24. Emmett

24

EMMETT

SEVEN YEARS OLD

“ W hat song is that?" I wonder out loud.

Oli stops humming but his eyes stay on the orange and pink sky. It's okay. It's why we laid down anyway. "I don't know," he murmurs.

"Did you make it up?" Sammy asks him from where he's sprawled out in the grass on Oli's other side.

"Mhmm," my friend replies quietly, like he doesn't want the crickets to stop chirping.

Plucking some grass, I feel my face warm before I admit, "I like it."

That gets Oli to look at me. "Thanks!"

His smile is so big, so I do the same, no longer feeling weird about telling him I liked his singing. I can't sing, and neither can Sammy. Oli just laughs and laughs whenever we try, so I haven't tried in a long time. I don't need to, because he's always filling the quiet with his voice.

Jokes, stories, and songs. That's Oli.

He starts humming again and I close my eyes, trying to think about what I do for us. I don't make them laugh like Oli does. Sammy is always watching the world around us. I'm not sure what he's looking for, but it makes me feel better.

I'm just kind of… there. Maybe someday I'll figure out what I can do for my friends to make them happy and safe. Like a pack member is supposed to do.

"Guys," I whisper, kind of hoping they don't hear me. My cheeks feel warm again, especially against the cooling air.

"Yeah?" Sammy asks softly as Oli pauses his song again.

How long has he been singing?

I swallow, squeezing my eyes closed. "Are we going to be a pack?"

"Yes," Sammy says right away.

Oli sits up, and I wonder if he's hiding how dizzy that made him. Sometimes when I stand up too fast, I feel dizzy. "Can I be a part of it?"

Opening my eyes, I look over fast enough to see Sam frown at his little brother. "Of course, Oliver. You're family. We are all family."

"Like we're already a pack?" Oli tilts his head.

I sit up, too, and ignore the itchiness of the fresh-cut grass beneath me. Looking at Sammy, I wait for his response. I would love to call them my pack. I know we're young, but they are my closest friends.

Sammy smiles, looking so much like Oli that I have to hold in my joke about them being twins. "Sure, Oliver. We can be a pack now."

Oli sighs with a grin. "We're gonna be the best pack."

My smile joins theirs and my excitement rises to meet Oli's. They are already the best pack members. Now I need to know how I can be the same.

I'll ask Papa.