When To Put Trust On The Line

Part 11

After school, I quickly headed to my locker. I was hoping I would get to catch up to Kenny's friends and see how things were going with him. Maybe they would be able to inform me on the latest news that they heard. I was mostly hoping that they planned on going to see Kenny again and could possibly bring me along. With my backpack slung over my shoulder, I looked down both sides of the hallway, not seeing any of the faces I was hoping to come across. I headed outside. A bunch of girls were hanging out at the top of the entrance stairs. I didn't see Jackson or the other guys. I went down the stairs and looked around, not seeing a trace of their car.

I sighed and headed home. The air was chilly but I felt comfortable in Addie's fuzzy sweater. At home, a short while later, I closed the door behind me and looked around. The house was very quiet. I entered the kitchen, finding a bowl of fruit sitting in the middle of the long antique table. I went over to it and picked up a small piece of kiwi with my fingers, dropping my bag on the floor. I picked up a cantaloupe slice next. As I shoveled more pieces of fruit into my mouth, I noticed a figure move out in the backyard. I moved towards the kitchen door. Mom was out in the back, hunched over and working on her gardening. She had on some sort of jumpsuit to protect her clothes.

I smiled warmly. Gardening wasn't something she did often due to being busy with work and at home chores... and Addie. It was a hobby she enjoyed doing when she was stressed or needed something to calm her down. I liked seeing her all relaxed like this, in her own world, some of the wrinkles seeming to have disappeared from her face just for a moment. I watched for a few more seconds before deciding to give her some privacy. I finished chewing the fruit in my mouth and ran my fingers under the faucet, wiping them on a cloth afterwards, before retrieving my bag from off the floor. I wondered where Dad was as I headed up the stairs. The basement maybe?

Up in my room, Adele was lying on my bed, her head at the edge and a book held up in front of her face. I marched in and dropped my bag near the frame. Adele peeked up from the book. "Fifty Shades of Grey' huh?" she said, with a sly smile.

I plucked the book away from her hands and headed to my closet. "Why do you always have to touch stuff that doesn't belong to you?" I placed the book back, where I thought it was well hidden, and kicked off her boots.

I heard Adele sit up on my bed. "Someone's always real feisty after school."

I turned to look at her. She was smiling. One of her annoying, teasing smiles. "It's not mine anyway. I'm holding it for a friend." This was true. Pauline had given it to me a while ago, afraid her religious parents would find it in her room. She never asked for it back, which made me wonder whether it was now mine or not.

"Uh-huh," Adele said. "Hey. You look good in those clothes."

I looked at her. "Your clothes? Why'd you do that?"

She rolled her eyes as though it were obvious. "Girl, your fashion sense was calling for help. I figured I could put my time here to use and help out my baby sister. I already got your next outfit prepared for tomorrow."

I headed to my drawers. "Oh no. This is not going to turn into a routine. I'm doing just fine, thank you."

Adele scoffed. "Okay. But admit, you like what you're wearing."

I rolled my eyes, my back to her, facing the mirror on my dresser. "Maybe I did."

"Ah hah!"

"That doesn't mean anything," I protested.

"Yeah, whatever."

I suddenly though of something. "You know where Dad is?"

"In the garage. Had been making so much noise. Don't know what he's fixing."