying around her shoulders, and her door closed moments later with a loud click. He dried off the counters and thought of everything his cousin had said. Why did she care whether or not he and Rett were friends? Tiffany had barely spoken a word to him since he arrived. Was it really selfishness that made her warn him against ending the friendship with Rett?
Deciding he could think on it later, Calum disappeared into his room to finish what few assignments he had left. Rett had demanded he do his work, so that was what he would do, even three weeks after her command. He had to get out of the town. Following the rules was the only way to do that. Rett said so.
