proud you are and like to keep your problems to yourself, but
we hope you accept this gift.
Love always, Max
P.S. A little bird mentioned to my dad that Kevin had a new DSI,
which is why we bought him the game.
My heart dropped as I reread his words. Was it pride that had prevented me from allowing Max in? At the time, my actions seemed so justified, but as I rubbed my fingers over his written words my actions seemed so cold and callous.
“Katelyn, aren’t you going to open your present?” Kevin asked.
“Sure, bud,” I said, setting the card aside to be analyzed later. I pulled the wrapping away, taking care not to tear it.
I slowly opened the small velvet box underneath the paper and gasped when I saw the heart-shaped pendent attached to a delicate gold chain nestled inside. I pulled it gently from the box, holding it up so Kevin and I could get a better look. It swayed back and forth as I held it up, revealing an engraving on the backside.
Turning it around, I read four simple words—My Heart is Yours.
I felt an instant lump in my throat. I’ve never had feelings this strong for anyone before. Was it possible after only our brief time together that his feelings matched mine? I had spent the last two months burying my own feelings, thinking I was doing the right thing, but after reading the words on the back of the pendant as it swayed gently in front of my face, I felt a greater sense of longing and regret.
“That’s pretty,” Kevin said, breaking the trance the necklace had put me under.
“It is, isn’t it,” I said, clasping it around my neck.
“Max?” Kevin inquired.
I nodded. “Cool shirt,” I said, looking at the slightly big shirt he had slipped over his pajamas.
“I know, right,” he said, looking down at the big red bird that dominated the front of the shirt.
“Alright, how about you help me put away these goodies,” I said, indicating the food that littered the top of the coffee table.
Chapter 14
The rest of our Christmas break passed with Kevin and me spending most of our time together reading and taking turns playing his DSI. Though he was practically half my age, his video game skills put mine to shame, and he giggled obsessively every time he beat me, which was ninety-nine percent of the time.
The food Max’s family gave us for Christmas dinner lasted several days, allowing me to stretch our other groceries and leaving me optimistic about making it until Lucinda’s card got replenished.
Bethany and I hung out for a while after Christmas, but wound up fighting when she spied the heart-shaped pendant around my neck. After being put through the third degree, I finally relented and told her it was from Max. She stomped out my room in a huff after I refused her request to return it to him.
Lucinda stayed in her room the majority of the time, only emerging to use the bathroom or to tell me to pipe down when Bethany had blown a gasket. I couldn’t help noticing that her skin was beginning to take on a sallow complexion from being cooped up in her small room constantly, chain-smoking. I tried to encourage her to join us in the living room, but she ignored my suggestion. The only thing she uttered, besides telling us to shut up was to not touch the remaining Christmas stuff until Jim came home. I didn’t bother reminding her that Jim’s public defender had told us he would most likely serve the majority of his sentence. The defender hoped to have Jim out after he served six months.
The day before school was due to start up again, we got our first eviction notice. My heart broke when I saw it. I knew I should have been expecting it considering we had been through this drill many times over the years, but I had somehow allowed myself to believe this time could be different. I showed the notice to Lucinda before crumpling it up. I wanted to keep it from Kevin, but Lucinda flew into a rant, saying it was inevitable that he would find out anyway. We had to listen as she screamed about the injustice of the situation and how grossly unfairly we were being treated. I sent Kevin to his room and continued to listen to Lucinda’s tirade until she crashed into a self-medicated stupor. I left her snoring on the sofa as I headed to my room. One thing I had learned from experience is that screaming about injustice would not resolve anything. The countdown had started and in ninety days we would be escorted off the premises by the local cops.
That night I didn’t sleep a wink as I tossed and turned, trying to decide how I should handle our current situation. Receiving the notice made me rethink wearing Max’s necklace to school. I hated to give him false hope by wearing the token of his love when I knew we’d be leaving sooner than later.
The lack of sleep gave me a massive stress headache the next morning, making the freezing cold trudge to the bus stop even less bearable. I was tempted just to go back home and crawl into bed.
As tempting as the idea was, I got
on the bus anyway, nervously playing with my necklace during the short ride to school. A bus full of screaming kids wasn’t exactly the best remedy for a pounding headache. By the time we made to school, I had to take a detour to the bathroom outside of Kevin’s classroom to empty the contents of my stomach.
“You okay?” Rebecca asked as I emerged from the stall.
“Yeah, I just have a stinking headache,” I said, trying to smile, but felt it was closer to a grimace.
“Do you need to go home?” she asked concerned, taking in my ashen complexion.