Trouble is not back at school on Monday. At lunch, Bella sits with Andi who sits with Robin who sits with Ethan.
aeskhyne
Trouble laughs.
"How about tomorrow," he says. "I'll bring you - I dunno, what do you want this time?"
"How about tomorrow," he says. "I'll bring you - I dunno, what do you want this time?"
Lunch proceeds.
After gym, Bella waits for the room to clear, then says to Trouble, "So, I'm guessing it's your stepdad, who's in it."
After gym, Bella waits for the room to clear, then says to Trouble, "So, I'm guessing it's your stepdad, who's in it."
"And Andi can't know this because it involves knowing a relatively innocuous fact about your family other than 'he probably isn't the result of parthenogenesis'."
"I want to figure out what's going on without touching it. I don't really fancy you touching it either, though."
"Well, I don't imagine I have any particular sway over you, and if you do decide to go poke it with a stick, and your personality survives the experience, I would be a willing audience for anything you learned."