36

It was past eleven when Piper got to Sophie’s high school.

Piper entered the school and approached the front desk, asking the location of Sophie’s class. After verifying her credentials, they gave her a visitor hall pass.

Sophie was in physics, and Piper waited in the hallway. Sophie sat at the back, staring out the window with her backpack at her feet. Her books, pens, and notebooks were all still tucked away, and she was just gazing out the window. It didn’t appear like she was paying attention to anything but whatever was outside.

The bell rang, and students poured out of the classrooms. The cacophony of youth filled the halls as everyone went to lunch. Sophie was one of the last to leave the classroom, and her gaze was down to the floor. She glanced up long enough to recognize Piper and her faced changed, a slight upward motion to her lips. Not quite a smile, but not indifference either.

“I was never good at science,” Piper said. “I liked history more.”

“I like science. I thought I wanted to be a doctor.”

“Not anymore?”

They began strolling together down the hall.

She shrugged. “It doesn’t seem important anymore.”

Piper watched her tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, and for some reason it made her sad.

“You wanna grab a smoothie? It’s on me.”

“I’d like that.”

They went to a nearby smoothie shop, a colorful space of neon pinks and blues with smoothie flavors like Skittles & Sherbet.

“I used to go somewhere like this in law school,” Piper said. “They knew I didn’t have much money, so they would let me sit and study all day without making me buy anything.”

“Was law school hard?”

“It was hard learning to think the way a lawyer has to think, but the workload was okay. My grandma used to be a nurse and taught me some studying tricks. She was good at making things easy to remember.”

They ordered and sat down. Sophie took a drink and seemed to be lost in thought before she said, “Where’s your grandma now?”

“I still live with her.”

“Why?”

“Because she took care of me, and now it’s my turn to take care of her.”

She nodded. “I took care of Sully. He was always getting in trouble, and my mom would yell like crazy. She didn’t know how to get him to listen, but I did. You just had to be nice. People thought he was a bad kid, so they never talked nice to him anymore.”

“You sound like you’re a good big sister.”

She had to swallow. “I was.”

They sat in silence awhile, listening to a loud conversation from a group of high school students in the corner.

“They think I’m, like, cursed,” she said, watching them. “They’re not mean, but they don’t want to be around me or look at me.”

Piper leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table. “They’re learning what to do, too. This is going to be a hard adjustment for everybody, but you know what I’ve learned? Time really does heal. Time and laughter. Unfortunately, I’m not very funny.”

She grinned. “I like you.”

“Thanks,” she said.

They drank brightly colored smoothies in silence a few moments.

“I didn’t just drop by for a smoothie, Sophie. I have some news and I’ve been debating where the best place is to tell you. Maybe back in your room?”

“No, you can tell me. I don’t cry as much anymore.”

The remark saddened Piper, and she had to clear her throat before speaking. “They, um, caught him. That detective that was with me when I met you? He caught the man that killed your family.”

Sophie said nothing. Tears formed in her eyes, but she didn’t make a peep. Piper knew she had made a mistake telling her in front of other people. She might not cry. When the body wanted to cry, you had to let it.

“I have to go,” Sophie said suddenly and rose.

“I’ll drive you back.”

“No,” she said. “I can walk. I wanna be alone.”